Love Letter From The Future

Ceria thought that she was acting strangely these days.

It had started not long ago. Whenever she was with Senior Ian, Ceria felt a strange sense of stability. It was an emotion she had never felt before.

For her, others were always difficult to deal with. Ceria found interpersonal relationships to be more challenging than the complicated exam questions at the Academy.

Since childhood, she had struggled to express her emotions and opinions properly. Even when she did, she tended to be overly honest and prone to making verbal mistakes.

Thus, she either refrained from speaking altogether or, when she did, she often received remarks about being ‘rude.’ She was already well aware that others referred to her as ‘Yuridina’s rude girl.’

She thought it didn’t matter. After all, the only thing that truly defined her as Yuridina was her swordsmanship.

Before long, Ceria began to feel uncomfortable and scared about interacting with others. It was inevitable that she would grow more isolated. Nevertheless, she also felt a slight loneliness along with a subtle comfort regarding her situation.

Then one day, a man stepped boldly into her daily life. It was none other than Senior Ian.

Normally, she wouldn’t have mustered that kind of courage. His first impression was terrifying. Even now, thinking about the brutal violence she experienced that day made Ceria tremble.

But because of that, she could trust him even more. He was a man who was sharp like a sword and at times demonstrated a spirit of gentle tolerance. Perhaps he might be able to help her.

With the Hunting Festival approaching, this was her last chance to defeat her half-sister.

To be honest, Ian didn’t meet her expectations completely.

He was an excellent swordsman, but within the Academy, he was merely of middle-tier skill. And their time together was also short. He couldn’t offer her valid advice on swordsmanship.

However, he provided her with many other tips.

How to train, how to rest, how to talk to others, and how to express emotions.

He told her numerous stories without hesitation, and even when he spoke rudely or hesitated during the process, he said nothing about it.

He simply waited patiently. He never got angry.

For the first time, Ceria felt that someone equal to her understood her. And the decisive moment that got her attention was during sword practice time.

When she teamed up with him and heard the word ‘friend,’ she didn’t fully realize what it meant.

But when Ian took up his sword and rushed out on her behalf, and when she saw him battered on Professor Derek’s back, she thought.

That must be what ‘friend’ means. A relationship that transcends logic and reason.

To Ceria, that relationship felt somewhat romantic. At least, that day, the courage Ian showed had that aspect.

He fought desperately for her without caring about his own life. Ian’s willingness to face death for her was something she had never experienced before. Therefore, her heart raced.

Strangely, she began to care about Ian. When she woke up in the morning, wielded her sword, or lay in bed at night, trying to sleep.

Occasionally, Ian came to her mind. Would he be safe? Would he be in pain? Would he blame her?

Although she looked forward to seeing him, she also felt fear. What if Ian was angry?

She had countless experiences of pacing restlessly in front of the temple. In her heart, she wanted to see Senior Ian right away, but each time she faced someone else.

A girl with black hair and a beautiful appearance. She heard that she was a close friend of Senior Ian.

Her name was probably Celin; she seemed to visit Ian’s hospital room several times a day.

And every time she encountered Ceria, her reaction was always the same.

She would grimace and pass by Ceria with a cold face.

Ceria felt a sense of fear, as if that was a preview of how Ian would react to her.

At that point, her ability to gather courage was entirely due to the help of a certain man.

That day, Ceria was pacing in front of the temple when she ran into Celin. Celin’s reaction was the same as always. However, there was another person standing next to her.

He had brown hair and green eyes, and his appearance was somewhat frail. Was he from the Magic Department?

He was joking with Celin, and when he saw Celin’s expression suddenly change, he turned his gaze to Ceria. Ceria, without thinking, lowered her head to avoid his gaze.

She felt fear. Would he also show a negative reaction towards her? Perhaps he was another friend of Senior Ian.

But the reaction of the brown-haired man was unexpectedly friendly.

“Hey there, pretty miss.”

Ceria, who had been biting her lips with her head down, didn’t even realize that he was calling her. She only lifted her head when she felt someone stepping closer.

Seeing her, the man chuckled and patted his chin.

“Why do you hang around in front of the temple every day? I’ve seen you do it more than eight times.”

“Reto, just ignore her and let’s go.”

Reto seemed to be that man’s name.

Celin did not seem pleased that he was showing interest in Ceria, as she firmly tugged on the man’s clothing.

However, Reto didn’t budge. Ceria was hesitating and finally managed to speak.

“Ah, um… so… uh…”

But the words just wouldn’t come out. She had no ability to respond in such a sudden situation. Her face flushed with embarrassment.

Reto watched her for a moment before casually shifting his gaze away.

“By the way, it’s ‘Ceria,’ right? Ian has been waiting for a girl with that name.”

“Hey, Reto!”

Celin shouted, unable to hold back her frustration. Reto pretended to cover his ears and whistled. Ceria looked at him with slightly surprised eyes.

Celin’s body was trembling. She gritted her teeth as she spoke.

“You’re betraying me…!”

“Betrayal? What’s that about? And hey, don’t you think Ian deserves a choice? He should at least have options.”

“Oh, come on!”

Celin and Reto kept bickering as they walked away, but Ceria couldn’t fully grasp the meaning of their words. The only thing that stayed in her mind was one point.

Senior Ian was waiting for her. That thought made Ceria’s heart swell.

When she finally met Senior Ian, as always, he was gentle.

