I’m Not Doing This With A Friend Chapter 180 - Special Side Story 1

She was born the third daughter of Count Riathris, one of two sons and two daughters.

 

From a young age, she watched her older brother and sister fight a daily battle for succession and vowed never to become involved.

 

So it was only natural that she chose Arena Academy, where her mother was the President.

 

She was determined to take over her mother’s position, but she had no intention of enrolling in the academy.

 

No matter how nice the dormitory was, it would never be as good as staying at home…

 

Since she had already missed out on junior year, she had to pass the infamous entrance exam to get into the Academy.

 

Of course, thanks to her genius, passing the test was no problem.

 

She just didn’t like the attention it drew to her.

 

Sylvia thought she didn’t need to attend the Academy.

 

Until her mother told her otherwise.

 

Looking at her mother, who was sighing in unison these days, Sylvia asked worriedly.

 

“What’s going on?”

 

“I’m having a hard time with that bastard Lysianthus.”

 

“Lysianthus…”

 

Sylvia remembered the situation of the Dukedom of Lysianthus.

 

The Duke of Lysianthus had died in the Imperial War at the hands of the notoriously vicious Grand Duke Caris, leaving the family with only his young son.

 

Normally, the younger heir would have taken the duke’s place.

 

But when the Duke dies, his uncle seizes power and sends him to the Academy, using the excuse that he’s too young to inherit the title.

 

“What does that brat do there?”

 

Sylvia’s mother sighs softly and confides in her.

 

“He’s been smashing up the Academy building and shooting magic at people.”

 

“…I think that’s enough to expel him, don’t you?”

 

“Well, the Duchy of Lysianthus is paying us far more in compensation for the damage than it would take to rebuild the building, so I can’t complain…”

 

The long war has reduced donations, and finances are running low.

 

The wealth of the Duke of Lysianthus would have been a great help.

 

“What about shooting magic at people?”

 

“That’s something the victims deny they were ever harmed, so there’s no reason to punish him for.”

 

This was either a hefty settlement, or blackmail with authority.

 

“That’s a lot of money. I imagine his uncle must have had a hard time cleaning up the mess.”

 

The Duke’s reason for leaving so quickly was to be expelled from the Academy.

 

“I’m the only one caught in the middle. Alas, this is exactly why I hate getting involved with nobles.”

 

As her mother sighed deeply, Sylvia narrowed her eyes in silence.

 

The thought of the Academy being used in such a way, the one she was about to sit on the board of directors of, was deeply distasteful.

 

Wondering what she could do to chastise the insolent young duke, she impulsively spat out the words as she grabbed her mother’s hand.

 

“I’ll see what I can do.”

 

The Arena Academy was strictly off-limits to outsiders.

 

There was only one way in.

 

To become a student of Arena Academy and stop him.

 

💫

 

After passing her senior entrance exam with flying colors, Sylvia ran into her friend Haley, who was also a student at the Academy.

 

“Oh my gosh, Sylvia, I didn’t realize you were actually going to the Academy.”

 

“I’m still a little stunned because it was half an impulse decision.”

 

But now that I’m here, I intend to solve the problem perfectly.

 

“Sylvia, if you haven’t decided which club to join, would you like to join my club?”

 

“That’s okay, I’m just going to join the magic club.”

 

“There are a lot of different clubs, so you have to choose carefully. If you make a mistake and get caught by the wrong people, you’ll be in trouble.”

 

“Do you think I’m the kind of person who would get caught?”

 

“…They’ll be in trouble.”

 

Sylvia’s specialty was magic.

 

The amount of mana in her body was not much different from a normal mage.

 

However, she was called a magical genius for a reason. Theories of magic are one thing, but her mana control was jaw-dropping.

 

Especially when it came to those tricky illusion spells.

 

Haley tilted her head and asked a question.

 

“Since you don’t seem to be interested in clubs, why did you suddenly join the Academy, Sylvia?”

 

“Oh, well…”

 

As she stood by the window looking out, a boy caught her eye.

 

Time seemed to slow down as she looked at him.

 

His dazzling silver hair and jeweled eyes seemed to shine among brilliant colors.

