༺ Eyes of a Dragon and the Human Heart (62) ༻
The central avenue of the academy was bustling with students unable to overcome their boredom.
The ‘Homecoming Festival’ ended a week ago. Naturally, all lectures had ended long ago, and with the grades already announced, students had no reason to stay at the academy.
Nevertheless, numerous students still lingered in the academy.
This was due to the post-cleaning of the recent surprise attack that had not been completely done.
Currently, officials dispatched from the Empire, the Holy Nation, and the Ten Southern Kingdoms were carefully examining the academy. The revelation that the Dark Order was behind the summoning of hundreds of demonic beasts was as shocking as it gets.
They were a group believed to have hidden their traces thousands of years ago.
Those who followed the Evil God Omeros were infamous for their cruelty. Even the demonic beasts that attacked the academy were horrifying results of gruesome biological modifications.
Moreover, they not only manipulated demonic beasts, but also meddled with human bodies. This escalated the anger and fear towards the Dark Order that tarnished human dignity.
However, this was a story limited to investigators from each country.
Although academy students had recently faced a life-threatening situation, the shock began to fade as time passed.
The crucial point was that while there were many injured, not many fatalities occurred.
As their friends gradually recovered and stood up, laughter made its way back to the academy. By now, the atmosphere had somewhat recovered to the level before the Homecoming Festival.
However, even in this lively atmosphere, there were individuals unable to adapt.
A girl walking with a gloomy expression was the typical example.
She was Cien, the 5th Princess of the Empire.
She, who just entered the academy less than half a year ago, was once in her prime and there was a time when everyone loved and respected her.
However, her past glory was nowhere to be found on her face, now tainted by shadows.
Even those who were laughing and chatting now looked at Cien with somewhat uncomfortable expressions. The murmurs soon reached her ears, stabbing deeply into Cien’s chest.
“Did you hear? The trading company owned by the Percus family has gone bankrupt…”
“Even if there were misunderstandings, isn’t this too sudden? The Imperial Family is indeed terrifying.”
“They say no one has seen her smile since then.”
“What’s the use of regretting after ruining everything? There are already many unemployed in the Percus territory…”
The city that used to be suitable for outings was in a mess after the attack. Having nothing better to do, the students exchanged all sorts of information through conversations.
Among the academy-enrolled students, the proportion of nobles was relatively high. To survive in social circles, having information was essential, so whether they liked it or not, they heard a lot of news.
Such rumors were taken as facts within the academy after undergoing several rounds of exaggeration.
Of course, there were also many pieces of uncertain information. For instance, there was a rumor suggesting that ‘Percus Territory is filled with unemployed people.’
The Percus Family’s trading company was not that large in scale. Initially, it was handled by Ian’s younger sister, who was a minor. She would only meet the academy’s admission requirements next year.
It had only been up for a short time, so the amount of capital rolling around at the trading company wasn’t huge.
While the trading company wasn’t so small that its downfall wouldn’t matter, it wasn’t at a level where a single trading company could determine the future of the Percus Territory.
The fall of the Percus Territory had been prepared throughout several stages.
The trading company was just the starting point. Following this, their connections with neighboring territories would be severed, leading to a decrease in the movement of goods and causing essential supplies to become scarce in the Percus Territory.
The next plan was in the midst of the deteriorating public sentiment, the special operations troops from the Yurdina family would launch an attack.
Then, in the midst of insufficient resources, they would need to gather troops somehow, and the worsening public sentiment would lead the Percus Territory to sink into a pit.
However, the remaining plans had been canceled for a long time.
To withdraw this, Cien also had to exert a lot of effort. Nevertheless, there was no other choice. She considered it the minimum condition to seek forgiveness from Ian.
However, there was one thing that couldn’t be stopped.
It was the bankruptcy of the Percus family’s trading company, and the order to withdraw came far too late.
Since learning that news, Cien had not smiled even once.
Instead, even while walking, she would occasionally stop and tremble. Her light gray eyes repeatedly spasmed as if unable to withstand the overflowing chill.
‘What should I do?’
Cien recalled the question that had occupied her mind for the past few days, and suddenly, she lightly bit her thumbnail.
Until now, she thought she could somehow manage the situation.
