How to Survive as the Academy’s Villain

Chapter 81

The next day.

“Hello, nice to meet you. I’m Cecilia Romanoff, candidate number 4. Please cast your precious vote for me.”

“Hello!”

“I’m Cecilia, candidate number 4!”

The academy was bustling with the ongoing handshake event that had started yesterday. Naturally, all members of the campaign teams were mobilized to participate in this event. I was among them, helping Lady Cecilia with the handshakes.

And simultaneously,

“Princess Francia, candidate number 1. Please vote for me!”

Across from us, Princess Francia was energetically greeting everyone with a smile on her face. As usual, she was surrounded by a substantial security detail.

“Kamon!”

“Yes?”

“What are you doing? You’ve been looking over there all this time.”

Caught off guard by Lady Cecilia’s sudden call, I scratched the back of my head and answered briefly.

“Oh, nothing. I was just thinking.”

“Thinking? About what?”

“That’s a secret.”

“What? A secret? Come on, tell me too!”

As Lady Cecilia began to pester me, I quickly signaled to Lois.

“Ma’am, there are a lot of people over there. Let’s go greet them and continue shaking hands.”

“Oh? Really? Alright.”

Watching her hurriedly rush off, I chuckled and shook my head.

“Alright, let’s focus on the handshake event.”

“I’m Cecilia Romanoff, candidate number 4. Please give me your enthusiastic support.”

We continued campaigning and shaking hands until the sun began to set.

“Thank you all for your hard work today. Please give it your all one more day!”

“You did great too, Ma’am.”

“We’re almost there. Let’s keep it up!”

With the first day of the handshake event coming to a close, everyone began to disperse.

“Good job, everyone.”

I greeted the others in passing and looked over at Princess Francia’s campaign team. She was still surrounded by people, greeting them as her guards led her away.

“Tonight’s the night, right?”

Fortunately, Kyle and Edin Berzen, known as the Sword Phantom, were among her guards, ensuring her safety.

“Well, there’s nothing to worry about.”

I had given the warning, and security had been increased. This was the best I could do.

“Kamon, you’ve been looking over there all this time. Are you planning to switch sides? It’s too late for that now. Just look at today’s handshake event alone…”

Lady Cecilia suddenly appeared next to me, chattering away. I shrugged nonchalantly.

“No, I was just observing the atmosphere.”

“The atmosphere?”

Lady Cecilia glanced over to the other side, tilting her head in curiosity.

“Why are you observing the atmosphere all of a sudden? Is there a problem over there?”

“No, nothing like that.”

“Geez, how disappointing. It would’ve been nice if someone had betrayed them.”

Giggling, Lady Cecilia then beamed and continued.

“Don’t worry. Though it’s still a secret, I heard some good news last night.”

“Good news?”

“Yes. As of noon yesterday, our support rate has surpassed Princess Francia’s. It’s still within the margin of error, but a win is a win!”

“Ah…”

“What’s with that reaction? Aren’t you happy? Are you planning to betray us?”

“No, it’s just within the margin of error. I think it’s too early to celebrate.”

“Of course, but this is the first time we’ve surpassed them. Isn’t that something to celebrate?”

Seeing her protest with a sullen face, I couldn’t help but smile.

True, coming from a seemingly impossible 9:1 ratio to exceeding 5:5 was a significant achievement and indeed something to celebrate.

However,

“It’s still too early to celebrate. We need to secure a decisive victory first.”

“Hmph, fine.”

Lady Cecilia distanced herself slightly, pouting, and waved her hand dismissively.

“See you tomorrow, you cold-hearted Kamon!”

Right after parting ways with Lady Cecilia,

“Oh man, I’m so hungry. Let’s go get some dinner. Lois, you’re coming too, right?”

“Yes, of course.”

“And Bren?”

“Me? I’m not that hungry.”

“Too bad, you’re coming anyway.”

“What? Why?!”

“Kamon, are you coming too?”

“Well, I’d like to, but I can’t get into the noble dining hall.”

“Don’t worry about that. We’ll just take the food to Bren’s room.”

“What? My room? All of a sudden?”

“Your dorm is closest to the dining hall.”

“Well, that’s true, but…”

Seeing Bren’s frustrated expression, I couldn’t help but laugh.

