In front of everyone, a body was seen pulverized in the most monstrous way anyone can imagine. And in a chamber not too far from this murder scene, a girl was found holed up in a corner with a bruised body and a tattered bloody dress, her memories were hazy and she spoke not a single word.

On a fateful night in the prestigious academy, a scandal unfolded within the hallowed halls of learning, causing potential international embarrassment. The perpetrator managed to evade capture, leaving no trace behind.

This incident served as a harsh awakening for the students, revealing the dark truth that immense power can lead to impunity and the ability to conceal heinous crimes with flimsy excuses.

It was a day that shattered the sheltered innocence of the 19-year-old students, exposing the corrupt nature of the so-called nobles they had once held in high regard. Now, they had to navigate a world where they must fend for themselves against formidable adversaries.

[A/n: A reader has made me realize that Vivian should be 19 by the end of her third school year so everyone is now a year older. I'll fix it in the previous chapters if I can.]

----------------------------------------

Earlier in the garden, I sensed something disturbing coming from the building we just got out of. Before that, I obtained a new System Function that can detect some sort of Karma.

While I don't understand what it really does and the system kept it a mystery from me, I knew that the moment I interfere with whatever trouble brewing inside the Ceremonial Hall, I will get myself stained with the shit brewing within.

If this Karma Sensor is good for anything, it is an incredible tool to avoid trouble.

No matter what it is, I can just look the other way and…

« New Quest: [Investigation: Investigate your first Karmic event "What is going on in the Ceremonial Hall?"] »

« Time Limit: 1 Hour »

« Reward: 1 Free Tarot draw. »

« Failure: Deducting 3000 SP. »

Son of a bitch! That much?

An event quest now?

Just like the game, these are time-limited quests that generate encounters with all sorts of random stuff. I really wanted to stay away from people and parties because this is what happens.

Now I must go inside the ceremonial hall and investigate?

I had a really really really really really bad feeling.

This sensation I am getting from that Karma Sensor thingy is also getting under my skin in a way I never thought possible.

"Senior! Something wrong?"

Edith came from behind me asking and as I turned to face her, I saw her carrying a platter of food. Not just a regular plate, but an actual platter filled with all sorts of delicacies.

"Edith, you're eating all that?" I asked without even thinking of being nice.

Edith looked between me and the platter she was carrying and then looked at the food she was stuffing in her mouth. Well despite it being an open-air party, food was offered in a manner that can be eaten from a platter by hand directly and it was all nice and tasty but my cute junior villainess seemed to be indulging herself way too much.

"I am a knight, senior. I eat large portions just to get by." She said with a guilty face.

While petite and slender, one can't tell that Edith is this kind of heavy eater indeed. I liked how her piercing gaze and determined attitude would scare off people from approaching me whenever she's around but it would be hard to take her seriously with that platter.

"Why don't we get away from here so that you can eat all you want?" I said.

"I don't really mind. But it would be nice to be comfortable someplace else." She said and seemed agreeable enough to follow.

"Perfect!"

Now with her by my side, I don't need to go investigating troublesome things alone. All I needed was to take her with me inside the Ceremonial Hall main building and look around the place. I pretended to be interested in the various pieces of art hanging around the hallways while I was slowly advancing toward the nearest place I felt…

"Whoops!"

"Ouch! I am sorry, I…"

I should have figured that of all the people I would bump into when I was investigating trouble, it would be her.

"… Lady Vivian!"

"Commoner girl! What are you doing here?"

It is Matilda Ambrose once again. The Heroine that keeps popping up when not needed.

"I… I…"

As she seemed to be struggling for words, Edith butted in.

"You do realize that without official escort, a commoner can't freely roam such a place?" Edith went for the usual villainess discrimination lines once again.

"Forget it, Edith. She is usually surrounded by some young lord or accompanying His Highness." I said as I wasn't interested in wasting my time on her.

"Yes, senior. That's the case it seems." Edith agreed to let it go.

"His… His Highness is in a meeting with the Provost." Matilda said in a weak and thin voice.

"Alright, we are not interested." I said and walked past her towards my target.

Edith followed me without asking much but then…

"Stop, please!" The Heroine immediately chased after us.

"What?" Annoyed, both Edith and I turned to her with the villainous intent to bully.

"Don't go that way. It is… it is…" Matilda kept hesitating to speak but for a moment there, I could smell her fear.

It is not just some intuition, it is the fear a predator smells in a prey. I don't know why those thoughts came to my head as I looked at her but I could see that Edith had the same feeling as I.

Matilda is just so… bulliable.

But that wasn't what I had to think about right now. She wanted to stop me from going in the direction I was taking, which meant she knew something.

"Why would we listen to a commoner?" Edith said as if she wanted to corner Matilda even more.

"Something… I don't know…" Matilda started to appear more than just afraid, she was terrified and that wasn't from us, it was from whatever in that direction.

I knew it.

How the Heroine gets to be involved in all kinds of events.

