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Beyond the Magical Crystal, I was kneeling in front of Lindy, Luna, Frecia, and even Gomtaengi and Tokki.

“Um… how long do I have to stay like this…?”

I subtly raised my eyes to gauge everyone’s reactions. However, Luna’s face was as red as a tomato, fidgeting with her fingers, while Frecia was busy fidgeting with her palms again, and Lindy beyond the Magical Crystal let out a deep sigh.

My legs were numb, and with my heels touching my butt, I couldn’t sit properly, fidgeting as if I were a statue.

I thought my sore backside from getting hit by Frecia last night had finally calmed down, but after being hit again a moment ago, it felt like twice the pain.

“Wait, why do I even have to be in this position?”

– It’s even more infuriating that you don’t know that.

Lindy’s voice sounded exasperated.

But thinking back, I questioned why I was getting hit on the backside and kneeling in front of everyone. Sure, I had indeed pressured Luna to remove her upper garment without much explanation. But it was only pulled up enough to reveal the mark just below her chest. We’re all girls here, so who cares about that? Of course, if boys were trying to strip each other, fists would be flying. But it’s different when it’s girls. It was just a normal thing among friends back in the Academy days.

Moreover, there were no other men here besides me. Well, I am a man, but at least on the outside, I appear more like a woman than anyone else.

Ah, Lindy knows I’m a guy, so it makes sense for her to react like that. And since I completely shut down Lindy’s perverted behavior while I’m in this situation, it must feel unjust to her. However, believe me, I was acting purely to help Luna.

“Of course, I did make a mistake by acting without explaining, but Luna allowed it, didn’t you? Right, Luna?”

The only person who could free me from being suddenly placed in the role of an aggressor was none other than Luna, who had also become a victim in this situation. A perpetrator who has never harmed anyone and a victim who has never suffered—what kind of bizarre verdict is that?

“…You were trying to remove my clothes to show that marking magic to her, weren’t you?”

“That’s right! I needed to reveal the marking magic engraved on Luna so the Master could erase it.”

Look at that. Luna understood my intentions perfectly. Unlike the two others who had some misunderstandings, the person involved, Luna, had a clear grasp of the situation.

With her misunderstandings cleared up, I slowly got up with a slightly brazen face.

“I never gave you permission to show the marking magic!”

“Huh?”

However, at the sound of Luna’s voice sinking into my ears, I hesitated awkwardly, looking at her with a face that said, “What do you mean?”

“W-What do you mean? I’m pretty sure Luna said it was okay. So I relaxed my grip.”

That was the moment when I could barely free myself from the pain; I called out to Luna in a panicked voice.

“Forget what I didn’t know. Anyway, I never gave permission to show my Master-Servant Mark, so remember that I was emotionally hurt because of you.”

However, Luna only uttered things that made no sense and adamantly refused to take my side.

If neither Lindy nor Luna would side with me, the only one left to turn to was Frecia. Of course, Frecia also hit my backside due to her misunderstanding, but surely once I calmly explained the situation, she would understand me. If our hearts are connected by a bond of trust, my sincerity would surely get through to her. I believed in Frecia.

“Y-You heard that, right, Master? Luna definitely said it was okay. Didn’t she?”

“Foolish Elysia.”

…Where did the pure and kind Master from three years ago go, and why is this mean-spirited one left?

Even the last person who could have sided with me disappeared.

Why can’t anyone see my sincerity? The verdict from the three of them now declared that at this moment, a perpetrator who has never harmed anyone and a victim who has never been harmed have come into existence.

Though I couldn’t clear up their misunderstandings completely, I hoped that our Goddess Serena in the heavens would understand my innocence and injustice.

Boom!

Even in the soundproofed room, the thunder outside was distinctly audible. See? The heavens are getting angry for my injustice.

While I took comfort in the fact that at least one person… no, a Goddess believes in me, I knelt down again quietly.

Boom, boom!

*

– Ah, I know those guys well. They’ve been threatening our informants, making things troublesome, but now I can deal with them without any hassle.

