Full Moon Night (3)

TL/ED: Lolz

In the Median House, the middle-grade dormitory of Lichten Academy.

Sharon Pierce, upon entering, had only intended to quickly handle her business and return.

For her, who resided in the top-grade dormitory, Grant Hall, stepping into such a lower-tier dormitory was not a comfortable affair.

"Lina Rosewell. Let’s just get a confirmation from her and then go back.”

She confronted Lina Rosewell before the disciplinary committee for Ian Blackangers.

It wasn't a big deal, but it was sufficient.

In fact, it was even stranger for her to come and meet directly. Sharon had never properly met and exchanged greetings with Lina Rosewell. The only plausible connection was the stories shared in the Kirtos anonymous chat. So, why did she come to find Lina Rosewell, who she had no substantial connection with?

"There was no other way."

There was no suitable method.

The problem was the past few days.

The communication network that was maintained through Kirtos. From Lina Rosewell, there was no response whatsoever. Not only no response, but there was also no connection being established. There was no way to contact Lina Rosewell through any means, so Sharon had to come in person.

— Is Lina not doing well these days?

— I saw her by chance last time, and she seemed extremely gloomy. Her complexion looked dark.

— I heard she broke up with her secret boyfriend she was hiding.

— Oh, really?

Rumors had spread recently that Lina Rosewell's condition had worsened. The news was that she had become quite exhausted. This was a troublesome situation.

The disciplinary committee for Ian Blackangers would take place soon.

For Ian Blackangers's punishment, everyone's statements had to align.

Ian Blackangers.

He was a presence no different from an enemy to Sharon Pierce.

Revealing his true intentions, consistently engaging in suspicious actions, and even an unknown curse. Sharon, who had received various forms of support from him without knowing what kind of being he was, hated Ian as much as she found herself cursed.

The disciplinary committee was the opportunity to systematically bring him down.

But if something went wrong due to some variable, it would be something Sharon couldn't tolerate given her personality.

Therefore, investigating Lina Rosewell's condition, the potential variable, was something she had to do.

However.

"...What in the world is this."

However, the scene in front of her in the dormitory was entirely different. Even if it was a space where nobles with lower status and some commoners lived, it shouldn't be as chaotic as it was now.

After the large shaking of the ground has passed, the atmosphere inside the building was incredibly ominous due to the red-tinged light outside the window.

— Clatter

The sound of footsteps echoing coldly in the hallway.

At the sound of occasional screams, Sharon placed her hand on the handle of her sword.

"..."

As she turned the corner, the sight of the common room in the dormitory unfolded before her.

Students scattered on the floor.

Sharon crouched down in front of one of them.

Torn blouse, tooth marks engraved on the pale skin, explained what had happened to her.

She touched the person; breathing was still there.

But.

A substantial amount of magical power and vitality had already been drained.

The faint sounds of breathing and heartbeat from someone healthy proved that.

The building surrounded by a red barrier.

People with drained blood.

It was evident who would commit such an act.

"...Bloodstone Cult."

Traces left by those who had just committed themselves to the Bloodstone Cult.

Sharon bit her lower lip.

haron Pierce.

The second daughter of a prestigious family in the field of swords. She should have grown up in an environment that seemed rich and happy, but her past was anything but that. It wasn't just because of the overbearing family, who always pushed her to her limits.

Rather, the root of all misfortunes lay in her mother's death. The enemy who took her mother away, Bloodstone Cult.

— Crackling.

As Sharon chewed on her lower lip, a chilling coldness emanated from her.

As her composure shattered, magical power surged violently.

However, there was no need to control it.

At the end of the corridor.

Conveniently, a Blood Cultist was looking in her direction.

— Sssrrk

Sharon drew her sword.

The slender and long sword glowed red in the moonlight.

"Hehehe! You look delicious!"

A blood-crazed student rushed towards Sharon, sensing her magic. Its speed and presence were enough to give even seasoned experts a run for their money.

The hand, stained with blood, shot towards Sharon's neck like lightning.

— Shk

The sound of something being cut echoed.

“…Huh?”

— Thwok

The blood-crazed creature belatedly looked at its severed hand.

A clean cut, marked with white frost.

The eyes of the one who confirmed it were tainted with a reddish hue.

Precursor of a [Blackening].

