The Strongest Brother Lost His Memory-Chapter 127: Side Story

“Is that true?”

“...Huh?”

“That you like Rosie, and you’re lingering here just to help her clean up, is that really true?”

“Uh, um...”

Because I couldn’t answer right away, Assistant Theo slammed the chalkboard eraser down with a thud.

“Then let’s get on with it. Cleaning, I mean. Kevin, please assist with the clean-up.”

“...Sorry, what?”

“You said you stayed to help. Here, take this broom.”

I had no choice but to grab the broom.

But then Theo grabbed it too.

What was this? I was sure he’d never help...

Just then, Rosie came back holding a rag.

Theo spoke stiffly.

“Rosie, please go outside and clean the corridor windows. They’ve gathered quite a bit of dust.”

“Huh? But what about inside the classroom...?”

“Kevin here has agreed to help me clean. I’ve promised him one merit point.”

“Oh, I see. Wow, Assistant, you sure hand out merit points stingily. Helping clean all this for just one point? That’s stingy, so stingy...”

Rosie nodded and walked out to the corridor.

‘Wait, what? What just happened?’

And in the end, I had to clean up the entire classroom with Assistant Theo.

I didn’t even get a chance to speak to Rosie.

<Difficulty Level 4>

I was wrong. Trying to use the assistant’s help was my fatal mistake.

Things between students should be solved among students.

No matter how smart I am, I can’t manipulate adults too.

But I am Kevin Rohard, the man of unyielding resolve!

I still had hope. Zahid and Rosie weren’t in the same class.

There wasn’t much time until graduation, but sooner or later, I’d get my chance.

Smiling, I stared at the academic calendar.

‘This is it!’

A one-time special lesson in the ‘Etiquette’ course—“Tea Time Manners.”

The ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) announcement said three students per table.

‘As long as I sit at their table, it’s perfect. Ray only drinks from his personal water bottle anyway. In the end, it’ll be just me and Rosie practicing together.’

We’d have tea in the garden, chat about this and that, and Rosie would feel our spiritual connection!

And finally, the long-awaited day of the special tea time etiquette class arrived.

I shot straight toward Rosie and Ray’s table and sat down.

“Hi, Ray. Hi, Rosie. Let’s have a good one.”

As I took a seat, Ray made an awkward face.

“Ah, Kevin. The thing is... I’ve got a psychological condition that makes normal participation impossible. Since you’ve got lots of friends, wouldn’t it be better to switch to another table? There are still plenty of open seats.”

Yes, just as I’d predicted.

I beamed and waved my hand like it was no big deal.

“Nah, it’s fine. We’ll just respect each other’s pace and practice. I’m good with anything.”

“...Really?”

“Of course. However you want to participate is totally fine by me, Ray.”

Rosie and Ray both widened their eyes like I was a saint.

Soon, Ray would fade into the background, and Rosie and I would grow close—it was just a matter of time.

Then class began.

“Kevin, I can only drink tea given to me by Rosie.”

“...What?”

“That psychological issue I mentioned? Yeah, it’s that. Sorry. But you said you didn’t mind, right?”

“Uh... right...”

Wait a second—wasn’t Ray supposed to not participate?!

But he drank the tea Rosie gave him! He turned his head away when I offered mine!

In the end, Rosie and Ray ended up doing most of the practice rounds together, while I only exchanged tea with Rosie once or twice.

...And her tea wasn’t even that good.

Then, when Rosie stepped away to fetch more tea leaves, Ray took a sip of her tea with great satisfaction and said softly—

“You like Rosie, don’t you?”

“PFFFFT!”

“She doesn’t notice because she’s not paying attention, but I’ve got my eye on everything that goes on in this classroom. I knew from the day you and your friends trashed the lab when she was on duty.”

“Guh—cough, cough...”

“But you should give up. As long as I’m in Class 1, you’ll never get close to Rosie.”

Before I could say a word in response, Rosie returned.

Ray instantly wiped his expression clean and smiled brightly.

“Rosie, think we could run through the exercise one more time? I’ve really missed tea time—it’s been so long.”

“Ah... I see. Kevin, sorry, but you’re getting bumped again. But let’s help our fragile soul here who’s trying so hard to overcome his trauma.”

All I could do was nod.

<Difficulty Level 5>

I am Kevin Rohard, the man of relentless persistence.

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

At this rate, I might never even have a real conversation with Rosie before graduating.

Where did it all go wrong?

I reflected on my past mistakes.

‘It all went wrong from the start.’

And I realized—

‘I should’ve gone in straight from the beginning instead of cooking up all those schemes.’

Maybe I backed off too easily, just because she had a fiancé.

‘Alright then. Fine.’

I jumped out of my dorm bed.

‘From now on, I’ll go with a direct attack!’

I’d go straight to Zahid.

We weren’t in the same class and had no real relationship, but I’d declare my intentions man-to-man.

I’d tell him that I liked Rosie and, even if I felt sorry, I was going to be honest and pursue her. A fair fight.

I’d never even spoken a single word to him before, but hey—he was a year younger than me.

Then, on the way to visit a friend’s room, I ran into Zahid.

He was dressed up and flushed, like he was returning from somewhere fancy.

“Woof! Woof woof woof woof!”

His Divine Beast barked at me warily.

Zahid didn’t even glance my way, just calmly climbed the stairs.

“Uh, excuse me!”

Only when I stepped into his path did Zahid lift his violet eyes to meet mine.

Wait—how was our eye level even?! I was standing two steps above him.

Anyway, it was the first time I’d ever seen Zahid up close.

“Woof! Woof woof woof woof!”

“What?”

He asked flatly.

Under his thick brows, those violet eyes shimmered. His nose was high and sharp, and his jawline looked like it had been carved from marble.

“...Never mind. Take care.”

I lost.

With just one word—“What?”—I lost.

Seeing him up close, I realized there was no chance I’d win a head-on fight.

“Woof! Woof woof! Woof woof!”

“Fire, what’s wrong? Let’s go.”

I slumped my shoulders with a tragic face.

<Difficulty Level 6>

The day before Academy graduation.

After seeing Zahid up close, I’d lost all will to fight.

People whispered that he was handsome, but not to that level.

If I were Rosie Noart, I’d feel like I was looking at a squid if I glanced at him and then at me.

But now that graduation was tomorrow, a new thought started creeping in.

‘You never know unless you try! What if Rosie turns out to be the kind of person who values what’s inside?’

More than anything, I didn’t want to graduate with unspoken feelings still bottled up inside.

Honestly, throughout our time at the Academy, I’d really liked Rosie.

She smiled easily, was kind, and whenever I heard her soft, slow voice, it made my heart feel warm...

‘Even if she ends up breaking off the engagement someday, I’ll ask her to think of me then!’

I mustered up the courage and wrote a note.

Rosie, please come to the fountain in the garden by 8 p.m. tonight.

—From a boy who likes you

I planned to sneak it into Rosie’s locker when no one was around.

But when I opened her locker door after confirming the coast was clear—

There was a massive warning sign stuck inside.

Spelling errors and all, it read:

Warning Notice

If someone opened my locker without permission,

it must’ve been for one of two reasons.

First, trying to mess with me because I seem like an easy target!

But know this—I'll pay it back several times over.

Second, slipping a confession note to cute little me!

Either way, I’m marrying my fiancé no matter what.

You’re getting rejected anyway, so give it up.

And especially—don’t call me out somewhere.

If Zahid misunderstands, we’ll have a problem.

“......”

Silently, I tucked the note back into my pocket.

Looks like I’ll never get to confess...

<End of Side Story>

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