The Duty Of An Academy Student Should Be To Study - Chapter 40

Episode 40

“Don’t worry about it. I know it’s not a thing anymore. There won’t be any misunderstandings.”

Rose placed a small palm near her heart and took a deep breath.

“It’s better this way. I was worried, in case… it was something like that.”

“Worried… about what?”

Jasper’s expression grew even darker than before, and he seemed visibly agitated. Rose hurriedly continued.

“I was just thinking that myself. It was an absurd misunderstanding…”

“What if it wasn’t.”

“Huh?”

“What if it wasn’t a misunderstanding?”

Jasper’s voice grew colder and sent shivers down her spine just listening to it.

Rose instinctively shivered.

“I know my limits.”

“What?”

“Even if you did like me, I mean that I wouldn’t have expected too much.”

“Explain yourself.”

“I never thought of seriously dating you or anything like that. I was just briefly confused.”

“Do I seem like the kind of guy who casually dates someone I like?”

Rose lowered her head in response to his chilly tone.

“No, not at all. I don’t think that way at all. I know you’re a serious person. It’s only natural that you wouldn’t consider me as a potential partner. I mentioned that before.”

“…”

“I acted awkwardly around you because of this misunderstanding. I’m sorry if I hurt your feelings.”

Rose explained the situation in her way, regaining her composure as she went on. However, Jasper’s face only grew darker.

In the end, Jasper sighed deeply.

“I forgot I have training. I should go first.”

“Can you go without having dinner?”

“I’ve lost my appetite.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t apologize to me.”

Jasper lifted his lowered head and added.

“Please.”

His tone sounded urgent. Rose nodded quickly in response. Then, Jasper turned abruptly and quickly distanced himself from Rose.

* * *

Jasper headed straight for the training grounds. Irritably, he threw off his uniform jacket, grabbed a training wooden sword, and entered.

Even though it was Sunday, there were quite a few people inside. Jasper spotted a familiar face among them and walked straight towards him.

“Caleb, want to spar?”

“Jasper, you haven’t finished training yet… Hey, what’s with that expression?”

Caleb, who was doing some basic physical exercises, stood up.

“What’s wrong with my expression?”

“I feel like you’re about to kill someone right now.”

“Close enough. Let’s have a round.”

Jasper tapped his wooden sword with his hand. Caleb grimaced in disgust.

“You want to kill me? Why so ruthless?”

“I’ll do it if you don’t. Find another partner if you won’t.”

“No, it’s better to spar with me. I don’t want to see someone’s wrist get broken.”

There were only a few people who could hold their own against Jasper for any length of time. One of them was Caleb. Among the fourth-year students, he was second only to Jasper in swordsmanship.

“Why is he like this…”

Muttering to himself, Caleb picked up his wooden sword. Jasper was emanating a palpable intensity. Some of the academy students who were in the midst of their training glanced at Jasper.

Jasper stood tall, gripping the hilt of his wooden sword with power. He was on the brink of exploding. His mind was still overheated and hadn’t cooled down. He felt like he had to move his body right now to avoid going insane.

“I know my limits.”

The voice Rose Bell had just uttered continued to linger in Jasper’s ears. It was a voice that drew a clear line without any room for ambiguity. It sounded like a warning not to cross that line. He understood it well enough. Commoner women who became involved with nobles often ended up unhappy.

‘I’m not like that.’

There was one thing Jasper could be proud of: he never casually discarded something he held dear. However, earlier in front of Rose Bell, he couldn’t make that assurance. The moment he saw Rose Bell’s relieved face, thinking it was fortunate, his lips froze.

He hadn’t even confessed, yet he was the one to back off first. No, perhaps it was for the best. The need to agonize over Rose Bell had disappeared. He hadn’t been able to concentrate for days, his mind filled with thoughts of her.

‘Rose Bell doesn’t want me.’

So, if he just let her go, it would be over. He didn’t need to scrutinize his feelings for Rose Bell any further. In the first place, there was no one to receive those feelings.

Jasper stared ahead with cold, unyielding eyes. Caleb raised his hand.

“Take it easy.”

Caleb’s words fell flat as Jasper charged fiercely. However, Caleb wasn’t an opponent to be easily pushed aside from the start.

Clang! Clang! The sound of wooden swords clashing loudly echoed through the area. Jasper moved without a word, and even as the match continued, his heart continued to boil. He had hoped that as the bout continued, his emotions would settle, but they still churned inside him. He tried to regain his composure and whispered to himself.

‘She doesn’t like me.’

