Vol 3. Chapter 5: Not a Monolith?

No—wrong. How exactly had Luna recognized her?

With the Disguise Lenses on, acquaintances basically wouldn’t recognize you, so Vanessa genuinely couldn’t figure out how Luna had seen through her.

“Not talking—that’s a yes?” Luna said with a sunny smile. “Alright then, it’s a bit noisy here. Since we’re of one mind, let’s find a quiet place to discuss the concrete details of your personal concert, shall we, my esteemed ‘holy healing pretty girl’?”

Vanessa heard what she meant. The other girl wanted a word in private.

As for agreeing or not—did she have a choice??

“Or,” Luna tilted her head, smiling with narrowed eyes, “does ‘holy healing pretty girl’ want to hear a few words from my heart?~”

“No need. Heart-to-hearts, in my opinion, aren’t suitable for a public setting.” Vanessa mused for a moment.

“Alrighty—so ‘holy healing pretty girl’ thinks so as well, hm? In that case—?”

Vanessa kept silent.

This running bit clearly wasn’t going to survive Luna’s mouth.

She already had an unerasable black mark with Luna; now she’d just added another.

One Luna, one Aesphyra—truly the nemeses written into her fate.

“Everyone, I have a few private matters to discuss with ‘holy healing pretty girl,’ so I’ll be borrowing her for now~” With that, Luna slipped an arm around Vanessa’s shoulders, offered the onlookers a soft, harmonious nod, and led her away.

“Do they know each other? Is that ‘holy healing pretty girl’ a friend of Miss Luna?” a bewildered boy asked, watching their retreating backs.

“Should be, right? Look—Miss Luna just took her by the shoulder like that. Definitely acquaintances.”

“I see... So that ‘holy healing pretty girl’ and Miss Luna are partners? The two of them teaming up to put on a concert—one brings talent, the other brings money and manpower?” With the situation as it was, no one really knew what was going on; all they could do was guess with blank faces.

“Is that it? Why does it feel like their relationship is... complicated?” Quite a few students present knew Luna—after all, she was the Haukekai family’s eldest daughter; lots in the noble circle knew her.

If she was Miss Luna’s friend, that made sense. People wouldn’t keep wondering why they had no impression of such a striking girl.

On the other side, Luna kept her arm about Vanessa’s shoulders and, all the way, brought her to the familiar maid café.

Mm. Looked like Luna was dragging her onto home turf.

“Miss, why did you bring me here?” Vanessa stepped into the shop and couldn’t help asking.

“Meow! The manager’s back, meow? Eh—who is this young lady?” Just then, Myako burst out of the kitchen in a maid uniform. Her eyes landed on Vanessa at once, curious.

Seeing Myako’s expression, Vanessa knew her disguise was flawless. Myako had seen her true face before—yet couldn’t recognize her—while Luna had.

So the issue really was with Luna?

Vanessa leveled a look at Luna, who only smiled without speaking.

“Myako, go make preparations,” Luna said with a blossom-bright smile.

“Eh? Preparations, meow? Okay, meow!” Myako answered, bolted for the kitchen, screeched to a halt half a second later, and ran back out, staring at Luna in confusion. “Manager, what do you want Myako to prepare, meow?”

“This ‘holy healing pretty girl’ wants to hold a concert at the Academy. I felt she and I were very fated, so I brought her back—and I’ve decided to sponsor her concert, so she can bloom to her heart’s content before all faculty and students of Carillian Academy.”

Hearing that, Vanessa kept her polite smile, but the muscles along her back locked up.

Luna didn’t sound like she was joking. She really sounded like she wanted to give Vanessa a grand stage—have her dance before the entire Academy and debut as a campus idol.

“Meow??” Myako was foggy-headed at that, her gaze bouncing between Vanessa and Luna. She had no idea what her manager was playing at, but she still nodded.

“Understood, meow. For a concert—where does this pretty pink-haired lady plan to hold it, meow? I’ll go talk with the Student Council to see if we can get a near-term opening. Aside from that, there’s promotion, and logistics—”

“No need. I appreciate your kindness, miss, but I can’t accept someone’s favor for nothing.” Vanessa declined.

At this point she couldn’t even keep her acting going—because all her acting was built on the foundation that she was playing someone she herself didn’t know, and that no one would connect those behaviors to her.

But Luna was different. She had, in all likelihood, already seen who Vanessa was. In other words, no matter how she acted, Luna would still see “Vanessa.”

The moment she thought about how Luna had watched every one of her antics earlier—and had already seen through her identity—Vanessa wanted to hoist the Academy on her back and run to another planet.

“Eh?” Luna looked at her, instantly puzzled. “How odd—holy healing pretty girl, what’s wrong?”

“? What’s wrong with me?”

“Why aren’t you bouncing and brimming with energy like before?” Luna asked with interest. As she spoke, she reenacted Vanessa’s earlier moves, hands swaying—yet even so, she remained measured, elegant, and proper. “Like this, yes?~ Talking while matching it with gestures—I find it very cute.”

“......” Even Vanessa couldn’t handle the mortification now. She fell silent.

If it were Vinny, he might have fired back a few lines. She felt her cheeks burning, like a well-bred lady who’d finally screwed up her courage to play a little prank in disguise—only to be caught by someone who knew her.

So cold—why did it suddenly feel so cold??

“Holy healing pretty girl, what do you think?” Luna, however, didn’t let her off. Her momentum remained “pressing, pressing,” and she advanced again.

“No need. I still have matters to handle. I’ll take my leave for today.”

“Matters? You can tell me, you know. Maybe I can help, holy healing pretty girl,” Luna said with a squinting smile.

“That would be too much trouble. It’s very improper to ask for help at a first meeting.” Vanessa tried to resist.

