Part 3. Garen
At some point, Garen Wilbreed burrowed into this world.
Blending in as someone's child wasn't that difficult. It was something he had repeated time and time again, boring and tedious.
At the same time, it was not a bad game despite that.
The difficult part was simply the effort of matching the pace of growth to a similar feeling by adjusting to the changes of others.
He entered a school commonly referred to as an academy and stepped once again into a boring and clichéd world.
Garen knew very well what position he had to take to live a smooth and well-rounded life without making enemies.
Friendly, familiar, and affectionate.
It wasn't difficult.
Discovering a new side of humanity from time to time amidst a boring daily routine was at least one of the pleasures.
Although very rarely, he occasionally met someone he liked, so he often continued this tedious game.
And Garen Wilbreed remembered.
The frank and straightforward girl he met at that academy, who was quite impulsive yet acted as she pleased.
"Ah. Hello. Young Master Walbreed."
"...Ah. What a fine afternoon."
A girl a couple of years younger than the shell he was wearing, who was expressing with her whole body that she was so happy she didn't know what to do with herself.
'Did I see her at the debutante ball?'
Garen Wilbreed remembered her family and soon smiled and opened his mouth.
"Lady Hyde."
"Ah...! Yes. My name is Selena Hyde. Um, I met you in a liberal arts class the other day... If you are going, may I come along...?"
It wasn't difficult to notice that this human woman in her prime, who was speaking to him while extremely nervous, was attracted to him.
He didn't have any particular thoughts about it. After all, Garen Wilbreed wasn't exactly a bad prospective husband.
The Marquis had decent grades at the academy, a pleasant personality, was neither arrogant nor rude, and was quick-witted, so it was no surprise that the opposite sex of that age showed interest in him.
"You may do as you please."
As he said, he had no particular thoughts.
Around this time, it was no longer a given that young ladies and sons of noble families were attending the academy and developing feelings for each other.
"Um... I, I like you."
So, Garen Wilbreed wasn't very surprised when he received the confession.
That’s understandable, since it wasn’t the first time this had happened.
"I'm sorry. I don't think of Lady Hyde that way."
And he also knew how to refuse it firmly with a smiling face.
Usually, if you refuse like this, they don't say it twice.
There were many times when they were so ashamed that they would badmouth you behind your back, run away, or never see your face again, but...
There was nothing to regret.
Aside from her honest and straightforward personality that couldn't hide her emotions, and the fact that they surprisingly clicked, there was nothing particularly new about them.
"Right...? I kind of expected it. After all, I'm not exactly better than Young Master Willbreed."
"It's not really..."
"I'll confess next time when I become a slightly better woman!"
So that was a little new.
The way she speaks with an awkward smile, instead of crying, screaming, resenting, or turning away to run away.
Even though tears streamed down the cheeks of the woman who turned and walked away quickly, those reckless words remained in his memory.
Even after that, she approached Wilbreed as always, as if she had never confessed, and took classes with him.
With an expression so plain that sometimes he wanted to ask if what was confessed was real.
They often ate together and sometimes took classes together, but she didn't make him feel burdened like other women did.
Things like bringing him a bouquet of flowers, or demanding as much affection as she arbitrarily poured out on him.
So, Wilbreed thought it was a relief that the other person had given up, which is rare.
However, one day as she moved up a grade, she stood before him again with a smiling face.
"Young Master Wilbreed! I actually made it into the top 10 on this exam!"
"Oh, congratulations. Your hard work paid off."
"...I like you. Young Master Wilbreed, won't you get engaged to me? You can just come as you are...!”
"...Don't you think the confession is a bit out of the blue? We were just on our way to lunch."
"I targeted the weak point where anyone would let their guard down."
"I am sorry, but my answer is the same. I am not a person capable of liking anyone. Nor am I worthy of receiving your love."
His answer was not much different from usual.
It was a rejection.
It was only natural. She was comfortable and easy to talk to—she could be said to be the most comfortable person of the opposite sex he had ever met—but that didn't mean it was love.
