Anything But Study - Chapter 3

A hollow noble title meant nothing.

Rather, if she hadn’t been a noble, if she had remained in the orphanage, she wouldn’t have been forced into the position of becoming the second wife of some old noble.

She wouldn’t have ended up sitting under a mountain of debt she didn’t even understand.

No, perhaps in that case she wouldn’t even have had the chance to cure Ervan.

As complicated emotions filled Melia’s eyes, Ervan’s slowly opened.

“…Sister.”

“Ervan. You’re awake? How do you feel today?”

These were the only kinds of questions Melia could ask Ervan.

“I’m fine.”

A lie.

It was the answer she always heard, but Melia knew well that it was not the truth.

Ervan only ever said he was fine.

Even as his condition continued to deteriorate little by little.

Melia could tell. That Ervan’s rough breathing lately was not normal.

That was why she couldn’t help but agonize even more

As things stood, the only way to pay off the debt and treat Ervan was to be sold into the marriage her uncle proposed.

Perhaps he could read her worries. Forcing the corners of his lips into a powerless smile, Ervan said, “Sister, I don’t know exactly what Uncle said. But you don’t need to sacrifice yourself for me.”

Melia bit her lower lip. She couldn’t answer.

If she opened her mouth, tears would burst out again.

And what Ervan said was what she had wanted to hear most of all.

Who would want to be sold into the bed of a noble more than twice her age?

‘Yes. Couldn’t I endure a little longer?’

At least until she graduated.

The promissory note said the repayment period was until this year, but under imperial law, if one was a student, the repayment could be postponed until graduation.

Her uncle was pressing her by using Ervan’s health as an excuse to collect the money sooner, but as long as the law existed, she could resist until then.

The important thing was Ervan’s condition.

If his body could just endure a little longer, and if she could start working quickly after graduation…

Then she could pay the debt, cover his medical expenses, and perhaps things would be manageable.

If money began coming in somehow, maybe even her uncle would be better than he was now.

Melia brushed her hair over her burning cheek and smiled at Ervan. “Look at you, saying things like that. My little brother’s all grown up.”

She pushed down the surge of emotions and steadied herself.

Yes, when her uncle came back next week, she would refuse.

***

Erpen Academy was the most prestigious educational institution in the Empire.

Yet it was also a place where, no matter how talented, commoners had no right even to apply. It stood at the very peak of the class system.

However, even children of nobles with the lowest title of baron could enter, so every noble family with a lower title dreamed of admission to Erpen.

Graduating from Erpen Academy guaranteed a better life than before.

This was an undeniable truth.

[All Are Equal Under Learning and Inquiry]

Melia looked at the motto written at the entrance of the academy and let out a self-mocking laugh.

Who had ever said there was equality inside the academy?

It was nothing but an illusion.

The very condition that only nobles could enter was inequality from the start.

Whatever the founder’s original intent may have been, now this place was run under a thoroughly strict hierarchy.

Yes, outwardly it proclaimed equality among students, but in truth everyone paid attention to each other’s titles, bowed to backgrounds, and curried favor.

Already, students socialized only with those of equal standing, measuring and judging one another.

Even professors could not speak easily to the children of houses of marquess rank or higher.

‘Equality? There’s no such thing.’

But Melia couldn’t laugh it off entirely.

Because for her too, Erpen was no longer a goal but a means.

When she was a child, she had once dreamed of entering the academy purely out of passion for learning.

But now?

Now, her reason for studying at the academy had become a means to a better life.

To graduate from Erpen with top grades and find a slightly better job.

So that Ervan could eat something better, even for just a day, so that she could make him more comfortable.

That was why she worked day and night.

Since entering, Melia had never once lost the top spot.

‘That third-year top student.’

That was what people called her.

Even if they didn’t know her name, the fact that she had always been top of her year since enrollment had never changed.

But that was all.

Here, even if she was top academically, she was no different from the lowest class.

Because she was only the daughter of a poor, insignificant baron’s house.

No matter how outstanding her grades, she could never surpass the highborn nobles born to rule.

At best, she would end up serving as their aide, working under them.

And still, Melia struggled each day for that path.

‘Ah, I’m going to be late.’

Melia quickened her pace as she crossed the corridor.

Though there was still plenty of time before class started, unlike the other students, she alone looked busy.

Her destination was none other than the library.

She worked there as a library assistant.

An hour each morning and evening before class began.

With two hours of work each day, Melia earned 2,000 Erin a month.

Even though it was a fairly high wage for the hours, she was the only volunteer within the academy.

Noble children of high birth would never do such work, so why this position even existed was unclear…

‘But for me, it’s something to be grateful for.’

Thanks to it, she didn’t have to do other work.

By working in the library while studying at the same time, perhaps that was how she could maintain her current grades.

In any case, as she hurried her steps to avoid being late, she noticed a spot where people’s gazes were gathered.

‘Ah…’

There was a man there.

She could hear the whispering voices of nearby female students directed at him.

“Wow, it’s Hailon.”

“What’s he thinking about? He’s so handsome.”

He wasn’t doing anything special. Just standing beneath a tree, his face looked as though he was briefly lost in thought.

And yet his striking presence captured everyone’s attention.

Melia too knew very well who he was.

Hailon Alfred.

The heir of the Alfred Duchy.

If one asked who stood at the very peak of Erpen, at the top of the class hierarchy, everyone would name that man.

That was the first thought that came to Melia as she looked at Hailon Alfred.

A man born to rule from above.

A man who had never bowed his head to anyone, who had never needed to worry about anything.

Whatever he did, people would applaud and nod in agreement.

‘What kind of world is it, a life like his?’

It was surely a world Melia would never have contact with.

She couldn’t take her eyes off Hailon Alfred, envy mingling with her gaze.

“……!”

Melia was suddenly startled.

His black eyes had turned in her direction.

The moment their eyes met, Melia instinctively spun her body and quickly hid behind a pillar.

“Wh-what the…”

She pressed a hand against her pounding chest.

Had Hailon Alfred’s gaze really been directed at her just now?

Perhaps he had just happened to look up at the second floor where she was standing, but in that brief instant, their eyes had definitely met.

It was only a single second. Maybe even shorter.

And yet, the image of his eyes remained burned into her vision.

Black hair and black eyes were common.

But even so, Hailon Alfred was special.

He was a man who made even such common traits appear extraordinary.

His eyes looked as if obsidian had been set within them, while his hair evoked the beauty of a night sky transferred onto earth.

On top of that, his manly build and tall stature drew gazes wherever he went.

Partly because of his background, but his flawless looks only enhanced that brilliance.

The heir of the Alfred Duchy, with power rivaling the Imperial Family.

He was a man who lived in a world far too different from Melia’s. He likely didn’t even know her name.

He could never understand the worries that shackled her down with money concerns.

As she drifted absentmindedly in thoughts about him, Melia suddenly snapped back and glanced at the clock.

It was already 7:57. Only three minutes remained until 8.

‘Ah, I really will be late.’

Melia hastened her steps toward the library. Her urgent heart quickly erased her thoughts of Hailon Alfred.

And because of that, she didn’t know that his gaze lingered on the spot where she had been for quite some time before finally drifting away.