Chapter 296: Explosion (1)

    The news that Hiriya had met with Marie reached me shortly afterward. Marie herself grumbled about it to me.

    For a moment, I was worried that something bad might have happened, but fortunately, my concerns were unfounded, and things unfolded as expected.

    Especially when the subject of my father came up, Hiriya seemed to accept it all too easily. The Red Lion’s reputation appeared to be even more formidable than I had anticipated.

    In any case, Marie explained that Hiriya left with a sinister smile, though what schemes she might be plotting remain unclear.

    Since she’s now completely dismissed the suspicion that I am Xenon, it won’t be long before she approaches me directly. She might even try to ensnare Adelia.

    To prevent this, Marie advised me to always keep Adelia by my side. With Hiriya having discarded her doubts about me being Xenon, she might resort to more aggressive tactics.

    Though I have no idea when this might happen, given Hiriya’s devious nature, she could approach me on an unexpected day.

    The bigger issue is Adelia, not Hiriya. Knowing Adelia, she might feel like a burden.

    Even though Hiriya is no real threat to me as Xenon, Adelia might think she’s a hindrance and try to leave.

    To prevent this, I need to keep Adelia close to me. Fortunately, the academy regulations allow for a bodyguard to stay with a student under special circumstances.

    In other words, Adelia will be staying with me in my dormitory from now on, instead of her own.

    Given this situation, I thought it would be better to request her official status as my personal maid, and I’ve already applied to the academy. The administrative office is known for its quick processing, so the approval should come through within two days.

    It’s a strange feeling, having my fiance?e live separately while Adelia, who is practically my concubine, stays in the same room with me.

    Even though Marie understood the situation, she couldn’t help but feel jealous, and she acted out during our date.

    “Chomp!“

    “Ack!”

    She playfully bit my cheek. This was one of her usual affectionate gestures, but today, perhaps due to accumulated stress from recent events, it hurt more than usual.

    “Ouch, ouch. What’s wrong?”

    “I’m trying to make you less handsome! Chomp!“

    “Ack!”

    Marie kept insisting that this whole mess happened because I was too good-looking. If I were a bit less attractive, Hiriya wouldn’t have taken an interest in me, she argued.

    I wanted to protest, but I knew it would only lead to more biting, so I reluctantly agreed.

    She bit me harder, asking if I was admitting to it. What was I supposed to do? Still, she was so cute that I let it slide.

    After finishing our date and smoothing things over with Marie, I headed to the dormitory to inform Adelia of the news.

    I also wanted to see Cherry, but since everything wasn’t completely resolved yet, I planned to meet her slowly. I even sent her a letter to avoid her feeling neglected.

    ‘She was the key player in this whole ordeal.’

    Though initially doubtful, Cherry helped turn my suspicions into certainty. She had practically exposed all of Hiriya’s plans. If everything goes well, I intend to give her a small gift.

    Knowing her, she’d be happy with anything I gave her, but I’m not that inconsiderate.

    As I pondered what kind of gift to get her, I made my way to Adelia’s dormitory.

    “Huh?”

    I couldn’t believe my eyes at the sight before me. Even from a distance, I spotted a color reminiscent of the sky.

    Standing there was a familiar woman with light brown hair. Both were of similar height, making their eye level the same.

    What the hell. Why is she here again? Doesn’t she have anything better to do?

    Cursing inwardly, I hurried my steps. I never expected Hiriya to come looking for Adelia so soon.

    At the same time, I felt relieved. If I had delayed even a bit, I wouldn’t have witnessed this situation.

    “Adelia Noona!”

    “?”

    “Huh?”

    Shouting loudly to catch their attention, both women turned their heads simultaneously, just as I expected.Th.e? most uptodate novels are published on n(0)velbj)n(.)co/m

    As soon as I made eye contact with them, I moved even faster. As I got closer, the sky-haired beauty, Hiriya, gave me an enigmatic smile.

    Was it just my imagination, or did that smile seem particularly unsettling? First things first, I needed to understand the situation.

    Contrary to my worries, Adelia was in her workout clothes. It seemed she had been exercising when Hiriya called her out.

    “Isaac?”

    Adelia’s eyes widened in surprise, clearly not expecting me to appear. Her sky-blue eyes were filled with confusion.

    What on earth were they talking about to make her look like that? I did my best to stay calm as I looked at Hiriya.

    Hiriya maintained a confident stance, her demeanor smug. The urge to punch her was strong, but I suppressed it.

    “Princess Hiriya, what business do you have with my bodyguard?”

    Despite maintaining my composure, I couldn’t keep my voice from lowering. My regard for Hiriya had hit rock bottom long ago.

    Hiriya, however, just kept smiling, whatever she was thinking.

    “How timely, a handsome prince has arrived. Don’t you think?”

    “... ...”

