NOVEL NEXT Chapter 135
The sky was filled with dark clouds, and in District 4’s entrance to the Valley of Death, angry flames leapt between the grim rocks.
When I first arrived at Mystic Island, it was an unthinkable, veiled interior of the island.
And the princess, Melissa de Prominence, stood in front, lost in anxious thoughts while gazing at Caeran’s back.
‘Something feels off…’
It was only the second day of the trials, yet they had already reached District 4.
The reason for such smooth progress was simple.
They hadn’t faced a single encounter with demon creatures along the way.
Naturally, they hadn’t met any other students either.
‘Surely, the academy didn’t intend for this to happen…’
Melissa’s unease was apparent, and it piqued the interest of the blonde knight, Aveline Valantes.
“Why so troubled, Princess Melissa?”
“Well… Is there something wrong with the selection trials themselves?”
–Pause.
–!
At her words, Caeran, who hadn’t stopped for a moment, suddenly halted.
“What do you mean, Melissa?”
“…”
Today, for the first time, he turned around and flashed a smile.
It was a bit eerie to Melissa but also oddly comforting.
“We haven’t seen any students or demon creatures while coming this far, have we? I’m sure Caeran knows that combat is necessary for evaluation points…”
“Hmm, indeed. But didn’t they say the first party to reach the Valley of Death would get bonus points?”
“That’s true…”
“Hmm, you seem to worry more than I thought, Melissa? Actually, I can sense demon creatures. So, I chose the safest path to avoid battles.”
“Oooh, as expected of you, Caeran!”
“Well, I might have been a bit harsh yesterday… but anyhow, it’s because you two followed me well that we’ve managed to proceed this smoothly.”
“Caeran…”
Surprised by Caeran’s sudden praise, Melissa smiled faintly, but it was still hard to shake off her fear.
–Creeeak. Creeeak.
This place had an atmosphere so eerie it felt as if they had sliced a piece right out of Pandemonium.
“Should we take a break here?”
“Yeah.”
“Ah, this is exhausting. How about you, Princess Melissa? Your burden seems lighter.”
“…What? But I’m using Enchant magic…!”
As the two women took a seat on the rocks to catch their breath, Caeran muttered to himself.
‘What a handful…’
Anyway, soon both would become demon creatures.
In exact terms, there were two choices: either die at his hands or become demon creatures.
‘Well, they’re not bad vessels overall.’
They were from quite reputable families within the Empire, and if he took them as his subordinates, there would be massive internal strife among humans.
So… to ease their suspicions, he needed to be just a bit more patient and comforting right now.
Caeran handed both of them a water bottle and said, “We all need to achieve high scores on this exam, right?”
“Yeah. I can’t let the duchy down.”
“Same here. I’ve already received harsh words from my father… I can’t be a burden to my older brothers anymore!”
“So let’s all do our best.”
“Right, we need to power through!”
“Understood!”
‘Kick. What foolish girls.’
Too easy to handle.
When a person is focused on a single goal, they tend to miss everything around them.
‘Maybe I should set this dimwitted knight up for a fall too.’
Caeran placed his hand on Aveline’s shoulder and looked down at her from an angle.
“Speaking of which, Aveline, I need a favor from you.”
“What is it?”
“Remember? The contract I made with Melissa yesterday…”
That was when…
–Clank. Clank.
In this dimly lit place, the heavy sounds of armor echoed as one of the academy’s guardians and the head of the Marksman division, Violet, appeared.
“You… How did you get here?”
“…”
“Violet!”
A look of relief appeared on Melissa’s face.
As Caeran stayed silent, the tall male guardian spoke to him in a low tone.
“I’m sorry, but the selection trials are currently on hold. We will be waiting here until we receive new communications from the academy, so cooperate with us.”
“W-What? The trials are on hold…?”
“Caeran?!”
In an instant, both Melissa and Aveline turned their gaze towards Caeran.
…
When all their gazes crossed, the red-haired man was nowhere to be seen.
–Whoooosh!
–!
Instead, a sudden black whirlwind began to blow.
“W-What?!”
“?!”
–Thunk.
The bizarre phenomenon occurred in an instant.
–?
When everything returned to normal…
“What the hell are you talking about?”
“Ugh… Ah… ugh….”
–Thud.
Just as Caeran finished speaking, the head of the guardian fell with a thud.
*
With the black magic not yet completely dissipated as Cerberus fell, I reunited with Liris after a long time.
Liris Larochelle.
She was the villain from the early part of Hwanseangaka, the one who tried to turn me into a rag through an elixir called the Demon’s Whisper.
‘Lev Denec, a third-rate villain, exists for that purpose.’
Technically, he was meant to awaken Edwin’s executioner.
Of course, thanks to her, I was able to grow rapidly by defeating Andras while absorbing his powers.
‘Liris…’
In fact, according to the canon of Hwanseangyongsa, Liris would reap continuous benefits through backdoor dealings in the student council but eventually got caught by Edwin and her corrupt activities were exposed.
Afterward, she would face expulsion and consequently get her tail cut by Caeran, leaving her in a weakened mental state.
In her moment of despair, Liris would attempt to mentally dominate Aria due to her desire for revenge against Edwin, only to face Edwin’s teaching once again.
Then, just as Liris thought she’d lost everything and considered giving up on life, Edwin would extend his hand to her.
