The Blanchard family was a noble house of great prestige, and Laetitia was its eldest daughter—and future head.
The pressure on her was far greater than anyone imagined, but she had always used a smile to deceive others… and to deceive herself.
Just like Ernest Fairclough, the student council president, whose own Fairclough family bound him in chains. Endless troubles, external threats, and the burden of the family left him with no freedom at all.
Ernest maintained a courteous facade in social settings, never revealing his true self. To others, he was known only as the "Holy Knight."
But they didn't know—he became the Holy Knight precisely because of his chains.
Laetitia, who was close to Ernest, was naturally influenced by him. In public, she behaved the same way—smiling, courteous, reserved.
Those words are fake, the smile is fake. I'm only doing it to deal with all of you.
It wasn't until she met Elise that everything changed. Laetitia was captivated by this girl who seemed to do everything better than her.
Why?
Wearing a false smile herself, Laetitia immediately saw it—Elise's smile held no falsehood. Every word she spoke was full of sincerity. How could someone be so genuine?
The more she thought about Elise's actions, the less Laetitia could understand. And the more she couldn't understand… the more she cared.
Which led to the scene before her now.
The sky was filled with dark clouds, and the air carried a faint electric charge—it felt like a storm was about to break.
Near a cliff not far from the concert hall, Elise and Laetitia stood facing each other.
"Looks like it's about to rain. Maybe we should reschedule. Catching a cold wouldn't be good," the Saintess offered kindly.
But to Laetitia, those words stung.
You really don't take me seriously, do you?
"No. Now is the perfect time," Laetitia said as she drew the Lux at her waist, pointing it directly at the Saintess before her. "Let's settle this right here."
"..." Elise was speechless.
Where is this bizarre sense of rivalry even coming from?
As Laetitia swung her sword, countless white blades of light appeared around her, like enormous wings.
That was the origin of her title—the "Witch of Thunder."
In the original story, Laetitia had another alias, one that mirrored Elise's—"Saintess." But now that Elise was here…
Who else under heaven could deserve the title of Saintess, if not the gentle and kind Elise?
There's only room for one.
The battle began.
Laetitia's attacks forced Elise to constantly dodge—but Laetitia knew very well Elise was evading her strikes effortlessly.
There wasn't a hint of tension in her movements.
Am I not even worth a serious effort from you?
Laetitia's emotions grew increasingly chaotic. Her once sharp and clean swordwork began to lose its edge. Even her control over the lightwings started to falter.
"Are you mocking me, Elise Holiness?!"
You're dodging my attacks so easily. Are you going to use this to mock me later?!
Just then, the rain finally poured down, drenching them both with a loud splash splash.
Faced with such an accusation, Elise's eyes narrowed slightly as she turned to look at Laetitia. There was a faint glimmer at the corner of Laetitia's eyes.
"No!" Elise firmly denied her accusation. Then, a playful smile appeared on her face.
"Just like you said before—you wanted to get to know me better… Well, I feel the same. I want to understand you too."
"Eh?" Laetitia froze, caught off guard by the unexpected response. Her entire body fell into stillness.
Elise... is really that kind of person?
Seizing the opportunity, Elise launched a flying kick, knocking away the incoming lightwings from Laetitia. She followed it up with a powerful downward stomp, driving the wings straight into the ground.
"You looked really distressed just now. After letting it all out a bit, do you feel better now?"
She's actually worried about me?
Then everything I thought about her before… was completely wrong?
"Ugh… ah—"
A powerful wave of emotion surged from deep within. The false mask she had always worn shattered. Laetitia now looked like nothing more than a little girl, sitting on the ground and sobbing uncontrollably.
Elise showed a warm smile and gently pulled Laetitia's tear-streaked face into her chest.
She spoke softly, "Keeping up that act all the time… must be exhausting, right?"
"You should take better care of yourself now and then."
"If you ever feel overwhelmed, you can come talk to me, okay?"
Feeling the warmth and softness against her face, Laetitia somehow began crying even harder. She clutched Elise tightly around the waist, burying her head in Elise's chest.
"There, there… no more tears."
Elise gently patted her back, hoping it would bring a little comfort.
Not long after, the rain stopped, and the clouds cleared. Laetitia had cried herself to sleep in Elise's arms.
"Really now… if you walk back soaking wet like this, even a Genestella might catch a cold," Elise murmured like a caring older sister, carrying the sleeping Laetitia back to the concert hall.
Looking at Laetitia's peaceful sleeping face, she wondered:
She must be having a wonderful dream right now, huh?
Guiding beautiful girls toward the right path is also a duty worthy of a saintess!
And so, Elise and Laetitia exchanged contact information and officially became good friends.
"Miss Sylvia, the concert is over. You can head backstage to rest now!"
"Once we finish packing up, we'll be heading to the next location for your tour!"
Now a famous pop star, Sylvia was in the middle of her global concert tour somewhere on Earth.
"Alright, thank you!"
Having just finished singing a few songs, Sylvia was about to take a sip of water when she noticed a message pop up on her device.
Elise: Sylvia, today I made a really good friend! When we have time, let's go hang out together!
"Ely? She made a new friend? That's wonderful!"
Seeing Elise's message, Sylvia smiled in genuine joy for her dear friend and couldn't help but ask:
Sylvia: If someone can be called your good friend, they must be a pretty amazing person, right?
Elise: Of course! We even took a picture together—I'll send it to you right now!
"Honestly, she's still just like a kid," Sylvia chuckled. To her, this felt exactly like a child showing off a new toy.
But then again, Elise didn't have many friends. As the saintess, she was always so formal.
Elise: [Image] (A photo of two girls embracing. The golden-haired girl with long, curly locks wears a blissful expression as she presses herself against Elise's chest—just a little closer and they might have kissed.)
Sylvia: ???
Isn't there something… off here?