Hello, Readers! I am celebrating my birthday with extra chapter updates, so please enjoy this special chapter release of 4 bonus chapters! 🥳

(Lurelia’s Birthday Bonus – Update 1/4 🎉)

♡ To all readers who purchased these chapters before my Birthday: I can’t express this enough – Thank you for your support. (*ˊᗜˋ*)/ᵗᑋᵃᐢᵏ ᵞᵒᵘ*

“Huh, alright. Ian.”

Professor Jose, in charge of the activity class, gestured to Ian who had come to the professor’s office.

“…How is Louis’s condition?”

“Fortunately, it wasn’t a serious injury. Although he did lose quite a bit of blood, we have excellent healing awakened ones at our academy, so he was treated quickly.”

“That’s a relief.”

“Yes. Don’t worry, he’ll be fine.”

“Yes, Professor.”

Jose examined the evaluation sheets brought by the assistant. Except for Group 7, all had properly completed their final evaluations.

This meant that nothing unusual had happened anywhere else.

Except for Group 7’s exam site where a high-level monster suddenly appeared.

“Hmm……”

“Professor, was that monster earlier really high-level?”

“…Yes, it was.”

“How could a high-level monster enter an exam site meant for low-level monsters? I almost lost all my group members. This goes against fairness.”

Not knowing the reason himself, Jose chose his words carefully in response to Ian’s question.

“Don’t worry about this evaluation. You all fought according to the rules sufficiently.”

“……”

“You even protected the healer as you were taught.”

“…Yes.”

Ian felt uncomfortable with the professor’s words, but couldn’t pinpoint where this discomfort was coming from.

“You did well leading your group members as the leader. Go back and rest.”

“Yes, I understand.”

Ian left the professor’s office and hesitated for a moment. He was unsure where to go next.

Although they were in the same group, he wondered if it was right to visit Louis, who was not only someone he wasn’t close with normally but also a commoner.

As he was conflicting, he turned his head at the sound of a student calling from a group.

“Mr. Ian. You’re going to visit Miss Anna, right?”

“We just heard the news too, let’s go together.”

“What on earth happened?”

“I know. Miss Anna must have been so shocked.”

“I’m so surprised my hands are shaking.”

While chattering among themselves, they subtly pushed him. Ian, who had been standing blankly, inwardly laughed at their behavior.

Sometimes, he found it unbearably amusing how they claimed to be worried about their friend while their eyes sparkled towards him.

However, Ian skillfully managed his expression as he replied.

“Yes, I was planning to pay a visit. Let’s go together.”

“You’re so kind, as expected.”

“Of course you’d be concerned, being the group leader.”

“Indeed.”

Although they wanted to go with him, the female students who couldn’t stand Anna getting all the attention chattered among themselves, but it didn’t reach Ian’s ears.

Because he was thinking of Aer.

He was, just a little bit, curious about her condition.

***

Recently, Louis was in a bit of a predicament. It felt like he was being punished for lying, but for a punishment, it was too joyful, so it didn’t seem like that either.

“If you feel dizzy while walking, lean on me. Understood?”

“…I’m fine now. I think Aer needs to be more careful than me.”

If they were injured together in the same place, they should receive the same treatment. But because her injury was minor, Aer only received a prescription from the infirmary.

She still had a bandage on her ankle. Although she didn’t need to use crutches, she would feel discomfort while walking.

“Hold my hand, Aer.”

As they had to go down the stairs, Louis extended his hand. Aer replied, unable to hide her joy.

“Thank you, Louis.”

It was the day the semester was ending. The entire academy was noisy with students excited about returning home after a long time.

All grades gathered in one place to listen to the principal’s words of admonition. Although he introduced it as a simple greeting.

“I hope you won’t forget that you are members of the only academy in the Basium Empire with a long history and tradition, even during the vacation. Now then. See you next semester.”

“Woohoo!”

As soon as the long greeting ended, the students shouted as if they had been waiting for it.

After lightly hugging and greeting each other, the students headed towards their waiting families.

Although not for 2nd and 3rd years, quite a few families of 1st-year students attended the vacation ceremony.

“Oh my, isn’t that Duchess Raymond and the Duke?”

“It seems they’ve come to pick up the young duke.”

“The Duchess is still so beautiful.”

“Indeed.”

The chatter of the parents could be heard. Amidst this, Vivian de Raymond, the original female lead, gracefully passed by.

And by her side was the original male lead, Knox de Raymond.

“Father, Mother.” Ian approached them happily.

“Our son, you’ve worked hard.”

