The Master of the Villains Has Disappeared

There was no hesitation in the steps towards the familiar person.

Attention naturally focused on the sudden appearance of the First Princess.

"Pr-Princess..."

"Why is the First Princess at the academy?"

"...Could it be, she came to see the Second Princess?"

Lilian, who walked through the murmuring crowd towards the dust-covered workers, extends her hand.

Towards the familiar man who had just noticed her presence.

No, towards the leader of the secret organization that had swallowed up all the shady parts of the continent in just a few months.

And.

"You know that the excuse of coincidence is childish, right?"

She asks.

What are you plotting this time?

What is the reason for a blood-soaked swordsman to appear in such a peaceful place?

However.

"P-Plotting? Your Highness, I've never had such sinister thoughts in my entire life...!"

"...What?"

What Lilian actually faced was not a familiar face but an unfamiliar one.

Lilian let out a hollow laugh at the sight of the man she thought she had caught disappearing like a mirage.

Then came the voice of the guard captain.

"Is something wrong, Your Highness?"

"No... It's nothing."

She thought about ordering the knights to search the area, but that man wouldn't be caught so easily.

It would surely just be a waste of effort.

Therefore, Lilian turned her back on the gazes directed at her.

And then, towards the carriage heading to the VIP accommodation where she would stay during the Stage of Advancement.

More precisely, towards the carriage heading to Lilian's accommodation.

'The long-awaited meeting can't mean him. Yes, it mustn't...!'

These were roughly the thoughts Lilian was having as she boarded the carriage.

She desperately hoped that the Divine Beast's message, which was the reason and purpose for Lilian's visit to Primus, didn't refer to the outwardly intact madman.

Shortly after, she arrived at the accommodation.

The place, which was the size of a noble's villa, already had several staff waiting to serve the First Princess.

However, she sent everyone away except for the minimum resident staff, making the excuse that she wanted to rest quietly.

After arriving in the spacious bedroom, she didn't even keep the guard knights by her side.

"Then, we'll be waiting outside. Rest comfortably, Your Highness."

Creak. The wooden door with luxurious patterns slowly closed.

Almost simultaneously, a faint sigh was exhaled.

"...Why does it have to be him of all people."

With Karian's appearance, it was clear that some commotion would occur at the academy.

Of course, she didn't particularly care what kind of commotion he might cause, but for some reason, she couldn't shake off the ominous feeling that it would interfere with her meeting.

Whatever that man's purpose was, she hoped he wouldn't interfere.

Whether he kidnapped Primus students or smuggled out ancient books from the grand library, Lilian herself had no intention of intervening.

She hoped the other side wouldn't interfere with her either.

While Lilian was lost in these thoughts about a familiar person, thud.

A neatly folded note gently fell on her forehead.

｢7 PM, I'll see you at the cafe in the main building. You ill-tempered princess.｣

"Ha, who's calling who ill-tempered...!"

I suppose it's as expected.

Despite the empire's elite knights guarding the area, he fearlessly appeared, just dropped a note, and disappeared again.

Lilian frowned at the fact that, as before, she couldn't even hear his footsteps.

Crucially, she was angered by him referring to her as an ill-tempered princess, just like before.

-Crackle!

Finally, she crumpled and tore the note due to the heat rising from deep within her chest.

And then, she annihilated it without leaving a trace using 5th rank incineration magic.

"『Hellfire』"

The note that briefly floated in the air before burning up and disappearing.

Somehow the edge of the carpet got slightly scorched, but she didn't care even a grain of sand's worth.

Only, it seemed she should hear what Karian was thinking.

And she should at least warn him not to interfere with her.

-Thud.

She left the accommodation a little earlier than the time written in the note.

Of course, Lilian alone.

"It's not allowed, Your Highness. If something happens while we're not there..."

"What would people say if they see a princess who can't even go to a cafe alone and is accompanied by knights? Wouldn't they say the First Princess is the continent's greatest coward?"

"However..."

"Icart. I'm no longer that little kid from back then. I can protect myself at least."

Lilian, who snapped at the guard captain with his dignified impression that he was worrying too much, turned her back on him.

She also added a threat that she would treat anyone among the knights who followed her as disrespectful.

