Chapter 111
A bonfire crackled in the evening night of the livestock shed.
‘It’s about ti.’
I stood in front of the bonfire and used Shurk’s ability.
Wearing the Black Mask, I moved toward the abandoned building.
‘According to the plan, I must find at least so evidence this week.’
Tonight.
I had ordered the gathering of the Black Knights.
‘Since it’s botherso to put envelopes in lockers every ti, I attached a receiver to the mask.’
It wasn’t that the mask transmitted voices. Instead, when a call was attempted, a green light appeared on the lower part of the mask.
Thanks to that, I could easily convey my intentions to anyone possessing the mask, and also summon them.
After arriving behind the abandoned building, I took out a large bag from subspace.
‘This should be enough.’
When I opened the bag, it was full of thick piles of docunts.
It was an operation plan I had written—what data to extract by infiltrating the Student Council Building, to which individuals to approach afterward, and in what way.
Since they were copies ant to be distributed to five people, the number of pages was quite large.
‘It may be a bit lacking in manpower, but if we spread it out over a few days, it should work.’
I briefly thought of recruiting about five more people… but I felt more comfortable thinking of it as an elite few.
‘Anyway, it really is cold tonight…….’
A chilly air swept over .
Even though nights were always colder, it was clearly the kind of temperature that made one feel winter was approaching.
‘It’s too harsh making the kids gather in the middle of the night for no reason. I’ll deliver this quickly and head back to the livestock shed.’
Just as I tucked the pile of docunts under my arm and was about to climb onto the stage through the back door of the building, I sensed soone’s presence.
I quickly hid myself behind the stage.
‘……What’s this?’
Peeking secretly from the back, I saw that those below the stage weren’t just the five I had summoned.
‘Six, seven, eight…… No, what is this?’
Dozens of people wearing the Black Knight’s mask were loitering about.
‘By rough count…… around twenty, at least?’
Why had the number suddenly increased? And why were they all so calm?
‘What on earth happened?’
I was bewildered, but the gathering ti was already upon us.
Wouldn’t it be strange if I didn’t show myself?
‘……Whatever this is, I need to step onto the stage first.’
Since the number of knights had suddenly grown, should I pretend to know about it?
With a headache coming on, I chose to ignore the increased numbers and stepped onto the stage.
Step, step……
I deliberately made loud footsteps, then stood atop the stage and shouted.
“I thank you for answering the call to gather.”
Small applause and murmurs of admiration spread among them.
“Captain.”
From the voice, I guessed that the one who spoke was Eris.
“Though the beginning is small, the end shall be great. As you said, we carefully chose trustworthy people and increased our comrades.”
So you’re the culprit.
‘And what on earth is she talking about?’
When had I ever told them to increase our comrades? I was dumbfounded and speechless.
“Thanks to having more capable allies, we were able to dig into all the information thoroughly. Just as you said, Rubin had committed considerable corruption. Even I felt disgusted.”
A neutral voice spoke from another spot. The owner of that voice was undoubtedly Nixie.
‘……They already found evidence?’
I hadn’t even given the order to collect evidence yet.
Moreover, without any particular infiltration skills, how had they managed it?
“As you instructed, we prepared information to hand over to Her Highness the Princess. If you give the order, we can act imdiately.”
To think they had already prepared everything.
The plan had proceeded smoothly on its own without knowing a single thing.
‘Should I be glad about this, or not…….’
They hadn’t ntioned anything about being discovered while gathering evidence, or problems occurring.
So did that an they had completed the whole operation flawlessly?
‘It was their first ti doing sothing like this, and yet not even a small mistake?’
It was true they had carried out the task swiftly and precisely.
But for , it was simply absurd.
“When Her Highness prepares impeachnt in the light, we will deal with Rubin in the shadows…… That is your will, is it not?”
At Nixie’s question, I nodded absentmindedly.
“……Yes. You have understood my intentions exactly.”
Saying that, I glanced at the pile of docunts tucked under my arm that I had ant to distribute.
