Chapter 1.8

“…I always feel that your words are really short.”

Whether annoyed by her words or genuinely irked by her tone, Enoch narrowed his eyes.

“This is the academy. You and I are both equal students here.”

She smirked arrogantly and crossed her arms.

“I only have to call you ‘Young Master’ at the Marquis Residence.”

“Right, I’m looking forward to it.”

Enoch fiddled with his pale blonde hair that reached his shoulders and smiled lazily.

“Father is also eagerly anticipating the upcoming exam.”

“…….”

As she scowled at his words, Enoch laughed out loud as if enjoying himself.

He knew precisely where her weaknesses lay.

The Marquis Chernor, her sponsor and Enoch’s father, had an abnormal obsession with her grades. Two years ago, upon hearing that she and Leonard were joint top scorers in the entrance exam, he had pressured her to defeat Leonard no matter what, his eyes glaring red.

It seemed he disliked not only Leonard but also the Klein Ducal Family, though why he used her to vent his inferiority complex was a mystery.

Enoch’s words, which hit the exact nerve of her frustration and the threat of possibly losing support, filled her with irritation beyond her limits, prompting her to finally speak her mind.

“Thanks for the heads-up. But maybe you should stop chasing after girls and spend more time looking at books. That might help raise your exam scores a bit, don’t you think? After all, you’ve got nothing but your looks….”

Not bothering to hide her rotten expression, she spat out her harsh words, prompting Enoch to raise his hands in surrender and lower his eyebrows.

“I get that you’re upset about losing the top spot repeatedly, but calm down, Raven.”

“Ha, who’s losing it? I’m taking first place in this exam. So stop meddling and focus on yourself.”

She turned her head abruptly, her face scrunched up again as if she hadn’t been arrogantly smiling moments ago. Enoch continued to look at her, letting out a hollow laugh.

It’s just as unpleasant as when they were 14. No, at least back then, he wasn’t this annoying.

“What are you doing? Get out. You don’t have the next class here.”

“Class hasn’t even started yet, don’t be so cold.”

When she glared at him silently, Enoch feigned a hurt expression. Ignoring him, she maintained her neutral expression with her arms crossed, prompting Enoch to finally shrug as he collected his coat draped over a nearby chair.

“Alright, alright. You’re studying, huh? You really live such a dull life.”

“Just leave.”

“Even if you try hard, with Leonard Klein around, you’ll still end up second, won’t you?”

Take it easy, take it easy.

Enoch patted her shoulder as he exited the classroom. His teal eyes curved unpleasantly at her appearance. She responded by grimacing back at him.

“…Ha!”

Once the door closed, she irritably brushed off the shoulder Enoch had touched.

Who does he think he is, ranking below 20th, to say anything?

Scoffing, she sat down, tidying her fallen hair and adjusting her glasses.

…Anyway, it’s a problem.

As she mentioned, since the entrance exam, she hadn’t taken first place even once. Only once, in the entrance exam, was she joint top scorer with Leonard. So, for this exam, she had to secure first place by any means necessary, but what method could she possibly use?

Having boasted so loudly, if she ended up second again, Enoch would surely mock her. Then she’d get angry, and the Marquis would get annoyed again. Then her uncle….

She didn’t care about anything else, but she wanted to avoid being a burden to her uncle.

It seemed Enoch had thoroughly shaken her mental state with his smirking.

Even after class started, she couldn’t concentrate, biting her nails while discreetly glancing at Leonard sitting beside her.

Thinking about it, Leonard remained completely composed even during the exam period, when everyone else was struggling, and even on the day of the exam, when she herself was tense. Whether he was naturally mentally strong or managed himself well, he was strikingly different from her, who became anxious at Enoch’s words.

“……”

Chewing her thumbnail, she glared at Leonard, lost in thought.

About a brilliant and good way to unsettle that calm face.

* * *

While pondering ways to mess with Leonard, class time quickly ended.

