The Extra’s Academy Survival Guide - Chapter 117

‘Romantic Adele’.

The actions she took in could be summarized easier than you might expect.

The Nosy Elvira Boss Fight.

She smiled while watching the duel between Taylee and Elvira as a bystander.

Glasskan Subjugation.

Even though she was trapped in the education district due to Velosper’s barrier magic, she had the audacity to continue on and play on her lute in a carefree manner.

Exploring the Alchemy Department’s Society.

After the incident, she sat on top of the statue of an herbalist in front of the Alchemy Department’s Society, singing a song.

Glast Subjugation.

At Taylee’s request, she joined his party to rescue Ayla and fought with all her might while using supporting magic.

Student Council President Election.

Hidden in the crowd, she quietly watched the election taking place.

And then…

From Act 3, Chapter 5, the second Joint Combat Practice, she started to have a bigger role in the storyline due to her connection with Saint Clarice.

As the Archbishop Verdio revealed her past, we learned that her past was much darker than you might expect.

After that… The Romantic Adele was killed off by the Archbishop.

The player only found out after the Joint Combat Practice came to an end.

After defeating several first year students, who rush in one after another—including both top students, Joseph and Wade—the top student of the alchemy department, Claude, finally came out.

After he was also defeated, unable to overcome his anger he drank a reagent considered taboo, the ‘Evil God’s Blood’, and became corrupted. The player then had to defeat Claude, who was now able to use all sorts of dark magic after receiving the magic power of the Evil God Mebula.

Once Claude—who was running rampant—was finally defeated, you were able to leave the arena.

Only then, when the episode ended, would the player learn of Adele’s death.

To help immerse the player in the next episode, the episode ended with that shocking reveal. When the player heard news of Adele’s death, they would be shocked and feel inclined to rush straight into the next storyline.

Then from there, it was Act 3’s final chapter. The final event before Lucy’s Subjugation.

A story between Saint Clarice, who was full of distrust, and the Telos Religious Group, who wanted to punish her. The connecting bridge that led to it was none other than the Joint Combat Practice.

Of course, that was the storyline that ‘I know of’.

Unfortunately, the world had already started to go awry.

***

“Unfortunately, I’m in a spot where I can’t spend a lot of time with you, but it would be nice if we could at least talk for a bit. At least, that’s how I feel now.”

Clarice gave an eloquent smile. I could feel the gazes from the handful of guards that were following behind her and the students that were looking on quietly further behind them.

Clarice was someone that always seemed to have a rather aloof appearance. It was the first time anyone had ever seen her approach someone on her own to talk with them.

It looked like Clarice had already finished her preparations to meet with the Holy Father, seeing as she was perfectly dressed up. Looking at her sitting there with my own two eyes, it was still hard to believe that the childish Kylie and Saint Clarice were the same person.

“It’s… A great honor, Saint.”

I responded to Clarice’s words as naturally as I could while trying to keep my facial expression calm.

Clarice sat neatly as she smiled brightly. She then glanced over towards Yennekar. Sitting next to me, Yennekar started to giggle as she hiccupped. She then quickly bowed her head.

“M-My name is Yennekar Palerover… Saint… It’s such an honor to see you… this close…”

Her voice was drenched with nervousness, cracking as she spoke. But given that it was the Saint of the Telos Religious Group that she was greeting, it made sense.

Back in the sacred Holy Father Building… She was considered to have received the most love from their God Telos, and she was also the most noble and holiest of Telos’ servants.

So, regardless of the fact that Yennekar grew up in the countryside, there was still no way she wouldn’t know the majesty of the Telos Religious Group. Nearly a third of the entire population of the Kroel Empire were members of the Telos Religious Group.

And the idol of that Religious Group was now right in front of her. There was no way that a girl like Yennekar wouldn’t be nervous.

“B-But… I heard… that you, the Saint… are supposed to m-meet… the Holy Father today, so…”

Yennekar couldn’t finish her sentence… She seemed to have bit her tongue as she started to shake her head around.

Then, with a tear in her eyes, she turned towards me as if asking to be rescued. I finished off what Yennekar was trying to ask.

