Chap 99-Her Record

 

Cutting through the cold air of dawn, a warp gate opened in the academy’s plaza.

Professor Emilia was the first to emerge.

Under her guidance, Camilla and Lina stepped out of the gate in turn.

Behind them, the injured who had received first aid and students still unconscious were carefully carried on stretchers.

The traces of the fierce battle that had lasted all night were deeply etched in the students’ bodies and minds.

Every face was filled with fatigue and fear.

The liveliness unique to students, which was always bustling, had disappeared, and only a heavy, gloomy atmosphere filled the plaza.

“This way.”

Camilla said briefly to Lina.

Leaving the students behind, the two walked for a long time towards a corner of the academy.

They arrived at an abandoned old dormitory building.

‘This is… the dormitory Yeon used to live in…?’

Unlike the dirty and shabby exterior, the inside was cleaned relatively neatly.

Camilla went inside without hesitation and stood in front of Yeon’s room.

“This is… the room Yeon used to live in…”

Lina murmured quietly, looking around the room.

It was neatly organized, but the room was desolate.

A worn and creaky bed and a small desk were all there was.

It was hard to believe that a Lady of a ducal family lived here; the space was somehow lonely and empty.

Lina blankly looked around at the faint traces Yeon had left behind.

“Hey… aren’t you curious about how Yeon is doing?”

At Camilla’s words, Lina was startled and looked up.

“Y-yes?”

“Weren’t you in love with Yeon?”

Camilla asked with a playful smile.

“T-that’s… not anymore…”

Lina said sullenly.

“Hmm…”

Camilla scanned Lina up and down slowly, as if amused, then turned her head towards the bathroom.

Then, she raised her hand and began to draw up magical power.

“W-what are you doing?”

Lina was flustered by her sudden action.

“Just wait. I’ll show you something interesting.”

Camilla said calmly.

“Every action that takes place in this world is stored in the Akashic Records. And we Librarians are the ones who read them.”

After a while, along with the sound of running water, a familiar silhouette began to appear faintly in the air.

“W-wait a minute! This is a privacy violation!”

Lina shouted and quickly turned her head away.

“Hmm… why? Didn’t you want to see?”

Camilla stifled a laugh at Lina’s appearance, turning her head away but still glancing furtively.

“W-what does this have to do with Yeon’s truth?”

Lina quickly retorted, and Camilla said with a serious face.

“This is just an example. I’m trying to show you that if you can connect, you can see everything about Yeon.”

“I’m not stupid, you know? You can only get this kind of useless and fragmented information. You can’t break through all the security with your power.”

At Lina’s criticism, Camilla chuckled and nodded.

“Yeah. I can’t break through it. But…”

She approached Lina and whispered.

“You can.”

“Me…?”

Lina asked back with a bewildered expression.

“I’m not a Librarian, though?”

Camilla ignored her words and began to draw up magical power again.

A different dimension of magical power than before.

An overwhelming magical power that far exceeded her publicly known level.

Lina gasped.

‘No way… is this really Lady Camilla’s power?’

Lina felt a chilling sense of incongruity at Camilla’s appearance, as if she had become a different being.

The red magical power extending from Camilla’s fingertips tore through the air and opened a door to space.

Beyond it, an endlessly vast ancient library appeared.

A space with no ceiling or floor.

Hundreds of millions of books sparkled in rainbow colors, and huge bookshelves rotated in a state of zero gravity.

“This is… no way.”

Lina was horrified.

“Yes. The place where all knowledge is accumulated. The Starlight Library.”

Camilla said.

“There can’t be many Librarians who can open this place…”

Lina questioned.

“I just opened it.”

When Camilla reached out to the opened space, red sparks flew and pushed her hand away roughly.

“See, I’m not even allowed to put a finger in.”

Camilla shook her hand slightly and looked at Lina with expectant eyes.

“Now, you try.”

Lina hesitated for a moment.

But the hesitation didn’t last long.

Then, she took a short breath and reached out her hand as if she had made up her mind.

The moment her fingertip touched the crack leading to the Starlight Library.

