Episode 15

Jasper, who usually ate separately, couldn’t understand why he had chosen to come to the restaurant today and why, among many empty seats, he had picked this place. Rose glanced at Jasper from the corner of her eye and then focused her gaze back on her plate. Since they weren’t sitting right next to each other, there was no need to be concerned. Jasper would probably eat quietly too.

Unexpectedly, Jasper was the one to start the conversation.

“Do you always eat like that?”

Rose looked at Jasper in confusion for a moment, as if he had asked her the question. Amid Rose’s hesitation, Briley casually intervened in the conversation.

“That’s right, you eat as much as my rabbit.”

Briley moved her plate closer to Jasper’s and pulled her chair over. The three of them formed a triangle. At a glance, they seemed like a group.

The restaurant buzzed with noise. A transfer student from the Republic. A scholarship student who was thought to have dropped out but had survived. And Jasper Conway. It was an eye-catching combination.

Jasper responded calmly to Briley’s words.

“She’ll probably eat less than a rabbit.”

“Hmm. Right. So, your wrists are slender.”

Briley playfully held Rose’s wrist. Rose felt a moment of panic.

“I, uh, naturally have a short appetite.”

“That’s why you’re so petite! It’s cute though.”

Jasper chimed in.

“You should eat more.”

When Rose Bell became the topic of conversation, the atmosphere between Briley and Jasper became noticeably lighter than before. They seemed to be hitting it off. The Jasper who had stared down Briley fiercely and then walked away without a word seemed out of character.

“I eat more for dinner than this…”

As Rose mumbled in embarrassment, both of them spoke at the same time.

“I’m just worried about you. Really announcing it, aren’t you?”

“I ate more than this even when I was five.”

“Oh, no. You guys…”

Suddenly, it felt like both of her grandmothers from Quilts had come here. There were even two grandmothers.

‘This familiar nagging, what is it?’

It was strange that they were showing interest in her meal. Rose, in her confusion, suggested in a small voice.

“Just… let’s eat.”

“Phew. It’s because we’re worried. You too, right, Jasper?”

Jasper nodded. As their conversation continued, more and more eyes were blatantly directed at them.

Rose slowly moved her chair to the opposite side of Jasper. As a result, the symmetrical triangular structure was broken. Briley and Jasper got closer, and Rose Bell looked like a peripheral presence.

* * *

The rumors within the academy always spread quickly. This is especially true when it’s related to Jasper. Around the time lunch ended and afternoon classes were about to start, the academy was abuzz with one particular story.

“What’s the relationship between Briley Lawrence and Jasper Conway?”

“And why is Rose Bell seen with them?”

The most popular speculation was this:

“Did Briley, who returned from the Republic, meet Jasper during the break?”

Duke Conway valued tradition and was a staunch aristocrat. He wouldn’t be pleased if his son associated with a lower-class girl.

“They must be having a secret relationship!”

Since it would be too obvious if they were alone together, a smokescreen was needed. Rose Bell, Briley’s roommate, and an exceptionally quiet commoner, would be an excellent choice as the smokescreen.

In the bustling rumors, Briley was the female lead, and Rose took on the role of the friend who helped the female lead with her love. Just as Rose had expected and hoped for.

Monday afternoon classes were in history and logic, both mandatory subjects for all academy students. Due to the large number of students, they were divided into three classes.

And fate had it that all the central figures of the rumors were placed in Class B for the mandatory subjects.

Rose Bell, Briley Lawrence, Jasper Conway. Moreover, Caleb Sidoor, who had returned after a year.

Rebecca Sherman, Caleb’s ex-girlfriend and Rose’s former roommate, was also in Class B.

Students gathered one by one in Classroom B for the mandatory subjects. The room was filled with a strange tension.

After having lunch and taking a walk around the academy with Briley, Rose had just entered the classroom. She had also given Briley a rundown of the campus layout and enjoyed a long walk.

During their stroll, like a wildfire among the students, rumors had spread.

Rose entered the classroom and found her seat. In the large lecture hall, seats were assigned individually. Perhaps alphabetically, as Rebecca was sitting beside her.

As Rose took her seat, Rebecca pulled her arm and quickly whispered.

“Is it true that something’s going on between Briley and Jasper?”

“Uh, what?”

Rose looked bewildered by the unexpected question.

“Really?”

“What… what are you talking about?”

“Plus, when did you get close to Briley? Seriously, it’s unbelievable!”

Overwhelmed by Rebecca’s stream of words, Rose was taken aback. After calming her down and hearing the explanation, Rose finally understood the situation.

‘The academy kids seem to be interested in Jasper.’

It seemed like the whole school already knew that Jasper was taking mineralogy with Rose.

As his lover’s roommate, Jasper must have been close to Rose Bell as well. Many had already guessed Jasper’s intentions.

Rose was uncertain whether to deny or confirm the rumors. While it was true that Briley had her sights on Jasper, there hadn’t been any significant progress between them yet. Rose chose to pretend not to know.

