Chapter 7: Clouds of Doubt, Clashes of Pride

Lilia leaned against the dormitory window, watching dark clouds roll in.

The morning had been bright and cheerful, but by noon, it seemed rain was coming.

Intermittent raindrops, like broken tears, fell from the sky.

Lilia’s heart was as gray as the storm clouds.

Opening the window slightly, a cold breeze brushed past her slender shoulders.

“Aren…”

His name slipped from her lips.

The Aren she saw in the library was like a different person.

Gone was the arrogant, immature boy, replaced by a great scholar pursuing only science.

His once cheerful tone, eager to impress her, had turned cold.

His eyes were distant, and he seemed perpetually tired.

Lilia felt unsettled by this change.

‘Does he now think he’s completely different from a student like me?’

She had just started wanting to understand Aren.

She wanted to achieve great things like him, to become a renowned scholar.

But Aren seemed to find it bothersome to share any knowledge with her.

As the rain continued, the world outside the window grew blurry and gloomy.

Lilia liked the sight—it matched her mood.

For a romance fantasy heroine like Lilia, being rejected by a man was rare.

What seemed trivial to an ordinary girl deeply troubled the heart of a romance fantasy heroine.

Lilia replayed the events in her mind, wondering if she’d done something to make Aren treat her so coldly.

‘Is it because I rejected his confession?’

Had she rejected him too harshly?

Had she hurt him by not understanding his feelings?

She didn’t know.

That public confession had been so embarrassing, so humiliating, that she’d just left.

“I’m sorry. It won’t work.”

Those two words were all she said before walking away from Aren.

That incident must have affected him.

The Aren she knew had completely changed after that.

Perhaps her actions had wounded him.

That confession must have been incredibly important to Aren, and she’d dismissed it with just those two words, fleeing the scene.

Maybe that’s why he’d changed so much.

‘Was I the one who did something wrong?’

It was possible.

To Lilia, it was a complicated issue.

But it seemed certain that Aren had been deeply shocked.

Shocked enough for one personality to die and another to emerge.

Maybe she was the one who caused his pain and transformation.

If she could go back, she wouldn’t have done it that way.

A wave of melancholy washed over her.

The drizzle, falling like tears, had stopped.

Lilia trudged out of the campus.

She wasn’t hungry, but since she could only afford cheap cafeteria food, she headed toward the student dining hall.

‘To Aren, I’m probably nothing now.’

He was even about to join the Royal Astronomical Society.

The lifelong goal she pursued, Aren had achieved at the same age as her.

Honestly, that fact made Lilia feel ashamed.

She’d dreamed of becoming a scholar since childhood, coming to the academy despite her family’s hardships.

But seeing such ‘true talent’ in Aren made her feel like she had none.

‘He’s undeniably impressive. Publishing a paper that contradicts centuries of established knowledge, with its impact spreading not just in the capital but to distant provinces.’

She’d likely never achieve anything like Aren, no matter how hard she tried.

She was just an ordinary person, far from his genius.

Lilia even wondered if, in the past, her presence had held back Aren’s greatness.

‘Now that I think about it, I might have been obstructing the path of such a great scholar.’

That thought brought some relief.

Aren’s coldness toward her felt like it was for the sake of his future.

But Lilia couldn’t shake her melancholy.

She wanted to be great like Aren, to know the secret behind his brilliant ideas.

With a soft sigh, Lilia stepped through the main entrance of the student dining hall.

There, she unexpectedly ran into Albrecht, a tall, muscular young man.

“Albrecht? What brings you to a place like the student cafeteria?”

“You know, to eat with you.”

“Whatever.”

Albrecht asked with a concerned voice.

“But Lilia, what’s wrong? Why do you look so down today?”

He noticed her gloomy expression.

Seeing her sad face felt like it was breaking his heart.

‘I never want to see Lilia’s sad face, not even in my dreams.’

Worry and sympathy welled up in Albrecht’s heart.

He wanted to make her smile, or at the very least, comfort her.

“It’s just… I feel like Aren and I aren’t friends anymore.”

“Aren again?”

The mention of Aren’s name sparked irritation in Albrecht.

He couldn’t accept that someone like Aren was making Lilia this sad.

Suppressing the anger rising within, Albrecht tried to comfort her.

“What happened?”

