Chapter 148: Cheerleading Squad (4)

At first, Martin thought it would be over quickly.

All he had to do was find someone—whether a teacher or a fellow student—who could support him and ask for help.

Surely, he had built up enough reputation at this school for that.

Outside, justice and common sense still existed.

However, shortly after the chase began, Martin realized the problem wasn’t that simple.

“There! The president is over there!”

“Tsk, damn it…!”

Clicking his tongue, Martin turned and fled in another direction.

Behind him, yet another underclassman was chasing after him with all their might.

Yet another unfamiliar face.

“Just how many of them are there?!”

Martin cried out as he ran.

He had no idea.

He didn’t realize just how much lust could drive people to act with utmost sincerity.

Among the members of Hero Sion’s fan club, there were many who would risk even death if it meant they could see her in a bunny girl outfit.

And Charlotte had contacted every single one of them, positioning them in key locations.

With just that, an inescapable net was completed.

It was as if he had become a rabbit being hunted.

“Huff, huff…!”

After wandering in a maze with no exit for nearly three hours, Martin was finally cornered in a dead-end alley.

Behind him, Charlotte approached with a triumphant smile.

“Hehe, President. How about giving up already? You’ve tried hard enough, haven’t you?

There’s no way to escape from the Bunny Party’s encirclement.

Bunny girls are the will of heaven and the desire of the people.”

Behind Charlotte stood no less than twenty students.

And right in the center of them, the vice president stood proudly, exuding the presence of a great general leading an army.

“If you’re that uncomfortable, let’s compromise. We’ll split the cheering time in half.

In the first half, she wears a normal cheerleader outfit. In the second half, she wears a bunny girl outfit.

How about that?”

“Don’t be ridiculous! You just want to see both, don’t you?!”

“Oh dear, you caught on? What a shame~”

Charlotte chuckled.

Truth be told, escaping from here wasn’t impossible for Martin.

If he simply swung his sword horizontally and released his sword energy, he could take out the lackeys and use the opening to escape.

No matter how skilled Charlotte was, she couldn’t possibly defend an entire alley by herself.

But there was a reason he couldn’t do that.

Sword energy was impossible to control precisely.

If even one student failed to dodge and took a direct hit, it would be a disaster.

And more importantly—

“Pr-President…”

Because right now, Seria, the secretary, was being held captive by Charlotte.

Seeing her trembling in fear, Martin shouted in outrage.

“You! Holding a hostage?! What a cowardly act! Let her go at once! Don’t you feel ashamed as a knight?!”

“Hehehe, revolutions are all about not being picky with means or methods! As long as you win, everything gets justified!”

Charlotte sneered as she lifted Seria’s chest slightly.

The timid girl, suddenly subjected to such harassment, let out a panicked squeak, her face going stiff.

“Now, hands up and surrender! Otherwise, I’ll start groping this cute secretary’s chest without restraint!

You okay with that? You gonna let me steal her chest’s purity?!”

“Kh…!”

Martin clenched his teeth and lowered his head.

Seria cried out in a determined voice.

“I-I’m fine, President! Please, don’t mind me—”

“Oh? And which impertinent breast dares to say such a thing? This one, perhaps?”

“Eek?!”

Charlotte suddenly grabbed Seria’s left breast, making the girl let out a flustered, high-pitched moan.

Despite her small frame, her ample chest stood out even more prominently.

A vein bulged on Martin’s forehead.

“You crazy pervert!!! Stop this nonsense at once!!! There are people watching! What do you think you’re doing?!”

“Kya-haha! If you can’t stand it, then just surrender! Or, if you’re curious how far I’ll go, feel free to stay put and find out…”

Charlotte’s right hand moved suggestively.

She only wiggled her fingers slightly, but everyone watching could tell exactly what she was implying.

She was serious.

She really intended to go through with it.

“Now then! What will our noble and kind-hearted prince choose? The hero’s bunny girl outfit, or the secretary’s chastity?!”

“Kh, damn it…!”

Martin let out a deep sigh.

He saw no way out.

No matter where he looked, there were only obstacles.

Was there really no way to resolve this?

Did he have no choice but to hand over the documents and seal, to give in to their demands?

Did he really have no choice but to surrender and submit to them—

—Secret Technique.

But at that moment.

