Chapter 84

“The Night of the Founding Ceremony.”

A boy who had slipped out of the boycott let out a sigh.

Well, to be precise, it was a girl.

“What a load of hassle this is.”

She was Hania Repidia, disguised as Hanon. The daughter of the imperial knight commander.

After discovering that Isabel was chasing Hanon, she thought it could turn into a messy situation and decided to join the boycott.

No one questioned her appearance since she looked just like Hanon.

Having unexpectedly subdued a few members of the boycott, she sighed once more.

Hanon had already flashed past after bumping into Isabel’s group.

‘She could’ve at least given me a heads-up.’

All I did was meddle and get into trouble.

Feeling an overwhelming urge to head back and wash up, she continued to plod along.

“Hania.”

It was then that she heard a voice and jerked her head up.

Because the voice belonged to no other than Iris.

Her jet-black hair flowed like inky tendrils.

Beneath long eyelashes reminiscent of a weeping willow, her ruby-red eyes glimmered in the moonlight.

“What’s with that look?”

Iris saw right through Hania’s disguise in an instant.

She was supposed to be waiting in the dormitory, yet here she was.

Startled, Hania fumbled for a response and just silently moved her lips.

This only solidified Iris’s suspicions.

Iris gazed at Hania with narrowed eyes.

Her gaze was sweetly charming, but beneath it lurked an unsettling chill.

“Hania isn’t lying to me, right?”

Iris’s low warning resonated.

Hania was her loyal subordinate.

Lying to Iris was tantamount to a death sentence.

Hania lowered her head.

“Of course not.”

Though they had agreed to keep it a secret from Hanon, there was no way she could avoid this one.

Hania spilled all the details to Iris, starting with Hanon being the ringleader of the boycott.

Feeling guilty for not keeping her promise, she covered it up by saying it was planned for Iris’s sake.

After mulling over the tale, Iris fell silent.

Worried about her reaction, Hania fidgeted.

“…I see.”

Without saying another word, Iris turned away.

“Ah, Lady Iris, let’s go together!”

Hania quickly removed her wig and contacts, hurrying after Iris.

For some reason, a flush of warmth lingered in Iris’s chest today when usually it was a cold void during the founding ceremonies.

* * *

The unexpected boycott plunged Jerion Academy into chaos.

While the professors and assistants who were conducting the ceremony eventually sorted things out, the ones who did the most were Isabel and her friends.

They mediated and suppressed a fight that could have flared up between the boycott members and the student council.

Thanks to this, Isabel’s status soared.

Most of the boycott members were rounded up and dragged off by professors and assistants for questioning.

Moreover, the corruption within Jerion Academy came to light as well.

The student council as well as the educational department of Jerion Academy couldn’t escape criticism.

As a result, several students received suspensions.

The chairman of the boycott, Rozamin, took the suspension stoically.

Originally, he would have been shouting about unfairness.

But this time, he wore an expression of resignation.

Even as he was being suspended and headed back to the dormitory, he urged the kids gathered in the ruckus.

“Run well.”

It was unclear who he was speaking to.

With that, he was taken away by the assistants.

Additionally, the chairman, Silvester Drapen, who had displayed great ineptitude during the incident, was also in a tough spot.

Even though it was before he became chairman, students questioned him about his negligence toward the long-standing corruption in the student council.

He already had a reputation for incompetence.

This time around, he was getting it from all sides.

Outside Jerion Academy, the 3rd Princess Faction led a fierce attack on the Drapen Duke’s family.

Silvester ultimately earned the infamy of having dragged the student council down.

He voluntarily resigned from the chairmanship.

He had nowhere else to go with the student council’s status plummeting.

Other student council members tried to dissuade him from resigning, but Silvester shook his head.

“Staying only complicates things further. I’m sorry for appearing like I’m running away.”

He forced a smile.

“Maybe I’ve just been running away all along.”

With that, Silvester returned to being an ordinary student, leaving a lonely figure behind.

The consecutive vacancies of the chair and vice-chair sent the student council into a panic.

But due to the incident, they were now barred from entry for a while.

A supervision team sent by the empire was scouring through Jerion Academy.

During this process, assistants, associate professors, and even professors weren’t spared from scrutiny.

Because of this, a tense atmosphere settled over Jerion Academy.

There were rumors that new professors, associate professors, and assistants would be coming in soon, but that needed some time.

A wind of change had begun to blow through Jerion Academy.

In a way, the goal of the boycott had been achieved.

Given the chaos, Jerion Academy decided to enter self-study mode for three days.

Students were already quite thorough about self-training.

So three days without professors wouldn’t be a big deal.

And thus began the period of change.

In the classroom for self-study, as soon as I arrived at school, I found myself forcefully dragged outside, landing me in a very troublesome situation.

“Lightning Sweet Potato.”

