Pretending to Be Human Is Exhausting Again Today - Chapter 77

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

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Pretending to Be Human: Episode 077

First, I surveyed the interior of the Banquet Hall.

I needed someone to explain what was happening.

Soon enough, I spotted Count Osla standing nervously in a corner, surrounded by several people who appeared to be instructors—all of them wearing expressions of clear distress.

“Count Osla.”

As I approached him, Count Osla hurriedly offered a greeting.

“Oh my, Your Highness the Princess! It is an honor to meet the Daughter of the Sun.”

I graciously accepted his bow.

“A pleasure to meet you, Count Osla. Thank you for the invitation.”

“My apologies—I should have come to greet you myself….”

“It’s quite all right.”

I gave the instructors behind him a subtle glance, signaling that I wished to speak with the Count privately. Once they had withdrawn, I asked him quietly.

“But Count Osla, the New Year’s Banquet seems rather turbulent. Would it be improper to ask what has occurred?”

“Of course not. I should certainly explain it to you.”

Count Osla dabbed his forehead with a handkerchief and recounted the full circumstances of the incident.

“This matter stems from a love triangle. The students in question are Cadet Jo-han and Cadet Atlas, both third-year students, and Cadet Cocomo, a second-year student….”

The narrative unfolded exactly as I had anticipated.

Jo-han and Atlas had been betrothed to one another, but Jo-han had his heart stolen by Cadet Cocomo, a junior who appeared suddenly.

The conflict had intensified until this incident occurred. The objective was naturally to break the engagement.

‘The question is whether Atlas truly harassed Cadet Cocomo….’

It was premature to judge, but my instincts told me she was innocent. The testimonies Jo-han presented all lacked convincing power.

Count Osla seemed to share my thoughts, shaking his head as he spoke.

“She has never failed to rank first during her enrollment, and her conduct has been exemplary. There’s no way she would do such a thing. Of course, she does have a somewhat peculiar personality.”

‘Peculiar?’

The odd word caught my attention, but I let it pass.

“You believe this is a fabrication by Cadet Jo-han and Cadet Cocomo?”

“As far as I’m concerned… yes.”

“Then why don’t you stop them?”

Count Osla’s expression grew pained as he replied.

“At the Military Academy, teachers and instructors can only intervene when school regulations are violated. Political matters and personal affairs are beyond our jurisdiction.”

He released a heavy sigh.

“I never imagined they would resort to such tactics during an event with external guests…”

Inwardly, I clicked my tongue at Count Osla’s naive thinking.

“That’s precisely why they made it public.”

“Pardon?”

“Disputes within the school would be suppressed by you, sir. What Cadet Jo-han and Cadet Cocomo truly want is Cadet Atlas’s public downfall.”

“Ah…”

Being a military man with no interest in politics, he seemed inexperienced in such matters.

‘If I were Jo-han, I’d make it public during an event with external guests too. That’s the most effective approach.’

Moreover, observing Jo-han’s demeanor and the reactions around him, I could infer his background as well.

“Cadet Jo-han’s family seems to wield considerable influence.”

“Yes, that’s correct. They’re a storied house of knights and military officers, and have even received imperial honors.”

“By contrast, Cadet Atlas must come from a family that’s either young or looked down upon.”

“That’s, well, also correct. The House of Medici—they’re a family of commoner inventors, but… how did you know?”

I offered a bitter smile and dodged the question. The students’ reactions alone made it obvious. If Atlas’s background were superior to Johan’s, this situation would never have unfolded.

Explaining it all point by point felt tedious.

“Then the celebration won’t proceed until this situation is resolved.”

“Yes, I apologize. To subject the Princess to such an embarrassment…”

Had she been any other member of the Imperial Family, she could have rightfully scolded him for such disrespect.

‘I didn’t come here to forge connections anyway, so leaving now would be fine, but…’

Yet contrary to my thoughts, Count Osla seemed genuinely eager to welcome me. He muttered darkly.

“It’s been so long since a member of the Imperial Family attended, and of all days, today…”

Never having received such hospitality before, I whispered to Emma beside me.

“Does the Military Academy have no ties to the Imperial Family? Don’t graduates become soldiers?”

The military was an independent force that answered solely to the Imperial Family’s command. To draw a comparison, the Emperor was the supreme commander, and the Imperial Family members were legion commanders.

So I naturally assumed the Military Academy would have connections with the Imperial Family.

“There isn’t just one Military Academy. The Northern Academy holds far greater influence than the one in the Capital. I’ve heard most of the military’s senior officers graduated from there.”

“So this is an academy that’s so neglected it would welcome even a cursed princess?”

“More accurately, it’s an academy that lacks prominence and has lost its reputation.”

In politics, indifference proved far more fatal than criticism.

So he wanted to use my notoriety to publicize the Military Academy’s name. Even a cursed Princess would draw attention, after all.

It was quite an audacious scheme, but since his welcome seemed genuine enough, I decided to let it slide.

