Chapter 628: [Event] [The Beauty And The Beast] [8] Selene Being Wary

As I made my way toward Victor, he turned at the same time—like he’d sensed me coming. His expression was uncharacteristically serious.

"Amael, I need to ask you something."

Had he found something? Maybe about Cyril or Lazarus?

"Be honest with me," he added, eyes locking with mine like he was bracing for a revelation.

"Yeah... about what?" I asked, trying to play it cool while my mind ran through worst-case scenarios. Maybe he heard about my visit to his stepmother’s estate. That could be it.

Don’t tell he was also having a misunderstanding about me and Alicia? For Eden’s sake not you, Victor.

He leaned in a little, just enough to keep the conversation private, and then whispered, "When you had your first time... did you wear protection?"

"..."

My mind stuttered, and I’m pretty sure my face twisted into a mix of surprise and secondhand embarrassment. That was not where I thought this was going.

"You see," Victor began again, nervously glancing around. "I had my first time with—"

"With Selene," I finished for him.. "And you didn’t use anything, and now you’re freaking out."

Victor blinked, genuinely stunned. "How the hell did you guess that?"

I shrugged. "Why else would you ask me that out of nowhere?"

He scratched the back of his neck, sheepishly. "I guess you’re right."

"If it makes you feel any better, no—I didn’t wear anything either," I said.

Though if I’m being honest, the state Elizabeth and I were in at the time... contraception wasn’t exactly a thought that crossed our minds. It was impulsive. Intense. Not exactly planned.

Victor’s eyes widened. "You weren’t worried? Selene told me it would be fine as long as I thought I didn’t want children."

This guy...

I sighed. "Victor... you’re seriously dumb when it comes to stuff like this."

"W–What?"

I could already picture Selene, wrapping Victor around her finger. It was just like her to make him feel safe, to plant the idea that he didn’t need to worry—because she was the one in control.

She wanted to be the first. And now that she was, she probably wanted more. Maybe even to seal the deal and lock down the marriage while emotions were high. It was cunning. Classic Selene. But I couldn’t help but admire how perfectly she’d played her hand.

And Victor? He’d walked straight into it.

"You really love Selene, huh," I said with a smile.

He didn’t hesitate. "Yeah, I mean... I do," he replied, grinning.

I found myself letting out a small laugh. It wouldn’t have worked if she had forced herself on him—thank god that was stopped before things went down a darker path. Since then, something between them had changed. It wasn’t one-sided anymore. Victor had started to really see her—not just as some girl chasing after him, but as someone he cared for and even loved now. And Selene, clever as she was, understood she didn’t need to do some weird things to get him to love her.

She had him. And he was happy about it.

As I watched his goofy smile and the way his eyes lit up at the mention of her I didn’t know whether I should tell him.

Should I tell him the truth? About his mother... about the man he believed was his grandfather—who, in reality, was his actual father?

"Victor," I said quietly, glancing over my shoulder to make sure no one was within earshot. "There’s something important I need to tell you later, but for now... can you keep an eye on Celes for me?"

Victor blinked at me, surprised. "Yeah, of course. She’s my friend, man. But—is something wrong?"

I gave a small, grave nod. "There’s a high chance Behemoth will attack the capital. Tomorrow or the day after."

"What?!" He nearly shouted, his eyes going wide with alarm.

"Shh—keep it down," I said, waving my hand slightly to calm him. "I don’t want to send the others into a panic."

Victor lowered his voice. "Shouldn’t you tell the professor? Or someone in charge?"

I shook my head. "And have them interrogate me instead of preparing? They already don’t trust me. The moment I say anything, the first question will be how I know. And the second? If I’m working with Behemoth to bring down Sancta Vedelia."

Victor frowned, clearly torn, but after a moment, he nodded. "Right... I get it. That’s rough."

"Exactly. And listen—if the trip gets canceled last minute, there’s a chance we’ll all be split up. As absurd as it might sound, staying here is actually safer for Celes and the others than sending them off somewhere without us."

I wasn’t trying to sound like a hero. But with me, John, Victor, Elizabeth, and Roda still around, this place was probably the most defensible location they had right now.

"You know how it is," I continued, "Celes being the Prophetess now... I’m sure Behemoth will come after her. I’ve got a lot on my plate, so I need you to watch over her if things go sideways."

John would too—he understood Celeste’s importance. But Victor had a personal stake. He cared for her as a close friend. That would make him more vigilant.

Victor gave a short nod to me. "Yeah. You can count on me—"

"Why does he need to keep an eye on Celeste?"

