“Huh…?”
“Lec, ty…?”
“I-I’ll go check on Rosalie-san!”
What entered my vision was Lecty’s bright red profile and her beautiful, light blue hair, shimmering as it reflected the moonlight. As if fleeing, she left the room.
Did I just… with Lecty…?
Unconsciously, I touched my finger to my lips, and the sensation was clearly different from before. …No, wait. It’s not necessarily her. There are plenty of soft parts on the body. Like the upper arm or the chest… that would be even worse!
Damn it, I’m flustered and my thoughts are all jumbled.
First, let’s calm down…
I pressed my hand against my rapidly beating heart, taking deep breaths.
Let’s think calmly. Lecty kissed me. So, that means… she likes me…?
Of course, it’s not like I hadn’t noticed Lecty’s affection…
Still, being kissed out of the blue was unexpected, and everything I’d been worrying about flew right out of my head.
…Is that the plan? Did Lily tell her to shut me up with a kiss if I was dithering too much…? No, Lily would never say something like that, and I can’t imagine Lecty doing it even if Lily told her to.
Lecty herself kissed me, of her own volition.
To cheer me up.
I’m pathetic beyond words… Should I chase after Lecty in a situation like this? I have so little experience with romance that I can’t even decide.
…Anyway, I’m also concerned about Rosalie. It’s embarrassing to face Lecty, but I’ll head to Rosalie’s side too.
Just as I thought that and got out of bed, heading towards the door,
“Well, Hugh. I heard you were injured, but I’m glad to see you’re doing well.”
Prince Lucas appeared as the door to the room opened. Roan-san was behind him, but Prince Lucas entered the room alone and closed the door behind him.
It seems we need to talk privately. Checking on Rosalie will have to wait.
“Could it be that you came to check on me out of concern, older brother?”
“Of course, little brother. Lucretia would be saddened if anything happened to you.”
Prince Lucas shrugged his shoulders as he said that. Lucretia might have actually put in a word for me, but this man probably wasn’t genuinely worried about me.
“So, what’s the real reason?”
“It’s a political decision. Cardinal Malicious’s actions this time are something the Kingdom of Reese can’t overlook. Especially something like an Underground Passage connecting the inside and outside of the castle walls. As royalty, I’m directly entering the Grand Cathedral to show the seriousness of the situation and put pressure on the Papal Court in the Holy City.”
“I see…”
It seems the Kingdom of Reese intends to make the Divine Blessing Church take responsibility. After having donations extorted by Malicious, he was also secretly manufacturing an Underground Passage. If they respond half-heartedly here, they’ll be looked down upon by others besides the Divine Blessing Church, or there might be other reasons.
“Now, Hugh. Can you tell me what happened underground? I’ve already heard from Lady Lecty and Idiot Hautness and have a general idea, but I’d like to hear it from you as well.”
“Understood.”
I reported to Prince Lucas as much detail as possible about what happened after I separated from Alissa-san and the others and entered the Underground Passage. The most important things were that Malicious possessed that drug, Rosalie was turned into a Monster by that drug, and the Holy Maiden Skill had the power to revert people who had been transformed into Monsters.
“…To think the Holy Maiden Skill had such power.”
“The Holy Maiden Skill’s status description says, ‘Governs healing and purification, and grants the power to ward off evil.'”
“So, what’s turning people into Monsters is ‘evil,’ huh?”
“Do you have any ideas?”
“No. However, I know something that might be a hint. Don’t you have an idea too?”
“…A fairy tale where the Holy Maiden Skill plays an active role, is it?”
Once again, I recall the contents of the fairy tale. A story about a girl with the Holy Maiden Skill who travels around healing people’s injuries and illnesses, gathering companions, and eventually fighting the Monster King.
The Monster King… abbreviated to Demon King, huh?
“It seems the fairy tale of the Holy Maiden Skill isn’t just a work of fiction. Perhaps it was originally a kind of legend.”
“Made to preserve events that actually happened for posterity?”
