I Became the Villain of a Romance Fantasy

170 – [Side Story] Noel

“Damian Krause?”

Noel had never seen Elena look so surprised. He had only one name protruding from his face like a calm lake, which always had a light smile on him, but she was shaking as if a rock had been thrown.

For a while, the lake froze like a glacier. Elena said to Noel with a cold look she had never seen before.

“Noel, you’d better refrain from hanging out with him.”

“Eh? Why…?”

“Well…Because it’s obviously not good for you.”

Noel’s meager answers did not answer Noel’s questions. Unlike her usual ways, Noel couldn’t understand why Elena reacted like that. Rather, she only increased her doubts about Elena.

Demian’s evaluation was very good among the cadets of the Faculty of Engineering. Even Reinhardt, who can be said to be the most outstanding among the current cadets, regards him as a rival and always sticks with him as his best friend.

If there were bad rumors, there was no way the sensitive children would not know about them, so there is no one who curses him, although there may be admiration for him and jealousy for his ability. In fact, even in Noel’s eyes, Damian’s personality was such that he wondered if others should imitate him, but Elena raised objections to Noel’s evaluation.

At Elena’s words, Noel wondered if she was missing something. She thought again.

This level of suspicion was justified, since she had never made such an affirmation about her other person. Elena must have had a reason for saying that. However, on second thought, Noel couldn’t believe that his behavior was based on hypocrisy.

‘Practice more. Then I will die.’

The words he left during sparring were clearly played in my head. I just said it in passing, but for some reason Noel couldn’t get his words out of his head. Rather than remembering what he meant by what he said, it seemed to be imprinted on him because it was the first thing Damian said to him.

The more Noel thought about Elena’s words, the more Damian’s voice filled his head. In the end, she couldn’t come to a conclusion. She hadn’t ordered Elena to do so right away, but Noel wanted an answer now. That’s why Elena said that to herself.

When Noel asked Elena why she said that, she replied that Elena seemed like she had something to say, but she never told her about it. She tells Noel that she is also aware of the strangeness of his behavior and that she has stopped talking about Damian.

“Well, it’s strange that you say this all of a sudden. Forget what you just said. If you judge me that much, I must be wrong…”

She muttered something incomprehensible to herself, and Elena ended the topic there. But she probably didn’t know that it was Elena’s behavior that made Noel curious about it.

Elena wouldn’t tell her, so Noel couldn’t figure out why she said that, but she did figure out one thing. It was that Elena and Damian knew each other.

South and North. I don’t know how two people who live on opposite sides of each other got to know each other, but that probably doesn’t matter too much. The important thing is that something happened between the two to the extent that Elena said otherwise. Noel’s focus was on that.

I wonder what that fact meant, but Noel was concerned that there was a relationship between the two.

She didn’t know whether to like it or not. Normally, it would have been Noel’s way of thinking that everyone would be close friends, but now she was concerned that Elena and Damian knew each other, and was relieved that what had happened between them and that the relationship between them had been severed because of that.

It was a little later that Noel was clearly aware of this change in herself, so she passed it on without noticing this change, thinking differently from her usual.

The conversation with Elena that day ended there, and Elena did not tell Noel about Damian any more after that, but Noel continued to remember her words with these questions. And it was after learning that there was talk of an engagement between Damian and Elena that Noel’s question was resolved.

When she found out, Noel asked Damian, not Elena this time. Elena had already avoided answering about this once, so there was such a thing, but she didn’t know why. She wanted to hear the answer through Damian this time.

“No, why did that happen all of a sudden…?”

“Everything, of course, because I’m curious! That’s the first time I learned that Elena had an engagement partner. But since it’s called Damian, I’m curious how it didn’t work out? If you listen to it, will you know what kind of guy Elena likes? That’s why it’s like that, anyway! Elena doesn’t talk about things like this at all.”

“If it’s like that. Well, it doesn’t matter, but if you listen to it, you’ll be very disappointed. There’s really nothing special about it.”

Damian seemed taken aback when Noel asked this question, but she didn’t, and like Elena before, she didn’t seem reluctant to talk about it. He seemed to think for a moment about how to explain, and then he opened his mouth.

