Chapter 141
Chapter 141
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 141
Chapter Title: Intermission – The Princess's Case
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***
Lord Howe Academy outskirts.
The coastal cliffs in the southern part of the academy island, a place even the faculty and third-years never visited.
A boy with a delicate appearance was arduously climbing the cliff.
A long rope was tied around his waist, and his body was drenched in sweat, but his face was filled with joy and anticipation.
After all, a grueling climb always led to sweet rewards.
Of course, his expectations never came to fruition.
Because an unexpected intruder was waiting for him at the top of the cliff.
Miridis—no, Soemiri.
She sat in a camping chair as if she'd been waiting for him, waving hello.
"You're later than I expected."
The boy, Baonic Lerak, stared blankly at the heroine from his novel.
*Why the hell is this bitch here?*
The questions welled up to his chin, but his exhausted body from the climb allowed nothing more than ragged breaths.
While Baonic was still dazed, Soemiri rose from her chair and approached him.
The moment he looked up in confusion, she'd already snatched what she wanted from his pocket.
A specially made red wooden box for storing elixirs.
Soemiri opened the serendipitous find that the 'author' had barely discovered and remarked,
"Hiding an elixir in a cliff—looks like the founder really loves the classics."
"...What the hell are you?"
Baonic couldn't hide his bewilderment.
*How? How did she know to wait here for me? Did that guy tell her? But he left the academy in a hurry, didn't he?*
Seeing his puzzled expression, Soemiri tucked the box into her bosom and said,
"Baonic Lerak."
"..."
"You can't just rummage through other people's things when the owner's not around."
"Own—owner? Who the hell are you to tell me—"
Baonic couldn't finish. Soemiri suddenly held out a single pink pill.
It bore no markings, but Baonic already knew its flavor.
"I'll let it slide this time since it was just the elixir—a warning. But if you slip your collar again because the owner's away... I'll boil you alive. Got it?"
"..."
"Come get your meds in person next month."
Baonic couldn't grab Soemiri's departing back.
He just stood there, dazed like a man possessed by a ghost, popping the pill into his mouth and chewing.
It tasted like familiar strawberries.
***
[A minor incident caused by a student's personal deviation.]
That was the academy's official statement on the massive disturbance in the sewers.
Of course, no one believed it.
Countless mages had sensed the twisted mana erupting from underground, and faculty had confirmed the unidentified barrier—such nonsense?
The Australian military's emergency deployment and the special instructors weren't idiots; no one bought it.
But disbelief and demanding the truth were two different things.
A few tone-deaf reporters protested at the academy, but within days, they were booted off the island.
By the hands of the crow beastkin and the US military, no less.
Only then did people realize the governments were involved and shut their mouths.
The academy pulling in the US, Korea, and even the Holy Kingdom beyond the dimensional gate to cover it up.
Curiosity was fine, but sometimes ignorance was bliss... or so people thought.
Of course, the truth was a bit more complicated.
"...I'm not sure if this is the right thing to do. Covering up an incident at the academy's request from the Holy Kingdom."
Principal Himena sighed as she flipped through a stack of documents. The girl seated before her desk smirked and replied,
"So you want to reveal the truth? That wouldn't be bad. Ta-da! The Incheon Butcher was among the academy students!"
"..."
"The Butcher teamed up with a hidden terrorist in the academy, targeting America's pride and the Saintess simultaneously while opening a dimensional gate... Hollywood would buy the script—it's that juicy."
The girl with the black eyepatch spoke in a flippant tone unlike her public image.
The principal wondered which was her true self—the one before her or the public's—but didn't ask.
Instead, she changed the subject.
"...And how is the Saintess holding up?"
"Me? Why the sudden concern?"
"You lost a friend right in front of you."
She set the document in her hand on the desk, her educator's worry evident.
The paper bore photos of a boy and girl stamped [Temporary Leave of Absence]. They were the two friends the Saintess had trailed daily.
Hong Seti, Cheon Yeomyeong.
The Saintess glanced at the documents, then shook her head.
"I didn't lose them. The two will definitely come back."
"Saintess, I personally confirmed the unstable dimensional gate remnants in the sewers. Even with the best luck, their survival odds are..."
"Principal."
"Yes, Saintess."
