/
After I woke up, Lariensa came every day, and her parents would visit me almost once a day.
To be exact, I already possessed this body for about a year during the vacation season of the academy. But the thing is, Lycan had never once visited me!
“Um, Marin…”
“Hmm?”
“Sorry…”
I was just lying in bed and eating the snacks that Lariensa brought when she suddenly apologized to me. I was extremely flustered by her sudden apology.
It already happened a long time ago, but you still want to apologize again?
“I’m sure brother was also worried about you.”
But unexpectedly, she defended Lycan for not visiting me.
“I told him to come with me, but… He also has a lot of assignments because it’s vacation, and he’s focusing on sword training these days… I’m sure he’ll visit you soon!”
“I don’t mind.”
“Eh?”
“If he’s busy, it’s okay if he couldn’t come. We’re not even that close, and he doesn’t have to come just because we’re friends.”
I was really fine. I might be quite curious about his appearance because he really looks like Lariensa. He was quite handsome with his blond hair and blue eyes. But, it doesn’t really matter to me if I couldn’t see him.
When I told her that I was okay, Lariensa looked hurt on the contrary.
Why do you look like you’re about to cry?
“How could you say that?”
“About what?”
“The relationship between us! How can you not be disappointed?”
“…Huh?”
“Think about it, Marin. Suppose you’re married.”
I nodded gently and listened to Lariensa for the time being.
“Then you’re injured! Like seriously injured!”
“To the extent that it’s that serious……”
“However! Your sisters-in-law didn’t even come to see you even though you’re seriously injured and still can’t get out of the bed!”
At that time, I was still not familiar with Lariensa’s affection for Marilyn in the original work. So I made a slip of the tongue.
“Ey, how is my husband’s family the same as your brother?”
[T/N: Okay, you need to imagine Lariensa is Marilyn’s husbando.]
“…….”
“Lariensa…?”
Lariensa’s eyes were turning red, and tears started to form.
No matter how emotional the heroine’s position is, why are you still crying at this age?!
“Marin got cold after she hurt her head……”
I know that I hurt my head because it bled, but…
“Is that what happens when you hurt your head? How could you change so much?”
Dear, you can now stop talking about my head injury… and also, I’m a different person from the Marilyn that you used to know.
However, I couldn’t tell Lariensa the truth.
“You once said friendship is more than love. My Marin has changed……”
On top of that, when I saw Lariensa crying, I couldn’t say anything cold towards her.
I was not exactly the type of person who was weak to tears. But both men and women were vulnerable to pretty faces, and Lariensa was quite pretty.
“I mean… I, I…”
I had to immediately make an excuse.
“You know! A husband and a friend are different! Doesn’t your brother have to come even if my sisters-in-law don’t? His sister’s best friend is dying of such pain!
When I tried to soothe her with such a lie, Lariensa finally regained her strength.
“Don’t be upset, Marin! I’ll tell him this time!”
“That’s not necessary……”
“Is it time for him to come home now? I’ll go now.”
“La-Lariensa?”
“You take a good rest. I’ll make sure to come with him tomorrow!”
“Hey, Lariensa? …Hey!”
The next day, Lariensa really dragged her brother with her. Lariensa’s ability to act made my mouth open. And until then, I really had no idea about what Lycan was thinking.
After giving me a formal greeting, he only watched us in the corner of the room. As usual, I was given “special” care by Lariensa.
“I still haven’t washed my face yet…”
“It’s hard to wash, isn’t it? I’ll do it.”
I swear to the heavens, I never forced Lariensa not to say no.
“Your arms look weak… give me a spoon. I’ll feed you.”
Everything she did, she wanted to do it herself!
“I’ve been lying down so much, and I want to walk for a while.”
“Not yet. Just lie down. I’ll massage your legs.”
I was not guilty. I was just favored by Lariensa.
“Ah, ah! It hurts.”
“Sorry, I’ll be gentle. Does this hurt?”
“No, that’s just about right.”
However, it seems that my behavior of using his younger sister annoyed Lycan.
“My throat’s kinda scratchy…”
“Wait a minute. I’ll get you some water!”
Lariensa left the room for a while. That man who was left behind showed a fierce look and said in a low voice as if he had been waiting in distress.
“Aren’t you bothering my sister too much, Marilyn Launer?”
I was wondering why he was just staying still.
He seemed to have waited until his sister was gone.
I admit that I’ve been feigning illness to Lariensa to keep bothering her, and it was now slowly poking my conscience. However, that doesn’t mean I’ll bow down to him.
Before Marilyn turned into a villainess, she liked Lariensa even though she felt inferior to her. So just as what Lariensa did to me right now, the real Marilyn also took good care of her when she was ill.
Well, as Marilyn turned her back on Lariensa, their past relationship was tarnished.
Anyways, the funny thing is Lycan didn’t like how Lariensa always took care of me. He said his sister was having a hard time. However, he took for granted that Marilyn also supported Lariensa.
I instinctively noticed what was on Lycan’s mind, and in front of me, he only unilaterally cared for Lariensa.
“What do you mean I’m bothering her? Did it look like I forced Lariensa to do it?”
His eyes widened for a moment, as he had never imagined I’d talk back.
“I guess it’s true that you hurt your head.”
So it’s natural for you to think of me as your sister’s maid, but you don’t want her to take care of me?
