I Became the Savior of the Academy’s Villains

Chapter 136

"They wrote inside here about the plan to kill me using Theodore Partigel."

Milia said so as she shook the letter.

The seal on the outside was not just the ordinary Partigel family seal.

It was a special stamp that only the family head could use.

"Of course, it could just be a fake made by the third prince... but the idea that someone would go to such trouble just to fool me is almost laughable. I'm probably not worth that kind of effort yet."

With those words, Milia made the letter vanish.

She then gave a self-deprecating smile.

"You know our supporter is the Duke of Partigel, right?"

"Roughly."

This was something Luca had heard through Isella.

He knew Milia's supporter was Theodore Partigel's father—in other words, Obrola Partigel.

"To be precise, it wasn't Obrola Partigel himself. It was Robentus Partigel, the current head of the Partigel merchant group."

"Robentus Partigel? Isn't he the eldest son of the Partigel family?"

"That's right. Since he himself said, 'My father ordered it', in the end it's still Obrola Partigel's will. Having his son carry it out instead of doing it himself was probably something of an insurance policy."

Listening to what Milia said, Luca showed a curious expression.

'In reality, all his children follow his word anyway.'

Luca, who had read the original story, knew what kind of person Obrola Partigel was.

He hadn't been shaken even when Theodore Partigel became suspicious.

'Actually, it was even stranger when I heard their supporter was the Duke of Partigel.'

There were two reasons why the mention of the Duke of Partigel felt off.

First, in the original story, Milia had no sponsor.

'You could call her the self-made type.'

Maybe when the protagonist was still in first year it wasn't obvious, but by her third year—when Milia, the undying princess, was making her moves—she had enough power to stand up to the princes.

She had grown her force by drawing in the non-mainstream arcane science students and some politically neutral alchemists.

She couldn't win against the princes, but she could go toe-to-toe with them.

At that point, the original goal for Milia was to bring the protagonist, who was stirring up trouble at the academy, to her side—forming a force able to defeat the princes.

'Well, it's a year earlier now, so even if she had a sponsor, that would be understandable. Still, it was odd for the Duke of Partigel to be that sponsor.'

The second odd point was the way the Duke of Partigel acted in the original story.

'The Duke of Partigel is, how should I put it... too patriotic to ever betray the first prince.'

Obrola Partigel, in short, was conservative.

He believed the first prince, the emperor's eldest son, was the rightful heir.

Of course, it wasn't just because he was the eldest.

His support base wasn't limited to a single faction—it stretched across many groups.

He also had ties with foreign powers that would help if he rose to the throne.

Moreover, Obrola Partigel was wary of the mages having too much power.

To check the third prince, who had the support of the mages, he lent more strength to the first prince.

'Did he want to create a three-way struggle? Then why would he give that letter to the third prince?'

It was one thing if he supported the fourth princess Milia to balance the scales of power, but it didn't make sense why he'd suddenly stab her in the back.

'... Wait a minute. In the original, didn't the Duke of Partigel betray Milia too?'

The timing or order might have been a little different, but in the end Milia was attacked by Theodore and the third prince in the original story too.

'If it's an incident involving the devil stone, it would practically have been fate.'

That event would have completely painted Milia as a villain.

Milia herself quite liked Theodore, but she was betrayed; Isella, unable to withstand the devil's power, would have been badly injured.

It was a huge incident where, literally, love and friendship were both lost.

'Even after being stabbed in the back and going through all that... how did Milia amass such power?'

Something didn't add up.

If the Duke of Partigel truly betrayed Milia, there's no way she would have gained political strength afterwards.

Especially in the arcane science department, since sponsorship from the merchant groups was crucial, the Duke's interference would have cut her off in an instant.

'... Wait. Could Milia detecting the betrayal be the change here?'

Then he remembered her trip to the imperial capital during the temporary break, meeting the third prince, and receiving that letter.

'What if in the original, Isella was injured and needed help? If the one who helped was the Duke of Partigel, and she didn't know he betrayed her?'

In that case, Milia would have become a very convenient pawn for the Duke of Partigel.

'So that's why the Duke of Partigel was the shadow behind Milia and Isella.'

Luca twisted his lips.

He had a fairly good grasp of the situation.

The question was, what should they do from here?

"If the Duke of Partigel is an enemy... that means half of the Hernan Empire is basically an enemy, doesn't it...?"

Just looking at Ottbo freaking out told him how powerful a foe this was.

The ducal family of Partigel controlled all the empire's money.

If you became his enemy, there would be no place for you in the empire.

"Why? Regretting you chose the wrong side?"

At his reaction, Milia said sharply.

Ottbo flinched and glanced at her warily.

Then Luca spoke calmly.

"I knew from the start this was a rotten rope. In fact, I didn't even think of it as a 'rope' at all."

"......."

"More importantly, what do you plan to do? If the Duke of Partigel is your enemy, do you have a way to resolve this?"

At the bluntness—almost cruelty—of his words, Milia fell silent.

Her eyes trembled slightly, clearly lost deep in thought.

Luca slowly voiced his own thoughts.

"To begin with, it was probably an accident from the Duke's perspective that you found out about his betrayal."

"... What do you mean?"

"I mean, the third prince's revealing of the Duke's betrayal to you was something even the Duke wouldn't have expected."

