Ch.5656. The Road Back to the Academy

The next morning, Celia and I were boarding a carriage to return to the academy.

We could have stayed a day or two longer, but we decided to return early to avoid interfering with the handling of the broken magic stone incident.

Everyone at the Imperial Palace was disappointed about Celia’s early departure, but there was nothing they could do about it. The Empress had ordered our return, and Celia had agreed.

As for me… I had already done everything I needed to do, so it didn’t matter when I returned.

There was still one of the three imperial secrets left, but I’d deal with that the next time I visited.

‘It’s not like I absolutely need to deal with that one anyway.’

The dark knowledge accumulated by Rubetia’s ancestors.

Unlike randomly occurring demon seeds or apocalyptic events, this one would only happen if a very specific route was followed.

Moreover, since that route involved Celia… I wasn’t worried at all, especially since I was spending the entire day with her.

‘I feel like I might be raising another flag here… but no, surely not this time.’

Anyway, Celia and I were on our way back to the academy.

The carriage we were riding this time was different from the previous one, but it was just as comfortable, so there were no complaints.

Of course, that comfort only extended to inside the carriage. Outside was a different story.

“Death… death…”

“How exactly are you planning to execute him?”

“Damn… such skill at that age… Princess Celia…”

Strangely, unlike the previous carriage, this one wasn’t soundproof at all.

I almost wished for an uncomfortable ride with better soundproofing.

It felt like my image had improved, but the pressure was actually worse than when I was being watched with suspicion.

Feeling self-conscious, I closed the window curtains like last time…

“He closed them.”

“He’s been acknowledged by His Majesty, so we should acknowledge him too.”

“Yeah… that’s right…”

It did get quieter, but the gloomy atmosphere still seeped in, making me even more uncomfortable.

Seriously, we’re not doing anything. Don’t misunderstand.

Feeling like I was just stimulating their imagination, I opened the curtains again to let them see outside.

“Is our escort even meaningful?”

“Not really. The Princess seems to have become stronger now too.”

Listening to their conversation afterward, it seemed rumors about defeating the demon had spread through the knights.

Thanks to that, Celia’s abilities had become somewhat known as well.

“They’re probably just following formality… even the captain didn’t come today.”

“True.”

“Still, it’s hard to accept someone being next to the Princess.”

“What are you going to do if you can’t accept it? Challenge him?”

“Well, not that.”

“We’re just extras here. We don’t have the right to question who stands beside the Princess.”

“Ugh, Princess… may you be happy.”

This is driving me crazy. My skills were acknowledged, but not my position, leaving me in an awkward middle ground.

Of course, I could never expect these people to accept me in that way.

Even the Emperor seemed to have reluctantly accepted it, rather than genuinely approving.

If I made any mistake, he’d use it as an excuse to find fault with me. Just thinking about it was exhausting.

As this uncomfortable journey continued, we stopped at some distance from the bustling district, just like before.

We needed to pick up the clothes we had left behind previously.

When we got off the carriage and headed toward the district, no one followed us this time.

‘That’s probably because they know Celia is strong now.’

They realized that if something dangerous enough to threaten Celia happened, their presence wouldn’t make a difference anyway, so they didn’t bother following us.

In truth, if they were following proper protocol, they should have followed us even if they couldn’t help, and they clearly wanted to follow us, but…

-“Escort? Not necessary. Just let them go. Don’t get in their way.”

Since their captain had told them to let us go by ourselves, they had no choice but to let us be.

He seemed to be one of the few people who actually accepted me.

“Damn it. What if we secretly follow them…?”

“Stop it. We’d be caught immediately.”

“Why am I so weak?”

“Let’s do some special training when we get back.”

They were supposed to be elites… but in a world with severe power inflation, they inevitably became small fry.

Thanks to that, the two of us could enjoy our date(?) in peace.

“Since we’re already here, shall we have lunch before heading back?”

“Sure, why not.”

After making simple plans following the clothes retrieval, we soon arrived at the store.

When Celia and I opened the door to enter, something felt off.

There was clearly a bell attached to the door, but it made no sound.

“Hmm…? Oh! Welcome!”

Normally, when the door opens, the bell should ring loudly to announce someone’s arrival.

But there was no sound at all.

The bell was clearly swinging and hitting itself, but strangely, it made no sound.

‘Ah, so that’s why.’

I suddenly remembered the “Snake’s Mark” engraved on my body.

An ability that deleted certain sound effects.

Apparently, door-opening sounds were included in that effect.

