Volume 1, Chapter 9 – Lord, I Met an Angel!

Spycraft Tip No. 4, newly added.

—Never underestimate any succubus because of her appearance.

Just a few exchanges with Remedios had already taught Stella that lesson.

Needless to say, Stella was nervous to death.

It was over. Was the secret of the succubus elixir about to be exposed?

This kind of unexpected disaster always seemed to strike the moment she relaxed even slightly. However, as a Saintess candidate who had fought her way through layer after layer of cutthroat competition within the Holy See, Stella’s mental fortitude rebuilt itself in an instant, right on the verge of collapse.

She took a deep breath, forcibly suppressed the fear in her eyes, and put on an expression as undisturbed as a frozen lake.

“Uh, I think you’ve probably misunderstood. What basis could you possibly have for accusing someone you’ve only just met like this?” Stella tilted her head and spoke without changing her expression.

Remedios’ cute lips parted slightly, giving her no chance to explain further.

“Oh, you should know perfectly well yourself, shouldn’t you, Miss Darkfallen?” She leaned forward, the tips of her platinum-blonde hair brushing against Stella’s fingertips and bringing with them a faintly cool sensation. “I think I’ve already seen through you. From the moment you stepped into this classroom, you only ever had one objective, material from Cheryl.”

A fine layer of cold sweat instantly seeped across the back of Stella’s neck.

No matter what excuse she came up with, the fact that she had collected those tears was undeniable. If she could not dispel the suspicion surrounding that act, she had no way to defend herself. Even the Vice Principal had chosen to turn a blind eye to it, so why did this girl insist on digging into it?

The situation before her was even more terrifying than a nightmare, yet it was unmistakably reality.

Stella was racking her brains, desperately trying to come up with some excuse that could cover the matter up, when Remedios spoke first. Her voice carried the clear, methodical cadence of someone reading out the correct answer.

“Hehe, you really are something… Miss Darkfallen. I never imagined you had such twisted  tastes.”

Rеαԁ οո КаtReαԁіոɡСаfe

‘…Twisted tastes?’

Stella heard the words, but understood none of them.

“Tears, especially magical tears saturated with humiliation and resentment, are undoubtedly one of the core mediums used to make curse dolls. Combine them with Miss Cheryl’s hair, fingernails, or even dust from the place where she was standing at the time… and you can create a little toy capable of making her suffer unbearable agony without leaving any evidence that can be traced back to you.”

Remedios spoke at length as though she were lecturing on an entertaining elective course.

“There are similar cases in Chapter Three of Applied Abyssal Cursecraft and A Brief Introduction to Bloodline-Linked Sorcery. You collected the tears in a test tube to preserve their activity and purity, right?”

“Very professional. And your motive couldn’t be simpler.”

“Her earlier offense and provocation displeased you, but because you were wary of the protection afforded by her family, you chose this method instead.”

‘R-Really?’

Stella blinked in bewilderment, barely managing to process what those words meant.

Setting aside whatever this curse doll was, which already sounded evil and unholy just from the name, Stella had absolutely no idea what kind of thought process this Hundredfold Wisdom succubus possessed. Somehow, Remedios had decided that Stella was a petty, vindictive succubus with a dark and calculating mind.

‘How could a Saintess like me possibly do something like that? I could not even have imagined such a thing!’

Still, forget it. That was not the important part right now. At the very least, according to Remedios’ theory, this was far better than having the truth about the succubus elixir exposed.

Stella fell silent for a while.

Things had already reached this point.

She might as well admit it.

Rеаd oո KаtRеaⅾіոɡСαfе

She let out a long, long sigh, deliberately furrowed her brows, practically writing I can’t believe you figured it out across her forehead, then parted her thin lips and said.

“I never expected… that you would actually see through me.”

“As expected, exactly the same as my deduction.” Remedios wore a rather insincere look of smugness. “I don’t even need to think about it to know how unwilling you must feel right now.”

‘Unwilling?’

She was about to burst out laughing.

The little Stella inside her head was already throwing a party.

She gritted her teeth. “Yes. I’m very unwilling.”

“In that case…”

Remedios straightened up, once again wearing that intellectual and gentle smile, while the words coming out of her mouth were the complete opposite.

“Stella, we can make a deal. I won’t tell anyone that you’re secretly making a ‘custom voodoo doll for the young lady of the Valentine family.’”

She paused, then tossed out the bait.

“In return, you need to… help me with one little favor. Don’t worry. For a privileged student like you, this should be quite interesting.”

“State your request.” Stella spat out the words succinctly.

Remedios pulled a parchment map of a labyrinth from her thick diary.

“Lilith Library, midnight. I want to borrow a volume of History of Dark Cursecraft from deep inside the restricted section. There’s a silence field and book-spirit guards there. If it’s you, there absolutely won’t be a problem. Besides, you have the Vice Principal’s special privilege. Take me inside without anyone noticing.”

Rеαⅾ οո КαtRеаԁіոɡСafе

Remedios raised her head, her blue eyes gleaming with a thirst for knowledge.

‘An angel!’

Stella was so moved she nearly cried.

‘Lord, I just met an angel…’

She had just been worrying about how she could sneak into the restricted section to find that damned Primordial Doctrine, and now this Hundredfold Wisdom succubus had actually taken the initiative to hand her the knife and even volunteered to lead the way?

‘Praise the Lord!’

“Deal.”

Stella’s voice was so calm that even she thought it sounded cold, though that was only because she was trying to conceal the joy in her heart.

She raised her chin slightly, allowing just the right trace of contempt to appear in her violet eyes, as though saying at least you know what’s good for you.

“I hope Miss Bledia remembers her promise. Since a secret is being exchanged, it would be best for it to retain its original silence.”

“Of course. Honoring contracts is the motto of the Bledia family.”

Remedios put away the parchment, her eyes curving into a smile.

However, at the exact moment she tucked the parchment away, Stella noticed something. Beyond Remedios’ shoulder, beneath her cascading platinum-blonde hair, a pair of crimson eyes were glaring straight at her.

It was Cheryl.

“Uh…”

Rеαⅾ οո KаtRеaⅾiոɡСаfе

Stella thought about it and decided to ignore her. The young lady had just suffered a setback, so theoretically, she should not come looking for trouble again anytime soon.

Go ahead.

Keep glaring, young lady.

Without looking back, Stella walked out of the classroom.

Second day of her career as a spy.

She was safe.

For now.

Although her current image was that of an evil succubus who possessed the privilege to torment students, had seduced a young lady into kneeling before her, was preparing to curse a classmate with a voodoo doll, was about to trespass into the restricted section, and still had to mind-control five innocent girls while she was at it…

Stella swore that she really, truly, was still a Saintess devoted wholeheartedly to goodness.

Translator Note

Praise the Lord!