How to Survive as the Academy’s Villain

Chapter 66

“How many days has it been?”

“Well… it’s been about nine days. We’ve definitely inquired with the Election Management Committee, but they say they’re doing their best. I’m sorry, Princess.”

One of the members of Francia’s campaign team bowed deeply, apologizing in response to her quiet question.

“No, there’s no need to apologize to me. This isn’t anyone’s fault.”

Shaking her head gently, Francia replied softly, causing the other students to look at her with admiration.

At that moment, Rosen Ravenia’s voice rang out.

“Well, the culprits are obvious, aren’t they? Who else but Lady Cecilia’s camp would do such a thing?”

“But there’s no evidence, is there?”

“Evidence? Hah, right. There’s no evidence. It’s all circumstantial.”

“I still can’t believe that such a naive person would do something like that.”

“Oh, come on, senior. Whose campaign team are you on?”

“I’m just saying how I feel.”

Vice President Obern frowned and replied firmly to Rosen’s sarcastic remark.

Rosen, still sounding annoyed, continued.

“Can’t we just increase the number of patrols and surveillance? We can catch the culprits right away.”

“Well, that’s true, but it’s easier said than done.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Night patrols are entirely the responsibility of the academy’s guards. Students can’t form their own patrol teams.”

“Seriously… this is ridiculous.”

According to academy regulations, students were not allowed to roam freely after midnight unless they had an urgent matter or special permission. Consequently, Francia’s campaign team had requested increased night patrols and surveillance from the guards, and the guards had complied.

However…

“Increasing patrols with the existing personnel has its limits. They can pay extra attention for a day or two, but any longer than that is difficult, or so we’ve been told.”

The posters being put up around the academy were cunningly and cleverly placed. The culprits seemed to be masters at evading detection. They paused their activities when patrols were strengthened and resumed as soon as they were eased.

“This is beyond incompetence. Let’s request permission from the Election Management Committee to form our own patrol team. We can’t just sit back and watch this happen.”

“I’ve already told you, Rosen. That’s the guards’ job. We can’t form our own patrol team.”

“So what, we just keep watching this? Do you know what people are saying about Princess Francia these days? Even my friends are asking if those rumors are true.”

“……”

Repeated false information and rumors were starting to shake Francia’s image. In less than ten days since the posters first appeared, people began to associate her name with terms like ‘heavy smoker,’ ‘thug,’ and ‘commoner hater.’

“Everyone, please wait a moment.”

When Francia raised her hand, Rosen, Obern, and the rest of the campaign team focused their attention on her.

“Vice President Obern.”

“Yes, Princess. Please, speak.”

“To my knowledge, the student council president has the authority to form a patrol team. Is that correct?”

“Well…”

Obern nodded and replied.

“Yes, that’s correct. The student council president can form a patrol team.”

“And President Alex is still maintaining his neutrality?”

“Yes. He has declared that he won’t influence the election in any way, so… he likely won’t take any action.”

“Ugh, even Senior Alex!”

“Alright then. Given the circumstances, we can’t just ignore this any longer. We’ll start officially countering these absurd rumors and fake news. And…”

Continuing, Francia turned to Obern.

“I want to respect President Alex’s wishes as much as possible. However, there’s a risk that an overheated election could negatively impact the students at the academy. Could you please convey to him that I would like to meet with him?”

“Yes, Princess. I will certainly relay the message.”

“Lady Rosen, please prepare materials to refute the content of those posters.”

“Yes, Princess!”

“Then let’s conclude today’s meeting here.”

With that, Francia ended the meeting and headed to her office.

* * *

“Is this right?”

“Yeah, do we really have to go this far?”

Crollin and Mork grumbled with displeased expressions, while Sol urgently hushed them.

“Shh! Be quiet, all of you.”

The monster trio were currently hiding around the academy, searching for the culprits who had put up the posters.

“How many days has it been?”

“We haven’t slept for three days, I think?”

“Hey, I told you to be quiet, didn’t I?”

Sol’s firm response made Crolin mutter in frustration.

“Are those guys really going to show up here? What idiot would put up posters in such a busy spot?”

“Exactly. Shouldn’t this be the job of Princess Francia’s campaign team? We’re not even part of the team, so why are we doing this?”

Annoyed by their continued complaints, Sol Krenz also looked irritated.