She had wasted the class thinking about that guy. 

This won’t do. 

She couldn’t afford to fall behind, so she needed to head to the library quickly to find books for her project.

Without giving anyone a chance to speak to her, she packed up and headed to the library. Fortunately, the library was quiet and empty at this time, allowing her to choose books in peace.

“…….”

Soon, while wandering through the stacks, she found a book suitable for her project but couldn’t reach it. It was on the top shelf, just out of reach. Though she was taller than most girls her age, it wasn’t enough.

After a while of tapping the area around the book on tiptoe, frustration welled up. Still, she grimaced again and struggled, reaching desperately at the almost reachable distance, when a large, white hand extended from behind her and snatched the book she was trying to grab. She turned around with a fierce expression.

“I got to it first…!”

“Is this the one?”

“…….”

The face of the person who asked in a bright tone darkened rapidly. Well, she couldn’t see her own expression, but it probably did.

She had specifically chosen a quiet time. With almost no one around, why was he here?

Leonard, with a kind face, handed her the book as she silently frowned instead of responding.

“Here you go.”

She was contemplating saying it wasn’t the right book and running away, but reluctantly took it from him. Leonard, in a friendly manner, started a conversation.

“Hi, Raven. Are you doing some research?”

Since he had helped her get the book, she couldn’t completely ignore him, so she reluctantly nodded.

Leonard, with a bright expression, continued speaking.

“What a coincidence. I’m here for research too.”

“…….”

“Uh, since we’re in the same class, if you don’t mind, maybe we could….”

Even as Leonard began speaking with a shy face, she was already looking for a way out.

“No, I’m done.”

Wanting to get out of the situation quickly, she turned away before he could finish his sentence.

“Uh…!”

His hand hesitantly touched her shoulder and then withdrew. For some reason, she stopped in her tracks.

Then Leonard, uncharacteristically, spoke in an uneasy and trembling voice. She couldn’t see his expression as she had her back to him.

“Uh, Raven. If you’re still mad at me….”

“I told you it’s not that.”

She replied in a somewhat harsh tone and turned away coldly.

Glancing back, Leonard wasn’t following her anymore. But he hadn’t left the spot in front of the bookshelf either, just standing there for a while.

“…Tsk.”

Foolish. 

She felt relieved to have gotten away from him quickly, but she couldn’t deny she still felt uneasy.

Clutching the book she borrowed from the library tightly, she moved on.

* * *

“Haha, sorry…. As you know, I couldn’t because of studying for midterms.”

“Uh, uh! Hey, what are you worried about? Our leader is the famous second place, so she’ll somehow handle it.”

“…….”

She closed her eyes tightly and rubbed her temples furiously at the sycophantic gazes directed at her.

She knew all too well what this sudden flattery was aiming for. Even if she now urged them to do the research, the girl sitting there wouldn’t finish it on time, the boy wouldn’t write the report properly, and the other boy wouldn’t do the presentation correctly.

The ominous feeling she had last time was entirely accurate. It wasn’t surprising. She had realized this long ago after dealing with numerous troublesome groups.

“…Give it here.”

When she sighed and spoke, the rest of the group members’ eyes shone with delight.

They hadn’t expected a commoner like her to take charge of the noble group members and act as the leader. Rather than producing a mediocre result through so-called cooperation with this foolish combination, it was better to just take it all on herself.

From that day on, she literally went crazy with the project. To the extent that it wouldn’t be surprising if blood suddenly dripped from her nose. Her roommate complained every night, begging her to sleep, as the candle on her desk never went out until dawn.

Having looked at so much related material, she had practically become friends with Emperor Julius in her mind. To speak of something a bit unpleasant, she threw up three times while working on this project due to stress.

Even after all the hard work, it took quite a long time to complete the project to a satisfactory level. It was only natural, considering she was doing the work of four people by herself.

Drinking several cups of black tea a day and staying up all night working on the project, the dreaded presentation day finally arrived.