The Tsundere Lady's Honesty Plan Backfires Spectacularly - The Battle of Killing Time and the Challenge Letter

Ginrei Academy at lunch break was always noisy. Voices leaking from the cafeteria, footsteps on the stone pavement, laughter drifting from the classroom building in the distance. Amid that clamor gently filling the main building's corridor, Ariana Von Gracia pressed herself against the shadow of a colonnade pillar. The sword practice grounds—the outdoor sand plaza extending from the west wing of the main building—were in perfect view ahead. She could get closer if she went to the fence. Three female students were lined up there today, their faces flushed as they whispered to each other. But Ariana didn't join them. She stayed in the shadow of the colonnade pillar, about fifteen meters from the fence. Perfect distance. Not too far, not too close, and most importantly—no evidence of "deliberately coming to watch." Leon Schwartz was swinging his sword. His deep chestnut hair clung to his skin with sweat. Golden eyes fixed straight ahead, reading his opponent's movements. His solidly built frame—one hundred seventy-eight centimeters—moved the wooden sword along a flawless trajectory. Eldest son of the Schwartz family, sixth-year student at Ginrei Academy, top-ranked in sword arts. All those titles were concentrated in the shift of his weight as his feet pressed into the sand. Ariana's gaze had wandered there of its own accord. (How does he move so fast with that footwork—) The moment she whispered it internally, a voice came from the side. "Lady Gracia, what are you doing here?" She turned. Two younger female students were looking at her with curious expressions. White blouses, navy skirts—Ginrei Academy uniforms. Third or fourth years, probably. Ariana straightened her posture. She stepped quickly away from the pillar. "…Sword arts are so barbaric," she said. She hadn't been asked. She said it anyway. And internally screamed. (Barbaric!? I was watching the whole time and I call it barbaric!? What am I saying!?) "I don't see what's fun about being covered in sweat," she continued. She couldn't stop. Her mouth was moving on its own. One of the younger students glanced between the practice grounds fence and Ariana. "…But you were watching from here, weren't you?" the girl asked. She tilted her head, posing the question with disarming innocence. Ariana's face flushed to her ears. "It's just on my way!!" she declared. She started walking. Down the corridor, away from the fence, at a brisk pace. (On my way!? This corridor is a dead end!! What am I on my way to!!) She knew it. She knew it better than anyone. But her feet wouldn't stop. She hurried around the corner, emerging onto the connecting corridor of the main building. Her heels echoed on the stone pavement. The spring afternoon breeze cooled her flushed cheeks slightly. From the practice grounds, the sound of wooden swords clashing drifted over. Ariana quickened her pace. ———— She heard the rest of the story later, from Leon's roommate. After training ended, as Leon was wiping sweat with a towel, his roommate asked if anyone had come to watch. Leon answered without much thought. "Yeah, Gracia was here. In the shadow of a pillar in the colonnade." When his roommate asked how he knew, Leon said simply: "Silver-gray hair stands out even from a distance." With that, Leon slung the towel over his shoulder and left the practice grounds. When Ariana heard this story later through Emma, her face turned the color of the sunset. ———— After school, she had no business in the courtyard. Really, none at all. Today she was supposed to go straight back to Shimohana Hall—the academy's first women's dormitory—and work on her etiquette assignment due the day after tomorrow. The courtyard was the stone plaza between the main building and the dormitory wings, and the shortest route did pass through it. So she would go through. She was allowed to go through. Nothing wrong with it. Ariana stepped into the courtyard. Spring afternoon light fell diagonally across the stone pavement. The breeze was gentle, and the faint scent of flowers drifted from somewhere. In the center stood the Silverwhite Tree—Jilvalinde. One hundred twenty-seven years old. A giant planted the same year the academy was founded. Not yet in bloom, but its branches spread wide toward the sky. Around the trunk, some fallen leaves from last year still remained, swaying in the evening wind. A person stood at its roots. Deep chestnut hair. Calm eyes. Even through his uniform, you could see his proper posture. Leon Schwartz was facing her direction. Ariana's feet stopped. (Run—) Too late. Their eyes met. His golden eyes brightened slightly. Leon took a step toward her. Ariana tried to back away but couldn't. Her feet wouldn't obey. (Run!! Feet!! Why won't you move!!) "Ariana," Leon called her name. His voice was low, calm, with nothing forceful about it. Ariana pressed her lips together tightly. She'd decided. Today, she would be honest. She'd made up her mind this morning. If she started with a greeting, it would be a short conversation, and if short conversations continued, someday she'd be able to tell him properly—she'd been thinking that since yesterday. (It's okay. This time it's okay. Just say "hello." Twelve letters. I can do it. Absolutely.) "Can we talk for a moment?" Leon asked. He stopped. Distance: about two meters. His golden eyes were fixed on her. Ariana took a deep breath. "…Well, not really," she said. There it was. "Hello" had become "not really." (Why!? That's completely different!!) Leon seemed to take it as permission to talk. He found a convenient stone ledge and sat down, right beside the roots of the Silverwhite Tree. Ariana remained standing, but she'd already lost the chance to escape. "I had training this afternoon," Leon said. "…I see," Ariana replied. "I worked up a bit of sweat," he continued. "…And?" she asked. "That's all. How have you been lately? How's etiquette class?" he asked. Ariana looked up at the tree branches. Maintaining