How to Survive at the Academy

소를 지을 수밖에 없었다.

Student Council President Election 下 (5)

As the student council president election fast approached, the atmosphere on campus became increasingly charged. There was already some consensus among the students about who the candidates would be. The interest in Princess Penia in particular was sky-high, to the point where even students who normally cared about nothing beyond their studies were eagerly awaiting her declaration to run.

“Lortel Keherln declared his candidacy for student council president as of this morning.”

Princess Penia could hardly hide her surprise at the news brought by her knight, Cler.

“Lortel Keherln of Elte Trading Company… He said it himself?”

“Yes.”

Princess Penia cocked her head, puzzled. Lortel Keherln was widely known as a power broker who operated behind the scenes, not someone who would seek a high-profile office. Plus, Lortel was busy running the Elte merchant house. It seemed impossible that he could manage the duties of both that and the demanding role of student council president. If he truly was running for president, it would mean he’d have to virtually abandon his merchant duties.

But she couldn’t believe that Cler’s information was incorrect, as he always brought carefully verified intelligence.

“This isn’t good… If she, already gripping the residential district’s sphere of influence, becomes student council president too… within Sylvainia, she’d reign supreme, like a queen. That’s something I’d… like to avoid.”

“If it’s Princess Penia…”

“But… I have no intention to be the student council president.”

Penia cut Cler’s advice short. After setting down her teacup on the grand table in her personal quarters of the royal residency, she grew lost in thought until she finally came to a decision.

“I need to meet with Tanya from the guest quarters.”

*

“You can’t stay hidden forever, Tanya.”

Deep within the first floor corridors of the royal residency and past several turns, lay the guest quarters—secluded enough that none but the cleaning staff would likely venture inside.

Due to the isolated geographical feature of Aken Island, where the empire’s peripheries lie, few dignitaries paid a visit, rendering the guest quarters seldom used despite being a standard architectural practice.

However, these rooms had become a sanctuary for Tanya, who had fled here, so in retrospect, constructing such rooms hadn’t been a total waste.

When Princess Penia entered, Tanya was just sitting at the table, trembling slightly.

“Princess Penia…”

“While I may not know just how close Edel Losteller was to Lortel Keherln… it seems that merchant has made up his mind to secure Tanya’s cooperation.”

Princess Penia remembered clearly Lortel’s staunch support for Edel.

Although the exact nature of their relationship was unknown, she could infer that Edel held deep significance for Lortel.

“Either way, before you can do anything, you need to clear your name of the accusation that you assassinated Edel Losteller.”

“But… when I think about it, given all the circumstantial evidence, I would also believe that I was the perpetrator. It’s not… an ideal situation.”

“Then, I have no choice but to ask for your thoughts, Tanya.”

Princess Penia, brushing her gleaming platinum locks aside, joined Tanya at the table across from her.

Looking at the girl, who resembled Edel so closely—from her fiery golden hair to her features—it brought back memories of the man whose life ended so absurdly and prematurely.

While Edel was no longer of this world, Penia could vow not to repeat the same mistakes.

“If you weren’t the one who instructed the murder of Edel Losteller, then who could have orchestrated it?”

The question was tied to a long-standing doubt that Princess Penia harbored.

The deep and dark mystery surrounding the Losteller family. Should she even manage to grasp a fragment of that darkness, helping Tanya wouldn’t be entirely meaningless.

“That is…”

Tanya hesitated, looking down.

The suspects for the murder, Cadec and Nox, were long-standing vassals of the Losteller family.

Being a vassal implied not just personal loyalty, but carrying the honor of the family on one’s shoulders, trained to conduct oneself carefully so as not to tarnish the family name.

What were the chances that these individuals, without any directive from their house, would independently commit murder?

Moreover, having been dispatched from their homeland to Aken Island, to the fantasy of stabbing their once-young master to death was certainly not something done on a whim.

The situation may have spiraled into crime, but there had to be a mastermind dictating such an assassination.

“That… could be… perhaps…”

Tanya knew that if she hadn’t given the order, only a few people would have been capable of instructing Cadec and Nox to take such drastic measures.

The most likely suspect she could think of was her father, Crépin Losteller, whom she had deeply respected.

If not him, there was nobody else who could have commanded the murder of Edel Losteller.

