DSFL | Chapter 94

~Chapter 94~ 

Ricardo was seriously deep in thought.

‘…Where should we hold the wedding?’

Spring would be nice, when all of Bianca’s favorite flowers are in full bloom.

Not that anything could outshine her.

He imagined placing chocolate fountains all over the venue so everything she looked at would be filled with things she loved.

As long as he could stand beside her and vow to love her for life, nothing else in the world scared him.

She had once asked him what his favorite thing was.

He had never thought about it before. There was never any need.

Because Ricardo only loved Bianca more than anything in the world.

Even if he told her every single day for the rest of his life, it would never be enough.

Time flew by when they were together, and it crawled painfully slow when she was gone.

Humans are bound by time.

But Bianca could twist time however she liked—so Ricardo felt destined to be bound by her forever.

So much had changed.

Her eyes, once always sharp and angry when looking at him, had softened.

She no longer avoided him, and even walked beside him now.

Even their conversations—once full of tension—had become casual and normal.

These were things he never could have imagined before.

But behind those happy thoughts, uneasiness began to creep in.

In Ricardo’s life, every time things felt perfect, despair would soon follow.

And the dream that grew from that fear painted a different future.

In the dream, Bianca had no attachments—just like before.

She always turned her back to him, as if he meant nothing to her.

No matter how far he reached, he could never catch her.

He’d wake up in a panic, relieved it was just a nightmare.

He had a vague idea where the dream came from.

“You seem like someone who has no ties to this world. Like someone who might leave any moment.”

He had asked her that once.

But Bianca didn’t answer.

She just looked at him with fear in her eyes, as if she didn’t even know she had given off that impression.

‘…Where are you planning to go?’

Would she stay if he gave her all the treasures in the world?
If he cured the illness of the family she loved so dearly—would that change anything?

When she smiled, the world lit up.

But when she looked the slightest bit sad—he couldn’t breathe.

He would do anything for her.

…But what if what she truly wanted—was to leave him?

The reason he had decided to live was her.

But if she wasn’t there when everything was finally perfect, what was the point?

He feared that in her version of the future, he wasn’t included.

He feared she’d disappear without saying goodbye.

Bianca would never let him hold onto her.

She was kind to everyone, and Ricardo could only wish that kindness was for him alone.

But that was impossible.

He loved her warmth, and at the same time, he wished nothing about her would ever change because of him.

His selfish, messy feelings were growing—but he didn’t know how to deal with them.

…Still, he believed it would be okay.

He would find a way to hold onto her—no matter what.

He would leave the past behind.

‘I’ll just start over from the beginning.’

That’s all he needed to do.

With his thoughts settled, Ricardo grabbed his jacket and stood up.

Right now, he just wanted to see Bianca.

He wanted proof that all his fears were just in his head.

***

“…Brother.”

“Yeah?”

I folded my arms and gave Leon a look.

“You’re not really interested in finding evidence, are you?”

“W-What? Of course I am.”

“Then why are you stuttering?”

“Because I didn’t expect you to ask that.”

Leon answered casually, though he avoided my eyes.

I noticed the geography book in his hands and stared at it. He quickly shut it.

“Fine. Then help me properly from now on, okay?”

At my words, Leon rolled his eyes, then gave me a sly smile.

“Alright.”

***

The academy’s headmaster welcomed Leon, a returning graduate, very warmly.

“Feel free to check the archives, Leon! You were a hardworking student—always welcome here!”

He also asked me to visit again someday—with Cedric.

Leon was from the 241st graduating class.

I checked the books by class number until I found Cedric and Leon’s.

Leon, following behind me, gave a quiet sigh.

“…Feels strange.”

He ran his fingers over the books, lost in old memories.

His face was filled with an emotion I hadn’t seen before.

“I didn’t expect this to still be here.”

Then he suddenly stopped and pulled down a box from the top shelf.

“…What’s that?”

“Punishment letters.”

Leon chuckled and opened the box. Inside were tons of letters.

“Most of the students here were nobles, so not many joined the school festivals.”

I nodded quietly.

“So one professor made everyone write letters to someone they wanted to talk to. Everyone took it seriously, thinking it would affect their grades.”

“And why was it a punishment?”

“Because students who didn’t attend the festival had to send their letters, no matter what.”

Wow. That’s harsh.

“So you wrote one too?”

“Yeah. Cedric did, too.”

I stared at the box, curious. Leon quickly lifted it out of my reach.

He was much taller than me—no matter how I tiptoed, I couldn’t grab it.

“You’re mean! Don’t say stuff like that if you won’t show me!”

“It’s embarrassing. I was young, okay?”

How young could he have been, really?

I gave up on stealing the box.

Then Leon mischievously said,

“Or… if you write me a letter, I’ll trade.”

“…That’s kind of tempting.”

“Two full pages, though.”

“Can I write a diary instead?”

“That’s not a letter, Bianca.”

Too bad. Guess a diary doesn’t count.

Now I was curious about Cedric’s letter.

She probably wrote one to Grandpa to say thanks—Grandpa would love it.

“By the way, the headmaster seemed happy to see you. Were you a good student?”

“Didn’t expect that, did you?”

“….”

“Bianca, seriously…”

Leon gave me an exasperated look. I smiled to lighten the mood.

He sighed and returned the box to the shelf.

“Well, I had no choice. To inherit the title, I had to graduate with perfect behavior and top grades.”

That made sense.

Without that reason, Leon wouldn’t have needed to attend the academy.

It was usually for nobles who weren’t direct heirs.

Talented students often became royal aides or mages at the tower.

“I became close with Cedric for the same reason. He was in the same boat.”

I stopped to think.

“Wait… Why Cedric?”

“He never told you? Wow, he really keeps everything to himself.”

Leon clicked his tongue, realizing I hadn’t been close with Cedric back then.

“There were rumors from his extended family.”

Seeing my worried face, he quickly added,

“He was the main heir, but still chose to go to the academy—guess he’s more rigid than he looks.”

“Haha, I guess so.”

When I answered lightly, Leon finally relaxed and looked at the bookshelves.

“I’ll check this side. You look over there.”

“Got it.”

***

After a long search, we still didn’t find anything useful.

We left the academy with heavy steps.

On the way home, I quietly watched Leon’s calm face.

“…You knew we wouldn’t find anything, didn’t you?”

He smiled awkwardly.

“Kind of. So… are you ready to give up now?”

“Never.”

Leon sighed, looking a little troubled.

“Bianca, you know Cedric and I can’t go back to how things were.”

“I’m not asking you two to make up. I never expected that.”

“Then why?”

“If you were in my place, what would you do?”

“Of course, I’d…”

Leon suddenly stopped, realizing the answer himself.

“So you do know.”

“…You really are something.”

Leon gave a small laugh. But then, something caught his eye, and his expression changed.

“What is it? Did you see something—?”

Just as I turned to look, Leon quickly cupped my cheeks in his hands.

Confused and frozen, I just stared at him.

“Come to my house tomorrow.”

“Alright.”

I nodded without question.

I thought the conversation was over—but then he leaned in and whispered softly into my ear,

“See you tomorrow.”

His tone was light, but his action felt oddly secretive.