“It’s not that I broke up with her…, No, it’s weird when you say this. I have to correct that it’s not about not being engaged. So, the reason for not being engaged isn’t much. There was a misunderstanding between us and that’s why That’s all. To be precise, it’s true that they had no intention of getting engaged to each other before the misunderstanding, but in the first place, the fathers just talked about meeting each other. It’s nothing else strange.”

Damian’s explanation was simple and clear.

It was just a common marriage story between nobles, and that was all Damian explained about the affair with Elena. He didn’t tell me what kind of misunderstanding there was, but there was no problem in understanding it. That was enough for Noel because he didn’t feel any lingering feelings from Damian, who was speaking out.

“Ah, it’s really much better than I thought.”

“So I said…No big deal. What if you ask and I’m disappointed?”

Hearing his story, the uneasiness that even Noel didn’t know vanished. Noel regarded this as a feeling of refreshment obtained by solving the question, but it is a later story to know that this is not the case.

Since then, the clash between Damian and Elena has become one of Noel’s pleasures.

Both of them were Noel’s friends, and Noel loved to play with them. Because of this, even if Elena and Damian did not want to meet each other, there were many cases where they met because of Noel.

At that time, Elena was wary of Damian as if she was trying to protect Noel, and Damian let it go with a bitter smile. Noel wasn’t the type to find happiness in the conflicts of others, but seeing them both gave her a different kind of pleasure.

Is it because the unsatisfied sense of distance between the two can fill both sides?

I have never felt this feeling in other human relationships under similar conditions, but only between Damian and Elena could I feel this feeling. It was only later that Noel found out that it was a relief to see how they couldn’t reach each other.

“Damian! Get ready after the end…”

“Let’s go there already? Isn’t the distance from Luden to the place too far?”

“One teleport is enough, so don’t be afraid and follow me. There are things I need to take care of, but I guess that wasn’t in the book?”

“How can I remember all of that… Anyway, I got it.”

However, the distance between Damian and Elena, which had reassured Noel before he realized this, disappeared one day. Noel didn’t know what the reason was. Really, at some point, the relationship between the two became so close that I wondered if they had growled at each other.

As time passed, unlike before, the two of them started going out together even though Noel was gone.

At that time, the faces of the two showed emotions that Noel had never seen before, and unlike before, he knew that it was he who distanced himself from the two. No, can it be said that it is far away? Noel was still their friend, and the two of them were still Noel’s friends. It was just that Elena and Damian were closer to each other than she was.

I don’t know what brought the two of them so close. However, what Noel felt at this time was the sense of betrayal of his time before the two met and the fact that he would no longer be able to feel the same pleasure from seeing the two of them.

Elena’s star-like appearance, which had always pleased her eyes, now felt like a weapon sharper than any sword. Elena’s talk that grew out of Damian’s mouth became poison, and the friendly smile that appeared every time he and her met her gaze stung Noel’s heart.

It was only after he knew why it was so painful that Noel was able to understand his heart.

The feelings he felt between the two of them the other day weren’t simply the joy he felt from seeing his friends arguing. It is the satisfaction gained from being able to reach what each other cannot reach. And at the base of those feelings was his love for Damian.

If you were late in noticing it, you could say it was late, but that didn’t mean it was later than others. Elena didn’t seem to know about this feeling yet. So even though Elena knew what she was thinking, she knew Damian and who she was looking at, she acted that way.

“Damian, will you marry me?”

Even though she knew it was far-fetched it would never be.

***

“…That’s right. Altair wants you to know.”

“Yes.”

Said Noel, passing the bitter taste down her throat. She lied like that, adding the excuse that it was Altair, trying hard not to misunderstand. If he recognized this kind of heart now, would there be anything other than sorry? He didn’t want to burden him.

Damian nodded at her Noel’s words and looked down at her. Now that the match is over. It’s okay to leave the venue again, but he didn’t leave as if he had something to say.

But whatever it was, it was uncomfortable for Noel. I wish I could move away, but I don’t have the courage to look into his eyes again, so I turn my head away. Damian opened his mouth again to Noel’s behavior.

“Sorry. There’s someone I like.”

At those words, Noel looked up at Damian once more. He was still looking at Noel.

As if he knew who he was talking to, Noel replied with a faint smile.

“Yes.”