King Returned with Gods : Chapter 59

 

The Knight King Who Returned with Gods : Chapter 59

Translators: Nyx and Ririi Rain

 

 

 

Episode 59: We will not tolerate such atrocities!

 

 

 

The Jeju Island Gate appeared a week ago, and it was Guild Leader Lee Yong-wan's Phoenix Guild that won the bid for the gate.

 

Lee Yong-wan brought in the Golden Lion Guild's Hwang Gum-cheol to clear the Red Gate, and the combined Firebird x Golden Lion raid team set out to conquer it.

 

There was one basic rule to attacking a red gate:

If you can't clear it, you must call for backup.

 

And if backup is requested, the Association has the authority to forcefully mobilize 'Hunters' to the red gate when a dungeon break is imminent.

 

This is pretty much the only option available, as a red gate basically causes damage to the level of virtually blowing away a city during a dungeon break.

 

Even this was not accepted by the large domestic guilds, so it came with the condition that 'failed capture' must be a predetermined fact.

 

This was why the Association sent Kim Jin-soo and Hari to the Black Gate previously, as scapegoats for the de facto failure of the gate capture.

 

"So, this me, you're going to mobilize me?"

 

Leon's eyes flashed with displeasure, and Chief Kim Jin-soo replied cautiously, sweating profusely,

 

“Of course not. The Association wants to maintain an amicable relationship with His Majesty. We are not yet at the stage where we can issue a mobilization order in the first place.”

 

An emergency mobilization order would require the preceding guild to declare failure. The problem was, there were hunters who escaped, but it was ambiguous whether it was a failure or not.

 

"I need to see them first. Where are the returnees?"

 

"They are being treated at the hospital. I hear they are pretty much unresponsive right now......."

 

"It doesn't matter. Let's go."

 

Leon headed straight for the Jeju hospital where the returning hunter was said to be. The Association personnel, who had been notified of Leon's visit in advance, bowed ninety degrees at the sight of him.

 

"This way, Your Majesty."

 

The wounded from the Phoenix and Golden Lion Guilds were squeezed into a four-person room. None of them were in very good condition, but they were undergoing treatment without any serious cases.

 

"So this is the hospital."

 

Following Leon to the hospital, Beatrice marveled at Earth's modern hospital facilities.

 

The rooms were kept clean to prevent infection and there were tons of nurses and doctors on duty.

 

It was quite a spectacle. She thought, 'why couldn't we have thought of something like this in our kingdom... no, it would have been impossible...'.

 

"Hum, it's not quite civilized."

 

"This facility?"

 

"Yes. I understand the purpose of this place to treat soldiers wounded in battle, but how can commoners also receive treatment here?"

 

He didn't mean it in a discriminatory way, as if commoners didn't deserve to be treated.

 

In the Lionheart Kingdom, as well as in most other countries in that world, commoners eat the blessed crops and never get sick.

 

The act of curing illness is repeated with every meal. They also have no germs in their mouths, so the concept of dentistry was foreign to them.

 

When commoners did receive healing, it was usually for accidental injuries, and since there was no god of medicine, the goddess of life and fertility took over.

 

Why do you need a doctor, why do you need hospitalization, when you can just come to the temple, offer a couple of prayers, eat a good meal, and go home?

 

Such things were only needed for soldiers and knights who had suffered serious wounds, such as the reattachment of a severed arm, or for those who had suffered internal injuries.

 

Even that was taken care of by the priests of life and fertility on the battlefield.

 

“……Your Majesty’s world is a unique case that cannot even be put on a scale.”

 

"Well, I am aware of that. Hence the burden of representing all the Gods."

 

"Huhu......."

 

The Queen didn't bother to tackle the arrogant entitled divine king, for she herself was now the high priestess of dreams and death.

 

"I see that they are quite rude."

 

"That's because they're sedated. Please wait a little longer….”

 

"That won't be necessary."

 

Leon approached the Queen.

 

"Is it my turn to step forward?"

 

"Please."

 

Beatrice conjured up her holy power. She was the high priestess of Fleur, the Goddess of Dreams and Death. Though she was an inexperienced and novice high priestess, she was not incapable of intruding into a person's dreams.

