That alone
had been worth it.
But.
How was I supposed to meet her?
&
“I’m sorry, but you’ll have to wait over there.”
I had shown up at the mansion without warning, but without even asking why, the guard politely blocked my way.
He said that those who came to seek advice from the Pimale family were usually guided to the reception area on the opposite side.
This was the path used by members of the family and approved guests.
“Ah, I’m here to see Lady Angelina.”
For a moment, the guard’s expression stiffened subtly.
It was only natural.
“I’ll send word for you first. May I have your name?”
“Rayon Signal.”
In any other territory, he would have looked annoyed first,
but this place was clearly different.
Even the guards never forgot their manners.
I waited for a while near the entrance.
Then it happened.
I heard the sound of someone running over in a hurry.
I wondered if it was Angelina,
but the one who came running was not her, but a maid.
“Huff, huff... Y-you’re Lord Rayon?”
“That’s right, but...”
I nodded, and the maid’s face lit up as she caught her breath.
“Lady Angelina is at the academy right now! I think you should go there!”
I didn’t understand why she was so glad to see me, but in any case, I headed straight for Valdria Academy.
However, I couldn’t go inside.
I needed an entry permit.
In the end, I had no choice but to wait near the entrance until she came out.
And a little while later.
Angelina came into view, holding books in her arms and laughing with her friends as she walked out.
In her academy uniform,
wearing glasses, clutching books to her chest.
Strangely enough, this suited her far better than when I had seen her at the party.
Rather, this felt more like Angelina.
I stood silently by the entrance and waited.
A moment later, Angelina’s gaze turned this way.
And then.
The instant she saw me head-on,
her eyes opened wide.
“Oh my!”
She was so startled she nearly dropped the books she was holding.
“M-Mr. Rayon?”
“It’s been a while.”
At my greeting, Angelina’s friends immediately looked intrigued.
“What, what? Angelina, who is he?”
“Oh my... He looks so manly.”
“Look at his shoulders. You can tell he’s sturdy.”
Their little whispers were not little at all.
Angelina’s face turned red in an instant.
“I-I’ll be going!”
She hurriedly adjusted the books in her arms,
then came straight over to me and grabbed my wrist.
And with that, she dragged me away at a run.
“She held his hand! Angelina did?”
“No way! That Angelina?”
At the shouts bursting out behind us, Angelina’s steps grew even faster.
Only after we finally entered an alley where people’s gazes could no longer reach did she stop.
“Haa, haa...”
Angelina caught her breath for a while,
then cautiously looked up at me.
“H-how did you come here? When? Don’t tell me... to see me?”
“Yes. I came to see Lady Angelina.”
At those words, her eyes shook greatly behind her glasses.
“R-really? Me? Why, why?”
I smiled and lowered my gaze.
Angelina followed my gaze and looked down.
“Ah.”
Only then did she seem to realize that she was still holding my wrist.
“Ah, eep. I-I’m sorry!”
Angelina flinched and let go, lowering her head with her face flushed red.
“If anything, I’m worried I interrupted you while you were with your friends.”
“N-no, not at all!”
Angelina hurriedly waved her hands.
Then she adjusted her glasses and forced herself to smile calmly.
“I have plenty of time. Really.”
“Really? That’s a relief. Please show me around your territory.”
“Yes!”
I had wondered what I would do if she refused,
but it seemed that wouldn’t be the case.
“Then... shall we go?”
“Yes.”
I walked through her territory together with Angelina.
What was amusing
was that no matter where we went, bookstores were the first things that caught my eye.
“This bookstore is already over a hundred years old. It’s also the most famous one in Arcadia. Scholars especially love it because it has so many old books.”
Genuine affection colored Angelina’s voice.
“And that bookstore over there is run by someone with such incredible connections that he can get books even the kingdom can’t. If you put in a request, it may take a few months, but he really does find them.”
I knew she liked books.
But I hadn’t known it was to this extent.
“And this is...”
Growl.
Angelina’s words cut off in an instant.
A brief silence.
Angelina’s face slowly turned red.
“Ah, aaaah... Th-this is, um...”
“You’re hungry, aren’t you? Let’s go eat. I’ll treat you.”
“Y-yes? No!”
Angelina hastily waved her hands.
“How could I make a guest pay? I should treat you.”
“I’ll pay today.”
I smiled and continued.
“Then you can treat me tomorrow.”
“Uh, uhh... Tomorrow?”
At that one word, Angelina adjusted her glasses again.
Then she asked back carefully.
“Tomorrow too... together?”
“Ah, you’re busy. Then it can’t be hel—”
“No! No, I’m not busy! Not at all!”
When I sounded disappointed,
Angelina answered almost urgently.
“That’s a relief. For now, if there’s a place you go often, let’s go there.”
“Ah, yes!”
The place Angelina took me to was a restaurant famous for a dish of boiled pork sliced thinly.
“Oh, this is good.”
“Right? Right?”
Angelina’s face lit up.
“It’s really popular with the academy students too.”
It was definitely decent.
It wasn’t overly stimulating,
and it had a flavor that went down easily without feeling burdensome.
As we ate, I finally asked how she had been.
“Have you been well?”
“Ah, yes. I’ve been well. Um... what about you, Mr. Rayon?”
“I’ve been really busy. So busy I could barely keep my head on straight.”
“Really? What kind of things kept you busy?”
I took a sip of water and smiled.
“This is the first time you’ve asked about something other than books.”
“Uh, uhh...”
Angelina’s eyes widened.
“Ah... w-was it? I’m sorry. I like books so much... Other than stories related to books, I honestly don’t have much interest...”
I set down my fork.
“Really? That’s a little upsetting. Even so, at the party, Lady Angelina was the first person I spoke to.”
