OHNIR – Chapter 33
Chapter 33: Betrayal
Kevit’s wood magic seemed unstable, as if it had suddenly been enhanced in a short period. The magic’s master didn’t yet know how to control his power, finding it difficult even to wield it with ease.
Kelusta, however, was different. Kevit’s speed in controlling plants was far slower than her speed in drawing water from the flowers and trees. Therefore, in the time it took the wood mage to command the vines to form a net large enough to resist her water blades, Kelusta could land several hits on him.
Perhaps out of consideration for the school rules and their past friendship, Kelusta didn’t strike ruthlessly. After being thoroughly overpowered by her, Kevit’s most severe injuries were just a few bruises and a bleeding cut on his arm. It was painful enough, but not something that would get Kelusta disciplined for “instigating a brawl.”
In the end, the brown-haired girl didn’t say any more harsh words to him. She just gave Kevit a cold look before leaving in a hurry, still seething with unabated anger.
Kevit leaned against the same pillar his childhood friend had just been leaning on. He stared at the scattered, broken flowers and leaves on the ground for a moment, sighed softly, and touched the wound on his arm. As expected, his fingers came away covered in blood.
He held his fingertips up to his face and stared at them for a moment, then gave an enigmatic smile. Limping, he went into the academic building, brought out some cleaning tools, and slowly began to clean up the messy battlefield.
If someone discovered this and the school authorities investigated, neither of them would be able to escape responsibility.
After everything was taken care of, Kevit put the cleaning tools away properly. He clutched the wound on his shoulder, which was hurting more from being frequently jostled, and couldn’t help but grimace. Only then did he turn and walk away.
He took a small path, winding and turning many times through the cover of the woods as if navigating a maze. Finally, he stopped in front of a cluster of unusually tall and lush bushes, took a deep breath, and reached out to part them.
Strangely, the moment his fingertips touched the bushes, the air rippled like the surface of water disturbed by a falling dewdrop. The green branches twisted, and the leaves shattered into pieces. Kevit took a step forward into the thicket and passed through as if through an illusion, entering another place without any resistance.
This was a small courtyard.
A dense banyan tree drooped its dark brown aerial roots, casting deep shadows on the ground. Not far away, a large cluster of sapphire-blue magic roses was being meticulously cultivated. In the sunlight, every petal glowed with a soft luster. They were enclosed behind a silver marble fence that had clearly been elaborately carved. A gentle breeze blew past, making the flowers sway, and a single drop of water hanging from a leaf silently slid into the soil.
Not far from the fence, a blonde girl holding a long-spouted watering can was slightly bent over. Her slender wrist formed a graceful arc as a stream of water, shimmering with a faint golden light, poured from the spout. Kevit could tell it was water imbued with magical power, specially drawn by a mage, which was exceptionally beneficial for plants.
Like the forests by Swan Lake, natural things imbued with magical elements were incredibly precious, practically priceless. Yet the girl nearby was using it for the common task of watering flowers... He didn’t know whether to call it a reckless waste or a sign of how much she treasured this flowerbed.
Kevit, of course, would not voice his inner criticisms. He simply stood silently before the entrance disguised as a bush, placed his right hand over his heart, and bowed deeply and respectfully to the blonde girl.
“Your Highness, the matter has been taken care of.”
The long-spouted watering can was lifted and gently placed beside the marble railing. The girl, holding up her elaborate formal dress, turned around. Her purple eyes were brimming with a smile. She took a few steps forward, came to stand before Kevit, and said gently, “You’ve worked hard, Kevit... As I thought, I feel most at ease entrusting this matter only to you.”
Kevit gave a somewhat embarrassed smile but maintained his bowing posture, his head lowered, not daring to look directly into Starangui’s eyes.
“You may raise your head, sir,” Starangui said magnanimously. “Here with me, a man of merit need not be bound by rigid rules. Come with me—”
She turned, the hem of her dress swirling with the movement and brushing against Kevit’s knee. He couldn’t help but take a step back, but Starangui paid it no mind. She walked straight to a small table set up under the banyan tree and gracefully sat in the seat closer to the rose bushes. Then, smiling, she gestured to the opposite seat, indicating that Kevit should also sit before they spoke.
He hesitated for a moment but followed her instruction, pulling out the chair and sitting down cautiously.
“You’re so tense,” Starangui said with a smile. “Try to relax a little. I’m not going to do anything to you.”
“I know you are so magnanimous and considerate... I’m very sorry, I’m just a little overwhelmed by the honor, Your Highness.” Kevit pressed his lips together and began to recount the events that had just transpired to Starangui.
The table was covered with a silver velvet tablecloth. When sunlight filtered through the gaps in the banyan tree’s leaves, one could faintly see fine sparkles on the cloth.
Starangui rested her clasped hands on the table, her fingertips gently stroking the velvet surface. When Kevit finished with the words, “Lady Gloria saw everything clearly,” she raised her hand in satisfaction. Her purple eyes curved into crescents as she said cheerfully, “You’ve worked hard. It seems those magic-enhancing potions from before were quite effective. I’ll have someone send some ointment to you later... And don’t attend your classes for now. Study in your dormitory. I will arrange for your leave of absence.”
