The Royal Visitor
"Keep this a secret from Schluss······."
"A secret? What exactly?"
"That I sucked on his finger······."
Erika tilted her head at Iris's quiet request. That had only been to help with the recovery magic. Wasn't it simply a medical procedure? Why would it need to be kept secret?
"Why?"
"Just promise me!"
"Ah, fine."
But when Iris fumbled and insisted on secrecy, Erika had no choice but to agree. Iris wasn't the type to make such requests. In fact, she wasn't the type to create situations that would require them. That only made her urgency all the more palpable.
"That aside, I never said Schluss and I were lovers."
"Right. You didn't."
"Don't tell me Schluss—"
"No. He didn't say anything either."
"Then how did you reach such a strange conclusion?"
Erika had to suppress a laugh at Iris's reproachful gaze. Seeing Iris, who was usually composed and in control, this flustered was something she rarely witnessed.
"No matter how much I asked, you wouldn't give me a straight answer. So I made my own guess. Was I wrong? Aren't you two dating?"
"We are not!"
"Pfft······ Hahaha!"
"What is so funny!"
When Iris began to grow visibly angry, Erika could no longer hold back and burst into laughter. Normally, Iris's calm, quiet tone was enough to make most people avert their eyes and tremble. But seeing her openly angry was not frightening at all—only endearing. It was like watching a child throw a tantrum.
"Heh. So now you'll tell me properly? What exactly is your relationship?"
"Tch······ Fine."
"Does it have something to do with that? The fact that you can see the future."
"What······?"
Iris's mouth fell shut at Erika's casual question. She had never once revealed her ability to see the future. As a child, she had mentioned it several times, but everyone had mocked her and dismissed it as delusion. Eventually, she had decided to keep her foresight a secret for life. She might have mentioned it to Erika once when they were very young. Yet not only did Erika remember, she had believed it all this time······. Iris couldn't help but feel a small shock.
"You still believed that?"
"Of course. Was it a lie?"
"No······."
"Then that's that. What's the problem?"
At Erika's innocent reply, Iris found herself speechless once more. Erika was no fool. She wasn't the sort to take everyone's words at face value and fall for scams. That meant she trusted Iris deeply enough to believe even the most absurd claims. Realizing this, Iris felt deeply grateful and moved, and a faint smile crept onto her lips.
"It's just as you guessed. It's about the future. Ever since I met Schluss, I've been seeing visions of his future over and over."
Iris's foresight was somewhat random, but it wasn't entirely without rules. The more deeply connected the future was to Iris herself, the more frequently and vividly it appeared. In other words, Schluss appearing often in her visions meant that in the future, she and Schluss would become close—whether for better or worse.
"What kind of future was it?"
"It was a future where Schluss dies."
"Ah······."
A sigh escaped Erika's lips as she listened with anticipation.
"Schluss dies. Sacrificing himself for someone else. I approached him to change that future. But no matter what, only the timing and method of his death change. He keeps dying······."
How many times had she seen him die? She had long since stopped counting. No matter how much the future shifted little by little, it always converged on his death. She had thought that by directly preventing him from being stabbed on the Day of Magic, she had finally stopped his death. But Schluss would die again in another future, in another place, for another person. Endlessly. Among those futures was one where he threw himself to his death for Erika's sake.
"Schluss? Really?"
"Yes."
But she decided not to tell Erika that. The girl had a gentle heart; it wouldn't be strange if she developed a sense of guilt over something that hadn't even happened yet.
"That can't be······."
Meanwhile, Erika's mind was in turmoil. Schluss was supposed to be a villain who had sold his lifespan to a demon in exchange for power. Yet he would die sacrificing himself for others······? It was hard to accept.
'Maybe that's why he sold his lifespan to the demon?'
One possibility occurred to her, and Erika grew even more confused. What if the reason he sold his lifespan was because he didn't need it? What if he had obtained such immense power not to live long, but to sacrifice himself for others? Then this mystery would make sense. She still couldn't accept that Schluss was such an absurdly good person, but······.
"So you want to prevent the future where Schluss dies?"
"Something like that. I am the Saintess, after all."
"Pfft······."
"What? Why are you laughing again?"
"Nothing. Hehe."
Saintess, huh······. Anyone else would have looked at Iris with reverence, but Erika could only laugh. To her, Iris was simply a girl her age, not some lofty and virtuous Saintess.
"I'll help too. So Schluss doesn't die."
"Really······?"
"Yeah. Really."
Iris's eyes widened slightly in surprise. She had thought Erika disliked Schluss. But Erika had her own agenda.
If the future Iris saw is true, then Schluss becomes a hero, doesn't he? Without anyone knowing he sold his lifespan to a demon. I can't let that happen.
No matter the reason, a contract with a demon could never be justified. As a devout believer, Erika held that conviction. But according to Iris, Schluss would sacrifice himself before his lifespan ran out and gain tremendous honor after death. That was unacceptable. She had to keep him alive so he couldn't sacrifice himself. No matter when that day came, he would live until his shortened lifespan ended, growing old and dying naturally in his youth. Then the fact that he sold his lifespan to a demon would be exposed, and his honor would be greatly tarnished. That was the proper end for someone who had made a pact with a demon.
I'll make sure he dies of natural causes!
Thus, Erika's wicked plan to make Schluss live a long, long life was set in motion.
***
Let's try to deduce the identity of the "distinguished guest" Ludwig mentioned. First, this was someone the arrogant head professor referred to with respect even in their absence. They either held a very high position or were someone Ludwig deeply respected. Timing also had to be considered. Today was the day after capturing and dealing with Henderson of the Crows. It was reasonable to assume that such an important guest arriving today wasn't a coincidence but a result of yesterday's events.
