An Ally Within the Academy
The Avelino Imperial Academy, where Cecilia and I had finally arrived, was quite an unusual place.
Situated on the outskirts of Ardea, it was practically an autonomous district in its own right. Though technically perched at the edge of the city, massive ramparts encircled the entire academy grounds, deliberately sealing it off to keep contact with the outside world to an absolute minimum.
"It is far larger than I anticipated."
"Does it seem that way to Your Highness as well?"
"Yes, remarkably so. Calling an expanse of this scale a mere 'academy' borders on absurd. It would be far more accurate to designate the place an entire city."
"It really does feel immense. With so many commercial buildings lining the grounds, I doubt we will ever find ourselves bored on the weekends."
"Which only means it will be insufferably noisy."
Is that so?
Personally, I preferred having plenty of amenities within walking distance. And while Cecilia complained about potential noise, the dormitories were actually built a substantial distance away from the lively academy avenues.
"More importantly, aren't you going to unpack our luggage? Do you intend to keep me waiting indefinitely?"
"Ah. My apologies. Allow me to brew a cup of coffee for Your Highness first, and I will see to the luggage immediately after."
"Very well."
In any case, Cecilia and I had officially arrived at the academy. We had finalized our admission formalities, completed all the tedious administrative procedures required for entry, and stepped inside our shared dormitory suite. Having just endured the journey, I had hoped we might share a cozy chat and rest our feet for at least a few minutes, but my sharp-tempered princess immediately demanded manual labor. Naturally, I had no choice but to get moving.
"*Sigh*..."
"Why are you sighing?"
"Ah."
"Tsk... If you loathe working that much, just come over and sit down."
"Would that truly be acceptable?"
"...Do as you please."
I had only let out the faintest whisper of a sigh while preparing the coffee, but Her Imperial Highness graciously granted me permission to rest. Of course, since Cecilia was genuinely fond of coffee, I finished brewing two cups anyway before heading straight toward the sitting area. Carrying both steaming mugs, I took a seat beside Cecilia on the plush, spacious sofa.
A fleeting thought crossed my mind about whether it was truly appropriate for a maid to sit shoulder-to-shoulder with an imperial princess, but she was the one who offered first, wasn't she? I was simply obeying the command of my royal superior.
...Naturally, behind Cecilia's aristocratic phrasing was the subtle implication that I ought to hurry up and get back to work. But having run wetwork missions the previous night without a wink of decent sleep, I was genuinely exhausted, so I opted to play dumb.
"...*Hah*."
Cecilia let out an exasperated scoff as she sipped her coffee beside me. Yet over the past few days in her company, I had noticed that she rarely ever gave me a genuine scolding in moments like this. For all her prickliness, whenever an utterly absurd situation unfolded, she tended to watch in muted disbelief rather than explode in fury. If spending over a week with Cecilia had taught me anything, it was that she was far lazier than she let on. Or rather, describing her as thoroughly devoid of motivation felt much closer to the mark.
"Your Highness, how should we divide the bedrooms?"
"The larger one shall be mine, and the smaller one yours, naturally."
"They appeared to be roughly the same size to me."
Cecilia made her claim as though it were the most obvious conclusion in the world, but both rooms were practically identical. I had already peeked through the open doorways to verify it, and the square footage was virtually indistinguishable.
"One bedroom features a window, whereas the other has none. Which would you prefer? If Your Highness takes the room with the window, I will furnish and prepare it accordingly."
Truth be told, I had already anticipated she would choose the room with the window. My plan was to arrange the furniture in an layout identical to her private quarters back in the Golden Pavilion. Even if we were slated to live here for an entire year, expecting her to adjust on day one was unrealistic. I wanted to make the environment as familiar and comfortable as possible for her. That meant setting up her small mood lamp on the nightstand, inspecting the mattress, and replacing the standard academy bedding with the ultra-soft, feather-light duvets and pillows she always used.
"Yes. I will take the room with the window."
"Then I shall see to it at once. And unlike our arrangement at the Detached Palace, would you mind if I set up our coffee-brewing station just outside the bedroom?"
"Suit yourself. If I find it displeasing, I will simply lodge my complaints with you later."
"Hehe."
A wave of quiet satisfaction washed over me just knowing we had reached the academy unharmed. We had encountered an assassin ambush along the road, but for the moment, no imminent danger lingered.
"*Yaaawn*..."
Late that night, despite resting on my mattress, I remained wide awake, staring up at the ceiling and biding my time. As a rule, Cecilia required at least thirty minutes to drift into a deep slumber. Once she was truly out, she rarely woke from minor disturbances, but reaching that state took considerable time.
Only after confirming that Cecilia was sound asleep did I quietly slip out of bed. I headed straight for my travel bag.
"Tripwire... mana detectors, and what else was there..."
Having gone two consecutive nights without proper rest, my goal tonight was to finish my preparations as quickly as possible and sleep undisturbed until eight in the morning. My task for the night was fortifying the dormitory suite's security. Being inside the academy, this place was undeniably safer than Baron Stupido's countryside estate, but one could never be too careful. Taking preemptive measures against worst-case scenarios was basic tradecraft.
Rummaging through the bag's compartments, I retrieved the tools alongside a single Blood Pack.
"*Sip... slurp...* *Phew*..."
