19 - How to Escape the Reverse Harem Cliché
Chapter 19
Orion gently gripped my fingertips.
“Laila. You manifested not too long ago, and you can already control your Guiding?”
“It’s not that. It’s just so subtle that you and Young Master Astolphe couldn’t feel it, perhaps?”
“No. I’m sure. I don’t feel any Guiding from you right now.”
I wondered if I should just agree, or explain that there are times when Guiding doesn’t manifest. It was while I was lost in thought.
“Laila! What are you doing there?”
A sudden gust of wind made Orion and I squint simultaneously.
And by the time I came to my senses, Adrian, who looked like a rabid wild dog, had grabbed Orion by the collar.
It’s one problem after another, really.
\ \ *
I seriously considered it. Should I just leave them both here and go?
I don’t know when Valerian will come this way, so shouldn’t my priority be to escape first? They’ll probably make up when they get to the Academy, anyway.
“I told you not to approach Laila.”
“There are many eyes on us, Spiritual Body. Let go.”
“Hey!”
“This is as far as I’ll go out of consideration for you being Laila’s brother. Let go, Spiritual Body.”
As Orion said, more and more people’s gazes began to fixate on us.
My latent fear of attention, which had been buried by the stares I’d received all the way here, flared up again, and I didn’t want to expend any more energy.
“Stop it, both of you.”
“……”
“Let go, Aiden. He’s not someone you can just manhandle.”
At my words, Aiden, who let out a small curse, released his grip on Orion’s collar with a deeply angered expression. Then, he quickly moved to my side, glaring, to prevent Orion from approaching me.
Even as this happened, the murmuring grew louder. Two people who already drew attention, with a young girl caught between them, would naturally draw interest.
How entertaining it must be for those people. There was even a saying that watching fights was the most fun thing in the world.
My head was starting to ache, so I pressed my hand to my forehead.
“Laila.”
“Laila, let’s go back. Mother is waiting.”
As soon as Orion called my name, Aiden cut in to interfere. Thanks to that, Orion’s hand, which had been reaching towards me, was withdrawn.
“Alright. Let’s go back, Aiden.”
Avoiding the increasingly gathering stares was the priority.
I felt a little sorry for Orion, whose expression hardened as he was suddenly ignored, but I believed he would understand. Just as I expected, Orion slightly lowered his head and didn’t try to hold me back any further.
Aiden, who turned back with me, examined my face with a frown.
“Did that guy bother you?”
“Aiden. You know Orion so well, why would you say that?”
“What do I know? I don’t care about that kind of guy.”
“……Looking at you two, I feel like I’ve done something wrong.”
“What? What do you mean by that, Laila?”
Aiden, who didn’t understand, kept pressing me about what I meant, but I just shook my head.
I truly felt like I had done something wrong. They were childhood friends who were inseparable, and I felt uneasy that our relationship had become so twisted because of me.
But now that I think about it, it’s a bit unfair.
No, I didn’t know it would turn out like this either! Who knew Adrian’s personality would become so fiery after he got healthy? Who knew Orion, who was kind to everyone, would be so cynical towards Aiden?
It’s not entirely my fault. They changed their personalities midway… I think it’s their fault too.
“Laila!”
By the time we arrived where the Countess was, she approached me, embraced me, and chided me for where I had been.
After briefly explaining that I had gotten lost, I handed her the documents I had received from Orion earlier.
She pulled away from me and, with trembling hands, opened the documents, checking each certificate one by one. As I saw the joy fill the Countess’s eyes, my suspicion towards her grew even stronger.
I gained certainty from Valerian. That pill wasn’t to lower Manifestation Pain, but rather to hide Guiding.
He said he couldn’t feel any Guiding from me, even with contact, not just without it. Orion also said my Guiding had completely disappeared.
The fact that she prepared and gave him the medicine immediately after he started showing symptoms similar to Manifestation Pain suggests she either knew I would manifest as a Guide beforehand, or I had manifested even earlier than that.
If that’s the case, why would the Countess go so far as to give me medicine to hide the fact that I’m a Guide?
Compared to ordinary people, the ratio of Espers was significantly lower, and Guides were even lower. Espers are necessary for war and Monster subjugation, but Espers need Guides, so Guides are relatively well-compensated and respected.
Yet, the fact that Laila, a Guide, was hidden means one of two things.
Either she loved Laila too much and didn’t want her to live a life of exploited Guiding, or there was a reason why the fact that a Guide appeared in the family could not be revealed to the outside.
In the current situation, it was impossible for it to be the former, but I had no choice but to cling to that sliver of hope. If it were the latter, I didn’t know how things would get complicated from here.
“You’re an ordinary person after all. That’s good, Laila.”
