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“But how is Ayla still attending the Academy?”
“The nerve of her.”
Ayla listened to the words directed at her and laughed inwardly, finding it amusing.
Because the situation hadn't changed at all from the original story.
'It's funny how they're spitting out the exact same lines without a single word changed.'
The nobles in the Faculty of Magic were gossiping without even trying to lower their voices.
They knew that Ayla, now a commoner, could no longer exert any influence.
Ayla didn't show it and opened her mouth, pretending to be sad.
“No, of course, it’s hard. But what can I do? I’m just accepting the situation as it is.”
Freya frowned, seemingly dissatisfied with Ayla's calm tone.
It was because Ayla's reaction wasn't as interesting as she had expected.
The Ayla she knew was inwardly fragile, despite her cold exterior.
Moreover, her pride was very strong.
'So I thought if I poked her a little, she would get angry and humiliate herself...'
Instead, Ayla seemed utterly dejected.
“I’m just… waiting to get used to my situation. It’s not easy to adapt, after all.”
Freya was slightly taken aback when Ayla didn't react to her provocation.
She had thought that Ayla, who had just gone from noble to commoner, would never tolerate such insults and would humiliate herself.
But she only seemed sad and didn't do anything that people could pick on.
Other students began to take an interest in Ayla's behavior.
“It seems a bit harsh, though.”
“They were friends, after all…”
“I didn’t think Freya would be so heartless.”
Freya gritted her teeth, hearing the whispers of the people around her.
'Doesn't this make me look like the bad guy?'
No matter how much the nobles valued bloodlines, there were some who felt sorry for Ayla's situation, having fallen from grace overnight.
Some were already looking at her with disapproving eyes.
Reluctantly, Freya decided to change the subject.
“Ha, do you know how many people have been harmed because of you? Kadin is one of them.”
Ayla lowered her eyes as if she was stung by her words.
However, Freya felt a sense of unease in that gesture.
She was bowing her head as if she was utterly defeated, but her eyes seemed somehow relaxed.
As if she was deliberately acting pitiful.
Just as Freya hesitated, Ayla opened her mouth in a sorrowful voice.
“I was so sorry that I asked Kadin to break off our engagement. What good would it do for me to deceive him now that I’m a commoner?”
As she finished speaking, tears welled up in Ayla's eyes.
Freya was speechless at the sight.
She had a feeling that if she pushed her any further, only her reputation would suffer.
Meanwhile, the students around them began to exchange words with excited expressions.
“Oh, now that I think about it, I heard that Ayla asked Kadin to break off the engagement a few days ago?”
“What, Kadin was dumped by a commoner? That’s hilarious.”
“The noble’s face has fallen to the ground, I guess.”
“Still, Ayla knows her place. She knows that she can’t maintain an engagement with a noble now that she’s not one anymore, right?”
Kadin held absolute power within the Swordsmanship Department, but not within the Faculty of Magic, where Ayla belonged.
The Faculty of Magic and the Swordsmanship Department had been rivals for generations.
Also, Kadin's reputation had suffered a lot because Ayla had broken off the engagement.
Perhaps because of that, Freya couldn't say anything more, even though her mouth was agape.
Her Noble house had a very close relationship with the Marquess family, so it was difficult to say anything more that would become Kadin's weakness.
In the end, Freya couldn't put Ayla down any further and began to glare at the people around her with a cold look.
The students who had been chattering all fell silent at her fierce expression.
After a while, someone's voice broke the silence.
“Why is it so quiet?”
A man walked into the lecture hall.
It was Cedric Blanche, a celebrity in the Swordsmanship Department.
When someone from another faculty appeared, everyone's eyes turned to him at once.
And soon, everyone's eyes widened in surprise.
It was because he was escorting a female student whom they had never seen before.
Meanwhile, Cedric, who had found Ayla, paused in his place.
'She was already in the lecture hall.'
His gaze was fixed on Ayla's teary eyes. Pity and a subtle sense of guilt washed over him at the same time.
'Could she have heard something harsh?'
Why were Ayla's eyes red again?
His heart ached at her shabby appearance, so different from her confident self in the past.
He was about to approach Ayla and talk to her without realizing it.
Suddenly, Rosia clung to his arm from the side.
As everyone watched Rosia with curious faces, she opened her mouth with a kind attitude.
“Thank you, Brother. Thanks to you, I found my way here. It was my first time at the Academy, so it was impossible for me to find my way alone.”
“No, Rosia. You’re smart, so you’ll adapt quickly.”
“Tch, Brother always praises me like this.”
“It’s not easy to pass the Academy transfer exam. Everyone in the family is proud of you.”
At those words, the students looked at Rosia with surprised eyes.
The transfer exam at Riod Academy was more difficult than the entrance exam.
In other words, passing the transfer exam for the Faculty of Magic meant that Rosia had outstanding magical talent.
“Proud? Blanche Noble house's daughters are originally excellent in Magic, aren't they? So, of course, I can do well too.”
Ayla inwardly admired Rosia's words.
'Oh, she's subtly dissing me.'
Rosia's words, that a daughter of the Blanche Noble house should naturally be able to do that, naturally directed the Academy students' attention to Ayla.
Because Ayla hadn't been able to do that obvious and easy thing all this time.
The students looked back and forth between Rosia and Ayla with newly enlightened faces.
They realized that Rosia was the true daughter of the Blanche Noble house they had only heard rumors about.
The atmosphere in the lecture hall instantly turned cold.
At the same time, Cedric flinched as various gazes focused on Ayla.
If Rosia hadn't been clinging to his arm, he might have asked Ayla if she was okay without realizing it.
“Brother, what are you looking at?”
“No, it’s nothing. I’ll go first, Rosia. Let’s meet after class.”
After hesitating for a moment, Cedric closed his eyes tightly and turned around.
Then, without hesitation, he disappeared into the Swordsmanship Department, where he belonged.
As soon as Cedric disappeared, the students approached Rosia and began to ask her questions non-stop.
“Hello, Rosia. It’s really nice to meet you.”
“It’s amazing that you passed the transfer exam.”
Seeing the crowd of people around Rosia, Ayla was reminded of the past.
Most of the people who were talking to Rosia now were students who had wanted to befriend Ayla.
'When I was Ayla Blanche, everyone wanted to be friends with me.'
But when it was revealed that Ayla was a commoner, they didn't even talk to her.
“Thank you, everyone. Let’s be friends.”
But Ayla knew.
They were pretending to accept Rosia on the surface, but they didn't fully consider her as one of their own yet.
'They're all high-nosed nobles, so it's a natural reaction. In the original story, it took Rosia some time to be recognized by them.'
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