'You're late...?'

Kyla forced an awkward smile at Yuria, who greeted her as if she had been waiting.

'How arrogant.'

Yuria's nonchalant behavior was getting on her nerves.

Kyla glared at Yuria with narrowed eyes, but seeing Yuria's persistently kind smile, she soon erased her wariness and put on a smile of her own.

After all, Yuria was just Yuria.

"Want to come into my room?"

"Is that okay?"

"Of course!"

To her, Yuria was someone she could treat lightly.

The most annoying person in the world, yet also the one who brought her the greatest joy, Yuria was a being that gave Kyla both hatred and pleasure simultaneously.

Kyla invited Yuria into her room with a faint smile and sat down in a chair with an arrogant posture, admiring Yuria's face.

'How should I cook her?'

What would it take to release her anger?

How should she torment Yuria to soothe the hurt she had suffered from those two? Kyla, with a faint smile, propped her chin on her hand and watched the fidgeting Yuria.

After all, Yuria was an idiot who would stay still no matter what she said.

But.

'I can't just treat her any way I want.'

She hadn't yet taken off her mask of pretense with Yuria, so she couldn't treat her carelessly.

She thought she could attain the ultimate happiness by letting go of Yuria's hand when she had no one else to rely on.

So...

"What's wrong? Did something happen?"

Today, she decided to just poke a little.

"Didn't you come because something's bothering you?"

At Kyla's deceptively casual question, Yuria shook her head with a faint smile.

"Umm. No."

"Then why did you come?"

"I just wanted to see your face after a long time."

"...Really?"

Normally, Kyla wouldn't want to see Yuria's face, but since she was wearing the mask of pretense, she put on a worried expression and held Yuria's hand tightly.

"You can be honest with me."

"..."

"Something did happen, didn't it?"

"...No."

"Then why are you like this?"

Kyla's first question was to confirm the status of her black magic.

"You can tell me, Yuria."

"No, it's okay."

"Did you have a nightmare or something?"

"Umm."

"Then?"

"It's just that things have been a little strange lately."

Just as Kyla was about to smile, having confirmed that there was nothing wrong with the black magic, Yuria shook her head and gave Kyla an unexpected answer.

"It's okay now."

"...Huh?"

"I solved it."

"Sol...ved?"

-Grit.

"Solved? What do you mean?"

Kyla squeezed Yuria's hand, which she was holding, with a sense of urgency. She was worried that Yuria might have undone the black magic.

It was supposed to be a spell that couldn't be undone.

A spell that, once cast, couldn't be stopped. The word 'solved' that Yuria uttered grated on her ears, and Kyla glared at Yuria with an awkward smile, but.

"You don't have to worry about it."

She was even more annoyed by Yuria's nonchalant head-shake.

"Can you tell me?"

"Umm... no. It's fine."

"Yuria."

"It's fine. Really."

Kyla couldn't understand why Yuria, who had looked like she was at death's door just a short while ago, could face her so calmly.

Just as the veins on Kyla's tightly clenched hand began to bulge.

"Can I sit down first?"

Yuria smiled and said, looking at Kyla's empty bed.

"Uh... yeah. Sit!"

It was a bed too grand for a commoner to sit on, but to get Yuria to open her mouth about her suspicious words, she had to keep her here.

She had intended to vent her pent-up anger.

"Thanks."

Instead, Kyla, whose frustration had doubled, watched Yuria sit on the bed with trembling eyes, swallowing her anxiety.

'Why is she acting so normal?'

'I told you to talk... Why are you so annoyingly quiet?'

'No, it's probably just my imagination. Otherwise, there would be no reason for her to come see me.'

Just as complex thoughts were consuming Kyla's mind.

-Pluck.

"Why are you biting your nails, Kyla?"

Yuria, looking at Kyla who had brought her nails to her mouth, meddled with a concerned tone.

"You'll ruin your pretty hands."

"...Huh?"

"Is something wrong?"