 

"This shouldn't be difficult. I'll create a new space in his dreams. It was I who constructed the repeated worlds within that gate."

 

As a gifted dreamer, she had maintained a repeating world in the midst of the demons, so what she was doing now was more than familiar.

 

"Huu......."

 

How ironic that the memories and experiences of the horrific repetition would be so helpful after being freed from them.

 

Beatrice entered the unconscious hunter's dream, where she could see into his consciousness.

 

[......This.]

 

Beatrice, who soon awoke from the dream, testified to the sight she saw in his consciousness.

 

"It was a knight in green armor, carrying a huge one-handed hammer and shield, and claiming to be protected by the Goddess of Life and Fertility."

 

"Hmm... Demera?"

 

But maybe not. There was no guarantee that other worlds don't have goddesses of life and fertility.

 

"Do you know the knight's name?"

 

"Geobrick. Apparently he is called the Magnificent Geobrick. And... the Guardian of Gerhane. He is supposed to be the mighty knight of Montreal….”

 

"......!"

 

At that moment, Leon's eyes widened.

 

"Your Majesty?"

 

"We shall depart immediately. I'll lead the way."

 

Leon's willingness to leave immediately brightened the complexion of Kim Jin-soo and the rest of the Association.

 

With four S-class players and most of the raiders out of contact, sending someone in such a situation would demand at least comparable power.

 

Other large guilds in Korea would naturally reach out, but the power they would send would be questionable. But if it was Leon.......

 

'This man does not operate on profit and loss.'

 

Moreover, his strength had a reputation. Perhaps equal to or greater than world-class monsters.

 

"Shall we call the troops at the headquarters? I can arrange a charter flight right now."

 

Leon was in Jeju Island precisely at this time to purchase horses for the knight cadets.

 

It was unusual for a hunter to purchase horses for a gate attack, and it was definitely unusual not to bring men.

 

Kim Jin-soo explained that they could use the Association's private plane to bring the soldiers over, since they would need troops to attack the gate.

 

"No, I'm not bringing soldiers to the gate this time."

 

"Why...?"

 

In response to Kim Jin-soo's question, Beatrice, who had witnessed hunter's dream sequence, voiced her guess,

 

“Because mediocre skills are meaningless, right?”

 

"Exactly. At the very least, they should at least at the level of a knight-errant. At least strong enough to not get themselves killed."

 

"That would be me, Ms. Hari, and the three of them. It was a mistake not to bring Sir Yappy."

 

Certainly not the soldiers, like Gu Dae-sung, Jim Do-han, and the other B-grade cadets, who are only marginally competent.

 

"The sooner we go, the better. We'd rather be quick than wait for Sir Spinner."

 

Was there a need to hurry that much? Faintly aware of the seriousness of the situation, she headed to the gate with Leon.

 

 

 

* * * *

 

 

 

"......."

 

"W, what in the world......."

 

What they saw as soon as they entered the gate was traces of a horrific war.

 

Scorch marks of incineration of any trace of human habitation. Not even a blade of grass was left standing.

 

Ruthless massacre and merciless destruction. Witnessing the graphic 'execution gallows', Hari gritted her teeth.

 

"T, this is too much......."

 

People were skinned and hung.

 

The sight of skinned children, men and women, young and old, was enough to have most people frowning.

 

"Hoekkk!"

 

Suho could not bear the nausea and vomited. Jaehyuk patted Suho on the back.

 

"......."

 

Cheon So-yeon had seen everything under the sun as she cleared gates, but she had never seen such a gruesome execution ground before.

 

Leon and Beatrice surveyed their surroundings calmly, though not without frowning.

 

“It’s been some time since the execution was set up. Could these be the hunters?”

 

"Probably not. They're rather short in stature overall. Koreans are generally tall."

 

Additionally, traces of people staying there until recently were discovered. Several footprints lay across the charred field.

 

"They killed them all using the Scorched Earth Tactic¹ to ensure that not a single seed remained in the land."

 

"You are familiar with it?"

 

"When I killed the orcs, I did something similar to some of their remaining land."

 

Leon rode his horse, leaving the executed victims behind.

 

"It's been a long time since things were done here. We'll follow the trail and find out what's going on."

