* * *

Zahid and Ray had been locked in a silent battle of nerves outside Theo’s lab for some time now—tension that had clearly been simmering since their very first meeting.

It was only natural that they disliked each other from the beginning.

“Leave.”

Zahid, his eyes cold, said it again.

“Rosie didn’t want to tell us anything, remember.”

“Then you leave,” Ray replied, tilting his head back.

“I don’t respect that kind of decision.”

That was when—

“Well, well, students.”

Yuta cut in with a soft smile.

“For now, let’s keep it down. I’m curious about this whole situation too.”

With a light step, Yuta rose on his toes and quietly slid open the high window leading into the lab.

He moved so fast that even Zahid couldn’t stop him.

And immediately, the conversation inside began to carry out to them.

“Assistant, you’ve noticed it, right?”

It was Rosie’s calm voice.

“For the past week, your hands have been shaking more and more by the day.”

“……What exactly are you trying to say?”

“It doesn’t interfere with your daily life yet, or even your experiments for now, but… just try to feel it. It’s faint, but it’s getting worse.”

“……”

“You must have seen it too—your petals in the experiment jar are the only ones trembling.”

Even Zahid, who hadn’t wanted to hear any of this, momentarily forgot everything as his lips parted in shock.

Magical Nanoscience was a field Theo constantly emphasized required precision—he always said, “Practice is everything.”

No matter how brilliant the theory, if your hands couldn’t execute it, it was meaningless.

Hand tremors? If they worsened, continuing research would become impossible.

“And every single day, just a little more.”

Rosie’s voice made even Yuta’s expression stiffen.

Theo said nothing.

He didn’t look surprised in the slightest.

Of course—he was probably the one who’d sensed it most acutely.

In truth, last night, when the Sky Pocket meant for the Empress Dowager was ruined, what devastated him most was the realization that it might’ve been his final masterpiece.

He didn’t care whether or not it was delivered to the Empress Dowager.

But what broke him was the thought that, due to his gradually worsening tremors, he might never create such a magical artifact again.

“Rosie Noart.”

His voice trembled as he finally spoke.

“……How did you know?”

“Pardon?”

“This tremor I have—something even I don’t know when it began. How did you figure it out? Did you know from the beginning? Is that why you brought me that tea?”

Rosie didn’t answer the question.

Instead, she said something completely different.

“Did you happen to receive anything from the Noart estate?”

“……What?”

“I came from the Noart estate. And when you live in that mansion, you learn things. My maid saw a powder—‘Onat powder’—falling off some letters in the mailroom. She didn’t know what it was, so she asked the physician, and he said it’s a rare, hard-to-find powder that, when exposed to in daily doses, causes tremors.”

“……”

“It’s not classified as poison because it doesn’t threaten your life, but once it progresses beyond a certain point, it becomes incurable. But at your current level, the infirmary should be able to treat it easily.”

“……”

“It just came to mind. Since you’ve been shaking your hands a lot lately.”

A heavy silence settled over the lab.

Zahid blinked in confusion, trying to grasp what he’d just heard.

Then, beside him, Yuta’s jaw dropped as he murmured:

“No wonder… Theo’s mother kept sending him packages every day.”

Monica Noart, Theo’s mother, had always said she wanted him to return to the Noart estate.

She wanted him to come home from the Academy and begin training as heir…

But to think she was secretly lacing his letters with tremor-inducing powder.

“Ha…”

While Zahid and Ray stood there with their mouths agape, Yuta sighed deeply and shook his head.

“Looks like Theo isn’t saying anything because he already knows it was his mother.”

Inside the lab, Rosie spoke again, calm as ever.

“The choice is yours. I’ve said what I came to say. Maybe I’m wrong. Who knows?”

Ray lowered his gaze and exhaled quietly.

Rosie had deliberately avoided stating everything outright.

She’d offered Theo a choice—pure and simple.

To either cover it up and return to the Noart estate as his mother wished, or get treatment and remain at the Academy.

