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Chapter 6
She had thought there had to be an extraordinary reason.
Some grand objective that could only be achieved by destroying this relationship. Some value so important that it could never be abandoned.
They had been together for more than ten years.
Even if Olivia hadn’t been Aiden’s fiancée, and Aiden hadn’t been Olivia’s fiancé, they were still childhood friends—companions who had spent more than half their lives together.
If he was willing to throw away all that history, everything they had built together, then there should at least have been a reason worthy of it.
But what did he say?
“Because you’re my friend’s little sister?”
Her voice naturally became calm.
Unable to see—or perhaps pretending not to see—the icy chill that had settled in Olivia’s eyes, as though winter had suddenly arrived, Aiden continued speaking with complete ease.
“Olive. You’re the younger sister of Cesare, my closest friend. That means you’re someone incredibly precious to me as well.”
“So this is how you treat someone precious? By handing her a letter to break off the engagement?”
“It’s not just that I can’t see my friend’s little sister as a woman… Sigh. No, to begin with, I don’t even believe in love.”
Can’t see my friend’s little sister as a woman? Doesn’t believe in love?
Olivia stared at him, eyes wide.
The sunlight was dazzling, but beneath the shade he held over her with his hand, she didn’t feel its glare.
The cold rising from the frozen ground never reached her because Aiden had spread his own uniform beneath her.
That…
That was love.
Love didn’t require anything grand or extraordinary.
It was simply paying close attention to someone, wanting to do little things for them even when they weren’t strictly necessary.
That was love.
Olivia bit her lip.
“I did intend to get engaged. I needed to. After the engagement, I only planned to fulfill the minimum obligations expected of us. Even if we’d eventually married, it would’ve been the same. To me, engagement and marriage were nothing more than that.”
“…Ha.”
“But what’s the point of talking about this now? I couldn’t break off the engagement, so those discussions never happened in the first place.”
He still didn’t understand what the real issue was.
Idiot.
Olivia muttered under her breath.
Apparently Aiden hadn’t heard her properly.
“What was that?”
“So what you’re really mean is this.”
“Olive, I…”
“As long as someone meets the right conditions, you’d have no problem getting engaged—or even married—to anyone.”
“…Olivia.”
“You said it’s nothing more than signing the same paperwork and carrying out the bare minimum obligations. Yet you’re saying you absolutely can’t do that with me.”
“Well, of course. You’re—”
“Because I’m your friend’s little sister? You’ve got to be kidding.”
She didn’t need to hear another word.
Olivia slapped his hand away and stood up.
“That ring will come off in three days.”
“I know. You already told me.”
“I’m going to finish this training successfully. No matter what happens, I’m joining the Lux Knight Order.”
“What? Olive! Absolutely not! No matter how angry you are with me, how could you choose something so dangerous and reckless?”
She froze.
Olivia had just taken a step toward the dormitories when she suddenly stopped.
“Olive?”
She slowly turned back toward Aiden.
Just moments ago, her voice and actions had been dripping with anger.
Now, however, her expression was the complete opposite.
She smiled brightly, as though spring flowers had bloomed.
Perhaps because of the sunlight, her cheeks were slightly flushed.
A tiny dimple cast the faintest shadow.
Aiden forgot everything he had been about to say.
He simply stood there, staring at her.
“Who said I hate you?”
Actually…
She did.
At least a little.
But—
“I’m only going to say this once, so listen carefully.”
“W-What?”
“I don’t hate you.”
“You…”
People always say that when you dislike someone, you end up giving them one more pie than anyone else.
Taking that old saying as her guide, Olivia decided to endure just a little longer—for the sake of this hopeless first love of hers.
“I like you.”
“You…”
Aiden was completely mistaken.
He believed only fierce, overwhelming, heart-wrenching emotions counted as love.
He thought what he felt wasn’t love at all—just affection for someone close to him.
So Olivia decided she would keep trying until he realized his own feelings.
Only then, one way or another, would they finally have an answer.
“So let’s start over from the beginning.”
“From our first meeting… all the way to our wedding. Okay?”
The moment she finished speaking, she prepared to run.
Remembering the expression Aiden had worn in Professor Saturn’s office earlier, she had a feeling escaping first would be the smartest option.
“Our second beginning… should happen in the Lux Knight Order. I’ll be going now. See you next time!”
