The Commander of the Knights Templar, Illion Bolton left the stadium with his entourage.
“So that’s the way she thought she would get Olivia to use her divine power.”
“I guess she thought… Olivia wouldn’t withdraw.”
His attendant beside him replied.
Lydia Schmidt.
She may not be Olivia Lanze, but she was a powerful paladin with a promising future. As it was, she was more than ready for action, she was overflowing with motivation.
He didn’t put much stock in her words.
When she mentioned that there was a way for Olivia to restore her faith, he couldn’t help but wonder what it could have been.
He could see the resolve in Olivia’s eyes as she chose to withdraw rather than watch her friend die before her eyes or use divine power to win.
Why did she think that would work?
No, she probably didn’t think it would work, she just felt like that was the only way left.
With the method she used, Lydia Schmidt was more extreme than Illion Bolton had previously realized.
He knew that extremism, regardless of cause, was dangerous.
He could see the maddening obsession with Olivia in Lydia Schmidt’s eyes.
“I don’t think Lydia Schmidt is going to give up….”
“I don’t think so either….”
It was clear that Lydia Schmidt was going to do something, and it wasn’t going to be pretty.
The attendant leaned forward and whispered discreetly into the Commander’s ear.
“By the way, what do you think? How likely is it that Lydia Schmidt is connected to the Nameless Order?”
“She’s easy prey for extremists, but I don’t think they’d want that kind of thoughtless devotion….”
The two continued their quiet murmurs as they walked away from the stadium.
If Olivia had used her divine power, there were things he would have to do as Commander of the KnightsTemplar, but that didn’t happen.
As such, the Knights Templars had no more business in Temple.
“…I know this isn’t the time but how are you feeling?”
“…No, it’s okay. Thanks.”
I had hoped to find a secluded spot, but given the circumstances, there were none, so we ended up in a cafe with few people as I sat across from Olivia.
I felt like I was out of my mind.
Charlotte and Saviolin Turner knew I was going to check on Olivia, so they told me to be nice to her.
If only Olivia had waited a little longer, Charlotte would have had the game stopped.
But Olivia had no way of knowing that. If she had continued fighting, Lydia Schmidt would have died after burning up all her life force, and if she had used her divine power, the Inquisition would have been waiting for her.
So Olivia felt like she had no choice but to withdraw.
Lydia Schmidt looked horrified at that.
She hadn’t expected Olivia to surrender, she was so surprised she froze up on the spot.
Apparently, she believed that Olivia would have used her divine power to overpower her instead.
In the end, the prize money went to Lydia Schmidt. Though she didn’t seem to care about that.
Olivia was sullen, her head down, and she wasn’t even touching her tea.
“Does this happen often?”
“…Yes.”
“She’s not the only one like that… There are other people too?”
“To varying degrees, but….”
Olivia looked crestfallen now that I was aware of the many problems she had had since leaving her faith.
Whether she was flirting with me or arguing with Ellen, she had always seemed cheerful, even if she was a bit of a crazy bitch.
But Olivia wasn’t getting along with her friends.
The way she kept coming to see me and bothering me. It wasn’t just that she wanted to see me.
She was also running away from them.
However, even if others persistently encouraged her to return to her faith, in Lydia Schmidt’s case, it was excessive.
It was sheer madness.
I’m sure Olivia was just as shocked as I was because she couldn’t have ever imagined that she’d be experiencing something like that today.
What could I say to comfort her?
What words would Olivia have liked to hear right now?
I’ve never been a believer, and I’ve never had to deal with the problems that come with giving up one’s faith, so I couldn’t imagine how Olivia must be feeling.
She was supposed to be a saint that met the expectations of humanity
She chose to abandon them, and the people around her believed that she went astray.
Olivia didn’t feel that her current way of life was wrong, but everyone was telling her otherwise.
It was like seeing a different side of Olivia, who was always cheerful and smiling.
Her head was down, so I couldn’t see her expression.
However, she had been suffering too much from the people around her. Just because Olivia could be angry and argumentative with Ellen doesn’t mean she could be the same to anyone else.
What may be possible to do to one person, may not be possible to do to another.
Therefore, Olivia was gradually being worn down, as she politely brushed away the coaxing of those around her, while smiling awkwardly.
“I don’t know….”
“….”
“Why are they doing this to me? I, I really don’t know.”
She’s lived with so many expectations, and while she’s gotten away from her foster father, who had the highest expectations for her , she still felt some kind of pressure from others around her.
