episode_0201

“Hmm….”

Edan, who expressed a clearly unpleasant mood by stiffening his expression at my mention that we might have to meet with the members of the Gate of Shadows, seemed to dislike the idea immensely.

“He really seems to hate it.”

Strictly speaking, the warrior had never directly harmed Edan before.

Perhaps even the one who had possessed the warrior was now confused about whether Edan was a villain or a hero, judging by Edan’s current state. If the Gate of Shadows had moved believing Edan to be a villain, they should have already warned him to release the seal at least once.

Following the original story, if Edan, warned by the warrior, had fled to the Blackwood Manor with the release, it would have been the storyline of the latter part of the second volume of ‘Luminor Academy’.

Of course, in reality, if such a thing were to happen, Edan would not have fled but rather confronted the warrior, wielding a sword, and perhaps even a fierce battle would have broken out within the academy.

So far, there had been no instances where Edan had been warned or attacked by the Gate of Shadows. Instead, after the previous Kraken subjugation, he had even saved my life by teaching me CPR.

Although Edan had warned me not to approach him, he had repeatedly approached me, creating situations using Seraphine to meet me forcibly, causing indirect trouble by inciting Natalie’s drunken antics. However, it was clear that he had not taken any actions to hold a grudge against me.

Of course, it was understandable that Edan, who was constantly surrounded by women, would be wary of the warrior. If I were in Edan’s position, I wouldn’t want to get too close to him either.

Edan’s guard against being taken away by the warrior was not easily softened.

In fact, in the original game, Rellis was one of the main heroines of ‘Luminor Academy’, so the speculation was not entirely wrong.

“Of course, I am also aware that Edan doesn’t particularly like the warriors of the Gate of Shadows.”

“…I can’t deny that.”

“However, Edan’s current power is not enough to defeat demons or those who have received demonic power. It’s not a story that only applies to Edan, and perhaps even the warrior has not reached that level yet.”

“…Is that so? If you think that way, can you tell me why you think I should tell that warrior?”

“That’s because that warrior is someone who does not submit to status and power and can defeat demons.”

“….”

Currently, the warrior did not have any special noble title. He was only referred to as the ‘Warrior of Another World’ or the ‘Warrior of Prophecy’.

On the other hand, this meant that he was equally free from responsibility and status, making it difficult to easily restrain him even if he caused trouble within and around the academy throughout the year.

It was a good time to remind others to treat the warrior well, as it was a good opportunity for the demons to ally with him.

Of course, the atmosphere that had been created was also due to the fact that the Gate of Shadows had been successful in reducing the number of demons, allowing them to be more free.

In any case, they were also moving towards clearing the game in their own way, and since MacHeart knew about the named bosses in the fourth volume, they would not miss any opportunities to defeat them.

If they understood the sincerity of my proposal, they would be willing to move to help willingly.

“In my position, asking for help from people and gathering them yourself may seem suspicious, but no one would view it as strange for a hero to gather people to defeat demons.”

Let’s assume that Nana Edan asks for help from another powerful figure. One of the country’s key figures seems to be associated with demons, so let’s gather strength to defeat them.

First of all, if the person in question hears something like ‘What did you eat wrong?’ they will most likely reject the request at first, and even if they agree, there is a high possibility of being accused of treason by the country.

But what if the hero, Gyeomjo Seogwi and the woman known as the saint, Serista, gather people?

If there are people who have already participated in demon subjugation with these two, there will be a certain level of trust, and if there are already a hero and a saint, it wouldn’t be too difficult to reveal that MacHeart is associated with demons.

Of course, the mention of a saint was not about the fake saint Serista, but about someone who can actually use the power of a saint.

“…It’s quite complicated.”

Not only killing the opponent but also dealing with the aftermath would require a lot of work.

Therefore, explaining the situation in detail was necessary to get the cooperation of Gyeomjo Seogwi and Serista, and even if Edan didn’t like it, there was a reason to meet them this time.

“Well, since Lelis said so, I have no choice but to meet them at least once.”

“Are you okay with this, Edan?”

“I don’t like his carefree attitude that seems to embrace women from all sides, but at least for now, it seems that his help is needed.”

“Thank you for making a brave decision, Edan.”

“So, how do you plan to arrange the meeting, Lelis? It seems difficult to inform Princess Seraphine since our relationship is not the same as before.”

“I will ask Agnes for help. She is my friend and also works with the hero.”

“Alright, I got it. Then I’ll leave it to Lelis to arrange the meeting.”

Finally, with a warning not to disclose the meeting as it would likely be a secret meeting, Edan’s urgent meeting was concluded.

After several attempts, the moment finally came when the opportunity to meet Gyeomjo Seogwi was created.

