The World of Otome Games is Tough For Mobs - Volume 8 - Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Youngest Son Colin 

At that moment, at Baltfault Manor, Colin, awakened early in the morning, was wandering around looking for a person.

- He said, "Hey, where's Noelle?

He came into the living room and saw Finley, and when he asked her about Noelle's whereabouts, she answered in a disgruntled manner.

- She went out early this morning with our brother.

- Eh～, they would have woken me up, too.

- I didn't know.

Hostile Finley was still a little sleepy.

The oldest daughter, Jenna, still hadn't woken up and Finley was quieter than usual due to not being around to compete.

Perhaps being free, she spoke to Colin, who was waiting for Noelle to return. - More than that. Colin, you need to stop following Noelle.

- Why?

Colin was confused, but Finley didn't give him any details and just gave him that instruction. - You don't have to know why. You just have to do what I tell you to do. ... Got it? Colin frowned in dissatisfaction and grumbled at Finley's reminders. - I don't want to.

Don't tell me what to do.

- Listen to me, stay away.

- Why?

- Whatever, just don't do it.

Finley never tried to explain why.

That was something Colin couldn't stand.

He felt like he was being teased because he was the youngest and, above all, Noelle was the ideal sister for him.

She was kind and played happily with Colin.

Noelle was more important to Colin than Jenna and Finley.

- Absolutely not. I'm going to play with Noelle again today. And won't she be going to the royal capital soon? I won't be able to see her for a while.

Colin intended to play with her a lot before they couldn't see each other. At Colin, Finley gave him a complex look... and sighed as if he had given up.

- Do what you want. I don't care what happens to you.

- I'll do what I want without you telling me～.

Saying that, Colin waited for Noelle to return.

◇

There were only a few days left before spring break was over.

After a few days, I'll have to go back to the academy to prepare for the new semester.

- Do you think Marie and the others are okay, are there any reports?

I asked Luxon about the situation of Marie and the others, but I got the same answer as usual.

[There don't seem to be any anomalies at this time. Although Cleare's solo action is notorious, Marie is enthusiastic about the investigation within the academy. I judge that there is no problem at all].

I am investigating, but the current situation is that there is no special information.

Still, when I heard that Marie was keeping her word and was working hard to gather information, I was more anxious than relieved.

- Marie is taking information gathering very seriously. I thought she would be a little relaxed.

[Wasn't that good?]

- Even I would forgive her for playing around a bit. I thought it would be good for her to relax a little and tell her a little louder.

Marie was working harder than I expected.

I regret being so intimidating to her.

I'm sure she would have liked to have had a break over spring break.

[Marie must have gotten serious about what happened in the Alzer Republic].

- It seems so. She was opposed to Lelia becoming the priestess until the very end. Noelle's twin sister, Lelia, was a reincarnated person just like us.

There was a problem because Lelia moved freely, but in the end, she became a priestess instead of Noelle and remained in the Republic of Arzel.

She lost the one she loved and chose to live as a symbol of the Republic of Alzer. You may envy her, but the reality is harsher than you think.

She will be appreciated as a priestess, but it will not be easy for her to live as the symbol of a country. Marie was angry because she could not understand Lelia, who chose that position herself.

We had a lot of things to think about and I often thought we could have done better.

Surely Marie also feels some regret.

- So, how are the five idiots doing?

[Same as ever. We thought they had grown up, but they keep losing points until they're close to 0, good thing they don't get to negative points].

Luxon's opinion of the five idiots is low.

I thought they were a little better in the republic, but did they do something wrong?

- What did they do?

- As for Julian, he kept a herd of cattle on the school grounds undercover. It seems he even set up a shed where he raised chickens.

- To make kebabs?

[Yes. He was called in and lectured, and is now under house arrest aspiring for the breeding shed to survive. By the way, compensation has been incurred due to vandalism on the school grounds and billed to you, Master].

- Why?

[Because Roland sent the bill to you.]

- Father and son bother me. For the time being, I'll give Julian a good whack.

[That's very kind of you. Now Brad's next.]

Wait a minute? Maybe there's a report for everyone?

