Academy’s Pure Love Dark Knight - Chapter 30

Chapter 30 –  Is This Really the Crown Prince Route?

 

—–CROW—–

 

“…So, President Laplace. You really didn’t know about the dungeon beneath the academy?”

 

“I didn’t.  All the books in the Library of Truth went blank.”

 

The neatly dressed man sighed briefly. It was Laplace, the president who had given the speech at the Grand Hearts Academia entrance ceremony.

 

Due to the Second Saintess kidnapping incident two days prior, he was discussing the matter with the board members.

 

“I still think those who borrow the power of the God of Wisdom are useless. They’re no match for the Hero Church.”

 

“I wouldn’t say that about other Demon Lords, but ‘Omniscience’! What am I supposed to do?! Our entire library is down! This is the third time since I took over!”

 

“…Are you saying I should have foreseen the students all dying, Professor Beatrice?”

 

The sage with demonic horns and the president, who also served as the librarian, yelled at the bob-haired nun.

 

“Stop it, Beatrice. They say the Apostle imitated you.”

 

“…Oh my, Lord Dennis.  Have you already heard what Chartinese said?”

 

“Answer me.  Did you truly not know about this incident?”

 

The woman with half-closed eyes smiled only with her mouth.  The uncurving corners of her eyes were slightly chilling.

 

“You know where I was at that time, don’t you?”

 

“…”

 

“Are you perhaps suggesting I used a double or something?”

 

“That possibility isn’t entirely out of the question.  If you’re a spy…”

 

Dennis, with his striking blue hair and white irises, glared at the nun.  But Beatrice appeared relaxed, as if she had nothing to hide.

 

“Stop it, Dennis! You know Beatrice isn’t a succubus! Fighting amongst ourselves will only benefit the Demon Lords!”

 

“…We have to be suspicious, Drake.”

 

“You get too worked up whenever the Demon Lord of Omniscience is involved!”

 

Drake, the Dragonslayer, intervened, preventing a fight from breaking out.

 

“…Can’t I be worked up?”

 

“Is it because of that person again?  Didn’t you say you can’t even remember their name?!”

 

“Yes, but they’re alive. They exist. My body proves it.”

 

He stumbled, emitting a boozy scent.  His white irises momentarily dimmed, losing their light, so he uncorked a bottle and downed its contents.

 

Then, the white light gently emanated from his eyes once more.

 

“…I investigated with my spirit… and it’s been there for a very long time.  The order is reversed.”

 

Just then, the dryad with pink hair and purple flowers spoke up.

 

“What? Professor Maria?  Does that mean…?”

 

It was Maria, the Spiritmancy professor.  She summoned her hamster spirit and began reciting the information she had gathered.  The spirit twitched its tiny cheeks.

 

“Judging by the time it took for the stalactites to form and the moss to grow, the spirits told me it seems like it was prepared ‘from the beginning.’”

 

“It was underground even before the academy was established…? Damn, we’ve been had.”

 

Drake put his hand on his forehead and grimaced. The shape of his scar changed momentarily.  The blond Dragonslayer looked at Beatrice again.

 

“Beatrice, are you truly not involved with the Hero Church?”

 

“…I haven’t left the academy, Dragonslayer.”

 

“Well, if you were involved, the Demon Lord wouldn’t have stayed quiet!”

 

As soon as he finished speaking, the blue-haired man stood up.  He opened his mouth as if to address everyone present.

 

“The Demon Lord’s Authority… truly a repulsive ability. Don’t you all agree?”

 

“I agree. But please take care of your body, Dennis.”

 

“He’s right.”

 

“If it weren’t for Head…”

 

He spoke in a despondent tone to the two who had just been reprimanding the nun.  He stared at the ceiling and sighed deeply.

 

“I will be the one to catch Headache.  No objections, right?”

 

He conjured a spherical magic circle in his palm and floated it in the air.  The magic circle, now with many rings, rotated repeatedly.

 

“…With this, it might be possible.”

 

Dennis made a fist, canceling the spell, and spoke briefly. Unlike before, he seemed filled with motivation. Seeing this, Drake asked,

 

“…Dennis, what’s that strange thing?”

