Clearing Up the Misunderstanding
My bet with Marie Resti ended in my victory.
Yes. Everything was fine right up to that point.
The problem came right after.
The brat burst into tears, spraying out every excuse in the book, and no amount of intimidation or reasoning did a thing. Before I knew it, I was dragging a bawling girl out of the sparring hall under the full weight of every cadet's stare, my reputation reduced to garbage in a matter of minutes.
'Goddamn it.'
A curse nearly slipped out of me, but I swallowed it down. What mattered now was finding Elisha and demanding an explanation for whatever nonsense this lunatic had been spouting.
Fortunately, class had just wrapped up with the mock battle. Without a moment's delay, I grabbed Marie Resti's hand and dragged her along.
"L-let go! How dare a commoner touch my—!"
She immediately launched into another tantrum, wailing at the top of her lungs. The moment I felt my temper about to blow, I locked eyes with her and delivered a final warning.
"Say one more word of that crap and I'll beat you senseless."
"…Heek!"
Marie Resti hiccupped and clamped her mouth shut. Apparently one experience of losing to me had been enough — she submitted far more easily than I expected. Honestly, if she'd uttered even a single syllable more, I really would have landed one square on her face.
A small part of me regrets not getting the chance.
"Bell?! Th-then who is that…?"
On the way to find Elisha, I ran into Rone — but unfortunately I had no time to stand around explaining.
"It's complicated. I'll tell you later, so go on ahead."
"O-okay. Got it."
She looked less than thrilled, but with a promise of an explanation later, she nodded and stepped out of the lecture hall first. With her behind me, I focused on tracking down Elisha.
'There she is.'
Luckily, it didn't take long. I spotted her standing near the entrance, hands folded neatly in front of her, waiting for someone — Marie Resti, most likely. Whatever the reason, it was welcome news for me.
"Elisha."
"Yes…? Huh?"
I walked straight up and called out to her, and her eyes went round as saucers as she turned toward me. Followed by an uncharacteristically dazed little sound that escaped her lips.
Seeing me holding her best friend's hand had probably made reality a little hard to process. But by this point, she was in no state to think about running, so I decided to release Marie's hand.
"Sorry for the suddenness, but the three of us need to talk."
And with that, I bluntly called for a three-way meeting with an Elisha who hadn't even begun to grasp the situation. After all, I needed to know what exactly had happened between the two of them.
Since it happened to be lunchtime, Elisha led us to a brunch café on campus.
'Insane.'
The moment we settled into a corner seat and I checked the prices on the menu, my jaw dropped. This was the kind of price range that could bring actual tears to a commoner's eyes. Sure, it was quiet and good for conversation — but with all the other places available, why did it have to be this one?
Still, I couldn't bring myself to whine about finding somewhere cheaper, so I ordered the most basic meal on the menu. Even that was a considerable luxury by my standards.
"It seems Marie caused you some trouble."
That was the first thing Elisha said the moment our order was done. Well, it made sense — in the original story, the two of them had been inseparable friends since childhood, and Elisha had often been dragged into the messes Marie Resti left in her wake. So she'd no doubt already concluded that Marie must have done something again. True to form, the girl in question shot up out of her seat at the remark.
"I-I didn't do anything wrong! This commoner was the one who—!"
"Ahem. Marie."
"……."
At Elisha's stern voice, she shut her mouth at once. Serves her right. Without so much as a sip of water, I already felt refreshed enough to smile. Then I mentally reviewed everything I'd organized in my head and pondered for a moment how to open the conversation.
"Could you tell me what happened between you two?"
"Of course."
At my careful opening, Elisha's eyes sharpened, as if determined to let no misdeed slip past. Why did she look less like a friend and more like a guardian? Come to think of their dynamic in the original story, that might actually be the more fitting description.
I idly stirred the water glass in front of me before cautiously speaking up. I wasn't in the mood to tattle, so I circled around it.
"It started with the kind of thing that happens all the time between nobles and commoners."
"…I think I understand. On their behalf, I apologize."
"Forget it. What good would an apology from you do me?"
I shrugged carelessly and took a gulp of cold water. I meant it, too. If anyone owed me an apology, it was that brat. What fault could Elisha possibly bear for having a rotten friend? Besides, most of the noble-born cadets shot me the same kind of looks, so I didn't much care — though it was the first time I'd heard it said to my face, so I was a little surprised.
"Anyway, at first I figured some hot-tempered girl was picking a fight with me. Then we ended up on the same team for the mock battle, and she proposed a bet?"
"A bet, you say?"
"Yeah. One way or another, I won. The problem was what came after."
Elisha shot a pointed glance at Marie Resti beside her before turning her eyes back to me — a silent pressure that said not another word until the whole truth comes out.
"Once the match was settled, this girl threw a fit, insisting that I'd been 'laid hands on' by you."
"L-laid hands on? What does that even…."
"My point exactly. That's why I called you here — for all three of us to talk it out."
As if speaking for exactly how I felt, Elisha turned a bewildered gaze on her friend once more. Her expression seemed to say, If you have a mouth, shouldn't you at least try to explain yourself?
Marie Resti hunched her shoulders for an instant, then finally parted her tightly sealed lips.
"Th-the thing is… lately, Elisha's had fewer and fewer chances to meet me after class…"
The moment I heard the word lately, I had a pretty good idea why. She was busy tutoring me after class, after all.
