A few days later
In the afternoon, after class.
I was waiting to receive a reply, either from the royal family or from Kanna. Surprisingly, the first reply I received came from the other side.
Victoria received a letter addressed to her.
It wasn’t a reply from her parents, but rather, the letter had been returned.
After receiving the returned letter, she sat there for about five minutes before immediately leaving the dormitory and heading toward the school building.
She entered the administration office, and then...
"Leave of absence?"
Her family had an issue, and she needed to go back for a few weeks? She was asked to submit the necessary paperwork? Isn’t this a bit too quick of a decision?
The staff at the administration office was clearly flustered as they inquired about the situation.
Victoria explained that she had sent a letter, but it had been returned, so she was going to check.
The staff was insistent that no letter should have been returned.
They tried to convince her to wait just a little longer, but Victoria remained unfazed.
She said it was an ominous feeling, and because she was following the procedure, she wanted them to go ahead with it. The staff knew, as did I from Victoria's gaze, that this meant she would leave if they didn’t comply.
Eventually, the staff gave her the necessary forms.
Victoria filled them out without hesitation and left the administration office. I could see from beyond her gaze that the staff member was contacting someone, but I couldn’t tell who.
Victoria returned to the dormitory, packed a small bag, and left a short note for me saying she had to take care of something at home and would be gone for a while.
Since I could see everything through Victoria's eyes, I didn’t need to go find her to know, but originally, this was something I shouldn’t have known.
Victoria left the front gate and headed down the route she knew.
She made her way to the port in the southwest of the capital and boarded a ship heading directly to Vern City.
It was the same port where Victoria had been kidnapped previously.
Shouldn’t she avoid such a dangerous place?
No, but Victoria had already captured every last one of the merfolk who had kidnapped her.
There was no reason to worry. Plus, she didn’t need to be afraid of strangers.
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Anyone who was remotely capable would lose consciousness from drowning before even managing to fight. And water is heavier and more powerful than one might think.
Victoria, who could control it freely, was truly strong.
Even if Maleficent had been lenient with her, she could have fought back at least.
In terms of a game, it means she had surpassed the level needed to handle a raid boss. Of course, she was still crushed due to the lack of support and power in the capital.
But at least, in terms of safety, there’s nothing to worry about.
Strength and bravery are two entirely different genres, though...
Victoria left.
And now, there was no way for me to know that right away.
I’d have to wait, immobile, and only hear about it from someone else tomorrow. Hiding the fact that I’m seeing the world through the harvest period is more important than Victoria’s safety right now.
Priorities, in short.
So, on that day, I stayed quietly in the dorm. The body called Bell can only move if there's a reason.
The next day.
Class started, but Victoria didn’t show up. Of course.
Right now, Victoria is waiting at the port to board a ship.
The teacher simply marked her as absent and moved on. Since it was just marked as an absence, it seems like the administration office still hasn’t conveyed the message.
Well, the first class wasn’t even taught by the homeroom teacher.
As soon as class ended, Polaris approached me.
"Bell, is something wrong with Victoria?"
"I’m planning to go check her room."
I was about to leave when I suddenly noticed her expression. She looked genuinely concerned.
Hmm.
"Would you like to come with me?"
"Uh, no. But—"
"It’s not strange for a classmate to go."
Saying that, I used lunch break to head toward Victoria's dorm. Unlike the hesitant words she initially spoke, as soon as I mentioned I would go with her, Polaris immediately followed without hesitation.
Both Victoria and Polaris have quick judgment.
They go to gather information while pretending not to know what they already know. I considered going by a way where we could hear Victoria’s voice, but that would bring up past issues.
Isn’t it strange that the royal family doesn’t know about the harvest period’s dismantling and experimentation?
It would mean I knew it. If I knew and still cooperated with the kingdom without any objections, that would be problematic.
Up until now, I've acted as if I were a virtuous person, but if they figured out I knew about the cruel experiments, they’d undoubtedly question my true nature.
So, I don’t say that I know her voice. I only vaguely hear it.
I make sure to stick to the line I can skirt around.
So, Polaris and I enter the dorm. I know the room is empty, but after knocking, I opened the door.
The room is completely empty.
I walked to the desk to pick up the note Victoria had left and showed it to Polaris.
"It seems like something happened at home."
I handed the note to Polaris. She took it from me and read it.
