Knowing that there was no way to explain herself to preserve whatever was left of her image in Emilia’s heart, Noelle could only wish to find a hole to crawl into and hide. Unfortunately, there was no such convenient place nearby, and the gray-haired girl could only stand there in front of the bed, mortified.
Even with her expression frozen as it was, Noelle would still look quite indifferent if not for her entire face being red from shame, making Emilia smile in amusement as she beckoned the girl over. “Come here.”
Looking at the younger girl curl her finger like that to call her over while still on her bed, Noelle couldn’t help but feel a sinful expectation in her heart. The fact that Emilia was still in her uniform didn’t help at all, and the gray-haired girl wondered for a moment if she had done it intentionally.
Walking to the edge of the bed in shame, Noelle barely had the time to react when she was pulled down into a soft, warm, and fragrant embrace that could have easily lulled her into a peaceful sleep had it not been for her heart pounding like a drum in a carnival.
Having never expected that she would one day seek comfort in the soft breasts of a younger girl, Noelle couldn’t help but be shocked at how ‘at home’ she felt lying side by side with Emilia like this. It was as if nothing else mattered anymore, and she would be both safe and happy as long as she stayed here.
The older girl knew that this was Emilia’s way of assuring her that she didn’t mind what happened just now, and she didn’t even mind what happened before. But even if she was willing to forgive her just like that… there was no way Noelle could accept it.
Biting her lip nervously, the gray-haired girl didn’t dare to look Emilia in the eyes. “I-I’m sorry… for rejecting you.”
A soft hum of acknowledgment was followed by nimble, dexterous, and caring fingers combing through her hair helped reduce some of the anxiety in her heart, but Noelle still couldn’t help but be nervous. “Y-You won’t—”
As she could already guess what it was that she wanted to ask, Emilia interrupted her with a soft kiss on the forehead. “Don’t be silly, Noelle. Do you think I don’t know you well enough by now? Even if you grumble and groan about some things, for our sake… you always do everything you have to, and everything you don’t.”
Noelle felt tears well up in her eyes as she buried her face deeper into the soft embrace. “Thank you… a-and I’m sorry for hurting you.”
Emilia couldn’t help but smile ruefully. “I can’t deny that it didn’t hurt a little, but it’s just a minor matter. What’s important now is for us to resolve the misunderstanding.”
Noelle nodded.
The crimson-haired girl pulled back a little to look her in the eyes. “Then tell me… what do you want in the future? Do you still want to stay with me?”
Noelle didn’t even pause to think about it. “O-Of course I do!”
Emilia sighed, as if not quite believing her instant response. “Be honest. Regardless of what you say now, I’ll still deal with the Nightingale clan, as they are going to be in my path anyway. And your relationship with both myself and Sam will be as it was before, I’ll make sure of that.”
Since Noelle wasn’t an idiot, there was no way for her to not realize what Emilia was implying.
Had it been the Noelle from about a year ago, when presented with this kind of choice, there was no need to think what she would choose.
After all, on one hand was an unfettered life of both freedom and dignity, and on the other was a young, silly little girl who wouldn’t even fully commit to herself. What was there to think?
But would the Noelle of the past ever let herself get into this situation in the first place?
The gray-haired girl knew that she had slowly changed from the moment she started getting attached to this willful, silly little girl, and there was no way to go back to who she used to be anymore.
As long as she thought about the possibility of never being able to look Emilia in the eyes and see that affectionate look again, never being able to kiss her soft, delicate lips, and never being able to hold her in her arms…
Noelle couldn’t help but feel like her heart was about to burst from inexplicable panic. “N-NO! You can’t cut me off now!”
Feeling the younger girl breathe out a sigh of relief, it was only then that Noelle realized that Emilia must have been just as nervous as herself, if not more.
The fact that she had caused all this just because she couldn’t sort out her own feelings and decided to vent them out on the younger girl only made Noelle feel like an even bigger idiot.
Burying her face in the older girl’s soft hair, Emilia couldn’t help but complain, her voice full of grievances. “I’ll forget about what happened before, but since you’ve decided to stay with me, you’re definitely never allowed to treat me like that in the future!”
It was only then that Noelle recalled that the crimson-haired was not only younger and not as mature, but she was also a willful little princess who had never been wronged like this in her life.
Just thinking about how Emilia still had to take the initiative to come to her and resolve the misunderstanding that wasn’t her fault in the first place made the gray-haired girl feel like a complete moron.
Not only was it herself who took the initiative to push Emilia onto the bed, she had also clearly known about the younger girl’s indulgent nature towards Sam and her closest friends, so what exactly did she plan to accomplish by throwing a tantrum later?
Wasn’t doing this the same as finding an excuse to wash her hands and leave after toying with the younger girl’s heart? No wonder she was aggrieved! It was already a wonder that she had decided to give her another chance.
Noelle couldn’t help but squeeze the crimson-haired beauty in a panic. “E-Emilia! I-I’m really sorry! I’ll never do it again, and you can punish me however you like if you want!”
Emilia pushed the older girl back with a giggle, leaving them lying side by side. “It’s okay to speak your mind, I just have a very fragile ego. If you shatter it, you definitely have to stay and pick the pieces to put them together. If you run away like this again… I can’t promise what I’ll do.”
Noelle quickly shook her head in denial. “It will never happen, promise!”
Even if she could shoot herself in the foot once, Noelle didn’t believe she could do it twice!
Emilia hummed. “And about that punishment… are you serious?”
”Of course! I already knew everything before making a move on you, and still acted like that—”
Emilia pressed a finger against the older girl’s lips with a smile. “Actually, there are some things you don’t know yet. That’s one of the reasons why I invited you to dinner in the first place, but I guess it’s fine to tell you now as well.”
”Eh?”
The crimson-haired girl didn’t beat around the bush, and explained the basic ins and outs of the situation to the dumbfounded Noelle.
Even minutes after the younger girl had stopped speaking, Noelle’s expression was still blank. “Y-You… came from another world?”
Emilia nodded. “That’s right.”
The gray-haired girl pursed her lips in thought. “How old were you when you arrived?”
The crimson-haired girl blinked. “Well… I came here around the time when I started school. As for how old I was… hmm… I was over twenty when I died, but…”
Noelle interrupted her in shock. “What?! You died?!”
The crimson-haired girl pursed her lips before nodding. “Oh… yeah. I guess I did.”
Noelle tried her best to calm herself down, but as long as she thought about such a possibility, she couldn’t help the panic in her heart at all. “Why didn’t you say so earlier?!”
”It’s not that important, is it? And I don’t really like recalling it.”
Emilia shuddered in disgust, and for a moment Noelle even felt like the girl felt averse to herself, making her head go blank.
The gray-haired girl quickly rejected that possibility as she patted Emilia’s back to comfort the younger girl. “D-Don’t think about it if you don’t like it, then. It’s all in the past, and I’m here to help you do whatever you want in the future!”
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