Chapter 110
Chapter 110
Ch 110
“Didn’t you know? You can come in however you want, but leaving? Not so much.”
Veronica spouted lines worthy of a final boss without batting an eye.
Even the Demon King would click his tongue at her for crossing the line, but this 'hero' was utterly shameless.
As expected from the infamous wicked hero’s silver tongue.
[But even coming in wasn’t really up to me.]
Seriously, truly, really.
I had tried to enroll… but got cut at the entrance without even properly taking the exam.
I’ll never forget that day when my painstakingly written application went straight to the trash. And right after, I somehow became the top enrollee without knowing how.
“…Was it like that?”
Veronica propped her chin on her hand, tilting her head with a bored expression.
She pretended to rummage through her memories… but it didn’t seem like she found any. Probably not that she forgot, but that she never cared in the first place.
“So what? What do you want me to do about it?”
[No, it’s fine.]
Yeah.
Everything was the will of our wicked hero, after all.
Who am I to complain?
“You got in as the top enrollee. That’s what matters.”
[Thanks to you.]
“Right? So now, you staying in the Cradle is also my will.”
[No.]
“What do you mean no? At this point, you’re basically my subordinate. Like a second Kaus. You entered by my will, you stay by my will, you breathe and live by my will, got it?”
[Slave.]
“Want to be a slave?”
“……….”
Veronica spewed her usual dragon nonsense today as well.
Whoosh.
Veronica swiftly snatched the whiteboard from my hand and gleefully picked up the marker.
And then…
[Yeah.]
“…….”
I tilted my head.
That wasn’t something I wrote.
But Veronica shoved it in my face and declared proudly.
“Thanks to me, life’s worth living, right?”
[Truly touching.]
“See? That’s my achievement, too.”
[It’s a disaster, not an achievement.]
Veronica smirked shamelessly and snapped her fingers.
Mana bloomed from her fingertips, drawing a picture in the air. That picture quickly formed into a petite, illusionary Veronica.
I reflexively blocked the wriggling illusion with my whiteboard as it flew at me.
“Without me, you’d have died on the streets.”
[That’s separate.]
“Ungrateful bastard who doesn’t even recognize favors.”
I carefully gripped the marker, about to write ‘ㅗ’ (middle finger), but worried Veronica might snatch the board again, I changed it to ‘ㅜ’ (crying face).
[ㅜ]
“See? You agree with me in the end.”
[Why?]
“So harsh~ Relationships between people should be built on trust, not suspicion.”
[You just called me a slave.]
“That was an expression of affection.”
The fresh shock, going beyond mere exasperation, left me speechless for a moment.
As expected of a dragon.
Even expressions of affection could be this destructive across species.
“You’re too cold.”
[Whose fault is that?]
“Hmm… Yours?”
[ㅛ]
“What’s that?”
[Nothing.]
What else could it be?
Double middle fingers.
But I couldn’t say it straight. My life was still precious.
“But without me, how do you think you’d have lived?”
[Pretty happily.]
“Like now?”
[No.]
“Meeting me in the Cradle was a miracle for you.”
[From your perspective, Headmaster, not mine.]
“Then it’s a win-win for both.”
[Let’s stop.]
“Surrender?”
[No, I just don’t want to talk anymore.]
“I win.”
Lost for words.
The wicked hero was immune to logic, common sense, and morals.
All that was left for Veronica was tireless chatter and infinite shamelessness.
Clunk.
I closed the door to the headmaster’s office.
As the heavy sound faded behind me, I finally straightened my bent back and swallowed a sigh.
“Phew…….”
The hallway was peaceful, but my mental state was the opposite.
I tried to regain my composure with each step, but inside, I was already in turmoil. One hand unconsciously rubbed my temple.
‘Why does every conversation end up like this?’
Conversation? More like a one-way barrage.
This hero named Veronica twisted the very concept of dialogue. Logic, common sense… all useless against her.
‘Hmm…….’
If I made a point, she’d counter with three times the audacity. If I drew a line, she’d trample it spectacularly and laugh.
‘Tsk…….’
Even watching the emperor’s mentality shatter left me emotionless. I even nodded in understanding.
Ah, anyone would break like that.
And it was good, in a way. Thanks to it, I got the Imperial Seal.
The problem was…
Why shatter mine, too?
‘Ah, my head hurts.’
My steps toward the clubroom felt unusually slow. Part intentional, but it also felt like trudging through thorns with every step.
‘Feels like talking to a wild animal.’
Conversations with Veronica always ran parallel. We exchanged words but never reached each other’s core.
‘But…….’
Suddenly, I took that thought one step further.
Wild animal?
No… that’s not it.
‘Lizards are reptiles….’
…Gasp.
I shuddered.
