Chapter 220
Teron, Yuridia, Victoria.
The biggest factions in the advanced class are currently in a standoff.
The classroom atmosphere turned tense in an instant.
The problem is, I'm caught in the middle.
No, should I say I'm the instigator of this situation?
"Zero, step back."
"Yuridia, there's really no need for this."
"They insulted a friend, didn't they? I have every reason to intervene."
"...A friend?"
"Ah, to be precise, a friend's boyfriend. It's outrageous to hold onto people who are too busy loving each other, let alone call them demons. I can't just let this go."
No. It seems like it could have been overlooked.
It would have been nice if they had treated me as if I didn't exist, as usual.
"I agree. I heard that priests tend to be stiff-necked, but I didn't expect them to demean an Annwood Academy student."
"Hmph~ Are you using that as an excuse to intervene? How quaint, Teron."
"...Shut up, Yuridia. To belittle an Annwood Academy student is akin to denigrating the empire itself. It's a grave sin worthy of the harshest punishment. That's why I intervened."
No. It feels like I'm about to be executed by Adonis.
I'm about to be beheaded, my neck going stiff with rigor mortis!
'Guys, don't do this! I want to live a life like a cockroach! Don't worry about me! Just despise me as usual! I like that(?)!'
I wanted to scream, but it was impossible.
Because Teron and Yuridia had physically pushed me away.
Click-clack-.
A young girl walked out from among the priests.
A huge folding fan covering her entire face.
A thin, young voice sounded from behind it.
"Oh! I heard Annwood Academy is a place where camaraderie doesn't exist. A very, very fierce place. But this is unexpected. Or maybe..."
Snap!
"Does this mean he's such an important figure? Important enough for two factions to step forward to protect?"
The Emperor's thirteenth daughter and the leader of the children sent from the Holy Kingdom.
It was at that moment that Victoria appeared.
Teron took a step forward.
"This isn't about protection; it's about doing what must be done. Protecting the weak. That is the basic ideology of the empire."
"Hmmm~ I'm well aware of that. I've mastered the imperial law, after all."
"...Are you the leader?"
"Leader? To use such a vulgar word... It makes me doubt whether you're a noble at all. And you move in packs."
"Isn't that the same for you?"
"Me? I'm different."
"How so?"
"The people with you are just hanging around looking for scraps. On the other hand, these people follow me without expecting anything in return. You could say they're enchanted followers of mine. Oh~ Hohoho!"
Victoria threw her head back and began to laugh.
A characteristic laugh in the game.
A laugh so vulgar that it made many players turn off their speakers.
'This is not good.'
As you can see, there were various issues with Victoria.
Speech, behavior, personality, princess syndrome, hypocrisy.
It was hard to find anything normal about her.
In summary, Victoria as a character could be described as...
'A sickly, beautiful girl who dreams of being an empress.' ...more or less.
I had decided not to worry about her since she would eventually join the main party, but I didn't know she would get involved right from the start.
'Story-wise, it's right for these three to fight...'
But that wasn't supposed to happen today.
Greetings, understanding personalities, and backhanded compliments.
That was supposed to be the extent of today's scenario...
But here we are. A brawl that wasn't even in the scenario is about to break out.
And it's all because of me!
I have no choice but to intervene.
The best way to calm everyone's anger in such a situation is, as always...
"This is troubling! Even though I'm cute, this is too much...!"
"How vulgar."
"What, what did you say!?"
Thump!
My body was suddenly shoved to the side.
This can't be happening. My ultimate cuteness attack had no effect!
The intensity of the children's aura was just that.
My cuteness didn't stand a chance against their boiling anger.
"That laughter is uniquely vulgar. It seems the real vulgarity comes from your side."
"What, what did you say!? This kind of insult is a first for me! How dare you, knowing who I am... kek!"
Cough!
Suddenly, blood spurted from Victoria's mouth. She then started coughing up blood, her shoulders heaving.
"Victoria, are you alright?"
