Chapter 5 Clues

"...Young master, it's morning. Time to wake up."

"Hmm... Just five more minutes..."

"Today is the first day to meet your classmates. If you're late..."

"I don't care... Let me sleep a little longer..."

"....." Worried about being stabbed by Kania while asleep, he stayed up all night. Of course, when Kania stood up from her seat to wake me up, I deliberately pretended to be asleep to give her a hard time. Although it might seem unnecessary, every such act could earn me evil points for saving the world.

[Gain 1 Evil Point! (Lousy Acting)]

To overcome the problems I'm facing now, I must enter the next stage as soon as possible. That is to say, I have to do evil more diligently than before.

"...Haah, then I'll go first. I hope I won't be late..."

"Let's go together."

"...Ah?"

"You're my servant. Of course, you have to go with me. Wait for me a while."

"......" She grew up receiving training as a housekeeper in our family. Therefore, she has an almost obsessive - compulsive habit of abiding by established rules and guidelines and detests violating them extremely. So, if I make her late on the first day... I should be able to earn quite a few points.

"…Young master, let me help you. We have to prepare quickly…"

"Am I a child? Leave me alone. I can handle this myself." I stopped Kania, who wanted to help, and then started packing my things slowly.

"Please, young master…"

"....." Seeing this, Kania was so anxious that she broke into a cold sweat and started urging me.

"Let me see… Books and… Stationery… Hmm, should I take a quill or a fountain pen?"

"Young master, time is pressing. Take everything first, and then later..."

"Which do you prefer? Kania?"

"...A fountain pen."

"Okay, then I'll take the quill."

"......" After dawdling for quite a while like this, Kania suddenly lowered her head and muttered softly.

"...Young master, there's only one minute left. Please hurry up."

"Wait, I haven't decided which brooch to wear yet."

"...Did I do something wrong?" I was looking through the brooches nonchalantly, while Kania stared at me with resentful eyes and threw out this question. I wanted to tell her that she was indeed wrong—wrong for once trying to kill me, but that was just retribution for my own actions, so I chose to remain silent.

"If you could tell me, I will definitely correct it. So please forgive me..."

"Kania, do you like fountain pens?"

"...Yes." But she kept talking, so I took out the fountain pen that she always carried with her and cherished from her pocket, twirled it in my hand, and started answering her question.

"I heard that the newly developed magic fountain pens can write by themselves?"

"...Really?"

"Yeah, isn't it very convenient? You can write without even holding the pen in your hand."

"Indeed. But what does this have to do with what we were talking about..."

"However, just because a fountain pen can move by itself doesn't mean it's more powerful than its owner, right?" I grabbed her shoulder with one hand and straightened the twirling fountain pen with the other, then started poking Kania's chest with it one by one.

"If this fountain pen, which thinks it can act on its own, writes something without permission, eventually it will be discarded. No matter how powerful the magic applied to it, a fountain pen is ultimately just a tool."

"....."

"So, don't act rashly if you don't want to be discarded, Kania. If you send a telegram to my father without permission again like this time, I will use my power to expel you and your brother from the family."

"U - Understood." When I ended this speech by throwing her fountain pen hard into the corner of the room, Kania replied through gritted teeth. I looked at her with satisfaction and, out of the corner of my eye, glanced at the clock behind her. After confirming that the time had passed, I said,

"...Well, it's time for us to go."

"...Yes."

"Carry my luggage for me. I'll catch up right away after I pick a brooch."

"...Understood." After making her carry my luggage and sending her out of the room, I stumbled, covered my mouth with my hand, and started coughing violently.

"Cough! Cough! Ugh..." It seemed that I had overdone it when I tried to inject a day's worth of my vitality into Kania's shoulder. I slumped on the ground and coughed for a while, then staggered up, leaning on the bed, sighed, and walked towards the door.

"...Alas." Now, it was time to go to Class A, where a group of heroines who wanted to kill me were gathered.

.....

"…You guys over there, class has been going on for 10 minutes. What on earth were you doing?"

"I'm sorry! I'm really very sorry!"

"......." As soon as we walked into Class A, the homeroom teacher's angry roar came over.

"…Frey Laan Starlight and Kania. You are late without reason and will be deducted 10 points."

"…Ugh!"

"…Whatever." Pretending not to hear the homeroom teacher's words, I walked towards my seat while quietly looking at the system window that popped up in front of me.

