The Strongest Student of the Weakest Academy-Chapter 173: Silverleaf Academy (XXI)

My smile stayed frozen.

She just said it.

She really just said it.

"I like you."

What a nice timing, huh?

Just when I was about to start planning how to kill the Emperor.

My eyes subtly narrowed.

Because if I accepted her feelings...

If I became her boyfriend...

Then I’d have an unshakable reason to walk into the Imperial Palace.

No one would question it. Not the guards. Not the court.

Not even the Emperor itself.

Because I’d be his daughter’s lover.

His precious little Ella, the Second Princess.

It would be the perfect cover.

No need for tricks, nor infiltration.

Just a clean path straight to my target.

She could be damn useful.

But then—

As I thought about it...

As I imagined saying "I like you too," and placing a gentle hand over hers...

As I pictured us holding hands in the garden, smiling in front of her father like nothing was wrong...

I realized something.

I felt nothing.

Not guilt.

Not excitement.

Not even the typical flicker of male instinct when a pretty girl confessed.

Just... nothing.

An empty silence inside me.

Exactly like how I used to feel—Back on Earth. Before I was Aestrea. Before this world of magic and monsters.

And in that moment—

I understood.

Fully.

There was no "me" anymore.

Just one soul.

Twisted and melted together.

Aestrea.

And whoever I used to be.

I didn’t care anymore about who I was before.

There was no going back.

"You’re quiet..." Ella whispered, her smile faltering as she looked at me.

Her fingers fidgeted slightly, doubt crawling in her eyes.

"...Was I wrong to say it?"

I looked at her.

At her flushed cheeks, her eyes shining with hope... and how fragile she looked right at this moment.

And I did what I had to do.

I smiled again; it wasn’t exactly a warm smile, but it wasn’t cold either.

"No," I said gently.

"You weren’t wrong."

Then I took a breath...

And opened my mouth, ready to say sweet words that wouldn’t make her that hurt. But then, my eyes widened.

"Is something... wrong?" Ella asked softly, looking at me with a hopeful gaze.

But my attention wasn’t on her right now.

It was on the... me behind her.

But not this me.

He had my face, but sharper, like I was three years older than now.

A little taller, with hair longer and messier, like it had grown wild with time.

He looked like someone who had stopped asking what was right and finally started chasing what he wanted—even if it meant becoming a monster.

And his right eye... was light blue.

The same kind of cold you’d see in glaciers untouched by the sun.

But his left eye... was a glowing white.

The kind of color you could see on the moon at night.

But in them was something else—

Sadness.

And on his forehead, shining like a divine scar...

The mark of the moon.

A crescent-shaped brand, glowing silver-white.

The second I saw him—

My breath left me.

I couldn’t move.

I couldn’t blink.

He stared right into me, like he had been waiting—watching—since the moment I first stepped into this world.

And then, his lips moved.

"Be selfish for once."

The same words.

The exact same words I had whispered to Aestrea’s soul before—

Back then, when I felt his overflowing kindness and selfless emotions.

"Be selfish for once."

And just like that—

He vanished.

Gone.

I glanced at Ella once again.

Staring at me with quiet hope, her silver hair swaying in the breeze. Her lips were trembling slightly, and her eyes searched mine.

I reached forward, gently brushing a strand of hair from her cheek.

Her breath hitched.

I smiled.

I had made my decision.

"Then let’s try," I said softly.

Ella’s eyes widened.

And then, she smiled.

Truly smiled, like she’d been holding her breath for weeks.

"I... I’m glad," she whispered, her cheeks redder than ever.

She looked down, laughing nervously, twisting her fingers in the hem of her sleeve. "I thought you were going to reject me for a second..."

I tilted my head, teasing her with a small grin, "Didn’t I say you weren’t wrong?"

She laughed again.

But inside me...

That blue-eyed version of myself kept echoing.

Be selfish for once.

So I would.

For now.

Even if it meant lying.

Even if it meant breaking her heart later.

Because I needed this.

Because the Emperor needed to die.

And no one—not even the girl who loved me—would stop that from happening.

"Hehe..."

Ella giggled to herself, her face was still flushed, her fingers playing nervously with her sleeves, eyes darting away like a startled deer.

I stepped closer, letting my voice drop just a little.

"So... you’ve had a crush on me for how long exactly?"

Her eyes shot up.

