Incompetent or stupid. It had to be one or the other. Why is he both incompetent and stupid?
Although she knew that the two inevitably went hand in hand like twins, Tilia resented her father's despised nature.
However, it was not this realization that kept her awake.
What bothered Tilia about his words had nothing to do with that, but with the attitude that Cecilia and those around her had shown her today.
Mistress. Tilia's fingers slightly crumpled the corner of the notebook as she remembered Bradley's outburst.
Even though George said it openly, her father believed that she and Ilex Davenport were in a relationship.
After all, Baron Ambrose had always dreamed of making a big profit from her marriage agreements.
However, even he attacked her, calling her the mistress of Ilex Davenport.
For her greedy father, this meant that even he could not imagine her becoming anything more than his second son's mistress.
Although she responded with harsh words, she couldn't help but feel that Cecilia Clayton's reaction might have been justified.
It must have been easier for his fiancee to see the truth. She must have seen the way Ilex Davenport was looking at her.
As the corner of her notebook threatened to tear under her grip, Cecilia's words echoed in her ears.
“It's okay, Hayley. It's not like he only had one or two women."
These words were also true. Ilex Davenport was known as the most notorious scoundrel in the academy.
The first reason she contacted him was because of the rumors that he was sleeping with many women.
Despite the fact that she knew all this and even heard these rumors herself, she considered herself stupid for doubting his intentions for a long time.
There was no point in thinking about it. Everything had to be the result of a coincidence or a misunderstanding.
Chocolate, asparagus, ice cream at a discount to celebrate the opening.
It was all just a misunderstanding.
And even if it wasn't, it wouldn't matter. Even if he really watched her for a long time, it wouldn't change anything.
After all, love on the part of a man was nothing more than fleeting lust with no deeper meaning.
"Remember your mother's death, Tilia."
Punishing herself for the unnecessary thoughts that had tormented her since visiting the ice cream parlor, Tilia forced herself to remember the last moments of Baroness Ambrose's life.
The terrible smell of blood and the excruciating pain in my stomach seemed to come to life again. But Tilia brought up these painful memories, using them to remind herself of the harsh reality.
“Remember the price she had to pay for allowing herself to be deceived.”
Her sunken eyes blinked once, disappearing under her eyelids before focusing back on her notebook.
Carefully smoothing out the crumpled corner, Tilia again fixed her determined gaze on the notebook.
Late at night, under the bright moon, she, completely immersed in her arguments, first heard a noise coming from afar.
She was poring over the lines, pointing at each word as she looked up to see who was wandering around the dorms at such a late hour.
Perhaps it was a freshman having too much fun with his friends, or perhaps a night watchman patrolling the area.
But all her assumptions turned out to be wrong.
"...Why is he here?"
As soon as she recognized the tall figure approaching in the gaslight, Tilia's expression hardened.
"I need to hide."
This thought came to her mind the moment she learned the identity of the tall man.
“Where... where can I hide?”
The instinct to hide overwhelmed her. Without understanding why, Tilia hastily hid under the thick leaves of the bush.
Step by step. The man with long strides soon found himself directly in front of the double women's dormitory.
She felt his footsteps stop on the stairs leading to the main entrance.
Unfortunately, in the place where Tilia decided to hide, there was a low bush that was easy to see if she turned her head.
"Leave. Just go away."
Crouching low, Tilia crossed her arms over her chest, fearing that he might hear the sound of her heartbeat, and watching his movements.
Once she hid, the reason ceased to matter. Now it was important not to be discovered and not to allow her to be found.
“Just leave already...”
Since there were no sounds of retreat, Tilia ducked even lower in despair.
And then, under the bushes, which had already turned autumn, a fallen leaf crunched softly under her foot.
At this moment, Tilia froze, holding her breath.
Did he hear it? She tensed, trying to detect any movement ahead, her antennae-like instincts on alert.
Not a sound was heard, even after a long time.
Thinking that it must have been blown away by the wind, she breathed a sigh of relief.
And then she noticed that the light from the street lamp had dimmed slightly.
Before she knew it, a chill ran down her spine.
Carefully raising her head, she saw the face of a man blocking the street light and standing over a bush.
The eyes seemed even more otherworldly in the light of the lantern streaming behind him.
Those beautiful gray-blue eyes belonged to none other than Ilex Davenport, a man she had not seen since that day.
The moment she met those beautiful eyes staring at her, Tilia understood why she was so desperate to hide.
No excuses were needed.
She just didn't want to date this man.
To a man who was soon to be engaged to Cecelia Clayton. With a man who seemed to want to make her his mistress.
She wanted to avoid him at all costs.
When she realized the reason for her escape, she was overcome by a feeling of despair.
Why does this man insist on finding me to make me feel so pathetic?
Her aimless anger was directed at Ilex Davenport.
Fury was undoubtedly visible in her sparkling eyes, but Ilex Davenport spoke completely indifferently:
- What are you doing there?
His voice even seemed cheerful.
Taken aback by his carefree behavior, so different from her own, Tilia stood up abruptly, brushing leaves from her skirt.
“I should have just turned and walked away as soon as he saw me.”
Regretting her attempt to hide, she watched as he approached her, standing on the steps and looking with a mocking smile.
Why is he smiling? Irritated, she raised her head and noticed that his gaze was fixed on her notebook.
- Study here all the way?
His words, which seemed to praise her diligence, irritated her even more.
Yes, you are a genius who doesn't need to put in that much effort. Another reason to turn away from him, and she didn't hesitate.
But Ilex was faster.
Before she could turn away, he snatched the notebook from her hands and quickly scanned the topics she was studying.
- What are you doing?!
- Everything is well organized.
Dodging her attempt to snatch the notebook back, Ilex continued:
- But this topic will not be raised.
He pointed to the one Tilia was studying most closely.
She momentarily forgot about returning the notebook and pounced on it.
- How do you know? Are you part of the examination committee?
- This was discussed in detail in the written part of the first exam. If it is not a compulsory subject, then it will not come up again in the second exam if it was already in the first.
His explanations, given as he turned the pages, left her at a loss.
She wanted to argue and give examples of questions from the first round that reappeared as debate topics in the second, but nothing came to mind.
And this despite the fact that she memorized all the topics that appeared in the second round.
Why didn't I notice this earlier? A comparison of the first and second examinations of the same year would easily reveal this.
As she sank into the futility of her actions, Ilex's voice reached her ears again.
- Remember this one. I think it will come up.
- …Why? This was the same during the first exam.
- Philosophy is a compulsory general subject. And to connect it with the recent uprising in the southern region, only this theme of ancient philosophy is suitable.
Tilia silently looked at the topic of debate that his steady finger was pointing at.
He was right again. She dismissed it as an obvious topic, simply muttering a few points under her breath before moving on, but a connection to the recent uprising in the south would really change everything. The supporting arguments would inevitably be richer.
- And yet...
The rapidly turning pages caught her tired gaze.