Chapter 51 – The Peaceful Midterm Week (8)

Mareile watched from a distance as Liv, clutching her wounded arm, approached a small building.

As a member of the Counterintelligence Unit, her goal was to make Liv Labre give up investigating her father. A person’s resolve is not easily broken with a single threat.

However, this mission was rated as “low” in difficulty. It wasn’t practical to use torture to break the spirit of a young mage, so the plan was to instill enough fear in her to ensure that Goliath would keep her under surveillance.

An injured prey instinctively flees to the safest place. If Liv Labre ignored the warning and bared her fangs again, that building would likely be her final refuge.

Just as expected, she didn’t emerge even after quite some time, and a spell surrounded the vicinity.

Hmm… A Mental Barrier.

Mareile quickly identified the defense spell as a well-constructed one, meticulously concealed to make it difficult to dismantle from the outside.

But it wasn’t impenetrable. How should she proceed? It looked like the lights were off, and Liv was probably inside with someone.

Perhaps she should sneak in and leave a little present on her pillow? Knowing she was being watched might deter her from resisting further.

She was about to take a step forward.

Crunch.

“Ugh!?”

The ground suddenly gave way, revealing a pit filled with spikes.

Why would there be a trap here?

The grotesque situation was something Mareile had not expected in the middle of the academy, and she was momentarily taken aback.

“That was close… Huh?”

Just as she regained her balance, a massive iron plate with sharp spikes shot toward her.

With a loud bang, the constantly active <Barrier> shattered, and Mareile was thrown backward.

A double trap!

Sweat dripping, she blocked the iron plate with her arms and then crouched down to summon her iron dogs. But before she could do so, an excruciating pain surged through her lower back.

“Gah!!”

It wasn’t just an attack from the front. The trap was designed to trigger from both sides with a time delay once the false ground was triggered.

A large stone struck her spine, forcing her to the ground. Even in this state, her mind raced, searching for a way out.

She still had magic and the iron dogs, an autonomous advanced defense mechanism.

If the trap was designed to paralyze the lower body, it wasn’t intended to kill. If I play dead until the enemy arrives… huh?

Thud!

Just as she thought that, a massive wooden mallet fell toward her head. Mareile rolled to the side just in time to avoid having her skull crushed, but she could still feel the sole of a shoe lightly crushing her head as it came closer.

“See? This is all skill born of experience. Even the most skilled ones will get caught by at least one if I set four traps like this.”

Her lower body was still incapacitated, and her face was buried in the dirt in a humiliating position. Mareile tried to gather as much information as she could from her attacker’s voice and demeanor.

A young man, at least 180 cm tall. Smokes. Wears slippers. Weapon… none.

If she could deduce that much, she could fight back even without being able to move. Responding to her thoughts, the two iron dogs lunged at the man. But—

Crack! Crunch! Snap!

A horrifying sound of metal being crushed with bare hands echoed. Moments later, two heavy metallic objects clattered onto the ground.

“Wow, iron dogs, huh? Just what I needed. I was thinking these traps were a bit risky and lacked proper defense. These can self-repair, right? I’ll put them to good use.”

The man confiscated the iron dogs and then searched Mareile’s body. She felt the humiliation vividly as he took a flask of liquor from her belt and a cigar from her breast pocket, but she could not resist.

My mana… it’s gone?

“Ah, this liquor and cigar are top-quality. From Batudis, I see. I’ll make good use of these. Huh? Hey, where did you get this picture?”

“…”

“No answer? Well, never mind. I’ll figure it out later…”

At this point, Mareile had two options: use the poison hidden in her molar to commit suicide or use her still-free arms to wield a hidden weapon.

Just as she prepared to twist her body to maintain her dignity, the man crushed the spot on her back where the rock had struck earlier.

“Kah—!!”

“Shh. Quiet down. The baroness is sleeping.”

Tears and saliva dripped onto the dirt. On top of that, her lower body trembled uncontrollably, releasing warm liquid.

She was completely subdued.

The unexpected combination of traps and the man’s strength to disarm her iron dogs, the means to seal her magic, and the physical restraint—all of it was terrifyingly effective.

Moreover, the man spoke in a calm, monotonous tone, as if this situation was nothing new to him.

“Your nerves are nearly severed. If you get to the temple now, you can still be treated. But if I break your spine twice more right here, even a high priest from Monarch won’t be able to get you out of a wheelchair. If you don’t want to be incontinent for the rest of your life, stay still.”

