The World Is Mine For The Taking-Chapter 1271 - 195 - Devilish Smile (4)

Ayaka’s POV

One of our classmates was crying.

Not the quiet kind of crying either.

It was the kind where someone sniffles a little and wipes their eyes while pretending they’re fine.

No, this was the real kind. The painful kind.

The kind where your shoulders shake and your breathing gets all uneven, like your chest is struggling to keep up with the emotions pouring out of you.

It was Asuka Tachibana.

She had been dating one of the guys in our class, and now... it was official that they had broken up.

Even though it had already been revealed quite some time ago that most, if not all, of the boys had been having sex with the maids inside the castle, it was only now that Tachibana-san finally decided to end things with him.

Honestly, the timing made it obvious that she must have been struggling with the news for a while. Maybe she had been in denial. Maybe she had tried convincing herself that what she heard wasn’t true. Or maybe she just didn’t want to believe that the person she trusted for so long could do something like that.

People process things differently, after all.

And when the truth finally settles in... it hits like a truck.

From what I heard from the others, she had been dating that guy since our first year of high school. Three whole years. That’s basically ancient history for people our age.

They were even talking about living together when they went to college.

Which, if you ask me, sounded like things were getting pretty serious.

Well... serious enough that when it all collapsed, it collapsed hard.

Now she was crying her eyes out in the middle of the room while the rest of us girls gathered around her, doing our best to comfort her.

"You don’t have to worry about it. A cheater like that doesn’t deserve you," Morofuji-san said while gently patting her back.

Her voice had that firm but caring tone people use when they’re trying to hold someone together emotionally.

"Seriously, guys like that are absolute scum," Yamashita Nanami added, crossing her arms with visible irritation. "I mean, I can’t believe someone would willingly cheat on their girlfriend like that. What kind of idiot does that?"

Her voice carried just enough venom to make it clear she wasn’t joking.

And honestly... judging by the reactions around the room, she wasn’t the only one who felt that way.

The atmosphere had become incredibly tense.

Right now, the boys and girls in our class were basically divided into two camps. The girls were furious. The boys looked either guilty, defensive, or awkwardly silent.

In other words... things were messy.

Very messy.

The girls hated them for giving in to temptation so easily, especially after everything that had happened here.

And because of that, the class—at least emotionally—felt completely split down the middle.

After staying there for a while and watching the situation unfold, I quietly slipped out of the room.

Not because I didn’t care.

But because sometimes the air in a room gets so heavy that you just need to step outside and breathe.

"I guess even a relationship that lasted almost three years can fall apart just like that," I murmured to myself as I leaned lightly against the railing outside.

The night air was cool and calm, which was a huge contrast to the emotional storm happening inside.

As someone who had absolutely zero experience with relationships, I honestly had no idea how something that lasted so long could crumble so quickly.

Three years felt like a long time.

But then again... when I thought about it more carefully, maybe it wasn’t that surprising.

Even friendships between boys and girls could suddenly break apart. Sometimes even friendships that had existed since childhood, basically since birth.

People change. Feelings change.

And sometimes... things just fall apart.

Relationships probably weren’t that different.

While I was staring out into the quiet night, letting my thoughts wander, I suddenly noticed two figures standing not too far away.

Princess Myrcella.

And Hasegawa-sensei.

They were talking.

At first I didn’t think much of it, but then something strange happened.

For some reason, my hearing had become unusually sharp.

Even from where I was standing, I could faintly make out their voices drifting through the night air.

That alone was weird enough.

But then, without really thinking about it, I focused harder.

And my hearing sharpened even more.

It was like adjusting the volume knob on a pair of headphones until everything suddenly became crystal clear.

"I might be... mistaken about what I saw, but... I think I saw Mr. Leon... kissing Vice Commander Veronica. I-I feel like I shouldn’t even be telling you this," I continued. "Because I was basically intruding, and I really didn’t want you to feel that kind of heartbreak. But I couldn’t just allow someone to do something like that to you when you’re such a kind person... Even though I know someone like Mr. Leon is supposed to be kind and powerful... I don’t think he deserves you."

That...

That was definitely something I shouldn’t have overheard.

I blinked slowly, staring out into the darkness as my brain tried to process what I had just heard.

How did I even end up walking into a conversation like that?

Seriously.

If this were a drama series, this would be the exact moment the background music gets really intense.

Still... I couldn’t help but feel surprised.

I honestly didn’t expect that Mr. Leon guy to be the cheating type.

The thought hadn’t even crossed my mind before.

He always seemed like such a decent person. He was kind, capable, and reliable. The type of person who looked like he had everything under control.

I never imagined he could be that kind of scum.

But then again... appearances could be deceiving.

I guess you can’t truly understand someone unless you really know them.

Actually... even if you do know them, unless you can somehow peek into their thoughts, you’ll probably never fully understand what kind of person they are.

Humans are complicated like that.

Still though... I couldn’t believe Hasegawa-sensei actually told the princess something like that.

That took guts.

Then again, sensei was the kind of person who couldn’t just turn away when she saw something unfair happening.

If she believed something was wrong, she’d say it—even if the situation was awkward.

But when I compared this moment to what I had seen earlier, the difference was almost surreal.

Earlier, Tachibana-san had been crying so hard it felt like the room itself was shaking with her emotions.

But the princess... was different.

"I see... Thank you for telling me that, Miss Chiaki."

Her voice was calm.

It was actually too calm.

There wasn’t even the slightest hint of anger in it.

Her expression didn’t change much either. She simply stood there with that composed, elegant posture she always had.

It was like she had just been told something ordinary.

Like someone casually mentioning that it might rain tomorrow.

The contrast between the two scenes was honestly shocking.

Just a little while ago, I had watched someone cry uncontrollably because her boyfriend cheated on her.

And now, here I was watching someone react as if the same situation wasn’t even a problem. 𝗳𝚛𝚎𝚎𝘄𝕖𝕓𝕟𝕠𝚟𝚎𝕝.𝗰𝕠𝐦

It made me realize something.

This world was different from ours.

Not just in terms of magic, monsters, or castles.

The people here had different beliefs. Different expectations. Different ways of looking at relationships.

Maybe what counted as betrayal in our world wasn’t always treated the same way here.

"Well then," Princess Myrcella said gently after a moment, "I think you should start by getting some rest tonight, Miss Chiaki."

Her voice carried a soft authority that made the conversation feel like it was already coming to an end.

"You will be leaving early tomorrow, after all."

Hasegawa-sensei seemed slightly surprised by the response, but she nodded quietly.

"Miss Shredica, Angelica, and someone from the Leonamon Group will come here to pick all of you up," the princess continued.

"They will escort you so that you can reach your safety destination by morning."

Her tone remained calm and composed the entire time.

Meanwhile, I just stood there in the shadows, staring at the quiet night sky.

Honestly...

Tonight had way more drama than I signed up for.