-Grit.

She was annoyed.

She felt like Yuria was getting under her skin.

She was a girl who couldn't do that.

A girl who didn't know the meaning of 'anger.'

Kyla couldn't understand why she was feeling this strange way.

About a minute of silence passed.

"Yuria."

"Kyla."

The two of them called each other's names at the same time and gave awkward smiles.

Yuria smiled and opened her rosy lips to Kyla. As if to say she was fine, so Kyla could ask first.

Kyla didn't refuse Yuria's offer and said.

"Are you sick somewhere?"

"..."

"You haven't been coming to class lately... and you didn't look well back then either."

"..."

"I was worried and was planning to visit you soon."

"Did you talk to Ricardo?"

"Huh?"

"Kyla, you're not that interested in me."

"What are you talking about?"

Hearing the name of an unwelcome person from Yuria's lips, Kyla frowned before quickly putting on an awkward smile and denying Yuria's words.

"What are you talking about, I care about you so much."

"You don't have to lie."

"..."

"I saw you talking to Ricardo earlier."

"Ah... the economics professor came to the girls' dormitory today. He said he came because he was worried since you weren't in class."

"I see."

"I sent him away."

Yuria's faint smile disappeared as she spoke.

"Why?"

"...Well, it would be uncomfortable for a man to enter the girls' dormitory."

"I would have been fine with it."

"..."

"I'm kidding."

Why was she being like this today?

Was the black magic taking effect and making her act this way?

Kyla bit her lip, suppressing her displeasure at Yuria's thorny words.

'I don't like this.'

The image Yuria should be showing her wasn't one of composure, but one that looked like it would crumble at any moment.

If this continued.

"Really...?"

She felt like she would be the one who looked broken.

"I'm glad nothing's wrong. I was worried something had happened to you."

"Really?"

"Of course, you know how much I think about you."

"...Thanks."

"Is it a love problem, perhaps?"

Kyla looked at Yuria and prodded slightly. She thought that if she could find out who Yuria liked, she could finish the job more easily.

She thought it wouldn't be a bad idea to just break the person Yuria liked, so she prodded her, but.

"Shall we... stop the games now?"

Yuria simply answered with silence, her smile gone.

"Haa..."

Yuria let out a cold sigh, looked at Kyla with a smile-less face, and said.

"Hey, Kyla."

"Yeah?"

"Can I ask you one thing?"

"Wh...what is it?"

Kyla casually dismissed Yuria's change in demeanor and waited for the question. No matter how serious she looked, she was still just Yuria.

She thought the question would be something like 'Why do people hate me?' or something about her difficulties in academy life, so she waited patiently for Yuria to speak, but.

"Why did you use black magic on me?"

"Uh...?"

"Black magic."

"..."

"You used it on me."

At Yuria's cold question, Kyla's eyes widened and she began to glare at Yuria.

Yuria, sitting on the bed, gave a light smile and asked Kyla once more.

"Why are you pretending not to know? You know too."

"Wh-what are you talking about?"

"Kyla."

"Was it Ricardo? Everything he says is a lie, so you shouldn't be swayed by things like that, Yuria."

Yuria took a deep breath and looked straight at Kyla.

"What were you thinking, doing something like that?"

"..."

"What if I were to cast black magic on you?"

"...What did you say?"

Kyla looked at Yuria with trembling eyes and forced an awkward smile.

"Yuria, I think you're having a strange misunderstanding,"

"Why do you hate me so much?"

"...That's not it."

"What did I do wrong?"

Yuria's voice gradually began to fill with emotion.

[The caster of the black magic has been found.]

Her suspicion had turned into certainty.

"Did I do something so wrong?"

"..."

"I thought of you as a real friend."

"..."

"Why are you so hell-bent on killing me?"

-Crack.

Kyla felt something inside her break. Yuria's eyes, filled with a conviction that she didn't believe a word she said, seemed unbreakable.

Why?

