Chapter 190

After Sofia Sub-Priest had a good cry, I finally managed to calm her down and took her around to explore the festival booths of other clubs.

Chloe insisted on joining us, but Daniel’s insistence that the haunted house needed a bit more work left her no choice but to relent.

Seeing her slumped and saying, “Next time, come with me, Professor,” left me a bit puzzled. Chloe had Elin with her, so it wasn’t like she had nobody to hang out with…. Why was she so insistent?

“Well, I suppose the more people, the better for events like this.”

I couldn’t say I didn’t understand. Yet, that look in her eyes was a bit… what should I say? It was the same gaze that Sofia Sub-Priest sometimes showed.

“Wow…! Head Priest! Look at that!”

The teary-eyed Sofia, who had been crying just moments ago, pointed excitedly at a festival booth, her tear stains all but gone as she smiled brightly.

“Is… is it now? Now is the time?”

“Shh. Take slow breaths and… let the wind carry you.”

“But there’s no wind at all!”

“Now! Throw it!”

Students were throwing darts at a spinning target, while another student stopped the spinning wheel. Soon, the student who had been throwing darts was left covering their head in despair upon hearing “miss!” from the target. Behind them were more confident challengers.

It seemed to be a kind of lottery aiming for prizes with darts, a good idea that spurred excitement among people while maintaining decent rotation. Wouldn’t it be possible to integrate this idea somehow into the haunted house?

Or perhaps it would be fine to discuss with the advisor professor of that club and discreetly include tickets for the haunted house in the prize stash.

The haunted house run by the Occult Research Club was, after all, a minor element amid the festival booths. Each time we passed another booth, I couldn’t help but wonder, “How can we attract more guests?”

Thinking about it, I seemed to have turned into some sort of advisor for the Occult Research Club myself. It was a different attitude than when I had been forced into it back in the day.

“There’s a lot of interesting stuff…”

“It certainly seems that way.”

As I walked around the festival booths with Sofia Sub-Priest, I noticed that while there were many students experiencing the booths, the actual festive atmosphere didn’t feel very lively.

Technically, it was the start of the Academy’s Fall Festival today, but perhaps because the familiar faces crossing paths were all too casual, the students weren’t truly running their booths with vigor.

Even the Imperial Knights patrolling seemed to be slacking off, with some actually indulging in the festival booths, which only amplified that sentiment.

“Well, Jericho is right here at our booth…”

It was likely that the real festivities would begin tomorrow. The opening ceremony by Acting Chancellor Professor Underwood was also scheduled for tomorrow morning.

By the way, I wondered where Chancellor Damian had gone off to. I hadn’t seen his face for quite a while, not even during the most significant school event— the Fall Festival.

“…It must be quite the important trip.”

In the end, that was all I could figure out. Sofia Sub-Priest and I continued walking through the Annex Courtyard, where the festival booths were endless.

“By the way, I’m kind of excited.”

“What kind of excitement?”

“Tomorrow, outsiders will come to enjoy the festival at the Academy… Then there will be so many more people enjoying it than now, right?”

Indeed, although there were many students wandering the festival scene now…

The larger size of the Annex Courtyard meant that the booths set up didn’t seem overly crowded. That’s one reason I could wander around without a care.

Tomorrow, outsiders would be allowed in… and with that, I bet this empty-looking Annex Courtyard would be packed with crowds.

If you asked me whether I’d be able to navigate through it and fully enjoy the festival… well, that was a question I couldn’t answer with certainty right now.

However, one thing was for sure.

“Still, Head Priest.”

“Yes, Sofia Sub-Priest.”

“During this festival period, you’ll stay with me, right?”

“…….”

Most students would be focused on operating their own club’s festival booths, so none of the professors I had any acquaintances with had suggested touring together. Professor Esther was no exception.

‘…Am I really that out of the loop?’

As I began to ponder deeply about my social life, Sofia Sub-Priest tapped my hand to catch my attention.

“Head Priest…?”

She looked up at me with shining eyes, like a cat wearing boots, making it impossible for me to refuse her request.

If I were to deny Sofia Sub-Priest’s plea now, I’d feel like the worst person in the world, burdened by guilt throughout the festival period… that uneasy premonition hung over me.

I had no idea where I learned this, but if she was deliberately making this expression to target me, she had certainly done very well to make it effective.

“…I understand.”

“Hehe…”

Sofia Sub-Priest seemed pleased and gently grasped my hand, shyly lowering her gaze.

Every time I saw Sofia Sub-Priest in that manner, my feelings became conflicted.

And the reason for this… came from the uncomfortable truth I had noticed during my weekend outing with Professor Esther.

‘…It’s not just because she resembles Helena.’

It was just that I needed a substitute for the person named Helena. My desires, which were so shameless and despicable that they couldn’t even be voiced, were reflected in my heart.

The closer I got to Sofia Sub-Priest, the more vivid that fear became.

