The Duty Of An Academy Student Should Be To Study - Chapter 64
Episode 64
Ethan walked with a straight posture, gesturing towards the sofa with his hand, indicating that Rose should sit.
She waited until he had seated himself on the couch before cautiously taking a seat opposite him. They sat facing each other in silence for a moment.
Ethan silently appraised Rose, his gaze running over her. While his facial features appeared softer than Jasper’s, his eyes were anything but. They seemed to dissect people one by one, a gaze that felt almost suffocating.
‘I feel trapped…’
While Jasper’s coldness had a rugged tenderness beneath it, Ethan seemed entirely icy on the surface. His refined coldness was much more pronounced.
Despite the upward curve at the corners of his mouth, there was no sign of a smile on Ethan’s face. Rose couldn’t begin to guess his thoughts.
After observing Rose for a while, Ethan finally spoke.
“I imagine you must have been surprised by the sudden summons. You seem rather composed.”
Rose felt relieved inwardly. It was fortunate that she didn’t appear too frightened.
“Why do you think I called for you?”
“I… don’t know.”
Ethan crossed his legs and continued in a relaxed tone.
“Your name is Rose Bell. You came to Berkley Academy as a scholarship student from the common class, and you’ve only missed being the top student once. You’re from Quilts, and you have four younger siblings. Is that correct?”
Rose nodded her head heavily.
‘You’ve been investigating me.’
Rose felt a sudden unease. She had a secret that must not be discovered.
Quilts was an area with a loose administrative system. There were no lords governing the land, and it had originally belonged to a noble family but had fallen into disarray and was now under imperial ownership.
In recent years, many fallen nobles’ territories had been absorbed into imperial ownership, and it wasn’t just one or two regions but several throughout the empire.
The imperial authorities didn’t pay much attention to lands in the northern outskirts that held no significant commercial value. As a result, it was relatively easy to falsify one’s background in Quilts.
Rose’s family had connections to a minor official who helped them with administrative paperwork, and the Bell household was soon created on paper. According to official documents, Rose Bell was a native of Quilts.
In rural areas, it was common for people to register their population records belatedly, especially in regions with lax governance like Quilts. Census officials mainly focused on lands from which they could collect taxes, and they had little interest in the majority of residents who lived modestly and self-sufficiently.
‘However, if someone were to deliberately dig into this and start asking questions in Quilts about the Bell family… They might find out that I’m not a true Quilts native.’
So far, there had been no such person. After losing their land and selling their home in the capital, there had been no one looking for Baron Verden. Furthermore, the current Baron Verden was far away, engaged in overseas trade as a merchant. The noble title was acquired mainly for the sake of increasing their credit when seeking investments abroad.
Rose could feel a headache starting to form. She didn’t know why Ethan Conway had taken an interest in her, but she wanted to quickly get out of his scrutiny.
Ethan gazed at Rose in silence for a moment before speaking.
“I’ve heard you’re a remarkable talent. Your life should take off after graduation. Do you really need to cling to the Conways?”
“…What do you mean?”
“Rose, let me ask you straightforwardly. What’s your relationship with Jasper?”
Rose didn’t hesitate for a moment and immediately replied.
“We’re classmates and friends.”
“Just friends? Are you sure? Lying in front of me might not be the best choice.”
Rose began to sense why she had been brought here. The misunderstanding she had encountered before with Adela crossed her mind.
‘Could it be… does he think I’m in a relationship with Jasper?’
Rose understood why Ethan was giving her a harsh look. She began to feel relieved despite the stern scrutiny. It was just a misunderstanding, and she had nothing to worry about.
She sensed that tension was slowly leaving her body. Taking a small breath of relief, Rose spoke.
“I understand it may seem that way, but Mr. Conway, you seem to have misunderstood. Jasper and I are just friends. You have nothing to worry about.”
Ethan’s eyebrow twitched.
“For friends, you seemed quite close.”
“We’re in the same social club, and our elective courses overlap. But that’s all there is to it. You can rest assured that there’s absolutely nothing for you to be concerned about.”
Rose answered calmly and steadily. However, Ethan still couldn’t seem to let go of his doubts.
“I know Jasper well. He doesn’t go around with just anyone. I’ve never seen that guy with friends.”
“Is there talk that Jasper goes around with me?”
It seemed that Ethan had someone inside the academy who served as an informant. Rose couldn’t fathom why she had suddenly become the target of suspicion.
