Chapter 3.4
While lost in thought, Ophelia turned her attention to the loud, deliberate voices meant to be overheard.
“Is she planning to switch from the Young Duke to the Young Marquis now?”
“Well, they do suit each other better. They’re both so plain.”
As expected, Lady Grafton was once again gossiping about Ophelia. She didn’t even know if the man from earlier was from a marquis family, so what did she mean by “switching”?
The mocking and sneering voices were enough to ignite Ophelia’s anger. Spreading baseless rumors was one thing, but this was crossing the line. Why were they spreading such stories without even verifying the facts?
If Ophelia had done something to wrong them, she might have understood. But that wasn’t the case, and the frustration was enough to make her chest feel tight.
“Why are you doing this to me? How can you insult me to my face without even confirming the truth? Have you forgotten your dignity as nobles?”
Unable to hold back any longer, Ophelia approached them and confronted them. She could tolerate being compared to Cedric, but dragging her into baseless rumors with another man was too much.
The young ladies who had been mocking her looked at her with expressions of disbelief.
What’s wrong with her? She must be crazy.
After exchanging glances, they left without a word.
“Ugh. I shouldn’t have bothered.”
Their shameless attitude made Ophelia regret confronting them. They would believe whatever they wanted anyway, and raising her voice would only worsen her reputation.
“Honestly, why don’t they just break off the engagement already? Why do they keep dragging me into this?”
But unable to suppress her anger, Ophelia shouted loudly, not caring if others overheard. She desperately hoped her words would reach Cedric.
When would she finally be free of this toxic connection with Cedric? As long as she was tied to him, Ophelia felt a foreboding sense that she would never escape this constant torment.
Sighing deeply, Ophelia recalled Young Lady Somerset’s behavior. Specifically, the time when she couldn’t bear the mocking and sneering attitudes of those around her.
Could it be… Is she trying to shift the attention and criticism onto me because she doesn’t want to be the target?
If Ophelia’s suspicion was correct, then Young Lady Somerset was truly selfish. She wanted to maintain her relationship with Cedric but didn’t want to endure the criticism. Wasn’t that far too much?
She wanted to deny it, but she couldn’t. The idea of someone creating baseless rumors seemed to have only one purpose: to divert attention toward Ophelia.
The more she thought about it, the more her irritation grew, refusing to subside. After parting ways with Nina, Ophelia headed toward the garden.
The Royal Academy’s garden was filled with lavender, and she thought she could calm her mind and body by inhaling its scent.
Whenever she was stressed, the fragrance of lavender would improve her mood. She wanted to force herself to relax, even if only a little.
Thump, thump. Her heavy footsteps echoed as she walked, drawing the attention of those around her. But she didn’t have the luxury to care about their stares. Right now, calming her anger took priority.
It wasn’t until much later that Ophelia realized something was wrong as she walked determinedly toward the garden.
The academy was vast, and if one wasn’t careful, it was easy to lose their way. The maze-like structure of the campus was the headmaster’s doing—he was a maze enthusiast and had designed the academy to reflect his passion.
Students were given maps upon admission, and since Ophelia was now in her final year, she had no reason to get lost. But she had taken the wrong path, likely due to her agitated state. The fact that she now had to take a longer route to reach the laboratory only added to her frustration.
In a fit of irritation, she kicked at the small stones in her path. The pebbles rolled away, scattering in all directions.
Her eyes followed the stones, and as she watched one come to a stop, her body froze in shock.
“…!”
Her heart, which had been racing from anger, now started pounding for an entirely different reason. Ophelia’s gaze had landed on an indecent scene.
The two figures—a man and a woman—were entwined like snakes, sharing a passionate kiss. The heat radiating from them was so intense that just watching them made her feel embarrassed.
What on earth were they doing at the academy?
There was nothing wrong with engaged couples kissing, but this was within the school grounds.
Even if it was a secluded spot, it was still a public place. Shouldn’t they avoid such acts here?
Thinking this, Ophelia decided to simply pass by the shameless couple. But before she realized it, she had stopped in her tracks.
Wait a moment.
Ophelia’s eyes widened as she stared at the couple.
Those two… weren’t they…?
If she remembered correctly, both of them were engaged to different people.
Why were they doing this when they each had their own fiancé? Were they insane? How could they so boldly engage in such behavior at the academy?
To make matters worse, the woman was one of the girls who often gossiped about Ophelia. How could someone with such poor behavior have the audacity to criticize her?
Although it wasn’t something Ophelia should meddle in, the shock she felt was enough to make her skin crawl.
She felt she shouldn’t let herself be seen. If they misunderstood and thought she was spying on them, she could easily become entangled in another baseless rumor. She hated the thought of that.
Just as she was thinking this, a familiar but unwelcome voice called out.
“Here you are….”
Ah! Who is it?!
As she cautiously stepped backward, she heard the voice of Cedric.
Why did it have to be him, of all people?
Ophelia quickly turned around. The moment she saw Cedric’s face, she immediately covered his mouth with her hand.
“Shh!”
Instead of speaking, Ophelia gestured with her eyes toward the couple. Following her gaze, Cedric seemed to understand the situation and nodded.
After she removed her hand, Ophelia carefully began to walk away, making sure not to alert the couple. Cedric followed her quietly.
It wasn’t until they were far enough away from the couple that Ophelia felt like she could finally breathe properly. She took a deep breath and exhaled before Cedric spoke.
“Do you have a habit of spying on others?”
“I-I didn’t mean to! I was just so shocked to see two people, each with a different fiancé, kissing like that….”
Feeling guilty, Ophelia glanced at Cedric, trying to gauge his reaction.
“Is this your first time seeing something like that? There are more people like them than you’d think.”
“You knew about this?”
Ophelia’s eyes widened in surprise, resembling a startled rabbit. She had no idea that such a world existed behind the scenes at the academy.
“If you walk through these secluded areas often enough, you’ll see it occasionally.”
“Oh, I see. By the way, why are you following me?”
Even as she sent him a look that clearly said,
Stop following me.
Cedric pretended not to notice and continued trailing behind her. It felt as if he was deliberately stepping on her shadow, and it was starting to annoy her.
“You told me to follow you.”
“When did I ever say that? I only told you to stay quiet.”
Ophelia grumbled under her breath; her voice tinged with irritation. She cast an unkind glance at Cedric, who returned her look with a displeased expression.
“So now that I’m no longer useful, you’re telling me to leave?”
“I didn’t say that.”
“Isn’t that what you meant? Am I wrong?”
“….”
He wasn’t wrong, so she couldn’t deny it. However, she felt like she had to say something. She didn’t want to let Cedric have the upper hand. While she was trying to think of something that might fluster him, Cedric suddenly said something unexpected.
“What? Have you fallen for someone else now?”
“What?”
What nonsense was he spouting all of a sudden?
Suppressing the anger that began to rise, Ophelia glared at Cedric. His face showed neither a smile nor a frown, but the coldness in his gaze sent a chill down her spine.
Could it be that Cedric had heard the rumors? Considering how loudly they’d been spread; it was no surprise that he might have. But what did that have to do with him? Why would he bring up the rumors in this situation?