Chapter 23 – Beginning

“Hey! I dumped him.”

“That’s the same thing.
Anyway, I won’t let him get away with this.
Do you want me to beat him up? Although there’s some distance from the Knight’s Camp to the Internal Affairs Department, I can still go and pulverize him,” said Chelleno.

I bit my lip.
Beating him up would definitely make me feel better, but I didn’t want to be involved with Kyles anymore.
Kyles was an imperfection in my life.
“No, don’t do it.
I don’t want to deal with him anymore.
It’s unpleasant to get involved with a man who’s not in my league.”

Chelleno then looked happily at me.
Lumi and Jianne also looked at me eagerly.
What’s wrong with them?

“A quick recovery! Just like our Marina! We three all admire you, and that’s why we have a good relationship with each other like this,” said Chelleno.

‘That’s right,’ I thought.
The three of them lost their mother when they were young.
Because their father was busy with his work as a knight, they had to grow up under the care of a housemaid.
As such, they grew to be arrogant and did whatever they wanted.
When they were young, they used to bully Harris and tried to do the same to me.
I had to teach them one by one, and soon they became like puppies to me.

“Oh, oh.
Brother, I met Elise while I was out today,” said Lumi.

Chelleno and Jianne frowned.
It was a very different sight compared to Kyles, who used to look mesmerized whenever he spoke of Elise.

“Hey! Don’t tell me you let her go.
You monster should’ve- ARGH!”

It seemed Lumi had stepped on her twin brother’s foot by mistake when she heard his voice.
Chelleno looked at it, became pale, and drank a cup of tea.
Lumi laughed and began to chatter to me.

“Marina, don’t tell me you’re going to let her get away with this.
I’m so looking forward to showing her what’s up.
I never liked her anyway.
It’ll be so fun to watch you beat that sly b**ch up.
Hehehe,” commented Lumi.

Jianne, who was in pain from being stepped on by Lumi, also spoke eagerly, “Honestly, I never thought she was pretty.
Marina is much prettier than her in my eyes.”

Don’t say that.
I once spoke ill of her appearance out of hatred and anger.
I was at a complete loss even back then.
Thinking of it made me compare myself to her in terms of beauty.
How can I compete with silver hair that looked like it had been blessed by god or aquamarine-colored watery eyes? Compared to the angel-like Elise, my dark brown hair with a faint hint of red was too common.
All I had that could even barely compete against her was ruby-like eyes that everyone complimented that they were beautiful.

What about the other facial features? Elise looks innocent and pure.
It’s what makes others feel the need to protect her, which has gotten her a lot of followers.
What about me? Raised eyes with a face that looks full of complaints and annoyance.
That’s me.

When I was in the Academy, I always heard that I looked frightening and angry.
Even my red eyes, the only thing I had that was beautiful, only worked to make me look even scarier.
My friends- well, they were the type to befriend a loner like me, a kind… No.
They weren’t kind.
Anyway, they were unique and praised me for my beauty.
In reality, the two of them were just as beautiful as Elise.

Yeah.
In terms of beauty, I can’t even compare myself to Elise.
Compared to her, I’m… not as gorgeous.
That’s why that damn Kyles cheated on me! Brute! I never want to see him ever again. 

While I was in the middle of thinking about my self-hatred, I heard Chelleno’s foolish voice.
“Marin’s much prettier and classier.
That Schuteiner lady looks dumb, you know.”

“Hey… Are your eyes only accessories?” 

Lumi replied to my astonished response to Chelleno’s words, “Oh, actually, he’s the only man who didn’t fall for that woman’s flirting!”

“Flirting?” I asked.

“Yeah! That b**ch Schuteiner suddenly came to him and invited him over to her tea party.
But wow, my brother turned her down coldly! Because he’s- Ngh.”

Lumi’s speech was interrupted by Chelleno, who covered her mouth.
She glared at him, and Chelleno flinched but still had his hands over her mouth.
Then he added, “Don’t mind what she was going to say.
I just did it because that Schuteiner lady wasn’t my type.
To me, you are the most beautiful woman in the world.”