âI donât understand. You said youâll go to the comfort room. Did you know how long we were looking for you? And why did you throw your jacket at a random person out of nowhere?â
When we were now out of Sibelâs sight, I was fiercely scolded by Lycan.
âBrother. Marin always gets lost easily.â
âYou donât need to defend your best friend, Lariensa.â
âIâm not lying. Itâs the truth. Ever since she hurt her head, she gets lost in our village everyday.â
When Lariensa explained it to Lycan, he then looked at me, trying to determine if what she was saying was the truth.
I had no choice but to admit it.
ââŚThatâs right. I always get lost in the village ever since I hurt my head. Iâm sure you donât know about it because you only care for your sister, and not me, whoâs your sisterâs friend.â
I stealthily tried to be sarcastic with Lycan. He was obviously flustered by it that he immediately turned his head away.
âBut, Marin. I understand that you were lost, but why did you do that earlier?â
Lycanâs nagging was over, and this time, it was now Lariensaâs turn.
âIt wasnât like you. I know you wonât do something out of sort without reason.â
âThatâsâŚâ
Yeah. You know what, Lara. That Sibel guy would fall in love with you. With your kind and beautiful heart. Then youâll be imprisoned by him at the academy, and not only that, youâll be **** and ****, then be ******! Also ****! Heâll do all those things to you! Thatâs why I just wanted to protect you from him!
Argh, what should I do? I have read the novel! I may not have finished it, but Iâve already read the part where you suffer from a mental breakdown.
And also, Iâm not really your friend Marilyn! I donât know where the real Marilyn has gone to, but I came from another world and just possessed this body!
Do you get it? Understand?
âŚand that was something I could never tell her.
âI guess, I might have turned crazy for a moment thereâŚâ
I lowered my head down. There was no proper excuse to make, even if I wanted to create one.
âLooking at his uniform, I think he also goes to the same academy as us. What are you going to do if you run into him?â
âWell, Iâll just apologize to him about it.â
I wouldnât really be sorry to him if I apologized though.
âLariensa, Marilyn. Start changing into your uniforms now. Weâll be late if we donât hurry now.â
Lycan pressed on us as he checked his watch. After changing into our school uniforms, we entered the academy together in a carriage.
âI wonât be able to go to the entrance ceremony with you guys.â
âItâs okay, brother. Weâre not kids anymore, so thereâs no need to worry about us.â
Lariensa had said so. Lycan glanced at his sister, yet I can also his piercing gaze at me.
âLariensa.â
âYes?â
âTake care of Marilyn Launer. If she ever gets lost again, things might get complicated.â
He looked at me as if I were a burden.
âDonât worry, brother. Iâll take care of Marin properly.â
Lariensa replied with a determined look. Being treated like a child made me utterly dispirited.
Lara. Thatâs because you donât know anything about whatâs going to happen to you. I was just protecting you from harm, you know?
But none of these people recognize the injustice they did to me.
Lariensa and I held hands as we finally went to the entrance ceremony.
And there, we met âhimâ again.
âGoodness, look there!â
âWhoâs that guy?â
âHeâs so handsomeâŚâ
Indeed, this was a situation that can only happen in novels.
As soon as the male lead appeared, every male and female student turned their eyes on him.
Including me.
Sibelâs appearance was dazzling enough for a halo to appear around him, even though I knew he was just some nasty guy.
As everyone who attended the entrance ceremony turned their eyes towards Sibel, his eyes met mine. But soon turned away as if he was not interested, and sat down quite far from where Lariensa and I were sitting.
There were ten students sitting between Sibel, Lariensa, and I. For some reason, we were sitting on the same row.
I took a glance at Lariensaâs expression. As expected, Lariensaâs really the heroine. While everyoneâs attention was focused on the male lead, she did not even bat an eye on him.
I also didnât bother bringing up Sibel to Lariensa. It was rather fortunate for me that she doesnât even pay attention to him.
