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Chapter 261 [Illustration]

However, Harriet’s issue still remained.

That night, I called Harriet to the tea terrace where I occasionally talked with Vertus.

When I asked if she was alright, Harriet forced a smile and said, “I’m okay. I’m getting better.”

She had no choice but to overcome it. It was a different kind of horror from seeing a corpse.

“I just can’t understand it. I don’t see why people have to do such horrific things,” she continued.

Magic was supposed to make the impossible possible, but she couldn’t understand why anyone would need to do something as grotesque as mixing different species together or creating such unnatural life.

Harriet’s complexion was still poor, but she was gradually improving. She seemed to be find some measure of composure as she sipped her tea.

“And how about things with Ellen?”

“We had a reasonable talk.”

“That’s good.” Harriet said with a sad smile. “You said you fought a horde of zombies in the Dark Land, right?”

“Yeah.”

“I’m struggling just after seeing something like that back there. I can’t imagine how hard it must have been for you and Ellen.”

We had fought horrific monsters face-to-face, and Ellen had dealt with the chimeras herself.

Harriet was struggling just after seeing the aftermath of that fight.

I wanted to tell her that her struggles were no different from ours, but Harriet seemed to believe that her own struggle was a sign of her own weakness.

“If it weren’t for you, Ellen would have died.”

“... All I did was use a scroll. That was it.”

“That doesn’t make what I said any less true.”

Harriet looked at me quietly.

If Harriet hadn’t been there, Ellen might not have decided to fight. But once the fight began, Harriet’s role was crucial.

No matter how insignificant she thought her actions were, they were decisive.

“I want to try harder,” Harriet said as she looked out into the autumn night.

“You’re already trying very hard.”

Harriet looked at me.

“But I can try even harder, can’t I?” she said.

I didn’t know when it started, but lately, there was a hint of sadness in all of Harriet’s smiles.

“I’ll stay here during the break.”

Harriet seemed determined to stay and focus on her research with the Magic Research Club instead of going home after the semester ended.

There was a glimpse of a desire for strength in her expression. Perhaps seeing Ellen fight so fearlessly had sparked something in her.

I was the only one who felt like time was running out, but both Ellen and Harriet seemed anxious. Was it because of my influence?

***

I needed to extract information from the magic societies. If push came to shove, I might have to resort to using my status as the last Demon King.

I had to walk the path of the next Demon King, even if it was a pretense. A successor to the Demon Realm who wielded no power would be nothing more than a good target, instead of someone to be wary of.

People needed to know that the next Demon King existed. For that, I needed to at least have a minimum amount of power.

The Vampire Council... I intended to bring them under my control, regardless of their will.

However, I didn’t know if the old vampires would fear either the holy sword or me.

The Vampire Lords were almost all mages, and it was possible I could glean some information about the magic societies from them.

The Black Order was willing to engage with me, and I was supposed to give them information about Cantus Magna, but I didn’t expect them to approach me anytime soon.

And while they had blown Aaron Mede’s head off, they probably wouldn’t try to kill me even if I fed them a little false information.

They already knew I was a formidable person with a Vampire Lord as a subordinate.

They wouldn’t report me to the imperial authorities, as that would be like one criminal reporting on another.

I still had some time before the Vampire Council convened.

The final exams were approaching. After the finals, there would be a festival, and after the festival was the winter break.

The busier I got, the harder it was for me to feel the changing of the seasons.

The short autumn was already coming to an end.

It felt short not just because I was busy, but because that was the nature of both autumn and spring.

Just when you think they’ve arrived, they’re already slipping away.

Crunch, Crunch.

The sound of fallen leaves being trampled on could be heard all around the campus.

“What’s this?”

I brushed a fallen elm leaf off Ellen’s head. She was standing there quietly, leaning against one of the columns at the dormitory entrance.

The large leaf sat on her head like a hat, and she didn’t seem to care. Ellen was staring at me intently. Or rather, she was staring at the person next to me.

“Why do you always make that face when you see me?”

“... What?”

Ellen was glaring at Olivia Lanche.

“Do you have a problem with me?” Olivia Lanche asked.

“No,” Ellen responded.

“Do you hate that I’m close to Reinhart?”

“Oh, come on! If you’re going to spout nonsense, just go!” Ellen exclaimed.

I had run into Ellen in front of the dormitory while returning from a meeting with Olivia Lanche. Olivia glared at Ellen, who glared back at her with a sullen expression.

I had some business with Olivia lately, so we ran into each other a few times.

Ellen and Olivia didn’t get along at all.

Then again... Not getting along often means there’s some sort of relationship there.