“I think it’s possible. If that’s the case, then the relationship with the Sacred Scripture might be the other way around.”
“The Sacred Scripture wasn’t the basis for the fairy tale, but the fairy tale was the basis for the Sacred Scripture…?”
“Or, the description of the Holy Maiden was just added to the Sacred Scripture later.”
Certainly, thinking that way makes it easier to understand why the Holy Maiden Skill exists. In the first place, the Holy Maiden’s appearance in the Sacred Scripture is somewhat abrupt, or rather, a bit out of place. Even though it’s the Divine Blessing Church’s Sacred Scripture, the fact that there’s no description of the Holy Maiden receiving the Skill from God is also strange.
“I’ll have the Knights Order and historians investigate this matter. If it’s a kind of legend, there might be ruins or folk tales left in various places. We might also find out the purpose of the people who are distributing the drug that turns people into Monsters.”
“Is it possible that Malicious was one of those people?”
“I can’t say for sure, but I think he’s innocent. As far as I can tell from what you’ve told me, Malicious didn’t want to turn Rosalie-jo into a Monster. He probably thought it was a drug to awaken her Skill.”
“Awakening Skills… is that even possible?”
“No, at least I’ve never heard of it.”
Prince Lucas shrugged and shook his head.
“In the first place, it’s not even clear what constitutes awakening, and the problem we should be considering is that a Cardinal of the Divine Blessing Church believed it. Don’t you think that’s unnatural? The Divine Blessing Church should be the most knowledgeable about Skills.”
“Indeed…”
It’s just not made public, but Skills can actually awaken…? No, the fact that they’re using a drug to promote awakening is strange in itself…?
Or rather, in terms of strangeness, Malicious’s words and actions were strange from beginning to end. He called the Holy Maiden Skill that Lecty received from God a fake, and he forced Rosalie to treat sick people even though it was impossible with her Skill.
Cicely-san said that Malicious was possessed by an evil ideology and became a heretic, but does that mean he was normal before he was possessed…?
“I’ve heard from Rosalie-jo. She said that she grew up in an orphanage that Malicious ran in the Royal Capital. The Malicious she knew was a kindly old man, and he didn’t show any particular obsession with the Holy Maiden. She hadn’t seen him for about half a year since Rosalie-jo was chosen as the Holy Maiden and moved her residence to the Holy City, but she was quite taken aback by how different he looked when she saw him again after a long time.”
“Something happened in those six months…?”
“It’s natural to think so. And that something is important. Hugh, I’d like to hear your opinion on my hypothesis. Do you think it’s possible that Malicious was being manipulated by someone’s Skill?”
“–!”
Prince Lucas seems to have sensed the existence of a Skill similar to the Brainwashing Skill that manipulates people’s wills in this incident. Certainly, if such a Skill exists, it would explain Malicious’s fanatical belief in the Holy Maiden.
“I don’t know about the possibility… At least, I think it would be difficult with the Brainwashing Skill.”
“I suppose so. I had Lily-jo show me how she uses it, but it interrupts people’s consciousness. The effect is also limited to when the Skill is being used, so it’s not suitable for continuously manipulating people’s wills.”
“However, it might be possible if you switch Skills. For example, Suggestion or Hypnosis.”
There are plenty of candidates that come to mind. I don’t feel like trying it though…
“I see, Suggestion or Hypnosis. They either implanted an obsession with the Holy Maiden with those Skills, or they amplified something that was originally only slightly there. …We should also consider the possibility that there’s someone other than you with the Brainwashing Skill, even though it’s extremely low.”
“…………”
The thought of someone other than me with the Brainwashing Skill makes my hair stand on end. Even if it’s not the Brainwashing Skill, it’s terrifying just to think that a similar Skill might have been used.
Really, Lily, Prince Lucas, and Idiot, they really accepted me…
“But who on earth, and for what purpose…”
If a Skill that manipulates people’s minds was used, what was the purpose…? Was it to make Rosalie, the Holy Maiden, drink the Monsterization Drug? Or was it to give some kind of advantage to Malicious, who was in the position of Cardinal?
