37 - How to Escape the Reverse Harem Cliché
Chapter 37
I lifted my gaze, which had been fixed on the floor, to meet the Dean’s.
I expected him to ask about what had happened with Evan, but the words that came out of his mouth were entirely different.
Why was he suddenly asking about the existence of a Guide? Had he figured out that I was the Guide who had been Guiding Evan?
Didn’t Adrian also enroll here while hiding the fact that he was an Esper, only to be expelled in the end? Perhaps he was speculating that I, his younger sibling, might also be someone related to abilities.
However, the conversation flowed in a completely unexpected direction.
“I heard that Prince Andreas, who went to the capital, is refusing Guiding.”
“What…?”
“He’s even rejecting all Guiding offered by an S-Class Guide.”
“……”
“Whether it’s his own will or his body rejecting it, I don’t know. In any case, for that reason, the Imperial Family and the Imperial Academy made a proposal to us.”
“……”
“They asked us to find Evan Olivite’s Guide.”
At that moment, I narrowed my eyes, busy trying to read the Dean’s intentions.
I wondered if he was suspecting me, but I couldn’t detect any suspicion in his eyes.
However.
“If you know anything, even a little, would you tell me, Miss Pashianne?”
I only read a chilling gaze, as if he wouldn’t let go of the unknown Guide once found.
This place was no different from the political arena I had lived in.
No. If anything, it was worse, not weaker. Wars occurred endlessly, and there were even beings who could use abilities called Espers.
In a world where the word ‘human rights’ didn’t exist, it was no exaggeration to say that every word spoken could dictate one’s life.
“I didn’t even know Evan… that is, Prince Andreas was an Esper.”
“Is that so? Truly?”
“You suspect me, Dean.”
“It’s only natural. Prince Andreas had been a student at our Academy since he was very young. Even though House Olivite is a family that produced an Imperial Consort, they sent Evan Olivite here instead of to the Imperial Academy.”
“……”
“Do you think we would take that as a pure intention, Miss Pashianne?”
The Academy was not merely a place to learn academics but an institution entangled in politics.
It meant they meticulously managed and showed interest in the students who enrolled, while secretly investigating and monitoring specific individuals.
“The Fascianne Family has maintained a neutral position for a long time. It’s also been quite a while since Espers and Guides were born into your family.”
“Are you threatening me with my brother?”
“No. However, as reports of your brother, the Spiritual Body of Pashianne, manifesting as an Esper and his achievements growing by the day reach us, we find ourselves watching Miss Pashianne even more closely.”
“My brother has nothing to do with political matters. He enrolled in this Academy wanting to live a normal life, and only when his ability was unexpectedly discovered was he expelled to the Imperial Academy. Even now, he just goes to the battlefield as the Academy and the Imperial Family command. What’s wrong with using his ability to protect the Empire?”
While I could overlook the matter of my family, I couldn’t stand being spoken to in a way that seemed to target Aiden.
Valerian and Orion were the same. Those kids were just acting according to orders from above, so what was wrong with that?
Coming from a world without war, I still couldn’t comprehend this place where small and large wars erupted constantly.
However, I didn’t think the Espers fighting to protect the Empire in those wars were inherently bad. Even with differences in perspective, they were beings that couldn’t be defined as evil.
“I will respect Miss Pashianne’s opinion on this matter. Everyone has their own position.”
“……”
“In any case, please think about it. We believe the relationship between Miss Pashianne and Prince Andreas is deeper than you might think. That’s why we suspect Miss Pashianne knows who the Prince’s Guide is.”
“Since you won’t listen even when I tell you the truth, I have nothing more to say.”
“Understood. Then we shall stop here. You may return, Miss Pashianne.”
I gave a slight bow and quickly turned to leave the Dean’s office.
“I hear psychic types suffer severe Guiding depletion just by existing. And if they have two abilities, it must be even worse.”
“……”
“It won’t last long. We are actually hoping for that.”
Before I could even hear the Dean’s words to the end, I slammed the door shut and left.
I knew it was a rude act, but what could I do? There was no reason to listen to such unpleasant words.
