Chapter 140
Chapter 140
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 140
Chapter Title: It's a Misunderstanding
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***
‘They really do look alike.’
That was Cheon-seong's first thought upon entering the park and seeing Anastasia.
Glacia was sitting on a bench, and next to her was a woman who resembled her—undoubtedly Anastasia.
No, perhaps it was more accurate to say Glacia resembled Anastasia. She had a more mature air than her sister, yet she looked like a beauty steeped in ‘coldness’.
Glacia's usual indifference and aloofness gave her a cold impression, but Anastasia felt even colder.
“...”
And when Anastasia’s gaze turned to me, the emotions in her eyes felt unnaturally intense.
Wariness. Suspicion.
Her eyes, a mix of various other emotions, stared right at me, but none of them felt particularly positive.
*Step.*
A faint breath escaped me as I slowly walked toward them.
'Calm down.'
Regardless, I had to face them.
It didn't take long to reach the two of them.
I spoke to Glacia first.
“Glacia.”
“You're earlier than we agreed. Welcome, Han Cheon-seong. This is my sister.”
“Ah, it's a pleasure to meet you. My name is Han Cheon-seong.”
Anastasia nodded, her expression slightly hesitant.
“...I'm Anastasia. I hear you're a friend of Glacia's.”
She answered more cautiously than I expected, and I slowly nodded.
“Yes. Glacia and I are friends.”
When I shifted my gaze to Glacia, she nonchalantly patted the spot next to her.
*Pat, pat.*
Her gaze seemed to invite me to sit, so I followed her gesture and sat down on the bench.
*Slide.*
Until I was seated, Anastasia's gaze remained fixed on me.
Her wary eyes felt strangely familiar.
And I soon realized why.
It was very similar to the cold, judgmental gaze Kalli had given me before.
The difference was that while Kalli had exuded direct pressure, Anastasia seemed to be completely restraining her aura, which made it feel quite different.
‘A gaze that even restrains emotion...’
Just as the dynamic between me, Glacia, and Anastasia was established...
“Sister. This is the friend I told you about. We're in different classes, but we see each other often.”
Rare for her, Glacia spoke first, leading the conversation.
“Different classes... I see. Well, your first impression isn't bad. You're quite handsome."
“...Thank you.”
Despite the unexpected compliment, I felt strange.
It felt as if Anastasia was assessing my worth, judging whether I was fit to be by Glacia's side. I even had the illusion that she was seeing right through me.
"..."
I swallowed nervously, feeling more tense than usual.
The woman so close to me held the 'key' to this world.
The extent of the crises I would have to face and endure in the future might all depend on Anastasia.
‘My future depends on this person.’
Just as my heart tightened with even greater tension...
I felt Anastasia's steady gaze upon me.
I could feel an unapproachable aura from her, making it difficult to meet her eyes, but I eventually did.
"..."
At that, Anastasia's cold gaze slowly softened.
“Really? You think Han Cheon-seong is handsome, Sister?”
I was taken aback by Glacia's sudden and very strange question.
“...Glacia?”
While I was still dumbfounded, Anastasia let out a small laugh.
“Glacia, how can you ask that right in front of him? I just said he's handsome on first impression. So, how did you two become friends?”
It was a little baffling to see Anastasia's wariness seem to melt away because of Glacia's words.
“I spoke to him first.”
At Glacia's calm voice, Anastasia's eyes widened.
“You did, Glacia?”
Glacia then looked at me, as if prompting me to answer, and I belatedly nodded.
“...Yes. When we first spoke, Glacia approached me.”
“Is that so? That's a little surprising. From what I know, Glacia isn't the type to readily approach someone...”
“Sister, I find it surprising too. Our first meeting wasn't exactly pleasant, but now we're friends like this.”
As Glacia replied calmly, I gave an awkward smile and nodded.
“I find it a little surprising myself.”
Thinking back, the first time Glacia and I talked was truly strange.
Glacia had approached me out of curiosity, saying she wanted to understand me, and I had accepted her with the intention of using her.
It was amazing that we had formed a 'purely friendly' relationship like we have now.
“Hearing you both say that, you must be really close. To think Glacia has made such a good friend... Your name was Han Cheon-seong, right?”
“Yes. Anastasia... Major.”
I was wondering what to call her and ended up using her rank, but Anastasia shook her head slightly.
“There's no need to use my rank at the academy. This isn't the front line. Just... Ms. Anastasia. Yes. That title seems appropriate for now.”
Seeing her use formal language, I quickly replied.
“You can speak to me comfortably. After all, Ms. Anastasia, you're in a position similar to an instructor.”