"I saw it! That weird guy popped up!"
"That demon must have used some strange sorcery!"
No, she has a chronic illness where she vomits blood when excited.
So it's her illness! How is that my fault!
—A disgrace! Execution! Burning at the stake! Impalement!
The atmosphere grew even more menacing.
How did it come to this? I was merely flaunting my undeniable cuteness.
Is being cute a crime?
"Keke, if that's a crime, then I'm looking at life imprisonment."
"Shut up and stay quiet. You'll really get yourself killed. I heard that the religious nuts are scary, but this is beyond my imagination."
Indeed it was.
The numbers may be similar, but this is the Empire, not the Holy Kingdom.
Meaning there's hardly anyone on the same side.
Yet to act so boldly was astonishing.
‘Well, that's why a duel is breaking out, I guess.’
Day after day, arguments erupted, and the leaders felt the need to direct traffic.
Teron's faction + Yuridia's faction vs Victoria's faction
Five members from each faction would duel, and the winner would command the advanced class.
After the midterm exams, it would depend on those results.
‘This is the early part of Chapter 2 after Victoria's arrival.’
Of course, I didn't care.
Only those belonging to one of the three great factions could participate in the duel.
‘Since I already know the outcome.’
I had no interest in watching a story I already knew. It's far more beneficial to spend that time on other matters.
In reality, I planned to quietly focus on growing Luna and Rezé until the midterms.
But then...
"Judging someone by their looks. Is that what the Goddess taught?"
"That's not it, but that's too much. Even the Goddess would curse if she saw this."
Glance-.
Teron and the other kids looked at me, then quickly turned away their heads.
"That's true, though."
...What am I supposed to do with that? It's like the Goddess is really cursing me.
"Victoria, there's no need for further discussion. Let's show them our strength. I, Jeff, will sort this out quickly."
A rather large boy moved past Victoria and stood in front of Teron.
Teron chuckled.
"What's this? You want to fight?"
As soon as he finished speaking, Daike stood in front of him.
Then he began to exude an overwhelming presence.
"O-oh!"
The boy trembled. The kids behind Victoria from her faction did the same.
"Jeff, a 4-star knight, is being pushed back. What's going on?"
"Could it be a 5-star knight...?"
"He's at our age and a 5-star knight? Was that even possible?"
These were merely fifteen-year-old kids.
Considering their age, being a 4-star knight was already considered a prodigy.
Now, a monster rated 5-star knight appeared before them, so their shock was understandable.
"Break a leg... no, break both legs. Arrogant actions must be met with consequences."
Daike moved forward. Clearly, he intended to make an example of this boy named Jeff.
Just as Daike was about to reach out his hand towards Jeff.
Snatch.
"Let's stop here."
A soft voice.
But everyone at the scene had no choice but to be surprised.
Someone had grabbed Daike's wrist.
The young man with golden hair appeared out of nowhere, his presence almost unbelievable for a fifteen-year-old. It was Adonis.
"Wh-when did he..."
"..."
Everyone fell silent.
Teron, Yuridia, even Daike, whose wrist was caught, couldn't believe it.
No one had noticed his approach.
Not because he was short, but because they couldn't sense his presence at all.
That's right. The strange Victoria had been able to survive until now for this reason.
You might realize she's somewhat charming after spending time with her, but...
‘It's because Adonis is watching her back.’
A knight of the ninth star rank. The pinnacle of them all.
With such a being guarding her, no harm could come to Victoria.
"This kind of brawl isn't good. That applies to you too, right?"
Teron gestured for Daike to pull back, but he was powerless to move.
Probably because he felt the force of Adonis's grip.
At that moment, I had to ponder.
‘Should I intervene?’
Seeing this hidden piece for the first time, I couldn't act recklessly.
Above all, my ‘life’ was at stake. I didn't want to draw any more of Adonis's suspicion.
In such cases...
I kicked vigorously towards a nearby trash can.
