Chapter 90: Chapter 90

-----------------------------------------------------------------

Translator: Vine

Chapter Title: A Peculiar Claim

-----------------------------------------------------------------

Isabel Luna.

The main heroine of the Flame Butterfly arc, she was neither the interim president nor the interim vice-president.

Therefore, she originally had no reason to accompany them on the way to this meeting.

However, those holding the president and vice-president positions were allowed to bring one assistant each.

The assistant Iris chose was me, the interim secretary.

Hania would have gone normally, but as it was student council business, she yielded her place to me.

"Lady Iris doesn't sleep well when her bed changes. Hanon is better."

Hania had become much brighter recently, seeing Iris sleep peacefully.

Perhaps because of that, her trust in me had also grown considerably.

Thanks to that, I ended up guarding Iris's side.

So, who brought Isabel?

The answer was already clear.

It was Sharin, lying on her lap.

Isabel had readily offered to come along.

When Isabel first said she was coming, I didn't pay much attention to it.

Isabel had been a little sulky last time when I left the battle unfinished.

But she wasn't the kind of girl to act sulky in a setting like this.

The only thing I hadn't expected was...

...that Iris, having fallen asleep in the carriage, would hug me while she slept.

And she did so as if she were quite used to it.

"..."

Silence fell between Isabel and me.

Ever since I'd been embraced by Iris, Isabel had been staring intently at me.

Iris's strength was not of this world.

Firmly trapped, I couldn't escape from the cramped carriage.

As I tried to avoid Isabel's gaze, feeling unnecessarily self-conscious, her lips finally parted.

"You, do you sleep like that with Lady Iris every day?"

Her tone felt sharper than usual.

Isabel had caught me sneaking into the girls' dormitory disguised as Hania.

Fortunately, Isabel hadn't gone around blabbing about it.

Still, I couldn't help but feel my heart clench every day.

"...Isabel, there's a reason for this."

"It's because of Lady Iris's sleep, isn't it?"

Did Isabel know about that too?

"Everyone knows Lady Iris usually struggles to sleep."

Iris suffered from severe insomnia.

Even if she didn't show it, it was something you couldn't help but notice during academy life.

"And I know how agonizing that can be."

Isabel had experienced long-term insomnia after Lucas's death.

So, she was no stranger to that suffering.

"But Lady Iris has been sleeping well recently, hasn't she?"

Thanks to my efforts, Iris had been sleeping soundly lately.

Because of this, even to outsiders like Isabel, Iris's face had visibly brightened.

"And that must be thanks to you."

Isabel had noticed that I was involved.

"Yes, that's right."

When I answered honestly, Isabel let out a small sigh.

"Well done. Honestly, your current appearance is a bit shocking, but it must have been necessary for Lady Iris to sleep well."

Such benevolence, befitting a main heroine.

"Of course, if there had been even a hint of ulterior motive..."

But apart from her benevolence, Isabel's eyes were devoid of light even as she smiled.

"I wonder what would have happened."

"There's no way I'd harbor such ulterior motives towards Her Imperial Highness, the Third Princess."

"Yes, that much seems certain."

Isabel affirmed.

Why did it feel like she was reading my mind completely?

Isabel was becoming increasingly frightening.

"Rather, that's what puzzles me."

Isabel slowly stroked Sharin's hair, which rested on her lap.

"Why are you doing this, if you have no ulterior motives?"

Isabel's eyes gazed calmly at me.

What they held was concern.

Isabel had misunderstood, believing I had instigated the boycott incident because of Nikita.

Therefore, she thought my staying by Iris's side was an extension of that.

In Isabel's eyes, I appeared to be staying by Iris's side to avenge Nikita.

The moment Iris completely opened her heart to me...

...she worried that I might seek revenge for Nikita.

However, my recent actions were far from seeking revenge for Nikita.

Iris was a sensitive person.

She was especially sensitive to hostility directed at her.

But I was staying by Iris's side without any problems.

This meant I hadn't shown her even an inch of hostility.

Feelings of resentment and anger, no matter how much one tries to hide them, cannot be concealed.

Isabel, who had personally used anger as a driving force, knew this best.

So, Isabel began to have questions while observing me.

How could I, harboring resentment for Nikita, remain so perfectly normal by Iris's side?

Only two possibilities remained.

Either I managed my anger to the extreme, never letting it show externally.

Or, I never harbored any resentment in the first place.

Isabel had just said that I had no ulterior motives.

This "ulterior motive" included resentment and anger.

Isabel's thoughts leaned towards the second possibility.

From there, another question arose in quick succession.

If so, for what purpose did I instigate the boycott, even going so far as to make her misunderstand me?

Furthermore, what was my true objective?

The moment these questions arose, various other doubts surrounding me came to her mind one after another.

