Ch.5656. Denial (4)

‘It all fits…’

Deception? A calculated move? He clearly never wanted, no, never even thought of such things.

It was sincere honesty without any hidden agenda. From the beginning, he had no intention of joining the Tembris Party.

If he had truly been trying to scheme his way into the Tembris Party, he would have made sure everyone knew he was the key figure in the Alcaide Hall siege. He would have prioritized getting his name out there to catch Goden’s or other members’ attention.

He could have created debts for others to owe him, or used countless other methods.

But he didn’t. Despite the risk of increasing student resentment toward him, he never reversed this decision.

And that’s not all. Looking back, things had been strange from the beginning.

Wasn’t it odd how he covered up a situation where he could have been noticed by Lady Ophelia?

My certainty came when Junon answered with his own mouth.

It was as if his goal was to avoid attention itself—deflecting or concealing his actions.

Now all the connections make sense.

The crystal-clear truth.

That’s why he wanted to avoid entanglement with the Tembris Party members and hid the fact that he helped with Erica’s surgery.

He avoided any possibility of being associated with the Tembris Party members and twisted public knowledge to conceal his actions.

Why did he avoid them? That’s the only remaining question, but I can’t know the answer.

Still, most of my questions have been resolved with him at the center.

He wanted to create debts for others to owe him? Nonsense.

If anything, we’re the ones who owe him. My comrade’s life, my own life. And other students too. It’s an enormous debt.

Because of this, Aris’s mind grew even more complicated.

“Haah…”

“Why have you been sighing like that, Aris?”

Erica asks with concern as she watches Aris sighing as if the ground might collapse beneath her…

But Aris can’t bring herself to explain the reason for these deep sighs.

‘Erica…’

Do you know?

That the person who saved your life was the same man we tried so hard to keep out of the Tembris Party.

***

Meanwhile, the Tembris team—who had completed everything from the Lemtert village mission to the Canolatlr extermination but had not yet officially formed a party—gathered to discuss matters.

‘Everyone seems to have similar thoughts about what we experienced this time.’

The team members all agreed that the absence of a “center” position seemed to be the biggest issue.

Goden understood this as well, having felt it not just this time but since their practice battles.

“Sorry. When I focus on my unique magic and firepower, I can’t catch everything else.”

“My rapid freezing magic might speed up the casting of ice magic, but it requires so much concentration that it’s difficult for me too. Plus, my mana is turbid, so it can be dangerous if I’m not careful…”

“I can read patterns up close and identify weaknesses. But I don’t have a broad enough field of vision to deal with variables. I’m primarily a close-combat vanguard after all.”

Michelle, Charlotte, and Senia each explained their shortcomings and why they were unsuitable for the center position.

Goden had been temporarily filling the role, but after being criticized by Professor Muniher this time, the conversation changed.

“…If Aris or Erica were here, would things have been different?”

Michelle cautiously brings up the topic.

“No, Michelle. Adding one more person wouldn’t solve the issue. The problem was that our formation itself couldn’t change.”

“I agree with Senia. We’re originally strong against leader-type enemies. We can easily subdue a single opponent with the Kenick 6 formation, but this time we had to face multiple enemies.”

“I guess… you’re right? In the end, we need someone who can freely change formations…”

Having too many team members creates problems like magic interference or members becoming isolated.

In Goden’s opinion too, they needed someone who could quickly assess situations, establish formations, and give orders.

‘It’s not that I don’t have someone in mind for this role…’

If Ophelia took the center position, it would be incredibly reassuring.

Her experienced background, unwavering judgment, and strong mental fortitude are enough to lead an entire expedition by herself.

But Ophelia refused, saying she couldn’t join their party.

-‘If you want to break the existing framework, it shouldn’t be me, but someone else, Goden.’

The reason Tembris was created was to break students’ preconceptions and social conventions.

Specifically, to shatter the inferior framework of position hierarchy.

Therefore, Lady Ophelia couldn’t take that place. The same went for other noble family heirs in similar positions.

If they achieved results by borrowing Ophelia’s power, they would just be another team of skilled individuals.

With Michelle, Charlotte, and Erica already being nobles, they were essentially at capacity.

This meant the remaining position had to be filled by a commoner who had been in a lower class to match the significance of their party formation.

Only then could they become a representative party that overcame issues like position hierarchy and class discrimination.

“I can’t think of anyone suitable for the center position. Hmm…”

While Goden had extensive connections, most of the people he knew were prominent figures directly connected to the Principality, which actually limited his options.

“Does anyone know someone good? Even recommendations are fine.”

“””…”””

“It’s okay. We still have plenty of time. We’ll find someone naturally as we practice. Let’s not rush.”

All three members were troubled.

As soon as they were asked about someone suitable for the center, they all thought of one person.

The reason all three hesitated was because the person in question was particularly unusual.

‘He would be perfect, but…’

‘He refused so adamantly that I can’t ask him…’

‘Would it be rude to suddenly ask a senior…?’

Senia, Michelle, and Charlotte had all identified a suitable person but couldn’t bring themselves to mention his name.

Even though all three were thinking of the exact same person.

***

“Senior Aris. Hello!”

“Aris is my role model. I admire you!”

“Miss Aris. You’ve always been impressive, but this time you were even more amazing. Even the second-years, called the greatest generation, have few with such experiences.”

