Chapter 56: Pochichic Hautness
I considered asking Lily in detail about the Holy Maiden, but I decided against it with Lecty present. If the conversation turned grim, it might make her anxious.
Just as I was thinking that,
“The Holy Maiden, huh… I wonder what kind of person she is…?”
Lecty, seemingly intrigued, asked Lily.
“Well… I don’t know too much either, but I believe she has taken over this year. She should be around our age. Normally, she would be attending the Royal Academy, but perhaps she was granted special exemption from enrollment out of consideration for the church.”
“Even a Royal Decree can’t go against the church,” Lily added.
“History has proven that opposing the church’s influence leads to nothing good,” Rouge chimed in.
Lily and Rouge nodded solemnly. It seemed there were various complexities in the history between the Divine Guidance Church and the Kingdom of Reese. I vaguely recalled some of it from history class.
I remembered that several kings ago, one had a falling out with the Divine Guidance Church and was excommunicated. To seek forgiveness, he stood barefoot for days in front of the cathedral. It was a story I had heard in my previous life as well. The relationship between a nation and religion seems to remain largely unchanged across worlds.
Lost in thought, I eventually reached the third floor of the school building.
Upon entering the classroom, I immediately felt a tense and unusual atmosphere.
“Not again…”
I muttered under my breath, noticing my classmates already gathered inside. They had split into groups, sitting on either the window side or the hallway side. While the seating arrangement was free, the palpable tension they exuded was suffocating.
This situation had persisted for over a week now.
The catalyst was the same as Lily’s engagement scandal—the incident at Duke Lecherie’s mansion about two weeks ago.
The day after that incident, newspapers in the Royal Capital simultaneously reported Duke Lecherie’s involvement in human trafficking. The heinous act of abducting and selling residents of the Royal Capital naturally incited backlash from the populace. Long-standing grievances against the nobility and the monarchy erupted, leading to some radicals loudly calling for a revolution and getting apprehended by the Knights Order.
Amidst this chaos, Prince Brute, the second prince, began to rise in prominence.
Having previously garnered support from the military and guards, he delivered a speech directed at the citizens of the Royal Capital, openly criticizing the corruption of the nobility and the negligence of the monarchy. This speech gained widespread support among the citizens, effectively rallying public opinion behind Prince Brute’s claim to the throne.
The current atmosphere in the classroom was a direct result of this upheaval.
The students sitting on the hallway side were supporters of Prince Brute’s faction. They were primarily commoners and the children of nobles with close ties to the military, forming a group of ten.
On the other side, the students gathered by the windows were the children of nobles supporting Prince Slay. This group, consisting of fifteen members, was the largest faction in the classroom.
And sitting alone in the center of the room was a student who belonged to neither faction.
“Good morning, Hugh. Lily Puridi, Rouge, and Lecty as well.”
“Good morning, Idiot.”
The lone figure, Idiot Hautness, greeted us with a friendly wave as we entered the classroom.
We took our seats in the row behind Idiot, with Lily, Lecty, myself, and Rouge in that order. For the past week, this had become our designated spot, one that didn’t belong to either faction.
Well, in reality, we were practically part of Prince Lucas’s faction.
“Are you still sitting alone today?”
I glanced at the students supporting Prince Slay and asked Idiot.
His family, the Hautness Marquis House, belonged to Prince Slay’s faction. Moreover, since Lily’s family, the Puridi Marquis House, switched allegiance to Prince Lucas, Idiot should have been supporting Prince Slay as a leading member.
It wouldn’t have been surprising for him to be at the forefront of Prince Slay’s faction. In fact, when the classroom first fell into this state, Idiot had been one of them.
…However, he had gradually distanced himself from them and had now fully embraced his solitary path. It felt like a distant memory when he used to be surrounded by followers, riding high on their support.
“I’ve had many disagreements with them. For both our sakes, it seems wise to keep my distance for now.”
“Ah… that makes sense.”
Idiot had shown little interest in the succession war. It seemed that his lack of enthusiasm had led to friction with those around him. Given the negative influence from his former entourage, distancing himself might be a good choice for him.
“Ah, but still, Lecty. You look even more beautiful today.”
Idiot brushed his hair back and turned slightly toward us, beginning to flirt with Lecty.
“Please stop.”
“Oh, right.”
Rejected firmly, Idiot slumped his shoulders and turned back to face the front.
Recently, Lecty had become increasingly unafraid of Idiot. It seemed that rather than Lecty growing, it was Idiot’s submissive demeanor that had alleviated her fears.
If these two hadn’t had such a disastrous first impression, they might have actually gotten along quite well…
Author’s Note: Thank you for reading this far! Your support through comments and follows truly motivates me to keep writing. I hope you found it even a little interesting!