The dazzling light that poured out dyed the world white.

As the intense light that made it impossible to open her eyes subsided, a huge System window appeared before Lina’s eyes.

[SYSTEM]

Starlight Library, Akashic Records access attempt detected

Accessor: [LINA]

···

[ Checking permissions… ]

Current Operating Administrator: [A.E.S.I.A] (Temporary Administrator Authority Holder)

···

[ Permission conflict detected ]

Identifier matching System Root Administrator Key confirmed

System Root Key Issuer: Eterisha

···

[ Applying higher authority first ]

Temporary Administrator [A.E.S.I.A]’s authority will be automatically revoked.

Root Administrator [LINA]’s authority is activated.

···

[ SYSTEM ]

Accessor: [LINA]

→ Root Administrator Authority Authentication Complete

→ Akashic Records Full Access Granted

→ [A.E.S.I.A] is now demoted to Auxiliary Administrator status.

···

[ Welcome to the connection, Lina. ]

“W-what is this…”

“How is it? Amazing, right? Congratulations on becoming the System Administrator, the pinnacle of Librarians.”

“System Administrator? Me? That’s ridiculous!”

“The Saintess Lina, loved by the world and blessed with luck. Did you really think that power was in you for no reason?”

Camilla said mockingly.

“Aisha, who is known as the current System Administrator, is just a temporary position. The transcendent have been waiting for a long time for the real System Administrator to take them out of the spirit world.”

Camilla stared straight at Lina.

“And… that existence is you, Lina.”

Lina hung her head and remained silent for a while.

A whirlwind of emotions arose in her eyes, then slowly subsided.

And when she finally raised her head, her eyes were clearly different from before.

“That’s strange? How do you know that? It seems like too deep a story for a mere Lady to know.”

“Are you doubting the Medici Family’s intelligence…”

“I don’t think even the great Medici Family could know this much information.”

Lina cut off Camilla’s words firmly.

Camilla sighed briefly.

For a moment, annoyance flashed across her face, but she continued calmly.

“Yeah, it’s suspicious. But… I can’t tell you now.”

She turned her head and pointed to the Starlight Library.

“More than that… didn’t you want to know the truth about Yeon?”

Lina’s shoulders flinched at the mention of Yeon’s name.

“Everything about her is in here.”

Camilla gestured with her chin towards the inside of the library.

“All you have to do is simple. Use your authority to unlock the security. Then you’ll be able to see everything.”

Camilla whispered in a seductive voice.

At those words, Lina walked slowly into the crack as if possessed.

The moment she took her first step, a new System window appeared before her eyes.

[SYSTEM]

Do you want to unlock all security for the Akashic Records?

Lina stood there and quietly closed her eyes.

A very brief hesitation.

Slowly opening her eyes, Lina said in a slightly trembling voice.

“…Unlock it.”

The moment her will was conveyed to the System—

[WARNING!] [WARNING!]

The System window began to flash red with a warning sound.

[SYSTEM]

Emergency intervention by Auxiliary Administrator [A.E.S.I.A] detected.

Root Administrator [LINA]’s command will be partially modified.

[Akashic Records Full Security Unlock]

→ Will be changed to [Yeon Bennet Related Records Partial Security Unlock].

“……!”

Lina was surprised by the sudden change and took a step back.

But Camilla, who was watching the scene, smiled with satisfaction instead.

“…As expected, that’s the limit.”

She muttered quietly.

“Aren’t you going?”

Camilla spoke as if throwing a question at Lina, who was flustered by the sudden change in the System window, and then walked into the crack first.

At her words, Lina hesitated for a moment.

But soon, she bit her lip tightly as if she had made up her mind and followed Camilla.

The very moment Lina’s body completely disappeared into the crack.

“Wait a minute! Lady Lina!”

Lea shouted in a hurried voice and rushed into the room.

But Lina and Camilla had already disappeared.

Lea, who was still dazed as if she hadn’t fully woken up, looked around the room, then discovered the strange crack in front of her and stared at it for a while…

As if she had made up her mind, she carefully took a step forward.

“Ah, ah…?”

