CH 39

Riett stared at the paper in front of her like it was her parents’ enemy. Then, slowly reaching out her hand, she grabbed the paper and held it close to her eyes, scanning through it. The grades on the report card should have consisted only of 1s and 0s, so why were there 8s and 9s as well…?

Tak! Riett placed the paper back on the table and wrapped her head with her hands, deep in thought.

‘I’m screwed.’

Her scores in the outdoor activities section were perfect. However, among the academic test results, there was one in the 80s and one in the 90s. As a result, her ranking naturally plummeted. She went all the way down to 5th place.

The absence of textbooks ultimately made a significant impact. Although she had expected some deviation in the results, facing it head-on was shocking. Beneath the report card that she picked up again, the rankings up to 10th place were kindly written.

1st place, Evan Kreutz.

2nd place, Lucas Holton.

It was natural for Evan to be in 1st place, but since Lucas had maintained 3rd place and dropped to 2nd place himself, he was promoted to 2nd.

3rd place, Henry Lerris.

That brat! A curse word almost slipped out of Riett’s mouth. He managed to get into the top 3. Looking at the results, it became clear that he had dumped his books at the fountain. Riett gritted her teeth as she realized this.

4th place, Samuel Plum.

Samuel, who had given up on competing for the top ranks…

Riett once again realized how far her ranking had dropped. As she applied force to her hand, the report card crumpled weakly.

Riett balled it up like a ball and threw it into the trash can.

Whizz! It made a muffled sound, and the buzzing of insects could be heard. The sunlight was still bright as ever.

After the exams, the school gave a short vacation. The reason Riett could calmly sit on the balcony was because of this.

‘How many exams are left from now on?’

Riett folded her fingers one by one.

‘Since half of the total twelve exams are over… Hm… Six exams left.’

If she could get perfect scores on the remaining six exams, although it would be difficult to reach 2nd place, 3rd place seemed possible.

‘3rd place…?’

How will she get all the way to first place……!

In an instant, a glimmer of anger flashed in Riett’s eyes.

She had discovered the tragic fate of the dumped book at the fountain, picked up the scraps, prepared for the exams, and even studied diligently. But when faced with the results, a sense of frustration welled up inside her.

‘Henry… Pierre…’

She would have her revenge when she met them.

They’ve been spreading false rumors about her, hindering her competitors. Now she would make them truly understand what hindrance meant. Isn’t there such a thing? In horror or thriller movies, the protagonist gets consumed by rumors and turns dark, eventually carrying out cruel revenge.

As she imagined such a scenario and smirked, a sound came from outside the door.

“Miss Riett, there’s a visitor for you.”

Riett weakly lifted her body from the back of the chair at the maid’s voice. Who could it be…? It wasn’t the right time to meet a visitor.

As Riett pondered, she shouted, 

“Can’t you say I’m not available?”

“The visitor is Duke Kreutz!”

At the maid’s response, Riett immediately stood up from the chair. By now, it was clear that he was her soul twin.

After seeing her miserable report card, she wanted to meet him and have a heart-to-heart conversation, so how did he know and happen to appear at this moment?

As Riett opened the door wide, she saw a surprised maid standing there.

“Where is he?”

“He’s in the drawing room.”

Riett quickly descended the stairs. Duke Kreutz, who was supposed to be in the drawing room, was standing in the central hall.

“Mister… I mean, Duke Kreutz!”

Riett hurriedly muddled her words and changed her address. This address could only be used for Duke Kreutz. If her father or mother heard it, they would surely scold her.

“Riett.”

Duke Kreutz smiled kindly and greeted Riett. Riett smiled brightly and ran up to him, hugging him tightly.

“It’s been a while!”

“While I was away, you’ve become a young lady.”

“Mister, you’ve changed a lot in just a few months too.”

In Riett’s mixed voice, the Duke smiled with a proud smile as he looked at his daughter.

As could be inferred from their conversation just now, Duke Kreutz had been away in another country under the identity of an envoy for a few months. That was also one of the reasons why Riett felt even more powerless.

Duke Kreutz was Riett’s emotional support. He was the pillar that helped her withstand any situation.

“It’s true. Riett is already sixteen this year, right?”

“Yes…?”

“When you make your debut in two years, you’ll become a fine adult.”

At the Duke’s words, Riett suddenly realized her age. Right now, she was sixteen years old, which would be eighteen in Korean age, and in two years, she would be twenty even in real Korean age.

“Shall we go to the drawing-room?”

Duke Kreutz gently ruffled Riett’s hair and looked at her. Riett nodded.

As they sat on the plush sofa in the drawing room, a maid approached them.

“How would you like your tea?”

“I’ll have a warm cup of black tea, please.”

“I’ll have black tea too, but put a lot of ice in it because I’m burning up inside!”

Duke Kreutz laughed heartily at Riett’s request.

“Since Riett seems upset right now, I came here as soon as I arrived in the capital.”

Riett’s eyes widened.

“Really? Didn’t you meet Evan either?”

