Chapter 823: Started On The Wrong Foot [Part 1]

As soon as classes ended, Alex immediately went to look for Aeris.

Dim Dim had somewhere to go, so it bid him goodbye and exited through the window. It headed to the farm, where Daisy and Rex waited for it.

After parting ways, the young man headed straight to the third floor of the main building where the Third Years were located.

He was convinced that the elven princess had personally spread these rumors from behind the scenes.

The incident that happened before classes started felt premeditated. It was as if Aeris was waiting for him to arrive at that moment so she could kiss him in front of everyone.

While Alex had no intention of denying his relationship with her, he thought the news would remain hidden for a few weeks at least.

And yet, it hadn’t been two days since they returned to the academy, and Alex once again found himself in the spotlight.

Alex ignored the judgmental looks the students gave him as he walked toward his destination.

The moment he arrived on the third floor, he went straight to Class 3-A, Aeris’ section.

The funny thing was that when he arrived, Aeris was in the hallway, chatting with her friends.

The moment she noticed Alex had arrived, a faint smile appeared on her face as if she already expected this to happen.

"Alex, did you come to look for me?" Aeris excused herself from her friends and talked to her fiance.

Truth be told, she wanted to hug Alex and maybe even kiss him in front of her classmates. However, a glance was enough to tell her that he wasn’t in the mood for a public display of affection.

"Yes," Alex replied. "Please come with me. I want to talk to you about something important."

Aeris’ friends started to whisper to each other while looking in Alex’s direction.

The young man didn’t give a damn about what they were thinking as he asked Aeris to follow behind him.

He didn’t dare try to reach out to her hand and drag her away.

Things would only become extremely complicated if he did that.

He was also afraid of the various rumors that would spread if people saw him dragging the beautiful princess away as if he was planning to *beep* and *beep* her in a place they couldn’t see.

Fortunately, Aeris cooperated with him and didn’t make a scene. She simply followed Alex, wondering where the young man would take her.

After walking for several minutes, they finally arrived at their destination.

It was none other than the old library of the academy.

A place that was rarely used by anyone, as well as the venue where Alex and Evangeline usually conducted their special session.

"Please come in," Alex said as he opened the door.

Aeris nodded and obediently went in. A moment later, she heard the sound of the door being locked from behind her.

Alex then gestured for her to follow him to the second floor.

"Aeris, tell it to me straight," Alex said as soon as he and the elven princess were seated. "Did you spread the rumors about our engagement?"

"Yes," Aeris replied without hesitation.

Frankly, the young man didn’t expect her to admit it right away. He originally thought Aeris would pretend she had no idea what he was talking about.

So, he was momentarily caught off guard by her honesty.

"What’s wrong?" Aeris asked in a teasing tone. "Why do you look surprised?"

"How can I not be surprised?" Alex managed to snap out of his daze after hearing the amusement in her tone. "Why did you do it?"

"Why?" Aeris smiled faintly. "I simply think it’s better for everyone to know about it sooner rather than later."

"Pardon?" Alex blinked. "What do you mean?"

The elven princess sighed as if the answer to this question was very obvious.

"First off, you do realize that I am very popular, right?" Aeris asked. "Also, although Lapiz doesn’t seem aware of it, she’s also very popular. Did you know? I often received marriage proposals, as well as love letters.

"Lapiz also receives them. However, she usually lets me handle these cases because she understands her position as a princess. Also, she thought that the reason why people were only approaching her was that they wanted to get closer to me. She just has no idea how charming and popular she is among the First and Second Years."

Alex wasn’t too shocked to know that Aeris received marriage proposals and love letters. She was considered the Perfect Heroine in ELO, so this popularity was understandable.

As for Lapiz, he could also understand her popularity.

Perhaps those who wished to date Aeris, but were too intimidated or felt that it was impossible to be with her, had decided to settle for the second best, which was none other than her sister, Lapiz.

Of course, there were also people who were genuinely attracted to her charms.

Alex was one of those people, which was why he had called Lapiz one of his Queens.

"The main reason why I started to spread those rumors around is to make everyone understand that both of us are already taken," Aeris explained. "This will also make those who are still planning to take a shot at confessing to my sister give up."

Alex calmed down a bit. If this was her reason, he could accept it. After all, the last thing he wanted to happen was for countless people to confess to Lapiz one after another, even though she was already engaged to him.

"Somehow, your reaction pisses me off," Aeris said in a serious tone. "You’re probably thinking that if it’s for Lapiz’s sake, then you don’t mind the rumors spreading, right?"

Alex blinked, surprised that Aeris had accurately read what was in his mind. Of course, seeing his surprised reaction made the princess click her tongue back in annoyance.

"So, it’s okay if people know that you are engaged to Lapiz, but it’s not okay for them to know that you’re engaged to me?" Aeris said with a smile that didn’t reach her eyes.

For a brief moment, Alex felt as if the temperature in the room had suddenly become icy cold, making him shudder.