Isn't it terrible to only get bad reports from the five idiots and not get a single report from Marie?

[He has put on a magic show without the Academy's permission. I received a bill from the academy for the repairs].

- Did Brad get billed too?!?

[Yes. He set up a tent, something he's not used to, and it collapsed, causing damage to the Academy. Brad is a subordinate of yours and you are responsible for his supervision, so you were asked to take responsibility for the repairs].

- That's pretty serious if you think about it so far?

[By the way, both Julian and Brad only caused less damage.]

- ... Hey, which idiot has caused even more trouble?

[Cheer up. They've all caused trouble without fail. Only three people, Marie, Carla and Kyle, were mature].

- I'm not happy at all.

In other words, Greg, Chris and Jilk have also done something.

- What did the other three do?

[Greg remodeled a room without the Academy's permission. According to him, he wanted to turn the place into a training room].

- Get permission, get permission!

[Also, since he did the remodeling himself, he made a lot of mistakes].

It looks like an amateur got his hands on it and has ruined several things.

Naturally, the school refused to turn it into a training hall. It decided to return it to the state prior to renovation.

As a result, repair costs were incurred, but I was sad to be billed because the five idiots couldn't cover it with their own money.

- What about Chris?

[... It seems that the bathrooms at the Academy were filthy and were remodeled without permission. Because of that, he got the bill for the remodeling].

The Academy was also a little happy that Chris renovated all the bathrooms on his own. It doesn't appear that he intends to return them to the way they were before.

However, they did not intend to pay for it.

Therefore, the remodeling fee came to me, who was in charge of Chris. If you don't have the ability to pay for it? Then why did you decide to remodel it?

- Haven't they learned about the value of money in the Republic? Have they forgotten already?

[Chris's excuse is that he plans to pay for it eventually. He probably thinks he'll be put off paying you].

- Is he stupid?

[He's definitely stupid. Last, but not least...]

- The only one I don't want to hear is the last one left.

Each one is too terrible, but so far, I'm still convinced.

It's a story that normally wouldn't be possible, but for me, who knows how terrible the five idiots are, I feel like they're even growing.

Considering what we've done so far, this is a lovely amount of damage.

However, among the five idiots, Jilk is the worst.

[... He said that he regretted the trouble he had caused earlier by buying artwork]. - He can reflect!!!?

I was shocked, but Luxon soon brought me back to my senses.

If Jilk was simple and decent, there would be no problem.

[That's why he has decided to make his own works of art. For this, I prepare a kiln and he's making his own pottery].

- Hey, what do I prepare?

[A kiln. Also, it was prepared in the academy's facilities. They're charging us the money to prepare it, but they're also charging us for the cost of destroying it].

It's amazing the acting ability of an idiot.

Do they think the school is their property?

In this case, Julian secretly raising chickens still looks cute because he understands he's doing something wrong.

Is Brad still okay because the freak show was a tent? Was Greg barely safe because of the amount of damage he did?

Chris was willing to pay, can I still forgive him?

But Jilk wasn't.

- I'll beat the crap out of Jilk when he gets back to the Academy.

[You won't give it to Julian?]

- Compared to Jilk, I don't think I'll have to beat him up.

[Master, aren't you getting soft on the five idiots?]

- D-D- Really?

However, as I knew, if I left the five idiots alone, they would do nothing but really bad things.

Could it be that Marie is seriously gathering information to somehow recover from the loss of the five idiots?

It's oddly satisfying to think that she's desperately running around thinking I'm going to be upset about the five idiots causing trouble.

That's most likely.

But still, the five idiots are really useless.

If they are useless, I think the burden on us will continue to increase.

- Just by having the five idiots, the expenses keep going up.

[They're a real pest. ... You want me to erase them?]

Is that how you want to get rid of the garbage? It's a problem if you ask me lightly like that.

- We can't.

[What a pity.]

Luxon looked a bit disappointed as he started looking down. This guy seems to be able to easily get rid of the five idiots if I just order him to.

The door to the room was slammed loudly as I thought he was worried about Luxon's dangerous comments.

