Chapter 30

Cecilia's eyes widened in surprise at the unexpected information.

"Another personality?"

"Dissociative Identity Disorder, commonly known as multiple personality disorder. If the gentle side of him that we usually see is the surface, then the face hidden behind, filled with hatred, is the true identity of the Killer."

Shocked and speechless, Cecilia listened as Grace prefaced her next words with, "From here on, it's about the game."

"The Killer was born due to the death of his sister, Emily. Emily, the only family member, was killed by a person possessed by 'Impurity.' The teacher began to resent the priestess for not protecting his sister."

"That's..."

"Yes. Of course, it's a misplaced blame. If it's the priestess's duty to suppress 'Impurity,' then her failure to do so is her fault. However, the fact that a person possessed by 'Impurity' harmed someone is not the priestess's responsibility."

As if Gilbert's whisper was understood, she answered.

"But the teacher couldn't come to terms with it. Unable to bear the pain of losing his beloved sister, he could only maintain himself by hating someone. Thus, the Killer who resents the priestess was born. ...However, it's impossible to kill the priestess."

Grace placed her palm on her chest.

"So, he decided to kill a priestess candidate instead. And the first victim was supposed to be me, Grace Martinez."

"Does that mean you protected your life by protecting Emily?"

"To be precise, it's a bit different. In the game, I suffer severe injuries but don't die."

In response to Gilbert's question, Grace revealed another shocking fact.

"In the final chapter of the route, the teacher, who has eliminated the Killer within him, regrets killing Grace while holding the protagonist's hand. Then, one of his companions, Oscar, appears and says, 'Grace is being protected by her father at the palace. The teacher hasn't killed anyone.' 'The article that reported Grace's death was fake information to protect the priestess candidate who survived.'"

"Wha..."

The protagonist and the teacher, upon learning this fact, hold hands and shed tears of joy. "Yay, yay."

The information was overwhelming. Cecilia felt her head might explode. It was natural, given that she was being told a story that would normally take hours to digest in just a few minutes. She couldn't even process it enough to be genuinely surprised.

Grace suddenly shifted her gaze to the confused Cecilia.

"By the way, in the bad ending, Mr. Modred is consumed by the Killer's personality and brutally murders Cecilia, who happened to be passing by."

"Ah!"

Cecilia hugged herself, understanding this instantly.

"There are no stills, but the text describes being cut limb by limb while alive, and having organs—"

"No, no! I don't want to hear it!!"

This time, she covered her ears.

Why did Cecilia always seem to be the one destined to die?

Unlike Cecilia, Gilbert, who had absorbed all the facts, stroked his chin and summarized the information.

"In summary, Mr. Modred's hidden personality is the Killer, and the trigger for his appearance is 'Emily's death.' You protected yourself not just to save your life, but to prevent the Killer from being born by helping Emily."

"Yes, that's right. ...However, it wasn't a complete success."

"Why not?"

"It was my first time reincarnating, so I was slow to realize I was in the world of 'Priestess Princess of Vrulhel Academy 3.' As a result, I couldn't fully save Emily."

Grace bit her lip, looking regretful. It was the same expression she had shown in the hospital.

Cecilia, who had reached a conclusion from Grace's story, looked at Gilbert with a startled expression.

"Then, the recent activity of the Killer...?"

"It's because Emily didn't die, so the timing for the personality to form was delayed."

"Wait, the Killer has appeared?"

This time, it was Grace's turn to be surprised.

After Cecilia explained what happened at the cottage during the summer break, Grace pressed her forehead, looking troubled.

"There's no other way but to eliminate the Killer from Mr. Modred."

"Really?"

"Yes. If left unchecked, the damage will spread. Not only Lean, but if it's known that you and I are priestess candidates, we'll be targeted by the Killer for life."

Cecilia's expression stiffened at this prediction.

"Will things calm down after the selection ceremony...?"

"I don't think so. It's like hating the monk and the cassock. Once targeted, there's no escape."

"Then, how do we eliminate the Killer?"

In response to Gilbert's question, Grace held up two fingers.

"I think there are two ways."

"Two?"

"Yes. One is to somehow awaken Emily, who was the trigger for the Killer's birth."

Grace folded one finger.

"The other is to catch the person who harmed Emily."

She folded the second finger. Cecilia was naturally confused.

"The culprit... the only information is that they were possessed by 'Impurity,' and they might not even have a memory of it..."

"No. The person who did this to Emily wasn't possessed by 'Impurity.'"

"Really?"

"The culprit spread this rumor to divert attention. This way, the blame would more easily fall on 'Impurity' rather than the culprit. Indeed, the teacher's anger was directed at 'Impurity' rather than the culprit."

Cecilia leaned forward.

"Then, who is the real culprit?"

"Bernard Broussais."

"Bernard!?"

Grace nodded firmly.

"Ticky Colson's goldfish poop. In the Jayd route, the pervert to be cornered. The first victim of his assault was actually Emily."

Bernard's twisted personality, formed by Ticky, was explored in the Jayd route. Bernard was relieving his daily stress by harming small children and women.

Grace continued.

"Originally, Emily's death was supposed to increase Bernard's violence. However, since Emily survived, his violence subsided, and he didn't repeat his crimes as the game intended."

Previously, Cecilia had thought, "Maybe his personality has changed," when she saw Bernard not causing any incidents. She hadn't expected such a hidden event.

"But if that's the case, we should turn Bernard over to the gendarmes!"

"I wouldn't recommend that."

Grace looked down.

"He's the son of a marquis. Without solid evidence, the gendarmes won't act. In fact, when I went to them, I was turned away. They even suggested, 'Maybe you did it.'"

"But isn't catching Bernard more certain than waking Emily?"

"That's true, but the evidence..."

Cecilia, like Grace, lowered her eyes.

As Gilbert said, it might be easier to catch the known culprit Bernard than to wake Emily. However, both were still significant challenges.

Moreover, Bernard was less likely to cause future incidents, which was a good thing, but it also meant no new evidence would emerge. To catch Bernard, they would need to investigate the Emily case.

(Can we even do that...?)

The gendarmes had probably investigated to some extent and still couldn't find the culprit. Whether Cecilia and the others, as amateurs, could do it was a mystery.

Gilbert, still looking away, hesitated.

In the end, the information exchange session ended without a good plan.