[Gain 70 Evil Points! (I Can't Help It)]

"…Yeah, I can't help it. Sorry, Kania." If I just left Kania alone like this, within a few months, her "first catastrophe" would arrive. In the last reincarnation, although she barely survived that crisis, she was forever plunged into terrible pain and auditory hallucinations. So, in order to postpone or overcome that "first crisis", her sister must wake up earlier than originally. The reason I deliberately did these evil deeds was that in the system's "Item Shop", there were items that could make her sister wake up faster than expected. When the evil deeds points accumulated to a certain extent, the next stage of the system would be unlocked, allowing access to the "Item Shop". Therefore, in order to save Kania from the curse and a life of pain and auditory hallucinations, I had no choice but to obtain points from her, the easiest and closest target for evil deeds at the moment. It's worth mentioning that one of the main reasons she committed suicide in front of me in the last reincarnation was the pain and auditory hallucinations. So, as the system said, this was a "necessary" choice for her sake.

- Ugh, ugh... While thinking about these things, suddenly a strange sound came from the side. I turned my head and saw that Kania was biting her lips so hard that they were bleeding. It seemed that because she was late and had points deducted on the first day, she was in a state of self - blame.

'...I have to secretly put some good ointment in her bag later.'

"Then, now that everyone in Class A is here, I'll introduce myself." At the same time, the teacher who had been looking at us sternly wrote her name in big letters on the blackboard, then looked around the students in Class A and said,

"...My name is Isolte Allem Bivorm. I will be your homeroom teacher for Class A in the coming year. Then, nice to work with you all." I looked at Isolte, who had simply finished introducing herself, and muttered to myself.

'...It's been a long time, this teacher.' As the homeroom teacher of Class A, Grade One, Isolte was truly the academy's real teacher, a ray of hope, and the last vestige of conscience. A thousand years ago, her ancestor had assisted my ancestor, the hero, in challenging the Demon King. As the eldest daughter of the Bivorm family, she came from a family renowned for producing outstanding warriors, a family with high standards and many talents. However, even in such a family, they called her "The Reincarnation of the Sword Saint", showing how astonishing her talent was. Standing out with her remarkable strength since childhood, a few months ago, she received invitations for both the position of the vice - captain of the Royal Knights and the position of a teacher at the academy. For an ordinary person, naturally, they would choose the position of the vice - captain of the Royal Knights, which was not only the highest honor for a warrior but also a shortcut to rapid advancement. However, Teacher Isolte, who was now looking at us with a cold gaze, unexpectedly chose the position of a teacher at the academy. This was due to her upright and firm sense of justice. Rather than becoming a puppet vice - captain of the corrupt and degenerate Royal Knights, she preferred to enter the academy as a teacher to cultivate the hope of the future. This choice angered her family, and after a big quarrel, she was now semi - estranged from her family. Therefore, it was likely that after this self - introduction, she would no longer claim the name "Bivorm". However, even if she no longer called herself Bivorm, the dignity and bearing in her would not disappear. She had the strength to subdue most of the academy students and also had the corresponding authority.

"...Then, let's start the class." She announced the start of the class in a plain voice, and most of the students started sighing or complaining. After all, on the first day of school, it was usually about telling adventure stories, playing games, or at least doing self - introductions. It was rare to have a teacher like her who followed the teaching syllabus strictly. Yes, the shortcoming of Teacher Isolte was that she was a complete stickler for principles. So, she and Kania got along quite well.

'...However, that teacher is still worthy of respect.' When the academy was on the verge of collapse, she was the only one who held out until the end, slaying the Demon King's army to protect the students. That is to say, as I just said, she was simply the "last conscience" and "hope" of this corrupt academy. According to the prophetic book, due to her outstanding performance, she was called a "supporting actress" in my ancestor's world. Is that right? Although I'm not quite sure about the details, fortunately, she was a "supporting actress". If she were a "main character" and had regained her memories from the last round... I'm afraid I would already be fighting her to the death now.

"...You, why are you here...!?"

"...?" While thinking about these things, suddenly a frightened cry was heard. I turned my head and saw a haggard - looking Irina staring at me as if she had seen a ghost.

"........" At the same time, I felt a warm yet cold aura. Looking back, Saintess Pelosh was glaring at me with wide - open eyes.

"........" Soon, even Kania, who was sitting next to me, started glaring at me with hatred in her eyes, and a cold chill began to fill the classroom.

"Pay attention! All of you, focus! I'm the teacher of Class A and won't make any exceptions for your convenience!" I avoided those gazes with cold sweat on my forehead. It wasn't until Teacher Isolte banged her fist on the blackboard and loudly scolded, diverting the heroines' attention, that I let out a sigh of relief and murmured softly.

"…Three - fifths of them are already here." Even without my fiancée, who was far abroad, and the imperial princess, who would appear only after the end of today's academy classes, the classroom was already filled with a cold atmosphere. It seemed that I had to buy a hand - warmer as soon as possible.

.....

"Then, that's all for today's class." As expected, Teacher Isolte was a stickler for principles and ended the class as soon as the bell rang. Thanks to this, I didn't have to listen to the content I was already familiar with again. So, I leaned back in my chair and stretched. At this time, Kania, who was sitting next to me, suddenly stood up from her seat and walked in a certain direction. I was tilting my head in confusion when suddenly there was a commotion behind me.