If I am not mistaken…

"Karma sensor…"

"Hm?"

For a moment there, Matilda's eyes widened, and looked at me.

Stupid me! I shouldn't have said that.

But just as I was about to divert her attention from what I said, the ominous feeling from the direction I was taking suddenly got worse.

Much worse.

My heart almost jumped off my chest and I lost my sense of balance for a moment there.

"Oh no!" Matilda suddenly backed off with her back to a wall and her eyes filled with tears.

"What is happening?" I couldn't make head or tail of the situation but it all got too chilly and my heart raced.

Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

"Senior, you okay?" Edith left Matilda and looked at me worried.

"Edith, something just happened." I blurted without thinking.

"What?" Edith put the platter of food on a console table nearby and put her hand to her sword's hilt, "I didn't hear anything."

I moved towards the direction of that feeling and it led me past a corner where the hallway ended with a door.

A simple wooden door that fits the style of the building without having any plate on it. Behind that door was that sensation I was feeling.

"It's here." Matilda, who seemed to have followed us all the way here, said as her eyes were flowing with tears.

"Edith, get ready."

I said as I called out two of the four flintlocks I had from my storage purse. I took one side of the door, Edith took the other, and we locked eyes.

"Is it necessary?" She asked.

I nodded then pointed to her with my eyes towards the door knop. She slowly reached out to it and on my muted countdown, she twisted the knop so silently I couldn't believe her control was that good.

But as the door opened, I aimed my guns ahead and quietly opened the door while checking my corners until…

"Shit!"

"Is that?"

As we entered the dim intersection hallway, we were met with a chilling sight. In the center of the dark room, a male body lay sprawled on the ground, surrounded by an eerie silence. The only source of movement was an open window, allowing a chilling cold current of air to stir the curtains, creating an unsettling atmosphere.

"Going in!"

I stepped ahead and covered my blind spots before proceeding to the middle of the hallway where the body was. Just one look at the face of that person was enough to put the fear of God into my very core.

"God! What happened here?" I spoke out of terror.

"That's bad! Wait! He's alive!" Edith approached from my side and checked the man's pulse from his neck before looking at me.

His face was so messed up he was unrecognizable. His nose was flattened and his facial bones were pulverized with massive force. Many wounds appeared on his body and it seemed he was hit with something powerful and blunt.

"Matilda! Get here quickly!" I called the Heroine immediately who was freezing in terror at the door.

"Wha… wha…" She was completely frightened and her legs were losing strength judging by how she was clinging to the door just to keep standing.

"You're a healer for crying out loud, help him! NOW!" I shouted at her and she quivered from fear.

She walked ahead but lost her footing as she got to me and I had to hold her not to fall on the blooded carpet.

"We're losing time! Do what you can and do it quickly!" I said then turned to Edith, "You're the quickest, run and get help!"

"On it!" Edith bolted like the wind and I let Matilda get on her knees and start healing.

"Dear Lord! Blessed are thy Saints! Bringers of Light! Guide Saint Florence through me! Give me strength to save the sacred life of man! Amen! Gratia Horti!"

I have to say, once she started praying, she felt like she was on autopilot and didn't even stutter despite her shaking hands.

As she extended her hands over the fallen man, a luminous circular dome appeared, bearing the emblem of a flower. It enveloped the man, and I could have sworn I witnessed the golden aura of numerous plants sprouting within the dome as they gently covered his wounds. This marked the initiation of the healing ritual.

As the room was dim and only lit by the faint moonlight coming from the windows, the spell cast by Matilda finally shed some light on the body in front of us.

He was a broad young man, a student, his clothes were mostly damaged but this pattern… this texture… these shoes.

"No!"

I recognized him.

It took my insides by a storm but from all the people I met tonight, he was the most decent gentleman.

"Reginald!"

I can't believe it!

I refuse to believe it!

One of this year's strongest students was reduced to such a mess?

How?

I couldn't do anything! I can't do anything or else I may interrupt the healing ritual.

I couldn't even process what was going on and stood frozen in fear.

Who would do that to him?

I looked around and tried to think slowly, my head was already filled with noise and if I lose focus, I may not be able to find the truth of what happened.

Think, Vivian, think! Less Vivian, more Nadia! That's what I need now.

Footprints! That wouldn't disappear easily. All I needed was a source of light.

I looked around and I found a candelabra nearby. I grabbed it and took one candle out before spreading some gunpowder on the marble table and hitting it with my gun's flint. A spark ignited the gunpowder and I managed to catch it on the candle and then lit the remaining candles with it.

That didn't take a few seconds and I had a source of light right by my hand. I ran back to the bloody scene and looked around until I found the footprints I was looking for. Of course, the culprit jumped out of the window, and judging by the fact that we are at least four meters above the ground, the culprit is most certainly trained as a knight.

From my storage purse, I retrieved a white handkerchief and spread it over the blooded footprint. As most of the blood was absorbed by the carpet, this footprint was barely faint but it was reprinted once again on the handkerchief.