A cold voice cut through our conversation. I turned to see Selene standing a few feet away, arms crossed, her gaze cold.

I sighed inwardly. Of course she’d overhear just the wrong part.

"I thought John had set the bar high for difficult in-laws," I muttered, giving her a dry look. "But congratulations, you’re catching up fast."

She ignored the jab. "Why can’t you do it yourself?"

I looked at her, meeting her glare calmly. "Because I’ll be busy. More than you can imagine."

I didn’t offer any more than that.

Selene’s fingers tightened around her arm at my words, her expression darkening with barely suppressed emotion. Yeah... definitely a yandere though not really recently but still one though a meeker one.

If it were about any other girl, she wouldn’t have batted an eye. But Celeste? That was a different story. She’d been close to Victor for years—practically his shadow at times—and lately, there had been rumors. Whispers of a possible engagement between them. So it made sense Selene would be... on edge.

I couldn’t help myself. "What’s wrong? Worried Victor might fall for Celes?" I asked with a chuckle.

"Huh?" Victor turned his head, glancing at Selene. His face fell when he saw how cold and distant her expression had become. Not even angry—just frosty, like she’d shut down emotionally in the span of a heartbeat.

Ah. Spot on.

I smirked seeing that.

"Hey, Selene..." Victor stepped toward her, placing his hands gently on her shoulders. "You know you’ll always be my number one, right?"

She looked up at him slowly, her eyes softening for just a moment. Then, without a word, she leaned in and kissed him—sudden and fierce, like she needed to remind both him and everyone else that he belonged to her.

Yeah, I’d had enough of this romance drama for one day.

"Alright, I’ll just... give you two your moment," I muttered, turning around and walking off without waiting for a reply.

Still, that line lingered in my head. "Selene is number one."

I didn’t like ranking the people I cared about. I loved them all, in different ways, for different reasons. But if I had to be brutally honest with myself...

Ephera would probably come first. Then Cleenah...

I paused mid-thought. Why was I thinking of Cleenah like she was already mine?

She wasn’t. I didn’t even know if she loved me the way I hoped she did—or if she only saw me as the boy she’d watched over all these two last years. A child she’d come to care for, not a man she could ever love.

She was a goddess, after all—ageless, eternal. Maybe the idea of love didn’t even hold the same weight for her anymore. And somehow, that thought stung more than I expected. Like I was already mourning something I hadn’t even lost yet.

Before I could spiral deeper into that train of thought, a loud clap snapped me out of it.

"Everyone, attention."

We all turned to face Priscilla—and behind her, a massive, circular structure loomed into view, its exterior carved with ancient reliefs and golden accents. The Museum of the Behemoth War.

"This," Priscilla began, "is the museum dedicated to the Behemoth War—what was once called the Third Great Holy War by those overseas. But to us, it’s better known as the War Against Deborah Dolphis."

Right, Sancta Vedelia was that much separated from the other Kingdoms.

"This museum holds critical artifacts, historical documents, and recorded accounts of the war that took place nearly three hundred years ago. It is, in every sense, sacred ground. You’ll be tested on what you learn here, so take your time, absorb what’s important, and use your judgment. You won’t have time to see everything, but make what you do see count."

Her gaze swept across our group sternly.

"And honestly," she added, "you shouldn’t need a museum to know the history of this war. It’s something all of you should have already studied—especially those of high noble blood."

She was right, of course. This war had been drilled into their heads since they were kids. Nobles were expected to understand it down to the finest details. But now that they were older—and at an academy that took warfare and magic education seriously—we were expected to go even deeper. Strategy. Politics. The ugly truth behind the names carved into monuments.

Of course, when it came to the political narrative, everything would be skewed in Sancta Vedelia’s favor. That much was a given.

Take the Utopian War, for example. I could already picture how the official records were shaping up—meticulously penned accounts of Sancta Vedelia’s glorious conquest and their triumphant victory over a monstrous enemy. Neatly tied up. Sanitized. Heroic.

And naturally, they’d leave out the inconvenient details.

Like the part where I killed the Utopian King.

Not that I really cared. I wasn’t looking for medals or statues. Hell, they could carve someone else’s name into the archives for all I cared. I hadn’t done it for recognition.

Still, it was a little funny how history worked—who got remembered, and who got erased.

"You have the entire museum to yourselves for today and tomorrow," Priscilla announced then as she walked. "Make good use of the time, and please—act like the Elites you claim to be while inside a historical institution."

There was a sharp edge to her words. She was definitely looking at me.

And Rodolf.

I mean, come on.

Why was I always cast as the damn delinquent when I was doing nothing in class?