“…”

Penia didn’t need to press, as she could infer the mastermind just by observing Tanya’s reluctance. After all, Princess Penia had harbored doubts about Crépin Losteller’s shady intentions all along.

Nevertheless, she did not pursue the matter further. The notion that Tanya’s trust in her father, who had performed such actions without a second thought, might be shattered was too hard for Tanya to digest on her own.

“Cadec and Nox’s reason for coming to Sylvainia… the pretext of assisting me seems to have been just that, a pretext. Their true purpose was to kill Ed. Brother…”

Suddenly, clarity struck Tanya, and she began to speak.

“Tanya…”

“I was merely… a puppet.”

Tanya whispered, head bowed down.

On reflection, Tanya’s life had always seemed to fall into that pattern.

How often had she truly decided anything for herself and achieved something significant?

After becoming sensible of the surroundings, she had grown up under Ed’s wayward tyranny, biding her time.

Even after arriving in Sylvainia, she had done little beyond exuding the aura of accomplishment predicated on the glory of the Losteller name rather than her own merits.

Without the backing of the Losteller family, Tanya realized she hadn’t achieved anything on her own merit—without the dignified status of a noble lady’s birth, she was merely a young girl who had studied slightly harder than most of her age.

That painful realization hit hard as she stifled a sob with her head still bowed.

But she did not let the tears flow. As she firmly held her gaze upon Penia once more, the fearful expression had largely vanished. Her efforts to fight back the tears and maintain a steadfast demeanor deeply impressed Penia.

The Losteller family was considered arrogant and greedy, and Penia had been unable to trust them.

Now, seeing Tanya’s demeanor, Penia’s preconceived notions about the Lostellers gradually started crumbling.

“I’ve decided to… run for student council president, Princess Penia.”

“It won’t be easy. You’re already accused of murder.”

“Yes, it won’t be easy, but… for the sake of those who have supported me in such dire times, I can’t just stay subdued.”

Tanya spoke firmly, holding her skirt tightly and straightening her back.

“My father had hardly cared about Ed. Brother. The reason for such an extreme choice… probably stems from the letters I sent about my brother’s situation.”

“That means…”

“Yes. In a way… I provided the circumstances leading up to the terrible fate that befell Ed. Brother.”

Although Tanya was only updating her father as usual, she never expected her words would lead to Ed’s death.

But now, that’s the situation she faced.

“I’ve come to realize something since arriving in Sylvainia. Brother Ed may be gone, but much has changed in this land of knowledge. I never shook off my suspicions about him until the day he passed… but now, I can accept it.”

Penia recalled the times she was served tea at Ed’s camp.

She regretted not being able to shake off the suspicion and failing to offer Ed a single warm smile, the man who had been so kind to her.

If it was indeed her actions that led to his death, then she had to carry that burden.

Surviving with that weight and ensuring Ed’s death was not in vain was the sole way she could atone to the man who had become but a spirit.

Willpower returned to Tanya’s eyes. Her hollow gaze began to regain its former light.

“I’ll stand equal with Senior Lortel and seize a power that prevents him from exerting undue influence on me. At least within this Aken Island, I’ll become someone who can’t be threatened so easily.”

“Running for student council president in your current state… will be highly disadvantageous. Especially with a murder conspiracy accusation, subjecting you to university investigation.”

“It’s still ‘an accusation’ and ‘a suspect.’ My guilt isn’t confirmed yet. Strictly speaking, I’m not yet a criminal. If I end this seclusion and submit to an investigation, I see no reason why I can’t run for student council president. Especially since Cadec and Nox have firmly kept silent, so it’s likely my accusation won’t be confirmed without further evidence.”

Of course, being eligible to become a student council presidential candidate wasn’t the end of it. Carrying a murder charge would be an incredibly damning flaw in anyone’s campaign, almost certainly deemed as overconfidence or even arrogance.

But Tanya’s expression was resolute, and seeing this, Princess Penia could only smile faintly.

A delicate sound of liquid filled the room.

“Then shall I… officially give my support to Tanya Young?”

Princess Penia’s official support meant a great deal, something Tanya was fully aware of.

At the same time, it was clear that Penia would bear a significant political burden by doing so.

Tanya widened her eyes in surprise at Penia, who averted her gaze as if to say not to worry.

“I also have debts I never repaid to Ed Rostrail in my lifetime.”

