Chapter 110: The Twelve Trials
[You applied to join the student council.]
[The one in charge of welcoming you is the president of the student council, the Queen of France — Marie Antoinette.]
[You imagine yourself as the great hero Heracles, and Marie as the twelve labors you must endure...!]
[Will you be able to win? Can you resist the overwhelming allure of this Queen? Stay tuned for the next episode of Chaldea Academy!]
Student Council Office.
When the French Saint — Martha, the last member of the student council — left, only Eikou and Marie remained in the spacious room.
A man and a woman alone together in a closed room — moreover, the other party was a beautiful and enchanting lady — it was truly the kind of situation that could easily make one's imagination run wild.
Especially when the Queen of France gazed at him with that gentle, seductive look in her eyes, making the quiet atmosphere subtly blur with an indescribable tension.
"..."
However, Eikou did not waver. He kept a serious expression, as if preparing to face a great trial.
"Oh my..."
Marie softly let out a sound of mild embarrassment, then glanced toward the office door:
"Really, Martha… going out and forgetting to close the door again..."
"?"
Eikou turned his head toward the door, confusion spreading across his face — the main door was clearly closed tight.
He saw Marie taking delicate, graceful steps toward the student council office door, and then——
Clack!
The office door was locked from the inside.
So that's what she meant by "not properly closed," huh. Well, this is definitely too properly locked now. Are you afraid someone might barge in… or that I might try to escape?
She's the Queen of France, princess of Austria, for crying out loud — could she at least show a bit of restraint? Does she really have to go all in without even pretending anymore?!
But thinking it through, Eikou could understand.
This one merely looked like an exemplary student on the surface — she was completely different from the Rider-class Marie. Her true nature was that of an Alter.
And as a "blackened" Servant, it was natural for her actions to be willful and unrestrained, doing whatever she pleased.
[Your trial has only just begun.]
"Alright then, no one will disturb us anymore..."
Marie Alter narrowed her mischievous, charming eyes, turning toward Eikou. In her slender white hand was his club application form.
In that moment, as she turned around, she shifted into her Alter Spirit Origin form — her beautiful twin white tails gradually darkened into gray, her school uniform hung loosely over her shoulders, her chest slightly emphasized, her curves taking on the allure of a mature woman, replacing the maidenly innocence she had just displayed.
Her once pure blue eyes also transformed unconsciously into sharp golden ones, brimming with a predatory aura.
Eikou's heart began to race wildly in fear.
This was an extremely dangerous signal.
It meant Marie had shed her "model student" mask.
Now she was no longer playing the pure princess of Austria — but the wickedly seductive Servant Alter.
"Sit down, won't you?"
Marie Alter said.
Eikou obediently followed, taking a seat on the nearest chair.
And, just as he expected, instead of sitting across from him, Marie Alter chose to sit right beside him.
"Eikou-kun~."
Her soft body leaned gently toward him, lips curling into a wickedly playful smile.
"I remember telling you before, didn't I? You could come find me anytime you wanted… It's been nearly a month already, so why haven't you visited me once?"
"Naughty boys who like to tease girls like that… when I catch them, they need to be properly punished, you know~?"
As expected, this is happening!
And what's with the way she's talking now — the teasing tone, the loose clothes, that soft, sultry voice dripping with mock seduction — is she playing the role of a gyaru-type girlfriend who likes to talk about 18+ stuff or what?
As expected of a lady from the royal palace — she really knows how to please a man.
But sorry, this kind of "little evil girlfriend" act — I've seen it plenty of times already. BB, Ishtar, and the others all fit this type, so you're kind of late to the party.
Your level's still not high enough to shake my heart.
Just ordinary!
Eikou only felt that his heart right now was as firm as that of Heracles — completely unshakable.
"President Marie, I think we should talk about my application form instead, shouldn't we?" he said seriously.
"There's nothing to talk about."
Marie Alter casually crumpled his application form and threw it straight into the trash bin.
"'You've already passed my interview.' It's that simple. An application form isn't necessary at all — if you say you want to join, that's enough."
"..."
Eikou thought silently to himself — then what's the point of putting on this whole 'private reception' act? As expected, you just wanted to use this as an excuse to flirt, didn't you!
Her soft, smooth hand brushed lightly across his thigh.
"Well then, since it's such a rare chance for us to be alone..."
No, no way...
I can't just let her lead me like this.
Suddenly, countless memories of what could only be called "Disaster With Women" flashed through his mind.
Thinking back on what had happened with Scathach and those married women, then the many battlefields of romance, the overlapping dates — weren't all those disasters caused by his inability to clearly reject women?
At moments like this, he had to stay firm, to crush any ambiguous feelings before they could even sprout!
I'm sorry, Princess Marie...
If it were the old Eikou — the one who was soft-hearted and easily led astray — he might truly have fallen into her hands.
But now, I am Eikoucles — the man who devotes himself solely to overcoming the Twelve Labors, with no women in his eyes.
"I'm sorry,"
Eikou said solemnly, moving away from her touch.
"Princess Marie, there's something I must make clear to you."
"My constitution is a little special — I tend to attract trouble related to women very easily. If you have feelings for me, then I'm sorry to say this, but it's best you don't get too close to me. I'm not the kind of man you should like, because my personal life is… chaotic."
"There are even some women I've had ambiguous relationships with, and others I've truly loved deeply... in other words, someone like me isn't suitable to be your lover."
"Before we make a mistake, before I end up hurting your heart, it's best for our relationship to stop right here. Alright?"
There, I've said it this clearly — she should understand what's going on now!
I reasoned logically, appealed emotionally — I've been completely honest. Surely now she has no reason left to keep clinging to me.
Forget chasing me — after hearing something like that, who wouldn't be scared off!
If this were a battle, then right now, I — Eikoucles — would be equivalent to having just used the Noble Phantasm "Slaying the Lancelot," erasing every single flag that could make another man's wife "relapse" over me again. I won't repeat the same mistakes.
Let me become a true pure-love warrior! Let me focus wholeheartedly on conquering Baobhan Sith properly!
Hearing that serious and powerful declaration, Marie Alter widened her eyes slightly, looking somewhat incredulous.
"I see, so that's how it is... thank you for explaining..."
Her voice suddenly softened, and she nodded lightly with a deep, unreadable expression.
Eikou had barely begun to sigh in relief when he noticed that her gaze had changed again.
Marie Alter's golden eyes now shimmered with a seductiveness that could melt one's resolve.
On that youthful face of hers was the dangerously alluring aura of a mature woman — she looked at him with eyes brimming with intoxicated fascination.
"...Eikou, I didn't expect you to be this interesting. You've got so many admirers, and someone in your heart too — are you deliberately trying to provoke me into chasing you instead?"
"Huh?"
Marie Alter pursed her soft lips, revealing a wicked little smile.
"You're awful, you shameless bastard... even if you hadn't said that, I was already planning to do everything I could to make you happy~"
"???"
No — what the hell is going through her head right now?!
I'm being completely serious here, I'm rejecting you!And yet you've somehow twisted my rejection into some kind of "Lancelot and Guinevere-style forbidden love play"?
...