Chapter 706
“W–wait a second! Student Council President!”
Auror raised her arm with a horrified expression.
“I wasn’t the one who performed the Dave ritual! Ah, no, wait. Was I? No! To be precise…!”
“?”
Watching Auror babble incoherently, Simon spoke calmly.
“Relax, and tell me slowly. I’ll listen to everything.”
She hastily grabbed a glass of water and gulped it down her throat.
Only after draining the glass in one go did she seem to calm down a little, and she opened her mouth.
“After… the Goddess Dave appeared in my dream, things started happening. Not just the self-harm….”
“?”
After going to bed, she said she unknowingly went outside the house and brought back brass bowls, candles, and other items. She stole goods from general stores, sawed wood to make crosses, and even killed monsters or livestock and dragged their heads home.
Then, when she came back to her senses, her face would be covered in blood, and her house would be littered with brass bowls and other ritual tools.
She repeated this cycle several times. She was terrified of what she might be doing every night.
“…Then once, I got caught by the night watch, and things got noisy.”
She spoke in a gloomy voice.
“They questioned me, asking why I had ritual tools from the Holy Federation. Luckily, since I’m a Keyzen student, I got out of it, but people still look at me with suspicion.”
Simon nodded.
In a situation where she was already receiving unnecessary suspicion, if she recklessly confessed these worries to a professor or an adult and an investigation started, she could even be charged with worshipping the Goddess Dave.
Compared to the Holy Federation, the Dark Alliance respected cultural diversity to some extent, but worship of the Goddess Dave that involved ritual acts was an exception. If caught, it was a terrifying crime punishable by execution, even beheading.
Simon glanced over the tools scattered on the floor.
“You really didn’t complete the ritual, right?”
In the world of white magic, this was something that had to be confirmed.
It wasn’t about blaming her, but if she had succeeded in the ritual, a much stronger white magical effect could have manifested.
Auror hugged her knees with a terrified face and trembled. Then she bowed her head and murmured faintly.
“Once….”
Simon quickly raised his head. She, pale-faced, hurriedly added.
“Really, just once! O–one day, when I woke up, there was some kind of altar built in my house! That time, I had a dream where the Goddess Dave strangled me while wailing! I was so scared! So… I knelt before it.”
Simon closed his eyes. She raised her voice defensively, as if making excuses.
“But I didn’t do it because I worship the Goddess Dave! I was begging for my life! Please let me live! Stop! I thought that if I did that, maybe the goddess wouldn’t appear in my dreams the next day…!”
“I understand.”
When cornered, a person could do anything.
Simon mobilized all the holy magic knowledge he had to grasp the situation.
‘If Lete were here, she would have solved it right away. Should I write to Mother? But it would take at least two weeks for a reply from Leshill.’
It seemed the best course was to go see Professor ‘Farahan’ of Defense Against Holiness tomorrow morning.
But for now, what Auror told him wasn’t enough.
He needed more information.
“Auror. Did you have that nightmare again yesterday?”
She nodded faintly with trembling eyes. After a brief thought, Simon spoke.
“Then I’ll sleep here tonight too. Is that okay?”
“!!”
Her face, frozen with fear, suddenly stiffened in a strange way.
“W–wait! You’re going to sleep here? Tonight?”
“Yeah.”
“Th–that’s….”
Simon smiled softly and pointed at himself.
“I’m the Student Council President, and I have a duty to protect our school’s students. There won’t be any disgraceful situations for you to worry about.”
“But still….”
In the end, after much hesitation, Auror agreed.
On one condition.
Click.
A clothesline was strung across the middle of the room, and a blanket was hung on it. The two of them would be lying in the same room, separated by a thin blanket.
“…Don’t peek.”
“Got it.”
Through the blanket, he could see her hurriedly changing into comfortable clothes. Simon quietly lay under the blanket and pulled the covers over himself.
“……”
“……”
A dark, dusty, and old room.
