Chapter 210: Lainella's Fate is Decided by Lainella (3)
Chapter 210: Lainella's Fate is Decided by Lainella (3)
The Academy at dawn was quiet.
The students here all set their own individual training schedules. Naturally, even in the early hours of the morning, few were still asleep.
No matter how great one’s natural talent might be, this was still the Academy.
It was a place where prodigies from all over gathered, and only those who used their day most efficiently could survive. That was why the sight of the Academy in the quiet morning felt so unfamiliar to me.
It was proof that the number of students heading home for the break had truly begun to swell.
Walking down the deserted Central Avenue was a rare experience. Though I had spent about two and a half years at the Academy, this was the first time I had ever seen the front of the Student Union Building completely empty.
After all, I was usually one of the first people to head back to my hometown as soon as vacation started.
If it hadn't been for the issues with the Princess, the demonic beast attacks, and the love letters from the future, this year would have been no different. Of course, such hypotheticals were meaningless now.
Something was lurking in the Percus Territory.
Now that I knew that fact, I couldn't back out. How could I just stand by when my precious home, where my family lived, was on the verge of being destroyed by the Dark Cult?
I needed to gather more information.
Of course, there was a priority even in the information I needed to collect. The most urgent rumors to investigate right now were regarding my own actions over the past two days.
The "me" from the future knew about many incidents.
Even if he didn't come from the exact same timeline as mine, that remained true.
In other words, the future where my future self existed was a separate future from the one I had been walking toward until now. The information he possessed was bound to be limited to some extent.
If the ideal future I wished to pursue was the "Favorable Future," then the time my future self had lived through existed separately under the name "Doomed Future."
And the future from which the love letters were sent was the "Favorable Future," not the "Doomed Future."
This was why I couldn't be certain that the "me" from the future knew about the events occurring in the "Favorable Future."
Ultimately, the events he knew were limited to the "Doomed Future."
Nevertheless, the actions taken by my future personality still provided valuable clues.
It was clear that he knew more than the current me. Since he was someone from a future that might be several years away, it couldn't be helped.
The advice left on the back of the letter made this point crystal clear.
‘Discard what needs to be discarded.’
That blunt advice implied that the man had already noticed something.
It was time to find out what kind of crazy things I had been doing for the past two days.
Though I felt a bit of trepidation, I steeled my resolve.
I had already messed with the Imperial Household.
There was no way I could have done anything crazier than that. With that faint hope, I headed toward the swordsmanship training grounds.
There were already over a dozen students training there.
No matter how much the Academy's resident population decreased, the training grounds were always bound to have signs of life.
While most of those from noble backgrounds returned home, commoners often had no suitable place to go back to. The Academy was much more convenient for living than a shabby house in many ways.
Though the crowd was less than half of what it was during peak times, it was enough to hear some rumors.
However, the results of my inquiries among the training students were shocking.
"…Nothing happened?"
"Yeah, you weren't doing anything. More importantly, were you still at the Academy?"
Unable to believe what I was hearing from a classmate with a familiar face, I swallowed my embarrassment and questioned several more students.
The conclusion was consistent.
"No, I haven't heard anything."
"Come on, Senior. If you went anywhere, everyone would be talking about it. But there haven't been any rumors at all."
"Huh? I thought you went back home. Celine was looking for you the other day."
Classmates, juniors, and even seniors all gave similar answers. If that was the case, there was no room for doubt.
The "me" from the future hadn't caused any trouble over the past two days.
It was a startling fact.
Of course, judging by the blood-stained Imperial Seal, he must have done something, but I was moved by the fact that it at least hadn't affected my reputation.
I felt like I could shed a tear.
To put it in perspective, it felt like seeing a brother I thought was a hand-axe-wielding psycho actually adjusting to society normally.
Right, you can do it if you try.
Muttering those words to no one in particular, I walked with a much lighter step. The weather felt particularly refreshing today.
It didn't take long for me, humming a tune, to come to a sudden halt.
Thwack!
A blow struck my back so hard I almost screamed.
My body, having endured it with superhuman patience, practically leaped into the air. Since it was a familiar sensation, I guessed the cause immediately.
When I turned my resentful gaze behind me, there stood Celine with her arms crossed.
She looked incredibly displeased.
"…Ian, where have you been?"
The way she stood with her arms crossed already looked ominous.
Thinking back, one of the things I had heard while asking around earlier came to mind.
They said Celine had been looking for me. For two whole days.
Despite the stinging pain in my back, I couldn't say a word and had to clear my throat.
"Well, I'm actually trying to find that out myself starting now…"
"…What kind of nonsense is that!"
The scream she let out revealed Celine's true temper. She was usually exceptionally gentle with me, but when she was truly angry, such consideration didn't exist.
Then again, it was understandable since I had disappeared for two days without a word.
I had given her the truth without adding or subtracting anything, but Celine seemed even more incensed, thinking I was joking.