Whether it was here or there, they treated Espers and Guides as less than human.
Despite walking away with a scoff, my heart felt heavy. Fatigue washed over me rapidly, and I pressed my hand to my forehead, letting out a sigh.
Even though I had entered the Academy building after a long time, I felt no joy, only a desire to go back and rest.
Then, for some reason, I found myself standing in front of the storage room on the first floor.
The door had creaked when I first entered, but after Evan repaired the entire place, all that was gone.
I lay down on the long bench bathed in sunlight, turning on my side, and stared at the bookshelf packed with books for a long time.
“What are you doing here? Didn’t go to class again?”
“I’m lacking Guiding.”
“……”
“Laila’s Guiding still lingers faintly here. I’m going to suck it all up.”
I had chided him then, calling it perverted, but I was now receiving the same sense of stability that Evan had found here.
Outside was chaotic, but this place was peaceful. He, who had been placed in a political position since childhood and ostracized both inside and out, must have filled his loneliness here. Just like me now.
If I lack Guiding, I’ll Berserk. I wish he would just receive Rose’s Guiding properly…
In the original work, Evan never left Rose’s side. If they weren’t so close, his Guiding would run out quickly.
That’s why his obsession with Rose was the most intense, and he couldn’t help but hate Laila, who was the cause of her death. After all, Espers are beings who cannot live without Guides.
In this situation, the only thing that could bring me some relief was the setting from the original work. That one setting where Evan was desperate for Rose’s Guiding.
But the situation was unfolding unexpectedly. The fact that he was showing a rejection reaction, when I thought he would receive her Guiding well, kept bothering me.
Had I already become addicted to my Guiding? Should I have thought more deeply during the Berserk incident?
I was so focused on escaping that I ignored Evan’s situation, and this was the result.
But there was nothing I could do about it. I couldn’t reveal that I was a Guide and go to meet Evan, could I?
I couldn’t give up the life I had prepared for so long to save Evan, could I…
…Don’t I have to live too?
“Why am I so uneasy?”
All I wanted was to escape this place as soon as possible.
I wanted to disappear to a place where no one would find me and live happily with Lena. Even if it wasn’t luxurious, even if it was just passable, that would be happier. Wasn’t that why I endured math, holding a pen that didn’t suit me at this Academy?
I thought it would be better for my health to get rid of useless thoughts, so as I closed my eyes, it happened.
Knock, knock—.
The long, drawn-out knocking sound made me slowly open my eyes.
I had forgotten, as no one had ever come looking for me while I used this place. It was a common space, so of course, someone could come.
I hurriedly got up and sat on the sofa, and then I heard the knocking sound again.
The door wasn’t locked, so why didn’t they just come in? I stared blankly, and finally opened my mouth.
“Yes. Please come in.”
As soon as my answer finished, the door swung open.
Just then, the sunlight pouring in from the window behind me illuminated the person entering, making me squint involuntarily. The various accessories on their clothes glinted, reflecting the light.
“It’s been a while, Lady Pasianne.”
But I had to rub my eyes to secure my vision at the voice that followed.
Why did it sound like Valerian’s voice? Was my fever not gone yet? Or was it a side effect of the medicine?
“I asked your friend, and they said you would be here, so please forgive my rudeness in coming directly.”
“Am I seeing things? Why is Prince Astolphe…”
“It’s not an illusion, it’s me.”
Valerian closed the door and approached me, closing the distance. Thanks to that, I could finally make out his face as he came into the shade.
Valerian Astolf had truly come to this Academy. For what reason, I didn’t know.
“You don’t look well. Are you perhaps sick?”
“No, I’m fine. More importantly, why have you come… I didn’t know it would be so easy for an outsider to infiltrate the Academy.”
“It was an urgent matter, so I used my ability.”
“I see.”
After my reply, silence fell between us.
I could feel Valerian’s green eyes staring at me, slowly but stubbornly, but I didn’t avoid them.
I was no longer afraid of him. Even if my identity as a Guide were revealed, I wouldn’t be dragged away helplessly like in the original work.
