Master 44

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“Thank you for the meal.”  

“You reserved the entire inn, so this level of hospitality is the least I can do. Hehe.”  

The inn, which had been noisy for a while, quieted down as lunchtime approached.  

“…Phew.”  

The innkeeper, who had been delivering meals to each room where the holy knights were staying, let out a small sigh and wiped the sweat from his forehead with his sleeve.  

“This should be the next room, I think…”  

Of course, he was exhausted from delivering such a large quantity of food.  

However, the sweat running down his face wasn’t just from the labor—it was a cold sweat caused by tension.  

“…Damn it, that old man just won’t die, will he?”  

After cutting ties with the back alleys and setting up an inn near the capital, he had truly believed he was starting a second chapter in life.  

“I even changed my hair color and face completely—how did they find me…?”  

That belief lasted until just yesterday when subordinates of the former underworld boss secretly visited his inn and assigned him a covert mission.  

‘Should I report this…?’  

For a brief moment, the thought crossed his mind.  

However, shaking his head immediately, he pulled out a precious photograph he always carried with him.  

‘No, if I do that…’  

Unlike in the past, when he had nothing to lose and could afford to act recklessly, he now had a family to support.  

If he betrayed them now, it was obvious what would happen to the smiling faces in the photograph.  

– Clench…  

Gripping the photo tightly at the thought, the man soon set his resolve.  

‘Fine, let’s do this.’  

Thinking about it, of course, it was risky, but this could also be an opportunity.  

All he had to do was slip something into the food and successfully knock out a single knight.  

In return, he and his family would receive enough wealth to live comfortably for the next three years.  

He wasn’t hurting or destroying anyone—just a simple trick.  

Compared to the dangerous jobs he had done in the past, this seemed like an enticing offer.  

“Ahem, ahem. Is anyone there?”  

After finishing his rationalization, the man stood before his target’s door, cleared his throat, and did his best to sound natural.  

“I’ve brought your meal.”  

“……”

“Excuse me?”  

But strangely, no response came from inside the room.  

“Ah… Is no one there?”  

Slightly taken aback by the unexpected situation, the man cautiously knocked on the door and asked again.  

However, there wasn’t even a sound of footsteps beyond the firmly shut door.  

“Excuse me, but I’m coming in for a moment.”  

“……”  

“I-It would be a shame if the food got cold. Hehe…”  

Growing increasingly anxious, he finally reached into his pocket for the spare key he had brought just in case.  

– Creak…  

Just as his fingers grasped the key inside his pocket, the tightly shut door suddenly creaked open without warning.  

“Whew. If you were inside, you should’ve said something…”  

Letting out a sigh of relief, he mumbled in a grumbling tone as he looked up—only to suddenly trail off.  

“Haha, well, this is awkward.”  

“…Who are you?”  

Peeking out from the slightly open door wasn’t a holy knight in uniform, but a suspicious-looking young man.  

“Did I… come to the wrong room?”  

“No, you’re in the right place. So, just hand me the food…”  

“But… there shouldn’t be anyone here besides the knights from the Holy Kingdom today…”  

Blinking in confusion, the man ignored the outstretched hand of the young man and nervously peered inside.  

“…Ah.”  

And at that moment, he realized his mistake.  

“Mmph! Mmmph!”  

“Stay still.”  

Inside the room, the knight who was supposed to be here was tied up tightly, stripped down to her underclothes, struggling like a chicken being prepared for market.  

“I really didn’t expect things to go wrong from the start…”  

“No, no! This is a great chance to practice covering up evidence!”  

“…”  

His brain completely froze as his eyes landed on three figures in the room.  

Bergen, who was glancing toward the window.  

Parsha, who was oddly excited.  

And Hestia, who was struggling to put on what was unmistakably the knight’s armor.  

“Uh…”  

“Hah.”  

“Can we close the door now?”  

The man, who had stood frozen for a long moment, finally snapped back to reality at Whitney’s low voice from the front.  

“Y-Yes, of course…”  

Fortunately, having grown up in the back alleys, he was quick-witted.  

“I-I’ll have the carriage ready outside the inn. And of course, I’ll never speak a word about what I saw…”  

“You may not understand now, but when you read the newspaper later, you’ll know the full story. You won’t face any trouble.”  

He didn’t bother asking how he was supposed to make sense of a scene where people stripped a holy knight of her uniform, tied her up, and held a knife to her throat.  

Because through the slight gap in the door, he could feel the cold, piercing stares of Whitney and the others directed straight at him.  

“Mmmph… Mmph…”  

“Ah, understood. Hehe.”  

The man desperately ignored the knight’s pleading and despair-filled gaze, pretending not to see it.  

Forcing a smile, he slowly started to step backward.  

“Ah, wait a moment.”  

“Hik! Y-Yes?”  

