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Chapter 207: The Princess and the Assassin (1)
People say that one’s nature doesn’t change with age, right?
Yet here we have soone who should be enjoying the fresh air sowhere, still occupying a position in academia.
Though it’s not a grand institution like the Royal Academy, just a small classroom with about ten students, if it’s what they desire, who’s to say anything against it?
Well, that’s partly why I’m here.
“Thinking about it now, it’s quite amusing, isn’t it? Why would you assu I know the author of this book?”
“I didn’t co here with absolute certainty. I simply thought, given the Chancellor’s keen observational skills to rember every student who passed through the academy, there might be a chance soone resembling the na had crossed paths.”
“You still have that annoyingly persistent deanor.”
The Chancellor said, seemingly unchanged.
“It doesn’t have to be the author of that book specifically. If you know anything about the na Hafenkus, just tell .”
“Ah, yes. There was one. A student at the academy nad Hafenkus…”
They say there’s nothing more frustrating than wasted effort in life,
But it seems I won’t leave empty-handed after all.
“Coincidentally, it might have been around the ti you dropped out. A commoner elevated to noble status, right? I recall she entered through a special transfer process, not as a regular freshman.”
“What was the na?”
“Mia Hafenkus.”
A na I’ve never heard before, naturally.
“What kind of student was she?”
“How would I know that? I resigned not long after you dropped out, and even if you hadn’t, I wouldn’t rember her.”
The Chancellor gave a displeased look, as if questioning the relevance of my inquiry.
Well, at least I got a relevant na, but there’s still more to find out.
“Did she graduate?”
“Well, how would I know? If you’re so curious, why don’t you go back to the academy and ask? I doubt Satwell would readily offer information, but I’m not inclined to make an effort for a disciple who’s not particularly endearing.”
He was probably teasing with that last remark.
Since I never expected any help in the first place, I’ll just let it go.
Anyway, to find more clues, I’ll have to go back to the academy, which seems like a hassle.
Maybe I should ask Brian…
“But, isn’t the order of your inquiries a bit off?”
“What do you an?”
“What you wanted to know, ultimately, seems to be about this book’s author, Dio Hafenkus. Shouldn’t you have first sought out the one who distributed this book before ?”
“….”
“You’re not suggesting you didn’t know, are you? It’s inconceivable that the most formidable intelligence network in the continent would be unaware of a fact even known to so old man teaching in a corner room.”
“We can’t just enter the lion’s den for uncertain information, can we?”
I replied casually.
Although it was just an act of indifference,
“Good at talking, aren’t you? Then how about this?”
“What else do you have to say?”
“That girl, Arin, she’s in this city right now.”
“….!”
My mouth twitched involuntarily for a mont.
“I saw her passing by the window earlier. Judging by the atmosphere, it doesn’t seem like she’s here for official business. There was no one else besides the knight who usually accompanies her.”
If it’s the knight accompanying her, it must be Ressimus.
It’s truly frustrating, beyond words.
Bringing only one guardian knight to Aquiel?
Amidst the hundreds of blades lurking nearby, it’s hard to imagine that the princess here isn’t soone with a strong will.
“Indeed, life is sothing you have to live through. Who would’ve thought she’d be exerting so much effort in the royal court to improve people’s perception of the mist? Isn’t now your chance? She hasn’t gone far yet, so go and ask directly. What was she thinking, doing sothing like that…”
Does it sound more like coercion than persuasion?
Maybe it’s just my mood.
But it’s not wrong.
If I wanted to know about the author of the book Dio Hafenkus, I should naturally seek out the person who distributed the book.
Moreover, if that person is now very close by, I have no reason not to go.
However,
*Taptaptap*
The sound of soone’s footsteps reaching through the floor.
It’s not far from the door.
Not the heavy steps of a man, but the confident steps of a woman.
Even though I don’t know who the owner of those footsteps is,
“…!”
For so reason, my heart raced and sweat trickled down my forehead.
As if my body was telling who the owner of those steps might be,
that encountering them would definitely not be a good thing.
*Knock Knock*
After a mont, the footsteps stopped at the door, and the door was tapped gently.
“Are you there, Chancellor?”
* * *
If there wasn’t anything special happening, it would already be ti to retire for the night.
Coming at this hour itself is a breach of etiquette, but Arin had no choice but to co.
“Are you there, Chancellor?”
She cautiously knocked on the door and called out, but there was no answer.
It didn’t seem like there was no one there.
As she could faintly feel warmth and presence from beyond the door, just as she was about to knock again,
“Co in.”
A gentle reply ca from inside.
Upon this, Arin, accompanied by Ressimus, slowly opened the door and entered.
“Aren’t you surprised at all?”
“I saw you passing by with your knight earlier. I was surprised then.”
Arin smiled softly at the cheerful response that relieved her tense heart.
“Hello, Chancellor.”
“It’s been a while, Arin.”
Kundel greeted his long-absent student warmly.
“I apologize for coming at such a late hour. Did I interrupt sothing you were doing?”
“No need to worry. It wasn’t anything cheerful.”