 

Leon led the way, followed by the Queen and the cadets.

 

Though they were still getting used to it, traveling on horseback was much faster than walking.

 

"Your Majesty."

 

Beatrice asked as they continued on horseback.

 

"You may speak."

 

"You seem to be in a bit of a hurry, not even waiting for Sir Yappy. Do you suspect something?"

 

"Hmm... I was inconsiderate."

 

As they were riding along, Leon began to talk,

 

"As I said before, people with half-assed skills are not safe, because there is a Holy Grail Knight here."

 

"A Holy Grail Knight... you mean Sir Geobrick?"

 

Beatrice remembered the green-armored knight she had witnessed in the hunter's consciousness.

 

The Majestic Geobrick. Claiming to be a knight of a deity, his power was definitely in the realm of the Unearthly.

 

"He is a Holy Grail Knight favored by Demera, the Goddess of Life and Fertility. A Holy Grail Knight three generations before me, whose lessons were passed down through my generations."

 

Leon doesn't know much about him either. Holy Grail Knights have a long lifespan by nature.

 

When they talk about a generation, usually they were referring to at least 200 years.

 

"Ser Geobrick was born eight hundred years ago, five hundred years before I was born. At that time, he sent out troops to subdue the barbarians and ascended to heaven.”

 

"A, ascended?"

 

“It probably means he was dead, Nuna.”

 

Leon did not deny Suho's conjecture. In essence, great saints don't describe their passing as death.

 

Their deaths were actually ascensions to paradise, led by the deities themselves.

 

"But Sir Geobrick did not make it to Paradise."

 

" ......His soul did not come."

 

"I have traced the aura of his holy relics, but I have not found him or his troops anywhere."

 

Beatrice saw Leon personally ascending the fallen trainees to paradise.

 

So she knew that, at least in Leon's world, there was an afterlife, and that it was populated by souls favored by the deities.

 

If the Holy Grail Knight was the most favored saint of his time, how could his soul not reach paradise?

 

"I have three guesses. First, Sir Geobrick is actually alive."

 

It was entirely possible. Holy Grail Knights do not inherently have a fixed lifespan.

 

They ascend when they fall on the battlefield, or when they resign themselves to be embraced by the gods.

 

"Second, his soul was lost in the middle. And finally──"

 

"Renegade......."

 

The Holy Grail Knight, Geobrick. Though favored by the goddesses, he may actually be a renegade.

 

"We may be able to find out the truth by attacking this gate, but it involves a very powerful Holy Grail Knight. If there is a battle, it will not be what a mere human can handle."

 

Therefore, only the humans who can survive the aftermath of the battle had been selected. They were not yet in a position to handle the force.

 

The farther they followed the trail, the darker the cadets' faces grew.

 

"Again......."

 

“They set it up as a show of pride.”

 

The corpses on the execution ground, as they were called, were as gruesome as they could be.

 

Bodies burned to death, villages razed to the ground devastated, and traces of massacres without the ability to resist.

 

Leon eyed them, especially those with flayed skin, and seethed.

 

"This is inexcusable, such atrocities. These people are great sinners who deserve to die.”

 

Hari nodded in agreement with Leon's words.

 

'As expected, His Majesty is also angry at this tragedy.'

 

At first look, Leon may be discriminatory and authoritarian, but at his core, he was a just man.

 

Despite their cultural differences, Hari felt he was a man of justice worthy of following.

 

"Han Hari. And the rest of you, listen."

 

The cadets' eyes focused. They were tired of the carnage, but they concentrated on Leon's clear voice, knowing he was the knight who would lead them out of this hellish place.

 

"Whatever happens from now on, you will only follow the King. Do not trust your eyes or your minds. Do you understand?"

 

"U, understood."

 

"I will only follow Your Majesty's direction!"

 

Why would he make such an obvious command? The cadets gave him a puzzled look, but Leon didn't say anything more and continued on ahead.

 

How far did they go?

 

-Aaaah!

 

-Help!

 

Another tragedy was upon them.

 

The smell of flammables and burning flesh, the sound of wailing on the wind.

 

“Your Majesty! It’s a village! People are being slaughtered!”