After carefully examining the confirmation certificate, the Countess finally broke into a relieved smile.
Anyone would think the Countess herself had been tested. I smiled back and nodded at her, who was rejoicing as if it were her own matter.
“Mother. You have absolutely no interest in me, do you?”
At Aiden’s grumbling voice, her calm gaze turned to her son.
Aiden wordlessly handed the paper he was holding to the Countess. It was probably a grade certificate. It seemed Aiden had also undergone a grade assessment today, just like me.
I was a little curious. I’d heard he was high-ranked, so I wondered what grade he received.
Here, just like in the world I lived in, grades decrease sequentially from A. At best, only up to D is recognized, and after that, they are classified as ordinary people.
The Inspection Stones at the checkpoint can only measure up to A, so A is treated as the highest grade.
Of course, there are occasional grades so high that the Inspection Stone doesn’t work. For example, Valerian, who shattered the Inspection Stone immediately after birth…
In such cases, an S-grade is given to signify surpassing A, but it’s a grade that can practically be considered nonexistent.
Especially for those who manifest with a high grade from birth, it’s only possible for someone like Valerian, whose setting values are impossibly high.
Orion, the second male lead, scored a B on his first manifestation and grew through training. Despite appearing to have a weak disposition, Orion, with his tenacious grit, succeeded in becoming an S-grade.
Come to think of it, the third male lead apparently started from D? He didn’t even try, but just reached S from D by receiving Laila’s Guiding. Both this guy and that guy have impossibly high setting values.
“A… It’s the glory of our family.”
The Countess replied with a slightly reluctant voice, tinged with a hint of surprise.
Snapping out of my thoughts, I widened my eyes and took the confirmation certificate from her. The letter A, clearly positioned in the center of the certificate, felt strangely unfamiliar today. It’s really an A…
“Right. It’s been a while since an Esper manifested with an A from the start. Since it’s turned out this way, I’ll bring glory to the family.”
I wonder if he even knows what it means to bring glory to the family.
It’s not the time to be happy just because you’re high-ranked, Aiden. You might be deployed to the battlefield with Monsters if you graduate early.
I don’t know whether to laugh or cry seeing Adrian, whom I went to the trouble of saving, about to face an even more dangerous battlefield.
“Yes. It’s fortunate that you’ll be able to transfer to the Esper-specialized Academy on time. If you had stayed at the National Academy, you wouldn’t have received proper Guiding, but you can be assured of that there.”
“Well, for now, yes.”
Aiden replied casually and nodded at the Countess’s words.
The story veered off course then, and I didn’t listen properly, but I heard that the high-ranked Guide who had been Guiding Aiden here had also been summoned to the Imperial Academy.
If they can easily Guide an A-grade Aiden, that Guide must be at least A-grade.
The Imperial family and the Academy wouldn’t just let a few Guides, especially one who manifested as high-ranked, go unnoticed. I felt a tiny bit of pity for that Guide who was forcibly summoned.
“Laila. I’ll write to you. You have to write back, okay?”
“Okay.”
Just then, I saw the coachman bringing the carriage, and Aiden, who stopped me as I turned to leave, pleaded with earnest eyes.
Aiden was the one who watched me read Orion’s flood of letters without ever replying. He seemed worried that he might end up the same way.
Surely I wouldn’t do that to you too. You’re not a male lead candidate, you’re my brother, after all.
“But don’t do it too often.”
“Got it!”
“Stay healthy, Aiden. Don’t rashly throw yourself into dangerous situations. Don’t stand out too much. You might be dragged to the battlefield early. Understand?”
“This is the first time I’ve seen Laila talk this much.”
“Stop joking around.”
“Okay, okay. Don’t worry. With Laila at home, how could I possibly rush into danger?”
“……”
“We promised when we were kids. No matter what happens, I’d protect Laila.”
Looking at Aiden, who spoke of the past with a suddenly serious expression, I felt a pang of guilt.
I had only said that because I wanted Aiden to take care of himself, but I hadn’t realized he had held onto it in his heart and felt such responsibility.
“Laila, you have to be careful too. Even at the National Academy, there are dangerous people. You understand what I mean, right?”
I nodded to answer him.
Aiden still seemed opposed to me entering the United National Academy. Perhaps it was because he himself had attended that Academy while hiding his identity as an Esper.
In case there were other Espers hiding there.
“If anything happens, you have to write to me right away, Laila. Okay?”
“I will. Anyone would think you’re my parent if they saw you. Go on, Aiden. They’re waiting for you behind you.”
At my gesture, Aiden looked back, his expression turning wry and his brow furrowing. Then, licking his lips, he waved and took heavy steps, rejoining the people waiting for him.
