Chapter 57

7 AM and 7 PM. I'm trying to figure out which time would be better for you to read it. If you have any opinions, please let me know!

According to Grace, the true ending of "Vruehel Academy's Miko-hime 3" involves everyone working together to exorcise a "hindrance."

"To reach the true ending, you need to raise the affection level of the character you're focusing on to a certain point and receive holy relics from all the knights as a candidate for the Miko."

"That sounds... impossible..."

It's unreasonable. Cecilia's cheeks twitched at Grace's words. After all, Cecilia was only dressed as a man because she didn't want to be a Miko candidate. Now, she was being asked to collect holy relics as a Miko candidate, which was an unreasonable demand. Moreover, if she suddenly revealed that she was actually a woman and a Miko candidate, she would undoubtedly receive a lot of disapproval.

Grace smiled thinly at Cecilia's expression.

"That's not a problem. I think it can be managed even if you stay in your current attire."

"What do you mean?"

"You don't need to go for the true ending."

Cecilia tilted her head at this contradictory statement. Grace continued calmly, looking at her.

"I said you need to enter the true route, but I didn't say you need to aim for the true ending. Given the current state of the story, it's unrealistic to expect a normal true ending."

"Um, so you mean I need to enter the route but don't need to aim for the ending?"

Cecilia's question was met with a nod from Grace.

"To completely exorcise the 'hindrance,' you need to enter the temple where the current Miko resides."

"Why?"

"There are multiple reasons, but the main one is that you need to obtain a certain item to exorcise the 'hindrance.' To enter the temple, you need to open the true route. In other words, to meet the conditions for exorcising the 'hindrance,' you don't need to aim for the ending."

Cecilia's eyes widened at this.

"You don't need the holy relics to enter the true route. You just need to raise the affection level of the character you're focusing on to a certain point. In other words, what you need to do now is to become friends with everyone and meet the conditions to open the route."

"All of them... including Ein and Zwei?"

"They are also characters you need to focus on, so of course."

Cecilia mumbled, "Yeah, I guess so..." Her unusually downcast expression made Grace tilt her head in curiosity.

"Is something wrong? Usually, you'd say, 'Got it! I'll become friends with them!' and rush out of the room."

"Do I seem that thoughtless?"

"Well, you don't seem very intelligent."

Cecilia let out a sigh at Grace's blunt words. Grace added, "Don't worry, it's just my opinion," but it was unclear if this was meant to be reassuring.

"Why do you look so troubled? Did you have trouble with the twins in your previous life?"

"No, I didn't even try to focus on them..."

"Then why?"

Faced with this reasonable question, Cecilia scratched her cheek in confusion.

"Well, you know... the bad endings for the twins are... not good. I don't really like that kind of thing..."

"Oh, you mean the imprisonment ending and the suicide ending?"

Cecilia nodded, looking exasperated.

Ein and Zwei Makias are twin brothers born into the Makias family. They look almost identical, but their personalities are quite different: Ein is assertive, and Zwei is timid. In the game, they are not particularly standout characters except for being twins. Initially, Cecilia's previous self, Hiyono, was eager to focus on them.

However, one day, Hiyono discovered something disturbing on social media. It was a fan-made comic by someone who had focused on the twins before her. The comic was beautifully crafted, but the content was problematic. Titled "After the Bad Ending," it depicted Ein imprisoning Lean in a dungeon...

Hiyono couldn't help but scream. She didn't usually like spoilers, but the description intrigued her, so she searched for more information. What she found was information about the twins' bad endings.

Due to their upbringing, the twins have a strong dependency on each other. If you raise the affection level of one too much, the other becomes extremely jealous, leading to a bad ending. Specifically, Ein's bad ending involves him going mad with jealousy and imprisoning Lean, while Zwei's involves a suicide pact. To focus on the twins, you need to raise their affection levels almost simultaneously, which is why players call it the "balance route." Despite this, the bad endings for the twins are more popular than the good endings, and there are many fan creations based on them. Unfortunately, Hiyono found them repulsive.

In other words, she found them physically repulsive.

So, she didn't focus on them in her previous life and has been trying to avoid them this time as well...

"If it were like Dante's bad ending, where you get killed, it would be better, but the slimy atmosphere of those endings... I just can't handle it..."

"Even though they're bad endings, the twins' are different from others. But focusing on the twins is easier than focusing on Dante. Besides, as long as you don't reach the bad endings, there's no need to worry, right?"

"I guess so..."

Cecilia said this in a voice that sounded like she was about to cry. The thought of the twins' bad endings made her shiver. She even got goosebumps, and she didn't want to imagine what it would be like if it happened to her.

"Anyway, if you want to exorcise the 'hindrance,' there's no other way. If you don't want to involve the twins, you'll have to give up on this."

"That's so unfair..."

"Well, the final decision is up to you."

Grace turned back to her desk, signaling the end of the conversation. Her gaze was already on a stack of papers, presumably her research results. Cecilia stood up, sensing the end of the conversation. As she was about to leave, Grace spoke.

"Be careful."

"Huh?"

"I don't want you to get hurt."

Grace smiled, a rare gentle smile.

"Try your best to change your fate. I'm looking forward to it."

Cecilia's lips curved upward at her encouragement. Though her expression was usually hard to read, she knew Grace was supporting her. This made Cecilia feel warm inside.

"Thanks, Grace!"

"You're welcome."

As she smiled again, Grace's gaze shifted to the door. Then, it slid to Cecilia.

"It seems someone has come to pick you up."

"Pick me up?"

"I remember every sound I've heard."

As she finished speaking, there was a knock on the door. Grace said, "Come in," and the door opened, revealing a familiar face.

"I've come to pick you up, Cecilia. Is your conversation over?"

Cecilia nodded energetically at Gilbert's question and left Grace's room with him.

December 28th, the second volume of the manga will be released!

I'm looking forward to it too > <

Thank you for your support!