Aisha had invited me to participate in a [Staring Contest].
I was dumbfounded.
Doesn’t ‘staring contest’ sound somewhat pathetic?
Theo inside me must have thought the same, as it’s been a while since [Twisted Noble's Dignity] activated.
Aisha pouted her lips.
“No, Theo. I understand why you feel that way, but hear me out first.”
“I need to hear what you think you understand first.”
“The term ‘staring contest’ sounds pathetic— isn’t that it?”
Her intuition is getting sharper.
She hit the nail on the head, but I didn’t want to admit it.
“...Go on.”
“...Yes. First, Theo, you are aware of how good-looking you are now, right?”
There’s no way I wouldn’t know that now.
I won first place in a beauty pageant.
I nodded my head.
"To some extent."
“Therefore, you have to leverage that ability. [Staring Contest] generally has a lot of female students participating. Here are the gender ratios of participants in the [Staring Contest] for the past 5 years that I obtained separately.
As you can see from the 5-year statistics, the ratio is 8 females to 2 males, right? Last year's participant ratio was even 8.5 to 1.5.”
Tap, tap!
Aisha, standing at the podium, pointed to a statistical chart affixed to the classroom blackboard with a ballpoint pen.
I spoke.
“Hmm, I see.”
“Hmm~ I see~ is it? Don’t you understand why you should participate even after all this? If necessary, I can explain in even more detail.”
“Explain further.”
Aisha seemed so immersed in playing an excellent lecturer that I obliged.
‘I didn’t expect her to prepare to this extent...’
I didn’t expect her to prepare past participant statistical data.
If I said I got the idea and wrapped it up, she might feel let down after preparing all this.
Next time I asked for a favor, she might not prepare as thoroughly.
Was I right?
A sly grin flickered at the corners of Aisha's mouth.
“[Staring Contest] starts with each participant's face about 25cm apart. 25cm might be hard to visualize. To give you an idea of that distance—”
Aisha, who came down from the podium with a thump, began to push her face towards me.
She brought her face close enough for her soft peach fuzz to be visible.
“Ahem.”
Aisha, who coughed awkwardly, thump- ascended back to the podium.
“That’s about 25cm, Theo. How was it? Pretty close, right?”
“I could see even your peach fuzz.”
“...You, you don’t have to mention that. Anyway, you understand that it's a very close distance, right? And if you look somewhere other than the eyes, you lose.”
“Yes, I understand.”
“Also, Theo, your eyes are sharp and intimidating, making it even harder for your opponent to maintain eye contact. The Waldeurk family's unique red irises also play a role."
"Hmm, is that so?"
"What's with that reaction? Are there any other women besides Siena who can maintain eye contact with you for such a long time?"
There seem to be quite a few, right?
Even just considering the ones that come to mind right away - Piel, Amy, Jang Woohee, and so on...
If I think a bit more, it seems like more will come to mind.
"Quite a few, actually. If I have some time to think, I think I can name around ten."
"······I see. Anyway, I'm sure that such cases will be almost non-existent in this [Staring Contest]. If they are, maybe one or two? Unless it's someone who has known you for a long time, they won't be able to do it."
"I see. I understand now. Good job, Aisha."
Aisha smiled, seeming satisfied.
"Yes, if you win this time, you have to treat me. Oh, and remember this. The rules are different starting from the finals compared to the preliminaries."
"What is it?"
"In the preliminaries, you're not allowed to have any conversation with each other, but starting from the finals where the host is present, conversation between participants is allowed. Of course, even then, keep your gaze fixed on the other person's eyes."
"Hmm, I see. I'll keep that in mind."
I nodded my head.
Come to think of it, it's an interesting competition.
My amplified [Twisted Noble's Dignity] will definitely come in handy.
"Well then, let's go and sign up. It starts at 10 a.m., right?"
Looking at the clock, it was already 9:30 AM.
Aisha excitedly raised her index finger and waved it from side to side.
"No, Theo. Details are important for a perfect first place. Why would you think otherwise?"
Saying so, Aisha took out makeup tools, a magic hairdryer, and a curling comb from her bag and started humming a tune.
