Chapter 52

“Next, you need to make this woman your ally.”

An ally of the school’s queen?

The sudden statement from the woman about the system’s rule that one must battle the school queen in an S-battle to reach any kind of conclusion left Erica momentarily at a loss for words.

“The queen’s power to turn everything into a lie. Although the term ‘ancient’ might suit her better, her power is no fabrication. Since she has nowhere to live, you can easily arrange for her to live with you at your house, making her much easier to ally with compared to others.”

However, the woman went on to explain the queen’s advantages without heeding Erica’s reaction. The sight of her kneeling in front of Erica while speaking juxtaposed with the form of the three collapsed individuals behind her created an eerie atmosphere.

“She has the power to fabricate falsehoods for you at least once or twice, should you make the wrong decision. Depending on how many followers she allows herself, her abilities can be extraordinarily useful in the countless situations you’ll face.”

It was as if the woman speaking knew something about the trials awaiting Erica.

Considering the system’s offer that defeating the queen would grant 30 favorability points that could be distributed among several, the once formidable school queen was now being described as an advantageous ally by the woman who had defeated her. This was a peculiar situation indeed.

Amidst all these strange events, Erica, whose role had previously been beyond her comprehension, felt a flicker of caution in her eyes.

“You, who exactly are you?”

“To that question, I can only say I’m the person who got free ice cream from you. But to somewhat meet your expectations—I’ll give you this—.”

Above the woman’s head, a name floated along with a word that suited her perfectly.

[ERROR Iska]

The most potent error in this world, capable of overwhelming the ability to turn everything into falsehoods, looked upon the seated girl with overwhelming favor and smiled.

Afterward, she rose, using her hands on her knees for support. Looking up at her, Erica suddenly realized how much more significant this person was compared to her current self.

“The student council president, having been chosen by ‘Him,’ can gather several powerful allies into the student council without experiencing particular humiliation. But you, having been abandoned by ‘Him,’ are different. You must lower your noble pride to gather allies one by one.”

It was a deeply meaningful statement suggesting that Erica’s ability to gather allies had changed due to ‘His’ choice. However, unlike before, Erica showed no particular uneasiness upon hearing it.

“I don’t understand why you keep insisting that I need to gather allies, but I think I’m sufficient without them.”

Allies were unnecessary. In a situation where giving one’s heart to anyone was impossible, allies were most likely to become hindrances rather than assets.

Erica, who didn’t fully trust herself to withhold affection from an ally, found Iska’s insistence on gathering allies rather redundant.

“You’ll realize the necessity of allies too late. Let me just give you one tip. The reason you need to gather allies is because the student council president has already done so. In other words, you need to gather allies to oppose the student council president, a woman who has gathered numerous allies to an extreme degree and is already complete.”

Erica was not someone who would patiently listen to unnecessary words. As she stood up, ignoring the woman looking down on her, and was about to return home, the woman’s words caught her ankle.

The ominous words suggesting that Erica would face her as an enemy despite the student council president being the one person in this world who had shown her unwavering goodwill.

“What are you talking about? Why should I fight her?”

Erica, not the type to calmly let such ominous prophecies pass, turned around in irritation. Iska, still maintaining her mysterious demeanor, continued to say things that would trouble Erica.

“The sole possessor of wisdom to attain omniscience in this world. That wisdom will inevitably uncover the secret you’ve hidden, and will lead to hatred toward you. The person who dislikes you the most, known as the strongest and most savage within the association, will strive to destroy you, even moving mountains if necessary—.”

Erica had had enough. A silver current shot out from her hand, a silent command for the woman to stop.

Although it didn’t carry the transcendent power it had when she first manifested electricity, the current still held enough force to incapacitate even a powerful supernaturally-abled person if they hadn’t taken precautions.

Just as Erica thought she had gained the upper hand, Iska suddenly disappeared, then reappeared behind her, wrapping her arms around Erica. Her hands were positioned just below her chest.

This left Iska unmoved, unable to advance further lest she provoke Erica, who already looked ready to lash out. With a slightly teasing tone, Iska continued her gentle explanation.

“I assume neither calling you my little sister nor wearing skirts presents much difficulty for you. Yet, I also know that you don’t particularly enjoy such behavior.”

The electricity that had been brimming in Erica’s hands subsided. She knew what might happen if Iska’s hands moved slightly higher.

Erica had studied online, knowing that a woman’s pleasure isn’t so easily attained. But this was the world of a romantic visual novel.

Since Erica knew how easy it could be to achieve such pleasure within this world, the act stood as one of the most effective forms of intimidation to her.