Who had whispered in her ear?

Was it that man? Did that man whisper in Yuria's ear and ruin everything?

At the pouring anger and the sight of someone who shouldn't be ignoring her crossing the line and acting up, Kyla heard the sound of something breaking inside her and opened her lips to Yuria with cold eyes.

"Shut up."

",,,"

"Shut up... Shut up...! SHUT UP!!!!"

Because she was going to have everything anyway.

"You just need to shut your mouth."

"..."

"You ask why I hate you?"

"..."

"Because you... you who have nothing, stole what was mine!!!"

The moment their cold gazes met in mid-air, Kyla threw off her mask of pretense and began to spew curses with an uninhibited voice.

"It's all mine."

"..."

"Teo's attention!!! The admiration from the students!!! The people who look up to me, it's all MINE!!!"

"..."

"You showed up and took it all away."

Kyla glared at Yuria, her eyes blazing through her disheveled hair.

"It's all your fault."

"..."

"You're the bad one, so I couldn't help but do it."

"That's just self-justification."

"Justification?"

Kyla smiled and shook her head.

"It's my natural right."

"..."

"The natural right that I should enjoy."

"..."

"I'm different from you, who was born of low birth."

"..."

"Pretending to be nice, pretending to be humble... All of that is disgusting....! Your very existence is so annoying it's driving me crazy, how can I not hate you?"

"..."

"You think you wouldn't be the same?"

Yuria opened her lips to Kyla.

"Kyla."

As if holding a mirror up to her.

"Is it fun to live like that?"

With just one sentence, she shattered Kyla's heart.

"Wh-what did you say?"

The crazed smile on Kayla's lips began to gradually lose its light.

"What...?"

She thought her ears had deceived her.

It was Julia.

That Julia.

The foolish woman who didn't know how to say a single mean thing, who would rather be hurt than hurt others, was now saying to her...

"I asked if it's fun to live like that."

She was provoking her.

At Julia's cold question, Kayla's face twisted and her eyes began to burn with a cold fire.

Because Julia's gaze right now seemed to be looking at her with pity.

"What do you mean, 'like that'?"

"..."

"What do you mean by 'like that'..."

As Kayla's hostile question poured towards Julia, Julia, without a moment's hesitation, began to pour out insults about the person named Kayla.

"Finding joy in tormenting others."

Because to Julia now, the person named Kayla was no longer a friend.

"Expecting rewards without effort."

"Ha? What do you know to be spouting such nonsense."

"You have so much more, but is it fun to live greedily for the smallest things?"

"Shut up."

"Kayla."

Julia looked at Kayla with eyes full of pity and said, as if she felt sorry for her.

"Don't be jealous."

"Jealous?"

"..."

"Did you just say jealous...?"

Kayla completely wiped the smile from her lips and said to Julia.

"Why would I be jealous of you?"

An awkward laugh bloomed. Like a person pretending to be strong, saying 'I'm fine no matter what you say,' Kayla let out a hollow, awkward laugh and shot back at Julia.

"Why would I be jealous of a nobody like you?"

"..."

"You are nothing to me, there's no reason for me to be jealous of you, and no reason to hate you... why would I be jealous of you?"

Julia, who had been listening quietly to Kayla's words, answered her insults.

"Then why did you use black magic?"

A remark that would shut her mouth in an instant.

-Grit.

Kayla glared at Julia and screamed like a child.

"I didn't use it!!!!!"

"..."

"How many times do I have to say it... how many times have I told you?"

"..."

"I didn't use it. I didn't use it!!! It's your stupid head that's been swayed by those rumors that's strange, why are you blaming an innocent person?"

"Kayla."

"You want to be ruined too, don't you? Fine... I'll pay you back just like I did to that guy..."

Julia reached out and placed her hand on Kayla's cheek.

And.

"Heal."

She sent her divine power into Kayla's swollen cheek, casting a healing spell. There was no faster way.

Therefore.

"...Huh?"

