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It was Cedric Blanche.
“Ah……”
Ayla, who had been blankly gaping, soon grasped the situation.
‘Come to think of it, he did ask me to make time after the Subjugation Contest.’
But his complexion didn’t look good.
Had something happened to him? The circles under his eyes were hollow, and his lips were chapped and raw.
‘Did he suffer after the Subjugation Contest?’
When Ayla didn’t respond, Cedric spoke again.
“If you’re not busy, I’d like to talk for a moment.”
At those words, Peony, who was beside her, gently tugged at the end of her sleeve.
She knew how uncomfortable Ayla was around the Blanche Family.
Ayla smiled reassuringly at Peony.
“It’s okay, Peony. I’ll be back.”
“But……”
“I have a previous engagement. Let’s continue our conversation later.”
At Ayla’s quiet words, Peony hesitated. But she couldn’t stop her and stepped back.
Cedric bowed slightly to the princess and then looked back at Ayla.
Ayla approached him, sensing the situation. Then, in a small voice that was barely audible, she whispered.
“If it’s important, I’d like to talk in a quiet place.”
“Don’t worry. I’ll guide you to a suitable place.”
As if aware that this meeting should be kept secret, Cedric led her down a rather secluded path.
Ayla, who had been following him silently, suddenly tilted her head.
‘If we keep going this way…… it’s the back gate of the academy.’
As expected, the two soon reached the vicinity of the back gate.
A shabby carriage was parked on the deserted grassy area, and strangely, it caught her eye.
“We’re here.”
Cedric stopped and gestured towards the carriage. It seemed he wanted her to get inside.
“Did you bring it on purpose?”
In response to her question, Cedric simply nodded.
Various thoughts crossed her mind as she watched him, but she soon composed herself and walked towards the carriage.
Then, Cedric, who had come up beside her, quietly opened the carriage door.
Ayla glanced at Cedric and was about to get into the carriage.
“……!”
Ayla, who had stepped on the footstool and raised her head, was startled.
There was someone inside the carriage, which she had expected to be empty. And it was a face that was unbelievably familiar.
Eyes that resembled hers, hair neatly styled as always, and shoulders that seemed thinner and more emaciated than before……
It was as if a scene she had drawn countless times in her dreams had come to life.
Ayla’s eyes trembled.
“Mother……”
A trembling voice escaped from her lips.
At that one word, Irene’s eyes instantly filled with tears.
“Ayla…… my daughter……”
Hearing her murmur, Ayla felt her mind go blank.
Ayla slowly turned back to look at Cedric. She needed an explanation for what was happening.
But the moment she saw the sad smile on his face, she couldn’t help but realize.
That the two of them had learned all the truth without her knowing.
Irene reached out to her, who was standing there blankly.
“How hard…… how hard it must have been for you alone, my poor daughter……”
Ayla was unable to resist and fell into her mother’s arms.
Her body reacted first to the familiar warmth and scent.
At the same time as an overwhelming emotion surged through her heart, tears streamed down her face.
‘I have to push her away……’
That’s what she thought in her head, but her body wouldn’t listen.
She realized that she had been pretending to be okay, but in reality, she had been very lonely and had missed this embrace so much.
She finally buried her face in her mother’s shoulder and quietly closed her eyes.
Today, Felix finished his training, washed up, changed his clothes, and headed to the library.
He knew that Ayla would be diligently studying there around this time.
But when Felix arrived at the library, he soon looked puzzled.
Ayla was nowhere to be seen, and Peony was the only one there.
“Why are you alone? Where’s Ayla?”
At Felix’s question, Peony glanced up at him and replied with a displeased expression.
“Cedric Blanche took her. They’re probably in the middle of a conversation right now.”
“Cedric…… ah.”
Hearing those words, Felix frowned as he recalled a recent memory.
‘Come to think of it, they did promise to meet after the Subjugation Contest.’
Ayla had hesitated for a long time before accepting Cedric Blanche’s request for her time.
As a third party, he couldn’t interfere, so he watched quietly, but he was honestly worried.
Cedric Blanche was once Ayla’s longtime family member and the one who drove her out of the Noble house.
In fact, through the Subjugation Contest, Felix realized that the relationship between the two was much more complicated than he had thought.
‘Cedric Blanche and Ayla…… they seemed to be subtly concerned about each other while pretending not to be.’
That was why he hadn’t reacted to Cedric’s constant taunts.
He didn’t want to be disliked by Ayla by responding unnecessarily.
‘It seems like the conversation is going to be quite long since she hasn’t returned yet.’
Since the library would be closing in an hour, Felix turned away without regret and headed towards the dormitory building.
He thought that if he waited here, he might run into Ayla on her way back.
‘But is Ayla okay?’
Ayla always struggled whenever she was involved with the Blanche Family.
Felix knew that she pretended to be okay on the outside, but she was hurting on the inside.
So today, he decided to just check on her condition and go back.
Time passed as the sun began to set.
Ayla, mixed in with the students in the distance, came into Felix’s view, staggering as she walked.
He felt uneasy for some reason.
“Ayla!”
Felix quickened his pace and soon reached her.
Ayla looked up at the familiar voice.
The moment Felix saw her face up close, he could feel what it meant for his heart to sink.
Her eyes were red and swollen from crying.
‘What did they talk about……’
The thought that Cedric had made Ayla cry filled him with rage.
“Who made you cry? Why are your eyes like this……”
Ayla chuckled at Felix’s serious expression.
“Don’t misunderstand. Nothing bad happened.”
As she said that, Ayla wore an expression that was somehow sad yet relieved.
Unlike what he had feared, she didn’t look hurt.
As soon as he realized that, Felix’s anger melted away.
“Then what happened?”
“Well, that’s……”
Ayla hesitated for a moment, not knowing how to explain.
Seeing tears welling up in her eyes again, Felix panicked and looked around.
When he spotted a bench in the distance, he quietly led Ayla towards it.
He judged that this was not a situation where they could talk standing up.
Sitting down, Felix took out a handkerchief from his pocket and handed it to Ayla. And he waited silently by her side for her tears to stop.
After a long time, Ayla opened her mouth.
“Sorry, I surprised you by crying suddenly……”
“I’m okay.”
Felix shook his head and said.
“More than that, I heard you talked to Cedric Blanche.”
“How did you know?”
“Senior Peony told me.”
“Ah, so the two of you met earlier.”
“So…… you’re really okay, right?”
Ayla smiled reassuringly at his cautious expression.
“Yeah, actually, it’s a good thing for me.”
“A good thing?”
Felix tilted his head as if wondering what had happened.
Seeing that, Ayla closed her mouth for a moment.
She hesitated about how much of what she had experienced she should tell Felix.
‘Well…… but, wouldn’t it be okay now?’
After all, Felix believes that she is from the future.
So if she explains her situation in a condensed way, he might understand.
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