A Summer With Bitter Rivals - Chapter 6

Chapter 6: The Storm

Emeline’s mind went cold as soon as she heard his words.

“…Are you suggesting we talk about the cheating you’ve committed?”

Zenon’s eyebrows shot up at her accusation.

Emeline carefully observed the change in his expression. His annoyingly attractive face seemed blessed with an abundance of expressions.

“No. I haven’t cheated, so that’s quite misleading,” he replied with disdain. He had been questioned endlessly all day, and he was sick of it.

Hearing his irritated tone, Emeline felt a peculiar sharpness growing within her.

“So, you’re saying you’re innocent?”

“Yes.”

“That’s hard to believe. Considering your past behavior, it’s more like a baseless claim.”

“My behavior? What’s that got to do with anything?”

“Lord Trancium, you’ve skipped classes almost every day. On top of that, you missed so many days and scored so poorly that you ended up repeating the year twice. That’s why we’re in the same grade.”

“Hmm…”

“Not to mention, during the last Gaulish exam, you didn’t even rank among the top scorers. Everyone knows you were at the bottom of the class.”

Just a few months ago, the disciplinary committee had posted a large warning about his grades on the bulletin board for all to see.

Zenon listened to Emeline’s words, tilting his head thoughtfully. “Ah… I see.”

“See? What do you mean, ‘see’?”

“I’m honestly curious. Lady Delzeier, do you think my behavior has anything to do with my grades?”

“…Isn’t that obvious?”

Emeline was growing irritated with his repetitive questioning.

Zenon stared at her, almost rudely, before finally speaking, “That’s a bit disappointing. I always thought you were particularly intelligent, always coming in first. But it seems you were overtaken by me just once, and your thinking is quite narrow.”

“What did you just say?”

Emeline was momentarily lost for words at his remark. His gaze showed genuine disappointment, and his words were an unmistakable insult. Deeply hurt, Emeline snapped back, but before she could say more, Zenon interrupted her.

“Think about it. I barely ever came to school, so do you think I went in just for the exams?”

“…I’m sure the school notified you about the exams.”

“Have you ever seen me on exam day? Even once?”

“……”

“See? The reason I used to be at the bottom was because I didn’t take the exams. It wasn’t because I was too stupid and failed them.”

“Even if that’s the case, it doesn’t explain how you suddenly took first place.”

“Maybe I’m a hidden genius. Lady Delzeier, can’t you consider that possibility?”

“…A genius? You?”

Emeline couldn’t help but scoff. Did he think taking first place was easy? At least with his ridiculous behavior, it seemed impossible. Listening to his nonsense, Emeline began to feel that this conversation was pointless.

It was absurd. She had agreed to talk, expecting some kind of explanation, but instead, he was claiming to be some unpolished gem.

‘If he didn’t cheat, he should at least provide a valid reason.’

In her mind, his dishonesty was already set in stone.

Despite his unique first impression, he was turning out to be just as she had expected—a delinquent. Speaking informally and acting all arrogant with someone he barely knew.

‘If I waste any more time here, Father will truly be angry.’

Emeline swallowed her rising anger and spoke calmly, “Prove it. Only then will I believe you didn’t cheat. Otherwise, stop wasting my time…”

“[Shall I?]”

He grinned as he spoke, and at that moment, Emeline froze.

The words that came out of his mouth were pronounced with flawless Gaulish intonation and emphasis.

The language of the exam Zenon Trancium had taken first place in.

Gaulish was inherently complex, with numerous transformations that most people found challenging. That was why Emeline had been certain he was lying.

She stared at him, disbelief flooding her mind. Zenon chuckled. 

“[Lady Delzeier, it seems you judged me based on rumors, but you should let go of your biases.]”

Again, he spoke in fluent Gaulish.

Earlier, his reply had been brief, so she had dismissed it, but this time, even Emeline was taken aback. It was a difficult language for her too, but his skill was flawless.

“[The reason I let you take first place all this time was because I wasn’t interested in academics. Thanks to my consideration, you were able to proudly come in first.]”

He smiled brightly.

Emeline, busy processing his words, suddenly felt outrage.

‘Let me take first place? Because you weren’t interested… consideration?’

