Shadow Monarch: Heroines Could Hear My Thoughts?!

Chapter 164- For Elise (Part 2)

The moment she closed her eyelids, an extremely blissful feeling invaded her very existence. It was so beautiful, so paradisical, yet also weirdly sad.

All her life, these sounds were what she heard for hours and hours on end. At some point, she fell in love with the piano and even decided to spend all her life learning everything that could be learned about this musical instrument.

As much pain as she experienced because of it and as much as this instrument was technically the reason she lost her whole family and lived through hell. Yet, not even for one second did she ever hate the piano.

It was her only time of freedom from her horrible life, after all. How can she hate that? How can she hate the only colorful thing in the sea of her monotonous days? That would only make her fall deeper and deeper into the abyss.

That's why, when she heard that familiar sound again, it was as if a part of her came back to life, a part that she thought had been long dead.

Her whole soul seemingly started moving with each press on the keys. Seconds, minutes, or even hours passed, she didn't know and didn't care, this feeling was just too amazing to let her think about anything else.

On the other hand, Rin who was the one playing the song, his smile widened as he saw Elise enjoying it. All the hard work he had put into practice was all worth it for this moment. It all started a few weeks ago when he asked Evelyn whether she knew how to play the piano and luckily for him, she seemed to be quite skillful in it.

So, he struck a deal with her to teach him to how to use a piano, and in return, he would… go on a date with her?

Rin is still confused about why she only asked for a date with him instead of actually trying to get to whatever she was aiming to get from him. Rin wasn't dumb and neither was he dense, in his own opinion. So, he was certain that Evelyn wasn't really there to merely play and tease him. Luckily, she didn't seem to be aiming to harm him but that didn't mean he could trust her either.

But, if a date is all she asked for, then he wasn't going to disagree with her as it wasn't really that hard of a request, anyway.

'I'm happy that I was able to learn quickly. I thought the piano would be harder than this. I might actually be a music genius without even being aware of it.' He thought as he chuckled.

A few moments later, the song finally reached its last part and arguably the hardest one. It was also the one that took the most time from Rin since for some reason, the composer decided to turn it into this complex song. From what Rin heard, the name of the song was actually targeted to a certain woman the composer was in love with and had dedicated this piece to her since she was one of his students. However, mid-composing it, he discovered that she was engaged and then decided to take revenge and made the last part horribly hard.

As sad and funny as the story is, Rin wasn't really that interested in it. He certainly chose it because it had the same name as Elise and because it was very beautiful and mesmerizing to the ear.

Eventually, Rin finished the piece. His fingers ran through the keys as a last signature move and then turned to look at Elise with a relaxed smile. He would be lying if he said that he was nervous about how she was going to react. Seconds passed in deep silence.

Elise's eyes were still closed as if she didn't realize that it was over yet. But, eventually, she opened her eyelids and stared directly at Rin. Her expression looked serene, and calm yet also weirdly perturbed. A contrast that Rin didn't even know was possible.

"Mmmm… Ehem." Finding the silence extremely awkward, Rin coughed a few times as he rubbed the back of his head.

'Did I fuck it up?!' He could only wonder.

Elise was a professional piano player so it wasn't that hard to think that he had made grave mistakes that made her hate it.

But, the next second, Elise finally spoke.

"Why?"

Only one word yet it carried many meanings. She wasn't blaming him, she was merely confused as to why? How? And when?

"Mmm, I started learning the piano a few days ago. I wanted to surprise you since today is your birthday, no?" He said.

Rin had asked Elise before about this in their usual banter and luckily, he was able to discern her birthday. So, he decided to surprise her on that particular day.

He had heard about a part of Elise's past and had seen how much she's struggled throughout her whole life so he wanted to show her something that might make her feel better. Rin was sure that Elise loved the piano but couldn't express that love because of the hardships and cruelty of the world.

For better or worse, she had lived for the sake of this talent.

"..." Elise seemed to have frozen again in her place.

'Did you like it or not?!' Rin screamed in his head as his heart started beating loudly. He thought he was ready for her reaction but he couldn't be any further from being wrong.

'Am I proposing to her or something? It's just a small gift for her birthday!'

*Tap*

As he was having such a dilemma in his head, he heard the sound of someone stepping on the platform. Looking up, he saw Elise staring down at him with her hypnotizing eyes.

Then, out of nowhere, she extended her arms and did something that Rin didn't even think of in his wildest imagination.

"Wha…"

She engulfed his neck and pulled him in for a very strong hug. Rin's body instinctively tensed up at first. But, when he heard what she said next, he immediately relaxed.

"Thank you… Thank you… Thank you." She murmured again and again. Her arms started shaking visibly and her breathing sounded erratic near his ear.

'Is she… crying?' Rin asked himself since his face was buried and couldn't look up. Elise didn't allow him to look at her crying because of the sheer awkward feeling.

"Thank you, Rin…"

Closing his eyes, Rin also hugged her back and stroke her long silky white hair gently.

"No problem." He simply replied.

There was no need for them to talk in order to understand what the other was thinking about. It was useless. They had already grown to comprehend each other to a great deal. Sharing thick and thin with someone is the best way to create the strongest of bonds. Bonds that can challenge the passing of time, never waning, never staling, and never disappearing.

"You have worked hard, Elise. You deserve to rest. But, sadly, we can't rest now. Maybe when everything is over, we can take some time to relax. What do you think?"

"Mmm…" She replied as she nodded her head.

'I actually like this very expressive, Elise. She's really adorable!' Rin thought as he kept gently caressing Elise's back.

To say that hugging her was the best feeling he ever experienced wasn't an understatement. Even though he hugged and touched many people before, he somehow felt different doing it with Elise.

It was as if touching her was the only right thing to do. As if she was a part of him that he missed for a long time and finally reunited with.

"We have taken a huge leap. The distance is still long but I'm certain we are going to get to the end. I will definitely make sure we reach the end. I promise."

"Me too…"

"Hehehe… I know that. You aren't going to let me get all the limelight for myself, are you?"

Pulling out slightly, Elise looked up at him and then in a rare sight, smiled warmly at him.

"You are too stupid… You need me to stop you from doing stupid things." She replied.

Rin was aware she was merely teasing him playfully so he played along.

"Ooh, how horrible of you. You also need me or you are going to keep glaring at everyone menacingly."

"I sure do."

Looking at each other, the two started chuckling joyfully. The atmosphere in the room was very wholesome and warm as if this place was a whole different world only made for the two of them.

'I'm definitely going to fall in love with her if we continue on this route. That would be troublesome… But, It's not a bad feeling at all.' Rin wondered to himself.

He was sure that even now, he was already having to feel stronger than that of a friend toward Elise. It could even be called a 'crush'.

Whether those feelings will ever be reciprocated, however, he still wasn't sure. But, one thing for certain, Elise considered him as important to her… If not more than that.

(A//N: End of the first part of the academy arc.)

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