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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 40
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40. Don't Like Me
In a world where bestowed traits held the greatest value, there was the Grand Royal Academy.
Having thoroughly read the novel set in that world, I knew how unreasonable this world was, and how one's fate was determined by their given traits and talents.
However, even if the trait I was bestowed was of a low grade, I also saw the hope that through effort, I could reach beyond its limits.
And now.
I was feeling a completely different kind of astonishment.
'To this extent, purely through individual strength, not a trait...'
Even though I had always thought that trait grade wasn't everything, I still believed that the 'level' of a trait itself was truly significant.
That beyond grades, there was an unbridgeable gap in levels.
But now, I felt like I had newly realized that even levels weren't everything.
"..."
"..."
As we faced each other now, I could sense astonishment in Luna's violet eyes as well.
It was clearly a different kind of astonishment from what I felt, but she was just as surprised, standing perfectly still.
At that, I felt no need to thrust my spear further. The sparring had ended with that single clash.
I glanced down at the floor a little distance from her, where a completely mangled Kite Shield lay. Even I felt the sheer power contained in my spear strike that had hit the shield.
I had managed to twist it this much, piercing through a vast amount of mana. I had finally forced the Kite Shield out of Luna's hand.
Yet, I hadn't reached a skill.
I had gained more than I expected from sparring with Luna, but the concept itself was still vague.
—[Pierce a single point and twist it]
I definitely understood the concept more than before the sparring, but I couldn't fully grasp it.
Still, I felt good.
More than the joy of winning the spar against Luna, I was happy that I had gained a much bigger clue to reaching a skill.
"Sparring suspended!"
At the instructor's calm voice, I lowered the tip of my spear to the ground.
At the same time, I felt the need to reconsider Luna anew.
'Her trait is one thing, but Luna's potential is just absurd.'
In the sparring just now, Luna had barely used her trait.
She had been so busy blocking my spear with her shield that Battle Cure's 'damage mitigation' ability had hardly been applied.
Yet, this was how capable she was.
She had blocked my spear like that purely with her own strength.
'Is this the power of a high-ranking noble?'
The Vermouth Count Family, known as quite a prestigious family in the novel, was also famous for possessing wealth and power beyond their high title of Count.
They also appeared later as a family that fully supported Leonhardt once they became lovers.
"Result of the spar. Student Han Cheon-seong is victorious."
Even as I heard the instructor's voice announcing the sparring result, I unconsciously let out a soft chuckle.
'As expected, traits aren't everything.'
I knew that even before receiving her trait, Luna had awakened to mana on her own and gained the power to utilize it.
That's why she could control mana even with a Trait Level 2.
Besides that, Luna, who could handle various armaments including hammers and shields, felt like a typical elite student from a prestigious family.
A student who wasn't just working hard after receiving a trait, but one who was already somewhat complete, having received an education befitting her family's status since childhood.
"..."
Luna, still staring blankly at me, seemed unable to comprehend the situation that had just unfolded.
How I had twisted the Kite Shield and forced it out of her hand. That was natural, actually.
It was a concept so close to a divine technique that even I didn't fully understand it.
Nevertheless, looking at her, I knew one thing.
'I absolutely must become friends with Luna.'
I really had to become friends with Luna, no matter what.
Her trait's power was one thing, but even just looking at Luna herself, her talent and aptitude felt truly heaven-sent.
It made me realize anew why she was the main heroine.
"...Han Cheon-seong."
Then, as Luna opened her mouth, I met her gaze with a faint smile.
I had no intention of gloating about winning the spar. Before the spar, I had honestly thought about teasing her a bit, but now, I was cleanly acknowledging her.
"What are you, seriously? Do you like me?"
But at her next words, my jaw dropped.
"..."
I foolishly blinked for a moment, then wondered if I had heard wrong.
It was so out of the blue. It made me doubt my ears.
'We were just sparring calmly, and now what is she talking about?'
How she had even reached that conclusion, I couldn't understand at all right now.
Nor why Luna was looking at me with such a strange expression.
"Luna?"
When I carefully called her name, Luna let out a faint breath and bit her lip tightly. Every single one of her gestures felt alien to me.
It was as if she had taken it to mean I liked her.
"Listen, Han Cheon-seong. I'm really begging you... please don't like me. If you really do have those feelings, I hope you'd give up on me early."
She suddenly spoke in a voice that sounded genuinely apologetic, but I had no idea what I could have done to cause such a misunderstanding.
I really had no idea at all.
But I had to open my mouth quickly.
"No, Luna? Right now, I don't understand what... you're talking about at all. Why on earth... do you think I like you?"
I didn't know why she had such an absurd misunderstanding, but it was beyond absurd; I couldn't understand it at all.
Even if Luna was pretty, she wasn't my type to begin with. I, for one, considered a sweet, gentle, and cute woman like Millia to be my ideal type, rather than Luna.
"Luna. I truly have no such feelings at all, so I hope you don't misunderstand. If you suddenly say something like that... you're making me look really weird."
I tried to explain repeatedly, but.
"...I'm sorry."
With a strange look, she said one last word and turned away.
...At that sight, no words came out.
Me approaching Luna here and grabbing her? I couldn't do that.
