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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
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“Oh my? It’s been a while, hasn’t it?”
Elise was surprised to see a familiar face at the royal end of year party and instinctively approached her.
The girl wore a maroon dress that went on to complement her auburn hair. Though the dress was somewhat revealing, her slender frame lacked curves. However, her easygoing charm was evident.
“Ugh, even ‘a while’ is too long with you.”
Despite the less-than-cordial greeting, Elise chuckled, hiding her smile behind her hand, and stood beside May.
“You should be happy to see a friend from the academy, especially when that friend is a princess of the kingdom.”
Elise subtly asserted her status, and May, after a moment of silence, whispered cautiously,
“Get lost, you crazy bitch.”
“If it weren’t for Master…”
Elise glared at May, clearly wanting to retort but unable to do so. May’s boldness had always been a part of her charm, a trait Elise didn’t entirely dislike.
She was like a female Daniel.
‘Of course, she’s no match for Master’s teasing.’
It had been over two months since she last heard his voice. There had been countless times she wanted to flee the royal palace, but after the execution of Prince Oliver, the eldest son, she had stayed to assist the second prince.
“Damn it, now I’m thinking about him because of you.”
“…That’s what I should be saying.”
May looked as though she wanted to shove her hands in her pockets, but her dress lacked them, so her hands hovered awkwardly in the air.
Normally, she would have pulled out a piece of candy and popped it into her mouth.
“I wonder what he’s doing right now.”
“I wish I had asked Lavender and her group to investigate.”
The two girls sighed.
Rumors were spreading among the partygoers about the unlikely friendship between the third princess and the problem child of the Plov family.
“Shouldn’t he have visited us by now? I’m seriously offended.”
“I confirmed he used warp magic to travel to Nirva, but I don’t know what happened after that.”
While May had been immediately taken back to her family, Elise had witnessed Daniel introducing himself to an eccentric woman and warping to Nirva.
Not knowing what had happened since then was frustrating.
Suddenly, their eyes widened as they spotted three girls talking amongst themselves in a corner.
A lively blonde girl, a navy-haired girl without her usual glasses, and a black-haired girl in a slightly worn dress.
“Tana, Eve… and Hayun?”
May was surprised to see them there, but Elise was already walking toward them.
“Let’s go.”
Hayun, in particular, had been part of the group that traveled to Nirva with Daniel. Perhaps she could shed some light on the situation.
The reason for their presence at the royal end of year party was simple.
Eve was there thanks to Tana.
Although Tana belonged to a branch family of the Mayas, one of the three great families of the kingdom, the Mayas patriarch held her in high regard due to her previous visit to the royal palace in place of the twins.
This allowed her to attend the party, and she had brought Eve along as her friend.
Hayun’s attendance just so happened to be a last-minute decision.
After parting ways with Daniel and arriving in Nirva, she had discovered the invitation to the royal year-end party and hurriedly prepared herself.
It was also an opportunity to formally announce herself as the new head of the Len family and to subtly reveal the unfortunate demise of her uncle.
Thus, an impromptu Aios Academy reunion was formed. Even though there were only five of them, they were excited to see each other again after so long, and their conversation flowed easily.
Naturally, the topic of Daniel McLean dominated their discussion.
“Seriously, I offered him candy, and he refused!”
“You were that forward with Daniel?”
Eve was surprised by May’s revelation, and May chuckled sheepishly.
“What else am I supposed to do? He wouldn’t even look at me. He’s completely smitten with that elf. I thought he was finally coming around, but then the holidays started.”
May sighed, remembering how flustered Daniel had been when he saw her and Rin at the fifth-year graduation party.
It had been the perfect opportunity to finally win him over.
However, according to Hayun, he had gone to the beast-kin territory to rescue the elf.
‘Damn it.’
She didn’t know what would happen between Daniel and Eris, but the carefully constructed tower of her affections definitely felt like it was crumbling.
“Well, I don’t know if things will work out between him and Eris, but I don’t think anything will happen immediately.”
The other girls turned their attention to Hayun, who had been with Daniel most recently.
Slightly flustered by their intense gazes, Hayun cleared her throat and explained,
“Daniel was questioning his own feelings. He wasn’t sure if he liked the current Eris or the future Eris he had seen.”
Elise raised her hand.
“I’ve been wondering about this. Does Master really have the ability to see the future? Did he really see the future Eris?”
She would have been skeptical before, but Hayun simply shrugged her shoulders, a wry smile on her face.
“He can stop time now, so…”
It was absurd, but somehow, coming from Daniel, it seemed plausible. They would probably believe him even if he claimed to have flown to the moon.
Eve suddenly raised her hand.
“But are you sure Daniel likes the future Eris? Doesn’t it seem strange?”
“Hmm?”
Tana tilted her head, and after a moment of thought, the others cautiously agreed.
“That’s true. He’s always been so distant with us, so it’s strange that he would suddenly fall for Eris just because he saw her future self.”
“I agree. I don’t think Master would fall for someone so easily. And I don’t think he would confuse the present Eris with the future Eris.”
“He hasn’t even experienced anything with her. He’s just seen her.”
May, Elise, and Hayun’s comments made them realize something was amiss. It felt like Daniel was hiding something.
Cracks were appearing in the façade of his lie, his claim of simply seeing the future.
“Excuse me, Princess.”
“May!”
Two people approached them simultaneously.
The one who called Elise was her personal maid, Bertia. Her face was pale as she hurriedly pulled Elise away.
The one who called May was the opposite.
A cheerful, bright voice. It was Lucia, the Saintess of Batian, dressed in her nun’s habit.
“Lucia?”
“May! You haven’t grown at all!”
“You call yourself a Saintess, and you talk like that?!”
Despite their banter, they hugged each other, catching up on each other’s lives.
Lucia, as the Saintess of Batian, had also been invited to the royal party to deliver the opening prayer for the new year.
With Elise gone and Lucia joining the conversation, the atmosphere was initially awkward. Only those who hadn’t gone on the school trip to Batian were present, but their shared interest in Daniel quickly bridged the gap.
“Doesn’t Batian usually hold a large gathering at the end of the year? Shouldn’t you be there?”
May asked, and Lucia tapped her chin thoughtfully. She seemed to hesitate, but May nudged her, urging her to speak.
Lucia gathered the girls closer and whispered,
“Actually, the Sun God delivered a divine message to us.”
“Huh? That happens?”
May was surprised, and Lucia shrugged, pointing at herself.
“This Saintess is special, you know.”
“…”
“Ahem, well, it wasn’t exactly a divine message, more like… a sign. Words appeared on the floor of our temple, scorched into the stone. It said to stop the apocalypse that will silence the world.”
“What?”
Lucia was unaware of the Earliest Apocalypse.
The other girls exchanged surprised glances, listening intently.
“So everyone’s in a panic. That’s the main reason we’re here today. We came to ask the royal family for assistance.”
“…”
The girls pondered the implications of Lucia’s words. Just then, Elise, who had been called away by Bertia, rushed back to Hayun.
“M-Master! Where is he?!”
“Huh? He’s in the beast-kin territory. He went to rescue Eris, who’s imprisoned in the royal…”
Overhearing their conversation, Bertia ran off.
“What? Is she really going to get Daniel?”
May, sensing the urgency of the situation, asked Elise, who tried to maintain a calm façade, but…
Her words were anything but calm.
“The magical beasts from the Demon Realm Forest are pouring out, invading the kingdom.”
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