“That careless fellow probably doesn’t even know today is the day I’m coming.”

He said that, but there was no trace of disappointment on the Duke’s face. He knew very well that his son wasn’t particularly meticulous. Riett also knew that to some extent and asked out of formality.

“Did you find anything while you were away as an envoy? You said you went because of the Spirit Stone.”

“I did find some things, but…”

Duke Kreutz fell silent for a moment, as if deep in thought.

“Mister?”

“I mentioned it before, the Empire’s one and only Spirit User. His name was… ‘Perante.’ I met him.”

Riett remembered. He was the only Spirit User in the Empire, and recently, he had been receiving great attention due to the rising value of Spirit Stones.

“How was it?”

“He was quite different from when I last met him. His attitude, his demeanor, everything was different.”

As the Duke murmured, lost in thought, he paused until the maid came in with the tea. Then he quickly changed his serious expression.

“We haven’t seen each other in a long time, so it’s better to stop these boring conversations.”

“No, I find all the stories you tell interesting, mister.”

“Haha, as expected, there’s only Riett. Well, let’s first relax a bit and finish our conversation.”

Riett nodded and looked down at her teacup. Unlike the cup of hot tea in Duke Kreutz’s hands, Riett’s cup had cold water droplets forming on its surface.

As ordered, Riett’s cup was filled with ice. In this empire, she was probably the only person who drank tea with ice.

Although the culture in this country preferred warm tea, Riett started putting ice in her tea after realizing that ice was commonly used in this world.

She couldn’t drink it often because her mother was shocked when she first saw her adding ice to tea. But even on a day like today when her insides were boiling, she didn’t know if her heart would burst if she drank hot tea.

“Every time I see it, it feels unique.”

“Well, there aren’t many people who drink it this way, so it might seem unfamiliar. But once you try it, you’ll like it. Maybe it’ll be a big hit if we start a business with it later.”

Riett took a sip of the cold tea and put her cup down.

“If I fail to become a nobleman, maybe I should start an iced tea business.”

Curiously, Duke Kreutz cautiously asked in response to Riett’s melancholic voice, 

“By the way, I heard that your grades… have dropped significantly?”

Where did he hear such news so quickly? Did he send a letter to that gentleman in the foreign country…?

Although she was curious, even if she asked, Duke Kreutz would probably just evade the question with a laugh. Riett decided to erase her doubts and calmly replied, 

“Yes, this time I got 5th place.”

“Oh, really…”

Duke Kreutz sighed as he held his teacup still.

“So, you have to get a perfect score in the remaining exams. There can’t be any mistakes.”

In reality, it wasn’t easy, and Riett knew that well.

But she had to accomplish it. Otherwise, all the efforts she had made so far would be in vain, whether she became a female count or a nobleman.

Seeing Riett’s slightly gloomy face, Duke Kreutz opened his mouth.

“Besides getting perfect scores in all the exams, there’s one more way.”

Riett raised her head at the hopeful words. It felt like a spark ignited in her eyes.

“What is it?”

“The student council election.”

As soon as Riett heard the words “student council election,” her eyes brightened. 

‘Right! Why did I forget about that?’

The student council election was not only an important academic event but also an event where the elected student received bonus points, similar to the dance party.

Until now, she hadn’t paid much attention to it because she was confident in maintaining her grades. But now, it was an excellent opportunity to make up for it.

Riett asked anxiously, 

“How many bonus points does it offer?”

“From what I remember, it was 100 points. It probably hasn’t changed.”

Since graduation grades were determined by adding up the scores from each quarter, receiving 100 bonus points in the student council election would have put her within the top 3. Moreover, if she scored perfectly on the remaining quarterly exams, she could even surpass Evan and achieve 1st place.

Riett’s excited voice grew louder. 

“How does the student council election work specifically?”

“They select it in the 3rd quarter of the 2nd year. The school will guide the election, but the election process is unique.”

Unique? Riett’s ears perked up.

“It’s solving problems given by the principal.”

Problems for an election? Riett’s forehead furrowed.

“For example?”

“Usually, the principal presents metaphorical problems, and the students running for the election have to find corresponding objects or people in response.”

Riett rubbed her chin with a perplexed expression. 

“That doesn’t sound easy.”

“As Riett said, the difficulty of the problems is usually quite high, so most of the time, no one can solve them.”

“Then does that mean there won’t be a student council president that year?”

The duke shook his head. 

“In that case, it’s decided through a majority vote. Since there are hardly any people who can solve the problems, it’s common for the president to be chosen through voting.”

It was a peculiar rule. Even though hardly anyone could solve the problems, they persistently attempted to elect a president that way. There must be another meaning behind it.

Tap-tap. Lost in thought, Riett absentmindedly tapped the table. The answer to this situation was simple.

She had to somehow solve the problems presented by the principal, and if she could accomplish that…

‘I can regain my rank with bonus points, become the student council president, and even grasp power.’

Her determination renewed. Riett swiftly downed the lukewarm tea in one gulp.

What’s the worst that could happen? She might as well give it a try.