"What? Did she just leave without saying anything to the school?"
She followed the proper procedure. But it seems like it hasn’t been communicated yet. I didn’t say anything, and while Polaris was reading, I opened the drawer and pulled out the returned letter.
"Do you know something?"
Polaris walked over to me, still holding the note.
"A letter came from the family, with a stiff tone they wouldn’t normally use, so I sent a letter back."
I handed her the letter from the drawer.
"Returned?"
"Victoria headed for her parents in Vern City."
I didn’t try to speculate about Victoria’s state or mindset. I learned recently that there could be a time difference in perspective.
Instead, I said this.
"Shall we follow her?"
"Let’s go."
Polaris didn’t hesitate.
Yeah, she’s bold. She might be similar to Kanna now.
Class?
For me, it’s just a way to pass the time. If something more important is happening, I need to go find it.
"Do you know the way?"
"I’ve been to Vern City a few times with my father. And if we go through Barrington Road, we’ll catch up with her right away, so don’t worry."
Though there’s still the physical distance to cover, I pushed aside the doubt and nodded. If she knows how to do it, we just need to follow her.
I follow Polaris as she immediately starts walking.
Meanwhile, Victoria has just boarded the ship.
Soon, she asks the crew in a cold voice, which sounds like it could freeze the ice.
Why weren’t they heading to Vern City?
From the crew member’s stammered response, Victoria learns a shocking truth.
The route to Vern City had been blocked for several weeks due to large-scale protests, and the protesters had taken over the city. The route had been shut down, though it was still possible to cross to the opposite side if there was business there.
Victoria calms herself after hearing the crew member’s words. She looks at her trembling hands and clenches her fists.
She apologizes and bows her head.
When the crew member cautiously asks what happened, she says her parents live there, and she hasn’t heard back from them.
The crew member reassures her, and the people around them offer words of comfort.
Victoria, with a stiff face, says she’s fine and heads to her seat.
It seems like she’s in a hurry, because it’s not a room, but a seat on the ship. Once seated, a somewhat frivolous-looking man approaches and kindly asks what’s going on.
Victoria impressively suppresses all emotions, easing her expression slightly, and answers that there’s an urgent matter at home, so she’s returning quickly, and there’s no need to worry.
She must be anxious, but she no longer trembles.
She’s become steady in her memories.
When she became the killer of merfolk.
That meant she had made up her mind.
Looking at that side of her, she isn’t an ordinary girl. Victoria.
Noticing her, the man subtly steps away. Ah, I could see his lust, but he quickly got the message. He's perceptive.
At that moment, Polaris asked me in front of the Royal Academy’s main gate.
"Going to run for a bit. Are you confident you can keep up?"
"I’ll just take a light jog."
"Try it."
So, just like when I went to Maleficent’s house, I ran. Polaris sighed softly.
I thought I was running pretty fast, but when she caught up, she lifted me up. Fortunately, our heights were similar, so I didn’t drag my legs, but she was planning to carry me while running.
"Excuse me. What? Why are you so light? Are you eating properly?"
"If you're going to carry me, please wait a moment."
The dorm was right in front of us.
I gave a slight squirm to get down and knocked on the dorm’s door. It wasn’t long before a maid came out and asked if I needed a butler to accompany me.
"Did you find what you needed?"
"Yes. I might not be able to come back today."
"I see. If you're in a hurry, would you like me to call for a carriage?"
Hmm?
I immediately called for Polaris.
"Why?"
Polaris came over, and I grabbed her hand.
"I'm going with her to Vern City. Please give us the fastest option."
"I'll prepare it right away. Please wait inside."
Strangely, without asking for any intentions, they just did what I asked. I led Polaris inside the dorm.
I may end up reporting to the royal family, but I don’t mind.
Right now, I’m not acting with information I shouldn’t know.
Polaris followed me with a dazed expression. We went into the room indicated by the butler in the meeting place on the first floor.
According to Kanna’s knowledge, it was a room decorated with 30% more precious furnishings than the one I live in.
After the butler left, Polaris hurriedly asked.
"You didn’t just enter the Royal Academy because of some special ability, did you?"
"Seems like that ability was valuable."
She gave me an expression that showed she didn’t believe it.
Polaris shrank like a little child in appearance. After saying the last words, she didn’t speak again. She was probably nervous.
A few minutes later,
Polaris and I took the carriage.