The sudden, significant increase in Kevit’s magic was, of course, inseparable from Starangui.
In fact, she had used potions that could rapidly enhance magic—a lure that any mage would find hard to resist—to successfully attract Kevit to her side.
Having tasted the benefits, Kevit was naturally willing to do her bidding, even at the risk of offending a duke’s daughter. But now he had received such an order. With exams approaching, if he didn’t attend class...
The corners of Kevit’s mouth twitched, but Starangui, as if she had already anticipated what he wanted to say, coolly lifted her gaze. Though her eyes were still gentle, her look made all of his prepared questions die in his throat.
“—You had best do as I say and stay put,” the blonde princess said with a smile. “Because I’m sure you have no desire to experience Lady Gloria’s methods.”
Kevit’s hands tightened slightly. He lowered his eyes and said, “...Yes, Your Highness.”
For several days, Kevit did not appear in class. Pascal, worried, came to ask Kelusta a few times if she knew what was going on, but she always fobbed him off with vague answers.
It was better that he didn’t come. Anyway, just seeing him made Kelusta’s teeth itch with irritation.
Top students don’t slack off just because the end of the term is near. On the contrary, at a time when others think, “There’s so little time left, what good will studying do now?” it is a precious opportunity for them to fight for every second.
Gloria, as the perennial first-place student at Holy Light Magic Academy... was naturally no exception.
Therefore, coupled with Gloria’s own intentional distancing, it was incredibly difficult for Kelusta to run into her under these circumstances.
“Starangui really played her cards well, completely extricating herself from the situation,” Kelusta, nearly at her wit’s end, grumbled to the System as she lay sprawled on her desk. “As long as Gloria avoids me, I can’t explain things to her. And if I don’t explain properly, she’ll want to see me even less... It’s a vicious cycle!”
The System commented: “We also cannot rule out the possibility that Starangui is pulling strings behind the scenes, deliberately preventing you from seeing Gloria.”
It had to be said, the probability of this guess being true was also very high.
“...It’s all Kevit’s fault,” Kelusta cursed dejectedly, also muttering something else under her breath that was hard to make out.
“Temporary Host, blaming fate is useless. Special situations call for special measures.”
The listless brown-haired girl propped herself up a little. She tapped her fingertips lightly on the desk, but mindful of the potion master at the podium—who was animatedly scolding the students for being blockheads—she didn’t dare make a sound. She absently continued her conversation with the System: “What special measures?”
“I once assisted a host who encountered a situation quite similar to yours,” the System said. “At that time, he adopted a series of maneuvers that I found incomprehensible, yet he ultimately succeeded in winning back his mission target... However, as that world is vastly different from the Nobili continent you inhabit, you might find it slightly difficult to understand.”
“Tell me about it first,” Kelusta said, her interest piqued.
The System pondered for a moment. “That host told me that in their history, a capable person studied ancient texts and summarized a set of profound military strategies called the ‘Thirty-Six Stratagems.’ To this day, it benefits later generations. Whether for leading troops in battle or studying strategy, this collection of stratagems is of great use.”
“At the time, his mission target, with a favorability of 70, had also lost trust in him over a certain matter. The villain was also creating obstacles at every turn, making it difficult for the two to meet. The mission was stuck for a long time with no progress... Therefore, this host steeled his heart and employed the thirty-fourth of the Thirty-Six Stratagems—the ‘Stratagem of Self-Injury.’”
“...That doesn’t sound like a very nice name,” Kelusta said, wrinkling her face.
“As the name implies, that host personally carved away the flesh from half of his own arm until only the bare bone was left. Only then did he earn a condescending glance from his mission target. From that point on, the misunderstanding was resolved, and the two were on good terms again,” the System explained consolingly. “The essence of this stratagem lies in whether you can bring yourself to harm yourself. Given your current relationship with Gloria, while it may not be as solid as that host’s with his target, you are still close... It all depends on whether you’re willing to take a gamble—to bet that you can trade a near-death state for a chance to see her.”
Kelusta’s face turned green. “Th-th-th-that’s too extreme!”
With his own hands! Carved off! The flesh from half his arm!
What kind of ruthless person was that!
She felt her own hand starting to ache.
“...It wasn’t so bad. In the plane they were in, the level of medical technology had nearly reached its peak. Even a severed arm wasn’t a big deal,” the System said after a moment of thought. “That host probably chose to carve off his flesh simply because it looked more frightening.”
Kelusta’s slender, pretty eyebrows were practically twisted into a pretzel. She refused adamantly, “No way!—You have to analyze the specific situation! In my plane, a severed arm would most likely be fatal!”
“...Therefore, you can choose a gentler way to execute the Stratagem of Self-Injury,” the System said patiently. “Have you forgotten the reward issued by the settlement system after you completed the 【Noble’s Invitation】 mission?”
The reward from that settlement?
Kelusta glanced at the potion master, who had just finished his tirade, and pondered for a moment. Suddenly, a flash of inspiration struck her, and she exclaimed in pleasant surprise, “The Fake Illness Potion recipe!”
The gospel for slackers, a must-have for skipping class, the perfect painless solution for the Stratagem of Self-Injury—brought to you by the Goddess of Darkness, you’re worth it.
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