28 - How to Escape the Reverse Harem Cliché
Episode 28
Aiden, who sat beside me, still looking dazed, gently stroked my cheek with the back of his hand and looked at me with concern.
“Don’t worry about your friend. We’ll find them, no matter what it takes.”
“Where is this place?”
“Our camp.”
“Camp… you mean….”
“The border.”
Aiden’s words made me sigh and press my palm to my forehead. I had walked right into the lion’s den. All because of that Evan Olivite.
“It’s okay. It’s safe here, for now. Once we find your friend, I’ll escort you both safely back to the Academy, so don’t worry, Laila. Okay?”
“I’m sorry, Aiden. I didn’t expect to meet like this.”
“No. I wanted to see you, so it’s good. We agreed not to say sorry, remember?”
I just nodded and looked out the window at the drizzling rain. Just then, with a knock, Valerian entered.
“Lady Pascianne. You must provide information about your friend for us to find them.”
“Their name is Evan Olivite. They disappeared two days ago, and I don’t know where they went.”
“Are you speaking of Young Lord Olivite?”
At the name Olivite, Valerian’s expression stiffened. Even Aiden’s eyes widened, and he grabbed my shoulder, urging me to answer.
“Laila. How do you know that person? Wait, Olivite is your friend? Were you threatened by them?!”
“No, nothing like that.”
“Oh, God. I told you at the Academy to absolutely stay away from that person!”
He had given me that advice in a letter. Aiden had attended the Academy too, so he knew Evan well.
Aiden, now seeming to grasp the gravity of the situation, let out a long sigh and turned to Valerian, speaking as if in pain.
“Sir Astolphe. This is serious. If it’s the Olivite family, we’ll need to assemble more search personnel. Young Lord Olivite is someone who might cause trouble outside.”
“I will make those preparations. Lady, please don’t worry too much and rest here.”
“Yes. Um… Aiden. I want to talk for a moment.”
“I will wait outside, Sir Pascianne.”
“Yes.”
They said they would work together as a team in the same camp, but unlike when I’d seen them before, they seemed to be interacting very formally.
Valerian bowed to me and left with his subordinates. The servants who had just entered brought blankets and a brazier, bowed politely to us, and then all left.
“Laila. What’s wrong? Are you scared?”
“No, I have something to tell you.”
“What is it?”
Aiden came down to the floor, knelt on one knee, took my hand, and asked kindly.
Looking at Aiden, who was trying to play the older brother role as always, I finally opened my heavy lips after a long pause.
“Evan is an Esper.”
“……What?”
“They’re at risk of Berserk. Their Guiding consumption is too high, making it dangerous. They haven’t received Guiding for half a month already…”
“Wait, Laila! Young Lord is an Esper? Why on earth would an Esper be at a regular Academy… No, I was hiding too. More importantly, Laila. Why didn’t you tell me! It’s dangerous!”
Even though he himself is an Esper. My mumbled words were met with him flying into a rage, asking if he and Young Lord Olivite were the same.
“Evan’s rank is low too.”
“Laila. Even with a low rank, an Esper is still an Esper.”
“I didn’t say it because I wanted to be lectured. Aiden, can you find them without telling Sir Astolphe? This place has equipment that can sense Esper wavelengths, you know.”
“Is that why you followed Sir Astolphe?”
I nodded at Aiden’s words. That would allow him to detect Evan’s unstable wavelength.
“But Laila. That’s a bit strange.”
“What is?”
“You said Young Lord Olivite hasn’t received Guiding for over half a month. How do you know that?”
“…….”
“……No, right? You’re just… you’re talking about the Guide sent by their family, aren’t you? Young Lord told you, right? No, Laila?”
I had to tell him eventually. I couldn’t hide it from Adrian if Orion knew.
“Laila…!”
“That’s enough. Please stop, Sir Pascianne.”
Orion, who had opened the door softly and barged in, strode over and grabbed the agitated Aiden. He must have rushed here, as sweat beaded on Orion’s forehead.
“Hello, Laila. I missed you.”
He bent at the waist and lowered himself, looking at me with an incredibly gentle expression and smiling with his eyes crinkled. Despite his noticeably larger physique, Orion’s smile was still as dazzling as sunlight.
“Sir Restro. This is a family matter, so please excuse yourself.”
Aiden said to Orion, frowning, but Orion’s gaze remained fixed on me. In the end, it was Aiden who sighed and pressed his forehead.
“You’re not listening to a word I say.”
