novelraw Chapter 134
Chapter 134
Chapter 134
“Aaron, Aaron~”
“Aaron! Wake up!”
I woke up to the sensation of someone fiddling with my face.
When I opened my eyes, Evangeline was tugging at my cheek, playing around.
The first thought that crossed my mind was:
‘Ah, thank goodness.’
Unlike yesterday, she no longer had a fever and looked no different from usual.
Seeing her recover this quickly, the doctor’s diagnosis of stress seemed to have been right.
I sighed in relief inwardly, then gave a light flick on the forehead to the naughty kid who treated my face like a toy.
Of course, I hadn’t put any strength into it, so Evangeline just laughed brightly and enjoyed it.
Seeing her laugh, it truly seemed like she had gotten better. Still, I had to be careful.
“How are you feeling?”
“Hm? What do you mean?”
“You don’t remember?”
“Now that I think about it, this is the first time I’ve seen this place! When did I come here? I remember changing into the new dress Maria bought me……”
“……?”
She didn’t remember the meeting with the Chairman?
I glanced at Ciel, wondering if this was even possible, but she just shook her head silently as if she didn’t know either.
Just in case, I scanned Evangeline’s body with my ocular scanner, but there was nothing unusual.
‘Stress-induced…….’
Could it be that the meeting with the Chairman had been such a shock to her that she unconsciously erased the memory to protect herself? It seemed best to call the doctor again for another examination.
Until then, I should avoid triggering the trauma.
“More importantly, both of you. I’ve prepared breakfast, so please wash up quickly and come eat~”
That explained it.
No wonder there was such a delicious smell.
Following Ciel’s words, I went to the kitchen and saw a fairly plentiful meal prepared.
As expected of a Maid Android, her cooking skills remained intact.
“So you registered in the management system.”
“Ah, I’m sorry. I didn’t ask for permission……”
“No. It’s fine.”
I had no intention of nitpicking about that.
Naturally, I sat down and started eating. Since my mansion didn’t have a child’s chair, Evangeline sat in front of Ciel’s lap, eating the food that Ciel picked up for her like a baby bird.
By the time we were almost done eating—
After sending Evangeline back to her room, Ciel came up to me.
“Aaron, I have something I must report to you~”
She explained.
Last night, while I was asleep, an email from an Unknown Sender had arrived in her personal mailbox.
“What was the content?”
“It asked me not to tell you, and to meet them separately~”
“The Transmigrator Alliance, huh.”
“I think so too~”
They contacted us not long after I had parted ways with Serena?
I would have to confirm with Serena to be sure, but the fact that they managed to find out Ciel’s email address—one we hadn’t shared—meant their information network couldn’t be underestimated.
And on a separate note.
‘How insolent.’
Contacting Ciel in secret at this timing could only be seen as an attempt to drive a wedge between us. Or perhaps to tempt her into betrayal.
Either way, there was no way I could view it favorably.
For now, Favorability Minus.
“I’d like to see that email myself.”
“Ah, I deleted it~”
“Why?”
“It had a virus in it~”
Though still a novice, a Wizard was a Wizard.
Ciel said she hadn’t opened the mail directly, only checked the content, then deleted it.
“Should I have kept it~? I deleted it because I thought backtracking would be impossible anyway……”
“What kind of virus was it?”
“It was malware that allowed them to see information from the infected device in real time~. Things like my location and activity logs~”
“Well done.”
If it couldn’t be traced back, there was no need to keep such a thing.
Since Ciel was a bit airheaded at times, if she accidentally opened it later, it would only cause headaches.
And if they confirmed we hadn’t opened their mail, that might even make them shrink back a little.
“When do you plan on meeting them, Aaron~?”
“That depends on when they contact me again. But before that, I’m thinking of visiting the Hunting Ground once more.”
“W-would that be alright~? Didn’t Evangeline say she couldn’t be away from you for too long~?”
“We’ll have to ask her.”
So after the meal, I asked Evangeline, who was rolling around on my bed.
“I don’t care!”
Her answer came swift and clear.
By the way, the room originally given to her was the guest room.
For some reason, though, Evangeline was playing in my room instead. I was sure I had locked it—how did she even open it?
“This place is much more comfortable than Maria’s house! Breathing is easier, and I feel better! It’ll be far more convenient for gathering mana!”
From Sector A to Sector E were all on the ground, so Anti-rain poured down regularly. But Elysium floated above Sector A in the sky, so no rain fell here.
Not only was there none of the sharp chemical smell unique to Anti-rain, but it was also far from city noise and smog, making the scenery truly like paradise.
For Evangeline, who was vulnerable to Anti-rain, living here was naturally far more comfortable.
However—
“That means you’d be apart from Maria. Is that alright?”
“Then just bring Maria here!”
“Hm……”
She would definitely hate that.
Think about it. Having to look after a child in her boss’s house, on top of already seeing him every day of the year—no matter how much Maria liked Evangeline, that would be too much.
But.
[It’s fine. No problem.]
I was wrong.
When I contacted Maria to ask, she actually accepted the proposal readily, almost as if she had been waiting for it.
Wait. But weren’t you scared of me?
When we first met, you trembled just from me saying a few words. And now you’re agreeing to stay at your boss’s house for several days?
