Chapter 2.4

The Herais Imperial Academy, which had recently held its entrance ceremony, was buzzing with excitement. It was because of the Young Lord of Klein, who had ranked first in the entrance exam.  

Everyone was thrilled by the sight of him elegantly reading the freshman declaration in front of the entire student body. Even without the Klein Ducal Family’s prestige, Leonard was a dazzling person in his own right.  

With his beautiful appearance and gentle smile, he had won the favor of all professors and the admiration of his peers within a week of entering the Academy. It was only natural, given that he was perfect in every way—family, looks, personality, and intelligence.  

Meanwhile, the student who tied for first place with him also became quite a topic of conversation, though not as much as the Young Lord of Klein. It wasn’t just because Raven Winston, a female student, was a commoner sponsored by the Chernor Marquis Family.  

Raven Winston was quite, no, very pretty.  

As indicated by her jet-black hair, she wasn’t a noble and glamorous beauty. But her skin was so white that her veins seemed visible, and her slender, lean figure caught the eye.  

In addition to the fact that she had ranked second, beating out prominent noble families, her black-rimmed glasses added to her intellectual aura, and her sharp, fierce-looking but actually long and slender eyes made her look somewhat intriguing. It was easy to spot male students glancing at her in every class.  

Despite her attention-grabbing appearance, few students interacted with her. Those who had spoken with her all described her as an arrogant and insolent personality for a commoner. Whether it was true or not, given her naturally taciturn nature and reluctance to blend in, she seemed to have earned a poor reputation, either by choice or circumstance.  

So even those who approached her lightly, thinking, ‘She’s just a commoner who’s good at studying, so if I sweet-talk her a bit… heh,’ ended up backing off, horrified.

Thrown into an academy full of nobles as a commoner, one might expect Raven Winston to feel intimidated, but she always walked with her back straight and her head held high.  

However, what was truly surprising was that Raven Winston and the perfect Young Lord Leonard Klein were often seen together. It even seemed as though Leonard was the one being more friendly.  

Many students were quite surprised and puzzled by this fact.  

Why would Leonard Klein, who was naturally kind but did not offer his company to just anyone, show interest in her and try to befriend her?  

* * *  

Indeed, she was curious about that too—why Leonard wanted to spend time with her.  

“…….”  

She glanced sideways at Leonard, who was reading a book beside her, shifting her eyes.  

It didn’t feel particularly good to be surrounded by all sorts of rumors just a week after entering the academy.  

She understood that there would be talk because Leonard, everyone’s prince, was always seen accompanying a commoner girl wherever he went, but she disliked being the center of attention.  

If she knew the reason, she might feel more at ease, but she herself didn’t understand why Leonard was acting this way.  

Just today, Leonard had been by her side all day, except for one class he attended separately.  

He wasn’t someone who lacked people to hang out with; in fact, there were plenty of people approaching him. Why was he following her around instead?  

It wasn’t a big problem, but the attention from others was burdensome, and frankly, it was a bit… quite annoying.  

“…Sigh.”  

She sighed quietly and turned her head towards Leonard. He really did have a beautiful face.  

She found herself staring at his face with a curious expression. Looking at his perfectly sculpted features, she felt a dreamy illusion of being drawn in somewhere.  

How could all those features fit on such a small face?  

What did he do to his eyes to make them sparkle with such vivid violet color? Did he use magic or something?  

His blonde hair looked like threads spun from real gold.  

“……!”  

No, this wasn’t the time to be admiring Leonard’s appearance.  

Suddenly regaining her senses, she shook her head. She held back another sigh and propped her chin with her hand.  

It was true that Leonard was a bother and a complication. She had never had friends in her life, and due to her unsociable nature, she expected to spend all three years at the Academy alone.  

Moreover, she had a high and clear goal of being the top student. Perhaps that’s why she was so flustered by a popular boy like Leonard suddenly being so forward with her.  

