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Chapter 65: The Main Heroine's Love and Hate
I quickly ran to Sharin’s side and supported her, leading her to the nearest restroom.
“I should probably get her so water.”
Judging by her state, she didn’t seem to know her drinking limits.
She was bound to regret it with a hangover tomorrow.
I went downstairs to the lodging’s lower floor to fetch so water.
Just as I grabbed a bottle of water stored under a freezing spell, I noticed a familiar face.
“Oh.”
The person recognized too and let out a short exclamation.
Her honey-blonde hair frad her slightly flushed cheeks.
A sweet scent of alcohol wafted from her, tickling my nose.
As Sharin had ntioned earlier, Isabel seed to have had quite a bit to drink.
‘At least she looks more composed than Sharin.’
At that mont, Isabel covered her face with her hands.
“Oh, I-I only drank because it fit the mood.”
She looked flustered, and her reaction gave an odd feeling.
‘This isn’t really about affection, is it?’
I suspected it was sothing else entirely.
“Isabel.”
When I tossed her the bottle of water, Isabel caught it in her hands.
“Let’s talk for a bit.”
“Huh? Wha—?”
Isabel widened her eyes in surprise, likely not expecting to initiate a conversation.
“But first.”
I pointed upward.
“Let’s deal with the drunkard first and get her to her room.”
We had to settle Sharin, who had turned into a dolphin in the restroom.
* * *
After safely escorting Sharin to her room, I stepped out to the terrace of the lodging with Isabel.
The sumr night was alive with the sounds of insects chirping.
In the distance, the blue ocean glittered under the starlight.
Swish—
The sound of waves carried on the breeze cald my mind.
Taking in the sight of the sea, I turned my gaze to Isabel.
There she was, seemingly sobered up a bit, enjoying the sumr breeze.
Dressed casually with a cardigan draped over her, she looked as picturesque as a painting.
As expected of the main heroine, her beauty was striking.
But Isabel avoided eting my eyes.
Or rather, she was intentionally looking away.
I watched her quietly before speaking.
“Isabel.”
“Yes?”
Her reply ca a beat too late.
After a mont of silence, I asked,
“Why do you keep watching my reactions?”
Isabel’s shoulders flinched.
She wrapped her hands around her arms—a defensive gesture people often make without realizing.
“...Watching your reactions? Who, ?”
“Even just today. At the beach, while drinking, and afterward.”
Her lips moved as if to speak but stopped.
Embarrassed that I had noticed everything, her face turned as red as a tomato.
I leaned against the terrace railing and looked at her.
“Tell . If there’s a reason, I’ll listen.”
“...”
Normally, she might have walked away, but thanks to the alcohol, Isabel stayed.
She opened and closed her mouth repeatedly, words struggling to co out.
Finally, she managed to speak, though faintly.
“...I don’t want to disappoint you.”
Disappoint ?
I looked at her curiously, puzzled by her words.
Isabel, her face redder than before, turned her head away.
The night breeze blew again, scattering golden strands of hair like the Milky Way across the sky.
The scent of the sea tickled my nose, mingled with Isabel’s sweet fragrance and the faint trace of alcohol.
“...To be honest, I used to think of you as my rival.”
She was confirming what I had already suspected.
“I hate how you criticize Lucas, but I’ve always respected your determination. Honestly, I sotis wished I could move forward like you.”
Alcohol has a way of loosening lips and revealing truths.
“But now, being here, playing with the kids, I started wondering if this is okay.”
Isabel gave a bitter smile.
It was a kind of guilt.
Isabel survived and lived because she beca my rival.
Relaxing and playing around didn’t sit well with her conscience.
“What a pointless worry.”
I dismissed it outright.
Isabel looked at , sowhat irked.
“I’m here relaxing just like you, aren’t I?”
She blinked.
While Isabel was resting, so was I, here at the sa resort.
“Isn’t that enough?”
“...But I’m falling behind.”
“Even if you trained all day, you wouldn’t catch up to .”
Not that I particularly thought I was ahead—it was just how Isabel perceived it.
“Isabel, people need to rest sotis. I don’t know what’s going on in your mind, but don’t you think taking a mont to reflect on the path you’re walking is worthwhile?”
“...”
As she mulled over my words, Isabel suddenly let out a small laugh.
When I frowned, she waved her hands apologetically.
“No, it’s just... You’ve never been this kind to before.”
“...I only said it because watching you overthink is irritating.”
“Right, right, of course.”
With that, Isabel turned back to gaze at the night sea.
“...Well, you are dating Hania, so I guess I’ll just have to close the gap during that ti.”
Her alcohol-tinged smile was laced with bitterness and loneliness.
“Sorry to disappoint, but that’s not going to happen.”
I decided to break her assumption.
“My relationship with Hania is fake.”