“Thanks to you, the academy is safe, Aris. You did well.”

Wherever she went, Aris encountered countless people praising her.

Many specifically highlighted her contributions to the recent events.

Additionally, newspapers about the Osophtera defense remained on bulletin boards for a long time.

The name Aris Mackenheim had become incomparably more famous than before.

They say no one dislikes being praised, but that wasn’t necessarily true.

‘I… wasn’t the one who saved you all…’

It made her uncomfortable.

Whenever she heard such words, they didn’t feel like praise but like a heavy burden being placed on her shoulders.

Those words should have been directed not at her who had fallen, but at the man they had all looked down on and mocked—the one nicknamed the weakest vanguard of Class E.

Every time this happened, Aris wanted to shout that Junon was the one who protected the academy.

“Aris?”

“Aris! Intercept it!!”

“Hey, are you paying attention?”

“Ah…!”

“It’s fine. I’ll parry it, just block Goden’s entry point.”

A shower of harpy feathers summoned for practice.

Though a projectile attack, its slow speed made it not particularly threatening to intercept, but this role had been assigned to Aris.

She missed it, forcing Senia to fall back and deflect it with her sword.

This distorted the formation, momentarily leaving Goden to face three opponents.

Barely managing to parry and minimize damage to her teammates, Senia spoke with a sharp voice.

“It may be practice, but we’re in combat, Aris. Focus!”

“S-sorry.”

“Everyone, should we take a break? Aris seems to be in bad condition.”

Following Michelle’s suggestion, the others agreed to stop the Talbert Arc operation.

“Hmm. I guess I got a bit hasty. I shouldn’t have started practice without checking on everyone’s condition.”

“Sorry, Aris. I didn’t notice at all.”

“I was too focused on formation practice and skill development to check…”

“Come to think of it, Aris was in charge of the Osophtera defense. I suppose it makes sense that she’s not at her best.”

“…”

Only Senia remained silent, while the other teammates nodded in agreement.

But Aris gritted her teeth, unable to accept this.

Her body was perfectly fine. Despite what had happened, the aftereffects of exhaustion had long since passed.

“No. Let’s continue.”

Every time she heard such words, two memories collided.

Poor condition due to the Osophtera defense? That wasn’t it.

“I’m fine. Turn the Talbert Arc back on and let’s continue.”

“Aris…”

“You don’t have to push yourself too hard.”

“I’m really fine. I’ll do it properly this time, so let’s…”

“Ha. This won’t work. Goden. Give me the Talbert Arc. Looking at Aris, we definitely shouldn’t continue.”

With that, someone approached Goden with proud steps, extending her hand as if asking for something.

“Senia…”

“Or we could just end for today. It seems we can’t continue anyway.”

Sheathing her sword, Senia continued speaking.

“Draw your sword again. I said I’m fine.”

“If those had been real monsters, your teammates could have been hurt while you were distracted. Do you understand that?”

At those words, Aris’s mouth closed tightly again as a scene flashed through her mind.

Recalling Erica with her abdomen pierced was an involuntary, reflexive response.

“Are you planning to dismiss it as something in the past? What if someone had been hurt there? Would you still dismiss it as something in the past?”

“Senia. That’s enough…”

Michelle tried to intervene and stop Senia’s harsh words, but Senia didn’t budge.

Aris had often clashed with Senia over differences of opinion, and each time she had fought back without changing her expression.

But this time was different.

“I have no intention of working with someone who gets distracted during combat. If you can’t even manage yourself and might break down from pushing too hard, go deal with it first.”

“I’ll go with her.”

“Thank you, Charlotte.”

The entrance door closed with a loud sound, and the wind that rushed in with the closing door gently swayed Aris’s hair.

That pink hair, like the color of a lotus flower, swayed and then stopped.

Even after her hair settled, she covered her mouth and kept her eyes fixed on the floor.

***

Goden took special measures with Aris.

“Resolve everything and come back, he says…”

-‘Senia is right this time. Sort out your issues and then we’ll meet again. It would be awkward to continue like this.’

It was time to practice again with the recently returned team members, but Aris had been practically expelled.

She was essentially banned from returning until she resolved all her concerns.

She did have increasingly numerous worries lately, and it was true that she couldn’t concentrate.

But the problem was that Aris’s concerns were very difficult to resolve.

The root cause was related to Junon, and there was no suitable solution.

Wondering what to do, Aris trudged along aimlessly until she arrived at a certain place.

It wasn’t really aimless—it was a place with unpleasant memories.

“This is…”

It was the place where she had attacked Junon to warn him not to think about joining the Tembris Party.

It was also where Ophelia, the Grand Duke’s daughter, had caught her in the act.

“…”

The thought had crossed her mind.

If only he would appear before her, she could speak to him and clear things up.

But that was nothing more than a fantasy. A dream of hers hoping that the deteriorated situation would somehow be resolved.

Senia had once sharply pointed out that Aris was too emotional and spoke like a dreamer.

Aris had often harbored hopeful thoughts without practical solutions.

Now it was time to face reality, even if just a little.

‘Why did I come to a place like this… Maybe I still haven’t come to my senses.’

As she grumbled to herself and turned to leave this place.

“You…!”

As if someone had granted her wish, Junon was standing right in front of her.