Episode 8 — The Leader
Iris did as Nada told her and went back to her room to freshen up.
Then she stepped outside.
The woman who emerged was nothing like the one who had appeared before Nada.
She was transformed.
After taking a shower, all the odors were gone, replaced by a faint citrus perfume. Instead of the mobility-focused, abrasion-resistant clothes she wore under her armor, she now had on a white shirt paired with a red pleated skirt. Brown boots tied the outfit together, bringing out her figure. And yet, she still had a kukri knife strapped at her waist. With her open neckline and pleasant scent, men on the street couldn’t help but glance her way—but as soon as they noticed the knife at her hip and realized who she was, they quickly averted their eyes.
Her face was clean, the downy hair and stubble completely shaved off. Her naturally fair skin now had a touch of makeup. Light blue eyeshadow framed her eyes, and her lips were softly tinted red. She looked beautiful—so much so that even women would be drawn to her.
But even makeup couldn’t mask the sharpness in her gaze.
Predator’s eyes.
Some of the onlookers were strong men, yet none dared to approach her. Iris’s strength, at least within this academy, was nothing short of divine.
She headed toward a place she once frequented often—Aghiya’s private room.
“Now then… I wonder if they’re in.”
With a faint smirk, Iris walked toward the building lined with party rooms. A bespectacled receptionist was posted there to keep out unauthorized people, but he didn’t try to stop Iris, who lacked a party emblem. When the gatekeeper politely asked her business, she simply said she was “here to see some juniors,” and that was enough to let her through.
Without hesitation, Iris opened Aghiya’s door.
“Please don’t just walk in—who are… you?”
Inside were four familiar faces and one new face.
“Long time no see—”
The five looked straight at Iris. Three of them looked as if they had just swallowed something bitter.
The face she didn’t know belonged to a red-haired boy.
He still had the innocence of youth—maybe around fifteen. Tall, with cat-like eyes, dressed in red that matched his hair. Digging through her memory, she recalled seeing his photo somewhere before—he was one of the promising newcomers.
His name was… Lio, if she remembered correctly.
But Iris’s gaze soon settled on one person.
“Welcome back, Miss Iris. Please, have a seat over here.”
It was Reaon.
He was the only one in Aghiya who greeted her with a gentle smile.
“Sure, I’ll take you up on that.”
Iris sat down across from Reaon, as if they were facing off.
The table was a rectangular one, so the rest of Aghiya’s members sat between her and Reaon.
One of the party members, Iris knew, Nanaka, poured fresh tea and handed it to her. Iris took a sip, and Reaon, resting both elbows on the table, spoke.
“So then, Miss Iris, what brings you here today?”
“Well… I just came to check on some cute juniors of mine.”
Her eyes narrowed slightly as she took another sip.
It was her favorite tea.
A faint sweetness drifted from it, calming the heart. There was no sweetness in the leaves themselves—Nanaka knew Iris’s preferences well and had added honey on purpose.
Yet Iris’s heart felt anything but calm.
“How is it? Seeing your juniors again after so long—”
Reaon smiled warmly.
“Unfortunately, it looks like my cute juniors aren’t here. So I came to see you disappointing ones instead.”
Her tone was flat.
Reaon’s expression tightened.
“I see. So we’re not the cute juniors you speak of—”
“That’s right. And more importantly, expelling Nada, whom I personally brought into the party? Really now.”
Iris shot Reaon a narrow glare.
“…What do you mean by that?”
Nanaka asked the Aghiya member beside her—Goushou.
Goushou was also one of the Aghiya members Iris knew.
He wasn’t sure if he was allowed to speak in front of Iris, who looked clearly irritated, but when she told him, “Explain,” he began to speak quietly.
“There are two ways to join a party: self-nomination or someone recommending you. You and I were recommended, and Reaon joined by self-nomination. But the only person Miss Iris ever recommended—past or present—is Nada.”
“That’s right. To Miss Iris, he seems to be someone special—”
Reaon added that, sounding almost suggestive.
But to Iris, he looked down, his lips twisted in a bitter expression.
“Sounds like you’ve got something you want to say.”
Iris lowered her gaze to the tea.
“Well, I just think you’ve been a bit too generous with your attention toward one junior. Almost… excessively so.”
Reaon spoke directly.
The other four members could feel the tension tightening the air.
“Is that so?”
“Yes. I think you should ease up on that kind of favoritism. You know how people with too much free time start imagining things that go in… unpleasant directions.”
Reaon gave her a gentle smile.
A normal woman would probably fall for that warm, passionate smile at first sight.
“You’re implying I’m sleeping with Nada, is that it?”
Iris tilted her head and smiled back.
“Well, that’s what some people assume. Even if that’s not the case, he’s already well-known as the one and only person you personally invited into the party. Any more attention from you, and he’ll just get burdened even further. It’ll only make it harder for him to live comfortably at the academy.”
“I doubt it’ll change much.”
“And why do you think that?”
“Because he’s used to that sort of thing. At this point… nothing new, right?”
Iris took another sip of tea.
“Then I guess my advice was pointless.”
Reaon exaggerated a sigh.
“So, why did you kick him out of the party? He was someone I chose, after all.”
“Well, I’m the leader now.”
Reaon said firmly.
“True. But you don’t feel like honoring the former leader’s decisions?”
Iris’s gaze sharpened.
“I’ve said it already: I’m the leader now.”
“I see.”
“And besides… I’ve always thought he had no place in Aghiya.”
Reaon folded his hands on the table.
“Why?”
“Because he has no future. He won’t grow any taller, and his strength probably won’t increase either. We’re both fifth-years—so I expected we’d be in Aghiya for three more years. And with him there, Aghiya could never reach higher. That’s why I brought him in as our new member.”
Reaon paused for a moment.
“You see… I want to climb even higher.”
He exhaled a deep, surging breath that had been coiled inside him.
There, Reaon’s feelings were swelling up.
“I see—”
“Yes. I want to become like you.”
“I see—”
“So, Miss Iris… do you have any intention of coming back to Aghiya? Of course, as the leader. I… want to dive with you again.”
Reaon invited her straight on.
At that moment, discord rippled through the party. Nanaka, in particular, jolted hard once, her shoulders twitching.
Iris flashed Reaon a radiant smile and said,
“—No.”
“…I see—”
Reaon quietly dropped his shoulders. He exaggerated it like a joke, but enough sincerity leaked through that he couldn’t speak for a while.
Iris continued in his place.
“Right. I’ve got no reason to come back. I don’t have anything I want to go down into a dungeon specifically to kill right now, so I’ve got no desire to form a party and dive. I’d rather go down comfortably. And… our directions don’t match. Even if they did—well, I still wouldn’t return.”
“Is that because he isn’t here?”
Reaon asked with a stern look.
“Who knows? Maybe you should overthink it a little more. And why exactly do I have to explain myself to you?”
Iris gave him a teasing smile.
“…I suppose you’re right. So, did you hear what you came for?”
“Yeah. I doubt I’ll have any reason to get involved with Aghiya again—”
With a cold expression, Iris stood and opened the door. Her steps were unhurried and graceful, but devoid of warmth—like someone turning her back on an enemy she’d grown tired of.
Just as she was about to leave, Reaon called out one last question.
“—May I ask one thing?”
“What is it?”
Iris replied without turning around.
“…Why him?”
Reaon’s lips were trembling with how hard he bit down. Iris couldn’t see it, but the other party members saw it clearly.
“No idea. I bet you’ll never understand.”
Iris turned back toward him, smiling like a flower blooming.
Leaving only that behind, she severed ties with Aghiya.
Afterward, inside the room, Reaon stared down at his clenched fist.
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