CHAPTER 104
CHAPTER 104
Honest Confession
Dunais Academy is not merely an educational institution.
This place is a massive ancient ruin, and the ruins have not yet been fully explored. Because of countless transfer gates, its structure is tangled, making it impossible to fully map out or investigate completely.
A transfer gate, huh. Come to think of it…
Idnia had managed to obtain information about the hidden transfer gates known among the students inside the academy by capturing Parinelli, a retainer of the Scarlet Pimpernel who had been investigating the outside of the academy, and striking a deal with him.
She had learned how to open the transfer gate to the library, which was not yet accessible to first-year students, but Idnia did not use it.
For now, she simply did not have enough time to fully understand the books she already possessed.
Entering the library would be something she would do only after reading and mastering all the books she currently had, and only if she still lacked material. There was no need to force her way in and draw unnecessary attention.
She was already attracting attention from the professors. There was no reason to further draw their interest in a negative direction by showing herself entering a restricted area.
Since Father had sent me books, the day I use the library transfer gate will be even further away. Instead, should I try tackling a dungeon?
I believe it’s only accessible from second year, but with this much Aka Coin, I might be able to get permission.
Thinking this, Idnia carried the books stacked outside her door into her room.
They were books her father had used, old but luxurious volumes with their corners bound in electrum, an alloy of gold and silver.
If sold as they were, they would have fetched a tremendous sum, yet they had been left unused and stored away despite the difficult finances of the principality.
It was clear how deeply the king had been shaken by matters concerning his wife.
But she is still alive. And not only that, she’s the empress dowager of the demons. Hmm… what would happen if Father found out about that? I’m worried.
His health is already weakening. This might become serious.
Worrying about her father, Idnia this time opened the letter sent by her aunt.
Her father, the king of the principality, had not told Idnia any bad news about the principality, out of concern that she might worry.
In contrast, her aunt’s letter was filled from beginning to end with complaints.
Because Idnia was absent, the gifts and tributes coming into the royal family had decreased.
Since no one was hunting deer or bears, revenue from furs and meat had dropped, and recently her father had not been eating well, and so on.
It was entirely full of grievances.
However, summing up all those complaints, there did not seem to be any issues such as demon invasions or a severe economic crisis.
As promised by the Archbishop Betelgeuse, purification projects and support initiatives were continuing, and the principality’s condition was clearly improving.
I don’t know why I was designated as a saint, but it’s a relief that I am able to exert a positive influence over the Principality of Betelgeuse. I should maintain my position as a saint candidate as much as possible to preserve the honor of the bishop who supported me. Hmm. Come to think of it, those envoys from the church have been asking me for quite a lot as well.
After reading the letters and the books on magic sent by her father, Idnia spent the night reading.
Ironically, even though this was already her second life, Idnia found herself unable to sleep, missing the scenery and people of Betelgeuse.
I can’t sleep… maybe I should go check the transfer gate?
Idnia left the dormitory again in the night.
The transfer gate leading to the library had been, in the original game Concherto of Awakening Girl, merely a convenience feature.
It was a kind of auxiliary paid feature included in package purchases, allowing players to skip the time consumed when raising character stats using the training function.
Idnia had known of its existence through the game, but she had not known how to actually use it until she heard about it from Parinelli.
“It should be here, right?”
Avoiding the gaze of the moving armors, Idnia stood before the mist in the lecture hall.
Phantoms still wandered within the mist, but Idnia paid them no mind and examined the statue near the lecture hall.
It was a statue of an athlete throwing a discus.
“On the discus, apply a light spell with a golden glow.”
When Idnia cast the spell, something responded within the statue.
“On the pedestal, red.”
After applying the magic, the transfer gate soon opened.
The transfer gate leading into the Dunais Academy library had been activated.
“Hmm, just as expected. Good. That made for a pleasant night walk.”
Idnia closed the transfer gate again and turned around.
Then, a pale-faced man holding an umbrella appeared before her eyes.
He was Ludwig Blackblad, the headmaster of Dunais Academy.
“Not going in?”
“Ah, Headmaster. This is… perfect timing.”
“Perfect timing?”
“Yes. Is this still valid?”
Idnia showed the Aka Coin exchange voucher she had received from her father, the King of Betelgeuse.
Seeing it, the headmaster frowned.
“There is… no expiration date written here. It doesn’t seem to be a forgery either. In that case, it is valid. Where did you obtain this?”
“It was inside my father’s letter today.”
“I see. The King of Betelgeuse… Draken Katze Betelgeuse was an excellent student.
Though he did not graduate.”
“May I ask what exactly happened?”
“Did you not hear it directly from your father?”
“No. It feels difficult to ask about matters involving my mother.”
“Your father, Franz, and your mother Flora were the most outstanding students of their time.
They saw each other as rivals and competed, constantly sharpening their abilities.”
Ludwig smiled and curled his fingers into a loose circle.
“Emperor Franz spent quite a fortune trying to surpass your father.
The Aka Coin revenue was so immense that we even considered hiring additional professors, instructors, and assistants.”
“Headmaster, you are bound to the academy, aren’t you? And yet you still wish to increase staff?”
“Indeed. I cannot increase the number of students as I wish, but I can increase the staff.