 

A group of knights and soldiers on horseback were killing unarmed, vulnerable people indiscrimately. Men and women, young and old, were slaughtered, and those who resisted were beaten mercilessly.

 

-Die! I'll kill you!

 

-Kahahahaha, die, you lowly things!

 

A massacre in the making. Anyone can see that it is a scene of one-sided slaughter. Leon became enraged as he watched the horrific carnage, where those who resisted were torn limb from limb in even more horrific fashion.

 

"These, these scum...!"

 

"Your Majesty!"

 

Hari was moved by Leon's sincere outrage: I can trust and follow this person’s righteousness!

 

"Our allies are in peril! We are charging in!"

 

"I will follow you!"

 

Although Hari was still clumsy, she grasped the reins of her horse. The other cadets did the same.

 

They had no doubt that this was the moment to save the civilians who were being mercilessly massacred and establish justice. With the help of the Lionhearted King, they would do justice.

 

-Drap, drap, drap!

 

Horses' hooves pounded the ground. The Lionheart King, who had summoned his lance, ran at full speed, so fast that no one could catch up with him.

 

Fumbling riders and their horses couldn't keep up.

 

"S, so fast! I can't keep up!"

 

"That's how angry he is, just like when he encountered the 'orcs'!"

 

The cadets excitedly tried to catch up. Just then, Suho cocked his head and said,

 

“……Uh, isn’t there something strange about the direction?”

 

"Huh?"

 

Hearing Suho's question, Hari looked straight in Leon's path.

 

The direction in which Leon was furiously charging with a shout of rage, that was... the residents confronting the massacre.

 

"To the Lionheart......! Glory!!!!"

 

Boom! At the moment of impact... three of the villagers were impaled on the lance like skewers.

 

Your Majesty?

 

Not in the other direction?

 

 

***

 

Notes:

1  Scorched Earth Tactic: A tactic that exhausts the enemy army by eliminating all military supplies and food that the enemy can use in the vicinity .^↩

 

 

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[LN] PAS : Volume 1 Chapter 3.3

Volume 1 Chapter 3.3

The Lie That Reveals the Truth, the Facts Filtering Through the Trees Part 3

Translator : PolterGlast

◆　On the day of the <duel>　◆

 

On that day, a tense atmosphere filled the entire classroom building from the morning.

Not only was this the first time the <Duel> system was to be practiced among the first graders, but the combination of the two competitors was also arousing the curiosity of the students.

Nina Stingray, who grew up in a famous family that has produced a number of renowned individuals with psychic abilities and is known as the <Queen of Disaster>, will be facing an ordinary, unknown student who did not perform well on the entrance exam and was forced to take part in the <screening test>. Many of the students who came to watch the duel held a faint expectation of seeing a show in which the cocky, and weak ones would be thoroughly trampled upon.

Finally, the chime for the end of the school day rang, and the two left the classroom together.

Since the <duel> would be held in a forested area a short distance from the classroom building, the students had to watch the match from a small balcony with a few binoculars. This was because Nina had warned them that they might get involved if they were too close.

On the balcony, filled with curiosity and excitement, Emma Licorice was the only one who was feeling a different kind of emotion than the other students.

She had no idea why the two ended up in a rift.

But was it really inevitable?

She couldn't believe that in less than an hour, one of them would have to leave the academy......

 

"They sure do some interesting things, don't they?"

 

A sudden voice made Emma turn around to see a tall, handsome boy smiling at her. His black hair was parted in the middle and he looked very mature, and one could sense the elegance in his every gesture.

Like Nina, he is a student who was exempted from the entrance exam. His name is ──.

 

"A~, excuse my hasty conversation. My name is Bennett Lohr. I heard that my friend Nina was involved in some trouble, so I just wanted to check on her."

 

There was a tacit agreement that the location of the <Duel> would not be disclosed to anyone outside of the class. That said, Bennett belongs to the fifth class. Given that he was from the neighboring class, it would not be surprising if information was already leaked to the others as well.

Bennett introduced himself first, and gave a perfect smile that seemed to be straight out of the first page of a textbook.

 

"Nice to meet you, Emma...... But to think there really is a daredevil out there who would challenge Nina to a duel. Is he perhaps really thinking he can win?"

"Hmmm...... I wonder."

