Catching the Spy (2)
The Imperial Central Noble Academy had classes in the morning and club activities in the afternoon before heading home.
It might seem pretty laid-back, but that was a mistake. We couldn't forget that every student here was the heir of a noble house.
The academy scheduled things loosely because most nobles had their own family education or obligations to attend to.
"Kael."
I was, of course, in the going-home club. I planned to use club time to investigate the academy rear garden again.
Originally, I would've grabbed Professor Temiri and checked the whole place out at once, but I'd lost her because of Maria Frendis, and in my anger, I'd stormed off without finishing the job.
Still, she probably hadn't had time to erase all the evidence. If I headed back now, I'd have plenty of time.
With that in mind, I slung my bag over my shoulder and stood up when someone called my name.
"Elia? Why do you always sneak up without a sound?"
"It's because you're not interested in me."
"What's up this time? Gotta head home together? Want me to walk you?"
"I invited you to lunch. It's lunchtime."
"Oh..."
Right. Normally, this was lunchtime, not dismissal.
Everyone would eat and then head to their club rooms. But I had other business.
I took a few steps, debating ignoring her, then glanced at Elia's face.
She was frowning a little more with each step I took away, staring at me intently with her long lashes and doll-like features.
"Sigh... Fine. Even the Diamond Mountains are best after a meal."
"Dia...mond Mountains?"
"Forget it. There's this saying. Let's go eat."
I nodded reluctantly.
And only after arriving at the academy cafeteria did I realize what a stupid choice I'd almost made.
I'd forgotten. This was a noble academy.
Steak was the basic menu item, lined up alongside lobster and lavish feasts made from monster ingredients.
I just had to pick something. Way more variety and luxury than what I'd eaten in Lotus Territory.
"Glad I came."
"The academy cafeteria is back to full service starting today."
"So, where are the prices?"
"Most of it's free. Unless you order off-menu specials."
"Specials?"
"You don't know? If you want something not on the regular menu, you can order a special. There are only five options each time, so sometimes you crave something else."
"Whoa... Wasting taxpayer money like this. This crazy romance-fantasy world."
Only five specials? That's insane.
But that's the charm of these over-the-top women-oriented romance fantasies.
A gripe for readers of the original novel, but for me right now? Perfect.
"Taxpayer money?"
"Come on. Where do you think it comes from? Sucking the commoners dry to live large. Might as well eat our fill."
I ordered shrimp fried rice. Looked extra tasty today.
Elia quietly ordered the same after me. Once the food arrived, we grabbed it and found a table.
"Do you worry about the commoners, Kael?"
"Always."
Because they were all military resources.
If they sided with the kingdom or revolted, it'd be a disaster. Plus, preparing for war with the kingdom meant I had to care about the people naturally.
For starters, I needed to look after Lotus Territory's folks a bit so I could conscript them into my army later.
In that sense, the imperial crown prince Lucas falling harder for Maria would make things riskier for me. Taxes would climb, squeezing the people dry.
"This luxury is only possible now."
I polished off the shrimp fried rice without leaving a grain. Not to avoid waste—just because it was damn good.
"You're a better person than I thought, Kael."
"Took you this long? I'm the only sane guy in this broken world."
"Didn't you call yourself a scoundrel before?"
"Yeah. If a scoundrel like me is the most normal, everyone's fucked up. Time to reflect."
I wiped my mouth clean.
Now to finish my real business.
And that's when it happened.
Thud!
"There you are!"
"...?"
"This is on me! Eat up!"
I'd just finished and stood to leave when more food appeared in front of me.
I turned to see a girl with white hair and yellow eyes grinning ear to ear.
"Professor Raphel...?"
"The midget professor?"
"Who're you calling midget! Anyway, I promised to treat you to a meal but ended up doing nothing. Oh, and Kael Lotus—I added your name to tomorrow's magic class roster! Took some convincing your other professors!"
"I never agreed."
"You'll agree, right?"
"Well..."
Professor Raphel Strahct.
She'd barged in with food and plunked it down in front of us.
But the portions were insane.
"You expect us to eat... all this?"
"You're young, aren't you? Eat hearty."
"What are you, some grandma..."
Bam!
The moment I muttered that, my vision flipped.
For a split second, I saw a yellow magic circle, the inside of the building shift to outside, blue sky, lush grass.
Pain exploded in my back a beat later.
"Argh... You crazy little..."
It took a few seconds to process what happened.
Agonizing back pain. And a sense of wrongness.
If I hadn't trained my body hunting beasts and practicing swordsmanship, I'd have been smashed into chunks and scattered across the earth.
"..."
The white-haired girl approached regally.
She crouched in front of me.
"Why'd you go and say that?"
"...Say what?"
"I'm asking why you used that word."
Her yellow eyes flashed.
Wait... what word?
"Not because of midget...?"
"Nope."
"Grand..."
I clamped my mouth shut there.
Her eyes were still gleaming.
No way... She got pissed at "grandma"?
The thought hit just as she saw me go quiet and chuckled softly.
"Can't control my strength sometimes... Sorry about that. I'll give you special treatment in class tomorrow when we meet."
"You half-cripple me and now what? Gonna give me painkillers?"
"Can't give poison then the cure. I'll promise something better. Don't skip class tomorrow."
"What the fuck is this..."
"See you, Kael."
She waved and vanished.
Elia approached belatedly.
"You okay?"
"Report that crazy professor. That's noble assault. Don't touch it... Argh!"
I wanted to yell why she'd jumped me out of nowhere.
But the medics arrived late, loaded me up, and the shift in position unleashed the pain.
I couldn't speak for a while.
For an apology about poor strength control, one potion fixed me right up.
Probably not poor control—she'd fine-tuned it to maximize pain and minimize actual damage.
"Where to now?"
"The garden, obviously."
"Oh my, Kael has a noble hobby after all."
Elia covered her mouth with her hand.
I brushed past her toward the academy rear garden.
"A garden here? Surprising."
"You don't look surprised."
"I knew about it."
"You going somewhere else?"
"I told you. Club activities are with my fiancé. Even going-home club, I should join."
Very Elia.
Thinking about it, she didn't seem to hate me like in the original story.
If anything...
"Hey. Be honest. You think my antics are like watching a monkey at the zoo, right?"
"I never said that much."
"Right. Fun to spectate."
Yeah. The lofty noble watching wastrel Kael's antics from afar.
That wasn't quite Elia's character as I knew it... Maybe she needed entertainment in this romance-fantasy world too.
But this time was different.
"Elia. Listen up."
"I am."
"It's gonna get dangerous from here. That's why I came to the rear garden."
Elia clasped her hands over her mouth.
I snatched one of her hands.
"Eek... Wh-what?"
"Get behind me. Just in case."
I pulled her behind and strode forward.
The rear garden warehouse. Tucked in a spot that was hard to notice, most people didn't even know it existed.
I opened the door.
Nothing inside.
"What? Where's the surprise?"
"What surprise? Wait outside."
Her face fell flat. What'd she expect?
I stepped in and groped the walls and floor.
Then I felt a small gap.
"Gotcha."
I wedged my fingers in and yanked hard.
Wood splintered with a crack, revealing a hidden floor passage.
"This is..."
"Elia. You know it's dangerous, right? If I go in and don't come out in ten minutes, get help."
Why not send her away despite the danger?
Someone had to spread the word if I got in trouble.