Lucian avoided the heroine's hand and moved away from the wall, hiding his discomfort.
He began walking toward the gardens, trying to lose her, but she kept up with him. She was surprisingly fast for her short height, or he was too slow.
He found a bench in the gardens and lay down on it, covering his eyes with his arm.
He occupied the whole length of it, making it impossible for her to sit on it, but she didn't leave.
She stood next to him as if unsure of what to do, "You shouldn't be sleeping on a cold bench like this, you'll catch a cold."
When she received no answer, she sighed, "We don't know each other that well...um... Your class was the most interesting one I've had today, no matter what the others say. Thank you for the lesson. And, um..."
Lucian listened to her words. It seemed like she could feel his pain and wanted to help, but misunderstood what was causing it.
She had found an unfinished die note Celine didn't have a chance to throw at him, saw the scattered mess inside the classroom and made her own conclusion.
She touched his shoulder, "...If you need someone to talk to, I'm here."
Lucian felt the tiredness of his body slowly fade away as his body regained its strength from the blessing seeping out of her touch.
He quickly yanked his shoulder away from her hand, "I'm fine, leave before the rumor about you and a teacher alone together starts spreading."
"W-what?!" She looked around, embarrassed, "I just..."
"Touched a man's shoulder?" he raised his arm, a sleepy smile on his face that could make one think he was being flirtatious, "Be careful, some might misunderstand your actions as a romantic gesture. Unless you meant for it to be so, Lady Lacroix."
She jumped away from him, horrified, and her face turned beet red, "Who would have such wild thoughts! I'm a saintess aspirant, I'm not interested in...in...my teacher!"
She turned her back on him and ran away.
'Good riddance,' Lucian finally relaxed on the bench.
While Celine had to seek out trouble, the heroine seemed to be a trouble magnet herself because she crashed against Edmund's chest face first as she ran blindly through the gardens.
They both fell down, and the heroine ended up on top of him.
"What are you doing?" Edmund grabbed her shoulders and pushed her off of him, making her yelp in pain when she was about to apologize, "Get off."
"You could have done that without hurting me," Bianca glared at him, rubbing her arm. "You're just like her."
"Who?" Edmund frowned, his eyes scanning her.
"Your sister," Bianca said, looking at him like he was an idiot, "Who else would I be talking about? The only people who hurt me are her and her followers. Not that it matters to you, anyway."
She turned to leave, not wanting to waste her breath on him. But Edmund stood up and grabbed her wrist, stopping her, "I'm not like her."
"Then… prove it," Bianca said, pulling her hand from his grip. "Show me that you're not a heartless noble who only cares about himself."
"How?" Edmund asked, his shoulders dropping.
"By being nice. By not treating me like dirt. By apologizing for pushing me." Bianca listed, her eyes challenging him.
Edmund was silent for a moment. He looked at her, as if he was weighing his options. Then he sighed, "I'm sorry. For pushing you."
Bianca's eyes widened in surprise. She didn't expect him to apologize so easily.
She didn't know what to say, so she just nodded, "I apologize too, for not watching where I was going. And for comparing you to her. You're not like her."
They both sat there, looking at each other, as if they were seeing each other for the first time and then laughed.
It was awkward at first, but then it became more genuine.
"She treats everyone like that," Edmund said, shaking his head. "Even me. I'm used to it, but it's still annoying. It's like she enjoys making people miserable."
"Tell me about it," Bianca agreed, rolling her eyes. "She thinks she owns this place, and everyone has to bow to her. I don't know how the teachers and the headmaster put up with her."
"Because she's the Duke's daughter," Edmund said, chuckling bitterly. "Father always spoiled her, gave her whatever she wanted. He never cared about me, but he adored her."
"Aren't you his child too? Why wouldn't he care about you?" Bianca asked, curious. She sat down on the grass, and patted the spot next to her, inviting him to join her.
Edmund hesitated, then sat down, keeping a distance between them. "It's a long story. My sister paints me in the worst light, and Father believes her. Whenever I try to do anything to redeem myself, she ruins it somehow."
Lucian would have believed this meek Edmund was his true face if he didn't meet the cruel Edmund before. He would never forget how much of a facade this man could put on when it suited him.
Bianca looked at him with sympathy, "That's terrible. I'm sorry you have to go through that."
"It's alright," Edmund said, trying to smile. "I don't expect your pity, or anyone's. I just want to be left alone. I don't care about the family business, or the politics, or any of that. I just want to live my own life."
"Is there anything I can do?"
Edmund was a bit surprised by her offer, then he gave her a faint smile, "Don't get involved with me. It will only make things worse for you."
"Too late for that," Bianca sighed, "I'm already involved. Whether I like it or not."
Lucian had tested whether Edmund could use the third eye too, but it seemed like Edmund didn't negotiate with his Voice like he did with his.
This Edmund seemed almost the same as the old one, except this one had lost a chunk of memories, especially the good ones related to Celine and his family.
'He is still protecting Celine,' Lucian thought about Edmund's sacrifice.
The old Edmund knew how the shackleds worked, which meant that he worked his way around the wish. He must have wiped part of his memories before death as a part of the wish as well.
Edmund knew he would be the risk to the Rochefort house, especially Celine, if he ever became a shackled, and made it obvious to her and his father, so they could deal with him before it was too late.
The result was this strange creature that had no recollection of being loved, was tortured by his family and was hated by his sister with a passion.
Edmund also somehow believed that Lucian was his friend instead of being Celine's lover.
A bit ironic, when the real Edmund despised him.