 

“Oh, this?  Licht told me about it.  It’s called a three-dimensional magic circle.”

 

He chuckled and explained to Drake.

 

“That disciple… dared…? To teach magic… while I’m here?”

 

“He seems to dislike old-fashioned swordsmanship, old man.”

 

The Dragonslayer’s brow furrowed.  He had trained with Dennis for over five years; it seemed he was dissatisfied that he had become attached to Licht.

 

“So, should we inform His Majesty the Emperor about this?”

 

“If it were my brother… well.  It’d be like confessing, ‘There was a Hero Church cell beneath the academy where your daughter attends!’”

 

“Wouldn’t we all be killed?  I’m against it. He’s gotten worse since becoming Emperor.”

 

When the sage voiced his opposition, the other Ten Swords nodded in agreement.  Seeing this, Maria expressed her confusion.

 

“…But he’s the Emperor.”

 

“Oh my, Maria. Do you really want to be executed?  No students were actually harmed, after all.”

 

“But… they were almost in danger.”

 

“If they directly attack the academy, it will lead to war.  The Hero Church isn’t stupid; they wouldn’t do that, would they?”

 

“That’s not the point… Cardinal Beatrice…”

 

When the blond nun rebuked her, the dryad had no choice but to back down.  Indeed, there were no casualties, and if their intention was to create chaos by targeting the Second Saintess’s absence, they would have killed her.

 

‘I’m uneasy… They’ve been quiet for nearly 20 years and now they’ve made a move. I wonder if it’ll be alright.’

 

But something bothered her.  As if to quell their anxieties, the Ten Swords began to devise a plan.

 

“I’ll try to strengthen the academy’s barrier as much as possible and block access to outsiders.”

 

“We need to put more effort into fostering successors…”

 

“The Demon Lords won’t attack the academy. They were already crushed by Brother Locke once!”

 

“…We should implement practical combat training disguised as assignments.”

 

Then, as if something had occurred to him, Dennis spoke to Drake again. The mention of being “crushed” triggered a piece of information in his mind.

 

“Ah, right. It was Licht, not Nex, the Vice-Principal’s son, who resolved this, right?”

 

“That’s right! Dennis, he’s your disciple, capable of defeating Apostle-level enemies. With that level of skill, there shouldn’t be a problem even if the Hero Church attacks in droves! Hahaha!”

 

“Yes, he’s remarkable.  Not only that, but Lady Phine is also quite strong. If a Demon Lord attacks, I’ll be there, and so will you… so it should be alright.”

 

A brief silence fell.

 

“…”

 

Everyone tried to act nonchalant, but worry lingered in their hearts. The fear of another war breaking out.

 

“Then… we’ll reopen this discussion when we find any trace of the Hero Church. We’ll say we couldn’t find any survivors after the dungeon collapse.”

 

With the sage’s words, the board meeting concluded.

 

—–CROW—–

 

“Ugh, I feel terrible.”

 

Cracking sounds emanated from Licht’s body as he got out of bed.

 

“Did Kainel… go to class?”

 

Void Slash was a technique that put a lot of strain on the body. It was no wonder he was in this state after using it consecutively.  He looked around his empty dorm room.

 

“Let’s organize what I’ve learned so far.”

 

The academy had already excused his absence. Licht picked up a notebook from the bookshelf.

 

First, regarding the status window…

 

‘It goes up and down.’

 

Since it showed a warning when a love line was in danger, he could prevent the Grand Route from going off track with this.

 

‘It seems like they start dating when it goes over 50%… and is it marriage at 100%? Well, it does say ‘even dating,’ so…’

 

Even when a couple gets engaged, it’s only at 62%… which means what happens afterward is important.

 

In Nex’s case, he would have to resolve the conflict with Asha Aureus.

 

He thought the culmination of love would be a happy marriage. So, would the Saintess also get married later if her love percentage went up?

 

“…”

 

Since that’s what the illustration he saw right before possessing Licht depicted, it was likely true. Tears welled up in his eyes.  He would just have to applaud from the sidelines.

 

“…She wouldn’t like a guy like me anyway.”

 

He recalled when he was affected by Servi’s nightmare magic.  He had realized it was a dream as soon as he touched her face. No matter how much he thought about it, she wouldn’t like someone who looked like him.