Now I have evidence.

"What are you doing?"

But out of Goddamn nowhere, I heard a voice behind me and without thinking, I turned around with my guns aimed at whoever that is.

Just as sudden as that voice was, my first gun was hit off my hand and so I knew I had to protect the other one, so I retreated my wrist to my waist and with my freehand, I grabbed a dagger that I hid on my side to keep the assailant at bay.

While I was confident in my technique, I lacked strength, speed, control, and perception. My opponent was none other than the Silver-ranked knight, Edmond Black.

"Lord Edmond?"

"Pretty lethal, Miss Moore."

"I apologize for my rude behavior. I acted on instinct."

I retrieved my weapons to my side and bowed to apologize to someone who outranks me in both seniority and class.

"What happened here?" He asked.

"Sir Reginald… he was assaulted. Matilda is stabilizing him." I replied nervously.

While I pointed at Matilda for him to turn and look, I took the chance and hid away the handkerchief with the footprint.

"You saw no one." He asked.

"No. Whoever did this escaped from the window and… I found Matilda roaming the hallway outside with a distressed face so Edith and I came here to check…" I replied.

"I see." He said and looked towards Reginald, "It's good that you followed Miss Matilda's hunch, she can sense if evil is nearby."

"Speaking of which…" I then pointed towards the door that appears after the intersection, "She mentioned something happening behind that door as well."

Better to stick it on her ability to sense karma than to appear suspicious. The second malicious aura was just as intense as this one and it was just a few meters that way.

"The faculty conference room?" Edmond looked in the direction of the door and walked towards it immediately.

I grabbed the gun he slapped away and followed him to the door.

"Watch over Miss Matilda." He said trying to send me away but that won't happen.

"She's okay! The culprit may be in there and…"

"Suit yourself."

I didn't get to finish what I wanted to say before getting rudely interrupted but as long as I can see what's inside that room, my quest will go smoothly.

At that time, if I knew then what I know now, I wouldn't have walked into that room.

In that conference room, there was another person in the far corner beyond the conference table, however, rather than lying on the ground beaten to an inch of their life, this one was conscious, breathing, and moving. However, nothing would make that person any better than Reginald.

"Hey, are you alright?" I stepped past Edmond, who didn't seem to mind, and when the light of the candelabra revealed that person, my heart skipped a beat.

In front of me was another student, this one I recognized instantly. Isadora Wellesley, a third-year student who was the first performer in the musical performance this year.

She looked pale, disheveled, and suffering from a serious shock. She didn't even react to the light as it was shed on her face and her tears were streaming from her eyes to no end.

But the real shock was how roughed up her dress was, how it was torn from various places that she seemed to be bringing together using her thin arms that kept shaking from the coldness that descended on her exposed shoulders.

That, and the blood staining her sky-blue skirt.

"Don't look here!" I spoke to Edmond and put the candelabra on the conference table before walking to him, "Give me that."

He seemed passive as I took the coat he had on his shoulders and ran back towards Isadora to cover her.

"Hey, that…"

While he seemed he was about to argue, he noticed the appearance of Isadora and chose not to say a word.

"Isadora! Look at me! Can you hear me?" I asked Isadora who kept crying with blank eyes looking at nothing but the void.

I tried my best at the moment but she seemed unresponsive no matter what I did.

"Has help arrived?" I asked Edmond.

"I can feel some people rushing here!" Edmond replied and dragged a chair from the conference table.

I carefully carried Isadora up but she kept losing strength in her leg and would cower back into the corner no matter how much I pulled her up.

"A little help here?" I turned to Edmond, whom I thought to have pulled a chair for me to help Isadora sit on, but I was faced with an Edmond who seemed to have pulled that chair for himself.

"What?" He looked at me as if I was doing something bothersome.

I don't know if it was the adrenaline rushing through my head or because of the training I did but I found myself fully carrying Isadora in both of my arms, walking to him while carrying her, shouting at him to stand up, and putting the girl on the chair.

Isadora, who was already crying, started to be reactive after I changed her position. She cowered her upper body against her knees and she started to cry hysterically.

At that point, Edith rushed into the conference room after she brought people to the hallway outside to save Reginald. Once she saw Edmond and me around Isadora, her face tensed but she understood what was happening and what situation was Isadora in.

"Over here! We need a healer. A female healer. Edmond, get out!" She immediately called outside and two professors rushed in.

They approached Isadora and understood her situation but then Edith approached me.

"Senior, please come outside."

"Why?"

"Just…"

I felt worried right away and before she could answer, I walked back outside the conference room to see Matilda, who was crying and hugged by Prince Liam far away from Reginald. Another professor came in and placed a curtain sheet that he took down and covered the motionless Reginald with it.

How I remained resolute that night is beyond me still.

I was just filled with anger and nothing would soothe it until the day I bring justice to Reginald and Isadora in a place that knows nothing of justice.

« Quest Complete! »

« Reward: 1x Free Tarot Draw »