Erica had obliterated puppets spouting human speech with a single swing of her hand by channeling protection into an aggressive form. But there had never been a moment when she resolved to unleash lightning that brought certain d*ath upon a person whose face she could clearly see.

“Contradictory as it might seem, such behavior isn’t entirely paradoxical. You just don’t consider ordinary people as ‘people.’ This is why you don’t feel shame in their presence. Some individuals may feel shame in public but none when alone.”

Erica concluded that the extras appearing as black silhouettes were artificial traumas designed to make her easier for the protagonist to seduce.

But it could also be viewed differently.

For Erica, being unable to become a murderer throughout her entire life, the fact that people no longer appeared as ‘people’ to her was a function that aided her in viewing them merely as obstacles to be removed without considering the act as m*rder.

“Irritating, you.”

With her heel, Erica stomped down on Iska’s foot, but there was no sound of pain from behind her. After all, the woman who had displayed overwhelming power against the queen wouldn’t feel pain from such a weak attack.

“This isn’t a threat but advice. If the people you recognize as ‘people’ were to target you this way, you should think about how you might handle it beforehand. In the two weeks after that incident, I’ve observed you and noticed how overly gentle and broken you’ve become, to the point where you’ve begun to need allies. If you find this kind of talk bothersome, then that’s all I can say.”

“Did you observe me for two weeks or were you spying on me? Who exactly are you?”

Ultimately, Erica’s venomous tone dissipated as she realized her words would have no effect on the unchanging gaze her opponent directed at her.

“Don’t you already know who I am? You’re clever both objectively and subjectively. Though I can’t be certain about your wisdom.”

The woman removed her hands from under Erica’s chest. Now that the threat had subsided, Erica could rebel again if she wanted. However, she chose to answer the question without summoning electricity to her hands.

“Yes, I know. If you reverse the name Iska, it becomes Sky. And one of the people near me is Kim Ha-neul. You must be Kim Ha-neul’s older sister, helping out upon his request?”

Certainly, if she could not k*ll this woman, it was better not to provoke her unnecessarily with reckless power. Her potent ability was uncontrollable when it came to life or d*ath, but it also carried the danger of instantly killing someone. If she didn’t need to k*ll in order to survive, it was best not to use it recklessly.

“Uh, yes. That’s right. I thought you might never figure it out.”

“I just thought you’d be someone close among the people around me. The wordplay made me think of something else too early, though. While it seemed simple, I also found it too straightforward. You’re too similar to yet also different from the person I know.”

She never expected Kim Ha-neul’s sister to be there guarding her. To Erica, Kim Ha-neul was merely an unscrupulous individual attempting to seduce both the student council president and Yoon In-na simultaneously.

But setting aside the nameplay, when you thought about Kim Ha-neul borrowing money for game room fees a few times, the ice cream request could be interpreted as a sort of retaliation after learning his sister had taken his money.

…Why she suddenly started stuttering in the middle of her sentence was unclear. Erica’s sharp mind rapidly reviewed her assumptions, but no discrepancies emerged.

“So, what’s your real name? Iska is just playing around with your brother’s name.”

The system displayed only ‘Iska,’ but it was highly unlikely the sister of someone named Kim Ha-neul would have such an exotic name.

Curious about the woman’s real name whose role remained elusive, Erica turned around and asked. However, Iska’s body was already beginning to fade, about to vanish.

“Hmm, your assumptions may be correct, but they could also be wrong. How you interpret my identity is entirely up to you. All I can say is, my name remains Iska.”

With that, the woman dissolved like a mirage and disappeared. The teleportation skill that rendered her as a mirage must be related to her powers.

Staring vacantly at where the woman had been, Erica eventually followed Iska’s advice and carried the school queen.

Whether she would truly make her an ally was a matter that required some thought, but later regret would be preferable to never making her an ally.

…Though Erica had no intention of lowering her pride as Iska suggested or engaging in the required S-battle to form an alliance.

She had never once considered the student council president as an enemy, unless she definitively decided Erica was no longer ‘Erica.’

Struggling under the weight of the school queen, shaking her trembling legs, Erica maintained her calmness as she walked down the corridor.

Had Iska really ‘cleared up’ things before leaving? The corridor was filled with unconscious bodies, and there were pockmarked depressions in various places.

Walking through a scene more fitting to describe as a natural disaster,

“I might d*e.”

Erica muttered about her own mortality.

The weight of the title ‘queen’ was causing her as much distress as its name implied.