ICETKM 32

Chapter 32

. Warning! External Intervention

Seriously.

I wanted to take a day off today.

But a duke of the empire didn’t get luxuries like that—damn it.

From the moment I woke up, it felt like something was hanging off my back, dragging my mood down.

It’s like one of those horoscopes that says, “Today you’ll fall backward and still manage to break your nose.”

Endless nightmares.
And the moment I opened my eyes, that fat cat was sprawled across my chest.

It was probably because of what that fat cat had said in such a meaningful tone:

“You’d better be careful today, meow.”

What the hell was that supposed to mean? Why drop such an ominous line out of nowhere?

This is all Lucy’s fault.

Thanks to that, my expression was probably a lot harsher than usual, because the magicians—who normally would have been chattering away—were following silently behind me.

In contrast to my foul mood, the little silver-haired boy beside me was smiling so brightly it almost sparkled.

Well, Luias, at least you’re happy. That’s something.

Loud noises drifted over from ahead.

I clenched my fists, glancing at the tense faces of the magicians around me.

Luias, clutching the hem of my robe, tilted his head up at me as if sensing something strange, our gazes meeting.
I shook my head slightly to say it was nothing and looked forward again.

By now, the awakened must have heard about the person and the drugs the emperor took away. And since the quest updated, that means the fight’s over, right?

If so, maybe today could pass quietly.

The place we were heading to was the very spot where Luias and I had once been ambushed out of nowhere by awakened.

The memory made me knit my brows slightly—
which was enough to spur the magicians, always ready to fawn over me, into action.

“Lord Head! We will protect you!”

“O-Of course, you’re not someone we even need to protect! But those people never apologized even after knowing the truth!”

They shouted loud enough to make my ears ring.

And considering the awakened had physical abilities several times greater than normal humans, I’d stake every organ I had that they’d heard the magicians’ yelling perfectly.

This is going to start another fight, isn’t it?

Sure enough, the first one I made eye contact with was the awakened knight who’d picked a fight with us last time.

The plant awakened… the emperor’s right hand. Some kind of count, I think.

His expression went pale, and after hesitating, he took the hand of what seemed to be his guide and started walking toward us.

The magicians around me visibly tensed, glaring as if to intimidate him.
Honestly, it didn’t look scary at all—it was more like a bunch of tiny hamsters clenching their little fists in anger.

Maybe it was just that these people had shown me too many ridiculous sides of themselves for me to take this seriously anymore.

Still, they formed a wall in front of me to block the approaching awakened.

“How dare you approach the Head!”

“Don’t you dare think of getting close to our duke!”

The awakened scratched his head.
He looked both frustrated and, oddly, a little wronged.

Is he… here to apologize?

Maybe. But from what I’d seen, awakened were never straightforward types.
And they’d be even less so with magicians bristling like angry cats right in front of them.

“I… heard about it. If I misunderstood something—”

Every eye focused on his mouth.
Mine included.

Alright, being honest is good. Let’s just keep this simple. We can’t keep fighting forever, right?

Not when we’re stuck in an apocalypse world like this.

Looking ahead at how the story was supposed to go, magicians and awakened really needed to make peace soon.

And though I was the head of the magicians, I was an impostor in this body—I didn’t fully side with them.

It’d be better if we worked together. Magicians can’t enter Gates, but we keep the balance of power outside perfectly well.

There’s no real need for magicians to go inside.
So if we could just stop fighting like cats and dogs…

“What the hell is this?!”

…Wouldn’t that be nice? Please?

The fairly decent atmosphere shattered instantly.

Out of nowhere, a clump of dirt shot toward the magicians, only to be deflected by a barrier spell.

I stared at the awakened who’d just spoken to me.

So you did come to pick a fight after all?

I gave him a glare full of blame and accusation.
He paled and shook his head frantically.

“No, that’s not what I—some bastard just—wait! What I mean is—!”

But his raised voice and the magicians’ active barrier spell…
combined with all the pent-up resentment on both sides,
sparked an incident that spiraled out of control.

A loud commotion erupted in the training yard.

“What’s going on here?”

“Hey, you treacherous magicians! How many of you does it take to face a single awakened?!”

Awakened who’d been watching from the yard came pouring over.

No, that’s not it at all!

I wanted to clutch my head and scream.

Aren’t you people supposed to have great hearing? You claim you can hear ants crawling!

If you’ve been listening this whole time, how do you reach this conclusion, you idiots?

I tried to intervene.

“Now, let’s—”

But the magicians, faced with the sudden arrival of a group of awakened, were already on edge.

“You’re the ones who picked a fight first! Step aside!”

“You muscle-headed brutes! How dare you behave so rudely before the duke without a single word of apology?”

“How far do you plan on looking down on us magicians?!”

The magicians’ emotionally charged words made the awakened—who’d been looking faintly awkward—flare up in anger.

“You bastards. Keep talking like you’re the only victims, why don’t you!”

“Do you even remember who’s been treating us like mongrels all this time?”

“Our knight hasn’t even attacked once, so how do you explain your overreaction? And why is the duke just standing there silently? Care to explain that, too?”

Why the hell are they shooting at me now?

I pinched my temples.
The headache from my lack of sleep was worse than usual today.

Which, of course, was misinterpreted.

“Oh, I get it—you think we’re beneath even speaking to! That’s it, isn’t it? I forgot, the duke only bothers to open her mouth in front of His Majesty the Emperor!”

…Oh. Really?

For a moment, I forgot the situation and just admired that.

Hilaria, you had some serious nerve…

And now I’m the one who has to live like that until the quest is done?

Then I saw Luias.

He’d started toward me, face full of fear, but when the standoff between magicians and awakened dragged on, he hesitated and stepped back, looking dejected.

The sight made bitterness rise in my throat.
I wanted to pull him into my arms and pat his back, telling him it was alright.

[Caution.]

Duke Ariel is a character with no warmth.

Her relationship with Luias is a cold teacher-student bond, nothing more.

If the character’s identity wavers, the quest may fail!

Yeah, yeah. I know.

I forced myself to look away from Luias.

Seeing the full-blown group standoff, I decided drastic measures were needed.

I’ll just use Spear of Fire on the training yard pillar. If the building collapses, that’ll snap them out of it!

I’d endure whatever agony came with it, sheer willpower keeping me going.
If I wanted to live, I’d just have to make it work—damn it!

With my resolve firm, I clenched my teeth and was about to call up my status window when—

[Warning!]