The Noble Lady of Lust

Chapter 412: What is she up to?

She is curiously good at managing the flow of conversation, from an exchange of death threats to reconciliation and even forming a friendship, as we were doing at the beginning.

And well, if we go back to the beginning, I won’t deny that I’m a little interested in her and so on; I also have to admire her personality in protecting her sister’s secret and integrity.

That’s worthy of my respect, and if there’s no conflict, it wouldn’t be bad at all to get to know her better and, along the way, find out why I don’t know anything about her.

"Well, hum, of course, I’m always available for lunch with a beautiful Senpai, although I’m not sure if Silvia is available, she’s a busy person."

’Silvia, help me with this. I’m a little interested in this girl, I’ll make it up to you instead.’

I spoke mentally to Silvia; it was a good time for her collaboration in the Silvi-Chris team, which she has neglected lately.

Besides, I know she doesn’t like this kind of thing and for her it’s more of a problem than anything else.

"I don’t need any compensation, you two can go."

’Good one, Silvia.’

’Do whatever you want, I really don’t understand how you can do something like this. I’m still scared of what you were about to do, and now you go and want to have a date with that same person.’

’Oh!, and you still helped me; I’ll pay you back for that too. Whenever you want to kill someone, I’ll help you.’

’...I’ll keep that in mind.’

’Hey!, is there really someone? Have you already awakened your yandere side? I’ll tell you that I won’t accept it if it’s someone I know like Lys or Rowyn.’

’Obviously not... you don’t have to worry about that.’

She says that, but I’m really worried; it’s my job as her friend to correct her if she goes down the wrong path, but she doesn’t seem to be lying, so it’s all good...

"Hmm, you don’t mind me going out with your boyfriend?... Well, okay, but don’t blame me if we get to know each other too well."

"He’s not my—"

"Attention, attention everyone, sorry for the delay, classes are starting now...."

At that moment, interrupting Silvia’s words, the instructor, who was neither Astrid nor the other annoying one, began to speak, amplifying his voice so that it could be heard everywhere.

It seems that they finally finished what they were doing, and in fact there are no longer just three instructors, but several who stayed behind to make sure there were no more incidents.

There was one who was especially tall and muscular, who for some reason I don’t understand was watching me closely and warningly

He was Instructor Graham, and incidentally, he is fourth on the list of instructors I got along with best. He would be higher up, but his classes are so sadistic that they lower his ranking.

"Okay!, here are the groups, I hope this will serve as a foundation for you to build your future."

The instructor who was speaking projected a large image made of illusionary magic in front of him, showing a list of students separated into groups, and also showing the veterans who was supposed to lead the group.

"Huh? That’s strange. I was sure I had made arrangements for my sister to lead the most outstanding young men... Why are you suddenly assigned to—? Did he intervene? No, That’s not like him. Wait!, he’s next to..."

I heard Wen-senpai mutter; and aside from the fact that she seems to have made arrangements for something that was supposed to be random, it seems that I am not under her or Rowyn’s tutelage as she thought; instead, I am...

..

.

’...Is there something strange here’

’Well, from what Wen-senpai said, it’s obvious that there is.’

’Did she do some kind of manipulation?’

’But that makes it even stranger; after all, he’s not here.’

’Yes, very suspicious, I really can’t understand what she’s planning.’

’Not to mention that it’s strange that she’s calmly standing next to him...’

’It smells like a conspiracy here.’

’Not everyone is as sensible as Wen-senpai, right?’

’Well, she can be sensible if she puts her mind to it, but apparently last time wasn’t enough of a warning.

’So she didn’t take what I said seriously.’

’If that’s the case, then we’ll have to start thinking about how to get rid of her before she becomes a nuisance.’

’Yes... although it will be difficult with her strength and faction. But if the conditions are right...’

I was talking mentally with my doppelgänger as I watched the two people in charge of guiding us and giving us advice.

Both were people I was familiar with.

One was Maximilian, someone who would become a good friend in the future... and my brother-in-law.

The other was Celestine, someone I didn’t want to get involved with anymore.

It was strange that, among so many people, they were the ones leading our group, which consisted of all the girls, including Silvia and a couple of others.

It was obvious that, before this class, many things had been set in motion behind the scenes to achieve this result.

