Chapter 511: Jealousy is My Power (11)
Chapter 511: Jealousy is My Power (11)
It was absurd, yet at the same time, tempting.
Iris’s voice, which had successfully piqued Cien’s interest, remained as flat as ever.
“Have you heard the news that the Great Witch is visiting the Academy?”
“Yes, I’ve heard it so often my ears are ringing…”
“She believes the cause of the abnormal heat lies within the Academy itself. If we can find that cause first, it will surely leave a deep impression on her.”
“So that I can be taken in as her disciple?”
Iris nodded. It was a gesture that betrayed a faint sense of satisfaction, as if they were finally speaking the same language.
“Exactly. Then, the Great Witch’s Secret Arts will finally fall into our hands. Wouldn’t that be wonderful?”
“But there’s no guarantee I’ll actually become her disciple…”
“We’ll make it happen.”
Snap. Iris folded her fan with an arrogant declaration.
“First, we’ll use the most legitimate means possible. If that fails, we simply remove the competitors one by one. It’s quite simple, isn't it?”
“Would the Great Witch just stand by and watch that happen?”
“She is a woman indifferent to the affairs of the world. In fact, she might just snort and say that one must overcome at least that much hardship.”
“What about Sir Ian?”
The topic shifted with startling speed.
Neither of them possessed the kind of leisurely personality required to discuss known facts at length. Instead, the two sisters preferred to summarize only the necessary business.
Cien’s pale gray eyes sank with a cold light.
“What does Sir Ian have to do with the Great Witch’s arrival? You seem quite certain about something.”
“The Great Witch showed interest in him. I don’t know the reason, but…”
“And what about Brother Vilteon?”
For the first time, Iris was at a loss for words.
Her blue eyes turned toward Cien once more. However, Cien had already regained much of her usual composure.
Her sharp gaze scrutinized Iris’s expression. Though her pupils hadn't slit vertically yet, her face made it clear she was ready to let them do so at any moment.
“If even you are stepping up, Sister, it means this is no ordinary matter. Yet Brother Vilteon hasn't said a word… Isn't that too strange?”
“Cien, please.”
A plea escaped Iris’s lips, as if she didn't even want to broach the subject.
It was only natural.
First Prince Vilteon—he was Iris’s rival for the future succession to the throne.
The fact that the two did not get along had long been accepted as common knowledge.
“I told you before, didn't I? You and I are fundamentally different from that man. You were born with not just the eyes, but the heart of a reptile… Do you really think you’d get along with that idler?”
“You know as well as I do, Sister… whether we ‘get along’ or not isn't what matters.”
Cien let out a silly laugh, wearing a deliberately sly smile.
“Hehe, wouldn't the give-and-take be more important? If we truly were a pair that ‘got along.’”
“…What do you want?”
Though she scoffed, Iris’s counter-question was immediate.
She seemed to have expected this turn of events. In fact, she looked slightly pleased, as if seeing the sister she knew slowly returning to form.
However, it didn't take long for Iris’s composure to shatter.
“I’ll decide that after I’ve had a chance to speak with Brother Vilteon as well.”
A groan escaped Iris’s lips.
Negotiations with Cien were always like this.
Once Cien gained the upper hand, she was more persistent and shameless than anyone. Unless she was given a suitable price, she would try to haggle by playing both sides.
She was a woman who could never be used as a mere confidant.
Though, ironically, that made her more trustworthy in a way.
As long as the payment was guaranteed, Cien would never violate a contract. A relationship where things were ‘exchanged’ was bound to be that solid.
“You really are…”
“More importantly, what is this ‘cause of the abnormal heat’? If it’s enough to change the climate of the entire region, it must be no ordinary thing.”
By now, Iris and Cien’s walk had led them to a secluded path.
Even the escort knights following them had long since vanished from sight. There were likely Imperial Intelligence agents hiding nearby, but it was clear Iris was trying to keep their presence as hidden as possible.
It meant she didn't want to be seen by others anymore.
It was the perfect environment for a secret conversation. Iris finally sighed and revealed the details.
“…I don’t know the exact mechanism either. The Great Witch only mentioned it in passing, and there are no other clues.”
“Then how…?”
“I investigated every single incident within the Academy.”
Her tone was calm, but the implications of those words were extraordinary.
Investigating every incident within the Academy.
It was easy to write down. But to make that sentence a reality required an astronomical cost.
One could tell just by doing a quick mental calculation.
She would have had to investigate every rumor circulating within the Academy, where tens of thousands of people resided. It was impossible to even guess how much manpower and money had been required.
And to have the power to mobilize such resources in a short time, along with the decisiveness to act without hesitation.
She was truly a talent worthy of contending for the throne.
Cien looked at Iris with admiration. Iris, however, maintained a nonchalant expression, as if she had only done what was natural.
“Do you see now? This is the power of an organization. Even your precious Sir Ian can do nothing without our strength. That is why he is a ‘tool.’”
It was a sudden rebuke.
Cien instinctively felt a surge of irritation and wanted to snap back, but she could only swallow her anger and pout.
