The pure white curtains fluttered gently in the wind, and a few pots of blooming white roses sat on the windowsill.
Beside the bed lay a violin, with a pale blue ribbon tied around its bow.
Adelina lay on the bed, her body sinking into the soft mattress. Her rose tea-colored long hair spilled across the pink bedsheet, glimmering softly under the sunlight.
On the desk, the communication sigil buzzed nonstop, transmitting documents and sending out the latest school festival activity guide from the academy.
Lately, every time she closed her eyes, Adelina would remember what Felyn had said to her at the banquet.
She recalled the music playing at the time, the taste of the banquet, the serious look on Felyn’s face, his gentle tone, and those eyes that looked straight at her...
“In my heart, you’re already number one in the world.”
“Ahhhh!”
Adelina buried her head in the pillow, her silky legs wrapped in white stockings kicking the bed in frustration.
Too embarrassing.
It was just a contract arrangement, so why did that guy have to say something like that all on his own!
And he even said something like ‘you’re already number one in the world.’
Who cares about that!
Right now, Adelina’s mind and body were completely out of sync.
Her ears were red enough to drip blood, and her heart was pounding as if it were about to burst out of her chest.
“Ahhhh that’s enough already!” She shook her head vigorously, trying to shake those images out of her mind.
But that line felt like it had been branded into her, impossible to forget.
Her pillow was already deformed from how tightly she was hugging it.
“Does he really like me that much…”
Adelina pouted and mumbled quietly.
She had already won a great victory at the banquet.
Felyn had actually chosen her in front of Viloti.
He had once again shown her the passionate heart hidden beneath their contract.
Speaking of contracts, Adelina suddenly remembered—the contract between her and Felyn would expire soon.
Whatever, they could just renew it when the time came. She needed to seize this chance to thoroughly crush the Viloti in her mind.
Buzz. Buzz.
The vibration of the communication sigil startled Adelina.
“President, all the information about the school celebration has been transmitted.”
“Got it. Thank you.”
Adelina’s voice returned to its usual gentle tone.
Lanche Academy’s centennial celebration was just around the corner.
And coincidentally, St. Andros Academy’s centennial celebration was scheduled on the same day.
The two principals had chatted and, in a spur-of-the-moment decision, agreed to host the celebrations together—saying it’d be more lively that way.
And just like that, the matter was decided.
But the poor faculty and student councils of both schools were left to handle the mess behind the scenes and had already cursed the two principals as evil gods.
Adelina had been busy with this for two whole days now.
A bunch of noble young masters and ladies gathering together wasn’t exactly her idea of fun.
And although the celebration would be co-hosted with Felyn’s St. Andros Academy, Felyn’s current identity was still that of a commoner.
It wouldn’t be appropriate for her to spend the entire celebration with him in front of everyone.
“Right, President. There are some new requirements. The principal said that since it’s the centennial, we should highlight the school’s fairness, so...”
Adelina’s head started to ache again.
Was the principal about to pull another one of his stunts?
He always had to add these strange new requirements, which only made her job harder.
Maybe the Claude family should just stop sponsoring him!
“So, the principal wants to encourage nobles and commoners to participate in the school celebration together.”
The voice on the other end of the sigil sounded troubled.
“The principal also hopes the student council will lead by example... and take the initiative to find a commoner as a partner...”
！
Adelina’s pale gray-blue eyes widened instantly.
Guess the Claude family will just have to sponsor the principal another ten million crowns next year.
Taking the initiative to find a commoner partner—wasn’t that basically naming Felyn directly?
No wait!
Why was she getting so worked up?
Adelina snapped herself out of it and patted her cheeks.
“President?! This request really is difficult, right? I mean, asking someone like you to interact with a commoner... maybe I should just tell the principal to drop the idea.”
Hearing Adelina fall silent, the speaker assumed she was against the idea.
“No! Ahem, I mean, no need.”
Adelina realized her reaction had been a bit too intense.
“This is the perfect chance to demonstrate Lanche Academy’s educational philosophy. When it comes to academics, nobles and commoners should always have equal opportunity, and our student council needs to set that example.”
“Then, what you’re saying is...”
“We’ll proceed according to the principal’s suggestion. But even among student council members, we can’t force anyone to pick a commoner partner. Everyone’s choices should be respected. I’ll revise the plan accordingly.”
After ending the call politely, Adelina leapt from the bed and rushed to the desk.
The communication sigil was already delivering a long list of notes and plans for the celebration.
Sure enough, Adelina found the part encouraging noble and commoner pairings for participation.
