Chapter 70: Change of thinking (2)

The Crown Prince of Salem, Martin de Salem, had recently become noticeably pale.

It was getting harder for his friends not to notice.

“Hey, why do you look like death warmed over these days? Like a fish dragged out of the ocean.”

“Ugh…”

Martin replied weakly, his eyes unfocused. Elias clicked his tongue at the lack of spirit.

“If something’s bugging you, speak up, man. Don’t just keep it bottled inside.

Aren’t you both a prince and student council president? What could be bothering you so much that you’re sulking like this?”

“It’s not… really a problem or anything…”

“Don’t even try to play dumb.”

Elias grabbed a nearby chair and sat beside Martin.

“So, what’s the issue? Family problems? Grades? Engagement?”

“…….”

There was no disturbance in Martin’s gaze. That meant none of the three.

That left only one possibility.

“Or… could it be… the Hero?”

“……..!”

The look in his eyes said it all.

Of course. Elias sighed.

Rumors had already spread through the Elpidion social scene that Martin was smitten with the Hero.

It was understandable; this fool could never hide his feelings, and every time he attended a ball, he’d obviously be focused on the Hero.

Only his poor fiancée, who was stuck in an unfortunate engagement and surrounded by gossip, suffered for it.

‘I just don’t get it. What’s so great about that doll with no sense of self?’

Elias leaned back, folding his arms.

Sure, she was pretty.

Even Elias, who had seen her occasionally, had to admit her appearance was worthy of a Saint’s reincarnation.

But that was all. Sion had an air of passive obedience to the goddess’s will—blindly accepting and following destiny.

It was the one attitude he despised most.

“So, did the Hero do something to you? Did she slap you and tell you to stop pestering her?”

“No way…”

“Then?”

“……”

Pressed by Elias, Martin muttered gloomily, his head drooping.

“It’s just… recently, she’s been avoiding me…”

“Huh?”

Are you kidding me? All that over something this trivial?

Elias held back the curse that nearly slipped out.

Of course, this guy would fret over something that insignificant.

What kind of sex-ed does Salem even give to their successors?

Seeing Elias’s face grow sour by the second, Martin’s voice rose in frustration.

“No, seriously! She’s been blatantly avoiding me lately! I tried visiting her a few times to check if she was feeling unwell, but she just turns her head and says she’s fine.

If I even get close, she slinks away…”

“She’s probably just sick. People get annoyed being around others when they’re unwell.”

“No, that’s not it. She still acts normally around her sister Isabel and the other students too!

She’s only avoiding me! I might not be the sharpest, but I can at least pick up on that much!”

Martin buried his face in his hands on the desk.

“Thanks to this, I feel like I’m dying lately… Where did I go wrong?

If I just knew the reason, I’d run to her right now and beg for forgiveness… I’ve even tried asking her servants and sister to find out, but they won’t say anything…”

“……”

Elias narrowed his eyes as he looked down at Martin.

He could hardly believe he lost the election to this idiot.

The other students needed to see this fool’s true colors soon.

Why did he even bother being friends with a guy like this?

Their values didn’t align, and as the crown princes of Espera and Salem, they were practically enemies.

It was one of life’s great mysteries.

“Alright, let’s break it down.”

Suppressing the urge to leave, Elias spoke in a low tone.

“For some reason, the Hero’s avoiding you.

When you get close, she retreats, and if you talk to her, she turns away or avoids eye contact.

She only treats you like this, while acting normally around others. Is that right?”

“Yeah…”

“And you can’t think of anything you might’ve done wrong?”

“No. Nothing at all…”

Hmm…

The Hero’s sudden shift in behavior, directed solely at Martin.

If it wasn’t guilt-driven avoidance, then that left only one option…

“Maybe she’s just embarrassed and avoiding you?”

“Embarrassed? Why?”

“Well…” Elias shrugged.

