Chapter 230

(TLN: somehow in my documents this chapter was replaced by another one sorry about that i fixed it)

Lepheria Academy students weren’t weak.

The reputation of the continent’s best academy wasn’t for nothing.

The reason they seemed weak now was that they were scattered and isolated due to the sudden turn of events.

It was like an army whose units had been fragmented and dispersed.

They couldn’t exert their full strength because they lacked cohesion.

But if that problem could be solved,

They were more than capable of fighting back against the vampires and ghosts, even if the Bone Dragons and Death Knights were a different story.

Zombies and skeletons were even less of a threat.

And that was the role I intended to play.

That’s why I was moving right now.

“Leon, take the left side. Senior Amy, please provide first aid to any injured.”

“Understood.”

“Got it.”

The Lightning Spear and the Blessing of the Baguette.

A good combination.

As our forces grew, it was important to deploy them quickly and efficiently.

That was the only way to save more people.

And that was also my role.

I was the de facto leader, even without an official title.

“Bain and Mosley, go to the right. Senior Diana, I’ll leave the injured to you as well.”

This time, it was newly acquired reinforcements.

They were students who had joined the Newspaper Club after being smitten by Diana’s beauty when she had taken off her glasses at the ball.

They weren’t main characters like Leon, but they were still second-year Royals from the Golden Generation, so their skills were undeniable.

Normally, they wouldn’t listen to me, but with Diana by their side, they were putty in my hands.

This was how you utilized connections.

“Aye, aye.”

“Don’t worry about a thing.”

“I’ll take good care of them, junior.”

Diana winked and moved out.

No, she shouldn’t be doing that here.

I could see Bain and Mosley glaring at me with envy and jealousy.

“What are you guys doing? We have to hurry.”

They reluctantly followed Diana.

Geez.

I chuckled.

And then I said,

“Let’s go straight ahead.”

I led the remaining members forward, towards those who needed our help.

* * *

Ugh, how could this be?

Why was this happening?

Alfred’s face, the half not covered by his mask, contorted in frustration.

At first, Max and his group had seemed insignificant.

The vampires were numerous, and they were just a handful.

But they had steadily chipped away at the vampires’ numbers, growing stronger with each victory, and now they were sweeping through the undead like a whirlwind.

It was as if a gentle breeze had transformed into a raging storm, obliterating everything in its path.

He couldn’t understand it.

They should have been dead by now if they had made even a single mistake.

But… how could they take such risks and make such decisions?

It was the judgment of a commoner.

Something a noble like him, born with a predetermined path to royalty, should never do.

Yes, I’m the one who’s right.

I’m the one who made the wise decision!

But.

As if to mock his inner cries, the other students spoke hesitantly.

“Um, Alfred. Shouldn’t we go down there too?”

“Y-Yeah. I think it would be better…”

“What?”

Alfred’s eyes narrowed dangerously.

The students flinched but continued.

“Th-The situation seems better over there.”

“R-Right. It’s not good for us to be isolated up here…”

Alfred’s cheeks twitched.

They were such fickle creatures.

They had been the ones who had criticized Leon for wanting to leave.

They had praised him for establishing a strong defense here, claiming it was the best decision and all thanks to him.

But now they were changing their tune?

Ugh, these commoners.

“Is there a problem? It seems perfectly safe here.”

“Ah, it is safe. Of course. But… it doesn’t look good for us to be hiding up here while everyone else is fighting…”

“Yeah, yeah. It would be better to join forces with them.”

“I totally agree.”

The consensus had shifted.

Alfred gritted his teeth.

Switching sides based on the situation?

He could understand it.

Commoners were shameless and only cared about their own interests.

It didn’t matter to him.

But it would make him look like he had lost to Leon.

He had lectured him so much, and now he was the one who looked foolish.

It was an unbearable blow to his pride.

To avoid that, he had to hold onto this place until the very end.

That was the only way to salvage his wounded ego.

“Abandoning a safe place? That seems like a pointless endeavor.”

He said coldly.

Half of these people would be dead by now if it weren’t for him.

They should at least have the decency to follow him after he had saved their lives.

That’s what normal people would do.

Alfred tried to assert his authority, to intimidate them into submission.

But.

“Ah, right. Of course you could think that way. Everyone has different opinions. So let’s decide by majority vote. It’s fair and clean.”

What? Majority vote?

Oh, damn it.

Alfred’s eyes widened in panic.

He knew which way the vote would go.

He might even end up humiliated, the only one clinging to his lonely stance.

“Yeah, majority vote sounds good.”

“Let’s do it now, right now.”

D-Damn it!

Alfred’s mind raced.

He would be humiliated if they voted, and humiliated if he suddenly changed his mind and agreed with them.

The only way out was…

“Ugh!”

Alfred let out a groan, pretending to be injured, and deliberately created an opening for the approaching vampires.

Two vampires slipped through the gap and entered the classroom.

“Damn it, we’ve been breached!”

“Wh-What?! Breached?!”

“Aaaaaargh! They’re inside!”

“Kill them!”

Chaos erupted in the classroom as the vampires attacked.

The students, focused on fighting the intruders, neglected their defensive positions.

More vampires poured through the weakened defenses.

It was pandemonium.

Alfred seized the opportunity and said what he had planned.

“Damn it! We have no choice! We have to break through!”

“G-Got it!”

