The Truth That Shook the Heart
“Are you really Caron?”
Thump-thump-thump.
[Lie or Truth] was trembling.
The thunder of my heart became the fuel that sped itself up.
The skill had barely managed to keep my sanity in check, but that was all it could do.
Shit, what the hell does this mean?
Unpleasant thoughts began to flood my mind one after another.
The moment my thoughts raced and the world seemed to freeze—
the liar’s words brushed past my ear.
The answer is, paradoxically, truth.
Truth.
I still hadn’t reached the point where I could recognize lies as truth, like someone still trapped in a dream.
But if that were the case, why not just speak the truth?
Thump… thump…
The agitation in my mind gradually cooled, and the pounding of my heart slowly settled as well.
I forced a relaxed smile and spoke to the professor.
“No.”
Startled.
The reaction didn’t come from the professor— but from Serena.
Why are you startled…!
I ignored her reaction and looked at the professor.
He, too, seemed to have been caught off guard; a small crack had appeared in his expression.
“What does that mean—?”
“—In other words, just as it sounds.”
Feeling the atmosphere shift entirely toward me, I twisted the corners of my mouth in genuine amusement this time.
“I am not the Caron you know.”
The crack carved into his face grew visibly clearer.
He began to think of something.
To keep any useless speculations from opening up, I continued immediately.
“A few days ago, I was struck by lightning on the road.”
The medium who had possessed me here—
I should have been furious, but right now it served as a sturdy crutch.
The only way to pull me out of this situation, and
the tether that would bind the professor’s thoughts.
“So you see.”
I raised a finger and tapped my head with it, driving home the nail.
“My mind has been a little unsteady lately. Since you’re going to look at me anyway, you might as well look at me cutely, right?”
I would be treated like a madman, but it wasn’t a bad choice at all.
At least, that was how I believed it.
“…”
A complete silence flowed through.
Only between me and the professor.
“Cough… cough… S-sorry…”
Serena was coughing like she’d swallowed a case of something, in a mad frenzy.
Was that last line a little too reckless?
When I lowered my hand in a slightly off-kilter posture and was about to reflect on my words—
“Lightning.”
He took the bait.
“Interesting.”
His pupils had sunk into cold depths.
Like a man calculating something.
I thought he’d get angry at me messing around…
His thoughts stretched a little longer.
When Serena’s cough finally subsided and silence flowed once more, he opened his mouth again.
“The illusion you showed just now—was it created there?”
“That’s right.”
Well, since it was the ability that appeared after being hit by lightning and possessed.
At least it wasn’t a lie.
“Can you swear there was no cheating of any kind?”
“I swear.”
Thump-thump-thump
My heartbeat had returned to its original feeling.
He nodded in time with my heart.
“Caron Ludaiph. 1st Class.”
1st Class.
For someone who had been worried whether he could even pass 8th Class, it was an absurdly high grade.
More than a feeling of elation, the thought of being burdened rose first.
While I was feeling complicated emotions, the professor snapped his fingers and released the interrogation magic that had been bound to me.
The air inside the professor’s office began to flow again.
I swallowed a sigh of relief and waited for his next words.
After a moment of hesitation, he spoke.
“Both of you may return.”
At his short declaration, Serena, who had been frozen like stone, reacted.
“Thank you.”
She bowed her head in a deep bow, and I followed suit and stepped outside with her.
Creak.
The moment the door opened—
“Caron Ludaiph.”
The sensation of the professor’s gaze stabbing into my back was sharply felt.
Without turning around, I stopped.
“I will be watching.”
The professor murmured.
Kuung.
The sound of the door closing echoed down the corridor.
Serena had vanished from view.
With the tension easing, I slowly walked toward the dormitory, savoring the oncoming drowsiness.
‘Maid Fan’ Achieved
2P Reward
I barely managed to stop my voice from bursting out right in front of the dormitory door.
Because the reward for the speech I had made to Lirith had just arrived?
Well, that could be fine…
The achievement name is complete bullcrap!
I rubbed away the goosebumps that had sprouted again and entered the room.
The steady sound of soft breathing filled the room.
I looked toward the source of the breathing and saw Lirith, sitting on the sofa and dozing off.
I approached carefully; her closed eyes fluttered.
“M-m-master? When did…?”
