Became an Academy Self-Inflicted Blackmailer chapter 69

69 – Mental Education (5)

Am I drunk?

My mind is blank.

‘I haven’t even finished drinking a glass yet.’

No matter how much it was, it wasn’t enough to take. Aria put down the glass she was holding and raised her gaze.

Looking at Dante.

It was out of the blue, but because she was feeling a bit dazed, she felt like she could finally look him straight in the eyes. Should I just say that’s how it feels?

Dante, who had been thought of as a bad guy and the beloved sword’s enemy just a little while ago, felt much more normal.

‘…… Hmm.’

One thing is for sure, Dante could never have looked good for breaking her own sword like that…….

Still.

Even if that is certainly the case-.

“… ….”

It’s different. It seems different.

Something was different now.

Remember the previous question.

What did Dante say?

‘Ah, yes.’

Did you feel anything? That’s what I asked.

Aria put aside her feelings of resentment for a moment and accepted it obediently. There were definitely more than one or two things I felt.

The point is ultimately conceit. She realized her own arrogance.

It would be fair to say that she finally recognized it clearly.

The result is inevitably bitter.

But on the other hand, she feels fortunate.

It’s not too late, I found out now. So, there is still room for improvement.

‘Looking back, that’s exactly what her grandfather had been saying all along.’

But she didn’t realize it until she heard it directly from someone else’s mouth.

It was such a shame.

Aria raised her head even though she felt bitter. Dante was waiting for her own answer.

…… Honestly, I think her tone was too extreme, but it’s a bit too much to point out that now.

She had already spoken out several times before, and she even cried bitterly for a long time without going far.

“…… I am.”

To put it more simply, there was nothing wrong with what she said, except that her tone of voice was not good. I had to admit what I had to admit.

Apart from emotions.

“I guess I was overconfident.”

Picking up the warm French fries and mumbling them, Aria began her conversation. Quite seriously, and in a somewhat calm voice.

Dante and Beatrice’s eyes were focused on her.

She said, “I thought that my level of achievement was unrivaled among my peers, and she probably didn’t have an entirely unfounded belief. Actually, I’ve never lost before. Huh… ….”

But, Aria sighed softly as she added.

“The undefeated streak continued for so long that my confidence probably passed into a stage of arrogance. Her grandfather was worried about that too. “I didn’t know that.”

It became a problem because I simply did not know. Not only was she harboring pride inside, but she didn’t even realize it was pride, so it just showed on the outside.

An attitude that sees her opponents as beneath her, and a self-confidence that does not even consider her own defeat.

Aria simply thought about it.

Could it be that the countless people who have dealt with her did not notice that hint of disdain?

No, that won’t be the case. You probably knew it well. It would surely have been easy to guess that the other party did not consider him an enemy.

It was rude.

He was extremely rude and rude.

I don’t want to think about it. What kind of feelings were those who recognized such a sign hiding inside?

And how self-righteous he thought he was…….

Even that wasn’t wrong, I just couldn’t find anything to say. Isn’t the phrase ‘a person without an eye under one’s eyes’ really fitting?

“There was no such intention, no intention to insult…” . Those words are no excuse. It’s just mockery. It’s a deception that can never be pleasant. “Even if I didn’t have those thoughts, the other person would have had no choice but to feel that way.”

This is truly evil.

It was not an indulgence that could be resolved by reflecting on it for a day or two.

The dazed feeling has completely disappeared, and now I just feel dizzy. Aria took her breath shallowly and reached for her beer.

Her excuse to herself, who did not enjoy drinking that much and valued moderation for martial arts, was simple.

Her head hurts, so she needs to borrow the power of cold energy. This is unavoidable.

Hop, jump!

“…… “Huh.”

I guess it’s because it’s a liquor mixed with pineapple juice. I felt a very sour aftertaste, but I didn’t think it was bad.

At least for Aria right now, such stimulation was bringing quite exquisite satisfaction.

My head became clearer.

‘No, am I drunk…? … ?’

It was a new experience to think that my mind became clearer while drinking.

Aria burst into laughter and lightly shook her head.

If I think about it now, wouldn’t it be possible that Dante’s words didn’t have any malicious intent? When she thought about those violent words, she felt like that for some reason, even though it didn’t sound like much.

Actually, where is the apology coming from so belatedly?