Kundel quietly tucked away the book he was reading under his desk.
“Did you co here for business?”
“Yes.”
“Seeing as you ca without sending any official notice, it doesn’t seem like it’s for official duties, but rather personal matters, not related to the royal family?”
“Sort of… Yes.”
Arin didn’t deny Kundel’s inquiry.
After all, there was no point in denying it.
“I don’t have much ti, so I’ll just ask directly.”
Kundel nodded silently.
“Has Cyan co here by any chance?”
Before answering, Kundel furrowed his brow slightly, showing a sowhat puzzled reaction.
“Why are you looking for that guy directly from , out of all people?”
“It’s a bit difficult to explain, but I happened to find out that Cyan is around here. So, out of curiosity…”
“He hasn’t co.”
Arin couldn’t continue speaking after the resolute response.
Though she wanted to steer the conversation elsewhere, her already closed lips wouldn’t easily open again.
“They say that despite seeming to change, the human heart doesn’t easily change. Hasn’t your desire to save him remained unchanged?”
“What’s the point? It’s useless if I don’t have the power to make that desire a reality…”
Despair flickered in Arin’s eyes.
“At first, I thought that as long as I had the strength to break rocks with a wooden sword, it would be possible. I thought that having the power to turn the impossible into possible would be enough. But I was naive. The impossible I need to change is far more than that…”
It can be said that learning always simultaneously reveals how foolish one’s past self was.
Seven years of relentless pursuit towards the goal of saving soone.
Although Arin had undoubtedly achieved aningful growth during that ti, she realized multiple tis how grand and futile her dreams had been in the past.
Now, it felt like she had to beco a god or sothing…
“It’s embarrassing to co back after a long ti and start complaining. Next ti, I’ll bring lots of gifts for the students.”
As if she didn’t want to linger any longer, Arin bid him farewell.
Just as she was about to leave with Ressimus,
“It’s almost laughable to ask now…”
Kundel stopped her once again.
“If you were to et him now, what would you say?”
Without turning around, Arin spoke with a small smile.
“Just… ask if he’s been well, maybe?”
It was the best thing she could say as she was now.
“Of course, even that might be sothing, as a princess, I can’t say…”
With a tremble in her head and a clenched fist,
Still,
She still couldn’t do anything even if she t him.
Maybe with more ti,
Actually, she didn’t know how much ti it would take,
But for the day when she could face him without any sha,
Arin would continue to run endlessly down the path that seed shrouded in unknown mist.
“If Cyan cos, please tell him for .”
“Tell him yourself.”
“…?”
Arin instinctively turned her head.
“After all, aren’t you here not as a princess? So tell him yourself. As Arin Sevellerus, not as a princess…”
“W-What do you an?”
As she asked in confusion,
*Snap!*
Kundel flicked the mana he had conjured from his hand with his finger.
Instantly, with a faint resonance, a transparent magical barrier spread around them.
Ressimus, who had been watching from behind, hurriedly rushed forward at the sudden situation.
“Why the sudden barrier…?”
In an instant, Arin felt it.
At the left edge of the space.
A dark space untouched by the light of candles.
The presence of soone, whose presence had been there for who knows how long.
Oddly, it wasn’t a stranger’s presence.
It was a very familiar, unforgettable energy from seven years ago until now.
The energy she had yearned for so desperately was now vividly felt before Arin’s eyes.
*Creak*
With distinct footsteps, a man gradually erged from the darkness.
A tall man with sharp eyes as keen as a blade amidst his thick black hair.
Even after seven years, his indifferent gaze remained unchanged as he faced her.
“Cyan?”
* * *
I could have done it when I heard the footsteps or the knock.
Whether through magic, trickery, or simply breaking through the window, I could have escaped sohow.
But I didn’t.
Instead, I just hid in the darkness and eavesdropped on their conversation.
Was it more like my mind decided for rather than my own will?
The chancellor closed his eyes to my presence and lied to her about my arrival.
Well, it’s not like he was considering my feelings.
It was probably just his own plan to lay the groundwork for a bigger sche like this.
* * *
Her eyes that t mine were deeply unsettled.
It’s not necessarily a bad thing.
If anything, it would be more surprising if she were indifferent.
Still, compared to seven years ago, her gaze, posture, and deanor showed quite a remarkable growth.
An admirable mber of the imperial family who contributes to the empire.
Now, I feel like I could say those words without difficulty.
.
.
.
So, what’s the big deal?
Do I really need to know?
Can’t I just ask if she’s been well?
Does she truly believe that’s sothing I would say?
Cyan Vert, the traitor who defied and insulted the empire?
I’m speechless with incredulity.
They say human nature doesn’t change.
Well, it seems the stubbornness of this princess won’t change even after decades or centuries.
A feeling of long-suppressed rage surged within .
And then, a thought naturally surfaced in my mind.
Since she’s soon to be executed by the hands of the leader and her n,
Why not just end her life right here, right now?
“…”
In my hand, the embodint of the demonic blade filled with murderous energy, gathered at the edge of its sharp edge.
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