Chapter 47
Chapter 47
Lorenzo crossed his legs.
“Let’s say what you’re claiming is correct, Karl. And to interfere with that, your subordinates beat up ours? While I was laying the groundwork and establishing smuggling routes, what exactly were you doing?
If the only benefit I get from forming an alliance with you… is being safe from your tyranny, then how is that any different from street thugs making threats?
If I’m to join hands with you, shouldn’t you be bringing something to the table as well?”
Lorenzo subtly rejected Karl’s proposal of cooperation.
But in doing so, it was no different from admitting that Karl’s assumptions were true.
That the smuggling routes Lorenzo created were a kind of safeguard allowing his agents to move freely at night.
That he had enrolled in the academy aiming for its very secrets, and that a considerable number of the students with him were informants.
It was as good as acknowledging all of that.
Idnia watched Karl and Lorenzo sizing each other up while eating snacks. Then suddenly, both of their gazes turned toward her.
“You two are like water and oil. At this stage, even if you join hands, you’ll just end up stabbing each other in the back anyway.”
Since their attention had shifted to her, Idnia simply said it outright.
“What?”
“……”
“First, Young Master Lorenzo. Unless you gather shops and unlock the academy’s facilities to a certain extent, you won’t gain much information wandering around at night. Once students unlock facilities, the academy clears the fog and opens paths even at night to some degree. Otherwise, no matter how capable your agents are, there’s little they can obtain. You do know that these student IDs we carry are tools used to track our movements, don’t you?”
Idnia’s point was so valid that both Lorenzo and Karl let out low groans.
In truth, since the entrance ceremony, they had been underestimating Idnia.
Not the individual Idnia Katze Betelgeuse herself. But since the Betelgeuse family had fallen and she entered alone without bringing anyone, they naturally looked down on her.
They had brought their own members and formed factions within the school right away, while she entered like an ordinary student without even a single attendant. Naturally, she seemed not worth their attention.
But what had she shown since then?
She displayed tremendous magical ability and was even leading the shop rankings.
At present, Idnia’s shop had 6 points by herself.
Adding the 4 points she could freely allocate as dorm leader, that made a total of 10 points.
Karl had 9 points, but that was only because he resolved the incident of the Invisible Stalker escaping. In regular classes, his performance couldn’t match Idnia’s.
Her individual ability is outstanding… but she doesn’t seem interested in the secrets hidden within the academy. It might be better to get engaged and draw her to my side.
Thinking that, Karl had proposed to her, but Idnia rejected him with peculiar words.
But now…
Listening to what she was saying, didn’t it seem like she knew far more about the academy’s secrets than they did?
“And Young Master Karl. You do have something prepared, but since you don’t know the extent of Young Master Lorenzo’s achievements, you’re afraid. So you’re deliberately revealing a bit of your hand and bluffing, aren’t you?
You know there’s something significant hidden in the academy, but you don’t really know what it is. You brought talented people with you, but you’re uneasy because your competitor Lorenzo is secretly moving at night.
If you’re this concerned without even knowing what Lorenzo has obtained, then you’re not even at the stage where cooperation should be discussed.”
“Lady Idnia. Just what are you….”
“……”
“First, let’s quietly gather shops and unlock the facilities. Whether to cooperate or not can be decided afterward. Thank you for the meal today.”
Idnia extended her teacup to the Boreas student holding the teapot.
The student filled it with a displeased expression, and Idnia downed the tea in one go, cleansing her palate before wiping her lips with a handkerchief and standing up.
“Well then. Let’s gather more resources and discuss things afterward. At this stage, there’s no such thing as joining hands or not. Even within school rules, in cooperative efforts for earning credits, people stab each other in the back. So how are you planning to form an alliance that’s far more dangerous?
You seem anxious, but no one here has even come close to the academy’s truth yet, so there’s no need to rush.
I wondered why I was called, but it turned out to be something so trivial.”
Idnia gave a slight bow and left her seat.
“Uh….”
“Hmm….”
Karl and Lorenzo were left speechless as Idnia turned and left with a swish.
“Haa… I put on quite the act, but I wonder if it worked.”
As Idnia headed toward the dining hall, her heart pounded inwardly.
There was some kind of secret within the academy.
This had been a recurring hint since the early stages of Awakening Girl Concert.
After all, when the Demon King raised his army to conquer the world, his top priority target was the Dunais Academy.
If the demon race seized Dunais Academy, they could rule the world.
In the user community, there had been interpretations that this was because Dunais Academy was a nexus of countless teleportation gates.
With the gates within Dunais Academy, one could travel anywhere in the world, so if the Demon King’s army occupied it, the strategic advantage would be immense.
But beyond that, there were also opinions that the academy itself possessed tremendous power and was binding the Empire’s five prisoners.
Despite all these hints, in Season 1, characters like Rudolf, Karl, and Lorenzo were portrayed as rather thoughtless noble heirs.
As the story progressed into Seasons 2 and 3, settings were revealed, and the characters became more serious and mature, but the impression during the first semester of first year, Season 1, was clearly different.