“I don’t think I’m that great….”
She couldn’t understand why people were so obsessed with her.
When one thought about it, there had to be a reason for the obsession, even if it wasn’t on the level of Lydia Schmidt.
The fact that Olivia was the wielder of Tiamata, albeit co-owned, was even hidden from most people.
If that was to be known, it would have made things even harder.
In the end, Olivia, who participated in the tournament for the prize money, didn’t win because of Lydia Schmidt.
“Actually, I wonder if things would have been different back then.”
Olivia, with her head down, smiles listlessly.
“I was what people expected me to be. No one… no one cared about who I was or what I thought. If I didn’t look or act the way they wanted me to, people would be disappointed in me. They’d be like, ‘Is this how the daughter of the Commander of the Knights Templar is supposed to be?’ I was a doll that existed solely to fulfill other people’s expectations.”
That’s probably how Olivia’s lived her life.
A life filled with many demands, boundaries and expectations.
She must have lived a life where even trying to act a little bit freely would have been considered rebellion and corruption.
“Only now am I starting to understand what life is about. What it means to live, what I really want. A life where I can be curious about things and be able to want things.”
“But people still want something from me. They think I’ve gone astray and need to be led back to the right path. Because I’ve helped others so far, now that I’m like this, they think I’m the one who needs help this time.”
“But I don’t think that way. I don’t think I’m wrong. People try to help me even though I don’t want it, and the people… the people around me don’t even realize that they’re not being helpful.”
I had a fundamentally different worldview than those who believed that living in the arms of the divine was an absolute virtue. Therefore, there were some aspects in which we couldn’t even communicate with one another.
This is absolutely right. In the end, this is what’s good for everyone. So everything I say must be good by default.
How can you have a conversation with someone who starts with the absolute conviction that they’re right and you’re wrong.The only way you could have a conversation with them is if you had the same worldview.
Olivia has moved away from that, but for whatever reason, people were trying to force her to come back because they think that, if she did, she would be happier.
At the other end of the spectrum was Lydia Schmidt.
Olivia was in this state not just because she missed out on the prize money or because she’s traumatized by what had happened today.
She’s struggling because she knows this isn’t the end.
She’s despairing, because she doesn’t know what else might happen in the future.
I wanted to do something for her.
But I couldn’t expel all of Olivia’s classmates, and I couldn’t go to each and every one of them and threaten to beat them up if they tried to do this shit again.
“Reinhardt.”
“Yeah.”
Normally I was a bit of an asshole, but right now I wanted to treat her gently..
If I acted out right now, it would only hurt her more.
Olivia lifted her head, as she looked at me hesitantly.
Her eyes were red.
She looked like she was about to burst into tears.
“I, I know it’s a bad thing to say at a time like this…”
“What is it, tell me.”
“Can you give me a hug?”
“….”
She looked like she was about to cry.
It was the look of someone who was hoping that there would be at least one person on their side, even if they thought they had no one.
There was no ulterior motive about it.
It was purely a desire to be comforted.
“No, it’s not necessary. I’m sorry. Really. I shouldn’t have asked….”
When I seemed to hesitate, Olivia’s lips quivered and she forced a smile.
“No, it’s alright.”
Eventually, I moved to Olivia’s side and gently put my arm around her shoulders.
Olivia buried her face in my shoulder.
Her shoulders rose and fell, gradually and slowly, as if she were taking her first breath.
Olivia cried, very quietly.
“Thank you… Reinhardt.”
I felt pathetic as I tried to figure out what to say to comfort her.
I realized once again that comfort wasn’t something that could only be expressed with words.
After Olivia cried for a long time, we left the cafe.
“I feel so embarrassed….”
It looked like she was mortified to have been crying in front of everyone in the cafe like a child throwing a tantrum.
“Aren’t you more embarrassed about your puffy eyes?”
“Gee, really?!”
Olivia’s complexion changed as I spoke, and she felt out her own eyes. She didn’t have a mirror so what was the point?
“What am I supposed to do? I have to go to Miss Temple today, but what if my eyes stay swollen?!”
“That makes sense. But don’t worry, it’s not that obvious.”
“But even a subtle difference can be a game changer! I couldn’t win the tournament, so I really have to win Miss Temple… What do I do, Reinhardt? If I can’t win, I’m really….”
Olivia started to sob again, but she held it in, thinking that if she cried any more, her eyes would get even puffier.
Was she feeling better? It looked like she was getting back to normal.
