Neris looked around her room.
It was the room she would share for the next 5 years. In her past life, she had to stay here longer, and it eventually became the seed of tragedy, but it wouldn't be the same this time.
She would leave before anyone could find a reason to exploit her.
Every corner of the quiet room was familiar, yet in a way, it was also unfamiliar.
It was the same room she had spent a long time in during her previous life, so Neris was familiar with it, but back then, she was truly a child and couldn't organize the room as confidently as she did now.
Books from the advanced senior classes she hadn't heard before and clothes given by Diane were somehow stored in various places.
From now on, Neris's days at the academy would be the same. They would undoubtedly involve experiences she had gone through before, but she would handle them differently this time, adding new elements.
And after those 5 years.
"I'll start a completely different life."
Valentin couldn't touch Neris for a while. Nelucian wouldn't allow it.
Why did Neris endure the disgust and pretend to be a good child to Nelucian all this time?
Even if Nelucian graduated, it would be the same. The events at the academy had already entered Nelucian's ears, so there was no way to escape.
The same went for Megara. Over the past year, Neris had learned amazing things.
No matter how hard Megara tried to make Neris miserable, it all lost its meaning when she had a friend who stood up for her. In her previous life, Neris had been thoroughly lonely because no one told her that what was happening to her was wrong. There were children who participated in the torment to some extent, but there was no one completely innocent.
Idalia was a prime example. While believing that a child being bullied was pitiful, she claimed that she was even more pitiful for closing her eyes to it.
Or like Alekto, who would pass on his inferiority complex and then completely forget about it.
Did they truly despise Neris as a human being?
Most likely, they didn't.
What about Lianon? When he betrayed her after suggesting they share true friendship and then shifted all the blame to Neris to avoid revealing his true self, did Lianon reflect on his actions?
And Angarad? Fearing he was the weakest in the class, did he create more victims to avoid being targeted himself?
Would they truly despise Neris?
Likely not.
Neris's peers treated her like an object. Because everyone else did. And by behaving that way, they found great pleasure in their sense of superiority.
The complete indifference to the inner world of a human being... and the ultimate result of years of relentless bullying due to that indifference.
So if someone treated Neris as a person, bullying became a valueless 'attitude' that required little attention.
Valentin and Megara, like Nelucian, were the same. They were all wearing the too sturdy armor of their lineage.
To pierce through, the armor had to be removed. Neris had no way to do that now, but in 5 years, it would be different.
So Neris Trude quietly awaited her growth.
Quietly, while sharpening the blade.
And so she decided to do that.
"Is this acceptable?"
Upon hearing Priest Adams' words, Len set down the paper he was holding.
A diploma bordered in ivory with golden ink.
A certificate of appointment with a golden border for graduating theology students who wanted to start in a slightly better position.
Once assigned, a parishioner couldn't leave until death. Therefore, parishes with high stipends were fiercely competitive.
The term 'couldn't leave' was, of course, a phrase used with exceptions in mind.
Len set down the appointment letter he received, which had the name of a small village far from the big city.
A satisfying smile crossed Len's lovely face.
"Exactly what I wanted. Thank you."
Priest Adams furrowed his brow.
He knew well that the boy before him was not an angelic being like his appearance suggested. An angel wouldn't kill those who tried to harm him with their own hands.
When Pope Omnitus was crowned, he killed the servant Dogon, who had recommended the herb Pope Omnitus killed Dogon, who had recommended the herb Pezalcho to Len. A slight suspicion was enough.
And the next in line was Priest Birk, who had subtly encouraged Len's flight, hoping to disappoint and discourage any remaining supporters of the Fayel family.
After Dogon's death, Omnitus had difficulty learning about Len's whereabouts. He had not missed the content of the letter Len had pretended to send to the head of the theology department one day.
"Priest Birk turned out to be someone who had received favors from the former Pope, Tacitus. I'm really grateful you subtly told him to stop using Pezalcho."
"He seemed to treat me well, yet he was sometimes very strict. Thinking about it, it was all for my benefit."
Omnitus, who had been wondering why Len suddenly stopped using Pezalcho, dismissed Priest Birk. Len didn't have to work hard in the process.
That coldness. The quick wit of using a few clever words to make his enemies cut off their own limbs. The thoroughness to leave no room for trouble.
The more he saw, the more satisfied Priest Adams was with his choice. But Len's methods were very different from Priest Adams' rigid methods, and it was often difficult to understand.
This time was no different.
Len had two options for survival.
Completely hiding to avoid attention, or completely revealing himself, attracting everyone's attention, and winning.
So far, Priest Adams had thought that Len would choose the latter. He had started attending the advanced theology classes he hadn't been interested in before, and he had never missed Bible readings during the holidays, which he had always been eager to skip.
But suddenly, he would go down to a small parish that no one wanted.
