Chapter 31

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Translated by Sylph

Read only at Novelbyu.com & Utoon.net.
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The third day of the Gifted Center dawned.

“Yawn.”

Evi headed to the cafeteria while giving a small yawn.

Normally, she would have woken up a bit earlier, but perhaps because of yesterday’s events, her eyes opened a bit later.

‘But it’s a relief that today’s schedule starts leisurely.’

When Evi entered the cafeteria, some of the students who recognized her whispered.

Evi didn’t mind and took her breakfast to sit in a corner seat.

‘I heard that today we’ll be looking around the walls of the Imperial Palace and other affiliated institutions.’

Was it thanks to having slept soundly? There were no worries like being reluctant to go far because of yesterday’s events.

Just the thought that it would be interesting to walk around many new places today.

While Evi was having her meal excitedly, looking forward to the day, she saw Rimora entering the cafeteria.

The moment she entered, the gazes of the two met.

Rimora hesitated for a long time at the entrance, then, as if having made a decision, she closed her eyes tight and opened them before approaching Evi.

“H, hello? Did you sleep well?”

“…”

Instead of answering, Evi slightly bowed her head to substitute for a greeting.

Then, Rimora’s face slightly distorted. Because it was clearly different from the attitude of welcomingly giving a return greeting yesterday.

Rimora’s lips flickered as if looking for something to say, and then she spoke with difficulty.

“Um, about yesterday, I really…”

But even before Rimora’s words were finished, her friends entered the cafeteria.

“Oh? Rimora?”

“What are you doing there?”

They came closer with surprised eyes upon seeing Rimora together with Evi.

“What were you talking about with her?”

The one who was terrified by the friends’ questions was Rimora.

“No, it’s nothing! Let’s just have our meal quickly! Oh, I’m hungry!”

Rimora hurriedly grabbed her friends’ hands and led them to the other side.

Rimora bit her lip, feeling Evi’s gaze quietly watching her.

‘Oh my god, what do I do?’

Yesterday, Director Seraphina told her: Visit her directly once a day and ask for forgiveness until Evi says it’s okay.

When she heard those words, she felt like her vision went dark and the ground beneath her feet collapsed.

She hated to death just to go and bow her head, but she absolutely must not be caught by her friends.

Then the fact that she had trapped Evi on purpose would be known to everyone, and after that, people would surely throw cold gazes at her.

‘I can’t let that happen.’

It was a chilling sight just to imagine.

‘This isn’t it…’

The life at the Gifted Center she had thought of was not like this.

She had intended to become the leader of the commoner students, get along with the nobles, and leave a mark on the Director as well as the professors to become the pride of her family.

She had thought she had plenty of ability for that.

But it hadn’t even been a week since she entered the Gifted Center, and she had received a perfect minus score from the Director.

Moreover, now she had to bow her head and seek forgiveness every day from a child she didn’t even want to see.

“Rimora, what do you want to eat?”

She resented her other friends who asked with bright voices, unaware of her situation.

But she couldn’t even get annoyed. If she did, even this remaining friendship would disappear.

“Yeah, I’ll just drink some juice…”

Saying so, Rimora slipped away alone and stood in front of the juice corner. Then she turned her head and looked at Evi sitting in the corner.

‘When should I go to her again?’

Today too, the students had to move busily. Moreover, most of the schedule was moving together.

Since it would become evening once that schedule was over, she had to visit and apologize as soon as possible.

Furthermore, Director Seraphina, who encountered her in the morning, recognized Rimora and spoke in a cold voice.

“I’ll be asking Evi Alden every day if you apologized, so don’t even think about just glossing over it.”

She didn’t say more, but if she didn’t apologize properly, there would surely be additional punishment.

And at that time, she would likely give a proper punishment, not just glossing over it without penalty points so that other children wouldn’t know, as she did now.

Rimora sat at the table with the juice, but she couldn’t drink even a sip.

She felt even more hopeless than yesterday.

She really didn’t know what to do now.