Her eyes, softly closed, bore significant meaning.

She couldn’t just stand idly by and watch the school fall into the clutches of that nefarious merchant.

Nor could she abandon Tanya when she was cornered.

And, there was the guilt of never having apologized to the deceased Ed Rostrail—an obligation compelling Penia to raise Tanya’s hand.

Who could have imagined it? That it was an alliance between Penia Elias Cloel and Tanya Rostrail.

* [Is it okay if I speak now?]

[Leave it be for now. If it was something you needed to intervene in, you would’ve been called earlier. ]

[But… he’s been sitting on that rock motionless for two hours now. It’s nearly high tide; shouldn’t we start heading to the cave?]

[ Do you think the young master is a fool? He’ll move when the water comes in. ]

The voices of Laysia and Merg quarreling reached me.

Perhaps because I had been sitting there in contemplation for so long, even the spirits seemed to sense something was off.

Spirits don’t always hover nearby. They dwell in ethereal states or entirely independent high-level spirits engage in their own affairs… It’s not common for spirits to linger for such extended periods.

Merg and Laysia usually orbited my vicinity, so they would converse in hushed tones when I acted oddly. On the other hand, Merilda was rarely around. She roamed the island as if it were her domain, yet when it mattered, she’d swiftly appear, so it wasn’t a significant concern.

“Hmm…”

The reason I sat on the rock lost in thought was because of the conversation I had with Rortel.

– ‘I’m going to sell the student council president seat.’

– ‘It’s not an easy journey, but the benefits you return will be as considerable as the effort you put in.’

Act III, Chapter 2: The Student Council Presidential Election.

If I remember correctly… it is the bridge episode that the audience experiences before the showdown with the ‘Cataclysmic Alchemist Claude,’ the mid-boss of the third act.

A scenario intended to demonstrate the transformative dynamics around the protagonist Taeli.

Villain Tanya Rostrail maintains the competitive structure with Princess Penia to the bitter end, only to suffer a crushing defeat.

There isn’t an actual battle scene although they claim the position of boss, as the election is strictly an internal academic power struggle.

Taeli was determined to actively support Princess Penia’s camp. And there’s good reason for that, as Taeli had been badly duped by Ed Rostrail at the start of the term. Naturally, Taeli harbors animosity towards anyone from the Rostrail family.

Thus, Taeli’s stance against Tanya Rostrail is the same—being cast as a disposable, haughty villainous lady.

Nonetheless, Taeli convinces students from Penia’s side. Obviously, the player wouldn’t be tasked with the foolish endeavor of convincing the entire student body in the scenario. If players had to do that, they would drop out from sheer boredom.

Therefore, Taeli’s task in the scenario is to meet with each grade’s top students and persuade them to support Penia. Systemically, the support of these top students was the variable that ultimately decided the election.

Securing the support of five or more of the eight persuadable individuals meant a victory for Penia, while Tanya would bitterly resist only to be deselected in disgrace.

Each character imposes various sub-quests during the persuasion process, and the conditions for each student’s quests differ. I remember it being a tricky part of the game.

“First, I understand how important the top students’ support is…”

Mumbling to myself, I stroked my chin a few times.

The persuadable individuals were set as two moderate representatives from each grade.

1st Grade Magic Department top student Josef, Alchemy Department top student Claude.

2nd Grade Combat Department top student Clevarius, Alchemy Department top student Elvira.

3rd Grade Combat Department top student Drake, Alchemy Department top student Atalante.

4th Grade Combat Department top student Dike, Magic Department top student Treyziana.

Securing the support of five out of these eight was critical for winning the election.

The 1st Grade Combat Department top student Wade was already supporting Princess Penia, and the 4th Grade Alchemy Department top student Dorothy supported Tanya, so they were not considered.

Moreover, the 2nd Grade Magic Department top student Lucy and the 3rd Grade Magic Department top student Yenika refrained from voting until the end. Lucy out of laziness, and Yenika out of absolute neutrality.

“Hmm…”

If everything had followed the script, the events should have unfolded thus, but the actual story has become twisted in unexpected ways.

The fractures that began in Act I swelled into an uncontrollable snowball by Act III. The election dynamics are unpredictable at this junction.

Thus, hoping for everything to proceed exactly as I know is pure greed.