In the end, what’s done is done.
The tournament was over, and Olivia now had her sights set on Miss Temple.
It was no longer clear to me who I wanted to vote for in Miss Temple. The mention of her puffy eyes bothered her so much that she rubbed her face and muttered in despair.
“Haah… I don’t even have a dress so I’m going out looking like this….”
“Why don’t you have a dress? You had one, you know, from the last fundraiser.”
Olivia laughed in embarrassment at my comment.
“That’s because… I actually sold it….”
“….”
I didn’t have to ask why she sold it. Olivia was breaking out in a cold sweat because she thought I was going to scold her.
She sold her own property to help others. I don’t even know what to say to that.
“Uh… can’t you ask to borrow one?”
“No, I can’t. It costs a lot of money to rent a dress….”
She was probably just going to present herself in her school uniform, but that would look like she didn’t put in any effort and was just relying on her face, which was the perfect way to look like a bitch.
I couldn’t help but imagine Olivia standing there in her school uniform, all alone, with no makeup on, in the midst of all those dolled up girls.
I don’t know what that scene would actually look like, but somehow I think it would be pretty miserable.
She would have won the Open Tournament, if only she wasn’t forced to concede in the finals.
A dress.
A dress….
“…”
“…Are you mad?”
“…No. Not really.”
A dress….
No. No. No.
But I think we have the same body type. I’m taller, but I was shorter back then.
I didn’t want to throw it away, so I gave it to Eleris to sell….
I don’t think she’s sold it yet….
No, but there might be someone out there who remembers it.
I mean, maybe I could just say that they were similar in design, though?
This was really dangerous….
Isn’t it better to just give her money to buy a dress?
However, to be honest, a dress didn’t cost just a few pennies, and there wasn’t a lot of time left. Wouldn’t it be better to just wear that dress instead of going around boutiques to find something that fitted Olivia in terms of size and design?
I know that there was no need to go this far.
But Olivia looked so miserable right now.
I felt so bad for her and wanted to do something for her.
“Why don’t you go back to your dorm… and wait for me there?”
“Huh?”
“Anyway, just go and wait for me.”
“Oh, okay…”
If she asked me where I got the dress, I would have nothing to say.
Okay, so what if I get caught!
My senior was in this kind of situation!
I needed to sell that thing and be done with it!
I’m sorry for a lot of things this time!
What could they do to me if they found out? Kill me?
I left Temple, leaving Olivia, who didn’t understand what I meant, dumbfounded by my request for her to wait.
“She dropped out of the tournament finals.”
“…She dropped out?”
“Yeah, I don’t know why, but she dropped out.”
Ellen, who was getting ready for the Miss Temple pageant, tilted her head at Liana’s words..
She’d vaguely assumed Olivia would win, but the news came out of nowhere, thus her disbelief.
The details of the situation were unknown, but the audience seemed quite upset that the tournament finals had ended in such a boring way.
Withdrawal.
The favorite to win withdrew.
It was pretty obvious that there must have been some reason for it, and Ellen wondered what the reason could have been.
Reinhardt would have been there to watch the finals, but would he know the reason why?
“Oh, there she is. There.”
Liana pointed out the window, and Ellen, looking out of the first-floor window, could see Olivia.
Olivia was alone.
Ellen found herself somehow relieved by that fact.
Olivia didn’t look happy, even if she tried to pretend otherwise. Ellen didn’t know what had caused Olivia to withdraw, but her eyes were swollen.
‘Was she crying…?’
She cried.
And then she came back alone.
She had expected Reinhardt to be next to her, but he wasn’t.
“Look over here.”
“Oh… Yes.”
Liana turned Ellen’s head towards her and started putting on her makeup.
She didn’t know what happened in the tournament, but that person was going to participate in Miss Temple soon.
She wasn’t even after the title of Miss Temple.
Ellen made up her mind.
She was going to put on a good show today. She had practiced smiling in the mirror a lot. It wasn’t working, but she was trying.
She’s going to stand in front of Reinhardt with a different look.
After the contest, regardless of the outcome, they’ll spend some time together. She and Reinhardt didn’t get to spend much time with each other during the festival, and she was sure Reinhardt would make time for her today.
Ellen didn’t know what Reinhardt’s face would look like then, and she didn’t know what her own face would look like either.
For today, Ellen decided to forget about everything else and think only of her feelings.
Not Harriet, not Olivia, not anyone else.
For today, she would not think of anyone but Reinhardt.
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