2. We're Not Anything
2. We're Not Anything
Estel couldn't wipe the smile off her face throughout the class.
A friend. She had made a real friend.
Memories of her time at the estate and the mansion came back to her.
She had grown up without a single friend, surrounded only by maids and tutors.
It was nice that her father adored her so much, but his love was excessive—he would glare daggers and block her from even exchanging a word with a man.
So, when she entered the academy and decided to strike up a conversation with the first man she encountered in the lecture hall and become friends, it might have been a long-simmering rebellion against her father.
But the person Estel spoke to was handsome, kind, and looked cool when he was focused on the lecture.
Estel thought it was quite impressive that he kept glancing at her and smiling in the middle of class.
Edmon Blake.
Just repeating his name in her head made her feel good.
"......."
But suddenly, a huge crack appeared in Estel's happy mood.
After class, Edmon hadn't even properly answered her and had just walked away as if ignoring her.
'... Did I do something wrong? I wanted to at least try eating a meal together.'
Even as she walked, her heart felt uncomfortable with that thought.
Estel might not have been confident about other things, but at least she was confident about her looks. So, she figured that blunt reaction must be because something about her tone or behavior bothered him.
She had no clue what the problem was, though.
"... Fixing things like this must be what social life is all about. Friendships probably aren't that simple, either. Yeah, yeah."
Estel muttered to herself, trying to reassure herself.
With that thought, she arrived at the student cafeteria alone. A place like this was a first for Estel.
Eating with her peers in such an open, spacious area felt strange, yet strangely exciting.
The experience of ordering food herself, receiving it on a tray, and carrying it to a table was also fresh.
'... Where should I sit?'
Her gaze, while holding the tray, wandered and followed someone without her realizing it.
It was Edmon.
"... Oh, Edmon?"
She tried to call out to him with a smile naturally blooming on her face, but as her gaze stopped, Estel's expression gradually stiffened.
Edmon was sitting across from a plain-looking, somewhat gloomy-looking female student, eating.
Where did that smiling expression he had when looking at her go? Edmon's face was wearing a completely different, blunt expression, saying something to her.
Judging by the lip movements of the girl sitting hunched over opposite him, the answer she returned was clearly a one-word reply.
'... No, why did he ignore me when I asked to eat together, but with someone like that...'
A feeling of injustice surged up for a moment, but she soon shook her head.
'No, it's not weird. They might have known each other from before. And you shouldn't judge people just by their looks. I shouldn't have such bad thoughts.'
Her head tried to understand it that way, but a corner of her heart was stinging. Estel herself didn't quite understand why she felt this way.
"The weather is nice."
"...... Yeah."
"How was the morning class?"
"...... Just, whatever."
Ha, it's not like I'm talking to a one-word-answer machine.
I sighed internally.
Whether I asked about the weather, class, or other trivial things, all I got back were one-word answers that made it impossible to continue the conversation.
At this point, I wondered if she was really a heroine in a dating sim.
Even if she wasn't going to rush at me saying she liked me, shouldn't she at least show the level of favor Estel showed me?
And we were childhood friends who already knew each other!
Watching Lucia eat her soup, I retraced Edmon's memories in my mind.
Edmon and Lucia were commoners born and raised in some rural town. They were next-door neighbors, and when she was young, Lucia was a slightly gloomy kid, similar to now.
The type who liked being at home and had a dark impression.
It wasn't this bad, though. Is it the influence of Astrology?
Then, around age ten, Lucia's parents moved for work, and after that, they exchanged a few letters, but even that had stopped a long time ago.
... If I talk about this, maybe the conversation will flow a bit better.
"U-uh, hey, are Ajusshi and Ajumoni doing well?"
At my casual question, Lucia's hand faltered.
Clack. The sound of her spoon hitting the bowl sounded exceptionally loud.
"I, I'm done eating. I'll be going now."
Lucia stood up from her seat and left without even looking back.
... Did I say something wrong?
I was staring blankly at her retreating back when a bright voice came from behind.
"Edmon! You were here!"
I turned around, and it was Estel.
"I came to eat lunch, and I just happened to see you!"
Estel smiled brightly and sat down right across from me, in the seat where Lucia had been sitting until just a moment ago.
"It's my first time eating with others like this, so it feels weird but fun!"
... Ah, now is not the time for this.
I could feel Lucia, who was leaving the cafeteria, suddenly glance back this way.
Nothing good would come from her seeing me being friendly with Estel for no reason.
"Oh, sorry. I'm done eating."
I shoved the remaining piece of bread into my mouth and hurriedly stood up from my seat.
