Chapter 13
“....”
Estelle Blackdahlia woke to an unpleasant sensation in her lower abdomen.
The urge to urinate. In other words, she needed to pee.
‘How is it that this is the only sensation I have left...’
Before getting into her wheelchair, Estelle slipped a hand beneath her panties and lightly touched her clitoris.
It wasn't to experience sexual pleasure.
She had simply touched it because it was the most sensitive part of a woman's lower body.
But no matter how much she rubbed her clitoris, she felt neither pleasure nor even the sensation of being touched.
She wasn't disappointed.
She had lived in this body for far too long to be disappointed by something like that.
She simply couldn't understand why, despite having absolutely no sensation below the waist, she could still clearly feel the urge to relieve herself.
After her brief experiment, Estelle finished her business in the bathroom and headed for the dining room.
Creak─ creak─
The only sound in the empty hallway was the turning of Estelle's wheelchair wheels.
Large mansions generally had quite a few servants.
However, the Blackdahlia estate had only two employees: a maid and a cook.
Even those two arranged their lives to avoid Estelle as much as possible at her request, so she always felt as though she were alone in the estate.
Creeeak─
When Estelle arrived at the dining room, the door opened automatically.
Food prepared by the cook was spread across the empty dining table.
Although it had been prepared at dawn, the food had not cooled in the slightest.
Every plate and glass in use was a magical artifact enchanted to preserve food.
They were quite useful, but they had to be replaced regularly and were rather expensive, so using them just to eat a warm breakfast seemed excessively luxurious....
Estelle didn't care.
The inheritance her parents had left behind when they died in a carriage accident.
And after the family of the uncle who had planned to adopt Estelle was massacred by someone, their wealth was also inherited by Estelle, their closest blood relative.
“...Thank you for the meal.”
She left the dishes on the table and returned to her room.
Frederica would clean them up on her own anyway.
Creak─ creak─
After passing through the empty hallway once again and returning to her room, Estelle climbed straight onto the bed.
She normally did rehabilitation exercises after eating, but perhaps because she would soon be returning to the academy...
Today, at least, she wanted to enjoy the peace of her bed.
‘The academy...’
She didn't particularly long for academy life, nor did she need a diploma.
She had enough money to live comfortably without ever working again, and if she ever ran out of money, she planned to simply die.
The reason Estelle attended the academy despite all that was that there were books that could only be read at the Holy Academy.
“Yaaawn...”
Perhaps she was short on sleep from reading until late.
She knew going straight to sleep after eating wasn't good for her, but worrying about her health when her lower body was already paralyzed was rather ridiculous.
So Estelle didn't resist her drowsiness and surrendered herself to sleep.
****
This is a dream.
In the dream, Estelle knew it instinctively.
“Hey... You crippled bitch! You think you can get away with this just because I'm asking nicely?!”
But just because it was a dream didn't mean she intended to simply take the abuse.
Just as she was about to detonate an air bomb in front of the charging Delphicia and knock her away....
Wham—!
Just as he had that time, Ian stepped between Delphicia and me.
Did he help?
No.
Ian took Delphicia's punch in my place, lost his balance, and fell forward, knocking me out of my wheelchair.
If he hadn't stepped in, I could have used a wind bomb to knock Delphicia away by herself.
But did that make me feel bad?
...That wasn't it either.
“Are you okay? Are you hurt?”
Being helped by the class's protagonist honestly didn't feel bad.
The sight of him asking with a worried expression as his blond hair fluttered made me feel as though I had become a princess rescued by a prince from a fairy tale.
But I am not a princess.
As Delphicia had said, I had crippled legs, a foul personality, and not a shred of feminine charm. How could someone like me become a princess?
“Don't interfere. I could have handled it myself.”
At that moment, gasps came from all around the classroom.
They were filled with contempt for someone like me, who had accepted help but couldn't even say a simple ‘thank you.’
Surely even Ian would despise me and leave.
But that was okay.
Ian and I had never been suited for each other in the first place.
“....”
I am a weak person.
Even a little kindness makes me want to lean on someone.
So it's better to draw a clear line before I start expecting things on my own and becoming disappointed on my own.
But....
“Ah, sorry. I wasn't ignoring you. I just wanted to make sure you weren't hurt.”
Ian neither got angry nor looked down on me.
Instead, he scratched his cheek with an awkward smile, as though he were genuinely sorry.
“Since I interfered anyway, let me do one more thing.”
Having said that, Ian righted the fallen wheelchair, lifted me in his arms like a real princess, and set me back in it.
“.....”
This time, I couldn't bring myself to say anything harsh.
If he hadn't helped me, I would have had to crawl across the ground like a maggot for quite some time before getting into my wheelchair, let alone becoming a princess.
I clenched my fist tighter.
Despite my firm refusal and harsh words, Ian had protected my pride.
His kindness was so excessive that it almost seemed idiotic.
Then, another protagonist's voice came from the corner of the classroom.
“Hey, are you crazy? Who did you just lay your hands on?”
“...I... I didn't... Ibelline... really... I didn't mean to do that to Ian...”
“Hey, stop bullying the kids. Delphicia, are you okay?”
“Ian! Whose side are you on right now!!”
“I'm not taking sides. Friends can sometimes go too far when they're fooling around. Why are you snapping at her like that?”
“I-Ian... s-sorry... I never meant to do that to you...”
“I know. I know. I was the one who stepped in, so it's fine. And maybe it's because Delphicia is so light, but it didn't hurt at all. Still, it was dangerous, so let's not fool around like that again, okay?”
“B-but... that bitch started it...”
