NOVEL NEXT chapter 32
32 – Leaf-1
“Um, is that him?”
“It’s true. I saw it clearly. At that time, even the audience… It wasn’t an uproar.”
Became famous. It was expected, but I couldn’t just accept it.
Annoying things have increased. The number of eyes looking at me increased.
‘Huh…’
Even when I stopped the Behemoth, the way people looked at me was ‘the warlock next to Claire.’
Unless you are a well-informed person, you would not have known that it was a Behemoth. Whatever the reason, it was unacceptable for such a monster to appear at the Academy.
The instructors desperately tried to hide that fact, and they also wanted to hide from me and Claire the fact that the monster that appeared at that time was Behemoth.
I felt a little bad because there was no financial compensation for something like that, but anyway.
“Lady Katharine… Wasn’t she the strongest warlock?”
“That’s right. Even if Claire was with us-“
So, the attention I received then and the attention I am receiving now were bound to be very different.
Compared to a monster whose form is unknown, Katarin had accumulated quite a bit of notoriety.
Despite her age, she is a woman who has already been through several battlefields. Even those who despised or ridiculed her had no doubts about her power, only demanding that she pay for her evil deeds.
And I fought her and won. Using the power of a warlock.
‘There’s still some time left until the finals…’
Anyway, I had no intention of winning in a fight with the princess. After defeating a few ‘enemies that can be defeated’ according to the match-up, I will abstain from the fight with the princess.
So, you have to do what you can now.
“Hello?”
When I opened the door and entered, I could see a blonde female knight sitting in front of a large desk.
“Ah, I see you came. Thank you. I have something to talk about, so please sit down.”
With a soft smile, she took the kettle that had been placed on one side of the student council room.
“Are you boiling it yourself?”
“That’s right.”
“You could have another student do it.”
She poured two cups of tea with her elegant posture and responded with her brilliant smile.
“Shamefully, this body has become accustomed to the tea served by the imperial family.”
Her elegant scent tickled her nose.
Refreshing yet profound. It’s luxurious, but doesn’t show it off.
“If the driver’s skills are even slightly inexperienced, I tend to frown without even realizing it. It’s a lack of skill. It’s funny.”
“I understand.”
“I didn’t bring this up to seek understanding. On the battlefield, you gulped down water that was even dirtier than this, but then you frowned at something that was a little more concerned. It’s my immaturity that needs to be shaved off.”
The feel of the tea on my tongue was beautiful.
I didn’t think it was perfect. Because I have never tried this tea and have no knowledge of what is ‘perfect’.
But this was definitely a new, attractive, and flavorful car.
To the point where I think that anyone who has never felt this sensation will not understand what I felt, no matter what words I use to explain it.
“It’s not a great skill, but maybe because I brewed the tea myself, I couldn’t help but be generous with the tea without realizing it. What do you think?”
“It’s the best. This is definitely the princess’s car.”
“Thank you for saying that. But, how can the beautiful scent of this tea be mine alone?”
The princess closed her eyes and savored the scent of the tea she poured.
“It’s silver tea, made from tea leaves picked from Silverfall Village. It’s a product made by good people who grew up in good soil.”
“It’s such a precious thing…”
Even in the game, it was a valuable item that could lower the stress levels of party members just by drinking it once.
The best tea leaves that even narcotic drugs that must be taken despite all kinds of side effects cannot surpass the performance of a cup of this tea.
“Everything in the empire is used for me. My power, dignity, honor, appearance, wealth. There is nothing that does not belong to the empire, and I must use it again for the empire.”
Her eyes met mine.
“You deserve it.”
After taking a sip of tea, Yurishia put down the teacup.
Her clear eyes were looking at me.
“Before we start talking in earnest… I should say this first.”
“What… do you mean?”
“Thank you.”
She lowered her head.
This is the princess’s hill. Even though it was an empty space without other people, its value was enormous.
“For being alive, even though I couldn’t protect you… even though you were caught up in a conspiracy that was probably directed at me, for coming back to life and seeing my face. I’m truly grateful.”