“Yes—this is indeed our first meeting.” Luna’s tone was meaningful, extra weight on “first meeting.” “But tell me, holy healing pretty girl—do you believe in instant rapport?”

Vanessa said nothing at that.

“When I see you, it feels like I’m seeing a friend I’ve known for many years. I feel a real affinity. Don’t you feel the same, holy healing pretty girl?” Luna kept her head tipped, asking.

“Hrm-meow?” Myako found it strange. Why was her lady calling her “holy healing pretty girl” again and again?? Was that pink-haired lady’s actual name?

That couldn’t be right, could it? Would any normal person really be named that??

In Myako’s experience, she’d never seen a name like it.

“...Miss Luna, how did you discover me?” After a long silence, Vanessa knew that if she kept pretending, Luna’s hints would be practically outright. She had to speak.

“Eh? Discover what? Whatever does holy healing pretty girl mean?” Luna asked with a face of innocence. “And how did you know my name?”

This woman.

In an instant, Vanessa felt that Luna was extremely troublesome—far more than she looked.

A fact already practically on the table, and she still had to play dumb, act like she didn’t know. The meaning was obvious: even though Vanessa had already lost face this badly, Luna still wanted her to expose herself—so Luna could put on a “surprised” expression and say, “Ah, Miss Vanessa, so it was you?”

“Miss Luna, didn’t you say you wanted a private word just now?” Vanessa forced herself to press on.

“Yes. And this place is my turf. We’re closed today. Doesn’t that count as a private word?” As she spoke, Luna flicked Myako a glance. Myako understood, went over, shut the maid café’s door, and locked it.

Vanessa suddenly felt like she’d walked into a thieves’ den—boarded a pirate ship.

No—if it was a pirate ship, hadn’t she already boarded once before??

“Miss Luna.” Vanessa drew a deep breath and, helpless, took off her Disguise Lenses. “Please—show mercy, and stop teasing me.”

“Ah-ya??”

“Meow-?!”

Both Luna and Myako started—only, Luna’s was surely feigned, while Myako’s was genuine shock.

No wonder this very pretty pink-haired girl’s hair color looked familiar—something was off, like it rang a bell at first glance, but the deeper she searched the memory, the stranger it felt.

“Ah-ya? Ah-ya-ya? So it was Miss Vanessa? Truly unexpected.” Luna hid her mouth behind her hand with a light laugh. “So Miss Vanessa has such an adorable side.”

“How did you see through my disguise?” Vanessa still didn’t understand.

“What disguise? I didn’t see anything. It’s just that the Miss Vanessa from earlier reminded me of a few little-known teachings left by a senior of my family.” Stars of mystery gleamed in Luna’s platinum cross-pattern eyes.

“?” Vanessa looked puzzled. She didn’t really follow that.

A Haukekai elder? Could she mean the Haukekai who once served as Pope??

But Luna didn’t go on to explain and clear Vanessa’s doubts.

“Eh-eh? So it was Miss Vanessa, meow?!” Myako looked delighted. “Long time no see, Miss Vanessa, meow! Ooh—Myako really missed you. Ever since last time, Miss Vanessa hasn’t come by our shop, meow!”

“Miss Vanessa, where did you go after that, meow?” Myako hopped as she asked.

“In this case, I also have my studies to attend to, Miss Myako.” Vanessa could only answer like that.

“But Myako has never seen Miss Vanessa at the Academy, meow?” Myako tilted her head.

“Myako, I’m probably not a formal student of Carillian Academy. In that case, it’s perfectly normal you haven’t seen me.” Vanessa sighed lightly.

“But I haven’t seen much of Miss Vanessa either,” Luna chimed in.

“Different year levels—missing each other is normal too, Miss Luna.” Vanessa kept her expression even.

“My, my—so this is my first time learning that Miss Vanessa has such a cute side and such a cute dream~” Luna smiled.

“And I didn’t expect Miss Luna to have a side that’s not so very ‘proper young lady’ either.” Vanessa naturally meant Luna’s earlier black-bellied turn.

“So, let me guess—has Miss Vanessa perhaps run into... financial difficulties again lately, and just happened to find a new way to make money?” Luna teased. “But putting on a concert does require some promotion and other costs.”

“Miss Luna, please—show mercy. Don’t bring up that topic again.” Vanessa turned her eyes aside. “And please... selectively forget.”

“Selective forgetting? As for that...” Luna tapped her own temple with a show of troubled thought. “I fear I must decline.”

Knew it.

“This matter, in my view—unless Miss Vanessa truly gets up on stage for real once, it’ll be hard to bring to a close.”

Vanessa’s lips pressed thin.

But it was obvious Luna didn’t actually want her to perform.

If she were Vinny, she might have missed it. But Vanessa picked up the tells from Luna’s many tiny movements and looks, and from her tone. The implication wasn’t to make her perform; it was to have her tell the truth—explain why she’d done this.

Except—

Thinking of Luna’s identity, Vanessa’s guard shot up in an instant.

Did the other girl really know nothing about her lineage?

She’d been suspicious for a long time now—had Luna sensed something?

But if Luna truly had sensed something, why was the Dawn Church still so calm—no ripples at all?

Laying groundwork? No need. With the Dawn Church’s power, would it be hard to erase an unacknowledged Facilis descendant with no name and no station? Would they need groundwork?

If they really wanted to, they wouldn’t send half-baked assassins like before. A casual wave, and outside Carillian Academy—what “accident” couldn’t happen?

Which was why Vanessa was currently baffled about Luna’s situation—did she know Vanessa’s lineage or not? And if she did—what was her game?

Vanessa thought of a question.

Could it be that the Dawn Church... wasn’t a monolith anymore?