Chapter 188
Chapter 188
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 188
Chapter Title: Charlotte's Lover
-----------------------------------------------------------------
A date with Charlotte.
Having lived this long only to hear those words from Charlotte, Krash was utterly dumbfounded.
"Follow me."
And just like that, without even considering the possibility of refusal, Charlotte turned and walked away.
Krash stared blankly at her retreating figure before hurriedly following after her.
He hadn't even thought to refuse Charlotte's words.
Besides, as Charlotte herself had pointed out, he owed her quite a bit lately.
Krash was well aware of the debts he owed her.
So he couldn't exactly ignore her request.
'A date? What on earth does she have in mind?'
Krash was definitely Charlotte's little brother, but he could never predict her actions.
She had always done exactly as she pleased.
She was someone whose patterns were impossible to read.
As he followed behind Charlotte, quite a few gazes turned their way along the path.
To avoid being recognized, Krash kept his head down as much as possible while trailing her.
"Um, sis."
He called out to her quietly in a voice too soft for others to hear.
"Call me big sis."
When Krash froze and stared at her in stunned silence, she flashed that trademark smirk of hers, just a slight curl of her lips.
"I'm kidding."
Charlotte's jokes were always impossible to anticipate.
"What I mean is—"
"Whatever you have planned for this date, wouldn't it be better to at least drop the disguise first?"
He would follow her, sure, but at least let him shed this appearance. When Krash pleaded as much, she tilted her head.
"The place we're headed to now? This look suits it even better."
Hearing her words, Krash tilted his own head—right before realizing where she was leading him and lifting his gaze.
There stood a beautifully constructed building.
Its rounded roof stacked in elegant layers and the closely spaced pillars gave off a temple-like atmosphere.
Combined with the flowing waterways and flowers around it, all bathed in the glow of the setting sun, it created a breathtaking scene.
And Krash realized exactly where they were.
'Raheln Academy's Noble Women's Society.'
A place where the academy's noble ladies gathered to sip tea and chat.
These days, it was mostly centered around the first-years.
On the surface, it was just tea and idle talk—but in truth, it was a battleground for power struggles.
In fact, most of the major rumors at Raheln Academy originated from here.
The male nobles didn't bother forming their own group, but they planted their own informants to gather intel from this spot.
Krash hadn't expected Charlotte to bring him here.
So when he turned to her with a questioning look, she smirked again.
"There've been some fun rumors lately. Thought it might help my little brother out too."
In other words, come gather some info to make your life at Raheln Academy smoother.
Realizing this was Charlotte's way of looking out for him, Krash's face briefly flickered with surprise.
He had been working tirelessly to become the center of the second-years.
And thanks to those efforts, he had successfully taken that position.
But in focusing on the second-years, he lacked info on the first-years' power dynamics.
Now that he was at the center of the second-years, it was time to aim higher—toward the first-years.
Which meant he had been wondering where to get intel on their factions.
And right on cue, Charlotte had shown up and brought him straight to the Women's Society, the easiest place to obtain it.
'She said she wanted to settle the debts.'
This felt more like piling on even more debt.
As those thoughts crossed his mind, Charlotte strode confidently into the society hall with her long legs, without a hint of hesitation.
Her bold entrance screamed someone who frequented the place.
"Eh, Charlotte?"
"Charlotte Valheim?"
"Oh my, Charlotte Valheim is here."
"Isn't this her first time?"
The moment Charlotte entered the building, the women inside reacted with surprise.
She had walked in with such familiar swagger, yet it turned out even she was a first-timer here.
Classic Charlotte.
"Charlotte?"
And soon, Krash heard a voice that instantly soured his mood.
As he slowly turned toward it, sure enough, there stood a woman with sea-blue hair.
Amid an air of refined elegance unlike the others, her sharp, intellectual eyes gleamed.
The owner of those jewel-like blue eyes was none other than the Empire's Third Princess, Sigrin Epania.
Krash barely managed to keep his face from twisting in disgust, but a flash of displeasure crossed Sigrin's eyes.
This place was practically her domain, after all—and now Charlotte had barged in.
A natural reaction.
But she was no amateur.
She smoothed her expression back to neutral before their eyes even met.
"Nice to see you. I didn't expect you'd show up here. What brings you?"
Sigrin asked with exaggerated politeness, but Charlotte let out a short huff through her nose.
"I'm not here to see you."
And without the slightest hesitation, she dismissed Sigrin entirely.
Sigrin's perfectly arched brows twitched once.
Getting snubbed right to her face? Another natural reaction.
It hit Krash then, just how Charlotte treated everyone else besides him.
Supreme over all, utterly self-centered.
True to form, she showed no mercy to anyone she didn't like.
And with someone like Sigrin—someone she was destined to clash with—that trait only intensified.
'I can see why Sigrin and Charlotte could never get along.'
Fundamentally, their personalities were polar opposites.
The only thing they had in common was their narcissism—the belief that they were the best in the world.
"Ha, haha, I see."
