Chapter 188

"I won’t be joining the student council in the second semester, Lillis."

It was a week before the new semester started.

This was what Ethan told me after returning from his first student council duties following the winter break.

Even though I knew he was upset about what happened that day, I never imagined he would already talk about leaving the student council.

Though Natalie’s behavior was rude, I couldn’t help but wonder if it was serious enough for him to give up his connections with Seraphine.

“When you say you won’t be joining the student council, are you also saying you’re giving up your connection with Princess Seraphine?”

“I’m not giving it up. She gave me a reason to.”

Seeing that Ethan was now referring to Seraphine as “she,” it was clear that he was still quite upset about the previous incident.

Judging by his reaction, it was evident that Ethan had grown tired of dealing with Seraphine.

“If it’s because of the incident with Miss Natalie’s drinking habits, I’m sure she will come to apologize once the semester begins. She probably didn’t have a way to meet with you during the break.”

“Yeah, that’s likely. Even though she’s a commoner, she’s not completely without manners. Besides, she’s a decent person when she’s not drinking.”

“So, perhaps it would be better to reconsider leaving Princess Seraphine’s student council after hearing Miss Natalie’s apology?”

“Sorry, but this isn’t about Miss Natalie’s mistake. I’ve simply lost trust in Princess Seraphine.”

“What?”

Not because of Natalie?

I had assumed that Natalie’s drunken behavior was what angered Ethan, but now I was confused.

As I tilted my head, trying to figure out what exactly had upset him, Ethan reluctantly explained.

“Making a mistake at a drinking party because of alcohol is something I can tolerate. Anyone can make a mistake like that. Miss Natalie has always been polite and never acted out of line before, so there’s no reason for me to be upset about that. Honestly, even if it was Princess Seraphine herself, I wouldn’t have been that bothered.”

“Then…?”

“What I can’t trust about Princess Seraphine is the fact that she invited that hero, Bolt, without informing me first.”

“…You mean the problem is that she invited an unannounced guest?”

“...Well, it’s something like that.”

Ethan sighed deeply, looking at me as if he was trying to decide how much to explain.

“You know that hero usually walks around with two women hanging off his arms, right?”

“…Are you referring to Saintess Cerista and the elf, Silena?”

“Yeah. I’ve always disliked how he flaunts those two women around, even if he is a hero.”

“But the Saintess is obligated to be with the hero, and Silena, being the only elf, doesn’t have any connections aside from the hero. Isn’t that just how things are?”

“It’s not just that. Seeing how recklessly that hero has been acting lately, it’s even more annoying. Just look at that Miss Natalie.”

“Miss Natalie?”

“…She originally planned to participate in the end-of-semester hunting festival with her childhood friend, Thomas, alone.”

Well, that’s true. If no one offered to team up with her, that’s how the original story would have played out.

I started to get a sense of what Ethan was implying.

Even I thought it wasn’t a good look for the hero, who was already flanked by two beauties, to recruit Natalie as a vanguard.

No one would deny Natalie’s excellent swordsmanship, but she was also famously beautiful.

Seeing the hero, who already had Cerista and Silena by his side, adding Natalie to his party could easily be misunderstood by others.

“If he needed another swordsman, he could have asked me or Karaham. But as far as I know, he only offered it to Natalie—the only girl in that group.”

“…I see.”

“Not that I would have accepted the offer, but he should have at least made the suggestion. His intentions are too obvious.”

Knowing Bolt’s circumstances, I silently swallowed the knowledge only I had.

After all, Ethan and Karaham were mid-bosses in the second and third parts of the original story, so it wasn’t like the hero could approach them easily.

And even though I knew that Bolt’s intentions were purely strategic—recruiting Natalie and Thomas to follow the original game’s path—that was something only I, who had played 『Luminor Academy』, could understand.

To others, it would look like Bolt was after Natalie and took Thomas along as an afterthought.

So, I tried to gently defend him without revealing too much.

“Perhaps the hero suggested it to Miss Natalie first because he was closer to her than to you, Lord Ethan? And if she had declined, he might have approached Karaham next.”

