Chapter 154: The Main Heroine is Acting Strange

A sudden, unexpected field trip with White Wood Duke.
Isabel was bewildered, but she had no right to refuse.

The reason White Wood Duke requested the visit was simple.
Isabel had recently awakened the Wings of the Goddess.

The Wings of the Goddess are a very special matter.
Even at Zeryon Academy, there wasn’t much they could teach about it, so White Wood Duke decided to provide additional instruction herself.

A chance to be taught directly by White Wood Duke.

For someone from the Empire, there is no opportunity more precious than this.
If you were an Imperial noble, you’d be ecstatic to the point of raising both hands in celebration.

But Isabel felt uneasy.

And rightfully so.
Because Vikarmern had been replaced by the real Hanon.

That cryptic statement about going to find his younger sister.

More than White Wood Duke, Isabel wanted to ask Vikarmern what was going on.

And so, she arrived at the western park.
It was a beautiful park filled with blooming violets.

As Isabel was walking along the path through the park, someone came into view.

A man in Hanon’s form, standing among the violets.
The moment she saw him, Isabel reacted completely differently than she had when she’d seen the fake Hanon earlier.

Her body froze naturally, and an unsteady smile slipped out.

It was a smile that even she hadn’t been conscious of.
At that moment, Hanon’s gaze met hers.

“You.”

A high-pitched voice burst from Isabel.
Surprised that she could even speak in such a high tone, Isabel was momentarily flustered.

She cleared her throat and straightened her posture.
Hanon responded with a gentle smile.

“Isabel.”

The instant she saw that smile, Isabel staggered.

Earlier, when the real Hanon smiled, it had irritated her.
But now, when Vikarmern wore Hanon’s face and smiled like that, she couldn’t bring herself to meet his eyes.

She instinctively brushed her bangs aside.
An inexplicable embarrassment gripped her.

“You came?”
“Y-yeah.”

She slightly hunched her shoulders and stood beside Hanon.
He turned his body with a relaxed air.

Every one of his movements made Isabel react involuntarily.
Trying to collect her scattered thoughts, she quickly opened her mouth.

“What do you mean, going to find your sister?”
“Looks like you met Hanon already.”

Once the conversation finally got going, Isabel nodded.
Hanon pressed his hand to his neck with a troubled expression.

“My sister is being targeted by the Mystics.”
“What?”

Vikarmern had a younger sister.

Xenia Niflheim.
To think she was being targeted by the Mystics.
Isabel’s expression changed instantly.

“What are you doing then? You should go right away.”
“Not even asking why?”
“What does the reason matter? If you came looking for me, it means you need my help.”

Hanon would never call on her without a good reason.
He must have decided her help was necessary.

So Isabel didn’t hesitate and gladly offered her help.

She was showing the true virtues of a main heroine.
Hanon gave a short laugh.

“Not long ago, you used to doubt everything I said.”
“T-that was in the past.”

As memories of the past came back, Isabel gave a nervous cough, embarrassed.

“Thank you. Isabel, like you said, I really do need your power right now.”

The Wings of the Goddess Isabel possessed—they were a crucial power for overcoming the many challenges ahead.

That’s also why she had secured the role of main heroine.

Seeing Hanon needing her strength gave Isabel a slight sense of pride.
Her mood suddenly lifted.

“Enough with the compliments, let’s just go already.”
“Ah, before that—someone else is joining us.”
“Joining us?”

Someone else is coming?
Just as Isabel tilted her head—

Step—

Footsteps came from the opposite entrance of the western park.
Just as Isabel turned her head toward the sound, her face froze.

Someone she had not expected in the slightest had appeared.

Platinum blonde hair fluttered in the breeze.
A graceful stride filled with nobility came into view.

The Saintess.
Narea of the Sacred Church of Acrede.

She had appeared alongside Cardinal Centriol.
Her presence, like a scene from a painting, left even Isabel speechless.

“…Saintess?”
“Hello. I’m very glad to meet the one who has inherited the Goddess’s mission.”

Acrede greeted her with a benevolent smile.
Isabel had grown somewhat accustomed to saints, but the saintess was a different matter altogether.

Naturally, Isabel was extremely surprised.

“Acrede will be coming with us to stop the Mystics. And so will Associate Professor Vinesha.”
“What in the world is going on…?”

Isabel wore a dazed expression.
She had known for a while that Hanon was no ordinary person.

But she never imagined he would be able to bring even the Saintess into the fold.

At that moment, Isabel noticed Acrede glancing subtly at Hanon.

Isabel had a sharp eye—much sharper than most.
Especially when it came to Hanon, her intuition was unusually perceptive.

It was a different reaction than the noble image Acrede had just shown her.
Isabel’s eyes narrowed ever so slightly.

Acrede’s gaze didn’t seem affectionate toward Hanon.
Still, the fact that she kept checking his expression was bothersome.

