Chapter 194
Chapter 194
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 194
Chapter Title: QED
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Io von Loengrin looked down at her younger brother's face, seated upon the jade throne right before her eyes.
A boy who couldn't even meet her gaze back in the day.
This brother of hers had entered the academy in her fourth year and was already slated to become the next student council president by his second year.
Wolfram.
Wolfram von Loengrin.
It had been five years since she'd last seen her brother, who bore the greatest bloodline in the empire.
Back then, the immature boy had dreams sparkling in his eyes—a passionate kid who, though extreme at times, knew how to show consideration for others.
But what had turned his eyes into this?
In her three years at Jefrin, Io von Loengrin had seen so many people and learned just how monstrous politics could be in shattering human spirits through the betrayals of her comrades.
Because of that, Io dared to pride herself on one small talent she'd gained: the ability to read the hidden emotions in people's eyes while reassembling Jefrin into a realm of 【Order and Balance】 over those three years.
What she sensed in Wolfram's eyes was suspicion. Envy. Bluff. Deceit. Hatred. Rage.
Not a single trace of happiness—just a writhing mass of torment.
Could she really entrust Jefrin's future to this child?
Yet there was nothing Io von Loengrin could do.
She was graduating at the end of this year.
She had to leave this model garden behind and pursue her ambitions in the greater world.
Even as the unprecedented student council president from the Knight Division in the past century, she had no intention of sticking around for graduate studies.
And as she endured the imperial court's intrigues while keeping an ear to Jefrin's rumors, word came that Wolfram had been dethroned.
Eve von Loengrin, her proud little sister, had severed Wolfram von Loengrin's claim to the throne and seized it for herself.
It was bittersweet, but surely this meant Jefrin's future was bright. With that thought, Io felt a mix of relief and a tiny pang of guilt in her chest.
If only she'd guided Wolfram even a little, he might not have strayed this far.
At the time, Io had been too consumed by the expedition's failure and her emotional wounds to properly handle her duties, and honestly, she hadn't even managed a proper handover to Wolfram.
So this time, she'd do it right. When Wolfram returned, she'd finally act like a proper big sister. With that resolve, she waited a month. Two months.
But Wolfram never came back.
When she inquired further, she learned he was still at Jefrin.
Io, who understood the weight of the Loengrin name better than anyone, judged his actions as mere stubbornness.
Thrashing about to divide public opinion, gather followers, and reclaim the student council presidency one more time.
But meeting him face-to-face proved that wrong.
Then was it self-imposed penance to atone for his sins? Considering the prices at that vending machine, it wasn't an unreasonable guess.
However, at this very moment, Io von Loengrin rejected even that possibility.
There was no doubt, no confusion, no anxiety, no anguish in the eyes looking up at her from the jade throne.
What she felt instead was ... absolute confidence in his path. Unshakable conviction. Qualities that ... a true sovereign should possess.
For a fleeting instant—just the briefest moment—she felt no sense of incongruity at Wolfram von Loengrin sitting upon that jade throne.
Her brother had clearly changed in some profound way.
"You've changed, little brother."
"Have I?"
And moreover.
Even though she'd barged in unannounced, fearing he might flee, Wolfram neither dodged nor hid.
Instead, he asserted his own logic and boldly met her test head-on.
That wasn't all.
As if he'd seen through the test's nature in advance, hadn't he prepared for it 'ahead of time'?
He'd read her? Prepared the perfect counter?
If so, then it wasn't change. Rather—
"So you're finally showing your true colors?"
"I don't quite follow, sister."
What a poker face.
"Fine. Then I'll give you the next test."
Aila sniffled and headed back to the dorms around eight on her black limousine. She had to be in bed by ten, after all. No helping it.
It was the dead of night.
Io was still mulling over the test's content.
This was getting annoying.
What was the point of taking her test, anyway?
Strictly speaking, Io von Loengrin was an outsider now.
Even if this young fogey acknowledged me, what glory would that bring to my life?
Best case, she'd just say something like, 'That punk's got some talent, but he's too cocky. He should at least say "Yes, ma'am" once in a while instead of backtalking. Tsk tsk.'
So this test was meaningless—just something to ease Io's mind. She could flat-out refuse, and it wouldn't matter.
That's why.
"I'm a small business owner myself. If there's no profit to gain from the time invested, I have no reason to take your test."
"...In that case, if you pass this test, your big sister will give you a grand gift."
Ha.
A grand gift? You think that'll sway me?
As if I'd be tempted by something like that.
"Just what I hoped for. Let's see it."
"Looks like you're finally motivated."
"You bet."
Well.
I can ignore a nosy elder asking if I'm not getting married, but when a generous senior offers to buy me a house while asking the same, it's only polite to listen intently and sell my personal info to a matchmaking agency on the spot.
Anyway, I can more or less guess what her next test will be.
In the original story, this is what she says.
【Protect Eve? What nonsense.】
【There's land I couldn't conquer even during my tenure.】
【I led a thousand from the Knight Division and still failed that expedition.】
【If you can take down even one monster from that region...】
【I might acknowledge you, even if just a little.】
That's the mission Io gives in Eve's side story 2.