“Just now. If you’re tired, go to bed and sleep.”
Shaking her head vigorously.
She shook her small head with a serious expression.
The feeling of looking at a stubborn little brother welled up.
“If you don’t go to bed, I won’t tell you what happened.”
“…”
She had given off a curious atmosphere, so I could take the clever way out.
“Uuu… That’s disgusting.”
Startled by the words that had slipped out without me meaning to, she hurriedly covered her mouth and began to watch my reaction.
It was an incredibly cute situation, so I played along, pretending not to hear.
I pointed my finger at the bed; she hesitated for a moment before walking wobbly-wobbly toward it.
After confirming that she had lain down, I lay on the sofa as well and began to tell her one by one what had happened in the professor’s office.
“The measurement result is 1st Class.”
My ears heard her breathing again as I summarized the situation for a long time.
Lulling myself to sleep with her breathing as a lullaby, I closed my eyes as well.
Savoring the first peace I had felt since coming to this world with my whole body.
***
In a dark room, several figures in red hoods stood.
Their forms were so lost in the darkness that they couldn’t be clearly recognized.
The man with brown hair and a beard spoke in a low voice.
“It seems we’ve gathered roughly.”
Swish-swish…
Just as if answering for the others, the flow of air changed.
Undeterred, the man continued as if it were an ordinary situation.
“The agenda is about the academy.”
Without waiting for an answer, he continued.
“There are two big goals.”
He waved his hand, and the figure of a woman appeared in the air.
A red-ponytailed woman.
“The first is to contact Serena Rudbein.”
“Oh my. She’s still just a greenhorn, isn’t she?”
The woman standing beside him expressed interest with a bewitching voice.
“It’s symbolism. You, who came from another world, will know what she’s called, right?”
The man said it with a voice dripping with boredom.
The woman, who had been showing off with a teasing smile as if she understood, nodded.
“The second?”
The man waved his hand again, and this time the figure of a young man appeared.
A handsome young man with black hair and red eyes.
He was giving off a very arrogant expression.
“Execute Caron Ludaiph.”
Whoosh… whoosh…
For a moment, silence followed.
The young man whose body was covered in tattoos asked.
“Reason?”
“Of course, it’s also for symbolism.”
“…”
After a moment of silence, the tattooed youth expressed additional interest.
“The academy will have yellow and blue, won’t it?”
The woman with both eyes covered by black cloth nodded cheerfully.
“That’s right~ They’ll be troublesome.”
Just as he had predicted their reactions, the man with the beard began his explanation.
“A month later, the anniversary party celebrating the birthday of the yellow princess will be held.”
“Ah~ That auction? Who will take the yellow princess~”
His eyebrows twitched slightly at the light-hearted answer, but he opened his mouth again as if the wrong word hadn’t been said.
“At that time, they will enter while the professors return to their respective families.”
After finishing his words, the man with the beard looked around.
His eyes asking for opinions.
One by one, they answered with that gaze.
“I don’t agree.”
“Me too~ I agree. It’ll be fun~”
“…”
“I’m against it. Adrian’s intuition is good, you know.”
“Kihihi~ It’s not because I still like it.”
“What? When did that—?”
“Quiet.”
The bearded man brought the argument between the two characters to an end and summarized the situation.
“Three in favor, one abstention, one against.”
“In favor, huh.”
The man with the beard nodded.
“Without any major changes, we will proceed as planned. We will meet here again in two weeks.”
The woman who had been muttering since earlier while wearing the blindfold let out a fart through her nose.
“Aww~ Boring. See you again next time, sis~”
With her words, the man with the beard, the tattooed man, the blindfolded woman, and the last remaining figure that had been silent until then all melted away into the darkness.
Leaving behind only one witch who had cast the dissenting vote.
The witch slowly removed her hood and put a cigarette in her mouth.
A spark of fire bloomed from the tips of her fingers and moved to the cigarette.
Whoosh—
Gray smoke curled up and was soon swallowed by the darkness, vanishing without a trace.
“…Adrian.”
She muttered to herself and slowly lit the cigarette.
Like sending away memories along with the glowing ember at the tip of the cigarette.
Time passed, and the ember gradually dimmed.
“I hope… this place stays safe.”
Her small wish was also extinguished in the darkness.