Just then, Whitney suddenly grabbed his arm.  

The man barely stopped himself from screaming, swallowing his groan with sheer willpower, and asked in a timid voice.  

“Leave that behind.”  

“Ah, y-yes…!”  

“Then, excuse me.”  

Fortunately, Whitney, who had been staring at him, only took the food basket from his trembling hands before retreating inside.  

“…Haa, haa…”  

The moment the door closed, the man staggered backward, leaning against the wall and gasping for breath.  

— Now then, Knight, open your mouth for a moment, will you?  

— T-The Goddess will never forgive you…! Mmph—!  

— There, there, just take a nice, long nap. Haha.  

As eerie voices began leaking from the room, the man covered his mouth with both hands, his face filled with terror.  

— Saintess… Why are you with such vile people…?  

— I-I’m sorry…!  

— Ah… Aah….  

And then, silence.  

With the knight’s faint, dying cry, all conversation ceased, and a chilling stillness filled the air.  

“Hiiik…!”  

Paralyzed with fear, the man stumbled to his feet and fled down the hallway.  

But as his legs gave out, he collapsed in front of the stairs, his face completely blank as he mumbled to himself.  

‘…What the hell have I gotten myself into?’  

He would never be able to understand, but Whitney’s grand plan for the Saintess’s awakening—purely for world peace and the greater good—was only just beginning.  

***  

Several hours later, after all the classes had ended for the day at the academy.  

“Phew…”  

“Cecil, you got this!”  

“Stay strong!”  

With her friends cheering her on, Cecil arrived at the waiting room where the participants for the Talent Selection Tournament were gathering.  

“What do I do? I’m so nervous….”  

Her grades and skills were on par with the other competitors, so her participation was more than justified.  

Still, the fact that a first-year had even been given the opportunity to compete was rare, so even though she had been mentally preparing for this for a while, she couldn’t help but feel anxious.  

“…Calm down, I can’t be like this already.”  

Slapping both her cheeks lightly, she steadied herself.  

With newfound determination, she reached out to grasp the door handle.  

“Guys, I’ll be going in now—”  

Just as she turned slightly to say a quick goodbye to her friends who had come with her…  

“?”  

“..?”  

She noticed that their gazes weren’t on her, but on something far down the hallway.  

“…Oh, for fuck’s sake.”  

Following their line of sight, Cecil furrowed her brows in irritation.  

“Ahem, ahem!”  

“Oh my, now who could that be over there?”  

Leading a group of noble followers, Adele was striding toward her.  

“Hmm, I can’t quite see with all these commoners in the way.”  

“You’d think a noble would know better than to lower herself by mingling with commoners. Doesn’t she realize how it affects her status? Fufu…”  

“Here we go again.”  

Having grown utterly exhausted from these childish antics since the entrance ceremony, Cecil sighed coldly and tried to slip into the waiting room before things got worse.  

“Ahem. Everyone, let’s not be so reckless with our words.”  

“?”  

“..?”  

“A rude comment like that only damages our own dignity.”  

Hearing Adele’s unexpected rebuke from afar, Cecil stopped in her tracks and turned back, eyes wide in surprise.  

“Excuse me, commoners—no, students. My apologies.”  

“…What?”  

“I sincerely apologize on their behalf. Please don’t take it to heart.”  

Up until a few days ago, Adele had been the epitome of arrogance and entitlement.  

But now, before Cecil’s very eyes, she was grabbing the hem of her skirt and bowing in apology.  

“Adele…?”  

“Why are you acting like this…?”  

Even her followers, who had been trying to stay in her good graces, were flustered.  

But Adele ignored them and took a step closer to Cecil.  

“Cecil, I… was a little harsh before, wasn’t I?”  

“W-What’s this all of a sudden?”  

“Wouldn’t it be nice if the top two students got along?”  

Before Cecil could react, Adele reached out and grabbed her hand.  

Silence fell over the waiting room entrance.  

“W-Well, I don’t mind, but…”  

“Oh my, I’m so happy. Fufu.”  

“…Okay, but seriously, why are you acting like this?”  

“Actually, I do have one little question.”  

Still smiling and waving her hand, Adele suddenly lowered her voice and hesitated, as if checking Cecil’s reaction.  

“…Are you close with your brother?”  

“…Huh?”  

“Oh, it’s nothing big. Just a tiny thing…”  

The moment Cecil narrowed her eyes in suspicion, Adele fidgeted nervously, pressing her index fingers together.  

“M-Maybe you could tell me what he likes or what his hobbies are…?”  

“…Why?”  

“F-For a gift! That’s all! No other reason! I just really wanted to thank him for saving me the other day….”  

In that instant, a long-dormant instinct as a younger sister screamed a warning inside Cecil’s mind.  

