Episode 41
Translator: RaidenTL
Episode 41
Adrian opened and closed his mouth several times as if to say something, but in the end, he just shook his head and sighed. Rayner stared at Elysia in disbelief and muttered.
“And here I thought your intuition was sharp.”
“My intuition is sharp.”
“No, you’re just completely clueless.”
No, my intuition really is sharp, Elysia thought, resting her chin on her hand. What in the world is he talking about? she wondered, then asked Rayner.
“Ah, whatever.”
“To think I’d get caught by someone this oblivious, it’s absurd—”
“Let’s get back on topic. For example, the story about you being high?”
The man’s grumbling face hardened. Elysia scraped her finger along the rim of the teacup before her, the sound sharp enough to make one wince, and continued.
“The Crea that fell by the window—you dropped it. Didn’t you?”
“…”
“Right? You bastard. Busted.”
With a smirk, Elysia leaned forward and whispered to the man, who was frozen in a state of shock.
“I want to know, in as much detail as possible, how drugs are being distributed in this school. Start talking.”
“…”
Seeing Rayner press his lips together, as if determined to exercise his right to remain silent, she let out a deep sigh. Right, so you’re not going to cooperate…
To be honest, she had fully expected this.
Rayner was a noble of fairly high standing, and the student named Hertz, who had been dealt with so harshly by Alma, was also a noble. The drugs were priced so high that no commoner could ever afford them, so the buyers were most likely aristocrats.
The bizarre code of solidarity that existed among them made it difficult for an outsider like Elysia to dig into the matter.
But thanks to the self-defense he so helpfully laid out for me, I have a weapon I can use.
A grin instantly spread across Elysia’s face. She stretched languidly, leaning back against her chair, and asked in a relaxed tone.
“Does Marianne Dupre know about this?”
Another crack formed on the man’s already shattered expression.
“I would never… No! I was so scared that day, I just smoked it for the first time to calm down.”
“No, whether it was your first time or your ten-thousandth, I asked if Marianne knows. Why are you answering a question I didn't ask?”
Rayner glared at Elysia’s nonchalant reply and growled.
“Is that a threat?”
A look of bewilderment crossed her face. She let out a short laugh and leaned forward again. His voice was quite menacing, but he was dealing with someone far from ordinary. Twisting a lock of her short hair, Elysia scoffed and asked.
“You call this a threat? You’ve lived a soft life, haven’t you? Hey, lower your eyes. Who do you think you’re staring at?”
“Ah, sis, please, your tone. Are you a gangster or something?”
“I’m giving you the courtesy of choosing how you’re gonna get fucked, you know?”
“Are you really a gangster?”
Ignoring Adrian, who kept chiming in, Elysia shot him a glare before smiling brightly and cupping her face in her hands. Her silver-gray eyes, curved as if she’d just landed a big catch, glinted with the sharpness of a predator that never lets its prey escape.
“You choose. Do you want to be remembered as a pathetic bastard who blew up out of jealousy like some attention whore, or be misunderstood as a degenerate who not only did drugs but might have also fooled around with other women?”
“I’ve never been with anyone but Marianne—”
“I know that. And I believe you when you say it was your first time doing drugs! You must have been a first-timer to spill something as ridiculously expensive as Crea all over the place.”
Elysia flashed a refreshing smile at Rayner, who narrowed his eyes, trying to discern her true intentions.
“But that’s a conclusion only someone as familiar with junkies as I am could draw. What about Marianne? If she finds out you’ve been doing drugs, wouldn’t she naturally become suspicious? I bet she’d start imagining just how promiscuous you’ve been. Poor thing. Taking two shocks back-to-back like that would be bad for her health.”
Dragging her chair, Elysia sat right next to Rayner. As he tried to avoid her gaze, she leaned in closer.
“The first option at least leaves room for forgiveness. The second? Rayner Williams, make the smart choice.”
“…”
“Even if you don’t talk, I’m going to catch every last one of those bastards and tear them apart one way or another. So pick your side carefully.”
Rayner looked up and met Elysia’s glare. Her eyes burned like fire, her fists clenched tight. He knew instinctively. This woman, no matter what, was the type to see things through to the very end.
With a sigh, he scrubbed a hand over his face and muttered weakly.
“Give me some paper.”
“Good. You made the right choice.”
As if she’d been waiting for it, Elysia handed him the pen and paper she had on her lap, nodding in satisfaction. With a reluctant air, the man accepted them and began to write down everything he knew.
Humming a tune, Elysia tapped her fingers on the desk. A red exclamation mark floating over her inventory window caught her eye.
She opened it and found the blue potion bottle she’d shoved in there at some point, now glowing. She slowly took it in her hand.
