The Liar
It was only after the sky had darkened that I finished my training. I swept back my sweat-drenched bangs and let out a ragged breath. The surface of the training sword I had dropped was engraved with the number of dummies I had cut down.
Dummies Processed: 376
“Mmm…”
It was a fairly high number, yet not enough to satisfy me. My goal had been five hundred or more. It seemed my low stats were the bottleneck after all.
Something like wearing clothes that don’t fit. Or perhaps my body simply couldn’t keep up with my mind. My movements refused to follow my thoughts, leaving me only frustrated.
With a complicated sigh, I organized the equipment. Having swung my sword without rest for several hours, every muscle in my body was screaming. I had burned through my mana the moment it recovered, so even my stomach churned. I spat out the sticky saliva and looked around.
“......”
The training ground was already deserted. Given the hour, everyone must have returned to the dormitories. I needed to head back soon as well. It would be troublesome if I returned too late and found the doors locked.
Just as I gathered my things and was about to leave the training ground, a voice called out from behind me.
“Young Master Lisite.”
This voice…? I turned my head.
“Lady Maharet…?”
There stood Raiden’s former fiancée. Maharet had her arms crossed, glaring at me. Those captivating crimson eyes and the long, flowing silver hair. I flinched at the mysterious aura that was hers alone.
…She was so unrealistically beautiful that it was almost frightening. Moreover, there were far too many uncomfortable memories between Raiden and her. I had no idea what she wanted, but I resolved to handle it quickly and leave, meeting her gaze.
“You called for me.”
Yet for some reason Maharet’s expression crumpled even further. What? Why is she looking at me like that?
“That polite tone.”
“......”
“How ridiculous, pretending to be proper now.”
…Why is she suddenly picking a fight? Pretending to be proper? Haven’t I been living quite diligently lately? How much effort have I poured in just to avoid earning anyone’s hatred?
I looked at Maharet with a sense of injustice—
“For the past few weeks, you’ve thoroughly tormented the children I cherish, haven’t you?”
—only to quietly lower my eyes. The moment I heard her words, I knew exactly what she meant.
“The commoner honor students, the eldest daughter of Viscount Levion, even the second son of Count Plont.”
“......”
They were all the ones I had beaten. Of course, I held no personal grudge. They had simply been unfortunate sacrifices offered up for my title acquisition.
“Did you know they belonged to my faction?”
“......I did not.”
I hadn’t targeted them on purpose. It was only after I beat them that I realized they were all part of Maharet’s group—and even then, I only learned it later when Gold Tae-yang and Ariel told me.
“Ha. Lies.”
Of course, the young lady before me had no intention of believing a word. The silver-haired girl radiated open hostility.
“I’m sick of your lies… both in the past and now.”
She was probably referring to Raiden’s accumulated sins. There were indeed many things he had done wrong to Maharet. If I had to name the four people who suffered most from that bastard’s actions, Maharet, Lucy, Ariel, and Rachel would likely top the list.
While I pretended to reflect and mulled over such thoughts—
“You are nothing but a liar steeped in deceit.”
—that single sharp remark stabbed straight into my chest.
Liar.
For a moment, it felt as though my breath had stopped. An unforeseen blow that tore at my reverse scale.
-Naru!
I tried to shake off the demonic hands of the past crawling up from the depths, but it was meaningless. The scenes I had desperately tried to forget were already replaying inside my head.
-Naru!
I hated it. I hated this memory. My throat tightened; I clutched it desperately. My breathing grew rough and chaotic, spinning my mind into dizziness.
“Young Master Lisite?”
“Ugh, heuk… heuk…”
My legs gave out. I collapsed to my knees. Maharet’s panicked voice flickered at the edge of my hearing, but I could not spare it any attention.
-Oh, how was training today? W-was it hard?
-Yeah… I-I’m fine! I didn’t get scolded much today!
-I-I hope Naru stays with me forever and ever!
Help me. Help me. Status window. Where the hell did you go? Erase this voice, quickly. I don’t want to hear it. Not those words. Don’t say them. Don’t look at me with those eyes. Please…
-You promised you’d stay by my side, didn’t you?
-……You liar.
“Ugh……”
Right as nausea surged and I nearly fainted, a mechanical sound that wiped everything away rang out clearly.
