Chapter 206
Chapter 206
Elined was staring at Sia with cold eyes.
I could even sense a faint trace of hatred in her gaze.
‘……Why is she standing here as if she naturally belongs in this place?’
Why did it have to be Sia of all people?
She had already suspected her as one of the dangerous individuals, and that made her nerves sharpen even more.
And it was not groundless suspicion.
The first piece of evidence Elined had pointed to was the Comprehensive Examination.
Though they were few in number, there were indeed individuals who acted alone during the exam.
But they fell into two categories.
Either they were so pitifully weak that no one chose them and they could do nothing but run away.
Or they were overwhelmingly powerful enough to survive on their own.
Most were the former.
……But Sia had scored high enough to be accepted into the Finders Department without suffering a single defeat.
Only three people had achieved high scores in complete solitude.
Kunking, Heidel, and Sia.
However, Kunking and Heidel were exceptionally outstanding even among their cohort.
From the time they enrolled until the end of the second semester, they had always been called the strongest—unprecedented prodigies.
……But Sia had shown nothing particularly remarkable during the semester.
In fact, when she first enrolled, her grades had been in the lower ranks.
And yet someone like that, in just one year, could stand shoulder to shoulder with overwhelming monsters like Kunking and Heidel?
Of course, there was also Ren, who was famous for having the highest growth rate among the cohort—but even he had not been able to act alone.
……But Sia simply made no sense.
Imagine a baby who had been babbling and crawling on all fours suddenly walking upright and speaking the language of the Empire in just a few days.
It would be impossible not to feel chills.
Moreover, during the Comprehensive Examination, there had been an incident where Kunking was subdued by a fellow student.
Among their cohort, the only one capable of subduing Kunking was Heidel.
But Heidel’s alibi had been proven, meaning he was not the culprit.
……Naturally, that left Sia as the prime suspect.
Yes. Sia had been one of the individuals unable to prove an alibi at the time of the incident during the Comprehensive Examination.
In other words, she might be an enemy within the Academy.
Elined had already intended to narrow down a few suspicious individuals during this meeting, and Sia had been one of the people she planned to name……
But since Sia herself was present here, she could no longer bring it up.
“……Miss Elined, is something wrong?”
Elined had unconsciously been on guard against Sia, but she barely came back to her senses at Ren’s question.
“No. I’m just a little tired.”
She composed her expression and showed a relaxed smile.
……She had not yet found decisive evidence that Sia was an accomplice.
Therefore, she must not reveal any hostility.
That was the conclusion Elined reached.
Everyone was seated at the table in the living room, waiting for the meal.
I had placed the meat in the oven and was now standing in the living room, watching their conversation.
At that moment, Keirin—who had been resting her chin on her hand—looked back and forth between Lapin and the Imperial Princess.
“Hmm……”
Her folded arms carried a meaningful air.
The Imperial Princess spoke, as if puzzled by Keirin’s reaction.
“Keirin, is something bothering you?”
“You know, looking at you like this… somehow, Your Highness and Lapin kind of look alike. Or is it just me?”
“……Pardon?”
“…….”
Lapin and the Imperial Princess exchanged awkward glances.
“Perhaps. At a glance, it could feel that way.”
Ren nodded in agreement.
……Indeed.
Standing side by side, they did share similarities.
Blonde hair, pale skin, and green eyes reminiscent of emeralds—they were all the same.
Of course, unlike the expressive Imperial Princess, Lapin showed almost no expression at all.
“Right? Right? Miss Finzer and Sia too, don’t you think?”
Elined and Sia remained silent.
When neither of them reacted, Keirin turned her gaze toward me.
“Wait… it’s not that, is it? What if Your Highness and Lapin are actually tragic sisters separated at birth?!”
Keirin’s eyes sparkled with excitement.
‘……There was never such a story in the game.’
If such a setting had existed, there was no way I—an ardent fan of <Yggdrasil>—would have forgotten it.
Especially since Lapin had practically been abandoned even by the developers, her origins were something that would likely never be revealed within the game.
How could I possibly know a setting that the development team had neither implemented nor even planned?
Even Lapin herself probably did not remember.
Her background was highly likely to remain forever shrouded in mystery.
‘Even if her backstory were revealed one day, there’s no way she’d turn out to be of imperial blood.’
However, regardless of where the Witch had taken Lapin from before turning her into a chimera, it was clear that her current objective was the body of the Imperial Princess.
The Witch had already made Lapin into a chimera. If she intended to create another, she would likely focus on finding someone with genetic information similar to Lapin’s—a successful case.
For example, a blood relative.
They even shared certain physical traits.
‘Why does Lapin also have green eyes and blonde hair? Is it coincidence? Or is there some connection……?’
It was probably not the case—but if, by some chance, this hypothesis turned out to be true, the repercussions would be enormous. So before the Imperial Princess could respond, I spoke first.
“Hey, Keirin. Even in the Academy, it’s not wise to casually speak of the Imperial bloodline. It could be taken as insulting the Imperial Family.”
“Ah…… is that so?”
“Of course. If you’re not careful, you might even be dragged away for lèse-majesté.”
“Eek……!”
At my words, Keirin’s face instantly turned pale, as if she had imagined something terrifying.
“S-Sorry, Your Highness! I didn’t mean it like that! Please don’t execute me! Anything but execution……!”
“I won’t go as far as execution, Keirin.”
The Imperial Princess said with a faint smile.
I added to Keirin,
“It’s not like Lapin and Her Highness are the only blondes with green eyes in the Academy.”
“Ah, that’s true. Among our cohort, Miss Arowell also has green eyes and blonde hair.”