The owner of the knocking was Angie.

- Leon, if you have time, I want you to come right away.

◇

Noelle has a room that she uses for rehab.

The room, made by Luxon, is equipped with rehab equipment, including handrails.

Noelle, who had already been rehabilitating, was now sitting in a wheelchair to rest.

- You're just in time.

Livia's figure stood near Noelle who was pleased with the results of her rehabilitation.

She was helping Noelle in her rehabilitation and was delighted to do so. - Those are the fruits of your hard work.

- Yes!

Livia has been helping Noelle in her rehab on a regular basis. Because of that she was very happy to see Noelle recovering smoothly. It was Colin who was seeing Noelle and Livia.

Seeing the two of them excited, he felt lonely.

He would like to take care of Noelle, but now he had Livia.

Besides, his parents told him strictly not to disturb her rehabilitation.

He would very much like to play with her, but Noelle was in rehab, so he waited patiently for her to finish.

Livia seemed to have been worried about Colin, so she turned her face and smiled at him. -

Colin, aren't you bored? Why don't you play outside?

- I'm fine here.

For some reason, Livia was also trying to get Colin out of the rehab room today.

Colin didn't understand why, but shook his head because he wanted to be by Noelle's side. -

... I see.

Livia had a complex look on her face, but she soon returned to talking to Noelle. Today's Colin's chest ached more than usual when he looked at Noelle. I can't help but get excited when I see Noelle.

Recently, he was always looking for Noelle.

Still, he couldn't speak properly when they were alone.

This had never happened before and Colin was confused.

As a child, he thought he was sick at first, but when he was with Noelle or thought of Noelle, his chest hurt.

Although this symptom made him uneasy at times, Colin was beginning to realize the nature of this feeling.

What did I think that was like? Jenna and Finley were talking about that too, isn't that a mistake? What they were talking about was that they wanted to have a heartbreaking love.

Colin also knew that falling in love made the heart ache and somehow, he understood that the cause was Noelle.

It doesn't stop when it starts to show.

I to Noelle...

When he was aware of it, he blushed up to his ears and felt embarrassed, but as he did, Angie came back into the room.

- I brought it.

Behind Angie's bright voice was Leon with Luxon.

Leon didn't seem to know that Colin was in this room, but he didn't think it was strange since he had been following Noelle around lately.

- Colin is here too?

Colin was glad that his favorite brother, Leon, had come.

- Yeah. - I was worried about Noelle.

- Oh, great. I'll give you some money later.

- Really?!?

[Master, you're spoiling your little brother too much.]

Leon, who was very soft on Colin, was lectured by Luxon as usual. It was a familiar sight, but Colin found it a bit strange.

- Hey, why did you come, brother? You don't usually come here, do you?

When he asked that question, Leon answered truthfully.

- Because Noelle doesn't usually like it when I do.

Leon said that and saw Noelle looking sweaty.

Apparently, Noelle had told Leon not to come.

- It's bad to go out in the middle of the vacations, isn't it?

- You don't have to worry about that.

- I do worry about it.

Watching the two of them talk, Colin unconsciously clutched his chest with his right hand.

Huh? Noelle, she sounds happier than when she's with me.

When Colin fell silent, Leon looked back and answered the question.

- That's why I don't usually come over, but today Angie told me there was something she wanted me to see. At the mention of her name, Angie nodded as she turned to Noelle. With that as a cue, Noelle tried to show off the results of her rehab. Livia began to support Noelle's wheelchair to keep her from falling. And then, Noelle slowly got out of the wheelchair.

- Noelle!

[This was unexpected.]

The reason why both Leon and Luxon were surprised was because Noelle could already stand up.

Noelle was so badly injured that she could have died at any moment, but Luxon and his team treated her and saved her life.

After that, she received a lot of support and recovered to the point where she was able to stand up. She was struggling a little too much in front of Leon.

Her legs were shaking a little, but she smiled and showed him that she was fine.

- The little sapling has grown well, so I have to work hard too, don't I?

The growth of the Sacred Tree and Noelle's rehabilitation were not related.

