Chapter 723
Keyzen infirmary rooftop.
Looking down at the empty schoolyard, now deserted since the students had gone home for vacation, two boys in white patient gowns were talking.
“I think of it as just deserts.”
Aizel said.
“It was bound to explode one way or another, someday. From the beginning, the idea of deceiving everyone until graduation was an impossible dream.”
“......Senior Aizel.”
“I feel sorry for you, Simon.”
Aizel continued in a gloomy voice.
“You must have prepared a lot. Yet I couldn’t even make it to the dueling ground.”
“What do you mean? Something like that happened, there was nothing you could do.”
Simon said so, then quietly gazed at Aizel.
“But, your expression looks much better now.”
“R-really?”
Aizel, scratching his cheek in embarrassment, soon leaned against the railing.
“To be honest, it’s a relief. I feel light, and refreshed.”
Huuuh—
He took a deep breath, then exhaled with a sigh.
“I should have just lived as I am, once the truth was revealed. Why did I stake my life on desperately hiding my identity?”
“Fear of the unknown, that’s the scariest thing.”
“That must have been it, huh?”
The two exchanged a faint smile. The atmosphere having softened, Simon asked cautiously.
“Have you met your friends?”
“Yeah, as soon as the vacation ceremony ended, they all came to my room.”
Aizel rubbed his own wrist, as if shy.
“They all understood, and encouraged me. Of course, some were upset, but I apologized, and I think we left things on good terms.”
Good heavens.
Simon wondered if this was really the same Aizel.
When they had first met, he had been constantly anxious about being discovered, obsessively glancing around in paranoia. Now, speaking in a calm tone, shoulders loose, there was a serenity that had never been there before.
“And before I go, I wanted to thank you.”
“Huh? Go, you mean….”
“I submitted a leave of absence. Actually, I tried to drop out, but the 3rd-year professors all came running to stop me.”
Simon had heard that rumor as well.
“Even Lady Neftis refused to accept my withdrawal form. Honestly, I don’t plan to return, but for now, I’ve put in a leave of absence and intend to wander the continent.”
Aizel smiled brightly.
“I plan to travel as my true self, and reflect upon who I really am.”
Though their time together was short, Simon felt a pang of emotion for the senior with whom he had shared struggles, joys, and sorrows.
“I truly wish you the best, Senior.”
“Thank you.”
Fweeeeh—
A breeze blew across the rooftop, sending leaves dancing in the air. As they silently watched, Aizel’s voice broke in.
“Did you hear anything about the student council presidency?”
Simon shook his head.
“Loraine told me the faculty’s opinions are split right down the middle. From the looks of it, the decision won’t be finalized until after vacation.”
“Ballack will target you from now on.”
Aizel’s face grew grim.
“Ballack has already surpassed me, he’s the strongest in Keyzen now. From here on, it’ll be his era. Your second semester might be harsher than before.”
“If he comes, I’ll gladly take him on. Whatever.”
Simon casually dusted off his hands and gave a sly smile.
“He’s easier than you, Senior.”
Ahahaha!
Aizel burst out laughing aloud. Then, letting his bangs fall, he looked at Simon.
“Even though I’m leaving like this now, once I’ve traveled the continent, and learned to love myself a little more, then—”
He clenched his slender fist, thrusting it toward Simon.
“Let’s have a proper fight again.”
Simon also grinned broadly and bumped his fist against Aizel’s.
“I’ll be waiting!”
It was a day of parting, yet a pleasant one.
As the boys’ cheerful laughter echoed, a girl leaning against the rooftop wall brushed aside her platinum hair.
“Honestly, men.”
It was Serne Eindark. She had cast a barrier to conceal her presence, eavesdropping on their talk.
“Why must farewells always be ‘let’s fight again next time’? Wouldn’t it be simpler just to end things with a smile? I can’t make sense of it.”
“They couldn’t settle it, so of course both feel unsatisfied.”
Beside her, Loraine was peeking out, pressed close against the wall.
Serne, with an indifferent look, twisted a strand of hair around her finger. Then, as the two boys looked to be parting ways, she stepped forward.
“Looks like they’re done talking, so it’s my turn now.”
“What? Wait!”
She instantly dismissed the barrier, striding out with long steps.
“Oh my, Simon!”
Simon and Aizel both flinched.
“What a coincidence, meeting you here!”
“Se-Serne? What are you doing here….”
“Simon wasn’t in his room, so I came out for some air. I didn’t know I’d find you here.”
Answering with feigned innocence, Serne walked over, hands behind her back, her eyes crinkling sweetly at Aizel.
“Nice to meet you, Senior Aizel. I’ve heard so much about you from Simon.”
“Ah, uh….”
Just moments ago, Aizel had spoken so calmly, but now he stammered, staring at Serne.
Serne nudged Simon’s arm lightly with her elbow—introduce me already.
Simon quickly regained his composure and spoke.
“Ah, this is Serne Eindark, a second-year. She’s the official successor of the Ivory Tower.”
“The Ivory Tower…!”
Aizel’s face went pale. As Simon finished the introduction, Serne immediately slipped into business mode.
