Reincarnated with an SSS-rank Tamer System: My Harem of Villainesses-Chapter 38 – The Truth Behind the Hatred

Adam and Piers were in an area far from the rest of the students, a small practice field that was rarely used at this hour of the night and that offered the privacy Adam needed.

He wasn’t in the mood for any more stupidity or curious stares directed at him.

And Piers was paying the price for that.

"Again," Adam ordered as he took his stance with his wooden sword.

Piers was panting, his hands braced against his knees, completely exhausted after the fifth consecutive round against Adam. "Give me... a second... please..."

"There are no seconds in a real fight. Guard up."

Piers could only grunt, but he obeyed. He raised his sword with trembling arms as he tried to maintain the posture Adam had been correcting for the past hour.

The training had been brutal from the moment it started. Adam wasn’t holding back at all; he attacked with enough strength and speed to force Piers to react instinctively without giving him time to think too much.

As they exchanged blows, Adam’s mind couldn’t stop returning to what had happened barely an hour ago.

Valeria’s slap. The look of hatred. Evelyne’s confusing words about the restaurant. None of it made sense, and it was driving him crazy.

’I don’t see any logical reason for them to react like that.’ He thought as he blocked a weak strike from Piers and counterattacked with a move that forced him to stumble back several steps. ’Just because I slept with Alice doesn’t mean—’

His thought was interrupted by the familiar translucent blue screen that appeared before his eyes.

[Tamer System]

[I see you’re having some... social issues, host]

’This isn’t the time,’ Adam thought irritably.

[Hey, hey, don’t blame me. I told you to PROVOKE her. I didn’t tell you to FUCK her in her room]

Adam cursed internally as he disarmed Piers with a swift motion that sent the boy’s sword flying to the side before sweeping his legs out from under him and dropping him to the ground completely exhausted.

The system was right, and that irritated him even more because he didn’t want to admit it was right.Piers lay sprawled on the ground, breathing heavily as he stared upward with an expression of pure exhaustion. "I think... I’m going to... die..."

Adam was about to tell him to get up when he heard the sound of someone clapping behind him.

He turned quickly only to find Isolwen Ashveil standing a few meters away with an amused smile on her face as she clapped slowly, as if she had been enjoying the show.

Adam looked at her with obvious annoyance. "What do you want?"

Isolwen stopped clapping but kept that irritating smile. "How hostile. I just came to appreciate the... training."

"You’ve appreciated it. You can leave."

"How rude." She commented in a mocking tone as she stepped a little closer. "Though I suppose it’s understandable given everything that happened this afternoon."

Adam clenched his jaw. "If you came to mock me too, save your time."

"Mock you? Not at all." Isolwen replied with feigned innocence. "I just found the situation...interesting. Alice is a good friend of mine, after all."

That caught Adam’s attention immediately.

Isolwen noticed his reaction, and her smile widened slightly. "I didn’t expect someone like you to get involved with her knowing your ex-fiancée was here. At the same academy. Where rumors spread faster than anything."

Adam stared at her, processing what she had said. "What are you talking about?"

"Oh, are you going to play dumb about this too?" Isolwen asked sarcastically. "It’s no secret for us that the Shadowends formed an engagement with the Ashcrofts years ago. Even if it was broken barely a month later because you turned out to be... well, useless."

The pieces finally began to fall into place in Adam’s mind like a puzzle.

The original Adam. Valeria Ashcroft. A broken engagement.

’Is that why she reacted like that?’ he thought as he kept his expression neutral despite the revelation.

"If we’re no longer engaged," Adam said, "I don’t see any reason for her to react like that toward me."

Isolwen let out a small laugh. "Really? Are you that dense, or are you just pretending?"

"Explain yourself."

"Look," Isolwen said as she crossed her arms, "I don’t know what you think about all this, and I don’t really care. But from the perspective of any woman with a shred of pride, what you did is a direct insult."

Adam frowned. "The engagement was broken. There’s nothing that—"

"The engagement was broken for specific reasons related to your previous behavior." Isolwen interrupted. "But technically, even if you’re no longer officially engaged, you WERE engaged to her.

And sleeping with someone else the moment you arrive at the academy where she also is is basically spitting in her face publicly."

"That’s stupid."

"Maybe it is." She admitted with a shrug. "But that’s how things work when we’re talking about pride and reputation among the nobility. Especially for someone from the Ashcroft family. Her public image matters more than anything else."

Adam processed the information for several seconds as he observed Isolwen with a neutral expression.

"Besides," she added in a calmer tone, "that engagement between you wasn’t exactly a secret."

"Between whom?"

"The high-ranking nobles. The princes and princesses. Everyone who actually matters."

Isolwen explained while gesturing vaguely toward the direction of the academy. "For the rest of the students, it’s just another rumor. But for us, it was basic information everyone knew before even arriving here."

’That’s why the stares.’ Adam thought, finally understanding the situation completely. It turned out that all the important nobles knew about the engagement; that’s why Evelyne mentioned it as a rumor—she didn’t know anything.

Isolwen looked at him for a moment longer before sighing lightly. "Look, don’t get me wrong. I’m not here to defend Valeria or judge you for what you do with your personal life. I just came because I found it amusing how someone so intelligent in combat can be so foolish in other areas."

"How considerate of you," Adam replied sarcastically.

"You’re welcome." Isolwen said with a smile before turning to leave. "Oh, and a free piece of advice: if you want to avoid more public slaps, maybe you should be a little more... discreet with your adventures."

"I didn’t ask for your advice."

"I know. That’s why it’s free."

And with that, Isolwen walked away calmly, leaving Adam standing there.

Piers, who had been listening to the entire conversation from the ground without daring to interrupt, finally sat up slowly as he looked at Adam with a worried expression.

"Adam... are you okay?"

Adam remained silent for several seconds before sighing tiredly. "Yeah. I’m just... thinking."

’An engagement with Valeria Ashcroft,’ he thought as he looked toward where Isolwen had disappeared.

’The original Adam was engaged to her and ruined it by being useless. And now everyone thinks I slept with Alice as a direct insult toward her.’

The irony of the whole situation wasn’t lost on him. He had transmigrated into the body of someone whose past decisions were still affecting him even after he took control.

"Shit." Adam muttered as he ran a hand through his hair in frustration. 𝐟𝗿𝐞𝚎𝚠𝐞𝚋𝕟𝐨𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝕔𝕠𝚖

Piers watched him, not knowing what to say or do to help the situation.

And honestly, Adam didn’t know what the hell to do now either.

The damn system hadn’t mentioned any of that and would probably say something like "I didn’t know about that.", so there was no point in asking.