Chapter 12

Chapter : 12

Bishot Puremoon’s life at the Academy had turned out far calmer than she had expected.

When she first heard Raphael declare that he would follow her into the Academy, her head had throbbed with dread, but all that anxiety had vanished. For some reason, the wretched bond that had tied her to Raphael until then had been cut.

Thanks to that, she had been able to devote herself entirely to the study of alchemy, just as she had always wished.

Every day, she immersed herself in alchemy and improved at a remarkable pace.

She spent entire days in the Academy library reading books on alchemy, learning about all manner of herbs and methods of transmutation.

How many times had she gasped in admiration as she studied and nodded to herself?

Her eyes had opened.

She had begun to see alchemy from an entirely new perspective. Herbs and techniques that had once seemed scattered and distant from one another became connected by invisible lines.

And at the end of that process, she discovered a new use for Earthroot Fleabane.

It was such an extraordinary discovery that it was hard to believe it had come from an undergraduate student, and so she devoted the entire day to researching it, pouring all her time into it.

Everything had been going so smoothly.

So where had it gone wrong?

Gilbert, apparently, had published her discovery first.

One might have called it coincidence, but the timing was too perfect. And according to Gilbert, the person who had given him the crucial hint had been Raphael himself.

It was obvious.

Raphael had stolen her research and handed it over to Gilbert.

All her efforts collapsed like bubbles bursting into nothing. Once again, she was reminded that there were only a few people in this world who could truly be trusted.

Then again, the whole thing was absurd.

Raphael defeating Jefrin in swordsmanship?

It was nonsense.

Bishot was convinced Katarina had intervened in their match. Gilbert and Katarina’s engagement was an open secret. Even she, who was poor at keeping up with rumors, knew about it.

Someone like Raphael would naturally have learned of it even sooner by using his status, and he would have approached Gilbert.

Raphael must have handed Gilbert the idea about Earthroot Fleabane, and in return, Gilbert must have helped him buy Katarina over.

Katarina, too, must have received something from Raphael and then favored him during the sparring match.

She must have guided the duel deliberately so that Raphael would have the advantage.

If that was the case, then Raphael defeating Jefrin in swordsmanship became possible.

And Jefrin, stubborn to a fault even in Bishot’s eyes, would have failed to notice any of it, accepted the result of the match, and left the Academy.

No, perhaps Raphael had planned even that as well.

Now that she thought back on it, there had been something unnatural about the circumstances under which Jefrin left the Academy. Even if he chose a leave of absence, had it not all happened too suddenly?

It was obvious that Raphael had manipulated Jefrin into it.

Just as he had always done, Raphael was scheming to drive away, one by one, the people close to her.

Having constructed such a convincing deduction in her own mind, Bishot ground her teeth. As she lowered her head in despair, she thought that escaping Raphael’s grasp here too was going to be difficult after all.

Only one thing still bothered her.

“How on earth did he do it?”

She had conducted her research thoroughly in private spaces. She occasionally went in and out of places like the library, of course, but never once had she felt anyone spying on her.

Had he used some sort of magic? She could not even begin to imagine the method.

What could she possibly demand of Raphael? Would he even admit his wrongdoing?

Bishot shook her head.

Getting entangled with him would only bring her more stress. She should endure it and let it pass, just as she always had. Even if she met him, she would grit her teeth and ignore him.

According to Gilbert, Raphael had chosen alchemy for his club as well, and he was supposed to attend that very afternoon. She would have to face him there too. The thought made it hard to breathe.

Feeling as though the situation had gone completely wrong, I scratched the back of my head.

When I checked the clock, it was already three in the afternoon.

In one hour, I had to go to the alchemy club room and meet Gilbert.

Haa...

I really did not know why I had said what I said back then and ended up making such a mess of things.

It had been necessary if I wanted to learn swordsmanship from Katarina, but now that things had reached this point, regret welled up in me.

The alchemy club.

Bishot would obviously be there, and the thought of how I should deal with her made my chest tighten.

Should I pretend not to know her?

That was the first thought that came to mind.

And, at the same time, it was also the method that would make me feel most at ease. Bishot disliked me too, so if I simply pretended not to notice her and ignored her, she probably would not go out of her way to speak to me either.

If I could, that was the route I wanted to take.

My heart leaned heavily that way, but I shook my head.

Would that not be practically confessing that I was the one who had stolen the Earthroot Fleabane discovery?

And yet, if I greeted her and acted as though nothing had changed, that would be uncomfortable in its own way. Bishot undoubtedly suspected me. Could I dodge that? Impossible.

Unable to choose either course, I only fumbled and wasted time. And then, at last, it became time to move.

I headed for the club room.

It was a walk of a good ten minutes, yet when I blinked, I was already standing right in front of it.

Gilbert greeted me warmly when I met him in the alchemy club.

The moment I opened the door to the club room, the man, a professor no less, sprang up from his chair and came over to receive me.

“You came? I have been waiting forever. Back in the dining hall, you acted so friendly, but once you enrolled, not a word from you. I even went out of my way to help you make that medicine... and then you never told me how it turned out. Have you been well?”

“Yes, I have been quite well. There is more work than I expected at the start of the term, so I simply did not have the time. I had meant to come and see you at least once.”

“Ah, I see. Right, right. They do say the period right after enrollment is busy, with all sorts of places you have to visit.”

“Thank you for understanding.”

He bent down, rummaged through a drawer, and pulled out a few sheets of paper, which he handed to me.

“Would you take a look at these?”

They were the paper in which he had published the new use for Earthroot Fleabane, along with business plans related to it, contracts, and the like.