The moment her toe touched the crack, Lea’s body was violently sucked into it.

…

Ugh… where is this…

Lea clutched her throbbing head and slowly got up.

Looking around, she soon realized that she was in an unfamiliar dormitory room.

Faded wallpaper and old, creaky furniture.

Overall, it was a shabby and lonely atmosphere.

Click-

After a while, the door opened and someone entered the room.

A strangely flushed face.

Yeon Bennet, looking restless and glancing around.

Her attire was literally a mess.

The uniform top was torn to shreds, and almost all the buttons were torn off.

The dark red bloodstains smeared here and there were noticeable.

White bare skin was barely visible through the gaps.

Swoosh-

Yeon threw off her torn uniform without hesitation.

Compared to the blood-stained clothes she had been wearing, surprisingly, there wasn’t a single wound on her body.

What was revealed on her body was a simple design of white underwear without any decorations.

The plain appearance rather highlighted her slender body line more clearly.

At the sight, Lea jumped up from her seat without realizing it.

Just in case, she waved her hand in front of Yeon’s eyes, but there was no reaction.

“…Can’t she see me?”

Lea breathed a sigh of relief.

And swallowed slightly, her mouth dry.

Unable to take her eyes off the scene before her.

For a while, Lea admired Yeon’s naked body.

Not overly voluptuous breasts, clear and smooth skin without a single blemish.

The dark red bloodstains smeared on it like stains…

Rather, it highlighted her charm even more precariously and vividly.

While looking at the scene, Lea was suddenly struck by a strange thought.

The reason she liked Yeon…

Was it actually not because she was a villainess, but simply because her appearance was her type?

While Lea was lost in such silly thoughts—

The sound of footsteps was heard in the hallway.

Yeon was startled and hurriedly tried to hide her torn uniform, but it was already too late.

Bang-

The door opened and Professor Emilia entered.

She showed a moment of embarrassment at seeing Yeon in her underwear, then bowed politely.

“I’m sorry, Lady.”

‘Lady?’

Why is Professor Emilia calling Yeon Bennet ‘Lady’?

“I-it’s okay, Professor. But could you please step out for a moment?”

Yeon said stammeringly.

But Emilia didn’t seem to have any intention of backing down.

She stared at the torn uniform Yeon was holding for a while, then suddenly approached and snatched it away.

“The wounds… you seem to have regenerated them.”

Emilia scanned Yeon’s body and glared at her with slightly cold eyes.

Yeon flinched.

“That’s…”

Yeon rolled her eyes from side to side with an awkward expression.

“With Lady’s skills, you didn’t have to let them do that to you.”

Emilia said tearfully.

She was right.

With the skills Yeon had shown today, she could have easily blocked such clumsy bullying…

Lea’s question deepened even further.

“That child… looked like she was having a hard time…”

Yeon murmured weakly.

“I heard that her family died on the front lines…”

“I don’t feel pain very well anyway! I thought it would be nice if she felt better even a little bit…”

‘What is this woman… even saying?’

Lea was confused.

Is this really the Yeon Bennet she knew?

Only an overly harmless and weak feeling lingered.

Of course, if she recalled what had happened today, she thought that she might not be a completely bad person as the world knew her, at least…

“Please… please don’t do that again…”

Emilia finally burst into tears and hugged Yeon.

Lea stared blankly at the scene.

Professor Emilia, who didn’t show any emotion even to seriously injured people.

Her appearance was a fresh shock to Lea as well.

After a while, Emilia seemed to have calmed down to some extent, wiped away her tears, and took a deep breath.

“Lady. Would you have some time for a moment?”

As if she had never cried, she spoke to Yeon with a serious expression again.

“It’s about the Evil God’s seal.”

‘The Evil God’s seal…?’

Lea’s shoulders trembled at the words.

She carefully looked around.

No matter how she looked at it, this place was… Yeon Bennet’s past record.

The image of her silently saving students while covered in blood flashed through her mind.

Maybe she is… right now, glimpsing something huge truth.

Lea held her breath and began to focus on Emilia and Yeon’s conversation.