"Your Excellency, Witch, we need to secretly keep an eye on these bishops for the time being," Ansu proposed at once. "Whether or not this is a trap, we need to be fully prepared."
"That was my intention." Cecilia nodded gently.
"But we can't tell anyone else in the Order. We'll have to conduct our surveillance and investigation in secret," Ansu continued.
"But there are only two of us." Cecilia furrowed her brow. "How can we keep track of three people at once? Should I send out the Puppet maids from my estate?"
"Absolutely not!" Ansu immediately objected. "Puppets can serve as eyes, but they're terrible at adapting. We need to investigate more thoroughly. We might even have to get close to those three powerful figures and lie low..."
"Then what do you suggest...?" Cecilia gazed quietly at Ansu. Without even realizing it, she had become quite patient about listening to his advice.
"We can rule out Bishop Paul. That leaves just two bishops for the two of us to watch."
Ansu's plan was for Cecilia to keep an eye on Bishop Leonard, who had always kept a low profile, while he and Freya continued watching Terry.
"Oh?" Cecilia looked slightly surprised. "Why are you so sure Paul isn't the one behind all this?"
"Instinct." Ansu smiled confidently. "Your Excellency, Witch, you have a witch's intuition, and I have mine."
The real reason was... he simply didn't dare tell Cecilia about the clues he'd found in the simulation.
Cecilia stared at Ansu. After a moment, she nodded.
"Fine. I trust you."
After all, he was always surprising her. Cecilia had great faith in Ansu's abilities.
They discussed a few more details of the plan, then Cecilia suggested leaving.
"If there's nothing else, I'll head back."
She stood and walked toward the door, then suddenly stopped.
Cecilia gazed at the door, as if she could sense what was happening outside. "Your little sister is pressed against it, eavesdropping."
"Uh..." Ansu gave an awkward laugh. After all the unexpected visitors today, it must have seemed strange to Vera.
Especially since every one of them had insisted on coming into his room and locking the door...
"Luckily, I put up a magical barrier. She can't hear us." Cecilia glanced at Ansu. "But your little sister..."
"What about her?" Ansu looked at her.
Cecilia's expression turned a little strange, but she didn't continue.
There was something about Ansu's little sister that really didn't seem sisterly at all...
After Cecilia finally left, Ansu and Vera stared at each other across the living room for a long while.
As the awkwardness grew, Ansu could only offer an explanation. "My boss and I were talking about work. Um... it's about a secret assignment we've been given."
"Oh..." Vera lowered her head glumly and went back to her homework.
Ansu noticed that she'd been staring at the same page for ages without writing a thing. Knowing she was sulking, he smiled, walked over, and sat beside her.
"Vera, I really can't tell you the details. It's for your own good."
"I know..." Vera rested her cheek on her hand and turned away, clearly not wanting to talk to Ansu.
"My brother has more and more secrets these days. But I'm just a kid to him, so it's only natural that he doesn't want to tell me. I'll be good and listen."
Although his sister sounded very understanding, Ansu knew she was being stubborn. Whenever they'd had a falling-out as children, she'd acted just like this...
But there really wasn't much he could tell her. Not yet, at least. He didn't want to drag Vera into this.
Ansu sighed to himself and let the matter drop. Instead, he headed for the kitchen.
"Take a break if you're tired of studying. I'll cook lunch today and treat you."
The smell of cooking oil gradually filled the kitchen.
Vera secretly raised her head and watched Ansu bustling about in the kitchen.
She sighed softly, feeling guilty for losing her temper earlier.
Her brother was already working so hard for their family. Over the past few days, she'd clearly sensed his anxiety. He seemed worried about something that was going to happen in the future...
Vera didn't know what was worrying her brother, but she really wanted to help him.
"I wish I could grow up faster..."
"Maybe then I could help my brother."
The following night.
Under cover of the thick darkness, Ansu and Freya waited in secret not far from the Cathedral.
"I wonder if Bishop Terry will sneak out again tonight..."
Freya murmured uncertainly, then glanced up at Ansu beside her.
"Lord Ansu, what are you thinking about?" Freya had noticed how unusually quiet he was that night. She couldn't see his face, but she could sense him silently turning something over in his mind.
"I'm... waiting for time to pass."
"Time?"
Ansu nodded slightly and checked the time on his system. There were less than twelve hours left until the Academy's Open Day.
For the past two nights, Ansu and Freya had secretly watched Bishop Terry, but he hadn't slipped out to meet anyone like he had the night before last.
Cecilia hadn't found anything suspicious either. None of the bishops had shown the slightest sign of unusual activity.
This couldn't go on...
The tragedy at the academy from the plot would happen in twelve hours. He had to identify the mastermind behind it.
Ansu had only one option left.
He would use the system's simulation to visit the Royal Academy ten hours from now and see what would happen the next day.
Ansu stared at the system panel, silently waiting in the darkness...
At last, it was eleven o'clock at night.
[The following times are available for simulation]
[Future]
[10 minutes later (April 23, 23:10), cost: 10 points]
[10 hours later (April 24, 09:00), cost: 50 points]
[Begin simulation?]
Ten hours later, at nine the next morning, the school gates would officially open.
Ansu pulled out his Future Diary and kept repeating a mental suggestion to himself...
No matter what happened, he had to write it down.
I have to record it...
In truth, Ansu had already gotten into the habit of keeping a diary whenever anything happened. This time, the suggestion shouldn't cause any problems either.
And so...
[Light Calendar 625, April 24, 09:00]
[Simulation begins...]
Darkness quickly swallowed Ansu's vision. When he opened his eyes, the scene before him made him freeze.
Corpses were everywhere...
Ansu walked in shock along a tree-lined path.
This was the only route to the school auditorium. But now, students' bodies lay scattered across the path, most of them horribly disfigured, their terrified expressions frozen in their final moments.
So the massacre had happened after all...
Ansu hurried forward and examined one of the students' bodies.
The skin all over the student's body had rotted away. Blackened blood seeped from the eyes and nostrils, and... the corpse radiated a strong aura of corrupted magic...
Ansu instinctively thought of Cecilia's "demonflame."
But after checking carefully, he decided that couldn't be it. Cecilia's demonflame would burn people to ashes. These people must have died instantly from some kind of unknown, large-scale forbidden black magic.
Ansu looked toward the school auditorium in the distance. The magic there was at its strongest; even the sky above had turned faintly black, tinged with a sinister, eerie aura.
He immediately headed for the auditorium. Along the way, he also noticed the bodies of several clergy members. It seemed the two sides had fought a fierce battle.
Just as he was about to reach the auditorium...
Among the corpses, Ansu noticed a petite figure in a floral dress.
The dead girl's golden hair was tied in a single ponytail, a sight very familiar to him...
Ansu's pupils contracted. A terrible feeling welled up inside him.
No way...
It couldn't be her... Why would she come to my school?
Ansu rushed over to the girl's body, crouched down, and lifted her filthy face from the ground.
Her once-lively blue eyes had lost their light, now dull and lifeless.
Rotting black wounds covered her body, and her face was still twisted with fear and pain from her final moments.
It was Vera...
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