    Ignoring my question, she made a bizarre statement, openly mocking Adelia. I couldn’t help but frown.

    Adelia, usually brimming with confidence, looked visibly unsettled by the situation. Her eyes darted nervously between Hiriya and me, looking pitifully distressed.

    She knows that I am Xenon, but she seems to be restraining herself as much as possible to avoid causing any harm to me.

    She probably would have endured and hid it even if Hiriya hit her.

    ‘I was careless.’

    Because of the long-standing feud between Adelia and Hiriya, my identity is destined to be revealed eventually. Even if I persist in denying it until the end, Adelia will face difficult situations like she is now.

    “Don’t tell me you have slept with this lowly woman?”

    Hiriya interrupted, cutting in sharply. It was like an unexpected blow that hit right in the gut, delivering a powerful counterattack.

    I flinched and fell silent, unable to hide my shocked expression. Adelia was similarly affected.

    If you think about it carefully, it’s a hypothesis one could easily come up with. Moreover, Hiriya has shown a particular interest in Adelia, so this was probably within her expectations.

    However, all I’ve done is give her more ammunition. Sure enough, Hiriya’s lips curled into a wicked smile before she burst into loud laughter.

    “Hahahahahaha! This is amusing, truly amusing! Hahaha!”

    “··· ···”

    “...What’s so amusing?”

    I asked while glancing around. My red hair alone was enough to draw attention, and with Hiriya here as well, passersby were naturally curious.

    Moreover, Hiriya is a princess of the Kingdom of Ters. Just being seen with her would spark all kinds of rumors, and right now, she was with me.

    “Look over there. Isn’t that the red-haired boy engaged to Lady Requilis?”

    “It is. But Princess Hiriya is with him too?”

    “What on earth is going on?”

    Our presence together was already attracting attention, and Hiriya’s laughter only drew more eyes.

    It was a situation beyond retrieval. I frowned and turned my gaze back to Hiriya.

    Still chuckling, she muttered disdainfully.

    “They say you can’t deny your blood. Just like mother, just like child.”

    “··· ···”

    “Are you going to repeat what she said? That you don’t care about yourself, but at least raise your child in a warm place. That it’s your child, so please raise them decently.”

    Was that what Adelia’s mother said when she went to see Friedrich? As everyone knows, Adelia’s birth mother was a prostitute.

    But it seems she decided she couldn’t raise her daughter in a brothel, so she went directly to Friedrich. However, Friedrich accepted Adelia but coldly turned her mother away.

    The whereabouts of Adelia’s birth mother are still unknown, but it was said to be a cold winter with falling snow, making it likely that she died. The mortality rate for prostitutes was very high in those times.

    In other words, Hiriya was delivering a barrage of insults at a nearly unforgivable level. Moreover, her words were sure to strike at the core of Adelia’s deepest pain.

    Glancing at Adelia, I saw a side of her I had never seen before. Her fists were clenched tightly and trembling, her sky-blue eyes bloodshot with anger.

    I exhaled deeply and spoke to Hiriya in a calm voice, trying to de-escalate the situation.

    “...Please stop, Princess. Adelia Noona is someone I chose personally. My fiance?e has approved of this as well.”

    “Oh. That’s an interesting story. Did she finally realize her place after desperately trying to gain a royal title?”

    “Princess.”

    “Yes, know your place. It’s better than trying to become the king’s concubine like someone else...”

    “You...!”

    Adelia couldn’t hold back any longer. She clenched her teeth and raised her arm.

    Even with her strong patience, she couldn’t tolerate someone insulting her mother. Hitting at her core pain rather than just a trauma.

    Just as Adelia’s hand was about to swing and slap Hiriya’s cheek.

    Grab!

    “Calm down, Noona.”

    “Ah, Isaac. But...”

    I managed to stop her by grabbing her arm. Adelia looked at me and Hiriya with a mix of surprise and anger.

    She couldn’t comprehend it. If she had acted on her momentary rage, the situation could have gotten dangerously complicated.

    She might even feel guilty. I slowly lowered her arm, signaling her to calm down.

    “Princess.”

    “What is it?”

    “You started this, Princess.”

    If Adelia were to hit Hiriya, she would bear the responsibility. But if I...

    Slap!!!

    ...hit Hiriya, it’s a different story. I would bear the responsibility.

    With a resounding slap, Hiriya’s head snapped to the side, and a heavy silence fell over the scene.

    I could hear the gasps of the onlookers, but it didn’t matter. The die had been cast.

    Hiriya touched her rapidly swelling cheek and stared at me, disbelief evident in her eyes.

    “Fine. I’ll tell you.”

    I don’t know if this is the critical moment Mora spoke of, but...

    “I am Xenon.”

    At least, Hiriya needed to know.

    “You bitch.”

    You’re done for now.

    Translators note:

    HOLY SHIEEET~~~ It’s going down~~~