Episode 9
“I feel ashamed just breathing the same air as you. So first, take this punch and then apologize.”
Lady Roseneath had once said that to her cheating ex-boyfriend.
“I wish I could say something like that too…”
But when Violet looked at Blue Dean, it wasn’t that easy.
She was too angry.
“I really want to say something that’ll stab him in the heart. Something he’ll never forget.”
Especially after seeing the future where he abused her as a wife, she felt she had every right.
“I don’t plan on being your sweet little fiancée. So that entire sentence of yours is just wrong.”
Violet spoke slowly and clearly.
“If you were smart and kind like Marigold, maybe you could’ve earned my love. Sigh… I guess people just can’t change their nature.”
She couldn’t hold back anymore.
“A harsh line, a harsh line…”
But what exactly should she say? Now that she was ready to spit it out, nothing came to mind.
The words she had said earlier to the servant weren’t really harsh—they just pointed out his mistake.
And he was just a servant anyway. She didn’t even remember his name.
But Blue Dean… he was like a sworn enemy.
Since words weren’t working, Violet decided to respond in the way she was best at.
Wham!
Her punch landed right on Blue Dean’s nose.
There was a nasty cracking sound—probably a broken bone.
Blood poured from both nostrils.
“Y-You… what did you just do?!”
Blue Dean covered his face with one hand, staring at her in disbelief.
“Get lost.”
Violet looked him straight in the eyes and said it quietly.
“Do you even know what’ll happen to us after this, you—”
“We’ll break off the engagement. That’s what I want.”
“…”
“And I’m not finished talking to you yet. Come back later. I still need to think about what exactly I want to say to you.”
Violet bent down and picked up a training sword from the floor.
“My father won’t let this go. He’ll never forgive you!”
Blue Dean panicked and tried to run away, still holding his bleeding nose.
“In all those strong-female web novels I read… the things the main characters said always seemed so simple. But it’s not. Saying something truly cutting is hard.”
Violet felt a little let down.
The path to becoming like Lady Roseneath was long and hard.
“Next time I’ll do better… This one doesn’t count as my ‘one line.’”
She thought about Cyril’s mission and made a firm promise to herself.
People had to train in all areas—even in speaking up.
Just then, as Blue Dean tried to leave, someone suddenly opened the door and nearly bumped into him.
“What the hell?”
With a frown, the unexpected visitor looked down at Blue Dean.
It was Ash Defendail.
“Ash Defendail… Lately, I’ve been seeing him way too often.”
“Your face looks priceless right now.”
Ash’s lips curled slightly. His face was beautiful—but the smile was sharp.
“Are you mocking me right now?”
Blue Dean was the son of the commander of the knights, and Ash was a commoner.
Still, Blue Dean watched his words carefully.
No one at the academy dared to treat Ash lightly.
Sometimes, fists mattered more than status. Rumor was, Ash was so strong he could cut down a building with aura alone—and fight an entire army by himself.
“Ash is taller than I thought… No, wait—he’s really tall.”
Even though Blue Dean wasn’t short, he looked small next to Ash.
Ash bent down a little.
“How can I not laugh? You get punched by your fiancée for being an idiot, then come here whining. Seeing that up close is comedy gold.”
“…”
“If I stayed quiet, that wouldn’t be politeness—that’d be a crime.”
Violet was shocked. He didn’t even blink as he said such savage words.
“Now that’s what you call a sharp tongue. Wow…”
She was deeply impressed.
Meanwhile, Blue Dean was shaking in rage.
“My father is the Commander of the Knights! One day, he’ll be your superior. You dare speak to me like this?!”
“Oh yeah? Then be sure to tell him—word for word—what I just said. Make him feel really upset. Got it? That’s your homework for today. And don’t forget to bring it to me for grading.”
Now Violet was sure—Ash was a master of verbal beatdowns.
“Y-You—!”
Blue Dean could only growl in frustration. He couldn’t even respond properly.
In the end, he ran out of the training room like a loser.
“Hi, Violet Everdeen.”
Ash gave her a sweet smile after watching her for a second.
“Hi. What are you doing here?”
“I’m next to use the training room.”
“Isn’t that a few hours from now?”
“I came early. I was excited.”
“Excited… to train?”
“Yeah. Just today, though.”
Ash walked a little closer.
“Are you done with training?”
“Oh? Not really. I just got here, actually…”
“Then wanna train together?”
“…You and me?”
That sounded like a village fool studying with the top student in the country.
“Is it because he saw me beat up Colvera last time?”
But even so, something didn’t feel right.
“I prefer to train alone,” Violet quickly said.
Spending all that time with Ash would be a disaster for her focus.
“Also… this whole situation is kinda embarrassing.”
No matter what, Blue Dean was still technically her fiancé. Getting humiliated by him in front of someone else was a little shameful.
“That’s too bad. I think we’d have fun together.”
Ash said in a relaxed voice, dragging out the last word a little.
Violet felt weird again and hurried to change the subject.
“If you want to use the training room now, I can leave and give it to you.”
“It’s okay. I just wanted to see your face and say hi.”
“…It’s only been a few days, though.”
After the Colvera incident, not much time had passed.
But Ash calmly replied,
“Time is a personal thing.”
“I guess so.”
Ash definitely had a unique way of treating friends.
“So, do you need help with anything today?”
Violet almost blurted out the question burning inside her throat:
“How do you get so good at savage comebacks?”
But asking that would probably be rude.
After all, calling someone a “sharp-tongued jerk” wasn’t exactly a compliment.
“If I think of anything, I’ll let you know. And… thanks. For what you said to Blue Dean today.”
Violet said it softly. Ash gave her a small nod.
“We’ll meet again soon, Violet Everdeen.”
He turned and walked out calmly.
Violet stood there, staring at the door that had just shut.
Maybe it was because of the visions of the future, but lately, a lot of strange things were happening.
