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What she was trying to retrieve from the forest wasn't the ingredient for the Temporary Cure for Felix.
It was to obtain the herb, Blue Evening Primrose, which would be used in the Antidote to cure the poison that the Princess Royal had ingested.
This was extremely rare, and because it contained poisonous components, it couldn't be obtained on the market as a mere student.
'I still have enough ingredients to make Felix's Cure once or twice... but it'll run out soon.'
However, if she gained the Princess Royal's trust, obtaining ingredients to make Magical potions, whether it was the Temporary Cure or anything else, wouldn't be a problem at all.
So, thinking it wasn't entirely a lie, she wore a brazen expression.
"Anyway, can you go out with me when I say I'm going out?"
Instead of refuting or questioning, Felix only sighed deeply and nodded with a stiff face.
"I should be the one asking. Please don't forget to take me with you when you go out."
Ayla's eyes widened.
She had asked Felix for help, but she didn't expect him to cooperate so readily.
"Of course. Don't worry."
"Definitely."
"I know. I'm the one who asked for your help in the first place, so of course, I'll go with you."
Felix, still not reassured by her words, added.
"If you're going to do anything even slightly dangerous besides this, you have to tell me, and don't act alone."
Seeing Felix with an uneasy expression, Ayla frowned.
'Is he perhaps worried about me?'
He was so wary of her at first, but now he was acting as if they were already on the same side, which was amusing.
'He might be a little cute.'
Of course, she knew that the reason he was doing this was that she was the only one who could make the Cure.
Perhaps he saw her as the Cure itself.
But it didn't matter.
After being revealed as a fake and kicked out of the Noble house, it was the first time today that she had received genuine concern from someone.
'He's definitely much younger than I was in my previous life...'
Seeing Felix stepping forward to protect her made her heart swell.
Meanwhile, Felix looked at Ayla and sighed softly.
He couldn't guess what Ayla was thinking at all.
'What's so good about going into a dangerous forest that she's smiling?'
In fact, he wanted to ask if there wasn't a safer way to obtain the ingredients rather than breaking the school rules.
But looking at her eyes full of determination to obtain the herbs, he couldn't bring himself to say it.
He already knew that the determination hidden behind that fragile face was extraordinary.
'You can tell just by the fact that she broke off her engagement with Kadin as soon as she was kicked out of the Noble house and came straight to me to make a deal.'
Even if he tried to stop her, she would end up taking the risk alone.
In that case, it was better to obediently follow her lead.
Besides, Ayla was smart enough to create the Mana Insensitivity Cure.
There must be a good reason why she chose such a difficult path.
'A person whose actions are impossible to predict.'
Sometimes she seemed very fragile when she shed tears, but at other times, she did things that others couldn't even imagine.
Felix couldn't figure out what kind of person Ayla was. That's why he kept looking at her and worrying about her.
Cedric swung his sword wildly in the training grounds until he was exhausted and collapsed on the floor.
Then, he rubbed his throbbing head. He couldn't stop sighing.
'What on earth is Ayla thinking these days?'
He knew that Kadin had made an impolite request to Ayla.
He had heard about it later from the group that was there, and he was so angry himself.
Therefore, he couldn't criticize Ayla's actions in rejecting Kadin.
If he had heard that rude proposal, he would have acted the same way.
'But as soon as she breaks off her engagement with that bastard, she's hanging out with a commoner.'
The rumors spreading in the academy were quite malicious.
There were many people gossiping that Ayla was shamelessly associating with a lowly commoner as soon as she broke off her engagement with Kadin.
Cedric was very angry when Ayla, who was once a precious family member, was subjected to such talk.
Even what Gerard had said fueled his worries.
"Is it true that Ayla is getting close to a commoner these days?"
"Why?"
"You know how much effort Father put into apologizing for Ayla's rudeness to the Marquess Noble house last time. It seems he thinks Ayla is mocking both Noble houses by associating with a commoner as if to show off after that."
"......"
"At this rate, we might not be able to bring her back into the Noble house. You should meet Ayla and persuade her."
Cedric had also heard about the rumors.
However, Ayla had explained that there was nothing between her and him, so he tried to believe her words.
But it seemed that the academy students wanted to believe the sensational rumors more than the truth.
'It's all because of that commoner who doesn't know his place.'
Cedric gritted his teeth as he thought of Felix.
He had recently become a hot topic by defeating Kadin in a duel.
'They said he recently cured his Mana insensitivity? The professors were raving about how he might become a rare talent.'
But no matter how good or bad that commoner was, Cedric didn't like him.
Even though Ayla had become a commoner, Cedric didn't think Felix was a suitable match for her.
Not unless he became a real Sword Master.
'He's never been systematically trained since childhood, so there's no way he can become a Sword Master.'
There had been almost no Sword Masters born from commoner backgrounds.
Nobles were inherently superior to commoners in terms of physical abilities and latent talents.
Of course, there were occasional mutations, but they appeared only once every few hundred years.
'On the other hand, Ayla may lack Magic skills, but she has excellent knowledge and elegance. Her skill in making Magical potions is better than most Mages. So, we can't marry her off to a mere commoner.'
Gerard and Cedric were thinking of marrying Ayla off to a Noble with suitable character and title, even if it wasn't Kadin.
That would be happier than marrying a lowly commoner.
However, suddenly, a worry arose.
'Could it be that they're really going to start dating?'
Suddenly, he felt bad.
How had he and Gerard treated Ayla until now?
If any foolish guys tried to give her a glance, they wouldn't let it go.
They even used to say as a habit that she should stay in the Blanche Noble house forever without marrying anyone and live with her family for the rest of her life.
Was that why? Even when she was engaged to Kadin, he didn't really like him.
Because she was such a precious younger sister.
'When I first saw her, I vowed to protect her for the rest of my life...'
...How did things turn out like this?
Not only had he become unable to speak to Ayla, whom he cherished so much, but he had to stand by and watch a bad bug cling to her.
In fact, he had been refraining from meeting Ayla to be respectful to Rosia.
If he became close to her like before, it felt like he would be doing something wrong to Rosia, who had lived without enjoying what she deserved.
But no matter what, this wasn't right. He had to meet Ayla this time.
Cedric was going to do his best to stop her.
'Let's persuade her not to associate with guys like Felix anymore. That's the only way Ayla can return to the Noble house.'
In order for her to return to the Noble house and receive protection, she shouldn't create any more scandals.
To protect his precious younger sister, Cedric finally couldn't stand it and moved his feet.
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