‘…Bothersome?’

Isabel was startled by her own thoughts.

She’d long been aware that she felt irritated by women who openly expressed affection toward Hanon.
But she had never directed such feelings indiscriminately at the women around him.

She didn’t even know what kind of relationship Acrede and Hanon had.
And yet here she was, harboring such petty thoughts the moment she saw her.

‘…Is something wrong with me?’

Isabel looked troubled.

The feelings she’d shown Hanon before were because she’d projected Lucas onto him.
Now, she no longer saw Hanon as Lucas. So why was she acting this way?

‘Am I relying too much on him?’

Isabel swallowed her confusion.

“Boy, I’ve finished speaking with the First Prince. Let’s go.”

Snow-white petals fluttered in the air as a white-haired woman appeared.
She had a mystical air and brought Associate Professor Vinesha along.

When Vinesha met Isabel’s eyes, she smiled gently.
Isabel felt something different about her today—something she couldn’t quite place.

“Yes, let’s go.”

Unaware of the storm of emotions inside Isabel, Hanon turned and began to walk.
It was time to head to the Niflheim Estate.

* * *

Count Niflheim’s Estate – A House of Magic.
There, lived a single genius.

Sixteen years old this year.
Next year, she would turn seventeen and enroll in Zeryon Academy.

Xenia Niflheim.

A girl of remarkable beauty with silver-white hair.
Her only real flaw—if it could be called that—was her petite height.

Her striking amber-yellow eyes stood out, and today, as always, she was diligently studying magic.

Her fierce, sharp gaze revealed much about her strong personality.

Flick—

Just then, her ears twitched slightly.
A noise was coming from outside.

Chatter, murmur—

The rule in House Niflheim was that absolute silence must be maintained during Xenia’s study time.
Even the head steward of the estate was no exception.

And yet, such commotion?

Xenia’s face immediately scrunched in annoyance.

She was a perfectionist to the core.
Having her study time disturbed was utterly unacceptable.

“I thought I’d finally gotten rid of all those noisy pests.”

Looks like the servants would need retraining.
Xenia closed the book she had been reading.

Then, she suddenly sprang to her feet.

Creak—

Without lifting a finger, she used magic to open the door and floated into the air, stepping outside.

Lately, she had heard that not walking much might be why she wasn’t growing taller, so she did walk from time to time.
Still, flying was far more convenient for checking out this kind of disturbance.

Her magic had already reached a level recognized even by several magic towers.

Next year’s top student in the Department of Magic was all but guaranteed to be her.
And she was the first in history to master the holy magic of Zeryon—a level of talent that was borderline insane.

In truth, she was the only one of her generation with such ability, aside from Sharin Sazaris, daughter of the Blue Tower Master.

For someone so gifted, using magic was no different than moving her hands or feet.
She soon located the source of the commotion outside.

It was coming from the front entrance.

When she arrived at the entrance, she finally understood the cause of the noise.
Xenia’s white eyebrows twitched.

Because she recognized the figure before her.

And not in a good way.
He looked like a beggar.

Vikaman Niflheim.
Her biological older brother.

“Xenia.”

At that moment, Vikaman’s eyes met hers.
Xenia responded with a look of sheer disbelief.

“Ha, unbelievable. Do you even know where you are, crawling back here like this?”

Her tone was anything but that of someone addressing her own brother.

And with good reason.
He was once someone she admired deeply—but he had changed.

After Xenia revealed her overwhelming magical talent, Vikaman hadn’t been pleased.
Instead, his expressions grew colder and more distant by the day.
Eventually, he stopped speaking to her altogether.

Xenia came to despise that side of him.
Jealous of his own sister’s talent, he chose to give up rather than grow—and that was pathetic.

Worse still, Vikaman had committed a serious crime.

He had targeted the team belonging to the Third Princess during a magical competition.
A crime tantamount to treason.
The Niflheim family had excommunicated him.

And yet, here he was, back at the Count’s estate.

It was fortunate their father was away.
Had he been here, he might have gone beyond threats and struck Vikaman down with lightning on the spot.

“Please. I just want to talk.”
“How dare an outcast try to speak with me, the acting head of the Niflheim family? Get lost.”

Thud—

Suddenly, Vikaman dropped to his knees.
At that, Xenia’s eyes twisted in anger.

Seeing her once-proud older brother kneeling before her—she couldn’t accept it.
He was no longer the man she had looked up to.

“Just once. That’s all I ask. You don’t even have to say anything—just listen.”
“…Haa.”

Xenia let out a sigh, unable to bear looking at him any longer.

“Follow me.”

If it turned out to be nonsense, she would throw him out immediately.
With that firm resolve, she turned around.

Vikaman silently followed behind her.

She couldn’t even remember the last time they had spoken.
All she could do now was sigh at the thought.