Episode 73
“I feel full.”
Evie patted her swollen belly as enthusiastically as she did every day.
When Luska said he would take care of feeding her today, Evie wondered what he meant.
But as soon as they went to the dining hall together, Luska took the seat next to her, which was usually reserved for Irene.
Then he began to feed her without stopping, relentlessly putting fruits and sweets into her mouth.
“Today, I will study hard until the evening by myself.”
If she didn't, her full stomach would prevent her from sleeping.
Evie's exams were focused next week, something that made Irene very jealous. This means she has more time to study.
“If I'm staying in my room, I might as well go to the dining hall now and get a sandwich or a snack.”
As Evie hesitated as she walked up the stairs, she noticed a gathering of students in front of the bulletin board.
“What's going on?”
There was no need to check the exam schedule now, it was published some time ago.
Evie approached, finding a new advertisement pinned to the billboard.
“Temporary opening notice for the library?”
The content was simple: the library, which was scheduled to open for the summer holidays, would be temporarily open starting today.
“Great! I was having a hard time studying in my room.”
“True, having the bed next to me makes me want to sleep as soon as I feel the slightest bit tired.”
“Even if we use the classes, there are too many annoying students...”
The surrounding students were welcoming the opening of the library as they rushed to the upper floors.
It was not only about the possibility of studying in a quiet and clean place, but also their curiosity to explore the library of the elite academy.
Evie hurried to her room.
“I have to tell Irene first!”
But when I arrived, I found a sign on the door of Irene's room that said [Absent]. Apparently, I went to study elsewhere.
Evie was momentarily disappointed, but quickly clenched her hand firmly.
“I shouldn't rely on Irene so much.”
The students welcomed the opening of the library in the upper school, and she was used to wandering around on her own. She had no friends from the orphanage to go to school with her, and in graduate school, no one would approach her.
So she thought being alone at school was normal, but when did she start feeling this anxious when no one was around?
“Irene will feel uncomfortable.”
Maybe that's why she decided to study on her own.
With these thoughts, Evie gave up searching for Irene and headed to the library alone.
—
At that moment, Irene was sitting in a café not far from the residence.
On her desk, books of the subjects she would soon be tested on were piled high.
Some students approached her, thinking it was an opportunity to speak, but they quietly backed away when they saw her intense gaze focused on the books.
It was clear that talking to her now would not result in a conversation, but rather a cold look ordering them not to disturb.
She was moving the pen quickly across the notebook, actively taking notes.
“Have I ever studied this hard before?”
Irene immersed herself in studies with a dedication she had never known before.
“I must get good grades.”
Since it is the first year and first semester, many of the lessons are arranged randomly without taking into account the individual students' levels.
“So this test is very important.”
The results of this test will definitely determine the allocation of classes for compulsory lessons in the second semester based on grades.
“Evie's grades are so high!”
Irene was not far behind, on the contrary, her grades were high enough to be enviable.
Being from the Terrence family, she received an extensive education from a young age with many private tutors, so it was only natural that she would excel.
But Irene was not reassured.
In the elite academy, the students who came from all over the country had strengths in different subjects.
Even the students who gossiped and criticized others had at least one subject in which they excelled with high grades.
As a result, Irene, who had generally excelled in all subjects, was left in an ambiguous position.
“If this continues... I'll end up in a different chapter than Evie!”
Not making it to the top class hurt her pride, but being in a different class from Evie was something that angered her.
“But Arcel Caillern won’t have a problem.”
Irene gritted her teeth as she remembered Arcel.
Lately, Arcel seems to be getting too close to Evie.
“Honestly, at first, I thought he was just going to be casual about it and then walk away.”
Arcel, who was randomly chosen by the Emperor, was supposed to leave the academy, and this was not a good thing.
The emergence of people who underestimated the Emperor's authority was likely, and if students from the common people or from orphanages left the academy in the next year, they might be subject to ridicule.
So, she thought that once things settled down, they wouldn't communicate anymore…
“But he cares more about her as the days go by!”
On a rainy and cold day since the morning, Arcel came from the dining hall carrying a cup of hot tea.
The cup passed smoothly between Luska and Irene, arriving at Evie.
Wasn't Evie, who was shivering despite her warm clothing, holding the large cup with both hands to warm her body?
Moreover, Arcel carefully answered all of Evie's questions, even the ones that might be annoying, and even asked her if she had more questions.
“This was not his nature.”
When it was said that he might be her future husband, her sister and parents verified his identity.
In the report, Arcel was described as a cold, calculating person devoid of emotions.
For this reason, he was said to be a likely candidate for adoption by the emperor.
He was supposed to be like this, and when they met briefly, she felt like he was indeed as described, so why would he treat Evie this way?
Arcel wasn't the only one who treated her well. Luska was also nice to her.
Seeing them, it seemed like they had been waiting for Evie's arrival for a long time.
“I don't have the right to say this, but...”
Didn't her sister say there were all kinds of strange things going on?
“No! Stop thinking about unimportant things and focus!”
You cannot be in a different class than others in the second semester.
Worse still, being in the same class as just Luska? impossible!
Luska Lajesselb was good at making people angry. Lately, he seems to be lurking around Evie's cheeks, which Irene always loves to touch.
“Evie's cheeks are mine!”
Irene gritted her teeth and returned to focusing on her studies.
She continued like this until someone came running to tell her that a disaster had occurred.
—
“Wow...”
Evie paused in shock as she looked at the library's pure white marble entrance.
“Is this a library?”
Until now, she had only seen the high school library, which was called a library in name only.
In fact, it was a deserted, dusty place, where old books were left that no one cared about anymore.
New books were sometimes brought in to spruce up the appearance, but the students would borrow them and never return them.
Therefore, she thought that libraries were always neglected, dusty places…
“Is this paradise?”
Evie couldn't close her mouth as she hugged her bag.
First, the Elite Academy Library was a four-story high-rise building.
Passing through the arched marble portal, a high atrium extending to the fourth floor emerged.
The ceiling was equipped with glass windows in the shape of a hemispherical dome, through which sunlight penetrated to illuminate the white walls inside the library.
Upon entering the side corridor, there were rooms divided by themes, filled with bookshelves. Between the shelves, desks were placed for the students who would be using them.
This scene itself was magical, but what was above the shelves was even more amazing.
Everywhere, there were paintings depicting scenes from mythology, along with portraits of famous graduates of the elite academy.
Between the shelves, there were bronze statues of them as well.
The library looked more like a museum preserving artifacts than a library.
“Is it really allowed to study here? Isn’t it supposed to be like a holy place?”
While Eppie was frozen in astonishment, the Elite Academy students seemed impressed by the place but not surprised.
Most of them had already seen larger academies' libraries than these.
Students entering the library moved to look for places to study.
But during this time, Evie was so busy exploring the library that she forgot time.
After a while, I realized that there were no more empty seats.
Since everyone came to find a place to study, they quickly occupied the desks.
Just then, Evie began hurriedly looking for another reading room.
The library was very spacious, designed to accommodate the number of students of the academy.
But the problem was that today was the temporary opening day.
Therefore, only a small part of the library was opened.
As a result, latecomers realized that there were no available seats and returned disappointed.
“Shall I come back?”
After walking around several times without finding a seat, Erin was about to return, when she spotted an ajar door in the corner.
°. • .✦ . ◌ ⋆ ° ✬ • ✫ ⋆｡ .° ◌ • .●