Chapter 2 – A Midsummer Night’s Nightmare II

R​e​a‌d​ ​o‌n ‍K‌​a​​t‍​R‌ea‍d​in‍g‌Ca​f‌e​​

“What the hell is going on…?!”

A student shouted.

The students were gathered in the lounge on the second floor of the dormitory building at their field trip location.

They had barricaded the entrance with furniture.

The male students who could fight were on guard, each holding something that could serve as a weapon.

Why did this happen?

On the fifth day of the field trip, the incident began on a rainy night.

A sudden commotion, someone’s scream, and the faint sound of gunfire.

Then, a female student armed with a shotgun appeared.

Humming a tune as if she were enjoying herself, she began killing the students one by one.

No one knew why.

Or perhaps there was no reason at all.

The way she casually shot her classmates from the same academy, seemingly enjoying it, made her seem anything but insane.

Whether she had always been insane or something had driven her to madness, the important thing now was figuring out how to survive in this situation.

In the center of the lounge, the Crown Prince, along with knight aspirants and students capable of combat magic, were discussing their next move.

“What about the teachers…?”

“…”

In response to the Crown Prince’s question, Günter Burgland silently shook his head.

Günter had gone to find the teachers to ask for help.

But when he arrived at the dormitory, there were no survivors left.

He had also checked the communication magical tools to call for help, but they had already been destroyed, and all the island’s guards were dead.

The regular ferry connecting the island to the mainland wouldn’t arrive for another week.

With communications down, the academy would likely send investigators once they realized something was wrong, but that would take at least two days.

So, they had to survive until then, no matter what.

“Fräulein Lieselotte, why would she…?”

Among the students discussing their next steps, a voice like that could be heard.

Angelica Pollin, the Crown Prince’s fiancée, trembled with a look of disbelief on her face.

The Lieselotte Angelica remembered was the epitome of a lady.

She was always dignified, noble, and elegant.

Why would such a person commit such a heinous act?

Angelica couldn’t comprehend it.

“Rike, right now, we need to focus on surviving…”

The Crown Prince spoke to Angelica, who had unconsciously grabbed his sleeve.

The Crown Prince was equally confused, but he knew they had to focus on survival.

For some unknown reason, Lieselotte was indiscriminately shooting even those she had been close to.

It was clear she wouldn’t hesitate to shoot Angelica, despite their past friendship.

The Crown Prince steeled himself to protect his beloved fiancée at all costs.

If possible, they wanted to subdue Lieselotte, but if that proved impossible, they would have to kill her to stop her.

After some discussion, they decided on a plan to subdue Lieselotte.

And the strategy was set.

“I’m sorry to ask this of you…”

“It’s alright, Your Highness. Someone has to step forward.”

Günter Burgland, who had volunteered to act as bait, responded to the Crown Prince’s apologetic words.

Lieselotte’s weapon was a double-barreled shotgun.

While it was a powerful weapon at close range, its limited ammunition was a weakness.

The plan was for someone to draw her fire, allowing the others to ambush and subdue her.

It was an effective strategy, but it required someone to act as bait.

And Günter had volunteered for that role.

Of course, he wasn’t charging in unarmed.

As the eldest son of Count Burgland, the head of the Imperial Guard, Günter was always prepared.

He carried a defensive magical tool for emergencies, which could block at least two shots from a shotgun.

Of course, there was a chance Lieselotte had other weapons, but if Günter could close the distance, he was confident he could subdue her.

She might have some combat experience, but given her age, it couldn’t be much.

Despite being armed with a shotgun, she was still just a noblewoman.

She wouldn’t stand a chance against a knight aspirant who had trained for years to join the Imperial Guard.

If he could force her into close combat, he had the advantage.

That was his reasoning.

“She’s here…!”

A student monitoring the hallway alerted the Crown Prince and his group to Lieselotte’s arrival.

The Crown Prince and Günter exchanged glances before nodding solemnly.

“Well done, Hugin.”

I praised the crow perched on my shoulder and gently stroked its head.

It was one of my familiars, a shadow crow.

The surviving students were gathered in the lounge on the third floor, seemingly plotting something with the Crown Prince at the center.

I took a piece of amethyst from my pouch and offered it to Hugin.

He quickly snatched it, let out a pleased caw, and then disappeared into the shadows.

I wondered how the Crown Prince planned to deal with me.

Feeling a bit of anticipation, I stepped onto the stairs.

As I ascended to the third floor via the central staircase, I heard the hurried footsteps of someone.

Probably a student on watch who had spotted me.

I could have stopped him from reporting, but I chose not to.

