Chapter 67:
The Room Next Door is Mine
Finally, a desperate cry burst from Riche’s mouth.
*Deon is going to kill Morgan.*
But contrary to that thought, Deon’s sword didn’t reach Morgan and instead returned to its sheath.
“…?”
What? The three people looked at Deon’s actions in confusion.
“It’s dinner time.”
A sudden remark.
Morgan felt a chill down his spine at the words that followed.
“That’s it for today. We’ll continue tomorrow.”
Three months and twenty days until the end of the preliminary rounds. Morgan could see his future, still clashing swords with Deon until the last day.
Knowing well what happens to Deon’s training partners, Philip silently offered his condolences to Morgan.
* * *
Riche tore at the white bread that was served for dinner.
Since she couldn’t tear her brother apart, tearing bread was the next best thing.
“I also want to receive a test assignment from Instructor Rodwick!”
A few minutes ago, Riche had blocked Deon’s path as he left the training grounds.
If he gave an assignment just to talk with Morgan, couldn’t he do the same with her under the guise of an assignment?
But Deon lightly flicked her forehead and left the training grounds.
“I don’t deal with magic.”
Deon was a swordsmanship and testing instructor, and she was a contestant in the magic department, so what he said made sense. But still, Deon should have understood that she just wanted an excuse to talk.
Please, just talk to me.
‘Why are you ignoring me?’
She was Deon’s sister, but lately, it felt like she was just cold soup.
“Uh, Trariche…?”
Jackson, who was sitting across from her, carefully called out to her. He pointed to Riche’s tray.
“Do you need breadcrumbs for the preliminary assignment?”
At his words, Riche looked down. The tray was piled high with breadcrumbs.
While thinking of Deon, she had torn the bread piece by piece, and now it was stacked up like that.
“If you need it, I can ask the kitchen if they can give you some breadcrumbs.”
“Breadcrumbs?”
At those words, the chef, who was connected to the kitchen through the serving hatch, poked his head out.
He was the same chef who had recently handed Riche some skewered demon meat.
He had been watching Riche with concern, thinking that she wasn’t eating because the bread didn’t taste good.
So she needed breadcrumbs?
“Ah, no.”
Riche belatedly waved her hands at the chef, who was now looking at her with shining eyes.
“Just a moment!”
But before she could stop him, the chef had already ducked back into the kitchen.
And a little while later…
“Miss, good luck.”
Riche was handed a large bag full of breadcrumbs and received the chef’s encouragement.
She couldn’t bring herself to say that she didn’t need what he had prepared. Riche awkwardly nodded her head.
“Th-thank you.”
When she entered her room, Riche set the bag of breadcrumbs on the floor and fell into deep thought. It was still about Deon.
She couldn’t meet him. She couldn’t withdraw from the competition. She couldn’t even use an assignment as an excuse to talk, like Morgan did today.
‘Deon isn’t avoiding me because of the competition rules.’
Yes, the more she thought about it, the stranger it seemed. Is Dehkerion Rodwick that kind of person?
Even if there were competition rules, he was the kind of person who would snort and ignore them if he wanted to.
‘There must be something more. That’s why he’s avoiding me.’
If Deon was going to be like that, then she had an idea too.
“Pythons.”
Riche called out to the Pythons inside the bag of breadcrumbs. Pythons, who had been rolling around inside, enjoying the texture, poked their heads out.
Fine breadcrumbs clung to the fur and whiskers of the Pythons.
“I need to meet Morgan tomorrow.”
“Morgan? Why?”
Riche clenched the breadcrumbs in her hand.
“I need to settle things with my brother.”
“Oh?”
With Derkedeon?
Pythons grinned like a villain at Riche’s words.
A fight between its contractor and Derkedeon? This was a chance to see which one was more of a monster.
Though it didn’t know why Morgan Dayel was involved, this was an opportunity it couldn’t miss. Pythons rose to its feet.
* * *
“Lily.”
At the Royal Academy, in Riche’s greenhouse.
Lotus watched his sister leisurely enjoy her tea at the table.
“Did you hear what I said? Zig is missing.”
Zigbert had disappeared. He skipped all his afternoon classes, and his dorm room was empty.
Something must have happened to Zigbert.
Yet here was Lily Hibetz, so calm in the face of such a serious situation.
“Lily, you don’t care about anyone except for Riche, do you?”
Without answering, Lily sipped her tea.
As expected, she didn’t care. Lotus gave up on getting a reaction from her and sat on the sofa.
It had been about three weeks since Riche left for the city of Kxelporn.
Thanks to the efforts of the plants and the professors, Riche’s greenhouse was thriving, even without its owner.
Lotus thought in the shade created by the lush, large leaves of the surrounding trees.
“Still, he’ll take the exam, right? If he doesn’t, Zig will be held back.”
The final exams for the first semester were starting tomorrow.
Zigbert, who was in the eighth grade, had only half a year until graduation, but if he missed this exam, he would be held back.
Repeating a year from the beginning? Just the thought of it was horrifying.
“Oh, could it be that he wants to graduate with Riche?”
Then, Lotus arrived at a plausible conclusion.
If Zig was held back a year, he could graduate with Riche. Maybe he was planning to skip the exam and hide somewhere.
Indeed. That seemed like something Zigbert would do.
