Suicide Before Defeating the Final Boss

Suicide Before Defeating the Final Boss – 58

 EP.58 The Revealed Truth Part 1

Everything requires a fitting sacrifice, and in that sacrifice, it must be the least valuable that is offered.

Second Princess Karina understood better than anyone that it was her belief in this principle that had raised her—a child born to a concubine whose name was rarely mentioned—to a possible heir to the throne.

‘So, even in this case…’

Deciding to act in accordance with her long-held principles, she instructed Esich accordingly.

“I’ve heard that the Second Knight Order has attracted many commoners recently. Among them, there must be some who are talented but still struggling with hunger.”

Although she expressed it indirectly, the meaning was clear: Shift all the suspicions about the leader of the Second Knight Order onto his subordinates.

Esich, understanding the implication behind her words, fell into a brief contemplation.

“There’s a problem, Your Highness. The investigators have already found out too much. Even if we offer new scapegoats, I don’t think they’ll believe them.”

He was right. The investigators indeed knew too much already.

However, Karina noticed that Esich was overlooking something, and she decided to point it out.

“Hasn’t Bishop Lea fled recently after murdering all the investigators?”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

“If we make it seem more likely that one of his accomplices was part of the Second Knight Order, it would add a certain level of believability.”

At her words, Esich opened his mouth as if to protest but then fell silent. Likely, it was the sheer danger of worsening the situation by fabricating even greater crimes to cover existing ones that made him hesitate.

Therefore, Karina offered him a way to navigate through this dangerous situation.

“… It is said that the First Princess has a great fondness for commoners.”

At this short remark, Esich’s eyes widened in surprise, and he drew a sharp breath as he looked at her. Karina calmly continued speaking.

“Influenced by her compassion, there could very well be an extremist who is determined to secure the throne for the First Princess by causing trouble in the name of the Second Princess’s faction.”

Though it was a lengthy explanation, what she was really suggesting was simple: Fabricate a story that a spy sent by the First Princess had pretended to be a member of the Second Princess’s faction and committed the deeds.

Esich fell silent, seemingly deep in thought, trying to anticipate what kind of repercussions this might bring.

Noticing his hesitation, Karina spoke with a tone implying there was no need for concern.

“Counter fallacies with fallacies, distortions with distortions.”

Despite her reassurances, Esich still appeared uneasy. Karina added another point to ease his mind.

“Don’t worry too much. There’s nothing left for First Princess Charlotte, who abandoned her claim to the throne and fled.”

At those words, Esich finally nodded and agreed to carry out her orders.

***

In the dormitory.

Jeong-hyeon chuckled as Miria, burdened with countless toys, tried to comfort Hana, who was about to cry.

Miria had changed completely since their first encounter when she acted like a madwoman. Now, she was showing the exact opposite of that initial impression.

‘Where did that madness go?’

It was often said that insanity fades when one meets someone even crazier than oneself, but it seemed unlikely that there was anyone around Miria who fit that description. He was puzzled by this thought.

‘The only ones around her are the pig, Jer, Marpe, or maybe Lucia, but that seems unlikely.’

Unable to make sense of the situation, he eventually decided to let it go, thinking that if things were turning out well, there was no need to complain. As he watched the scene unfolding before him, he found it rather amusing.

“Hana, how about this? It’s really expensive and nice. What do you think? If I give it to you, will you forgive me?”

“No…”

“Th-then how about this? This one is expensive and delicious.”

“I like Daddy more…”

“Hah, this isn’t working. How about I just give you money? How much do you want?”

“……”

Did Miria really think everything could be solved with money? Finding her behavior hard to understand, he thought it was time to get down to business. He called out to the anxious Miria.

“Miria, tell me about the awards ceremony.”

“Oh… okay.”

He got up, calling the somewhat dejected-looking Miria over. As soon as he moved, Hana trailed right after him, circling around his legs.

“First of all, you should know this award ceremony isn’t going to be normal. No matter how well an academy student does, it’s rare for them to be summoned all the way to the kingdom to receive an award.”

He nodded in agreement, and Miria, seeing his response, continued speaking.

“So, I started investigating why they would go to such lengths to hold the ceremony in the kingdom, and it turns out there’s a lot tied up in it. Issues about the royal succession, potential wars, conflicts between nobles, and even…”

She rattled off various reasons until she seemed to realize she was going on too long. With a sigh, she summed it up.

“Basically, it’s just a show of power.”

“Really?”

“The strange part, though, is how they’re focusing so heavily on the academy… I’ve looked into it, but all I have are speculations, so I can’t say for sure.”