 

Even as an angel from heaven, he had an inhuman appearance. His red eyes, especially in contrast to his pale skin, were a perfect snipe at Sylvia’s taste.

 

Although he was frowning in boredom, his handsome appearance made it seem pleasant.

 

Sylvia tugged at her friend’s sleeve, wide-eyed.

 

“Haley.”

 

“What?”

 

“I think I fell in love with him.”

 

“What? Who!”

 

In a panic, Haley glanced over to where Sylvia had pointed, and there stood Leonian.

 

The famous Lysianthus bastard.

 

If that was his face, it was no wonder Sylvia had reacted the way she had.

 

But it was clear she didn’t know him yet.

 

“Hey, Sylvia, I know you’ve only been here a short time, so you may not know him, but he’s…”

 

But nothing entered Sylvia’s ears, which had already fallen firmly in love with the boy.

 

“Senior? He’s older than me, that’s better. I prefer older men.”

 

“Is this the time for your preferences?”

 

“Ha, how can he be so handsome, he’s the first person to make me so motivated, I’ll do anything to seduce him. How can I seduce him, he’s so handsome, he must have already received countless dashes, so the usual methods won’t work, I’ll have to use that method…”

 

“His eyes are completely gone.”

 

Haley, who had been waving her hand in front of Sylvia’s eyes, shrugged as if it was none of her business.

 

“Yeah, do whatever you want. I just remember I tried to stop you.”

 

💫

 

Leonian found life at the Academy extremely boring.

 

Of course, he had been forced to come to the Academy by his uncle because he was too young and weak…

 

Now that he was grown up, he was confident that he could return to the Duke’s seat at any time.

 

Even if I returned to the dukedom, I knew I would be buried in a pile of papers, so I stayed at the academy.

 

So whenever he was bored, he would stir up trouble to keep his uncle occupied.

 

But after a few years of this, he grew tired of it. He sat down on the bench, stared blankly up at the sky, and slowly closed his eyelids.

 

A nap was the only way to pass the time.

 

He wondered how much time had passed.

 

Standing in the middle of the forest, Leonian walked where his instincts led him.

 

In his dream, he didn’t question why he was suddenly standing here.

 

He arrived at a valley with a trickling stream of clean water.

 

There, Leonian spotted a girl.

 

She was small and slender with long, wavy pink hair, and he couldn’t make out her face because she was standing with her back to him.

 

But her aura and the energy emanating from her back made him think…

 

“Fairy?”

 

As soon as he said it, the girl’s footsteps and laughter jolted Leonian out of his dream.

 

Blinking softly, he stirred from his nap.

 

“…A strange dream of unknown meaning.”

 

He wasn’t particularly interested in the pink-haired girl in his dream.

 

But after that dream, I had the same dream a few days later and gradually started to wonder about the girl’s face.

 

But then something strange happened.

 

Whenever I tried to talk to her or look at her face, she would break the dream.

 

As if someone was deliberately waking him up.

 

When that didn’t work, a creeping feeling began to form in Leonian’s mind.

 

He tried many ways to see her face. But when he still couldn’t see her face, he began to think about the girl in his dreams all day long.

 

Then one day.

 

After failing to see the girl’s face again today, Leonian walked down the hallway, drying his face in frustration.

 

A familiar back of the head came into view.

 

It looked exactly like the girl in his dream. He moved involuntarily and grabbed her hand.

 

The girl in his grasp spun around in surprise, her long hair whipping around her and the warm scent of soap wafting in.

 

Leonian locked eyes with her and swallowed hard, his mouth almost gaping open like a fool.

Such a lovely face.

 

Far beyond anything he had vaguely imagined.

 

Sylvia blinked innocently, then slowly brushed a strand of hair behind her ear.

 

“What can I do for you?”

 

“What are you, my…”

 

Leonian started to ask if he was dreaming, but then realized the absurdity of his words and changed them hastily.

 

“I mistook you…”

 

And with that, he teleported away.

 

Meanwhile, Sylvia, who was left alone behind, looked at the spot where Leonian had been a moment ago and curled her eyes in half like a fox.

 

“That’s cute.”