“It’s precisely because it’s Forbidden Love that it’s so exciting!”
Alice answered with a look of absolute certainty, stars even sparkling in her eyes.
“Now I’m curious too, Miss Liakade, hurry up and tell me who it is!”
“Don’t be in such a hurry.”
Liakade blinked, signaling Alice not to get too worked up.
“Let Princess Field try to guess first.”
It wasn’t that Liakade was unwilling to say, but Alice and Field’s reactions at this moment were just too entertaining, and Liakade couldn’t help but start teasing.
“Is it a girl?”
Field was taken aback upon hearing this. No wonder she had never heard of such a thing before — Forbidden Love wasn’t exactly something one announced publicly.
Field was a little surprised that Liakade knew about it too.
“I can’t guess with just this little information. Besides, why are you so concerned about my matters?”
How could a girl admit to having feelings for another girl?
It was hardly something to be openly told.
“Then I’ll give Princess Field a little hint to narrow it down.” Liakade held up a few fingers, helping Field count off Irina Zi’s characteristics.
“Hmm… excellent grades, about equal to Princess Field’s. In terms of rank, even higher than Princess Field.”
From memory, Irina Zi’s recent grades were close to Field’s.
“Her hair is about waist-length.”
Liakade gestured around her own waist. “Same length as mine.”
“She often watches Princess Field.”
Liakade thought for a moment. Since Irina Zi kept spying on Field, this description made sense.
“She’s very pretty, probably one of the top beauties in the Academy.”
Although Irina Zi had a harsh personality, she was still good-looking.
“Hmm…” Field pondered for a while but couldn’t think of anyone around her who fit these conditions.
“I really can’t figure it out… Besides, these clues are way too vague.”
“That’s the point of being vague. If I gave you obvious hints, like hair color or family name, wouldn’t you guess immediately?”
Liakade kept teasing, watching Field with interest.
“Princess Field, try a little harder.”
“Tsk…” Field bit her lip lightly, carefully thinking over anyone who fit the description.
First, just having grades comparable to hers narrowed the pool considerably.
Second, being female ruled out many candidates. Yet among these people, Field couldn’t think of anyone she had any interaction with.
Moreover, if the person often watched her, wouldn’t she have noticed?
So why was Liakade making her guess?
Why not just say it outright?
Wait, wait…
Field racked her brain for a long time, and suddenly a flash of insight lit up in her mind, seeming to grasp the key to the puzzle.
If the person Liakade mentioned was actually herself, then everything made sense.
Liakade was female, her grades were close to Field’s—both true. Liakade also said the hair was the same length; if the person was Liakade herself, that fit too.
Field’s thoughts suddenly cleared. The more she thought, the more logical it seemed.
In terms of looks, Liakade could definitely rank among the top beauties in the school. Although Liakade’s words sounded a bit like bragging, in Field’s eyes, Liakade really was that level.
If the Academy had a School Belle Election, Field believed Liakade would be a strong candidate. The only drawback was Liakade’s unpopular white hair.
As for the constant watching, they spent a lot of time together, so naturally they saw each other often. Yet Field never realized Liakade had been paying so much attention to her. This realization brought a small thrill to Field’s heart.
Later, Liakade said if she mentioned hair color, the answer would be too obvious. That made it even clearer — in the entire Academy, only Liakade had white hair.
Now it was clear why Liakade was teasing her like this. It was probably because she was embarrassed to confess openly, so she was dropping hints in this way, preparing Field’s heart or hoping Field would uncover her feelings first.
So… we’re actually secretly in love with each other!
Thinking this, Field swallowed hard.
“I… I still can’t figure it out. Can you give me one more key hint?”
Although Field felt her guess was almost certainly correct, she wanted to confirm. Otherwise, if she guessed wrong, it wouldn’t just reveal her feelings — it would also make her look foolish.
“Why would that be? That person has such strong feelings for Princess Field, and you can’t feel it?”
Liakade propped her chin on her hand, her eyes rolling.
“Then I’ll give you a hint about her name.”
“Without the surname, her name has four characters.” Liakade snapped her fingers and blinked expectantly at Field.
“Well? Can you guess now?”
“Hoo…” Field exhaled deeply upon hearing Liakade’s final hint.
Liakade’s name did have four characters.
Field felt her breathing grow heavy. Liakade’s expectant gaze pressed against her heart. It seemed all her previous deductions were correct.
“Liakade…” Field lowered her head slightly, her bangs hiding her eyes. Her voice was barely a whisper.
“What?”
Liakade clearly didn’t hear well; Field’s voice was too soft.
“That person…” Field hesitated, then mustered all her courage to look up and say with all her might, “That person has to be you—Liakade!”
“Pfft—” Liakade almost spat out a mouthful of old blood, thinking Field was joking because she couldn’t guess.
“Wh-what a joke! You don’t know and you’re teasing me?”
“Eh… c-could it not be?”
Field froze in place, embarrassed at Liakade’s shocked expression.
“Of course not, it’s Irina Zi!”
Seeing Field really couldn’t guess, Liakade finally gave in and revealed the truth.
“Huh???”
Field couldn’t care about the embarrassment anymore. More than that, she was shocked. “Liakade, are you messing with me? That person, I barely know her! We only met as kids, and she doesn’t treat me well at all! I don’t have the slightest good feeling toward her!”
“Wait, didn’t you just say…” Field suddenly remembered something, turning pale as she covered her mouth. “She… she often watches me!?”
Goosebumps broke out all over Field’s body. She recalled Liakade was close to Irina Zi before. So what Liakade said might really be true.
“T-there’s a stalker!!!”