Academy’s Dark Perspective - Chapter 348



Only Krnovel

Academy Dark Curtain Viewpoint Episode 348

“I like you. Please date me officially.”

I couldn’t help but hold my breath at Iri’s sudden confession.

No, it wasn’t out of the blue. It had been quite some time since I had sensed her feelings for me, so it was something that could have happened at any time, and it just happened today.

Since I was somewhat prepared, I took out the answer I had prepared.

“Can not be done.”

Even to me, it was a sharp answer that seemed somewhat harsh.

However, Airi only flinched for a moment when she heard the answer, and then asked back with an indifferent expression.

“why?”

Just as I had prepared for Airi’s confession, she also seemed to have expected me to reject her. Her voice was faintly trembling, but her attitude was still confident.

“Because I’m from the Fallen?”

“no.”

I shook my head.

“I am the chairman of the Stingray Education Foundation. My job is to discover, sponsor, and support talent. As you know, Trinity Academy is a place where all corporate education foundations are interested in investing.”

“So?”

“That means that no matter what I do, I can’t help but be the center of attention. If the chairman of an educational foundation were to associate with a student he sponsored, you can imagine how much of a dirty look people would give him.”

If we could simply date and “live happily ever after,” everything would be okay, but that wasn’t the case in reality.

“Don’t you remember the rumors that went around early last year when you and Miyu were the only ones in the special class? Because there were only two girls in the special class, people around me started saying that I was buying the girls I had my eye on with money.”

“… … .”

“Miyu is from Sector E, and you are from Fallen. That’s why the rumors never died down before Silence came. No, to be exact, even after Silence came, there were rumors for a while that I was also a homosexual.”

No one would say anything to my face, but behind my back they would whisper and gossip about all sorts of nasty things.

Unfortunately, Aaron Stingray, before I became possessed, was not very womanizing, which tended to amplify the rumors.

“Do you need any other reasons?”

“……yes.”

I thought she would back down just from that, but surprisingly, Airi didn’t. Instead, she took a step closer to me and proudly held her chest out.

“I used to get extremely angry whenever people looked down on me for being from the Fallen. I didn’t hesitate to use violence, and there were times when I would kill someone halfway until they apologized. And I wanted the world to be a place where people don’t discriminate based on their origins.”

“… … .”

“But when I actually realized it, I was the one who had labeled myself as a ‘fallen’ more than anyone else and was looking at myself with colored glasses. Things like, ‘That person is definitely ignoring me,’ or ‘That smile must be mocking me.’ To be honest, I still had that delusional feeling until a few days ago… … Then, I suddenly realized something.”

“Have you realized?”

“It’s all useless when you’re dead.”

Iri’s purple eyes look at me.

“When you die, it’s all over. Whether you were looked down on because you were born a Fallen, or like you, you were born with everything. When you die, it’s all over. When you die, it’s all over anyway, so why should I live my life worrying about what other people think?”

“Iri.”

“I’ll do what I want to do.”

Iri declared.

“I couldn’t say it because I was ashamed of it even though I liked it, and I was discouraged because I didn’t come from the right background… … But I worked hard to become someone who could stand next to you.”

“… … .”

“But come to think of it, who in this world would be able to fight side by side with you? No matter how strong I become, I’ll never be strong enough to defeat a dragon on my own. More than anything, what I really wanted wasn’t ‘strength,’ but the ‘confidence’ to stand next to you.”

“… … .”

“You’re so strong, so why are you afraid of the eyes of others? It’s over when you die anyway.”

“ha…….”

I sighed, closed my eyes for a moment, and then opened them.

“Iri.”

“yes.”

“I didn’t tell you because I thought you’d be hurt, but if you absolutely can’t give up, tell me more reasons why.”

“Ugh… … That, that’s right. Tell me.”

As they came out strong, Airi also looked nervous.

“First… … there’s a big age gap. When I was 8 and just starting out in the corporate security team, you weren’t even born yet.”

“Then I will also refute. In a world where people can easily live to be 100 thanks to anti-aging surgery, an eight-year age difference is not that big at all. Besides, Serena is the same age as me, so why did you get engaged to her?”

“That’s not my decision.”

“Yeah, people around you don’t think that kind of age difference is anything special, right? Then there’s no difference between us.”

“… … .”

It was refuted in one breath.

I’m being logically defeated by Iri.

I lost to Miyu in a fight earlier, but why have I become so weak lately?

Oh, no, not yet.

There are still plenty of bullets.

“Second… … appearance… … .”

While talking, I suddenly made eye contact with Airi.

I tried to say that I didn’t like her face, but honestly, it was nearly impossible to criticize Iri based on her looks.

There are many beauties around her, from her younger sister Kalia to Maria and Serena, but when it comes to looks, Airi is not inferior to them at all.

Even with a face without makeup, she would be able to slap the cheeks of any celebrity, so as a man, I couldn’t lie and say, ‘I don’t like my face.’

In this world, appearance is something that can be easily changed with a few surgeries, so it’s a bit strange to be obsessed with it.

“third…….”

“Why are you just letting the second one go?”

Iri pointed it out, but he ignored it.

“Third… … I am a possessed person.”

“Does it matter?”

“I don’t know what you think, but I myself don’t know what principle is driving this body. Maybe at some point, I’ll return to my original world.”

