Proofreader: Me!

  Bewildered. That word perfectly fitted my state of being — an invisible pressure, as if mountains built upon the backs of others sat atop my shoulders.

  ‘Get a grip!’ I pinched my thighs with the strength to bleed.

  Alicia, out of every character in the game, was the most terrifying. Which, is why I had avoided her at all costs until the inevitable found its way to me. That danger was tied to her cunning.

  That force pressing on me was a skill made for negotiations. It was an ability formed by the accomplishments of her lifestyle until now.

  However, something of that calibre would not force me to collapse here. Through enhancing my mental fortitude, the nerves that directed signals to my body had been reinforced. I grit my teeth, meeting her eyes.

  “My apologies, was my greeting too rude?” Her voice ladened with worry, was nothing but a facade as she evaluated me.

  “Haha,” I managed a chuckle. “Of course not, I was just shocked that we’d have a conversation under such… a tense atmosphere.”

  Alicia’s face remained unchanged, except for a slight twitch in eyebrows.

  She raised her hand with a surprised gasp, “Ah! Of course, my mistake. I had just arrived after a talk with troubled acquaintances.”

  Not wasting another second, my shoulders were able to rise upwards once again.

  “Instead of a sidewalk, why don’t we continue our conversation in the guest facilities?” I offered with a false smile.

  “How kind of you, we gladly accept,” Alicia accepted the pretence without batting an eye.

  With a wave of her hand, her subordinates led the way forward, their gait stalwart all the while. Watching such unwavering loyalty, my throat became parched. If Luna only had authority, Alicia had both the charisma and intelligence to back it up.

  Arriving at the entrance of the Golden Nest, we sat ourselves down in the guest rooms. It had always been empty since no one had the gall to intrude on the current prodigious generation.

  Somehow, Alicia’s coup did not seem like guests, manoeuvring the place as if they were tenants.

  “You sure know this place well,” I mischievously added.

  “Huhu, we do often meet with the Prince,” Alicia softly chuckled.

  My face soured. That interaction was commonly seen only after the beastman invasion. Too many implications were in place, whether they were talking about the reclamation of the north’s recently fallen region or Charles’ heirloom.

  ‘Tch,’ I clicked my tongue in frustration.

  Unfortunately, sound logic has been consistently wrong since I arrived in this world.

  ‘And, if pattern recognition has taught me anything, then these two…’

  “Don’t tell me–”

  Alicia turned to me in a flash, as if fearful of my words.

  “You two are in talks of… dating!?”

  Her face remained still, along with the movements of her two guards. I scratched my head, puzzled by the result of my outburst.

  “Uhm… Luke, I think you are in the midst of a misunderstanding?” Alicia’s perfect poker face threatened to collapse.

  “Ahaha… it was a mere jest, a joke, of course.” I bursted out laughing in the hallway, adding to the heat rushing to my face.

  “So that was it,” Alicia nodded with a shaken expression. “I’ll keep that in mind.”

  I heard the breath of a whisper, but its words were unintelligible.

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  -x-

  “Ahem. Since we’re here, I would like not to beat around the bush,” Alicia placed her tea cup on the table.

  By the time we arrived, my mess was already forgotten.

  ‘Hopefully.’

  Thus, now the real talks would begin.

  “I would appreciate that too,” I nodded.

  “Great. The first thing we would like to bring up is not exactly the main reason we’ve sought you out, but is a rather sudden issue.” Alicia’s smile dimmed. “Recently, we’ve caught wind of an insider, or well, the news of one coming.”

  The gears in my mind began churning, connecting the dots between the character's relationships and events occurring behind the scenes. Charles was most likely already aware of the beastman invasion, while Alicia had just found out. Similarly, they are both extremely methodical in their movements. Which meant, coming to me was calculated.

  ‘Well of course it was…’

  Keeping those things in mind, the only correlation I could make was that an influx of transfer students would be announced in a few days. Those characters were quite liked by the players, as they were the first non-human race you could come across.

  ‘Huh? Transfer students, and the incoming invasion. Hold on… why didn’t I make this connection before?’

  Alicia tilted her head, “Did you notice yourself?”

  “Well, the only thing that comes to mind would be the transfer students who are due to join our academy,” I spoke, withholding the rest of my knowledge.

  The one hiding cards would always be at an advantage, especially in negotiation.

  “Impressive, you must have a quick information network,” Alicia leaned on her hand, peering deeper into my eyes. “Although, you must’ve not heard then.”

  “If I may ask, heard about what?” I questioned her with an oblivious tone.

  “Such a topic leads me to the second thing we’d like to ask you about.” Alicia’s gaze sharpened, likely evaluating my worth. “A faction of the beastmen tribes are aiming to infiltrate, and plausibly raid the academy.”

  Internally, I was relieved to hear that. In the end, whatever I knew could be discarded by the irrationality known as Hell’s Paradise.

  “Then, what exactly would like from me?” I genuinely asked.

  That was the only thing I couldn’t figure out before meeting Alicia. In essence, I could understand that my help would potentially accelerate any process.

  ‘But how would, or why do they find out?’

  The only people who understood the extent of that were the three girls, as well as Erin. Fen was also included in that group, however, he explicitly told me that he wouldn’t report about me to Charles.

  By this point in time, I could only let her do the talking.

  Alicia readjusted her posture and gestured something using her hand toward her followers.

  “The truth is, we’re quite interested in your… character if that makes sense. Your ability in particular, it is nothing short of an enigma. You’ve shown weakness, but also strength. Most importantly, however, is the unknown stretch of knowledge you possess.”

  ‘So… it wasn’t that they knew what I could do, but rather, they did not. However, I’ve shown enough competence to likely be far more capable.’

  Alicia observed my undisturbed expression and continued. “Which is why it was quite surprising you weren’t already aware of what I had just told you… but is it possible that it was a lie?”

  Her question had been charged with that mountainous pressure from earlier. The followers on both sides had already put their hands on the hilts of their swords.

  “Hahaha!” I let out a hearty laughter in the face of such intimidation.

  Despite all of the thinking I had done, it was stupidly simple. They were only curious and expectant of my actions in the coming crisis.

  I raised both my arms in retreat. “Alright, you win. I did lie. But even so, what did you want me to do?”

  Alicia’s poker expression broke, revealing an amused smile. “Well, it’s a simple ask.”

  ‘Didn’t I hear the same thing yesterday?’

  “Please, watch over the transfer student and cooperate with senior Krulia when she finds you.”

  “Isn’t that two asks?” I pointed out.

  “Is it?” Alicia imitated an innocent expression, tilting her head.

  I sighed and dropped the gentleman's pretence. “Sure, sure, I already planned to do those two things… so could you three, like, get out?”

  “How uncouth, is this your true demeanour?” Alicia put a hand to her mouth, feigning shock.

  I shrugged, “Haven’t you always worn a mask? Keep in mind where you’re coming from.”

  Despite how afraid of meeting Alicia I had been. I realised, that she was an ally and not the enemy she could be within the game.

  “Is that so?” Alicia shrugged in turn, leaving the chair at the same time.

  One of her followers took the chance to bark, “Keep your mouth shut, filthy commoner.”

  “Urk-”

  My illusion of leisure had been broken by the aftermath of his speaking. The student collapsed, foaming at the mouth under Alicia’s gaze.

  ‘That skill is truly frightening… thankfully I have enhancement.’

  “I’d like to apologise for my follower’s vulgar comment… and if possible, could we talk one on one, at a later date?” Alicia left with a sly grin.

  Behind her, was her other follower dragging the fallen one.

  Watching them leave, I muttered, “Damn… she’s scary.”

  I had been reminded of her terror.