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Chapter 224: The Spider and the Empress (1)
The lively atmosphere of the Seven Star Festival quickly subsided.
With the second semester final exams just around the corner, cadets were bustling in and out of the training grounds, intensifying their efforts to prepare.
Of course, that was only the story of the average cadets.
“Haa…”
Sitting in the second-floor lounge of the party house, I gazed out the window and let out a deep sigh.
Though the seemingly endless suspension period had finally come to an end, unlike the other cadets, I wasn’t preparing for the finals at all.
“What’s the point? I’ll just end up in last place anyway.”
After receiving one suspension for the field trip incident and a second, heavier suspension due to the matter with Lanez, my spot at the very bottom was already secured.
Even if Chancellor Lionel used his influence to prevent me from being held back a year, there was no salvaging my ruined grades.
But more importantly—
‘Even if I weren’t suspended, this isn’t a situation where I can focus on finals.’
During my fight with the Archbishop of Madness, I gained critical information.
‘The Eternal Order.’
In my previous life, I hadn’t even known of their existence—a mysterious organization.
‘They’re heading for the Imperial Palace.’
Though I didn’t know their purpose, one thing was clear.
“The Empress, Camellia Padsha…”
The current number-one-ranked hero.
Due to her high status, I had never spoken to her personally, let alone seen her face.
‘She’s said to be incredibly powerful.’
Though there were few instances of her displaying her strength, her story of destroying the demon city Gehenna with a single gesture was so famous that even I, living in a remote Republican orphanage, had heard of it.
‘She rose to the top rank immediately after that.’
Camellia’s source of power was her divine blessing.
She hadn’t mastered swordsmanship or reached the pinnacle of magic—her innate blessing was simply overwhelmingly powerful.
‘Similar to Lanez.’
Her blessing, known as the “Blessing of the Seven Stars,” was said to temporarily draw upon the power of the seven gods.
Thus, her title: “The Incarnation of the Seven Gods.”
Camellia Padsha, the Empress, wielded a power that transcended humanity, nearing divinity itself.
“The real question is… who could possibly kill someone like Camellia?”
The Eternal Order?
‘I don’t know their full strength, but could they really manage to kill Camellia?’
It was uncertain. But what I knew for sure was even more pressing.
‘The site of Camellia Padsha’s murder showed no significant signs of resistance.’
In other words, for some reason, she didn’t use her “Blessing of the Seven Stars” against her assailant.
‘I don’t know if it was because she didn’t use it or couldn’t use it.’
Haa…
I exhaled deeply, closing my eyes.
What mattered now was that the Eternal Order was heading to the Imperial Palace.
‘And.’
Camellia Padsha’s death had to be prevented at all costs.
‘If Camellia dies, that war will happen again.’
The war between the Republic and the Empire.
The war that senselessly claimed the lives of hundreds, thousands of heroes—this had to be stopped.
“The problem is… how do I even get into the Imperial Palace?”
The Imperial Palace wasn’t some community center you could just stroll into.
The only plausible option was Yurina, with her Imperial noble status.
But even she couldn’t enter the palace without proper authorization.
“Ugh.”
Maybe I’d think of a way to get into the palace later.
‘It’s not like worrying about it now will solve anything.’
If worse came to worst, I could try sneaking into the palace.
Of course, I’d rather not resort to such measures.
‘For now, I’ll just train to clear my mind.’
My thoughts about the Eternal Order and Camellia had kept me from training lately.
Heading down to the first-floor training hall, I stood in the center and closed my eyes.
“Hoo…”
Taking a slow breath, I recalled the recent festival.
More specifically, my fight against the Archbishop of Madness.
‘I won thanks to the Blessing of Revival, but overall, I was overwhelmed.’
Even after using Ignition and Conflagration, I couldn’t block all the crimson thorns raining down on me.
‘If I’d used Inferno, would I have been able to block them?’
The one card I didn’t play during the fight was Inferno, a technique I gained by absorbing the Primordial Ember.
A powerful ability that engulfed the surrounding area in primordial flames.
If I’d used it, I probably could have burned away the Archbishop’s crimson thorns.
But—
‘Inferno… isn’t practical for real combat yet.’
I didn’t refrain from using Inferno to keep a trump card hidden—it had a critical flaw.
The mana consumption was unimaginably high.
That was the biggest reason I didn’t—or couldn’t—use Inferno in the fight.
“If I absorb another Primordial Ember, it might become usable in combat.”
But I had no idea where to find another Primordial Ember.
“Tch.”
For now, my only option was to improve my control and minimize Inferno’s consumption.
‘Start with one meter.’
Whoosh!
The embers enveloping my body flared out, expanding into a circular field.
