Chapter 54: I don’t care if I go to hell if it’s in your hands.

“Thank you for today.”

“I didn’t do much. You solved almost everything yourself.”

“Having someone explain makes a world of difference.”

The study session ended as the sky began to darken.
They tidied up at a good stopping point, and the writing tools disappeared from the table.

Violet and Yulan stood, stowing their worksheets in their bags, and turned to the two who were apparently staying longer.

Violet bowed politely.

Yulan… did not.
He simply wore a flawless, mask-like smile.

“Thank you as well, Lord Mirania. We intruded.”

“Take care on your way home~ Yulan, see you again.”

“We’ll be going now. Excuse us.”

He breezed past Mirania’s cheerful smile with mechanical speed, expression never wavering.
The perfect, textbook Arcadian smile was honestly terrifying.

“We’ll take our leave, then.”

With the bare-minimum greeting (just barely on the acceptable side of rude), Yulan turned away.
Violet followed.

Before closing the door, she glanced back one last time.
Mirania was waving, which wasn’t particularly funny.

But behind him, Claudia had raised his hand to shoulder height and was giving the tiniest, awkward wave.

For some reason, that struck her as hilarious.

A little… she felt happy.

––––––––––

“…You’re in a good mood.”

“Eh?”

“You’ve been grinning the whole time.”

“…I have not.”

She said it, but her hands flew to her cheeks anyway.
The curse of being told something and suddenly becoming self-conscious.
For someone whose default expression was practically an iron mask, a loose face would make people question her sanity.

Fortunately, to ordinary eyes Violet’s face was its usual enigmatic blank.

But to Yulan, it apparently looked like she was beaming.
In the world he saw, the scales were always, without exception, tipped entirely toward Violet.

“…It was fun.”

“Yulan…?”

He stopped suddenly, and Violet’s feet halted too.

When she turned, wondering what was wrong, Yulan was looking down; his bangs hid his eyes.
Yulan almost always smiled, so in a way his expressions were hard to read.
Even when he was more open around Violet, the golden eyes said the most.

When those were hidden, his true feelings became surprisingly difficult to guess.

“What’s wrong? We have to hurry or the gates will—”

“Vio-chan.”

His voice was clear, but carried the faintest tremor.

Calling her name had always been pure happiness for him.
Like proudly showing off a glittering treasure, like letting his bouncing heart spill out without hiding a thing; being able to use that nickname was the greatest joy in the world.

A phrase as precious as a confession of love.

That was why he never wanted to follow it with words like these.

“Were you happy… talking with Claudia?”

If Violet smiled, that was enough.
Nothing in existence was more precious than her smile.
For Yulan that was immutable truth; no exceptions.

So if Violet was happy, nothing else should matter.

At least, until he saw her unable to hold back a laugh in front of Claudia.

If Violet was happy, that was fine.

If Violet smiled, that was fine.

If it had been anyone else; even Mirania; he could have allowed it.
He could have looked down from above and graciously praised them for making her happy.

But Claudia was the one person he couldn’t allow.

Only that man was absolutely unacceptable.

“…”

He had wanted Violet to be happy.
He had wanted to help her.
For that, his own feelings didn’t matter at all.

That wish wasn’t a lie.
It hadn’t changed.

Even now, if Violet wanted, he would take her straight back to Claudia.
They could gather the same way again tomorrow.

For Violet’s sake, everything else could burn; he could still declare that without hesitation.

That was exactly why he was shaking so badly right now.

Anything else wouldn’t have mattered.
Anyone else he could have ignored.
Even if the other person was Claudia, with someone else he would have felt about as much interest as a roadside pebble.

Because it was Violet; because she had smiled; his chest felt this suffocating.

One smile from Violet could send him to heaven.
One smile from Violet could also drag him to hell.

“Did I… manage to help you at all?”

And if it made Violet happy, Yulan would gladly choose hell.