Chapter 8

“What’s with that ungrounded, tacky background?” “No wonder people say her reputation is full of cheap vibes.” “What would she have done if she wasn’t even smart? Seriously, even if I were reborn, I’d just choose my own ordinary family.” “What is so ordinary about your family? You’re a count’s young master who goes to Oltzen every summer to tour all sorts of high-society events.”

This wasn’t cute, petty gossiping like she’d done with Alina; this was pure malice. Rozia kept her mouth firmly shut, pretending not to hear as she toyed with her juice glass. She felt even more uncomfortable than when she’d received the senior’s summons.

Come to think of it, Jeremy’s group were all nobles. Her gaze drifted to the expensive accessories that clashed with their school uniforms. Discrimination based on social status was strictly forbidden at Xenios, meaning even royalty didn’t receive special treatment—unlike the Royal Oltzen Academy, where only children of nobles or the wealthy could enroll.

Because of the school rules, everyone exercised restraint on the surface, but there was no stopping a sense of superiority from quietly leaking out when they were among themselves. Of course, many nobles blended in easily and amicably with commoners, to the point where you wouldn’t know they were noble until they told you themselves. On the other hand, there were people like them.

She gathered up her snack wrap packaging, tossed it aside, and raised her head. She was about to say she had things to do and had to get going. At that exact moment, Jeremy, who had been talking away, suddenly turned to look at her.

“Right, what do you think, Rozia? You’re the one here who has experienced Senior Heyworth closest of all.”

Four pairs of eyes fixed on her in an instant. She had wanted to slip away quietly, but things had become annoying. With a suppressed sigh, Rozia bit down on her lower lip. Her peers were all waiting for her answer with looks of keen interest.

“…It’s true that Senior Heyworth says things rather meanly. Still, I don’t want to judge people based on their background or things like that. How could I? I don’t even know him well.”

And we don’t know what kind of circumstances he might have, either. Well, that didn’t mean all the harsh things he said were forgiven, though.

An awkward silence settled over the table. She had expected as much. Pretending to agree just to avoid a moment of temporary discomfort didn’t suit her temperament.

Well, what can you do? We weren’t even that close to begin with. Just as she pushed back her chair and started to stand, Jeremy burst out laughing. Soon, her other classmates began to giggle along with him.

“Ah, Rozia. Being this naive and sweet will get you nowhere.” “How are you going to survive this cruel world being so gullible?”

What? Why is that their reaction? Flustered, Rozia narrowed her eyes slightly and rolled them. It was right at that moment that a familiar figure entered her field of vision.

The person standing at the very front of the sandwich queue had paid and turned around. A pair of coldly sunken golden eyes swept across her and her four peers in turn. Rozia’s expression hardened. Did he hear all of that, by any chance?

“Oh, hey! Isn’t that Senior Heyworth?” Realizing who it was a moment later, her classmates exchanged flustered, wary glances. Seizing the opportunity, Rozia successfully escaped from them.

“Something urgent came up, so I’m going to head out first. Thanks for the lunch, Howard!”

Rozia immediately dashed off after the senior. Strictly speaking, she was innocent. She hadn’t joined in on the badmouthing—quite the opposite, in fact. Even so, something gnawed at her conscience, making it impossible to just stay put.

“Senior! Wait a second!”

Naturally, he completely ignored her. He didn’t even pretend to hear. Besides, why did he walk so fast? Did being tall mean your stride was automatically that wide? Well, obviously.

He truly ignored her. And not just ignored—he didn’t even give her the time of day. Moreover, cutting through the bustling crowds was hard enough; there was no way she could catch up to a senior who had already pulled far ahead in the blink of an eye. By the time she caught her breath, he had already passed through the teleportation gate and vanished somewhere.

A pointless streak of stubbornness flared up inside her. Wiping the light sweat from her forehead, Rozia stepped into the gate. Where else could he be, anyway? The magic department building, obviously.

As soon as the bright, flashing white view cleared, she spotted the senior just passing the research building entrance. Just as I thought.

“Hey, I said wait a minute!”

Clutching her bag to her chest, Rozia sprinted at full speed and caught up to him at the landing leading to the second floor. Grabbed by the sleeve, the senior turned around with an expressionless face.

“What. Let go.”

He immediately shook her off and resumed walking. Or at least he would have, had she not brazenly grabbed and held onto his arm.