"Show me proof of meaningful results from something I couldn't accomplish during my tenure. Only then ... might I acknowledge your continued enrollment—a student council president who could divide Jefrin without even holding the title."
Just as I thought.
"Io von Loengrin. The most dynamic student council president in history, backed by four-fifths of the Knight Division, who once made even the Magic Division wary. Yet strangely, the moment she hit fourth year, she all but abandoned Jefrin. The reason? The great expedition failure in the summer of her third year."
"..."
Io's expression visibly soured.
"No deaths by some miracle, but after a year's preparation, it was a retreat so dire we had to invoke miracles. The land she targeted has become a near-forbidden zone at Jefrin."
That land's name was.
"The Frost Plains."
"...Yes. Do you know it? It's a land of death. An icy hell that freezes the heart just by venturing there."
Oh?
Is that so?
Was it?
Is that some hidden lore I don't know?
The next morning, Io set off north with Wolfram, heading out on a whim.
With every step, her feet fought to halt, but she forced them onward.
No doubt about it.
Her body was afraid.
She still couldn't forget it. How could she? That day when the sky turned violet.
Cold enough to freeze solid, surrounded by thousands of monsters, the ground splitting, the sky crumbling. Blizzard raging, and at the end of that chill, an absurd scorching heat.
Beyond the violet sky. Amid the howling gale, a voice echoed.
The friction of wind, the roar of snow—it blended into a human voice, resounding in the ears of a thousand at once.
【We'll let it slide this once. Go home.】
That was ... the last mercy the ruler of these plains showed frail humans.
A place she never wanted to revisit. She consciously avoided looking north, grew uneasy at snowfall. No one died, keeping her sanity intact. Had there been casualties, Io might have broken too.
For her mental health, she coasted through fourth year like a break.
And now, Io had returned to that forbidden zone—the land where utter defeat was seared into her soul.
And there.
"My comrade Wolfram. Short time no see—what brings you here?"
"Long time no see, Liya Dia Frost."
"Who's that over there?"
"Never mind her. As promised last time, I've brought the goods."
"...Heh. I see. My fellow kin, Wolfram. Your wares are always top-notch. ...Make our human guest comfortable too."
"...Uh."
Io von Loengrin thus shared tea time amid her own despair.
"Uh, um... Y'know, Wolfram. This is... "
"The expedition to the Frost Plains where you suffered a crushing defeat? I've surpassed it. 【Ice Queen Liya Dia Frost】 is my business partner and like-minded ally."
"H-how is that even... "
"Even my closest retainers don't know my secrets—surely you don't expect me to spill to a Loengrin who hides her own? What price could I even set? As a businessman, it's beyond valuation."
Io's hand froze at Wolfram's icy words.
She wanted to call it a lie, but she'd walked the Frost Plains, reached the Ice Queen's castle, and the unforgettable voice of ice and wind still rang in her ears.
"I-I see... Sister has no choice but to acknowledge this achievement. Yes. If you're the first to plant a flag in this land I deemed a 【forbidden zone】 after my own defeat... What do you want from me?"
Influence? A public endorsement? Or perhaps?
"First, we need to sort the hierarchy, so I'll drop the formalities."
"...Huh?"
"I speak casually to Philtea too. Honoring you while doing that would mess up the pecking order. Got it?"
"Who's Philtea...?"
"Doesn't matter. I'll introduce her when the time comes. Anyway, first order of business: casual speech. Sis."
"...Very well."
He'd really changed so much.
Trembling, Io gazed into her brother's beast-like eyes, which brooked no compromise.
Having chased off the shocked Io, this Wolfram had seized eternal happiness!
Well, hard to say for sure since Io's tests usually number three. I've cleared two now ... so probably one left.
"Wolfram... "
"Hm."
Aila, squarely hit by the treason talk, slumped like a rain-soaked Yorkshire Terrier.
Was her mental fortitude strong or weak?
"My treason isn't a game... "
"I know."
"I'm always serious about treason."
"Yeah."
"You believe me, right, Wolfram?"
"Of course. Don't worry."
"But what about Io... I... I couldn't win even a single word yesterday."
Hm.
Well, that's 'cause she got smacked with straight facts.
Harsh to say, but Io's words to Aila yesterday were honestly pretty logical.
Talking treason in front of an imperial—treasonous in itself, but Io let it slide leniently. Considering Aila was the heir to the empire's top noble house, Io probably had no intention of escalating.
Heir to the Trista count family—no, potentially a duchy depending on circumstances—so treating it as kids' banter is what a proper adult does. But for Aila, those facts plus the adult lecturing and dismissal hit like a triple combo, flattening her.
Still, that's that, and this is this.
Aila's my party member. Rather than side with Io here, I need to manage Aila's morale.
So.
"It's fine. No need to worry at all."
"...Wolfram? What happened?"
I said that and briefly recapped yesterday.
Going to the Frost Plains. Dropping formalities with Io. Her accepting it.
"Io von Loengrin has lost to me. This proves no one can surpass this Wolfram. Don't worry, Aila."
"Th-then, does that mean... "
"Yeah. The treason is complete."
"Wolfram...!"
With that, Aila teared up and grasped my hand.
Thankfully, not squeezing as hard as yesterday.