Just the kind-hearted Crown Prince Rudolf,
Karl, the violent and hot-tempered northern soldier,
And Lorenzo, the sly and profit-driven southern tycoon.
They had rather simple images.
But now that Idnia saw it… unlike the game, this real world had its settings established from the start at a late-stage level, and the characters had been arranged accordingly.
I can’t act based solely on the impressions from the original game. Ah, come to think of it, where is Miss Mari?
Idnia looked for Mari, the protagonist of the original story, but she was nowhere to be seen in the dining hall.
“Miss Sendia? Where is Miss Mari?”
“Ah, since His Highness the Crown Prince was injured, I think she went along because of that….”
Since Isolde was also nowhere to be seen, it seemed that both Isolde and Mari had gone to check on the Crown Prince.
Hmm. There was something similar in the original event.
In the original game, there was an event where the Crown Prince Rudolf suddenly fell ill with a fever, and caring for him increased affection.
His body would ache for no apparent reason, and potions wouldn’t work. When the saintess eased his pain with her power, their bond would deepen…
I hope it goes well. I’ve given up on leaving everything in this world to Miss Mari and stepping back, but still, I hope the original protagonist, Miss Mari, can be happy.
Silently cheering for them, Idnia took some bread from the meal.
Even after night fell, Mari did not return.
She must have gone to care for Crown Prince Rudolf, but at this rate, she would receive penalty points.
“Hmm, could she be over at the Zephyros dorm? I should check.”
As usual, Idnia climbed out the window.
A light drizzle was falling tonight.
Within the rain, the fog covering the academy grew even thicker, making its boundaries easy to see.
“Hmm, I should go up after all.”
Idnia released the suppressed Tyrant Aura and grabbed onto the wall, climbing up.
With the aura fully unleashed, scaling the wall felt as easy as walking on flat ground.
Rather, the difficult part was making sure the exterior decorations didn’t crumble under her grip.
The sandstone ornaments of the outer wall could easily shatter under her strength, so she climbed carefully, as if handling an egg that must not break.
But when Idnia reached the dormitory rooftop, someone held out an umbrella.
“The academy coat has a hood, but for a duke’s daughter to run around rooftops in the rain… you really are an incorrigible troublemaker.”
“Ah, Headmaster….”
“Out again today? And I told you not to use the Tyrant Aura carelessly. It stimulates Lakias….”
“Are you going to check attendance again tonight?”
“Haa. Forget it. Doing the same trick repeatedly isn’t interesting.”
The headmaster had been holding an umbrella over Idnia as she climbed up, but once she fully reached the top, the umbrella was pushed aside by her aura.
Though Headmaster Ludwig was a tall and handsome man, Idnia in her Tyrant state was even taller.
“You hold it.”
“Ah, I’ll be running around, so it’s fine. It’s just a bit of rain….”
“……”
Ludwig floated the umbrella into the air.
As it spun gently above them, it created a powerful barrier, forming a wide water-repelling field that kept rain from falling where they stood.
“Wow….”
“But didn’t you use extraction magic extensively in class today and then continue using mana again? Other students are exhausted and asleep, so why are you the only one still energetic? Don’t tell me that wasn’t even your full power?”
“That’s not it, but strangely, I just can’t fall asleep.”
Idnia looked around from the dormitory roof.
Amid the spreading fog, beyond the lecture halls, one new building stood clearly visible, not covered by the mist.
“That is….”
“It’s the Life Magic Research Lab. A place where necromancy and transmutation are studied… and also something like an infirmary where students can rest depending on their condition.”
“They use a necromancy research facility as an infirmary?”
“Yes. Don’t worry. Not a single student taken there has died from an accident. In magic schools, if someone dies in an accident, it’s usually instant. As long as they don’t die instantly, we somehow revive them so they can walk out on their own… and then die afterward.”
“Wow. That’s very reassuring.”
Idnia replied sarcastically.
The fact that accidents occurred so frequently in a magic school was already unsettling from a student’s perspective, and the idea of merely ensuring they could walk out hardly sounded like proper treatment.
“By the way, Headmaster, why are you out here?”
“Because I’m a vampire. What’s strange about a vampire being active at night? If anything, it’s strange that a student like you is out. Are you getting enough sleep?”
“Well, that’s true. Um, can I go over there for a bit?
I think my roommate might be there….”
“Hah, when have you ever asked for permission? And don’t ask like that. Officially, I’m in no position to allow such things. Just handle it yourself.”
“Yes. Then….”
Idnia prepared to leap across to the building.
But Ludwig sighed and stopped her.
“Don’t. If you jump, you’ll break the roof.”
“Pardon?”
Headmaster Ludwig cast a spell.
A bluish bridge of force formed in midair.
Walking onto it, he gestured to Idnia.
“Come on, follow me.”
“You said you wouldn’t permit it.”
“I didn’t permit it. I’m merely protecting academy property from a certain reckless individual. If you go jumping around and tear off the roof, that’s a loss of school property.”
Stepping onto the bridge Ludwig created, Idnia followed him toward the Necromancy Research Wing.