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[Translator - Peptobismol]
[Proofreader - Demon God]
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Chapter 179 - Kirrin’s Black Forest (2)
"Apologies for the late visit. I had something urgent to discuss."
"It’s fine. Have a seat."
The Second Princess gestured toward the chair by her vanity.
As Dian pulled the chair closer and sat down, the Second Princess walked over to the door and cracked it open slightly.
"Bring some light refreshments and tea."
After giving instructions to the attendant outside, she shut the door and returned, perching herself on the edge of the bed.
"So, Dian. What’s the matter? And why did you come in through the window?"
"They wouldn’t let me in through the front."
"I see. But how did you get up here? If there’s a security flaw, I’ll need to address it."
"I just climbed the wall. There aren’t any weaknesses. Your security should be able to detect even dark elves."
At that, the corners of the Second Princess’s lips twitched ever so slightly.
"So what you’re saying is… you’re better at concealing your presence than a dark elf?"
"I guess so. But that’s not the point right now."
To the Second Princess, however, that was the point.
Her security measures were supposed to be impenetrable—even to dark elves.
Yet, Dian had bypassed them all.
Unless it was a barrier personally designed by a mage on Kaiden’s level, there was no stopping him.
And Kaiden was on Dian’s side.
As for the other two Grand Mages? They were elderly men who could drop dead any day now.
In other words, there was no way to stop him at all.
For the first time, the Second Princess truly felt why the Emperor had spent the past ten years living in fear—constantly dreading the possibility that Dian might one day come for his head.
"...Let’s hear what you have to say."
But the Second Princess was seasoned enough not to let any of this show. She simply crossed her legs, her expression perfectly composed.
"Did you tell Headmaster Kirrin she was being dismissed?"
At Dian’s direct question, the Second Princess tilted her head as if hearing nonsense.
"Where is this coming from? I never said such a thing."
"You didn’t?"
"Did something happen?"
"Kirrin is missing. No one knows where she is. I thought maybe she ran away after hearing she was being removed."
"I put her dismissal on hold. She’s changed quite a bit since you joined the academy. And besides, Kirrin wouldn’t leave of her own accord."
"I figured. Her father would throw a fit, right?"
"Exactly. Nemara is a ruthless dark elf—he doesn’t even spare his own kin. That’s why Kirrin, despite never wanting to be Headmaster, held on for so long."
"Then where the hell did she go…?"
Dian muttered under his breath, just as a knock sounded at the door.
A voice from outside announced that the refreshments had arrived.
The Second Princess subtly positioned herself in a way that hid Dian from view and personally took the tray from the attendant.
"Here, eat. There’s no poison in it."
"Even if there was, it wouldn’t matter."
Dian grabbed a pastry without hesitation and stuffed it into his mouth, chewing enthusiastically.
"Oh, this is good!"
Crumbs scattered all over the carpet, but the Second Princess didn’t react.
Or rather, she couldn’t afford to care—because of what Dian had just said.
‘Even if there was poison, it wouldn’t matter.’
Did he have a resistance to poison?
If anyone else had said it, she would’ve dismissed it as bravado.
But coming from him? It sounded like a simple statement of fact.
Which meant poisoning him was off the table.
The Second Princess had thoroughly investigated Dian’s past through various channels.
In just a few short years with the Special Forces, he had accomplished feats so absurd they would sound laughable in an epic poem.
From that, she had reached one conclusion—Dian was physically invulnerable.
A normal person would have died countless times over from the injuries he had sustained.
The same could be said for Linus, but the two were fundamentally different.
The Second Princess didn’t fear Linus.
Linus was a Hero.
If the concept of justice took human form, it would probably look just like him.
As long as she didn’t commit some grand atrocity on an imperial scale, Linus would never be a threat to her.
But Dian? Dian was unpredictable.
Based on their past encounters and everything she had learned, he didn’t chase justice like Linus did.
Yet, he wasn’t driven by greed or malice either, making him difficult to manipulate.
The best course of action?
Leave him be.
And, whenever possible, give him what he wants.
He had no weaknesses. If she antagonized him, everything she had built could be ruined in an instant.
Tonight, he had come simply to confirm whether she had dismissed Kirrin.
Since she hadn’t, all she needed to do was feed him some snacks and send him on his way.
"This is delicious. The capital really is something else."
"I’m glad you enjoyed it. Now, you should be heading ba—"
"By the way, do you guys make fried chicken?"
Dian suddenly blurted out.
"...What?"
"Fried chicken. You know, chicken coated in flour and fried until it’s crispy."
Fried chicken…? Where was this coming from?
"There’s something like that, yes."
"Great. Pack two whole chickens for me."
The Second Princess just stared at him.
What the hell was this supposed to mean?