With Frecia’s help, I was able to easily erase the marking magic engraved on Luna. Now the Master-Servant Mark scroll in the Assassin Guild was just a regular piece of paper. Luna hesitated, opened her mouth a few times, and then spilled all the information she knew about the Guild she belonged to.

“Isn’t Lindy going to lose out if we take them down? Or is there something we need to be careful about?”

– There’s nothing like that, so you can wipe them out. There will be assassins outside, so it will be hard to wipe them out completely, but our goal is to make Luna free, so just causing enough chaos that we can’t look for Luna should be alright.

Then it should be sufficient to take out just the Guild Master and a few of the higher-ups.

“Then let’s go while we’re at it. Umm… Master, could you please wait here for a moment?”

– No way! I’m coming with you!

“…Looks like that’s settled.”

When I heard about the skills of the Guild members from Luna, it didn’t seem like it would take too long, but just to double-check, I asked Frecia again, not wanting to trouble her after already helping. But the answer came back from Lindy within the Magical Crystal. Even Luna, who had been glaring at Frecia like a spiteful cat since last night, silently approved of Frecia’s company.

It seemed Luna still couldn’t believe she was free, her face showing a dazed expression. I patted her head, proud of her for not forgetting the fact that she was helped by Frecia amidst all the chaos. Luna reacted, bursting out as usual.

“Yay! I’m not completely forgiving you for the wounds you gave my sensitive heart, okay? Treat me kindly!”

Right, that’s Luna. This lively demeanor fits her much better than when she pretends to be aloof.

“So, you don’t like it?”

“…Not really, but.”

As I slightly pulled my rough hand away from Luna’s head and asked, she whispered in a voice barely loud enough to be heard, grabbing my retreating hand and putting it back on her head.

I chuckled at Luna’s cute demeanor and gently patted her tousled hair with a much kinder touch like she had mentioned.

*

If I set my mind to it, flipping the Assassin Guild upside down wouldn’t be impossible, but I didn’t know how many people like Luna had become assassins not by their own choice but through force. So instead of making a fuss unnecessarily, I decided to take out the executives hiding deep within the Guild.

Naturally, neither the ordinary Guild members nor even the executives noticed our presence. Of course me, but thanks to Luna practicing up close while observing her skills all this time, she was in prime condition. Even Frecia was leisurely following us, using the concealment magic from Tokki and Gomtaengi that hid them even from the eyes of the demonic race.

Now all that was left was the Guild Master right in front of us.

“Ugh…! Who the hell are you?!”

“I’d love to kill you on the spot, but unfortunately, someone else has come to take your life.”

While the Guild Master of the Black Moon wasn’t in front of me, this guy was no different, and I didn’t expect anything good to come from him. But as I said, someone else is here to handle him.

“…Master.”

“Y-You are… Luna? Then with that silver hair and that appearance… Don’t tell me you’re the Hero?”

“You catch on quickly. I guess that means you’re the Guild Master of the Assassin Guild.”

“What are you doing standing there instead of stabbing that Hero girl right now! Kill her! Hurry up!”

Even while writhing on the floor, the Guild Master fumbled in their pocket and pulled out a piece of paper, holding it out toward Luna while yelling. However, there was no way Luna— now free of her Master-Servant Mark— would budge.

Given that Luna had brought me here, it was already futile. Seeing the Guild Master desperately scream with false hope brought me twisted satisfaction.

“Didn’t the Master say so? Yes, he said, ‘Kill her in one stroke. If not, I will die!’”

Luna, having borrowed my hand up until now, pulled out the dagger she had never dared to wield.

Then slowly, Luna brought the dagger to the Guild Master’s neck. The blade was so sharp that just lightly pressing it against the skin drew blood, which trickled down the dagger.

This was a situation where everything could end if she cut him. But Luna withdrew the dagger that had just been at the Guild Master’s neck.

Hope returned to the terrified Guild Master’s eyes. And in that moment.

Thud!

“Urgh!”

Luna’s dagger pierced through the back of his hand that held the marking scroll and slammed it to the floor.

I was glad I brought Frecia. Thanks to the barrier she set up, the Guild Master’s scream couldn’t escape outside and stayed solely within the room.