“As expected from Zig. He does things differently.”
“Do you really think that’s the case?”
Lotus was nodding proudly, but Lily’s sharp remark interrupted him.
“Then what is it? Lily, you know something, don’t you?”
Lotus turned his upper body towards Lily, holding onto the back of the sofa with one hand.
When Lily acted all superior like this, it meant she knew something.
Lily, apparently not planning to keep it a secret, responded while writing on a piece of paper.
“Zig went to Kxelporn.”
“Kxelporn? Why? Is it because of Riche?”
Lotus’s expression changed from curious to slightly troubled.
‘It would be a problem if Zig is in love with Riche too.’
First love, fate, the one who owns my heart.
Lotus was used to hearing about love because Rovenhaf mixed in such cheesy words while seeking dating advice from the twins.
The problem was that, despite talking about it endlessly in front of them, he couldn’t say a word in front of Riche.
“Yes, he went because of Riche.”
“What? Then what about our brother? Zig is manly and cool. He might make Riche’s heart race.”
Lotus, like Lily, was rooting for Rovenhaf’s love.
It was already a love with little chance of success, and now Zigbert appeared as a rival.
Lily waved her index finger side to side at Lotus, who looked worried. This was why she was a step ahead of him.
“Lotus, I’ve already got a plan.”
“What plan?”
“A plan to make our brother Riche’s black knight.”
As she finished speaking, Lily put down her pen and picked up her teacup.
‘I can’t let Zig get all the points.’
That morning, she had overheard Professor Rumbla’s communication by chance.
After escaping from the flowerbed, she immediately went to confront Zigbert.
“Brother, did you hear what Professor Rumbla said?”
Zigbert nodded. The green eyes that had seemed angry had returned to their usual calm color.
“What did he say? No need for a full explanation. Who’s going to do what to Riche?”
“…Nothing much.”
Zigbert remained silent.
It was too bothersome to explain, and Zigbert clearly intended to handle it himself, which is why he wasn’t telling her.
“Zig, I’m not leaving until you tell me.”
But Lily’s persistence was as stubborn as Zigbert’s resolve.
In the end, it was Zigbert who gave in.
Lily’s threat to go directly to Professor Rumbla and ask him worked.
“They’re planning to kidnap Riche and hold her hostage.”
“What? Kidnap her? Why?”
“Because they need someone with her abilities.”
“Professor Rumbla?”
“The person he was communicating with.”
Shortly after that, Zigbert disappeared, so it was certain he had gone to the city where Kxelporn was being held.
The culprit who left the giant claw marks in Professor Rumbla’s office was also obvious. While students speculated that monsters might be appearing again, it wasn’t a monster—likely, it was Zigbert in his monstrous form.
Lily folded the letter in half as she thought.
‘Honestly, I’m not really worried about Riche being kidnapped.’
The idea of someone overpowering *that* Riche was almost unimaginable.
‘Plus, Derkedeon will be with her.’
And if Zigbert joins them, the kidnappers should be the ones fearing for their lives.
Still, it would be a problem if her brother wasn’t present when Derkedeon and Zigbert were making a name for themselves in front of Riche.
As Lily slipped the letter into an envelope, a sly smile spread across her face.
“Lotus.”
“Huh?”
“If my brother marries Riche, half the credit is mine. So, I’ll be using the room next to Riche’s, okay?”
“Oh. You really think you can make that happen, Lily?”
“Of course.”
The success of Rovenhaf’s love was something the twins wanted more than anything.
Lily and Lotus exchanged devilish smiles as they imagined taking the rooms next to Riche’s and sneaking in every night.
The servant from House Hibetz, who had come all the way to the greenhouse, looked distressed at the twins.
“Young Lady, Young Master, you are studying for your exams, right…?”
* * *
Before dawn.
Morgan stepped outside for his early morning training and immediately sensed something suspicious.
‘Someone’s tailing me.’
Though he couldn’t see them, he was sure someone was following him.
Who could be skilled enough to remain hidden like this?
Could it be someone Principal Hannibal had secretly planted in Kxelporn?
‘Let’s just see how this plays out.’
Morgan continued his routine.
After his early training, he took a shower and had breakfast.
‘They’re still around.’
The faint presence had briefly disappeared while he was showering but had returned.
It was puzzling why he couldn’t find them despite knowing they were close.
‘If only I could use the Eye of Insight.’
He missed his ability that Hikenka had temporarily taken from him.
“Morgan, what do you think of this?”
In the dining hall after breakfast, Morgan reached out for the weapon that Hamad, sitting across from him, was offering.
Hamad had fetched it from his room after Morgan mentioned wanting a small weapon.
“Wait, Morgan. There’s some sand on it. Let me clean it for you.”
“No, I’ll do it.”
As Morgan brushed the sand off the black weapon, he noticed something odd.
The sand granules crumbled easily under his fingers. Morgan crushed the remaining granules between his fingertips and brought them to his tongue.
“…Breadcrumbs?”
The taste of roasted grains confirmed it—these were crumbs from dried bread.
He had initially assumed it was sand blown in from the distant Rom Desert on this slightly windy day.
Morgan looked around. Then he noticed similar granules scattered on the floor, leading toward the dining hall entrance.
“….”
Morgan’s golden eyes fixed on the entrance.