âMarin, where do you keep looking at?â
âNothing. I just couldnât concentrate on the program.â
âYouâre bored, arenât you?â
âA littleâŚâ
The principal came up to the podium and delivered his speechâŚ
It doesnât have much to do with the rules of the academy or something I had to be aware of, so I just let it pass on my ear then out on the other.
âLara, stop holding my hands.â
âMarinâs hands are so soft that I want to keep touching them.â
Lariensa took my hand for no reason and just kept on holding it. Later on, I just went along with her and also played with my hands.
And for the entire duration of the entrance ceremony, we just played around.
I might seem playful on the outside, but actually, I was very busy! I had to sneak a peek to where Sibel was sitting every now and then while playing with Lariensa.
HoweverâŚ
Why do I keep making eye contact with him every time I steal a glance?!
âŚIs that it? I tried to delay their meeting as written in the novel, but that Sibel guy seems to have his sights on my Lariensa already.
Eventually, I couldnât stand it anymore and looked at Sibel. He was also now looking at us intently. Not a shred of embarrassment was seen on his face as he continues to stare at my friend.
Far from being embarrassed⌠it seems that he has been watching us for a long time.
âMarin, where are you looking at this time?â
While I was briefly distracted by Sibel, Lariensa followed my gaze and turned around. I tried to stop her, but it was already too late.
âHuh? That personâŚâ
ââŚâŚâ
âThatâs the guy whom you threw your jacket at, right?â
I tried to delay their meeting even though he has his sights on her alreadyâŚ
Iâm screwed. Iâm totally screwed!
ďź ďź ďź
After the entrance ceremony, I was troubled because we were then assigned to our classrooms. I already knew what was going to happen in advance because I read the novel, but I still wanted for a miracle to happen. However, nothing of such sort happened.
Lariensa and I were in the same class, which was good so far. But the problem is that Sibel guy is also in the same class as us!
Fortunately, when he entered the classroom, he pretended not to know us, but Iâm still worried.
âIt must be our destiny to be classmates and also roommates in the dormitory at the same time!â
As I was filled with worries about Sibel, I couldnât even hold a proper conversation with her as she began to appreciate the dormâs ambiance.
âLara, remember the promise you made with me before?â
âThat promise where you told me to stay away from people you donât want me to get close to?â
ââŚâŚâ
âAnd also to ignore them if they talk to me, and run away if they approach me.â
Although I knew that Lariensa liked Marilyn very much, I didnât think she would remember the promise so accurately.
âWhy? Is there someone I should avoid?â
Yes, there is. Sibel, that very nasty guy.
âSiâŚâ
I was about to say Sibelâs name when suddenly this thought struck me.
âWould it be a good idea to advise Lariensa to avoid Sibel?â
Isnât it already written in the novel? Like he would thinkâŚ
Youâre the first girl to treat me like this!
âŚbecause Lariensa would deliberately avoid him and that everything is already predetermined by the author?
One evidence is that Lycan was now becoming more âfriendlyâ with me than before because I was rude towards him. But this kind of friendship is a bit problematic though.
Anyways, if Lariensa would start avoiding SibelâŚ
Wouldnât it make Sibel wary of her actions?
âMarin? Were you about to say something?â
ââŚItâs nothing. I just wanted to test if you still remember the promise you made with me.â
âHow mean. I remember everything you said to me.â
âYou shouldnât just remember it. You should actually keep your promise.â
âIâm confident that I can keep any promises I made with you.â
When Lariensa said it like that, I was relieved.
âThen, thatâs a relief.â
Alright. If Lariensa would continue to avoid and not pay attention to Sibel as she does right now, Sibel would also not gain any interest in her.
Sibel wasnât interested in Lariensa in the first place either.
Although he was interested in her appearance to a certain extent, it was only a passing interest. But since they are both the main characters of the novel, they would always bump into each other, whether on big important or small trivial events. Through these events, Sibel gradually became strongly attracted to Lariensa.
Eventually, in the novel, Lariensa found some kind of secret of Sibel and kept an eye on him in good faith.
