Chapter 15

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Translator: Harry Potta

Chapter: 15

Chapter Title: Same Classmates

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After the entrance ceremony ended, Lucia and Herwin headed to their assigned class.

"Same class—lucky, right?"

"Yeah, talk about a coincidence."

The two of them were fortunately in the same class.

'My month-long wish came true!'

Lucia cheered inwardly.

Ever since hearing they'd both been accepted to the academy, she'd prayed every single day until today that they'd end up in the same class.

It felt like heaven itself had granted her wish—she was floating on air with joy.

"Huh? Looks like the Duchess's Daughter is in our class too."

The moment they stepped into the classroom, Arista Lydia caught their eye, already seated.

Just like at the ceremony, she was surrounded by a crowd of people.

"To put up with all that. Impressive."

Herwin looked at Arista Lydia with pity.

Truth be told, if he hadn't kept his distance, he'd have been in the exact same position.

He'd already gone through something like that once before the ceremony.

"Huh?"

At that moment, their eyes met—Arista Lydia's amid the throng. She widened her eyes in surprise at the sight of Lucia.

Her stare was so intense that Lucia unwittingly stopped in her tracks.

"Lucia, what are you doing?"

"Huh? Oh, coming."

Only after Herwin called out did Lucia break free from Arista Lydia's gaze.

Herwin had already claimed a seat in the back. It was a choice perfectly in line with his aversion to drawing attention.

"Kyaa!"

Lucia suddenly let out a scream. Something had caught her foot, throwing off her balance as she pitched forward.

As she flailed her arms to keep from falling, someone caught her by the waist.

"You okay?"

"Th-thanks..."

"No big deal. Glad your pretty face didn't get hurt."

Lucia steadied her pounding heart and looked up at her rescuer.

He was a handsome young man with navy-blue hair falling to his shoulders in a neat bob and striking golden eyes that blended mysteriously well.

Not quite on Herwin's level, but far more striking than she'd expected—Lucia was quietly impressed. After taking a moment to admire him,

"Um... your hands..."

He was still holding her hand and waist. He startled and quickly let go.

"Whoops, got carried away holding on. Sorry if that creeped you out."

Normally, something like that would have bothered her, but strangely, she felt no such repulsion.

"I'm Brian Chercis. Same class—let's get along."

Brian introduced himself, and Lucia followed suit.

"I'm Lucia Agnes. Nice to meet you. Thanks for catching me so I didn't fall."

"Just did what anyone would. But... that your friend behind you?"

Glancing back at Brian's words, Lucia saw Herwin standing there with an uncomfortable expression.

"Huh? Herwin, when did you get here?"

He'd definitely been way over there just before she tripped.

"Just now. Good thing you didn't hit the floor."

"Yeah, Young Master Chercis grabbed me."

With the beaming Lucia between them, the two men's eyes met.

A subtle tension crackled in the air, along with the tiniest spark.

Brian narrowed his eyes for a moment before flashing a gentle smile and extending a hand to Herwin.

"Brian Chercis. Let's get along too."

"...Herwin Peneus."

"Oh, so you're from the Peneus house. That explains the aura."

Brian let out a small exclamation. It was just a casual joke, but Herwin scowled, clearly displeased.

"Lucia, let's go. Professor'll be here soon."

"Okay! Catch you later, Young Master Chercis."

Pushed along by Herwin's hand, Lucia had no choice but to head to her seat.

"Be more careful. Still tripping over yourself on your first day at the academy?"

"Wh-who's tripping! It was my bag."

The moment they sat down, Herwin launched into a scolding. Even as Lucia flushed with embarrassment, he still looked dissatisfied.

"That's what clumsy means. Jeez, no wonder Lucas and I can't take our eyes off you."

"......"

Being treated like a little kid stung.

She wanted Herwin to see her as a woman. But the more time passed, the more he treated her like Henry.

Sometimes it even felt like he saw her as younger than a child, which hurt.

'...Still.'

On the flip side, the fact that he kept such a close watch on her sent her heart soaring.

Her feelings were so fickle when it came to Herwin—and it only tormented her.

Time wore on, and students began taking their seats one by one.

Most of them kept stealing glances at the empty spots around Lucia and Herwin.

Snagging one of those seats meant a shot at getting close to Herwin, so it was only natural. But no one mustered the courage.

She was wondering why they were hesitating when someone finally should have come over, but a glance sideways revealed the reason.

"Herwin, your face."

Herwin's expression was twisted like he was furious.

To others, he looked angry, but Lucia knew better. He sometimes scowled without even thinking about it.

"Stop frowning."

At her words, his scowl eased just a little.

"Oh, this seat's empty."

A cheerful voice rang out as someone plopped down in the seat right in front of Herwin.

With his forehead-exposed red hair and ordinary brown eyes, he had a mischievous look that matched his lively tone perfectly.