From the start, he didn't really understand such vague emotions as affection or love.
Just because of that, why wouldn't he have tried marriage while moving around here and there for such a long time?
However, the marriage did not last very long. It usually ended in disaster.
The problem was all his.
Garen Wilbreed was not a person interested in such boring things as affection or love.
Rather, it was slaughter or battles of wits. It was a being that sought a little more stimulation, like an interesting human.
There is no way he would ever fall in love with a human in the first place.
Is there a human who falls in love with ants?
Even if he fell in love with an ant, it would feel like raising a pet. It could never have been sincere.
Garen Wilbreed does not want to end a relationship with someone he doesn't dislike under such a trivial name.
When was the next confession?
It was the day of his graduation ceremony, a year later.
Even after being rejected, their relationship did not change.
Because both she and he had returned to their ordinary lives as if the confession had never happened.
But just when he was about to forget, she confessed again. As she handed him a large bouquet of flowers as a graduation gift...
"Congratulations on your graduation, Young Master Walbreed."
"You still won't call me senior."
"I don't want to call the person I like 'senior.' So, I was wondering, if you don't want to date or get engaged, how about we get married?"
"...Oh dear, I thought the confession was over."
"There's no way it will end. Giving up is the thing I hate most in the world. I have to do my best. They say that's what a confession is."
By that time, he was speechless at how triumphant she was.
Holding a large rose in her arms, the man gazed at the bouquet for a moment, then smiled and spoke.
"Thank you for the congratulations on my graduation. However... you are too good for me. As I said, marrying me would only make you unhappy. And eventually, you would regret it. I am quite happy with our current relationship. I am rejecting your confession today for your happiness. Thank you for your kindness."
He thought he gave a long-winded refusal filled with sincerity, which was uncharacteristic of him.
As if she understood, she did not confess the following year.
Of course, they exchanged letters during that time as well.
They only occasionally exchanged letters asking about each other's well-being that were practically devoid of substance.
He thought she had given up.
That is, if it weren't for the rather elaborate proposal he received at the graduation ceremony, where he went to return the congratulations he had received from her.
"Young Master Wilbreed! Please marry me. I will do my utmost to ensure you don't have to worry about the housework, and I will try my best to keep you from lifting a finger!!"
It was a truly shocking confession, presenting a diploma stating that she had come in second place, along with a ring.
So much so that Garen Wilbreed, who was holding out a flower, froze.
On that day, it took him quite a long time to find the words to refuse.
It was similar even after making his debut in high society.
Due to his position, Garen Wilbreed had to attend almost every banquet, and she attended every place he went.
From a certain day on, he received a confession every time they met.
"Congratulations on becoming a Marquis. Shall we get married while we're at it?"
"Could you please not make a confession sound like a request for a drink? I’ll refuse as always."
It was a confession and rejection that had now become natural.
He wondered how many confessions he received.
Even after wandering the world for such a long time, Garen Wilbreed had never received such a persistent barrage of affection.
They were now a hot potato in high society.
When will Garen Wilbreed accept Lady Hyde's confession?
Lady Hyde was also receiving quite a few marriage proposals, and although Garen Wilbreed was receiving just as many, the two of them rejected all of them.
So many years passed.
It was around the time when both of them were just reaching the tail end of their marriageable age.
"...It's a good evening, Marquis."
Having shed their youthful and naive teenage appearances, they had become quite mature young men.
She met him when she was thirteen. She graduated at sixteen, and she turned twenty-one.
"Did you come to confess again? You never get tired of me."
"It's strange to get tired of someone you like."
She leaned against the terrace railing, looked at the sky, and opened her mouth with a smile.
"I have come today to make my final confession. My father told me that it can't be any more and that this year is the last. So, today is the last time I will bother you, Marquis."
“...I see.”
What were you thinking?
Did you think you were finally being freed?
Or perhaps, was he surprised to see the tears filling her eyes, as she had never once cried in front of him?
" I like you, Marquis."
"..."
Or perhaps, because it was irritating and unpleasant, he was swept away by a rare wave of emotion.
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