[No title provided]
A mind-blowing silence.
It wasn't as if some vampire who knew time-stop magic had screamed "World!" and frozen everything in place, but the situation was so still that even Prazia's sweat had stopped dripping, leaving everyone frozen in shock.
"Uh, everyone? There's a misunderstanding here..."
"What, you don't wanna touch anymore?"
Shut up! You crazy woman! Don't fan the flames of misunderstanding with lines like that!
"Tou...ch?"
Oh crap.
The women's eyes sharpened instantly. If I fumbled my excuse, I might end up leaving the academy with a lawsuit instead of a diploma.
I hurriedly yanked my hand away from where it had been forced onto Prazia's cheek and pushed her firmly away, putting on a show of it.
"Listen, everyone, this is a misunderstanding, nothing more—the woman lying there came looking for me while I was resting, nagging me to spar, and when I said why the hell should I bother with someone as unapproachable as her for free, she suddenly climbed onto the bed and made me touch her cheek—what was I supposed to do? I'm so wronged; it wasn't my idea at all."
I spat out the long sentence without a single stutter, then panted heavily as I gauged their reactions.
"......"
"......"
Not a great response.
As I racked my brain for another way to break this awkward tension, Her Highness the princess stepped forward with a sigh.
"Haa... Let me sort this out first. So, to recap what you said, Mars: this Prazia from another academy came to you while you were resting, demanded a spar out of nowhere, and when you refused, she resorted to this tactic to provoke you?"
As expected of our princess. She calmly and logically unraveled the whole bizarre incident for everyone, even though it had been hard for me to make sense of it myself.
"You all, clear up your misunderstandings. If this guy were the type to do something like that, we wouldn't be struggling like this right now."
"That's true."
"What are you even talking about?"
"Nothing at all. Anyway, the misunderstanding about you seems cleared up, so how's your body holding up?"
"Ah, yeah. I'm fine. It was a rough beating, but no serious injuries, so no need to worry."
Experienced Aura users learn how to hit hard enough to hurt without leaving bruises. From what I'd heard, it maximizes pain receptors with aura while transmitting sensation instead of direct damage.
"Still, that was amazing! Holding your own against Helios Count like that!"
"It wasn't really even..."
To outsiders, it might've looked like a close fight, but in reality, it was my total defeat. My master had been slightly thrown off by the new technique, but if he'd gotten serious, he'd have wiped me out in seconds. He was just testing how far I'd grown, praising me along the way—if he'd gone all out from the start, it wouldn't even qualify as a spar.
"Impressive. Normal people would've been too intimidated by the atmosphere to even swing their sword. I only watched from afar, but I get why everyone idolizes the count."
"I've seen you spar with him a few times before, but today was on another level? You always seemed like such a slacker, but looks like you've grown."
Luna, who'd tagged along with me to a few spars back in the day, sounded genuinely shocked at how different this one was. The ones she'd seen were before I'd grasped the path to Aura Lord, so she hadn't witnessed anything this grand. Even for her, the clash between two Aura Lords must've left a deep impression.
"Enough chit-chat... You there."
Her Highness cut off our banter and turned her gaze to Prazia, who'd been quietly watching.
"Hm?"
"Prazia of Velrum Academy... right?"
"Yeah. That's me."
That relaxed expression and tone even facing the empire's princess—was it impressive or just clueless? Hard to say.
"First off, I'm sorry you got caught up in the incident at our academy. We should've tightened security more, but we failed. My apologies."
"It's fine. Not your fault."
"Good, thank you for understanding. But—"
Her Highness glanced at Prazia beside me, her tone turning uncomfortable.
"Even for you, acting like that in front of a strange man is highly unbecoming. Don't you think your behavior is a huge nuisance to him and tarnishes Velrum Academy's reputation?"
"Hmm...?"
It was a perfectly logical point from the princess, but Prazia just tilted her head like she didn't quite get it.
"And pretending to be close to a man you're not truly interested in can lead to major misunderstandings—"
"I like him, though?"
"What."
"What."
I blurted it out right alongside her in shock.
"At first, I was just curious about the Aura Lord guy everyone talks about... but he helped me even though he didn't know me, and saved me too. It's weird. First time I've felt this. I've always been expected to live up to everyone's faith... kindness with no strings attached... first time since Delphine."
"Wh-what—!"
"Not bad. With someone like this. I don't know him well yet... neither does he know me, so we can figure it out as we go."
With that, Prazia slyly placed her hand on mine. I tried to pull away, but her half-dragon strength pinned me down like a vice.
"That sneaky fox bitch—"
Knock knock.
The sharp knock cut off the duchess's rising voice, cooling the heated room once more.
"C-come in!"
I was thrilled at this savior's timely arrival to diffuse the chaos—
"Pardon the intrusion."
"Master?"
—only for my excitement to crash.
The one who entered was all too familiar. My master approached with a light smile, inspecting my face from every angle.
"Hm. Doesn't look like any major injuries."
"Coming from the guy who did the beating, that kinda pisses me off."
"You're an Aura Lord anyway—your aura circulation heals minor wounds fast enough. Be grateful he didn't hit your face."
"Oh, sure. Thaaanks a bunch."
At least thanks to my master, the weird atmosphere shifted naturally. Small mercies.
"But what's with the vibe in here? Did you all fight or something?"
"Nothing like that. You here to check on me?"
"Eh, not really my job. The reason I came..."
In an instant, my master's laid-back aura sharpened into something piercing, tension rippling through the room.
"...is to tell you about me and the Heaven God Cult. Our connection."
"Uwaaaah!! Grraaah! Kraaaah!!"
At the Heaven God Cult's headquarters, the cultists clutched their aching heads from the thunderous roars shaking the temple.
"Th-that's... Gula, right? First time I've seen him that pissed..."
"Yeah. He's usually only obsessed with eating—super chill as long as you don't touch his food."
Gula was inherently evil, but he didn't bother tormenting people unless it amused him. His sole passion was food. He'd never raged like this over anything else, so this tantrum struck fresh fear into the cultists.
"But with his powers, isn't Gula basically invincible? Even among the executives, he's supposed to be a tough one."
"Tell me about it. Rumor has it the opponent was just a bit stronger, or he might've died. With all our top execs dropping lately, can we even trust those stories?"
"! H-hey... hey!"
"No, but think about it. They all claim to have god-like power from the Leader, but they're just losing left and right... doesn't that seem off?"
"Indeed."
Everyone jolted.
"S-Sub-Cult Leader?! Th-this—!"
"No need to worry. I understand. It's natural to have doubts when our executives fail to reward your faith."
The Sub-Cult Leader had appeared silently behind them, placing a pale hand on the shoulder of the one badmouthing.
"This is all my failing as your leader... I must take responsibility."
"S-Sub-Cult Leader...? I wasn't doubting—"
Crack!
"Hngh!"
The cultist's arm fell off without warning from where the Leader had touched. He tried to scramble back, but the Sub-Cult Leader's hand clamped his jaw.
"I cherish your loyalty... so I'll help you reach His side first."
As the Leader stroked his hand and belly, the body crumbled like sand sculpture, dissolving painlessly. The overwhelming horror made the cultist thrash wildly, but the grip was ironclad. A strange sensation spread from his gripped jaw.
"—! —!!"
His face disintegrated like dust in the wind, starting from the mouth. The collapse spread, erasing flesh, blood, and even proof he'd ever existed.
"Hic... hngh..."
The other cultists witnessing their comrade's end collapsed, wetting the floor with tears.
The Sub-Cult Leader turned away without a glance. His face was serene as ever, but no one noticed the unusual tension in his clenched fist.