By not delivering a decisive verdict, she left him the space to pretend he didn’t know and forgive his mother.

That’s why she had even gone through the trouble of arranging those weekly tea times.

This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.

So it could end with a single subtle hint he could choose to notice.

A pause followed.

“Well, I’ll be going now.”

Rosie said quietly.

“From tomorrow, you won’t have to worry about me pretending to be friendly anymore. That flower tea I brought, it tasted awful anyway. Even I had trouble drinking it.”

At least she was honest with herself.

“Please wait a moment.”

Theo stopped her.

“Why… why did you tell me this? Why something like this?”

“Sorry?”

“You could’ve just kept quiet. We’re not even close.”

Theo’s voice shook violently.

“I mean, you know my mother doesn’t like you. You must’ve noticed I don’t care about you either and try not to get involved with you! All those things you went through—I never once took your side!”

“I know. You’re not stupid—you’re top of the class. Also, your speech is seriously weird.”

“If… if I return to the Count’s estate, are you afraid I’ll interfere with your obnoxious brother becoming the heir? Is that it?”

“Ah…”

Rosie responded slowly.

Her tone was a stark contrast to Theo’s emotionally charged voice.

“To be honest, I don’t care at all if you go back to the Count estate.”

“What?”

“Right now, Grandfather is still absurdly healthy, and you’re such a painfully unsociable shut-in that you’re no match for my brother. Monica’s the only one who doesn’t realize that, isn’t she?”

“……”

“My brother may have lost his memory, but he’s already going insane over money and power. I think he’ll reclaim his position in a few years.”

Ray, still eavesdropping, muttered, “That’s true,” and nodded in agreement.

“Ha.”

“I just wanted this to be your own choice.”

“Then why on earth…?”

“I just… I couldn’t ignore it. It’s one thing to not know, but if I know something like this, I can’t just watch.”

Rosie gave a faint smile.

“That’s all.”

“……”

“Life is precious. Whether you’re a wretch, a bastard, an illiterate fool, or an orphan everyone tries to tear down…”

She was clearly describing herself, and gathered like that, it was a truly pitiful list. Rosie gave a bitter smile and added:

“I didn’t understand that before. But at some point, I decided to value my own life. And that meant I had to value other people’s lives too.”

Theo remained silent for a long while.

Stillness filled the air.

Even Zahid and Ray, listening from the hallway, said nothing.

And then, it was Theo who finally broke the silence.

“By the way.”

“Yes?”

“Why don’t you call me ‘Theo oppa’ anymore?”

“…Sorry?”

“You used to say it all the time. Why did you suddenly start calling me Assistant?”

“Uh… I thought that’s what you preferred. And we don’t have any reason to fake tea time anymore…”

“You’re kind of cold. Doesn’t match your looks.”

As Rosie had said, his speech really was bizarre.

“……Truly, tha–tha–thank…”

“Excuse me? Are you about to say you’re so grateful you’d sacrifice your life for me?”

“Wh–what! I-I just meant th-thank you for all your h-hard work!”

“Ah, I see.”

“And I’m s-s-sor…”

“Excuse me? Are you going to say you’re so sorry for treating me like I didn’t exist, you’d drop to your knees and beg forgiveness with your whole heart?”

“Wh–what! I meant I must be out of my mind!”

“Then I’ll just be going—”

“I’ll make you a cup of tea. Just for you, to cleanse your palate. For your information, I’ve never even given one to Assistant Yuta. You’re also expected to return for tea tomorrow.”

As Zahid tilted «N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t» his head, wondering if that strange tone was Theo’s way of expressing affection—

Yuta quietly stepped down and closed the window again.

Then he bent down and patted both Zahid and Ray on the head.

“Time to go, kids. Let’s not get caught eavesdropping on someone else’s messy family drama.”

A wistful smile crossed Yuta’s face.

“Seriously, who raised that girl so well?”

That day, Rosie remained in Theo’s lab until the end of lunch.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep