After leaving Simon behind with Hector, Knox, Lorain, and Serene continued walking toward the mansion leisurely.
However, while walking, they realized something.
The students who had followed Elisa earlier to gang up on them…
Were still there.
"..."
Looking at the crowd nervously blocking the path ahead, Knox suddenly smiled.
A very dangerous smile.
"Hmm?" Knox tilted his head slightly. "Now that I think about it…"
He glanced toward Lorain and Serene.
"Both of you don't really care about points at all, right?"
Then he added casually,
"So your current points should only be slightly above the safe line, I guess?"
The moment those words fell, the atmosphere suddenly became strange.
Knox slowly turned his gaze toward the students in front of them.
His eyes were smiling.
His face was smiling.
But somehow—
The students there felt an inexplicable chill running down their spines.
Meanwhile, Lorain and Serene immediately understood what Knox meant.
And naturally—
Both girls smiled as well.
Normally, with beauty capable of toppling the entirety of Kizen, the smiles of Lorain and Serene would have been enough to make students feel as though their hearts had been pierced by Cupid's arrows.
But right now, the students had a strong feeling those arrows would be significantly more physical than romantic.
A moment later, crimson light and ivory light exploded forward simultaneously.
Lorain and Serene instantly transformed into two streaks of light, shooting across the battlefield like deadly arrows.
And then—
The massacre began.
"KYAAAAAA!!"
"W-Wait!!"
"Why are they suddenly attacking us?!"
Screams echoed everywhere.
Some students were sent flying.
Others rolled across the ground desperately trying to escape.
Tongue Pads scattered through the air one after another.
Meanwhile, Knox simply stood there silently while watching the chaos unfold.
Then, deep inside his heart, he quietly made a solemn vow.
No matter what happens in the future…
I absolutely must never make these two angry.
After the "cleaning" was finished, Lorain and Serene returned to Knox's side.
Lorain immediately looked at him with sparkling eyes, like a husky eagerly waiting for praise from its owner.
Meanwhile, Serene also smiled smugly, resembling a noble royal cat proudly returning after a successful hunt.
Looking at the two of them, Knox could only smile helplessly.
"Alright, good job, both of you."
Then he added casually,
"As a reward, I'll cook for you guys later. How about that?"
"You promised!" Lorain answered instantly without even a second of delay.
Meanwhile, although Serene still maintained her composed appearance, inwardly, she felt quite delighted.
"Hmm~ Very well," Serene replied elegantly while brushing her hair lightly. "I shall graciously accept your gratitude."
And so, after peacefully finishing their violent "negotiation," the three of them continued walking toward the mansion leisurely.
[Class A's Knox Aznable has been confirmed to have entered the mansion.]
[Class C's Serene Aidark has been confirmed to have entered the mansion.]
[Class L's Lorain Archbold has been confirmed to have entered the mansion.]
After arriving at the mansion, Knox was immediately greeted by the rest of his group.
"Knox, took you long enough," Cindy said with a grin.
"Well, at least you're safe," Claudia added with a small smile.
"Knox… hungry. Need food," Merida muttered sleepily.
"Haha, hello guys. Glad to see all of you here," Knox replied casually.
"With this, our group is finally complete."
"Hey! Why are you with her?!"
Meilyn suddenly appeared and pointed directly at Serene with a visibly displeased expression.
"Well, no special reason, I guess?" Knox replied casually. "It was just some 'bla bla bla,' then baam!, and somehow we ended up coming here together as a team."
"What do you mean by 'bla bla bla'?!" Meilyn snapped immediately.
Then, Serene suddenly leaped toward Meilyn.
"Kyaaaahh! It's Meilyn! What are you doing here~?"
Before anyone could react, Serene had already clung tightly onto Meilyn's arm with a bright smile.
"Ah, damn it! Get lost!"
Meilyn immediately pushed Serene's face away with one hand while shouting irritably.
Meanwhile, Serene puffed her cheeks unhappily.
"Hmph. That's so mean. Seri only wanted to get closer to Meilyn."
"Seri, my ass! Freeze to death already! I told you before that your clingy behavior is creepy!"
Meilyn spoke with complete disgust.
