Gathering (2)

“Hmm…”

At my suggestion that we should meet Gyeotmwa Josyegigot, Ethan’s expression hardened, clearly displaying his displeasure.

‘He really hates him that much, huh.’

To be fair, the Hero hadn’t directly harmed Ethan so far.

Most likely, the person possessing the Hero was also confused about whether Ethan was a villain or an ally given his current state. If Gyeotmwa Josyegigot had been certain Ethan was a villain and acted accordingly, he should have already warned Ethan at least once to release Lilith-that would have been the normal course of events.

In the original story, after receiving the Hero’s warning, Ethan would have fled with Lilith to the Blackwood mansion and gone into hiding. Chasing Ethan and Lilith to the Blackwood mansion would have been the latter half of Part 2 of 『Luminor Academy』.

Of course, if that had happened in reality, Ethan wouldn’t have fled-he would have opposed the Hero, drawn his sword, and possibly even started a bloody fight right there in the academy.

First of all, I had never heard of Ethan receiving any warnings or attacks from Gyeotmwa Josyegigot so far. On the contrary, after the previous Kraken subjugation battle, he had even helped save my life by teaching me CPR.

Though he had warned me not to approach him, he had persistently tried to talk to me several times, and he had indirectly caused trouble by using Seraphine to force a meeting, leading to Natalie’s drunken rampage. But of course, none of that was enough to warrant deep resentment.

That said, it was perfectly understandable for Ethan to be wary of a Hero who paraded around with women hanging off both arms. If I were in Ethan’s position, I wouldn’t want to get close to him either.

Ethan’s wariness, still rooted in the fear that the Hero might take me away, wouldn’t easily fade.

In the original game, Lilith was one of the main heroines of 『Luminor Academy』, so his concern wasn’t entirely unfounded.

“Of course, I’m aware that you don’t particularly like Hero Gyeotmwa Josyegigot, Young Master Ethan.”

“…Yeah, I can’t deny that.”

“But as of now, Young Master Ethan’s strength alone isn’t enough to defeat demons or those empowered by demonic forces. This isn’t just about you-I doubt even the Hero has reached that level yet.”

“…Oh? If that’s what you think, then why do you insist we need to talk to that Hero?”

“Because he’s the only one who can stand against demons without bowing to status or authority.”

“……”

Currently, the Hero holds no special noble title. He is only referred to as the “Hero from Another World” or the “Hero of Prophecy.”

Conversely, this means he is free from responsibility and status, which is why he can run wild inside and outside the academy all year without being easily restrained.

It’s not for nothing that telling the summoned Hero from another world to behave properly could easily get you accused of siding with the demons-this was an era where such suspicions ran rampant.

Of course, the reason such an atmosphere existed was because Gyeotmwa Josyegigot’s freedom was earned by consistently reducing the numbers of demons.

In any case, he was also moving with the goal of clearing the game in his own way, and since he knew Machart was a named character in Part 4, he wouldn’t pass up an opportunity to eliminate him beforehand.

In fact, if he grasped the true intent of my proposal, he would gladly move to help.

‘From my position, asking for help and gathering people directly would seem suspicious, but no one would bat an eye if the Hero gathered people to slay a demon.’

Suppose I or Ethan tried to ask a powerful figure for help-say, suggesting that a key national figure might be connected to demons and needed to be dealt with.

First, we’d likely be met with a “Have you lost your mind?” and flatly rejected. Even if things went well, given the nature of the target, there was a high chance we’d be accused of treason.

But what if Gyeotmwa Josyegigot, the Hero, and Celista, known as the Saintess, gathered people?

Those who had previously participated in demon subjugation with them would have some trust in them, and with the Hero and Saintess present, exposing Machart’s connection to demons wouldn’t be too difficult.

Of course, this assumes the “Saintess” isn’t the fake Celista but someone who can genuinely wield the Saintess’s power.

‘…This is getting complicated.’

Given the nature of the target, killing him was just the beginning-there was a lot of cleanup to handle afterward.

That’s why the help of Gyeotmwa Josyegigot and Celista, who would cooperate once the situation was explained, was absolutely necessary. No matter how much Ethan disliked it, this was a reason to meet them at least once.

“Alright, if Lilith says so, I guess I have no choice but to meet him at least once.”

“Are you sure, Young Master Ethan?”

“I don’t like his debauched attitude-flaunting women left and right, front and back-but it seems we need his help for now.”

“Thank you for making such a brave decision, Young Master Ethan.”

“So how do you plan to arrange the meeting, Lilith? It might be difficult to ask Princess Seraphine now that our relationship isn’t what it used to be.”

“I’ll ask Agnes for help. She’s my friend and has worked with the Hero before.”