composure was all she could manage. "Fine," she said. "I see," Leon said. There was a pause. The spring breeze blew, and the Silverwhite Tree's branches swayed gently. Leon opened his mouth. "—I want to know your true feelings," he said. Ariana's thoughts went completely white. "You always speak harshly," Leon continued, unhurried and quiet, "but I want to know what's beneath that. Will you tell me?" His golden eyes looked straight at her. Beautiful eyes, Ariana thought distantly. Some cool, rational part of her was saying that. But her body wasn't cool or rational at all. Her cheeks were burning. She wanted to look away but couldn't. Leon's gaze pulled at her like gravity. Words swirled in her mind. The words she'd prepared. "Being with you calms me." "I want to really know you." "Not as your fiancée, but—" All of it melted away. The intensity of those golden eyes burned away her prepared words cleanly. Ariana opened her mouth. "…I suppose I could keep you company if you're bored," she said. Silence fell beneath the Silverwhite Tree. Ariana herself was frozen by her own words. (—Bored?) (Did I just say bored?) (Did I just respond to a serious, confession-like question with the word "bored"?) Leon slowly raised an eyebrow. "…Is that your honesty?" he asked. Not accusing. Not laughing. Just genuinely puzzled. Something inside Ariana broke. "That's not—! It's not like that—! Shut up!!" she shouted. She ran. Her feet pounded the stone pavement as she cut across the courtyard, sprinting through the connecting corridor beside the main building at full speed. Her skirt billowed in the wind—she didn't care. Leon might have said something behind her, but she couldn't hear it anymore. As she ran, her internal commentary wouldn't stop. (Bored!? Why did I say bored!? "I could keep you company"—what kind of arrogant thing is that!? And "I suppose"!? What does "I suppose" even mean!? He wasn't asking for anything!!) The entrance to Shimohana Hall came into view. She ran inside. Her footsteps echoed down the corridor. "—Lady Ariana Von Gracia?" A woman with chestnut hair pinned up noticed her in the middle of the corridor. Emma. Twenty-eight years old, senior lady's maid, calm-eyed, translator of Ariana's words. Ariana wondered when she'd caught up, but that wasn't important right now. "Emma," Ariana said. She stopped, catching her breath, and spoke in a hollow voice. "…I said bored," she said. Emma blinked. "To Leon?" she asked. "When I was trying to confess!!" Ariana shouted. The words echoed down the corridor. Ariana turned. Three academy students down the hall, clutching textbooks, had gone rigid. All their eyes were wide. (Seen.) (Heard.) (The information "I said bored when trying to confess" has just reached three people.) Ariana's face turned to stone. "…Never mind," she said. All three scattered in different directions. One of them started running. Emma quietly said, "This way, please," and guided Ariana to a small lounge off the corridor. When the door closed, it felt like the world had finally cut her off. The lounge was small. Four chairs, one round table, a small shelf along the wall. Through the window, she could see the courtyard. In the distance, the silhouette of the Silverwhite Tree was visible. Ariana slumped onto the table. "Why do those words come out?" she said, her voice muffled against the wood. "Bored. Why bored. I'm not bored. Not at all. I practiced in front of the mirror seventeen times this morning, so where's the bored coming from?" Emma sat down in a chair. She spoke quietly. "Leon was not angry," she said. Ariana lifted her head. "You were watching?" she asked. "From a distance," Emma replied. Emma's eyes narrowed slightly. "He looked troubled—but he was smiling peacefully," she said. Ariana stared at the wood grain of the table. (He was smiling.) Not angry. Not exasperated. He'd received that nonsensical statement and smiled peacefully. (How can he smile like that?) Something pricked at her chest. It would have been easier if he'd been angry. She would have preferred if he'd been exasperated. If he'd dismissed her as "this person is strange after all," it wouldn't have gnawed at her like this. But he smiled. That's what made it hard. He smiled peacefully, and she couldn't get it out of her head. ———— The next morning. She hadn't meant to cross the courtyard. Really, she hadn't meant to, but the shortest route to the main building in the morning did go through the courtyard, so it wasn't intentional, and before she knew it, she was passing in front of the Silverwhite Tree. Something was wedged in the old crack of the trunk. A folded white piece of paper. Ariana stopped. She looked around. No one in the early morning courtyard. Morning light fell on the stone pavement. She reached out and took it. She unfolded it. A neat handwriting. Just one line. —*'I'd be happy if you'd think about your answer a little longer.'* Ariana froze. She stayed frozen for about ten seconds. (An answer—) ("Think about your answer"—) (He's treating that as an answer?) ("I suppose I could keep you company if you're bored" is an "answer"?) (He interpreted that nonsensical statement as "a somewhat affirmative response" and is now asking for a more formal answer?) Her face burned all the way to the tips of her ears. Still holding the memo, Ariana turned back toward Shimohana Hall. She ran into Emma in the corridor. Emma started to say "good morning" but stopped when she saw Ariana's face color. "Emma," Ariana said. She thrust the memo in front of Emma's eyes. "This is a challenge, right!?" she demanded. Emma took it and read. Three seconds for one line, then she said quietly: "By any reading, it's a love letter." "He came back with a counter-attack to my provocation!!" Ariana insisted. Emma didn't say "yes" to that—because she couldn't. It clearly wasn't that. Ariana took the me

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Episode 2

Name: The Tsundere Lady's Honesty Plan Backfires Spectacularly
Author: Novelia

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