My Charlotte Hates Me

Chapter 11: Sacrifice

"Today is my birthday," Noel said.

I handed her a small evergreen box with a dark red ribbon.

Call it a little revenge, but I chose the colors she hated most as the wrapping for her present.

"Happy Birthday," I said as I handed it to her.

Without even flinching, she accepted the present right away.

"Thank you so much, Lady Charlotte," she said.

When she thanks me with that face and that voice, I only think about ripping her tongue out of her mouth.

"Since it is my birthday today, can we celebrate it together? I reserved a classroom for my personal use.

What kind of school lets a student rent a classroom for their personal use?

"...Alright," I answered.

After school, I went to the empty classroom as instructed.

"Here we are," Noel said.

"I am surprised that you were able to ask for a key right before the weekend," I said.

"...I have me ways," Noel said as she pushed me into the classroom.

The door soon closed behind me and clicked with a locking sound.

When I checked, the door could only be locked by the outside.

"...Why did you lock the door from the outside?" I asked Noel.

"Unlock it," I ordered.

"...No," Noel replied.

I angrily banged at the door.

"I am not playing games! Let me out of here!" I yelled.

"...Since coming here, don't you think you have forgotten me a bit too much?" Noel asked.

"What are you talking about?" I asked.

"...We have always been together, so why did you leave me?" Noel asked.

"It was one time! Why are you acting like this over me leaving you behind one time?" I asked.

"...I do not mind being left behind. It is just that I cannot stand that you were forced to spend time with those wenches," Noel said.

Is she talking about Grace and Jane?

"This is too much of an overreaction!" I shouted.

"Since they were able to steal your attention once, it is not impossible that they might do it again," Noel said.

It did not matter whether or not it was Arielle or not...Noel was just unwilling to share me with anyone I give an ounce of attention.

"Whatever you are misunderstanding, it is definitely wrong...I don't care about them," I said.

"...I should still make an example of them so that others won't come near you," Noel said.

"They are still Nobles! You won't be forgiven if you touch them!" I shouted.

"My Godfather is the Head Priest of the Rowan Faith. I will be forgiven if I do anything to lower class Nobles like them, so please stay here until I am done with them. It will solidify your alibi if you are found locked in here by a passing teacher," Noel said.

She is crazier than usual...

Her confidence in being able to doing horrendous things without fear of punishment comes from her relationship with a Head Priest? Is it because Arielle was a Duke's daughter that it took more preparation to harm her?

No sane person would act and behave as if they are immune to punishment no matter what they do!

A terrible afterthought crossed my mind...

If I were to just let Noel hurt Grace and Jane and collect the evidence afterwards, I could condemn Noel in a proper Noble's Court. I would be able to finally save Arielle as a result...but at what cost? Even though I only sat together with them only once, why do I feel guilty with the thought of sacrificing them? Arielle is still my one and only true love, but the thought of using others to get hurt in her stead...

...In the end, I cannot go through with it.

"...I won't forgive you if you do anything to them, so cease this nonsense!" I yelled.

A minute went by in complete silence.

"...As I thought, I should get rid of them as soon as possible," Noel said.

I could hear her feet tapping away from the door.

In the end, it is my fault that everyone I care for gets hurt...

"...I won't forgive you...I will never forgive you," I said as I kept on rattling the door knob.

After seeing that rattling the doorknob or finding a way to unlock the door from the inside, I grabbed a metal chair and began attacking the doorknob with all of my might. After three swings, the doorknob fell off. I then kicked the door open and then ran through the empty halls.

It was near the weekend and sundown, so most students would have returned to their dorms to rest.

I ran to the Girls' Dorm and saw that Grace's roommate was sitting in the Common Area with friends.

"...E-Excuse me, but have you seen Grace and Jane anywhere?" I asked.

"Grace and Jane? Oh, those two are from the Art Club, so they usually spend a little more time in the Art Room," Grace's roommate answered.

"They should usually be back by now, right?" another girl asked.

"...Art Room? Thank you," I said as I quickly ran outside.

The Art Room was about a fifteen minute walk from the dorms. However, if Noel was already aware of where Grace and Jane was, she would have nearly half an hour to get to them.

Half an hour? Is that not too much time alone with them?

I ran like mad and began feeling the numerous blisters accumulating with every second I ran. My shoes began to feel like heavy weights with every step. Even the wind caressing my cheeks felt as if it was scratching my skin.

I finally made it to the Art Room. I was scrambling for air and tried to calm my nerves before opening the door.

When I opened the door, I saw a horrific scene. Curtains were torn, desks and chairs were flipped on their sides, torn paintings, and splattered paint on the windows and floor.

I found the red paint oddly dark and runny upon closer inspection. As I got closer, I noticed a strong metallic smell.

It did not take me much longer to realize that the paint was actually someone's blood...

"Grace? Jane...why aren't there any bodies?" I asked myself.

The Art Room had two entrances/exits.

If I entered through the door without seeing any drops of blood, they must have left through the other door!

I ran out to the other door to find several trails of blood leading outside of the classroom.

Even though I wanted to follow the trail, I ran towards the teacher's office first to get help. To my dismay, the entire office...rather the entire building had strangely been emptied of all people. Even though it was the weekend, I had hoped that there would be at least one or two people around.

...Just why did it have to be those two!

Grace's and Jane's only faults were being too kind to someone like me.

I tried following the blood trails only to be led to a dead end. The blood trails seemingly stopped midway in the hall.

Where did they go?

.