“Maybe she suddenly developed feelings for you. Maybe the springtime air filled her with romance, and she’s excited without realizing it.”

“…..”

Martin, who had been slumped over the desk, froze.

Slowly, he raised his head and looked at Elias.

“…..What?”

The look on his face said he couldn’t believe it.

Her? In love with him? Why?

“No, that can’t be right. We’ve known each other in the same castle for seven years. Why would she suddenly—”

“That’s how love works. It sneaks up on you when you least expect it. Who knows?

Maybe she’s been seeing couples all around and decided she wants to experience that kind of youth herself.”

“Nah, no way.” Martin laughed, shaking his head.

“That’s the one thing I can be sure of. She’s so dedicated to her duty. There’s no way she’d fall for someone like me.”

“…..”

Squeak

A vein subtly pulsed on Elias’s forehead.

After all that, he immediately dismissed it? Laughing so casually was infuriating.

And most of all, it was aggravating that he undervalued himself like this.

If someone like him could be dismissed, then what did that make Elias, who had lost the election to him? Equivalent to a bug?

“This won’t do.”

Elias frowned, standing up.

“If you’re so confident, then just go find out for yourself. Let’s see who’s right.”

“Find out? From who?”

“Who else? The Hero herself, obviously.”

“!?”

Martin shot up from his seat.

“Are you crazy? Don’t do it!”

“Why not? What’s the problem? I’d only be asking her one question.

What am I doing that’s so wrong here?”

“It’s inconsiderate!”

“No, the real nuisance is you, whining all day and making everyone around miserable.”

“Enough. Just stay down like usual. This big bro will take care of everything and be back.”

“Aaaah!!! I said stop!!!” 

Martin yelled angrily, lunging at Elias.

Of course, Elias, already in a foul mood, didn’t back down and fought back. 

A fight suddenly erupted between the two most powerful students in the middle of the class.

The other students, taken aback, hurried to pull them apart. 

But both of them, while not openly showing it, had bodies that they were confident in physically.

Even with two or three people trying to separate them, they wouldn’t budge and continued their struggle. 

Finally, just as the fight was about to escalate into a full-blown brawl, a voice sounded from the back door. 

“Excuse me, is Prince Martin here?” 

“!?!”

The familiar voice startled everyone, and they quickly let go and stepped back. 

A figure with silver-white hair neatly brushed back, and features so striking that anyone who saw them couldn’t forget—a warrior named Sion. 

“I happened to meet the class teacher while walking down the hall and was asked to pass on this handout.” 

With those words, Sion slowly stepped forward. 

“If it’s not a bother, may I hand it over now? Or should I wait until you’ve finished what you’re doing?” 

“N-No! It’s fine!” 

With a dazed look, Martin took the document she handed over. 

In the past, he would’ve lowered his head or run off at this distance, but this time, for some reason, he didn’t react at all. 

As always, she was graceful and composed. 

“T-That is… um, Hero?” 

Sion tilted her head slightly, looking at him. 

Her unwavering, straight gaze left Martin speechless.

All the words he had prepared to say evaporated. 

“A-Ah, no… It’s nothing.” 

“…..?”

Sion looked at Martin, a bit puzzled, but only for a moment.

She soon dismissed any doubts, clasped her hands politely, and said, 

“I apologize for intruding. Please forgive my impolite arrival without prior notice to the senior students.” 

“Then, everyone, please have a pleasant morning. And Prince,” 

“Y-Yes?” 

“It’s good to be spirited, but please refrain from scuffles as much as possible. Your body is the nation’s greatest asset.” 

With that, Sion gave a polite bow and disappeared down the hallway. 

The sound of her footsteps echoed clearly in the silent room, everyone holding their breath. 

Elias, who had been scuffling with Martin just moments ago, frowned and asked, 

“What’s going on? You’re totally fine, aren’t you?” 

“Huh… huh?” 

Martin was thrown into confusion, feeling as if he’d been bewitched.