“We heard that the Holy Father and the Archbishop are supposed to visit soon. Is it okay for you to come here like this?”

“As you can see, I have already finished getting ready. And the Holy Father is supposed to personally visit Trix Hall, right? So, while I was heading there, I happened to pass by the Student Center.”

After speaking, she smiled once more.

Looking at Clarice as she was now, she was definitely pure white. Whether it be her hair color, skin color, or attitude towards people.

She was certainly someone that was filled with a pure white color. It was to the extent that anyone would wonder if it was truly possible. However, because she appeared so pure, the parts of her that weren’t were rather suspicious.

And because of her pure white background, her bright red eyes stood out even more intensely. And the red bow hairpin stood out quite a bit in her white hair.

She was also wearing a scarlet-colored school uniform overcoat and a dark blue skirt, both of which didn’t cover up her pure white glow.

“Saying that it’s all a coincidence…?”

“Since now they are announcing the matchups for the Joint Combat Practice, I figured that you would be here, Ed.”

In short, she was saying ‘I came here to meet you.’

With those words, shock began to spread through the crowd. Even though they didn’t show it on the outside, I definitely felt it.

I wiped my face as I thought of the best way to respond to the situation. I then spoke.

“It’s an honor.”

“Is there any reason for you to feel so honored, Ed?”

A benevolent smile after every word she spoke. Probably because she was a Saint from the Holy Father Building, the attitude she held for the followers was ingrained in her body.

“It’s been a while since you’ve seen the Holy Father, so you must be a little nervous.”

“That is true.”

The first thing I did was completely change the topic.

Thinking of the times I had come into contact with Saint Clarice, the time she had suddenly come to my camp last winter and scolded me was the only thing I could think of. Even so, that was dealt with without any loose ends, and there was a good reason to send her back.

So why did she suddenly come to see me at such an important time?

The first thing I needed to do was determine that reason.

“The Holy Father is a very sharp and wise person. And Archbishop Verdio, who accompanies him, is a rather intelligent person… Almost to the point that I wonder if he is able to read another’s mind.”

“I see. They seem to be quite amazing people. But it seems that your horseman has been tapping his foot on the ground for quite a while now. Perhaps you don’t have the time for this?”

“Hmm. Regardless, don’t you think the fact that Verdio might have the ability to read another’s mind is rather interesting? It must be a form of Sacred Magic, don’t you think…?”

“Perhaps. Though, it would be difficult to know much about Sacred Magic without being directly involved with the Religious Group… But at this time, you should probably…”

“That’s true. In fact, it would be difficult for any outsider to know details about the principles of Sacred Magic. Archbishop Verdio’s ability to read through another’s heart… It really is such a mystery…”

……

Strangely… The conversation wasn’t making any sense…!

It might be intentional, but it felt like Saint Clarice kept leading the topic to focus solely on Archbishop Verdio. She might also be conscious of all the ears that were surrounding us, listening in as well.

To catch my breath for a moment, I took a sip of my drink, which was placed on the wooden table.

Then, after apologizing to Clarice as I asked her to take a brief break, I took a deep breath.

I then looked right back at her.

I didn’t realize it from afar, but up close I had a strange feeling that she was nervous. I guess Clarice was feeling a bit rushed after all.

Seeing her continue bringing up Verdio’s ability, her intentions also started to make sense.

I was someone that knew of the fact that Saint Clarice was actually Kylie. So, if I were to run into Verdio, the Religious Group would find out that I knew the true identity of the Saint.

From Saint Clarice’s position, as she needed to hide her true identity to attend school, it wasn’t a pleasant situation. She must have wanted to meet with me quickly to tell me that.

However, it wasn’t something that she could have someone else tell me.

“Please go find Ed Rothstaylor and tell him he must never meet with Archbishop Verdio.”If she were to make such a request, anyone would think that was extremely suspicious.

Only an idiot wouldn’t be able to figure out that Ed Rothstaylor might have discovered the Saint’s true identity. There would be no point if her close aide were to discover that truth.

However, there also wasn’t enough time to send a wax-sealed letter. So, since it was on her way, she decided to meet with me in person.