A familiar voice rang out behind Charlotte.

“Granfil Style, Form 13—[Ventus Tempest]!”

“Uwaaaagh?!”

A sudden, violent gust of wind swept through the alley, catching the students completely off guard and sending them crashing to the side.

Thud! Crash!

The vice president’s subordinates were all slammed against the left wall, screaming in pain.

The unexpected development left Charlotte flustered.

“W-What?! Where did—”

“Granfil Style, Form 1—[Swallow Thrust]!”

“Kh?!”

Charlotte swiftly drew her sword to parry the incoming strike.

Clang! Sparks flew as their blades clashed fiercely.

Furious, she shouted.

“Who dares interfere with our sacred mission?!”

“That’s what I should be asking you, Vice President.”

The unexpected intruder, Lancia de Granfil, let her long black hair flow as she responded coldly.

“What is this vulgar and disgraceful behavior?

Not only are you coercing the president with threats, but you’re also mercilessly harassing an innocent young girl.

Is this what you call the chivalry of Havenia? I’m deeply disappointed.”

“What did you just say?! You little brat…!”

Charlotte’s face twisted in anger.

“Just because you took out some lackeys, you think you can challenge me? You’re just a mere first-year!”

“You seem mistaken. When did I ever say that I would fight you directly?”

“Huh? Then what—”

Charlotte started to question her, but then noticed Lancia’s eyes flick toward something behind her.

Realizing the implication, Charlotte hurriedly turned around.

But it was already too late.

Moving soundlessly behind her, Martin’s friend Elias lowered his voice and murmured:

“Imperial Fist Art—Falling Comet Strike.”

Boom.

A single, heavy blow.

Just one strike.

Yet the force behind it was powerful enough to split a mountain in half.

“Kuhuk…”

Even Charlotte, who prided herself on her superior physique as a half-giant, coughed up blood and collapsed unconscious after taking that punch.

A first-round KO.

“I don’t know what’s going on here, but that smug grin of hers was pissing me off, so I knocked her out.”

Elias turned away, looking down coldly at the students still piled on top of each other.

“I’ll ask just once—does anyone else want to fight? If you challenge me to a duel, I’ll gladly accept, in the name of Elias Fitzhames, Crown Prince of the Espera Empire.”

“……”

The students exchanged uneasy glances before hurriedly scrambling to their feet.

Without even looking back, they fled the scene in an instant.

“Hmph, spineless fools with no conviction. Kingdom folks really are all the same.”

Elias scoffed at their retreat, a sneer tugging at his lips.

Meanwhile, Martin stood there, still in disbelief, muttering to himself.

“W-What the hell? Elias? Lancia? How are you two even here—?”

“I just felt like the campus was unusually noisy today, so I decided to check things out,” Lancia replied, sheathing her sword.

“And when I arrived, I saw that you were being cornered and threatened, Your Highness.

I wasn’t sure what was happening, but I stepped in anyway to stop it… Seems I wasn’t wrong to do so.”

“Yeah, you weren’t. You seriously saved me.”

Martin exhaled in relief.

It wasn’t just a figure of speech—if these two hadn’t arrived, he would’ve surrendered within a minute and been forced to sign the humiliating documents.

No matter what, he couldn’t allow Seria’s innocence to be sacrificed for something so absurd.

Even the hero would understand that.

“Th-Thank you for rescuing me, Lady Lancia…”

“Oh, don’t mention it. It was just my duty as a knight. And since I’m your junior, you don’t have to be so formal, Seria-senpai.”

Lancia smiled warmly, reassuring her.

Meanwhile, Elias stood over Charlotte’s unconscious form, arms crossed, and asked,

“So, what exactly was this woman rebelling for? I heard you two were close enough to speak informally despite your superior-subordinate relationship.

Was our intel wrong? Or did you insult her or something?”

“No, nothing like that…”

Martin let out a tired laugh.

“Actually, look over there—she dropped a photo when she went down. Pick it up and take a look.”

“Hm?”

Elias did as Martin suggested, lifting the fallen photo.

The moment he saw what was in it, his expression twisted in disgust.

“What the hell is this? This lewd, indecent outfit? Is this what’s trendy in Salem these days?”

“Of course not. It’s some so-called ‘bunny girl’ costume. I don’t even know where it originated.

