TLed by NolepGuy
Chapter 243
◎You have qualified to view the Hidden Side Story.
◎〈666th Side Story〉 in its Original Form….
-Would you like to view it?
I thought that once I found the key, all misfortunes would come to an end.
Even the recurring nightmares.
Even living while hoping for justice.
I thought that with the key, the story would come to an end.
“Haa…”
Mikhail swallowed a deep breath, calming his Troubled Heart. The time had come to receive answers for the efforts he had poured into one single hope. It wasn’t easy to calm his heart.
The reward for all the efforts he had made until now.
Standing before the hope he had risked his life to know if he could, Mikhail let out a trembling breath and nodded.
“I’ll view it.”
The Blue Window whispered in a Cold Voice into Mikhail’s ear, changing his vision.
-The viewing begins.
Mikhail envisioned a happy Future.
And.
That hope broke down.
***
Returning to the Estate, I swallowed a deep breath in the Dark Room.
“…My lips are itching.”
[Q. Mikhail’s guardian.]
·
·
·
◎ Reward: You can view 〈16th Side Story〉 ‘The Risk of Truth.’
The limit of keeping the secret I had put off and delayed had arrived. Blocked by the hill called Restriction, I could no longer play the game of secrets. I looked at the Status Window before me and gave a bitter Smile.
“I was never someone who listened well in the first place.”
When the Young Lady wet the bed as a child, I had spread the rumor throughout the entire Estate, yet the restraint that tickled the lips of the Possessor stirred a pointless defiance within me.
“Suddenly, I feel annoyed.”
Even though I usually ignored the words of the Status Window that hadn’t done much for me, the thought of being cautious made me feel like I had lost my resolve, which annoyed me a little.
“…Should I just blurt it out?”
The thought of blurting it out in a fit of anger crossed my mind, but I let out an Empty Laugh and shook my head.
‘No, I held back because I hate trouble…. I can say it later, right?’
Since I would be the most inconvenienced if Mikhail’s Awakening was delayed, I shook my head and let out a sigh.
“Hmm…”
Then, should I take a look at this Restriction?
What on earth is so grand that it’s been hidden so tightly? I stared at the Status Window, filled with curiosity.
-◎ Reward: You can view 〈16th Side Story〉 ‘The Risk of Truth.’
It was the reward for a Quest I had completed during my short stint as a teacher in Hamel. Looking at the reward I had been putting off, I nodded slightly and spoke.
“I’ll view it.”
With a warning that I’d spill it all if it wasn’t a big deal, I accepted the darkening vision with familiarity.
*
My vision darkened.
Maybe because I had experienced it once before, I wasn’t too surprised. After all, the first time is always the hardest.
‘What are they going to show me this time?’
Honestly, I wasn’t looking forward to it.
Expecting something like this felt strange, and I could roughly predict what kind of events would unfold.
Shock.
Regret.
And apologies. That’s all I thought it would be.
Instead, I assumed the process would be long and might cause issues with the Awakening. As I felt my darkened vision gradually brighten, I lifted my head and let out an Empty Laugh at the sight of myself standing in a familiar space.
‘Ha.’
A familiar building.
Frozen people.
And me and the Young Lady standing in the center of their gazes.
‘Damn…’
As soon as I opened my eyes, a curse slipped out.
There were no good Memories in the space where I stood. The vile hobby of the divine naturally made me curse.
The Courtroom.
In the place where I had met my end at the Academy, I stood.
I saw the Young Lady glaring at the people with a face that seemed about to explode and myself clenching my Fist, holding back my anger.
Chartia, who had taken on the role of the committee’s moderator, and the Witness Stand occupied by Mikhail, Yuria, the Crown Prince, and Ruin. Gathered in one place after a long time, they looked at our past selves with cold eyes.
And I looked at them, frozen in the past, with cold eyes.
‘…I don’t know how to feel about this.’
I thought I was fine, but seeing myself in that place from a Third-Party Perspective made me let out an Empty Laugh.
‘Seriously… this is f*cked up.’
Standing still in that spot for a long time, I tightly closed my eyes and recalled the events of the past.
-Expel the Evil Villainess.
-Get her out!
-Don’t ever let her set foot in the Academy again!
-Boo! Boo!
Recalling the Criticism, rebukes, and curses that had run rampant that day, I felt a melancholic mood. I regretted not cursing more at the time.
It hadn’t even started yet, but I already felt deeply uncomfortable.
I took a calm breath and lifted my head.
-The viewing will begin in 10 minutes.
Nothing would change by getting angry, but I still had a long way to go before becoming an adult.
Time passed.
The seemingly immovable time struggled to take its steps, awkwardly leaping forward to deliver the truth called ‘Restriction.’