While there was certainly a reason that Lilian walked alone towards Primus's main building because she was concerned about the students' gazes.

The most crucial reason lay with the man she would meet in a few minutes.

'He'll probably mock me anyway. Asking why I'm so afraid that I brought knights with me.'

She didn't want to be looked down upon by Karian Dezar, if no one else.

That's why she arrived a little earlier than the appointed time and waited for him with a calm expression.

○

-Rustle.

-Rustle rustle.

"Well then, with this we'll conclude. If there are any parts from today's lesson that you didn't understand..."

As I was finishing up the class as usual, I stopped my words at the sight of the students' dazed expressions.

In such a state, they probably wouldn't hear anything I said.

'Hmm, I might have pushed a bit too hard today.'

Until just now, I had increased the density of the lesson because there were only a few days left until the Stage of Advancement.

Perhaps because of that, most of the advanced class students hadn't even finished taking notes.

Still, well, everything from start to finish was all crucial parts.

They're also things that can be understood step by step once you start understanding a little bit.

Therefore, I abandoned the idea of previewing the next lesson to the students and left the auditorium.

For some reason, it seems like sighs erupted from here and there as soon as I left the auditorium, but I must have heard wrong.

'Come on, does it make sense to be exhausted from just a 3-hour class?'

A moment later, as I started walking down the long corridor, I became lost in thoughts about my next class, the basic Mana Design class.

However, the desire to drink something sweet kept interfering with my thoughts before class preparation.

-Stop.

-...Thud, thud, thud.

In the end, I changed my direction not towards my office where Princess Irina and Evan were waiting, but towards the cafe in the main building.

I'm sure I didn't particularly crave sweet things until just a few months ago, but since my body became younger, it seems I keep looking for sweet things.

Of course, if you think about it, it's certainly because of the cafe owner's excellent skills.

He easily makes things that can't be tasted anywhere else on the continent, so it's impossible to stop visiting.

Moreover, custom-made orders tailored to my taste were also possible separately.

I wonder why I keep thinking of the franchise cafes that were abundant in my original world.

'Indeed, the continent's best academy.'

In a way, the cafe's delicious drinks can also be considered one of Primus's welfare benefits.

I thought that the biggest benefit I gained from becoming a Primus professor might be the cafe.

Eventually, I arrived at the familiar garden and walked towards the entrance of the cafe located in the center of the garden.

However, something feels strange. Especially the atmosphere inside the cafe is strange.

'...Did a fight break out?'

For some reason, I tilted my head at the murmuring filling both outside and inside the cafe, and entered the cafe anyway.

And almost simultaneously, I doubted my eyes.

"Shall we call it... a treasure hunt?"

"Treasure? Are the orphanage's circumstances that difficult these days?"

"Anyway, I just have something to look into personally. Your Highness can just thoroughly enjoy sisterly affection."

Golden hair flowing down to the waist.

High-priced accessories that look expensive at a glance.

Overall white appearance.

And, across from her, black hair.

A clean face with only round glasses as an accessory.

Overall slightly thin build.

"I never thought you'd care about others' family matters. I'm so touched I could cry."

"I've said this many times, but I'm 3 years older. I'd like you to stop addressing me like a subordinate."

"What's wrong with calling a subordinate a subordinate? If you're dissatisfied, you should have been born in the imperial palace."

Very familiar figures to me were sitting at a cafe table, exchanging words that could be either well-wishes or curses.

I barely restrained myself from unconsciously trying to greet them.

However, despite my efforts to fix my gaze forward and walk towards the cafe owner.

"Lower your voice, please. Look, that girl over there can't even order because she's nervous because of you."

"Why is that because of me? It's because of you. Who wouldn't be scared of an assassin reeking of blood?"

"Then, let's ask her directly."

For whatever reason, Karian stood up from his seat and approached me.

No, not just approaching, but patting my head and speaking in a friendly voice.

-Pat pat.

-Pat pat.

"There's just one thing I'd like to ask, if that's alri─"

-Crack!

"...!...!?"

"Ah."

Without realizing it, I kicked Karian's shin hard.

I couldn't stand him patting my head, especially since he's ■■ years younger than me.