NOVEL NEXT Chapter 78
After that day, Seron returned to her usual self.
“Lightning sweet potato, give me pudding.”
“Eat yours completely before asking for mine.”
During lunch, her appetite had returned to the point where she tried to snatch my pudding.
Somewhere within her, a certain emptiness and foolish antics persisted.
She was just the same old Seron.
“The pendant is gone.”
At that moment, Seron glanced inside my clothes and said that.
As she mentioned, I hadn’t been carrying the pendant when I was in Hanon’s form.
I wanted to avoid giving her any misunderstandings.
“I lost it.”
“Hmm.”
Seron didn’t inquire further and started eating the pudding.
However, I couldn’t overlook the hint of longing that occasionally flickered in her eyes.
I just felt that Seron had become a bit more mature than before.
‘A broken heart, perhaps.’
I inadvertently showed a refusal that wasn’t really a rejection.
I wasn’t sure if it was right to reject her as someone who wasn’t the Bickamon she remembered, but the current Bickamon is me.
‘Where is the real Bickamon, anyway?’
I had no way of knowing.
Whether he simply ceased to exist.
Or if, conversely, he had transferred into my original body.
In the absence of any knowledge about it, I could only live as Bickamon.
Thus, I couldn’t provide Seron with any answers.
Around the time Seron’s situation began to settle, the boycott group had definitely grown in size compared to before.
At this rate, it was time to—
“Bickamon, someone has come forward who wants to sponsor our boycott activities.”
I felt it was time to take the bait. I turned to the Boycott President, Royzin.
“Who is the sponsor?”
“It’s a secret from the others.”
Royzin seemed as though he had been given strict orders to keep it confidential.
“It’s the 3rd Princess.”
The 3rd Princess, Iris Haishirion.
As soon as Royzin mentioned her name, he discreetly gauged my reaction.
I explained to him why I was furious.
Royzin remembered my words about wanting to topple the student council after Nikita’s death.
So he was likely wary of how I would react.
“I’m sorry, Bickamon. It’s mostly thanks to you that our boycott activities reached this level.”
However, the sponsorship suggested by Iris was likely an amount that Royzin couldn’t easily brush aside.
He definitely wanted to challenge the student council through the boycott.
Though he claimed it was for the greater good, Royzin had personal reasons behind it as well.
‘Revenge.’
Royzin was originally a noble.
However, one of the four dukes, Drapen, had eradicated his family for some reason.
As a result, he lost his family and even his castle.
Therefore, he held a grudge against Drapen.
And this grudge was directed squarely at Student Council President Silvester Drapen.
Just as his family had fallen, he wanted to see the Student Council President brought down as well.
It was a dark desire indeed, but he looked at me without revealing it.
“So, I’ve decided to refuse.”
“Huh?”
What in the world is happening here?
“…Why are you refusing?”
“I told you. It’s largely thanks to you that our boycott activities could grow.”
Royzin turned to me with a look of uncompromising determination.
“Bickamon, I’m embarrassed to say this, but I originally intended to boycott because of my grudge against the Drapen family.”
He laid out exactly what I had previously mentioned.
“And you are out for revenge for Nikita, just like me. Seeing you makes me feel this way.”
Royzin clenched his fists tightly.
“We must ensure our boycott succeeds through our own efforts.”
The boycott becomes valuable only if it’s achieved through the strength of the members, not with help from others.
That was how Royzin thought.
“If I were alone, I’d gladly take the 3rd Princess’s hand, but since we have everyone here, I don’t need to.”
Above all, he was no longer operating solely on revenge.
He looked up at the night sky.
As if he were a boy lost in a dream, his eyes sparkled.
“The current student council is wrong. I will correct it.”
Royzin turned back to me once more.
His eyes were brighter than ever.
“Bickamon, I know we can definitely do it together.”
And I felt lightheaded.
While I was preparing thoroughly for the boycott scenario,
perhaps I had prepared too well.
The Boycott President, Royzin, suddenly awakened.
I was struck by an incredulous reaction as I looked at him.
What the heck is going on with this awakening nonsense?
“Royzin.”
It couldn’t be helped.
“I get what you’re saying.”
I decided to turn the tables and persuade Royzin.
“But if you’re refusing Iris’s proposal for my sake, there’s no need for that.”
“But Bickamon, the 3rd Princess…”
“Right. She’s involved in Nikita’s death. However, I also understand the underlying situation. That’s not the 3rd Princess’s intent, but the 3rd Princess Faction’s.”
My resolve to avenge Nikita was clearly reflected in my eyes.
“The student council is just the first step. As you said, I must succeed in this boycott to ensure Nikita’s revenge.
Even if it means selling my soul to the devil, I will accomplish Nikita’s revenge.”
To that end, I would readily join hands with the 3rd Princess.
Seeing my resolute determination, Royzin swallowed his tears while clenching his fists.
“…Bickamon, you crazy guy!”
He wore a look like a protagonist from a youth drama.
“Alright. If that’s truly how you feel, I’ll do the same.”
Internally, I sighed in relief.
Thank goodness Royzin is simple-minded.
