Tess was one of the protagonists and possessed charm and beauty that could attract any healthy male.
While this may seem like a blessing, it also ca with its own set of problems for Tess.
"Please go out with !"
The senior student bowed his head, his face flushed and adorned with a subtle grin. His brain seed to assu that there was no other option for Tess but to accept.
Tess and the senior were both nobles, and their relationship would bring positive benefits to both families.
'...'
As I looked at his face, I had to cover my mouth or else a giggle would've escaped. The guy was a literal definition of a young, narrow-minded master.
While it might seem like a really good offer from today's perspective, there was one big problem that the senior seed to have overlooked...
Tess's Talent!
She was far more talented than he was, and the gap between their abilities was evident.
Furthermore, there was the issue of the senior only lusting after Tess's beautiful appearance, as they had never interacted before.
"No, thank you. I'm currently not searching for a partner."
Tess politely declined the senior student's offer. It was obvious that she would reject his confession, but the guy's eyes rolled back in surprise.
He raised his head, looking confused and thinking that he might have misheard her.
"I think I might have forgotten sothing..."
He said, scratching his neck with slight embarrassnt before doing another bow.
"My na is Arthur Norder, the son of Nord Count..."
Arthur introduced himself, hoping to see recognition in Tess's eyes, but her expression didn't change.
In reality, she didn't care who the person before her was - it could even be the prince, and she still wouldn't accept.
"It is nice to et you, Arthur, but I'm sorry."
Tess said politely, however her voice seed sowhat irritated. She did another bow and turned around, planning to leave the Garden.
"Soil Dance: Reinforce!"
Suddenly the dirt around Tess's feet hardened, preventing her from taking another step away from Arthur.
"Could you at least tell why?"
Arthur spoke, looking at Tess with a mix of anger and sadness.
Swish...
Although invisible, I could see Tess's aura growing more eerie, reaching a level where I could see the air around her rippling.
"I've already stated my reason. I'm not searching for a partner."
Tess replied firmly, stomping her foot and freeing herself from the grasp of the soil. She turned to face Arthur, who was grinding his teeth.
"Don't you dare try to attack with your art..."
She warned, her brown eyes glittering as she pointed to the rapier she had strapped to her hip.
"Or else you might lose a limb."
I looked at the pair, feeling slightly troubled. If a fight broke out, there would surely be so commotion.
It would attract too much attention to this specific location, and the teachers would inquire to review the cara footage.
The video would probably display giving blood to a Vampiric Plant and then taking it for myself, which could lead to charges of thievery.
'Should I reveal myself?'
Perhaps if there was a witness, Arthur wouldn't attack Tess.
I scratched my cheek, deep in thought and, finally, I decided to act as if I had accidentally stumbled upon them.
Crack...
I quickly found a dry branch and stepped on it, making it break in half. The noise caught the attention of the pair, and they turned to look at .
Walking out from behind the bushes, I glanced at them with a hint of slight surprise on my face.
I instantly noticed that Tess's aura disappeared upon the sight of the other student, while Arthur's hands went right back into his pockets.
"..."
Both glared down as I walked past them, when suddenly Tess grabbed the corner of my jacket's alcove.
"Wait for a bit."
My golden eyes t with her brown ones and I silently nodded my head.
"We'll talk next ti, Arthur..."
She pulled away from the senior, whose expression was unreadable, only his grey eyes seed to radiate so kind of anger and confusion. I didn't bla him; rejection can be a hard pill to swallow.
Tap… Tap…
I thought Tess would let go as soon as we disappeared from the guy's view, but instead, she led deeper into the garden towards a water fountain.
"..."
Without a word, we took a seat on one of the benches. The silence was becoming overwhelming, and I was growing increasingly self-conscious of the protagonist sitting next to .
"So, what did you want to talk about?"
I spoke, attempting to maintain a calm and composed voice.
Upon hearing Tess's question, she let out a sigh, her eyes fixated on the water fountain.
"...I have a question."
Her voice was barely above a whisper, making lean in closer to hear her over the sound of the fountain.
"What is your connection to Rose?"
Her question made a bitter smile form on my face.
I often found myself wondering how I could keep running into Rose, despite my best efforts to avoid the protagonists.
Our strange connection, whatever it may be, was not sothing I desired.
"..."
After collecting my thoughts, I realized Tess was likely aware that I had t Rose in Helixia and that I was the last person to see her in the dungeon before she fought the Wyvern.
Tess's actual question seed to be more complex.
"I've always looked up to the princess..."
However, there was no reason for to read in between the lines, so I decided to play dumb and simply answer the question she asked.
"I'm actually a huge fan of the princess and always looked up to her. Did you know she slayed her first monster when she was just seven years old? It's incredible!"
I started to ramble on about random facts known to the public about Rose, which slowly changed Tess's expression from an emotionless to a smiling one.
"She really is a person to look up to..."
Tess said after a mont, and I nodded my head, trying to appear as enthusiastic as possible.
"Well, thank you for your ti, Aiden. Let's talk again next ti."
Tess said, rising from the bench and dusting off her black skirt before waving goodbye.
"Have a good day!"
I watched as her red hair disappeared behind the greenery, and slumped back onto the bench, feeling my entire body relax.
It was starting to concern that a simple conversation with the protagonist could drain so much energy from . My body felt like I had just finished another spar.
I couldn't help but wonder if I was dealing with so kind of ntal health issue.
"I just don't like their company..."
I grumbled to myself, crossing my arms and trying to convince myself that it was because I chose not to interact with people, not because I lacked social skills.
There was no problem talking with Oscar!
Suddenly, as if sothing clicked within my mind, I slapped myself in the cheeks.
"Now that I think about it, I feel like running only when I interact with won..."
I felt... I don't know how I felt, like shit?
"Shit!"
I kicked the gravel, finding it hard to believe that I was scared of interacting with won. As far as I could recall, I never had such issues in my previous life.
Could this have sothing to do with Aiden's past?
I tried to recall Aiden's mories, but most of them were blurry. I could barely make out the faces of his deceased parents.
"Aghh..."
Suddenly, a sharp pain jolted through my head, forcing to drop my thoughts. It was as if soone had punched in the head, and I felt blood gathering in my mouth.
"What the hell!?"
I kneeled on the ground, waiting for the strange pain to subside.
This was real pain, and even I had to acknowledge it. It felt like soone was stabbing needles into my brain, which was not a pleasant feeling.
Slowly rising from the ground, I quickly took out my phone and looked at my reflection.
"..."
Blood was streaming from my eyes.
Whatever had just happened or prevented from investigating Aiden's mories had inflicted significant damage.
"Damn..."
I gingerly touched my eyes, feeling the stickiness of the blood.
I decided that it was best not to continue experinting outside of my apartnt.
As I left the garden, I was careful to avoid the gazes of other students, so of whom might have thought I was hurt in a fight.
"In what body did I reincarnate?"
Entering my apartnt, I stumbled to the couch, clutching my head in pain. The mories of Aiden's past were hazy and elusive, as if they were deliberately hidden from .
The effort of trying to piece together the missing mories made feel sick, and I found myself coughing up blood.
I rembered the weakened body of Aiden whose health I had to restore using the Elixir of Life.
"What happened in the past, Aiden... Who really are you!?"
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