Harassing Ian and even meddling with those around him were fatal mistakes. However, there was still room for forgiveness as those hadn’t caused irreparable damage.
Fortunately, Young Lady Lupesia seemed to have no intention of referring Ian to the disciplinary committee. Without the need for Cien to persuade her, everything would be alright if she assumed the role of the antagonist in this situation.
Apart from that, Cien didn’t need to take any action.
Everyone naturally turned their backs on Cien. Instead of praising Ian, the new hero, they pointed at Cien as the scapegoat to atone for their sins.
Thus, Cien became a sacrifice on the altar of hatred and anger, burning alone.
She willingly accepted that.
Yet, to be honest, she couldn’t help but feel disgust. Wasn’t everyone, in a way, an accomplice? However, since the biggest fault lay with Cien, she had to accept that.
If only Ian’s reputation could be restored.
Her childhood nightmare had been resurfacing and suffocating her once again.
If there was a moment when the girl finally discovered the ‘real one’ she had been searching for all her life, she could even endure it with a smile.
It was enough just to shed her tears at night.
However, she still hadn’t received forgiveness from those around Ian.
Yet, even this was a problem that could be solved over time. Improving relationships wasn’t something that could happen in a short period.
Only the bankruptcy of the trading company had become an irreversible mistake, throwing Cien into confusion.
She could establish a wealthier trading company for them with extensive support from the Imperial Family. However, the connections and trust they built over the years were assets that no capital investment could obtain.
Not to mention the time they had spent running the trading company until now, she didn’t know how many years it would take until it could be rebuilt.
Time was also an intangible asset. It was unimaginable what kind of loss Ian’s younger sister might feel.
Feeling suffocated, Cien stopped walking and strangled her neck.
With broken coughs and groans, tears trickled down from her eyes. The trembling light gray eyes reflected Cien’s deteriorated state.
Memories from childhood buried deep in her mind resurfaced once again.
The sight of her mother choking Cien’s throat.
Each time, Cien had no choice but to repeat the truth she had sincerely realized that day.
‘Everyone hates me.’
‘Everyone treats me with fake masks.’
‘Even my mother, who claimed to love me, all of them.’
It was an incredibly harsh truth for a girl not even a few years old. And it remained the same even now, as she had just become an adult.
The light gray eyes turned slit vertically on their own. Amidst her gasping for breath, she could hear the voices of these people. And even a faint sense of resentment emanated from within.
Cien’s body convulsed once, like a fish with a knife stuck in its spine. She soon staggered backwards, looking as if she might have experienced dizziness from a bystander’s perspective.
Anyone could see that her condition was unstable, and she could feel the looks of the people around her.
Not long after, a female student cautiously approached Cien. She asked with a concerned voice,
“…Um, Your Imperial Highness, are you okay?”
However, the female student soon had to hold her breath, and her body stiffened.
It was because Cien’s light gray eyes directed toward her turned slit, much like those of a reptile. Due to the peculiar pressure, cold sweat formed on the female student’s forehead.
The unreal spectacle made the female student startle, and she rubbed her eyes repeatedly after regaining her senses.
Only then did Cien’s eyes return to their normal state. The Imperial Princess said nothing for a while, only wearing a melancholy smile.
“Yes, I’m fine… I’ve been having trouble sleeping lately.”
Feeling a subtle sense of distance in Cien’s words, the female student awkwardly smiled and stepped back.
Cien then moved with unsteady steps, heading somewhere.
The female student, who had been observing her from behind, quickly rejoined her group and immediately began criticizing Cien.
“Ugh, how rude. Is being a member of the Imperial Family everything?”
“Tsk tsk, with your status, why should you worry about a member of the Imperial Family like her? There will be plenty of people around to pick her up if she faints or collapses.”
Yet, the female student remained unaware.
How chillingly cold Cien’s gaze was as she walked with her head down.
Suddenly, a sharp sound of teeth grinding echoed. In the lady’s light gray eyes, there was even a faint, ghastly aura, creating a dreary atmosphere.
Cien once again thought.
‘As expected, everything is just fake.’
‘There’s only one who is the “real one”.’
The Imperial Princess wanted that ‘real one’.
