How To Live As An Academy Extra Villain

100 – Acceleration (4)

“Yes?”

In response to my question, my father smiled hollowly and spoke again.

“hahahaha, boy. Pretend you didn’t hear. Seeing you look so shy, it looks like someone is there. Could it be the girl who came last time?”

“Huh…Huh…Sigh…”

“…Last time…? That lady…?”

Adele’s eyes widened after hearing her father’s words. Soon, moisture began to gather in his eyes. And he looked at me helplessly, as if I had been betrayed greatly. Estelle frowned and muttered to herself as if she were disapproving.

“If it was last time… Do you mean Sicella?”

“Yes, that’s the lady from the Holy Kingdom. I looked closely, and she interacted with you in a very informal and friendly manner. It made me smile just to see that you seemed to get along so well.”

“…Sisella and I are just friends. And I’m a little embarrassed to say this, but in that way…”

“What? This guy. Are you trying to lie to Abby? He looks so much like me, so that’s it…”

“Stop it, uncle.”

“Sister Estelle? Why…Suddenly?”

After hearing what I said, my father frowned as if he couldn’t do that. Estelle suddenly came up to me and I wondered what was going on, but she suddenly hugged my face and buried it in her chest.

The faint scent of lavender, just like Estelle, wafted out and tickled her consciousness.

Estelle seemed to be somehow dissatisfied with that, and she gently covered her ears with her hands as if to stop her from listening to her father.

“How can you not know that although our Edwin looks exactly like your uncle, it is fortunate that he does not resemble you in that respect?”

The conversation between my father and Estelle slipped through my fingers and seeped into me. I can feel my father’s rare expression of embarrassment at Estelle’s words.

“I heard everything from my father.”

“What did you say?”

“When I was at your uncle’s academy. I’m embarrassed to even say it, but every night, the girl who knocked on my dormitory door changed her hair color…”

“Hmm…!”

“Even though she was called in by the student council president and given warnings, she was not cured at all…”

“Honey…”

Her father called Estelle pitifully, but Estelle paid no attention and continued to tell her father’s secret story.

“Even after she got engaged to her aunt, the female students lined up without any hesitation, and her aunt put her through a very hard time…”

The words that came out of Estelle’s mouth were something I had no idea about. However, after hearing the inside story, I can’t understand why my father never mentioned a single word about his time at the academy. You must be embarrassed…

“I was so surprised when I first heard the story. How could a person do that? Even though there is an unwritten rule at the Academy.”

“Oh, I get it, I get it. I lost, so let’s stop. Why on earth are you talking about such manly things…?”

“Compared to him, do you know how quiet and exemplary Edwin is? How fortunate I am that this child resembles his aunt’s personality. How can you get wind of a child like that?”

“Sister, wait a minute….”

As soon as I said ‘wind’, I felt Estelle’s arms wrapping around me becoming stronger.

However, although I am grateful that I was able to prevent my father from asking difficult questions, I honestly have doubts about whether it is okay to use the expressions such as meek and exemplary.

In Estelle’s standards, I guess the fact that I harassed commoner students doesn’t count as a mistake. I even heard rumors about Eli and saw him in person…

“That’s right…I hate you…I hate you father…!”

“Honey, Adele…”

I heard a running sound coming from somewhere, and I felt a warm and heavy weight on my legs. And Adele’s voice, soaked in water, can also be heard shouting to her father.

Through the obscured view, the pitiful expression of my father after hearing Adele’s resentful words passed by.

“…It was a very young time. But isn’t that why I met Grace?”

“…Yes. He was truly a virtuous and benevolent person. So shouldn’t we at least give Edwin that same reputation? A place like Robinet cannot be compared.”

“Sweetheart…Still doing that…”

Estel’s words were slowly showing emotion. And my father must have been thinking the same thing, as he looked at Estelle with a wry smile.

When her engagement to Iris was first announced, Estelle reacted with a rejection that was literally competitive.

I can still vividly see how he came to our family alone at that young age and argued with my father.

-Uncle! How could you! Did you sell Edwin to the imperial dogs?

Although it was very disrespectful, her father just accepted Estelle’s anger. I think he did it because he cared for me.

And although it is radical, it is not completely wrong. It was also true that the background to the engagement was a political calculation to establish connections with the central government.

However, Duke Scylla came and apologized in person, and Estelle did not mention the incident at all after that.

However, when I listen to Estelle’s words now, I get the feeling that she may still be keeping that incident in a corner of her mind.