‘No way. This can’t be happening…’  

Of course, it wasn’t as if she had suddenly rekindled some deep sibling bond with her brother.  

It was just the primal horror any sister would feel when someone showed an interest in their useless, lazy older brother.  

‘She’s interested? In him? Of all people?!’  

It was the same gut reaction a younger sister would have upon realizing that someone wanted to be introduced to their good-for-nothing sibling who spent most of their time lying in bed, scratching their stomach.  

“I-I’m sorry, but I’m not really close with that… I mean, my brother.”  

“O-Oh, I see.”  

“We haven’t really talked much since we were kids, so…”  

Suppressing the shudder creeping up her spine, Cecil tried to end the conversation by outright denying their sibling relationship.  

“…That’s a little disappointing, but oh well. He’s probably inside anyway.”  

“…What?”  

“Actually, could you help me out when I go talk to him?”  

With a slight blush on her cheeks, Adele turned her gaze toward the waiting room door, absentmindedly twirling her hair with her fingers.  

“…From what I heard, he was pretty badly injured during the exam and even stepped down as a judge.”  

“Oh.”  

“And for that reason, wouldn’t it be rude to go inside…?”  

“Y-You’re right. My apologies.”  

Only after Cecil spoke in an icy voice, her patience completely worn thin, did Adele finally mumble dejectedly, her eyes losing their spark.  

‘I feel a little bad, but this works out for me.’  

Rubbing the goosebumps on her arms, Cecil glanced at her before regaining her composure and grabbing the door handle of the waiting room.  

‘Whatever he’s scheming, this must’ve thrown a wrench in it.’  

“…Uh, um.”  

‘At the very least, he won’t be able to interfere with the selection—’  

“Let’s go together!”  

Just as Cecil was about to push the door open, Adele suddenly raised her voice urgently, causing Cecil to look at her in confusion.  

“I-I’m also an alternate candidate for the selection match!”  

“…What?”  

“Look! I received this letter from the board this morning!”  

Adele quickly held out a letter, and Cecil’s eyes widened when she saw the exact same candidate seal that she herself had received days ago.  

“But… there was only one open spot, wasn’t there?”  

“…Right. Maybe someone withdrew, opening up another spot?”  

“But the selection match is such a prestigious opportunity. Who would willingly withdraw?”  

As they exchanged puzzled glances, Cecil decided to set aside her doubts for now and stepped through the half-open door.  

“Well, we can just go inside and check the situation.”  

She was far too eager to step into the room to waste time on trivial questions.  

***  

“But why is it so noisy in here—”  

With a slight thrill in her heart, Cecil stepped into the slightly bustling waiting room, finally experiencing the dream of being a participant in the selection match.  

However, the excitement lasted only a moment.  

“W-What the…?”  

Her eyes widened in disbelief, and before she realized it, she took an instinctive step backward.  

“Cough… Cough…”  

For some reason, a third-year student was slumped on the floor, clutching his chest and gasping as if he was on the verge of collapsing.  

“W-What’s going on…?”  

Cecil was about to rush forward but hesitated mid-step.  

Standing in front of the struggling student was Whitney, who was supposed to still be lying in the infirmary, wearing a cold, emotionless expression.  

“P-Please… reconsider….”  

“I-I want to participate in the selection match… Please don’t crush my hopes… Ugh.”  

The desperate student knelt at Whitney’s feet, trying to plead, but before he could finish, Whitney mercilessly stomped on his outstretched hand.  

His voice was as frigid as ice.  

“You, who can’t even land a single hit on me, think you deserve to compete in the selection match?”  

“…Ugh.”  

“Wouldn’t it be better to give the opportunity to someone more deserving?”  

Grinding his teeth, the student glared up at Whitney but eventually lowered his head in silent defeat.  

“Everyone here, keep quiet about what happened. Don’t stir up unnecessary trouble, and let’s handle this withdrawal quietly.”  

“……”  

“For the smooth progress of the selection match… and of course, for our lovely new addition, Lady Adele. I’d appreciate your cooperation. Haha…”  

With that, a suffocating silence fell over the waiting room.  

No one even dared to breathe too loudly, their faces pale as they all nodded in reluctant agreement.  

“Good, then—oh.”  

Finally satisfied, Whitney turned his head—only to suddenly freeze when he spotted Cecil standing blankly at the entrance.  

“…Cecil.”  

For a long moment, neither of them spoke.  

Then Whitney, awkwardly lifting his foot from the student’s hand, finally broke the silence.  

“This time, I swear, it’s really a misunderstanding.”  

But Cecil’s face had already darkened ominously.  

“So that’s why Adele was acting weird all of a sudden…”  

“N-No, I’m serious, it’s a misunderstanding.”  

“…This is the worst. Go die.”  

Having disqualified a student for conspiring with black mages, only to barely escape retaliation, Whitney felt more wronged than ever.  

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