SRC 10

Chapter 10

“Rosaline!”
Aiden called out, but it was useless.
He turned his head and said to my sister with an awkward expression,
“I’ll apologize on your behalf too. I didn’t teach my younger brother properly. I’ll make sure he’s punished according to student council rules.”

“Of course. As a member of the student council, I’ll attend the meeting myself.”

Now that I thought about it, my sister was also part of the student council.
In shoujo comics, most of the times she ran into Aiden were in the student council room.

As I watched the two of them talk, Aiden’s gaze shifted toward me.

“Are you Emma’s younger sister, Olivia Bardedor?”
“Do you know me?”
“There’s no way I wouldn’t.”

Right. Even though I was technically a ghost member, he might have heard about me from the club members.

“You’re brave, stepping forward to protect your sister.”

I wasn’t sure which part exactly had caught Aiden’s attention, but apparently, I had impressed him in some way.

“Thank you for seeing it that way.”

“I’d like to have a deeper conversation, but unfortunately, I’m busy with the welcome ceremony.”

Even though he was a third-year, he was the student council president, so it seemed he had been called to help prepare for the freshman welcome ceremony.

“I’ll see you next time.”
“Yes, definitely. Make sure to get your cheeks treated at the infirmary.”
“Yes.”

“Emma, you need to get back to work too.”

Aiden gestured for my sister to follow him.
Before leaving, my sister gently stroked my cheeks and said,
“Don’t worry. I’ll make sure to get proper revenge.”

“No, it’s fine. I can get through this.”

I was more worried that my angry sister might end up doing something to Rosaline.

“That’s not possible. I’ll be back soon.”

With a firm determination, my sister waved and quickly left with Aiden.
Honestly, there’s no cure for that guy’s sister-complex.

“Well, so an antagonist has appeared. I guess the Liam event is officially starting.”

It was obvious that he would continue to interfere with my sister’s path in every way.
I wanted to take care of him in advance, but there was no way to stop him right now.
And since he was Aiden’s younger sister, I couldn’t just touch him without permission.

“But why hasn’t Liam appeared yet?”

It was unexpected that it was Aiden, not Liam.
Moreover, he seemed to be playing the role of cleaning up after missing all the important moments.
Do all the male lead candidates just not do their jobs?

Everything kept going against the shoujo comic developments I knew.

Even though things didn’t go as expected, at least I met the third male lead candidate, Aiden, so it wasn’t a total loss for this event.

After organizing my thoughts, I realized I was hungry.

“Well, I guess I’ll fill my stomach first.”

My cheeks would heal on their own, so it wasn’t a big deal.
I leisurely looked for food and wandered into the banquet hall.

Eating alone wasn’t the end of the freshman welcome ceremony.
It seemed the preparations for the party were in full swing, as upperclassmen were setting up something on the stage in one corner of the banquet hall.
Was there going to be a performance?

Curious, I turned my head around while continuously stuffing cake into my mouth.

“Olivia!”

Then, a familiar voice reached me.

“Siana!”

I set my plate aside and happily hugged Siana, who was walking toward me.
Even though we had only been apart briefly, it felt like a heartfelt reunion.

“I thought I wouldn’t see you until the welcome ceremony was over.”
“Good thing. For some reason, seeing all this food, I had a feeling you’d be here.”

Even though we hadn’t spent much time together, Siana knew me well.

“Ah, ahem. Please pay attention.”

Using a magical voice amplifier, my voice carried throughout the banquet hall.
On stage stood someone in a tight green suit, and I immediately recognized him.

“Hello, everyone. I am Aiden Carter, your host for today.”

Apparently, Aiden didn’t just handle student council duties.
He must be busier than anyone could imagine.

“Every time I see him, I think the student council president is really handsome.”

Even from afar, his height and appearance drew attention.
No wonder he was the third male lead candidate.

His easygoing personality seemed to have its own charm.
Despite the huge drawback of being the villain’s older brother, he seemed confident in himself. Being talented in so many ways, maybe that could excuse a lot.

“Above all, congratulations on your admission to the Royal Saint Louis Academy. As I mentioned at the entrance ceremony, you are the pride of the Grayson Empire…”

“I can’t take this part.”
“That’s a minus point.”

Siana, who had been praising Aiden’s looks, immediately stopped paying attention because of the long speech.
I also firmly recorded ‘-1 point’ on my imaginary scorecard for my brother-in-law.

No matter how impressive he is, a speech that long isn’t necessary.
Does he want to be the academy principal in the future?

“…Now, I hope everyone enjoys the freshman welcome ceremony! Let’s officially begin the event!”

“Waaah!”

Everyone clapped enthusiastically as soon as Aiden finished speaking.
Finally, the nagging was over.

“Now, we will have a speech from the representative of the freshmen.”

Suddenly, the applause stopped.
It seemed everyone was disappointed, as this wasn’t the development they had been expecting.

“Please welcome him with a round of applause!”

Flustered, Aiden tried to force the crowd to clap.
Unlike before, only a few people gave weak applause.

A male student, seemingly nervous under the unfriendly welcome, stepped onto the stage.
He was so nervous he stumbled once on the stairs.
Even from a distance, his tension was noticeable.

The black-haired boy in a black suit took the magical voice amplifier from Aiden.
His eyes were fixed on the parchment in his left hand, presumably his prepared script.
He seemed to be shaking slightly.

From the moment I saw him, something felt strange.
He was a boy I had never met, yet somehow, it didn’t feel like the first time.
He must be the top student in our grade, in Class S, while I was in Class A, so we probably never crossed paths.

As I tilted my head in curiosity, he finally spoke.

“Ah, hello… I’m Lucas Benjamin.”

That was when I realized.
Until now, he had kept his head buried in his script, so I hadn’t seen his face properly. Now, raising his head to greet everyone, I finally recognized him.

The last male lead candidate—Lucas Benjamin.

He was set up to be good at studying, but I never expected the top student in our grade to be Lucas Benjamin.

Lucas was shy and quiet compared to the other male leads.
He kept his face hidden behind long hair and large glasses, so people didn’t know what he really looked like.
That’s why he was often isolated and avoided by others.

But my sister recognized the real him.
She treated him like anyone else.
That’s why Lucas fell for my sister at first sight.

The students ignored Lucas’ speech and whispered among themselves.
The more they ignored him, the more he stammered, showing clear signs of embarrassment.

I wanted to help, but I couldn’t shout for everyone to listen.
So all I could do was focus and listen intently.

“…That’s all….”

Finally finishing his speech, Lucas hurriedly left the stage.
Seeing him like that made me feel sympathetic, and I wanted to comfort him.
But since he didn’t know me, approaching him might only make him wary.

Instead, I clapped as hard as I could.

“Now, please fully enjoy the freshman welcome ceremony!”