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Chapter 16
After making sure the door had closed, Genevieve headed toward Thompson’s office and clenched her fist.
He was always annoying in new and creative ways, but today was especially bad. She had only written Isis as Isi by mistake once, yet Thompson made her copy the sentence a hundred times.
‘My fist is crying, my fist is crying.’
Genevieve wiped the fake smile from her face.
She was exhausted.
“……”
Then she saw someone she wasn’t supposed to see.
Genevieve hoped Edward had not witnessed her embarrassing behavior earlier, but unfortunately, his eyes had already adjusted to the darkness on the way here.
At least she could comfort herself with the fact that he hadn’t seen her punching the air.
She walked toward him.
“What are you doing here?”
Genevieve whispered softly while trying to calm her pounding heart.
After spending an entire week copying texts in the same room as Thompson, she had learned that he hated it when punished students brought other people with them.
“I came to see you, Senior……”
Edward replied in an equally quiet voice.
“This place is dangerous. Let’s get out first.”
Genevieve grabbed Edward’s wrist and pulled him away.
He followed her without resistance.
“Thompson hates it when other students come here. The day before yesterday, Owen got caught too. He almost ended up copying texts as punishment. Of course, he ran away.”
By the time they reached the first floor, Genevieve’s voice had gradually returned to its normal volume.
“Senior?”
“Hmm?”
“……Is it because of Monday’s Mass?”
Edward asked carefully.
“……”
People always said there were no eternal secrets, but she never expected it to be revealed this quickly.
Genevieve had wanted to keep it hidden for as long as possible, but she answered honestly.
“……Yes. I’m sorry.”
She admitted it without resistance.
“Shouldn’t I be the one apologizing?”
Edward looked genuinely confused.
After all, the glasses belonged to him, and Genevieve was the one who had been punished instead.
Genevieve was about to disagree, but then she closed her mouth.
“This isn’t something either of us should apologize for!”
she said in a slightly angry voice.
“The person who left your glasses there is the one at fault.”
The more she thought about it, the more annoyed she became.
It wasn’t Edward’s and Genevieve’s job to create a heartwarming apology scene.
The person who had left the glasses there—Genevieve firmly believed it was Charles—should have been the one asking both of them for forgiveness.
“The one who should really apologize still hasn’t shown up after an entire week……”
The more she thought about it, the more irritated she became.
Wasn’t it normal to come forward and apologize?
Genevieve wasn’t someone who enjoyed reporting people, but if she found proof, she was fully prepared to tell Thompson everything immediately.
“But how did you find this place?”
Genevieve asked while trying to calm her boiling anger.
“I asked your friends. There was something I wanted to tell you……”
Edward said in a brighter voice.
“What is it?”
Genevieve prepared herself to listen.
“Ah……”
Edward hesitated for a moment.
“……I joined the fencing club.”
His voice was noticeably weaker than before.
Edward lowered his head.
His light brown eyes, shining under the moonlight, kept glancing at Genevieve like a guilty criminal before quickly looking away.
“Really?”
Genevieve asked excitedly.
“That’s great!”
She was so happy that she immediately grabbed both of Edward’s hands and shook them up and down.
She even opened his palm and made him clap hands with her.
She looked even happier than the person who had actually joined the club.
“Did they hold the test again?”
“Not exactly. I think the coach saw that match.”
Genevieve remembered how Edward had recovered points at an incredible speed in less than a minute.
“Even if it were me……”
What kind of crazy coach would let a player like that get away after seeing him nearly turn the match around in a single minute?
Genevieve completely understood the coach.
“Huh?”
“I would’ve looked for you too.”
Genevieve continued calmly.
“I’m sorry your lunch match ended because of me.”
“Ah… no. It turns out Collins was just messing with me. You were only trying to help me. I’m really sorry about what I said at lunch.”
“It’s okay. So, should I call you a school representative now?”
Edward smiled awkwardly as though he had never heard such a title before.
Genevieve’s eyes sparkled as she asked him to tell her absolutely everything.
Edward did exactly that.
“So training starts tomorrow?”
“I already trained today. Director Smith said weekend training runs from dawn until the afternoon……”
“Teresa Smith?”
“You know her?”
“Not personally. She’s just famous, so I’ve heard about her a few times. Apparently, she became commander of the Imperial Knights forty years ago. And she was the youngest person ever appointed. She must be incredibly skilled.”
