Veronica's eyes narrowed slightly. The light-attribute magic in her hand flickered but did not immediately extinguish.
Olivia, the Headmistress of Glory Cael Magic Academy—Veronica knew the sheer weight of that name all too well.
She was one of the Great Archmages standing at the pinnacle of the world, a legendary figure who had single-handedly sealed the Northern Abyss Rift and saved the nation from disaster multiple times.
Even as the Saintess of the Holy Church of Light, Veronica had to take the testimony of such a person seriously.
She began to ponder deeply: Was this Greg's desperate, last-ditch struggle, or did his identity truly stand up to scrutiny?
After a moment of hesitation, Veronica finally made her decision.
Turning her head slightly, she called out to the door, “Go and invite Headmistress Olivia of Glory Cael Magic Academy to join us.”
The guard nun outside acknowledged the command and departed.
Silence descended upon the room once more.
Veronica sat back down in the chair by the window. With her hands clasped resting on her lap, she closed her eyes as if resting her mind.
But Greg knew she was scrutinizing his every move in her own way.
After a while, Veronica suddenly spoke, her voice calm yet carrying a subtle note of testing:
“Since you claim to be a reincarnated Heroic Spirit... who exactly were you in your past life?”
Greg maintained a calm smile on the outside, while frantically screaming in his mind to Nightmare:
“Hajimi! Quick, tell me the name of one of the strongest warriors who used to follow Serafina! It needs to be someone believable for my current situation!”
Nightmare's voice drifted in lazily, completely devoid of her previous bloodthirsty eagerness to fight:
“How about Zeyn Hardy? That was indeed a very powerful warrior, and very few people know of that name, so it should carry more credibility.”
Greg had no time to overthink it and blurted out the name immediately: “Zeyn Hardy—that was my name in my past life.”
Veronica's eyes opened a fraction.
She did indeed recognize the name.
Zeyn Hardy was a powerful but low-profile warrior who reportedly guarded the Goddess from the shadows, never seeking fame or glory.
It was a name that even many within the Church might not know. The fact that Greg could name them certainly lent him some credibility.
However, after a brief silence, Veronica suddenly uttered a sentence that nearly scared Greg out of his wits:
“I recall... wasn't Lady Zeyn Hardy a woman?”
Greg's smile froze on his face.
A furious roar erupted in his mind: “You absolute bastard, you set me up?!”
Nightmare's voice carried the sheer delight of a successful prank as she cackled:
“Hehehe, I didn't lie. She was indeed one of the strongest warriors who secretly followed that bitch, and she is indeed perfect for your current situation. It's just... I forgot to mention that she was a woman.”
Greg wanted nothing more than to drag that damn cat out of his shadow and beat her to a pulp, but he had to survive the crisis at hand first.
Taking a deep breath, his mind raced at lightning speed before he managed to squeeze out a helpless, bitter smile. “...Yes, Zeyn Hardy was indeed a woman. Of course I know that.”
Veronica's eyes flickered slightly as she waited for him to elaborate.
Greg let out a sigh and continued:
“But I am Greg Sass now. Reincarnation is not something I can control.”
“My soul is still that of Zeyn Hardy, but in this life, I was mistakenly born into a male body. This wasn't my choice, and it troubled me for a long time. But later, I realized that gender doesn't matter. What matters is that I still remember my mission, and the oath I took to fight for Lady Serafina.”
His tone was earnest and sincere, even tinged with a faint melancholy, as if he were truly distressed by the gender mismatch between his past and present lives.
Veronica watched him in silence, not replying immediately.
She reasoned that given Greg's vast knowledge, if he were indeed faking, he could have easily picked a well-known male hero's name instead of risking her suspicion by choosing a name with a mismatched gender.
This act of exposing his own apparent flaw actually made his story more believable to her.
Ultimately, she nodded and dropped the subject.
Just then, heavy footsteps echoed from outside the door—the distinct, heavy thuds of thick cowboy boots clicking against the floorboards.
The door was pushed open, and Olivia walked in.
With her wavy, wine-red hair draped casually over her shoulders and a slightly tipsy flush on her face, she had clearly just enjoyed a few drinks somewhere.
Entering the room, she waved casually to Veronica, her tone slurred with a hint of intoxication. “Yo, Lady Saintess, what did you call me over for?”
Then, her gaze fell upon the other person in the room.
When she saw Greg sitting there completely unscathed, even offering her a warm smile, Olivia's half-drunken, hazy eyes snapped wide awake.
Her sixth sense screamed at her—there was absolutely no way this brat was up to any good.
Yet, even though she had braced herself slightly, Veronica's very first sentence still made her jaw drop:
“Tell me, Miss Olivia, are you aware that Greg Sass is the reincarnation of Lady Zeyn Hardy, who once followed the Goddess of Light?”
“......”
Olivia felt her head instantly throb with a massive headache.
Her first instinct was to pull out the revolver magic conduit from her coat and shoot Greg dead on the spot.
Because she knew better than anyone that Greg was lying through his teeth. With the kind of power that kid possessed, how could he possibly have been a follower of the Goddess of Light?!
If she helped him cover up this lie and the truth eventually came to light, neither of them would have a place to hide on this entire continent!
Deceiving the Saintess was equivalent to deceiving the Holy Church of Light—a crime serious enough to make them wanted fugitives across the entire continent.
How does this kid dare to play such a high-stakes game?
Was he trying to seduce the Saintess?!
Countless thoughts flashed through Olivia's mind.
She could easily betray Greg right now. All she had to say was “I don't know,” and Greg would be arrested immediately, leaving him with zero chance of leaking her embarrassing secrets.
But then she remembered her previous deal with him: during the tournament, no matter what happened, she had to stand on his side.
She was an incompetent headmistress, and she knew that better than anyone.
She drank heavily, embezzled funds, and constantly dumped academy affairs onto her subordinates.
But there was one thing she had never broken—her promises.
Because she was the last cowboy in this world!
Olivia fell silent for a moment. Then, raising her head to meet Veronica's gaze, she nodded. “Yes, I am aware.”
Rate on N.U.