Would they charge out, or would they stay barricaded?

Either way, it didn’t matter.

If they thought of me as just a girl with a gun, they were in for a rude awakening.

Even if they didn’t, I wasn’t the type to struggle against a bunch of students.

The hallway leading to the lounge was eerily quiet.

I had expected an ambush, but my shadow detection revealed nothing.

Had they chosen to hold their ground?

As I cautiously moved forward, I sensed a presence around the corner ahead.

It didn’t feel like a survivor separated from the Crown Prince’s group.

Instead, it felt like someone waiting, exuding a well-contained killing intent.

It was likely the person I had expected to face.

In this situation, there was only one person who would act this way.

“Count Burgland, good evening.”

“Fräulein Lieselotte…”

At my greeting, Günter Burgland, who had been hiding around the corner, revealed himself.

He had already drawn his sword, his eyes sharp and predatory as he glared at me.

I smiled bitterly at him.

Was it chivalrous of him to come out so obediently when called?

He could have ambushed me, but facing me head-on was so like Günter.

His only weapon seemed to be his sword.

As the Crown Prince’s guard, he could have carried a pistol, but he didn’t.

It seemed a bit reckless, even for a student.

But he probably had a defensive magical tool, which was why he dared to face me, armed with a shotgun.

He likely believed he could withstand a couple of shots at close range.

“Haaah!!”

As I expected, Günter charged at me with a fierce shout.

He closed the distance quickly, lowering his stance and leaping forward.

His wide, sweeping stance, using centrifugal force, seemed aimed at a single, decisive strike.

He probably wanted to end this quickly.

I quickly aimed my shotgun at the charging Günter and pulled the trigger.

At this range, there was no way I could miss.

The shot hit, but the pellets were blocked by something before they could reach Günter.

As expected, he had a barrier-type defensive magical tool.

I fired the second shot immediately, but it also failed to penetrate the barrier.

Of course, the magical tool wasn’t unscathed after blocking two shotgun blasts.

I could see the barrier flicker and fade as its energy depleted.

With that, my shotgun was out of ammunition.

Realizing this, Günter charged at me like a predator seizing its opportunity.

He must have thought I was defenseless now that I was out of shells.

I might have had a dagger hidden, but he probably assumed I couldn’t match him in close combat.

He was right—I couldn’t beat him with a sword.

But my shotgun wasn’t my only weapon.

I released the shotgun and swiftly swung my right arm downward.

The motion caused a hidden secondary weapon to slide out from my sleeve.

A four-shot derringer, a small .22 caliber pistol meant for self-defense.

I grabbed it, roughly aimed at Günter, and pulled the trigger.

“Ugh…?!”

Günter’s face twisted in pain and confusion.

He hadn’t expected me to have a hidden pistol.

But this alone wasn’t enough to stop him.

The hastily fired bullet hit his shoulder, and the .22 caliber’s stopping power was insufficient to take him down.

But this was enough.

For just a moment, Günter hesitated.

It was a brief opening, but it gave me enough time to aim properly.

I aligned my sights and pulled the trigger again.

If one shot wasn’t enough, I’d fire more.

One shot, two shots, three shots.

A headshot would have killed him instantly, but missing would be disastrous.

To ensure his defeat, I aimed for his abdomen.

Günter stopped after the third shot hit.

He took a few more steps forward before collapsing.

In his final moments, he swung his sword at me, sending a chill down my spine.

One shot to the shoulder and two to the abdomen—even if they missed vital organs, most people would have died by now.

But his toughness was impressive.

Still, he was only human.

He would eventually bleed out.

Of course, I needed to make sure he was dead, as he might still retaliate in his dying moments.

I reloaded my shotgun as I walked toward Günter, who was lying on the floor.

I broke the barrel, ejected the spent shells, and pulled new ones from my pocket.

“Well done, Count Burgland. But you were out of your depth.”

“Y-You witch…!”

I praised his bravery, even in defeat.

He gritted his teeth and spat out those words with a strained voice.

Even on the brink of death, his eyes still burned with killing intent.

This guy really was…

It was time to end this.

Just as I thought that and was about to finish reloading, I sensed movement behind me.

“Now! Attack!!”

I quickly turned to see the Crown Prince and the students from the lounge, ready for battle.

So, this was their plan.

While Günter, the Imperial Guard candidate, distracted me, the other students would launch a surprise attack.

If Günter could subdue me alone, that would be ideal.

But if he failed, the others were prepared to strike while I was reloading.

It was a solid plan.

Of course, that was only if their opponent wasn’t me.

(tl: mc second gun )