“I am truly, really sorry.”

Her hasty apology made him stop in his tracks. She swallowed hard, waiting for the senior to say something. Fortunately, the research building was quiet during the lunch hour. It was a relief not to have to put on a scene in front of others.

“Why are you apologizing? Are you his spokesperson?”

After a long wait, a blunt question came flying back. Rozia let out a sigh of relief. No matter how harsh his tone was, it meant he was at least willing to talk.

“Well, the senior… doesn’t deserve to hear things like that. And they have no right to gossip about the senior like that, either.”

And you’re definitely not the type to go running back to apologize on your own accord, she added silently. Of course, receiving an apology from someone other than the actual culprit wouldn’t help much… Still, those words were too cruel and painful to swallow all on their own—especially when they concerned someone’s life story that nobody else knew the truth about.

“I, um… I’m going to pretend I didn’t hear anything. It’s just bad manners to go around blabbering about people’s private business.”

He slowly turned his head to look down at her. She had secretly expected him to be hurt, but his eyes were unexpectedly calm. A strange realization flashed through her mind. Ah, Senior must have heard this kind of bad-mouthing more than once or twice. Maybe even worse things than this.

There were countless rumors starring “Senior Heyworth.” Countless stories consumed as morsels of cheap entertainment, accompanied by gasps, laughter, and various malicious reactions.

What must it feel like to be unable to escape from people’s minds, even long after graduation?

He stared into her face for a long moment before pulling his arm free. It was a surprisingly gentle motion. Then, turning around, he continued up the stairs as if nothing had happened.

The second-floor hallway was bright with midday spring sunlight. Yet the senior walking down it looked as though he were entirely alone in winter. Seeing that, she felt a strange, lingering ache in her chest.

Late that afternoon, he sent a message postponing their appointment to the next day.

Around the time the cautious knock was heard, Noah was busy at work as usual.

In fact, his workload had doubled since yesterday. The culprit behind it, naturally, was none other than their dear Professor Sidpelle. Instead of returning from Oltzen right away, he had gone and sent a whole bunch of miscellaneous magic tools he’d collected over there via a courier—completely absurd.

The postcard that came with them was even more ridiculous. On the back of a painting depicting a famous spring canal with beautiful scenery was a short note: “Sending these so you don’t get bored. Back soon.”

Is this some kind of joke right now…? Noah’s face twisted in annoyance. The courier, silently waiting for him to pay the fee while dropping subtle hints, shifted his posture and politely folded his hands.

That had been around 4 PM yesterday. That was why he had postponed their group project meeting. It was impossible to invite someone into a research lab cluttered and wrecked with all kinds of boxes. That was the only reason.

Yet Rozia, who had entered with a gloomy expression, seemed to have something entirely different on her mind. Walking over listlessly and sitting down opposite his workbench, she radiated an out-of-place, melancholic aura.

He gazed silently at her as she sat hunched over, clutching her bag. What’s up with her? His golden eyes narrowed in curiosity. On any other day, she would have peeked at his work and spoken up first, but today, the silence dragged on.

Ah, no way. Noah set down his glasses and took off his gloves. Is it because of yesterday’s encounter at the Rosarium? Noah let out an involuntary snort. Anyone looking at you would think you were the one who had to listen to nonsense, not me.

Besides, words of that caliber didn’t affect him in the least. That was the only reason he had left them alone instead of storming out and causing a scene. You’ve really gone soft since graduation, Noah Heyworth.

Of course, he had been half-tempered to see just how far they’d go with their blabbering. It wasn’t that he had eavescraped on purpose, but the sandwich line was long and the tables were close enough that he heard it whether he wanted to or not.

Along with the snickering of four aristocratic-looking idiots, there had been Rozia’s clear, determined voice schooling them on basic common sense they severely lacked.

So she’s not just cheeky in front of me, but actually speaks her mind to others, too. Consistent, aren’t we? Up until that point, he had been thinking about it quite placidly.

It had been a bit unexpected when she chased him down persistently and apologized after our eyes met. He had been fully prepared to lecture her if she threw tantrums or made annoying excuses, but she hadn’t even given him the chance.

Come to think of it, she had quite a few sides to her that differed from her first impression. Feeling his fixed gaze, Rozia suddenly raised her head. Hesitating for a long time, her lips parted as if she wanted to say something.