“What?”
“It’s just a situation. Do you really think Hania and I are actually dating?”
Others might misunderstand, but it seed better to clarify things for Isabel.
If she had her sights set on , then I needed to beco a goal so high she couldn’t possibly reach .
That way, we could maintain a rivalry moving forward.
"Above all, I have no intention of dating anyone."
After all, I wasn’t truly Hannon.
The idea of dating soone in this form felt deeply disrespectful.
Isabel blinked her large, luminous eyes.
Then, after a brief silence, she smiled faintly for so reason.
"Ah, I see."
It was a smile that, oddly enough, seed to carry a sense of relief.
My eyes widened slowly.
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Unconsciously, I opened my mouth, then closed it again.
‘This…’
To soone like Sharin, it might appear as love at first glance.
Isabel had been in an unstable emotional state, brought on by losing Lucas, the person she relied on.
I had filled that void with anger and resentnt.
Isabel had clung to that anger and resentnt to get through half a sester.
And in the process, she leaned on , the very object of that anger and resentnt.
It was as if my idea of becoming a moon to replace the sun that was Lucas had hit the mark.
"Still, you…"
But at this point, sothing unexpected happened.
There’s a word: love-hate.
A state of having both affection and hatred for soone at the sa ti.
It illustrates how surprisingly thin the line between love and hate can be.
Soone filled with affection for another could one day harbor hatred.
Conversely, soone filled with hatred might one day harbor affection.
"You seem like soone who wouldn’t leave and would always stay by my side."
Emotions, after all, are complex.
"Oh, I an staying by my side in the sense of acknowledging , you know."
Isabel had no choice but to lean on emotionally.
Even if those feelings were built on the terrible foundation of anger and resentnt, she had to lean on to survive.
And in the process, I had beco deeply embedded in Isabel’s heart.
‘The inherent possessiveness and desire for exclusivity in people.’
Even the feelings that should have been directed at Lucas had, at so point, shifted toward .
‘So, this is what Sharin ant when she said Isabel sees as overlapping with Lucas.’
Isabel wasn’t healed yet.
She was rely enduring by seeing Lucas in .
If I were to leave her disappointed and abandon her, she wouldn’t be able to handle the sense of loss again.
So, she had been desperately holding on until now.
‘When she heard that Hania and I might be dating.’
The anxiety Sharin sensed in Isabel wasn’t jealousy.
Whether as a lover or anything else, her fear was that I might lose interest in her and leave.
‘That day, when the Card jokingly asked her about relationships and she flew into a rage.’
It might have been her subconscious emotions surfacing.
Isabel’s gaze t mine once more.
Her eyes were laughing brightly.
"I feel like I’m talking too much today. Must be because I’m a little drunk, so don’t take it too seriously."
Was that smile truly bright?
I felt as though there was no light in her eyes.
Still, there wasn’t a clear way to resolve things with Isabel right now.
Was this really the right path?
Her smile was so bright that it made wonder.
When she finally realizes I’m not Lucas, will she be able to endure it?
I didn’t know.
Whoosh—
The sound of the waves on the night sea echoed in my doubts.
* * *
The lingering image of Isabel’s smile kept up all night.
“Yawnnn…”
Groggy with exhaustion, I sat up slowly.
As I did, Iris’s arm, which had been draped around as she slept, slid off gently.
I tucked her in carefully to make sure she wouldn’t get cold and quietly left the room.
On the other bed, Hania was sleeping with a face full of resentnt.
Judging by her expression, she must’ve been bitter about losing the spot next to Iris.
I wondered if Hania might stab out of jealousy soday.
Stepping outside, I was greeted by the crisp morning air.
As part of my daily routine, I lightly stretched my body and started running.
Skipping a day of running now left feeling unsettled.
As I ran along the coastline, I noticed a few others jogging too.
Well, it made sense.
The people here were students of Zerion Academy.
They were all used to training as part of their lifestyle.
‘This feels refreshing.’
A morning run always helped clear my mind.
Even the frustration from my conversation with Isabel last night seed to ease a bit.
Tap, tap—tap.
Suddenly, I heard the sound of footsteps keeping pace beside .
Soone else who had been jogging in the morning had caught up with .
Impressed by their energy, I stepped slightly to the side to give way.
However, instead of passing, they continued to run alongside .
Realizing this, I turned my head with a hint of curiosity.
There, I saw a boy with short black hair.
Seeing his face, my eyes slowly widened.
"Hello, this is the first ti we’ve t in person, isn’t it?"
He smiled faintly as our eyes t.
Damn it.
‘I’d figured soone from the First Prince’s faction would be sent.’
But I hadn’t expected this guy to show up.
The person running alongside was none other than Hannon Irey.
Not , but the real Hannon Irey.
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