A crack began to form in Kayla's eyes. Accompanied by a bewilderment so great it instantly dissipated her anger.

"Look."

"..."

"I said look."

Julia's voice was filled with a sense of regret, as if to say, how could someone as beautiful as you have become so broken. Of course, Julia's eyes were cold.

"It's not healing."

"This is, because..."

"Do you need other proof?"

"...Just listen to me for a moment."

Kayla's stubbornness had long since crumbled.

It might have crumbled from the moment she started arguing with Julia, but from the moment Julia found out about the black magic, the wall of stubbornness she had been desperately holding up came crashing down.

To the point where her whole body trembled with anxiety.

"You're still going to insist you didn't use it?"

"Just listen to what I have to say...!"

"..."

'This isn't right.'

'Julia, you of all people should be beneath me.'

Kayla, denying that the always-foolish Julia could ever stand above her, looked at Julia with trembling eyes and her lips moved wordlessly.

"Julia..."

"..."

"Julia!!!"

-Thud.

Kayla fell to her knees, looked up with trembling eyes, grabbed Julia's sleeve, and begged.

"It's a misunderstanding."

"..."

"This is a real misunderstanding."

"..."

"Yes...! It's because Olivia used black magic that the divine power didn't work, so if you try again, it'll definitely..."

Julia coldly shook off Kayla's hand gripping her sleeve, looked down at Kayla with an icy expression, and uttered a denial.

"Kayla..."

"...Julia!"

"If you're going to make an excuse, at least make it a plausible one. Why are you dragging Olivia into this?"

"I'll explain everything... I will!!"

Julia said to Kayla.

"I don't want to hear it."

"..."

"I don't even want to listen."

The tide turns.

"...No."

The scale she thought was tipped in her favor collapses to one side.

"Don't do this, Julia."

It can't be like this.

How hard have I worked to protect this position.

Kayla denied it again and again, saying she couldn't fall because of... because of a woman like this, but the sweet illusion shattered with the tingling pain rising in her cheek.

Julia looked at Kayla's swollen cheek and said in a cold voice.

"I really can't understand you. Even when I tried to understand... I just couldn't."

"..."

bWpnL1VNWWVlR0h2N0IyVWd5ZUJTeVhPYlJhdGVHa050UzR4Z2RXYndFSE16ZXI5Nkh3Mlg1QWMwU2F6QU52ZA

"Why are you so hell-bent on tormenting people?"

"..."

"Why do you hate me so much?"

"..."

"Like you said, you're so great. You were born a noble and grew up wealthy in a good family..."

"Julia..."

"I can't understand why you're so jealous of what you don't have."

Julia looked straight into Kayla's frightened expression and opened her lips to speak in a bitter voice.

"You said it to me, didn't you? That if we were in the same position, I would have done the same as you."

Julia bit her lower lip, shook her head, and spat out a denial.

"No. I don't think I would become like you."

"..."

"I don't think I would live as disgustingly as you, and I don't think I would live as cowardly as you."

"..."

"Because right now, you are the worst."

Julia had no intention of nagging her to be charitable to others either.

Because being charitable was not something easily done even when one's life was comfortable. However, being envious and jealous of others was a different direction entirely, so Julia looked at Kayla with pity and clicked her tongue.

"I'll ask again."

"..."

"Why did you hate me so much?"

"..."

"The truth is..."

"..."

"It wasn't that you had something taken away..."

Julia released the arrow she had held on her bowstring and said to Kayla.

"You were just envious of the person I am."

"...Shut up."

"You have everything, so why do you feel you have less than me... You are perfectly great, and there are more people who like you than me... You were just envious of me, so you threw a tantrum and hated me like a child."

"...I said shut up!"

"Look at yourself."

"..."

"You're quite pathetic right now."

-Bang!!!

Kayla slammed her fist on the floor and denied it, veins popping on her neck as she faced Julia.

"It's all your fault..."

"..."

