I Possessed the Villain’s Childhood Friend – Chapter 82

“Is it true that Avatarara is an organization moving to bring about the Empire’s downfall?”

“Yes, that’s correct.”

“And the Death of Selene was just a stepping stone to create chaos?”

I nodded, and Ender Dean let out a sigh.

“For such a ridiculous reason, that child had to die?”

“Because the reasons behind their activities are utterly insane.”

Avatarara is absolute evil.

At least, that was a fact that would never change for me.

If we trace it back, even Reina’s death in the original story was ultimately caused by them.

“…Aike, as you know, there’s no evidence to back up what we’ve discussed so far.”

However, Ender Dean continued his words.

“Then if that’s the case, it seems you wouldn’t be reckless enough to say all this if you were trying to confuse me as a related person to Avatarara.”

Even while saying that, Ender Dean’s eyes remained completely steady.

As if he had already made up his mind.

“Can this old man teach me what I should do?”

“Thank you, Dean.”

Being able to gain Ender Dean’s cooperation here is a massive victory.

The key to my plan hinged on whether I could secure Ender Dean’s help.

“First of all, to stand against them, we need a Saintess.”

“…We need a Saintess?”

“Yes. If we are to confront Avatarara, we’ll need someone to anchor our position.”

In truth, this wasn’t the only reason behind it.

However, no matter how much Ender Dean trusted my words, he wouldn’t likely believe this.

I couldn’t understand it either when I first read about it in the original story.

So let’s keep this part hidden for now.

“Just having someone in the same organization as the one who’s received divine revelation would elevate our credibility. I can understand your point.”

“That’s right.”

“But don’t you know? A Saintess is chosen directly by the God Eos, not something that appears just because we want it to…”

“Don’t worry about that.”

“Why is that?”

“I received a prophecy that a new Saintess will soon protect the Empire’s peace, and it’s Olivia.”

To be precise, it was a slightly different detail, but there was no need to explain it fully.

What matters is that Avatarara threatens the Empire’s peace and that we need the power of Saintess Sophia to safeguard it.

“Is that so?”

Ender listened to my words, lowering his head and sighing.

“Selene. You must be doing this for that future…”

And after spouting words I could not comprehend, he looked up at me again.

“Aike, should I search for the one who will become the Saintess?”

“That’s fine.”

After all, the one chosen as the Saintess would eventually be Sophia, so there was no need to waste effort.

“There are two things I want to ask you immediately. First, please take this ring.”

I slid the Ring of the Saintess that I had placed on the table over to him.

“Keeping this ring, which had been lost, and passing it on to the next Saintess would suit you better than me. You have the title of the former Saintess’s disciple, after all.”

“I understand. And the second?”

“I would like the privilege of being able to freely go out on weekends.”

“Weekend outings?”

Ender Dean frowned at my request.

He was probably recalling what happened at the beginning of last year’s semester.

However, he soon relaxed his expression, tapping his fingers on the desk as he spoke.

“Well, both requests are not difficult to fulfill. But finally, Aike, may I ask you just one question?”

“I will answer to everything I can.”

“Since I’ve decided to believe your words, I won’t push back. Though your request for weekend outings makes me a bit suspicious, I can let it slide.”

“Yes, thank you.”

“But why have you been hiding this all along?”

“…What do you mean?”

As I expressed my confusion, Ender Dean narrowed his eyes as he continued.

“Based on the current information from across the Empire, Avatarara definitely wasn’t formed in a short time. They are an organization created after extensive preparation.”

“That’s right.”

“So why have you not shared this information with anyone until now? That is what I am curious about.”

“Um…”

I had anticipated this question.

And simply evaluating it based on my emotions, the answer was simple.

To me, this world was nothing more than a story.

If I saved the girl I liked, the remaining key events would all be resolved by the main characters Sophia and Leon from this web novel’s world.

But now I can’t think of this place as just a story.

It is a reality I must continue to live in, and I have people who are valuable to me.

Reina, of course.

My parents, brother, Anna, Alex, Sophia, Helen, Leon, Atal, and even Ender Dean, with whom I’m having this conversation, are all precious connections formed in this world.

Each of them has given me so much that I lacked.

Of course, I’ve been hiding the truth that I’m not the real Aike, but I’ve already decided not to dwell on that.

So I resolved to take action.

Because I absolutely do not want to see any of my loved ones die due to the changes I’ve made in the future regarding the original story.

But I couldn’t say such things to Ender Dean.

This was a story no one could understand.

“Can’t you provide an answer?”

“That’s not it, just taking a moment to organize my thoughts.”

I didn’t want to leave any seeds of doubt here.

If it was a problem that needed resolving, it should be settled clearly.