“Yeah, if it was just that, it wouldn’t seem so strange. It’s not wrong for strong students to band together to win the hunting festival.”

“Is there anything else that bothers you besides Miss Natalie?”

“Agnes Elizabeth Blaze. It’s also suspicious how she suddenly joined the hero’s party at the last minute.”

“Miss Blaze…?”

As Ethan pointed out, Agnes had also become a new heroine in the hero’s party during the hunting festival.

Natalie, being in the swordsmanship club, had some connection, and Thomas was recruited because of his link to Natalie.

But it made little sense for Bolt, who was in the swordsmanship club, to suddenly recruit Agnes, a member of the magic club.

Especially since Agnes had a notoriously difficult personality and was known for her poor social skills.

“Lillis, I’ve heard you have a connection with Miss Blaze, right?”

“…Yes. Miss Blaze and I took the spirit communication class together this semester. We’ve exchanged a few favors as well.”

“Right. Then do you think that someone with such a difficult personality would willingly join someone else’s party?”

“…Not in the slightest.”

If I tried to defend her here, Ethan might start suspecting me as well.

So I explained Agnes’s personality to Ethan as objectively as possible.

“As you know, Miss Blaze doesn’t really have any friends at the academy, so she would likely refuse any party invitations. She probably thinks of others trying to recruit her as leeches looking to boost their scores.”

“Is she really that difficult? That’s what I felt too.”

“And I can’t imagine her bowing her head to join someone else’s party either. She has too much pride to be anyone’s subordinate. That’s likely why she has so few relationships; she’s too stubborn to compromise.”

“Yeah, that’s the strange part. Normally, there’s no way Miss Blaze would join the hero’s party. So I looked into it a bit. I wanted to find out what connected the hero and Miss Blaze.”

There’s only one person who could have connected them… The one person I can think of who fits the role.

In fact, when starting in a different department than the magic department in 『Luminor Academy』, the process of recruiting Agnes was almost predetermined.

Even the stubborn and prideful Agnes had a secret relationship with someone she considered a friend at the academy.

“It turns out that Princess Seraphine has a personal connection with Miss Blaze.”

“Oh…”

“Not only that, but it was also Princess Seraphine who connected Natalie and Thomas to the hero’s party. I found this out by accident.”@@novelbin@@

“…I see.”

“Princess Seraphine has introduced two women to the hero. Then, she suddenly invited his party to the after-party…”

“…”

“Maybe it’s all just a coincidence. But that doesn’t mean I have to endure the uneasiness of it all.”

He had a point. If maintaining a relationship meant enduring anxiety, it might be better to sever ties.

If I were in Ethan’s position, I would likely feel the same unease.

Especially since Ethan didn’t know the direction in which Bolt was moving, which only fueled his suspicions.

‘I don’t think it’s necessary to cut ties with Seraphine…’

But if forcing the current situation would cause Ethan more anxiety, it wasn’t a good idea either.

In fact, if the two were forced together and ended up clashing, it could lead to the original story playing out, which was something I wanted to avoid.

Maybe it was better to let them drift apart now before things got worse.

Misunderstandings could be cleared up later if necessary.

“I understand, Lord Ethan. If that’s your wish, we will only cooperate with Princess Seraphine’s student council until the end of this semester.”

“…Thank you for understanding. I know you have personal connections with both the princess and Lady Auguste.”

“The safety of Lord Ethan is far more important to me. Have I ever gone against your wishes?”

“…Haven’t you done that quite a few times?”

…Now that I think about it, maybe I have.

Anyway, since Ethan decided to distance himself from Seraphine, as his personal maid, my conclusion was simply to follow his lead.

“But this time, I’ll definitely act according to your wishes, so you can rest assured.”

“…Thank you for saying that, Lillis.”

“It’s only natural as your personal maid, Lord Ethan.”

After all, if I didn’t trust Ethan, who would?

He was already feeling uneasy, so of course, I had to be there for him.