The two of them stared blankly at the ceiling for a moment.
“…Student Council President.”
“Just call me Simon.”
“…Okay. Simon, here.”
Auror shyly extended her hand past the blanket, handing something over. Turning his head, he saw a small pair of earplugs.
“If I scream, wear them. Your ears might bleed otherwise.”
“Thanks.”
Simon put the earplugs away. Auror lay back down and stared at the ceiling again.
“…This reminds me of our first-year dormitory days.”
She looked exhausted, but managed a small smile.
“It feels like it’s been so long since I slept with someone else. At first I was worried, but now I feel kind of at peace… Simon?”
Soft breathing sounds came from beside her.
“You already put the earplugs in.”
* * *
Night passed.
Simon, lying motionless under the blanket, slowly opened his eyes.
Keeping his head fixed upward, he rolled only his eyeballs to the side.
A faint silhouette could be seen beyond the thin blanket.
The silhouette wasn’t lying down.
It was standing.
Arms dangling, back bent unnaturally far backward.
‘…….’
It was looking straight at him.
Simon slowly stretched his arm toward the blanket in the middle. And then—
Whoosh!
He threw the blanket aside and sprang up in an instant.
“…?”
But Auror was asleep. Turned to the other side, breathing softly.
‘What was that just now?’
Half-asleep, Simon frowned in thought, then flinched at the glimpse of her underwear strap as he lifted the blanket. He quickly restored the blanket to its place and lay back down.
‘Did I imagine it?’
Much later.
“……”
Simon again sensed something off and opened his eyes.
Rustle, rustle—
A strange sound came from beyond the blanket. Simon rolled his eyes that way. A blurred silhouette was up from the bedding, rummaging around.
That side was toward the wall covered in crosses and magic circles.
Though faint, he could guess what was happening. A table was being set, candlesticks placed.
An altar was being built.
‘I won’t miss it this time.’
Simon carefully stretched his hand toward the blanket.
Whoosh!
The blanket suddenly shot upward and lunged at him.
“Kh!”
Simon hastily grabbed the rising blanket with both arms. It felt as though he were holding back the jaws of a monster. With snapping sounds, a sticky liquid seeped through the fabric.
Bracing himself, Simon concentrated Darkness into his legs and—
Baaam!
Using his body’s rebound, he kicked out. The thing was knocked back, and Simon tumbled and sprang to his feet.
“Finally showed yourself.”
Simon grinned.
Auror, hair hanging down like a ghost, was bent forward. And on her back, rooted deep, a pale spirit body glared at Simon.
A grotesque figure like a twisted angel. Instead of wings, long blades jutted from its back.
‘Spiritology, huh.’
If necromancers had Spiritology, priests had Spiritual Studies.
Where necromancers commanded undead, priests dealt with spirits.
The problem was—
‘How can a necromancer like Auror have something like that in her body?’
Shreeeeek!
The spirit spread its blade-like wings from its back and sent them at Simon. Simon lightly tilted his shoulder on the spot, dodging.
Shwaak!
The blade grazed Simon’s shoulder. The barrier on his uniform was cut down sharply in an instant.
‘So, it even carries physical force.’
Thud!
The spirit moved.
–Kekekekekekekeke!
Erupting from Auror’s body like a snake, it twisted its waist like a rope and rushed toward Simon. Stretching out its hands and screaming, its appearance was far too grotesque to even be called a spirit.
At this, Simon—
Pow!
—swung his fist with a bored expression.
–?!
The result was overwhelming. Struck by Simon’s fist, the spirit’s cheek grotesquely distorted as it was hurled away and crashed into the wall.
–???
The spirit reacted as if it couldn’t believe it had actually taken damage.
“What, never seen a necromancer punch a spirit before?”
Simon lowered his fist and continued speaking.
“While I’m saying this nicely, get out of Auror’s body.”
Step, step.
Simon drew closer. The spirit, as if deciding the previous blow had been a fluke, rose again and lashed out with its blades.
