“What… are you doing?”
Sevitis forcibly held her breath, trying to stop that sweet fragrance from invading her mind any further.
Eulalia, however, remained bent over, her eyes curving into crescents, her tone carrying a hint of mischief.
“I’m just testing whether someone really can’t see me.”
Sevitis didn’t dare move a muscle. She had already backed up to the very edge of the large rock; if she retreated any further, she would fall straight off.
But she couldn’t move forward or stand up either.
Trapped in this half-encircled position, the moment she shifted, the two of them would inevitably make physical contact.
And that was definitely what this wicked woman most hoped for.
What should she do?
Sevitis felt her brain had turned into mush.
Those usually aggressive words were now stuck in her throat, unable to form a single syllable.
Only when she saw the black-haired girl’s face getting redder and redder did Eulalia let out a soft laugh.
She straightened up and finally, mercifully, gave Sevitis room to breathe.
Sevitis gasped for air, though the tip of her nose still seemed to carry the lingering fragrance from the other.
“Stop! Enough!” Sevitis quickly raised a hand to halt Eulalia, who was trying to sneak closer again.
She drew an invisible line between them. “Keep this distance. If you come any closer, I’m out.”
“Mm… fine.” Knowing when to stop, Eulalia obediently nodded and gave up.
“If you have something to say, say it. What do you actually want to talk about? I still need to get back and rest.” Sevitis curled her lip, urging impatiently.
Eulalia tilted her head, thinking for a moment, then suddenly asked:
“Do you still remember our wager?”
Sevitis paused, then looked at Eulalia as if she were an idiot.
Was there even a need to ask?
This idiot must have gone soft from staying in the Theocratic Nation.
How could I possibly forget?
If it weren’t for that damned wager, why would I have shown up at Kantaier Academy looking like this today?
The more she thought about it, the angrier she got.
But she couldn’t beat her now.
As for cursing her?
That would probably only give her pleasure.
Sevitis decided on the iciest response: ignore her.
“Mm.” She squeezed out a single cold syllable from her nose.
“Then…”
Eulalia propped her hands on the large rock behind her, tilted her head back, and looked up at the bright moon in the night sky.
“Are you… doing well now?”
“That’s none of your concern.” Sevitis crossed her arms and stared down at the tree shadows on the ground.
“Hearing you say that puts my mind at ease.” E
ulalia seemed to effortlessly translate someone’s actual meaning.
“I heard you’re now the official heir of the Adams family. Have you finally reunited with your family?”
“I’m just a tool they adopted. The so-called ‘legitimacy’ they announce to the public is nothing but a deceitful trick.”
The moment the words left her mouth, both fell silent for a breath.
“Is that so?” Eulalia didn’t dig deeper into what had actually happened.
Instead, she tilted her head and looked at her with a half-smile.
“But is it really okay to tell me something like that outright? After all, isn’t this a secret between you and the Duke family?”
“And… you act so guarded around me.”
“…You’re pretty self-aware.”
Sevitis muttered under her breath. Eulalia let out a soft laugh, unsure if she had caught the complaint.
Sevitis was silent for a moment, then slowly raised her head to stare into the darkened forest ahead.
“Other people might believe it, but would you?”
Even if this woman had once personally severed their past, even if she herself was now desperately trying to push her away—
In the end, one fact could not be changed: they had once been the people who understood each other best in this world.
Sevitis turned her head and looked seriously at Eulalia. This was the first time tonight she had actively gazed at her former childhood friend.
“With your understanding of me, you must know very well that someone like me could never be some duke heir who was lost among the people.”
Sevitis didn’t look away, trying to confirm something from those blue eyes.
“Am I right?”
However, the smile on the blonde girl’s face didn’t diminish in the slightest.
She merely tilted her head slightly and smoothly shifted her gaze away.
“That might be true. Who knows, your real background might be even bigger than the duke’s?” She brushed it off with a joking tone.
At that, Sevitis didn’t press further. She silently withdrew her gaze and turned back to the dark forest.
“…Maybe.”
…
This somewhat heavy silence didn’t last long. It was soon broken by Eulalia’s one-sided chatter.
“Angelina is good in every way, but she’s sometimes naggy, like a worrywart old mother…”
“The Pope really does look like an old man…”
“The Saintess of Dawn has been very kind to me. After she took me away back then…”
Eulalia talked on and on, pouring out all the trivial events and interesting encounters she’d had over the past five years since entering the Theocratic Nation, holding nothing back.
Sevitis didn’t get up to leave, nor did she respond.
She simply pulled a random book out of her storage space and started reading.
Originally, she had come out tonight to find a place to paint and relax, but obviously, that mood was gone now.
Listening to the cheerful, clear voice beside her, like a lark, Sevitis felt a moment of daze, as if she had returned to the osmanthus tree at the orphanage years ago.
It was just like this back then…
Even though she didn’t want to admit it, in just over half an hour, the irritation and tension inside Sevitis had unknowingly dissipated.
In its place was a long-lost sense of peace.
But this was still just an illusion.
Sevitis reminded herself. J
ust like that warm time back then, which had eventually shattered like a bubble, this tranquility before her was nothing but a dream that could wake at any moment.
Once, she thought she understood this lively, cheerful girl beside her.
But on the day they parted ways, she realized she could never see through the purpose and thoughts hidden beneath Eulalia’s smile.
The ridiculous part was, even now, when she considered herself reborn and even turned into a Vampire, she still couldn’t see through this woman in front of her.
Even just now, she didn’t know why she had inexplicably asked Eulalia that kind of question.
Sevitis shook her head with a bitter smile.
She put the book back into her storage space, patted off her skirt, and stood up, ready to put an end to this reunion that had crossed the line.
“You’re leaving?” came Eulalia’s voice from behind, unreadable.
“Mm, it’s about time. I need to go rest and prepare for the entrance exam the day after tomorrow.” Sevitis answered without turning around.
“Or did you put on this whole show tonight just to drag me into chatting late at night, make me sleep poorly and perform badly in the exam, so you can win the wager for sure?”
Eulalia didn’t retort. There was only a faint rustling sound behind her.
Sevitis hadn’t expected a reply anyway; it was just a habitual jab.
So she stepped forward, her feet sinking into the soft grass, heading toward the main road back to the dormitory.
But as soon as she took one step, her wrist was gently caught by a warm hand.
Sevitis turned back in surprise.
Eulalia was holding her with one hand, while the other produced an exquisite lunchbox from who knows where.
Inside, neatly arranged, were several soft, pink, fragrant pastries.
And in Sevitis’s knowledge, there was only one person in this world who made pastries like that.
The blonde girl in front of her.
Eulalia blinked her clear blue eyes and tentatively pushed the lunchbox forward.
“Do you… want to eat?”