Chapter 192
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 192
Chapter Title: Isn't It 'Common Sense' for Families to Attend the Invitation Ceremony? (1)
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“G-g-geh, th-thaaaah!! K-kweeeeeek!!!”
In the crimson-stained room, a girl wrapped head to toe in bandages let out a bloodcurdling scream.
“Kwaaaah!!!... St-stop!!... P-please... kill me!!!... Kwaaaah!!!... P-pleeeease!!... J-just kill meeee...!!!”
No matter how her limbs were twisted or her guts spilled out, she couldn't die.
The desire to live had been abandoned long ago.
She just wanted to die.
The girl wanted nothing more than to die as quickly as possible.
Watching her pathetic struggles, the 'Twisted Desire' snapped its fingers.
At that instant, the bandages enveloping the girl were reeled back in toward the 'Twisted Desire'.
Boom—!
The girl's body exploded like a bomb, splattering chunks of flesh and blood across the room.
“This isn't helping my mood at all...”
Staring down at its palm, the 'Twisted Desire' rasped in a voice like metal scraping metal.
Even after repeating this act until the once-white room was drenched in red, it still wasn't satisfied.
This was nothing more than venting frustration.
The only reason the girl had been chosen as the outlet was her vague resemblance to 'Liana Lumenhark'.
To be honest, she didn't even look that much like Liana.
Their only commonality was their golden hair.
And even that—the girl's dull, drab gold—paled in comparison to Liana's radiant, sun-like blonde.
“Liana... Lumenhark.”
Recalling Liana's mocking face from beyond the mirror, the 'Twisted Desire' ground its teeth.
It couldn't comprehend how a mere human could wield such overwhelming power.
Even undervaluing itself, it was certain she surpassed someone empowered by an Apostle.
“...With that much power... what more could she possibly want?”
Whether by strength or bloodline, Liana stood at the pinnacle of humanity.
There was nothing more to gain by crossing over to their side.
Of course, inheriting an Apostle's position would make her even stronger than now.
But to the 'Twisted Desire', Liana didn't seem obsessed with power at all.
“Could she be planning to strike us from within...?”
Entertaining the possibility for a moment, the 'Twisted Desire' shook its head.
No, that couldn't be.
They wouldn't accept such a dangerous entity without any safeguards.
Liana's neck bore a collar that made betrayal impossible.
After pondering Liana at length without reaching a conclusion, the 'Twisted Desire' clicked its tongue.
“...I need a new toy.”
Day two of the invitation ceremony.
As I was slicing into a steak with Bianca, Melphisa came looking for me.
“I'm sorry for the sudden visit, Young Master. I have something to tell you.”
“...”
Bianca narrowed her eyes at Melphisa's abrupt appearance, as if demanding an explanation.
But right now, I didn't have the luxury to soothe her.
Melphisa, who always served me with utmost respect, showing up unannounced like this meant it was something critical.
Letting out a short sigh, I set down the knife I'd been using to cut the meat and rose from my seat.
“Bianca, I'll be right back. If it takes too long, feel free to head back first.”
“Sigh... I thought the mood was nice for once. Fine, fine. Got it. Go ahead.”
Bianca pouted, but she seemed to sense the unusual atmosphere and let me go without protest.
The moment I led Melphisa to a secluded spot away from prying eyes, she dropped to her knees on the ground.
“Y-Young Master. I'm so sorry. I've made a grave mistake.”
“...I'll hear your apology later. Tell me—what happened?”
“...Didn't you tell me before to contact you immediately if Her Highness the Princess suddenly sent me somewhere far away?”
“Yes... don't tell me.”
“Yes... I... I overlooked something.”
I closed my eyes and pinched the bridge of my nose at Melphisa's words.
This wasn't something I could just brush off with 'don't worry about it'.
“...Explain the situation.”
“...A while back, Her Highness asked about you.”
“About me?”
“Yes. She seemed to be prying into my relationship with you.”
“And what was your response?”