He asked Miria to share what these speculations were, and she replied.

“Keep in mind, this is purely speculative and not very credible.”

With that, she began to explain.

“This involves not just the kingdom but the church as well. It feels like both groups have some hidden agenda with the academy. They’re placing personnel very persistently, hosting ceremonies to sway students to their side…”

As Miria continued speaking, she suddenly let out a sigh mixed with laughter.

“Look, I know this all sounds like a conspiracy theory, right? It’s not reliable information, so you don’t need to take it too seriously.”

Miria waved her hand dismissively and spoke to him. Watching her reaction, he fell into thought.

‘There’s evidence that both the church and the kingdom have some hidden agenda involving the academy, so it seems like this is true. But what exactly are they after? That’s still a mystery.’

He figured the best way to uncover their intentions would be to attend the awards ceremony and investigate from the heart of the kingdom. With that thought in mind, he decided to look into it further during the ceremony.

***

‘Only about two days left until the awards ceremony, huh?’

By the next day, they would need to set out for the kingdom. He had to wrap up all the pending work and start preparing for the journey.

‘If things were like they normally are, I’d be able to finish preparing without much trouble.’

The real problem, however, was the fact that the sapling—no, Hana—had transformed from a seedling into a human form. Figuring out what to do about her was the biggest dilemma.

‘The best option I have is to leave her in Lucia’s care.’

The issue was that Lucia also had her own duties and couldn’t keep an eye on Hana all day. After a moment of consideration, he came up with a reasonable solution: leaving Hana with Miria only in the mornings.

‘Anyway, Miria rarely attends morning classes.’

He thought it would work out to have Miria watch Hana in the mornings and Lucia take over from lunchtime. Believing this arrangement to be the best for the short duration of his absence, he brought it up to Miria.

“…In the mornings? If it’s just for a few days, it shouldn’t be too hard. I’ve already given up on my grades, after all.”

Fortunately, Miria agreed. Internally cheering, he also asked Lucia to help out, and she consented as well. However, there was still one more issue.

He tried to calmly explain the situation to Hana, who was clinging to his leg.

“Hana.”

“Yes?”

“For a while, I… I mean, Daddy has to go somewhere…”

“Don’t leave me…”

“No, it’s not about leaving you.”

“I’ll be good… Please don’t leave me…”

Where had she picked up the idea of being abandoned? I couldn’t understand and tried to console the tearful Hana.

‘So, how am I supposed to handle this?’

He didn’t want to keep her tucked away in a subspace, after all. As he sighed and pondered the situation, Lucia suggested an idea.

“Now that I think about it, isn’t it possible for Hana to transform into a tree? If she stays in tree form, it would be easier for me to watch over her from morning until evening.”

Observing Hana’s reaction, he saw that she seemed more willing to accept the idea of staying with Lucia all day. It wasn’t a perfect solution, but it was the best compromise he could hope for.

“Okay… but Daddy, you have to come back quickly.”

“I’ll come back as soon as I can.”

“Alright.”

It was both relieving and a bit disconcerting to see the issue resolved, and with that, he decided it was time to start packing.

***

The next day, as promised, he prepared to leave Hana with Lucia. However, Hana clung to him, refusing to let go. He awkwardly smiled, finding it hard to detach her. Hana buried her tear-streaked face in his thigh, sobbing uncontrollably.

He thought it was strange to encounter someone who was so reluctant to let him go in this world, considering how different it was from his previous life, where people either wanted to kill him or push him away.

‘It’s almost the opposite of my past experiences.’

He gently wiped Hana’s tear-streaked face.

“I’ll definitely come back, so just wait a little bit.”

Hana sniffled and clung tightly as he lifted her and handed her over to Lucia.

“Please take good care of her.”

“Of course.”

Lucia, with a calm expression, patted Hana’s back and nodded. Seeing this, he managed to put on a small, awkward smile before heading to the meeting spot.

Upon arrival, he found the First Princess waiting by the carriage. It would be unheard of for a commoner like him to be accompanied by the First Princess, but the kingdom had promised to treat him as a distinguished guest, and the First Princess had mentioned having important matters to discuss with him during the journey. This arrangement was a result of these intersecting factors.

Feeling comfortable, he approached the carriage. The First Princess sighed and spoke to him.

“Why are your pants so wet? Did you spill something while washing?”

Looking down at his pants, he noticed tear stains on them and gave an awkward smile.

“Anyway, let’s get going. I have a lot to discuss with you.”

Having much to say himself, he decided to follow her lead and approached the carriage she pointed to.