At a time like this, it would be best to lie that she had a boyfriend, but unfortunately, Anita didn’t have one. She didn’t have the audacity to invent something that wasn’t there and wasn’t bold enough.

“I don’t think it’ll work….”

Lost in her own thoughts, Anita didn’t hear what he was mumbling.

“Like I said, I have no interest in you.”

If she were to ask for his name now, he might misunderstand that she’s interested in him. To prevent such a situation, Anita used the rigid title “senior.”

Anita’s gaze shifted to her hand. The trace of the blue butterfly was faint but still shimmered, displaying its presence under the sunlight.

After that, Rutger didn’t appear. When he was chasing her for days with something to say, now he…

In the end, he was irritated that Anita moved away from his side. He was annoyed that the stupid girl who had been following him around was gone.

It seemed so easy. Just drawing a butterfly and acting like a fool. How easy it must have seemed.

Anita forgot the presence of the man standing in front of her and rubbed her hand busily. She needed to quickly erase the paint marks from her hand.

“Are you listening to me?”

“…….”

Anita, who was rubbing her hand, raised her head. The man, as if dissatisfied, was standing on one leg, holding his fist.

“How should I put this? I have no interest, as I mentioned. I have someone I like, and it’s not you.”

At first, her tone was polite, but as it went on, it became colder. It was only natural; Anita didn’t like the man at all.

She wished that he would be honest if he had no feelings for her and had someone else in mind. Anita made an effort not to be ambiguous.

In that aspect, Anita was striving not to be ambiguous and make her intentions clear.

Seeing the man persistently act as if he didn’t understand and stubbornly pursue her irritated her.

There was even a hint of jealousy.

She had been working hard to rid herself of any lingering feelings for Rutger and to avoid being a bother. This man, on the other hand, seemed to have lived a life where he didn’t have to consider how uncomfortable or burdensome his actions might be for others.

“If you persist like this, I’ll have to report you.”

“What, what did you say?”

Anita abruptly stood up. Startled by his sudden movement, the man hesitated and stepped back. Seizing the opportunity, Anita swiftly moved away.

Please don’t follow me!

Anita had a keen sense, and she felt that if he followed her, things might escalate into an unpleasant situation. She hoped he would understand and leave her alone.

Unfortunately, Anita’s instincts were right this time.

A huge shadow stretched behind Anita’s shadow.  The chosen location, being a quiet place, seemed deserted except for Anita and the man.

Anita quickened her pace, almost running. The difference between walking and running was negligible. His heavy footsteps echoed behind her.

“Anita!”

“…….”

“Wait….”

She couldn’t hear anything. Anita only focused on moving forward, hoping he would collapse from exhaustion.

BANG!

The sound was deafeningly loud. A pungent odor filled her nostrils.

A gun?

Anita turned her head in the direction of the gunshot.

Guns were supposed to be banned.

Who the hell was using a gun in broad daylight? Anita furrowed her brow and looked around, and then she heard pounding footsteps in the distance.

Only then did Anita remember that a man was following her. He must have been frightened by the sound of gunshots and was running away without even looking back. He was running so fast that the dirt where his shoe heels had stepped was flying into the air.

Watching the man disappear in a cloud of dust, raised the corners of her mouth.

He must be afraid of guns.

The man who ran away for fear of being attacked probably didn’t know this, but the gunshot just before was not dangerous.

Anita barely remembered that Aberdeen University had a shooting club.

After hesitating for a moment while standing on the roadside, Anita walked towards the origin of the gunshot.

Following the path where the dead trees were lined up, she soon reached a narrow alley. As the deserted path continued for a while, Anita hesitated. She wasn’t interested in shooting, and she didn’t want to start club activities right away. Was it okay to go without thinking?

However, it was already too late to escape. In front of Anita, there was a huge open space surrounded by a fence.

BANG!

Another ear-splitting blast assaulted her eardrums. It was louder than the last one, probably because it was closer.

“Hello?”

The voice she heard was much softer than the previous gunshot, but Anita was still surprised.

“What…?”

“Want to join here?”

The one who greeted her with a nonchalant face was Lice Neuheim.

“That’s a good idea, there’s nowhere as practical and friendly as our club.”

Practical. Friendly. Neither word fit the pungent scent of the shooting range.

“I’m not signing up yet.”

Anita’s voice gradually lost confidence. From Lice’s perspective, she must have looked like someone who took a long walk to the shooting range, far from the school building.

“Hmm. It’s not a bad thing to be cautious. Shooting requires patience and discretion.”

Her way of interpreting people’s words to her advantage, and suddenly speaking from behind, reminded her of Edmund. Were they close friends since childhood? That might be why.

“Well, it’s boring to sit around and study like a sandman. Sometimes you need to relieve stress. You know?”

“Yeah.”