"From one to ten."

"..."

"It's not that I was envious of you! It was a right that should have naturally come to me, and you were someone who didn't deserve to receive such treatment!"

"..."

"Envious? Of someone like you?"

"..."

"How dare you spout such words to me... Who are you... to look at me with pity... I'm just great, that's all."

Julia looked at Kayla's vein-popped face with a pitiful expression and said.

"Look in the mirror."

"..."

"What you look like right now."

"..."

"All the boasts you've made with your own mouth... you haven't been able to protect a single one."

"I haven't been able to protect...?"

"The rights you talk about, the attention of people, you haven't been able to protect any of it right now."

Julia looked at Kayla and said.

"Kayla, I'm not envious of you at all."

"..."

"Rather, I pity you."

Kayla, her mask stripped away, could neither do this nor that at Julia's words, and just stared blankly.

She had been insulted.

"Don't look at me like that..."

There was nothing she could say.

Until now, she thought she was the best, she thought she was someone Julia wouldn't even dare to face. But Julia's cold words, who didn't even consider her a competitor, dug deep into Kayla's heart and made her feel shabby.

"You're... not envious of me?"

"No. Not in the slightest."

"Be honest."

"..."

"My red hair... my family... my connections, you must be envious of them."

Julia let out a hollow laugh and shook her head.

"Kayla."

"..."

"You're more pathetic than Olivia right now."

"..."

"Olivia back then was better than you."

"..."

"Rather, I'm more envious of Olivia."

Julia, who had let out a small expression of envy for Olivia, shined her divine eyes towards Kayla and said.

With a minimum of affection.

"You're dying right now."

She gave her a warning.

In Julia's divine eyes, she could see the distorted parts of Kayla. A scene where a black energy was swallowing up a part of Kayla's body.

"Stop when you still can."

"..."

"Because this is the last advice I can give you as a friend."

Julia, who had grabbed the doorknob, bid farewell without even looking at the wretchedly sitting Kayla.

"And."

-Creeeeak.

"Don't ever call me a friend again."

-Slam.

[The quest 'Time of Choice' has been completed.]

Kayla glared at the firmly closed door, a sound simmering from within her as she called Julia's name.

"Where are you going!!"

Where do you think you're going.

I'm not even done talking yet, where do you think you're going so insolently.

"Come back!"

"..."

"I'm not done talking yet!"

"..."

"I said come back!!!!"

But Kayla's voice could not reach Julia, and in Kayla's room that had been filled with splendor, a cold silence and shabbiness arrived together.

"Come... back..."

Something seems terribly wrong.

Kayla, on her knees, slammed her fist on the floor and sobbed, feeling the darkness approaching her.

This is.

"No.. this is..."

It's not right.

----------------------------------------

Julia looked at the dark sky with a complicated expression.

"...Ha."

Because she wasn't feeling very good.

She thought they were friends.

She thought Kayla was the kindest person among the nobles, but seeing Kayla with her mask stripped away, Julia's heart was not in a good place.

Because there was a time when she thought they could be good friends even after graduating from the academy.

"A bad person..."

The sense of betrayal was greater than the feeling of relief.

Because the wound that comes back is as big as the trust you gave.

"..."

Would anything have been different if she had said just one word?

What do you think of me.

Or if there were any pent-up feelings.

Would the ending have changed if she had asked such questions?

Although she knew such thoughts were meaningless, Julia, who kept having lingering regrets, swallowed her lonely heart and looked at the moonlight in the night sky.

[You can choose your reward.]

1. You can view the 2nd Side Story 'The Secret of the Glutton'.

2. An interview with the 'Coordinator'. (You can ask one question.)

Julia closed her eyes and opened her lips.

Because the answer was already decided.

.

.

.

-Creeeeak.

Julia, opening the pure white door that stood alone in a white space, looked at the woman sitting at the desk.

As expected.

"Nice to see you."

The person she had expected was sitting there.

"Julia."