Chapter 506: Request for the saintess Interlude

“S-S-Student Council President, w-welcome…!”

“Just Snow is fine, junior,” the white-haired girl replied softly, her smile never fading.

“T-Then… S-Senior Snow… w-welcome!” Emilia’s voice cracked like dry twigs underfoot as she stood up so suddenly her chair scraped loudly against the ground.

Her hands trembled behind her back as she bowed slightly, face flushed with nervousness.

The aura exuding from the young woman before her—calm, dignified, and cold—was almost suffocating.

Just looking at Snow felt like being stabbed by a thousand invisible ice blades.

Snow’s presence wasn’t something one could get used to.

It was refined. Beautiful. Lethal.

Emilia had always admired her from afar. The elegant princess from the imperial family. The one who stood above the rest—not just in terms of grades, or magical ability, but in sheer untouchable authority.

She had even been someone the Pope himself told Emilia to approach, back when she was first chosen as the Saintess.

But… the naive first-year had long forgotten that advice—at least, until now.

As the air around them grew heavier, she remembered it very clearly.

“I believe this is the first time we’ve formally met, right, junior?” Snow asked with a gentle tone as she gracefully pulled out a chair and took a seat across from Emilia. Her every movement was effortless, refined—like a queen indulging her subjects.

“Y-Y-Yes, President—ah, I mean… S-Senior Snow… h-hi, my name is… uhm… Enna! Just Enna!” she blurted out, trying and failing to smile. “A first-year… general department student!”

Snow tilted her head ever so slightly, one eyebrow raising with amused curiosity. “Hmm… the general department?”

Her icy blue eyes scanned the area around them—then drifted lazily to the cafe’s signage, the cobbled path, and the surrounding scenery.

“Isn’t that quite the long way from your department hall?” she asked, tone still light, almost casual. “Panda Café is located at the heart of the commercial district… rather out of the way for a simple morning routine, don’t you think?”

Then… her eyes shifted.

Directly toward Riley.

Her gaze didn’t harden. It didn’t need to.

It simply lingered.

“…Did someone perhaps invite you here?”

The weight of that single question felt like a guillotine lowering over the table.

“I-I—!” Emilia shot up in panic, hands flailing slightly. “N-No! Not at all! Uhm—i-it was actually me who did the inviting!”

She turned toward Riley, her flustered eyes practically screaming for him to back her up. “I was the one who sent the invitation! Aha…haha…! I-I just wanted to treat Senior Riley as thanks for… uhm… for something he helped me with a while ago!”

Snow let the silence stretch.

Long enough for the tension to turn solid.

Then—finally—she offered a serene smile, brushing a lock of snow-white hair behind her ear.

“I see.”

She turned back to Emilia. “How thoughtful of you, Enna.”

Emilia nodded so fast her entire body swayed. “Y-Yes! Very thoughtful! Extremely thoughtful!”

“Yes,” Snow said, her voice calm but sharp as crystal. “It was very thoughtful… and quite kind of you as well.”

Emilia smiled nervously, still gripping her cup with two trembling hands.

“…But,” Snow continued, her eyes narrowing just slightly, “you still dared to invite Riley—knowing my “relationship” with him?”

That word.

Relationship.

It echoed louder than anything else Snow had said so far.

Emilia’s heart skipped a beat.

Her stomach dropped like a stone.

Of course… she knew—kind of.

Riley and Snow’s “relationship” wasn’t a secret by any means. If anything, it was one of the Academy’s most persistent rumors.

Whispers always surrounded them when they were seen together: the most beautiful imperial princess and the academy’s most unpredictable sexual maniac.

But still… to hear it from Snow herself—casually, coldly, and directly—was like being pierced by an icicle straight through the chest.

‘S-So, it’s true…?’

She felt the warmth drain from her fingers as her grip loosened over her cup, nearly spilling her tea.

Around them, the low chatter of the café crowd turned into a growing chorus of gasps and speculation:

“Did she just say… relationship?”

“Wait—that girl invited Riley? Is she crazy!?”

“I knew something was up the moment that bastard walked in with another girl!”

“Hey… isn’t that the Saintess from the General Department?”

“No way… is she trying to steal her man!?”

“Forget that—did you hear Snow?! She called him hers!”

A few chairs subtly scooted farther back, as if people were trying to gain better seats to witness the brewing drama.

The quiet tension was now crackling. The air felt thinner.

Riley let out a small sigh and rubbed his temple. Great, he thought. Now everyone’s watching.

Then, with a short cough, he leaned forward.

“Snow,” he said, tone firm but still gentle. “That’s enough. You’re scaring her.”

Snow’s head tilted slightly.

Her long white hair slid over her shoulder like falling snow. Her cold blue eyes met Riley’s with a soft smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes.

“Oh? Are you defending her now?”

“Not exactly,” he replied, glancing at Emilia who looked like she was about to cry. “But… this kind of teasing might actually traumatize her. It’s not like she has your resistance to pressure.”