"Ian… did you forget we're supposed to leave for the Percus Territory the day after tomorrow?! Before we go down, we have to buy presents for your parents, and for Aaron and Ria too!"
"I mean, I don't always buy presents every time I go home…"
"That might be true for you, but I'm going too, aren't I?"
I immediately shut my mouth at Celine's sharp glare.
It was a bit awkward to show up at someone else's house empty-handed. It might have been different when we were kids, but Celine and I were adults now.
However, I felt I had a point, so I had to voice my defense.
"Well, then couldn't you have gone to buy them with Reto?"
"Are you crazy?! Why would I go downtown with that man alone?"
At Celine's cold rebuttal, I stroked my chin in silence.
To Celine, it would feel like going downtown with her actual brother. It would be like me going downtown to shop alone with Ria.
After thinking about it for a while, the conclusion I reached was simple.
"…What's wrong with that?"
"Perversion."
Contempt began to flicker in Celine's amber eyes.
Facing that look, my sense of injustice doubled. I tried to persuade Celine in a frustrated tone.
"No, Celine… there are many different types of siblings in this world. There are those who avoid each other like you and Reto, but there are also those who cherish each other dearly like me and Ria."
"…You and Ria are a bit much."
Hmph. Celine snorted as if she had heard something ridiculous.
"Especially Ria—that girl is a bit dangerous. She likes you way too much! If I pick out a gift by myself, she'll just mock me in that polite tone of hers…"
"Ria isn't that kind of girl."
At my firm voice, Celine's lips pouted.
Soon, with an "I'm sure she isn't" expression, she let out a deep sigh and turned a reluctant gaze toward me. She looked like she had given up.
"So, where on earth have you been? There wasn't a peep from you for two days, as if you'd evaporated. Do you have any idea how worried I was?"
I told you, I don't know. I felt like shouting that right then and there.
However, I had recently realized that telling the truth wasn't always the right answer. Instead, I decided to listen to Celine's story.
If she had been looking for me for two days, she would surely have the most sightings of me.
"…Did no one see me for two days?"
"I'm telling you, no one!"
Celine stomped her feet, seemingly frustrated all over again. she looked quite indignant and upset.
"Do, do you know how worried I was?! At first, there was just no news, and then I looked for two days, but no one had even seen your f-face…"
Celine's voice gradually grew thick with tears.
It seemed she had searched for me desperately in her own way. Since I had vanished without a trace or warning, it was only natural for her to be worried.
If Celine had disappeared like that, I would have felt the same.
Realizing that, I silently stroked Celine's hair. Then, Celine leaned her head against my chest, sobbing.
"I'm sorry, Celine."
"…Yeah."
Only after comforting Celine for a while was I able to move on.
Celine said she had only heard one single sighting of me.
"I heard a rumor that you went back to the dormitory last night carrying whiskey."
That was the only moment I had been seen within the Academy during the two days I had "evaporated."
Something was strange.
If my future personality had been holed up in my room all day after possessing me, there must have been a purpose. But there were no traces left in my room.
And if I had been in my room, Celine wouldn't have had to look for me for two days.
Then there was only one answer.
The Imperial Household.
I didn't know what had happened, but it was clear there had been some kind of contact with them.
The seal tucked in my pocket felt exceptionally heavy.
*
In the end, I had to find Senior Neris to get information.
However, before I even had to make my way to the Newspaper Club, a shadow fell as I reached a deserted clearing.
It was a swift response, as if she had been waiting all along.
She must have been tracking my movement route in advance. My eyes turned toward Senior Neris, whom I hadn't seen in a while.
She was a woman with neat brown hair that covered her nape and an impressive pin in her bangs. Her dark green eyes were sunken with a gloomy light.
The most striking change, however, was the bandages wrapped around her body.
The bandages wrapped tightly from her neck to her shoulders, and from her fingers to her wrists, hinted at injuries. Even at a glance, they didn't look like minor wounds.
When I gave her a slightly puzzled look at her sudden appearance, Senior Neris immediately bowed her head low.
Her body was trembling like a leaf.
"I-I have compiled the information you requested. The current status of missing persons in the Percus Territory and the surrounding lands…"
"…Are you okay?"
It was a question any person with normal sensibilities should ask.
Isn't it just common sense to ask after someone who clearly looks hurt?
However, Senior Neris looked up at me with wide eyes, as if she had heard something she shouldn't have. My gaze merely looked down at her, still filled with questioning.
After being dazed for a moment, Senior Neris's face turned pale.
"O-Of course! Of course I am. Thanks to Lord Ian's merciful treatment…"
As my expression grew more and more bewildered because I couldn't understand what she was talking about, Senior Neris eventually pleaded, her voice cracking with tears.
"I, I didn't doubt you… I won't, I'll never doubt you again…"
Finally, I slapped my hand against my face and dragged it down.
Right, there was no way he just let it slide.
What the hell did you do?
Only after hearing the rest of Senior Neris's story was I able to grasp the general situation.
*
The man opened his eyes in a dark, secret room.