“Alright, got it. Then I’ll leave arranging the meeting to you, Lilith.”

With a final warning that this would likely be a secret meeting and to avoid leaking information, my emergency meeting with Ethan concluded.

After several attempts, the opportunity to meet Gyeotmwa Josyegigot was finally secured.

⁎ ⁎ ⁎

The day after convincing Ethan to meet Hero Gyeotmwa Josyegigot, Agnes managed to arrange a time and place for the meeting.

One week later, at the Luminor Academy Theology Department building.

A room on the fifth floor of the massive church-which served as the Aurelia Church’s academy branch, the Theology Department’s education building, and the Theology Department dormitory-was chosen as the gathering spot.

There were two main reasons for selecting the church among many other locations.

First, hundreds of patients and Aurelia Church believers came and went daily, so a student from another department visiting wouldn’t stand out.

Second, since it was the church where Celista resided, there was no need to find a separate meeting place.

Gyeotmwa Josyegigot, Celista, Ethan, me, and Agnes, who arranged the meeting-five people in total gathered in Celista’s dorm room on the fifth floor of the Theology Department building.

As the one who called this meeting, I was the first to speak and explain the situation.

“First, I’d like to thank the Hero and the Saintess for responding to my sudden request.”

“O-Oh, no…! Of course I had to come when Lady Lilith requested it…!”

“It’s fine. I didn’t have any plans until the evaluation match anyway. Don’t worry about it, Lilith.”

“…You, on the other hand, should be more cautious. Acting overly familiar with my personal maid like this…”

“Young Master Ethan, please restrain yourself today. Everyone here is gathered at my request.”

“…Sorry, Lilith.”

After briefly reprimanding Ethan for nearly creating a hostile atmosphere before the meeting even began, I continued explaining the situation to Gyeotmwa Josyegigot and Celista.

I detailed the recent attack by Prince Machart, how he had used demonic power to target me, and everything I had witnessed that day. The longer I spoke, the darker their expressions grew.

“I-Is that really true, Lady Lilith…?”

“…Saintess Celista, I’m sorry, but the way you’ve been addressing me is overly formal…”

“Wait, Machart targeted you? Because of that incident at Prince Antonio’s birthday party where you cursed at him?”

“Yes. It seems I’ve thoroughly earned his hatred. I was lucky to escape unharmed last time, but if it happens again, I doubt I’ll get away so easily.”

“Lately, Blackwood and I have been sticking together to keep watch. We don’t know what a demon-powered guy might do, but facing him together is safer than alone.”

“So the story’s changed again? How are we supposed to handle this now…?”

“…Story?”

“Ah, it’s nothing. Just talking to myself.”

After Agnes’s additional explanation, the Hero muttered to himself with his head bowed.

Only Ethan reacted to the muttering, asking skeptically, while Celista and Agnes seemed accustomed to it and didn’t question it.

From the start, Celista had been trembling like a sinner, avoiding eye contact with me, and even addressing me as “Lady Lilith”-her behavior was clearly off.

But I had no time to dwell on that. The priority was discussing how to deal with Machart.

Seemingly having devised a suitable scenario based on my altered story, Gyeotmwa Josyegigot cautiously spoke up.

“Actually, I had my suspicions too. I sensed a demonic aura around Prince Machart.”

“…Really?”

“Your reaction just now is suspicious. Are you just pretending to agree with Lilith’s story?”

“No, that’s not it. It’s just that since he’s a prince, I had to be careful with my words. If I accused him of being a demon without proof and killed an actual prince, even I wouldn’t escape punishment.”

“……”

“Besides, I wasn’t the first to notice-Celista was. I only started suspecting him after hearing her story. …Right, Celista?”

“Y-Yes! I-I thought something was off about Prince Machart from the moment I first saw him! His, his aura, the way he carried himself-it all felt strange…!”

…From their reactions, it seemed they were going with the “We suspected him all along” strategy.

Celista’s reaction made it clear this was news to her, and I knew she had no means to detect demonic power yet. But for the sake of the discussion, I chose not to point it out.

“I see, Hero Gyeotmwa Josyegigot. Then may I take that to mean you believe me?”

“If demons are involved, of course I’ll help. Having a demon spy in the imperial palace is especially dangerous. If we’re not careful, Seraphine could be in danger, and leaving a demon infiltrator in the palace would let other demons spread throughout the empire.”

“Thank you, Hero.”

“…But before agreeing to cooperate, there’s one last thing I need to confirm.”

“Huh?”

Locking eyes with me, Gyeotmwa Josyegigot’s next words drew everyone’s attention to the two of us.

“Miss Lilith, could you step outside with me for a moment?”

“Huh?”

“Just the two of us. I want to talk alone.”

…This is definitely about figuring me out, isn’t it?