"Excuse me, is this spot taken?"

"Huh? Yeah, go ahead. It's free."

Not long after, a female student approached the seat beside him.

She was the prim-and-proper type.

Her light gray hair fell in a neat, long cascade, with slightly tapered eyes that suited her beauty well.

"Thank you. I was panicking with no seats left."

"No problem at all. I'm Ethan Belluna, from the Belluna Viscount House."

"I'm Christine Dioress. Young Master Belluna, let's get along."

"You got it! Let's be friends. You in the back too!"

In the middle of chatting with Christine, Ethan turned around.

Lucia, who had unwittingly been eavesdropping, jumped when he pointed at her.

"Me?"

"Yeah! You kept staring, so I figured you wanted in on the convo. Or not?"

"Ah, sorry... I wasn't trying to listen in."

"All good, all good. You heard my name, right? What's yours?"

"Lucia Agnes. And next to me is Herwin Peneus."

"Whoa! You two are friends? Thought you were strangers, like Christine and me."

"We're childhood friends."

"Lucky! Same class as your buddy."

Ethan steered the conversation effortlessly with his natural charm. His easygoing vibe even thawed Christine—and Lucia too.

Even the quiet Herwin seemed to take a liking to Ethan, tuning in before long.

"Peneus... that's the northern ducal house, right?"

Once the awkwardness had mostly faded, Christine asked.

It felt more like genuine curiosity than a ploy to cozy up to Herwin.

Herwin picked up on that and nodded readily.

"Yeah."

"I had no idea the Peneus Young Lord was our age."

"You're from quite the famous house yourself."

"Me? Compared to Peneus, we're small fry."

"Hardly. Dioress is renowned for leading one of the empire's top trading companies."

"Oh, thank you for the kind words."

Christine smiled softly.

"Man, making friends with all you famous folks—honor for my house! Truth is, I'm from the sticks, so I don't know much about high society."

Ethan laid bare what could have been a flaw without a second thought.

Whether he was oblivious to noble class differences or just didn't care, he kept the same attitude even after learning who Christine and Herwin were.

"Alright, looks like everyone's here?"

The professor's arrival settled the bustling classroom. He started with a self-introduction, then gave a brief rundown of the class schedule ahead.

The academy life kicked off on a reasonably smooth note.

A fair amount of time had passed since enrolling in the academy.

The initial awkwardness didn't last long. The students soon formed groups with others who matched their personalities.

Among those clusters, Herwin's group was by far the largest.

With his looks, skills, and wealth, Herwin was someone everyone wanted to befriend.

Arista Lydia enjoyed similar sky-high popularity, but while she warmed up to people easily, Herwin wasn't the type to let just anyone into his circle.

When a celebrity seems hard to approach, human nature compels you to try striking up a conversation anyway.

Desperate to get close to Herwin, people tagged along with his group—but none breached the boundary he'd set.

Those who made it inside were the ones he'd spoken to on the first day: Ethan and Christine, Brian, and later Bianca Lawrence, who'd grown close more gradually.

Herwin had seemed wary of Brian at first, but they got along well now. Bianca had been the one to approach him first.

Like Christine, she showed no particular interest in Herwin—which made it easy for him to relax around her.

Of course, Lucia was a core member of Herwin's group too.

As his closest friend, it was only natural.

Early in the semester, plenty of people whispered about Lucia and Herwin.

With them always stuck together, most assumed they were dating.

But once everyone realized it was just a misunderstanding, a bunch started approaching Lucia.

Some were drawn to her cute looks and gentle personality, but most were kids hoping to connect with Herwin through her.

Girls in particular, upon learning Herwin had no girlfriend, begged her for introductions.

Something like this, for example.

"Hey, Lucia. Could you introduce us to Young Lord Peneus?"

"We heard you're super close. We wanna get to know him too, but it's hard to just talk to him..."

"Please?"

Lucia looked at the girls in front of her with a smile. This was already the twentieth such request.

The girls gazed at her with sparkling eyes, their stares a bit overwhelming.

"Sorry, I don't think I can."

"Aw..."

Disappointed sighs escaped them.

"Why not? You're childhood friends. Should be easy for you, right?"

"Even so, no can do. Sorry. Herwin hates that kind of thing. If you really wanna get close, why not ask him directly? He'll probably say yes unless it's something crazy."

She refused again, her tone soft yet firm.

Sensing she wouldn't budge no matter what, the girls' faces hardened.

"Tch, acting all high and mighty just 'cause you're friends with Young Lord Peneus."

One girl muttered it loud enough for everyone to hear, clearly offended. Lucia's face stiffened for a split second before she caught herself.

"Hey, what did you just say?"

Bianca, standing beside her, snapped in Lucia's defense.

"What? I was just talking to myself. C'mon, girls, let's go."

"Go where? Get back here!"

Bianca yelled after the departing girls in anger, but they were already gone.