‘……If the evidence collection operation is already finished, these are useless. I’d better take them back.’
Just as I was thinking that, Eris voiced a question.
“Captain, those docunts……?”
She had noticed the pile of papers under my arm.
“……These, you an?”
This was troubleso.
I couldn’t just say I had simply brought them.
Yet if I handed them out, it would be the sa as admitting I hadn’t even known the operation was already underway.
As I hesitated, sothing caught my eye.
All around the building’s interior were discarded barrels.
“It’s nothing important.”
I descended from the stage.
Then, stuffing the papers into one of the barrels standing in the middle of the hall, I snapped my fingers to ignite it.
Whoosh!
Pitch-black flas roared up from the barrel.
The mbers approached the barrel and whispered among themselves.
“Did he bring firewood for us?”
“……It’s warm.”
“Ah, even paying attention to such small details.”
“How kind of him…….”
It seed I had managed to gloss over the docunts.
No matter what they murmured, I ignored it and stepped back onto the stage.
“……Captain. Just as you said, Vice President Rubin was completely rotten. His corruption involved more than a few things.”
Eris’s report continued.
“And also, just as you intended, I found Rubin’s terror plan.”
Terror?
Words I had never heard of kept flowing out of her mouth.
“Indeed, if Rubin is impeached, his supporters will collapse. Following your plan, we will be able to stop the terror.”
I still didn’t know how or why things had turned out this way.
“……That is correct.”
I had no choice but to agree.
‘If I try to piece the story together…….’
It was definitely sothing deviating from the main storyline.
Still, I at least learned why a ‘terror’ had been planned.
‘So Lahan approached Rubin because of this.’
While my head was tangled with thoughts, Nixie walked up to the altar and handed a docunt.
“This is Rubin’s plan.”
I took the docunt Nixie gave and carefully read through it.
I felt my thoughts begin to align.
‘Injecting the strengthening potion Ruber made…… into Bomb Beetles?’
Indeed.
Just as the docunt stated, if Bomb Beetles were reinforced with that strengthening potion, their destructive power could reach the level of destroying buildings.
And if that damage were to spread to the Student Council Building or the Main Building?
It wouldn’t just be buildings—casualties would be unavoidable.
‘If we fail to stop this, the storyline will collapse beyond repair.’
Even though it was sothing outside the main plot, the terror must absolutely be prevented.
‘To think that such a trivial side episode would escalate like this.’
I could not delay any longer.
I had to resolve this before it grew into sothing unmanageable.
After storing the docunt in subspace, I lowered my voice.
“Imdiately send the evidence of Rubin’s corruption to Her Highness Arlhardt.”
A private villa on the grounds of Yggdrasil.
Princess Arlhardt was standing by the terrace railing, gazing out over the barley field.
“Your Highness, you are awake.”
From the shadows, Curio erged and bowed her head.
“Forgive my intrusion, but I have sothing to report. This letter has arrived.”
“……A letter?”
The Princess accepted the envelope that Curio handed her.
「I pray that you may face the truth.
From. Black Knights」
……Not the Black Knight.
‘The Black Knights?’
With puzzlent ca curiosity.
The Princess imdiately tore open the envelope and drew out the letter. There were so many sheets inside that it looked quite thick.
‘This is…….’
Her eyes widened.
It was a letter written by a subordinate who had been entrusted directly by the Black Knight.
The letter contained astonishing information.
‘The Black Knight…… Rubin’s embezzlent?’
The news in the letter was not re speculation.
There was a photo of a cadet, presud to be Rubin’s supporter, packing a bag of money into a carriage.
There were traces of altered financial records where expenditure reports had been manipulated.
Not only were there circumstances pointing to embezzlent, but also clear supporting evidence.
‘He spent two years in the Student Council, and after becoming Vice President, he committed corruption for a year…….’
There were so many instances that his greed was sickening.
‘On top of embezzlent, he was preparing terror as well.’
A dreadful plan—what could only be called a staged act.