What if one day my soul were to disappear from this body and the original owner’s personality were to come back to life?

Well, if that happens, it would be a disaster, needless to say.

A murderous sociopath who became strong enough to defeat a dragon. The Sky Dragon was somewhat considerate of humans, treating them like livestock, but this guy probably wouldn’t do the same.

It’s terrifying to even imagine.

“Is this enough of a reason?”

As I stepped forward confidently, Iri remained silent for a moment before opening her mouth.

“No. As I said before, I don’t care if you’re a possessed person or anything.”

“Then fourth.”

“Oh, it’s still there?”

“Personality. I like a woman who is a little more gentle and refined. Can I consider a guy who kicks me without a care in the world when we first meet as a romantic partner?”

“That, that… …! I have nothing to say about that, but if you try, you can change it! Think about it. When I entered school, how many people thought they would become the student council president? My grades went up a lot, too.”

“Just give up. The fact that you’re trying to appeal to others sexually is what makes you a child.”

“T-That’s how it comes out!?”

Airi finally explodes with anger.

“Honestly! Where in this city is there a person without personality problems? Serena is not normal, and Maria is a workaholic too! Even you!”

“I didn’t mean to criticize you, so calm down.”

“You have a serious personality, don’t you? You’re a narcissist, and you always wear a dull black suit! You always have slicked-back hair, and you don’t even know how to joke around properly… … Oh, and on top of that… … !”

“I told you to calm down.”

“And besides, he’s a terrible liar… … but still!”

That moment.

Iri’s momentum suddenly weakened.

“Well, still… … I mean, I thought that ‘Aaron Stingray’ looked cool… … .”.

Soon her face turned bright red like a strawberry.

Yet she never averts her gaze. She looks at me with her clear purple eyes and pours out her heart in a trembling voice.

“Well, it’s not that you like someone because they’re cool, it’s that they look cool because you like them. Isn’t that what it means to like someone?”

“Iri.”

“I, I dare say. There are many things about me that you would like… … that I am a girl, if you just give me the chance, I can fully show you.”

Iri’s face went beyond bright red, and it looked like she was going to explode. It was even more noticeable because her skin was already so pale.

however.

This time I had no choice but to give the same answer.

“……sorry.”

“… … .”

I averted my gaze with a light sigh, and Airi did not respond. There was silence between us for a moment.

Meanwhile.

Airi broke the silence and opened her mouth again.

“… … Then let me ask you one last question.”

“what?”

“Why did you never say, ‘Iri Aliceval doesn’t seem like a romantic interest to you’ when you listed so many things about her that make her undateable?’”

“… … !”

For a moment, I felt like I had been hit in the head with a hammer. I tried not to show it, but Airi had a keen sense and caught that part exquisitely.

When I turned my head to look at Iri, a smile spread across her lips. Her face was still bright red, but her expression was as proud as that of a triumphant general.

“If you don’t like me as a romantic partner and think there’s absolutely no chance for me, then just tell me clearly that you don’t like me. Then I won’t press you any further.”

“Iri. I don’t know what you think, but men are creatures… … .”

“Don’t say anything weird. Answer me.”

“… … .”

There was no way I could say no.

Okay, let’s be honest.

A woman who tells me she loves me, who sacrifices herself for me when my life is in danger, and who cries sincerely when she thinks of me.

No, long before that.

The heroine I’ve admired since before I became Aaron Stingray.

The person who brought hope to my gray life.

I supported her progress by seeing her only through imagination, beyond the words.

How could I possibly hate it?

“… … .”

No matter how many excuses you make or how many lies you try to tell.

That was the truth that never changed.

however…….

“… … Iri.”

“yes.”

“You shouldn’t have liked me.”

“why?”

“The person you originally liked was not me, but someone else. The reason you like me is because you are still immature, and it is also a mistake that fate and I made.”

“… … .”

“You shouldn’t have liked me.”

The original world line.

In the original, there was someone else she fell in love with. Shade Wells, whose name now seems so distant, was the one Airi had to like.

My original goal was to be an ‘observer’.

My dream was to have overwhelming wealth and power, and to watch the growth of the guys I admired from a comfortable position.

It just got twisted and twisted and ended up like this, but Airi was originally supposed to hate and loathe me, ‘Aaron Stingray’, just because I was Stingray.

Although the gap with the original work had already become irreversible, that was also one of the most important reasons why I couldn’t readily accept Airi’s confession.

“therefore…….”

“Then let’s do it like this.”

That moment.

Airi cut me off.

“I’ll give you just enough time until you graduate.”

“……what?”

“You’re still holding me back because I’m still a student, right? Well, then I’ll give you a three-year grace period until I finish my fourth year and graduate.”

“What are you talking about now?”

“If you don’t change your mind by then, I’ll back out cleanly. But if not, you can date me after I graduate. What do you think?”

“… … Shouldn’t it be the opposite?”

Is this a suggestion you should make from a confessional standpoint?

I guess you have such doubts.

“Please answer quickly. Otherwise, I’ll keep pestering you by sticking around here.”

“Are you calling that a threat now?”

“Think about it. Why did everyone leave their seats when I came? It’s because everyone else is in on it. They’re on my side.”

“… … .”

How can I answer that?

What eventually came out of my mouth was a declaration of surrender.

“……I get it.”

I admitted defeat with a sigh.

“I accept your offer.”