Chapter 207: The Fan Driven by Madness (2)

Fortunately, thanks to the superhuman patience she had honed during her time as the Demon King, Sion was able to keep her outward composure. However, even so, she could not stop the fundamental fear that was welling up inside her.

Is this what they call “true madness”? It’s no joke—it’s genuinely terrifying.

‘Good thing that girl Exia didn’t hear this. She’s sprawled out asleep again.’

Better turn her back into a sword quickly once she wakes up—before Marianne starts collecting the drool dripping from her mouth to use as seasoning.

As Sion thought this and sipped her coffee, she suddenly noticed something strange.

‘Huh? Wait a minute. Now that I think about it, why isn’t Marianne making a fuss even though Exia is sleeping in the same bed with a girl?

Based on her usual patterns, this is the kind of situation where she’d be spraying nosebleeds like a fountain, right?’

Of course, to avoid any misunderstanding, it must be clarified: there is absolutely no lewd meaning behind them sleeping together.

It’s simply because Exia enjoys the soft, fluffy feel of a mattress, so Sion kept her in human form while indoors.

In fact, the fact that Sion suggested it without hesitation and Exia didn’t feel the slightest embarrassment proves that there were no romantic feelings between them.

However, that’s only from Sion’s perspective. From Marianne’s point of view, it could be a completely different matter.

Considering her astonishing ability to jump to extreme conclusions, if she ever found out that the two of them had been sharing a bed—for three whole months, no less—there would be a massive uproar.

Honestly, it wouldn’t even be surprising if she died of excessive blood loss.

Yet right now, Marianne showed no reaction whatsoever to this situation. No, she didn’t even seem to notice it was something to be concerned about. Why?

Sion’s question was soon answered.

“Come on, Lady Exia. It’s morning. Please wake up.”

“……..!”

Marianne said as she tapped the sword body leaning against the wall, and Sion caught her breath.

Needless to say, that was a fake Exia—a copy she had prepared through mana before entering the academy.

Whenever Exia took human form, Sion made sure to keep the sword replica nearby so no one would even suspect that they were the same being.

The fact that Marianne was talking to the fake meant—

‘As expected, she doesn’t know that Iris and Exia are the same person!’

Sion applauded inwardly.

It was understandable.

Exia had only appeared in human form for about two to three years, and even then, mostly as a member of the expedition team.

There hadn’t been much opportunity—or time—to leave behind portraits or records.

After the expedition ended, Exia had some free time, but she spent it moping in sword form over the deaths of her comrades, so again, no records were made.

Long-lived species are troublesome in that way. When they get depressed, it tends to last 10 or 20 years by default.

Especially with Exia’s childish personality, it would have been even harder for her to shake off her grief.

Because of these complicated circumstances, very little information about Exia’s human form had survived into the present era.

At most, all that was known was a vague image: “an innocent and lively blonde girl.”

And that description was so generic you could find dozens of matches anywhere in the world, leaving very little evidence to link Iris and Exia together.

Knowing this, Sion could afford to bluff. If it hadn’t been the case, she would have transformed Exia into a completely different appearance instead.

Marianne was no exception to the general ignorance, and so she naturally approached the fake Exia and started talking to it.

Given this, there was only one course of action for Sion, now that she had realized the situation:

‘Hide it! I absolutely must hide the fact that Exia can become human!’

If anyone were to start digging into Iris’s origins, she’d have to start explaining from the whole Beryl incident onward, and that was way more of a headache than Sion wanted to deal with.

No, more than that, she simply didn’t want Marianne, of all people, to start digging. No one else would be as troublesome.

“Hmm, she’s not waking up. Was she that tired? She’s not even responding,” Marianne said.

“Considering what’s happened recently, it’s not surprising.”

Including everything you did, Sion silently added but swallowed the words.

“It’s a rare holiday—let’s just let her sleep until noon. If you carry her around, she’ll wake up on her own eventually. Whether she’s awake or asleep doesn’t change the fact that you can swing her around just fine, so there’s no problem.”

“Really? Okay then.”

Marianne nodded.

Good. Now, if they could just leave the room like this, everything would be fine—

“Then, Iris! Wake up! It’s morning!”

“Uwah?!!”

Sion rushed forward and blocked Marianne’s way, shouting in a voice that clearly betrayed her panic.

“I-Iris is the type who likes to sleep in on weekends! Please don’t wake her up, just let her be!”

“Oh, really?”

“Of course! If you forcibly try to wake her, she’ll throw a tantrum, so it’s better to leave her alone. Ahem.”

Cold sweat trickled down the back of Sion’s neck.

