Chapter 4: The Rumor

The next day after the entrance ceremony, ──── we freshmen were waiting in our classrooms according to the previously announced class assignments from A to E. We were seated according to the seating order posted on the blackboard, and each of us was either chatting or reading a book. I took a glance around the noisy classroom, looked up at the blue sky, and reflected on the events of yesterday.

“I am ──── Grayson Lee Soleil.”

That’s what he said. I hadn’t misheard him. And if I’m not mistaken… his name matches that of the third prince of the Kingdom of Soleil. The Kingdom of Soleil is a country that excels in military power and has a slogan of wealth and strength. Since they have an alliance with the Draconian Empire, which controls about half of the northern continent, they don’t fight each other, but Soleil seems to be waging war on other countries here and there. 

Perhaps because it was such a bloodthirsty country, all the people in the royal family of Soleil were trained in martial arts. The first prince is a great wizard with the title of Sage, and the second prince is the strongest warrior who excels in martial arts. The third prince is a swordsmanship genius who rose to the rank of Swordmaster ────at the age of only twelve. I’ve heard a lot of rumors about him, even though I don’t often show up at social gatherings. 

I had no idea that His Royal Highness Prince Grayson, the youngest Swordmaster, had enrolled in Frügel Academy… It’s not uncommon for royalty from other countries to enroll in Frügel Academy, but this is a bit unexpected. I stole a glance at His Royal Highness Prince Grayson, who was seated in front of me on the hallway side, and let out a sigh, 

“Haa… I was about to be thought of as a slut by such an amazing person…”

In my depressed state, I overheard someone talking.

“Hey, is that the girl…?”

“Yeah. That’s Scarlet-sama’s little sister.”

“Scarlet sama teaches her and she can’t do anything right at all …?”

“I’ve heard that she’s a disappointing child who doesn’t learn even when she studies. That’s why Scarlet-sama is teaching her so patiently.”

“I heard that the instructors were all bribed because her brain is so bad… my older brother said it was a miracle that she was able to enroll in Frügel Academy.”

I tilted my head at my classmates who were whispering near the classroom doorway, “Hmm …?” While I was puzzled, their conversation continued to escalate until they finally came to the unintelligible conclusion that “the girl had entered the school through the back door.” 

I became upset by the stupid rumor. What? I’m a backdoor student? What are they talking about? What the hell…?! You can’t just say, “I’m Scarlett sama’s little sister,” and then say, “I can’t do anything right at all.” They are definitely referring to me. But I have no memory of such a story. In fact, I don’t even know why such a rumor is going around. I mean, I’m a new student, I just got in yesterday. As the sister of the vice president of the student council, I can understand why there would be a lot of attention to me, but for such a rumor to be circulating from just yesterday is …… unbelievable! Trying hard to suppress my annoyance, I glanced around.

Most of my classmates knew about the rumor, and everyone was convinced that “Ah, that girl…” The speed at which rumors spread is just too fast… Nothing happened yesterday, so why on earth? Did someone start a rumor about me yesterday…? No, the speed at which rumors spread is too fast for that. Even if that were the case, few people would believe it, there’s only one possibility… the rumor had already spread among the upperclassmen, and the freshmen who had older siblings spread the rumor in turn. 

With that in mind, the speed at which the rumor was circulating made sense, and it also explained why most people believed it. But who on earth would start such a rumor…? Do they have an agenda? I don’t think there are many benefits in demeaning me… Is it the work of people who want to dethrone my sister? No, that would be too inefficient. On top of that, it’s a roundabout way of doing it. They would rather spread rumors that directly relate to my sister than go through the trouble of doing this. Then who the hell is…? What is the purpose of spreading such a rumor…?

“Someone who benefits from demeaning me…”

I muttered in a small voice and frowned at the person that came to my mind. I wanted to say, “No, it can’t be,” but considering the rumors and the benefits, that was the only person I could think of. That person is ──── my own sister, Scarlett Rosa Meyers.

My sister used to laugh at me and feel superior by looking down on me. So it’s no surprise that she was abusing me at the school, just as she did at home… My sister is the vice president of the student council, and I’m sure the students believed her story without much doubt. If that’s the case, I can’t help but hate my sister… Because ────she just ruined my happy school life.

No one would want to get close to a failed viscountess. There’s no benefit in getting involved with her. Relationships aren’t determined solely by profit and loss, but at the beginning, everyone considers the advantages and disadvantages of the people they choose to be involved with, … especially when it comes to aristocrats. It’s not that I want to live a sparkling youth like the protagonist of the novel, but I also don’t want to live a lonely, boring life.

I just want to have a normal school life, hang out with my friends and have fun! While occasionally looking for a potential husband…! I want nothing more than that!  But this is too much… My sister may have talked about me in a light-hearted way, but her influence was tremendous. I clasped my hands tightly and looked around, but… everyone looked away as soon as our eyes met. 

I couldn’t for the life of me believe that I would be able to get along with these people who pretended not to see me. I’m sure they won’t believe me even if I said “that the rumor is false” in this situation. Scarlett, the vice president, and I, a mere freshman, have completely different power of speech and influence… I could easily imagine a future where I would end up not being taken seriously by anyone. 

For now, I’ll go see my sister at lunchtime. That’s how I’ll find out the truth about these rumors. If it’s as I predicted, I’ll ask my sister to retract the rumor, saying that it was a lie. I concluded while desperately suppressing the anger smoldering in the back of my mind. I put my mouth in a tight line and endured the stares of those around me.

──── my peaceful school life was about to collapse.

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