Chapter 113: In the Second World.
“Violet-sama, does it not suit your taste?”
“Huh?”
“It doesn’t seem to be progressing much.”
“Ah…… I’m sorry. I was lost in thought.”
Classes had ended, and it was lunchtime.
The terrace where Violet sat facing Rosette caught the sun just right—warm and pleasant.
She had grown somewhat accustomed to the surrounding stares and attention.
Not the stares themselves, perhaps, but rather the fact that she and Rosette together drew them.
Even now, the combination of Violet and Rosette seemed surprising enough that passersby did double-takes.
But both of them were already used to attracting notice, so they adapted quickly.
Before them sat the lunches they had ordered a little while ago—two portions.
Violet’s, as always, was light on the main course and heavy on dessert.
Even so, the plates still looked almost untouched, the food barely diminished beyond the initial freshness.
She knew she had a small appetite and ate more slowly than average, yet even accounting for that, the portions remained conspicuously full.
“Is something troubling you……?”
“Not trouble, exactly…… more like I was stunned to discover a side of myself I never knew existed.”
“……?”
Violet felt a pang of guilt toward Rosette, whose head was practically sprouting question marks.
But confessing that she had felt the indecent desire to be touched by the opposite sex—something utterly unbecoming of a lady—was not something she could casually share, even with a trusted friend.
Especially not here, in the academy where ears could be anywhere.
If word ever leaked, combined with her appearance, the rumor would sprout tails and fins in no time and spread like wildfire.
“I’m sorry for worrying you. But it’s all right—just a little confusion, that’s all.”
“If that’s the case, then I’m relieved…… If there’s anything I can do to help, please tell me.”
“Thank you.”
She returned a smile to Rosette’s concerned gaze and turned her attention fully to the meal before her.
She hadn’t truly lacked appetite to begin with.
Once she pushed the lingering turmoil to the corner of her mind, her hands and mouth moved easily.
The pasta wound around her fork gleamed with orange-tinted tomato sauce, tempting her appetite.
“By the way, Violet-sama, have you already begun preparing?”
“Hm?”
“The period is coming up soon, isn’t it?”
“Ah…… yes, now that you mention it.”
The period—six times a year, the examination periods.
The fourth one would begin shortly.
Thanks to Yuran, after the first round she had been able to receive cooperation from Claudia.
As a result, her father’s lectures had decreased—even if only slightly—and she could now let them pass as mere background noise.
Whether that was growth or resignation was another question entirely.
But there was no need to keep letting herself be hurt dutifully.
（I see…… so much time has already passed.）
The fourth examination period meant that two-thirds of the first year was already drawing to a close.
When it had begun, she had felt only shock and resignation toward this “year she was supposed to have already experienced.”
Yet somehow, without her noticing, it had diverged greatly from the year she once knew.
Honestly, there had been moments when she thought being thrown back into prison would be preferable to reliving that year again.
But in those days she had not known certain emotions.
She had not made certain choices.
There were things she had discarded—things she later realized she hadn’t needed at all.
Yet for every one of those, she had gained and learned something far greater.
The end of the first round had been regret inside a prison cell.
Soon, the second round would conclude.
“Would you like to study together? After classes, we could reserve a salon somewhere.”
“Oh, that sounds lovely. Though I’m afraid we’d end up talking the whole time.”
“……I can’t exactly deny that.”
“Fufu, but it does sound like fun.”
When this year ended—where would she be, and what would she be doing?
Vaguely, she had thought: If only these peaceful days could simply continue forever.