Normally, nobles and commoners stuck to their own groups for these kinds of events.
It seemed like the principal really wanted to change that.
Adelina didn’t see much difference between nobles and commoners anyway.
If anything, she thought nobles had more idiots among them.
But since she represented the Claude family, every move she made was under scrutiny.
Getting too close to Felyn would surely invite gossip.
But now, Adelina approaching Felyn was for the greater good—it was to uphold the academy’s philosophy. It definitely wasn’t because she wanted to...
Felyn’s probably the one who wants to be with her!
She was just too kind—a good boss who truly cared for her employees!
Adelina kept reading and reached the application requirements for commoner students.
It was mostly about good academic standing, with a requirement to pass the upcoming joint exam.
The requirements weren’t high, since commoner students who made it into Lanche or St. Andros were already excellent.
Wait.
There seemed to be one exception.
Felyn was a fallen noble turned commoner, wasn’t he?
And his grades were... terrible?
The Seiwa Joint Exam was next week.
Adelina thought for a moment—if she tutored him, there should still be time!
If he turned out to be too dumb, then it would have to be all-night cramming sessions!
But ever since that pink-haired menace attacked her in the dungeon, her current residence had frequent visits from family guards for security.
If her father found out she had a boy over for the night, he’d be furious.
In that case... it would have to be her going to Felyn’s place for overnight tutoring...
Adelina flopped back onto the bed, her moist eyes staring blankly at the ceiling.
Tutoring at Felyn’s place...
Just the two of them, alone in a room, under the warm glow of a lamp...
“No no no!”
She pressed the pillow over her burning face, but the images in her head only became clearer.
That idiot would definitely say weird things again, and definitely look at her with those gentle eyes again.
Her face grew even redder.
There’s no way that kind of situation would actually happen.
… …
“Teacher Sophia, I’ve received it.”
On Viloti’s communication sigil, a message from Sophia arrived with the instructions about the joint school celebration.
“This event encourages nobles and commoners to pair up as partners. I was thinking... Felyn might be a good choice. I don’t know what your thoughts are...”
“I’m willing.”
Viloti didn’t wait for Sophia to finish and answered immediately.
Yesterday, she had struggled with herself the entire way to Felyn’s door.
That short distance took her a full hour.
In the end, she had taken so long that the Silafiel family’s guards, noticing their young lady hadn’t returned, quickly found her and stuffed her into a carriage back home.
She sat properly in the carriage, her face still expressionless. But the slight furrow of her brow and her clenched fingers betrayed her unwillingness.
Viloti was angry.
But she couldn’t say.
Why?
Because, she was planning to visit a boy’s house.
Hearing the cold response over the sigil, Sophia couldn’t help but smile.
“But there’s a condition. Felyn needs to pass next week’s joint exam. But his grades are terrible.”
“I understand, Teacher. I’ll help him study.”
“Good. That’s the spirit. But with Felyn’s current performance, you’ll probably need to tutor him after school too.”
“But...”
But now, she had guards following her even at night.
Her father was always home too—he’d never allow a boy into the house.
“Ahem, to support the principal’s idea of academic equality, as your teacher... I suppose I could help a little.”
They spoke a little longer and then ended the call.
Sophia took off her glasses, smiling brightly.
The scent of youthful romance made her feel ten years younger.
Ever since she discovered Viloti had feelings for Felyn, Sophia had wanted to play matchmaker.
Right now, Felyn’s attitude toward Viloti was cold, but that was just the typical pride of boys their age.
As long as she nudged them closer, Sophia believed Felyn would definitely come around.
When Sophia was younger, she too had once shared a tender, ambiguous relationship with a commoner boy.
Felyn reminded her of him.
Same family gap. Same pitiful story.
But in the end, she had chosen a noble.
The marriage didn’t go well. They divorced shortly after their child was born.
Sometimes she wondered—what if she’d been a little braver and chosen that boy?
If they had been together, maybe she wouldn’t have so many regrets now.
She knew very well that the gap in status between Viloti and Felyn was vast, and even if they got together, it probably wouldn’t end well.
But the Silafiel family would definitely give Felyn a huge breakup fee.
He might be heartbroken for a few years, but with that money, he could live the rest of his life comfortably.
Better than chasing after Viloti while nibbling on cold bread.
From an objective point of view, this was the best possible outcome for Felyn.
And besides.
Damn it, Viloti actually has feelings for Felyn—how could anyone not push this along?
Student Felyn, you’d better remember to thank me!
(End of Chapter)