Vivian embraced Ian. Knox looked at his sturdy son with a benevolent expression and said, “I’ve already heard. It seems you’ve been quite active.”

“Thank you.”

Ian’s expression softened at his father’s praise. Then, with curiosity evident on his face, he looked around and asked, “By the way, didn’t Pamela come with you?”

“Hoho, how can you two be so alike?”

No sooner had Vivian finished speaking than Pamela, who had been hiding behind Knox, jumped out and exclaimed, “Brother, congratulations on your first vacation!”

She held out a red rose to Ian, exactly like her own eyes. Ian replied, looking at Pamela with eyes dripping with honey, unlike his usual cold face.

“Thank you, Mel.”

“Hehehe.”

Despite being just a year apart, Ian found Pamela extremely cute. Those around watched the Raymond Ducal family with admiration.

A harmonious family was heartwarming just to observe.

Aer also watched the original protagonist’s family. This moment of being thoroughly relegated to a supporting role felt strange.

‘Clearly, I’m living in this world, but seeing the protagonist’s family makes it feel like I’m not…’

The impression was different from when she had only seen Ian. As she was frantically looking at the person who would become the protagonist of the original story and the spin-off, Louis took her hand.

“Aer, let’s go.”

“…Ah, yes.”

As she passed through the crowd with Louis, a small murmur pierced her eardrum.

“Detestable Bestia.”

Once she heard one, they started to follow in succession. It felt foolish that she hadn’t heard them until now, as everyone seemed to be criticizing Aer.

“He must have some conscience at least. He didn’t follow to the academy…”

“Instead, his daughter came.”

“Ugh, could he have sent his daughter to watch?”

“The daughter would probably be more interested in the young duke than the Duchess…”

Whisper, whisper.

The quietly mumbling voices gradually grew louder and stronger.

Before those voices could completely overwhelm her, the two of them left the auditorium.

“……”

After recalling her past life memories, she thought she wouldn’t be affected by the past anymore.

She had even let go of the parental affection she had so desperately craved, so she thought others wouldn’t matter much.

But the power of the crowd she faced directly was different.

Even though she was clearly different from before and no longer liked Ian, her past mistakes were still holding her back.

Moreover, even the actions of her father, whom she didn’t even consider family, were all attributed as her faults.

It wasn’t that she hadn’t thought about this at all, but feeling it directly on her skin made the back of her head throb.

“Aer, let’s go.”

She, who had momentarily lost her senses, was able to gather her thoughts thanks to Louis’s voice and warmth.

“…Yeah.”

She was so grateful that Louis was by her side. Just as she was about to take a difficult step, someone called out to them from behind.

“So it’s you two.”

A chilly voice stopped them in their tracks. When they turned around, Anna and her mother, Countess Gonzalo, were standing there.

They approached Aer and Louis. Anna spoke to her mother with a sulky expression.

“It’s them, Mom.”

“Are you the ones who saved my daughter?”

The question and its tone were so contradictory that it was strange. As if displeased that they had saved her, Aer blinked slowly and looked at her.

“I can understand the boy being a commoner, but you, a noble young lady, how could you? When you see an adult, shouldn’t you show proper manners?”

An adult in a noble society.

Although Aer’s family clearly held a higher title than Anna’s, she had nothing to say.

Because this was the academy, and even though she was a marquis’s daughter, she didn’t hold a title herself.

“…Hello.”

“Hello, ma’am.”

“Hmph, I’m not too pleased with greetings given only after being told.”

“Mom, let’s quickly give it to them and go. I want to talk with the Duke’s family.”

“Tsk, ‘Duke’s family’? Who taught you to call them that?”

“Hmph.”

Countess Gonzalo looked at her daughter very lovingly, then spoke brusquely to Aer and Louis.

“It was only natural, but our family is not so stingy. Here, take this.”

The two looked at the pouch she held out with puzzled expressions. Then an irritated voice followed.

“Why are you pretending not to know? It’s obviously a pouch of gold coins. Take it quickly.”

Anna seemed unable to accept that they had saved her.

Intending to give some compensation and forget about it, Anna clung to her mother and chattered away.

“You put a lot in it, right? It’s the price of my life after all.”

“What nonsense.”

“You heard that? You’ll regret it if you don’t take it, so hurry up and accept it.”

For something given as compensation, it was extremely coercive and unpleasant. Aer, who had been momentarily dazed by the events in the auditorium, slightly raised the corners of her mouth.

She even felt pathetic for having been so weak and foolish earlier.

Right. In a world like this where she needed to survive, was there any need to be shocked anew?