Chapter 12
Chapter 12
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 12
Chapter Title: Orlando Monarch
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# 12
Orlando Monarch.
*Has she come to her senses?*
Judging by the timing, she must have woken up right after I dropped her off at the infirmary and started moving.
The doctor said she needed at least half a day of rest.
Of course, she wasn't back to normal.
Her face was paler than usual, likely due to the lingering effects of the poison, and her movements lacked strength, but that was it.
Merdi pulled out the chair across from me—right next to Roze—and sat down as if nothing had happened.
"Merdi!"
"Hey, Roze? You're stuffing your face like a pig again today, huh."
"You have no idea how hungry I was. Eat up already!"
"I'm good. Not hungry."
As she said that, she shot me a glance.
Then she propped her chin up with both hands and fixed her gaze on me.
"Ahem..."
I wish she'd just say whatever was bothering her.
Don't make a guy choke on his food.
They say even dogs don't mess with you when you're eating—what did I do wrong?
"Hmph."
She even let out a little snort, clearly enjoying my discomfort.
I racked my brain desperately to shake off the awkwardness.
Fortunately, Roze, who had been shoveling food into her mouth, brought up a new topic.
"Oh! Vacation's coming up soon. Anyone got plans?"
"I'm heading to the main house."
"I'm just gonna sleep."
"Yeah? What about you, Lemon?"
Her eyes sparkled.
That expectant look.
Given Roze's simple mind, she was probably hoping we'd all go somewhere together.
But unfortunately, I had something I absolutely had to do.
"I've got stuff to handle."
"Really?"
"I heard your family's situation is complicated."
"...Yeah, and I've got a bunch of things I've been putting off."
I felt a pang of guilt as I responded to Barton.
I'd completely forgotten about the Monarch family matters.
It might be the one thing I needed to sort out first.
For someone like me, who felt no blood ties whatsoever, it was just like dealing with someone else's family business.
"Aw... I was hoping we'd go dojo-hopping together if you had time."
"Haha."
"You gotta bring at least one disciple along to look cool, you know."
Roze pouted, expressing her disappointment.
But I had zero regrets.
Martial clans were essentially combat organizations.
Every clan relentlessly pursued perfection in their ideals.
They hated losing with a passion and were stubbornly devoted to their martial arts—beyond imagination.
You think they'd just sit back and watch someone smash their signboard?
They'd pull out all the stops to stop it.
"Sounds fun. Mind if I tag along?"
"Really? Awesome!"
But Roze's bait unexpectedly hooked someone else.
Merdi, who had been quietly sitting there until then.
I had no idea why an esper like her was interested in dojo storming.
*Roze and Merdi together? What a chaotic combo.*
Two unpredictable forces united.
In vulgar terms, it was a recipe for total mayhem.
I offered a moment of silence for the people who'd have to deal with them, then dove back into my meal.
***
The remaining practical exams wrapped up in just two days.
Since the main focus this semester had been the command course, the rest were minor.
Things like live-fire tests for the weapons we'd trained with in class or exams measuring esper ability growth.
I'd racked up decent points in those too, so I was confident my overall ranking had shot up nicely.
*72nd place.*
A solid two-digit score.
And out of every cadet in the Academy's history, only about three—including me—had jumped that dramatically from midterms.
*Nice. This should be enough...*
The Academy didn't skimp on perks for high scorers.
Priority access to facilities, the ability to request whatever you needed from the admins without much limit, even cash rewards.
They practically showered you with them.
*Let's see. For cadets ranked 50th to 100th, the off-base leave allowance is... up to 3 weeks max.*
Tight.
Considering this was a future era of spacefaring civilization, three weeks wasn't generous at all.
Hell, even a round trip to Earth—the cradle of humanity—would eat up ten days.
And there were factors complicating the tight schedule.
*Visit the branch house on Terra.*
A message out of the blue from the Monarch family.
I'd had no plans involving the family this break, so it was bewildering.
Why now?
Not a single contact during my entire time here at the Academy.
Was it because of my grades?
Lemon's situation was a bit messy.
But she was someone perpetually on the fringes of the family's attention anyway.
Without her sudden esper awakening, she'd have gone unnoticed her whole life.
Probably ended up in some mid-level position as one of countless branch family members.
*Fine. If we're gonna cross paths anyway...*
I closed the panel window displaying the message.
At least it wasn't the main house.
The Academy orbited Terra on its outer satellite, and the branch house was planetside.
If I timed it right, I could make it there and back in five hours.
"Ready."
"Ah, thank you."
"No trouble at all. It's an honor."
The short-range space shuttle landed in front of me.
A sleek 3-meter craft with graceful lines.
Its refined design stirred the soul.
*...Whoa.*
To someone used to clunky modern rockets, it looked almost too delicate for spaceflight.
Still, no worries.
Lemon's memories.
The old Lemon was a top-tier pilot.