 

Suddenly, an old memory flashed through his mind. The words of the white-haired woman when she encouraged him.

 

[It’s just that those people are bad. Don’t be intimidated, Knight…!]

 

But that was a game, and this was the past. He and the Saintess currently had no connection.

 

“Reality isn’t that easy, Saintess.”

 

There were many other characters besides her who spoke favorably to the player, and…

 

He couldn’t cling to that. Even if he followed the Saintess route, he had to abandon the thought of dating her.

 

He would be content just protecting her from the side.

 

After all, it was an artificial word created by people. Perhaps such a thing didn’t exist anywhere.

 

He sighed deeply.  He had to get a happy ending this time.

 

He didn’t want to see her sad face again.

 

“…Headache.”

 

He opened the page where ‘Demon Lord of Omniscience’ was written.

 

A Demon Lord described as a Grim Reaper from another world summoned as a hero. A lunatic obsessed with the number of lives written in the Book of Life and Death.

 

The reason he had viewed him more positively than the Demon Lord of Truth during yesterday’s dungeon攻略 was…

 

‘He’s the Demon Lord who saved our Saintess.’

 

At the end of <Knight Heart>, he explicitly states to the player that he will spare the nameless Saintess because there’s no need to harm her.

 

After that, she is forcibly removed from the final battle before reaching the ending, and thus survives until the end of the original story, appearing in the sequel.

 

As such, he was a person who minimized unnecessary killings if it aligned with his plans. But if his calculations went wrong…

 

‘He’s a Demon Lord who kills without mercy or strips them of their Authority.’

 

Dennis was a case in point. He avoided killing as per his creed, but he cursed his lover.

 

‘…I’m still too weak.’

 

He clenched his fists.  Yesterday’s incident was fortunate; it was a believer whose abilities he knew, and his constitution miraculously aligned with it.

 

But if it had been a long-range ability that perfectly countered him, he wouldn’t have been able to protect Nex, let alone rescue senior Chartinese.

 

Could he really defeat a Demon Lord now?

 

Fatigue washed over him. He had no way to block their Authority.  It was a relief he knew the dungeon’s location; he might not have even been there otherwise.

 

Should he grow stronger while protecting the love lines at the academy? He couldn’t fail the Grand Route either.

 

He felt like he was missing something…

 

The road ahead seemed bleak.  He had no connections or anything to acquire a weapon.  If he at least had a holy sword, it might be different.

 

“There’s no clear solution.”

 

Currently, he couldn’t reach the Demon Lords. As always in the original and sequel, they cheated with their Authority.

 

…There was no other way.

 

“The Crown Prince Route.”

 

He had to follow it, no matter what.

 

Was there any way for him, in his current state, to protect her, a non-combatant, if she encountered a Demon Lord?

 

She was a character designed to be so weak that she couldn’t even kill a bug despite using divine power.

 

‘Chartinese and Beatrice are normal, though.’

 

In the community, there were many harsh criticisms of her, such as ‘incompetent’ or ‘a healer you use briefly at the beginning.’

 

In fact, most healers in the game also engaged in combat. There were berserker-like priests wielding maces, and monks who split the heavens and shattered the earth with their fists.

 

Moreover, the Wolfkin, the werewolf race, wasn’t that rare.  Those from the Empire often had dog or cat ears.

 

‘Just look at the Imperial Guard; they are Wolfkin with wolf ears and tails.’

 

He had simply enjoyed having her in his party until the end of the game.  He could just rely on his controls and overwhelm the Demon Lords with his stats.

 

And he liked the things she occasionally said when they rested after battles.

 

Her slightly high-pitched voice, her transparent and bright personality, the text describing her rose scent.

 

[I’ve only received help again today, Knight… but please don’t get healed by anyone else but me, okay?]

 

She still lingered in his mind when he closed his eyes, and…

 

[Yes? Why are you asking me that all of a sudden?]

 

Her chuckle, her teasing lines as she smiled at him…

 

[…Because I might get jealous.]

 

They remained in his memory, making his heart habitually pound.

 

“…”

 

He started to worry about her safety again.  Where could she be, and what was she doing?