Did they even have that kind of relationship to begin with? I wasn’t not sure.

“If I were five years younger, you wouldn’t even be able to stand next to Reinhart. I could teach him all sorts of things too.”

At Olivia’s words, One corner of Ellen’s mouth lifted in a smirk.

‘What is this? I’ve never seen her make that expression before.’

“It must be nice to be old,” said Ellen mockingly.

“Wh-What?! I’m only twenty-two! I’m still young! I’m in my prime!”

“Still, you’re older than Reinhart and me. By five years.”

Olivia, clearly losing the verbal spar, looked at me in frustration. “Grr! Reinhart! Can I hit her?”

“... Why are you asking for my permission?”

“Go ahead and try,” Ellen said with a confident tilt of her head.

‘Ellen... What’s gotten into you? This isn’t like you!’

Olivia huffed and turned away.

“Hmph! I’m only holding back because I hate violence! Remember that!”

Olivia stuck out her tongue and stormed into the dormitory.

‘That woman. She’s great, really great. But sometimes, she does things that make me want to smack her.’

Ellen watched Olivia leave and then turned her gaze to me.

“Can’t you stop acting so close with her?”

“... Why?”

“I don’t like her.”

Ellen was visibly upset.

“Why? Did something happen?”

“I don’t know. I just don’t like her. She annoys me.”

It was the first time Ellen had expressed her feelings so bluntly.

“Well... she’s helped me a lot with various things... and I need her for something important right now...”

“Is it really important?”

“Yeah, very.”

I knew it wasn’t a good look for Olivia to be so close to me, but I really needed her help this time.

Ellen wasn’t about to argue with me about the necessity of it, but she still looked very displeased.

“Make it clear,” Ellen said.

“Wh-What do you mean?”

“You’re not being clear, which is why she keeps acting like that.”

Ellen’s anger was now directed at me. Her cold gaze was enough to freeze me in place. “Or do you like it when she acts like that?”

“No, not at all. I don’t.”

“You seem to like it while pretending you don’t.”

“No! I don’t! I really don’t!”

‘What is this? Why does this feel like I’m being scolded by a girlfriend for not managing my female friends properly?

‘It’s a strange situation, but I can’t find the words to respond.’

However, if I said something remotely close to “Who are you to say this?” to her, I was sure I would lose my tongue or my head in an instant.

‘This is really terrifying.’

“Then make her stop.”

“Uhm... Yeah, okay...” I replied.

In the end, I responded like a boyfriend who couldn’t manage his female friends.

***

I had too much to do.

If everything related to the Gate Incident was considered work, then I had an overwhelming amount of work.

Dealing with all the issues my relationships were throwing up was also making my head feel like it was about to explode.

Therefore, my studies, which were supposed to be the main focus for me as a student, had been neglected.

It would be dangerous if I ended up at the bottom of the class again. Therefore, I wasn’t going to deliberately aim for last place, although being in the lower ranks was a given.

“So, please tone it down a bit,” I said.

When I finally approached Olivia to ask her to stop being so forward as Ellen had instructed, Olivia pouted and huffed, throwing a fit.

“Hmph, is expressing affection a crime?” Olivia replied.

“... This really makes it seem like I have some sort of agreement with you! I have no intention of marrying you!”

The seriousness of my tone made Olivia’s face turn pale, and her mouth fell open.

“... R-Really...?”

“Why are you so shocked?!”

I had always made it clear to her that while I genuinely liked her as a senior, I had no interest in her in that way.

“I thought... you were just playing hard to get...”

“Ugh, this is giving me a headache...”

“Well, if not now, maybe you’ll like me in the future?”

Seeing Olivia’s dazzling smile made my head spin.

‘She just doesn’t get it.’

“Tch, you use me as you please, but you can’t overlook this one thing? You have no idea how scary it would be if I got really upset, do you?”

Olivia had a point.

I didn’t know what to say. I was indeed using her because I needed her, and so not being able to overlook this quirk of hers was rather uncharitable.

“Do you like that girl so much? Enough to be so serious with me?” Olivia asked.

“It’s not about that.”

“If it’s not about that, then what?”

Olivia’s expression suddenly hardened, and she seemed about to say something before stopping herself.

“I’ll just say one thing,” she said instead. She was being serious. “That girl hasn’t done anything wrong to me. Nothing at all. But I still don’t like her. That’s just how it is. Don’t tell me not to hate her, not to bother her, or not to pick fights with her. Alright?”

Olivia bit her lip slightly and looked at me.

“The more you say things like that, the more I’ll dislike her for no reason.”

Bang!

With that, Olivia slammed the door shut.

