Chapter 27
Translator: True Detective
Chapter 27: Crushed by the Disaster I Brought Upon Myself (7)
“E....Alicia..”
“Yes?”
“Not Saintess.... Please call me Alicia..”
The moment I heard those words, I realized.
'Ah, this is big trouble.'
It seems this was something like an event given to the main Male Lead.
Staying by her side when she's having a hard time.
Regardless of whether it's a genre for men or women, doesn't this become the most decisive blow when choosing the main wife or main Male Lead?
Following Mother's advice got twisted properly.
Just how many moves ahead did Mother look?
'Should I have ignored her from the start?'
Since when?
Since hearing the Saintess boast at the training ground?
Or since listening to the Saintess's worries at the dessert cafe?
It was an impossible thing.
I'm not a psychopath, how can I ignore a kid crying alone.
Putting aside that the Saintess is the protagonist of this world so if she breaks, the world breaks, anyone could see she was having a hard time.
It wasn't hard because of her own fault either, so it was too pitiful to just ignore and neglect her.
But this is also my choice.
It's my karma, so I have no choice but to accept it.
Besides, I can't say no to a kid who just calmed down after crying, can I?
"Understood, Saintess."
"....It's Alicia."
".....Alicia. Is that okay?"
Perhaps satisfied only then, the Saintess buried her face in my chest and nodded.
“So, Alicia.”
“Yes.”
“When do you plan to come out?”
“............”
Alicia shut her mouth.
Since we were in a private room, there was no worry of anyone entering, but since I handled it wrongly, I wanted to distance myself as soon as possible.
....Although it seemed late.
Eventually, I raised the white flag at her stubbornness.
Since I was the one who hugged her to comfort the Saintess, it was awkward to force her off when she wasn't emotionally stable yet.
I admitted defeat obediently and patted her quietly.
‘I never imagined I would treat the Saintess like this...’
Since she is a person with good nature, it was awkward to treat her coldly, so I tried not to give any opportunity to get close by distancing myself, but it was all in vain.
Same Knight Department, same club, and even solving the same incident together.
....At this point, it was harder not to get close.
However, what worried me was the future.
As the distance with the Saintess decreased significantly with this incident as an opportunity, the Saintess's attitude treating me will also change a lot in the future.
The reactions of the surroundings, especially the Male Lead Candidates, will become sensitive.
Honestly, except for about Kyle and Asel, they were relationships where I only knew faces so I didn't have much interest, but I worried if I twisted the story that was originally laid out too much.
If Male Lead Candidates cannot perform their roles properly, wouldn't it be others who handle that?
Among them, surely I would be included, so I couldn't help but be concerned.
But this worry was solved unexpectedly easily.
“Eut....!”
“......Alicia?”
“I... I have something to do!”
Because from the next day, Alicia avoided me.
Yesterday's matter was wrapped up well.
Alicia, who squirmed in my embrace crying for a long time, eventually took her face off my chest carefully.
Perhaps she was ashamed too, she lowered her head deeply avoiding my gaze.
I handed her a handkerchief without saying much.
After that, she wiped tear marks a bit, organized her face, and we parted ways; that was all.
So avoiding me as soon as seeing my face like this means...
‘She must have been quite ashamed.’
Even if it were me, if I did that, it was a situation to kick the blanket all night.
Overwhelmed with emotions, vomiting out what was sad all this while, and crying in the arms of a strange man.
If I did that to the Saintess or Senior Luciela, I wouldn't have been able to lift my face for a while.
Thinking she would get better after a few days pass, I let it slide thinking so be it.
But one day became two days, two days became three days, and three days became a week.
“Good morning.”
“Hik...!”
Alicia receiving my greeting answered instead by being startled and running away.
Kairin seeing that asked.
“....Ethan, just what did you do wrong to Alicia for that kind kid to avoid you to this extent?”
“I have nothing to say, so ask her yourself.”
Ideally, I wanted to vomit out the truth, but considering Alicia's face, I shut my mouth.
Kairin moved on thinking they would solve it on their own, but the problem was others.
Until just before midterm exams, rumors circulated for a while because Alicia distanced herself from Male Lead Candidates and came to the seat next to me.
But now she suddenly started avoiding me, so the dopamine detection sensors of our Knight Department classmates were ringing loudly.
Amidst that, Jean's nonchalant voice was heard.
“Ethan must have done something wrong so the Saintess is avoiding him.”
