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Chapter 12
Edward was about to give a simple answer to her question.
Something like “I’m alright at it” or “I’m not really sure.”
But the words didn’t come as easily as he expected.
“Your Highness. If you want to live, do not stand out.”
Edward parted his lips.
More than anyone else, he knew he had talent with a sword.
“……”
A person who should not even exist was already a scholarship student at the prestigious Saint John’s College.
Joining a sports club on top of that?
There could hardly be anything more contradictory.
Instead of talking about his skills, Edward brought up another question.
“How is that even possible?”
Genevieve lowered her voice as if she were sharing a state secret.
“It’s not widely known, so you absolutely can’t get caught. If the professors hear about it, they might ban it starting next year.”
Edward was surprised that such a loophole existed in a system that looked flawless.
For seven hundred years, the school regulations must have been carefully built and refined.
The fact that Genevieve had found a weakness in them was impressive.
“…What do you think? If fencing is difficult, there’s also archery or yachting.”
Just as he was surprised that she had somehow recommended the event he was best at, she started suggesting other sports.
But for Edward, even joining the archery or yachting clubs would be difficult.
With his current eyesight, hitting a target a hundred meters away was impossible.
He wouldn’t even be surprised if the archery club threw him out the moment they saw the heavy glasses resting on his nose.
As for yachting…
The cost alone made it impossible.
It was an open secret that club activities were supported through donations and family sponsorships.
Edward couldn’t imagine Mr. Milford willingly paying such an enormous amount.
If anything, he would probably try to stop him.
And even if the money issue were solved, Edward had a bigger problem.
“I… can’t swim.”
To be precise, he was afraid of water.
Whenever he thought about deep, dark water, his heart sank.
“Really? Then we should cross yachting off the list. Safety comes first.”
Edward was grateful that Genevieve accepted it without making a big deal out of it.
In the end, Edward turned down archery as well.
But he didn’t agree to join the fencing club either.
Charles Collins and his friends had practically claimed the fencing club as their territory.
They often picked up long branches and used him as practice for fencing.
He could easily imagine what would happen if he went there.
“…I think it’ll still be difficult. I’ll try to think of another way. Thank you for worrying about me.”
“I’m not forcing you. Still, it would’ve been fun if we could go together. That’s a shame.”
“…Yes.”
After that, Genevieve noticeably became quieter.
He already felt bad for rejecting the opportunity she had gone out of her way to find for him.
Now that she wasn’t talking much, he felt even more uneasy.
“Senior, are you alright?”
“Hm? Why?”
“You look a little down.”
“Ah, so you were worried. It’s nothing.”
Perhaps she hadn’t even realized her expression had changed.
Instead, Genevieve reassured him.
Soon, her usual gentle smile returned.
Her green eyes slowly examined him.
More specifically, they seemed to be looking at the cheek Charles had hit.
“……”
Edward could feel his ears turning red from embarrassment.
He quickly looked away.
“It’s healed a lot, hasn’t it?”
Genevieve pointed at his left eyebrow.
As she said, the deep wound above his eyebrow had healed considerably.
He had already switched from bandages to a small strip of tape.
“Yes. The doctor said it won’t leave a scar.”
“That’s a relief.”
“…It’s thanks to you, Senior.”
The doctor had told him that if it hadn’t been treated immediately, it would have left a deep scar.
When Edward thanked her, Genevieve immediately waved her hands in alarm.
Only after Edward seriously listed all her contributions did Genevieve finally surrender.
Joining the fencing club? What was I thinking?
Even the next morning, Genevieve regretted what she had said.
She shouldn’t have brought it up.
There was no way Edward would want to enter a place where someone he was uncomfortable being around already spent his time.
He looked like he really wanted to go to Myon, though.
Genevieve felt sorry for Edward.
It was unfortunate that he couldn’t attend such a major event just because of Charles.
As a last hope, she had asked James if Edward could at least be placed on the rowing team’s reserve list.
The answer she got was a firm no.
“There’s really no way?”
“You’re the club captain.”
“I said no. The team was finalized at the beginning of the year.”
James replied in a tired voice, still not fully awake.
“I know, but…”
“Ginger, aren’t you going to see Tommy today?”
“I am.”
“Then where’s your tie?”
“Huh? Where did my tie go?”
Once today and Monday passed, her scripture-copying punishment would finally be over.
At this point, Genevieve absolutely did not want to give Tommy any excuse to criticize her.
She needed to look as perfect as a student from a textbook.