“Everyone, charge!”

“Hurry!”

The students abandoned the classroom and desperately fought their way through the horde of vampires.

Alfred had successfully manipulated the situation without any embarrassment.

All he needed was one more line.

“Damn it, if only we had Leon…”

“Ugh. Y-Yeah.”

“If… If only Leon was here.”

He had instantly painted a picture where they had been forced to retreat because they had lost Leon and their defenses had been breached.

‘Yes!’

Alfred cheered inwardly.

They managed to break through and escape the building.

“What are you guys doing?”

A condescending voice came from ahead.

‘Huh?’

A group of students was staring at them as if they were some strange creatures.

And at the front of the group was Max Celtrine, the person he hated the most.

“You could have seen what was happening from up there. Why didn’t you come down sooner? Why are you putting yourselves in danger like idiots? Hmm? Everyone, help us deal with these guys first.”

Max, spotting the vampires that had followed them, gave orders to his group.

They immediately sprang into action, attacking the vampires with a speed and efficiency that suggested they had become seasoned vampire hunters.

They quickly eliminated the vampires.

Alfred and his group stood there speechless, their mouths agape.

They looked like they regretted not coming down sooner.

Max drove the point home.

“Who’s the leader? Who’s the idiot who put their comrades in danger by dilly-dallying up there?”

All eyes turned to Alfred.

Alfred’s eyes darted around, his expression panicked.

He had never felt so embarrassed in his life.

He was trapped, with no way out.

If he got angry, he would look like a fool. If he admitted fault, he would look like a fool. If he denied it, he would look like a fool to those who had been with him.

It was an endless maze with no escape.

“Th-That’s not…”

He stammered, his mind frozen.

But even those words were…

“Ah, right. The mask. You. Everyone makes mistakes. But you have to be more careful in a crisis. Not just your life, but the lives of your comrades are at stake. If you can’t handle it, let someone else make the decisions. Just because you’re a young lord doesn’t mean you always have to be the leader or make the right decisions. Like now.”

Alfred’s words were completely drowned out by Max’s one-sided lecture.

He, the son of the most powerful man in the Kingdom, had never been lectured like this before.

It was the ultimate humiliation.

The problem was that even though he wanted to retort, the situation and the atmosphere made his mind go blank.

He felt a suffocating frustration, as if he had swallowed a hundred sweet potatoes.

Alfred’s face paled.

“Well, we don’t have time, so join us and help. Oh, mask, you don’t look so good. You can rest in the shade if you want. Get some rest.”

“Ugh…”

Alfred felt like he was about to faint.

It was the most humiliating moment of his life.

* * *

‘Hehe, this is interesting. A very interesting sight.’

On the rooftop of a building,

Princess Oscar was watching the scene unfold below with an amused expression, as if she were enjoying a delightful spectacle.

Her eyes were filled with a honey-like sweetness.

Her gaze was fixed on Max and his group, of course.

And on Alfred, who looked utterly defeated.

‘I can’t just stand by and watch, can I?’

To be honest, she wasn’t really interested in rescuing the students.

It wasn’t something she valued.

She found it more interesting and worthwhile to observe this desperate situation.

But.

Things had changed.

Because Max had exceeded her expectations.

It was no fun for a hero to act alone.

Heroes were meant to be killed.

But she wasn’t ready to do that yet.

She was enjoying watching him.

‘Then shall I do the bare minimum as a princess?’

Princess Oscar stood up with a sly smile.

“Hehe, since I received a souvenir.”

She reached into her pocket and fiddled with the Holy Light scroll.

And then.

Hop.

She leaped gracefully, disappearing from the rooftop.

* * *

The yellow area was cleared.

Now only the black area remained.

Skeletons and zombies.

They were both low-ranking undead, but they were the most numerous.

Their sheer numbers made them a threat that couldn’t be ignored.

But if we had to choose one to prioritize, it would be the skeleton area.

Zombies had greater vitality, strength, and poisonous claws that could melt flesh, but they were slow.

Because they were slow, we could avoid them as long as we didn’t get surrounded.

The students in the zombie area were probably playing a desperate game of tag with the undead right now.

They were capable enough to evade them as long as they didn’t get tired.

On the other hand,

Skeletons were faster than zombies.

And they used not only swords and spears, but also bows, which gave them a ranged attack.

They might be the weakest in terms of individual strength, but their numbers made them a formidable opponent.

That was why the skeleton area was our priority.

We entered the skeleton area.

But then.

“What are all these bone fragments…?”

“Th-These are skeletons, right? Or rather… what used to be skeletons?”

Everyone stared in shock.

The ground was littered with the shattered remains of skeletons.

Everywhere we looked.

It was a veritable bone graveyard.

What was even more surprising was that all the weapons the skeletons had been using, swords, spears, and bows, were also broken into pieces, scattered on the ground like bone fragments.

It meant one thing.

This was the work of a single person.

That’s why all the traces were identical.

‘If there’s someone capable of this…’

Only a few people came to mind.

But among them, especially…

‘No, there’s no way that person would be this proactive, right?’

I dismissed the thought.

It had never happened in any of my playthroughs.

But my denial was proven wrong.

When I saw the princess, standing atop a mountain of bones, a smile on her face.

“Everyone, I’ve cleared this area. You can proceed to other locations without worry, hehe.”

It was really the princess?

My eyes widened in disbelief.