Of the two suspects, it obviously wasn’t going to be the straightforward and kind Maximilian.

And if there was anyone who liked that kind of thing, it was none other than that devious princess Celestine, whose specialty and enjoyment are these kinds of behind-the-scenes power games.

If William were in this group, there would be no problem, but now I had to rack my brains thinking about what she was planning, so I kept my eyes on her.

"Okay, and when you kill the beasts, make sure you don’t let your guard down. Even when they appear to be dead, strike a vital point to make sure they really are."

"The reason is that some are cunning enough to feign death; that has already cost many lives."

"If it’s like Celes says, it’s never good to be overconfident... Hmm... what else...?"

"Post-mortem treatment and how to get the most out of the hunts. If you don’t mind, I can take this part."

"...All right."

It was interesting how they both explained things and gave advice.

It was mainly Maximilian who shared his experience, while Celestine chimed in from time to time, adding her own thoughts when they differed from Max’s.

Objectively, it was very good advice for second-generation novices—and considering that both of them were the super elite of the previous generation—this was a unique opportunity.

But from my perspective, both of them fell quite short compared to the experience my alternate self had left me with.

The difference was clear: too much immaturity, some gaps in their advice. Still, they were mostly correct.

And because I already knew what they were saying, I was more focused on something else:

what Celestine was up to... and how I should deal with her.

"..."

"..."

"..."

"Huh?"

Suddenly there was a strange silence that puzzled me, and I paid attention to what was happening.

"Just in case, I’ll repeat, are there any questions or personal opinions regarding what we said?"

I don’t understand, but Maximilian asked that, looking directly at me for some reason.

I looked around and most people raised their hands, including the girls; even Elena and Eira had questions.

Only three people didn’t raise their hands, including Seraphina and me.

We were both too deep in our own thoughts.

I mean, that shouldn’t matter; if I don’t have any questions, he should just skip me and answer the rest, but it seems like he wants me specifically to raise my hand.

Maximilian was looking at me with an expression that was anything but friendly.

I didn’t understand why... and even less so when he gave me one last look full of contempt and warning before starting to answer questions, while Celestine was already doing so on her own.

"~Um... Chris, what are you thinking about? Why are you so distracted?"

I heard a low voice next to me. It was Aurora.

For some reason, when I arrived, she saved me a seat next to her. On the other side were Eira and Selene.

Selene, in the middle, took advantage of the situation and rested her head on my lap to take a little nap; all this time I had been unconsciously stroking her.

"It’s nothing, I was just thinking about something else. Anyway, I don’t have anything to ask."

"You should at least pretend you do. But hey, it’s your problem."

I didn’t quite understand what Aurora meant, but I didn’t give it much thought.

Selene’s ears began to move, which caught my full attention.

I started stroking her and playing with her a little while she slept. She complained and seemed to resist my teasing, but I knew she wouldn’t wake up so easily, which made it more fun.

So I entertained myself by teasing her for a while... at least until Eira got angry. I didn’t know if it was because I was teasing her sister or because she was jealous that I was only flirting with her.

"Huh?"

At that moment, I felt something new and looked up; it was in the direction where Maximilian was, but he wasn’t looking in my direction.

’How strange, well, whatever, I’m going to tease Eira a little.’

..

.

"Okay. Now that we’re done with the theory part, let’s move on to my favorite part. A little sparring. I’ve always thought that a good fight is worth a thousand words."

"Ahem!. Maximilian, try to maintain a little decorum or the juniors will think you’re just a musclehead. That impression cannot come from the future king."

"Huh? ...Yeah, I guess you’re right. But, Celes, today you... No, it’s nothing."

’That girl is definitely acting weird. What is she up to?’

Celestine always sought to discredit Maximilian, to prove that she was superior in every field.

But today, not only did she not do that, she acted as a supporter, as an equal, even trying to maintain harmony. Without her usual provocations.

To those of us who knew her, this seemed strange and absolutely suspicious. Even Maximilian seemed to realize that something was wrong; I also heard Aurora whisper something about her next to me.

"Okay, I’m going to randomly pick someone for a little practice. Starting with... you. The one with dark hair. Come here."

"..."

"Hey, aren’t you listening to me?"

"Huh? Me?"

"Yes, you. Stop fooling around and come up here."

’What’s going on?’