This episode would lead to Liris being inspired by Edwin and forging a holy sword for him.
Starting as a villain, she becomes a helper character who aids Edwin in the end.
‘Originally, this would be correct, but…’
Since I intervened, the story took a slight turn.
She used the mental domination that was meant for Aria on me.
And I took advantage of this to coast through Trial 2.
In other words, the connection with Edwin was completely severed.
…
“Speak.”
With urgency at hand, and a long way to go, I simply required her to relay the message.
Liris smiled softly and tapped her finger to her lips.
“Hmm~, actually, I have nothing to say to you….”
“?”
Then she pointed behind me.
“I want to talk to that girl?”
“…!”
The one she pointed at wasn’t me, but Aria.
‘I thought she’d be mad and lash out.’
This was unexpected.
Up until now, her obsession with me was because she believed I was a demon.
Thus, I thought she’d come to doubt me after witnessing me defeat the demon creature, Cerberus.
Knowing the affair between Aria and Liris, I offered her a different proposition.
“Wouldn’t you want to ask me instead? You probably have many questions, right?”
“Well… maybe? I thought the virgin junior was more likely to have questions for me.”
“…”
With my silence, Liris nodded and continued.
“Alright. If you don’t want to hear anything, I’ll withdraw….”
“…I’ll listen.”
“…!”
At that moment, Aria appeared between us.
*
Aria remembered the relationship between Lev Denec and Liris Larochelle.
Initially, she was the student council president, and he was an interim member of the council. When Lev lost against Edwin in their duel, the council expelled him, seemingly bringing their relationship to an end.
The following events were unforgettable, even if she wished to forget them.
The troublemaker Lev Denec, who had been half-mad, began to harass the lower students and eventually confessed to Melissa as well.
However, circumstances turned upside down right after that confession.
In a surprising twist, Liris, who was in a position of authority, suddenly approached Lev, saying,
—“So please save me… turn me into a demon.”
And she began presenting nonsensical circumstances to him.
—Slap!
—“Snap out of it, man!”
Lev responded by slapping her back into reality.
That was all Aria saw.
‘But why to me…?’
Clearly, her memory of conversing with Liris was only of her asking if this classroom was where Lev Denec was.
…
“Should be good enough now?”
Liris led Aria a bit away from the group.
Students who hadn’t fled quietly packed up their belongings.
It resembled a wartime scene.
“…You said you had something to say to me?”
“There’s no need to be cautious. Junior.”
Liris said this and whispered as she smiled.
“Do you trust Lev Denec?”
“…”
It was ambiguous to ask if she trusted him in the current situation.
If she fully trusted him, there would be no need to cast surveillance magic.
Furthermore, this woman gave off an uncomfortable vibe.
Aria pondered her answer and avoided.
“Well, I don’t think I’m obligated to answer that.”
“Oh? That’s unexpected. I thought a cute junior would naturally trust Lev…”
“We’re in the same party. I think that adequately answers your question.”
“How cold~.”
“I refuse any form of divisive talk…”
Liris twirled in front of Aria and then said one more thing.
“Correct. It is divisive.”
“Pardon?”
“Don’t fully trust him.”
“….”
“I was deceived, you know.”
“Lev deceived you…?”
“Yeah, I thought he was definitely the demon who would embrace me…”
Liris hugged herself and released a hot breath before putting on a serious face.
“You know… I regret not choosing Caeran Hiss…”
“…”
No longer surprised by the suspicion around Lev Denec was to be expected.
Selena had also warned Aria about that very point.
Seeing no need to continue the conversation, Aria turned to leave.
“If you’ve said all you wanted, I’ll excuse myself.”
“Wait…!”
Liris called out to the quickly departing Aria and pulled something from her bosom.
“So here, I’ll give this to you.”
“…? ”
What she handed over was none other than a small dagger.
It was a dagger with a little crooked shape like a black feather.
Though it didn’t look extravagant, it certainly wasn’t ordinary.
The beautiful blade emanated an ominous dark aura, making it hesitant to touch.
Aria frowned slightly and asked Liris.
“I’m a priest. I don’t handle weapons…”
“I’m sure there will be a time you’ll need it.”
“…I don’t really understand what you mean.”
In that moment, Liris clicked her tongue in disappointment.
‘Is it her virginity making her so stiff?’
She was doing everything for her, yet why was she being so resistant?
At least in Liris’s thoughts, Lev Denec.
Even from the last battle she saw, he had become too strong.
She wanted nothing more than to take her revenge on him for deceiving her, but she couldn’t.
Yet this cute girl might not know.
Aria Bluebell. She seemed to be the only one who couldn’t completely trust Lev Denec in their party.
‘Even while Lev junior disrupted my plans… so please, kill him in my place.’
As she observed Aria’s still apprehensive expression, Liris decided to bring out a fact she had noticed.
“Cute junior. You placed surveillance magic on Lev, didn’t you?”
“!”
In that moment, Aria’s eyes trembled as she was caught.
Liris had noticed due to a coincidence, not because of a sharp insight or any magical abilities.
Thud.
Taking that opportunity, Liris pressed the dagger into Aria’s hand.
“I hope you find no need for it.”
“….”
Liris! We need to head back too!
Dailen’s voice echoed from a distance, and Liris gently reassured Aria.
“If you really trust him.”
Leaving behind only that remark, Liris lightly turned on her heel.