***

The day after convincing Edan to meet the hero Gyeomjo Seogwi, through Agnes’ arrangement, they managed to set a time and place for the meeting.

One week later, at the Luminoir Academy Theological Department building.

The meeting place for this gathering was a room on the 5th floor of the massive church that housed the Aurelia Church Academy branch, the Theological Department Education Building, and the Theological Department dormitory.

There were two main reasons for choosing the church as the meeting place among several other locations.

One was that it was a place where hundreds of patients and Aurelia Church believers visited daily, so students from other departments wouldn’t stand out much.

And the other reason was that since Serista resided in the church, there was no need to find a separate meeting place.

Gyeomjo Seogwi, Serista, Edan, myself, and Agnes, who arranged the meeting, gathered in Serista’s dormitory on the 5th floor of the Theological Department building, and I, who organized this meeting, was the first to speak and explain the situation.

“First of all, I would like to thank the hero and the saint for agreeing to meet me at such short notice.”

“Oh, no…. If Lelis requests it, of course we should agree….”

“It’s okay. I didn’t have any plans until the evaluation match anyway. Don’t worry about it, Lelis.”

“…You should be a little more careful. You shouldn’t be overly friendly with my personal maid….”

“Lord Eden, please be careful as the people gathered here today are at my request.”

“…Sorry, Lillith.”

Before the meeting even began, Lillith warned Eden, who was about to create a tense atmosphere, and immediately relayed the story to Gethmyoshaygweot and Cerista.

I explained in detail about the recent attack by Prince Machart and his attempt to target me using the power of the demons.

As a knight, it was necessary to convince Cerista as well. So, I described the events and what I saw that day as detailed as possible, and as the story went on, a shadow slowly crept over the faces of the two.

“Is that really true, Lady Lillith…?”

“…Lady Cerista, I’m sorry, but the title you’ve been using to address me is too formal…”

“Wait, Machart targeted you? Is it about the incident where you cursed at Prince Antonio’s birthday party?”

“Yes. It seems he bore a grudge against me. Luckily, I was able to escape unharmed, but if the same thing happens again, I don’t think I’ll be able to run away easily next time.”

“These days, Blackwood and I have been constantly monitoring you. We don’t know what that guy using the power of demons might do, but it’s better to have two people than one to deal with him.”

“Does this mean the story is changing again? How should we respond to this…?”

“…The story?”

“Oh, it’s nothing. Just talking to myself.”

The knight muttered to himself, bowing his head after hearing Agnes’s additional explanation. Eden was the only one who reacted to his muttering, looking puzzled, while Cerista and Agnes seemed unfazed, as if they were used to it.

From the beginning, whenever Cerista met my eyes, she trembled as if she were a sinner and avoided my gaze. Also, the fact that she changed the title she used to address me to Lady Lillith was strange in many ways.

Of course, there was no time to worry about such reactions now. We needed to discuss how to deal with Machart first.

Gethmyoshaygweot, who seemed to have come up with a suitable scenario based on the information he had heard about the changed scenario, cautiously spoke up.

“To be honest, I had some suspicions as well. I could sense the demonic energy from Prince Machart.”

“Really?”

“It’s suspicious considering his reaction earlier. Maybe he’s just pretending to agree with Lillith’s words?”

“No, that’s not it. I was just being cautious because he’s a prince. I don’t have any certainty, so if I mistakenly think he’s a demon and actually kill the prince, even a knight won’t be able to escape punishment.”

“….”

“I wasn’t the first one to notice, Cerista was. I only started to suspect after hearing the story later. …Right, Cerista?”

“Y-Yes! I, I thought something was off from the moment I first saw Prince Machart! T-There was something strange about his aura, and the feeling was a bit odd…”

…Judging by their reactions, it seemed like they were trying to go with the strategy of ‘we were suspicious from the beginning.’

Seeing Cerista’s reaction and knowing that she still didn’t have a way to detect demonic power, I chose not to point it out and just move on for the sake of the story.

“I see, Sir Gethmyoshaygweot. So, can I understand that you believe in what I’m saying?”

“If it’s related to demons, then of course I have to help. Having a demon spy inside the palace is especially dangerous. If we make a mistake, it could put Seraphine in danger, and leaving a demon informant in the palace could lead to other demons spreading throughout the empire.”

“Thank you, hero.”

“…However, before agreeing to cooperate, there is one last thing I need to confirm.”

“Yes?”

With all attention focused on the two individuals, the next words from the mysterious figure, with their gaze fixed on me, caught everyone’s interest.

“Miss Lillis, would you mind stepping outside with me for a moment?”

“Yes?”

“I want to have a private conversation, just the two of us.”

…They must have noticed, right?