702 – 8. Last Words (76)
The moon in the night sky illuminates the marble forest hidden under the curtain of snow.
The academy, which had silently endured the harsh north wind, was now stained pure white. This was because snow removal work was not carried out properly after being trapped in a mysterious barrier.
It had to be that way.
The academy still looked beautiful under the white snow, but if you looked a little to the outskirts, you could find an ugly lump of flesh.
Chunks of meat that are bloodshot and dark red.
It was an ancient spell called ‘contamination tumor’. These ominous lumps of flesh, possessing extensive search capabilities and causing deadly epidemics, continued to proliferate endlessly, threatening the Academy’s territory.
Without a single day of rest.
Even though they were cornered like this, there weren’t many options for those trapped in the academy.
At most, I just pray that a miracle will happen and I can escape tomorrow. Like a princess waiting for a wonderful knight in an old story.
And tonight.
Three princesses gathered together, eagerly waiting for a knight.
Just like the old story, they didn’t seem to have any intention of staying still.
“We have to shake that guy up somehow.”
This was the main point from the beginning.
When the girl with dark blue hair declared that, the woman with light pink eyes let out a faint sigh. She was also a crippled woman with silver eyes so pale that it was difficult to distinguish her pupils.
It was the former of the two who raised the question first.
The daughter of a heavenly god, the only living saint, and a woman who was once called a ‘saint.’
Lucia touched her lips with a look of deep fatigue.
“Yes, I know, but… ….”
“In the end, we can infer that Sir Ian’s problem is psychological.”
Is it because I read a negative vibe at the end of the blurred words?
The girl with dark blue hair quickly added an additional explanation.
“I heard that the ‘personality from the future’ also said that? He ‘won’t’ come back yet… Even the personality from the future has so far shown a reluctance to take the lead in solving the case. If you have changed your attitude now, of course there must be a corresponding reason…….”
“But.”
The girl’s continuous talking soon quiets down.
Considering the girl’s extraordinary status, this was a possible result because she was literally a saint. There wouldn’t be many people on the entire continent who would go so far as to intercept the words of the fifth princess of the empire.
Of course, she was nothing compared to a saint who appeared hundreds of years later.
“How do you plan to shake it?”
“That’s right… ….”
“I know the story after hearing it several times. In fact, Ian said she seemed very distressed after Brother Leto passed away. She cried and cried like that… That man appeared. Thinking that her best friend’s death was entirely her fault.”
Strictly speaking, Ian was responsible.
If he hadn’t gone into battle, Leto wouldn’t have had to sacrifice. Naturally, Ian had a duty to suffer from Leto’s death.
However, there was one thing he was mistaken about.
Leto voluntarily decided to sacrifice himself for Ian. He didn’t want to see his friend, who gave his life, suffer so much.
Originally, I would have taken time to admit that fact and accept the breakup.
All plans went awry when a ‘personality from the future’ appeared. As a saint, it was not strange for her to feel helpless.
Didn’t she even fail to stop his plans every time?
“In order for Ian to return, a significant psychological blow must be inflicted on the ‘personality from the future’, right? “It has to at least be shaken so that there is a chance that Ian’s consciousness will come back, at least forcibly.”
“Yes, yes, that’s right. At least that’s my guess…….”
“But how?”
That question felt like self-deprecation or self-torture. In fact, it wasn’t just the academy that was approaching its limits.
The saint also had no choice but to be psychologically exhausted by the series of disasters.
Her beloved husband is terminally ill, her colleague who was with her through life and death has turned into an enemy, and now she is trapped in the academy and has to worry about the extinction of humanity.
If she didn’t feel any fatigue, it was even weirder for her.
“Is there an incident that would cause a person to be mentally shaken when it seems like not a drop of blood would come out even when pricked with that needle?”
This question truly represented the helplessness the saint felt.
In the meantime, the saint repeatedly rebelled against the decisions of the ‘personality from the future’, but she never succeeded in breaking his will. It was because she was not someone who could communicate with politics or negotiations in the first place.
It is truly a machine.
No matter how much sacrifice he has to make, he does not hesitate if he thinks it is a reasonable decision. In that calculation, ethics and emotions were merely secondary elements.
Humanity has been worn away, but force is extremely strong.
How can we deal with this monster?
Shien began to hesitate for a while, observing her saintess’s thoughts. It looks like he has a clever idea, but his face doesn’t look like he particularly wants to talk to the saint.
But the worries were short-lived.
She had a mission to save her Ian, and for this, the cooperation of her saint was essential.
Finally, the girl closed her eyes tightly and suddenly opened her mouth.
“Actually, the last time I saw it, Lupine-senpai seemed a little shaken when he rebelled…… !”
“No.”
The results were as expected, though.
The voice of the saintess, whose face was covered with fatigue just moments before, was very firm. As if she had regained her former strength in this matter.
“At that time, she seemed so desperate that I let her in, but didn’t she end up in the search group? She ended up taking unnecessary risks. If her Ian found out about this, there would be an uproar…… !”