Luca presented the optimal reasoning, putting together what he knew and the current situation.

"The Duke of Partigel likely intended to use you to keep the third prince in check. Since the empire's developed in magic and the third prince, supported by mages, must have been a thorn in his side."

"I can't be worth that much to him, can I?"

"The basic rule of merchants is to buy cheap and sell high. Right now, you've got no real power base and little strength, but with 'divine relic' and 'Moonlight' as asymmetric assets, you'd be a valuable uncut gem if polished right."

Luca folded his arms and continued.

"The third prince isn't stupid either—he must have guessed the Duke's intent to some extent. Still, he went along because, so long as he killed you for sure, there would be no loose ends."

Realizing something, Milia narrowed her eyes.

"But I survived."

"Exactly. Which means you've become that 'loose end'."

Luca pointed at Milia with his finger.

"You didn't die, but instead hid yourself in the academy. Plus, the academy is currently under heavy scrutiny thanks to the terrorist incident. They won't be able to send in new assassins right now."

"... And if I build a power base here?"

"That would mean the birth of a new force to check the third prince—exactly as the Duke of Partigel planned."

If the third prince killed Milia, it's convenient—one annoyance gone.

If he failed, then a new force with a grudge against the third prince would be born—also convenient.

It was the shrewd calculation of a merchant.

"And that's why the third prince gave you that letter. To keep things from going the Duke's way."

In this scenario, there's one way to redirect Milia's anger: make her realize she's been betrayed.

So the third prince handed her the letter.

'The third prince isn't ordinary either.'

It seemed as though he acted on whim, but there was calculation behind it.

Having listened to Luca's reasoning, Milia let out a little laugh.

"... So that's how it is."

Until now, her head had been so hot she couldn't think straight, but now she understood the situation surrounding her.

'I hate to admit it, but I owe this to Luca.'

Milia was inwardly impressed.

Luca managed to figure all this out with so little information.

His cool logicality and quick judgment were impressive.

'... Maybe Luca is my opportunity.'

Looking at things now, it wasn't Luca who grabbed the opportunity of a new fourth princess's faction, but Milia who seized the opportunity called Luca.

She bit her lip.

'I can't let this continue. Calm down. I need to act more properly from here on out.'

It brought her a strong sense of urgency.

After everything she'd survived so far, she couldn't fall apart here.

'Luca. Truly an amazing guy.'

Milia looked at Luca.

Though his indifferent face betrayed nothing, she couldn't help but think he was remarkable.

"Let's sum up the situation. First, the Duke of Partigel probably doesn't know that you're aware of his betrayal yet."

"Right. The third prince wouldn't have told him."

"But I think it's only a matter of time. Even if he's not certain, he'll be suspicious sooner or later."

Neither the Duke nor the third prince were ordinary.

They'd have prepared for the chance of both sides betraying each other.

"So it really is just a matter of time. You need to build some kind of power base before he catches on completely."

"Do you have a way?"

At Luca's question, Milia gave a bitter smile.

"Who knows? But I have to try, don't I?"

"... That's true."

Whether she could or not wasn't the issue—she had to.

Otherwise, the Duke of Partigel would cut off her arms and legs and turn her into his puppet.

"And actually, there's something I've been considering for a while. A way to build a force outside the Duke's influence."

"You have?"

Looking quietly surprised, Luca eyed Milia as she smiled serenely.

"I was planning to prepare a bit more, but... as things are now, we'll have to move faster."

"Hope it works out for you."

"But Luca, I'll need your help with this. Can you help me?"

As Milia spoke carefully, Luca smacked his lips.

"Can't be helped. Say it."

"Well..."

Milia quickly explained her plan.

"I'd like you to make friends with the alchemists. Preferably with someone like Archiond Robette."

"You don't need to get them to say they personally support us. Just get close enough that people know you two are somewhat friendly."

"Of course, it's fine to befriend others too. The point is that you're a 'useful person' who's connected to talented people, and that person supports me."

Milia's plan was simple.

Raise Luca's value.

And make it common knowledge that Luca supported Milia.

"With that, I'll negotiate with 'Robentus Partigel'."

"... Ho."

Hearing her plan, Luca's expression turned thoughtful.

It was a clever move.

'Making the son betray the parent. Not a bad idea.'

For Milia, it was quite a gamble.

After all, there was no obvious reason for Robentus Partigel to betray his father.

But if she'd been preparing for this for a while, she must have had some grounds for it.

"I've been laying the groundwork, but I'm missing one critical piece—the next generation's sure-and-promising leader to swear support for me. I'd like that person to be you."

Milia's face was earnest.

Looking at her, Luca was silent for a moment before clicking his tongue.

"Making friends isn't exactly my hobby."

"We can't always do only the things we want."

"Huh. That's true. But won't it take quite a bit of time?"

Glancing past Luca, Milia chuckled softly.

"It might end up being faster than you think."

"?"

"Oh? Luca! Haha! Fancy meeting you here! Did you have a good break?"

Just as if he'd been waiting, someone spotted them and approached with a bright smile.

Seeing who it was, Luca clicked his tongue.

"Can't catch a break."

"What do you mean?"

Dark brown hair, slender build, and a winning smile that put anyone at ease.

It was Archiond Robette.