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“….You’re lying! I’m sure of it! There’s no way you’d help me after I tried to ruin you. This is how you’ll get your revenge! You’re just trying to do the same to thing to me!” Emma shrieks. Even the whites of her eyes are starting to turn a bit red now as several tears brim up and spill over onto her cheeks.

Why is she this angry with me? Is it because I haven’t been speaking politely to her even though she’s older?

“Seeking revenge against you wouldn’t be of any benefit to me,” I tell her honestly.

“Ha! Don’t make me laugh! It’s obvious that you’re trying to set me up!”

“Is that what happened? Did someone frame you for something you didn’t do?”

“……That’s none of your business!”

At my words, Emma becomes visibly agitated.

It looks like someone really did set her up in some way. But, Emma is a member of Liz-san’s faction…. Why would anyone try to mess with her?

“Very true. It doesn’t have anything to do with me. And frankly, I not not interested….. However, I know that for strong-willed people like you, crying usually feels like you’re admitting defeat. Under most circumstances, I’m sure you’d stubbornly push down your feelings and refuse to cry. All I’m saying is that I think it’s fine to let those feelings out every once in a while. It’s okay to cry sometimes. So why don’t you just stay here and cry until you feel better?”

With those as my parting words, I really do leave the classroom this time. I don’t bother to wait for her reply. And I don’t turn back, so I’m not sure how she took my words. But at the very least, she didn’t object, so maybe I can take that as her agreeing….?

As I close the door, I quietly snap my fingers, enacting a barrier around the entire classroom. The moment before the barrier falls into place, I hear a single, wracking sob break out from the other side of the door, but then the barrier solidifies and all becomes quiet again.

….I don’t particularly care about Emma, but after seeing her like this, I can’t help but wonder if someone really did set her up. I’m curious.

“This is just my own thought but…..”

“Yeah?”

“You really are a good-natured person, Alicia.”

“What are you saying? You use good-natured to describe people like Liz-san,” I reply back, laughing.

Gilles lifts his eyes heavenwards for a moment and then looks back at me, a small resigned smile slipping onto his face.

“What? What’s that look for?”

“Nothing much. It’s just, if things continue on as they are, the role of the saintess is…..”

As he speaks, Gilles’s voice becomes fainter and fainter. His last words were spoken so quietly, I wasn’t able to catch them.

But I’m sure that even if I ask him about what he said, he won’t tell me anything. So, even though I want to know, I won’t ask.

“Come on. Let’s go search for Duke-Sama,” I say, and then with quick steps, I hurry down the corridor.

T/N: Sorry for the short chapter my friends. But that’s just the way the cookie crumbles! XD Actually, it was a boon in a way. I was afraid I wasn’t going to have time to put this up, but short chapter = quick translation/edit time. The will at least be twice as long as this one though, so you can look forward to that!