"You look confused."
Len, instantly reading Priest Adams' expression, smiled languidly. Priest Adams nodded, not denying it.
"Yes. What can you do here?"
"That's not the question."
Len raised his right index finger and tilted it to both sides. His mischievous eyes sparkled with deep meaning.
"You should ask, 'What can't you do here?'"
"What?"
Priest Adams fell into thought, trying to figure out what he had missed in the current situation. But no matter how hard he thought, nothing came to mind.
Len smiled faintly. He didn't know exactly 'what' Priest Adams expected of him. But he could sense a great anger in the heart of this stubborn priest.
An anger so great that he had to dare to shake the current balance, even mortgaging his own life.
"It's so strange. How quickly people forget. Even the name you called a hundred times yesterday, you act as if you don't know it today."
Len, deliberately using a long introduction to make Priest Adams curious, was also telling his own story.
He regretted the years he wasted, unable to accept the fate of the fallen Fayel family.
A hint of bitterness passed over the boy's cute face.
"When my brother was elected Pope, there were a few people who helped him a lot. One in particular was very fond of me when I was young, but he disappeared after leaving the priesthood due to an unfortunate incident. He still has many followers, so he must be living peacefully."
As Len finished speaking, Priest Adams' expression changed as if he couldn't believe it. He blinked his eyes and moved his mouth several times.
There had been so many political battles since Omnitus became Pope, and so many people had disappeared from the Papal State and the world. That's why he had forgotten the famous people of the previous generation.
In the early days of the former Pope's reign, there was a great dispute in the Papal State regarding the interpretation of doctrine.
It was a trivial matter to the point that even Priest Adams couldn't remember exactly what the issue was, but the dispute had split the entire Papal State in half.
It was natural. It was nothing more than a political power struggle to actually suppress the new Pope.
At that time, there was a figure who stepped down as an example to quell the intense dispute.
Even if his political stance was reserved, he was a giant who was respected by countless priests, so the priests who were ready to declare one side as heretics immediately focused on paying their respects to him.
And they quickly integrated under the new Pope's order.
Omnitus, the current Pope, was one of the few who did not integrate at that time.
Len, seeing Priest Adams' face, nodded.
"His hometown is here. He told me when I was young."
Len Fayel, with no family, wealth, or influence among the priests.
The only key to his survival, even though he was still a boy.
"I've registered it."
Cladwin slightly raised his eyebrows at the complaint in his subordinate's voice.
"Do you dislike it?"
"Where would I dislike it if my precious master wants it?"
"It sounds like you're complaining to me, Talfryn."
Talfryn, a man sitting in the corner of a small private room, made a short, strange sound. Cladwin thought it sounded like a sneer.
An ordinary master might have been outraged by his subordinate's attitude.
"Didn't you say complaining is my right? When you took me in before?"
"Who said you couldn't?"
"Strange." It was a rare word that could be used to describe Cladwin Maindland's subordinates. Respecting their individuality was as important as anything else in leading such people.
Talfryn leaned against the wall and chattered.
"I've made the library chair recognize Lady Trude's magic, so if my lord goes up there, you can talk if your schedules match. But are you really not taking her with you? She'll be a valuable asset."
"Why?"
Why? Talfryn's eyes narrowed behind his monocle.
"Aren't you worried about leaving her behind?"
Cladwin's subordinates were few in number but all elite, never missing any movement in the school. That was why Cladwin knew everything Neris had done.
That meant he had also figured out many of the actions that other children had tried to do to Neris.
Whether she liked it or not, the little girl couldn't live quietly. How many people disliked her?
So, leaving the school before a bigger storm hit was a perfectly good choice, at least in Talfryn's opinion.
Of course, those nasty junior high school kids would have a hard time moving around for a while.
But when it came to dealing with people you didn't like, there were always more direct methods than tricks among children.
Frankly, even if you hired a mercenary, it wouldn't be difficult to make a little girl disappear from this world.
Cladwin mentioned the name of another person in the private room.
"Aidan will stay."
If Joseph was Nelucian's confidant and playmate, Aidan was Cladwin's confidant. Even if not as good as Cladwin, he was a talent worthy of the epithet "genius."
Leaving your most important and skilled subordinate at school? That's not something someone who's about to walk into a dangerous situation would say. Talfryn genuinely thought so. But what could he do?
"Yes."
If he said so. And this boy master was someone who never took back his words once he spoke them.
Cladwin leaned back against the chair. And fell into deep thought.
Neris would do well with the rest of her school life. Of course, he would help if she had any difficulties, but she had managed to fend off the arrogant upperclassmen even when she was a powerless freshman.
So his job wasn't to focus on children's friendships.
He had to go back.
Go back and let those dirty bastards know who the master is. And by the time the girl from Jaan graduates.
A safe place will be prepared for her.