But Simon casually swatted them away with the back of his hand, brushing them aside.
Crunch, crunch, crunch!
Simon’s body, which had been fending them off expressionlessly, suddenly jolted. He lowered his head and looked down at himself.
A huge divine spike was lodged in the center of his chest, piercing where he’d let his guard down.
–Kekekekekeke!
The spirit cackled, mouth tearing open. Twisting its body upward, it lunged to engulf Simon’s face.
Chomp! Chomp!
Its enormous maw swallowed Simon’s head whole, chewing.
However—
–Kehk?
The spirit’s expression soured.
It couldn’t bite through.
“What are you doing?”
Simon muttered indifferently, then grabbed the angel’s nose with one hand and pulled upward.
Crreeeeak!
The spirit shrieked, thrashing in agony.
“I told you, get out.”
Simon clenched his other hand into a fist.
It wasn’t Darkness. Holy light shimmered in his hand.
–Geh?
“Clench your teeth.”
Bang!
Simon’s fist smashed into the spirit’s face. Its cheek crumpled like dough.
Wham!
Crack!
He followed with several more punches. The spirit was battered helplessly, its body cracking.
Soon, a radiance surged from Simon’s fist, shaping into a cross.
Kwaaaang!
A new Holy Combat technique manifested by chance while beating the spirit.
Simon’s fist slammed into its side. The spirit’s body twisted unnaturally as it screamed.
–Gegegegegegegegegegegege!
Enraged, the spirit stretched its jaws impossibly wide and lunged again.
Simon quickly cast a magic circle.
< Lete’s Original – La Escrime >
Crunchcrunchcrunch!
A rotating holy lance pierced through the spirit’s gaping mouth and drove deep inside.
With the sickening sound of flesh being shredded, the long body of the spirit exploded from within and shattered into fragments.
A perfect finish.
Thud.
Auror collapsed limply. Simon brushed off his hands and sighed.
“As always.”
“Kkeeeeeeek!”
Suddenly Auror’s eyes rolled back, and she charged at Simon. He snatched her wrist like lightning and slammed his shoulder into her. Thump! She was driven into the wall.
“So, since holiness doesn’t work, you’re trying to use Auror’s body instead?”
Simon gestured.
Detached Bone Armors flew over and pinned her to the wall. Her arms were crossed and fixed upward, and her legs pressed tightly against the wall.
“This is the last warning.”
Simon’s eyes burned as he spoke.
“Get out.”
“…!”
Auror’s eyes quivered, then her head drooped.
The foreign aura emanating from her body vanished completely. Only then did Simon finally smile in relief.
“H–huh? Where is this…?”
Auror opened her eyes.
Clatter—
She tried to move her hands, but they were restrained. She looked around, confused.
“?!”
She was bound to the wall, and in front of her stood Simon, smiling with a villainous, meaningful grin.
“Uh, wait, Auror.”
Simon raised his palms, sweat beading.
“I know this looks bad, but this is…!”
–Kyaaaaaaaaaaah!
The shriek of a banshee rang out.
Simon quickly ran and shoved in the earplugs, dropping flat on the ground.
* * *
The next morning.
As soon as the sun rose, Simon was walking across the Keyzen campus with Auror.
“You said there wouldn’t be any disgraceful incidents! You said there wouldn’t be!”
“…I think I’ve said it was a misunderstanding about thirty times already.”
Though Auror still seemed deeply affected by what had happened that morning, she also knew she turned strange whenever she slept, so she reluctantly let it go.
The bigger problem was—
“Something like that came out of my body…?”
Simon nodded, brushing his hair back.
“It’s definitely not an ordinary situation. For now, let’s go see Professor Farahan.”
She looked slightly frightened.
“P–Professor Farahan, you mean that priest, right?”
“That’s right. But he’s trustworthy. He won’t tell the school about you.”
Simon pointed ahead.
Over the hill, a quaint little house came into view.
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