She glanced sideways at Leonard again. At that moment, the sunlight caught on the ends of his golden hair and sparkled.  

Yes, it’s a bit much to coldly push away someone who’s done nothing wrong…? Besides, how could someone like me refuse the son of a Duke? If he wants to hang out, I should at least pretend to bow and stick with him.  

“Sigh.”  

Pressing her temples as if she had a headache, she eventually sighed and closed her book. Even though she hadn’t made much noise, Leonard raised his head with a friendly smile.  

“Why, Raven? If you’ve finished your homework, should we get going?”  

“Oh, yeah. I think we should head to the next class now.”  

She nodded bluntly and stood up. As they left the library, Leonard asked with a gentle smile.  

“Want to go together to the next class?”  

“…Your classroom is in the opposite direction of mine.”  

“That’s true…. Okay, then see you later.”  

Leonard, though looking disappointed, obediently headed to his classroom.  

“Oh, see you later…?”  

Muttering in bewilderment, she nodded as she headed to her classroom.  

She couldn’t understand Leonard Klein’s intentions at all. What did he want from her? She was just a commoner with nothing to offer.  

Filled with questions, she opened the classroom door, and all eyes focused on her.  

“…….”  

Such curious attention was overwhelming for her.  

With a face full of discomfort, she found her seat and sat down.  

As she fumbled with her open book and pressed her tired eyelids, a male student with brown hair approached her and spoke.  

“Hi, Winston. Remember me? I’m Peter Grayson.”  

“Oh, yeah. Hi.”  

Sending Leonard away, now his friend came.  

She nodded slightly, substituting the gesture for a greeting, and Peter chuckled as he sat in front of her.  

“You always seem so indifferent.”  

“Do I?”  

Responding flatly, she opened her book.  

Leonard’s group was entirely made up of nobles with good lineage or wealth. Peter Grayson, in front of her, was no exception.  

He was from the Grayson Earl Family and had been friends with Leonard since childhood. She had no choice but to know him because Leonard had forcibly introduced them. It wasn’t so much knowing him as having seen his face a few times.  

“You’ve got some strange rumors going around. What did you do?”  

“I didn’t do much.”  

She was aware of the rumors about her being ill-tempered and arrogant.  

There was a reason she suspected, but even so, she didn’t think it was enough to warrant such criticism. 

Should I greet everyone I meet with a smile and treat them kindly? Like Leonard does?  

She added reluctantly.  

“I just said no when someone asked to see my notes.”  

She hadn’t expected refusing to show her notes to a student who hadn’t even paid attention in class to be misconstrued in such a way.  

Nobles were so sensitive. They must have been upset that a commoner they expected to kowtow to wouldn’t even show her notes. Thinking of that student grumbling about her made her laugh.  

“You probably didn’t just say no with your personality.”  

Peter said, resting his chin on his hand, as if he understood.  

“What’s wrong with my personality?”  

She put down her pen and glanced at Peter. She was about to retort when, conveniently, the class started. 

Damn it. 

Peter turned away with a sly smile.  

She had no choice but to look at the blackboard, but honestly, she couldn’t concentrate. She had to grip her pen tightly to keep her mind from wandering.  

And at the center of those wandering thoughts was Leonard Klein.  

* * *  

The class, which felt unusually long, finally ended.  

She stood up, stretching her neck stiff from sitting in the same position for so long, when Peter suddenly followed her.  

“What’s this?”  

She looked up at him with a puzzled expression, and Peter gestured to her casually.  

“Let’s go. Leon will be in front of the library.”  

“I know, but why are you taking me?”  

Walking down the hallway with him, she asked sullenly, but Peter didn’t answer. He merely nodded his head, urging her to follow.  

Fine, whatever happens, happens. Meeting Leonard wouldn’t make her miss the next class anyway.  

She sighed and relaxed her body as if she had given up. Either way, Leonard would find her like a ghost. It sounded a bit odd, but she had gotten quite used to hanging out with Leonard by now.