Chapter 2
“We have gathered everyone here for an important announcement. The time to select a new Saint has come. The starry crystal ball has appointed new Saint candidates and also the knights that…”
A priest-like man sent by the king was announcing this speech at the hall of the auditorium. The boring monologue accompanied by exaggerated gestures was long and sleep-inducing.
As a matter of fact, the game had an unusually long prologue, so Hiyono saved it just before the first chapter started and always began playing again from that saved data.
So, in her past life, Cecilia only saw through the prologue once.
(But why is it so long? The speech was also long, but I feel like there was something else too…)
The monologue goes on and on while she’s thinking about that.
To summarize his long and endless declamation:
- The starry crystal ball announced that the new Saint candidates have appeared.
- There are three candidates for the Saint position. The divination has told that all of them are students of this school, and one of them must be chosen through a careful draft.
- Therefore, the place for the selection will be the Wruhel Academy.
- Now they will also select the seven knights who will protect the Saint.
- That’s it.
By the way, that starry crystal ball is an essential tool for the Saint selection, and the knights are basically the so-called ‘capture targets’.
The knights will each be granted a ‘treasure’, and the person who becomes a knight will choose a suitable Saint candidate to become the next Saint in the length of one year. They will then present their 'treasure’ to the chosen one.
Winning or losing as a Saint candidate depends on the number of 'treasures’ acquired.
Until the next Saint is decided, this one year is called the 'Selection Ceremony’.
(In other words, the 'Selection Ceremony’ is a battle for collecting votes.) fre(e)webno(v)el
Cecilia looked up at the man on the stage, who was still dragging on the explanation.
This 'Selection Ceremony’ is a mechanism in the game to measure the likability of the knights, and a Saint candidate who has been entrusted the most 'treasures’ will become the next Saint. And those who are chosen as the next Saint also have the right to choose one of the knights who handed their 'treasure’ to her as a holy knight, to always protect her. It’s the so-called ‘lover position’.
(If I don’t come up as a Saint candidate here, the 'treasures’ will naturally be all gathered together by Leanne, and then everything will be perfect and I’ll be free! In the worst-case scenario, even if Leanne can’t get a 'treasure’, If I also don’t gather any, I won’t be bothered!)
The knights have the right to give away their 'treasure’ to whoever, but at the same time, they don’t have to do it if there are no Saint candidates they think are suitable.
In this case, Leanne, blessed by her protagonist halo, will be chosen as the next Saint if no 'treasure’ is entrusted to any other candidate.
Alas, even in that route, Cecilia died without exception, simply because Cecilia was Cecilia …And was a Saint candidate. But a powerless mob character like 'Cecil’ should be able to avoid that horrible ending.
(If I overcome this step, I’ll be safe for the time being! Let’s just silently watch over Leanne’s love life!)
While Cecilia comfortably thinks to herself, another person comes from behind the man on the platform. He is carrying a white cloth with seven silver glittering bracelets on it. This is what they call a 'treasure’.
It is said that the 'treasure’ contains a spirit that serves God and that the abilities of those who have been chosen as knights will manifest according to their affinity with one of the spirits.
When a knight passes down their 'treasures’ from their hands to the Saint candidate’s hands, the vote is also transferred. Candidates can hold up to seven 'treasures’.
When the man lifts the cloth upwards to the sky, the bracelets light up. The knights will now be chosen.
At that moment, the 'treasures’ floated and scattered to seven different directions …
A crackling scream broke into the auditorium.
Turning towards the sound, they could see a female student being pushed down by another student. The boy who topped over the girl is strangling her neck. The girl’s carotid artery was being deeply crushed, suffering to the point of bending up her body.
“That’s…!”
Cecilia deeply breathes out. She can see a dark haze surrounding the boy’s body.
“Wruhel Academy Saint Princess 3” was a rare type of otome game, one that was more like a fighting RPG, and the characters could even level up.
The target of the battles is a kind of monster called the 'disturbance’ that nests in the negative emotions of animals and people. Although the 'disturbance’ by itself is not strong, it can harm others by boosting their ability and disrupting the emotions of people they leech on. 'Disturbances’ lurk everywhere in this kingdom and they should have been suppressed by the power of the Saint, but they began to appear all over the country again due to the weakening of the current Saint.
And the most distinct feature of those who are cursed by a 'disturbance’ is that black fog coming out from their bodies.
That boy was being afflicted with a 'disturbance’.
“Oh, uh, uh …”
The female student who was being strangled begins to convulse. Saliva was flowing from the edge of her mouth, and her eyes were trembling.
“This is bad…if it goes on like this–!!“
People looked around and wanted to help, but they were all surprised by the boy’s sudden change and seemed unable to move.
Certainly, there’s nothing you can do if you’re suddenly shown a scene like this. Even Cecilia would have been like that if she had no memories of her previous life.
However, she does have them, and with those memories, also came a composure of someone who could immediately scan the situation and understand what was happening to him.
Only Cecilia, who knows that he has been afflicted with a 'disturbance’, can help them here and now.
Cecilia rushed towards the boy’s body.
They clash and roll on the floor, hitting their backs against the auditorium wall.