Iron Mind
Nullifies the user’s status abnormalities (Panic Disorder, Suicidal Impulses, Self-Harm, Trauma, etc…).
“Haa… haa…”
I remained crouched, panting for a while. The voices had vanished and my breathing had returned to normal, yet I could not bring myself to stand. Resentment toward the late-arriving status window, self-loathing aimed at myself, and guilt directed at someone else—these ruined emotions tangled together and crushed my heart.
“Raiden!”
What pulled me back to my senses in that moment was the desperate voice calling my name.
“W-why are you suddenly like this? You were the same last time too—are you sick somewhere?”
Maharet was patting my back with a flustered voice. She glanced around, then rose to her feet.
“W-wait! I’ll call someone. It’s late, but the infirmary should still be open……”
Her heart was in the right place, but I was fine. I could not allow myself to appear any more shaken than this. Thanks to the status window’s intervention, my mind had cleared.
“……I’m all right, Lady Maharet.”
“Raiden…?”
“I’m sorry for the trouble.”
I brushed off her hand and stood up abruptly. My head was such a mess that I couldn’t control my movements. Staggering, I fled the scene as though escaping.
I felt… a little tired.
The training ground was left in silence after Raiden departed. The silver-haired girl stood motionless, lost in thought. Naturally, her mind was consumed by the boy who had been there only moments ago.
—Heuk… heuk…
Those painful, gasping breaths. The black eyes that trembled pitifully. The expression that had seemed drenched in terror. Maharet could not understand any of it.
“Just what…”
Nothing had happened. She had pressed him with criticism, but it had not been that severe. Besides, he was not the sort of person who would care even if she lashed out at him.
Then what had that expression been?
—I’m sorry for the trouble.
The way he had fled in such a hurry, as though he had shown something shameful. He had been drowning in fear.
What could have frightened him so badly?
Maharet hated Raiden. No, it would be more accurate to say her feelings had crossed into loathing. The emotional chasm between them ran that deep.
Yet—
……Seeing a face like that, there’s no way I could simply ignore it.
She had never seen such an expression before. Not in the days before he changed, nor during his worst bastard phase. She had never witnessed him trembling like that.
Separate from her resentment toward the boy, Maharet was not cruel enough to turn a blind eye to someone clearly suffering. In that sense, her worry was only natural.
“Sigh… Well, he can handle it himself.”
The girl exhaled a long breath and shook off her thoughts. Yes, he had always been self-centered. There was no need for her to concern herself. It was laughable that she was even worrying about him in the first place.
With a bitter expression, Maharet left the training ground.
—Click. Creeeeak…
I reached the dormitory just before curfew. The moment I dragged my heavy body inside and pulled the front door, someone waiting behind it sprang forward.
“Ah, Young Master! You’ve returned?”
It was Rachel. Since she had been about to retire for the night, she wore light sleepwear instead of her maid uniform. Her signature double ponytails were also neatly undone. The girl greeted me with a bright, refreshing smile.
“Did you spend the day well?”
“……Yeah. I’m back.”
I wanted to answer in a cheerful voice, but this was the best I could manage. Dragging myself like soaked cotton, I headed toward my room.
“Young Master…? Are you all right…?”
Rachel must have found my reaction strange; she asked cautiously. I hadn’t wanted to show it. As always, keeping a poker face was difficult.
“I’m fine.”
“But your expression is so dark……”
“Just a little tired.”
I forced strength into my facial muscles and lifted the corners of my mouth into an awkward smile. I thought it was a rather convincing mask, yet the look in Rachel’s eyes only grew darker.
“……The bath water is ready. You can wash and go straight to sleep.”
“All right.”
Thankfully, Rachel asked no further questions. As expected, she was quick to read the room. I closed the bedroom door, leaving her behind.
“……I should just get some sleep.”
It would be fine. If I soaked in hot water, changed into soft pajamas, and closed my eyes in a fluffy bed, this sticky depression would surely wash away.
Muttering to myself, I stepped into the bathroom.
But as if to betray that hope—
-Naru! It’s dangerous!
-Kiiiiiiik—BANG!!
-M-Mom…?
That night, I dreamed the cruelest nightmare I had ever known.