“Delphicia, okay? I'm asking you this: first year is almost over, so wouldn't it be nice to finish it without any more incidents?”
“...Sigh... okay. I understand.... Ian.”
“Thanks for understanding. Oh, and even though this is kind of a weird time to say it, your bob looks good on you too.”
“Ah... eh... yeah.. t-thanks...”
I nearly let out a hollow laugh at how effortlessly Ian wrapped up a situation that could easily have become serious.
“...Bastard.”
“Ibelline, why are you swearing again?”
“A bastard like you deserves to get cursed out.”
“Aah..! Ouch...! Don't hit me.”
“What? It hurts? Her hit didn't hurt because she was light, but mine does? Are you saying I'm fat!”
“How did you get that from what I said! Ah! Stop! It hurts!”
“Again!! Again!! You only say it hurts when I hit you!!”
They were dazzling.
I was envious.
I wanted to be with them, to become like them.
But I couldn't.
I was weak and cursed.
‘I'm cold...’
Upon waking from her dream, Estelle curled up beneath the blanket pulled over her head.
***
“What a fucking mess.”
The gallery had never gone a single day without being a shitshow, but today it was a disaster to an unusual degree.
The cause was nothing special.
[Advanced Mage VS Advanced Spirit Mage: Who Would Win in a Fight?][451]
This one shitpost uploaded yesterday had turned the gallery into this.
To give the conclusion first, the spirit mage had won.
[IOnlySayNiceThings■: No, unless they're Archmage-level, a mage can't beat a spirit mage at equal skill, damn it! Don't you get it?]
ㄴㅇㅇ(74.812): Look at this bastard taking the spirit mage's side, as if we needed reminding he's an elf lol
ㄴIOnlySayNiceThings■: Not because I'm an elf, you fucking morons! It's simply logically impossible for mages to beat spirit mages!!!
ㄴㅇㅇ(74.812): Then explain why, lol
ㄴIOnlySayNiceThings■: Idiots lol. Even if I explained it, would you understand? You don't know a damn thing lol
ㄴㅇㅇ(74.812): Yeah, I do, so explain it lol. Stop dodging the question and just say it already
ㄴIOnlySayNiceThings■: Fine, you bastard!! I'll post it, so if you lose, bang your head into the floor and upload a verification shot
After that, it was a one-sided slaughter.
IOnlySayNiceThings■ rolled out a string of duel records and papers dating back over 200 years, as though she'd experienced them firsthand, and used them to attack the mages.
‘No one can beat this...’
...Honestly, even I wanted to take the mages' side as a mage, but I couldn't overcome the logic of a beautiful nineteen-year-old genius spirit mage.
The problem was....
[Elf henhouse smell... Urgh... Bwaaaah... Elf henhouse smell... Urgh... Bwaaaah...][0]
[The mages in the ■■Gallery wiped the floor with you, didn't they? LMAOOOO Spirit mages can't do anything, can they?][0]
[Shuk. Shushuk shi. You fucking bastard, shuk shuk shuk shi. You fucking bastard. Shuk. Fuck. Shushuk shuk. Shi. Fuck. Shuk, bastard, shushuk.][3]
[The mages in the ■■Gallery wiped the floor with you, didn't they? LMAOOOO Spirit mages can't do anything, can they?][0]
[Elf henhouse smell... Urgh... Bwaaaah... Elf henhouse smell... Urgh... Bwaaaah...][1]
The mages who couldn't accept their defeat began plastering the gallery with posts to claim a moral victory.
You could block one or two of them, but when dozens of people spammed the gallery at once, it became difficult to find any normal posts.
Then, an eye-catching post appeared among the spam.
[Poster ㅇㅇ(177.96)]
[But does the ■■Gallery not have a manager?][13]
If you created the gallery, you should take responsibility. How are we supposed to deal with these idiots if you just dump it here and leave?
IOnlySayNiceThings■: For real, we need to block all the anonymous users first
ㄴㅇㅇ(74.816): Hmm... If I were the manager, I think I'd ban you first....
ㄴ IOnlySayNiceThings■ These fucking anonymous users never go a day without picking a fight with me
ㄴㅇㅇ(74.816): Hmm... Is this guy living a gallery life instead of a real one? He's always in the gallery....
Puaeng■: But if there were a manager, they'd probably make a fuss anyway
ㄴㅇㅇ(74.816): 100% lol. Even if I were the manager, I wouldn't come forward
ㄴㅇㅇ(177.96): No!! But if it stays like this, the gallery will die!! At minimum, the spam has to be stopped! If this continues, I won't even want to use the gallery anymore
ㄴFlameSandwich■: Then you do it
ㄴㅇㅇ(177.96): Ah... that's a bit....
‘...A manager.’
[Sex Status]
Name : Ian
Title : Gallery Manager ▶ Click to learn more!
Fetishes : Rape LV MAX, Training LV MAX, Harem LV MAX, Pure Love LV MAX, Hypnosis LV MAX, NTL LV MAX... ▶ Click to learn more!
Compared to Evelyn's, this was quite a clean Sex Status.
It used to display my masturbation count too, but I changed it so it wouldn't be visible.
What would I need to see my own masturbation count for?
More important than that was the title of Gallery Manager.
- Can learn the real names of registered users who have posted in the gallery.
- Can check the Sex Status of gallery users with whom I have had a sexual relationship.
- Gains additional administrative powers when creating a registered username.
Until now, I had thought it was best for everyone to use the gallery freely, but if I left it like this, it would become neglect rather than freedom.
‘Let's create a registered username.’
Three days before the academy term began.
At last, I resolved to make the best choice of all: create a registered username.