Sofia Sub-Priest approaching someone like me felt like… well, she was committed to her role as a Head Priest and Sub-Priest, and since neither of us had anyone else we could genuinely call friends, that must have contributed as well.

“Well then, tomorrow, we can leave the dorm together.”

“…Yes, that sounds good.”

Nodding back at Sofia Sub-Priest, I thought.

‘At least during the festival period…’

Like the Grade-by-Grade Duel from Monday to Friday, this extended event of the Academy’s Fall Festival would last for five days.

During this time, I would tell myself not to cast my eyes elsewhere except toward Sofia Sub-Priest.

I make another promise to myself.

It’s only four days ahead, without needing to take a long detour.

That would be enough. That would be…

* * * * *

The second day of the Fall Festival at Caldera Imperial Academy dawned.

The Academy courtyard was bustling from the morning, so crowded there was hardly room to place a foot.

As a huge annual event held by Caldera Imperial Academy, it’s also an event that officially permits outsiders to visit, hence the throng of visitors eager to check it out.

Most of them were locals from the city, but there were also students visiting from other academies to experience the festival.

Since Caldera Imperial Academy is one of the Empire’s leading academies, many wish to either learn from its practices or simply enjoy the scale of the festival.

Amid the influx of so many people entering the Academy, only a few carried luxurious envelopes in their pockets as they stepped onto the Academy grounds.

“Hmm…”

Among them was Duke Maximilian von Adelheit, who graduated from here long ago.

He gracefully maneuvered through the throng, effortlessly parting the neatly lined crowd. Some citizens cast bewildered glances at him as he walked ahead without bothering to queue like others, but once they recognized he was not an ordinary person, their expressions quickly shifted to understanding.

“It’s been a while.”

“It seems not much has changed since the past.”

Without even having to show an invitation, he was allowed entry to the Academy purely based on the aura emanating from him.

The Imperial Knights controlling the crowd at the Academy gate and several professors were no easy opponents, but his dignified gait, coupled with an appearance that was impeccably neat to the point of appearing obsessive, and the tangible social status that no one among the Knights or professors could miss, combined with the sharp-featured woman standing beside him, made it all possible.

‘I’m glad I brought her along.’

Luciana Reskova. She was a senior priest and simultaneously served as Maximilian’s personal priest, providing him with religious advice.

This had been customary for noble estates, where the Holy Empire would send a personal priest to carry out evangelism, and the priest would provide religious counsel to the nobility instead of the residents.

However, she wasn’t just an ordinary priest; like Carmondorf, she served on Maximilian’s staff during the Great War and had a distinctive character that set her apart from average priests.

She wasn’t particularly loyal to Maximilian but had been faithfully committed to her duties, was devout, and had never clashed with anyone she served with.

She had served as a military chaplain. No matter how the priests were divided into officers, sub-officers, and soldiers within the defense forces, they had still needed to be assigned somewhere or take orders from someone.

Those priestly duties were managed by the military chaplain.

Maximilian glanced at Priest Reskova standing beside him. Dressed in a black priest’s robe, with skin that looked icy white and hair braided distinctly with a grayish sheen, she resembled Chief Curbin yet appeared more businesslike and rigid.

“That’s hard to say. The former chancellor was an individual who tried many new things, so if one just looks a little closer, there may be even more changes. Anyway, what’s your impression of Caldera Imperial Academy?”

“It’s beautiful, yet that building over there, the Annex… seems like it needs some maintenance.”

“Well, it still carries a historical ambiance. Originally, that place served as the main building.”

“Is that so?”

“By the way, it’s a shame we couldn’t bring Nina along.”

“It was unavoidable. It wouldn’t be healthy for the second young lady to roam around in such a crowd.”

Even with the father of the second young lady standing right there, Priest Reskova spoke her mind without hesitation. Her unchanged expression was certainly different from Carmondorf’s demeanor.

In the past, Maximilian used to enjoy Carmondorf’s charming tongue, but now he found himself feeling more dependable with the straightforward and unyielding disposition of Priest Reskova. There was an inherent trustworthiness about her.

“The fireworks are planned for the last day, right?”

“Correct. Scheduled for Friday at 8 PM.”

“Then, I must definitely be with Laura on that day.”

“Given the recent behavior of the first young lady, she’ll probably refuse.”

“Don’t speak such heart-wrenching words. Don’t you know how to tell a little white lie?”

“The children of falsehood might have been cast out of this world, but what would a priest achieve by uttering lies?”

“…You’re the second most obstinate of the priests I know.”

“Good thing I’m not the first.”

“The first one is too stubborn for you to contend with. You might end up meeting them during this festival.”

As he sensed the curious gaze of Priest Reskova, who seemed to seek clarification on who that was, Maximilian stepped into the Annex Courtyard.

“You’ll meet them soon.”

For now, it was time to go meet his beloved daughter.