Chapter 18: The Iris and Estelle (Please Follow! Please Comment!)

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The name Iris is actually ill-suited for a secret society. It’s neither mysterious nor frightening. Many who knew of the Iris Society’s existence were curious about the origin of its name. Ron, however, knew why.

“The iris pattern on the contract is exactly the same as the one you saw on the maids,” he thought. “It’s a rune they use to counter your prying eyes.”

“Vivian’s flames can’t harm any physical form, but they possess astonishing power against magic.”

“Fueled by potions, the raging self-consuming flames act like a greedy serpent, devouring all magic within their reach.”

“All magical seals on the books were consumed.”

“The runes on the Iris contract behave the same way.”

“The Iris Society was probably founded by their own maid group.”

“Lia?”

“Impossible.”

“Although she was somewhat corrupted under my influence, her hatred toward me never faded.”

“You always liked her because, though her heart brimmed with hatred, her body remained obedient.”

“That would be Estelle.”

“She was a beautiful elven girl.”

“A cursed elf who was bullied, abandoned, and killed by her own people.”

“The elven seers prophesied she would be the harbinger of their downfall.”

Estelle… Ron remembered her. Even among the many beauties in his Crystal Palace, she remained the most stunning. When Ron first met her, she was already dead, slain by elven warriors. Because of her extraordinary beauty, Ron revived her. Since then, Estelle became his most loyal maid. She was the one who personally carried out Ron’s self-inflicted wound. At that time, Ron didn’t perceive the figures appearing in his consciousness as real, so he committed all sorts of atrocities without remorse. He never considered Estelle’s feelings. After his death, did Estelle found the Iris Society, vowing to resurrect him? Ron’s emotions were somewhat tangled.

In truth, he had little sentimental attachment to his former harem, as most of his relationships there were purely physical, devoid of any emotional exchange. Usually, if a woman was beautiful, Ron would simply capture her for his harem—a plot typical of the bulldozer-style stories of his era. But Estelle was one of the rare women with whom he shared emotional ties. Ron’s destruction of the Elven Empire and the capture and harsh treatment of the elven queen were partly motivated by Estelle. “You all say Estelle is the cursed girl of prophecy, so I’ll make sure this curse comes true.”

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“Ron! Ron! What are you daydreaming about?” Vivian’s voice snapped you out of your reverie. She waved the contract in her hand. “Hurry and put this back! The teacher will be back soon!”

Seeing no response, Vivian panicked and tossed the contract onto the floor, then pushed over the nearby bookshelf, burying the contract beneath the fallen books.

Vivian scooped you up and was about to flee when a golden light flickered behind her.

Vigfart appeared with a dark expression behind Vivian.

“What have you done, Vivian?” Vigfart’s voice carried a hint of anger.

You finally came to your senses and looked at Vigfart.

Looking at the tall and dignified woman before you, you recalled the words inscribed on the Iris contract: “When the emperor returns, we shall offer everything we have.”

A mental image of Vigfart dressed in a maid’s outfit flashed through your mind.

Not now, brain! Get a grip!

You wondered if she was wearing Iris-themed lingerie as well.

Bang! Ron slammed the table, standing up in a fury.

At that moment, a loud crash came from downstairs, followed by a woman’s scream.

Ron frowned.

The couple downstairs had started arguing again.

This interruption oddly helped calm Ron’s anger.

Turning back to Vivian, Vigfart was indeed a good teacher. She didn’t scold Vivian harshly for her actions.

“Did you do all this?” Vigfart asked, noticing the magical seals on her hidden books had vanished.

“I’m sorry, teacher! I didn’t mean to!” Vivian quickly apologized.

Looking at the vanished seals, Vigfart’s mind began to stir with thoughts.

In her thoughts, you glimpsed the whereabouts of several lingering souls—some sealed, others treasured.

Vigfart intended to use Vivian’s unique abilities to retrieve these residual souls.

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However, Vigfart’s thoughts soon shifted to pure joy over Vivian’s awakening talent.

She sincerely celebrated Vivian’s discovery of her unique gift.

Vigfart began planning Vivian’s future in her mind.

Collecting residual souls was a mission of the organization, but it was best not to drag Vivian into it.

Vigfart was evidently a member of the Iris Society—and a truly good teacher.

From her inner voice, Ron understood her real reason for wanting Vivian to graduate early.

The Abyss was stirring.

This meant a new demon god was already in its embryonic state.

The empire was mobilizing troops for an expedition and had issued a summons to all supernaturals within the empire.

Soon, this summons would extend to all academies and mage towers. By then, Vivian’s graduation would mean conscription to the frontlines against the Abyss.

Knowing Vivian’s strength, Vigfart naturally did not want to see her sent to the front.

Not just Vivian, but her other students would also be graduated early for various reasons.

Vigfart herself would soon head to the northern front.

Ron observed all this, his doubts about Vigfart completely dispelled.

It was a pity that as long as he existed, Vivian’s fate was destined to be extraordinary.

Ron recalled the magical tomes he had read.

Since consciousness exists simultaneously in both reality and the spirit realm, when Demon King Meow read those tomes in the spirit realm, the knowledge was simultaneously absorbed into Ron’s mind.

If he remembered correctly, every empire throughout history facing demon god invasions allowed supernaturals to form squads for the campaign—a so-called Hero License.

Then he would guide Vivian to become a hero! That would give her a reason to seek out the demon king’s residual souls.

Just as Ron was thinking this, there was a knock at the door.

Strange… I didn’t order takeout.

Puzzled, Ron stood and peered through the peephole.

“Big brother! Big brother! Please save my mother! Dad has gone mad!”

Ron frowned as he looked at the pleading girl outside.

This girl was the child of the couple downstairs.

She had knocked on Ron’s door before to seek help during her parents’ fights and even physical altercations.

But back then, at least her head was still intact.