I’d realized something tremendous.
I thought I was talking to a beast all this time… but actually, I’d been talking to a reptile.
‘No wonder.’
No wonder words never got through.
It was my mistake trying to ‘converse’ with such a monster. I should’ve been trying to ‘connect’ but kept using language to persuade.
My stupidity.
“Ah, there you are.”
“…?”
…Grab.
A hand landed on my shoulder.
I’d just turned the corner in the hallway.
Turning my head, golden hair and red eyes entered my view. The emperor and princess I’d seen earlier.
Hair and eyes just like theirs.
“Adel… got a moment?”
Crown Prince Rufus.
I tilted my head slightly and pulled out my whiteboard.
[I do, but]
Rufus hesitated a moment before quietly leading me aside, then spoke.
“I… heard Father stopped by.”
[Oh]
Rufus seemed to have noticed the emperor and princess visited the Cradle.
His expression was like a puppy desperate to pee. The message on his face was clear.
‘If that rumor spreads, I can’t come to the Cradle anymore.’
As the Crown Prince, his life here becoming awkward was obvious.
[I won’t tell.]
“…Not that.”
[?]
If not the rumor… then what was this about?
As I tilted my head, Rufus hesitated before continuing.
“By chance… did Sis say anything weird?”
[Sis?]
“The woman next to Father.”
So… the princess.
Weird stuff…
Nothing like that, I think.
“For example, penguins actually have knees or something….”
[Oh]
“…Did she?”
[She said she could melt people down to make a nail.]
Rufus’s face rotted away.
He clutched his forehead, looked up at the ceiling, and sighed.
“…She said that too, huh.”
[Does she say that stuff often?]
“‘Often’ doesn’t even cover it.”
His tone was laced with genuine exhaustion.
…Rufus’s gaze lowered back, scanning my face… the eyes and hair beyond the mask, then my whole body.
“…She didn’t say anything else weird, right?”
[Like what?]
“Like you being a girl, or seeming like one.”
I looked down at the whiteboard in my hand.
As Crown Prince, I usually filtered appropriately…
[What kind of bullshit is that]
This time… no filter, raw words spilled out.
“…Good, then. Even if she’s family… to me, that’s not human, it’s beastly.”
What image of the princess was etched in Rufus’s mind?
The one I met wasn’t weird so much as… curiously intriguing.
‘Melting people makes a nail.’
To me, it was kinda fun and interesting.
“……..”
And… maybe my inner thoughts showed through the mask.
Rufus gave me a subtle look. Like, ‘There’s a beast here too.’
[What]
“……Never mind.”
Tch…
Was my mind that easy to read? Now even Rufus could read me.
[Neru]
“Nyaam.”
[Heavy.]
Clubroom.
A cat lay sprawled belly-up on my lap as I sat on the sofa. In that position, it happily munched the Churu I fed it.
“Saying that’s rude, nyanya.”
[Neru sprawling on my lap isn’t rude?]
“Nyaam… That’s cute, so it’s fine, nyanya.”
I see.
So you set standards based on yourself?
“Nyaam nyaam.”
With an infuriating ‘ㅡvㅡ’ expression, Neru wagged its tail while eating the treat.
Ears perked, tail swishing.
Annoyed, I lightly tugged Neru’s tail.
The fluffy texture spread from my fingertips. Surprisingly addictive.
And…
Clunk.
“Phew…….”
It was Delpin.
Lately, Delpin always arrived later than us.
Before, he was the first face when opening the clubroom door… now, he seemed busy prepping assignments.
“Urgh….”
And he always looked exhausted. Those dark circles weren’t fading; they’d deepened to the point of no return.
I finally stood to approach Delpin…
“Nyaam.”
…But Neru wouldn’t budge.
Push with arms, kick with legs—Neru clung flat, unmoving.
In the end, after tugging the tail for ages… Neru barely, grudgingly shifted aside.
Finally up, I approached Delpin and greeted him.
[You look tired, Professor.]
“…Can’t help it. I’m handling all the first-years’ assignments.”
[What?]
First I’d heard of it.
Handling all first-years alone? Possible?
[Did they dump it on you?]
“No.”
[?]
“I volunteered.”
[??]
“How could I pass up the chance to legally beat—er, passionately educate you all.”
[Oh god]
Pretty sure he almost said “beat” there…
I clicked my tongue, set the whiteboard down, and flopped back onto the sofa.
Working under Veronica must’ve rubbed off on Delpin, too.
Definitely not normal.
“Nyaam.”
And as if waiting, Neru slyly sprawled belly-up on my lap again.
Perfect timing. Utterly shameless timing.
I looked down at Neru again.
[Heavy.]
“Churu.”
The cat boldly demanded Churu.
…No wonder my day never ends quietly.