“Hanon.”

“You.”

Seron Parmia.

Iris Haishirion.

Isabel Luna.

The three of them stood before me, each harboring different intentions.

Should I make a run for it?

“Don’t even think about escaping.”

Seron snapped at me, having caught on to my pattern.

Blocking my exit, huh? What a twisted sense of gratitude.

‘As for Seron and Isabel, fine, but—’

I stared quizzically at Iris.

Why was Iris waiting for me like this?

As I looked at her, my eyes locked on Hania, who was quietly standing behind Iris.

She flinched and quickly lowered her head.

‘…Caught red-handed.’

I sighed internally, realizing it was nearly impossible to go unnoticed.

‘The question is.’

They say it’s better to face the music sooner rather than later, but who should I face first?

The three exchanged furtive glances at one another.

Clearly, they hadn’t predicted this scenario since they all stood up as soon as I arrived.

Whoever backs down first here will have to concede the win, right?

Just then, Iris spoke up.

Ah, the 3rd Princess indeed.

What an imposing presence.

“Hanon, come to my room after this.”

The 3rd Princess unleashed a cannonball of a statement.

Iris turned with a tone that was all too familiar.

Of course, that pointed to the girls’ dormitory.

Just this could cause a big scandal, and what sort of implications would arise from coming and going from the 3rd Princess’s room?

Iris’s bombshell caused Isabel and Seron to gasp in unison.

Both looked at me in shock.

“W-what the hell?”

Especially Seron, who had seen through my identity, looked utterly flabbergasted.

Sure, with Hanon she could use the excuse of being a princess’s cousin, but me? I was Bickamon.

Being caught sneaking into a princess’s chamber was practically a death sentence.

“You…!”

As I raised my hand, I quickly shut Seron’s mouth.

Seron struggled while my hand covered her mouth.

Realizing my cover had been blown, her face turned beet red.

Looks like she still has a taste for girls.

Just then, my wrist was caught by someone.

The one gripping it was Isabel.

She fixed her calm gaze on me.

“What were you doing with Lady Iris every night?”

Sleeping.

But saying that would mean instant doom.

“…I had some business.”

“Oh really? Business at the girls’ dorm, huh?”

Isabel beamed, grinning widely.

“…You left after being with me.”

We did end up fighting a bit.

“W-what!?”

Seron glared at me wide-eyed from the side.

Why make this more complicated?

Was this intentional?

Isabel snorted derisively and, at this point, turned to leave.

In the end, only Seron remained.

As the grip on my wrist loosened, Seron lifted her head slowly.

I quickly avoided her gaze.

“Well, I should be going too.”

“Where do you think you’re going?”

As I tried to slip away naturally, Seron firmly grabbed my collar.

Stuck in place, I turned to face Seron.

“Seron, about what happened yesterday…”

“Enough, just be honest.”

Looks like there’s no way out of this.

“Lightning Sweet Potato, are you Bickamon-senpai or Hanon?”

Finally, I raised both my hands in surrender.

Since I already exposed my identity to Seron, there was no escaping now.

“I’m Bickamon. I returned to Jerion Academy in this form for some reason.”

As I spoke, Seron appeared to mull over it, her lips moving as if she had so much to say, yet choosing her words carefully.

“…Is it because of Nikita-senpai?”

She was thoughtful about that, huh?

With a deflated expression, Seron awaited my answer, and I sighed.

“I can’t say that’s the only reason, but it plays a part.”

Nikita is important, but there’s an even greater reason I came here.

I have to prevent this world from ending badly.

But I can’t just lay that out plainly.

“…But you liked Nikita-senpai, right?”

“That was in the past.”

That was the Bickamon from before, not me.

More than that, my feelings of love were likely lost due to the bandages of the veil.

“I don’t like anyone right now.”

Hearing my response, Seron fell silent.

Just then, she suddenly yanked my collar hard.

Seron was a martial arts student too.

The moment I was pulled closer due to her sudden strength, our faces were nearly touching.

She bumped her forehead against mine and smiled.

What a ridiculously cute grin she had!

“Then I don’t have to give up yet.”

My face went blank.

“You know I was Hanon, right?”

“Doesn’t matter.”

Seron released me and wore a look of relief.

“You’re still my prince.”

“But didn’t you call me a sweet potato?”

“And you were a sweet potato, but I never disliked you to begin with. You’ve just become even better.”

Seron said that with a cheerful smile.

…This girl, has she been enlightened by this incident to spout such embarrassing lines so casually?

“Prince Sweet Potato.”

Seron firmly placed her hands on her hips.

“Prepare yourself. I won’t be backing down in this battle.”

Her wholesome laugh was so charming that it momentarily made my heart flutter.

What the heck am I supposed to prepare for?

This battle could turn out to be incredibly tough.