“…What? Wait! Olive! Stop right there! This is a completely different matter! Just listen to me for a second!”
“No!”
With a sharp shout, Olivia bolted away before Aiden could grab her.
Among all the Knight Department students, Olivia was the fastest.
Her light, agile body was one of her greatest strengths.
Thanks to that, she gradually widened the distance between herself and Aiden.
Of course, Aiden was every bit as stubborn.
He chased after her with everything he had.
“Olive! Stop! Think about this again! This isn’t right!”
“I said no! Why don’t you just break up with my brother already? Enough with this ‘friend’s little sister’ nonsense!”
“What?! W-What are you talking about? Why would I break up with him?!”
“Then why can’t you?! You tell me you want to break off our engagement, but somehow you can’t break up with my brother?!”
Shouting at each other the entire time, the two disappeared into the distance, leaving only afterimages behind.
The problem was…
The one who witnessed the whole scene happened to be Bennett—the biggest gossip in the Knight Department.
“…What was that just now?”
“Olivia… and who was the other person?”
Tilting his head, Bennett stuffed the bread he was holding into his mouth.
“Could it have been… her fiancé?”
But…
He’d been chasing after Olivia.
Bennett hadn’t seen much else, but he had clearly noticed one thing.
The man chasing her had brilliant blond hair.
His sharp instincts were screaming at him.
Something about that was incredibly suspicious.
Memorizing the scene he’d just witnessed, Bennett hurried back toward the dormitories.
He had to share this astonishing news with everyone as quickly as possible.
If Olivia had known what he was about to do, she probably would’ve challenged him to ten extra sparring matches.
That very night…
A brand-new rumor spread throughout Veritas Academy.
“Did you hear? About Olivia’s mysterious fiancé?”
“What about him?”
“Apparently he’s no ordinary person either.”
“What?”
“Bennett saw them yesterday. Olivia was running away from him like her life depended on it. And not only that…”
“And not only that?”
“They say he has… some kind of relationship with Olivia’s older brother.”
“…My goodness!”
Thus the rumor spread:
Olivia’s fiancé was every bit as formidable as she was, so there was no need to pity either of them.
And on top of that, he apparently shared some suspicious relationship with Olivia’s brother.
* * *
The day of training finally arrived.
Starting today, Veritas Academy’s senior students would spend the next three months being relentlessly worked to the bone by the training instructors.
Every year, despite surviving every academic course, one or two students still ended up dropping out because they couldn’t endure this training.
There was no guarantee Olivia wouldn’t become one of them.
“All right.”
“You can do this, Olivia.”
Standing before the mirror, Olivia raised her clenched fists in front of her chest in a little fighting pose.
“I can do this.”
“I can do this.”
“I can do this.”
Then she recited the mantra she had never skipped a single day since transferring into the Knight Department.
Today marked the first great step toward joining the Lux Knight Order.
The training instructor will probably be Aiden.
Starting today, Olivia could spend time with Aiden…
Legally.
Everything was perfect.
Well…
Except for the unfortunate incident yesterday when Aiden had chased her all the way to the women’s dormitory.
Still, after the dorm supervisor talked him down, he seemed to have accepted it and gone home.
It’s been a whole day.
Surely he’s calmed down by now…
At least…
That was what Olivia believed.
Until she arrived at the training grounds.
The instant she got there, she realized how naïve that assumption had been.
“Olivia.”
“That instructor over there…”
“He looks like he has an absolutely terrible personality.”
…I know.
That’s exactly how he looks to me too.
“But he keeps staring only at you.”
“You didn’t actually do something to him, did you?”
Well…
She had.
Thinking back on it, she might have gone a little too far teasing Aiden yesterday while she was angry.
Only now did Olivia finally regret it.
I should’ve remembered sooner that he’s my training instructor!
But it was already too late.
People say the hotter a flame burns…
…the bluer it becomes.
Aiden’s eyes were exactly like that.
His blue eyes blazed as though they were on fire.
Thud.
Each step he took echoed like thunder.
Just as Olivia had done the day before…
Aiden smiled brightly.
Then he said,
“Welcome to hell, cadets.”
This isn’t the military…
Olivia’s timid protest was swallowed up by the frightened murmurs of the pale-faced students.