“What’s this? Why is it doing this?”
At that moment, with a dull mechanical sound, a system window opened—one that belonged neither to <Panic in the City> nor <You'll Fall in Love>.
SYSTEM: Item usage conditions met. Executing Errorcheck_Program.
…checking ‘Rayner Williams’ ###
completed. ###
Reason for crime: Jealousy, based on affection.
Item usage conditions not met. Terminating Errorcheck_Program. ###
As if its job was done, the system window blinked out of existence. Elysia stared blankly at where it had been, lightly pressing her fingers to her forehead.
“…What was that all about?”
The potion bottle, clutched so tightly her knuckles had turned white, remained silent. As if it were simply waiting for the next opportunity.
*
A week later, Elysia was chewing on a piece of blackened toast with a look on her face like she was chewing on shit.
Damn it, a manual oven. I have to control the cooking time myself? I know the setting is what it is, but this is too much!
She could have just thrown it away, but she was too lazy to make another piece of toast, and she was certain her professor was waiting for her, eyes blazing, ready to somehow turn his idiot student into a functional human being.
Therefore, she willingly chose to chew on what was closer to charcoal than food. Besides, she had little interest in gourmet cuisine.
Elysia plopped down at an empty table in the dining hall and muttered as she watched the students chatting quietly.
“…So peaceful.”
The confession of the culprit who had torn Lucian’s painting was handled quietly, especially compared to the initial uproar it had caused.
Rayner Williams had gone to the Student Council, confessed, and submitted his withdrawal letter. Wary that Cain might try to pull something, Elysia had stuck by his side and presented all the evidence.
The academy, responsible for failing to properly protect Lucian’s painting, paid half of the compensation, while the other half was Rayner’s share.
Siene Reve’s name was cleared. Marianne had looked shocked, but she seemed to be gradually calming down.
Elysia didn’t know if their engagement was broken or not, but that was their problem, not hers to meddle in. Since there was no news, she figured there was a high probability it was still on.
And that potion bottle…
That night, she had returned to her dorm, opened the lid, and emptied all the pills out. She had tried everything she could think of, but the suspicious system window never appeared again. She even steeled herself to try eating one, but a boring message simply popped up: ‘This item cannot be consumed.’
Staring down at her textbook, Elysia sighed in annoyance.
“This is bugging me…”
“You.”
Just then, someone sat down across from her. She lifted her eyes from the textbook—a tome thick enough to be a weapon—and looked up, startled.
Lustrous silver hair. With her lips pressed into a firm line, Siene Reve was glaring at Elysia.
“…What is it?”
“Eat with me.”
Elysia tilted her head in confusion.
“I’m about to leave. This is weird. Why do you want to eat with me anyway? Don’t you have any friends?”
“I don’t!”
“Huh. Proud of it, are we?”
“It’s not like you have any either, right?”
After her sharp retort, Siene muttered something under her breath and pulled an object from her bag, sliding it across the table. Right… I don’t have any friends either. Struck by a low blow based on facts, Elysia lost the will to fight back.
Still dazed, she picked it up. It was a stiff, gold-leafed piece of paper. She narrowed her eyes to examine it.
“What’s this? A ticket?”
“The top student for the Art Department’s Art Festival painting category was just decided. It’s me.”
Siene’s face suddenly turned bright red, and she began to fidget, her demeanor completely different from before. What does she want me to do? Elysia offered a deadpan congratulations.
“Uh… congrats?”
She waited for Siene, who kept opening and closing her mouth as if trying to say something, but then she checked the time and shot up from her seat. Any later and she’d be late.
Leaving Siene to her dramatic pause, Elysia gathered her things and stood up, saying with an indifferent look.
“Anyway, I’m busy, so—”
“You better not skip it!”
“…What?”
What is she talking about? Stunned into silence, Elysia watched as Siene also stood up. With a beet-red face, she pressed the ticket back into Elysia’s hand and said again, her voice firm with emphasis.
“You have to come see my painting. If you don’t, I’ll make you regret it.”
“Is this how you normally invite people? Are you threatening me?”
“I-I don’t know! Just come, okay? Do you think I give these privilege passes to just anyone?”
What even is a privilege pass? Elysia waved her hand dismissively as if it were a bother, but she still took the pass from Siene and stuffed it into her jacket pocket.
Ignoring Siene, who was now following her like a shadow, she quickened her pace.
Ugh, whatever, whatever. I’ll think about it later.
As she muttered this and was about to leave the dining hall, Siene’s sharp cry echoed through the room.
“SO ARE YOU COMING OR NOT!!!”
Wow, her personality is really something else!
Clicking her tongue, Elysia ran toward her classroom.
—First Case, solved.—