Guiding the Male Lead out of His Trauma - Chapter 41.2
Cassiel’s disciplinary action was ideological education. In other words, copying texts and submitting reports for the purpose of correcting impure views.
He had to attend one-on-one sessions with the professor in question and, beyond that, write a massive number of reports.
It would be grueling for most people, but would it even be effective on Cassiel?
‘He’s probably just doing nothing and reading whatever books he wants.’
The annex, which was more extravagant than the main building, wasn’t a space used for classes.
As a symbolic structure of the academy, it was occasionally used to host outside guests.
Or, it was used as an emergency shelter due to its distance from the main building.
Like during Acteon’s second manifestation.
This annex had a small-scale library.
The main library existed as a separate building next to the main hall, but those under disciplinary action, who needed to be isolated from the other cadets, were sent here.
Technically, I wasn’t supposed to access the library either.
‘But there’s always a way.’
There was a very easy method to slip into the second-floor library. I used it often when I first entered the academy.
I approached the building wall and tugged on the thick vine clinging tightly to it.
“As expected. It’s tough. No problem.”
Grabbing the vine, it felt novel to be scaling a wall again after so long.
Back then, I’d even fallen once by mistake. After three or four tries, I’d gotten the hang of it.
I climbed up without much trouble, and after placing one foot on the window ledge to secure myself, I opened the window wide.
Cassiel, who appeared on the other side of the rattling window, looked like he couldn’t believe his eyes.
“Liliope Ortis, did you… just climb up the wall?”
“No one’s allowed to pass through the annex entrance. Are you doing your transcriptions properly?”
“Do I look like someone who would? They’ll have to let me out soon anyway, so I’ve just been cooling my head.”
I climbed inside and briskly brushed off my dirty palms.
Cassiel seemed at a loss for words as he looked at me.
Despite the professor’s disciplinary action, he seemed to be getting along just fine.
I’d thought he was like a princess locked in a tower, but laughably, that princess was currently engaged in a battle of nerves with the witch who locked him up.
“You’re not the type to calmly process your anger.”
“What do you think of me, exactly?”
“That you and Acteon really are brothers.”
Especially the way both of you think you’re being patient, but no one else sees it that way.
Anyway, you’ve got free time, huh?
In that case, I might as well get some help from him. I took a medicine vial from my coat and handed it to Cassiel.
“Mister Belled asked me to pass this on. It’s some kind of sedative, right?”
“I figured you’d know. Yeah, it’s the medicine I take.”
Just as he was about to take it, I pulled the vial back.
“Before that, I have a question. While getting prescriptions from Mister Belled, did you ever hear anything personal about him? Even something trivial?”
Cassiel, left grasping at empty air, looked at me with a strange expression rather than answering.
“Why Belled? Did you get interested in him or something?”
“What? There’s just something suspicious about him.”
“Oh, if that’s it, then I don’t mind.”
There’s no way I’d suddenly be interrogating some strange man because I was interested in him, not when I’m about to be deployed to war.
I glared at him in disbelief, but Cassiel shamelessly ignored my stare.
“Belled came in right after Claire died, before we even held a proper funeral. Back when my mother and I were half out of our minds, he helped us a lot.”
Cassiel had grown far more desensitized to talking about death than before.
And hearing that from someone so clearly changed from how he used to be only made my suspicions lose direction.
“There’s definitely a side to him you can’t read. Whether you trust him or not is up to you. Maybe I’ve come to trust Belled so much that I’ve lost objectivity, but he’s never once harmed me or my mother.”
Unexpectedly, Cassiel vouched for Belled with certainty.
For someone as stubborn and unwilling to show weakness as Cassiel to defend him this much meant that Belled really must have been a great help.
He just didn’t say it outright.
Cassiel probably saw Belled as a benefactor.
‘Can’t be helped.’
Even if I still felt uneasy, I didn’t have enough grounds to keep doubting him. I’d only face resistance from Cassiel and the Duchess.
This time, I handed over the vial properly.
Cassiel silently took it.
“You climbed the wall just to ask that?”
That’s way too inefficient.
Instead of answering, I held up the hand that had handed him the vial right in front of his eyes.
At the center of the bracelet, intricately crafted like twisted thread, the red control stone gleamed.
When I’d confronted the Crown Prince, that man named Oregon had held a small key that could deactivate this control stone bracelet.
Now that deployment was looming, this bracelet would become even more directly tied to my life.
Which meant I had to find a way to deactivate it.
If Cassiel had developed a critical view of how Manifesters were managed because of Claire, then he would already have a considerable amount of knowledge.
“Before I get conscripted to Lomdina, I’m going to figure out how to deactivate this bracelet. I need your help if I want to survive.”
I asked him for his help.
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