“Hey, what was our order? To thoroughly investigate Kamon, right? And they suspect he’s behind those posters, so what choice do we have?”

“That’s what I can’t believe. Is it really Kamon? Is he the one who put up the posters?”

“They don’t have any evidence. They’re just guessing. Why would Kamon Beyde do this?”

“If you keep whining like that, go tell the princess directly that you can’t do it.”

“Uh?”

“Hey, Sol, why do you always have to talk like that?”

“Seriously, just shut up.”

Sol Crensh didn’t like being caught between Francia and Kamon Beid, causing him to suffer. Initially, he obeyed Francia’s orders and paid attention to Kamon out of fear.

‘Why the hell are we even doing this?’

If he were truly one of her trusted followers, he wouldn’t have had any reason to complain. When he went alone to report information about Kamon to Francia:

– Is that all?

Her question, with deeply sunken eyes, left him speechless.

– Don’t come to me on your own again. I’ll contact you later. Wait for it.

Francia’s immediate dismissal forced him to leave in a hurry.

‘Kamon, that bastard, and Francia, that bitch!’

Their submission to both Kamon and Francia wasn’t due to genuine loyalty but because of the power and leverage those two had over them. As their discontent grew towards both Kamon Beid and Princess Francia, the Monster Trio noticed something.

“What’s that?”

“What’s going on over there?”

Shush!

A figure in a black cloak appeared on the path.

“Shh, be quiet.”

The cloaked figure pulled something from their cloak and quickly began posting it on the wall.

“…!”

Then, as the figure swiftly left the area, the Monster Trio quickly followed.

But…

“Huff, huff. What the hell? That guy is so fast…”

“Yeah, seriously quick.”

In the end, they lost sight of the black cloak that vanished at an incredible speed.

“What do we do now?”

Crollin scratched his head roughly, and Sol responded irritably.

“What else can we do?”

“Huh?”

He pointed back to their original spot.

“We go back to hiding there.”

“Damn it! Seriously!”

As the Monster Trio loudly vented their frustration, not far from them, behind a building, the figure in the black cloak panted heavily.

“Phew, those guys were hiding there?”

The figure lowered their hood and spoke again.

“How should I deal with them?”

The person who posted the flyers in a black cloak was Kamon , the very culprit the Monster Trio was desperately searching for.

* * *

Clang, clash, clang!

“Whoa, the sword feels pretty heavy today.”

Kyle moved swiftly, his voice full of excitement.

“…”

Swoosh!

Chelsea increased the speed of her sword without a word.

“With that weight and speed, it’s not easy to parry!”

Despite his constant chatter, Kyle blocked every single one of Chelsea’s relentless attacks. She bit her lower lip in frustration.

Chelsea gathered all her strength for one powerful strike aimed at breaking through Kyle’s defense.

“Hup!”

With more force than ever, she swung her sword at Kyle.

Swoosh!

But…

“Wow, I really can’t block that!”

With a light exclamation, Kyle narrowly dodged the attack.

“Stop, stop. Let’s call it a day. Someone’s going to get hurt at this rate.”

Landing gracefully, Kyle set his sword down and quickly gestured to stop.

“Phew.”

Chelsea, also lowering her sword, looked at Kyle with deep, piercing eyes.

‘I couldn’t hit him even once.’

Since the duel began, Chelsea had focused mainly on offense, especially today, pouring all her strength into a relentless attack without holding back. Yet she hadn’t landed a single blow.

“Your sword was pretty fierce today. Is something bothering you, Chelsea?”

Kyle asked with a gentle smile. For a moment, Chelsea felt like hitting him on the head.

Despite always playing the defensive role and taking her attacks, his ability to block them without fail showed the significant gap in their skills.

“No, nothing much…”

“I thought maybe something was wrong today. Things have been a bit tense around here lately.”

As Kyle mentioned, the atmosphere at the academy had been odd since the posters started appearing everywhere.

“I’ll start cleaning up.”

Kyle began putting his sword away and tidying the training ground. Chelsea found herself muttering to herself.

“What? Am I in a bad mood?”

Remembering Kamon’s face from that morning, Chelsea shook her head firmly and muttered again.

“There’s no need for unnecessary thoughts.”

Chelsea gathered her resolve, put away her sword, and spoke up.

“Hey, let’s do it together!”

She then began helping Kyle with the cleanup.

______________

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