TN: Thank LittleTerminal14 for the chapter.
TL/PR: Ruminas; ED: novicelily
Ariel had been dwelling on what happened last time.
Because even before that, he had made a mistake with Iria.
Iria had been injured by an explosion of starlight in the swordsmanship training hall.
Though Iria had accepted his apology, the feeling of guilt didn’t easily fade from his heart.
Regardless of her forgiveness, he couldn’t shake the burden it left behind.
But then he made another mistake. This time, it wasn’t an accident but a wound inflicted directly by his words.
He had only wanted an explanation, unaware that his question would reopen Iria’s old trauma.
Seeing her cold expression, he realized how many hidden scars must lie beneath.
Her duller emotions and reluctance to show dislike may be because she had grown numb.
‘Just because someone has red eyes doesn’t mean they’re a monster.’
Thinking of how she must have faced ridicule and disdain just for the way she was born made his heart ache.
Instead of comforting her, he had only added to her pain.
Ariel lowered his head, lost in thought.
‘I was fooled by the whispers of the stars…’
The stars had warned him that Iria wasn’t human.
Ariel didn’t want to believe it, so he tried to confront Iria directly.
That’s probably why he had been so impatient. It wasn’t really Iria he wanted to confront. It was his own fear of what the stars had told him.
‘No, in the end, it’s just an excuse.’
Regardless of his intentions, blaming the stars was only a way to avoid his own guilt.
He knew the fault was his.
He planned to apologize to her soon. Whether she forgave him or not, he had to make things right.
Just as these thoughts weighed on him, Amelia appeared.
“Honestly, don’t you find Iria a bit unpleasant? Her eyes are red, and she seems kind of like a monster.”
“…”
Ariel remained silent momentarily, then slowly turned his head toward her.
“What did you just say?”
His voice was calm, but his face showed cold, simmering anger.
Amelia’s expression faltered at his unexpected reaction.
***
Iria’s POV
I walked through the academy, ignoring the rumors swirling around me.
The words of the weak never even reached my ears.
Whether they feared me or not wasn’t my concern.
They couldn’t expel me anyway.
The occasional fool who dared to speak to me was annoying, but what could those cowards do?
Nothing. They lacked the skill to even challenge me to a duel.
“…”
Still, the matter with Ariel lingered in my mind.
I thought back to that moment on the ridge when he asked me if I was human.
“Hmm.”
How did he know?
Looking back, there were plenty of clues.
The way I was injured by starlight during our duel, my physical abilities exceeded human limits without using mana.
And, of course, my red eyes.
But somehow, I doubted those were the reasons he suspected me.
He doesn’t strike me as someone who would jump to conclusions like that.
Based on what I’ve seen of him, Ariel doesn’t rashly question those he trusts. Especially not someone close to him.
Even though there was plenty to be suspicious of, I knew he wouldn’t have asked me like that without something more.
There must be some other factor I’m unaware of.
‘He’s been different since he awakened to the stars.’
It must be related to that.
Last time, I may have overreacted.
Not that I was truly angry. I just thought it was the best way to hide the truth.
No other solution came to mind. I couldn’t tell him the truth.
It wasn’t a lie, but honestly, I don’t care as much about it now.
Maybe in the past, but I’ve grown too used to it.
And really, what was so bad about asking a monster if they’re a monster?
If anything, Ariel did the right thing. I’m the one who deceived him.
He knew nothing, and yet I hid the truth.
It worked too well on someone as righteous as Ariel—so much that I almost felt guilty for how burdened he seemed.
‘Should I go see him?’
I decided I would meet Ariel again.
Even if I couldn’t resolve our misunderstanding, I wanted him to know I was fine.
It wasn’t hard to guess where he’d be, probably swinging his sword in the training hall.
By the time I finished that thought, I was already standing in front of it.
No one would be here during lunch break, and Ariel would surely be alone.
I opened the door without much thought.
But then…
“I’ll ask you again. What did you just say?”
“Th-that’s not what I meant…”
“Then what did you mean?”
What on earth was happening here?
***
It took some time for Iria, who had just arrived, to grasp the whole situation.
She had to sift through Amelia’s memories to understand the conversation fully.
It took even longer because she couldn’t read Ariel’s memories.
“…”
Iria scratched her cheek.
So, Amelia was the one behind the recent rumors. She had tried to drive a wedge between Ariel and Iria, only for it to backfire.
“Um… Iria? About what happened…”
Iria already knew most of it from reading Amelia’s memories, but Ariel still took his time to explain everything, slowly detailing each point as if to help her understand more deeply and accurately.
Of course, since she knew most of it already, she found herself getting bored, only half-listening while nodding along.
“I don’t really care about what you or Amelia have said.”
Amelia asked in puzzlement, making Iria flinch slightly.
‘Come to think of it, this was our first meeting.’
“Because you’re the top student,” Iria replied, making use of what she’d learned from Amelia’s memories.
The conversation shifted back to the original point.
“So, why did you say those things?”
“…”
Ariel had a rare sharp look on his face.
Usually kind and upright to everyone, he now radiated a cold, controlled anger.
Amelia was flustered. Was this the real Ariel? She’d always thought he was indifferent to the world, focused solely on training.
He was polite, yes, but he kept his distance, preferring to hone his skills over building relationships.
She had assumed he would distance himself from Iria, too—especially now. Surely, if anything interfered with his training, he would sever ties without hesitation.
She’d expected this to be the moment he walked away, indifferent to the outcome.
‘What is this? Why is he so sensitive?!’
Normally, he would have dismissed rumors as irrelevant and focused solely on his training. Yet here he was, standing by Iria’s side.
Why? Why was Iria the exception?
“Well… did I lie?” Amelia’s voice wavered but quickly grew sharper. “In an incident where people got hurt, and the one suspected of causing it did strange things, isn’t it natural for others to feel uneasy? I just let people know what I saw. What’s the problem with that?”
Cornered, Amelia lashed out. Her voice was raised as if shouting her reasoning would make it stronger. She refused to back down, even as she faced the strongest student in the academy.
“In the first place, isn’t it her fault for staying quiet while these rumors spread? If she’s not denying it, doesn’t that mean it’s true?”
It wasn’t wrong.
Iria, who had been listening quietly from the side, actually agreed with her, at least partially. After all, Amelia wasn’t wrong. Iria was at the center of that incident and hadn’t bothered to deny it. Not because she couldn’t, but because she wasn’t particularly good at lying. And, honestly, it just felt like a waste of effort.
The academy, to Iria, was a place to keep an eye on Ariel. That was her priority, not managing rumors.
However, Amelia’s justification didn’t sit well with everyone.
“Amelia Endelson,” Ariel said, his voice cold and unyielding, “you are a coward.”
Amelia flinched, taken aback by his words.
“What?”
“Iria is not an outlet for your filthy emotions. Aren’t you ashamed? A third-year, trying to bully a first-year to make yourself feel better?”
Ariel’s blue eyes gleamed, icy and filled with contempt.
Translator’s Corner
Triple digits. Yippie~
-Ruminas