Now, she was trying to convey her message as quietly as possible in a roundabout way, praying that I’d figure out what she was trying to say.

After thinking about it, I was finally starting to organize all my thoughts. Ultimately, that was probably what Saint Clarice wanted to hear the most from me.

“If you’re saying that much… Then Archbishop Verdio is truly an amazing person. Of course, a ruined person like me, with low status, would never have the chance to meet with them in my life.”

“…I–Is that so…?”

Clarice raised her eyebrows slightly, as if asking for confirmation.

I responded with a bit more confidence.

“Yes. Either way, since I’m participating in the Joint Combat Practice, I’m already quite busy. Also, the difference in our status is too large. It would be difficult for me to even participate in the Holy Father’s visiting ceremony. So, there’s probably no chance that I will personally end up meeting Archbishop Verdio.”

“……”

“…Not a chance.”

After saying all of that, Saint Clarice’s face started to lighten up.

As if she could feel that the message had finally clicked between the two of us, she started to relax her shoulders and did her best to stop the corners of her lips from rising.

No matter what others might say, that girl’s true nature was that of the immature girl, Kylie Eckner.

Even though her circumstances forced her to become the holiest girl in the entire world, true nature started to show itself when she was happy.

Of course, she was also a veteran at controlling her emotions. She lived her entire life practicing self-restraint, after all.

“E-Excuse me… Saint.”

Of course, her actions also had a major blind spot. The fact that there are so many eyes watching her every action.

The only thought on her mind was that she was coming to see me personally, to take care of the incident as fast as possible. However, from a third person point of view, all of her actions were extremely unusual for her.

So, it was not surprising that a question would come out of Yennekar’s mouth.

“So… You came all the way here… just to see Ed…?”

Clarice had been trembling in fear over the idea that I might end up attending the Religious Group’s event or meet with Verdio.

And only after that major fear of hers was relieved did she finally begin to finally open her eyes and look objectively at the situation.

“Uh… So… Th-That’s… Right…?”

After taking care of the urgent issue, she now started to see another issue that she would need to resolve. And that was the people around her that were watching.

The students that had come to the Student Center and waited around to check on the matchups had all been watching quietly. Even though they pretended to be uninterested, secretly all their attention was focused on us.

It was an obviously uncomfortable situation, so it needed to be taken care of as naturally as possible…

“You were so nervous about meeting the Holy Father… so you came all the way here in a carriage to meet with Ed…”

“N-No, that’s not it.”

Seeing her come straight here from such a faraway place… No matter how you looked at it, it looked like we had a special relationship.

Clarice’s flustered expression was as rare as gold from the heavens. That was because, for the Saint that was supposed to always be benevolent and dignified, making a scene was prohibited.

From Kylie’s position, as someone that didn’t have such a heavy weight on her shoulder, that may not be the case. But from Clarice’s position, as someone who had been living as the Saint since she was a child, she didn’t show such an appearance easily.

If she was able to maintain her composure and calm herself down as Saint Clarice, not Kylie Eckner, then she could control the situation and not cause a scene—no matter how strange the situation was.

Once she steeled her heart, she was like an impenetrable castle of iron.

However, if she did have a weak point, it would be none other than getting tangled up with a man.

In the belfry of the Holy Father Building that she lived in, from the entrance all the way down the hallways, it was an area restricted to men. Even the Holy Father didn’t step foot in such a sacred area. The guards that watched the perimeter of the entrance would even have to go through an ablution if they stepped foot on the boundary line.

That meant that, unless it was time to go outside and show herself, she never had the chance to come in contact with a man. Especially when it came to a guy around her age.

Wasn’t that the Clarice that only knew the relationship between a man and women from the third-rate romance novels that Adele had secretly brought her?

The Saint, who was completely cut off from a man and woman relationship, had no skills when it came to being able to deal with such a situation with a boy around her age. In other words, she was no different from a young girl that couldn’t help but blush from handholding. Someone far from being capable of handling such a situation.

“No, That’s… Uhm…?”

Unfortunately for her, such a reaction only added flames to the misunderstanding.

