Published: August 1, 2025
The bed felt a bit small for Norman's sleeping quarters. When I collapsed onto it carelessly, my feet hung off the edge. But well, it wasn’t impossible to sleep on it. Besides, there was a pleasant scent. I vaguely thought it strange that a sixty-year-old man from the Bear Clan Homo sapiens would be using a perfume that smelled like a girl's natural scent.
Lying down, I once again realized how utterly exhausted I was.
Anastasia’s meddling was actually appreciated. Though she spoke bluntly, I believed she was truly a caring and gentle person underneath. — Despite all the wounds I had suffered myself.
A few years ago, she kept up a cheerful smile in society for the sake of her family. I had never been able to smile so well.
— “You’re really bad at lying, huh.”
— “You’re bad at lying, aren’t you?”
Those two voices overlapped in my drowsiness. One was Anastasia’s. The other was Cyrus’s.
That line… when was it said again…?
“Hey, Ruifeng.”
A displeased voice called my name. It was spring of my second year at Lezamonde Academy, in the hallway between classrooms. Cyrus, who had grown taller since last year, stood blocking my way.
I smiled broadly.
“Hey there. What’s up, Cyrus?”
“What's with that creepy way of addressing me...”
“Because you make such an uncomfortable face when I do,” I replied without answering. Cyrus’s tone grew sharper.
“You’ve been slacking off lately, haven’t you?”
“What do you mean? If my rank dropped, then be proud that I allowed myself to slack. You were studying even on your days off, weren’t you?”
“That’s because I thought I couldn’t beat you otherwise. But this year, I heard you sneaked out to the market on test days and enjoyed a leisurely lunch?”
“I just really wanted to try the crocodile meat steak that opened last week. The dorm food is a bit bland, you know?”
“If that’s the case, at least eat secretly in the back seats, not on the terrace! You know the instructors patrol around!”
I grinned foolishly. The more seriously I spoke, the more foolish I appeared. Wearing a carefree smile like a mask, I knew if I kept laughing this way, the teachers would just give up in exasperation.
But Cyrus became furious and grabbed my collar.
“Are you running away from our competition?”
“...I’ve never really cared about winning or losing, or rankings.”
That was true.
Even before Richard told me, I had known. I had a vague suspicion for a while. The tutor’s expressions and the inconsistent grading standards felt off.
— “Three correct out of five questions, just one step away, Lord Ruifeng. Since Lord Lionel got all questions correct, let’s aim for four correct next time.”
— “All five correct? Well, ah... no, the handwriting here is too messy to read clearly, so it's a deduction. Four correct.”
— “Recently, you’ve been rapidly improving your sword skills. Almost catching up to Lord Lionel, who is called the sword saint... But if you grow too fast, you might hurt yourself. For the next three months, you must not hold a sword.”
I couldn’t shake the unease and gradually lost motivation.
That discomfort had been forgotten since coming to this academy. I didn’t want to lose to this man. For the first time in my life, I studied seriously.
As a result, seeing Cyrus frustrated was too funny… and I was happy.
But now—
“Don’t lie. You’ve been competing with me so hard, that’s impossible.”
“I’m not lying. Last year I just wanted to be mean and play pranks on you.”
Cyrus let go silently and walked away.
I wanted desperately to kick his grumpy back. Surely, he would punch me back with full force. But I couldn’t do it, so I just smiled and watched him leave.
My eyes looked like a waning crescent moon. My mouth was shaped like a little plate.
That pattern was etched on my face like a tattoo.
After that, I barely spoke to Cyrus.
Still, since we shared a room, I saw how he behaved.
As always, diligent and hardworking. Especially in economics, even at thirteen he had his own opinions and passionately discussed with professors what kind of trade he wanted to do when he grew up. Excellent grades, a well-built physique, skilled at sports and swordsmanship.