Calling it “field expansion” was grandiose for an area with only a one-meter radius.
“Haa…”
A shiver of exhilaration ran down my spine.
A mere one-meter radius.
But within this space, I felt omnipotent, as if I were a god.
Fwoosh!
With just a snap of my fingers, ashes ignited in the empty air, and with a simple gesture, the fiery embers swirled fiercely, as if dancing to my will.
Of course, this wasn’t something I couldn’t do even without using Infernal Flames.
‘But the feeling is completely different.’
It’s like the difference between throwing something with your hand versus having the object float and fly on its own.
The result—an object flying—was the same in both cases.
But when the process of "throwing it with your hand" disappeared entirely, it allowed the power to be used far more freely and quickly.
‘A god who wields the primordial flame freely, huh.’
Yes.
In this space, it truly felt like I’d become… a Demon God.
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“Ugh.”
But the dizzying sense of omnipotence that surrounded me lasted only briefly.
Soon, the domain of the Infernal Flames began to shrink rapidly, and the embers blazing in the air scattered into nothingness.
“Argh…”
Calling myself Demon God like this, what a joke.
“Sigh…”
While sipping water from the fridge set up in one corner of the training grounds to recover my depleted mana—
Clack.
The door to the training hall opened, and a woman in a black suit stepped inside.
“Professor Elisha?”
“Ah, as I thought, you were here.”
“What brings you here at this hour?”
“I’m here to fetch Candidate Dale because the Principal has summoned you.”
The Principal, Lionel, summoned me?
“If that’s the case, why didn’t he just contact me through the Hero Watch…?”
“Heh. Isn’t it more personal to deliver it in person like this? Besides, I had another reason….”
Professor Elisha approached with a faint smile and gently ruffled my sweat-soaked hair.
“To catch a glimpse of Candidate Dale’s sexy side.”
“…Sexy side?”
“There’s a saying, isn’t there? That men look sexy when they’re working hard.”
Good grief.
My professor has some peculiar tastes.
“By the way, have you finished your training?”
“Yes, I was just about to take a break.”
“Perfect timing, then. Freshen up and head to the Principal’s office right away.”
“…You’re not planning to join me in the hot spring again, are you?”
“Ahem. Well, today there’s no time for that, so let’s save it for next time.”
As if recalling that time, Professor Elisha blushed faintly and averted her gaze.
I chuckled lightly and made my way to the underground hot spring.
* * *
Knock, knock.
“Come in.”
The Principal’s office at the Hero Academy.
As I entered the room, which resembled an old bookstore filled with ancient tomes, I spotted Principal Lionel.
“I heard you summoned me.”
“There’s something I need to tell you.”
“What is it?”
With a faint smile on his wrinkled face, Lionel began to speak.
“Before that… I heard you personally dealt with the demon infiltrating the school this time.”
“Oh, yes, that’s correct.”
Although I kept the fact that the infiltrator was the Archbishop of Madness a secret, the rest had already been reported to Lionel through Professor Elisha.
“Thank you. Thanks to you, we avoided a disaster like during the sealing ritual.”
“Well… it’s all thanks to Professor Elisha’s help.”
“Ha, such humility. I like that.”
Lionel nodded approvingly, a satisfied smile on his face.
“By the way, regarding the group you reported, the Order of Eternity—I’ve informed Empress Camellia about them.”
“What did she say?”
“As expected, she didn’t seem to care at all.”
“……”
Well.
That reaction was to be expected.
From Empress Camellia’s perspective, hearing about some obscure organization targeting the imperial family must sound as laughable as a cat hissing at a tiger.
‘So much for using the investigation into the Order of Eternity as a pretext to make contact with Empress Camellia.’
At this rate, I might seriously have to infiltrate the royal palace myself.
The thought of it made my head throb.
‘If I get caught, it won’t just end with expulsion from school.’
In the worst-case scenario, I could become an official enemy of the Empire.
If that happened, the fallout wouldn’t end with just me.
‘Everyone connected to me would be dragged into it.’
No matter how strong our party was, fighting against an entire nation wasn’t feasible.
Even if we could win, it would leave behind nothing but meaningless bloodshed and death.
“Ugh.”
While I was seriously contemplating whether to give up entirely—
“Ah, that reminds me, I haven’t told you the reason I called you here today.”
Lionel stroked his beard as he continued.
“Empress Camellia heard about you and expressed interest. She sent an invitation to meet you.”
“…Pardon?”
An invitation?
“Well, the semester is still ongoing, but if you’re willing, how about visiting the Imperial Palace for a few days?”
“……”
I already knew the future was volatile and unpredictable, but—
‘Who would’ve thought I’d live to see the day I received an invitation from the Empress.’
Life sure has its surprises.
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