Chapter 78
“Wait… the Chairman…?”
“Yes. It seemed like only Sia and I were talking earlier. Please share your thoughts too, Wendy.”
Luna stared at Wendy with her chin resting on her hand. Her eyes, visible through her glasses, held a mysterious glow.
Wendy gulped. Now that she had been asked, she couldn’t just brush it off. If she answered poorly, it could raise suspicions from both Luna and Sia. As Wendy agonized between her conscience and friendship, Myohail whispered to her.
‘Now’s the time! Let out all the Count-bashing you’ve been storing up! Go on!’
‘If you keep this up, I’ll block you, Master!’
‘Heh heh heh. Scary, aren’t you? You think you can block Myohail’s telepathy? Go ahead, try it, my disciple!’
‘Ugh… Did you take me as your disciple just to tease me…?’
With even Myohail acting like this, it seemed Wendy had no allies here. After some thought, Wendy finally opened her mouth.
“I…”
To defend or deny the Count? Wendy’s answer was neither.
“I don’t really know…”
“Huh?”
“Um…?”
Luna and Sia reacted to the unexpected answer. Wendy slowly continued her explanation.
“I’ve heard some bad rumors about the Chairman too. But… since I haven’t seen it myself, I can’t say for sure if they’re true…”
Before becoming Tristan’s exclusive maid, Wendy had also believed the rumors. But at least from what she had seen so far, he wasn’t a bad person. His words and actions might be cold, but his heart was more considerate than anyone else’s. That’s why Wendy could only say this.
“After all, they’re just rumors, right? So I think it’s too early to judge. If we observe him a bit more, maybe we’ll see a different side of the Chairman…”
Her last words were based on her own experience. She also hoped that others like Luna and Sia would come to see Tristan’s considerate side.
“Hmm…”
“……”
Silence followed. The two seemed to be digesting Wendy’s words. Eventually, Sia nodded.
“As expected of the top student… That’s an interesting perspective.”
“Huh?”
“It seems we were too hasty. Thanks to Wendy, we’ve gained some clarity.”
“Ah… Sia…? Clarity, you say?!”
“Wendy! I get it now!”
At that moment, Luna, sitting beside her, suddenly grabbed her hand.
“So, Wendy, you’re saying you want to take the initiative and uncover the Chairman’s true nature…! Impressive!”
“Huh!?”
Flustered, Wendy met Luna’s sparkling eyes through her glasses. As if seeing Wendy in a new light, Luna held her hands and made a vow.
“Your willingness to take action! I’ll join you in your noble cause. Together, we can expose the Chairman’s evil side!”
“Did I say anything about an evil side…!?”
“In that case, I’ll stand with Wendy too.”
“Sia…?”
When Wendy looked up, Sia was standing in front of her. Sia placed a hand on Wendy’s shoulder.
“We share a common enemy, so it’s only natural. I’ll help.”
“Common enemy…!? That’s not what I meant…”
But Wendy’s desperate voice was drowned out by the two.
“What we know so far is just the tip of the iceberg. The Chairman must have many hidden secrets. If we uncover them, we can bring him down from the school.”
“Indeed… As Luna said, to defeat the enemy, you must know them. It’s perfect timing. We can freely enter and exit the Chairman’s office.”
“Really? Then maybe we can…”
As Sia and Luna planned their next steps, Wendy was at a loss. Watching this, Myohail muttered softly, as if watching a fire from across the river.
‘Sigh… Our disciple sure has some exhausting friends.’
*
Zap!
A flash of light, followed by a gust of wind. But that was all.
Turning around, someone stood in front of Patrick.
“How dare you threaten my master, big brother.”
Helga, clad in a military coat, held a spark of flame in her hand. She had caught the lightning Patrick had conjured with his magic. Not stopping there, she clenched her fist, and the lightning vanished in her grasp.
Recognizing her, Patrick finally showed a surprised expression.
“…Helga. You’re still alive?”
“Yes. I’m not an easy one to kill.”
“Haha… Is it because you’re a half-breed? Your life sure is tenacious.”
“That’s right. Half-breeds are known for their tough vitality.”
Helga smiled as she looked up at Patrick. Compared to Patrick’s height, Helga was much shorter. But she wasn’t intimidated. Instead, she was calm.
Patrick frowned, clearly annoyed by her composure.
“You’ve grown a lot since I last saw you. Joined Aslan, huh? Must have made you fearless. This isn’t a place for mere soldiers to act recklessly.”
“I was discharged. Now I’m here as the Count’s bodyguard knight.”
“Bodyguard knight…?”
Patrick glanced at me, his expression intrigued.
“Interesting. Then you should have stayed quietly in the background. Why step forward?”
“It’s my duty to protect the Count from threats.”
“Protect? From me?”
Patrick chuckled, amused.
“Cute. You’ve really changed. The little girl who used to be too scared to even look at me now dares to glare at me like that.”