But no matter how much she searched her dorm room, her tie was nowhere to be found.
“Want to borrow mine?”
“Really?”
“Say, ‘Big Brother Owen~’ first.”
Owen raised his voice in a ridiculous falsetto to tease her.
“There he goes again. Ginger, just use mine.”
“Thanks.”
After glaring at Owen, Genevieve accepted Blanca’s tie.
“Why would they organize it like this?”
The participant lists she had carefully arranged on a lounge table had apparently looked messy to a cleaning staff member.
As a result, they had all been gathered together into a complete mess.
Thanks to that unnecessary act of kindness, Genevieve had to stay behind and sort everything back into order.
After wasting more than ten minutes, she finally left the dormitory.
Only then did she realize she had forgotten her assignment.
With an annoyed sigh, she returned to her room, grabbed it, and came back downstairs.
“Ah?”
Near the entrance, she spotted Edward preparing to leave.
“Edward!”
Genevieve happily called out his name.
His brown hair shifted slightly as he turned toward the sound.
“Are you heading out now?”
Edward asked as Genevieve hurried over to him.
“Yeah. I forgot my assignment in the dorm. Are you leaving too?”
“Yes. It’s quiet at this time. There aren’t many people around, and it’s close enough to the main building that I don’t have to run to get there on time.”
Edward spoke in a gentle voice.
“Have you always gone at this time?”
“It’s convenient because I don’t run into people. The hallways are less crowded too.”
“There usually are a lot of people in the mornings.”
She had left only ten minutes later than usual, yet the hallways felt surprisingly spacious and peaceful.
All the worries she normally had—
What if I drop my books?
What if someone steps on them?
—felt completely unnecessary.
She had never expected to enjoy such a relaxed morning.
“Maybe coming to class at this time isn’t a bad idea.”
Thinking about how she always rushed around every morning now felt almost ridiculous.
“…What?”
While she was admiring the peaceful hallway, she heard Edward say something.
“Hm?”
But his voice had been so quiet that she couldn’t hear it.
“…Ah, nothing. I was just talking to myself. I turn here. Have a good day, Senior.”
After saying that, Edward quickly headed in the opposite direction before Genevieve could even respond.
“You actually weren’t late. Impressive.”
“Right?”
Maybe it was because of that peaceful morning walk.
Once she found her rhythm, all the things that had seemed ready to go wrong started falling neatly into place.
After handing the participant lists she had organized to Professor Sally, the professor immediately gave her another task.
“Genevieve, could you distribute these to the fencing club students as well?”
Professor Sally looked far too exhausted for Genevieve to complain about spending her precious lunch break on more work.
In just a single day, the professor had become visibly thinner.
As a temporary junior professor, she had been forced to handle all the small tasks other professors didn’t want to do.
“Yes… It isn’t difficult, at least.”
Genevieve looked at the documents Sally handed her.
They were liability agreements regarding injuries during the competition.
She was familiar with them because she saw them every year.
According to the Pine Tree Circle Treaty, if a student was injured during an event, their family could not hold the school responsible.
Any student who attempted legal action would be immediately expelled and permanently banned from enrolling in any Pine Tree Circle school.
In exchange, the school promised to do its best to support the student’s recovery and rehabilitation.
From the look of it, all she had to do was give them to Franz, a third-year member of the fencing club.
“Goodness, why does it feel like every time I see you, you’ve been given another job?”
Blanca said in genuine admiration while looking at the thick envelope of documents on the table.
“This one will be finished as soon as I find Franz.”
Genevieve dipped bread into her soup and answered briefly.
Then she slid the envelope between her textbooks.
Franz was a third-year student in the fencing club.
They had taken the same common language class during her first year, so they at least knew each other by face.
“Sorry I’m late. Where’s James?”
Owen asked as he arrived and sat beside Blanca.
“Honestly, Owen, how little attention do you pay to your friends? Since last month, he’s been having lunch separately with the rowing team because of the summer competition.”
“Oh, right. I’ve been too busy preparing the April issue lately.”
“Is The College coming along well?”
The College was the school newspaper published by Owen and Blanca.
Of course, unlike a real newspaper sold in the market, it wasn’t published daily.
It came out once a month on the twentieth.
There were no harsh criticisms or attacks to be found.
Most of its content simply informed students about school schedules and events.
After all, they would likely meet these people again in politics or business after graduation.
Neither Owen nor Blanca wanted to create unnecessary enemies by publishing something that might offend them.