Even without him saying it, the searing pain was pushing Mareile to the brink of unconsciousness. The man grabbed her by the leg and dragged her toward the academy’s outskirts.

He headed to a smelly incineration site, where the stench of garbage lingered.

Was he going to dispose of her here?

Contrary to Mareil’s fears, the man dumped her into a large trash bin.

Chhhk! The sound of a cigarette being lit.

“The garbage truck comes at 5 a.m. If you call for help then, you should make it to the temple.”

“…”

“I just spared your life. Shouldn’t you respond?”

“…What is your objective?”

Through clenched teeth, grinding with enough force to shatter her molars, Mareile still expressed her hostility. Goliath does not break until death. All for the kingdom and humanity. No matter how strong the opponent, she had no reason to fear.

“Is your goal to reveal the true face of Paris Greenwood to the world? Or is it to overthrow the Pennheim royal family?”

“…”

“Whatever the case, you’ll regret threatening us. Goliath will pursue its target to the ends of the earth.”

“What nonsense are you spouting?”

Creak. The lid of the recycling bin opened slightly. Through the gap, a pair of eyes as dark as a demon’s stared back at her.

“Keep doing what you’ve been doing. Whether you block information or hinder the path… that’s the reason you exist, and you wouldn’t listen even if I told you otherwise. However…”

With those cold, piercing eyes, Mareile felt another terrifying sensation in her still-numb lower body.

“If you lay a hand on Liv Greenwood again, you’ll die by my hands.”

“…!”

“Not just you, but all of your precious Goliath buddies. This isn’t a threat.”

Who is this man to make such arrogant remarks?

“It’s a notice.”

Unable to find the answer, Mareile finally lost consciousness.

When she woke up, the temple was already treating her. Fortunately, they said she would be able to walk again after a few months of rehabilitation.

With her body still not fully healed, she quickly sent a report back to the headquarters.

She reported the abnormal difficulty of the mission, her experience at the academy, and all the information she had gathered about the suspicious man protecting Liv Greenwood to the counterintelligence unit.

Every detail of their conversation was included without leaving out a single word.

A few days later, she received a reply. Although it bore the seal of Goliath, it had been sent from the royal family, not the mountains.

Was it news of reinforcements? Or orders to recover and infiltrate again?

With a trembling heart, Mareile opened the dispatch, only to collapse on the spot.

“Aah…”

Inside was nothing but the same empty black envelope she had shown to Liv before.

***

The grueling midterms were finally over. In the end, Liv had submitted a report on a different topic.

After finishing a week of exhausting schedules, Liv was on her way back to the dorm when Karen called out to her, questioning where Liv had spent the night earlier.

“Liv, where were you that night, really?”

“I told you, I stayed up at the library.”

“Don’t lie. I asked the librarian on duty that night, remember? If you were there, someone would’ve noticed.”

“Maybe I was in a corner where no one could find me.”

As usual, Liv replied coolly and went on her way. Karen, feeling a bit uneasy about her friend’s behavior, saw Liv turn back and ask,

“Hey, Karen. Do you have a boyfriend?”

“Huh? Why are you asking all of a sudden?”

“Um… has he ever, you know, touched your stomach?”

Karen frowned at the oddly specific question, but she replied anyway.

“I never let him.”

“Why not?”

“Because it makes me feel fat. I’d rather have him touch my chest.”

“Really…?”

Liv turned slightly and began pressing her stomach and lower abdomen, revealing a strangely seductive look.

Karen snorted and hugged her around the waist.

“Well, our Baroness Liv doesn’t need to worry about that~! There’s no flab to grab on you!”

“K-Karen! Wait…! Where are you touching, kyaa!?”

Barely managing to push Karen away, Liv took two steps back and wrapped her arms around her stomach.

Even with her face flushed bright red, she looked beautiful.

“Anyway, I hate it when anyone tries to touch my stomach, including my boyfriend.”

“I see.”

“Yeah, it just feels bad.”

“Feels bad?”

“Of course! What did you think?”

“U-um, well… it’s kind of ticklish, or maybe it feels a bit… floaty…?”

“What?”

Startled, Liv frantically waved her hands. She looked visibly flustered.

“N-Nothing! Yes! Right, it feels bad. Yup!”

“…Liv?”

“Never mind! Thanks, Karen! I’m going back to the dorm to rest now, so see you later…!”

“What? Wait, Liv!!”

Despite Karen’s shout, Liv kept her head down and ran off in the distance. Karen stretched out her hand in vain and mumbled while looking in the direction Liv had disappeared.

“We share the same room…”