In the eyes of others, since she barely had any contact with me in the first place, there was no reason for her to ride a carriage and strategically set her path to come and meet me when she is already so busy.

It was something that she had done quickly, planning on coming up with an explanation later on, but it was also something that couldn’t easily be explained. Even more so if her face was just going to turn bright red in embarrassment like that.

“So… About that… Uhm…? I-I’m… Also a person…? So, of course… I get nervous…? That’s why…”

Anyone would think that she was trying to make up some lie. However, since everyone in the area were just regular people, they couldn’t recklessly talk over her.

“S-So… That’s why… I just… Uhm… I wanted to meet someone… and then, when I thought of who I wanted to meet… The only face… I saw was…”

“No, so, what I’m trying to say is… That… It’s just because I’m nervous…? I just wanted to see him… or something…? How should I say it… Just, as a person…?”

She seemed to have realized that the more she opened her mouth, the stranger it sounded. That was why she had stopped talking and started to read the air around her.

Although no one was saying anything, the students that had been watching seemed to be at a loss for words.

No one had ever seen Saint Clarice, who was always elegant and proper, blush so much and tremble like that.

As a result, Saint Clarice ended up making the worst possible decision she could have.

She ran away.

“Oh my… Look at the time…! The Holy Father will be arriving soon…!!”

She covered her face as she ran away to the carriage.

The horseman, who was already getting impatient by the passing of time, quickly swung his whip as he made the luxurious carriage go forward.

“……”

“……”

At the place where the Saint had quickly run away like lightning, all that remained was silence.

Gazes of astonishment poured down like bullets. And the person sitting in the center of all of it was none other than me.

I wiped my face with both hands as I lowered my head.

***

The Joint Combat Practice took place in two of the three buildings that made up the Student Center.

The first and second years would have their duels in Nail Hall. The third and fourth years would have their duels in Glockt Hall. Because of that, the two groups didn’t mix with each other.

Of course, the buildings were still right next to each other. If you needed to go between them, you could get there quickly. You would have to be a complete idiot to get lost, and there wasn’t a particular reason for people to do so. Still, I was planning to finish my fight quickly and go next door to see how the situation played out.

“Whew…”

Leaving behind the explosive actions of the Saint, I quickly escaped from the scene.

The first thing I needed to do was say goodbye to Yennekar. That was because, in Glockt Hall, the two of us were in different dueling arenas.

Yennekar was in the seventh arena, which was the furthest inside. Meanwhile, I was in the third arena.

“??? ??????”

Still not understanding what the Saint was talking about or why she reacted that way, Yennekar’s face was frozen, question marks flying up in the air. I really hoped it didn’t interfere with her match. Though, I was sure she would quickly overwhelm every student that faced her.

“Whew…”

It was worthwhile to push my way through the students waiting around outside and make my way inside the building.

Most of the students that didn’t have a match right away were waiting on the terrace. When I entered the hallway, everything was quiet.

Yennekar was horrifically bad with directions. Afraid that Yennekar might not find her arena, I made sure she got there safely before I headed to the third arena on my own.

As I walked in, I looked at the match timetable. The opponent automatically assigned to me… It was Kordek. Among the fourth years, he was in the Combat Department and considered one of the most talented students there. A savage-like warrior that used axes and other blunt weapons.

“Hmm… It will be disadvantageous for me if I’m dragged into close combat.”

The corridor leading to the dueling arena. A place where, aside from a couple of passing students, it was completely empty.

The sound of footsteps on the arena’s floor. I slowly walked forward… Suddenly, I was looking at a student wearing a wide and roundish skirt, sitting off in the corner of the Arena.

“♪ ♫ ♪”

“……”

It was a complete surprise.

Adele was there, sitting on the floor playing the lute.

In the first place, she was someone that would travel with the wind and show up in a flash. She was famous, since no one had any idea of where and when she would appear. Why was sitting there, playing the lute in a place that no one ever went? Of course, I knew the reason. Still, seeing her in person like that, I couldn’t help but be surprised.

“What are you doing here…? This is Glockt Hall. If you’re a second year student, you should head on over to Nail Hall.”

“Oh. It’s nice to see you again, Ed.”