Then, as if suddenly remembering something important, her eyes narrowed sharply.
"And you, you damn fox. You secretly stuck feathers on me before, didn't you?!"
"Huh?~"
"Don't play dumb! You were the one who attacked Simon!"
Serene tilted her head innocently.
"I'm not really sure what Meilyn is talking about though~"
"Don't deny it!"
Meilyn's face instantly flushed red from anger.
Meanwhile, Serene only spoke with a teasing smile while lightly waving one finger side to side.
"Hehe~"
"Don't 'hehe~' me!" Meilyn shouted angrily.
Then, Serene suddenly changed her expression and replied,
"Ehe~"
"<(ꐦㅍ _ㅍ)>"
The moment Meilyn saw that extremely familiar, annoying, and punchable expression, her anger rose even further.
"Don't you dare use that very familiar annoying 'ehe~' gesture that Knox always uses!" Meilyn snapped.
Meanwhile, Knox, who had merely been peacefully watching the drama from the side, suddenly became collateral damage.
"…..Have I offended you somehow?"
Serene lightly wagged her finger side to side while speaking in an innocent, baby-like tone.
"And besides, Seri's ability doesn't create feelings from nothing, you know~"
"It only amplifies emotions that already exist."
"So if Meilyn attacked Simon, doesn't that simply mean those feelings already existed deep inside your heart~?"
"Stop with the bullshit and just die already!!"
The two immediately tangled together.
Well…
Calling it a "fight" would be a bit inaccurate.
It was mostly just Meilyn pummeling Serene repeatedly while Serene casually accepted the hits without resisting much.
Bam!
"SERENEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!"
A thunderous roar suddenly echoed throughout the mansion.
Serene immediately gave a bitter smile.
"…I truly am a woman full of sin."
"?"
The person stomping furiously through the mansion was none other than Special Entry No.10, Malcolm Randolph.
"You bastard!"
In a single stride, Malcolm grabbed Serene by the collar and lifted her into the air.
Yet Serene still did not resist at all, merely letting her arms dangle loosely.
"You dare control me and make me do such humiliating things?!"
"Oh my~ I have absolutely no idea what Malcolm is talking about though~"
Lorain, who had been silently watching the situation unfold until now, finally looked toward Knox.
"Knox… what exactly did this fox do to him?"
"Well," Knox replied casually, "you know Serene~"
That alone somehow explained everything.
Then Knox stepped forward slightly and spoke calmly,
"Alright, let's stop here."
"Besides, this is a non-combat zone. Attacking people here is punishable."
"Ha! Do you think I'd be scared of something like that?!" Malcolm shouted angrily.
Then, in pure rage, Malcolm swung his hand toward Knox's head.
Whoosh!
A black dagger suddenly flew past Malcolm's eye silently.
Thunk!
The dagger embedded itself deeply into the nearby wall.
Malcolm instantly froze.
Lorain, who had been standing beside Knox while casually sipping juice earlier, was now staring directly at Malcolm with her crimson eyes.
No—
To be more precise, her entire body was releasing an overwhelming killing intent.
"…Lorain Archbold. You too?!"
"You."
Lorain's voice turned ice-cold.
"How dare a vermin like you attempt to attack Knox."
"Do you want to die?"
It had merely been a thrown dagger.
Yet Malcolm felt all strength drain from his body instantly.
Meanwhile, Knox casually added from the side,
"No, actually, what I wanted to say is…"
"The moment you attack Serene, we'll also have a valid reason to attack you too."
"So feel free to attack her." Knox finished calmly.
"Hey! What exactly do you mean by that?!" Serene protested immediately like an abandoned girlfriend.
Hearing those words, Malcolm subconsciously looked around.
Special Entry No.1, Knox Aznable.
Special Entry No.2, Serene Aidark.
Special Entry No.3, Lorain Archbold.
Special Entry No.5, Merida Hugh Ickel.
Alongside top students like Meilyn Villene, Cindy Vivace, and Claudia Menzies.
"…."
With so many terrifying students gathered in one place, Malcolm's face flushed red from humiliation.
But in the face of the overwhelming difference in power—
Malcolm could only grit his teeth bitterly before cursing under his breath and leaving the mansion in frustration.