"Uguguguguk! A mere creature like you thinks it can win on the day it receives the grace of the Blood...!"

However, its words were cut short.

— Shk

A vertical line drawn through the center of the creature's body.

It just stopped in place.

— Shyaaaa!

Blood sprayed out, unable to overcome the pressure between the open cut.

Beyond the graceful curve, Sharon took a step forward.

◆

'… Ugh.'

Watching Sharon skillfully behead the blood-cultist from a distance, Ian shook his head.

Indeed, Sharon's strength set her apart from the other heroines.

She had solely pursued the growth of her power, specifically in the field of the sword. Regardless of whether her insides were rotting, the crucial thing was her overwhelming ability.

'With that level, she would have already reached 4.5 stars.'

Considering that the official growth limit in Fanta X Aca was 5 stars and the average level of the Blood Cultists was around 3 stars, and the average Aether class was around 4 stars, she was incredibly powerful.

What was fortunate was that, at this moment, Ian could utilize Sharon Pierce.

If Sharon were to move to deal with the [Blackening]-enhanced blood cultists, there was no need for Ian to struggle.

The first clear condition of the scenario, 'Defeat the blood cultists who have taken control of the 1st and 2nd floors,' would be resolved effortlessly.

Therefore, Ian slipped away into the central garden.

Median House, with its 'ㅁ' structure, had a center—the garden.

Thanks to the red moon's distortion, the garden illuminated by the red moonlight was quite eerie.

It could be considered a stroke of luck.

No one seemed to have thought of escaping into the garden.

"Lucky."

Here, there were special materials that could only be found during a full moon.

The garden, filled with various plants and flowers, was challenging to distinguish due to the difficulty in discerning colors under the red moon.

"Phew."

Utilizing mana perception, Ian rummaged through until he found a flower blossoming alone in the moonlight.

‘Selene's Tear’.

The term referred to an item representing a type of moon-welcoming flower that only bloomed during a full moon. It was crucial for awakening a character that required it.

'I was wondering how to obtain it... This is fortunate.'

In the original game, it would be an event where the player manipulated the heroine to find it. However, considering Ian received hatred from all the heroines, there was no chance he would even dream of doing such a thing.

In a way, it was considered fortunate that the scenario progressed in Median House.

Apart from the Selene's Tear, he managed to gather many useful plant items.

"This should be enough."

Ian closed his now full pockets with satisfaction.

This should be enough as rewards for what could be obtained here.

Of course, there was no way to get something for nothing in Fanta X Aca.

Now, it was time to refocus on the main scenario.

"I wonder if the first floor is roughly cleared?"

If the blood cultists had sucked blood for more than an hour, it would have been quite challenging. However, since Sharon moved promptly, dealing with them shouldn't have been too difficult.

What worried him more was this.

"Why did Sharon come here?"

Coming to the dormitory meant meeting someone. However, Sharon's nature was inherently cold and sharp. At first glance, one might think, 'She's hard to trust just by her face.' That would be the type to think.

Which meant she came to meet Lina Rosewell...

"No, wait."

A chill ran down his spine.

Until now, Ian had the intention of intervening in the final boss phase as appropriate.

As long as the scenario was cleanly cleared, everything would be resolved.

But what if it wasn't?

'Another problem I have to solve...'

Finding the culprit.

In such a situation, if, by some chance, Sharon Pierce and Lina Rosewell fiercely clash, and one of them dies?

Up until now, Ian believed that the heroines wouldn't kill each other.

However, from the perspective of the non-v*rgin heroine, just as she tried to take advantage of Pongpong's death, the death of another heroine could also be beneficial to the culprit.

'Dead people can't speak, so...'

No one has properly interrogated anyone in this situation.

If one of the heroines dies here, even if she turns out to be the culprit, Ian would have to interrogate all three remaining heroines to confirm that fact.

And if it turned out the deceased wasn't the culprit, the living culprit would have successfully shifted the blame for the crime onto the dead person.

"…The difficulty level is going to skyrocket."

Even if any heroine died, Ian knew he had to use every means to extract a confession before that.

But the assumption that heroines wouldn't kill each other was flawed.

Ian looked up at the dormitory.

The third floor where the final boss, Lina Rosewell, was located.

Sharon's eyes were shining with a sharp blue light as she walked there.

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