"Th - That... Lord Frey?"

"...?" Hearing this weak voice, I turned around and saw Saintess Pelosh standing nervously behind me.

"...Could you come to the church after school? I want to offer a blessing to Lord Frey, who comes from a long - established hero's family."

[Pseudo - Evil Intuition: A strong killing intent is felt nearby!] When she made this suggestion, sweating profusely, a system window immediately appeared in front of me. I couldn't help but show a helpless expression and muttered to myself.

'...What's this? A murder notice?' She, known as the "Pure White Saintess", was so kind and pure that the whole continent recognized her. That is to say, she was so naive that she couldn't plot a decent conspiracy.

"...Information window"

[Name: Pelosh Astrad]

[Abilities: Strength 1 / Divine Power 8 / Intelligence 2 / Mental Strength 8]

[Special Notes: Blessing of the Sun God] I narrowed my eyes, looked at the trembling Pelosh, and whispered out her information window. When I saw the special notes column, I couldn't help but widen my eyes.

'...Blessing of the Sun God?' The blessing of the Sun God wasn't something that just anyone could receive. It was a blessing that only the saintess recognized by the Sun God could obtain when the saintess prayed devoutly. With that blessing, ability values became meaningless. Pelosh could crush me or tear me to pieces with one hand today. No wonder the legendary story of the saintess, a member of the previous hero's team a thousand years ago, using that blessing to tear open the Demon King's flank was still passed down to this day.

"...No."

"...Ugh." If I followed her to the church, I would probably be sacrificed to the Sun God without even a mouse or a bird noticing. So, I immediately refused, and Pelosh showed a shocked expression.

"Wait... Please don't. You don't seem to understand the value of the blessing I'm giving. The blessing I'm going to give Lord Frey today is something that money can't buy..."

...I said, I don't need it.

"Ah? But..."

"Get lost. I hate people from the cult."

"That... I mean..." Seeing me reject her impatiently, Pelosh was sweating profusely and started stuttering. As we could see, this "Pure White Saintess" indeed had an innocent heart, but she was also equally simple - minded. To put it nicely, she was a devout believer who knew nothing except the Sun God and the doctrine; to put it bluntly, she was just a carrier of divine power. Judging from the fact that she didn't even have a backup plan after I refused her suggestion, one could tell how naive she was.

'...Tsk, she's so stupid that she's being used by the cult.' The high - level members of the cult coveted her ability—her divine power was so abundant that the system showed divine power instead of magic power—so they deceived her with sweet words and turned her into a carrier of divine power. Sure enough, this cult that served the crazy Sun God was as exasperating as it was in the last round. At that time, the Demon King was still swaggering around, but they didn't even show up. Now that I'm struggling to save the world, instead of helping, they're bestowing blessings on the heroines who want to kill me. This is really too much. So, the cult must also be thoroughly reformed. For some reason, it always feels like even if I do nothing, there will be more and more things to deal with, and I'm in a really bad mood.

"Ugh, ugh... Ugh, ugh, ugh..."

"...Just get lost, you container of divine power."

".....!" In a bad mood, I coldly scolded her. The saintess's eyes filled with tears, and she lowered her head deeply and returned to her seat. To be honest, I was originally worried that she would give up and even rush up to pull my hair, but fortunately, she didn't do that.

"Ah, why are you still alive... That damned bastard... Could it be that you were in league with the Demon King from the beginning..." After Pelosh returned to her seat gloomily, Irina beside her was in a panic and started muttering. She had experienced a year - long state of "magic power depletion". It seemed that I would have to take care of her like I took care of Kania in the future. If she was eliminated or dropped out of Class A, the "script" would have serious problems.

'Well, the most dangerous ones are indeed the imperial princess and her fiancé...' Just like this, leaning back in my chair, listening to Pelosh in the back seat pondering over the next conspiracy and Irina beside me muttering non - stop, I started thinking about the imperial princess and her fiancé. After a brainstorm, I came to the following conclusion:

'...Should I just apply for a leave of absence?' Even with the system in hand, I'm not confident that I can defeat those two.

.....

"Found it, my fountain pen." Just as Frey was racking his brains over how to deal with the imperial princess and her fiancée, Kania returned to Frey's residence and picked up the fountain pen that was lying alone on the ground.

"...That bastard, I will definitely kill him. No matter what it takes, I will." In a hurry to avoid being late, she had packed in a panic and forgotten to take this precious fountain pen, a gift from her younger brother when he was a child. She held the fountain pen tightly in her arms and planned to rush back to the main building of the academy before the end of class. However...

"…Huh?" She soon noticed something on the white bedsheet and tilted her head in confusion as she approached.

"…What is this?" There was a bloody handprint conspicuously left there.