"Haah……"

After putting her bag on the desk and sit down, then Violette lets out a sigh.
It was not a problem for her to merge herself thin with the air during breakfast with her parents, but the same cannot be done when she"s going to the academy. Maryjun insists that she wants to go to school together with Violette even though Violette wants to go out separately.
She felt too restless during the carriage ride, and she finally finds her own breathers once they separated with Maryjun. To Violette, the academy is more calming than her own home.
She had the option for not going to the academy and withdrawing, but she doesn"t think she should do that. It might be better for her to consider moving to a separate residence.

"…… I should take a detour on my way home."

It will be troublesome if she gets caught by Maryjun after school. It is already suffocating to have breakfast and dinner together, so Violette wishes to be let alone as much as she can, as well her time in the academy.

"Violette-sama, greetings."

"Greetings."

She returns the greeting from the students next to her seat. It has been a day since the rumor spread, however, after staying quiet from the distance, the atmosphere has returned to normal the next day.
She thinks that she can greet other students normally now. Violette doesn"t show any malice or temperament even she has gotten a new mother. She only shows indifference, and it shows other students how much Violette does not care about the rumors.
Still, there is not much change in her everyday life, except for a slight.

(I don"t care as long I can live in peace.)

She does not feel lonely even though she is by herself now. It is useless to pay attention to the rumors, and that is not going to soothe her mind at all.
She lays her cheek on the desk and looks at the floor. This kind of behavior of hers might influence her beauty badly, especially to those who think Violette is a perfect model for a painting.
In the first place, what makes Violette"s life so miserable is because of her appearance, and she inherits her father"s beauty, which captured her mother"s heart.

By the time the cla.s.s ends, it is the time for lunch break. There are only few people bringing their own lunch boxes to school. There are not many who regard their own family chefs highly, and theirs cannot compare to the first cla.s.s dishes served in academy.  In addition, taking care of own health sounds like a ha.s.sle. And, just like any other students, Violette is also satisfied with cafeteria"s dishes. However, it is because Violette doesn"t have specific preferences when it comes to food, it is just that she does not want to bother any people belonging to Vahan family.
Of course, it does not mean she is dissatisfied with home meals. It is simply because meals made by both are equally delicious, so she does not really mind either one.
She still prefers the family chef who is familiar with her preference, but that person is someone close to her father, who is also the person she does not want to be a bother to. So, she needs to be wary since he is employed by her father.

Anyway, she is wondering what she should eat for lunch.
The breakfast Marin prepared this morning has finally been digested, so she feels hungry at the right moment. She should hurry for her lunch before her stomach growls.
Her steps are speeding up boosted by her hunger. There are students who walk with their friends, and some have already taken their seats in the dining hall to some extent.

(I should buy a takeout if it"s too crowded.)

She would never feel too cramped with huge numbers of people in this big school. Her cla.s.smates do not care about those rumors anymore……or perhaps, it is more like they don"t seem to care from the way she sees at first glance.
However, the rumor itself hasn"t calmed down yet. She thinks it is better not to be concerned about it.
Rumors easily concentrates where people gather, and rumors get less accurate as people treating those like a message game. The parts of stories tend to be different from the original facts, so it is unnecessary for her to get involved.

"—Violette-sama!"

Violette"s shoulders tremble as soon she gets called such. It might seem like an exaggeration from being called like that, however, there is always high possibility when her name is called so. She would not need to watch out if she"s called by Yuran since she has her own nickname.
Once she turns back, she can only see a man with dark blue hair raising his hand as he is approaching her.

"Millsama……?"

"h.e.l.lo, it has been a while, huh?"

She considered of staying vigilant, but hearing to that light and cheerful voice, it feels like any her defense has shattered to pieces.  His dark blue hair matches with his dazzling green eyes.  His black-rimmed gla.s.ses give an intellectual impression, but many rumors there are some rumors that the mole under his right eye makes him look appealing.
Rather than referring him as a mysterious beauty, it is more correct he is a das.h.i.+ng man that will look beautiful in any types of clothes.
Millania Deolle, he is a third year student of this academy and also the vice president of the student council. He is Prince Claudia"s close friend.
The current Violette cannot help but to keep her guard up.