“That may be so, but I can't just drop the formalities right away.”
As Anastasia kept some distance, I didn't press the matter.
“Sister, wouldn't it be better to just speak casually with Han Cheon-seong?”
Glacia, who had been watching us quietly, suddenly spoke up.
“It's just that he and I are friends, so it feels a bit strange for you to be so formal.”
“Glacia, I'll think about it and decide later. You can speak casually because you're friends. I've only just met him.”
“Really...?”
“Of course. And since fate has brought us together like this, Cadet Han Cheon-seong?”
“Yes, Ms. Anastasia.”
“Let's go to a café to continue our conversation. I've met my sister's friend, so I should treat you to something, shouldn't I? I also have many questions for you, Cadet Han Cheon-seong, so I expect this will take a while.”
Hearing the coldness thaw from Anastasia's voice, I accepted, albeit awkwardly.
“...Yes. In that case.”
Afterward, as we headed to the café, Anastasia continued to speak calmly, and I felt as if the first piece of the puzzle had fallen into place.
I hadn't done anything remarkable, but it seemed I had somehow made a good first impression on Anastasia.
‘I don't think I gave her a bad impression.’
But whether it was a *good* one was another question entirely.
Anastasia was no longer giving me that cold stare.
She calmly continued the conversation about Glacia,
but the atmosphere didn't suggest she was ready to let her guard down around me just yet.
***
*Ting.*
Entering the café, Anastasia spoke lightly.
“I'll go order. You two find a table. What will you both have to drink?”
“The usual, please, Sister."
“I'll have the same as Glacia, please.”
With their answers, Anastasia headed to the counter alone. She let out a faint, unconscious sigh.
“...”
Outwardly, she maintained a calm demeanor toward Glacia and Han Cheon-seong, but inwardly, her mind had been in turmoil ever since the park.
‘Glacia's first friend is a boy.’
How was she supposed to take this?
She tried to think simply, but it wasn't easy.
First, it didn't seem like the kind of relationship she needed to be worried or concerned about. That is, there was no sense of romantic feelings involved.
They seemed to treat each other genuinely as friends.
‘But they've only been talking for a short time.’
She couldn't even be sure of that.
They might be more than friends, or perhaps Glacia had been swayed by this cadet, Han Cheon-seong. She needed to consider it seriously.
A 'friend of the opposite sex' carried a different weight.
“...How may I help you?”
Lost in thought, she finished ordering and waited, her gaze drifting around the café's interior.
The cadets gathered in small groups around the café looked full of life.
There was none of the unique, gloomy atmosphere of the battlefield, no metallic scent of blood. These cadets, who had just entered the academy filled with hope, radiated positive energy.
And that was all so natural.
...But to her, it didn't feel natural at all.
‘Is it because it's been so long since I've returned to this kind of daily life?’
The comfortable, warm atmosphere itself felt alien.
An officer who had spent a long time on the battlefield would inevitably become steeped in the smell of blood.
Whether it was their own blood or a monster's, it was a trace that remained on the body, an indelible stain no matter how hard one tried to wash it away.
“...”
She unconsciously brought her hand to her nose and sniffed. Fortunately, she couldn't detect that smell of blood on herself now.
Only a faint trace remained, one most people wouldn't notice.
*Clink.*
Feeling a little relieved, she picked up the tray with the desserts and drinks that had just come out.
As she turned and headed toward the table where Glacia was seated, the gazes falling upon her were both familiar and different.
These weren't the looks of awe from officers and soldiers, but the pure gazes of cadets, mixed with simple admiration and curiosity.
*Click.*
Leaving those gazes behind, she approached their table and, for a moment, doubted her own eyes.
“You're back, Sister?”
“...Ah. Yes.”
As she placed the tray of desserts and drinks on the table, her eyes caught a pair of hands that quickly pulled apart.
At first, she thought she'd seen wrong, but that wasn't it at all.
The cadet, Han Cheon-seong, had hastily pulled his hand away from Glacia's grasp.
She was sure of it.
“Sister, you really do remember all my favorite desserts.”
“Of course... How could I forget?”
She replied awkwardly and sat down beside Glacia, her mind growing even more troubled.
‘So, they're not just ordinary friends after all?’
If so, how was she supposed to interpret the fact that they had just been holding hands?
“Um... Ms. Anastasia?”
"Yes, Cadet Han Cheon-seong."
"What you just saw was a misunderstanding."
Hearing him say that so cautiously made her feel incredibly strange.
"...A misunderstanding?"
You were holding my sister's hand...
And you say that's a misunderstanding.