"That's enough testing my foresight. You don't want the Holy Knights gunning for you over this, do you? I like you, former principal."
Principal Himena gave a wry smile. No dice, as expected.
Few knew the Saintess had precognition, and even fewer knew its extent.
A top Holy Kingdom secret.
She'd hoped for a glimpse, but the Saintess denied even that, offering concern instead.
She paused there.
A brief silence. Then longer deliberation.
The Saintess spoke first.
"Principal, may I ask something?"
"Of course, anything. How could I refuse the Saintess who helped with the cleanup?"
"Then... who took the Butcher's body? The US? Korea?"
"..."
Youthful recklessness or passion? The Saintess's question was direct.
*'Totally different from Mom, who loves beating around the bush.'*
The principal pondered her response, then told the truth.
"Korea took it. In exchange for helping bury this incident. Minister Kim Gwan-hyyeong handled it personally, so the US military stood down."
"...Korea."
The Saintess drummed her fingers on the table in surprise, then pursed her lips.
The next instant, the principal's office door flew open.
Thinking a visitor had arrived, the principal looked— but no one had come for her.
Someone was leaving, though.
***
"Hey! You can't just bolt like that! What if we get caught?!"
On the way to the first-year girls' dorm, the Saintess yelled.
"You think the invisibility cloak is invincible? Especially Mom's mid-grade one—the principal might notice!"
Her voice was furious, but the target showed no reaction.
Finally, the Saintess exploded.
"Hey, you commie bitch! Keep ignoring me, why don't you?!"
Only then did Soemiri, texting on her phone, turn her head. She frowned slightly and added,
"...Saintess, I asked you not to call me that."
"You ignored me first—!"
"And more importantly, think of your mother's feelings. That's like spitting in bed."
*Your mom's a commie too.*
The Saintess suddenly wanted to blast the half-elf, but barely suppressed her rage.
Partly from years of ascetic training, but mostly because she wanted to meet the people ahead composedly.
*'I'll deal with her later.'*
Anyway, the Saintess and Soemiri crossed the dorm threshold and headed to the room.
The one Seti and Soemiri had shared until recently, now Soemiri's alone.
But they didn't enter right away.
The Saintess stood at the door, gripping the knob, wasting time with deep breaths.
"...Saintess, they know you're here anyway— just go in already?"
Only after Soemiri's nudge did the Saintess fling the door open.
In the red room bathed in sunset glow sat three girls, all in form-fitting combat gear instead of uniforms.
"You're late."
The tallest, with striking blue short hair, spoke first.
"Sorry. It took longer than expected."
Soemiri glanced at the Saintess—*not my fault*—but the Saintess trembled at the sight of the girls.
Barely holding back from hugging them.
Soemiri ignored her and addressed the girls... no, Seti's sisters.
"Everyone ready?"
At "ready," the sisters pulled out their gear like they'd been waiting. Full kits suited for battlefield soldiers.
Combat gear and full packs—only then did the Saintess notice the oddity, her face blank.
"What? Why the sudden military gear?"
"Stalker... I mean, the Saintess doesn't know anything?"
Red bob-cut Siri asked Soemiri, who nodded.
"If you knew, you wouldn't have followed so obediently."
"What? What the hell are you talking about?"
While the Saintess gawked at them, Soemiri pulled two items from her bosom.
One was the blue rat's invisibility cloak Yeomyeong left behind, and the other...
"...Y-You! Why do you have that?!"
A bizarre gem blending gold and black.
It was the last mana stone remaining where Seti and Yeomyeong's dimensional gate had been.
Not a Corruption Stone, nor infused with dimensional magic—just a mana stone.
"...I figured the US took it."
"Of course I grabbed it first."
"W-Why didn't I see it?"
"Because... you were wailing until Corvus and the US military arrived, Saintess?"
"..."
Instantly, Seti's sisters shot the Saintess odd looks. She turned away, embarrassed.
Meanwhile, Soemiri set the mana stone on the floor and faced the Sacrifice Sisters again.
"As I told you before, this mana stone became a pseudo-dimensional gate. With enough mana, we can open a gate to where Yeomyeong and Seti are."
"...If we have enough mana."
The youngest replied cynically, eyeing the stone and Soemiri alternately.
"I don't believe you gathered us just to say that, roommate sis."
"...Of course I have a way, that's why I called you."
