NOVPUBIn the middle of the bedroom, next to an oak long table, Lanci Hyperion and the princess sat across from each other.
Their gazes intersected over the three pieces of paper on the table, as if all the secrets of the Cerryti Empire were hidden between those pages.
It was late at night, and the world outside was so quiet as if it had been forgotten. Only this room stood isolated outside the flow of time.
The fear that was about to engulf Alexia, following the disappearance of the Great Love Poet, faded away. She breathed deeply, as if emerging from the depths of the sea, and finally managed to control her emotions.
After a long silence.
"I believe the accuracy of your information, but... who are you exactly?"
The corners of Princess Alexia’s eyes were tense, her lips slightly stiff, and her words still couldn’t shed an unspeakable tension.
"I am an ecologist, currently working on a project about the Blood Clan."
Lanci’s gaze was as sharp as a knife, and every word he spoke seemed to carry a weight.
Even though he could join the Ichrite Academy in the future as a Platinum Level Card Maker, there was still a long way to go to become a dean.
The current dean position of Ichrite Academy is vacant. Professor Bolao of the Magic Engineering College is not interested in power. The Dean of Knight College is in retirement, the Dean of the Sage Academy, Loren, is also the Great Priest of the Church of the Goddess of Destiny and does not have enough time, and the Dean of the Alchemy College is often involved in litigation due to copyright infringements by his newspaper, and there is a possibility he may be jailed at any time.
To become the dean of such a top-notch school, one’s reputation in the academia is indispensable. The school is not only subordinate to the Hutton Kingdom, it is also the official certification and highest-level direct institution of the South Continent Shadow World Management Association and the South Continental Kingdom Union Council. Accompanied by many powers and conveniences, the requirements are naturally extremely high.
One of the extremely challenging requirements is to have a paper that is rated as having the highest academic value in South Continent.
Only a handful of professors in Ichrite Academy meet this condition, demonstrating the strictness of this requirement.
Therefore, the most difficult academic research that Lanci can think of at the moment is "On Ecological Balance and Blood Clan Control".
He is not sure whether this project will be recognized by the academic community in South Continent at that time.
But this should be the attitude towards academia, wholeheartedly, to reach the peak.
"?"
Alexia had never heard of an ecologist who could manage the Blood Clan.
Hyperion, on the other hand, sneaked a glance at Lanci, her eyelids twitching, feeling that he was up to something big again!
The project of visiting the tablets in the Northern Continent scheduled for the winter vacation hadn’t started yet, and he was already planning the next step of research on the ecological environment issues of the Cerriti Empire!
Really, if you don’t become Dean, no one else would be fit to.
Moreover, by that time, even if Hyperion didn’t want to involve Lanci in the Duke’s enigma, Lanci himself would likely get involved in the central dispute of the Cerriti Empire!
After listening to Lanci’s answer, considering it a joke, Alexia pondered for a moment and asked again:
"What is your relationship with the Blood Clan?"
Alexia was on high alert.
This young man knew too many secrets.
There were only two possibilities.
Either he was a puppet of the Blood Clan,
Or he was the Blood Clan’s mortal enemy.
Firstly, Alexia was certain that Lanci could not be the Blood Clan. The Blood Clan was the easiest race to identify, because they would become weak under sunlight, and at noon, they would be reduced to only a tenth of their power. It wasn’t possible for them to look as lively as Lanci under the sun.
But Alexia could not determine if Lanci was a member of the Blood Clan!
Compared to believing that he has an over-the-top prophetic ability, a more reasonable explanation is that Lanci, who is extremely knowledgeable about the Blood Clan, is actually one of them!
"Don’t worry, you’ll know what my relationship with the Blood Clan is tomorrow."
Lanci spread his hands out in resignation, as if understanding Princess Alexia’s worries.
Indeed, he couldn’t explain the source of his intelligence.
But it didn’t matter.
The question the princess asked, he could prove the answer to her tonight.
"Tomorrow... Even if you know so much, what’s the point?"
The resilience that Princess Alexia had initially raised seemed to have been pulled back into harsh reality by Lanci’s brief words, dissipating completely.
If they had met Lanci outside the shadow world, she might have tried to cling to this sliver of hope and struggle to the end.
But in this shadow world where death was inevitable, everyone dying at the hands of the Seventh-order Blood Clan Count was a foregone conclusion.
Even if all the challengers staked their lives, there was no chance of surviving until the arrival of the sixth dawn under the count.
"..."
Lanci’s hand was lightly tapping on the table, the sound echoing in the quiet room, piercing the silent night.
He seemed to be contemplating something at the moment.
"Just a Blood Clan count has scared you like this, if all the royals of the Cerryti Empire are like you, it’s no wonder the nation has been so easily occupied by others."
Finally, Lanci spoke.
Hyperion looked at Lanci in surprise, on the side.
She had never seen Lanci speak so harshly to a girl before.
However.
Upon hearing Lanci’s words, Alexia seemed to be a puppet wound up, and started to move again.
She was glaring at Lanci, her eyes red-rimmed, as if the most uncompromising part of her heart had been touched.
"You...You can call me a useless princess... but you’re not allowed to insult the Cerryti Empire!"
Her eyes were filled with tears, which revealed her final stubbornness.
Even though she had already given up, she didn’t know why, but she just couldn’t let go of certain things.
"Didn’t you think there was no tomorrow? So what’s the point in arguing?"
Lanci looked at her as if she had restarted, and then smiled reassuringly.
"Remember the charges for insulting the royal family, I won’t forget..."
Alexia kept wiping her tears, still warning Lanci.
"Then I’ll wait for you to sue me, I’ll show you what a South Continent invincible player is."
Lanci smiled openly and said.
"Then you go and kill this count first! You’re all talk and no action."
"What if I really hunt down this Blood Clan Count, what will you say?"
"Then whatever you say goes, because you won’t be able to do it anyway." 𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙥𝒖𝒃.𝒄𝒐𝒎
"..."
Although from Hyperion’s perspective by the side, Lanci’s teasing tone was continuously mocking Princess Alexia, it was those words that kept stirring up Alexia’s stubborn will.
Even the reawakened survival instinct in Alexia did not notice.
"Okay."
Lanci stood up with a smile, pushing his chair back into place, the sound of the wooden chairs and stone ground echoing around the room.
Then he and Hyperion left for the bedroom door.
The count doesn’t need the princess to fight tonight, or it’s better to let it look like "the princess has never been trusted by all the other challengers, the Blood Clan interruption has nothing to do with her".
After all, she still has to return to the Cerryti Empire and live with thoses Blood Clan for a while.
If it aroused the vigilance and suspicion of the Blood Clan, it would be troublesome.
Lanci closed the door of the bedroom for Alexia.
"Please, your Highness, have a good rest tonight. I promise the sun will rise as usual tomorrow."
The door slowly closed, and his face was gradually obscured by the door as his voice faded.
Alexia stared blankly at the already locked door and Lanci’s disappearing figure.
Although Lanci’s promise before leaving seemed like an impossible illusion.
But for some reason, she, who was about to give up, felt a burning fire in her chest at this moment.
She looked out the window.
When even the stars seemed blurry, it was as if the night was going to be very long.
If I can really see the sunrise tomorrow.
Then how much difference would it make for the one who can give her this dawn, compared to the sun?
"Please save me... no matter what kind of sun you are..."
Alexia looked at the cage-like night sky as if she was praying, muttering to herself.