“…Honey, Estelle. We are not a great family like you. It was only during my generation that Reed entered the ranks of the lowest of the 100 great nobles of the empire. Even Robinette was a significant upward marriage for us. After marrying more than that, Where can I get it?”

“…”

When her father hit the nail on the head, Estelle seemed to have nothing to say in response, so she just puffed out her cheeks with a dissatisfied expression on her face. I felt Estelle’s arms wrapping around me gradually losing strength.

“And Edwin.”

“Yes, father.”

“I asked this question half-jokingly, but if you are my heir, then of course you should pay attention to such matters. A noble has a responsibility to ensure that future generations are continued.”

“…”

“There’s no place like the academy to find a partner, so how can you neglect your duty? Unless I hear some good news soon, I’ll have no choice but to look for a position again.”

“Uncle…!”

“Estelle, I am truly grateful that you care for Edwin, but I cannot compromise on this. You are not a child anymore. I think you will understand what I mean more than before.”

“Ugh…”

Estelle tried to argue again, but this time her father took a step forward. There is nothing wrong with what he said, so it is not appropriate for him to refute it.

“Huh…”

Adele, who was hanging on my leg, just looked like she was crying. Are you thinking that your brother will be taken away from you?

In fact, no matter who I bring to the table, my father’s words will be considered correct. Even as you get older, it’s easy to think that not having a suitable partner means there’s something wrong with you. This is especially true in aristocratic societies that are sensitive to face.

But it is also true that I am not thinking about that at all right now. On the other hand, it’s also strange. The people I am close to at the academy now are all women, and they all show off their beauty. Ellie, Selene, Sicella.

They all needed friends, and they approached me emphasizing that need. So it’s not surprising that they don’t feel that way toward me.

But I don’t think I really felt that way toward them either. It’s natural to think that way. However, even if I guessed the reason, it was not clear.

Fear of changing relationships, the therapist’s comment that there may be a mental problem, the burden of preparing for the future, perhaps all of those, or there may be other reasons.

It is also difficult to convey these things directly to my father. It definitely needs to be resolved…

Anxiety always comes to me unexpectedly.

***

“Brother…Kiss…”

After finishing the meal and chatting, it was already getting late into the night. My father went back to the office, and Estelle and I took Adele to the bedroom.

Adele rubbed her eyes and gave me her cheek. When I lightly kissed her cheek, Adele smiled brightly.

“hehehe…Good…”

When Adele was sleepy, she became especially foolish. I picked Adele up at her door and carried her to her bed. After covering her with a blanket and patting her a couple of times, Adele quickly fell asleep, breathing softly.

I took Adele away, and then guided Estelle to a separate room prepared for her guests.

“Then, sister, have a good night…”

“…Are you not doing it for me?”

I exchanged greetings at the door and tried to leave, but Estelle suddenly grabbed my sleeve.

“What do you mean?”

“…Kiss…”

“Sister…”

As I sighed, Estelle looked dissatisfied.

“…Didn’t you do that often when you were young…”

“Isn’t it like that when we were kids…You said that at the last academy too…Now please stop teasing us like this…”

“…”

Estelle was silent for a moment after hearing what I said. Her face was extremely red, perhaps because of the wine that accompanied the meal. Not long after that, he started talking about something else without any context.

“Edwin. Do you remember? When you were young, you always liked the refreshments I brought you. Biscuits with almonds, white bread with cream puffs, even cookies with raspberries.”

“How could I forget that taste? And that’s it. My sister always fed me a lot of food. She even always told our chef to be careful about my meals.”

“Yes… It was definitely like that…”

“Thanks to you, my figure has also become thicker. You have no idea how hard I worked to come to my senses and change my eating habits. Oh, I don’t blame you, but…”

“…It should have been that way…I hid it well…”

“Sister?”

“…No. It seems that my shallow strategy was not enough to stop the flowing river.”

Estelle slowly walked closer to me. When he got close enough to hear her breathing, he lifted his heel and stood upright. And she placed her lips on my cheek. The scent of lavender is so strong that it gives me a headache.

“…I promised myself from that day on that I would never have anything taken from me again. But I still didn’t have enough strength. So I tried to keep it hidden until the right time came…”

Estelle very slowly parted her lips, but she still kept her body close. She said as if Estelle was whispering.

“Sleep well, Edwin. No matter how much you yell at me for being an adult, to me you’re still cute Edwin. And if you don’t give me a kiss, know that I’ll get scolded really harshly.”