How to Survive as That Villainess - Chapter 20

Chapter 3: A Well-Timed Day (6)

I had slept to relieve my fatigue, but instead of feeling refreshed, I felt only a lingering unease. As I stretched my arms upwards and tried to shake off the discomfort, I turned my head, concerned about Aren’s unusual silence.

Aren was intently examining my ankle, his expression deeply troubled. He flinched as if he were the one hurt, looking exactly like a rabbit. I thought he looked like a rabbit because of his white, soft hair and his golden eyes that shimmered in the light. So cute! It would be rude to think such things, so I had to be careful not to let such careless remarks slip out.

“Aren?”

Hearing my call, Aren seemed to come to his senses, withdrawing his gaze from my ankle and giving me a gentle smile. His smile, still warm and kind like spring sunshine, naturally put me at ease.

“But what brings you here? You’re not hurt, are you…?”

Was he attacked by someone or involved in a fight? I thought for a moment but then shook my head. Who would dare touch Aren? His fan club, ever vigilant, would surely take care of any ruffian who dared to attack Aren.

Even without the fan club, Aren, who can handle magic as easily as breathing, could have taken care of things himself, so there was nothing to worry about. It was the attacker, trying to harm the future Tower Master with just a sword, who should be worried.

“I’m not here because I got hurt.”

His voice, usually high-pitched, lowered. Aren took my hand, which was resting on my thigh, with his large, warm hand, and then gently intertwined his fingers with mine. Oh my, what are you doing? Is this some sort of seduction…?

If a man with such a perfect mix of handsomeness and cuteness tried to seduce me, I’d definitely fall for it, given my weakness for attractive men. While it’s unlikely that Aren would try to seduce me, I decided to stay alert just in case.

“I heard you fell. So I came because I was worried.”

While I was trying to stay sharp and focused, Aren continued speaking calmly and with ease.

“Um, could you let go of my hand…?”

Fidgeting as I spoke, more concerned about our interlocked hands than his words, Aren obediently let go.

“I’m glad you seem healthy like this.”

Aren, speaking seriously today, felt unfamiliar. Still, interrupting and changing the subject didn’t seem right for a friend, so I just listened quietly. Ugh, but it’s a bit cold. I shouldn’t have slept with the window open. The autumn breeze was colder than I thought. My body was shivering, and it seemed like I had a slight fever. It would be a big problem if I caught a cold…

“If Radel gets hurt, I…”

“Achoo!”

Oh no, I ended up sneezing. I felt sorry for unintentionally interrupting Aren. Sniffling, I gestured for Aren to continue speaking.

“Well, I, uh, Radel, I…”

“Achoo…! Ugh, achoo!”

I couldn’t help the sneezes that kept coming.

Since it was beyond my control, I ended up shattering the serious atmosphere once again. This wasn’t intentional. Sneezes and similar things aren’t something I can stop.

I felt embarrassed and sorry for repeatedly interrupting. The serious atmosphere I had created after so long had turned into something strange. Once again, seriousness was neatly folded and tossed to the sky. Whoosh.

“Sorry, Aren. Just laugh all you want…”

I saw Aren with his head down, trying to suppress his laughter. It seemed my sneezing was a little, no, a lot funny to him. When I told him in a weary voice to just laugh, Aren really did burst into laughter. I had never seen this side of him before. It was refreshing, but I couldn’t completely shake off the awkward feeling.

“Are you done laughing?”

I patted his back as I asked, and Aren nodded while wiping away tears. Was it that funny to the point of tears? Was my sneezing that much of a spectacle? How many embarrassing moments have I added today…

“Really, Radel, you’re such an unpredictable person.”

Aren said with a bright smile. I took it as a compliment. Surely Aren wasn’t trying to subtly imply I was clueless.

“You’re also quite unique, and that’s why I like you.”

Now I was even told I was unique. That’s a compliment too… right? I should be happy about that, right? Despite the questions in my mind, I just smiled. Since he said he liked me, that’s a good thing.

It must mean that. I don’t know how it happened, but it seemed like my favorability with Aren had increased a bit. If the outcome is good, then everything is good.

“Then rest well.”

