Chapter 270: Interlude – Engagement (2)
Silence fell over the training arena. Everyone froze as if time itself had stopped, their gazes locked onto Berald and Senior Sophia. A quiet like the calm before a storm lingered for a long moment.
The first to erupt were the girls of the party, especially those closest to Senior Sophia. Iris shrieked and jumped to her feet. Yurina lunged toward Senior Sophia with frightening momentum. Camilla staggered back, looking utterly bewildered, as though she couldn’t process what she had just heard.
“Engaged... to B-Berald?”
“W-wait? S-Sister Sophia! Is that true?”
“Kyaaah! What on earth happened?”
Then there was Laneige, the one who could arguably be called Senior Sophia’s closest companion. She looked like a machine that had short-circuited after being dunked in saltwater. “En-en-engaged. Engaged? En-gaged? H-how? How did this happen?”
“Uh, maybe calm down first?”
“I asked how it happened!” Laneige shouted, then charged at her.
Senior Sophia was flustered. “Kyaaak! Hey! What’s gotten into you?! W-Wait, calm down— Kyaaah! Where are you touching?”
“Is that what matters right now?”
“It matters!”
Laneige bit her lip, eyes shimmering with unshed tears. “Is it really true? You’re actually engaged?”
Senior Sophia let out a long sigh and nodded. “Yeah. It’s true.”
“W-were you two dating this whole time?”
“No.”
Visibly confused, Iris stammered, “Th-then how did it even...”
Senior Sophia shrugged. “I guess Berald’s father took a liking to me.”
“Berald’s father?”
“Y-You mean Lord Gilbert?”
“Yeah.” A faint blush spread across Senior Sophia’s cheeks. “You know how I visited Berald’s family home over winter break? I stayed there for a few days, and then, out of nowhere, his father burst into tears and begged me to take his son off his hands.”
All eyes turned toward Berald as if to confirm whether this was actually true.
Grunting awkwardly, Berald scratched his head and nodded. “It’s true.”
Yurina leaned in close. Maybe it was because she was the romanticist in the party, but her eyes sparkled like stars as she stared at Senior Sophia, and her voice brimmed with excitement. “T-then you accepted the engagement, Sister Sophia?”
With a small smile, Senior Sophia gently waved the hand bearing the ring. “Well, I wouldn’t be wearing this otherwise, would I?”
Yurina exclaimed, “W-wow! Waaaah!”
“Why are you so shocked?”
“I just... I didn’t know you liked Berald like that.”
“Like—” Senior Sophia’s face turned bright red as she shook her head. “L-like him? Why would I like that bear of a man?”
“Huh?” Yurina’s eyes widened. “B-but you said you’re engaged.”
“I only agreed because of Father’s request! Okay? Think of it as saving a man’s life!”
Wait, if that’s the case, why are you already calling him Father? I said internally.
“A-anyway! I didn’t get engaged because I like him!”
Yurina awkwardly took a step back. “O-oh, okay.”
Iris approached Senior Sophia with a sly smile. “Hm, is that really true?”
“W-what do you mean?”
“Oh, nothing. It’s just that judging by your expression and the way you were stroking that ring earlier, it didn’t look that way at all.”
“M-my expression? What about it?”
“Hehe. Want me to tell you what it looked like?”
Senior Sophia snapped her head away and muttered under her breath. “F-fine. Don’t.”
“Of course! Of course! You already know without me saying it, don’t you?”
“Grr! Iris, you little!” Senior Sophia bared her teeth, red as a tomato, while Iris burst into peals of laughter.
“Still, an engagement, huh. I’m jealous.” Iris’s eyes narrowed slightly. “Some people haven’t even brought up that word once.”
That sudden turn surprised me. Wait. Why am I suddenly the target?
Iris continued, “You’re always saying ‘I love you, I love you.’”
I quickly replied, “N-No, that’s—”
However, she cut me off. “But when it comes to marriage or the future, not a word.”
“Well, you see...”
“And whenever you get the chance, you keep adding more women to your collection.”
Th-that’s... My apologies, Saintess.
She glanced at me. “You hear everyone say they like you, and suddenly, it’s like every woman in the world belongs to you, huh?”
“N-no, not to that extent.”
“Not to that extent? Oh?” It seemed she had worked herself up while talking. Her expression twisted sharply as she stepped closer. “More than half the women standing here are dating you. And you’re saying that? You know what’s even more shocking? We have to add Professor Baldwin to that list too.”
“That’s...”
There was no room for excuses.
“Heh. Well, whatever. I like you knowing exactly what kind of person you are.” Sighing, Iris gently pinched my stiffened cheek. “So, watching Sister Sophia and Berald, did you feel anything?”
“Feel, um, what, exactly?”
“Engagement. We should get engaged too, shouldn’t we?” With a bright smile curving her lips, Iris pressed the attack as if delivering a final will. “Ah, and of course, Yurina and Sister Laneige as well. All together.”
As if to show she hadn’t forgotten them, Iris turned and gave a playful wink toward Yurina and Laneige, who were both still standing there stiffly.
