Chapter 103: I’ll come back to your side.

Being told it felt “refreshing” didn’t quite fit.

The sense of loss outweighed everything else, and perhaps that alone proved how large a space those feelings had occupied in her memory.

She wasn’t lonely. She held no regrets.

Yet his presence had always been special to her—precisely in a place far removed from anything that could be called love.

“Sorry for keeping you so late. Will you be all right getting home?”

“Yes. I usually stay this late anyway.”

Leaving Claudia—who apparently still had work remaining—behind, Violet was urged to head home before it grew fully dark, and so she left the student council room first.

She declined the offer to be seen as far as the entrance.

The unusually light, gentle atmosphere felt both out of place and faintly ticklish at the same time.

Even though they had “finished,” what their relationship would become from here on remained entirely undecided…… nothing but questions.

Perhaps because their connection had always been so unusual, even now neither of them knew how to begin changing it into something normal.

They were both carefully avoiding touching the subject.

Not close enough to be called friends, yet far too entangled to suddenly declare themselves complete strangers starting today.

The two of them in the past would probably have found that the natural outcome.

Yet strangely, now that she was trying to maintain distance—far more than when she had once unilaterally sought his company—the lack of a name for their current state felt even more troublesome.

“……This isn’t an order, nor is it exactly a request. I want you to hear it knowing that the choice is entirely yours, Violet.”

At the hesitant choice of words and the awkward way he averted his gaze, Violet tilted her head.

Claudia—who usually spoke so clearly and decisively—had gone to such lengths with preliminaries that she could only feel puzzled.

Perhaps he resigned himself to her stare…… or perhaps he had made up his mind.

After one deep breath, he met her eyes squarely and spoke.

“If you’re willing, Violet, would you join the student council?”

“…………Eh?”

“I’ve seen your speed and accuracy with work several times when you’ve helped out. I trust your character as well, and even those picky about family background would have no complaints if it were you.”

The list of reasons he laid out was, indeed, perfectly logical and fair.

Claudia had no intention of lying.

Yet to Violet—who was visibly bewildered—every single one seemed difficult to accept.

The cause was painfully obvious: her chronically low self-evaluation.

At the same time, there was still something Claudia hadn’t said.

Something he had been thinking ever since the day he first invited Violet into this room and they worked together.

“Besides, if it’s student council work…… even if your return home gets delayed, that shouldn’t be a problem, right?”

“……!”

He had noticed long ago that she felt some discomfort at home.

He had seen her drifting absently with an expression that could hardly be called happy…… especially since the time a new family member was added to the Varhan household, he had witnessed it again and again.

He hadn’t looked into the details, so he didn’t know the full truth.

What kind of influence the stepmother and half-sister had brought to that house.

Still, the sight of her standing alone—not going home, not speaking to anyone, blending into the wind-tossed flowers until she seemed on the verge of vanishing entirely—

When he wondered whether there wasn’t some reason, some means to let her blend in differently, that was what occurred to him.

It wasn’t mere pretty sentiment “for Violet’s sake.”

There was benefit to Claudia as well—a matter of supply and demand.

There was no room between the two of them for the kind of understanding that would let her think he was extending a hand out of charity.

“Of course, it comes with responsibility. The hours are long and the workload will be nothing compared to today. We would be helped a great deal, but in return there’s almost nothing we can offer you.”

“…………”

“So you don’t have to answer right now. I can’t wait forever, but please think about it carefully and decide.”

“Y-Yes……”

Violet still seemed confused; her reply came out slightly lisping as her gaze wandered.

Claudia knew it was his fault she was like this and could do nothing about it, yet the fact that she showed no outright rejection brought him a measure of relief.

Considering everything up until today, she would have been perfectly justified in delivering a polite, polished refusal right here.

“Then, take care on your way.”

“Claudia-sama…… please don’t overdo it yourself.”

Returning a wry smile to Violet’s concern, Claudia watched her go before turning back toward the student council room.

He could easily imagine the mountains of work still waiting.

Even if he didn’t want to push himself, there simply weren’t enough hands to make that possible.

That was exactly why he had invited Violet—natural, when put that way.

（The student council……）

The Violet of the past would surely have nodded eagerly.

Without even understanding that it was work, she would have felt that simply being told it held value made everything acceptable.

She could easily picture her old self getting carried away in an instant.

Now, she understood it wasn’t that simple.

The tired look on his face.

The workload far too heavy for just two people.

The bundles of paper that showed no sign of diminishing.

If she could lighten even a fraction of that burden—if even the help of a single cat’s paw would make a difference—then shouldn’t she repay at least some portion of the trouble she had caused until now?

（……But still.）

She did regret the trouble she had caused.

The legitimate excuse not to go home was undeniably attractive.

And if Claudia himself said Violet would be fine, then she presumably met the baseline ability required.

She was the type easily swayed by a sense of justice or sympathy, but he wasn’t foolish enough to decide an important position based on that alone.

She understood that it was a mutually beneficial arrangement.

Even so, the reason she still couldn’t nod was—

“—Welcome home.”

He sat perched on the windowsill, looking toward her.

Eyes narrowed in a gentle smile, long lashes casting shadows along their edges.

Beautiful. Cute. Kind. Soft.

She thought it might have been him who first taught her that a person’s smile could bring peace of mind.

Because until then she had believed that people—whether laughing, crying, or angry—were all, all terrifying.

“Hm…… maybe ‘welcome home’ isn’t quite right?”

“No, it’s perfect.”

No matter where she was, no matter who she was with—she wanted to come back here.

This place felt like where she belonged.

“I’m home, Yuran.”

Because I want to be with you.

If she refused for a reason like that……

Would he smile for her again?