“I said nothing. While she was pressing me, she suddenly craved cake and sent me all the way to Sankisan Village on an errand... Ah, e-even if she'd kept pushing, I never would have betrayed anything about you.”
I raised a hand to calm her frantic excuses.
“No need for excuses. I trust you.”
“Th-thank you. B-but Young Master... do you think this matches the situation you warned me about? Maybe she really just wanted cake...”
Melphisa gazed at me with hopeful eyes, but I had no choice but to nod.
“No, the fact that she stopped prying and chose you specifically of all people makes it a match.”
“Ah... I-I'm sorry. I failed to carry out your orders properly...”
“No time to dwell on the past. How many days ago exactly was this?”
“...Around the end of the Golden Week holiday.”
Hearing Melphisa's intel, I let out a brief sigh and looked up at the sky.
...So she's finally making her move.
Chapter 5's boss.
The ultimate, the worst, the strongest traitor.
Liana Lumenhark had finally risen.
This monstrous princess couldn't be confronted head-on.
Dig traps, gather as many people as possible, launch a surprise assault—success odds wouldn't hit zero percent, but...
Plenty would die in the process.
...Which means the final boss fight ends before it even begins.
If even one member dropped from the party I'd assembled in my mind, the final boss was unbeatable.
Did that make Chapter 5 a guaranteed loss?
Not quite.
I'd called Liana the Chapter 5 boss, but the chapter's goal was stopping the academy rebellion centered around her—not a boss fight.
Once the rebellion broke out, there'd be no need to fight her.
While suppressing it, Liana would link up with the 'Twisted Desire' infiltrating the academy and head to the real rebels in the empire's eastern regions.
Then the empire's civil war would ignite.
From there, Carnea Academy would close its doors, and no more story would unfold within.
Just endless war, with countless dead and wounded until the rebellion was crushed.
...And at the end of it all.
Recalling Chapter 5's conclusion, I clenched my fist tight.
“Melphisa.”
“...Yes... Young Master... p-please... punish me.”
The punishment Melphisa sought wasn't some lewd spanking like Vivian had joked about—it was genuine suffering.
I shook my head.
“...Punishment can wait.”
“...Yes.”
“Return to Her Highness now. And this time, report every single one of her actions to me without missing a beat. Understood?”
“Yes... Young Master... Understood.”
The silver lining was that the princess hadn't gone into full motion yet.
Carnea's internal rebels consisted of low-ranking nobles and commoners.
Even if Liana treated people without regard for status, she was still imperial blood—the pinnacle of nobility.
For her to rise as their leader, she needed a solid trigger.
In Academy's Tamer, it started with a young commoner girl killed by a noble's carriage...
The empire had laws, of course.
Even nobles faced punishment for killing commoners without cause.
But a minor accident like a commoner hit by a high noble's carriage? Hardly an issue.
Yet the noble responsible, Hubetz, was actually of fine character.
It could've blown over, but guilt-stricken, he compensated the parents enough for a lifetime.
Still, the incident ballooned unnaturally, spreading empire-wide.
Not organic—Liana's faction weaponized the rumors.
By the time it reached Carnea, Hubetz was a deranged killer who'd murdered dozens of commoners for sport.
High nobles who knew his true nature defended him.
Low nobles and commoners who'd never met him lumped all nobles together.
Even Carnea Academy, which outwardly promoted equality, saw nobles and commoners clash internally.
In this chaos, Liana—championing commoners' rights with her exalted status—inspired followers who elevated her as leader, sparking the uprising.
...But the carriage incident is still far off.
If Liana's betrayal and the rebels' moves had accelerated, a fitting incident would surely occur.
I needed to uncover what it was.
Just then, a commotion stirred—tons of students heading somewhere.
“...Melphisa.”
“Yes.”
As if reading my intent, she melted into the shadows without a word.
Returning to the princess's side as ordered.
Meanwhile, I rushed toward the students to pinpoint the source of the buzz.
Amid the overlapping chatter brushing past my ears, one phrase I couldn't ignore rang out.
“They say the Calliope family's carriage just pulled up at the main gate?”