But the problem was that yesterday's incident had been kept strictly confidential and hadn't been reported in any media yet. It was a measure taken to prevent social repercussions. So there weren't many places that could have obtained this information. If someone important enough to rush over immediately upon hearing the news······.
"Ah, fuck."
The Crown Granddaughter. The Emperor's eldest granddaughter. No one else came to mind.
Recalling the hooded guest she had encountered this morning, Schluss grew even more urgent. He headed straight for the headmaster's residence without looking back as soon as class ended.
"No way. No way."
But then he remembered the voice of the Crown Granddaughter as described in the original novel. Slightly hoarse, husky, androgynous. Yes. It matched the voice from the hood he had heard this morning.
"Haa······."
When he arrived at the mansion, the hooded figure was still lingering in front of the main gate. Had they gone somewhere in between? Or had they been waiting the entire time while he was in class? Considering the Crown Granddaughter's rigid personality, the latter seemed more likely.
This was really fucked.
"You've been waiting all this time."
"Now, about the time—"
"Yes. I have time. Please come in, Your Highness the Crown Granddaughter."
"······!"
Leaving the slightly startled Crown Granddaughter behind, Schluss opened the door and guided her inside. She was the second most revered person on the continent, after the Ma-in. He would have to give Emilia a heads-up so she wouldn't offend her. Ah. He might have already offended her.
"Heinkel? Who is that······"
"A guest. Could you prepare some tea?"
"Yeees······."
The figure, completely covered by a hood and long robes, must have looked quite strange. After sending the Crown Granddaughter to the living room sofa first, Schluss briefly deployed a small perception-blocking barrier so their conversation wouldn't be overheard.
"It's the Crown Granddaughter. Keep that in mind and show the utmost courtesy. Any discourtesy will not be tolerated."
"What? You mean Her Highness the Crown Granddaughter?"
"I'm dispelling the barrier now."
Since his mana was running low, he immediately deactivated the barrier and followed after the Crown Granddaughter, leaving Emilia standing there with her mouth agape. That was probably genuine shock. It was the second time he had broken through Emilia's acting and drawn out her real emotions. He felt oddly proud.
"Who told you?"
"Told me what?"
"That We are the Crown Granddaughter."
As she spoke, she pushed back her hood. A beautiful woman's face with golden hair and sharp eyes appeared. It was the same thing he always said, but it was eerily identical to the image he had imagined. She pulled out her long golden hair, which had been hidden behind her back, and sat demurely on the opposite sofa. Wow, look at that hair. It was shining. He wanted to touch it just once. ······Of course, he wouldn't. He couldn't commit any more discourtesies.
"No one told me."
"You simply guessed?"
"Yes. I was lucky."
"······."
Aria slightly raised her chin as if displeased. He probably shouldn't call her Aria yet. She hadn't undergone her coming-of-age ceremony, so she didn't have a name. According to the original novel, she would be called Aria Victor Friedrich von Freyja, or simply Aria.
"You live quite lavishly."
"This was provided by the academy. If I lose my top rank, I'll be expelled immediately."
"Hah. How heartless. As expected of a den of mages."
While Schluss responded politely to her questions, he couldn't help but observe her carefully. Should he apologize for treating her coldly this morning and making her wait over two hours······? Since she didn't mention it first, maybe it didn't bother her?
"It must have been quite an important class. Important enough to stand Us up to attend."
"······."
Bullshit. She had been holding onto it after all. At Aria's chilling smile, Schluss hid his trembling hands under the table. This was someone who could decide his life or death with a single word. He had to choose his words carefully here. Should he bow his head and ask for forgiveness first? That was a good idea. If he wanted to cut ties with Aria for life.
Aria hated people who didn't admit their mistakes, but that didn't mean she liked people who did admit them. What she liked were people who didn't make mistakes in the first place. In other words, he needed to make the discourtesy he committed this morning not count as a discourtesy. Don't get it? Honestly, he didn't really get it either.
"Yes. It was a major class."
"Hoh. So you're saying it was more important than meeting Us?"
"Yes. If I miss a class, I can't take it again, but I can meet Your Highness the Crown Granddaughter again, can't I?"
"······."
Silence fell over the living room. Fucked. Really, really fucked. It had turned into sophistry: since he didn't consider it a discourtesy, it wasn't a discourtesy······. Honestly, he had known something was off midway through, but he had pushed forward anyway. If he tried to take back his words, it would only earn Aria's displeasure. Though it seemed he had already earned quite a bit.
"Huu······ You're quite the amusing fellow."
"I had no intention of amusing Your Highness. I'm glad you're enjoying yourself."
"So the rumors in the palace about you being arrogant for a commoner were true. Now that I've met you, I can see why the nobles would be disgusted."
"I'll take that as a compliment."
"Yes. Hehehe······ Do that."
Aria finally burst into laughter. It seemed he had managed to get through it somehow, even if it was strange. Whether she felt goodwill or not, if she was laughing, it at least meant he hadn't offended her. Aria was honest about expressing her emotions. In many ways, she was the opposite of Emilia.
"Hohohohongcha is ready. I'll bring it right over, so please enjoy it slowly."
"Thank you, Emilia."
Soon Emilia appeared, pulling a cart with teacups and cake. By the way, that stuttering act was really well done. Anyone would think she was genuinely nervous. Though Emilia would never be nervous in front of anyone.
After unloading the teacups and cake from the cart, Emilia left the living room as if fleeing. Her exit was also a masterpiece of acting.
"How strange. A man who speaks formally to a servant."
"She's not a servant. It's merely a contractual relationship. There's no reason to speak down to a fellow commoner."
"A fellow commoner? You won't be able to say that anymore."
"What do you mean by that, Your Highness?"
"Schluss Heinkel. We intend to grant you a title. If there's something you desire, speak."
"······!"
A windfall had rolled right in.