Sigrin forced a laugh and turned her gaze to Krash instead, plastering on a friendly smile.
"More importantly, this guest looks new. Who might you be?"
Of course, even Sigrin hadn't pierced Krash's disguise.
Her face held a veil of curiosity.
Anyone Charlotte would bring along should be someone in her memory—but she drew a blank.
Naturally, that sparked questions.
And oddly enough, aside from the hair color, she bore a striking resemblance to Charlotte.
To Sigrin, Charlotte was a walking wildcard.
With no telling where she'd swing next in this round, Sigrin made it a point to memorize everyone around her.
At that, Charlotte reached out and casually draped an arm around Krash's shoulders.
Already tall, Charlotte towered even more over Krash in his female form.
She pulled him into an embrace and twisted her lips into a smirk.
"My lover."
Krash froze. Sigrin froze.
It sounded so absurd, but Charlotte had dropped the bomb and sauntered off.
She pulled out a chair at the center of the hall—the seat of honor—and sat down, beckoning Krash over with a wave.
Her whims were one thing, but this was pushing it. Krash's head spun, a headache brewing.
And Sigrin looked just as stupefied, staring at Krash.
Understandably—Charlotte wasn't the type to joke about having a lover.
"Lover?"
"A lover?!"
Nor was Sigrin the only one reacting.
All the women who had been eavesdropping since Charlotte arrived chimed in.
Their gazes locked onto Krash in unison.
Eyes filled with curiosity, interest, and all sorts of emotions poured his way.
And among them—jealousy, of all things.
'Jealousy? What the hell?'
Absurdity washing over him, Krash nearly clutched the back of his neck out of habit but stopped short.
One wrong move, and someone might see through his disguise.
So instead, he meekly went and sat beside Charlotte.
"Hmm, so this is what the inside looks like."
Ignoring Krash's turmoil—or perhaps not—Charlotte glanced around the hall she was visiting for the first time.
The space was furnished with the latest trendy furniture, flowers, and more, all tailored to captivate noble ladies' hearts.
And the hall's sponsor was none other than Sigrin.
Items she'd personally sourced from the Empire, no doubt.
'Shows off the Empire's might and lets her play the gracious benefactor. Perfect fit.'
Krash felt queasy, like he'd swallowed something rotten, but held it in.
Anything involving Sigrin made him want to hurl first.
"Wahaha, so this is really Charlotte, huh?"
Just then, another boisterous voice echoed through the hall.
Familiar to Krash, he turned to see a woman standing there.
A short white shirt that revealed a hint of midriff, paired with a long red jacket emblazoned with the magic department's emblem.
Ash-gray hair tied up with a bright yellow accessory, round glasses completing the look.
Clack!
Grinning with shark-like teeth on full display, her identity was none other than—
The top of the first-year magic department, just as Charlotte topped the martial arts first-years.
The woman who would later be called the Thunder King and rise to the Ten Supremes.
Taria Vales.
Among the Generation of the Sky, she was the fastest to reach the Ten Supremes after Charlotte—a lightning magic specialist.
'She's already at 7th Circle Adeptus Major, right?'
In swordmaster terms, that put her at mid-master level.
And she was only 16.
Considering her age, it was an absurd achievement.
'First-years: martial and magic tops are both women. Second-years: both tops are men.'
An ironic, intriguing dynamic.
She approached Charlotte with a giggling laugh.
"What's the occasion? Don't you hate places like this, oh noble Charlotte?"
Her teasing question earned a brief glance and a casual shrug from Charlotte.
"My mood."
Never denying her nobility—that was Charlotte.
"Heh heh heh, yeah, that's Charlotte alright."
Undeterred by the curt response, she laughed it off.
She had a bold, outgoing personality.
And she showed surprising familiarity toward Charlotte.
A sign she'd reached out to her plenty before.
'They weren't supposed to get close originally.'
Charlotte never came to Raheln Academy in the first place.
Thus, Taria had no connection to her.
She'd holed up in her magic tower after graduation.
But because of Krash, Charlotte had come to the academy—and their paths had crossed.
This connection might lead to something new.
'If things go well.'
He might even pull Taria—who ignored groups like the Generation of the Sky and stayed buried in her tower—into it.
As Krash pondered that and glanced at Taria—
Their eyes met, and hers curved into crescents.
The emotion in them was anything but casual, leaving Krash puzzled—
When Taria tugged at her high-neck t-shirt, angling it so only he could see.
Krash's eyes slowly widened as he spotted what was etched there.
"Hey, nice to meet you. No idea who you are, but you seem like Charlotte's close little sis."
The moment he saw her curved smile, Krash let out a short, silent 'ha'.
The mark on her neck was a black star.
And Krash knew exactly who bore such a black star.
Taria Vales.
She was the seed Crimson Garden had planted in Raheln Academy.
Words materialized before Krash's eyes in that instant.
Message magic, cast in a split second.
Her sharpened gaze swept the hall.
And then, the incident occurred.