"Oh, already?"
Estel asked with a flustered face, but I didn't even have time to answer and ran straight in the direction Lucia had disappeared.
Even though I choked on the bread and coughed for a moment, I didn't stop my pace.
As I caught up to Lucia, all sorts of thoughts raced through my head.
... Don't tell me her parents passed away. That would be the absolute worst.
Or did something else bad happen? Is that why her personality got even darker?
But if something really bad happened, it wouldn't be polite to ask about it openly. I should change the subject.
"Hey, Lucia."
"......."
"You're in the Astrology Department, right? I didn't know you were interested in that kind of stuff when we were young. It's fascinating."
Lucia didn't stop walking, but she didn't ignore me either.
"Let me get my fortune told by you later."
Then, a slightly clearer voice than before returned.
"... Astrology isn't a study for fortune-telling or prophecies."
"Oh, i-is that so?"
Awkward.
I cleared my throat for no reason and changed the subject to my Magic Department. Still, it felt like I was keeping the conversation going a little better than before, so it wasn't all bad.
We walked while exchanging a few more words, albeit awkwardly, and parted ways after saying goodbye in front of the Astrology Department building.
"Then, see you again. Or do you want to eat dinner together? I don't have any friends, so I have no one to eat with."
"... Yeah, sure."
Her tone was still listless, but at least she didn't refuse, so that was a relief.
The afternoon class was also Introduction to Magic.
An elderly white-haired professor suddenly brought up Astrology in the middle of the lecture.
"Whether it's Magic or Astrology, the foundation is the study of handling mana. However, while Magic releases internal mana to the outside to cause an effect, Astrology is closer to the opposite—accepting external mana, especially the natural mana emitted by stars and the moon, into the body to interpret and prophesy."
Huh. So that was it.
"However, the prophecies themselves aren't very accurate. The main purpose is, at the end of the day, to interpret and study the natural mana accumulated in the body. So, students, don't go around saying things like 'tell me my fortune' just because you're learning Astrology."
I felt a sting in my conscience.
... Should I apologize for that earlier?
"Edmon, what are you thinking about?"
"You, please stop talking and focus on the class."
And Estel whispered in my ear throughout the class in the afternoon, sitting next to me.
Her sweet scent tickled the tip of my nose, her lukewarm breath touched my ear, and our shoulders bumped, so all sorts of thoughts crossed my mind.
Please, calm down, please. Doesn't this academy have something like a school anthem?
"Edmon, do you want to eat dinner together later? I was so bored eating alone earlier. There were a lot of people eating alone, but I don't know how they do it."
"I have a prior engagement."
"... With the person you were eating lunch with earlier?"
"Hey, you there."
Before I could answer Estel, the professor pointed at me with the tip of his wand.
In a playfully teasing voice.
"Can't you be quiet if you're going to be flirting from the first class? Sigh, seeing freshmen like that on the first day makes me miss my wife."
Wahahaha, laughter erupted from the other students.
"A-ah, no, it's nothing like that at all."
"What do you mean 'no'? You two have been stuck together whispering since earlier."
I felt my ears burning. When I looked to the side, Estel had also turned red up to her neck and was bowing her head low.
"No. It's a real misunderstanding. We just met today..."
"Hmm, is that so?"
"Yes, we're nothing to each other."
"Aww, that's boring. You know? In times like this, you should just say 'She's my lover'."
Laughter erupted again at the professor's words.
"Really, we're really nothing to each other......"
"I get it. I was just joking, but if you get too serious, the female student next to you will feel embarrassed."
Sweat trickled down my neck. If rumors got twisted like this and reached Lucia's ears for no reason, it would be a disaster, so I needed to deny it as much as possible.
The professor pointed back to the blackboard and continued his explanation.
We're nothing to each other.
Estel repeated those words in her head.
When the professor suddenly singled out Edmon and her, she regretted not being able to say anything because she was embarrassed and shy.
We're friends.
She hated herself for not being able to say this. Was she not a friend to Edmon? Even if they just met today, she had asked to be friends.
It was like that at lunch earlier, too. Does he not want to be friends with me?
Estel felt her pride hurt.
Up until now in her life, no maid or tutor had ever refused her words.
Naturally, the proposal to be friends should have been accepted. It was obvious that if she spoke, the other person would listen.
The lunch earlier was the same. Edmon should have naturally accepted her request.
Because it was the first time she had experienced being ignored like this in a row.
'I'll make sure he can't say that again.'
A strange stubbornness had sprouted.
The target of that strange stubbornness, however, was just looking at the professor's writing next to her.