I hadn’t really researched it deeply since I wasn’t particularly interested in sound effects, but the range seemed quite broad.

“I must have been distracted and didn’t hear the door open. I’m sorry.”

Thanks to my ability, I’d just made the employee uncomfortable for no reason.

This ability is completely useless. And I can’t even turn it on or off.

“What did you just do?”

Celia noticed it too and asked me that question.

I wasn’t sure how to explain, but decided to talk about it once we were outside.

After retrieving the clothes and heading out, I gave her a brief explanation, which left her with an incredulous expression.

“So you gained an ability that eliminates various sounds?”

“Yeah, like footsteps and such.”

“What’s the use of that?”

“That’s what I’m saying.”

Celia understood too. Beyond a certain level, hearing becomes almost meaningless in combat due to shockwaves and collision sounds.

That’s why skilled fighters develop their sense of presence detection or the ability to sense surroundings through mana.

An ability that erases sounds becomes completely meaningless.

That’s why I had been treating it as a non-existent skill…

“I didn’t know it would eliminate even these kinds of sounds.”

“So clapping sounds don’t work either?”

“Those do.”

Clap! When I clapped my hands, a crisp sound rang out.

Seeing that, Celia chuckled.

“That’s really a strange ability. How did you end up learning something like that?”

“I didn’t want to learn this either.”

But gacha doesn’t work the way I want it to.

Just as we finished our conversation and were about to go for lunch, there was a commotion nearby.

Wondering what was happening, I looked in that direction, and Celia, who seemed to have noticed something, started giggling.

“Looks like Lilith is hard at work.”

“Oh, Lilith?”

“Yes. The mana signature is definitely Lilith’s.”

She can distinguish people by their mana in this crowded place… as expected of Celia.

Regardless, if Lilith was working, we definitely had to go see. Celia seemed to want that too.

Pushing through the crowd, we went deeper and found two people standing on a simple stage.

One was an elderly man who appeared to be a clergyman, and the other was Lilith.

Dressed in a nun’s habit and keeping her mouth shut, she looked exactly like the ideal image of a saint.

If only she didn’t ruin it the moment she opened her mouth—when she was quiet like this, she really did look like a saint.

“…So God always prepares a path to salvation. Never give up. Now, the Saint will bestow her blessing.”

After listing what sounded like life motivational speeches for a while, the clergyman stepped back.

Lilith, who had been standing still, stepped forward and began to gather divine power.

The sacred power spread widely, enveloping the surrounding crowd like a caress before returning to Lilith.

It was an extremely inefficient way to use power, but she seemed to be doing it for show.

The gathered divine power formed a sphere and shot up into the sky.

Then it burst in the air, fluttering down like snowflakes.

“Ah… how beautiful…”

“Dear God…”

“Amazing every time. To think such sacred power exists.”

People who were moved by the sight began to express their admiration one by one.

Someone used the word “every time,” suggesting this wasn’t a one-time event.

She’s been working hard without us knowing.

Celia, who was watching the scene, commented:

“…It is pretty.”

“Yeah.”

“Does Ludion like such pretty magic too?”

“Magic doesn’t have preferences.”

Magic is about efficiency.

Of course, there’s nothing wrong with considering aesthetics, but only in certain situations.

What use is prettiness when fighting monsters?

When I shared this thought, Celia smiled brightly.

“I think so too.”

It seemed I had given her the answer she wanted.

Still, we couldn’t deny that the magic before us was beautiful, so we continued watching…

“…Oh.”

“Ah, Lilith is looking this way.”

“…Huh? Ugh…!”

“She seems embarrassed.”

Celia’s eyes met Lilith’s.

“Is something wrong with the Saint?”

“What’s happening all of a sudden?”

As a result, Lilith’s expression froze, creating such a stark contrast with her previous benevolent saint mode that everyone watching noticed something was off.

“Saint! Are you alright?!”

“I-I’m fine. It’s nothing.”

“Your face is red! You seem to have a fever… we should get you to the medical bay immediately…”

“I’m really fine!”

The clergyman assisting her was also flustered and panicking… she looks really troubled.

Watching this scene, Celia smiled without even trying to hide her amusement and asked me:

“Shall we go tease her?”

“You’re truly evil.”

“So, are we not going?”

“Of course we’re going.”

When your friend is caught being embarrassed while working on her concept, how could you not go?

We absolutely had to go tease her.

With evil smiles, Celia and I headed toward the back of the stage where Lilith had retreated.