Just as I was getting tired of waiting.
-The viewing begins.
A Cold Voice cautiously announced the start of the story.
“Ah. Ah…”
Chartia’s voice was heard.
The voice of the strong and cold Student Council President resonated through the hall, marking the beginning of the recollection in the ears of the me standing in the center.
“From now on, we will begin the 307th Academy Countermeasures Committee.”
At Chartia’s voice, which announced the judgment of the Evil Villainess, the audience began to murmur.
“Young Lady…”
“I told you, Ricardo.”
“…”
“If you’re too kind, they’ll just keep crawling all over you, won’t they? I could’ve done worse, I could’ve just killed them, but I held back, and this is what I get.”
“Young Lady.”
“I’ll kill them.”
The quiet whispers of the past me and the Young Lady echoed softly. Our voices, which had been the most aggrieved and had become the Protagonist of that day, rang out without catching anyone’s attention.
Chartia silently carried out her duties.
“Today’s case concerns the violence, verbal abuse, threats, ostracism, and use of Dark Magic by 1st Year Olivia, which occurred on May 15th. We will determine the level of disciplinary action.”
I didn’t realize it at the time.
-Murmur, murmur.
-Again with the same thing?
-The rumors are already everywhere.
That the way they looked at us was so blatant. Seeing it all from a Third-Party Perspective, I felt the fact that there was no one on Our Side in this Courtroom like a piercing sting.
I knew it.
I let out an Empty Laugh, looking at the Young Lady with her Rage Vein showing and my Past Self worrying about her, and gave an awkward Smile.
‘Haa…’
Students claiming to be Victims were coming out one by one as Witnesses.
“That’s right. Olivia made us do everything…”
“I did tell you to do it, but you all did it together, didn’t you!”
“Kyaaak!”
“Ricardo, make that b*tch Kneel Down right now.”
The Young Lady’s unfiltered reaction darkened the atmosphere of the Courtroom, and Public Opinion, naturally, flowed against us.
I wasn’t resentful.
Because it was something we had done wrong. Even now, I didn’t think we were falsely accused, nor did I want to argue about it. I just regretted not cursing out those who stood as Witnesses back then.
Since I had no intention of being a Hero, I brushed away my dark Emotions and silently watched the events of the past.
The next Witness to appear was Yuria.
“1st Year Yuria. Can you describe the situation where Olivia threatened and bullied you?”
-Nod.
Next was Mikhail.
“1st Year Mikhail. Can you testify about the Evil Deeds Olivia committed?”
“Yes, and I will also testify about Ricardo, that The Man.”
As the traces of Evil Deeds piled up one by one, the Young Lady and my Past Self naturally lost their words and tightly shut their mouths.
The Young Lady, blinded by love, cried at the Betrayal of someone she trusted.
My Past Self, who had extended Generosity as the Best Effort, waited for the Trial to end with a bitter Smile.
And.
“Then, we will now announce the decision. The Student Council Executives hereby order the Expulsion of Olivia, the Main Perpetrator of this case, and impose a one-month period of Self-Reflection and a one-year ban from the Ranking Tournament on Ricardo for his involvement and support.”
The moment the verdict was delivered, all the Criticism and rebukes from that day poured onto me.
“What did I even do wrong!”
The Young Lady’s Resentment.
“Get lost!”
The Students’ Grudge.
And the Criticism from those we trusted rained down on us.
-Don’t ever show your face again.
-I’ll never forgive you.
-Idiot.
That day, I smiled and gave them the Middle Finger, but one The Man followed me to the end, hurling Curses at me.
“Won’t Apologize until the end?”
Standing before Mikhail, who had come to me just like back then, I stood with a bitter Smile.
And, as I always did, I responded with a Smile.
[The perspective changes.]
[The perspective shifts to the moment when your consideration was taken as a weakness.]
The perspective changed.
It shifted to the day I saved Mikhail from ‘Yung’ for the Second Time.
“Don’t act so high and mighty.”
And on that day, I gave a different answer than before.
“Mikhail.”
“…”
“I’m disappointed.”
“What are you disappointed about? I never even wanted help from someone like you…”
“Lee Minhyuk.”
“Huh?”
“Don’t you remember?”
Mikhail’s face Started to Crack.
*
At that moment.
Mikhail began to breathe in the Alternate Future shown by the Blue Window.
“I…”
The face of that The Boy, which had been obscured in black, began to reveal itself.
Mikhail clenched his Fists and slowly lifted his head.
Under the Academy’s Fountain Square.
Hearing the Voice of the The Man who claimed to be ‘himself,’ Mikhail clenched his Fists.
“Actually, I…”
And.
‘Huh…?’
-Drip.
Tears started to fall.