Chapter 11: Finally, the Baron’s Daughter Appears
“So, apparently if you see my true face, your memories might come back.”
“…What?!”
After explaining the situation in Alondra’s research and personal room, I received an excited response.
She was already beaming when I talked about the Goddess of Time, Sheila, but this was an even greater joy.
She jumped up, causing her light peach-colored hair to bounce. Alondra closed the distance between us with a wide stride and a smile on her face.
“Take off your glasses right now!”
“I thought you’d say that.”
Knowing that it was impossible to quell her curiosity, I gave up resisting quickly.
I took off my glasses and made eye contact with her, but Alondra’s excitement quickly turned into disappointment.
“…I don’t remember a bit of my first life coming back to me?”
“You have to have had a deep connection with me from your first life. Besides, Alondra, you’ve already seen my true face before.”
Since there’s no need to hide it from my best friend, Alondra, I normally take off my glasses in front of her. If they get foggy or dirty, I naturally want to wipe them.
“What the…”
Alondra expressed her disappointment quite openly and sat back in her beloved desk chair.
After thinking for a while with her arms crossed, she immediately made eye contact again.
“However, if seeing your real face would trigger their memories to come back, you can’t just take off your glasses recklessly.”
“That’s right. I have to be careful. There was a suggestion to switch from magical glasses to normal ones when the time is right, to minimize the difference…”
If my marriage to Camilo really becomes a reality, I plan to stop wearing glasses altogether.
So after graduation, I plan to gradually change this plain glasses style and eventually eliminate most of the difference.
It’s still a long way off, so I haven’t thought about it in detail yet.
“I see, it could be an effective solution. However, personally, I want to show your real face to everyone who had a connection with you during the first time.”
Alondra spoke without looking at me, lost in thought.
…Um, please spare me from that.
It was Monday, after the weekend, and just as the rumors had said, a new student transferred to my class. His name was Yserra Echeverria.
His silver hair reflected the sunlight, and her deep green eyes seemed to dissolve the colors of the forest. When her cherry lips curved into a smile, all the boys in the class held their breath.
Her delicate beauty was almost identical to the first time I saw her, and I couldn’t help but want to cover my forehead with my hand.
“So Miss Yserra has finally transferred here.”
Alondra, sitting next to me, murmured in an impressed voice that was difficult to hear. It was the first time something had happened just as I had predicted, so she was surprised all over again.
“Yes, I’m a little nervous.”
“Well, it’s understandable to be a little nervous. It’s not someone you have a casual relationship with. But I’m sure you can avoid any unnecessary entanglements.”
Looking at Alondra’s calm smile, I was able to regain my composure quickly.
I am not His Highness’s fiancée now, and I have no reason to be jealous of their love. In this lifetime, all I need to do is warmly watch over the two of them as they nurture their love.
“Yes, our class has gained some new members. Let’s all get along!”
Our homeroom teacher, Lena Allen-sensei, says in a clear voice.
Lena-sensei, who is a language teacher, is still in her early twenties and is a lovely, gentle, and kind teacher.
“Then, Yserra-san, please sit in the empty seat on the hallway side.”
“Yes, thank you, sensei.”
Yserra-sama bows her head properly and begins to walk, her silver hair fluttering. I couldn’t help but be impressed by her graceful demeanor that everyone, regardless of gender, was admiring.
(She’s already so popular. I’m sure she’ll be surrounded during recess.)
Yserra-sama takes the same seat as before. I am sitting in the seat behind the window, and Yserra-sama’s seat is three seats away from Alondra.
Lena-sensei’s cheerful voice echoed as homeroom resumed. Despite feeling like my mind was wandering, I tried to focus on the teacher’s words.
As expected, the moment the first period ended, Yserra-sama was surrounded by students. Alondra and I whispered to each other about what was going to happen while looking at the crowd of people.
“By the way, where did Prince Agustin and Miss Yserra meet again?”
“I think it was after this, when Yserra-sama dropped her handkerchief in the hallway, and the prince picked it up for her. I was there too, and they were so obvious about their mutual attraction.”
Now, I wonder if the same thing will happen this time.
Since I’m not involved with Prince Agustin, the timing will probably be off. Will the prince even notice the handkerchief that Yserra-sama drops?
