CICN 73

Chapter 73

“Full.”

Even today, Evi tapped her protruding belly with a little pat.

When Ruska had said she would feed her today, Evi hadn’t understood what she meant.

But when they went to the dining hall together, Ruska sat in the seat next to Evi—the one that had always been Evi’s usual spot by Irene.

Then, without pause, she kept putting fruits and snacks into Evi’s mouth.

“I should study hard alone until dinner today too.”

Otherwise, Evi thought, her stomach would be so full that she wouldn’t be able to sleep.

Most of Evi’s exams were scheduled for next week. Irene had been extremely envious of that.

More study time meant more advantage.

If she was going to stay in her room anyway, she might as well go to the dining hall now to grab a sandwich or some snacks.

As Evi considered this and was about to head upstairs, a crowd of students had gathered in front of the bulletin board.

“What’s going on?”

The exam schedule had been posted long ago, so it wasn’t likely they were checking that.

As she got closer, she saw a new notice had been posted.

“Temporary Library Opening Notice?”

The content was simple.

Originally scheduled to open around summer break, the library would now be temporarily open starting today.

“Perfect. I’ve been struggling to study in my room anyway.”

“Yeah. Maybe it’s because there’s a bed right next to it, but even when I’m a little tired, I just want to sleep.”

“Even if we could use the classrooms, there were always noisy students…”

The students standing there all welcomed the library opening and hurried upstairs.

It wasn’t just the chance to study quietly in a clean environment—it was also curiosity about what the gifted school’s library was really like.

Evi hurried back to her room as well.

“I need to tell Irene first!”

But when she entered her room, a “[Absent]” sign was on Irene’s door.

It seemed she had gone somewhere else to study.

Evi felt briefly disappointed but soon clenched her fists.

“I shouldn’t cling to Irene too much.”

Back in her previous school, she had gone around alone all the time.

She had no friends at the orphanage who attended school with her, and in the upper school, no one approached her at all.

So being alone at school had felt normal. When had it become so unsettling for her to be without anyone around?

“Irene would probably find it uncomfortable too.”

That must be why Irene had decided to study alone.

Thinking that, Evi gave up searching for Irene and headed alone to the library.

At that time, Irene was sitting at a cafeteria not far from the dormitory.

Her table was stacked high with books for the upcoming exams.

Those who spotted her thought it was a chance to talk and approached.

But seeing her fiercely focused on her studies, they quietly stepped back.

Anyone who tried to speak now would likely get a cold glare telling them not to bother her.

Scritch, scratch. The pen moved busily across the notebook.

Irene was studying with such desperation, she wondered if she had ever worked this hard in her life.

“My grades need to be good.”

Since it was the first year, first semester, many classes were assigned without considering individual students’ learning levels.

“That’s why this exam is important.”

Based on these exam results, second-semester required classes would likely be assigned by grades.

“Evi’s grades are way too high!”

Irene herself was not far behind. Her grades were high enough to make others envious.

As a member of the Terrence family, it was natural—she had had numerous tutors from a young age.

But Irene couldn’t feel at ease.

The gifted school had students from all over the country, each excelling in different subjects.

Even students who gossiped and criticized others had at least one subject they could boast about.

Compared to them, being consistently strong across all subjects made her position somewhat ambiguous.

“If this continues… I might end up in a different class from Evi!”

Not making the top class would bruise her pride, but being in a different class from Evi would make her angry.

“But Arcel Kellen should be fine.”

Gritting her teeth, Irene thought of Arcel.

Lately, he seemed to stick even closer to Evi.

“Honestly, at first, I thought he’d just hang around a little and then leave.”

If the boy chosen carelessly by the emperor left, it would be troublesome.

People would likely ridicule the emperor’s authority, and if any commoners or orphanage students entered next year, they might also be mocked and quit quickly.

She had expected that once the situation settled, they wouldn’t cross paths again…

“But he seems to take care of her more and more every day.”

On a chilly morning with heavy rain, Arcel had brought a warm cup of tea from the dining hall.

The cup passed naturally past Ruska and Irene to Evi.

Thanks to this, Evi, who had been shivering despite wearing warm clothes, was finally able to warm herself with both hands around the large cup.

Moreover, Arcel answered even the slightly bothersome questions Evi asked.

He even asked if she had any more questions.

“He’s not that kind of person.”

Reports given to Irene and her parents about him had described him as calculating, cold, and emotionless.

It had been said he was likely to be adopted by the emperor.

He had seemed just like that when she passed by—but why was he being so nice to Evi?

It wasn’t just Arcel. Ruska was also treating her well.

Looking at both of them, it seemed as if they had been waiting for Evi all along.

“Though I shouldn’t be saying this.”

Her sister hadn’t said it outright, but things like this did happen.

“No! Stop thinking nonsense and focus!”

Next semester, she couldn’t end up in a different class alone.

And she especially didn’t want to be in the same class as Ruska!

Ruska Lagselv was an expert at manipulating people. Recently, he had been watching Evi’s cheek, which Irene often touched, with keen eyes.

“Evi’s cheeks are mine!”

Gritting her teeth, Irene refocused on her studies.

Until someone ran in shouting about a big problem…

“Wow…”

Evi couldn’t help but marvel at the library entrance made of pure white marble.

“This is the library?”

So far, she had only seen one library in the upper school.

It was called a library, but it was so old that most of the books were neglected and forgotten.

Occasionally, new books arrived to maintain appearances, but students borrowed them and rarely returned them.

So she had always thought of libraries as dusty, abandoned places…

“This must be heaven.”

Evi hugged her bag, unable to close her mouth.

The gifted school’s library was a tall, four-story building.

Passing through the marble archway, a high lobby open to the fourth floor appeared.

The ceiling had a dome-shaped glass window, letting sunlight illuminate the white walls inside.

Entering the side corridors, rooms were filled with bookshelves organized by subject. Between the shelves, desks were set up for students to use.

Even this alone was breathtaking, but the tops of the bookshelves were even more impressive.

Paintings depicting scenes from myths, along with portraits of famous graduates, adorned the shelves.

There were also bronze statues of these graduates.

The library felt more like a museum preserving relics than a place for studying.

“Is it really okay to study here? Shouldn’t I be praying to the gods in a place like this?”

Unlike Evi, the students at the gifted school were impressed but not surprised.

Most had seen even larger academic libraries before.

The students who entered the library moved to find their study spots.

Meanwhile, Evi was too distracted exploring the library.

After some time, she realized she couldn’t find a seat.

Everyone else had quickly taken the desks they wanted.

Only then did Evi frantically search other reading rooms.

The library was designed with the number of gifted school students in mind, so it was very spacious.

The problem was that today was only a temporary opening.

Only a small portion of the library was open.

Latecomers realized there were no seats and reluctantly turned away.

“Should I go back?”

After circling several times and finding no empty spot, Evi noticed a slightly open door in the corner.