“Laila. Are you cold? Is this blanket enough? We have thicker ones in our supply locker. I’ll bring one for you.”
“I’m fine. My clothes are dry.”
“The servants will bring your clothes soon. Even if they’re dry, you’ll feel sticky. Change into those.”
“Sir Restro. Stop it and get out, would you? Our conversation isn’t finished yet.”
Aiden, who had only been watching Orion’s behavior, finally got annoyed and pushed himself between us, separating us.
“What is this, barging in without knocking, Sir Restro?”
“I’d like to ask you the same. I heard you raising your voice at Laila from outside. What on earth were you doing, pressuring Laila?”
“Why would I be angry at Laila?”
“Your voices were loud. So loud that even the servants waiting outside were startled.”
At Orion’s words, Aiden seemed to realize his mistake, raking his hair with his hands and letting out a long sigh. He then quickly sat next to me and checked my complexion.
“No, Laila. I wasn’t angry at you. You know that, right?”
“I know. It’s okay. Orion, it’s not like that, so you don’t have to worry.”
Beyond bickering, the two of them snarling at each other every time they looked at each other gave me a headache. In the original work, they were inseparable, but now they couldn’t wait to kill each other. This is entirely my fault for changing the original story so much.
“Anyway, Sir Restro. Please step aside for a moment. I have something personal to discuss with Laila.”
“Yes, that’s right. Orion, I’ll see you in a bit.”
Orion, who had been acting like he would never leave, finally nodded when I waved my hand and left the bedroom.
“I don’t like a single thing about that guy.”
“Why again? It would be good for both of you to get along.”
“I don’t know. I never liked him, not since long ago. I don’t like him paying attention to you, either.”
“Aiden. Are you jealous?”
I chuckled and teased him deliberately to lighten the mood, but Aiden’s expression slowly hardened. Then, he exhaled a hot breath and replied calmly, unlike before.
“Of course, I am.”
“…….”
“I hate anything that takes your attention away from me. Even if it’s my parents.”
Perhaps Aiden had felt my Guiding before. Otherwise, he wouldn’t react like this.
My theory was this.
The original work stated that she manifested as a Guide at seventeen, but in reality, Laila must have manifested as a Guide much earlier.
The Countess knew this fact and, for some reason, seemed to have given Laila suppressants to hide it from the outside.
This meant that my Guiding might have leaked out without my knowledge and reached Aiden. Neither he nor I knew that the other was an Esper or a Guide.
I worried that Aiden, exposed to my Guiding unconsciously, might become obsessed with me like Evan, but Aiden quickly regained his composure, perhaps due to my stiff expression.
“I was just complaining. Laila was so indifferent even to my letters…”
“I understand. Anyway, I want you and Orion to get along. I’m not forcing you, it’s just my thought. On the battlefield, you two are on the same team.”
“I’ll try.”
“It’s not a forced effort, though.”
“Exactly. I’ll try, and if it doesn’t work, then so be it.”
Aiden grinned and crouched down in front of me again, resting his chin on his hands placed on my lap.
“I’ll keep it a secret. I’ll tell my subordinates to carry wavelength detection stones and search thoroughly for unregistered Espers as they move, so don’t worry. If there’s a risk of Berserk, we’ll assign our own Guides to stabilize them.”
“Thank you.”
“But in return, Laila, you have to answer my question from earlier.”
“…….”
“Who was Guiding Young Lord Olivite?”
Aiden’s eyes signaled, ‘Please say it was a Guide sent by the Marquis Olivite’s family, not you,’ but I no longer wanted to lie.
“I did.”
“What…?”
“I’m a Guide.”
“…….”
“I’m sorry I couldn’t tell you sooner.”
“What….”
Even though he had suspected it, hearing the confirmed answer directly from me seemed to shock Aiden. He stammered for a long time, his lips moving, then took my hand and gazed intently at my face.
“……I can’t feel it at all, the Guiding.”
“Because I hid it.”
“You can control it too? Then… when did you manifest?”
“I’m not exactly sure, but I was certain last year at the capital’s checkpoint. Orion felt my Guiding too.”
“That guy knew?! For that long?!”
“Your voice is too loud, Aiden.”
Hissing, Aiden shook his head, muttering that it was unbelievable. He blamed himself quite pessimistically about why he couldn’t feel it, then finally calmed down and gently shook the hand he was holding.
“Then why did you refuse when I suggested going to the Imperial Academy? You had already manifested by then.”
“Why would I be afraid of Espers?”
“…….”
“It’s because I’m a Guide, Aiden.”