If Exia woke up now, things would get messy fast. Given her inability to lie, there was a very high chance she’d blow Sion’s cover completely.

And the resulting disaster was something Sion didn’t even want to imagine.

“Come on, Marianne, let’s just go already. No need to make a fuss around someone who’s sleeping, right?”

“Hmm.”

However, despite Sion’s urging, Marianne remained rooted to the spot, as if something was still bothering her.

She stared intently at the sleeping Exia for a moment—then finally opened her mouth.

“But, Sir Sien, what kind of relationship do you have with this child?”

“Uh, huh?!”

In that moment, Sion’s heart dropped heavily.

What does she mean by “what kind of relationship”? Could it be that she’s realized the truth?

No, not yet. If she had, that one would not be maintaining her composure like that. She could be sure of it.
Stay calm. There’s no need to panic just yet.

“What kind of relationship, you ask? As I said before, it’s simply a childhood friend relationship. She was specially allowed in as a maid to serve as a companion…”

“A childhood friend? Really?”

“Y-yeah… but… what’s wrong with that? Are you saying Ye can’t have a childhood friend?”

At Sion’s words, Marianne crossed her arms.

She then glared at the sleeping Exia with a gaze full of hostility and said, “That’s not it, but honestly, it’s a bit much.

Barging into the precious honeymoon suite of Sir Sien and Lady Exia without any sense, and calmly taking up space in the bed…

What’s the point of her existence, really? I’ve never seen her work like a proper maid. Isn’t this more like just freeloading at this point?”

“Ah…”

Only then did Sion grasp the situation.

Indeed, from the perspective of “Iris ≠ Exia,” Iris must seem like nothing more than a thorn in the eye. She practically clings to Sion without doing anything of actual value.

Especially for Marianne, she would only see Iris as an obstacle to the love between Sien and Exia. Even if the fundamental premise wasn’t true.

“Why is it that you favor this child so much, Sir Sien?

Even becoming close is one thing, but allowing exceptions for her to attend school with you, or sharing a room — isn’t that crossing the line a bit too much? Especially the latter.”

“Watch your words.”

Sion said sternly, pretending to be angry. (Of course, it was an act.)

“Whom Ye chooses to be close to is Ye’s own business, not yours to interfere with. You should bear in mind that it is you who are crossing the line right now.

Besides, Exia herself has accepted Iris’s presence. There’s no reason for you to have any say in it.”

“Ugh… is that so…”

Marianne drooped her head in dismay, looking resentful at being scolded by the person she admired.

She glanced at Exia and asked hesitantly,

“Does that child know that the Hero is actually you, Sir Sien, or not?”

“…She doesn’t know. There’s no benefit in telling her.”

At first, Sion considered saying she knew, but decided otherwise — if she said that, Marianne might start probing Iris about “Sien.”

It was better to minimize any possibility of them connecting the dots.

Making a quick decision, Sion firmly nailed it down to prevent any further problems.

“So make sure to be cautious with your words around Iris as well. Never reveal that Ye is the Demon King, and treat Ye only as the Hero. Understood?”

“Yes, understood.”

Marianne nodded solemnly.

Good. That should do it. Now Marianne wouldn’t act like a crazed fan whenever Exia was around, and could serve as a kind of safeguard.

This was truly a blessing in disguise, Sion thought, smiling in satisfaction.

However, at that moment…

“Haah… Sien-sii…”

Suddenly, Exia turned over in her sleep, and started sleep-talking with a blissful expression.

“Hehehe… I can’t eat that much… just a little bit is fine… hehehe…”

“”…………””

The room was instantly filled with deep silence.

With her pupils trembling, Marianne said in a shaky voice, “W-what did she just say…? ‘Sien-si’…?”

“I-it’s a misunderstanding!!!!”

Sion shouted.

“T-that was just a mispronunciation! Or maybe she’s dreaming about Sien! She’s a fan of Lier’s Heroic Tales too, so that could totally happen! Ahaha, ahahaha…”

Sion desperately tried to cover it up.

It was a ridiculous excuse, but she had no choice but to go with it — she had already declared that Iris didn’t know Sion’s true identity.

However, to her despair, Exia then drove the final nail in with her next words:

“If you’re grateful, you should treat me better normally too… It’s all thanks to me that you can keep pretending to be the Hero, you know… heehee…”

“Ya know? Right? You’re lacking respect for the Holy Sword, that’s what it is… respect…”

“”……………..””

It was over.

There was no salvaging this situation, no matter what excuse she tried.

Sion accepted her fate and surrendered to ruin.

That morning, Anatolia’s emergency room admitted one fainted patient at the crack of dawn.