However, Noelle, who had thought that if the Sacred Tree was trying to live with all its might, also thought it should work hard.

Colin was glad to see Noelle stand up more gently than usual. Noelle, you've been working hard so far. You are really amazing. Colin had always been watching Noelle's efforts.

He couldn't say he understood the difficulties of rehab, but he knew from the way he looked at her how much she was suffering.

He respected Noelle for overcoming this and being able to walk.

Noelle then began to walk toward Leon.

She was slowly getting closer to Leon, and Colin wanted to encourage her.

Come on! Try hard, Noelle....

But then, he realized.

- ... What?

Noelle approached Leon, and he opened his hands timidly.

Noelle was happy when she made up her mind to jump and reached Leon's chest.

Leon was shy at first, but he seemed to be impressed by Noelle's appearance. He closed his outstretched arms, hugged Noelle and said a few kind words. - You tried hard, Noelle.

- Hehehe, that was thanks to everyone. Olivia, Angelica, and my mother-in- law helped me.

- ... I didn't help much, though.

- Don't get depressed. I refused. I thought you should take a break while you could. - No, that's right, but... - And besides, I wanted to surprise you by showing you the way.

- And besides, I wanted to surprise you by showing you the way.

The two embraced each other with such joy that even a child like Colin could understand what was going on.

Seeing Colin in a daze, Angie and Livia approach him with a worried look on their faces.

Angie was puzzled, but leaned over to talk to Colin and made eye contact with him. - Colin, prepare some sweets, so let's go to another room.

Angie was very cautious.

The reason she went to the trouble of preparing candy was because she knew this would happen. The same thing happened with Livia.

- Angie brought us some delicious candy. If you don't hurry, your sisters will eat them.

They tried to force Colin out of the room, hiding Leon's embrace with Noelle with their own bodies.

Colin was filled with tears.

What he could see through the space between their two bodies was Noelle, who was happily with her tinted cheeks hugging Leon.

Colin had two experiences at that moment.

The first was first love.

It was at that moment that he realized he was in love with Noelle.

And the second was heartbreak.

He realized that Noelle was not in love with him, but with his older brother, Leon.

At the same time, he recognized his first love, Colin, who also experienced the heartbreak, started crying and jumped out of the room.

My brother Leon is an

idiotaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!! Screaming at Leon, Colin ran out of the room.

From behind, the impatient voices of Angie and Livia could be heard.

- W-Wait!

- Colin, listen to me!

Noelle's voice sounded surprised.

- What's the matter, Colin?

Colin ran off, but Noelle's voice almost stopped him as if he was being pulled from behind for a moment.

But then he heard Leon's loud voice.

- Colin!!! what have I done to you!!!?

Unable to bear his voice, Colin started running again.

Colin, who was running at full speed to his room, didn't have time to worry about running into someone on the way and being told not to run in the hallway.

He ran to his room, climbed into bed and pulled the blanket over his head. As he continued to cry, the door was banged loudly.

Outside were Leon and Luxon... And Livia and Angie's voices could also be heard.

- Colin, come out! If I did something bad to you, I'll apologize! Let's talk anyway. If we talk, we can work it out.}

[I don't think so.]

- {Don't joke now!}

[I'm not kidding. Leaving him alone is the right answer now.]

- Colin! Talk to me, your brother. Please leave the room.}

When Luxon told him it was impossible, Leon's voice sounded impatient.

It must have been a shock that his little brother, Colin, hated him.

Leon usually ignored his sisters, but when it came to his brothers, he was more forgiving.

In fact, he loved his younger brother, Colin, more than his younger sister, Finley. Himself, he couldn't believe Colin hated him.

Then Angie's voice was heard soothing Leon.

- Calm down. Let's leave him alone for now}.

- {I don't want to! I don't want my little brother to hate me.}

Livia lectured Leon, who sounded obnoxiously pathetic, in a soft voice.

- {Sometimes he just needs time. For now, let's wait for Colin to calm down shall we, Leon?

Let's give Colin some time to calm down}.

- {But... it's just that...}

The usual reckless Leon wasn't there.

Finley was passing through the room and was annoyed to see Leon.