“Perhaps I should somehow assist them to notice? If they don’t meet here, there’s no telling if they’ll ever have a chance to meet properly in the future.”
“…Stop it, Leticia. You’re being too kind to the person who killed you. What will you do if they notice?”
Alondra sighed in exasperation. She was right, so I suppressed my restless feelings and nodded.
“Yes, you’re right. I’ll stop. They were a couple who loved each other so much in their first life, they’ll surely meet again somewhere.”
“Yes. You should just quietly watch.”
At the moment the two of us nodded at each other, Yserra-sama stood up from her seat.
The moment we had been waiting for had finally come. We made eye contact and moved after Yserra-sama left the classroom.
I had sworn not to get involved with the prince, but that’s why I wanted to witness the two of them falling in love. If their relationship progressed smoothly, I could be sure that I wouldn’t have to be involved.
I followed Yserra-sama’s beautiful silver hair while hiding my presence. Yeah, it’s okay. It might be weird for me to say, but I’m a plain existence with few friends. If I just walk normally, no one will pay any attention to me.
And as expected, Prince Agustin appeared from the other end of the hallway.
“Here comes the prince.”
Alondra whispered with a mischievous look. I felt nervous and silently watched where the two of them were heading.
So when Yserra-sama passed by Prince Agustin and deliberately dropped her handkerchief behind her, I was too surprised to move my feet.
Huh?
What?
Wait a minute, did Yserra-sama do that on purpose…?
“Hey, hey…”
Alondra next to me was also at a loss for words. In front of us, Prince Agustin picked up the handkerchief and handed it to Yserra-sama.
At that moment, I felt like I could hear the sound of church bells.
Perhaps the only thing different from my first life was the distance between the two of them and me. In a scene that was exactly the same as before, Prince Agustin widened his eyes in surprise, and Yserra-sama had the same expression.
No, you intentionally dropped it, didn’t you?
“Fallen Love…”(フォーリンラブ…)
I nudged Alondra, who was muttering quietly, to silence her. We passed by the side of the lovers who had just met, pretending nothing had happened.
We walked out of the school building without saying a word and reached the courtyard. As soon as we arrived, I collapsed on a bench, feeling all my strength leave me.
“Hey Alondra, what happened?”
“Wait a minute, I’m thinking about it too.”
Alondra, who had been silent for a while, looked me in the eye and confidently declared:
“Could it be that the meeting was originally orchestrated by Miss Yserra?”
“I-Is that really the case?!”
In shock from our agreeing opinions, I looked up at the sky.
I didn’t want to know. It’s not like it makes any difference, but I didn’t want to know that Yserra-sama was a calculating girl with ambitions!
“It seems that she is quite ambitious. After all, the first time, she went after the engaged Crown Prince. She must have an exceptional mind to pull it off.”
“T-That’s…! She didn’t happen to fall in love with the Crown Prince by chance?!”
“I’ve said it many times, but you’re too soft-hearted. She’s your love rival, even if she’s your former enemy, you should put her down more.”
Alondra said, looking exasperated. It’s true that I had my rightful engagement stolen from me, so maybe I should be more angry about it.
“Well, it’s not like I feel like getting angry or anything…”
If anything, once the shock wore off, I could only think of how amazing it was. I mean, I could never be as smart and strategic as she is. If I had attacked her head-on all the time, Prince would have hated me.
“Hmm. Well, maybe it’s just something that’s in the past for you.”
Her words, mixed with a wry smile, settled deep within my heart.
… I see. I guess I have a much better handle on my former love than I thought I had.
Or was that even love?
I liked how Prince Agustin behaved so coolly and confidently.
I respected his efforts to become king.
Being able to assert oneself confidently to anyone was something that I thought was cool and a manifestation of my confidence as a member of the royal family.
Looking back now, it felt more like a longing for something out of reach than a crazy infatuation. Even though I said I wanted it so badly, somewhere along the way I was convinced that I would never be able to have it.
“And yet…”
I was so lost in my own thoughts at the time that I didn’t notice Alondra muttering to herself.
The bell for the next class rang, its cool chime echoing through the halls. Feeling refreshed, I urged Alondra and began walking towards the classroom.
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