The Princess's Sleepless Night
The Ultimate Villainess. Iris Haishirion, the Third Princess of the Empire. There was a great deal to say about her.
She was the final boss and mastermind of Act 6 of the Flame Butterfly Chapter. Akjon. She was the designated vessel for that very entity. Perhaps because of that, the aura radiating from Iris was strangely decadent.
Despite being second in the line of succession to lead the empire, the vibe she gave off was unequivocally gloomy and dark. Yet, quite apart from that, she possessed a magnetic power that made it difficult to tear one's eyes away.
First, there was her natural beauty. Pitch-black hair, skin so pale it seemed almost excessive, and eyes imbued with a ruby-like mana. Anyone who met her gaze would invariably sigh at her beauty, wishing only for her to look their way.
It was not for nothing that she contested the title of the empire's most beautiful woman with Nikita Cynthia. If Nikita's beauty was defined by coldness and integrity, Iris's was defined by decadence and allure.
Whenever her cherry-red lips parted, people's hearts wavered, and they leaned in to listen. Whatever she whispered, it made them want to grant her every desire. While this was partly due to the seductive nature of Akjon within her, her unique, decadent atmosphere played an equally massive role.
And that very woman was now standing right in front of me.
She certainly didn't come for something as trivial as a 'get-well visit.' After all, I hadn't spoken a single word to her since entering Jerion Academy. So, what was her reason for seeking me out?
The man whose body I've possessed, Hanon Airey, is technically of the same bloodline as her. Though it was through his mother's side rather than his father's, they were still cousins. Iris would likely view Hanon's existence in a specific light.
Her maternal grandfather, Duke Robliaju. She probably thought Hanon was someone sent by him with some hidden agenda.
It looks like she's still suffering from insomnia. I could see the dark circles shadowing the skin beneath her eyes. Forced to strive for the throne to satisfy her grandfather's greed, Iris lived under constant pressure, which naturally made her a chronic insomniac.
On the surface, it didn't seem much different from Isabel Luna's sleeplessness, but the root cause of Iris's insomnia was fundamentally different.
Akjon is interfering with Iris's sleep. The whispers of Akjon haunted her nightmares. To eventually corrupt her completely and claim her as his vessel, Akjon relentlessly tightened his grip on her mind through those dreams.
The more nightmares she has, the weaker she becomes. In truth, by this point in the story, Iris's insomnia should have shown some signs of improvement. Lucas Fernando's Flame of Fighting Spirit had the power to banish her nightmares. Thanks to him, she should have been able to overcome her sleeplessness and find peaceful rest.
That was supposed to be the catalyst for Iris to seek out Lucas more and more. A series of incidents would unfold, and resolving them together was how Lucas and Iris built their relationship.
But Lucas was no longer in this world. Naturally, Iris's insomnia remained unresolved, a lingering affliction. And this was a task I had to handle. The day she fell completely into the abyss of her nightmares would be the day of Akjon's resurrection.
"I greet the Third Princess, Her Highness Iris Haishirion."
However, curing her insomnia wasn't something I could just rush into. The process was crucial. I had to build a relationship of trust first. As I knelt and offered the proper etiquette due to royalty, Iris stared down at me blankly. Then, she gave a dismissive wave of her hand.
"This is Jerion Academy. Even if we are alone, there is no need for students to stand on such ceremony."
She was right. I had merely put myself in Hanon's shoes and acted as he would have. Iris leaned her head back against the wall. As she did, her black hair cascaded naturally over her pale skin. Seeing her up close again, her appearance truly exuded a seductive, decadent charm.
"There is one thing I want to ask you."
The delicate voice flowing from her cherry-red lips possessed a strange power to captivate. My ears instinctively perked up at her words.
"Are you someone sent by Duke Robliaju?"
I had anticipated she would ask something like this from the moment she approached me.
If I get entangled with Duke Robliaju right now... I, not Lucas, would be fast-tracking straight to a bad ending. Duke Robliaju was a greedy man who would even harness the power of Akjon to place Iris on the throne. If someone he hadn't sent drew close to Iris, he would almost certainly assume the 1st Prince was plotting something and try to have my head.
Well, technically, that actually is the case. As mentioned before, Hanon Airey was a hidden character who only appeared when specific conditions were met. The condition for Hanon's transfer was for Lucas to achieve a certain level of fame within the academy.
And he only transfers if you achieve a perfect clear on every single fame-related event. Because of this, relatively little was known about Hanon. However, one thing was absolutely certain.
