The Butterfly That Swallowed the Fog
The butterfly had swallowed the fog.
Tilia finally understood why Elex had turned his head that night. She studied him closely, her gaze lingering on the faint flush near his collar. His cheeks were indeed tinged with color, as if embarrassment had crept in.
She had known from rumors that they shared something more than mere acquaintance, but never had she expected the flush to reach his face.
‘More than that… Was he here to pick her up? Then what was he doing in the library?’
Even as Elex lingered near the library, Tilia hurried to turn away when Cecilia approached. She could not afford to become a witness to their meeting. If her presence was discovered, Cecilia would surely demand a private word with her; anything to avoid that at all costs.
“Did I keep you waiting? You must have been freezing out here…”
“Oh, Tilia.”
But Cecilia arrived first.
Elex had barely stepped out of his chair when Cecilia spotted Tilia and let out a startled voice. She had been so focused on Elex that she had not noticed her at all.
Tilia swallowed her sigh and turned her body back to face Cecilia, forcing a practiced smile onto her lips.
“Hello, Cecilia.”
Cecilia rolled her eyes with deliberate awkwardness and drifted a step away from Elex’s side.
“Tilia, you’re heading out of the library too?”
“Yes. You as well?”
“No, I came from the student council room. I was studying there.”
After exchanging the most awkward conversation imaginable, Tilia waved her hand quickly and descended the stairs.
“Well then, I’ll be going first. Study hard.”
If she had been spotted, the sooner she vanished, the better.
But Tilia could not shake the image of Cecilia or her own destination from her mind.
The Archasis Royal Academy was an ancient boarding high school.
Although the dormitories differed, the two female residence halls stood close to one another.
Half-walking, Tilia followed the pair of Elex and Cecilia, her steps quick and her sigh laced with irritation.
Oddly enough, no matter how fast she walked, the distance between her and the pair who were clearly enjoying their illicit rendezvous never changed.
“Did you study a lot?”
But the real worst was only just beginning.
“I didn’t even bother to take a coat out in this cold.”
From a short distance behind, the conversation of the magnificent secret couple drifted over.
She had no idea whether Elex found her walking ahead so irritating that he had not spoken at all.
Still, at least reply to me. Cecilia would be mortified otherwise.
Unlike what Tilia feared, Cecilia seemed only thrilled and delighted.
“I’m worried. The graduation exam pass rate is under thirty percent. I’m terrified I’ll get flustered from the first stage.”
Tilia strained to ignore Cecilia’s words and stared at the surroundings instead.
“Ah, but Elex won’t have to worry, right? He’s never once missed a top spot, has he? Tell me his secret. He doesn’t even study seriously. He skips classes all the time.”
Yet at the mention of a secret, Tilia’s ears perked up sharply.
His secret. If the Archasis Royal Academy possessed one, Tilia had to know it more than anyone else.
“What could it be? Maybe he studies in secret? Or perhaps… the highest-grade Holy Water?”
Tilia walked slowly, keeping her nerves trained on the pair behind her.
Yet there was no answer.
“Well, I asked something pointless. There’s only one right answer, after all.”
Cecilia’s voice carried a faint laugh, as if the air had been let out of her.
“Just that you’re a genius, right? You’re a genius, aren’t you?”
Tilia clicked her tongue, picked up a nearby pebble, and stuck out her lower lip.
“Hearing that you’re a genius is actually kind of nice.”
Laughter drifted from behind—both of them laughing, it seemed.
Now was the perfect moment.
Tilia straightened her steps that had begun to tilt.
“Yes, I am a genius. I still remember the day you entered the Academy as the top student on your entrance ceremony.”
Walking with a muttered complaint inside, Tilia lowered her eyes when Cecilia’s voice pierced her ears again.
She could not forget that day.
“It was really cool back then. Honestly… did you come in late on purpose?”
Through Tilia’s trembling lashes, the memory unfolded.
Her belly and thighs still throbbed from the beating she had received with a cane.
Should she be grateful that the cane had fallen on invisible spots for the entrance ceremony, or should she feel humiliated that it had been done for his own pride?
Tilia clenched and unclenched her fists, her face expressionless.
Unlike the physical pain, the unfamiliar psychological loss seeped out of her like sweat.
On the entrance ceremony day of the Archasis Royal Academy, there had been no representative position for the runner-up.
That honor belonged solely to the top student.
“Freshman representative, enter!”
When the white-haired man on the stage called out, every student turned their expectant eyes to the surroundings.
Tilia, with her dark green eyes, also scanned the area, looking for anyone who might suddenly appear.
“Freshman representative…?”
But the protagonist did not come. The headmaster’s voice sounded flustered. Murmurs grew louder, and the sound of someone rushing far away to search for the missing person reached them.
“Why isn’t he coming? I was looking forward to it.”
“Who do you think is this year’s top student?”
“You didn’t hear? It’s that Davenport heir, the second son. He was already famous even at his debutante ball…”
The moment Tilia’s tense hands began to relax, the door of the Victory Hall, decorated with black velvet, opened.
Sunlight streamed in like light illuminating a dark cave.
Someone whistled mockingly.
That was true. His entrance was as commonplace as the protagonist in a typical novel.
The late-summer sunlight poured behind him, far more dazzling than the scattered chandeliers. His uniform, made of the finest fabric, was naturally disheveled.
Shining shoes stepped on the red carpet without hesitation, backlit by the sun.
Kong.
The door closed.
When the light that had blinded the crowd for a moment vanished, the protagonist’s appearance became crystal clear.
Tilia murmured to herself this time.
Tall. Balanced body. And… a face so close to perfection.
His face, as if the god had painted it solely for his own gallery, had no flaw anywhere.
From the straight eyebrows under the soft blond hair to the nose bridge and jawline, the lines were elegant to the point of being unrealistic.
Tilia could have bet her entire fortune that the person who had once mocked his entrance earlier was now completely speechless.
Because her own heart right now was exactly that.
Sweat began to seep out of her palms again.
She did not glance away, staring at the one who had brought her nothing but despair.
Her eyes held a burning intensity toward the man who had brutally crushed the pride of someone who had never once lost first place until now.
How had he studied to achieve such a vast gap in ranks?
Or had she sensed the sharp hostility rising from the gaze?
The second son of the Davenport ducal house, walking with complete disregard, turned his head to look at her.
In his hazy grey-blue eyes, Tilia found only one emotion.
Boredom.
Deeply rooted, it had become his very nature.
The indifferent gaze swept past her as if wondering when he would ever look at her.
His head turned, but his eyes reflected nothing at all.
“Freshman representative, Elex Davenport.”
Tilia heard the headmaster’s voice recover its composure and made her own vow.
On graduation day, I will stand on that spot.
Tilia looked at the broad back of the freshman representative of the Archasis Royal Academy and burned her dark green eyes with fierce light.
On graduation day, I will definitely remove that back.
Tilia returned to reality with a deep sigh.
Ultimately, that wish would never come true. No matter how many years had passed since that day, she had never once defeated Elex.
Tilia’s brows furrowed again at the memory of that time.