Despite learning some of his disgraceful secrets, she still thinks of him as a good and kind character.
It continues with Sibel developing his love for Lariensa, and then gradually becoming interested in her (or obsessed in my perspective).
I donât really want to think about what would happen after that.
I enjoyed reading the novel, but it never fully sank to me how the people around me right now, especially my best friend, would go through all these things.
The mere thought of it was just terrible.
âAnd you know Iâm bad with directions, right? If you leave me alone, youâll never know when, where, or how Iâll get lost, so never leave me alone. Wherever and whenever you go, make sure you take me with you, okay?â
Despite my brazen request, Lariensa smiled brightly and nodded.
âI will.â
The obedient Lariensa was so pretty that I hugged her and rubbed her cheeks wildly. Hearing her laugh like a child, I regained my composure.
Itâs okay. Iâll let you enjoy the normal academy life you wanted!
And in order for that to happenâŚ
Chapter 1 â Do not let the hero and heroine meet!
ďź ďź ďź
My efforts to protect Lariensa were a tearful. During recess, I would immediately take her out of the room. Also, if I happen to see Sibel on the hallways, I would quickly grab her hand and run away.
However⌠As if mocking my efforts, Sibel seems to show no interest in her. I havenât even made eye contact with him ever since the entrance ceremony.
Maybe thatâs why I unwittingly let my guard down on that day of all the days.
âYou two look inseparable ever since the start of classes. Have you been friends since childhood?â
During lunchtime, Lariensa and I were eating our lunch near the fountain with an angel statue. We are eating together with our new friends Emily, Violet, and Natalie.
âOf course! We are so close that we even know the number of spoons and forks we have in each othersâ houses.â
Emily, Violet, and Natalie became close inside the academy. Lariensa spoke enthusiastically about how close we are in front of them.
âMarilynâs parents like me, and my parents also treat her like their own daughter.â
âWow, really?â
âI am envious of you two. I wish I could also enter the academy with a close friend like youâŚâ
Lara, please stopâŚ
My face flushed in embarassment.
The children here were all docile and kind. If I were you, I wouldnât have askedâŚ
Still, it was a good thing. I was worried that Lariensa would only be stuck with me in the academy, but now itâs good that we are able to make friends with such nice kids.
It was all the more so because Marilyn was the only friend of Lariensa whose name was directly mentioned in the original work.
Everyone might love Lariensa, but not many were close to her.
I looked at these friends who looked gentle, hoping that none of them would go through that predictable storyline where someone will turn black and become a villain.
âGuys. What do you expect the most of your life here at the academy?â
Each one of them had their own unique answers showing their personality.
âI would secretly sneak out at bedtime and then explore the academy!â
First, Emily was the adventurous type.
âI want to graduate as the top student. I wonât accept becoming the second seat. Then after graduating with the best grades, I will get a job at the royal palace.â
Violet was a smart and ambitious friend. However, the problem is her grades arenât cooperating with herâŚ
âI want to have a happy academy life with Marin! Walk around with Marin, then eat together with Marin, andâŚâ
Iâll just skip on Lariensa.
âI want to date.â
I was wondering why âdatingâ didnât come out as an answer earlier.
âOur parents arenât here to interfere with us, and this is also a place where both young women and men are gathered⌠isnât that obvious?â
Natalie spoke haughtily while folding her arms. All of them looked up to Natalie. Natalie, who has the same mental age as me, seemed to look mature.
âThen Marilyn, what about you?â
âIâŚâ
âYou also want to date, right?â
Natalie perfectly guessed my answer. Well, honestly, Iâm old enough in my past life to be interested in dating, but unfortunately, my answer is,
âNo.â
âLiar!â
âThatâs impossible!â
âArenât you flirting with Sibel?â
âHuuk!â
I choked up on the water I was drinking. What?! Flirt?! There is actually a word for âflirtâ in this world?! And where did that even come from?!
[T/N: They used the word ě¸(sseom) in here which is short for something between a man and a woman. I just directly translated it to âflirtâ.]