Chapter 12
Chapter 12
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: penny
Chapter: 12
Chapter Title: What Kind of Person Is He?
-----------------------------------------------------------------
He was what kind of person, exactly?
My debut at the academy salon had been a success.
I'd managed to build a decent rapport with Nicholas the mage, and the other attendees had started rethinking their impression of me.
Beating him at chess and then calling off the bet had come across as an act of mercy in everyone else's eyes.
It must have been quite the shock, because word spread like wildfire.
"Who would've thought the Duke of Dominica's kin would show mercy..."
"I heard he was the Little Iron-Blooded One, but the rumors don't quite match up."
"That's not the point right now! Did you see that game? I've never seen tactics like that before!"
Of course, the rumors didn't magically improve my reputation overnight.
My existing image was too entrenched—most people wouldn't believe it without seeing it for themselves.
Still, it wasn't without effect. No one was screaming in terror just from passing me in the halls anymore.
Instead, I was getting more curious stares—but
'Better to be a spectacle than something to fear.'
I decided to look on the bright side.
Negativity wouldn't change a thing.
And there was one more piece of good news.
"Laura—!"
"Sister? Running in the halls is dangerous!"
Kiara bounding up without a hint of reservation, as usual, and Laura welcoming her just as warmly.
It hadn't been that long, but the two had grown surprisingly close.
It was astonishing, yet somehow made perfect sense.
'Kiara can be a bit much with her lack of boundaries, but she's kind at heart.'
And with Laura's own natural affability—enough to befriend me quickly—their budding friendship wasn't so surprising.
Of course, it was a little unsettling that this sisterly bonding came at the expense of yet another victim of big-sister syndrome.
No, wait—was it big-sister lighting or little-sister lighting?
Since Laura's birthday was later than Kiara's, "little sister" was technically accurate...
Anyway, good was good.
Over tea with Laura, I asked about what had gone down between them.
She hesitated for a moment before answering.
"I heard stories about Leonardo from when he was little."
Stories from my childhood?
I paused at the unexpected topic, then it clicked.
'Of course I'd be their common ground.'
There might have been other chatter, but it wasn't odd for me to come up.
Childhood memories, though.
Nothing particularly stood out, even as I racked my brain.
My early years had been consumed with studying to meet the Iron-Blooded Duke's exacting standards.
If anything noteworthy, it was meeting Kiara and—
The death of my birth mother in this world, the Duchess of Dominica.
That was about it.
I recalled the day the Duchess of Dominica passed.
'I was pretty down back then.'
The Duchess hadn't fit the dour Dominica mold at all.
She was lively and bold in her words and actions.
She adored children, often gathering us siblings for stories.
But the woman who'd brought vibrancy to gloomy Dominica closed her eyes on my tenth birthday.
Not due to any foul play—just pure health issues.
Always frail, she'd never fully recovered after giving birth to me.
Holding on for another ten years was the real miracle.
Before she passed, she gathered us children and left her final words.
"My darlings... please... get along..."
"Mother, please... Mom! Mom!"
Even the eldest and second-born—who took after the Iron-Blooded Duke—couldn't hold back their tears that day.
That was when I first learned they could even make sad faces.
But I couldn't cry there.
It was sad for me too, but—
Watching my birth mother die had dredged up something else.
My parents back in the modern world.
The real ones I'd been too busy to think about until then.
'I've ended up here, but what about my parents? Are they okay?'
Are they living well?
Are they perhaps grieving their son's sudden death?
Wait—did the modern me actually die?
How did I even get here?
I had zero memories of that, so maybe—
With thoughts like those swirling, tears weren't coming easy.
After that day, my siblings and I cut off all contact, and I buried myself in studies alone in that bleak household.
Shaking off the memory, I said flatly,
"Not much of an entertaining tale, I'm afraid."
Laura gazed at me with a complicated expression.
She pursed her lips, choosing her words, then asked,
"Doesn't it... hurt?"
"It's ancient history. No reason to dwell on the pain now."
"......I see."
Her face clouded over at my words.
Not liking the mood, I shifted the topic.
"Anyway, have you heard about the academy? Kiara knows everyone, so she's probably got the rundown."
"Yes, a little."
Awkward pivot or not, Laura nodded and played along.
We spent the rest of the time discussing classes before heading back to our dorms.
Lying on my dorm bed, I thought,
'Gotta tell Kiara to watch what she says.'
Laura warming up to me was great, but—
For the future, some distance needed maintaining.
No more to say, but better safe than sorry.
***
Pulled along by Kiara's hand, Laura listened to her ramble on about this and that.
Personal chit-chat, academy info, idle gossip that was somehow captivating—
Kiara led the conversation with bubbly enthusiasm, clearly trying to win her over, but Laura sensed something off.
To Laura, Kiara didn't seem genuinely interested in her.
Even when she'd observed them earlier, it had felt the same.
Yet it didn't seem malicious either.
This left Laura deeply confused.
'What's her angle?'
Impossible to read. Utterly inscrutable.
She could read minds, yet Kiara's intentions eluded her—
In all her years meeting countless people, this was a first.
Or was it?
She still didn't know what her own fiancé thought of her.
And this Kiara, who dragged her around claiming to be Leonardo's sister.
Remembering that made her motives suddenly relevant.
Unable to hold back, Laura asked.
"Lady Kiara, why are you treating me like this?"
"Huh? I already told you, didn't I? As Leon's fiancée, you're basically my little—"
"You don't actually think that."
Kiara halted abruptly at Laura's words.
She stared for a moment, then grinned.
"Sharp one, aren't you, Laura? No wonder Leon dotes on you."
"......"
Laura stayed silent, so Kiara nodded lightly and confessed.
"Fine, calling you my little sister was a stretch. But I do want to get along."
"Why?"
"Because you're Leon's fiancée."
The vague answer she'd half-expected prompted Laura to press further.
Sensing it, Kiara drawled lazily,
"You're quick on the uptake, so you probably already know... You've noticed it too, right? About Leon."
"Noticed what?"
"His attitude. There's this subtle distance, don't you think?"
Laura's eyes widened.
It was exactly what she'd sensed herself.
Kiara continued.
"He holds back his emotions, never dives deep into others' thoughts or feelings."
Laura had chalked it up to family traits, but Kiara dismissed that.
So what was it, then?
Kiara's answer was simple.
"No idea. For real. Best guess? Maybe the death of the Duchess of Dominica when he was young."
"......"
"But that's not healthy, right? I want him to drop that wall."
That's why she'd approached Leonardo's future closest companion.
Hoping her childhood friend would break free from the isolation he'd built himself.
She wrapped it up with,
"So this is me cheering you on to get close to him. And hey, we can be friends too!"
Laura nodded at her words.
And felt a stir of emotion within.
'Leonardo...'
He was more like her than she'd realized.
Lost parents in childhood. Lingering solitude.
Though her parents hadn't died—they'd abandoned her,
And his isolation was self-imposed, unlike hers—
Still, it was enough to feel a profound kinship.
'He matters to me.'
What kind of person was he?
Laura mulled over the question she'd harbored since first learning of him.
But this was different from before.
It wasn't born of necessity, but genuine curiosity.