“Alright, let’s go.”

“K-Kamon?!”

“Great, Lois, let’s go grab the food.”

“Uh, is it really okay to go to Bren’s room?”

“Of course it is. Right, Bren?”

“…”

Realizing he couldn’t refuse, Bren nodded with a defeated look.

“Alright, let’s go.”

So we headed to the noble dining hall to get our food.

* * *

“Wow, why are there so many people here today?”

“It’s probably because of the handshake event. We might have to wait a while.”

“But why is it so chaotic here? It doesn’t even look like there’s a line. Hey, don’t push!”

The front of the noble dining hall was crowded with people who had come all at once. The situation was chaotic, with people not even standing in line properly.

“Hey, stop pushing!”

“Line up, there’s a line here.”

“What’s wrong with everyone? Do they have no sense?”

Hearing the irritated voices of students all around, I shook my head and muttered.

“I’ll just go to the common dining hall. You guys eat here.”

“What? What are you talking about, Kamon?”

“I don’t want to wait in such a crowded place.”

My head was already throbbing, and I didn’t want to stay in such a noisy place.

“Senior, Kamon says he wants to eat at the common dining hall. What do we do?”

“What? That’s so unfaithful, Kamon.”

“There’s no need to eat here. We can have a proper meal together later.”

“What? No way…”

“Then I’m leaving first. See you tomorrow.”

Before they could say anything else, I quickly made my exit.

“Wait a minute.”

“Hey, Kamon!”

I ignored the voices calling me from behind and hurried away. When I finally reached the common dining hall, I couldn’t help but mutter to myself.

“Damn, it’s the same here.”

The common dining hall was just as crowded as the noble one had been.

“Form a line first!”

“Stop pushing.”

“Damn it, can’t you guys follow basic rules?!”

It was the same chaos all over again.

“Sigh.”

Watching the scene, I let out a short sigh.

“Maybe I’ll just skip dinner today.”

Honestly, even if I managed to get food, I doubted I’d be able to eat it properly.

‘They must be encountering each other by now, right?’

In my mind, I pictured Princess Francia surrounded by shadows under the dark sky, guarded by her escorts, with Kyle ready to defend her.

They would be caught off guard by the sudden attack, with most of the guards falling quickly, leaving Kyle to stand alone, defending the princess.

“…”

As a fan of the original novel, I had always found that scene quite exciting.

“If it were a webtoon, it’d be pretty cool. But no, a third-rate novel like this wouldn’t get a webtoon adaptation…”

Chuckling at my own thoughts, I shook my head and joined the line.

“Still, I need to eat something.”

Growl.

Ignoring the rumbling of my stomach wasn’t an option. I didn’t have that much self-discipline.

As I waited in the long line at the common dining hall,

“Hey, Kamon?”

An all-too-familiar voice called out from behind me. I turned my head, my movements stiff and creaky.

And there he was, smiling and waving at me.

“K-Kyle?”

Seeing him, my whole body froze.

What is he doing here…?

“Yeah, it’s Kamon. Are you here to eat?”

“W-what? Why are you here?”

“Hm? I just finished everything and got here. Shall we eat together?”

His innocent smile and question made my mind go blank.

And then,

“Shit! This is really driving me crazy.”

Bang, bang, bang!

I started running as fast as I could.

“Huh? Kamon? Where are you going?!”

“Kyle! Princess Francia is in danger!”

“What?”

Thud, thud, thud!

Running like a madman, I couldn’t help but curse.

“Damn it! Fucking hell!”

I had been too complacent!

Simply existing in this world had created countless variables.

How did I believe everything would resolve itself without any issues?

If Princess Francia’s safety was compromised…

‘How will we deal with the butterfly effect?’

Until now, I had been dealing with manageable variables, but if something happened to one of the main heroines?

Princess Francia’s death or disappearance would change the story, the settings, and even the ending I knew.

Moreover,

“I need that ring!”

My life depended on the top-tier artifact that Princess Francia possessed.

Without it, I wouldn’t even live to see the ending.

“Please, let nothing happen!”

With all my strength, I pushed off the ground and ran, shouting.

______________

Rate us on Novel Updates to motivate me translate more chapters.