From cars without flight capabilities to fighters rivaling combat spacecraft—she'd handled them all like a pro.
This was her prized ride.
Even after selling off every asset Lemon owned, I couldn't bring myself to part with this state-of-the-art shuttle.
I licked my lips and settled into the seat.
*...Damn, this is killer.*
Arguably the one thing Lemon did right.
Just look at the interior.
Too cool.
Flying through the space I'd only dreamed of with this beauty.
No moment would ever top this thrill.
Right then, a deep pride welled up from my chest, enough to make me forget my grudge against the protagonist who tossed me into this world.
*Alright. Seal the hatch first. Pressurize...*
I double-checked the memories and operated the shuttle.
I disabled the autopilot AI.
For my perfect first flight, junk like that had to go.
Soon, preflight checks were complete.
Pulling the central lever, the shuttle lifted off slowly.
Already felt free.
With this, I could go anywhere.
-Tower to 00929. Cleared for takeoff.
Tower clearance granted.
As long as I didn't breach the planetary defense zones around Terra, I was free to roam.
I gripped the controls and throttled up.
G-forces hit hard as acceleration kicked in, buzzing through my body.
*Faster.*
Speed broke Mach in seconds.
And kept climbing.
Ships that left before me shrank to dots and vanished behind.
*Straight there? Nah, let's have some fun.*
Five hours? Please.
At this speed, one hour would do.
I scrapped the direct route to the branch house and decided to enjoy the flight a bit longer.
I gazed at Terra drawing nearer.
A massive world drifting through the vast cosmos.
A green planet, shaped a bit differently from Earth but just as beautiful, filled my view.
"Haa..."
An inexplicable emotion drew out a soft sigh.
Thinking how this immense world was born in humanity's hands made my chest itch.
My heart swelled—should've been enough.
But my mind vividly pictured the horrific disaster soon to befall this planet.
Crunch!
My grip tightened on the controls.
Right— no time for fun.
I had to get back to the Academy within the allotted time, so no wasted detours.
*...Hm.*
Still, messing around a bit en route couldn't hurt.
I timidly recalled extreme maneuvers from Lemon's memories that the shuttle could pull off.
Ones no normal human could even attempt without superhuman physique.
It ignited my challenger spirit.
"Let's do this."
I yanked the lever hard.
In the end, arrival took a full three hours, as expected.
*
"Welcome, Leonard Monarch."
The branch house was bigger than I'd imagined for a "branch."
Given Terra's status as the "Second Earth," with its natural bounty, I could roughly guess the land's value.
"Hello."
"...This way, please."
The man who introduced himself as the attendant Eric eyed me briefly before turning and leading the way.
Was my reaction that weird?
Well, Lemon wasn't exactly polite.
Strong against the strong, weak against the weak.
A real petty villain.
"They're waiting here."
"Uh... Waiting? Who...?"
"The master of this house, Orlando Monarch."
Orlando Monarch.
I flinched.
A character not in my story, known only from Lemon's memories.
Orlando was direct lineage from the main house, mother to one son, one daughter, and another son from an affair with a commoner.
The last one being Lemon's father, naturally.
*Lemon's biological mother.*
To Lemon, "biological mother" was a term loaded with love and hate.
Orlando had been brutally cold to Lemon, born from her fling with lowborn blood.
She left all education and upbringing to the servants, barely seeing her face once every few months.
No wonder Lemon grew up resenting her mother.
"Long time no see. Come, sit."
Orlando's face matched Lemon's memories perfectly.
Fifty-five years old.
Yet she looked early twenties.
Her youthful features blended with the gravitas of age, creating an enigmatic aura.
Anyone but Lemon would take an instant liking to her gentle impression.
"Yes. Long time no see, Mother."
I sat in the chair before her and greeted her naturally.
Maybe it was the "Mother," but her face stiffened.
"You..."
"Didn't expect you'd summon me here. You're usually at the main house, right?"
"...Have some tea first. Eric!"
Eric appeared as if he'd been prepped.
He set teacups before Orlando and me, carefully pouring from a pre-brewed pot.
His gloved hands parted to reveal wrists that screamed rigorous training.
*At least instructor level.*
I got distracted despite myself.
Now I saw—this really was a den of masters.
An ordinary attendant packing martial arts instructor-level power.
I dredged up etiquette from Lemon's memories and took a cautious sip.
A soothing calm settled in my chest.
"The tea's exquisite. As expected from Mother's favorite 'Monarchri.'"
"...You've gotten chatty. Enjoying life at the Academy?"
"Who knows. Probably not that interesting to you. Anyway, what's this about? Straight to the point, like always."
The words slipped out snappier than intended.
Had I peeked too deep into Lemon's memories?
"...I see."
But my sharp senses caught a faint tremble in her voice.
The first emotional shift I'd seen.
From experience, it wasn't anger—more like sorrow. Or regret.
Why?
For a split second, a twinge of guilt hit me, wondering if I'd messed up.