Ever since arriving at the Detached Palace, I had exercised strict restraint regarding my blood intake. The supply of Blood Packs packed in my luggage was finite, making it impossible to indulge freely.
"So good..."
Tasting one after a full week of abstinence was an extraordinary sensation. It wasn't an addiction, but the liquid was as intensely sweet as fruit nectar, sending a bizarre thrill through my palate every time I drank it. A tiny flicker of psychological discomfort regarding the act of consuming blood still lingered in the back of my mind, yet once it coated my tongue, the sheer flavor swept every hesitation away.
"Time to get to work. Right."
The drowsiness that had clouded my thoughts vanished entirely. Gathering my equipment, I crept into the hallway and began installing the defensive measures. I affixed specialized magic tools to Cecilia's window frame and the main entryway, tuning them to detect intruders for a designated duration upon mana injection. Next, I scrutinized the ceiling, searching for hidden crawlspaces or ventilation shafts that could serve as points of entry. Of course, this being the empire's premier academy—and specifically a suite reserved for an imperial princess—the architectural defenses were far from sloppy, revealing no structural vulnerabilities.
Once the perimeter was secured, I hid emergency armaments across the kitchen, the living room, and Cecilia's bedroom. Concealing lethal weapons throughout our living quarters might have seemed slightly paranoid, but...
"Better safe than sorry."
Stashing a few well-balanced daggers within arm's reach was always sound doctrine. Having thoroughly completed the suite's fortification, I slipped back into my bedroom. The clock read just past eleven.
"At least I'm going to sleep earlier than yesterday."
Muttering a quiet note of relief, I pulled the fluffy blanket all the way up to my chin and closed my eyes.
I genuinely intended to rest peacefully, but—
"......"
A sudden, sharp prickle grazed my senses.
It was the exact same chilling intuition I had experienced during tense exchanges with the Guild Master and Cecilia, and during yesterday's ambush on the carriage. While I had grown somewhat accustomed to the sensation, the primal alarm still made the hair on the back of my neck stand on end.
"*Hah*."
Yielding to the warning, I climbed out of bed and crept toward the living room. Clad only in my pajamas, I drew a single dagger into a reverse grip, gliding with soundless steps toward the massive bay window overlooking the grounds. The foreign presence I had detected from my bedroom was centered directly on the glass, pulsing stronger with every step I took.
"......"
Reaching out, I gripped the latch and pushed the sash outward. At the very same instant—
"Sharp instincts, aren't they?"
"......"
"I made sure to drop in as quietly as possible, but I never expected you to notice so fast."
A woman landed feather-light onto the open windowsill. Had she not spoken, and had my gaze not already been fixed upon the window, her arrival would have been utterly imperceptible. Her frame was small—only a hair taller than my own—possessing none of the imposing presence or statuesque curves found on Cecilia or Sylvia. Though enveloped in a voluminous hooded traveling cloak, her petite stature remained obvious. From beneath the shadow of the hood, a spill of pitch-black hair framed a pair of striking green eyes that gleamed vivid and sharp against the darkness of the night.
"...Who are you?"
Even as she remained perched casually upon the sill, I leveled my dagger directly at her throat. Regardless of her small stature, her presence felt vastly more dangerous than any of the assassins who had targeted Cecilia yesterday.
"I came at the Guild Master's request."
"The Guild Master?"
"Serena of the Assassins' Guild. Correct?"
"......"
The Guild Master. The Assassins' Guild. Serena.
Those three words alone laid the entire situation bare. This woman had to be the inside ally the Guild Master had promised. He had mentioned that someone would seek me out on their own, but I hadn't expected them to show up so abruptly. Lowering my guard, I slid the drawn dagger back into the leather sheath strapped against my thigh.
"*Haaah*... Isn't this arrival a bit too sudden? I almost stabbed you."
"Hmph... Is that so? Well, what does it matter in the end? Having me show up early rather than late ought to be far more convenient for a junior like you, wouldn't you say?"
"I suppose so, but..."
I had genuinely assumed another wetwork operative had infiltrated the grounds to assassinate Cecilia. Who in their right mind approaches a window in the dead of night, draped in a suspicious hooded cloak? Swallowing my lingering irritation, I gestured for my academy contact to step down from the windowsill into the living room.
"*Phew*... That's much better."
"A cat?"
As she stepped across the floorboards toward the sofa, she pulled back her hood, revealing a pair of sleek feline ears twitching atop her head. The sight instantly brought another senior assassin to mind: Hannah. Hannah was also a Cat Beastfolk, and she possessed the exact same dark hair and piercing green eyes as the woman standing before me...
"Ah, yep. I'm a Cat Beastfolk. The name's Lyn. I'm your senior... and Hannah's sister."
"Ah... Then are you Hannah-sunbae's younger sister?"
"Huh? I'm five years older than Hannah, you know?"
"......?"
The moment Lyn's words registered, Cecilia's face flashed across my mind. Specifically, the utter disbelief Cecilia had shown when I first told her I was an adult.
This tiny Cat Beastfolk—who was barely a hand span taller than my own diminutive height—was the older sister of Hannah, a woman who stood taller than even Cecilia? To put it bluntly, she looked small enough to pass for Hannah's daughter.
So this was how Cecilia felt when she found out I was an adult...?
Only now could I truly sympathize with why the princess had interrogated me with such bewildered suspicion back then.