Bang! Crash! Clang!
The trash can rolled across the classroom with a satisfying noise. And then...
Beep-beep-beep!
"Brawling is grounds for expulsion! Everyone stand down!"
Rodelin shouted from outside the window.
‘As expected... the trash can hidden piece works wonders, doesn’t it?’
But isn’t this the second floor? Well, whatever. As long as the situation is handled.
"Teron! If you get penalized..."
"Tch, it seems now is not the time to fight. Let’s pull back."
Adonis withdrew his hand. Or rather, he had already done so.
He was truly like a ghost.
The kids from the advanced class began to leave one by one. As Adonis passed by me, he whispered.
"Enchantment... or perhaps, brainwashing? You are skilled."
"Keke, I’ve done no such thing."
"You'd do well to be careful. I'll be watching."
Adonis quietly left.
Suspicion level. It seemed to stop there for now.
"Too bad. I was about to give him a good punch."
Luna, were you going to hit him?
"Keke, be careful. It’s best not to get involved."
"Hehe~ That strong? I’d like to fight him once."
...Perhaps our Luna doesn’t understand the language?
Before the midterms start, maybe I should teach her the basics of the imperial language.
Bang bang!
Rodelin was knocking on the window.
I had forgotten; this was the second floor.
Slide.
I unlocked it, and Rodelin climbed in, a few leaves stuck in her hair.
"Whew, thank you. Zero, you’ll receive one penalty point."
"Keke, it was an act to stop the brawl."
"But at the expense of an innocent trash can."
Rodelin pointed at the dented trash can.
Indeed, there was one casualty(?).
Thump!
I straightened the other side of the can so it could stand somewhat properly.
Rodelin frowned, but what of it?
Just stand it up manly.
"But why were you there?"
"I spotted a thief cat. Chasing it, I ended up climbing the tree. Sadly, I lost the cat. Stopping your brawl was a priority."
Catching thief cats, too?
What exactly is a vice president in this game?
Maybe something like the legendary grad student rumored to be able to cool a fridge with a sigh?
Suddenly, I noticed the leaves stuck in Rodelin's hair.
As I leaned in to remove them...
"O-oh! What are you doing now?"
"Stay still."
The leaves were stuck deeply from how long she had been in the tree.
I shook my hand vigorously trying to get the leaves off.
The more I did, the hotter Rodelin's face grew.
"Petting is for cats. I am not a cat..."
What is she talking about now?
I grabbed the falling leaf and waved it in front of Rodelin's eyes.
"Keke, for someone who claims not to be a cat, you certainly stayed quite still like one."
My hand holding the leaf and my face.
Alternating her gaze between them, Rodelin's face turned bright red.
She had realized the situation.
‘Rodelin as a cat...’
Rodelin, or rather, the cat, blushed but didn’t shy away from my touch. If such a creature existed, I might pet it all day long.
"What are you thinking about now?"
"...Happy thoughts?"
"So you were having perverted thoughts?"
Why are my happy thoughts always translated to perversion?
"Let's go eat. Will you join us, senior?"
"Hmm! Yes, I suppose I should treat you guys."
"Zero said he would pay, so it’s fine."
...When did I say that?
"Keke, did I say that?"
"Don't be like that. It's a celebration of Rezé's growth, so you should at least do that."
"Growth?"
Luna pointed at Rezé.
Standing proudly. Usually, it wouldn’t have been surprising if she had fainted in such a situation.
Yet there she was, standing on her own two feet!
‘OurPufferfish Rabbit has grown!’
It was a moment for tears of joy.
Thump.
Rezé collapsed. Still in the standing pose.
She wasn't actually grown; she had fainted while standing.
‘No growth at all...’
We started walking toward the cafeteria, dragging Rezé along.
--TL Notes--
Hope you enjoyed this chapter. If you want to support me or give me feedback, you can do it at /MattReading
Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you so much!
Use arrow keys (or A / D) to PREV/NEXT chapter