His irritated voice could be heard.

- {What are you doing?}

- Colin locked himself in. He calls me an idiot... Do you know why he says that?} - {He calls you an idiot because you're an idiot.}

- What did you say?!?

- First of all, you're too soft on Colin. You should take care of me too.} - I hate the existence of a younger sister.

- {What, you say you want to fight?}

- {Don't think I'll hold back just because you're my younger sister. I, who has been suffering for her younger sister for many years, I can take revenge even on you!}

Luxon pointed with a dismayed voice at Leon, who declared that he would take revenge on his sister.

[When it comes to revenge, you can do it all at once. Shouldn't you take action before you, do it?]

- {Colin, I've done something bad to you, I'll apologize, so come out!}

Not having time to respond to Luxon's point, Leon was at the door making a fuss.

Colin sank into the blanket in his room, sobbing and screaming.

- This is not true.

Thus, Colin's first love ended.

◇

- Colin hates me. I'm done.

In the living room where family gatherings are held, there were my siblings Nicks, Jenna and Finley in addition to me.

Luxon was here too, but Angie and Livia were not present.

My siblings were all around me and they all knew I was depressed.

However, no one came to comfort me.

Nicks clutched a letter in both hands and let out a small sigh of anguish.

- It would be great to be able to write poetic sentences right now. I wish I had taken it more seriously at the academy. I know old phrases, but I don't know what's in vogue today.

The sender of the letter was Dorothea.

Upon returning from Roseblade territory, the two were in immediate correspondence.

Nicks was preoccupied with how to respond.

I and my siblings circled the living room table.

Sitting across from Nicks, Jenna was teasing Nicks as she picked up a cookie and popped it in her mouth.

- Nicks nonsense about poetic sentences? Why don't you stop if you're just going to make a laughing stock?

Nicks blamed Jenna's attitude.

- I'm aware that I don't have a sense for poetry. I'm your big brother. Enough with calling me disrespectful.

- Do you want me to call you dumb big brother, just like dumb little brother Leon? Nicks seemed to have given up on Jenna, who is not afraid of her big brother.

- Although sometimes I do call you dumb brother. Haa, well, what are you going to do with your answer, should you give her some presents?

Finley raised his hand when the word gift was mentioned.

- I want accessories. I'm about to enter the academy, aren't I? You want to be a little better dressed.

Finley, who is hoping to get into the academy, said she wanted accessories that would look good on her uniform.

Hearing that, Nicks felt a little uncomfortable.

- You don't need them.

Jenna is similar to Nicks, but for a different reason.

- It's safer to buy it in the royal capital. It's better to see what's fashionable there before you make a mistake.

Finley inclined his head toward Jenna and asked her a series of questions.

- "Hey, is that so? Don't you know anything about current trends, sister? You were in the royal capital not too long ago, weren't you?

- Why do you ask questions like that? Trends change every year.

- Well, then I'll buy it in the royal capital, so tell me a good store. Oh, you want to go to the royal capital with me?

- That's a good idea! While I'm shopping with you, should I catch a nice guy there and marry him?

- Isn't that impossible?

- It's not impossible! Otherwise, I'll be tied up in a field like that forever. I want to live in the city!

What noisy sisters.

I was sitting on a chair with my knees on my arms, but I slowly lowered my legs, stood up and lowered my hands to the table.

Bang! When the noise echoed in the room, everyone looked at me as if they couldn't ignore it anymore.

- Listen to me and worry a little! Colin hates me and locked himself in! This is important and you guys are gathered together as if you don't care?

I don't want to hear your trivial story! Listen to me! For trying to say such a thing, I provoked the wrath of my brothers.

Nicks looked at me with his eyebrows furrowing.

- Colin's story is irrelevant. The letter with Dorothea is more important to me than your unimportant story.

Jenna was so angry her hair seemed to stand up.

- I don't care about your sibling feud! My future is at stake! I want to marry a handsome rich man in the royal capital and become a city woman!

I said "Oh, oh" at her somewhat threatening attitude.

