The Things I Don't Want to Lose
“Huh?”
The unexpected compliment left Evey momentarily speechless. She simply stared at him with her mouth slightly open, unsure how to respond.
In contrast, Cyrus continued speaking with the same unchanging expression he’d worn from the very beginning.
“I did think you wrote quite a lot of unnecessary information, though.”
“I didn’t write anything unnecessary!”
“At the very least, that self-introduction at the top was completely pointless.”
Evey pushed her glasses up with a firm motion.
One thing was certain. If Evey’s social skills were close to hopeless, then Quinton’s were so nonexistent they might as well be theoretical.
“Do you really not know anything?”
The “introduction” he was talking about was something that absolutely had to be included.
“Who in the world would be happy to have a complete stranger suddenly point out mistakes in their solution?”
That was why Evey had written a simple greeting and self-introduction at the top—something along the lines of nice to meet you for the first time.
It might be a fabricated identity, but she really was a student at Royal High School, wasn’t she?
“I wouldn’t have minded.”
“Don’t worry. I have no intention of meddling with your problem-solving.”
“Good. I don’t think I’ll be asking you for help again either.”
“Who said I was offering?”
Evey returned the book she’d been holding to its proper place. If she stayed here arguing any longer, she wouldn’t be able to focus on the important matter at hand.
“Well then, I’ll…”
She was about to say she was leaving when she suddenly glanced back at Quinton. Only then did it occur to her that the “important matter” she needed to think about included him as well.
If she left the school like this, there was a high chance she would meet this boy again—as a potential marriage candidate.
Cyrus probably wouldn’t even recognize her. He wouldn’t care, either.
He would simply throw himself even deeper into the royal secret archives.
And Evey wouldn’t feel any particular emotion toward him.
To be honest, I’m not even sure what that “particular emotion” is supposed to feel like anyway.
Still, one thing was clear. Whatever it was, it wasn’t something she could share with Cyrus Quinton.
His gaze had already returned to the bookshelves. It seemed he still hadn’t found the book he was looking for. She noticed his unusually long fingers slowly tracing along his jawline.
Evey let her eyes linger for a moment on his sharp facial features. She didn’t want to admit it, but there was something intellectual and refined about him.
He gave off the impression that even his emotions were perfectly controlled by reason.
“What?”
Apparently sensing her stare, he turned to look at her.
“Nothing. Just thinking.”
She couldn’t exactly say, I was thinking about how horrifying it would be to marry you, so Evey simply gave a light shrug.
Then, without much thought, she added,
“I was wondering whether it might be better for me to leave the school.”
“I see.”
His reaction was as indifferent as if she’d just told him what she had for lunch.
Well, to him it probably wasn’t much different. After all, it had nothing to do with him.
“……”
Unable to find anything else to say, Evey decided it was time to actually leave.
But after pulling a book from a high shelf, he suddenly asked,
“What do you want to do?”
“Huh?”
Evey turned her gaze back to Cyrus. He was rapidly flipping through the pages of the book he’d taken out, checking its contents.
It didn’t seem like he was taking her words particularly seriously.
Oddly enough, that made it easier to talk to him.
“I…”
Evey thought for a moment.
If she set aside all the complicated circumstances and simply answered the question of what she wanted, then Evey didn’t want to leave.
Escaping the stifling life of the royal palace had been refreshing, and being able to freely attend all kinds of classes was wonderful.
“I don’t want to leave. Not really.”
“Then you should stay.”
He reached that conclusion in a completely dispassionate voice. Then, as if there was nothing more to say, he turned and walked out of the aisle.
“……”
Evey remained in place a little longer. She was somewhat stunned.
Not by what he’d said, but by her own feelings.
Then you should stay.
The conclusion he’d drawn earlier had been hasty, and his reasoning was flimsy.
Yet the reason it stirred something strange inside her was probably because he had spoken the exact words she had most wanted to hear during her meeting with the headmaster.
Not that she was particularly moved or anything.
* * *
With a chocolate bar in her mouth, Evey headed toward the classroom for her next class. She didn’t know what would happen from now on, but she at least wanted to finish the first semester properly.
For her own sake.
However, she had no desire to be glared at unnecessarily, so she waited in the shadows beneath the stairs until just before class began, watching for the professor.
The moment she spotted the professor coming down the hallway, Evey finally made her way into the classroom.
And the instant she opened the door—
She realized that everything she had done to avoid drawing the students’ glares had been completely pointless.
The noisy classroom fell silent in an instant. Every pair of eyes turned toward her.
She had thought she was used to being the center of attention, but that must have only been when she received gazes as a princess.
The stares directed at “Evey” after becoming entangled in so many scandals were far harder to endure.
Her face flushed hot in an instant. She lowered her head and quickly squeezed herself into the nearest empty seat she could find.
Thank goodness the professor walked in right then. At least those stinging stares would finally go away.
“Cough!”
Unfortunately, the cookie crumbs from the chocolate bar she had hastily swallowed seemed to have gotten caught in her throat.
The sound Evey made was so painful it seemed like her breathing might stop, and everyone’s eyes swung back to her again.
Oh, come on!
Evey decided to give herself an award.
The Nevertheless, She Stayed Until the End of Class Award. At that moment, it felt more impressive than a Nobel Prize.
“Oh my, Angel. Were you waiting for me?”
After class, while Evey was cooling her head by the window, a ridiculous voice came from behind her.
It seemed she had been standing right in front of the classroom where Tiffany Vance had been.
“You turned me down so coldly earlier.”
There was no way Evey would have accepted Tiffany’s absurd offer—revealing Joy’s secret in exchange for Evey taking on the entire group project alone.
She had naturally rejected it on the spot. It wasn’t even worth considering.
“I heard the rumor. The situation has completely changed, right? You’ll need my help now, won’t you?”
“Let me make one thing clear, Vance.”
Evey turned to face her and answered calmly.
“I wasn’t waiting for you. Does that answer your question?”
“What?”
Tiffany tilted her head slightly, as if she had just heard something utterly bizarre.
“Why?”
“Because I have no business with you.”
The exaggerated smile vanished from Tiffany’s face. She must have been disappointed that Evey hadn’t come crawling back after all.
“How strange. I thought we’d finally reached the same opinion about that annoying Joy Carter.”
“I don’t know her well enough to dislike her.”
“Ah, I see. Well, if you want to get to know her better, there’s a way. Just go to the locked back gate near the Memorial Hall at dawn.”
The locked back gate by the Memorial Hall?
That place had been out of use for a long time because of poor accessibility. No one ever passed by there.
What could a secluded spot like that possibly have to do with the haughty Joy?
“I hope you see something interesting. That way you can pay back all the humiliation you’ve suffered, right?”