“I heard you’re taking a leave and setting out on a journey. Do you have a destination in mind? Do you have travel funds? Actually, from our Ivory Tower….”
Aizel, the former 3rd-year top student, leaving Keyzen of his own accord. For Serne, soon to become the Master of the Ivory Tower, he was a prize too tempting to ignore.
Of course, she didn’t outright demand he join the Ivory Tower immediately, but she eagerly offered sponsorship, proposing to support his travels.
“Hello, Simon.”
Looking very displeased with the scene, Loraine approached.
“Loraine, you were here too?”
“Sorry. I came to stop Serne, but somehow got caught up.”
Loraine too seemed just as concerned about Aizel.
For Keyzen as well, Aizel was a talent they absolutely did not want to lose. They wanted to present favorable terms, but for the moment, they seemed satisfied with having at least stopped his withdrawal. Any further demands would only wear him out.
“You may be leaving now, but one day you will surely return to Keyzen.”
Loraine turned her head.
“Don’t you think so too, Simon?”
“Uh, yeah.”
That was how he answered, but truthfully—
In Simon’s view, Aizel didn’t seem interested in either Keyzen or the Ivory Tower.
‘Good luck with that.’
Especially now, it was amusing to see Aizel being harassed by Serne.
Serne was speaking warmly and familiarly, sprinkling in just a touch of cutesy tone as a younger schoolmate. But Aizel could not accept it that way at all.
Standing before a younger junior, his hands folded together in front of him, trembling as he listened. The herbivore radar ingrained within him had detected the overwhelming “predator” before his eyes.
Simon was just thinking he should probably pull poor Aizel out of there—
“Lady Loraine.”
A masked man, who appeared to be her direct underling, quietly appeared and handed her something. Reading the paper he gave, her expression hardened slightly.
“Simon.”
“Yeah.”
“The guardian who’s supposed to come visit you on the island, it’s your aunt, right?”
Simon’s eyes widened.
Aunt? Not uncle?
“There’s a problem.”
She said.
Serne, who had been busy trying to persuade Aizel, immediately stopped talking and turned toward Loraine.
“It seems your aunt has gone missing in Langerstine.”
* * *
If she were just one or two hours late, one might think nothing of it. But Langerstine was different.
A place swarming with gangs, muggers, and thieves.
Stand around absentmindedly, and you’d lose your nose before you knew it.
When Simon had first left his hometown Leshill to enter Keyzen, someone had even approached him pretending to be a guide. And now, someone unfamiliar with the big city had gone missing there.
—We move immediately.
Loraine at once mobilized people, preparing a teleportation circle bound for Langerstine.
Simon was supposed to be resting in the infirmary, but he decided to go personally. Since Simon was going, Serne naturally tagged along as well.
And so, the three stepped onto the teleportation circle and crossed over to Langerstine.
“Welcome, Lady Loraine.”
At the harbor, her underlings were already waiting. Loraine asked,
“Has Simon’s guardian still not arrived?”
“Yes, we confirmed she entered Langerstine, but her arrival is delayed.”
Simon pressed his forehead with a worried expression.
‘......If it’s Mom, she would definitely get caught up in something.’
Why it was Anna and not Richard who had come, he didn’t know. But in any case, they had to find her before it was too late.
With her authority in Keyzen temporarily restored during vacation, Loraine issued commands.
“Mobilize all underlings stationed in Langerstine. We must find Simon’s guardian at all costs.”
“Yes!”
“Let’s go too.”
The three immediately began their own search.
“Excuse me, have you seen a noblewoman who might have gotten lost around here? Her hair is silver-gray, her figure a bit slender….”
Simon and Loraine asked people one by one, while Serne used feathers to control minds. Sometimes, she even read memories directly.
“Hmm, now that you mention it.”
“?”
As Simon inquired, an old man stroked his beard and said,
“I saw a beautiful lady following after a man.”
Simon’s face hardened at once.
“Which way did they go?”
* * *
Step, step.
Anna was delighted to be in a big city again after so long. Her eyes sparkled as she looked around everywhere.
“This way, please.”
Escorting her was a gang member disguised as a “guide”. People who so clearly showed they were first-timers in Langerstine were the easiest prey for gangs.
‘No husband, no servant attending her, and she’s wandering Langerstine alone? Bold, isn’t she.’
How could someone be so naive to the ways of the world.
She was obviously a noblewoman. Likely raised in a greenhouse-like childhood, then married off to a rural lord, living quietly raising children ever since.
Her ransom would fetch a fine price, but first, he needed to know her background. If she was too high-profile a noble’s wife, that could be troublesome.
“Ah, come to think of it, madam, I completely forgot to ask. Once we reach the harbor, where did you say you were going?”
Anna smiled gently.
“To Keyzen!”
“......”
Damn.
The gang member’s lips twitched uncontrollably. Still, since he wasn’t completely sure, he decided to probe further.
“Ha-ha! So you must know someone in Keyzen. Perhaps a servant there?”
“No!”
She smiled brightly.
“My son… no, my nephew is the Student Council President!”
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