“So, there’s such a rumor going around. I don’t know.”

“How can you not know? You’re her roommate!”

“It’s only been two days since we started rooming together.”

“You seemed close, though.”

“Briley is just naturally friendly.”

At that moment, Caleb entered the classroom. As soon as Rebecca noticed Caleb, she quickly lowered her head.

‘Oh no…’

Rose looked at Rebecca with sympathetic eyes.

Caleb casually surveyed the classroom and found his seat. Only after Caleb had sat down did Rebecca release the breath she had been holding.

“He’s going to take another year off, so why did he come back now…”

Rebecca muttered softly.

‘I wonder if he still has feelings for Caleb, even though they broke up a while ago?’

As someone who had distanced herself from relationships, Rose didn’t know what kind of emotion it was to care so much about someone like that.

Rebecca confidently held onto Rose’s arm and whispered.

“Rose Bell, I mean you. Promise me you won’t ever tell anyone how I was when I broke up with that guy. Got it?”

“There’s no one to tell.”

“Swear it. Swear it on your family name. Oh wait, you don’t have a noble family name, do you?”

Even until the end, Rebecca couldn’t help but add a snide remark. With a sigh, Rose responded.

“I swear on my magic engineering.”

“Hmph. I can believe that.”

Just before the class was about to start, Jasper finally entered the classroom. While Rose was preparing for class, she suddenly felt the atmosphere in the room become restless and looked up.

Jasper was seen standing awkwardly, trying to find a seat. His sharp gaze, which had been scanning the room, came to a halt in one spot.

‘…Did he see me?’

Jasper’s cold gaze was fixed on Rose.

Why did her heartache again? She had wanted to be curious about it but held herself back. If he knew that his rumors had spread within a day, he might have been irritated.

‘Why did he even start a conversation in the restaurant…’

It seemed that only Briley was enjoying the view of herself at the center of the rumors. Briley, sitting in the front, was laughing and exchanging greetings with everyone diagonally around her.

Jasper shifted his gaze away from Rose and walked to his seat. His footsteps seemed irritable and annoyed as he made his way there.

* * *

The third morning of the spring semester. Rose was checking her bag to make sure all the necessary materials were inside. Beside her, Briley was rummaging through various accessories and humming a tune.

In just two days, Briley Lawrence had become one of the most influential students at the academy. Being the daughter of the renowned Lawrence family and possessing her unique charm, she easily captured the attention of her fellow students.

After the exploration period, students who had decided to approach Briley came up to her deliberately to strike up a conversation.

“Right! Rose. There’s talk about forming clubs.”

“Oh, we’ll start accepting applications from this Saturday.”

The academy had a variety of clubs, with themes ranging from horseback riding, fencing, croquet, and occult studies, to dancing.

Anyone could establish a club, and Saturdays were the designated club activity days.

Clubs served as a place for camaraderie and socializing within the academy. Joining one of the long-standing and renowned clubs was considered an honorable accomplishment.

To join a prestigious club, one often had to go through a kind of interview process. Invitation letters were sometimes sent to promising students from prestigious families as well.

“Rose, which club are you in?”

Every academy student was required to join at least one club.

While this rule wasn’t exactly favorable for Rose, luckily she had found a suitable club for herself.

“The Walking Club.”

Many people didn’t even know such a club existed. It was because Rose was the only member of the club.

The club had been established when Rose was a freshman. It was initiated by a scholarship student in their senior year. Though a couple more scholarship students had joined later on, they had dropped out and disappeared.

The senior who had been the club president left the school, relishing the honor of being the first scholarship student to receive a graduation diploma.

Noble or gentrified students often sneered at the Walking Club as the “commoner club,” and no new members were joining.

Thus, the only member left in the club was Rose Bell. It was practically an obscure and forgotten club.

On Saturdays, Rose went around the campus under the pretense of campus inspection, then headed to the library. All she had to do was write quarterly activity reports.

However, Briley suddenly raised her hand and exclaimed.

“I want to be in the same club as Rose!”

“Oh, Bry. This is technically a club in name only and in reality…”

Rose explained the truth about the nearly non-existent Walking Club, but Briley didn’t change her mind.

“It’s okay! Anyway, I can hang out with Rose every Saturday, right?”

“But you could join more popular clubs… Academy life would be more fun in those.”

“But I want to hang out with you more, Rose. You keep going off to other places! After class, you head straight to the library. Don’t leave me alone.”

It was true. Whenever people gathered around Briley yesterday, Rose discreetly slipped away. After afternoon classes, she went to the library to review the day’s lessons.

“But Briley, you’re going to have a lot of friends besides me, and….”

“Still, I want to have fun with you on Saturdays.”

Rose’s eyes darted around. Briley’s face swelled with anticipation as she bounced around.

“Walking… a walk, huh… Yeah, let’s go for a walk by the riverside! Since we’re the only members anyway, we can decide whatever we want! Oh, isn’t that great? A Saturday date!”