All the air in her lungs was knocked out, and tears came to Cecilia’s eyes.
The male student who received the body roll stood up shakily and looked down at Cecilia with unfocused eyes.
(This is baaad! Is this how it actually feels when they look at you!? I’m so scared right now!!)
There is a huge difference between manipulating a character through the game screen and confronting the enemy as yourself.
She managed to pull herself up, but her knees trembled as the enemy stared down at her.
She felt like someone was calling her from behind the crowd, but she couldn’t afford to look away.
(T-that’s right, how to defeat them…)
She refreshed the memories of her past life.
(A Saint candidate or a knight must touch the mark somewhere in the body!)
At the next moment, the student jumps towards Cecilia. She barely noticed it, closely avoiding it.
After desperately training her body for twelve years in case something happens, she can finally put it to use. Well, because of all those workouts, her stepbrother called her a 'brute’, but as long as it’s useful, she’s totally fine with it.
She grabbed and twisted the male student’s arm and kicked him in the pit of his stomach. However, the boy who has lost his sanity just grabbed her foot in his abdomen without losing consciousness.
”Hans bro*, direct kick!“
Crying out the outrageously ridiculous technique name, Cecilia spun her body around the captured foot and kicked the side of his head.
The name of that move is stupid, but the effect seems to be outstanding, and the student falls on the floor again.
Her knees aren’t shaking anymore.
"I found it!”
Cecilia found a black mark that looked like ivy around the boy’s left wrist and jumped in despite being injured.
Even though she kept fighting, it is obvious that she’s already in a bad state.
The opponent’s physical strength is inexhaustibly enhanced by the 'disturbance’.
The boy was rampant for a while but stopped moving as soon as Cecilia touched his wrist. And at the same time as the black mark disappears, his body loses power and falls on the spot.
Cecilia also fell down on the fainted male student.
“Hey si– I MEAN! Cecil, are you okay!?”
The first person who rushed to her was the cute stepbrother. While being helped out by him, Cecilia cries out with a crunched expression on her face.
“I…I was so scawweeeed …”
“If it’s that scary, then why did you have to put yourself in danger like that?”
“But the person who was attacked was also in danger and suddenly my body moved…”
“That’s why I’m saying…”
And then Cecilia finally noticed. The surroundings were too quiet.
If you look around, everyone is paying attention to them. The fallen male student, Cecilia, and Gilbert who helped her out were surrounded by the crowd.
Looking further, Leanne was standing right in the front row.
She is frozen still while staring at Cecilia.
(Oh, wait…This…Maybe…)
The moment she realized what she had done, a cold sweat ran through Cecilia’s back.
(This is the tutorial battle!!)
And now, a brief explanation!
The tutorial battle is the first enemy encounter at the beginning of the game and teaches the basic operation of the game battles and explains the fighting system in the form of an actual battle.
Cecilia was skipping the prologue every time because she thought it was annoying.
(This…I interfered…)
Suddenly, she felt her blood rushing around her whole body.
If one looks closely, right behind Leanne, there are all the capture targets that would have been chosen as knights. In other words, Cecilia disturbed their first collaboration (LOL). Moreover, they’ll be suspicious of Cecilla since there isn’t any ordinary person who can defeat the 'disturbances’.
“You……?”
With eyes wide open in astonishment, Leanne slowly approached them one step at a time. Cecilia’s expression stiffened up.
“Sis, take this.”
“Eh?”
At that moment, something touched Cecilia’s left wrist. She shivers at the cold chain-like sensation.
“Everything will be fine, don’t hesitate to go all out. It’s probably going to be okay with this…”
Cecilia looked at her left wrist as Gilbert whispered. Suddenly there’s a bracelet that should be proof of an appointed knight. It’s probably Gilbert’s.
“But this!”
“Ooooh, did a knight already performed his duties?”
"EEH!?”
While Cecilia raised her voice, she could see the man on the platform walking slowly over. f(r)eewebnovel.com
“You are a wonderful knight! It was a little dangerous, but your performance was very good. Please continue to protect the Saint candidates with those skills.”
“W-wai…Eh?”
Her hand was forcibly grabbed and they made her stand up. Then applause burst from the crowd around them.
In the middle of that crowd, there are also girls with sparkly eyes and flushed cheeks from the excitement of watching the gallant fighting figure just now…they are members of the [Prince Cecil FanClub].
“It was wonderful, Mr. Cecil!”
“Our Prince has become a knight! You have become more and more out of reach!”
“That roundhouse kick was really cool! Ah, my body gets all hot when I remember that!”
The other capture targets that have been brimming with jealousy now have a confident expression. That’s right. It’s possible to defeat a 'disturbance’ by herself if Cecilia was a 'knight’ rather than a 'general student’. It won’t be suspicious at all if she wears the 'treasure’.
For the time being, Cecilia escaped her difficulties thanks to Gilbert’s swift action.
However–…
(That means that Gilbert’s 'treasure’ passed over to me !?)
The moment she grasped the current situation, Cecilia froze up and her face turned pale again.
It seems like her ordeals have only just begun.
*Hans is a mob character, it’s mentioned later on~
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