Fried chicken, flour, oil, crispy, two whole chickens…
Was this some kind of coded political message?
...Hmm.
She went ahead and ordered the kitchen staff to prepare two chickens.
By the time she returned, Dian had already cleaned his plate and emptied his cup.
"Sorry for bothering you so late at night."
"It’s fine. More importantly, it’s the academy’s break, isn’t it? How have you been spending your time?"
Despite already knowing the answer, the Second Princess played dumb.
"Huh? You already know, don’t you? Why ask?"
Dian answered without hesitation, making her smile.
"I know where you are, but I don’t know what you’re doing. Just curious."
"I’m having a great time. I’ve never seen such luxury before. It’s even grander than the capital."
"I see. And I imagine you’ve had plenty of discussions with the Duke, seeing as you’re old comrades?"
"More like… savior."
The Second Princess chuckled. She was well aware of how Dian and Linus had once rescued the noble army from Hindrasta.
"So, did you two enjoy reminiscing about the past?"
"I know what you’re getting at, but no. None of that happened."
It wasn’t until after he spoke that the Second Princess realized she had been caught.
Dian had answered so casually that she almost missed it—she had been fishing to see if the Duke had tried to recruit members of the Demon King Slayer Special Force.
"Actually, he was more interested in matchmaking me."
"Matchmaking?"
"Yeah, something like that. Anyway, I should get going now."
"You forgot your fried chicken."
"Ah, it’s on the way. I can smell it getting closer."
The Second Princess inhaled quietly—but smelled nothing.
Just another bluff.
But the moment she thought that, a knock came at the door.
"Your Highness, I have brought the late-night meal you requested."
She opened the door to find an attendant holding a package of fried chicken.
Only then did the aroma reach her nose.
…Could he really smell it from that far away?
Time to test it.
"Here, Dian. Enjoy."
"Much appreciated. Sorry for disturbing you at this hour."
As Dian climbed onto the windowsill, the Second Princess stepped back and whispered just loud enough for herself to hear.
"...See you again, Dian."
"Of course, Your Highness. I’ll be back."
With that, Dian leapt into the night.
She rushed to the window—but he was already gone.
Just then—
"Out of the way!"
The door slammed open as a voice roared.
"Your Highness! Are you all right?!"
The knight drew his sword and stormed into the chamber.
"What’s going on?"
"We received reports of an intruder!"
"Calm down. I’m fine. Close the door."
Even as he obeyed the Second Princess’s command and shut the door, the knight remained on high alert.
"An intruder? But the alarms never went off."
"I happened to run into a servant in the hallway carrying Your Highness’s late-night meal. Given that you never eat after sunset, I found it odd. And on top of that… two whole fried chickens…"
Hearing his reasoning, the Second Princess burst into laughter.
"As expected of you. Yes, you’re right. There was an intruder."
"I knew it!"
The knight gripped his sword tightly and scanned the room with sharp eyes.
"Relax. He’s already gone. It was Dian."
"...Dian? The Head Combat Professor of the Special Missions Academy? But how did he—"
"He came in through the window."
"I’ll see to it that the Captain of the Guard and everyone responsible is punished immediately!"
"Don’t bother."
The Second Princess shook her head with an amused smile.
"Punishing someone for failing to stop a natural disaster would be absurd. Instead, summon the intelligence division’s cryptographers right now."
"Cryptographers? Did Dian… leave behind some kind of secret message?"
"He said something important. I need to figure out what he meant."
Dian—once a member of the Demon King Slayer Special Forces.
Tonight, the Second Princess had come to a realization—Dian was someone who surpassed even the hero, Linus.
Every action he took, every word he spoke—it was all calculated.
Someone like him would never speak carelessly.
Which meant—those two fried chickens?
They weren’t just a meal.
They were a message.
And she had to decode it.
# # # # #
Back at the academy, I dropped off one of the fried chickens at the administrative office for the staff on duty.
"You’ve all been working hard. Have this while you take a break. It’s fried chicken from the capital."
"The capital? Professor, you really do have a sense of humor!"
The female staff giggled, playfully tugging at my arm to get me to join them, but I declined.
I had other plans.
I was going to break into the Headmaster’s office and search for any clues about where Kirrin had gone.
Holding the remaining bag of fried chicken, I made my way there.
The office door was still locked, and knocking yielded no response.
I pulled out a paperclip I had borrowed from the administrative office, straightened it out, and fiddled with the keyhole.
With a click, the lock gave way.
As I turned the doorknob and stepped inside—
I instinctively leapt into the air.
A snare trap, set on the floor, snapped shut with a sharp crack, missing my ankle by a hair’s breadth.
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[Translator - Peptobismol]
[Proofreader - Demon God]
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