“It is not something for the princess to blame herself for.”
“There is nothing on this earth that I don’t have to blame myself for.”
I felt a heavy sense of responsibility weighing down on the princess’s shoulders. I know. She was that kind of person originally.
“It’s okay, really. She knows that the princess did her best.”
“I see. Then, now we can get to the main point.”
The princess finally relaxed her frozen face and regained her smile.
“First of all, I want to congratulate you on your victory.”
“It wasn’t that big of a deal.”
“If the subjects had heard of the humility you have just now, they would have definitely tried to kill you. That victory alone is enough to make Abama remember your name.”
Her hand was gently placed on my hand, which was lying face down on the desk.
“Be proud. You have achieved something that no other human in the empire has been able to accomplish… The defeat of Lady Erst Catherine with your own hands.”
It was so soft that it was hard to believe it was someone who used a sword.
“So, there is something I would like to suggest.”
“What is it?”
“Would you like to join the student council?”
I was thinking about making this suggestion. But she never expected that the princess herself would make the proposal in such a good atmosphere.
“It’s sudden. But, I don’t know if I’m qualified to enter here…”
The academy’s student council was no different from a small-scale national union.
The princess had just entered school and naturally took the position of student president. She was either an ordinary officer or a clerk, or a member of a princess, prince, or duke of any country.
This is the student council that must negotiate with instructors and control students. Even if there are executives who hold power ‘within the academy’, if their status is low, students will not listen to them.
“Actually… There is something like a secret quota system. There is pressure coming from the instructors. The question is why they don’t bring a warlock into the student council.”
“…I see.”
The student council is a union, and naturally it had no choice but to become a symbol of integration.
However, the princess was a person who had some distance from such values. Luckily, I seem to be one of her ‘exceptions’, but I basically hate warlocks.
‘First of all, this is going according to plan…’
A trustworthy warlock, a safe warlock.
A warlock who can claim the title of not discriminating against warlocks, but is unlikely to cause any problems.
I was glad to be in that position, it was not something I could refuse.
“It’s an honor. It’s not enough, but I’ll do my best.”
“Thank you.”
The teacup exposed its bottom. However, it seemed like her story wasn’t over yet.
“You will go through the application process. We will take care of all the troublesome stuff here, so you don’t have to worry.”
“I understand.”
“And… I didn’t call you to take on this task, but there is something that needs to be done.”
I quickly turned my head around and quickly analyzed my position and the princess’s mind.
A few events came to mind.
“Recently, I heard that some black magician cadets are distributing dangerous drugs.”
“Drugs… you mean?”
It’s not a strange thing. Warlocks naturally enjoy the forbidden, and are much more easily swayed by their desires than others.
It is a place where numerous warlocks gather together. There will be warlocks who have been using drugs for a long time, and there will also be cadets who are curious after seeing other warlocks using drugs.
“If it’s distribution, things will get a little bigger.”
“That’s right. If the cadets were just consumers, it would be enough to cut off external distribution channels, but…”
It’s not that great of an event. All you have to do is defeat a few ‘evil warlocks’, confiscate the drugs, punish those involved, and gain honor.
“If things got a little bigger, the student council was planning to intervene in earnest. Of course, the professors will cooperate, but there are things that students have to deal with among themselves.”
“I know.”
Each professor has his or her own duties. Those who were busy teaching students could not be asked to perform police duties.
However, when an investigation team is officially brought in, things become too big. The Academy’s trust has already been shaken, and they will want to resolve this incident as quietly as possible.
“You are a warlock. It will be easy to confirm the truth of the incident and find out who the real culprit is. There will be less suspicion.”
“It will be so.”
Catherine’s dominance weakened. Warlocks tended to worship the strong, and they slowly began to respect me.
“I’ll try it.”
“Thank you.”
She held my hand again. I felt a warm feeling.
He is a good person. He is a good person. Despite this, I couldn’t smile without thinking.
Because she knew very well what kind of person she was.