“I mean, isn’t she nursing her friend who hurt her head?”
“Massaging your legs, feeding you meals, and running errands are not considered nursing…”
“It is.”
“…….”
“What you just said, that’s how you nurse somebody.”
He quietly stared at me as if he had nothing to say now.
I’m not scared of you at all, you know?
“Friendship is an exchange. Of course, I’ll also do the same if ever Lariensa gets sick.”
“….…”
“You don’t have any complaints now, do you?”
What can he say when I just said that I’ll do the same for her, and not just be the one on the receiving end?
On top of that, he knew well how I am usually good to Lariensa.
“It seems you’re all better now that you’re making a lot of noise, so I’ll be going now.”
As he tried to leave the room faster, I bid some last words to him.
“Don’t interfere too much with your sister’s friendship.”
“….…”
“It’s really silly.”
His shoulders flinched, but I pretended not to see it.
I know that your family must come first, but they don’t force others to do the same. Having had a minor revenge on Lycan, who had hurt the original Marilyn, I rejoiced in my heart.
Serves you right, you rascal!
It was natural for Lycan to leave the room right away after losing a verbal fight. But before he went out, he left a strange remark.
“…You seem to have changed a lot.”
I had millions of question marks in my head. What does that mean?
Does it mean something like “you’re the first woman to hit me”?
Section 2. Academy’s Angel
Marilyn Launer. When she was young, her nickname was Ginger, and her hair was scarlet red in color.
Marilyn was a child who had freckles when she was young and had no merit in appearance other than being cute. But as she grew older, her freckles disappeared, and she became pretty.
The problem was that Marilyn’s friend is not just anyone else; it was Lariensa.
If Marilyn had a decent appearance, then Lariensa was certainly a fraud.
She had golden hair as if it were gold threads hanging on her head, and her eyes were blue like the sea.
Even if Marilyn has a pretty good appearance, she would be discouraged if she went around with a friend who has a goddess-like beauty.
“Lara.”
“Hmm?”
Lariensa, who tied my hair in front of the mirror, raised her head and made eye contact with me through the mirror.
Today was the day Lariensa’s family and my family decided to hold a party to celebrate our admission to the academy. Lariensa was now tying my hair up.
“How do I look?”
“You’re beautiful.”
“Really?”
It may be natural for Lariensa to respond like that because she loves Marilyn so much, but objectively speaking, Marilyn did not look bad. It wasn’t as beautiful as a real beauty, but it was already good as a young girl.
Nevertheless, Marilyn, who has always been compared to others, was pitiful.
“I especially like your eyes, Marin.”
Listening to Lariensa’s words, I looked into the mirror. Marilyn’s eyes were light green.
“It’s like a fresh leaf on a tree during summer.”
She’s not the heroine for no reason. Lariensa naturally said that embarrassing remark that I would never ever say.
“There will certainly be a lot of guys who’ll like you in the academy.”
“It’s not me, it’s you…”
The problem is that all the boys are scumbags…
No. They are not merely scumbags, they are despicable! Trash!
“Lara, what if there’s a guy who will like you when we enter the academy, would you date him?”
I thought she was interested in something like that, but unexpectedly Lariensa shook her head.
“I’m not going to date someone until I graduate.”
“But isn’t it a waste? School couples are everyone’s dreams.”
I glanced at Lariensa. In fact, if she wouldn’t date, I would be glad about it.
When Lariensa entered the academy, she was constantly dragged around by the male lead, and in the end, she fell in love with him in a disordered state… though I would be crazy if I called it love.
Let’s make sure Lara doesn’t bump into the male lead first. But can I do it myself? We’re inside a novel, and the two are fated to meet each other. And it’s not like I can hide her beauty.
“What’s the matter, Marin?”
Struggling alone thinking about what to do, I returned to reality when Lariensa called me.
“Ta-da! Isn’t it pretty?”
My hair seemed to have been tied up completely while I was thinking for a moment.
“Woah－”
Looking at the mirror, I admired Lariensa’s flamboyant dexterity. She braided my hair splendidly and tied it in a circle, which made it look like a princess in a fairy tale.
“I just need to put on a crown, and it’ll be perfect.”
“That’s right because you are pretty like a princess.”
I mean, it’s just my hairstyle that was like a princess, but somehow it turned out to be a self-praise…
“Lara, promise me one thing.”
“What is it?”
“First of all, promise me that you’ll keep this promise.”
Lariensa nodded candidly, not knowing what I would say.
“Stay away from people that I don’t want you to get close to. If they talk to you, ignore them and run away when they get close. Okay?”
Lariensa nodded again this time, but that carefree response was somewhat worrying.
“You shouldn’t answer without much thought. It’s a promise you have to keep under any circumstances. Do you understand?”
“I understand.”
“Don’t just say it.”
“I mean it.”
Lariensa held my hand tight.
“Because you don’t like those people that you want me to stay away from them, right?”
“That’s right.”
“Then I also don’t like them.”
“I know what kind of people I’ll tell you to stay away from.”
“Anyways, if we stay away from those people, we’ll never know what kind of people they are.”
It was unusually a cool answer from Lariensa. But it was certainly true. I nodded my head, still having a bewildered look on my face.
“That’s… that’s true.”
“So you can rest assured, Marin. I’ve been listening to you for a long time.”
As I was anxious, Lariensa gave me confidence.