Aren said he had another lecture and hurried out. Before leaving, he closed the window and tucked the blanket over me, which was touching. I waved him goodbye and closed my eyes once more. Though I wasn’t sleepy, I had a lot to think about.

‘Why did Seria do that all of a sudden?’

This was my first thought after I fell. Up until now, Seria had always seemed like a meticulous and thorough woman. What on earth had made her act so hastily? Of course, I had been meddling with the fish in her pond lately. But I didn’t expect the pond owner to notice me so quickly…

Was it just a warning, or was it silent pressure to stay as I was before?

Seria seemed to really enjoy her role. The role of the beautiful and tragic heroine. I hadn’t even posed a threat to that role, yet she hurriedly attacked me.

I felt like things were getting tangled. What was even stranger was Seria’s expression, which contradicted her rash actions. She was smiling leisurely, as if she was enjoying it.

What on earth is this heroine thinking?

I wish I could read minds at times like this. Then I wouldn’t feel so frustrated, and things would go more smoothly.

“Ah, I don’t know!”

Thinking about Seria was annoying. I decided to just get some sleep and leave the infirmary at lunchtime. I forced myself to sleep in the infirmary, which had somehow turned into an accommodation facility.

***

“So, you skipped class to sleep?”

“That’s right, the infirmary bed is quite nice.”

I had lunch with Alec, whom I met by chance during lunchtime. We were sitting neatly at the place where we had eaten sandwiches before, chatting away while he looked at me incredulously.

Alec’s expression was so funny that I couldn’t help but burst out laughing. Fortunately, I didn’t have any food in my mouth, so there was no mishap.

“Have you heard the rumors about you?”

“What rumors?”

I had a bad feeling. I slowly put the tomato sandwich I was holding into my mouth and listened to Alec.

“I’ll just tell you the gist of what I heard.”

“Don’t beat around the bush, hurry up!”

If it were rumors about someone else, it wouldn’t matter, but since it was about me, it made me anxious. What kind of rumor was it that even Alec, who wasn’t interested in anything besides Seria, heard about it? Chewing the sandwich filling my mouth, I focused on Alec’s words.

“There’s a rumor that you deliberately tripped over Seria’s foot to get Lord Kailon’s help, which sounds a bit strange.”

“What…?”

Alec said this as he reached for my sandwich. I slapped Alec’s hand to protect my food and asked again. Alec rubbed his reddened hand and shed a few tears.

“Yowch, can’t you just give me one…?”

“Stop pretending to be pitiful and tell me again, what did I do?”

“So, there’s a rumor that you deliberately used Seria to pretend to trip and then threw a tantrum to get Lord Kailon’s help…”

“What nonsense!”

I was so dumbfounded that I couldn’t even speak. I put down the sandwich I was eating and sighed deeply. I was so shocked by the rumor that I couldn’t even stop Alec from secretly eating my cherished tomato sandwich.

“Calm down. I also thought it was a ridiculous rumor because you would never do that.”

“Alec, you jerk. I always thought of you as a pathetic guy who only cared about Seria!”

“What? Is that really what you thought of me?”

I was feeling touched by Alec’s unexpected loyalty when someone tugged on my hair. It was a gentle tug, so it didn’t hurt. However, being extremely sensitive at the moment, I furrowed my brows slightly and turned around. Who is it?

“Hello, star of the rumor.”

“Huan?”

It was Huan, with a somewhat pouty face. I wondered if he was here because of the Seria issue, but it didn’t seem like it. The atmosphere wasn’t tense enough for that.

“What’s up?”

“You’re asking what’s up? How dare you skip my lesson and act so carefree.”

“Oh, right.”

Come to think of it, I had agreed to take dance lessons from Huan during lunchtime. We had decided this after discussing it yesterday since I had student council work after the academy… I had completely forgotten!

“Come on, follow me.”

Huan’s face was determined as he grabbed my wrist and pulled me along. What’s this? He used to say he didn’t want to teach me, and now he seems to feel some sense of responsibility. Come to think of it, I always seem to meet important people whenever I eat lunch at that spot. Last time it was Kyle, and this time it’s Huan. I should start calling that place the meeting spot.

While I was making useless resolutions to myself, I looked back and saw Alec eating my entire sandwich.

That jerk! I take back what I said about him having loyalty.