Hanon was sent by the 1st Prince to scout the talented individuals under Lucas into his own faction. The battle for the throne raged between the 1st Prince and the Third Princess. Naturally, the 1st Prince sought to gather power, but the world's most prominent talents had already flocked to the academy when the Third Princess enrolled. Due to Duke Robliaju's schemes, the 1st Prince had been unable to interfere with Jerion Academy. To avoid an all-out war with the Duke, he had refrained from making a move on the academy. However, once Lucas's fame reached the ears of the imperial court, the 1st Prince realized all those talents might fall into the Third Princess's hands. Thus, he sent a transfer student. That was Hanon Airey, whose transfer had been quietly arranged by the 1st Prince's faction behind the scenes.
If the conditions aren't met, Hanon never transfers in the first place. If the requirements fell short, the 1st Prince would decide that Jerion Academy wasn't worth the trouble. To avoid clashing swords directly with Robliaju, he would choose not to send him. But the fact that Hanon had transferred meant the 1st Prince deemed the situation critical enough to risk a direct confrontation with Robliaju.
And I transferred here using Hanon's identity. Jerion Academy had eyes and ears everywhere. The 1st Prince's faction would likely be baffled to see Hanon suddenly transferring without their explicit permission. However, it would take them about half a year to grasp the exact situation.
Right now, the 1st Prince is incredibly busy. Having already averted his gaze from the academy, he had no time to spare for it. And during that window, I planned to establish my position by any means necessary. I hadn't been idle before entering Jerion Academy either. I had drawn up a rather meticulous plan—a tightrope walk between the 1st Prince and Duke Robliaju.
But there was exactly one person who could snap that tightrope in an instant. Iris, who can relay information to Duke Robliaju at any moment. The girl standing before me was that very wild card. She didn't need to meet Duke Robliaju in person to pass her words along to him. The reverse was also true for the Duke. So, if she were to ask Duke Robliaju about me, either Robliaju or the 1st Prince would send someone to cut my tightrope.
Fortunately... Iris never initiated contact with Robliaju. She wasn't particularly thrilled about being dragged into the succession war because of him. During the game, she had subtly expressed her aversion to Duke Robliaju multiple times. Because of that, she wouldn't go out of her way to ask him about me.
The problem is, that's strictly an assumption. This was reality now, not a game. Moreover, it was a world after the bad ending, where the protagonist was dead and no one knew how things would unfold. In a world ruled by variables, there was no telling how Iris's feelings might have shifted.
"Wouldn't that depend on what you believe, Your Highness?"
Therefore, I had to prepare for both scenarios. A world where Robliaju sent Hanon, and a world where the 1st Prince sent him. I had to consider both possibilities to steer the story back toward the true path, regardless of the variables to come.
Upon hearing my answer, Iris stared at me intently. Her gaze was heavy. It felt like a long-haired cat staring at a human with an inscrutable, incomprehensible look.
"I see. In that case..."
Iris didn't press further. It seemed she decided to ponder it on her own and reach her own conclusion. It was bad for my heart. But then, that was only natural when conversing with someone who could become the final boss.
"As a side note, you would do well to refrain from speaking ill of Lucas Fernando."
Iris had shared quite a few connections with Lucas. The Flame of Fighting Spirit had been the only lullaby capable of soothing Iris when she couldn't sleep due to her nightmares.
"There are still many who remember him."
He had only attended Jerion Academy for a single year. Yet, the impact Lucas had made during that year was by no means small. As expected of the protagonist, his roots ran deep.
And I have to replace that role. My gaze drifted back to Iris. To replace the protagonist, Lucas, what did I need to do for her?
"Are you still unable to sleep these days?"
Naturally, the answer was to resolve the insomnia that tormented her the most.
"There is a honey called Honeyer harvested from the southern clay regions. Brewing it into a tea before bed might offer some help."
It was a honey that induced sleep in exchange for a restorative effect. While it couldn't cure the root cause of her insomnia, it would at least grant her a little rest.
Iris's gaze locked onto me. Within her vivid, ruby-red eyes, a strange gleam flickered for a brief moment.
"...I will keep that in mind."
Perhaps she thought of it as a fair exchange since she had given me advice first. Without another word, Iris opened the door and departed. I let out a long breath as I watched her black hair flutter away.
"Still a long way to go."
Isabel Luna's suicide. Nikita Cynthia's Ancient Dragon. Iris Haishirion's insomnia. Every single one of these was a critical issue directly linked to a bad ending. I had to resolve them all.
I quickly stepped out of the room. I couldn't afford to lie around any longer. I needed personal training for the upcoming mock battle. I had to raise my stats even by a fraction through repetitive practice and mastery. On top of Steel Skin, there was something else I needed to prepare. To secure my future, I absolutely had to rank near the top in the mock battle. I would prepare everything I possibly could.
Man, my body is going to be absolutely wrecked. Shaking off the lingering fatigue, I walked down the corridor. The sun had already set, but I couldn't rest yet; I had to become my own sun.