 

Bennet's tone was laced with dismay, and Emma couldn't help but feel uncomfortable.

Seriously, why did Jin challenge her to a duel?

He seemed to be a more rational and cautious type of person during the <screening test>.

 

"Oi, here they come!"

 

One of the boys cried out, and everyone on the balcony gasped in unison. Emma, whose turn to use the binoculars had not yet come, could only see them as peas moving in the forest.

 

"What's going on? Both of them, just standing still while facing each other......"

 

A female student, who took her turn to look through the binoculars, raised a doubtful voice.

Based on the newly thrown questions, the students spontaneously started discussing.

 

"Are they gauging each other out?"

"Nina's <Queen of Calamity> should be able to destroy him without a second thought. There should be no reason for her to be so cautious."

"Nevertheless, that guy named Jin is also a very mysterious person......"

"No, no. He's nothing but someone who was subjected to the <screening test>, you know?"

"But at that time, he was earning points by defeating a well-known opponent, right?"

"A brawl between dropouts isn't worth much...... I think."

 

Aside from Nina, whose abilities were well known even before she enrolled, there was extremely little information on Jin, whose relationships with his classmates, with the exception of Emma, were tenuous. Most of them probably think that the outcome is so obvious that it is not even worth a bet.

Come to think of it, where is that girl?

The girl I befriended yesterday, who calls herself Kate, is nowhere to be seen. We had been taking classes together all day, but she went back to her dormitory without showing any interest in this big event.

 

"What's wrong ...... Emma?"

 

Emma returned a vague smile to Bennett, who looked into her face.

She has a feeling that something beyond their imagination might be going on.

Whether it was merely foreboding or meant something else, Emma wasn't sure.

As if to blow her doubts, an explosion sounded.

No one could take their eyes off the full-scale battle that had finally begun.

Explosions echoed intermittently, and white smoke began to rise throughout the wooded area. Yet the two remained motionless while facing each other.

 

"I bet it's their psychic powers clashing ......."

"I-It's safe here, ...... right?"

"Look, Nina removed her brooch! That's the signal to unleash her powers!"

 

I had never heard of such a phenomenon of invisible powers colliding with each other among people with psychic abilities, but maybe it is common knowledge that I just don't know about.

Before Emma could put her doubts into words, the students quickly evacuated into the classroom.

Only Bennett, with an incomprehensible smile on his face, was staring at the figures facing each other in the wooded area.

 

◇

 

In the wooded area, filled with white smoke and the smell of gunpowder, Nina and Jin were facing each other.

As instructed, she removed the brooch from her chest, and for some reason, Jin kneeled on the ground and began to let out a cry of anguish. When she held out her right hand toward Jin, he began to scream, even breaking out in a sweat.

His acting was a little too exaggerated, and there were many rough edges. But even this should be sufficient for the students, who can only see him from afar through binoculars.

Naturally, they were not aware of the fact that the two had not signed any written pledge, nor that it was just an ordinary tin doll on the ground, not Jake, who was present to witness the duel.

 

"Look, the class is fleeing into the classroom"

"I guess ...... it went well."

"Looks like the rumors you spread are working. As expected of a great fraudster."

"I don't want to be told by you ......."

 

The plan was going well, but it was still too early to relax.

At least for another three minutes or so, they have to continue acting out the fight to the death according to the script.

To divert her attention from her body, which was reaching its limits due to anxiety, fatigue, and lack of sleep, Nina decided to think back to last night's details.

 

◆　Sixteen hours before the <Duel>　◆

 

When they parted ways in the courtyard, Jin told her, "I want you to come to the wooded area where the [duel] will take place at 1:00 a.m.".

Since she was good at hiding her presence, sneaking out of the dormitory in the middle of the night was an easy task. Nina carefully made her way along the path at night, trying not to get her feet caught in the muddy ground after the rain had stopped.

There were no streetlights near the wooded area, and it was forbidden to bring a flashlight. All she could rely on was the light of the moon in the night sky.

It felt strange to walk outside in her silk nightgown, and she was a little nervous about meeting a male student alone in the middle of the night, especially considering the fact that the other party was an incomprehensible fraudster.

Once she arrived at her destination, Nina was taken aback.