When new people enter the sphere of our reach, it never becomes dull.”
“……”
They were prisoners. From the perspective of those confined in a prison, newcomers and outsiders naturally became excellent sources of entertainment.
But hearing that, Idnia suddenly felt a sense of pity for Headmaster Ludwig.
He was undoubtedly a powerful mage and a vampire with near-invincible strength, yet if he wished to hire more staff simply because the academy’s finances had improved, and the reason was loneliness and boredom, what a pitiful soul he seemed to be.
“In that case, you should treat the students a bit better.”
“The ones who made me regret that were Flora and Franz.”
“What?”
“Beyond them, spies have long infiltrated as students in disguise.
For example, some first-year students have already managed to activate the hidden transfer gates of the academy.”
“Ahaha…”
Idnia laughed, realizing they were speaking about her.
“Since you mentioned Franz, the Emperor, and my mother Flora, it seems my father had no major issues.
Then why did he leave before graduating?”
“Because of the demon attack.
More precisely, when the previous King of Betelgeuse passed away due to a demon assault, he returned to inherit the principality.”
“I see.”
“And you didn’t know even that? Yet you have opened the library transfer gate?”
To think that someone who had uncovered the academy’s hidden transfer gates knew nothing about her own family.
As Ludwig pointed this out, Idnia nodded.
“Yes. It’s difficult to ask about matters involving my mother.”
“That makes sense.”
Surprisingly, Ludwig accepted that point as well.
“Then… may I purchase a dungeon entry pass for the academy dungeon?”
“First-year students are prohibited from entering the dungeon.
Of course, you may not be as constrained by risk given your mastery of such advanced techniques at your age, but this rule is bound by an ancient oath that even I cannot break.”
“I see.”
Idnia clicked her tongue upon hearing that.
It seemed dungeon exploration would only become possible from second year, just as in the original game.
In the original game, it had been released in an incomplete state, and the dungeon content had only been added later… but in this world, it is bound by the rules of Dunais Academy.
Idnia decided not to dwell further on entering the dungeon and stepped back.
“Understood. Then I will return to the dormitory.”
“Idnia Katze Betelgeuse.”
Ludwig called her name quietly.
“Yes?”
“What do you desire?”
What did he mean by that?
Idnia looked at Ludwig.
She could deflect with a vague answer, but Ludwig seemed to be asking her in earnest.
“Franz desired strength.
Flora desired power.
So they quickly kept pace with the academy’s classes, and greedily wandered the halls at night, uncovering the academy’s secrets to obtain that power.
In contrast, your father obeyed the rules and devoted his remaining time to training.
By focusing deeply on a single discipline instead of learning countless trivial techniques, he made a genius like Franz feel inferior.
Watching that was quite an interesting experience for me.
But I do not understand why you wander the halls at night like this. Why? What do you desire? Idnia Katze Betelgeuse?”
“I… dare to say that I love this world.”
“You love this world?”
“Yes.”
“Hmm.”
He had seen countless people claim they loved their homeland or their country.
Such expressions of patriotism were often nothing more than propaganda to justify their actions and consolidate their influence.
He had never seen a truly proper person among those who spoke like that. At least, not until now.
But from Ludwig’s perspective, Idnia was sincere.
I can’t believe it. Draken, how on earth did you raise a daughter like this? Or was she born this way?
While Ludwig silently observed her, Idnia spoke with a hint of embarrassment.
“So I would like to exert a positive influence. Upon this world, and upon all the people living here…”
For her, who had once been the villainess Idnia Katze Betelgeuse, the one now called Idnia was a person from Earth who had taken over that villainess’s body and fate.
From the perspective of the original villainess, this Idnia could be seen as someone who had stolen and exploited her body and destiny.
It was like a second life granted to someone who had already lived one, akin to doping in a sports competition, potentially causing others to feel inferiority and despair.
Even so, Idnia wished to become someone who exerted a slightly better influence on this land, as herself, not as the villainess of the original story.
She lived with that wish in her heart.
Sensing that genuine desire, Ludwig shook his head.
“That is not something one would expect to hear from a girl of your age. It sounded like the words of someone who has lived far longer.
Which makes it all the more suspicious.”
“What?”
“I understand. Idnia. The night is late. Go inside and rest.”
Ludwig instructed Idnia to return to the dormitory.
The students gathered in the dining hall the next morning were secretly looking forward to their meal.
This was because dinner the previous evening had unexpectedly been decent.
Buremhyde had used leftover meat and vegetables from a gathering to prepare stew, and had served bread and pastries of far better quality than usual, improving the overall standard of dinner.
“Perhaps the poor quality of meals until now was a form of early intimidation, and now that we are focusing on our studies, they will provide better food without such pointless pressure?”
“Yeah. There’s no way they would keep feeding us garbage forever. Haha. We are the future pillars of the empire, after all.”
Such unrealistic hopeful delusions were shared among the students.
From Idnia’s perspective, who knew the reality, it was absurd, but she felt no need to correct their delusions.
Ah, so this is how rumors are born. People really do choose to believe what they want in the face of true despair.
In any case, their fantasies were promptly shattered by the head of a fish being dumped onto their trays.