…… I’m cautious, but it’s not like I have any guesses at all.

Aria pursed her lips for a moment.

When I think about it now, Dante’s attitude was clearly excessive.

In other words, it means that it is reasonable to think that there must have been a good reason.

Yes, the reason.

It was quite simple to guess the reason.

In fact, even if it was a possibility, there was only one possibility.

“…… “There you are, Dante.”

Aria’s thin voice reached Dante. She let him know he was listening by throwing his eyes at her, and Aria lowered her head slightly as her guilt began to deepen little by little.

I am also careful about what I say to her. But it was something she had to point out.

“You-.”

Embracing her hard-earned courage, Aria hesitantly continued her words.

“…… “You’ve probably met me before.”

A short word.

But perhaps even Dante noticed with this one word.

She realized the inside story of the series of accusations.

“I’m sorry I don’t remember. “I’m sure my forgetfulness has made you sharper.”

It was not easy to raise her head. But what to do? It’s karma that needs to be dealt with.

It was just a thought that occurred to me.

The more I thought about it, the more confident I became.

It’s such a simple story that I can’t understand why I couldn’t think of it until now. It was that kind of situation.

Aria’s expression became even darker.

-Know the topic.

-It’s nice to see someone overflowing with confidence, but if it’s too much, it’s just annoying.

For the first time, Dante said those words to himself. At the time, I thought it was just a common provocation, but…

If I thought about it deeply, I could easily come up with guesses in a different direction.

Isn’t this actually the first time we’ve met since entering the academy? Dante and himself.

There was no face to face. I mean, it was like that.

But, Dante knew himself. He actually spoke as if he knew very well.

-That’s what I meant by saying that it looked very similar to yours.

How did they know?

-‘I’m going to win anyway’, otherwise ‘there’s no need to be nervous’. Well, this kind of attitude probably suits you more than me. Even if it wasn’t after entering the academy, it would always be a thought that came to mind when sparring with kids of similar age.

How did he see through his own pride?

I wouldn’t have had a chance to confirm anything other than when I faced off against Beatrice, who is by my side right now.

At that time, he spoke briefly to Beatrice playfully, but it would not have been possible for him to recognize the arrogant state of mind that even he himself was not aware of.

So, in the end, there is only one hypothesis left that can be made at that point.

That is.

I met him the day before.

Otherwise, there is no explanation.

…… In other words, it meant that everything was explained.

Aria closed her eyes tightly.

“Five years ago, when I was traveling around the empire following her grandfather as a trainee, if you were among the countless people who mixed swords then, it all makes sense. Yeah, you probably hated my attitude. It must have been very heinous. I understand…. So, now like this… ….”

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I can’t bear to continue speaking and let out a low sigh.

Right now, in Aria’s mind, Dante’s past journey was already being played in the form of a video.

A story of hard work that cuts through bone and flesh that cannot be seen without tears. As a result, the battle of revenge was finally achieved!

If you think about it rationally, you may realize that there are some obvious loopholes in that reasoning…

First of all, I couldn’t hope for such logical thinking from Aria.

She just thought. She said that no matter how many people she had met, that could not be an excuse.

Didn’t she just forget about it and almost make the same mistake?

If Dante hadn’t defeated him today, he would have probably taken that victory for granted and moved on. I would not have been given the opportunity to enlighten myself like this.

Aria admitted.

She had the right to condemn herself to Dante.

She deserved criticism. She was such a young child. She was herself back then.

I will admit it.

And, I will not avoid it.

Ariagai clenched her teeth and lifted her head. Putting aside these extremely complicated emotions, I wanted to first apologize for my mistakes and move on!

“Dante, I—.”

Boom!

But Aria’s words were cut off before they could continue properly.

The cause was a sudden noise.

Aria twitched her body. If nothing else, it was because Dante suddenly hit her forehead on the table.

…… Why?

“Dante?”

A name I called without thinking.

And Dante could no longer suppress his emotions at the questionable, so to speak, purest voice.

Dante trembled and muttered in a hushed voice.

“I’m sorry, I was wrong, please don’t do that, I’m being such an asshole.”

It was a 100% pure and sincere apology.

Of course, Aria didn’t understand and just blinked…….

It was a little later that Aria, after belatedly completing her proper understanding of the situation, fell even deeper into emptiness.