“I have no idea what the purpose is, but I have a hunch about who’s behind it.”
“Eh?”
“The Royal Academy’s school nurse. The person suspected of kidnapping Lady Lecty.”
“…!”
Come to think of it, I never saw the school nurse who took Lecty away. Even in the dark underground passage, my «Ninja» Skill ensured my vision, so I shouldn’t have missed them.
It doesn’t seem like Cicely-san or Idiot defeated them in the underground prison…
“The body of the school nurse in question was not found. They’re probably still alive, but it will be difficult to find them.”
“Why is that?”
“…There’s something inexplicable. Hugh, do you know the name of the school nurse?”
“No, I didn’t have any direct contact with them…”
I remember the names of the teachers who teach the classes, but I can’t remember the name of the school nurse. But that’s not really that inexplicable…
“Then, their appearance. Was the school nurse male or female? What color was their hair, and what color were their eyes? Did they wear glasses? Were they tall or short? Please try to remember.”
“…………Huh?”
When asked, I finally noticed the strangeness. I couldn’t recall anything about the school nurse’s appearance, even though I should have spoken to them. Not their gender, hair color, height, or even their voice.
All of it was missing from my memory. It was as if only the school nurse was shrouded in mist, as if only their existence had been cut out with scissors.
“Not just Lucretia and Lily-jo. Even Alissa didn’t remember the school nurse’s appearance. There’s no doubt they were using some kind of Skill.”
“I see, so that’s why…”
Was the reason Idiot, who was with Lecty, was so easily neutralized because they were using a Skill that inhibited recognition from those around them…?
“Wait, but the school nurse’s Skill is supposed to be healing-type…”
“Hugh, have you actually seen the school nurse heal someone’s wounds?”
“Yes… Wait, I should have seen it, right…?”
During the Mock Group Battle to decide the class commander, when there were many injured, the school nurse should have been treating several students. …No, were they actually treating them? Lecty was treating all the seriously injured, and only the lightly injured were left. And those seemed to be just scratches and bruises.
“We were made to believe they were healing wounds…?”
“That’s possible. If it’s a Skill that takes advantage of people’s perceptions and assumptions, it would make sense.”
“…Should we chase them?”
If I switch my Skill to «Chaser», I should still be able to follow them now. It would be a pain if they escaped outside the Royal Capital, but there’s still a possibility they’re hiding inside the Royal Capital. I thought we should catch them before they do anything else, but,
“No, there’s no need to chase them.”
Prince Lucas didn’t nod.
“Why is that…?”
“For example, if it’s a lone perpetrator, we can just chase them and catch them, and that’s the end of it. But that’s probably not the case. What if it’s an organization of two, three, or even dozens of people? If we miss even one, retaliation could begin. The other party has drugs that turn people into Monsters. If they were to sprinkle that in all the wells in the Royal Capital, it would be irreparable.”
“…!”
If that happened, the Royal Capital would be more than just in chaos. It’s clear that the result would be much more cruel and gruesome than if ordinary poison were sprinkled.
“Then, at least to confirm the scale of the group…”
“You shouldn’t do that either. The man who gave the drug to Lecherry, you sensed his presence through Clairvoyance, right?”
“That’s…”
“It’s wiser not to provoke them yet. It’s frustrating, though.”
“…Understood.”
It feels too passive, but Prince Lucas’s concerns are valid. What we should avoid above all else is making the situation worse with my rash actions. I’m furious at the guys who involved Lecty and Rosalie…
Just because I have a «Brainwashing» Skill that makes anything possible, I don’t have the confidence to use it perfectly. I don’t want to use it at all in the future, and I even want to throw it away if possible.
But if this power is the only way I can protect them.
When I’m forced to use it, I can’t handle this power as it is now.
I guess it’s about time I faced it…
To get the ideal Slow Life.
To protect her, who is more important than anything to me.
–The «Brainwashing» Skill.