"Greetings…… It"s really has been a while."

However, she has reasons why she cannot keep up her guard up.
Millania is the eldest son of a fellow count, so they often meet together as fellow n.o.bles. Most students in academy funnily tend to know each other well since they mostly grew up in the same social circles. n.o.ble society is small no matter where it is.
Prince Claudia is hard to get along with, but Millania is popular because of his appearance, and it does not take long to get along with Millania due to his personality.
Also, it is imaginable how he got along with Violette, who is infamous because of her family name and appearance.
However, to be called out at this time…… What a good development indeed.

"Going for a lunch? I don"t see the usual girls though."

"Eh……?"

She cannot understand what he meant by those girls, but then she realizes. Usually, there are always many people surrounding Violette before.
It has not been long since those days. Only recently…… Those girls always surrounded Violette since the first day she entered the school until the second year, and that makes one year. It was only before Violette"s mother pa.s.sed away, and Maryjun came to her house.
Currently, those girls who gather around Violette are being quiet after being thrown away.

(Now that I think about it…… no one would dare to approach me because of the rumor.)

She never refers those girls as friends since they tend to be problematic even now. When she thinks carefully, those girls tended to gather together around her like spiders.
She knew that their topic of interest presently is about the rumor that Violette getting a step-mother, but she could easily convince them that she did not care about it. She just wants to take it easy.
It is not unusual for a traitor to exist among her friends, but Violette from before forgot that fact, and she was being irrational.
Perhaps, how people see her is also included with the pity of losing her friends, not only the rumors.
She did not know before, but before she sympathized herself for losing her a friend…… Her dark history is getting painful and even more painful.

"Well…… I think I won"t be taking to them again in the future."

"Eh……?"

"They don"t find interest in me anymore."

Rather than "anymore", it is something that has not happened yet.
That time when she was still hungry for love, everything she did was justified, even though those were bad things covered with logic. She has both influence and beauty, but she never cared about those because she was not loved.
She realizes that she was a trash that pretended to love. She knows now she would ruin herself if she repeats those actions. If you eat trash, you"ll ruin your stomach, it was her own fault for not understanding the common sense.

"I think Millsama should have known, right? Rumors…… about my family."

"Well, that"s……"

"However, it is not as bad as it sounds."

To those girls, Violette"s values are her beauty, her presences, and her family attention. They would like to take advantage of those benefits, and to a certain sense, isn"t she the same as an accessory?
Even she is beautiful, it is normal for it to be thrown away once it loses its values. It is not something to be praised, but if Violette hasn"t realized it, she would become an unfortunate loser.

"Anyway, do you need something from me?"

Both of them are not in the relations.h.i.+p where they can talk freely. Even though they are acquainted since they were little, they never become friend. Violette was disliked because of her personality she obtained from growing up in a twisted family environment.
When asked, Millania expression looks clouded.

"Did something happen with Claudia since the previous tea party?"

"……Why didn"t you ask from the person himself?"

"Well, it is because he didn"t want to say anything about it."

So, what is his aim from asking Violette? The only person that can mediate between Violette and Claudia is Millania.

"But, he looks really worrying. So…… I think you know something about it."

She doesn"t like what she"s hearing now. She cannot come up with a good answer just like before.
She doesn"t want to speak so much regarding of what happened in the other day"s tea party. She just wants to forget it if she can.

"……Well then, let me rephrase the question."

Seems Millania notices Violette"s darkened and uneasy expression. After a few seconds, he relaxes as he tilts his neck.

"Back then, did something happen with  Yuran?"

Translator"s note:

To be honest, I don"t know how should I write his name with alphabet, but it definitely sounds like a girl"s name? Well, if there"s any correction, please tell me.