"La-la-la~ What kind of hairstyle should I try today~! Since it was done all the way yesterday, should I do just half today?"
"By 'half', do you mean your current hair-style right now?"
"Ugh, Theo, you're like a man in his 30s sometimes, you know? How can the half-done hair of a woman and a man be the same? Do you think my aesthetic sense is that bad?"
"...Do as you please."
"Yes, Theo, trust only me, okay?"
Raei Translations
Theo, after 10 minutes of skin care and hairstyling, moved with Aisha to the booth accepting applications for the [Staring Contest].
The booth was near the Knight Department.
While walking side by side, Theo spoke.
"By the way, where did Siena go? She said we would meet today."
"I don't know? We separated right after leaving the training ground yesterday, so I haven’t heard anything."
"Hmm, alright."
Theo faintly nodded his head.
'That unpredictable girl will probably show up out of the blue later.'
Although it's hard to believe, seeing Irene use the swordsmanship of her teacher yesterday might have stirred some old memories.
So, Theo and Aisha chatted as they walked and arrived at the registration booth.
Theo spoke.
"Then, I'll go and sign up."
"Sure, go ahead. But wow, we came here early for no reason. There's almost no one signing up."
There was only one person applying at the [Staring Contest] booth.
Usually, registrations for this kind of entertainment competition are done at the last minute.
In front of the participation booth, Theo spotted the familiar back of a girl's head, who was wearing the uniform of the Hero Department.
"Piel."
"······!"
Instead of responding, Piel's back trembled as her name was called.
She seemed startled.
Walking over to her, Theo spoke again.
"So, you're participating in the [Staring Contest] as well?"
"······Yes."
Piel answered briefly, only looking ahead.
"Is something wrong? You seem different than usual."
"······Nothing."
Piel still kept her gaze forward as she responded curtly.
‘Her face is a bit red, too······ She’s definitely different than usual.’
Theo quickly racked his brain and found a plausible reason.
‘······Is she embarrassed of what happened with Duke Maximin at the seminar?’
Well, that would certainly be embarrassing.
Two people were falsely accused and an innocent person was forcefully taken.
"Let’s forget about the past, Piel. We’re not living forward without looking at each other, are we?"
"······."
Piel did not respond.
She didn’t meet Theo’s eyes either, just kept staring forward.
Then, the booth staff spoke.
"Registration is complete, student Piel de Chalon. The competition is scheduled to start soon, so we recommend you wait on the preliminary stage."
"······Yes, thank you."
Piel bowed her head and promptly left the spot.
Theo, watching her retreating figure for a moment, shook his head slightly and proceeded to apply for the [Staring Contest].
Piel, contrary to the booth staff's recommendation, quickly walked towards a distant back alley away from the preliminary stage.
Thump-- Thump--!
Her heart was beating rapidly.
‘Why... Why did he suddenly appear there!’
It was because she unexpectedly ran into Theo.
‘Ughhh... I really am a dumb, stupid idiot... I could’ve just greeted him normally.’
Confirming that there was no one around, Piel bowed her head and covered her face with both hands.
The palms of her hands felt warm against her face.
Thump, thump!
Her elevated heart rate didn't seem to be coming back down anytime soon.
Even if she walked and tried to cool off for an hour, her heart rate wouldn't change.
‘Based on the fact that he greeted me first... it doesn’t seem like he despises me... but still...’
She didn't know how she should look at Theo.
She had participated in this [Staring Contest] for this reason as well.
Last week, her father even confirmed that Theo is not a contractor.
It was extremely unlikely that anyone would think of Theo as a demon contractor anymore, and even if they did, it wouldn't change anything.
That 'Demon Hunter' said it too.
The probability of being the Demon King's contractor was almost zero, and if by any chance the Demon King descended, the continent would end anyway.
This meant that the issue had been with her own heart from the beginning.
"Shi...t."
An indecent word, unbecoming of a lady from a high noble family, escaped from Piel’s lips.
"What am I going to do..."
Her face, hidden behind her palms, remained stubbornly flushed.
