Chapter 245
“But Rose, were you close with Lord Daniel? I don’t think I’ve ever seen you two talking in the Guide Division… Oh, wait. Wasn’t it Lord Daniel who saved you when you almost got hurt in the auditorium before?”
“…”
“And now that I think about it, Lord Daniel also chose you during that s-x education session… At the time, I thought he was just being kind because you were sitting there alone.”
“…”
“Oh, and I’ve heard that you two have even eaten together in the cafeteria…”
“It wasn’t just the two of us—there were three of us…”
I replied sharply. Epine looked at me as if this was a very astonishing fact.
I was just as flustered.
Daniel likes me? Since when?
Even when I was just an ordinary person trailing behind Claude, Daniel had always been kind to me. He would buy me delicious food. He stood up to Claude, whom he respected so much, for my sake, and he was willing to endure being ostracized by other Espers because of it.
I did wonder why he would do so much for me. It was excessive kindness for an ordinary person from any Esper.
But he didn’t know I was a guide at that time. It seemed unlikely that someone as popular as Daniel would have liked me, an ordinary office worker, from the beginning.
Could it have been when he witnessed my outburst and stayed by my side? Or when we had meals together?
When I accidentally guided him and he discovered I wasn’t marked? When I guided him as he cried in pain from his guiding allergy?
…No matter how much I thought about it, pinpointing the exact moment his attitude toward me changed was difficult. He had always been consistently kind.
I couldn’t tell. But I had a bad feeling. This might not just blow over as simple gossip.
So as soon as class ended, I grabbed Epine’s hand and hurriedly left the auditorium…
“…Miss Rose.”
A voice I didn’t want to hear came from right behind me. I turned around in surprise to see Daniel hastily following us.
The first emotion I felt was discomfort.
“About earlier, I really…”
“Oh, there’s no need for explanations. Or apologies.”
I cut Daniel off.
“I know it wasn’t your fault. It was the Guides who teased you.”
“Oh…”
“Can I go now?”
All I wanted was to leave this uncomfortable situation.
What if this had happened before I met Claude? Maybe I would have been more excited than Epine, hoping to become the protagonist of a romance story.
Maybe I would have eagerly anticipated the end of class, hoping he would follow me and confess his love romantically.
But now I had Claude, and everyone at the Center knew we had imprinted on each other.
Yet Daniel suddenly seemed to have feelings for me, and the Guides in the class saw it all.
I could already imagine how much the gossip-loving Guides would talk about me and Daniel.
Although he put me in an awkward position, Daniel was a good person, and his actions were not malicious. So, even though I had to be firm, it didn’t make me feel any better.
But it was time to be resolute.
“Lady Rose…”
“I’m really flustered by this situation.”
“I understand. Really, it will only take a moment.”
Daniel pleaded, showing no sign of backing down.
I groaned and glanced at Epine beside me.
Suddenly, I linked my arm with Epine’s. Epine looked down at me in surprise.
“Then, say it in front of Miss Epine!”
“Ah…”
“I really want to avoid any further misunderstandings. If you have something to say, do it with a third party present who can act as a witness in case anything happens!”
I decided to use a strategy I once used during college when a creepy senior would say, ‘You look drunk, want to come out for some ice cream?’
If you didn’t reject them outright, rumors would spread the next day saying, ‘Those two are dating.’ But it was awkward to reject them in front of everyone.
In such cases, you grab your friend’s arm and say, ‘Sure! My friend can come too, right?’
This clearly shows you’re not interested while preventing any gossip.
Daniel glanced at Epine. He seemed to want to talk alone but realized he had no choice since I was so adamant.
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