"That's true."
"But she wouldn't tell me why, so at first I assumed she'd gotten herself a lover."
"…Ahem."
Elisha stole a glance in my direction, flushed, and averted her eyes. Embarrassing, no doubt — she'd merely helped a stranger with his studies, only to be mistaken for having gained a lover because of it. And having that conversation right next to the very man in question would only make it more mortifying. Honestly, even I found myself unconsciously scratching my cheek in awkwardness.
"So one day, I secretly followed Elisha and…"
"W-wait just a moment. Marie. You followed me?"
The story had abruptly taken on the air of a crime, and Elisha cut in, flustered. Even as a bystander, I found it shocking. What kind of friend tails someone, of all things?
"Y-yeah… sorry."
The one silver lining was that even she seemed aware her behavior was wrong, offering an apology without fuss. She only bristled like a stray cat in front of me — in front of her friend Elisha, she was as docile as a puppy. Was I supposed to be relieved she wasn't a complete lost cause, or should I be wary of someone whose attitude shifted so drastically depending on the person?
"Haah… fine. Hearing the whole story comes first."
Elisha too, realizing Marie's apology was sincere, seemed inclined to let it slide for now. True to a friend, she'd apparently decided the girl might have acted out of worry. Marie Resti gave a small nod and resumed her account.
"And there you were, with some man. But there wasn't even a hint of romance between you…"
"So?"
"…I thought maybe that man had found some weakness of yours and was doing something terrible to you. I'd heard all the rumors — about him seducing the examiners to get in."
With her account finished, she announced the end of her confession by unceremoniously draining the water glass in front of her. At the sight, both Elisha and I could only stare at her, mouths agape.
'Wait, that's it?'
It was so absurd that instead of irritation or anger, a wave of sheer disbelief washed over me. Oh, gods above. What am I supposed to do with this brat's paranoia?
She hadn't just played both drums — she'd hauled out the gongs and cymbals too and put on an entire percussion ensemble all by herself. Is a brat's brain naturally this filthy with delusion? I knew from the original story that she had a habit of spinning her own fantasies, but this went well beyond the pale.
"Marie."
"Yes, ma'am!"
A cold voice from Elisha reached my ear as I was busy sighing — followed by the crisply disciplined reply of a soldier in training.
"Let me make this clear: I have never suffered any harm from Dinauer. I meet him at the library to help him with his studies, and it is something I do entirely of my own will."
I had to admire how calmly she laid out the explanation, point by point, even in the middle of all this — while the rest of us were too flabbergasted to get a word out.
"Is… that so?"
"Yes. So apologize to Dinauer at once. You're a noble too, Marie — surely you understand how grave an offense it is to slander someone's honor?"
Elisha's winter-frost eyes fixed on Marie Resti beside her. Exposed to that gaze, the girl flinched like a frightened mouse, letting out a tiny "hee!" as her shoulders trembled.
"Ugh…"
Then she shot sideways glances at me, her mouth opening and closing like a goldfish. Surely — surely — she wasn't planning to spout nonsense about how a noble's pride couldn't bear apologizing to a commoner. If she did, Elisha standing there or not, I'd knock her teeth in on the spot.
"…Sorry."
She finally forced the words out, but to my ears it barely registered at all.
'I bet even an ant could say it louder than that.'
Leaning in with theatrical mock-politeness, I demanded she try again.
"What was that? I can't hear you."
"Uuurgh…! I-I'm sorry…! For the misunderstanding, and for looking down on you for being a commoner. All of it!"
"…Tch."
I had my doubts about whether that counted as an apologetic attitude, but for Elisha's sake, I decided to let it end there. If it weren't for Elisha, you'd be dead, you brat.
In the original story she'd gotten off with a slap on the wrist early on, and apparently this world was no different.
"That's enough. Push any further and we'll just be going around in circles."
"S-so you forgive me?"
"Yeah. But next time you start yapping about commoners in front of me, there won't even be broth left in the pot."
"…Understood. I'll just be careful."
Right to the end, she had no idea what she'd done wrong, just huffing and grumbling. I honestly felt like asking her to let me smash her forehead in properly, just once.
"I'm glad the misunderstanding is cleared up. Thank you for forgiving my friend, Dinauer."
With one matter more or less resolved, Elisha bowed her head to me in gratitude.
"By the way, about that bet you mentioned — I don't think I heard the details of it?"
"Ah."
Right, there was that. Since the topic had come up, I intended to settle the debt completely before we left. With Elisha here as my witness, that brat would undoubtedly try to weasel her way out otherwise.
"Hey, Resti."
"If you're going to apologize anyway, just call me Marie. — What is it?"
Apparently she'd been too busy cooling her head to catch our earlier conversation — how else could she wear such a relaxed expression?
"You remember the bet, right? If I won, you'd grant me one favor."
"What do you want? Money?"
"Tempting… but no."
It did spark my interest for a moment, but that wasn't what I wanted, so I shook my head slightly. Then again, it was impressive how casually she could throw around the word money with no context at all. A true daughter of a great house, evidently.
But what I wanted wasn't material. I wanted a demand that would benefit me and land a solid blow on Marie at the same time. Even after forgiving her, wanting a little payback was only natural for a human being.
I drained the water glass in front of me, took a deep breath, and solemnly voiced the demand I'd been mulling over for a while now.
"Be mine."
…Hold on.
Something about that came out wrong.