Chapter 59
Chapter 59
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 59
Chapter Title: Shadow Behind the Gold☆ (3)
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As dawn broke, sunlight poured between the buildings.
In front of the securely locked main gate of the United Student Council's grounds.
We had gathered to discuss the current situation.
"..."
There had been a brief commotion.
I figured Hilde was just being a little clingy from exhaustion. But I could still hear whispers of 'the president's woman' and 'lover' from behind, and Sieglinde was still eyeing me with suspicion.
"It seems... the President..."
"...If they have a ceremony... when..."
"...Was she showing off the President's favor...?"
"..."
The soft sensation still lingered on my forehead.
To stop myself from subconsciously reaching for it, I fidgeted with my fingers and tried to sort out my thoughts.
*'It's not an unpleasant misunderstanding... Hmm. A misunderstanding? Is it? I don't know. But honestly, dating Hilde doesn't sound so bad... No, getting worked up over a single touch isn't very manly. Or is it? I'm not a man anymore, right? That's why I gave up on those feelings...'*
Oh, my fiercely burning manly spirit.
Don't just get serious during fights, give me an answer.
What in the world am I supposed to do in a situation like this?
*'Ah... you wouldn't know either, since you've never dated. My bad...'*
I desperately pondered how to explain this feeling before coming to a conclusion.
*'Hmm... I don't know. Let's put a pin in this for now.'*
There were more pressing matters. I needed to emulate the shamelessness of Chancellor Cao, who sacrificed his men to pursue a married woman.
"Like the married-woman hunter, Cao Cao...☆"
Channeling Cao Cao's audacity, I lifted my head and looked forward.
Naturally, Hilde was leading the meeting. But she seemed a little drained, unable to hide her fatigue from fighting all night against Frau, who had become as strong as a Unique Aether user thanks to the power of an ancient god.
*'Is she... okay?'*
I glanced at her face.
"..."
"..."
Hilde sensed my gaze and met my eyes. But perhaps because we were in a meeting, she gave a slight shake of her head and refocused on listening to the reports from each person.
*'She did it, but now she's feeling self-conscious.'*
I found that amusing for some reason and let out a small chuckle.
The numerous students gathered at the scene.
The United Student Council, Freyja, and even the straggling beastkin girls... as testimonies from countless students were cross-referenced, a larger picture began to form.
The stirrings of a faction within the beastkin aristocracy, centered around Frau.
A suspicious alliance between the newly formed Eastern Federation and Ratatoskr.
And even the long-held desires and inferiority complex of the Eastern Federation's leader...
I was surprised to hear the story.
*'To think that Frau, the student council president of Public Vana Boarding School, had been researching ancient gods and forbidden powers since her first year...'*
An attempt to shed the incompetence unbecoming of the leader of the aristocratic faction.
A forbidden power that could defy one's fate—the laws of the world—actually existed. To be precise, the authority of the ancient gods had been passed down through vague oral traditions.
What a coincidence.
A foreign authority that granted power to defy the laws of the world.
To think it was real, and that people had been researching it for a long time...
I recalled my ill-fated history with the fur-beasts from the past.
*'No wonder I used to run into fur-beasts who would suddenly pick fights with me in the wastelands. To think they were the ones researching forbidden powers...'*
Of course, I defeated them easily. And those fur-beast gangs, with their unimpressive combat skills at the time, never crossed my path again after a few provocations.
*'I ignored it because it was a side-story event, but here it's actual ancient history... though it's all distorted since so few people know the truth.'*
The authority of the Serpent of Wisdom and Cycle.
The power to grant desired knowledge in exchange for one's [Fate].
The lore behind the cultist mobs that appear in the post-ending side stories.
And surprisingly, there was more than one such ancient being.
I was starting to understand how the rumor of the Faded Spiral came to be.
*'Did knowledge of these ancient beings spread as rumors, getting distorted and becoming the foundation for the Faded Spiral... It probably doesn't affect me much anyway, since I don't fully belong to this universe.'*
It was ridiculous to even call it a forbidden power.
Honestly, it was hilarious that people equated fighting without a weapon to pledging one's [Fate] to some shady, ancient beings.
Unlike my thoughts as someone from an outer universe.
Freyja and Hilde kept glancing at me worriedly as they talked.
"...Th-that's what happened. Th-this is just a hypothesis, combining what I knew with... the, the testimony of the stragglers."
"I see."
"A-and looking at the condition of some students... I-it seems that power can't be used for long... I-it's presumed to be a very temporary power. Someone like F-Frau, who gained the power of a Unique Aether user, might be able to use it a bit longer, but... the, the rest of the stragglers are already losing their power..."
"...So that's what happened. That's why Lara's power..."
I cut in before Hilde could misunderstand.
"Ah-☆ No misunderstandings here♪ I'm perfectly fine~☆ The Faded Spiral?☆ I didn't even know there was a rumor like th-that~♪"
"..."
"..."
As their gazes lingered on the branch-like scar on my neck, I desperately added.
"Saying I was sick before was a lie—☆ It was a lie after all—☆ Sorry for worrying you~♪ I'm r-really... I'm healthy—♪"
"..."
"..."
"I haven't lost my power, and my light hasn't faded—☆ I'm totally ready to become a sparkling, spiraling beautiful girl~♡ Right? Stray Cat, you saw me fighting earlier—☆ Hilde, you're looking forward to fighting with me too, right? Yes♪ My heart is pounding so hard~☆"
"..."
"..."
"Wh-when this all calms down, let's invite Eir too! Yes♪ L-let's all have a tea party and catch up☆ Yes♪ We can clear up all the misunderstandings then~☆"
"..."
"..."