Many aspects she hadn't paid attention to because she was consumed by anger.

And even the conversations and actions we had shared until now.

Questions that only began to surface when Isabel started seeing me as Lucas, rather than through the lens of anger.

'...This is dangerous.'

As mentioned before, Isabel was superimposing me with Lucas.

This was a reaction stemming from Isabel's desire not to forget Lucas.

The wounds etched in her heart had not yet fully healed.

That's why she projected Lucas onto me, leaning on me to ward off her anxieties.

Isabel's recent obsession was for this reason.

Love-hate.

The affection she felt because she saw Lucas in me, and the hatred she felt for my remarks that insulted Lucas.

Isabel had escaped death using anger as her driving force, so she couldn't easily shake off that anger.

It was due to the fear that if she recklessly let go of her anger, she would once again walk towards death.

Thus, affection and hatred coexisted within her.

But precisely because of this, Isabel observed me closely, and it became an opportunity for her to reflect.

And in that process, she seemed to vaguely realize that I had intentionally become the object of Isabel's anger.

'This is troublesome.'

When she became certain of this, I couldn't guess what emotions Isabel would feel.

Human emotions are unpredictable; you never know where they might erupt.

If she felt gratitude, it would be a blessing, but if she were stained by betrayal, there was no telling what might happen.

Isabel quietly looked at me.

Her eyes showed no sign of leaving me.

"Isabel..."

So, just as I was about to open my mouth to cut off the tail of Isabel's questions...

"Because we're family."

It was Iris who spoke up.

Waking at some point, she casually rested her chin on top of my head.

When Isabel looked at Iris with surprised eyes, she hugged me even tighter.

It was as if she was firmly declaring that she would never let go of what was hers.

More than that, the softness pressing against my back intensified.

I wondered if this was really okay.

"There are some secrets others don't know."

Iris looked at Isabel, smiling meaningfully.

Seeing that smile, Isabel's eyes widened.

She hadn't expected Iris to defend me.

Isabel didn't know the full details of my relationship with Iris.

Therefore, the many questions that had arisen became unresolvable questions now that Iris was defending me.

When I looked up at Iris, she gently closed her eyes and curved her lips into a smile.

It was as if she was smiling, saying, "You helped me with my insomnia, so I helped you a little too."

Just like the Third Princess.

She was incredibly perceptive.

"And..."

At that moment, Iris hugged me tightly.

"Hanon is my younger sibling, so I have no intention of giving him to just anyone."

"...What?"

Isabel asked back with a blank expression.

Iris had also noticed the possessiveness and obsession Isabel had subtly displayed.

Even if it was due to her projecting Lucas onto me, it was directed at me nonetheless.

I had been constantly by Iris's side until now.

It was something Iris couldn't possibly not know.

Therefore, now...

Iris was asserting her ownership over me.

"I have no intention of giving my comfort doll to anyone."

Her words held that meaning.

However, Isabel, who harbored a love-hate relationship with me, had already been shaken by the fake girlfriend, Hania, earlier.

Iris's statement was like setting fire to Isabel's heart.

Isabel's eyes slowly sharpened.

Her eyes were so fierce, they hardly seemed to belong to a main heroine.

"Lady Iris, even if he's your younger sibling, shouldn't you avoid speaking as if he's a mere possession?"

"It's fine. I'm a Princess."

Isabel was momentarily speechless.

She hadn't expected Iris to pull rank here.

"...As a Princess, shouldn't you set even more of an example?"

But Isabel showed no sign of backing down easily.

"Looking after one's family is a perfectly exemplary action."

"But when 'looking after' goes too far, it becomes a nuisance. If you allow everything just because they're family, it's no different from domestic abuse."

A strange current swirled between Isabel and Iris.

It almost seemed as if sparks were flying between their eyes.

And I, caught in the middle, sat there with a "whatever happens, happens" expression.

Since Iris had already bound me so tightly,

there was nothing else I could do.

Just then, I met Sharin's eyes; she had woken up at some point.

Sensing the atmosphere in the carriage, she moved her lips.

"A lovers' quarrel."

Sharin was observing the situation with great interest.

It was only natural, as it was the first time she had seen Isabel confront Iris like this.

Reading her lips, I simply closed my eyes.

At least if it were a lovers' quarrel, I might feel a little better.

Beautiful women fighting over me, asserting ownership—it would at least boost my self-esteem.

But this was different.

One side saw me as an object of love-hate.

The other saw me as a comfort doll.

It was a long way from love.

My will was not reflected in the ownership they claimed in the slightest.

Therefore, I couldn't step in.

Was this my karma?

I merely wanted to turn a bad ending into a happy one.

'Lucas.'

Today, I missed him particularly.