Ren agreed with me.
“Really? Ugh…… it would’ve been fun if they were long-lost sisters.”
Keirin pouted in disappointment.
……Not long after, the oven chimed.
I placed one plate in front of each person.
It was a perfectly cooked monster wild boar steak.
Hot steam rose in soft curls, filling the room with a rich, savory aroma.
Keirin clasped her hands together, her eyes shining.
“It looks so good! I’ll enjoy it, Young Master~!”
As she pierced the steak with her fork, juices slowly flowed out.
“Nom nom…….”
Keirin and Ren took a bite at the same time.
Fwoosh—!
After only a few chews, their eyes sparkled.
“This meat is incredibly delicious! It doesn’t taste like ordinary pork!”
“The meat itself is excellent, but the sharp pepper aroma and the rich butter…… this harmony is absolutely superb!”
“……You prepared quite well.”
Even after swallowing, the Imperial Princess continued cutting into her steak, apparently pleased with the taste.
Elined, Sia, and Lapin also continued eating without much comment.
“By the way, if we move into this house, does that mean we get to eat your cooking every day, Young Master?”
“Ah, if that’s the case……!”
Ren and Keirin looked at me with hopeful expressions.
“Mr. Villed, could I perhaps also move in……”
“You two are not allowed.”
Ren had barely begun speaking before I cut him off coldly.
I could already guess what they were about to ask.
“I’m only planning to let those who can’t stay in the dormitories move in. You two are doing just fine in the dorms. Stay there.”
In the main story, there were episodes that utilized the setting of main characters like Ren and Keirin living together in the dormitories.
If they moved into my house, those episodes would all be erased. For the sake of the canon storyline, I could not allow that.
“That’s such a shame…….”
“Ugh…… being able to eat food like this every day. Lapin is so lucky……. Oh, Sia is staying here too, right? I heard from Lapin earlier.”
Sia had been sitting quietly. With everyone’s eyes suddenly on her, she looked slightly flustered.
“…….”
She hesitated, unable to answer.
At that moment—
“Ahem.”
Elined cleared her throat and spoke.
“In a few days, we’ll be practicing for the Opposition Training.”
“……Ah, that’s right!”
Ren nodded.
The upcoming Mock War training episode.
In short, the Mock War resembled an AOS game genre.
Defeat the monsters on the map to raise your tactical level or gather spoils, and then destroy the opposing team’s base.
‘We’ll have practice sessions soon…… I suppose I’ll see it firsthand then.’
There would be two weekly practice sessions before the official training began.
It was content I had experienced countless times in the game.
I knew the strategy, of course—but I had no intention of standing out, nor did I want to.
More than anything, countless spectators would be watching. That alone was reason enough to refuse.
“So how do you win?”
Keirin asked, and Elined—who had clearly been waiting to explain—smiled faintly.
“Each side has a throne. The team that destroys the opposing throne wins.”
“That’s it? Just smash it? Doesn’t sound too hard~.”
“The throne is inside a fortified wall, so it won’t be that simple. To break through the gate, you’ll need to defeat monsters placed throughout the terrain and opposing students, while also gathering various items.”
“Hmm, sounds like there’s more to it than I thought.”
Keirin nodded as she chewed.
“Yes. Among the items…… each team will possess one summoning right for a giant golem called ‘Block.’”
“A golem?!”
Keirin’s eyes lit up.
“Yes. I’ve heard it’s larger than the Academy’s male dormitory.”
The Academy dormitories were roughly twenty meters tall. If something of that size moved, the intimidation would be considerable.
“Since the opposing team can steal the golem’s summoning right, we must protect it at all costs. Which means…… if we steal theirs, we gain a strategic advantage.”
Keirin tilted her head.
“Then wouldn’t it be better to just use the golem from the start and sweep everything?”
“No.”
Elined shook her head.
“The golem can only be summoned for two minutes.”
“Two minutes? That’s so short~.”
“But in that short time, its destructive power is immense. If we relied solely on our own strength, it would take…….”
She paused briefly before continuing.
“About five minutes to break the gate. But with the golem…… roughly ten seconds.”
“Ten seconds?!”
It was the very core of strategy.
Calling it overwhelming force would be an understatement.
“Yes. It reduces five minutes to ten seconds. An extraordinary power.”
Ren nodded in understanding.
“If what Miss Elined says is true, then if the golem is stolen by the enemy…… we would be very close to defeat.”
“Then someone really, really strong should hold it, right? Maybe Heidel, Kunking, or me?”
Keirin had spoken without any particular intent, but at the mention of Heidel’s name, Elined briefly bit her lip before nodding.
“That’s highly likely.”
“I hope I get it. Riding a giant golem sounds fun!”
“I’d like to try riding it too. It sounds like it’ll be an enjoyable training.”
“Yeah, I want to experiment with a bunch of things!”
“But if you play around too much, Professor Jennings—who’s famous for being strict—will definitely say something.”
When I looked out the window, the sunset had already fully faded, yet their conversation continued.
They only left the house once night had fallen completely.
It was a bright afternoon.
MacGrim, wearing a white beret, held onto the arm of an elderly gentleman in a suit as she led the way.
Even before reaching my livestock shed, the large building came into view.
As she approached it, MacGrim’s eyes widened.
“Manager, look! That’s it!”
“Ohh……. It’s a splendid house indeed.”
“Yeah, it’s my first time seeing it fully completed too.”
MacGrim and the old gentleman gazed at the house in admiration.
“Did you arrive?”
A familiar voice came from behind.
MacGrim turned around.
“Lord Villed!”
I was standing there, wearing work clothes and holding a shovel.