NOVEL NEXT Chapter 55
“Ran, what are you doing here?!”
Elma’s expression turned bewildered when she spotted me.
“Do you know him?”
“…He’s my junior participating as my partner for this tournament.”
At the mention of partnership, the Head of the Family narrowed his eyes.
It was clear he wasn’t pleased.
“Your partner? A guy?”
A mix of disdain and coldness shot towards Elma.
“Are you doing this on purpose?”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean sticking a man into your life.”
Crack!
Elma ground her teeth.
She balled her fists tightly but stayed quiet, listening.
“Here’s a piece of advice: discard feelings that don’t help you. You must let go of the past and seek the future to truly become strong.”
“If that’s the standard for strength… then I’d rather put down my sword.”
“Ha, I know better than anyone that you can’t put down your sword.”
The Head of the Family nodded slightly.
“Show off with some restraint.”
“……”
“It’s support, after all. If you’re to be my successor, you might as well bring a man along to win.”
He then walked past Elma and toward me.
“Hmmm… you have black hair. I see why she’s attached to you.”
Black hair.
Surely, Elma’s father had black hair too.
Thud thud
That was as far as the conversation went.
It seemed he had lost interest in me, leaving without a second thought.
‘This complete indifference is quite rare.’
Since becoming a male student of Polaris in this world, I was always under scrutiny.
Yet, that Head of the Family didn’t give me a moment’s notice.
He merely glanced at me as if I were an afterthought because I was Elma’s partner.
“…I made a fool of myself. I’m sorry.”
Elma sighed, letting her shoulders droop.
“It’s hard to keep my emotions in check around that person…”
“No, it’s my fault. I shouldn’t have eavesdropped on your conversation by chance.”
Technically, it was Black Lotus who brought me here.
If I had been quicker to make a judgment, I could have returned before being discovered by the Head of the Family.
‘…That might have been impossible.’
It’s not easy to escape the presence of such a skilled individual.
“That person is indeed…”
“Yes, the head of my family. My… mother.”
The way she referred to her mother felt unusually cold.
I knew the reason well enough.
“I didn’t think she would come all the way here. Usually, she doesn’t move unless it’s a combat situation…!”
“Seems she learned about your actions.”
“My rumors… you mean?”
“That you don’t engage in activities as the Head of the Family.”
This was just my speculation, but…
“The Head’s goal is to elevate the family name while reducing your influence within it.”
However, if Elma masks her identity and wins…
“If that happens, what the Head wants will end up being completely reversed. The family name will be hidden, and only your achievements will remain.”
To the outside, it would be proclaimed as ‘Elma’s’ victory.
Internally, Elma’s standing would rise.
“But if the Head intervenes here…”
“My victory may revert to the family…”
In normal circumstances, that wouldn’t be much of a problem.
The younger heir is literally the future Head of the Family.
Raising the family name is akin to elevating one’s own status.
However, in the current situation where the Head and the younger heir are at odds, it becomes quite the predicament.
As the Head’s influence grows, it becomes increasingly difficult to stand against them.
To become a thorn in a family that is already strong feels like facing a massive tidal wave head-on.
“…I get it.”
Elma trembled with anger.
“But… don’t worry.”
“Excuse me?”
“I won’t give up on winning for this reason. For the sake of Ran, who believed in me, I will give my all in this tournament.”
She masked her emotions and forced a smile.
“…Senpai.”
“Yes?”
“Come here for a moment.”
*
“Here you go.”
“W-What is this?”
“Cotton candy. I thought you liked sweet things.”
“Um… that’s…”
I had led Elma to a spot where we could overlook the scenery.
The sun was just beginning to dip below the horizon.
Twilight cast a deep hue over the festival bustling in the streets below.
“They say it’s good to eat something sweet when you’re feeling down.”
“Isn’t that a saying among men?”
“…Is it?”
“I’ve heard guys say that whenever we pass by a dessert shop.”
Elma took a small piece of the cotton candy and popped it into her mouth.
She chewed a few times, then smiled faintly.
“It’s sweet.”
As she slowly ate about half of the cotton candy, she said, “Senpai.”
I began to speak.
“The reason you want to win this tournament, to expand your standing in the family… it’s for the sake of the brother who came back, right?”
“……”
Elma froze, her busy hands stopping as she nodded.
“Yes, that’s right. When he comes back someday, I want to create a safe place for him to rest.”
A child who had been persecuted all their life.
A child who lost their place in the world.
“Now, I want him to be safe… so that such a thing never happens again.”
When I returned, dragging my weary body,
At least I want them not to tremble in fear.
“I want to be their shelter.”
“To sacrifice half your life for that?”
“For that child, I would gladly give everything, not just half.”
Elma’s words were filled with determination.
“I was saved by my father. So, it felt vague to me that I should save that child, who is my father’s bloodline.”
Once emotions begin to swell, they rise like a river after a torrential rain.
Tears glistened in her eyes.
“But… it wasn’t that way. It was the other way around; I was being saved by that child once again.”
“……”
“In a world that turned gray after my father’s passing, that child allowed me to live. But that child did not receive proper treatment in the family. They were always discriminated against, could never study without anxiety.”
The reason being…
“It’s because of me.”
“…What?”
“Because I exist… that child has fallen from being the heir to being a mere nuisance. They have given me trust and love… yet I’ve only brought them exile and horror within our family.”
Every word she uttered felt like a dagger piercing her own flesh.
…Drip!
A droplet rolled across her white cheek.
Drip! Drip!
Like a dam breaking,
The droplets fell harder and faster.
“I’ve just… taken… without any sense of shame…”
Elma’s expression crumbled.
“Every day is filled with anxiety… wondering where that child may be suffering right now… everything feels sinful…”
To sleep in peace.
To eat delicious food.
To live the academy life.
To lead a life not so different from any other.
All of it was a sin to Elma.
“Ugh…! Huh…!”
It was a crime to her.
“For now, let me say this.”
I didn’t express undue sympathy for her.
I didn’t offer comfort or encouragement.
To empathize with pain I had never experienced is only a deception.
“I’m not wiser nor more insightful than you. I can’t say it’s foolish to dedicate your life for someone, nor can I say you should live for yourself.”
Guiding someone’s path requires great caution.
When judging others with my own standards, I must carry the responsibility that comes with it.
Honestly, I don’t care much how Elma chooses to live.
Even if she decides to give up opposing the Head or chooses not to find her brother,
I would merely mull over the disappointment, for I have no right to reproach her.
“But I can say this much.”
What I could say was something anyone could say.
However, to speak with sincerity is something not just anyone could do.
“If you’ve decided to do something, let’s do our best.”
Even if it’s a dark path where not a single step ahead can be seen.
If we have made the choice to walk it, then we must walk it.
Occasionally glancing back,
Wondering how it might have been had I taken a different path is understandable.
But still, we must tread forward.
We can’t be bound by things that can’t be undone.
At the very least.
“Until the very last moment, let’s make sure we can say we’ve given our all.”
“….”
“Even if everything returns to emptiness, let some traces remain. Let’s leave even something small in this world.”
There’s nothing meaningless in this world.
‘Right.’
Before I reincarnated,
My miserable life eventually reached someone.
For Elma, who is better than me.
“You can do it.”
“……”
“Ahem. By the way, I’ve been thinking. There might be a good reason to erase the family name’s tarnish in this tournament…”
Whoosh!
At that moment,
I felt a soft sensation burrow into my side.
“S-Senpai?”
“Thank you… so much…”
Elma struggled to speak each word in a voice thick with emotion.
“For not calling me foolish… truly…”
I said nothing.
I simply patted her back for a long while.