I'm The Male Lead, Not Another Love Interest (Webnovel)

Something's Strange (3)

Chatter filled the large room as friends and fellow classmates drone on about their days. Demian was sitting at one of the large wooden tables, mechanically eating his food without tasting it.

The past few weeks have been strange. He had been strange.

"I can't wait!" Laxel exclaimed loudly while making a slashing motion with his hands, as if he were holding an invisible sword. "I'm gonna bag so many, I'll be the envy of all!"

They have officially been enrolled in Oakswood Academy for one month and two weeks, that means that in two weeks it will be the hunting trip. The hunting trip was a special two day event where all students participated. The first years hunting trips were held on the second and fifth months, while the second years had theirs on the first, third, and sixth months.

It was a group to test one's magical and physical strength. Though that wasn't everything. The students would be broken up into teams of four and only given a small rucksack. They would be tested on how well they could coordinate with each other along with their survival skills. 

Ophelia giggled at Laxel's childish pantomime.
And this was why the past few weeks have been strange to Demian. He had been hanging out with Ophelia and Laxel more and he couldn't understand why. 

The world was also hazy and it was hard for him to think. His brain has been muddled here lately.

"Oh!" Ophelia exclaimed, a hand over her mouth. "I forgot I made these." She fished out two small pouches from her bag.

Laxel perked up like an excited child. "Cookies! I love your baking, Ophelia!" He held his hands out and eagerly waited for Ophelia to drop one of the pouches into them.

Ophelia giggled while she gave Laxel a pouch filled with butter cookies. She then turned to Demian and gave him one.

Demian looked down at the bag. This had become a weekly thing. Ophelia would find time to bake and would always wrap some up for him and Laxel.

They weren't the best of cookies. Being a crown prince, Demian had tasted far superior delectables but there was something about the ones Ophelia made. For being plain, they were addicting. They also strangely smelled like Ophelia's pheromones which he had caught a whiff of on a few occasions, much to Ophelia's horror because she hadn't realized she had been releasing them.

"Make sure you guys eat up! You both have training today so you need your strength!"

It was the one day a week that Demian always looked forward to. He didn't look forward to the day because of the class itself, he came to absolutely loathe sword training, but it was a class he shared with Remi. It wasn't his only class with Remi, he shared a total of four with the beta, but this one was different. It was the only one where he could see Remi running around, sweating, and full of determination-the only time Remi looked alive while putting in his best efforts.

It was also the only time when the world wasn't hazy.

A long drawn sigh snapped Demian from his thoughts. The cheerful Ophelia now wore a forlorn expression as she stared out at the tables. The table that held her focus was one filled with a bunch of happily gossiping young ladies. And in the center of it all were two betas, one looking as if he belonged and the other looking like he wanted to be anywhere else.

Demian felt his heart thump painfully against his chest. How was it that everyone else could easily talk to and eat with Remi while Demian has a hard time getting just one sentence out.

"Don't worry, Ophelia," Laxel comforted the little omega. "They're just jealous."

Demian happened to be looking at Ophelia out of the corner of his eyes and noticed the girl roll her eyes. "Really," her voice was light and airy, "I just hope we could be friends." Her sentence and tone of voice did not match the look she had worn earlier, the one she thought no one had seen.