Just how much do you like this kid?
I never thought I’d feel madness from Maria on par with Raina.
“……It can’t be helped, then. Ciel?”
“Understood, Aaron.”
I decided to ask Ciel to help me cover for my absence.
Since suddenly disappearing would be suspicious, we agreed to make it look like I had just been away for a few days.
Instead, I planned to use the ticket at Ciel’s apartment.
Carrying the suitcases I had left in my room, I headed toward Ciel’s apartment. On the way, a thought struck me.
‘Wait…… didn’t I just leave three women in my house, and yet the actual owner is going to stay at someone else’s place?’
Of course, one was just a little kid, another was an Android, and the last one was my exclusive secretary, so it wasn’t strange at all…… but looking at the situation alone, it really sounded hard to explain.
Well, pointless thoughts end here.
‘Before meeting the Transmigrator Alliance bastards, I’ll get my hands on a new module.’
A new Lv.5 Game Changer Module.
Or an unprecedented Lv.6 Arcane Module.
If I could obtain one, then whether it was the Transmigrator Alliance or Omega Investment, it wouldn’t matter—I’d be able to rampage however I pleased.
‘I wonder what kind of place it’ll be this time…….’
What kind of monsters would appear.
What I’d be able to obtain there.
With half-excitement, half-anxiety pressing against my chest.
Sriiip—!
I tore the Blue Hunting Ground Ticket.
While Aaron left for the Blue Hunting Ground—
Time didn’t stop flowing, and before long, the start of Trinity Academy’s second semester arrived.
Normally, students would simply begin their scheduled classes and training without any special events, but this year was a little different.
“I appoint Iri Elisbell as Student Council President.”
From the second semester this year, the Student Council system was being reinstated.
In the election held before vacation, Iri had been chosen, and now an inauguration ceremony was held to grant her the title of Student Council President.
The newly elected citizen-side representative Headmaster handed Iri her appointment letter. As with the Entrance Ceremony, various VIPs attended the event.
After that, the headmasters took turns expressing the pain caused by last semester’s terror incident and student protests, before launching into passionate speeches about overcoming those wounds and reclaiming the land stolen by monsters for the sake of humanity.
“[He talks well. Maybe he got picked as Headmaster just for flapping his mouth.]”
“Be quiet, senpai.”
“[Ow!]”
When Silence mocked the speech while standing in formation, Raina pinched the back of his hand.
Once the Headmaster’s turn ended, Iri went up to the podium as the student representative and gave a speech along similar lines.
Since it was her first time in such a position, she looked a bit nervous in front of the mic, but at the same time, she stood prouder than anyone.
Some disparaged her as ‘Polen’s stray dog,’ but the majority expected that she would responsibly fulfill her duty as Student Council President, just as she had shown on the battlefield.
However, among the VIPs attending the ceremony, some less pure conversations were circulating, separate from Iri.
—The Stingray Chairman has gone missing.
—What? Is that true?
—They say he hasn’t returned even after his vacation ended.
—Another disappearance?
—It’s not certain. Something similar happened last semester, right? Back then it was because someone ambushed him, but this time the rumor is that he simply skipped work without notice.
—First I’ve heard of it.
—Well, the Stingray Foundation is keeping quiet. But it is true that all the events originally scheduled before Trinity Academy’s second semester began were canceled.
Aaron Stingray had disappeared.
One day he suddenly left somewhere, and his whereabouts were still unknown. Rumors spread that his subordinates were handling his duties in his place.
Hearing this nearby, Serena Beresford’s eyes widened in shock.
‘M-my dear husband has disappeared?’
Somehow, Serena’s way of addressing Aaron had changed from ‘Mr. Aaron’ to ‘my dear husband.’
Since returning from their arranged meeting, she had been so lovesick that she dreamt of meeting Aaron every single night.
For her, the news of Aaron Stingray’s disappearance was a huge shock.
‘So that’s why he didn’t answer my calls?’
Serena had told the members of the Transmigrator Alliance that Aaron wished to speak with them.
Later, the members had gathered their opinions and arranged a schedule to meet Aaron, and Serena had tried to deliver that news to him.
But all she got in return was silence.
Despite being the one who had said he’d meet them first, Aaron didn’t respond to Serena at all. Every time she tried contacting him, both on his personal number and at work, the cold reply was always: “The Chairman is unavailable.”
Because of that, opinions were divided among the Transmigrator Alliance members, and they still hadn’t reached any conclusion.
‘I thought I would definitely see him here, so I begged Father to let me attend, even though it was difficult…….’
What should she do now?
‘That person’ remained silent, and Aaron was unreachable. Worry kept swelling inside her.
Flick. Flick, flick.
Suddenly, the lights illuminating the auditorium flickered. Iri’s speech paused, and students began murmuring.
At that moment—
A man slid smoothly into the VIP gallery. Dressed in a black suit, walking with confident steps, it was none other than the city’s Crown Prince, Aaron Stingray.
—What the, he showed up?
—So the disappearance was just a rumor.
—Wait, but……
Everyone’s gaze was drawn to his hand.
On the back of it, there was a small new scar that hadn’t been there before. Or more accurately, not a scar……
—A module mark?
It was proof that he had equipped a new module he hadn’t had before.