However, there is hope that Princess Penia will seize power as this will be of great benefit during the later Crepin subjugation quest—a wish that it would flow according to the original setup.

It’s impossible to match every minor flow, but to prepare for later events, the major currents must align favorably for my position.

But… The words of Rortel cannot simply be ignored.

– ‘First, I’ll make Tanya the student council president, by any means necessary.’

Sitting on a tan rock with the crashing waves as a backdrop, I cracked a wry smile.

Behind that facade lies the grand merchant of Elte Company, teeming with thousands of wily schemes.

When asked why he wanted to make Tanya the student council president, the girl from my memories replied.

– ‘Because she’s your sister, after all.’

That was Rortel’s tailored picture-perfect answer.

Rortel’s true motives always hinted at deeper intricacies.

As such, I cannot remain passive in this situation.

However, what action to take is ambiguous. Currently, I am officially ‘dead.’

I must quickly put an end to this pointless charade of death to move more freely.

*

“I’ve gathered the necessary documents for submission here. You’ve really decided to run for student council president, Representative Rortel.”

“Thank you, Secretary Lien. You may leave them there.”

Rortel hummed a tune with apparent glee, giving quick instructions to the cute, red-haired secretary.

Rortel, who usually handled most tasks without a secretary, left Lien, a low-ranking employee at Elte Company’s Silvenia branch, with a rather peculiar job. Certainly, Rortel taking on student council election work seemed too vast an undertaking.

The oddity lay in throwing his hat into the ring, knowing full well the workload. Did he intend to abandon company work if actually elected?

“Deputy Rortel, I have…”

“Let’s avoid unnecessary questions, shall we?”

Perceiving Lien’s curiosity, Rortel, without pausing his document-flipping hand, replied sharply.

“Quite frankly… I have no intention of becoming student council president.”

“Then these documents are for…?”

Suddenly, Rortel’s dancing hand over the documents came to a standstill. Ink slowly spread beneath the stationary quill.

“Can we stick to necessary questions only?”

Despite his warm and beautiful smile, Lien felt a chill run down her spine and hurriedly apologized before closing the office door behind her.

Alone again, Rortel resumed his tune, reanimating the quill.

“After all… it’ll all come out eventually…”

Tanya Rostrail feared Rortel, seeing him as someone who believed she caused Ed’s death.

By keeping that notion alive and subtly hinting at retaliation, Rortel became the ‘whip’ pressuring Tanya.

On the other hand, whether it’s Penia or Tanya… they’d both feel a strange debt to the officially deceased Ed Rostrail.

Their psychological debt—stemming from not recognizing the man’s sincerity, mistreating him, and neglecting him until his death—won’t easily fade. Considering the nature of their personalities, that’s even more likely.

If left undisturbed, this debt could fester, elevating Ed Rostrail in their consciousness, turning him into an untouchable sanctuary.

Then, when Ed Rostrail returns, the accumulated guilt and a budding desire for compensation will finally blossom, making Ed’s recognition and actions difficult for them to refuse—the ‘carrot’ they won’t be able to resist.

By continually stirring this sense of indebtedness towards Ed Rostrail, it’s possible to find them all ensnared by Ed’s devices sooner or later. People’s psyches become more extreme when cornered. The whip intended for such manipulation is Rortel himself.

A balancing act between resistance and acceptance, conquering others on his palm, tuning them to his accord.

Holding both the whip and the carrot, gradually pulling the future student council president into his grasp is akin to a puppeteer controlling marionettes.

For Rortel, who’s lived manipulating human relationships within the mercantile world for half his life, the sticky web of power play is as natural as breathing.

*

“Hey, Bell.”

“You have 24 days and 3 hours left.”

“…”

Bell’s response was almost automatic, but the days did not dwindle.

Lucy sat, legs hugged to her chest in her private room chair, and began to click the chair out of sheer restlessness.

-Clatter-bang!

Eventually, she lost balance and fell over. Lying aimlessly on the floor and gazing at the ceiling, the world remained motionless.

“Just kill me………….”

“I cannot do that.”

“Just kill me………!!!”

She had vowed never to succumb to emotion and cause a ruckus again, but separate from that, she still had 2/3 of her punishment to serve.

Silent prayer.

“…”

Only the face of the stoic housekeeper Bell gleamed as if freed from the worries of the world.

To Lucy, Bell’s face was utterly unbearable.