Volume 1 Chapter 50 Childhood Friend, The One Who Extracted The Truth
The backlash against her is strong.
I felt this when I overheard their gossip about her.
As a former commoner now turned noble, it seems she's not well-regarded by commoners.
Well, the nobles also seem unsure how to interact and just watch from a distance.
Still, isn't it a bit much to speak ill of her so openly?
Isn't gossip supposed to be said secretly?
Even now, I hear whispers that feel somewhat bold yet sneaky.
"She was a commoner, after all"
"Acting all noble now"
Such voices.
However, an interruption appeared.
It was Elena passing by.
"...I see. Come on you all, say it louder. Let her hear you. What was it? She was a commoner? Acting all noble? And what else? You still have more to say, don't you?"
Her voice was clear and entirely confident.
"Oh, they have escaped, Rolus"
"It seems so, Lady"
Those who were gossiping suddenly feared Elena and fled in a hurry.
While I was watching Elena tilt her head and follow her back as she ran away, all of a sudden the presence of the person next to me disappeared.
"Ah"
For some reason, the person who was being talked about ran away.
I wanted to call out to Elena, but there was something I really wanted to say and ask Flora, so I decided to go after her, who had run away.
"Weren't you supposed to say thank you just now?"
Flora, who had escaped, was crouching in a corner of the hallway.
When I looked into her face, she saw that she was covering it with both hands.
Then, when I listened carefully, I heard a faint voice say "N-no... ah..." through the gaps between my fingers.
I'm relieved that she doesn't seem to be crying.
I don't know how to comfort you even if she cries.
But who is this girl?
After being her caretaker for a week, I was finally reaching my limit.
I sighed deeply and folded my arms and leaned against the window next to her.
"Why are you running away from Elena?"
"Well, um..."
Hearing my question, she finally removed her hands from her face.
Her previously covered face was slightly red, and her eyes looked a bit watery.
"Did Elena do something to you?"
"...n-no, nothing... nothing...?"
"Then there's no need to run away. Elena was assigned to take care of you too."
Besides me, both Elena and Ms. Natalia were also assigned as caretakers.
Since the transfer student is a girl, I thought it would be fine to leave it to the two of them, but somehow I ended up shouldering it all alone.
I never imagined I would be the only one.
Now, Ms. Natalia is helping me, but the two are still somewhat awkward with each other, so ultimately, I'm the only one they rely on.
I don't dislike being relied on, but the problem is that Flora keeps avoiding Elena; that's all.
Because Flora is avoiding Elena, I can't get close to her.
Not being able to get close to Elena has meant I haven't been able to hang out with her much lately.
A few days ago, when I told Elena I couldn't play today either, she looked incredibly sad and murmured softly, "When we get busy like this, we can't spend time together."
It hurt me to see Elena's sad face.
Later, when we happened to meet in the recreation room, she said, "You play with that girl, but you won't play with me."
Was that jealousy on her part?
If that's the case, I feel bad for Elena, but I'm also a little happy.
Elena has a lot of friends, so somewhere in my heart I still thought that she wouldn't be lonely even if I was gone.
My thoughts have gone off track a little, but... that day, when we ran into each other in the recreation room, Flora said she wanted to see the game that Elena had donated, and that's why she was there.
In the first place, Flora looks at Elena when she doesn't notice, and she seems to be somewhat concerned about her, so it doesn't seem like she hates her.
"Flora, do you hate Elena?"
"No."
As expected, she answered immediately without any hesitation.
"So, you're scared of Elena?"
"I'm not scared."
"Then why are you running away?"
As I asked, she seemed to fumble for words, her mouth opening and closing several times, but ultimately she shut it and covered her face with both hands again.
...This isn't getting anywhere.
"It's just... I don't know what kind of face to make..."
Those words slipped out from between her fingers.
"Face?"
"Um... well, Ms. Elena, did she say anything about my true self? No, no, did she mention anything about me?"
"Nothing in particular about you. Just that she was wondering, 'Am I scary?'"
After hearing my words, Flora let out a sigh and said in a weak voice, "It's not that I'm scared..."
"I don't quite understand, but if it's not hate or fear, then why not just talk to her? Elena is a good person. I'm saying this as your childhood friend, so it's not a lie."
"I know she's a good person. It's just... it's about being mentally prepared..."
"Huh?"
"Well... uh..."
Flora's halting words were starting to irritate me a bit.
"If I become Elena's enemy, you will protect Elena and Elena's friends will become my enemies. Now the prince of this country will also become my enemy."
"It's impossible for me to be an enemy. Have you heard the story of the bride-to-be of the Marquis Blanche family?"
When she asked me that, she looked up as if she had been pushed away.
Her face is red again.
"I know. You didn't choose Ms. Elena, did you, Marquis? I was surprised when I read it in the paper. What a fool she is."
"Huh? You knew Elena back then?"
"She used to come to the store a lot. So, what was the point of that story?"
Store?
"Yes, before the bride candidate was decided, there were people who tried to harass Elena, thinking they were competing for the position. But we, Elena's friends, banded together and stopped them."
"Amazing!"
I didn't bring up this story to move you, you know?
What is up with this girl?
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