“What nonsense! This isn't a simple incident!”
“Then what is it?”
“Did you see the Saintess's expression? This is at least a love triangle!”
“Whose and whose?”
“Of course Ethan and Asel.... Hiiik!?”
Somehow feeling my mood would get bad if I heard more, I did well to intervene.
It doesn't feel very good when others talk about me, but if false information is mixed in there, it becomes twice as unpleasant.
Furthermore, isn't this girl trying to spread groundless rumors full of her own taste.
Giving off uncomfortable vibes meaning to do it moderately, she tactfully apologized and left her seat quickly.
Showing an example with one person, only then did the lecture room become a bit quiet.
Doing this for a week, I started getting annoyed.
To the extent of seriously agonizing whether to request a spar and inject some manners if there is anyone crossing the line.
But unfortunately, I couldn't do that because the subject of the rumor was the Saintess.
After the incident where stupid young ladies who messed with her at the beginning of the semester were sliced away, a kind of unwritten rule was created for the Saintess.
Thanks to that, even classmates of the Knight Department whispering like this didn't dare to spit out conjectures that could harm the Saintess's reputation out of their mouths.
Because stupid students burning their lives on gossip are already socially dead or couldn't even enter here.
Anyway, since the lecture room kept getting noisy like this, I felt the necessity to talk with Alicia.
“Kairin, do me a favor.”
“What is it?”
“After the lecture ends, tell Alicia I waited for her a lot so let's talk a bit now.”
“Hmm... Got it.”
When it became time for the lecture to start, Alicia entered the lecture room carefully.
Glancing at me walking on eggshells, she sat on the opposite side of me; that appearance was like me at the beginning of the semester struggling to avoid her.
While I sighed at that appearance, Kairin tapped my shoulder, packed her things, and headed to Alicia's side.
Since the only one Alicia avoids is me, when Kairin came to her side, I saw her smiling.
But when Kairin said something to her, Alicia's expression stiffened completely.
She turned her head toward me with trembling eyes.
I mouthed to her.
See. You. La. Ter.
The Saintess's body trembled.
After the lecture ended, I left the lecture room first.
Since I told Kairin the meeting place, Alicia will come before long too.
It's time to liquidate this awkward relationship.
The time waited like that was 5 minutes... 10 minutes...
But strangely, no matter how much I waited, she didn't come.
It wasn't something that would take this much time?
There's no way Kairin didn't deliver it.. When I wondered if I should go find Alicia, I felt the presence of someone pacing in front of the door.
‘Come to think of it, that presence since earlier....’
Thinking 'no way', I opened the lecture room door.
“Hik!?”
The female student startled at the sound of the door sliding was, as expected, Alicia.
I grabbed the hand of her who was surprised and stepping back, brought her inside the lecture room, and closed the door.
“E... Mr. Ethan!?”
“Until when do you intend to run away.”
“Ha... Hand...!”
“Hand? Ah...”
I let go of the hand grabbing her.
Since she came inside the lecture room, she won't open the door and run away daringly.
Still, if she felt continuous burden, she might run away just in case, so I turned my body to make her as comfortable as possible.
“Ah...”
“Why are you like that?”
“It's nothing.”
I shrugged my shoulders and continued speaking.
“Haven't you been avoiding me continuously recently. I tried to understand thinking so be it, but it's already been a week.”
“Yes...”
“How much longer do you intend to avoid me?”
“Th....That is.. I'm sorry... Because I was too ashamed...”
Saying that, the Saintess's face was still red.
It seemed the incident at the dessert cafe a week ago still remained intensely.
I want to solve this soon, but the Saintess, the person in question, shows no signs of getting better.
While agonizing over what to do about this, the Saintess spoke.
“One day...! Can't you give me just one more day...?”
“Will that be enough?”
“Yees...! I'll try to solve it within a day...!”
“....Understood.”
I wondered if anything would change giving one more day, but the Saintess must have her own thoughts.
Since we spent a week like this already, giving one more day isn't a loss, so I accepted the Saintess's request.
“Then I will see you in two days.”
“Yes...!”
Since she asked for one more day, there was nothing more to say.
We opened the door to leave the lecture room.
Rattle.
“......?”
Rattle rattle.
“Mr. Ethan?”
“.....The door is locked.”
“Yes!?”
The lecture room door that was fine until the Saintess entered was locked when it was time to leave.