“Ah, th-that’s not what I meant...”
Flustered, Angelina even waved her hands.
“I’m not saying I dislike you, Lord Rayon...”
Her words trailed off.
I did not miss that moment.
“Ah, then you like me?”
“Of course. I like... Yes, yes? Huh? Yes?”
In an instant, Angelina’s eyes wavered blankly.
As though her mind had stopped entirely,
her gaze behind her glasses couldn’t find its place.
Ah.
So this was what it felt like.
It probably wasn’t exactly the same,
but was this the kind of fun Eileen felt when she teased me?
“Haha. I’m joking.”
“Y-you were joking. Hahaha...”
Angelina laughed awkwardly, then pressed her fingertips to her temple.
“How strange. My head hurts more than when I solve difficult problems...”
Her reaction was so cute that I laughed,
but then a strange feeling suddenly brushed past me.
Was I a little like Eileen just now?
Oddly enough, the way I had pushed someone into a corner seemed to resemble her.
I cleared my throat for no reason and changed the subject.
“Problems, huh... Actually, I came because there was something I wanted to ask you related to that.”
Angelina, who had been lowering her head, instantly had a sparkle in her eyes.
“What is it?”
“I’ll tell you tomorrow.”
This time, Angelina’s eyes shook in a different way.
Not with embarrassment,
but with pure curiosity.
“C-can’t you tell me now?”
I was sorry, but I needed to make a little use of that reaction.
I naturally shifted the topic elsewhere.
“By the way, I heard the academy library is that impressive.”
At that moment, Angelina pushed up the bridge of her glasses with her fingertips.
The change was very subtle, but unmistakable.
The flustered air she had shown until just moments ago instantly settled,
and a confident expression rose to her face.
“Hehe. I don’t think it falls behind even compared to the royal library. Originally, it was a library our family built independently, but when the academy was established, it was integrated.”
Even in that brief explanation, pride was evident.
“I heard there are some procedures required to enter.”
“Ah, you don’t have to worry about that.”
Angelina answered immediately.
“Our family manages it anyway, so if you move with me, you can enter right away.”
Good.
“Then since we’ve finished our meal, I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“Uh, huh? Already?”
Angelina’s expression became visibly regretful.
“The sun hasn’t even set yet...”
“I couldn’t sleep properly on the way here. I’m more tired than I expected.”
In truth, it wasn’t that difficult.
Recently, I had been continuously managing my physical condition,
so I could still move around well enough.
But if I spent too much time today, her curiosity might cool.
At times like this, it was better to put a little distance between us.
I placed the meal money on the table and stood up.
After we went outside the restaurant together,
I immediately gave her my farewell.
“Then I’ll come find you tomorrow. Ah, will you be at the academy?”
“Yes? Ah, yes.”
Angelina hurriedly nodded.
“I do have to go to the academy early in the morning... but tomorrow is relatively free, so if you send word, I’ll come out right away.”
“Good. Then I’ll see you tomorrow.”
Just as I was about to turn away.
“M-Mr. Rayon.”
“Yes?”
Angelina seemed about to say something, then moved her lips slightly.
“Um... a place to sleep...”
The moment I made a puzzled expression, her words suddenly changed.
“Ah, never mind. I-I’ll see you tomorrow!”
In the end, she couldn’t finish her sentence and hurriedly turned around.
Watching her back as she nearly fled into the distance, I tilted my head.
It seemed like she had wanted to say something.
But I had no idea what it was.
***
The next day.
The atmosphere at Valdria Academy was far freer than I had expected.
If there was a lecture one wanted to hear, one headed to the classroom,
and if not, everyone scattered to the library or the gardens as they pleased.
They studied on their own,
organized the contents of their research, submitted them, and received evaluations.
In other words, only those who truly had the will to study could remain here.
Today as well, the students headed into the academy, each carrying books.
And among them, a few discovered a person standing near the entrance.
“That person... Isn’t he that guy?”
“I think that’s right.”
In truth, most Valdria Academy students were the type to be more interested in their own studies than other people’s affairs.
Although Angelina was inevitably a subject of attention at the academy,
Angelina herself almost never showed interest in anything outside her studies.
She had never done anything especially conspicuous either.
But that Angelina had, for the first time, done something that could end up on people’s lips.
In the end, no matter how scholarly a place was, it was still a place where people gathered and lived.
Gossip was bound to spread in an instant.
“But he doesn’t seem that handsome?”
“What are you talking about? A man should be manly. Look at that build. Did you see his forearms? He’s completely different from the boys here.”
“Calm down and wipe your drool first.”
The male students passing by afterward also glanced over at him.
“Hmph. He looks ignorant at a glance.”
“Exactly. Types like that are rude nine times out of ten.”
The students at this academy generally spent a long time sitting at desks, so naturally many of them had slight builds.
That made it stand out all the more.
The body of the man standing at the entrance was especially conspicuous.
Broad shoulders and firm lines of his arms,
movements refined without anything unnecessary.
It was not flashy,
but in a place like this, that only made him look more out of place.
Yes, that was me.
Apparently, through all my training, my body had gotten quite decent.
“By the way, who should I ask?”
The concentrated gazes were a bit burdensome, so I quickly addressed a passing student.
“Excuse me.”
“Are you talking to me?”
I was sure I had called out to a male student,
but a female student passing beside him reacted first and approached me.
I was flustered for a moment, but immediately continued.
“I have an appointment with Lady Angelina. Could you let her know that I’m here?”
“You’re going on a date! Wait here, I’ll bring her!”
Why was she more excited than I was?
And why was she looking at my arms instead of my eyes when we talked?
In any case, not long after she ran off,
I soon saw Angelina running this way.