 

"Let's see ....... Huh? What does this mean?"

 

Her eyes, which had grown accustomed to the darkness, caught sight of four men silently going about some sort of work.

Almost all of them were adults, dressed in dark-colored work clothes and expertly blending into the darkness.

They were digging in the ground or setting up some kind of device on a tree trunk, the purpose of which she had no idea.

After a momentary loss of words, one of the four stopped working and approached her.

 

"Why are you in your pajamas? You can't work wearing that."

 

The man who looked the youngest was actually Jin Kirihara, dressed in his work clothes.

His bangs, which normally hung down, were pulled up and tucked into a towel wrapped around his forehead.

With a troubled expression on his face, Jin offered a shovel to Nina.

 

"Look, don't just stand there, we got some work to do. For now, can you dig a hole in the arranged spot for me?"

"Hold on a second, I really don't get it! Why are we doing civil engineering work this late at night? And since when did I get sold off to a contractor?"

"You're overthinking things ....... All you have to do is just dig a hole and fill it with gunpowder."

"G-Gunpowder!? No way, are you trying to make me participate in terrorism ......?"

"Calm down, it's not like we're going to kill someone. It's just a toy that makes a lot of noise and smoke."

"You're trying to catch me off guard and frame me as the main culprit, right!?"

"...... Am I that untrustworthy?"

"On the contrary, I wish you would tell me how I can trust you."

 

Nina threw her next question with a sigh.

 

"...... Besides, who are these people?"

"They're the <landscape contractors> I've been using for a long time. They are expensive, but they do a good job even if hired at a moment's notice. That scary-looking old man is Gasta-san, their president."

"...... I can't keep up with the tsukkomi any longer. Using them for a long time, you say? Weren't you supposed to be a student?"

"Huh, didn't I tell you? I've never been to school, you know?"

"Haa? Don't keep throwing in new facts that don't make any sense one after another."

"I've been wandering around the country helping an old fraudster with his business."

"Another stupid lie......"

"It's true, it's true. I've probably made about 300 million els so far."

"Don't make up stories like that. I mean, what does that have to do with these people?"

 

Heiberg Academy maintains a level of secrecy to the extent that students who leave the school are subjected to memory-sealing measures. Naturally, the security system is not so lax that a suspicious contractor can break in with ease. There is only one entrance, which is guarded by a gatekeeper, and there is even barbed wire attached to the fence surrounding the property.

 

"That's because Gasta-san and the others are professionals."

"That doesn't explain anything......"

"They have broken into a prison on an isolated island before. That's why, they can break through this level of security easily."

"Hey, what are you going to do with these criminals? I really want to go back."

"Whatever, by the way, your personality sure is different from when you're in the classroom, huh......"

 

With his mouth agape, Jin began to talk about his plan to get over their predicament.

It was a strategy that, upon hearing the outline, seemed like child's play.

They implanted a device that generates explosions and smoke in the forest, and made onlookers believe that it was caused by Nina's ability. With the assumption that no one would be allowed to approach them for any reason, they would be able to avoid any major problems.

Of course, that alone would not be enough.

 

"The success of this plan depends on your acting skills."

 

Eyes darker than the surrounding darkness stared intently at Nina.

 

"Tomorrow, I want you to spend the day pretending to be that Kate or whatever she's called and spread rumors all over the class. I want you to tell the class that when two powerful psycho-powers collide an explosion occurs, that I hid my abilities during the entrance exam, that removing the brooch is a condition for releasing your abilities, and so on......"

"Eh~? Is it safe to spread such blatant lies?"

"I don't care about the content or whether it's true or not. Anyway, what's important is to create the fact that we two are the kind of existence that is talked about through groundless rumors."

"What do you mean? Just what in the world is the point to doing that?"

"If you circulate a lot of meaningful rumors, the information will be rearranged on its own and will spread rapidly. That way, when there is an explosion among us, for example, someone will come up with a plausible theory."

"What's that? It's almost like incitement! You really are a scoundrel, aren't you?"

"What, you just figured that out now?"

 

Although the moon wasn't hiding behind a cloud, the boy's face in front of her suddenly disappeared from her vision. Her two eyes caught visual images without any problem, but her brain couldn't process what kind of expression was on his face.