Ceria felt somehow unable to face him directly. When he held her hand, her heart started to race as if she were falling ill.

A fluffy sensation rose inside her. Yes, was this ‘friendship’?

It was a feeling she had never experienced before. Ceria thought that perhaps ‘friends’ were better than she had imagined. She was grateful to recognize Senior Ian now.

Of course, it wasn’t that everything had gone well for her up until now.

For some unknown reason, her reputation among the academy students had deteriorated further in recent times. Nevertheless, the bullying, which had been somewhat discreet, became increasingly blatant.

Then one day, the bullying aimed at her suddenly intensified to an alarming degree.

As if sliding down a slide.

“Hey, that’s her. That’s her.”

“Oh, the second-year top student? But they said she ran away like a loser in front of the monster.”

“That Senior Ian, right? They say he risked his life to protect her. The reality is that he’s the real expert, and she’s just a fraud, a fraud.”

The mockery was thrown out as if to be heard, following her around like shadows every time she passed by.

That didn’t trouble Ceria much. No matter how much they belittled her, it didn’t mean Ceria’s skills were lacking. And she secretly agreed with some of it.

Senior Ian’s skills were indeed real. She hadn’t realized it during training, but just seeing the number of monsters he dealt with that day was telling. He was much stronger in actual combat.

She resolved to learn from that, reassuring herself. She could endure a little criticism if it was for the Senior Ian she respected.

However, every so often, there came insults that even she couldn’t bear.

“Hey, there goes that rude girl.”

“Oh, the one who grew up without a mother?”

Abruptly, Ceria’s steps faltered. Her eyes turned toward the source of the voice. A well-built man with golden hair and bronze skin stood there.

And the snickers of the rest of the group. Ceria’s gaze darkened ominously.

It was in the cafeteria. As Ceria was moving with her tray, he threw jabs at her as if he wanted her to hear, touching on the one thing that hurt her the most: her mother.

Ceria felt a wave of emotion swelling within her, and she displayed a clear animosity. Yet, the man with bronze skin, who was Tean from the Southern Kingdoms, merely smirked mockingly.

“What’s wrong, Lady Yuridina? We’re just talking among ourselves. Do you have something to say?”

It was a mockery aimed directly at her, but due to the lack of clear evidence, Ceria was left to only bite her lips.

She turned abruptly. She thought it would be better to ignore him.

Ceria’s mother was seen as a disgrace even within the Yuridina clan. It was easy to assume that they would deliberately ignore this mockery even if they heard it within the Yuridina family. Treating her mother as if she were nonexistent was the goal of the Yuridina clan.

That feeling was unbearable and made Ceria feel deeply humiliated. Her body trembled.

The laughter continued. Tean spoke derisively.

“Yeah, just like always, we’re asking you to ignore us. Ah, how sad.”

As he said that, he lightly shoved past Ceria, almost bumping her shoulder. Ceria nearly spilled her tray.

Ceria was startled and hastily adjusted her grip on her tray, but Tean’s gang kept brushing past her, one by one. Eventually, her tray tipped over.

Ceria’s sharp glance turned toward Tean and his group. If only she could wield her sword, those guys would be nothing to her.

Yet Ceria was alone, and soon the laughter that followed was cutting. It wasn’t just the boys. Recently, even some girls were joining in mocking her.

In the end, she gritted her teeth and had no choice but to clear the spilled tray. Outside of dueling, fighting was banned within the Academy. In a situation like this, where arguments could be dismissed as ‘accidents,’ she had no means of defending herself.

But Ceria didn’t have that capability. All she knew how to do was swing her sword.

This was the ecosystem of the Academy, akin to a jungle. In every sense, the weak would naturally be weeded out.

It could be seen as a training institution disguised as an educational facility. So, Ceria had no choice but to endure. That miserable feeling.

But even that felt different when she was with him.

At some point, the mocking voices stopped abruptly. The gazes that had been watching her dispersed quickly. Just as Ceria was feeling perplexed, she heard a voice from somewhere.

“Ceria, it’s been a while. I’ve been discharged… what? Did you spill your tray?”

Black hair, golden eyes. And even his calm voice.

It was Senior Ian. As soon as he appeared, everyone completely diverted their attention from Ceria as if nothing had happened. More accurately, they were watching him intently.

The incident where Ian smashed the monsters in the forest had spread throughout the Academy under the name ‘The Southern Forest Monster Massacre.’

As the details evolved, Ian gained notoriety as someone whose reputation would not waver whether facing nobles or commoners; he was known as someone who could cut down ten high-class monsters without flinching. This, of course, created a chemical reaction with the rumors of ‘Yuridina’s rude girl incident,’ but Ceria was unaware of those intricate details.

She simply breathed a sigh of relief inwardly. The miserable feelings she had been enduring melted away the moment she met Ian.

As long as Senior Ian was there, things would surely be okay. With him around, even the mocking and criticism directed at her would vanish in an instant.

Ian naturally joined Ceria as she cleaned up the overturned food. He inquired with worry in his eyes.

“Hey, you’re not dealing with anything lately, are you? How could a swordsman lose balance like that?”

“…No, nothing’s wrong,” she replied.

To be precise, it was because Ian had come that it had turned out this way.

Ceria, who didn’t want to burden Ian with worry, could only say that.

That was how Ceria’s ordinary days had been lately.

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