“Good. As it happens, I’m scheduled to meet one of the 3rd Princess’s confidants today.”
Taking this opportunity, Royzin brought it up.
Originally, he intended to send me alone, but seeing him think like this today made me a little anxious.
“Okay, let’s do that.”
I decided to go along with Royzin.
I had to manage this so that no accidents would occur.
* * *
Following Royzin, we arrived at a park behind an abandoned building.
Jerion Academy boasted many parks, thanks to its abundant natural landscaping.
The park we found was notably dimly lit and had an eerie atmosphere when visited at night.
It was essentially what you’d call a haunted spot.
“Brr, it’s a bit cold.”
Royzin trembled, shaken by the spooky ambiance.
As we waited there, I soon picked up on a presence approaching in the distance.
Click-clack—
The sound of heels crunching against the grass reached my ears.
Soon, a girl with peach-colored hair appeared.
Hania Repidia.
She had come here in place of Iris.
‘As expected, Hania has stepped up.’
If things were to go awry, Hania likely volunteered herself to take the blame rather than let Iris be the scapegoat.
She glanced at Royzin and then slowly turned her gaze to me.
Then, her head tilted slightly.
“Who’s that?”
“Oh, this is Bickamon Niflheim.”
Royzin introduced me on my behalf.
Hania didn’t fail to recognize my name.
However, the puzzled look in her eyes suggested she couldn’t understand why I was here.
After all, I effectively got chased away for messing with Iris’s party.
At that moment, a breeze blew toward Hania.
As she felt the wind, Hania wrinkled her nose, then her eyes began to widen with realization.
Simultaneously, she quietly stared at me with a piercing gaze.
“Royzin.”
A strange murderous intent from her wafted through the night air.
Feeling her energy, Royzin instinctively shrank back.
“Uh, could you give us a moment alone?”
Royzin’s eyes met mine.
He seemed to think I genuinely saw him as a friend.
When I signaled that I was okay, Royzin quietly stepped back.
“Um, uh, you two talk.”
Royzin sensed something was off.
Yet, he chose to do so willingly, trusting me.
As Royzin left the park, it left only Hania and me.
I had a rough idea as to why Hania wanted to be alone with me.
Bickamon had been driven away from Iris.
On top of that, there was the recent Nikita incident.
Being smart, she would quickly deduce why I was here.
In her eyes, I would have become a foe of Iris’s.
“Hanon, what are you doing here?”
Huh?
My eyes blinked in surprise.
I didn’t expect to hear that name, so my expression turned incredulous.
“…What do you mean by Hanon?”
I tried to play it cool.
Hania sighed and scrunched her nose.
“Hanon’s scent is mixed with Iris’s fragrance.
For it to be so strong, it must mean you’ve shared a bed with her.”
Feeling flustered, I smelled my wrist.
Yet I couldn’t detect any particular scent.
‘No, but I took a bath after morning drills, so I should be clean.’
Besides, it wasn’t today that I shared a bed with Iris, but yesterday.
Plus, I was in different clothes.
‘Even so, how could a scent still linger?’
What kind of nose structure is this girl working with?
Hania’s obsession with Iris was getting a bit frightening.
“And you have that tool that allows you to transform into any form.”
I had once appeared in Hania’s form.
That meant Hania could pick up on me taking Bickamon’s appearance right away.
No one else would have Iris’s scent as strongly as me.
‘This was something I didn’t anticipate.’
To be honest, the real Bickamon is my true form while Hanon is just the disguise.
Yet, it seems people act based on the information imprinted in their minds and haven’t grasped that.
“So.”
Hania, showing a bit of annoyance, crossed her arms.
“What on earth were you thinking, coming out here in that state?”
A little while ago, through a glance exchanged with Royzin, Hania must have figured out that I’ve been involved in the boycott for quite some time.
That’s why she looked even more perplexed.
Her expression said she couldn’t find a reason for me to join the boycott group.
“…Could it be.”
Shortly thereafter, Hania’s expression shifted as if she recalled something.
“Hanon, did you hear something from Iris?”
I had slept next to Iris to protect her from her nightmares.
At that time, Hania was in the boys’ dorm for me, so she wouldn’t know what was exchanged between Iris and me.
Iris isn’t the type of person to easily share her troubles with others.
But since I had been getting rather close to Iris lately, it was possible she might have mentioned what was commanded by the Duke of Robliju.
“No, I didn’t hear anything.”
But I opted to deny it for now.
If I ended up misspeaking later, it’d cause a mess.
Yet, my denial didn’t sound credible to Hania.
“…Haa, if you’re going to play dumb, at least do it properly. It’s obvious you’re trying to help Iris.”
I had saved Iris from the assassination attempt against Nikita.
I often acted in ways that aligned with Iris’s interests, causing Hania to mistakenly conclude that I aimed to create a boycott group for Iris.
Indeed, parts of that were true, so I had no counterarguments.
Hania stared at me for a moment, then crossed her arms again.
Her chest was emphasized as she did, but I refrained from looking in that direction.
“Fine, Bickamon. Just tell me your plan. I’ll cooperate based on that plan.”
Hania was willing to do anything for Iris.
I had gained a reliable ally in this girl.