The vice president was dead set on making it the official uniform for the cheerleading squad and forcing the hero to wear it. When I refused, this whole mess broke out.”

“What?”

Elias looked utterly dumbfounded.

It was such a pathetically absurd reason that he was at a loss for words.

With a scoff, he flicked the photo aside.

“Tch. Typical lowborns, playing their filthy little games.

Getting worked up over something so idiotic. I feel like I wasted my time dealing with this nonsense.”

He grumbled irritably before turning away.

“Well, I’m off. It’s almost dinnertime. You should start keeping your subordinates in check.

This is what happens when you’re too nice to them—they start thinking they can step all over you.”

“Y-Yeah… I’ll think about it. Anyway, thanks for the help today.”

“If you’re grateful, buy me a meal sometime.”

With that, Elias left without looking back.

Now, only Martin, Seria, and Lancia remained in the alley.

“What kind of outfit is it, exactly…?”

Curious, Lancia picked up the photo Elias had tossed aside.

And then—

“?!?!?!?!”

Her face instantly turned bright red.

What… What is this?

This… counts as clothing?!

“Th-They were planning to make Lady Sion wear this?!”

“That’s what I’m saying. They’re all out of their minds.”

Martin sighed heavily, sheathing his sword.

He glanced at the sky in thought, then pulled out the documents and his seal, handing them to Lancia.

“Lancia, can I ask you for a favor?”

“Y-Yes?! What is it?!”

“No need to be so nervous, it’s simple. Just hold onto these papers and my seal for today.

After running for three hours straight, I’m too exhausted to deal with anything else.

I just want to go back to my room and rest.”

Martin’s voice was thick with fatigue.

He had already spent the entire morning buried in paperwork, and now, after being chased around campus until sundown, the physical exhaustion had hit him like a brick.

All he wanted was to take a bath, collapse onto his bed, and sleep as soon as possible.

“Oh, and you can just rip up the documents on your way back. They’ll make me rewrite them anyway.

Just don’t let the seal fall into the wrong hands. Can you do that?”

“Y-Yes…!”

Lancia, her face still flushed, nodded slowly.

She glanced between the photo and the documents, then hesitated before asking,

“If… If this document gets stamped and submitted to the teachers…”

“Then Lady Sion will be forced to wear that shameless outfit and perform five different cheer routines in it. That absolutely cannot happen.”

“You agree, right, Lancia?”

“…….”

Lancia stared blankly at the photo in her hands.

The revealing leotard. The stockings. The bunny ears.

This was what her mentor would be wearing…?

“Lancia?”

“…Ah, yes!”

She jolted in surprise, quickly responding.

Martin tilted his head.

“Are you okay? Are you feeling exhausted too? Would it be better if I asked someone else?”

“N-No! I’m in perfect condition! Don’t worry about me!”

“…Really?”

Martin still seemed doubtful.

She didn’t look great—her breathing was heavy, and her face was red.

“You really don’t have to push yourself. If it’s too much, I could just lock it in my room’s safe—”

“No! It’s really fine! Don’t worry about it! Seriously!”

Lancia hastily reassured him, repeating herself several times, her voice laced with an odd desperation.

Martin hesitated for a moment before nodding.

If she was this insistent, it would be rude to doubt her.

Besides, she seemed motivated enough.

And skill-wise, there was no need for concern.

Other than Sion, she was undoubtedly the strongest swordsman in the first year.

She could easily handle any small fries that came after the seal.

Leaving it in his room might get it stolen—but entrusting it to someone reliable like her?

A far safer option.

“I got it. Then I’ll leave it to you. If anything happens, come find me or contact me with communication magic.”

“Y-Yes… I will… Please rest well…”

Lancia’s voice trailed off into a whisper.

She watched Martin’s retreating figure, following him with her eyes until he completely disappeared.

And the moment he was gone—

“…..”

Lancia carefully unfolded the document and began reading through it.

Meticulously. Word for word. Without missing a single detail.

A few moments later, her eyes stopped on a particular sentence.

—‘The cheer squad will practice and perform five routines while dressed in bunny girl costumes.’

“……………….”

Gulp.

In the now-empty alleyway, the sound of someone swallowing hard echoed faintly.

One hour later—

The cheer squad’s activity proposal was officially approved.