 

His throat went dry.  Because of that, he quickly began searching for the most dangerous obstacle in his notes, and…

 

“…Magic Hat Masquerade.”

 

He reminded himself that the crazy magician was the most dangerous.

 

The one who wore a mask, deceived others, and even sliced up the Saintess at the end of <Knight Heart>.

 

He had possessed Licht because of this guy in the first place.

 

Now that the Hero Church had begun its activities, he would undoubtedly start moving as well.

 

He assumed that the protagonist of <Grand Hearts Academia> was Lupus Grancia. No matter how he struggled, he would eventually have to join forces with him in the end.

 

For the sake of the nameless Saintess, he couldn’t afford to be picky about his methods.

 

If he joined forces with the Crown Prince and incapacitated the Demon Lord of Truth in the past, he might be able to avoid the bad ending.

 

Being stubborn wouldn’t help; the Saintess didn’t know him anyway. If he stayed idle like this, she might be harmed by the Demon Lord.

 

As long as he kept Lupus as a companion and didn’t disrupt the Saintess route conditions, it should be fine.

 

As his thoughts cleared, he remembered what he had to do.

 

“…I should go see senior Nex.”

 

A spirit that had matured.  It would be a great help now. Even if a Demon Lord attacked the academy, they wouldn’t be able to penetrate Phoenix’s Cradle.

 

“I need to buy a new Pure Love Injector too.”

 

Moreover, he had to buy a new sword.  The academy should sell them. He started walking.

 

—–CROW—–

 

Five figures sat around a round table illuminated by a chandelier.

 

Several appetizing dishes were laid out, suggesting it was a meal.

 

“…Are you sure it’s done, Head?”

 

“Yes, with this, Nex should have mastered ‘Phoenix’s Cradle.’  There won’t be any errors in my calculations.”

 

“You went this far to reduce the number of deaths? You’re truly ruthless… Just do it all at once…!!”

 

“No.  We have to choose the path with the highest probability of success.”

 

A woman dressed as a magician held a fork, and a gentleman-like man in a suit checked a book while wearing a monocle.  Beside them…

 

“…I think this plan is really good. Don’t you think so, Brother Finn?”

 

“Right.  Intinium.”

 

A pair who looked like twins smiled as they ate.  Blood dripped from the steak they cut with knives.

 

“The Hero of Omniscience only managed a kidnapping? How laughable. It’s not some child’s play.”

 

A man with long black hair and deer antlers spoke sarcastically to the man with the monocle.  The latter seemed displeased and opened his mouth.

 

“Black Cloud, your language is vulgar. This is the best course of action. And stop using that title.”

 

“It’s what our Hero of Omniscience thinks.  Could it be wrong? Hehe!”

 

Tilting her magician’s hat, the white-haired woman spoke with a laugh.  She patted the back of the man called Head forcefully, as if to encourage him.

 

“…It would be best if you didn’t speak.”

 

“Why? We used to be close as heroes~ I’m starting to feel hurt…”

 

“I abandoned the title of hero long ago, Magic Hat.”

 

“Yes, I understand.  My Lord!”

 

The magician puffed out her cheeks as if sulking.  Seeing this, the twins chuckled, while the old man called Black Cloud grimaced in displeasure.

 

“But even with Omniscience, was there a reason to use Servi specifically?  There’s Gluttony and other Apostles.”

 

“This way, we can exploit the loopholes in reverse… Hmm?”

 

Head’s hand, which was flipping through the pages, stopped.

 

As if something serious had happened, the man with the monocle unfolded the book and flipped through it repeatedly. He even broke out in a cold sweat as he checked for errors.

 

“Oh dear, what’s wrong, Head…?”

 

“This can’t be.  Nex was supposed to be the traitor this time…”

 

Head’s hand trembled.  At this, the attention of the other Demon Lords focused on the gentleman.

 

“Ha, as expected.  Just as I thought…”

 

“Headache, are you alright…?”

 

Seeing this, the magician’s eyes curved into crescents, her long white hair fluttered, and her golden eyes gleamed.

 

“…This is going to be interesting!”

 

The Demon Lord of Truth smiled as she looked at a name written in the Book of Life and Death.

 

—–CROW—–