Honestly, how could he scream for such a little pain? Even if his life were hanging by a thread, he sounded like someone who hasn’t fought on the front lines in a long time.

Luna playfully poked the Guild Master’s hand that was pierced by the dagger with her finger and opened her mouth.

“But I don’t plan to kill you in one stroke.”

It was fine by me, but showing this kind of scene to Frecia wouldn’t do good for her mental health, so I went behind her to cover her eyes. With her ears blocked by Gomtaengi and Tokki, they stood by her side to help.

Fortunately, Frecia didn’t seem to feel annoyed but instead quietly leaned against me, standing still.

“You know, Master, as you know, I learned not just assassination skills but also torture techniques in this hellhole. So I’ll be showing you the torture techniques I learned from you, just like that, expect it.”

I checked the hand covering Frecia’s eyes again carefully for any tiny gaps there might be.

*

“Congratulations on being free.”

After wrapping everything up, we threw a small party inside the city’s restaurant to celebrate her freedom. It felt a bit ridiculous to hold a party after killing someone, but what should be celebrated should be celebrated.

Unlike me, who cannot escape my past sins, Luna was now completely free. She no longer needs to commit unwanted murder.

“So what will you do from now on? Do you have any plans?”

“What do you think would suit me?”

Luna asked me as if reversing my question.

“Hmm… Well, if you haven’t thought of anything specific, how about checking out Griffin Academy? Even though I only went for a year, it’s a good place.”

Since Griffin Academy had just reopened for new students, it would be a great opportunity for Luna. Even though she has no background, it wouldn’t be any trouble to ask the Emperor to admit her.

“Wow! Then it means you’ll become a senior again? That sounds a bit greedy, doesn’t it?”

Well, Luna would do well anywhere she goes. Her skills, though specialized in assassination, are quite excellent, and her personality is friendly and approachable.

As we chatted about this and that, we finished our final dinner together before parting.

“…Since today will be the last, I’ll generously give up my spot.”

I don’t know why sharing a big bed alone constitutes a sacrifice, but in the end, Luna and I ended up sharing a bed. Since tomorrow would be our farewell, Luna naturally had a lot to say.

She talked about the day she targeted me, and how she was saved by me in reverse, among other things…

After a long chat, still feeling regretful, Luna kept talking even as her eyes began to close.

However, after a long day full of events, Luna eventually fell asleep, leaving me as the only one awake in the room.

Luna, who had freed herself from the Master-Servant Mark, no longer had any reason to seek my life.

And that meant she no longer needed to follow me.

Having been through so much with her, I too only felt regret at her leaving.

Yet instead of mourning our parting, I gently kissed her forehead while she dove into dreamland, blessing her.

May happiness always fill her path.

*

When I woke up in the morning, Luna had already left without a trace. Still, I wanted to at least give her a farewell.

As I felt the emptiness of her absence and prepared for the day by waking up Frecia, a voice came before me that roused her first.

“Tada! Senior! Look! I got bread from the Master!”

With a loud bang, Luna burst in, her hands full of bread.

“Here, here! I brought breakfast, so hurry and eat! I even got milk!”

In fact, a bottle of milk was dangling at her waist. No, more than that…

“What? Didn’t you leave? There’s no need to follow me anymore.”

I was utterly bewildered, thinking she had already left. But Luna, seeing my astonishment, tilted her head with a puzzled expression.

“Don’t you like it when I follow you?”

“No, that’s not it… But it could be dangerous…”

From now on, I’ll be hunting down the demonic race, ultimately heading toward the Demon King’s castle. I couldn’t bear the thought of bringing Luna along on that journey.

But even before I could finish answering her question, she giggled and cut me off.

“This is my will, Senior. Until now, I followed others’ wills, but now I’ll follow you only out of my own will! Brace yourself, Senior!”

Luna exclaimed with a proud demeanor, almost as if she was declaring it.

Bam!

“Ugh!”

“Foolish Luna.”

However, that proud demeanor quickly crumbled with the pillow Frecia threw at her.

It was quite amusing, and I laughed and laughed.