Wow. He really did move fast.

I was impressed by how much he had managed to do in such a short span of time. His drive was like a rocket.

Gilbert watched my face and said,

“I told you I would not just keep all of this for myself. If we are being meticulous about it, what was achieved here was essentially all your doing.”

He rambled on about things like splitting the profits and listing me as a co-author, and I simply agreed whenever he asked, saying that it sounded good or that I liked the arrangement.

In short, money was going to come in even if I did nothing.

Even so, there was something that bothered me more than that.

Bishot was sitting in a corner, pretending not to listen while fiddling with a vial, but her expression kept catching my eye.

She must have thought she was acting naturally, but the hand holding the vial had gone still. She was obviously eavesdropping on the conversation between Gilbert and me.

And then, right on cue, Gilbert brought up the one topic he had been avoiding.

“But how did you come to know about Earthroot Fleabane?”

He continued,

“It is not exactly a fashionable item these days, is it? It would not have been easy to approach it from that angle, so how did you know?”

When I moved my eyes slightly, I saw that Bishot had given up even pretending to hide her expression. She was staring openly in my direction.

Her whole manner said she wanted to hear what answer would come out of my mouth. Her gaze never left my lips.

So I gave the reply I had prepared.

“I am the eldest son of the Isaac family. The Isaac family is known as a Sword House, yes, but it is also an old family with many members who excelled in various branches of learning. Alchemy is one of them.”

Earthroot Fleabane was not the only thing I knew.

Bishot, the alchemical genius officially recognized by the author, had made one astonishing discovery in every single volume without fail.

Having read the work, I knew every one of them, and if I laid them out here, I could dispel Bishot’s suspicion. To prove that point, I said,

“And aside from Earthroot Fleabane, there are several other things I know as well.”

Gilbert’s mouth fell open, and he swallowed.

He looked as though he wanted to ask at once what it was I knew, but he was clearly forcing himself to endure it. This was not for Gilbert’s sake. It was to make Bishot believe me.

I revealed one secret connected to a hair-loss remedy and secured a promise from Gilbert that I would receive half the profits from it.

---

“Hello. It has been a while. Have you been well?”

I smiled and waved at Bishot.

Even while smiling, I found myself wondering whether I was actually managing to smile properly. I had lifted the corners of my mouth and narrowed my eyes slightly, but since it was not something I usually did, I felt as though I must look ridiculous.

Bishot lowered her head a little and answered,

“Yes, it has been a long time. I have been well, thanks to your consideration, Lord Raphael. Nothing unfortunate befell me during that time.”

What she meant was that she had been glad not to have had any occasion to meet me since entering the Academy.

And, at the same time, it also meant that now that we had met again, trouble would likely begin once more.

After saying that, Bishot closed her mouth, lowered her gaze to the floor, and waited for whatever I would say next, as though she intended to leave the moment I had no more to say.

Why?

Why was she acting like this?

If I had been Bishot, I would have said all sorts of things to test whether I really was the one who stole the Earthroot Fleabane information.

Why was she being so calm?

How could she be?

Ah.

Only after our eyes met did I realize.

She was furious.

Beyond suspicion, beyond accusation, she had already reached certainty.

No matter what proof I showed her that I was not the culprit, no matter what I said, she had already decided never to change her mind that I was the one responsible.

Her distrust of me had ripened into certainty that I was the culprit.

The moment I faced that, my resolve began to crumble.

Should I just give up?

Everything had become tangled.

When I first found myself possessing this body, I had thought of two ways to survive.

Either prevent Bishot from ending up with any powerful male lead, or restore my relationship with her.

As for the first option, things had been proceeding rather smoothly.

Jefrin, whose specifications had been lacking from the start, was now entirely out of the Academy, and as for Ian, I had erased the point of connection altogether.

That left only two candidates.

The Crown Prince and the Grand Duke of the North. Those two were several times more troublesome than Jefrin or Ian, but considering how well things had gone so far, it was not impossible. It was certainly far more plausible than becoming close to Bishot and smoothing over everything Raphael had done.

Try to catch two rabbits at once, and I might lose them both.

Should I decide on a single path even now?

Should I really just give up?

Even if I remained the worst bastard in the world in Bishot’s eyes, as long as she did not end up with any of the male leads, that would be fine for me.

It did not matter that she was still the child of a ducal house. On her own, she could do nothing.

No matter how much she hated me, she could not truly harm me. In that case, would things not be fine if they remained exactly as they were?

No. Pushing away the Grand Duke of the North might be possible, but driving back the Crown Prince would be far too difficult.

I smiled again.

I rearranged my expression. I blinked softly, narrowed my eyes a little, and drew up the corners of my mouth. Giving up and overturning the board in a fit of despair would have been stupid.

So I chose the best course available to me right now.

“I heard from Professor Gilbert that you had been studying Earthroot Fleabane as well. That is impressive.”

“Yes. That is correct.”

“It ended up looking as though I interfered with you. I am sorry. Instead, I will tell you something else. This should earn quite a bit of money too. There is no need to feel burdened. I am only offering it because I feel bad.”

“It is quite all right.”

“I feel sorry about it. Could you not just accept it?”

Bishot let out a sigh, then raised the eyes she had kept lowered.

It seemed her feelings had overflowed beyond what she could endure, for tears welled in her eyes.

Those tears caught the red in her gaze and shone beautifully.

She drew in a deep breath and said,

“I do not want to receive anything from you, Lord Raphael. No matter how difficult my circumstances may be, receiving something from you frightens me more. How could I possibly know what you might demand in return for it?”