‘Why do I have to go through all this cringy situations? I mean, it’s cringeworthy, but when you think about it, all of this is for the sake of saving the world.

‘Still, why do I have to go through all this...’

***

“I don’t like her either,” Harriet said, nodding in agreement.

“Still... they say she was really nice before all this happened...”

Riana met Adelia’s comment with a shake of her head.

“She’s kind of a bitch, that unnie.”

“A... a bitch...?”

Adelia seemed taken aback by Riana’s harsh language.

Omnomnom.

The one who had brought up the topic after suggesting they go out for dinner, Ellen, was busy devouring five different dishes.

She seemed slightly different from her usual self. It felt as though she was eating voraciously to relieve stress because she was angry.

When Riana had asked why she looked so upset, Ellen explained that she didn’t like Olivia Lanche, who was hanging around with Reinhart.

At that moment, Ellen was engaging in gossip for the first time in her life.

Harriet agreed with her, Adelia was unsure, and Riana had called her a bitch.

“Then again, considering how Reinhart is a jerk, maybe they’re suited for each other,” said Riana innocently.

Ellen and Harriet stared at her.

“What? Am I wrong?”

“...”

“...”

“R-Riana...”

“What?”

Riana de Granz had a peculiar lack of awareness when it came to certain areas.

She claimed she wasn’t very hungry, and was nibbling on a cheese salad.

“That senior does cling to him in a weird way. Reinhart says he doesn’t like it, but the fact that he can’t push her away might mean he’s interested... Why do I feel a chill? Has it gotten that cold?”

Riana went on nonchalantly, shivering from a sudden chill. Of course, she didn’t realize it was because of Ellen’s gaze.

“I don’t know about anything else, but she’s kind of annoying. She knows she’s pretty and flaunts it. It’s irritating,” she continued.

None of the others present had anything to say to that.

Olivia Lanche... The title of the Saintess of Eredian had long since faded, but her striking appearance still made her stand out wherever she went. Even though Reinhart showed signs of disliking her, hadn’t they seen him at times genuinely flustered or even blushing?

Watching Olivia clinging excessively to Reinhart was enough to make even someone who didn’t care feel a bit annoyed.

The way she relied on her looks and acted so overly forward only invited certain thoughts.

“So, what do you want to do about it?”

“... It’s not about wanting to do something. I just don’t like her. She picks fights with me for no reason,” Ellen said, still focused on her food.

Ellen always ate a lot, but she really seemed to be stress-eating.

“She picks fights with you? Really?”

“Yeah.”

It would have been okay if Olivia didn’t say anything, but she would always make a snide comment whenever she saw Ellen.

It wasn’t a recent development either, and had been going on for quite some time.

Ever since the sponsorship gathering, Olivia would launch subtle jabs at Ellen whenever they crossed paths.

Since they lived in the same dorm, they inevitably ran into each other occasionally.

“Oh, hi there, Reinhart’s friend!”

.

.

“Take good care of our Reinhart!”

.

.

“You shouldn’t get too close to Reinhart. You know why, right?”

.

.

“Oh, you’re quite pretty now that I look at you. Not as pretty as me, though.”

.

.

“I heard you’re good at fighting? Just don’t bully our Reinhart too much.”

.

.

“Sorry, but I’m your competition. Tough luck.”

.

.

“Oh, are you mad? Are you angry? If you hit me, I’ll tell Reinhart. Is that okay?”

.

.

Ellen gripped her fork tightly as she ate.

The more she thought about it, the angrier she got.

Creakkkk...

Everyone watched in astonishment as the fork crumpled in Ellen’s hand. ‘Is that even humanly possible?’

In the end, though, Ellen wasn’t the type to harm someone just because she disliked them.

Harriet, who also didn’t like Olivia, wasn’t so different.

Harriet used to be like that, but not anymore.

“Hmm... but that unnie’s situation is a bit tricky,” Riana said.

“What do you mean?”

At Adelia’s question, Riana shrugged.

“She came in as a Divine Power major, right? But now that she’s given up her faith, how is she going to graduate? Graduating as a Divine Power major would be weird, wouldn’t it?”

Everyone’s expressions turned curious.

“That’s true.”

There’s no reason to worry about how a rather-disliked senior was going to graduate, but everyone was curious.

How did Olivia Lanche plan to graduate?

“I don’t know,” Ellen said.

Ellen, having wolfed down five dishes, took a sip of water. Her eyes sparkled.

“If she keeps doing that, I won’t hold back,” she concluded.

“U-Umm... please hold back, Ellen...” Harriet said.

Harriet, while secretly hoping Ellen would do something about it, also feared something terrible might happen, so she tried to calm Ellen down.