Genevieve smiled at Edward’s innocent question.
As firearms became the main weapons used by armies across the continent, knight orders had become little more than relics of history.
Genevieve, who had always admired knights, found that rather unfortunate.
“Yes. She’s amazing.”
Their conversation naturally shifted toward knights.
Genevieve asked Edward all sorts of questions.
Even ridiculous questions about Sword Masters and sword aura.
Edward answered every one of them sincerely.
“Hey~ Genevieve, and that junior from earlier?”
By the time they noticed, they had already reached the dormitory.
The person greeting them while walking down the stairs was Owen.
Owen smiled with suspicious amusement.
It was the dangerous smile he often wore whenever he was planning a prank that would be fun for him and troublesome for everyone else.
The moment Genevieve saw that smile, her worries multiplied.
“Since we’re all here anyway, Junior, why don’t you come with us too? Being alone is boring.”
Edward tried to refuse.
But after Owen’s relentless persuasion, he eventually ended up following the group.
“Owen, why did you take so long— Ginger!”
“So you found him.”
Blanca and James, who were sitting on the sofa, welcomed the unexpected arrivals.
The two had already been enjoying tea together.
Cookies and scones sat on the tea tray on the floor, while books were scattered across the sofa.
Since another person had joined them, Blanca and James pushed the books aside to make room.
“Hey, you spilled the tea.”
During the process, a pen fell into a teacup.
Blanca quickly rescued it and wiped it with a napkin.
As a result, the sofa became a complete mess.
“You can sit now.”
After James moved the tray onto the table beside the sofa, things were more or less organized.
Genevieve glanced at her friends with familiar eyes before helping with the introductions.
“You met Owen before, right? This is Edward, a junior from the year below us. Edward, this is Henry James Carter, and this is Blanca La Tour Beauharnais.”
“Just call me James.”
After the introductions were finished, Genevieve sat on the floor and leaned against the sofa.
Owen sat in the armchair beside it instead of on the sofa where his friends were sitting.
Since his intended seat had been taken, Edward awkwardly sat beside James.
“Edward…… the fencing one?”
Blanca suddenly asked after thinking for a moment.
“The fencing one?”
Owen asked.
“I ran into Franz earlier. He said a genius joined the fencing club today. Apparently some second-years secretly used the arena at lunch, so a coach came to scold them and ended up—”
Blanca remembered there was a junior present and quickly chose a more elegant expression.
“—falling in love at first sight with a fencer. He begged the director to recruit him no matter what. Franz said his name was Edward. Are you that fencing genius Edward?”
Blanca casually used embarrassing words like genius and the player the coach fell in love with at first sight.
“You know Franz? Franz Lawrence?”
Blanca asked with wide eyes.
“Stop scaring the junior. I’ll apologize on her behalf. She’s obsessed with finding school representatives because of The College’s May special issue.”
James quickly calmed Blanca down.
As he said, Blanca disliked running around looking for stories like ordinary newspaper club members.
Instead, she preferred recruiting students who looked likely to win trophies and bring glory to Saint John’s College.
Just like always, the rowing club and women’s polo club were the only ones currently on her list.
“Ugh… Why did I participate in those competitions back then? Our dear Owen doesn’t even care that his friend is dying from overwork.”
“I already let you off for missing four articles. Isn’t that enough?”
“Not four. Three.”
Blanca kindly held up three fingers.
“Two hunting competition articles and one winter tournament article.”
“Ginger. Is Theo really impossible?”
“Give it up. Do you think he’d agree?”
Owen answered for Genevieve.
“That’s true…… But even one interview with a winner from another school would make the article much better.”
Blanca still sounded reluctant to let go.
“Who’s Theo?”
“Cough!”
The moment Edward said the name Theo, Genevieve choked on her tea.
“C-Could I have some tea……?”
she asked James with a lifeless expression.
“……You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to.”
Watching Genevieve desperately gulp down tea, Edward decided it might be better not to know.
He quickly tried to fix the situation.
“Can I tell him?”
“Everyone who needs to know already knows. Well… it’s not exactly a secret……”
Despite her dramatic reaction, Genevieve gave permission surprisingly easily.
However, her expression was extremely dark.
“First of all, it’s not Theo. It’s Theodore Woodville.”
Hearing the name after so long, Genevieve tightly shut her eyes.
“Theodore Woodville was Genevieve’s former fiancé.”