Thunk! Caleb blocked Jasper’s forceful attack. Jasper was unknowingly building up more and more tension in his body.

“Hey, can you ease up on the strength…”

Caleb muttered, but Jasper didn’t hear it.

‘Fortunate to think she doesn’t like me.’

Jasper gritted his teeth and moved instinctively.

‘Rose Bell…’

Jasper’s wooden sword descended from above. It was a swift and forceful movement, far from being a light spar.

‘To me…’

Thunk! The two wooden swords clashed.

‘She doesn’t have any feelings.’

At that moment, Jasper’s wooden sword snapped with a sharp crack.

“Ah…”

Only then did Jasper snap back to reality and stared dazedly at the broken edge of his wooden sword. Caleb, who had been barely keeping up with Jasper’s attack, gasped in shock.

“I thought you were going to break my wrist!”

Zing. Jasper belatedly realized the vibration in his wrist. His pale skin was covered in sweat.

Caleb frowned and sat down on the ground, his whole body drenched in sweat.

Jasper looked down at Caleb and asked.

“Is my temper that bad?”

Caleb wiped the sweat from his neck with the back of his hand, wearing a bewildered expression.

“What’s with the sudden question? Well, your temper isn’t exactly mild.”

“Did I scare you?”

Jasper muttered to himself. He slowly dropped the two mismatched wooden swords and sat down.

Jasper recalled Rose Bell’s trembling shoulders from earlier. He had never intended to intimidate her. It was just a momentary freeze and lapse in judgment in response to a straightforward question. He had never imagined that Rose would be the one to bring up such a topic.

‘Did I give myself away too much?’

Even so, he should have known better than to ask so directly. Rose Bell always acted unpredictably. Unexpected attacks often pierced through one’s defenses and changed the course of a battle. Jasper, having lived his life with a sword in hand, knew that complacency could lead to defeat.

Today, he had been completely caught off guard by Rose. He had crumbled without any defense.

But the moment his guard was down, it seemed different to Rose. She cowered as if frightened and stammered out an embarrassed apology.

Jasper stared blankly at some point in the air with a bewildered expression. Caleb, who had been silently observing Jasper, playfully poked Jasper’s side with his hand.

Under normal circumstances, Jasper would have avoided such a prank and reacted with irritation. But now, he simply allowed Caleb to do it.

“What’s up? Who’s scared of you?”

“…”

“Perhaps a woman?”

Jasper slowly turned to Caleb with a reluctant response.

“No.”

It was an awkward voice that anyone could recognize.

“Talking about a woman, huh?”

Jasper bit his lower lip tightly. Caleb grinned with curiosity.

“You should have approached it more gently. Try acting affectionate with your face. Who wouldn’t be drawn to you then?”

“I acted affectionate.”

“Wow, that sounded incredibly unbelievable.”

Jasper narrowed his forehead.

“Shut up.”

“You’ve never done such things in front of a girl, have you?”

“Not once.”

“Oh, you tried then. But you should try harder.”

Jasper made an effort to be as affectionate as possible. However, doing things you weren’t used to always backfired.

“… I feel my efforts are a burden.”

“Be good at controlling it so it doesn’t happen like that. That is what it means to be skilled. But is there a woman who would reject you? that’s interesting.”

Caleb grinned broadly, his cheeks almost cracking, as he stared at Jasper.

“Could it be Rose Bell?”

“Why are you suddenly mentioning that name?”

Jasper responded coldly, but internally, he felt his heart skip a beat the moment he heard Rose Bell’s name.

“No? It seems likely.”

Caleb continued to taunt him with a mischievous tone.

“Did Rose Bell reject you? Does she not like you? Wow, she’s quite something.”

“…Mock me one more time.”

Jasper’s voice became icier.

“You acting like this is why girls get scared.”

“I’ve never done that to her.”

Jasper denied vehemently, but when he noticed Caleb smirking, he realized he had fallen into a trap. He clenched his jaw shut. Caleb let out an exaggerated sigh and patted Jasper’s shoulder.

“You have this basic tone. Would changing the wrapping paper make a difference?”

“…”

“You lack talent in relationships.”

“Why do I need talent for that kind of thing?”

“Wow, you’re suffering right now because you don’t have it.”

“Shut… just be quiet.”

“You were going to tell me to shut up now, weren’t you?”

Caleb opened his mouth wide and laughed loudly.

“Jasper, don’t rack your brains too much. If it doesn’t work out, just give up reasonably. Is she the only girl in the world?”

Jasper involuntarily wrinkled his face at Caleb’s words.