'Then it would look like...'
It would definitely look like I had just been rejected by Luna and was pathetically clinging to her.
Moreover, countless students were watching Luna and my sparring match right now.
"..."
I stared blankly around me. Some students were leaving as the sparring ended, but I distinctly felt the gazes of other students looking at us with strange expressions.
And those students' gazes slowly turned towards me.
'Why... are they looking at me like that?'
As if they were looking at a man who had confessed and been rejected, their eyes filled with pity, I was truly speechless.
They say that when a situation completely transcends understanding, one's thoughts stop flowing. That was exactly what was happening to me now.
It was a true dilemma.
Following Luna and grabbing her to tell her it wasn't true would make me look like a pathetic man, and if I just stood still, I'd suddenly be misunderstood as a guy who liked Luna and got rejected.
"..."
Suddenly, Millia, who was looking at me, caught my eye.
She seemed as surprised as I was, standing there, quietly watching me. And unconsciously, a method came to mind.
A very good way to clear up the misunderstanding that I liked Luna...
But then, I shook my head vigorously.
'Even if I'm flustered... what an absurd thought.'
The absurd thought of confessing to Millia on the spot to clear up the misunderstanding about Luna crossed my mind for a moment, but that was something I absolutely shouldn't do.
"Hmph."
I let out a sigh I couldn't hold in and a hollow laugh, dumbfounded.
'I clearly won the spar.'
Yet I felt like I had lost.
How should I deal with this strange feeling, as if I had been utterly defeated?
'Still, I gained what I gained.'
Gaining a more concrete concept of skills through the spar with Luna was definitely a big gain.
Even if the price felt too high...
***
Click-clack. Click-clack.
The heavy, dull sound of their heels echoed through the darkened dormitory hallway.
It was Luna and Millia.
A deep quiet and strange silence hung between them.
"..."
"..."
Even though the atmosphere would normally be harmonious with them exchanging words, there were no particular words exchanged between the two.
Then, some female students passed them.
"The dinner menu was really worse than I thought."
"Yeah. The money we get as C-class students feels too ambiguous."
"If you want to eat something really tasty, it's too expensive. What's 20 silver, really..."
"So I'm going to ask my family for some support. 20 silver isn't enough for living expenses."
The female students passed by, chatting brightly. Luna glanced at them, and for some reason, they felt incredibly enviable today.
Normally, she too...
She should be exchanging words with Millia like them, but she couldn't.
"..."
Luna glanced to her side.
Watching Millia walk silently, her heart felt truly uncomfortable.
'Why did it turn out this way?'
She really didn't know why... the atmosphere had become so awkward.
Millia and she never used to have such a heavy, silent atmosphere between them.
They would exchange friendly words and happily talk about what had happened that day. But now, it was as if an invisible wall had come between Millia and her.
"Luna."
Then, when Millia suddenly spoke, she was startled and immediately replied.
"...Yes?"
"The spar today was really cool."
"Oh, no. What's so cool about it... I lost terribly in the spar."
"No. It wasn't terrible. It's just that Han Cheon-seong is too strong. I think you did well enough, Luna."
"...Really?"
"Yes, really. It made me think, 'This is my cherished friend, Luna.'"
At Millia's kind words, a smile unconsciously escaped her.
'As expected. It's Millia.'
Her most cherished and precious friend, and a friend she wanted to stay close with forever.
She was so grateful Millia had spoken to her so kindly first.
"Still, even thinking about it now, the spar was quite disappointing. It's not that I think Han Cheon-seong isn't strong or that I don't acknowledge him, but I wonder if I didn't try hard enough. I think it would have been a bit different if my trait was Level 3."
The difference between Level 4 and Level 2 was indeed significant.
But it was also ridiculous for her to blame levels. Because a level was proof that one had worked hard and evolved their trait.
"No. If you think about it that way, it's just that Han Cheon-seong is too strong."
"Is that how I should see it?"
Just as she received Millia's words then.
She saw that Millia's eyes, looking at her, were slightly, almost imperceptibly, subdued compared to usual.
So she started thinking again.
The end of the spar she had with Han Cheon-seong today.
The reason she had suddenly said such strange words to Han Cheon-seong.
At first, she hadn't wanted Han Cheon-seong to get closer to Millia, but ironically, after the spar ended, she started thinking again.
—What truly benefited Millia.
Knowing her closest friend's feelings already, how should she act?
At first, she didn't know why Han Cheon-seong had taken an interest in them and approached them.
But she still tried to prevent it in advance.
By rejecting him first, she would eliminate any possibility of him developing an interest in her.
Because she knew how Millia usually thought of her. Kind Millia might perhaps jump to conclusions and try to give up her feelings.
'But is this really the right thing to do?'
She, who was clumsy with others, didn't know well, but she honestly wondered if this was enough.
Still, at least because of today's incident, she thought Han Cheon-seong wouldn't show any interest in her from now on.
"..."
Looking at Millia, who had suddenly fallen silent, a faint smile formed on Luna's lips.
Millia's complicated gaze now seemed to be thinking of Han Cheon-seong again.
Perhaps because they had spent so much time together, Millia's changes were clearly visible... and now Luna felt as if she could even sense her thoughts.