What Happened When I Gave Everything to the Girl Who Sold Herself as a Prostitute After Losing It All

Chapter 7.1

Serena Wilhelmina was the eldest daughter of a duke family and the youngest student council president in the history of the academy.

Her grades were top of the year.

Her magic aptitude was a mix of water and wind.

Etiquette, political science, governance theory — she had no weak spots in any of them.

And the most troublesome thing of all was that she was closely tied to the first prince faction through her older brother, making her a central figure on the academy side.

In other words…

She wasn’t an enemy.

But she wasn’t an ally either.

If anything strange popped up around me, she was the type to come check it out first.

And right now, that check was about to begin.

“You really are the one who stands beside His Highness… I’ve started to want to make sure of it a little.”

The air in the training ground suddenly grew tight.

The students watching around us stopped talking too, as expected.

The mood wasn’t just people enjoying the show anymore.

The moment the student council president herself stepped in, this had turned into a place to measure where everyone stood inside the academy.

Fine quietly looked back at Serena.

“What do you mean by ‘make sure’?”

“Exactly what I said.”

Serena kept her perfect smile in place.

“Simply being excellent isn’t enough if you’re going to stand beside His Highness.”

“…”

“Do you understand your position? Do you have the intelligence not to disturb the scene? Will you keep His Highness’s words and position from being clouded by your own feelings?”

“That sounds exactly like something the student council president would say.”

When I cut in, Serena only shifted her gaze toward me.

“It concerns the order of the academy, after all.”

“The order of the academy, huh.”

“At the very least, we can’t just let the situation slide without explanation — a girl His Highness brought back from the slave market enrolling after just a few days and standing beside him like it’s the most natural thing in the world.”

Whoa, she came straight at us.

This woman doesn’t hold back at all.

I could feel the students around us holding their breath.

Well, yeah.

Everyone wanted to hear this.

But they couldn’t ask directly.

So if the student council president was going to do the asking for them, it was perfect — that’s what their faces said.

What a pain.

It was so typical of the academy, and such a pain.

“So…”

Serena turned back to Fine.

“Could you show us with your own words?”

“Show you what?”

“The reason you are worthy of standing beside His Highness.”

…Oh boy.

What a nasty way to put it.

Worthy reason.

In other words, defend yourself.

Who are you, and what gives you the right to be here?

Any normal noble daughter would have gotten stuck picking her words too carefully and fallen silent by now.

Or she would have borrowed the power behind her.

Something like “Because His Highness wished it” or “With the endorsement of the chief court magician.”

But Fine was different.

“I don’t have a reason to be worthy yet.”

The training ground fell completely silent.

Serena’s eyebrow twitched just a little.

“Hmm.”

“I only just enrolled. I have no achievements inside the academy yet. No family status. No connections.”

Fine’s voice stayed as quiet as always.

There was no hint of making excuses.

She was simply laying out the facts.

“So it would be dishonest to claim I’m worthy at this point.”

“Then you’re saying you’re not worthy?”

“At least, not until I prove it.”

The crowd started to murmur.

Ah, nice move.

She didn’t say she wasn’t worthy.

She just left it at “not proven yet.”

Not a denial, but a hold.

And she wasn’t running away either.

Serena seemed to pick up on that too.

Her smile stayed the same, but her eyes got a little more serious.

“Then how exactly do you plan to prove it?”

“With results.”

“That lacks specifics.”

“Then I’ll be specific.”

Fine took one step forward.

“Academic grades.”

“…”

“Etiquette.”

“…”

“Magic control.”

“…”

“Judgment in dealing with people.”

“…”

“Selecting those who would put unnecessary burdens on His Highness.”

Only the last one sounded kind of dangerous, didn’t it?

Sure enough, Serena caught on to that part.

“Selecting, you say?”

“Yes.”

“Not removing?”

“I will take steps if necessary.”

“The way you say it makes it sound like removal comes after those steps.”

“I will respect the order of the academy.”

“Respect, and as a result…?”

“Yes.”

Scary.

Fine’s face stayed completely blank, but the pressure in her words was strong.

While I was clutching my head inside my mind, Serena let out a small breath.

“I see. At least you seem to understand what you are not.”

“I do understand.”

“And yet you still say you will stand beside His Highness.”

“Yes.”

“That’s quite the ambition.”

At those words, Fine shook her head.

“It’s not ambition.”

“Then what is it?”

“It’s a choice.”

She said it short and clear.

“I was picked up by His Highness.”

“…”

“More precisely, I was chosen.”

“…”

“At that time, His Highness gave me status, education, and a future.”

The mood around us changed.

Even the people who had been watching half for fun went quiet and listened.

“So I decided to use all of that to go stand beside His Highness.”

“A way to repay the favor?”

“No.”

The answer came instantly.

“Just gratitude isn’t enough to bring someone this far.”

“Then is it obsession?”

“It might be something close to that.”

“Fine.”

I called her name without thinking, and she glanced at me for just a second.

“It’s the truth.”

“Don’t say it like that…”

The crowd stirred again.

Serena’s smile grew just a little deeper.

This woman was enjoying this, wasn’t she?

“It’s quite heavy, isn’t it.”

“Yes.”

“His Highness looks a little troubled.”

“I know that too.”

“Even so?”

“Even so.”

Fine answered without any hesitation.

“Because it wasn’t something I could take lightly.”

“…”

“His Highness saves people’s lives with a calm face.”

“Hey.”

“But the ones who were saved can’t accept it with a calm face.”

“…”

“So I won’t take it lightly.”

There it was again.

This girl always stopped my breath in moments like this.

Even Serena went quiet for a moment.

She probably realized with that one line that Fine wasn’t just some upstart trying to get close to His Highness.

If it was just calculation, she would have phrased it in a much nicer, more social, safer, more noble-sounding way.

But Fine was different.

She didn’t decorate anything, yet it somehow hit hard.

“…I understand.”

Serena finally spoke.

“Your words are not bad.”

“Thank you.”

“However, the academy is not a place that stands on words alone.”

“I am aware.”

“Then let’s test it with one thing.”

I had a bad feeling.

And since she was saying it right here, it would be in front of everyone.

“There is a joint debate event hosted by the student council in three days.”

“A debate?”

When I frowned, Serena nodded smoothly.

“It’s a public discussion held every month. Anyone from upperclassmen to lowerclassmen can observe. Outstanding participants receive recommendations from the academy side.”

“So that kind of thing exists…”

“His Highness has been absent the last two times.”

“You don’t need to remember that.”

“I remember it very well.”

She remembered, huh.

“There…”

Serena looked at Fine.

“We will prepare a seat for you as well.”

“Student council president.”

I opened my mouth.

“You’re putting someone who just enrolled straight into a public debate seat?”

“Yes.”