Jenna, who hasn't had many opportunities to go to the royal capital after graduating from school, seems to be quite impatient.

As I sat down and kept my mouth quiet, Luxon teased me.

[You made them angry.]

- You're loud, shut up.

[I will. Nicks, would you like me to help you answer the letter?]

I told him to shut up and he agreed, but he immediately went over to Nicks and started talking fluently.

- Are you sure?

[Yes. The Master caused you a lot of trouble, didn't he? Please let me help you. I have chosen some possible gifts for you].

- You saved me. Luxon is more reliable than Leon.

[Of course, isn't he?]

Jenna raised her hand towards Luxon and spoke.

- Oh, then introduce me to a handsome rich man.

[It's a difficult request for me, but I can prepare a candidate.]

- Who is he? What kind of person is he?!?

Luxon gave the name of a shitty guy to Jenna, who took the bait.

[He's a man named Roland. He's in his forties, but I consider his appearance passable. He looks very young for his age and is classified as beautiful. And there is no doubt that his assets are some of the bests in the kingdom].

- The age is a bit of a problem, but it's not bad. Can you tell me where he's from and who he is?

[He is the King of the Kingdom of Holfault.]

Upon learning that he was the king, Jenna hit Luxon.

However, Jenna is more likely to be hurt by hitting a piece of metal.

- What do you mean, His Majesty the King? Of course not!

[Since he's surrounded by a number of concubines, I decided I could go in as one of them.]

N-No! Why a man who is surrounded by many women? N-No, isn't His Majesty the King too honorable?

[Is that so? I'm sorry to hear that.]

He tried to say he didn't like men with mistresses, but it seems Jenna respects His Majesty the King.

Does she respect him or is she afraid of him?

However, even I don't like the idea of my older sister being Roland's mistress.

Although I have this older sister, I at least feel sorry for her because she is a member of the family.

Finley, who was just watching Nicks and Jenna from the side with Luxon in the middle of them making noise, spoke.

- My brother Leon really is useless. I can't believe this person is a hero.

She can't believe I'm being called a hero because of my everyday appearance.

I agree with her.

- I think so, too. Me being the hero means this country is finished. - You say so yourself?

Finley was astonished by my unexpected answer.

◇

At that time.

Angie and Livia were in front of Colin's room.

They prepared some sweets and drinks, and talked to Colin in front of the door. - Colin, you don't have to answer. But, listen to what we have to say. Angie talked to Colin through the door, but no noise came from the room. I wish my in-laws were here.

Both Barkas and Luce were missing, and it was Angie and Livia who took on the role of comforting Colin.

Angie began to talk about the situation.

- I didn't tell you the details. Did you hear that Noelle is from the Republic of Alzer?

There was no answer to the question, but Angie went on to explain.

- Did you know that Leon went to study abroad? At that time, they met. Noelle was in a complicated position. She was also in danger in her hometown. ... It was Leon who saved Noelle.

She didn't talk about the Sacred Tree or the priestess out of consideration for Colin, who is still a child.

Angie awkwardly summarized the story.

- Only Leon can protect Noelle. I know this is hard for you, but you have to accept that fact.

I'm not very good at this kind of thing.

His older brother's fiancée was his first love and his heart was broken before he confessed.

She was the wrong person to fall in love with.

When Angie seemed to be in trouble, Livia took over and spoke kindly.

- I'm sorry. I know it's painful for you, Colin. But please don't hate Leon and Noelle.

Actually, we should have told you earlier, but we weren't sure how to say it.

What should you tell Colin, who had not yet recognized his first love? His mother, Luce, just said, "He has to experience lovelessness."

Neither Angie nor Livia gave an explanation in agreement with that opinion.

Livia put the palm of her hand on the door.

- Due to various adult circumstances, we can't separate them. If Colin gets a little older, I think you'll be able to understand the situation. So...

There was a sound from inside the room before Livia continued. The door opened and Colin peeked through the gap with his puffy, teary face.

- .... Sorry.

◇

Colin invited them into the room.

Angie and Livia were sitting on either side of Colin on the bed.

They put their hands on Colin's shoulders and thighs to comfort him.