It would be convenient to have a definite answer for when I might have a similar conversation with someone else later.

“…To put it simply, I lacked confidence.”

“Confidence?”

“If I had been recognized as a prophet or received a revelation when I went to the Martires Order, I could have acted on that basis. But what I saw was all just a simple dream.”

“Hmm.”

“But all I have is a gut feeling that this dream will become reality. However, if this was indeed just a simple dream, it would cause trouble for everyone. So for now, I tried to verify the truth alone.”

“Certainly flimsy information would only stir confusion.”

“Yes. The reason I sought weekend outings last year was also for that. One of Avatarara’s hideouts was in Raynen, and I learned about their plan to assassinate the students of Arcana.”

“…What does that mean?”

Ender Dean’s eyes widened significantly at my words.

As if he had heard something unimaginable.

“I too wanted to believe this was all just a dream. But if it’s true, I felt I must stop it at all costs.”

“To be saying that here right now…”

“Yes. When I went out on the weekend, there were numerous assassins present.”

“What did you do with them, Aike?”

“I took care of them all.”

“…”

Ender Dean gritted his teeth and sunk his head low, letting out a sigh.

I could feel the unmistakable rage radiating from him.

“In any case, since then I’ve been gathering information without being detected. And now, with their names starting to become known, I’m reaching out to you for help.”

Even while listening to my words, Ender Dean kept his head bowed.

What on earth was he contemplating?

Though I couldn’t help but harbor such doubts, right now, it was more crucial to see how Ender Dean was processing what I had just told him.

Of course, he said he would take my request, so he wouldn’t suddenly change his mind, but it would be a bad situation if he felt uneasy or left lingering doubts.

Trust between us was the most important aspect in the upcoming fights—to be exact, in my plan.

“Huh.”

Finally, Ender Dean took a deep breath, looking at the ceiling.

“I understand, Aike. For now, let’s end the discussion here. I’ll let you know separately about your weekend outing request, so please wait for a while.”

★

Bang!

The sound of a fist smashing down on the desk resonated in the room.

The culprit required no search—the owner of the room, Ender Arcana.

“Damn it.”

A curse that would never normally escape his lips came pouring out.

The reason was clear.

The revelations Aike had just unloaded in this room.

They were enough to turn the image of the mild-mannered Ender completely upside down.

As he had mentioned to Aike earlier, he knew Avatarara wasn’t a recently formed organization.

The chaos happening throughout the Empire.

The traces that vanished even when he tried to follow them.

Ender had even pondered whether a massive noble faction was behind it all.

But according to Aike, what they wished for was the destruction of the Empire.

“What a ridiculous tale.”

It was inevitable for such sentiments to arise from Ender.

What kind of nation was the Astria Empire?

The very ruler of the continent that had subdued the war-torn ‘Aiter’ and maintained its status for nearly a thousand years; a veritable hegemon of the continent.

To think that even after extensive preparations, a mere organization would attempt to bring down such an Empire.

He couldn’t comprehend it, and from an objective perspective, it was indeed a ludicrous story.

But according to Aike’s testimony, they were already capable of assassinating the Saintess Selene.

Furthermore, the disturbances currently occurring across the Empire were by no means trivial matters.

Though they were kept secret to prevent chaos from spreading, a recent incident involved the assassination of the heir to a rather well-known Marquis family.

“Is it truly possible?”

Moreover, Aike stated they would ultimately declare war against the Empire head-on.

Hearing those words, Ender desperately wanted to nod, but in the end, he couldn’t.

Considering the common sense, it was an impossible task.

If you count from the frontline to the central Knight Order, the Empire boasted nearly a thousand knights.

Certainly, gathering them all to fight against Avatarara would be unfeasible, yet opposing the Astria Empire meant facing those knights.

In normal circumstances, this would be something to snicker at and brush aside.

However, the blue eyes of Aike, who spoke those words, were unwavering.

It was as if he declared it with absolute certainty.

“Huh.”

Ender composed himself, looking up at the ceiling.

“Still, I promised that I would believe you, so I must do my best.”

As Selene had said, to become someone’s miracle.

To create a bright future.

He could not afford to remain idle.

‘I took care of them all.’

But just as he was about to dive back into his work, Aike’s words suddenly echoed in his mind, causing Ender’s hand to freeze.

“…”

As a teacher rather than a dean, there were definitely things he needed to say to Aike.

Yet, Ender hesitated to speak those words and ended up refraining until the very end.

“Damn.”

With that surge of self-loathing bubbling up from within, Ender gritted his teeth and made a determination.

Once he completely eradicated the organization known as Avatarara, he would definitely tell him.

And with time passing once more…

“Dean Ender! There’s an emergency situation!”

The war had begun.