Why was her attitude back to normal? 

Well, he’d definitely prefer this over being constantly avoided, but… why? 

“…..Geez.” 

Unable to find the words, Martin scratched his head.

His gaze was fixed on the spot where Sion had just been, unable to look away… 

Meanwhile, Exia was equally bewildered. 

-“H-Huh? What’s going on? Not showing any signs like she usually does…?” 

Exia, who had watched Sion struggle with her femininity over the past week, especially when dealing with Martin, who was a renowned heartthrob and frequently interacted with Sion. 

So far, Sion had been avoiding him like the plague, much to Exia’s surprise. 

Why did she suddenly seem so unfazed? 

“Haha…” 

Sion let out a sly, almost sinister chuckle. 

“Until now, they were trapped by a single preconceived notion.”

-“A prejudice?”

“Yes.”

Sion said, casually glancing over the other students walking down the hallway.

“Men look like men, and women look like women. That’s the stereotype you’ve held onto until now, right?”

-“..?”

Exia tilted her head, not quite understanding what Sion meant.

Isn’t that obvious? Why would that be considered a prejudice?

-“Why the sudden philosophical talk? Of course, men look like men and women look like women. What else could it be?”

“Generally speaking, yes, that perception holds. But think carefully.

Defining ‘gender’ is, strictly speaking, about the form of reproductive organs, not appearance. On the other hand, ‘looking like a man or woman’ refers to external appearance.

So, while these two are often correlated, they aren’t entirely the same concept.”

-“????”

I have no idea what she’s talking about. Why is she phrasing it so complicatedly?

-“I’m not sure I understand. Could you explain it more clearly?”

“It’s like this. Imagine there’s a person here who, at first glance, looks completely like a girl.

Long hair down to her waist, narrow shoulders, a slender waist—anyone would think she’s a girl of that age.

But if, under those clothes, instead of female organs, there’s something male, would that make this person a man or a woman?”

-“Um… a man, I guess? I’m not exactly knowledgeable in this area, but if that’s there, she wouldn’t be a woman, right?”

Exia responded without much thought. And in the next instant—

-“!?!?!?!?!”

A lightning bolt of realization struck through her.

Could it be… this person…!

“Heh heh heh… Yesterday, I visited Marianne and saw something quite amusing.”

With that, Sion recalled the moment she first encountered ‘that book.’

“It’s the concept known as ‘otokonoko,’ or ‘trap’… where they draw a character who looks unmistakably like a girl and insist he’s actually a boy.

It’s an absurd setting, but since you can’t exactly flip over the lower half of a drawing, you have no choice but to take the creator’s word for it, just imagining that ‘someone like that might exist somewhere.

And in that moment, I realized, ‘I can use this.’”

In reality, true otokonoko characters are rare.

Though, theoretically, appearance and gender don’t always match.

But practically speaking, 99.999% of people on the continent would say that men look like men and women look like women.

There may be exceptions, but they’re generally very androgynous.

However, that’s only for ordinary people.

What if the Demon King, who governs all creation, decided to deceive the world in earnest?

If she used all her magical power to cast a transformation spell?

By using the power of [Perfect Polymorph], she could change only her gender while keeping her appearance intact… into the perfect otokonoko, whom no one would suspect…!

-“Y-You didn’t…”

Exia asked Sion in a trembling voice.

It was a question layered with implications, without a subject or object.

-“Did you…?”

No, surely not.

It can’t be.

It mustn’t be.

She couldn’t be that far gone, right…?

But, shattering Exia’s hope, Sion flashed a wide grin and declared,

“Yes! I did!”

With a smile utterly free of any shame, so refreshing and pure.

At that moment, Exia finally realized.

She had greatly misunderstood Sion all this time.

She wasn’t nearly as crazy as Exia had thought.

She was far crazier than Exia could ever have imagined.

Sion was the real deal—truly insane.