With a bright smile and fluttering flower petals flying around her head, Adele continued to pluck the strings.

“It’s a surprise to see our fates align like this. They say that one’s fate is as unpredictable as the wind, yet we seem to meet each other quite often.”

I shook my head at Adele’s smiling face. There was a degree to being free.

“Aren’t you going to participate in the Joint Combat Practice?”

“Naturally, I’m going to. I should slowly get going. My match isn’t until a little bit later.”

Adele continued to smile as she stood up from her seat. She then dusted off her clothes.

“The timing is perfect. If can just slowly head out now~”

After speaking, she quietly walked past me towards the exit.

As she continued to pass by… I just stood there silently.

“……”

The moment she passed me, all of my accumulated thoughts had suddenly burst out, flooding my mind all at once.

That’s right.

After the Joint Combat Practice ended, Adele Cerise would be killed by Archbishop Verdio.

I knew that for a fact.

However, the problem was… I didn’t know the full story.

All the knowledge I gained while playing had been obtained from swordmaster Taylee’s point of view.

Right now, that same point of view would probably be to show me that swordsman taking on all the challenges from his underclassmen. Now that we’d reached the end of the middle part of ACT 3, he should be strong enough to hold a rank among the top second years, also called the generation of shining stars.

And from Taylee’s point of view… the details of Adele’s death weren’t exactly known.

That was because the Joint Combat Practice and the Holy Father’s visit to Silvenia happened at the same time. And in the middle of it all, Adele’s murder would take place.

The information that I was able to get from the protagonist’s point of view… It was that the situation was all caused by a scheme created by Verdio. Though, the only information I had was that he didn’t let Adele run away after stealing the secrets of the Religious Group, so he punished her with death.

That would be the switch that ignited Saint Clarice’s wrath, and also the start of her fully digging into the corruption committed by high-ranking clerics of the Telos Religious Group.

The Saint of Distrust, Clarice.

The image of the Saint covered in blood, looking up at the starry sky between the burning trees of Right Mountain… Right now, it felt like that switch was right in front of me.

The situation then returned to the present.

Adele walked down the hallway, heading towards the exit. Perhaps that would be the last image of Adele while she was alive.

Knowing that she would die, would it be the right decision to just ignore her and let her go out there to face her fate?

The first thing that came to mind was one’s morals. The question of whether it was right to leave a man alive without their limbs.

In the past, I would have started weighing the effects of her life with the original storyline. However, after Act 1 and Act 2, the storyline had already become twisted—to the point that it was no longer in my control. And by twisting it even more, I even ended up putting Tanya in the position of Student Council President with my own two hands.

It didn’t make any sense to worry about the storyline anymore. Now, it was just a matter of morals.

However, I didn’t know the exact details of her death… So, would she even listen to me if I said anything? If I told her that she would die if she didn’t stay here for now, would she even agree?

Without any evidence, I would be saying that the holy Religious Group’s highest-ranking clerics were trying to kill an innocent little girl… Who in the world would trust such a statement?

However, if the person I told that to was also a devout believer of the religion, then I’d only be eaten alive and credited as a conspiracy theorist.

What suddenly came to my mind was the old professor that had died under an old tree under the moonlit night.

Of course, that was completely different from Professor Glast’s death. Back then, I was weak and not someone that could be trusted.

But what about with Adele? There was still a chance to avoid her death if I put in the effort… So, was it my duty as a human being to save her from death as best as I could? If that was the case, then I’d have to take action immediately.

Then, in the moment when I was falling into such deep anguish…

“Hey.”

Suddenly, words came out of my mouth. I looked straight ahead as only my voice came out.

Adele, who was walking outside, looked back with a smile.

“Yes, Ed?”

“You will die soon.”

Without even a moment to rest, I ended up saying such a thing.

‘What are you saying?’

‘I’m going to die? What kind of horse shit is that?’

‘You’re quite the joker.’

No matter how she responded to me, I decided that I would explain it to her in a way that made sense.

“I know.”

Adele, who still had a smile on her face, gave a brief response as she continued to head through the exit.

And with that… A long silence lingered in the hallways of Glockt Hall.