She wasn't wrong.
Which made it all the more annoying.
How could she pour out such reckless verbal abuse when she’d barely even seen Sir Ian?
Cien’s voice naturally turned blunt.
“…So, did you achieve any results?”
“Of course. I’m on my way to confirm the fruits of that labor right now.”
For once, her tone carried a rare sense of boastfulness.
Cien looked puzzled but didn't bother asking. If she just waited patiently, Iris would eventually recite the information anyway.
And Cien’s hunch proved correct once again.
“I have a confidant staying at the Academy. The Alphenhauser twins—they are quite capable… They quickly found a strange rumor circulating within the Academy.”
“A rumor?”
“A rumor that several students disappear at night and then return.”
Iris’s voice was confident, but Cien looked unconvinced.
There were plenty of students who disappeared and returned in the middle of the night.
Whether it was for a late-night tryst or to go out drinking and dancing.
There were countless reasons. It felt almost excessive to categorize it as an ‘abnormal phenomenon.’
Of course, Iris was not so naive as to be ignorant of the nature of youth.
“To you, who are currently attending the Academy, it probably seems like nothing, right? But what if those who were missing all night showed a common change?”
“Hmm, a change…”
“I’m told the frequency of their outings during the day has decreased significantly. Even if they do go out, they prefer the shade, favoring lush forests like this one.”
Cien’s expression remained skeptical.
It was still just a matter of suspicion.
Lately, the weather had been sweltering, no different from midsummer. It was only natural to want to avoid going out during the day, and even if one did, it was human nature to want to stay in the shade.
Could that really be called ‘suspicious behavior’?
Despite Cien’s distrustful gaze, Iris didn't lose her faint smile.
“It’s fine. We still have plenty of places to look around anyway. I brought you here today because I want you to use those ‘eyes’ to observe that child’s movements.”
“They’re up ahead, aren't they? One of those ‘missing’ victims.”
Iris didn't answer.
It was a silent affirmation. Cien let out a deep sigh, touching the corners of her eyes for the first time in a while.
She had vowed not to use them anymore.
But she had used them secretly a few times since then, and Sir Ian wouldn't blame her for a matter of this importance. There were few abilities as useful as the ‘Dragon’s Eye’ when it came to detecting anomalies that weren't visible to the naked eye.
It was then.
The two women, who had been walking, suddenly froze.
A chilling silence descended.
The cause lay at the end of the path. There was only one thing the metallic scent tickling the tips of their noses could imply.
The scent of blood.
The two women’s gazes collided in mid-air. As Iris gave a hand signal, the escort personnel stationed around them began to gather one by one.
They were in a clear state of alert.
The safest choice would have been to send one of the guards ahead. However, Iris and Cien chose to head toward the scene themselves.
They didn't know what they might find.
A scene immediately after discovery preserved the most information. If these two sharp-eyed women could examine it, they might obtain a decisive clue.
Step by step.
As the two women moved forward, the pungent scent of blood grew more intense. Accordingly, their tension reached its peak.
Thwack. Thwack.
The sharp sound of a blade piercing flesh tickled their ears. It was clear that violence was being committed just beyond.
The two women held their breath as they approached the source of the blood scent.
The procedure was simple.
Immediately after the guards entered, the two women would follow under their protection.
The plan was executed without a single error.
However, there was one thing they hadn't considered: the presence of the man waiting for them.
Blood that had formed puddles flowed like a stream.
The man, sitting with his back against a mound of flesh, was covered in blood. The blood soaking his hair was dripping down like a streak of sweat.
And yet, there wasn't a single sign of injury on his body.
He had been yawning as if bored, but upon seeing the two women enter, he offered a friendly smile.
Meeting the man’s golden eyes.
Iris stood frozen, unable to say a word. She could only stare blankly at the carnage the man had created.
Corpses, corpses, corpses.
The landscape, a mixture of humans, demonic beasts, and unrecognizable chunks of flesh, was nothing short of gruesome. One of the most horrific sights was that something among them was still moving.
A severed arm, having lost its owner, twitched and stood up, then scurried toward Iris, its fingers moving like legs.
Just as Iris flinched and was about to step back.
Splat. Blood sprayed across the ground.
Kieeeeeee—!
A hand axe, plunging down like a guillotine, stopped the rogue arm in its tracks. The ownerless arm struggled for a moment longer before finally losing its strength with a pitiful groan.
Everyone’s attention was focused on the man.
Black hair, golden eyes, and a hand axe floating in the air.
There were too many clues to guess his identity. The only incomprehensible question was why on earth he was here.
And what on earth had happened here.
The man’s answer was simple.
“They were monsters.”
Swallowing a dry chuckle, the man emphasized his conclusion once more.
“The missing people, I mean… They had turned into monsters, just as you suspected.”
It was a rather insolent way of speaking for the second son of a rural viscount, but for some reason.
Iris did not dare to rebuke the man before her.
And so, one mystery was solved.
By the hands of a single man, so very easily.