Patrick’s hand, which had been about to pat her head, stopped mid-air. Helga had grabbed his arm.
“You’ve changed too, big brother. You used to seem so big and strong. Or maybe… I’ve just gotten stronger? Hehe…”
Helga covered her mouth as she laughed, but her grip on Patrick’s arm didn’t loosen. Patrick’s arm muscles twitched, but Helga didn’t budge. Their strength was evenly matched.
In the end, it was Patrick who let go. He shook his hand in irritation.
“You’re such a rude brat… Take care of your remaining eye. If you weren’t my sister, I’d have made you blind long ago.”
“Oh my… Are you interested in my remaining eye? Hehe… I’m interested in yours, big brother. Would you mind giving one to your little sister? Or maybe I’ll just take it.”
“Your humor has improved. But…”
Patrick scratched his neck as he spoke.
“Can we talk after you let go of this?”
“No, we can’t.”
A voice as cold as ice came from behind Patrick. Blanshe, who had been hidden by his large frame, revealed herself.
“This is getting tedious.”
“Don’t move. If you keep moving, the thread will dig in.”
Upon closer inspection, a thread thinner than a piano wire was wrapped around Patrick’s neck. It was one of Blanshe’s favorite hidden weapons. As she said, the thread tightened every time Patrick moved.
In a very short moment, Patrick had been caught in a pincer by Helga and Blanshe. Patrick raised his hands in surrender.
“Did the Count hire not just bodyguard knights but professional assassins too? And such a beautiful assassin at that. Impressive.”
“That’s presumptuous of you… I serve the Princess, not the Count.”
“The Princess’s bodyguard?”
At Blanshe’s words, Patrick’s eyebrows raised slightly.
“Then I really don’t understand why you’re doing this to me.”
“Just now, you clearly showed intent to attack by releasing your magic. This is a necessary measure.”
“Intent to attack?”
Patrick responded to Blanshe’s accusation with a confused expression.
“I was just trying to clean up this trash.”
He pointed to where the bear dolls had been. Moments ago, Patrick’s magic had incinerated them without a trace. Some of the dolls still had limbs left, but the rest had been completely burned by the lightning.
“How cruel…”
Bella, still in my arms, sighed as she saw the scene. Thankfully, she wasn’t hurt. But she seemed quite shaken, as she made no move to leave my embrace.
Finally realizing that Bella was frightened, Patrick spoke with a tone of regret.
“I admit it was a bit excessive, but I never intended to harm the Princess or the Count.”
“Hmm.”
Though he said that, Patrick had clearly shown intent to attack. His magic was powerful enough that someone could have been hurt if Helga hadn’t intervened.
But it was all circumstantial. You can’t punish someone based on circumstantial evidence alone. Besides, no one was hurt, so it would have to be let go.
I signaled to Helga and Blanshe. Only then was Patrick freed from their encirclement. Once free, he bowed politely to us.
“My apologies for the unsightly display. Regardless of the reason, I owe you all an apology.”
The old man muttered as he looked at the blackened floor.
“This is quite a mess…”
“Ah… Sorry about that. I’ll cover all the damages, so don’t worry.”
Patrick spoke with an awkward expression. In moments like these, he seemed like a decent young man, but his true nature was twisted.
Patrick, like Tristan, was a man of great possessiveness. But while Tristan desired everything in the world, Patrick’s desires were limited to women. If he took a liking to a woman, he would stop at nothing to have her. His persistence was unmatched. However, his good looks often made women fall for him without much effort.
Aside from his twisted approach to women, Patrick was a capable character. He was recognized for his abilities in the Imperial Navy, rising to the rank of admiral. Even after Tristan overthrew the Imperial Family, Patrick remained in the navy. Tristan acknowledged his competence, but it was also due to Patrick’s smooth talking.
Following the original story, Patrick wasn’t a character who clashed with Tristan. Though they were from different factions, their goals didn’t conflict. Moreover, Patrick never set his sights on someone else’s fiancée.
Perhaps the moment I gave up on Bella, a clash with Patrick was inevitable. But I had no intention of giving Bella up.
She was one of the essential characters for me to clear this game.
But…
Bella was still in my arms.
Wasn’t this enough?
Just as I tried to subtly move away to check on her condition…
“Wait…”
“?”
“My legs feel weak. So just… stay like this for a moment. Five seconds… no, ten seconds…”
Bella spoke in a small voice, only audible to me. I couldn’t see her face, but she seemed still uneasy.
‘Ten seconds… That’s not too hard.’
I stood still as she asked. Meanwhile, Bella, still not calm, buried her face in my chest, breathing heavily. Damp… damp…
Huh? Wait… what did you say…?
Just as I was about to voice my confusion, Bella pulled away from my embrace. She looked refreshed, as if she had just recharged.
“Phew… Fully charged.”