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Evi saw Rimora, who was leaving alone with a face that had grown even darker than when she entered.

Rimora looked very troubled.

Especially when her friends spoke about Evi, it was visible to the point of her breaking into a cold sweat.

Seeing her unable to relax, worried that what she did would be caught, Evi felt like she understood what the real punishment the Director spoke of was.

Now Rimora would have to watch her friends and Evi’s eyes at every moment.

‘I was going to say it’s okay now if she apologized today…’

She knew Rimora had done wrong. She also hadn’t forgotten that she had a hard time.

But if she had approached and apologized without caring about others’ gazes, she had intended to forgive her.

But in the end, Rimora just left after watching her surroundings.

‘I’m also not very pleased that Rimora visits me every day.’

Evi stuck out her lips and, after tidying up her tray, came outside.

When the set time came today as well, everyone moved to the plaza after checking the people who hadn’t come.

Just like yesterday, male students were approaching from the male dormitory across the way.

Evi looked for Arcel and Ruska among the people.

Since the gazes toward her were not good, even if she couldn’t approach and greet them first, she intended to at least give a nod somehow.

“Oh! Evi!”

But before Evi could find the two, a bright voice was heard.

“Over here!”

When she looked toward where the sound came from, Ruska was running while waving his hand.

And behind him was the appearance of Arcel, who was closing his eyes as if he had a headache.

“Did you sleep well? You’re not tired or hurt anywhere?”

“I’m fine. Thank you so much for yesterday.”

She had wondered how to greet them, but to think they would come and ask first like this.

When the two approached and greeted Evi, the surrounding students looked on as if it was strange.

She was a child whose reputation wasn’t good due to yesterday’s events, so why were those two taking care of her like that?

In the meantime, the staff of the Gifted Center, who finished a brief conversation about today’s schedule, checked the number of students.

Somehow, it seemed they were trying to check more surely from today because they had lost Evi yesterday.

Because of that, Ruska and Arcel had to return to the male students’ side.

When Evi, who became alone again, was about to stand in line, someone approached her side.

“…”

She turned her head, wondering if Rimora was going to apologize this time for real, and found Irene Terence standing beside her before she knew it.

“…”

Evi looked at her in surprise. As much as Evi was surprised, the female students around her also wore surprised faces.

“Miss Irene? Why are you going over there…”

The female students who were beside Irene looked at her with gazes that said they could not understand at all.

Then Irene replied indifferently.

“I guess I’m concerned about what I missed yesterday. Because it’ll be troublesome as a roommate if such a thing happens today too.”

Then she gestured with her eyes to the female students.

“So I’m going to go around with Miss Evi today. I hope everyone will understand.”

When Irene spoke firmly, the female students had no choice but to back off without being able to reply.

“I thought you would go around with us today too.”

“Perhaps the staff gave Miss Irene a hard time? I heard the Director also came and found her yesterday, so Miss Irene wouldn’t have been able to just ignore it.”

“Sigh, what trouble Miss Irene is going through…”

In the end, the end of the conversation flowed toward resenting Evi again, but they couldn’t openly glare since Irene was standing beside her.

A short while later, Arcel and Ruska, who had finished the headcount, came to Evi’s side again.

The two saw Irene beside Evi and gave a simple bow to greet her.

Irene also received their greeting with a bow without saying anything in particular and stood a bit closer to Evi.

Then Ruska also gradually stood beside Evi. Arcel stood behind those three with a sigh.

‘Why… did it become like this?’

Yesterday she went around alone.

Today, she was suddenly walking as if being escorted, surrounded by the three most famous people among the students of the Gifted Center.

As the staff’s guidance began and she moved her steps, Evi looked at the three people surrounding her as if she couldn’t believe it.

It’s probably not that they are particularly taking care of her, but rather trying to make sure no problems occur, but…

Evi moved her steps while pressing down the corners of her mouth that were going up involuntarily.

It was likely they were doing this to make sure something like yesterday didn’t happen again rather than especially for her, but it still felt much better than going around alone.