Then, a sharp scream pierced the air.

“Kyaaaah!”

All eyes converged on the center of the Banquet Hall.

“Cadet Cocomo!”

“How could you strike her!”

The one who screamed was Cadet Cocomo. She lay sprawled on the ground, gazing up at Cadet Atlas in a pitiful pose. Cadet Atlas stood frozen like a statue, his hand extended forward.

Seeing this spectacle, I turned to Emma.

“Say, Emma. Is that situation…?”

“Cadet Cocomo grabbed Cadet Atlas to prevent him from fighting on her account, then fell over on her own. She’s simply portraying it as if Cadet Atlas struck her.”

‘Nothing here deviates from expectation.’

Count Johan seized the moment, pointing at Cadet Atlas and hurling insults.

“There’s your true nature! Just as I thought—that dark sorcerer’s temperament of yours, always obsessing over bizarre contraptions and experiments, never changes!”

“Count Johan, I didn’t do anything…”

“Silence! You aberration, showing no remorse for harming others!”

A childish, predictable farce. My hands clenched involuntarily as I watched. Emma seemed equally affected, rubbing her furrowed brow.

“How dreadful. I never thought I’d witness such juvenile antics in reality.”

“I agree.”

Emboldened by the surrounding support, Count Johan’s insults grew increasingly vicious.

Complaints about my cold, statue-like demeanor, my arrogant tone about being good at studies, my meddlesome “advice”—the vulgar insults spewing from that man’s mouth were so crude I could scarcely believe he was an adult.

Atlas’s face grew increasingly pale. Rather than anger, bewilderment and a sense of injustice flickered across his features.

In that moment, words I could not ignore tumbled from Cadet Jo-han’s lips.

“Your punishment will be decided by His Highness Prince Franz! How fortunate. At last I can cast you out as His Highness wishes!”

‘Franz?’

Emma and I exchanged glances, both turning our attention to Count Osla. He wiped cold sweat from his brow and nodded slowly.

“Ah, now that you mention it, I recall hearing rumors recently that Cadet Jo-han has been frequenting the Imperial Palace.”

‘This pathetic fool is friends with Franz?’

From the tone of his words, it seemed Franz himself had orchestrated this broken engagement.

I murmured softly to myself.

“Then the situation changes entirely.”

“Your Highness?”

“Count, might I borrow your ear for a moment?”

“Ah, of course.”

I quickly relayed to him what was about to unfold.

His complexion blanched momentarily upon hearing my proposal, but he soon nodded, apparently concluding it would benefit the Academy.

“Ah, I understand. If this crisis can be resolved….”

“Trust only in me.”

With his permission granted, I strode directly toward the center of the Banquet Hall. I could see male cadets who appeared to be Cadet Jo-han’s followers attempting to seize Atlas as though he were a criminal.

Emma, who had been following me, asked cautiously.

“It’s not just because of Prince Franz, is it?”

“What makes you say that?”

“Your expression brightened as if you’d been waiting for this very moment.”

I quickly suppressed the corners of my mouth that had begun to rise unbidden. Maintaining a poker face was proving difficult.

I pushed through the crowd.

Only then did the people around me begin to murmur and whisper.

“Huh? Who is that?”

“Wait, those eyes…”

Regardless, I positioned myself between Cadet Atlas and Cadet Jo-han.

“Who are you?”

Then I opened my mouth toward Cadet Jo-han, who still hadn’t grasped the situation.

“All cadets, stand at attention.”

“What, what?”

“Didn’t you hear? All cadets, stand at attention. Can’t you hear your commander’s orders?”

‘This is exactly when I should use Imperial authority.’

At my words, all the cadets fell silent as if bewildered. It seemed my orders weren’t reaching their ears.

Then, a refined-looking man who appeared to be one of Cadet Jo-han’s followers, standing behind him, approached me.

“Are you perhaps the Princess, Your Highness?”

“And if I am?”

“Ah, my apologies for not recognizing you sooner. Please, come this way. We’re rather busy at the moment.”

His eyes betrayed both bewilderment and a contemptuous smirk, as though he were looking down on me.

He probably saw me as nothing more than a foolish Princess playing pranks. And to make matters worse, I was Imperial Family with a tarnished name.

But unfortunately for him, this was the Military Academy—which meant it was the military.

And in the military, the commander’s word is law.

I looked at the man who had tried to push me aside and spoke.

“What’s your name?”

“Ah, I’m Milleni Zon….”

“What kind of idiot gives his family name instead of his full name when a commander calls for it?”

“Y-yes?”

While the bewildered man stammered, I stepped forward and seized him by the collar.

“Wh-what!”

Then I hurled him to the ground and planted my foot on his chest. The man gasped violently as the wind was knocked from his lungs.

“Cough!”

“I’ll ask again. Your name.”

Only then did the cadets grasp the gravity of the situation, and an icy silence fell over them.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com

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