**SLAP** 

The sound of flesh hitting flesh resonated in the whole hall pausing everyone from whatever they were doing.

The music was also halted by the choir as the slapping sound was enough to throw them into a startling state.

I was standing some feet away from the main scene with a glass of fruit beer in my hand with some of my classmates beside me.

Unlike me, they had their mouth covered with their hand in astonishment with visible amusement rising in their expectancy.

The whole hall was now looking at the pair of people who arose such commotion and naturally were in the center of all attraction.

The girl who just raised her hand and slapped the person in front was one of my classmates and training partners, Lilia Von Verlin. Daughter of Viscount Verlin.

The person she slapped was her fiancè and the person I was genuinely interested in for the first in my whole life.

Austin Wright.

The reason she slapped him was clear as day for me. 

Austin came alone for the ball and when he saw Lilia walking around with another man whome I know too very well, Austin just went toward them and started shouting some insults at the guy who mostly has stolen Austin's fiancè.

"On the name of my father, I, Lilia Von Verlin from this very moment call off our engagement. I have already told my father about it so don't worry about the compensation. Now get lost from here and don't show that face of yours ever again!!."

Well, now that mostly changed into completely.

The man Lilia sided in the ball was another classmate of mine, Kyouki Sudou. 

In this whole scenario, he was neutral except for the fact that he encouraged Lilia to take this step just some moments ago.

To be honest, it was a natural thing to happen in the count of everything Austin was partaking in this whole half-year. 

The way he acts and taunts Kyouki, the favorite of all humanity, and the way he bad mouths women around him, which unsurprisingly, includes me too, I think he was lucky to still be attending this school. Well, being a Count's son must be helping him.

Every person inside the hall seemed to sigh or deliver the same kind of expression as in to show how satisfied they were with this conclusion.

I should also have felt something like that toward the person who has called me a slut, whore, and whatnot this past half a year.

But looking at his fallen head which he never held back up since the moment he was slapped, I was somewhat anxious.

There could be any two reactions a person who's self-obsessed such as Austin, could give upon being shamed like this in the middle of the whole crowd.

First, whether he would slap her back by saying some other vulgar words and reject the annulment entirely.

Second, he would threaten her in the name of his father and discard the situation by backing off arrogantly.

But he did none of what I thought.

He just hung his head low and turned on his heels. Under the mocking gaze of everyone, he started walking silently and soon disappeared from the ceremonial mall.

It just felt like he was tasked to do something like this...

But I wasn't sure who in the world would ever want to be treated like this or get slapped in front of those many gazes.

Even though I don't care about people's perceptions of me, I don't think I could ever tolerate such humiliation at all.

However he behaved, whatever he did, he still was in the end a proud  son of a Count.

'I have to talk to him...'

Before I could think anything further, my feet were already on a move toward the direction where Austin just left.

I only walked about two steps when someone called for me.

"Luna? Where are you going ?" 

It was my classmate and the person who arose that uproar indirectly some moments ago.

Smiling at me he asked casually as I felt some pair of daggers directed in my direction.

It wasn't tough to tell who those women were as I was acquainted with them but in all honesty, I didn't have a single piece of care for their envy toward me.

Heck, I didn't even know why they had to envy me when I was not into their favourite man at all.

But arising such an argument right now wasnt something I wanted to bother myself so I just made a plain excuse.

"I don't feel good, so I am going back to my dorm."

It was the best way to escape a scene that despite being generic, I use every time I wanted to escape something weary.

"Oh is that so. Then let me accompany you."

But Kyouki was Kyouki. He had to play the good guy all the time.

I immediately shook my head with my fake smile slowly dropping in annoyance.

"It's okay, Kyouki-kun. I will be fine by myself."

I didn't stand there to hear Kyouki's exclamation or his harem's curse for how mean a woman I was.

I just couldn't stand those guys.

Walking out of the hall was also prolonged because of the number of people who greeted me on the way. 

My position in the academy was only below one and above all.

Naturally being called the Saint of humanity didn't feel much good to hear but there wasn't anything I could do.

Since I was proficient with healing magic and was filling the gap in the hero's party, people named me such.

Not only that. From the general mentality, if I was in a party of women with a sole man named Kyouki, people started believing I would be his first wife or sort.

Even though I denied it a couple of times, the women beside me in the party thinks me as their rival and always said something, 'I will not lose to you even Kyouki-kun never look at me, or something along those lines.

I feel so irritated when the whole world tries to frame that man who doesn't even could discern that the women around him, love him madly.

I mean even a mindless creature would start reacting if those many beautiful women fawning over them, yet he sees those gestures as merely a sign of their friendly behavior.

'Ah...I seriously have to leave his party as soon as possible.'

Shaking off my useless thought about myself I walked out of the hall and entered the garden which was just after the main entrance of the ceremonial block.

The night had fallen with nocturnal creatures buzzing in the background.

I knew even in this peaceful silence it would take me time to find Austin so I just used [Mana Detection], and immediately pinpointed him.

I knelt down and after clipping off my sandals which have given me quite love bites around my ankle, I started walking toward him.

He wasn't far away so it didn't take me more than 5 minutes to reach a distance where I could see his figure.

I didn't advance more than necessary and hiding behind a tree I concentrated mana on my optic nerves to see what he was doing.

As I drew my eyes closer his image become more vivid.

He was currently sitting on a bench with his both legs curled up with his face being supported by his knees.

He had a blue kind of rectangular slim marble-like thing in hand which had two black circles drawn on its back. The strange thing was illuminating Austin's face with vibrant blue light.

But still, that weird illumination didn't make me startle this much, as something else did.

Austin's eyes which I have often seen filled with arrogance and pride were devoid of any such sins. 

His pair of olive green eyes were now relaxed to the point where I felt myself lost in them. There was a glint of loneliness with love filled in those eyes.

His all-time smug face carried only a gentle smile which made me realize that this person could make such an expression too.

I was stunned by such a sight after so long.

No, maybe this was the first time when I felt someone's expression exhilarating my emotions to this extent.

Calming my nerves I exhaled deeply.

It wasn't how I usually behaved but strangely I didn't hate it. More like I felt natural in this last moment.

Now the thing I wanted to know the most was the content which that blue stone was displaying, which drew out such an expression from the famous good-for-nothing noble.

I erased my mana and used [Camouflage] before I walked toward him silently.

This skill of mine was a secret which I and only my grandma knew about .

I have used this spell a couple of times for ambush and when I wanted to study in the library for whole night, but this was my first time using it for something like this.

Using it to spy on a man whom I felt interesting ...would be suitable I guess.

Being aware of the path I was walking upon I made way toward the bench on which Austin was sitting before I took the position just behind him.

Leaning my head slightly I finally was able to the see the source of such weird illumination. And when I finally did see the content, my eyes went wide in disbelief.....