Soemiri cleared her throat to draw eyes, then cautiously drew a dagger. The ornate ritual one from the underground sewers.
Seeing it, the Saintess realized the plan and frowned, but Soemiri pressed on.
"Sacrifice Sisters? Drip your blood on the mana stone, each of you."
"...Our blood?"
Park Neti grimaced in disgust. *Sacrifice Sisters* was bad enough—now actual blood? Truly sacrifices?
"The sewer gate was completed with Seti's blood. With proper adjustment, your blood should suffice to open one."
"But back then... it was sprinkled on a half-completed gate."
As the Saintess pointed out, Soemiri added,
"So this time, we'll need a bit more."
More? How much? Before the Saintess could ask, Siri stepped forward and snatched the dagger.
Then—*stab!*
She plunged it into her own palm.
Red blood gushed, soaking the mana stone... but its mana didn't stir. As if mocking Soemiri's hypothesis.
Failure? The Saintess and Soemiri frowned together, but Neti and the youngest grabbed the dagger too.
Neti sliced along her lifeline; the youngest tried her wrist but was stopped by Soemiri, settling for a fingertip prick.
As the three sacrifices' blood pooled and the mana stone dipped slightly in,
*Flash!*
The mana stone's power erupted.
The Saintess caught the stumbling Soemiri; the three sisters stared intently at the stone.
It absorbed all the blood from the floor, floated into the air, and formed a golden curtain just shy of 2 meters high.
A dimensional gate.
A speck compared to a true personal gate, but real nonetheless.
Feeling the dense mana, the Saintess swallowed and asked Soemiri,
"This... leads to Seti and Yeomyeong, right?"
"You can't use it, Saintess."
"What? Why?!"
"You didn't make it. Only Yeomyeong and the Sacrifice Sisters can... in theory."
The Saintess wanted to say she'd surpass mere theory, but couldn't.
The gate's mana was so faint it'd vanish after one person.
The safest choice now: one of the three gate-makers.
"Which sister will go?"
At Soemiri's question, they eyed each other.
Neti, Siri, Sis. The youngest, Sis, spoke first.
"I have the only healing ability, so obviously me."
Siri shook her head.
"You're a half-baked blessing user who can't even cast properly. Mages rule beyond the gate—I'm the mage, so I'm best."
Reasonable, but rebutted instantly.
"I'm a mage too."
Neti.
"What? A halfwit who can't fine-control."
Siri's retort.
"You sisters are idiots anyway, all dead weight... Why not go by IQ order?"
Youngest's venom.
As the bickering dragged, Soemiri intervened.
"Okay, everyone calm down. Time's short... rock-paper-scissors, alright?"
No better alternative—they agreed.
And the result...
"Winner: Park Neti. Any complaints?"
The youngest muttered something like "fuck," but Soemiri pretended not to hear and handed Neti the invisibility cloak.
"Take this. Don't forget the gear and potions. And... Saintess?"
"Yeah? Why me?"
"Give Neti a relic."
"...Why? Want a blessing?"
As the Saintess rummaged between her breasts for a relic, Soemiri whispered in her ear.
"You know your foresight's blocked because of Yeomyeong. Use it on the relic—maybe you can see something."
"..."
The Saintess didn't ask how she knew.
Soemiri's secrets about Yeomyeong were weird enough already.
She just assumed some mystery, like her own foresight.
*'Yeomyeong will explain later.'*
Thinking that, the Saintess pulled out the relic depicting a book and brush between her cleavage.
The azure relic of Benul, god of wisdom.
She pressed it into Neti's hand, then hugged her with affection.
Neti accepted the baffled embrace briefly.
Everyone in the room gave Neti useful items.
Especially the youngest, who secretly slipped a very secretive item into her big sister's pocket, just like before.
...Anyway, geared up, Neti stood before the gate.
"I'll find Sis and brother-in-law and come back."
"Don't become hole siblings... er, pillar sisters."
As the Saintess freaked at the youngest's words, Neti leaped into the gate.
*Flash!*
Familiar golden mana to Soemiri and the Saintess engulfed Neti.
Thus.
For Neti crossing—no time even to blink.
The first sight: her sister in a black dress crossing a burning street...
And Yeomyeong battling a red-haired elf, smashing the city.
***
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