“Getting engaged to Dale,” Yurina muttered, pondering it.
“Wouldn’t ma-marriage be better than just an engagement?” Laneige exclaimed.
“What are you talking about, Sister?”
“W-wait a second! I’ll grab my bag from the lounge!”
Laneige bolted out of the training arena. Moments later, she returned with her shoulder bag in hand. She rummaged through it frantically before pulling out several sheets of white paper.
“What’s that?” I asked.
“M-marriage registration forms!”
I was speechless. No. Why are you carrying marriage registration forms around in your bag?
“I-I’ve been keeping them ready so that if Dale ever wants to, we can get married on the spot!” she explained.
Laneige rushed up and thrust the forms toward me. Perhaps it was because her closest friend had just leaped ahead of her, her eyes blazed fiercely, completely at odds with someone supposedly blessed with the Blessing of the Frost.
“Dale! Your seal! Hurry!” Laneige said excitedly.
“Why would I be carrying my seal around with me?”
“T-then wait! If there’s no seal, we can just use a fingerprint.” Using her Blessing of the Frost, Laneige formed a small dagger of ice and brought the blade toward my hand.
“What do you think you’re doing?” I flicked her on the forehead and quickly ignited a spark of flame, melting the ice blade before it could do any damage.
“Ah!” Laneige rubbed her reddened forehead, teary-eyed.
Iris said, “He’s right, Sister. I understand how you feel, but you don’t have to rush like that.”
“D-does that mean you don’t want to marry Dale, Iris?” Laneige asked.
“It’s not that...” Iris trailed off and glanced around. The training arena was still in shambles from the earlier sparring session. The air was thick with sweat and lingering heat. “I just don’t want to do it in this kind of atmosphere.”
“Uuugh. O-okay. I’ll hold back.”
Smiling sweetly, Iris gently patted Laneige on the head. “That’s a good girl.”
Which one of them is older again? I wondered.
I stifled a snort and stretched with a groan. “Anyway, why don’t we head up to the lounge and finish talking there? It feels weird continuing the conversation here.”
“Let’s wash up first.”
“Ah, yeah. Good idea.”
We had worked up quite a sweat during the spar.
The other girls hauled away Senior Sophia, practically dragging her across the floor.
“Come on, Sister Sophia! Hurry and tell us what happened over winter break!”
“I-I already told you earlier!”
“More details!”
“Ugh, fine! Just stop dragging me!”
I turned to Berald. “Let’s go wash up too.”
Berald nodded with a dejected look. “Okay.”
“By the way, was that thing at the store earlier about this?” I asked.
With a sigh, he replied, “Yes.”
“Why the long face?”
Berald’s expression turned heavy. “Brother, could you spare a moment for some advice?”
“Sure. Let’s hear it.” Judging by his expression earlier on the way, I could tell he had a lot on his mind about this engagement with Sophia.
He explained, “My old man pressured me so much that I ended up getting engaged half against my will.”
“Why? You’re not happy about it?”
“N-no! It’s not like that.” Berald shook his head in a hurry. “Sister Sophia may seem cold on the outside, but she’s actually very deep and thoughtful. Honestly, she’s too good for someone like me.”
“I didn’t know you thought of her that way.”
“I didn’t at first. But, well... As we worked on magic research together and wandered around the festival side by side, I gradually developed feelings.”
Oh? So, it’s not like he’s completely indifferent.
“Then what’s the problem?” I asked.
“No. T-there’s one issue.”
“What issue?”
“Ahem. I’ve mentioned this before, Brother, but as a guardian of the microscopic world, I have very firm tastes.”
Guardian of the microscopic world, my ass!
I stared at him. “So?”
“Well, to be honest, I do feel affection for Sophia. But, as a man, that sense of excitement? I don’t really feel it strongly.”
“Hmm.”
That was a bigger problem than I expected. Sexual compatibility played a significant role in romantic relationships.
“But if you’re into older women, wouldn’t marrying Sophia solve that?” I said.
With a sigh, he replied, “I don’t think you truly understand what ‘older woman’ means.”
He shook his head solemnly. “For someone to be a true ‘older woman,’ separation must lie at the very foundation! Without having lost a husband, how could she possibly qualify?”
“At least now I know you don’t understand what ‘older woman’ actually means,” I replied in a lifeless tone.
“Gah! How can you fail to understand my heart?”
“I don’t want to understand it, you lunatic.”
What the hell is this idiot even saying?
“Anyway, marriage alone won’t solve it. Ah!” Berald’s eyes widened as he gasped. “T-that’s it! I’ve thought of a brilliant solution!”
“I’ll hear you out.”
“What if we get married first, and then get divorced? Wouldn’t that solve everything? “Hahaha! Even you must admit that’s a genius idea— Guhk!”
This wasn’t something words could fix. I drove my fist into his solar plexus, sending him rolling across the floor. As he writhed on the ground, I stepped on him and clenched my fist. “Why go through the trouble of a divorce? Making her a widow would work just fine.”
“B-brother, wait— Guh! Cough!”
Across the vast training arena, Berald’s wailing cries echoed pitifully into the distance.