“I feel like Aren and I have grown apart, and it’s making me sad. He said he’s busy. I wanted to ask him so many things, but now that he’s called a great scholar, I guess there’s nothing I can do.”

“That’s what’s making you so sad?”

“No, it’s not that bad…”

But Albrecht, seeing Lilia’s expression, couldn’t take her words at face value.

The fact that Lilia was so upset because of Aren sent his heart ablaze with anger.

At the same time, Aren was increasingly getting on his nerves.

If Aren had caused Lilia’s distress, then conversely, if he had welcomed and treated her kindly today, wouldn’t she be happy and cheerful?

The one to make Lilia happy should be him alone.

‘Is this… jealousy?’

Childish, irrational thoughts and emotions swirled in Albrecht’s heart.

Was he really feeling inferior to Aren, as his father had said?

Albrecht was convinced something was wrong with this situation.

Of course, he wasn’t foolish enough to act out or cause trouble.

That wasn’t in his character.

‘But I can’t just sit still like this.’

If given the chance, he wanted to compete with Aren openly.

To defeat him with skill and prove to Lilia that he was far superior.

“Hey, what’s with you? What are you thinking about so deeply?”

While Albrecht was lost in thought, Lilia tilted her head, looking at him.

He coughed awkwardly and forced a smile.

“Nothing.”

Though he said that to Lilia, inwardly, he gritted his teeth.

He wanted to shake off these ugly emotions as soon as possible.

*

I entered the academy’s swordsmanship training hall.

The afternoon class was sword practice.

Considering I was in the swordsmanship department and an academy student, it wasn’t surprising, but since I was always in the library, it felt unexpected.

The training hall was already filled with the clang of metal and shouts.

The air, thick with the smell of sweat and blood, stung my nose.

Dust floated in the sunlight streaming into the indoor gymnasium.

Wooden swords clashed loudly.

Picking up a sword and swinging it a few times, it felt familiar, likely due to the original Aren’s muscle memory.

Apparently, Aren was in the top ten of the swordsmanship department.

Wiping sweat from my brow, Professor Dandolo, today’s supervisor, approached me.

The regular swordsmanship professor was absent, so this middle-aged literature professor was filling in.

“Student Aren, that paper you recently published was truly impressive. A remarkable achievement.”

Professor Dandolo praised me in front of the other students, his voice dripping with flattery.

“Honestly, I don’t know why a great astronomer is here.”

“Well, I’m still a student.”

When Dandolo left to supervise another match, a tall, muscular man approached me.

It was Albrecht, whom I’d seen before.

His face was shadowed with distress.

“What’s up?”

“Let’s spar.”

“Do we have to?”

“It’s just a wooden sword spar. There’s a supervisor—what’s there to fear?”

Since he was provoking me, I nodded.

A spark flickered in his green eyes.

I sensed complex emotions swirling within him.

I gripped my wooden sword, and Albrecht clenched his, teeth gritted.

We stood facing each other.

His lips trembled, and his sword quivered slightly in his grip.

“Ready to start?”

“Yeah.”

Professor Dandolo, returning to oversee the match, spoke.

“This spar is between Aren Rubellius and Albrecht von Wallenstein. Ha, an astronomer who swords!”

Dandolo chuckled and then shouted.

“Ready! Begin!”

Albrecht charged like a bolt.

Our wooden swords clashed in the air.

As expected of the top student in swordsmanship, the impact numbed my hand.

His sword came at me like lightning, overwhelming my defenses.

I barely managed to block his attacks, but Albrecht’s skill far surpassed mine.

“Aren, I don’t think you’re that great.”

What was he talking about?

There was no time to think.

Suddenly, an unexpected voice rang out—Professor Dandolo.

“Stop! That’s enough!”

“What? But Professor, this is a spar I agreed to with Aren.”

“If a great scholar like Aren gets hurt, it’d be a huge loss to the academy. Better not.”

“What about the result?”

“I’ll give you both full marks.”

“We need to finish the spar!”

“Don’t push it, Albrecht. Aren’s destined to be a professor at our academy soon. What do grades matter?”

Dandolo approached me after the spar, smiling and shaking my hand with flattering words about a great match.

“See you next time, Albrecht.”

he said, dropping my wooden sword in front of the trembling Albrecht.