"Sorry, I don't think we've ever had the chance to get to know each other? Things were too hectic when we first met and I apologize for that… inappropriate behavior. I mistook you for someone else."

Raghnall smiled apologetically at her, but Ingrid could see the sadness hidden behind his smile. But she didn't comment on it since it wasn't any of her business.

"So, I hope you'd forget that little incident and we could start over. My name is Raghnall and I'm… a student in this Academy."

Ingrid smiled lightly as she introduced herself as well.

"I'm Ingrid. And yes, I have heard that I had the same name as this ever-so-popular, 'Inna.' Speaking of which, do we really look alike?"

Raghnall gulped lightly as he gave her a strained smile.

"Near identical. Despite being with her for more than a year, I still couldn't differentiate you from her unless you started talking."

Ingrid raised an eyebrow curiously.

"Unless I started talking?"

Raghnall nodded as his strained smile turned into a melancholic one.

"Yeah. Her words are very unique. And well, she's quite… direct and barbaric? No… maybe animalistic? Actually, I'm not sure how to describe her but once you know her, you'll just... know it's her."

Raghnall chuckled as he looked over at the roses again with a mysterious emotion flitting in his eyes.

Ingrid tried to process what he just said but she couldn't help but comment on its strangeness.

"I don't think I'm happy to be mistaken as such a person. After all, one described her as abusive with another described her as animalistic… I don't know how to feel. Should I be offended?"

Hearing her genuine confusion, Raghnall broke into light laughter at her statement.

"No, no. That was mean of me. Let's just say that she's a very straightforward and kind person that's just true to herself and to her desires. She's honest, understanding, caring, and considerate. She doesn't let what other people say get to her and she's the type of person that couldn't feel shame in any part of her body. Well, I'd say she lives her life without worries but after knowing more about her a few days ago, I realized that she's someone with a lot more worries than a normal person could ever hope to handle. She's good at hiding her emotions, so much so that even she doesn't probably realize what she's feeling. Also, she's the type of person with barely any manners at all so she doesn't recognize boundaries well. But that just makes her more endearing, entertaining, and interesting."

Raghnall smiled as he recalled their memories together. Their first comical encounter, the first day of her cla.s.ses, the exams, the training, their bickering, and their inside jokes…

h.e.l.l, it's only been a few days but it felt like he hasn't seen her for years. Could she even come back? Now that her other self was living as though everything was just normal, it didn't seem like she'll ever come back.

Raghnall sighed as he told himself to stop his negative thinking. Nothing good would ever come out from his negative thoughts.

Hearing Raghnall's tone as he talked fondly about her, she couldn't help but release a small smile.

It seemed like that 'Inna' girl was really loved by them.

Ingrid couldn't help but feel a tinge of jealousy as she sighed.

That 'Inna' girl sure was lucky, to have people treasure her existence this much. Meanwhile, her own family was out to get rid of her.

Ingrid smiled bitterly at the thought. Then she suddenly felt a stabbing pain by her abdomen that made her suddenly hunch over. She groaned in pain as she squeaked out.

"I'm sorry if it might seem inappropriate but do you mind leaving? I'd leave if I can but… I can't and I'm not sure if its safe for you to stay with me longer than you already had."

Raghnall furrowed his brows as he looked at her pained expression. Flashbacks of the day where Inna writhed in pain suddenly bombarded his mind and he felt himself suddenly panic. He instinctively casted his healing spell as a.s.surance as he hurriedly asked her.

"What's wrong?! Are you okay?!"

Raghnall hurriedly tried to make her way to him but Ingrid simply raised her hand to stop him.

"No, no. I'm… alright. It's… I have my bleeding. Blood Week."

She panted as she tried to recover from the sudden pain. It started to ease when Raghnall finished his healing spell but then, another series of piercing pain made her hunch over once again. The armor she had on her made loud noises as they collided because of her sudden harsh movements. It was by far the most painful attack she had that it even made her vision blurry.

The loud sounds of her armor made Raghnall snap out of his panic. And after listening to her reasoning, he finally calmed down.

"It's okay. My body's const.i.tution allows me to be immune to that annoying side effects of the Blood Week. That's because my body absorbs those magical particles you scatter into the air like it's a snack so instead of making me go into a wrathful or l.u.s.tful frenzy, it just helps replenish my mana by a small margin. But you seem like you're in a lot of pain… Should I continue the healing spells? Or would it be better to cast a pain nullification spell?"

Ingrid blinked furiously as she hissed out.

"Pain… nullification. The healing spell… makes it worse… Because it tries to stop… it... Making it clog…"

Raghnall understood what she meant and he immediately casted his best Pain Nullification spell. In just a few seconds after completing the spell, he heard Ingrid's groan of relief as she finally slumped back to the chair.

"Thank you for that. I get those terrible attacks of pain all the time and since I'm not good with all this magic stuff, I usually just endure it."

Ingrid gasped out as she tried to calm herself. Then, when she finally recovered, she sat up straight on her seat. When she did so, she felt the sudden gush of liquid between her legs that made her stiffen.