Colin finally regained his composure and spoke about his feelings.

- I didn't realize I liked her until recently. I... I didn't realize I was in love. And I felt so bad that I ran away.

As Colin sobbed, Livia spoke softly to him.

- You had ugly feelings, but let's go apologize to Leon later, shall we? Colin obediently accepted Livia's proposal.

- Yes. I'll apologize.

Angie was relieved by his response and patted Colin's head.

- How admirable, Colin.

Colin, who was comforted by the two, was offered sweets and tea.

He spoke of his feelings for Leon and Noelle as he was pampered by the two gentle people.

- I want Noelle to be happy.

Angie nodded.

- You're a strong boy. It's great to wish happiness for your loved one, even if you're not meant to be with her... It's something I couldn't do.

Colin looked at Angie's face.

It struck him why she had a forced smile.

- Angelica also suffered a heartbreak?

That question puzzled Livia for a moment, but Angie smiled involuntarily and said nothing.

Angie told the story of her heartbreak.

- Yes, I experienced a terrible heartbreak. I really couldn't wish for the other person's happiness. Colin, you are much stronger than the me of that moment.

- Even Angelica had a heartbreak. - What about Olivia?

When Livia, asked later, made a worried face, Angie urged her to continue.

- Why don't you tell her?

Livia spoke with a wandering look on her face when Angie spoke to her.

- W-Was he a neighbor, I guess? I-I think she admired him.

Colin asked her about the lack of clarity in Livia's story.

- You admired him? You didn't like him?

- W-Well. That...

Angie was quick to speak up because Livia doesn't want to talk about her first love.

- I'm curious too, so tell me. Isn't it okay? Even if you've had your first love, you're by Leon's side right now.

Angie seemed to think that Livia was hesitant to talk about her first love because she thought it was bad for Leon.

Livia hid her face with both hands when Angie told her that her past love is irrelevant.

- You're wrong. I never fell in love until I came to the Academy. I've only recently come to realize that, so....

Hearing that, Angie realized why Livia was hesitant about talk. Colin noticed it too.

- Maybe your first love was Leon?

Livia nodded.

- I'm sorry. I tried to hide it because it's not the story we're talking about now. Apparently, Livia couldn't tell Colin that her first love had come true. Angie looked apologetic.

- I-I'm sorry. I-I see. Are you devoted to Leon? I-It's not a good thing, is it? Cases like that happen.

- I'm sorry.

Livia apologized, but Colin shook his head.

- I'm glad that Olivia's first love came true!

Livia, to whom Colin said that, was a little surprised and praised him.

- You're really kind, Colin.

The two told him that it was amazing, but Colin couldn't understand what was amazing.

However, seeing the two of them happy, a question came to his mind of, will there comes a day when I am?

- Will I be able to meet someone who really likes me like you two did? Angie replied to Colin.

- You will meet her. For that, you have to learn a lot. And get involved with several people.

Colin narrowed his eyes at Angie's advice.

- You're not using this story as an excuse for me to study?

Angie gently tapped Colin's forehead, who had learned to be a little wary of people when he found out he'd had a heartbreak.

- Dumbass. If you don't learn, you won't grow up, and if you don't interact with people, you won't meet someone. Or do you think it's okay if you don't grow up and meet someone?

- ... It's not good.

Then Livia also gave some advice to Colin, who was convinced.

- You'll meet someone someday. Maybe you have already met someone close to you, or maybe you will in the future. So please continue to cherish that encounter from now on.

- ... Did you meet my brother Leon that way?

Colin asked that question, but he would soon regret it.

Angie's cheeks flushed slightly.

- That's right. In retrospect, I'd like to praise my decision to get involved with so many people at the academy. It was one of the most fortunate experiences of my life to meet your brother.

Livia's face was flushed with embarrassment, but she spoke cheerfully.

- In my case it was Leon who approached me. Leon at the time was really great. He invited me to tea when I was in trouble. He's chivalrous and kind, so....

They both got excited and started talking about their relationship with Leon.

As he listened to them, Colin thought.

Huh? Don't tell me I have to listen to everything?