"W-What?!"

I smirked at her words, "You confessed, remember? It’s only fair I get the juicy details now."

"That’s not how it works, Aestrea!" She puffed her cheeks, clearly flustered.

"Oh? I thought that once a girl confesses, the guy is entitled to at least one embarrassing story." I leaned in, just enough that our noses nearly touched.

"Rules of romance."

She gasped, half-laughing, half-panicking.

"There are no rules like that!"

"Then I guess I’ll have to make them up as we go."

I reached out and took her hand.

She flinched for a second—but then let it happen, slowly curling her fingers around mine.

Her skin was warm, soft.

A soft silence fell over us as we stood like that, the evening wind dancing past and making her silver hair flutter like silk.

"...It was during the Hunting Festival," she finally whispered. "I... I was supposed to be safe in the carriage, but the barrier broke."

I nodded as I clearly remembered a quivering girl.

"I thought I was going to die," she continued. "And then... you came. Wearing that black cloak and silver fox-patterned mask."

I grinned.

"Moonlight Swordsman. Sounds cool, huh?"

"It was," she uttered, cheeks pink. "You looked... like a hero from a fairy tale. The way you cut through the wolves, the way the moonlight followed you..."

She glanced up at me.

"I never forgot you. Even when you disappeared."

"I didn’t disappear," I said.

At that time, I just started using invisibility potions and found a way to hide my mana.

"I just... got better at hiding."

"And now?" she asked quietly.

"I’m here," I replied.

"With you."

Ella’s breath caught.

I tugged her gently forward, letting her walk beside me.

The stars began to appear above, scattered like dust across the velvet sky.

"So, Princess," I said playfully, "if I start dating you, does that mean I’ll be getting an invitation to the palace sometime soon?"

She laughed nervously.

"Maybe..."

"Should I start practicing how to bow to your royal father?" I raised an eyebrow, teasing, though inside, the thought made my blood throb cold.

"If you bowed, I’d laugh," she said with a grin. "I think I’d prefer if you stayed the way you are."

"Dangerous?"

She nodded. "And kind... when you want to be."

"Hmm..." I hummed.

"Well, for you... I can be a little of both."

Her fingers squeezed mine just a little tighter.

"Hehe..." she giggled softly.

I glanced sideways at her as we strolled slowly down the path.

She kept sneaking glances at me, cheeks still a soft pink, lips slightly parted like she wanted to say something—but couldn’t find the words.

Adorable.

"You know," I murmured, leaning closer to her ear, "you’re surprisingly easy to fluster."

"I am not," she said quickly, face immediately turning redder.

"Mmm, then prove it." I turned to face her, walking backward with a lazy grin. "Look me in the eyes and say you don’t think I’m handsome."

Her mouth opened—

Closed.

"...T-That’s not fair."

"Thought so."

I chuckled and turned forward again.

Her little huffs and foot-stomps behind me only made it worse.

—or better.

Ella caught up beside me again, this time bumping her shoulder lightly into mine.

"You’re a bully."

"I prefer ’charming rogue,’ actually."

"More like ’arrogant troublemaker.’"

I gave her a lopsided grin.

"Careful. You’re describing the man you just confessed to."

She covered her face with both hands.

"Agh, don’t remind me..."

I reached over and gently tugged her hands away.

"But I liked it."

Her breath hitched the moment she heard my words, her eyes meeting mine.

But then—

RING~ RING~ RING~

The academy bell echoed across the campus, loud and abrupt, like a splash of cold water.

I blinked, sighing.

"Time to head to class."

Ella pouted.

"And I have to go report to the headmistress,"

I took a step back, sliding my hands into my pockets.

But then I paused.

And smirked.

"Hey."

She tilted her head.

"Wanna go on a date?"

"Huh?" Her eyes widened.

"A date." I leaned in slightly, repeating my words.

"After classes. I’ll even let you pick where."

"I-I..." she stammered, flustered again.

"Say yes," I whispered. "Or I’ll ask in front of your classmates next time."

"...Y-Yes," she muttered, looking away.

I gave a wink, then started walking toward my class building.

"See you later, Princess."

Behind me, I heard her squeak—and then a soft, breathless laugh.

Yeah.

A date.

She just didn’t know that she might be falling for someone who wasn’t entirely real anymore.

But for now, I’d play the part.

And play it well.

Just like I always did.