“Ha, but it’s necessary.”
“Even we can’t abandon Ian’s will.”
Another assertion.
After confirming the stubborn will of her saint, Shien had no choice but to bow her head.
She thought that she might have to push ahead with this plan secretly.
It was immediately after that that a new problem arose.
“Well, I…” “I’m sorry.”
“…… ?”
The eyes of the two women who were in the middle of a conversation turned towards the last remaining woman. A crippled woman with half her face covered in bandages and even missing her limbs one by one.
Siene Alpenhauser swallowed her dry saliva once, as if feeling burdened by the gazes of the two dignitaries.
“Ian Perkus… ….”
“Ian Perkus?”
“Lord Ian Perkus!”
Syene, who was carefully trying to bring up her topic, was startled by the princess’s sharp retort. She was so surprised that her shoulders shook once.
This is probably because she has become more timid day by day since she became disabled.
“Even if you come back… That… If her physical condition remains the same…….”
I wonder if the situation will get worse.
Siene wanted to ask that, but she ended up trailing off her words. Isn’t that true of everyone?
Reciting a pessimistic future to two sensitive women?
It didn’t seem like it would lead to any good results. The only good thing was that, unlike the saintess who sighed with a more tired complexion, the princess had a confident face.
“Don’t worry about that. “I have a solution.”
“Solution…… ?”
The saintess’s puzzled gaze turned to her Shien, as if this was the first time she had heard of it in her life. Nevertheless, the princess did not lose her confident demeanor throughout her days.
“Yes, solution.”
“How? No way, trying to do something strange…….”
“You know. “The fact that I am not one to go against Sir Ian’s will.”
At Shien’s words with a smile on his face, the saintess sighed and closed her mouth.
It certainly looked harmless.
“I also don’t want to be hated when Sir Ian returns.”
“Yes, that’s true, but…” ….”
“There are just circumstances. “Can you trust me with this matter?”
A person who was no less than a princess appeared in such a low manner.
No matter how much of a saint she is, it is bound to be difficult for her to refuse this offer.
Finally, the saintess nodded her head, sighing for who knows how many times today. She felt like she was being tricked somewhere, but decided to ignore it as being overly sensitive.
Even if it’s a lie, the princess won’t cross her line.
After a conflict in the past, she was a girl who pathologically hated being hated by Ian. Of course she wouldn’t do anything to make Ian angry.
Around the time when the saint came to that conclusion.
“Hey, over there… ….”
“…… ?”
At the small sound Siene made, the eyes of the two women moved once again. Meeting that gaze, Syene swallowed her dry saliva again, and then.
“Oh, no.”
She ended her words like that in her crawling voice.
Actually, she wanted to hear at least a rough plan and say that she would trust and leave it to him.
Shiene had a face that said she was genuinely not interested in Shiene’s opinion. At this point, Syene came to a sharp realization.
She realizes that she is nothing here.
Suddenly I wanted to see Ian. She could have at least said something, and then… ….
She even told me that she was pretty.
Syene’s tranquility, lost in her sweet reminiscences, did not last long.
“Okay, then I’ll think about the detailed plan some more and then tell you.”
“Please.”
With Sienne’s declaration, the saintess stood up without hesitation, and Siene had no choice but to follow suit.
It was immediately after that that the smiling girl’s face turned cold.
“Emma senior… ….”
Only Shien knew her. She thought she could do something to that commoner girl.
Even though Ian probably doesn’t know that fact, there must be a reason why she refused treatment.
Shien was not a problem for her to worry about. The most urgent priority was the return of her Ian.
“…… “I can’t use it.”
From Noble mtl dot com
Huh, the girl muttered while bursting into laughter.
It was self-deprecation.
She swore that she would never betray Ian’s trust in her again and that she would never do anything to make him hate her.
I can’t believe Ian’s life is in danger like this.
But what can we do? That’s a girl’s nature.
The dragon stands tall but does not look down.
Shien checked her plan one last time. The real conspiracy she did not tell the saint or Syene.
Don’t you mind making sacrifices for the purpose?
That was the same for the princess.
The night is getting deeper. Ian hasn’t returned yet, and the blizzard will hit again.
There was no time.
For anyone.
*
“I will treat you.”
“…… ?”
It was a proposal given to me by a girl with reddish-brown hair.
I thought it was so arbitrary that it appeared out of nowhere just as it disappeared, clinging to my side and chatting away. What on earth is this little guy doing this for?
The girl who appeared once again was clearly larger than before. I should say that it no longer feels like a fairy, but rather the size of someone in their early teens.
But compared to me, it wasn’t much.
I couldn’t help but laugh.
“Treatment? What on earth… …..”
“Your image.”
Standing tall and stopping.
Even though there was a long way to go, it was something I couldn’t pass up. When I narrowed my eyebrows and showed a look of doubt, the girl smiled brightly as if it was genuine.
“It’s really the last time.”
The end of a long dream was approaching.
Now is the time to wake up.