Come to think of it, Nina barely knew anything about Jin's past.

What kind of a life would have created such a monster?

 

"Well, you can stop here. It would look suspicious if your pajamas were stained. You should go back to your room and get some rest."

"What a self-indulgent person you are......."

 

When Jin lifted his feet to go back to work, a small fire of rebellion flared up in Nina's mind.

I can't keep letting this fraudster take the lead.

 

"Listen here, even I have a name you know."

"I know that. Every dog in the neighborhood has a name. Even tin dolls have names."

"You can call me Nina."

"Ha?"

"As I said, from now on, you can call me Nina. I will also call you by your name. If you keep calling me [you], I'll get angry."

"......I understand, Nina. Is that okay?"

"Somehow, the way you say it is kind of awkward. Huh, are you perhaps embarrassed to see a girl in pajamas?"

 

Nina closed the distance between herself and Jin while saying in a seductive voice. It was a well-done act, even for herself. With this acting, she could easily be compared to a top-class stage actress playing a high-quality romance.

She wanted to see Jin, who was so full of confidence flinch like a boy of his age.

If she could see him in such a cute and adorable state, she would be able to sleep soundly tonight with a sense of superiority.

However, Jin's reaction was far more relaxed than she had expected.

 

"...... Aren't you a little too close? Don't tell me, you're trying to seduce me?"

"H-Haaaaaah!?"

 

It was an unpredictable counter.

The temperature on her face rose rapidly due to her frustration and embarrassment that her plan had been foiled.

 

"Aren't you a little too cocky!? What a creepy guy, don't talk to me anymore!"

"I have a feeling you brought this on yourself, though ...... What's going on here?"

"Enough! I'm going back!"

"Wait, wait, what's wrong with your emotional stability?"

 

Nina glared at Jin, who replied with the same unabashed bravado as ever.

Not good, talking and acting won't work against Jin. It's best to give up on the easy way of seizing the lead by swaying him with romantic acts as soon as possible.

"I'll definitely bring you to your knees someday!". Nina said like a villain and decided to go home.

 

Jin Kirihara is an untrustworthy fraudster, She thought.

But as an accomplice, there is certainly no one more reassuring than him.

Even though she was so close to him, she did not know how far ahead he was planning.

 

◆

 

Even after the <Duel> was over, the classroom was still enveloped in a strange silence. Everyone seemed afraid to utter a word. Only the occasional coughing could be heard.

Toward the end of the day, everyone in the class had evacuated to their classrooms, and the lingering smoke made it difficult to see what was going on in the wooded area.

It was Jin who was the first to kneel down, and from the previous reputation, it was obvious who was the winner. Still, many students showed respect for Jin, who had a decent fight with the notorious monster.

Emma, bewildered as she was dragged along by the atmosphere around her, caught sight of a girl entering the classroom through the door behind her.

 

"...... Nina. Are you okay?"

 

By the time she regretted calling out to her, everyone in the classroom had turned their attention to Nina, who had just returned from the <Duel>.

Not caring about their attention, she opened her mouth with her usual graceful manner.

 

"Of course, I would never be defeated by him."

"......What about Jin-kun? Don't tell me, is he expelled from school?"

 

Nina's mouth curled into a smile as she spoke hesitantly.

 

"I changed my mind. I decided not to take any points from him this time."

 

According to the information that came out at the party the other day, the winner of the <Duel> can also choose whether or not to fulfill the agreement in the written pledge. If the winner were to change their mind, it could invalidate the transfer of the points they had originally wagered.

 

"Does that mean you acknowledge his ability?"

 

Suddenly, Bennett interrupted them.

Nina showed slight surprise at his appearance, but quickly regained her composure. Looking around at the awe-struck class, she muttered in an amused voice.

 

".....You may interpret it that way. At the very least, I thought it would be unfair to have him expelled from the academy after only two days."

"Hee....... So he's on a level that someone with psychic abilities like you would recognize, huh?"

 

Nina thought about something for a moment and then said with a mischievous expression on her face.

 

"Perhaps he might be able to sweep you off your feet as well."

 

Bennett laughed, as though he had just heard a great joke.

 

End of Chapter 3

 

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