‘But the one who has a rumored secret relationship with Jasper is not me, it’s Adela and Briley.’
Rose couldn’t fathom why she had suddenly become the target of suspicion.
‘Could he have found out about our secret tutoring sessions?’
If anyone had seen them walking into the lab alone, they would have been suspicious. While pondering how to handle the inquiries related to secret tutoring from Ethan, Ethan suddenly spoke.
“Are you pretending not to know, or do you really not know?”
Ethan’s voice was tinged with annoyance and sarcasm. Rose took a slow breath to calm her frustration. Her eyelashes trembled.
‘Why do I have to endure this kind of questioning when I was forcibly summoned here?’
Even if Ethan hadn’t called her, she would have been peacefully studying in the library by now.
‘I wanted to review quickly because today’s class was interesting.’
Suddenly, her quantum mechanics textbook, left in the dorm room, loomed before her. Rose thought that time was as precious as diamonds. To maintain her top ranking, she had to diligently allocate her time.
Ethan stared at Rose with pursed lips and spoke.
“Just say what you want.”
“…Yes?”
“To establish yourself properly in the capital after graduation, you’ll need support, right? I’ll give you a rough idea of what to say, so stay away from Jasper.”
Rose’s pupils filled with shock.
‘This… could it be one of those situations commonly seen in romance novels?’
It was a scene that appeared consistently in conventional works dealing with class differences, where they tried to tear the two protagonists apart by enticing them with money.
However, Rose’s situation is different from those protagonists. Rose, feeling bewildered, spoke with a firmer voice than usual.
“You’re misunderstanding. There’s no need for you to make an effort to separate Jasper and me. We were never even together in the first place. I don’t want or need that kind of support.”
“Hey, don’t pretend you didn’t. I saw it during the competition yesterday.”
“During the competition? I’m not sure what you mean…”
“As soon as the game ended, Jasper was staring intensely at somewhere. It was the first time I’ve seen him make that kind of expression…”
Crash! At that moment, with a loud noise, the study door was forcefully opened.
“What are you doing now?”
A deep voice reverberated. Rose turned her head to look in the direction of the door. Jasper, who seemed to have pushed his way in despite objections from others, was standing there.
Jasper, wearing only a shirt without a jacket, was breathing heavily. It was clear that he had rushed over.
Jasper alternated his gaze between Rose and Ethan before scrunching up his face. Then, he stretched out his long legs, quickly approached, and grabbed Rose’s arm, lifting her in one swift motion.
Ethan, who had been sitting quietly, spoke.
“Both of you, sit down.”
Jasper, still holding onto Rose’s arm, glared at his brother. Rose had no choice but to stand awkwardly and watch the sibling argument.
“Why did you call her?”
“I said sit down, Jasper.”
“Why did you call her?”
“Sit.”
The Conway brothers exchanged rapid-fire words. Rose could only hold her breath. Blood was thicker than water, but their voices and the furrowed brows were eerily similar.
‘But how did Jasper find out and come here?’
Rose glanced up at Jasper. Sweat beads had formed on Jasper’s forehead, and two shirt buttons were undone. His grip on Rose’s arm was warm.
She was grateful that Jasper had rushed here so urgently. In truth, it was because of Jasper that she found herself in this situation, but she harbored no ill feelings towards him. In fact, she felt sorry.
‘He’s already burdened enough with the arranged marriage.’
Adding the misunderstandings between them only made her worry that Ethan Conway would scold Jasper even more.
‘I understand Ethan’s perspective.’
Ethan had a duty to uphold the reputation of the Conway family. Naturally, he had to pay attention to his younger sibling’s marriage.
‘But if he thinks I’m some commoner girl causing trouble, he’s got another thing coming.’
Rose felt a bit indignant that the arrow of Ethan’s anger had struck her unfairly. However, she believed that as long as they cleared up the misunderstanding, everything would be fine.
‘…But he was talking about the sword fighting competition earlier.’
Rose recalled the look in Jasper’s eyes she had seen after winning the competition. The complex emotions she had felt at that moment rushed back, making her body tense.
‘No.’
Rose closed her eyes tightly, pushing the memory away.
‘It’s nothing.’
She had to maintain that stance.
At that moment, Ethan spoke in a cold voice.
“Miss Rose says she has nothing to do with you, that you’re just friends.”
Jasper’s breathing became slightly heavier.
“Jasper, why don’t you speak up? Is it true?”