Syrah accepted the shrill paper behind her back and let out a yelp without realizing it.
Oliver frowned, looked back, realized that Syrah had made the sound, and sighed.
“… Concentrate during class.”
“Ah, ahaha. Sorry, Instructor.”
After she apologized to Oliver, she carefully turned around and looked at me. She placed her hand on her waist, pulled out the paper, read the words on it, and then frowned, looking at me again.
Ignoring her gaze, I focused on the blackboard.
Syrah rolled up the paper into a small, round shape like a bullet and flicked it with her fingers.
“Ugh—”
The paper that hit my face didn’t end with a single flick. She bounced it off my face countless times with impressive skill. She didn’t stop until class ended, and only after the lesson was over was I finally freed from her one-sided bullying.
“Hey.”
“Yes? Ah—”
Having accumulated a bit of frustration from being attacked throughout class, I approached Syrah and pinched her cheeks.
Like a typical cadet, she wore no makeup, and her soft cheeks felt like pinching a newborn’s. But still…
“Are you out of your mind, or what?”
“Haha—! Haha!”
“What are you even saying now?”
I began to pinch her cheeks without mercy, twisting them as I did so. She flailed her arms, complaining of the pain. Yet, I didn’t let go until she was genuinely squirming. This was a taste of her own medicine.
After a while, I paused, realizing the atmosphere around us had become strange.
“… When did those two get so close?”
“I know. They used to just walk together…”
“In class, openly showing affection…”
This world resembled the 21st-century Earth in many ways but wasn’t exactly the same. Here, aristocratic society still thrived, and men and women were usually separated. It was only permissible to show any desire toward a woman after engagement, and even then, it was frowned upon in public.
‘… What?’
Syrah rubbed her blushing cheeks, glancing at me with a mixture of frustration and embarrassment.
***
Cadets’ gossip spread quickly in the academy, faster than the wind and faster than a 5-star Summoner.
“No, why are there rumors that I’m dating you?”
“Huh? I don’t know,” Syrah hummed, feigning innocence. But I knew better.
‘No, this girl is to blame.’
I took that back; she was definitely to blame. If she hadn’t messed with me first, I wouldn’t have had to retaliate, and this rumor wouldn’t have spread.
‘I didn’t even hear rumors like this with Stella…’
But that was because Stella was far too high-profile to target—she was the princess of House Eritz. In contrast, while Syrah was the successor of the Marquis of Acacia, the Acacia family was more obscure, known only among certain circles due to its secretive nature.
Most cadets probably didn’t even know where the Marquis of Acacia was from. If it ever became public that their family carried out covert operations under the emperor’s command, it would certainly cause a stir.
“Well, I have a weekend job, so I’ll buy you lunch today!”
“Our academy lunch is free.”
“Yes! But you can still eat more!”
Syrah joked as she headed toward her seat for lunch. I followed and took a seat across from her.
The stares from others were intense. All the cadets around us whispered, no doubt gossiping about us. No matter how I tried to brush it off, it didn’t feel pleasant.
“Hi.”
“Oh, Ian, hi!”
While we were quietly eating, Stella and Noah appeared and took seats next to us.
Syrah frowned as they sat beside me without permission but didn’t say anything.
Noah sat down, looking uneasy as she glanced between Syrah and me, and cautiously spoke.
“Ian, is that rumor true?”
“No.”
“… You didn’t even hear what the rumor was.”
“I’ve already heard that question over a hundred times today.”
It was obvious what rumor Noah would be referring to. A rumor had spread that Syrah and I were engaged. Some were saying that a marquise’s heir and a 3-star Summoner made a good match and even approved of it.
‘Engaged to Syrah?’
But that idea was as absurd as trusting fate to a roll of the dice. If I got engaged to Syrah, my life would be like riding a never-ending rollercoaster.
“We’re not like that—don’t believe such strange rumors.”
“Really? Thank goodness! Right, Stella?”
“Hmph, I never believed that rumor anyway.”
Noah beamed at my reassurance, relaying my words to Stella, who just snorted and shrugged as if she’d never doubted it.
“Ian can’t date Syrah. He’d be better off with… me.”
“With who, exactly?”
“Who could that be?”
Stella, realizing her slip-up, widened her eyes in surprise.
But Syrah and Noah, who had already picked up on her intentions, weren’t about to let her off the hook.
Stella hesitated for a moment before attempting her best possible comeback.
“… Forget I said anything.”
It was clear, though—she couldn’t take back what she’d just let slip.
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Check out my other projects: Flower Stealing Master, Rehabilitating the Villainess, Pushover Extra Trains the Villainesses, I Picked Up an Amnesiac Witch, Dual Cultivation with a Fox Demon, Ask the Mirror and Immortal Divine Tribulation
Funnythat there were no rumors after a full day date, but rumors started flying after MC pinched her cheeks. Author sigh…
Thanks for chapter