Confession

Due to the demon’s rampage, the academy not only had to repair the student dormitories but also deal with Rebecca’s incident, so classes were temporarily suspended, giving the students a short holiday.

As for Rebecca… since the academy had failed to detect the danger early and handle it properly, and with the young lady’s plea for leniency, she was ultimately not sentenced to a heavy punishment. Instead, they chose the relatively merciful option of exile.

Upon learning of this outcome, Noel took her two maids and secretly left the kingdom together with Rebecca.

“I was planning to elope with her anyway—this just makes it happen sooner!”

It was merely brought forward, that was all!

Before leaving, Noel flashed a fearless smile and, together with Nino, expressed their gratitude to us.

I believe they will do well abroad.

However… because of all this back and forth, my Valentine’s Day plans were completely sheldered.

The chocolates I had painstakingly made still hadn’t been given away.

But today, I absolutely had to place them into the young lady’s hands!

“Young lady…”

At that moment, the young lady was holding documents, reviewing the funding table for rebuilding the men’s dormitory.

Normally, such matters would be handled by Lord Claude, but since it was a decision the young lady herself had made, he had fully entrusted the task to her.

“Ailena? Perfect timing. Could you make me a cup of black tea?”

“Oh… of course.”

I should fulfill the young lady’s request first.

After preparing the tea, I placed the cup in front of her.

She didn’t even glance at it, simply picked it up and took a sip, her eyes never leaving the funding table.

Watching her so utterly focused, a question suddenly rose in my mind.

“Young lady, why did you go out of your way to help Lady Miller, and why do you care so deeply about it?”

At my words, the young lady finally set down the documents, her expression turning solemn.

…Because their circumstances are so similar to mine.

That was why I couldn’t help but want to reach out and save them.

I didn’t quite understand what she meant, so I tilted my head slightly in confusion.

Yet her next words shocked me even more.

She walked over to me, took my hand, and gazed into my eyes—her own brimming with tender affection.

Then her scarlet lips parted softly.

“Ailena, I love you. I have loved you for a very, very long time.
As long as I’m by your side, I feel happy.
As long as you are with me, I overflow with boundless energy.”

It was so sudden that my mind went completely blank.

Could it be… the young lady felt the same way about me?

I could hardly believe it.

Was I so desperate that I was hallucinating?

And then her next words completely overloaded my heart.

“It’s not the love of family… it’s romantic love.
That night before Valentine’s Day, remember? I told you I had something I wanted to give you.
It was chocolate I made with my own hands. Unfortunately, the demon ruined everything, and you never got to taste it.
I had planned to confess to you with that chocolate on Valentine’s Day… but the plan fell apart.”

As she spoke, she leaned down and pressed her lips to mine, as if to prove the truth of her words.

The warm sensation on my lips told me, again and again, that this was no illusion—this was undeniable reality.

The moment I realized what the young lady had done, heat rushed to my cheeks so fiercely I thought steam might actually rise with a hiss.

After that brief kiss, just as I tried to look away, the young lady cupped my face gently with both hands, giving me nowhere to escape.

“I’ve decided I will no longer run from my feelings…
So, Ailena, please don’t run from yours either, all right?”

Her loving sapphire eyes gazed into mine. Reflected clearly in them was my own face, flushed crimson all the way to the base of my neck.

“Ailena… do you love me?”

“I…”

My heart felt like it might burst with joy. If she weren’t holding my face, I might have jumped into the air right then and there.

To think the young lady truly harbored the same feelings as I did.

When the realization finally hit me, tears welled up before I knew it.

There was no longer any reason to hesitate.

“I… I love you too, young lady!”

At last—at long last—I had said it.

It felt as though a burden I had carried for ages had fallen away, as though floodgates had opened, and every emotion poured out, leaving my heart utterly at peace.

Perhaps, just for this moment, I was genuinely grateful to that nun demon.

Although… I was a little dissatisfied that I hadn’t been the one to confess first.

It was the same tiny frustration one feels when a perfect plan is disrupted.

I quietly clenched the chocolate hidden in my pocket.

But… a confession alone could not fully resolve everything between us.

The gap in our stations, the web of noble obligations…

“Young lady…”

“I know what you’re about to ask, Ailena.”

The young lady raised one finger and gently pressed it to my lips.

“You asked earlier why I wanted to help Rebecca Miller…
And my answer is that our situations are alike.”

I nodded.

“Watching them—watching Master… no, Margaret and Elizabeth—
I realized that within this kingdom there are so many others like us:
bound by status, shackled by etiquette, judged coldly by the world…
Perhaps two people can break free of those chains…
but most are not so fortunate.
For the sake of their houses, they must sacrifice their own love.
Some may even fall into the abyss because of it—just like Rebecca Miller.”

The young lady’s voice was deep and moving; even I felt sorrow for girls I had never met.

She drew a slow breath, then spoke each word with resolute weight:

“That is why… I will change the current system of engagements.
I want every girl in a situation like ours to have the right to choose her own happiness.”

When she declared those words, her expression was firmer than I had ever seen.

A wonderful ideal…

But… was it truly possible?

As if reading my thoughts, the young lady continued:

“I know it sounds like a pipe dream… but it’s not entirely impossible.
If I join the student council, achieve great deeds, and earn His Majesty’s favor, the Emperor will grant that student one wish.
If I can manage that… I want to use it to make this seemingly impossible dream come true.”

She looked straight at me.

“Ailena, will you stand by my side as my lover and support me?”

To be honest—if it were merely about fulfilling a personal romance, there would be no problem at all.

In the original game, that was exactly how the heroine achieved love across class boundaries.

But that would mean the young lady would have to personally defeat the Demon King…

And her wish was far too vast—a fundamental upheaval that would shake the very foundations of the realm.

Still, with the accomplishment of slaying the Demon King behind her, it would not be empty talk.

More than anything… this was the young lady’s wish.

So I answered with a smile.

“Of course, young lady.”

No matter when, no matter where—I will always remain by your side.

“Oh, that’s right… young lady, actually, I also made chocolate for Valentine’s Day.
I never got the chance to give it to you then… Would you like it now?”

“Eh!? Really!? I want it, I want it!”

Seeing the young lady bounce with childlike excitement, a soft smile crept across my lips.