Greg stood in the corridor outside Veronica's room, waiting listlessly.
The morning sunlight filtered through the window at the end of the corridor, casting a bright band of light across the floor.
He felt a bit relieved. Fortunately, when he had returned to the dormitory in such a disheveled state earlier this morning, he hadn't run into any girls he knew, especially Vivian and Silvia, who had rather complicated relationships with him now.
Otherwise, he really wouldn't have known how to explain why he was only returning to the dormitory at dawn, let alone the traces of an unidentified liquid on his clothes.
“It seems my luck on the surface is finally normalizing a bit. At least it's not constantly screwing me over anymore.”
Greg felt a small sense of relief, as if he had finally made it through the worst.
After a moment, the door opened. The guard nun walked out and said expressionlessly, “The Saintess permits you to enter.”
Greg nodded slightly in accordance with standard etiquette. “Thank you for your trouble.”
He then straightened his collar and stepped into the room.
What he failed to notice, however, was a pink figure standing silently behind a pillar at the end of the corridor, taking in the entire scene.
Silvia had originally woken up early to wander around the Magic Tower simply because she had been unable to sleep well the night before.
After all, she had been here for over half a month, yet there were still many floors she had never visited.
So, wearing a loose cream-colored morning gown with her long pink hair cascading over her shoulders like a waterfall, she had left her dormitory.
But not long after she began her exploration, her steps suddenly ground to a halt.
She saw Senior Greg appearing at the door of Saintess Veronica's room, and now, he was even walking inside at the guard's gesture.
“...”
Silvia leaned against the wall. Her pink bangs cast a shadow over half her face, obscuring her expression in deep gloom.
She slowly put her right thumb into her mouth and gently bit her nail. This was a habit she had developed since childhood; whenever she felt anxious, she would unconsciously do this. It was a habit that hadn't surfaced in several years.
“Why did Senior Greg go into Veronica's room? Could Senior Greg...”
At that possibility, Silvia's gaze turned dark and deep. Her pupils reflected the closed door, staring at it as if she wanted to pierce right through it.
But she quickly shook her head.
“No! Senior Greg would never do this willingly. He must have been forced by that brain-damaged woman using her status as the Saintess of the Church of Light! That's why he had no choice but to enter her room!”
Silvia told herself in her heart.
Once this thought took root, it was as if she had been hypnotized; it rapidly sprouted in her mind, completely taking over her thoughts.
The more she thought about it, the more convinced she became.
It had to be that woman. She was using her power and status as the Saintess to threaten Senior Greg, forcing him to do things against his will.
“Since she's using her status as the Saintess to do such things, then I know exactly what I need to do.”
At this thought, a morbid smile slowly crept onto Silvia's face. An obsessive light flickered in her normally gentle eyes.
“Don't worry, Senior Greg... I will definitely save you~”
...
Inside the room, the guard nun kept her eyes fixed on Greg. Only after confirming that he had walked obediently over to Veronica did she withdraw her gaze, turn around, and quietly close the door behind her.
The moment the door shut, Veronica, who had been sitting elegantly in her chair, seemed to transform into an entirely different person. She instantly stood up and eagerly strode over to Greg.
“Lord Greg, you've come!”
Today, Veronica wore an elegant long white dress with a slender silver sash tied around her waist, outlining her slender, graceful curves.
Her platinum-blonde hair flowed like moonlight, draping smoothly over her shoulders and waist, the strands shimmering with a soft luster under the sunlight filtering through the window screens.
At this moment, she exuded the sheer enthusiasm of a little fan meeting her idol.
Nightmare: “You know what I want to say, right?”
Greg: “I know what you mean, so shut up first.”
“I have always hoped to speak with you face-to-face like this again.”
Veronica was completely oblivious to Greg's momentary distraction, her voice filled with clear joy.
But she quickly seemed to remember something and composed herself, her tone turning warm and sincere:
“The nun at the door just now isn't actually a bad person. Her faith in Lady Serafina, the Goddess of Light, is just as devout. She only looked at you that way because she doesn't know your true identity. I hope you don't mind.”
Greg waved his hand. “It's fine. After all, I was the one who requested to hide my identity, so I definitely don't mind.”
Only then did Veronica put her mind at ease, and she proceeded to ask:
“What brings you here so suddenly today? I haven't even had time to prepare any refreshments. If you had sent someone to notify me in advance, I could have prepared tea, snacks, and—”
“There's no need for any of that. I only came today to tell you one thing.”
Greg interrupted her, cutting straight to the point:
“I have a general idea of where the entity that escaped from the dungeon is hiding.”
The moment she heard those words, Veronica's perpetually squinted eyes snapped wide open.
Her eyes, beautiful as the stars, stared straight at him with undisguised surprise and shock.
Although Veronica had never told Greg the true purpose of her coming to observe the exchange tournament, Greg had already deduced it on his own based on all the information currently available.
First, judging from Veronica's own strength and the fact that she was nominally here to observe and learn, yet rarely appeared in the original storyline of the tournament, it could be inferred that her purpose in attending was definitely not just to watch and learn.
Combining this with her knowledge of the dungeon's secrets and her previous mistake of assuming Greg was someone who had emerged from the depths of the dungeon, one could guess that Veronica must have already known that something had escaped from the Empire Dungeon.
Her coming here under the pretext of observing the exchange tournament was undoubtedly to deal with this matter!
“You... already know everything.”
Veronica let out a soft sigh, her tone carrying a trace of a bitter smile and heartfelt admiration.
“Yes.”
Greg continued:
“So there's no need for you to shoulder this all on your own. I will help you.”
“!”
Looking at Greg's calm face, an indescribable sense of reverence surged in Veronica's heart.
She had deliberately avoided bringing this up to him so as not to disrupt his plans.
Yet, just as he had once guarded Lady Serafina from the shadows, he had proactively investigated these matters for her—she who was acting in the shadows for Lady Serafina's teachings.
This matter clearly had absolutely nothing to do with him, yet he had taken the responsibility upon himself.
What immense devotion and responsibility!
He was truly worthy of the title 'Lady Serafina's Dark Blade'!
Rate on N.U.