He intended to release Bomb Beetles within the campus, and when the threat of terror lood, Rubin would pretend to be the Black Knight and perform a rescue.
‘Why…… why would he risk human lives for this…….’
It was shocking.
The Princess covered her mouth, barely suppressing the urge to vomit.
‘How could a person be this vile.’
After reading the final line of the letter, she fell into deep thought.
She had already been suspicious of Vice President Rubin.
‘……So I wasn’t wrong after all.’
Ever since eting Rubin, who revealed himself as the Black Knight, Arlhardt had felt suffocated in her chest.
Sothing kept bothering her, so she had her subordinates independently gather information.
For months now, the Student Council had been divided into factions of the President and the Vice President.
Those who were dissatisfied with President Adin had flocked to Vice President Rubin’s faction.
As the faction war dragged on…… Rubin declared himself the Black Knight, and his approval skyrocketed, overtaking President Adin’s.
‘Adin’s faction is steadily losing strength.’
If things continued like this, Adin might voluntarily step down from the presidency.
‘……Rubin intends to devour the Student Council whole.’
If Rubin succeeded Adin as President, he would control the Student Council completely, and by then, there would be no one left capable of restraining him. It would only lead to even greater corruption.
The Princess folded the letter.
“Hoo……”
A sigh escaped her lips.
But this sigh did not signify emptiness, sorrow, fatigue, or anxiety.
It was, rather, closer to ‘relief.’
Contradictory though it was, the Princess felt a strange reassurance in her heart.
‘……It is truly fortunate that Vice President Rubin is not the Black Knight.’
Unintentionally, the Princess had faced the hideous truths of the world from a very young age.
Jealousy, revenge, deception, hypocrisy, hatred, lies, betrayal, and greed.
And countless other repulsive things besides.
……But.
The Black Knight, who had hidden his identity from the public without seeking any reward, could be said to be the complete opposite of the knight the Princess had known.
His very existence felt as though he were boldly claiming that nobility and altruism still existed in this world.
To the Princess, who had grown up seeing only the negative side of the secular world, the Black Knight was like a ray of hope.
If Rubin, steeped in greed, had truly been the Black Knight…… the Princess would have lost hope, and her sense of emptiness toward the world would have been imnse.
‘……Yes. If he were the true Black Knight, he would not have acted for selfish gain.’
Though their conversation had been brief, she knew from speaking with him directly.
The Princess felt grateful toward the Black Knight—even for delivering this letter to her, which otherwise she would never have known the truth about.
The Princess speculated about the Black Knight’s intentions.
‘……He ans for to take action.’
The letter was asking the Princess to move forward for Rubin’s impeachnt.
According to this letter, she must stop the terror, reveal the truth, and punish Vice President Rubin.
The Princess gave Curio a faint smile.
“Thank you for delivering the letter, Curio.”
In response to the Princess’s words, Curio silently bowed and slipped back into the shadows.
anwhile.
Curio lded into the shadows and arrived at ‘a certain room.’
There, a man with half-closed eyes, Luga, was sitting in a chair polishing his blade.
“Sir Curio. It would be best not to inform Her Highness yet that we have infiltrated the Black Knights.”
“I agree with you, Lord Luga.”
For now, it was necessary to ease the Princess’s worries.
Therefore, it would not be too late to reveal that they had successfully infiltrated the Black Knights only after discovering the Black Knight’s true objectives.
Curio always wondered when watching the Black Knight.
‘The Black Knight…… is he truly a righteous figure?’
A hero who sought no credit was sothing only found in fairy tales.
‘Humans are driven by desire.’
Desire was the fundantal motive that made humans act. Every choice and action was inevitably based on ‘desire.’
Therefore, even the Black Knight surely did not move without a purpose.
‘There must be sothing—surely sothing—that drives the Black Knight.’
If they stayed infiltrated within the Black Knights long enough, they would be able to uncover his aims and goals.
Curio wrapped himself in the Black Knight’s mask and coat, then disappeared back into the shadows.
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