*Zzzzing—!*
Did it look like a desperate lie mixed with an attempt at reassurance?
Violet and azure-white aether sized me up. But I no longer possessed the same amount of aether as before, and I even had scars all over my body.
"..."
"..."
Freyja and Hilde looked at me with pity.
If anything, my clumsy climb back to the second stage... the state of Vibrating Aether, must have looked like a pathetic struggle. To be in this state, of all times, when we reunited.
I felt like I was trapped in a swamp I couldn't escape.
*'This is driving me crazy... I went into hiding to preserve my knowledge of the original story, then came back out when I realized it had been twisted, and now they won't even believe me if I say the enemies know about the original story too... Should I just tell them I experienced this world as a game and that everything they're worried about doesn't apply to me...?'*
But somehow... I felt like they'd just think I'd lost my mind and lock me up in a ward. I was truly certain of it.
Freyja and Hilde took one last look at my faded, light pink hair and sighed.
"Haaah..."
"..."
"...Senior."
As deep as Freyja's and Hilde's sighs.
And as sorrowful as Lotha's gaze.
My chest ached with guilt.
This situation, being worried over like this, felt embarrassing and like karma, making my head spin a little.
*'I'm going crazy... Is this all karma...'*
At the same time as my complex feelings.
Freyja and Hilde, with subtle expressions, continued the conversation.
"A-anyway... while Frau was r-researching the forbidden power... she saw the fruits of her labor..."
"And she intended to use that power to conquer the academy city in a surprise attack."
"O-of course, since it was executed so hastily... there was no p-plan or anything... just a r-rampage using an outside force... but th-that brutish strength alone... is th-threatening."
"Hmm, given the timing of Ratatoskr's Apostles appearing and Frau obtaining ancient power, it's hard to call it a coincidence."
"I-it was probably to prevent outside forces like the Crimson Trajectory from i-interfering... I-if things went as planned, they would have secured a way to keep me in check, too..."
"Is that why Frau hastily stopped fighting and retreated?"
Hilde nodded in understanding, as if she had grasped the entire situation. She seemed to have raised her guard against the Eastern Federation and its collusion with outside forces.
Hilde spoke emphatically to Sieglinde and the other students around them.
"Evidence of a detestable... alliance between Ratatoskr and the Eastern Federation has been revealed. If you encounter any Apostles, act according to the existing 'Apostle Response Strategy,' but if a commander-class enemy called a 'Priest' appears, retreat immediately."
"Understood!"
"Understood!"
"For enemies with a time limit, their means of eliminating variables will be Svart Industrial High School on the outside... and the Ratatoskr group presumed to have infiltrated the inside. Keep this in mind and stall for as much time as possible. That is all. We will now move out again."
Hilde's command was followed by powerful salutes.
*Thump—!*
"Understood!"
"Understood!"
The numerous students of the United Student Council began to move in perfect sync once more. Sieglinde, of course, continued to watch me intently even as she moved.
"..."
Hilde looked at me, her gaze implying that the order to retreat included me.
"..."
"Ahaha...☆"
I had originally intended to warn them about the severity of the situation.
*'But they've already figured it all out and accepted it themselves.'*
This was a situation where snake-tattooed fur-beasts, estimated to be level 60-70 with post-ending side story buffs, were running rampant in an area where the average level was 40-50. And on top of that, Ratatoskr's influence was likely involved.
But before I could even open my mouth, everyone had already recognized the gravity and strangeness of the situation, leaving me with nothing to say.
*'They're all... so smart.'*
So, all I could do was raise my hand forlornly and reply.
"Ooh—☆ Let's go defeat them all—♪"
"What are you talking about? Lara, you're staying with me."
"..."
"I will protect you. You came all this way for me... From now on, no one will harm you."
"..."
What are *you* talking about...
You should be out there keeping the strong ones in check...
And just like that, the asymmetrical powerhouse Hilde was on the verge of becoming my bodyguard.
"..."
Freyja, who had been deep in thought, cut in.
"N-no... A-actually, it would be... b-better if the Ruffian went with me to the Public Vana Boarding School's library..."
"What do you mean?"
"W-well..."
Just as Hilde was questioning Freyja sharply.
*Pat-pat-pat—!*
From the distance, amidst the United Student Council students preparing for the next battle, a student stationed elsewhere ran up. Judging by the insignia on her shoulder, she was a messenger.
The messenger hurriedly reported to Hilde, who was looking at her.
"Urgent report! A group presumed to be from Svart Industrial High School has invaded from outside the Aesir Girls' High School district!"
In that moment, the faces of Alvitt, Kara... and the other girls, including Vel, flashed through my mind.
＊
"Kukuk... You're a sorry sight, inferior species."
"Shut up...! What do you know...!"
"Oh, you mean the fact that you used a power beyond your station to fight the strongest in the academy city, only to end up a tattered mess and run away?"
"...!"
The girl with fox ears so lush they swayed gracefully.
Frau bit her bloodied lip and glared in the direction of the voice.
"What good will glaring do? Are you going to give up on becoming the ruler of the academy city now and go back to living a life of insignificance?"
"..."
"Kukukuk...!"
A giant green dragon stood there.
Its bizarre body looked like a praying mantis with hundreds of dragon horns attached.
With a magic circle emitting black aether behind it, the creature sneered at Frau.
The Priest of Conflict spoke in a voice that sounded like it was scraping the floor.
"If the true form of another beast god were to descend here, perhaps even your pathetic [Fate], tied down by the World Tree, could change."
"..."
"Though for you, who has already offered up her [Fate], I wonder how much of a future you have left... Kukukukuk...!"
As if she didn't want to hear any more, Frau turned her head and returned to the tent to treat her wounds.