Watching Emeline’s face twist in disbelief, Zenon shrugged. He spoke again, this time reverting to their native language.

“From now on, you’ll be second. Why don’t you work hard and use me as a stepping stone to improve your studies?”

“Excuse me, what?”

Unable to suppress her mounting indignation, Emeline glared at him. Her fists clenched involuntarily.

“…There’s no guarantee you’ll come in first for the next exam.”

“Well, there’s no law saying I have to, either.”

“Then don’t be so arrogant. Gloating over a single achievement is disgusting,” Emeline hissed through gritted teeth, giving him a sharp warning.

Zenon let out a soft laugh.

‘Laughing?’

Her brow furrowed in frustration.

Zenon spoke with a hint of mockery in his voice, “You seem to be the one making a spectacle of yourself. At least from my perspective.”

Then, with a suddenly innocent expression, he extended his hand toward her. “I’ve decided to attend school diligently from now on. It seems we’ll be seeing each other often, so let’s get along.”

Emeline’s eyes fell to his hand, then slowly moved back up to his face, glaring at Zenon Trancium. She clenched her teeth and walked right past him.

‘Get along?’

How arrogant and rude.

Emeline acknowledged that she was at fault for confronting him, but she had no intention of shaking hands with him warmly. Zenon Trancium’s audacious attitude left her speechless. She had never felt so humiliated, not even when her father showed no interest in her grades.

But now, after receiving Zenon Trancium’s derisive mockery, she felt a rage that she could hardly contain.

‘…I won’t let him take my place again.’

To her, being first was her only goal in life, a position she had fought to protect through countless lies.

Emeline breathed in her anger, vowing to put Zenon in his place.

***

“Recently, Lord Trancium has been attending school quite frequently, hasn’t he?”

“I thought I’d like to see his face properly at least once… But I can see why he has so many lovers. He’s incredibly handsome.”

‘Handsome? Who in the world?’

Emeline listened to her friends’ chatter, feeling displeased. She kept drinking tea, trying to quench her thirst.

“But isn’t it surprising? I thought he was just a delinquent, but he’s so good at studying. They said the results caused such a stir that they made him retake the exam multiple times, and he got perfect scores each time.”

“Oh my, so he really is a genius… Lady Delzeier?” One of the excited young ladies noticed Emeline getting up from her seat.

“Oh… Well, no matter how good he is at studying, he can’t be better than Lady Delzeier, right?” Angel, who had been watching Emeline closely, quickly jumped in to defend her.

There was no need for any defense. For them, academics were still a domain monopolized by men, so their admiration was genuine. They weren’t praising Zenon Trancium just to upset Emeline, who had been outranked.

Emeline smiled quietly. “Thank you, Lady Laresa. But there’s no need to worry about me. I just wanted to take a walk. And… it’s true that I was outperformed by him.”

“Lady Delzeier, should I accompany you on your walk…?”

“No, Lady Laresa. You mentioned your shoes were uncomfortable today. I’ll be fine on my own.” Emeline politely but firmly declined.

The young ladies enjoying afternoon tea exchanged glances. Their unease was palpable, so Emeline softened her tone further to reassure them.

“I’m really fine. The conversation was quite enjoyable. I’ll just take a short walk and come back.”

“Alright then, take care, Lady Delzeier.”

Only then did their tense expressions relax. Emeline gave them a slight nod and turned away.

‘…Exhausting.’

Having everyone watch her and try to appease her feelings was just as unbearable as having to fawn over someone else. After walking a bit, Emeline stopped and closed her eyes tightly.

She had been studying late into the night with a lamp on recently, and fatigue was catching up to her. But even so, Emeline was still in second place. After her first encounter with Zenon Trancium, she had taken three more exams. Despite them being in different subjects, she had lost first place to him every time.

What could it be?

Who exactly was this man that he was so superior?

What was she lacking?

“You seem deep in thought, Lady Delzeier.”

A voice suddenly broke through her thoughts, startling Emeline. She opened her eyes quickly and looked around. A little distance away, on a bench in the circular garden, sat a man. He met her wide-eyed gaze, then let out a breath, smiling.

White cigar smoke curled up into the air, briefly blurring his handsome face before coming back into focus.