“Protection?”
Alicia’s gaze swept over Vivian’s hand on the hilt of her sword.
“But it seems I only see a threat.”
Lynn felt like he was going crazy.
‘I know reasoning with these two abnormal women is impossible,’ he thought.
‘I have to use their own logic to solve their problems.’
He took a deep breath, and a solemn, majestic expression appeared on his face—the same act he had used to fool Alicia before.
“Enough.”
His voice was not loud, but it silenced both women.
“I have returned to the Academy to complete a long-overdue ‘Ritual.’ This is a necessary path for me to reclaim my full power; it is a fate that cannot be defied.”
He repackaged the simple act of “going to school” as a sacred mission once again.
“During this time, I require absolute peace. Alicia, your escort was considerate. Vivian, I have received your concern as well. But if your dispute affects my ‘Ritual’ and causes my ‘Divinity’ to be tarnished…”
He did not finish his sentence, but the threat was already obvious.
To Alicia, this was a blasphemous act that could shake the very foundation of her faith.
To Vivian, this was an attempt to destroy her most precious “possession.”
The two women locked eyes, each seeing blatant hostility in the other’s gaze, but they both forcibly suppressed the urge to strike immediately.
“I understand.”
Vivian retracted her hand from the sword’s hilt, her tone stiff.
“Since it is a ‘Ritual,’ I certainly cannot leave. I will personally supervise the area to ensure that no blind fools disturb you.”
Alicia also nodded with a smile.
“I shall follow your will. I will purify all impure gazes and sounds for you.”
Lynn’s heart sank to rock bottom.
It was over.
He had upgraded from one mobile prison to two.
Double the joy.
Having temporarily called a truce to the fire, Lynn only wanted to find a place to hide.
“I’m going to the classroom.”
As he spoke, he set off, wanting only to leave this place of trouble as quickly as possible.
Vivian and Alicia followed closely behind him on his left and right, like two guardian gods.
The walk from the Academy gate to the teaching building felt more painful to Lynn than walking to an execution ground.
The gazes of all the surrounding students were glued to him—a complex mixture of jealousy, greed, fear, and fanaticism.
He could even hear some uncontrollable whispers.
“My god, who is that? Lady Saintess and Her Imperial Highness are actually…”
“I feel like I’m suffocating. I want… I want to snatch him away…”
“Shut up! Do you want to die? That is the man the Imperial Princess has her eyes on!”
Lynn kept his eyes straight ahead and quickened his pace.
He finally saw the sign for his classroom: Class A, First Year.
“Home, a warm harbor!”
He rushed into the classroom as if running for his life, found his seat by the window, and sat down.
When the students in the classroom saw him and the two great figures following behind him, they all became as quiet as cicadas in winter, even slowing their breathing.
Lynn slumped onto the desk and buried his face in his arms, wanting to act like an ostrich.
However, the peace he craved did not arrive for even a single second.
A massive shadow loomed over him.
“Then.”
“CLANG!”
A deafening sound of metal striking wood, accompanied by the explosive sound of flying splinters, erupted next to his ear.
Lynn’s entire body jolted, and he snapped his head up.
A greatsword nearly as tall as he was was currently embedded deep into his desk.
The blade was less than one centimeter away from his fingers.
The sword was still vibrating.
The hard oak desk had been split down the middle by a hideous, jagged crack.
Vivian stood before the desk, one hand pressed against the massive hilt, looking down at him from above.
A few strands of her fiery red hair hung down.
Her expression betrayed no emotion, but her hawk-like eyes were locked onto Lynn, giving him no chance to escape.
The classroom was deathly silent.
Everyone was terrified out of their wits by this sudden scene.
Alicia, standing at the classroom door, also lost her smile.
As she looked at the greatsword nearly touching Lynn, the holy light in her blue eyes was being replaced by something dangerous.
Vivian ignored everyone.
She leaned down, bringing her face close to Lynn’s ear, and asked him one word at a time in a voice only the two of them could hear:
“Where exactly have you been these past two days?”
“Who were you with?”
“What did you do?”
The massive greatsword remained stuck in front of Lynn.
The blade reflected the light coming through the window, making his eyes dazzle.
The surrounding air seemed to have frozen under the weight of the sword.
“Answer me.”
Vivian’s voice was very soft, yet it carried an irresistible pressure.
Her hot breath brushed against Lynn’s ear, giving him goosebumps.
“Where was he these past two days? “
“Who was he with? “
“What did he do?”
The deathly three questions.
Lynn’s brain worked at high speed.
Should he tell the truth?
Say he was kidnapped by the Saintess, held in chains, and almost “purified”?
Vivian would pull that sword out the next second and fight Alicia to the death on the spot.
The Academy being destroyed would be the least of their problems.
“Lie?”
A lie would require even more lies to cover it up.
He was facing two “sickly” women with sharp insight and extremely unstable mental states.
Any slip in detail could cause his Blackening Value to break 100 in an instant.
Lynn swallowed hard and forced himself to calm down.
He looked up, meeting Vivian’s eyes that burned with flames, and squeezed a frank, even slightly aggrieved expression onto his face.
“I got lost.”
“…Huh?”
Vivian was clearly not expecting that answer.
“Really.”
Lynn’s tone was incredibly sincere.
“Two days ago, I originally wanted to go to the forest outside the city to gather some herbs. I accidentally went too deep and wandered around inside for two days. My Magic Stone had no signal.”
The communication tools of this world were a type of Magic Stone, and they did indeed have signal coverage issues.
“Fortunately, I ran into the Saintess while she was out praying.”
Lynn pointed toward Alicia at the door with a grateful look.
“It was she who brought me out and let me stay for one night. Otherwise, I really might have died in that forest.”
His words were half-true and half-false.
He explained his disappearance and rationalized Alicia’s actions as a “rescue.”
Most importantly, he portrayed himself as a weak and helpless figure in need of protection.
This would satisfy Vivian’s protective desire to the greatest extent.
Vivian stared at him, seemingly trying to distinguish the truth from the lies.
Alicia, standing at the door, moved her lips but ultimately said nothing.
The holy smile on her face merely deepened.
She had accepted Lynn’s version of the story.