A few days had passed and I was now in my fourth week at the Academy. It was currently wednesday and we had gathered for the Class Philosophy lesson in the 1-A class.
In fact, not everyone was in the class. Alex wasn't around and it didn't seem like anyone was curious about his whereabouts. I could only see that Viola looked worried. If I got myself into trouble with the sect members, the main character was surely involved in some trouble as well. I thought to myself, 'The most likely one to come to mind is the Scarple family.'
Otherwise, I was with my usual group of friends. Stefan had started carrying a bow with him at all times. He was one of those who accepted archery lessons and since he hadn't yet figured out his class, he would be taking an archery lesson next week. Ela, with her usual curious personality, was thinking about what kind of lesson she should pick and just couldn't make up her mind. Iris, on the other hand, mostly attended lessons related to spear mastery and I figured the lesson she would choose next week would again involve spears.
As for me, I was just as indecisive as Ela. I knew that as soon as I secured a class, I'd start reclaiming the Class Philosophy lesson, so the course I chose would be temporary. That's why I wanted to pick something easy to learn.
While I was still pondering my choice, a voice echoed inside my head.
"The order has come. Let's go to the place we agreed to meet."
This voice belonged to Emerra. Since I had the same item in my inventory, she could read my mind and for a few seconds, she could speak with me my mind as well. As soon as I heard her voice, my face immediately turned toward the area where the nalia people were.
As usual, they continued to appear normal. They were very quiet. It seemed like they didn't care about Rona's death.
"Stefan. What was the most frightening thing you saw while hunting?"
"One time, I encountered a wild boar. It was twice the size of a normal wild boar. It had some kind of mane around its neck and it looked like it was about to catch fire."
"Wow! Hunting something like that must be a huge achievement."
"I didn't even shoot an arrow at it. Its red eyes were so terrifying that I immediately took a step back."
Stefan and Ela were chatting as usual and Ela kept bothering him with questions. Iris seemed to be listening quietly but her face was pale. She couldn't hear what I heard because she didn't have a dagger in her inventory. That's why I wanted to ask why her face was so pale.
"Are you okay?"
"Uh... Sorry. I think I caught the infection."
While saying this, she uncontrollably sneezed. I thought, 'Apparently healers can also catch a cold.' So, my last class before I could get a class was over. The course I chose in its place was the same as the one I saw on tuesday.
After the lesson, I gave Iris a sign that Emerra wanted to talk with us. When that happened, we would secretly meet tonight and after nightfall, we would meet in Iris's room.
Time seemed to have no meaning for me and until I arrived at Iris's room on the second floor of the dormitory, I roamed through all the floors. I also stopped by Stefan, who I knew was on the fourth floor, to ask if he wanted to ask me for a weapon. This was a defense I took because someone was following me. Even if someone was tracking me, I didn't want that person to understand my intentions. When I reached Iris's door, I knocked without checking around and within a few seconds, I entered her room.
Iris's room was no different from the other rooms. Emerra was sitting on a chair, seemingly waiting for me to arrive. She also looked a little pale in her face but the pallor was not due to a simple cold. After a brief cough, Iris brought another chair for me to sit on. She herself sat on her bed.
"Now that Nell is here, I can explain the order we were give." she said.
Before starting her explanation, Emerra couldn't help but look around her surroundings. I thought, 'This is no longer even paranoia. I guess this has become her normal.' Then she clenched her hands into fists on her knees and spoke in a cold voice.
"We have been ordered to kill the Academy President Dolphan."
"WHAT?!?!"
Iris raised her voice in shock. Emerra motioned with her gaze to prevent the girl from shouting further.
"I suppose it's because of the old man's pious nature, right? That's why such an order was given?"
"Orders are not questioned but I cannot deny that there's some justification behind this."
Since the founding of the academy, even if the person in charge was my own perverted excuse for an assassination attempt, I thought it wouldn't be easy. Dolphan is currently the wealthiest person in the Heiben lands. Such a person would take the highest level of precautions that money can buy.
"So, when do you plan to do this?"
"We believe the most suitable time for this is right after the first exams."
"If they don't act early."
I sensed that mentioning this wasn't a good sign. Iris must have thought the same as I did, because before I could say what I was thinking, she asked:
"What do you mean?"
"We've been left to decide how to proceed with fulfilling the order. I insisted on developing a plan until the time of the exam. But I don't think they will actually do it."
In other words, when the sect members attack was uncertain. All six of them, including Emerra, could participate in the assassination, or one or more of them could devise their own plan and attempt the attack.
"So, what are we going to do then, traitor princess?"
"Our course is clear. We will inform the academy head about this plot. If they're aware of the situation, they'll take precautions."
Even though I wanted to prevent Dolphan's assassination attempt and become a hero, that wasn't our main plan. The academy head didn't seem to have any particular loyalty against the Ucretnight kingdom, like Hanbel, the ritchi who funds my scholarship.
Actually, I could have told Hanbel everything that was happening. It was quite likely that Hanbel had a direct connection with someone who could see the king, even if not with the king himself. Once we found an opportunity to meet with the king, I could go to the cunning ritchi and ask them to protect Emerra. I decided to ask Stefan about her to learn what she was currently doing.
Additionally, Emerra shared with us the weekly schedule of Dolphan. This way, we could tell him that his life was in danger at the most opportune moment.
Everything had ended, and I had returned to my room and laid on my bed.
I felt that something was going to happen soon and before falling asleep, I checked my stats.
Strength: F
-Strength: 15 (F-)
-Strike Power: 13 (F-)
Agility: F
-Speed: 17 (F-)
-Dexterity: 27 (F)
Intelligence: F+
-Knowledge: 50 (F)
-Logic: 36 (F)
Endurance: F
-Defense: 37 (F)
-Resistance: 2 (+10) (F-)
Charisma: E
-Persuasion: 55 (F)
-Appearance: 115 (E-)
Magic: E-
-Magic Power: 30 (F)
-Magic Control: 76 (F+)