Snow’s gaze lingered on him for a moment… then slowly moved back to Emilia, who sat frozen in place—her lips slightly parted, her eyes wide, her whole body trembling like a shivering puppy that had just been yelled at.

The princess blinked once.

Then suddenly—

“Fufu~”

Snow’s expression melted into a gentle, melodic laugh, her fingers lifting to cover her mouth delicately.

“Oh dear… it seems my little prank got a bit too real. Forgive me, junior.”

“P-P-Prank…?” Emilia stammered.

“Yes~ Believe it or not, it’s not every day I find Riley sitting comfortably with an unfamiliar girl. I simply couldn’t resist acting the part of a properly possessive girlfriend. Just a little bit of theatrical flair, nothing serious~”

“I-I see…” Emilia said, though her hands still trembled and her breath hadn’t fully recovered.

Even though Snow smiled, even though her voice was soft and sweet, the chill in the air hadn’t quite left.

And Emilia could only nod, barely able to process it all.

Riley, meanwhile, leaned back in his seat with a neutral smile and tried not to think too hard about how that “little prank” had probably just sparked a hundred new rumors across campus.

And Snow?

She just sipped her tea with elegance, eyes glimmering with amusement.

Ah, for reference—the tea Snow was now casually sipping wasn’t hers.

It was Riley’s.

She had simply taken it without asking, lifting it delicately from beside his hand and bringing it to her lips like it was the most natural thing in the world.

And, unsurprisingly, Riley didn’t complain.

Not even a glance of protest.

After all, with the mountain of food and beverages Emilia had enthusiastically ordered for him, one missing cup of tea was hardly a loss.

He simply gave a quiet chuckle and leaned back slightly, observing the two girls as if watching a scene unfold.

“I didn’t expect to see you here, Snow,” he finally said, his voice even. “Did council duties end earlier than expected?”

Snow swirled the tea in its cup, watching the steam rise before answering.

“Likewise,” she replied, voice smooth as ever. “I didn’t expect to see you here either… especially not with an unfamiliar girl. I suppose I’ll have to get used to it eventually, but still… next time, perhaps you could inform me first if you’re planning on taking in another girlfriend?”

Her words were calm.

Teasing, almost.

But beneath them lay something cold and cutting, like a perfectly carved icicle.

Riley sighed, already sensing where this might go. “I’m not taking on another girlfriend,” he said firmly. “And also—please don’t refer to junior Enna like she’s some random girl I just picked up.”

He turned to Emilia and gave a small, apologetic smile. “Sorry about that, Enna. Snow can be… a bit blunt. But trust me, she doesn’t mean any harm.”

“I-I-It’s fine, Senior,” Emilia replied, her voice meek and fluttery. “R-Really, I don’t mind…”

Despite her words, the faint blush on her cheeks—and the way her hands clutched her skirt under the table—told a different story. She definitely minded, but was trying not to.

Snow’s eyes flicked toward Emilia with a narrowed gaze, subtle but sharp.

She didn’t comment immediately, but there was something in the way the Saintess looked at Riley just now—so soft, so familiar—that made her blink once in thought.

Interesting…

Clearing her throat with a small cough, Snow straightened her back like royalty returning to poise. “In any case, I didn’t come here to stir trouble. I’m here for official student council business,” she announced, tone professional now. “As president, it’s part of my role to personally inspect the most active and high-traffic student zones across the academy.”

Her gaze drifted over the café. “The Panda Café has become rather popular recently… so this visit was simply a coincidence, my love.”

“Uh-huh,” Riley replied, amused. “Sure. Coincidence.”

“Absolutely,” she nodded, though a playful smirk tugged at the corner of her lips.

“Though enough about me being here,” Snow said, smoothly shifting the attention, “Let’s talk about this cute junior of ours. Enna, was it?”

She turned her icy blue gaze back to Emilia, eyes now glinting with a hint of amusement that only made the Saintess sit straighter, like a mouse being appraised by a hawk.

“You seem… rather close with Riley. I’m curious, how long have you two known each other?”

“M-Me? Uhm, w-well… for a while now?” Emilia stammered. “A-Actually we only got to know each other properly last semester… I-I’m friends with Reina, so through her, I…”

“Oh~ friends with Reina, you say?” Snow’s tone dipped into something more curious—almost impressed. “Then you must be quite the good girl.”

“Y-Yes? I-I try to be…” Emilia smiled nervously, uncertain whether that was a compliment or another veiled test.

Snow leaned back in her seat, resting her cheek against her knuckles as she observed the junior with new interest, silently filing the information away.

Riley, meanwhile, just sipped from his untouched drink, mentally preparing himself for what was clearly going to be a long, complicated morning.

…

Thirty minutes later, what was originally supposed to be a quiet thank-you gift—a small, sweet, and secretly devised tea date Emilia had prepared for Riley—had devolved into something entirely different.

Instead of a one-on-one moment with her senior, it turned into a light yet surprisingly dense conversation session between her and Snow.

An unintended meeting… that felt more like an impromptu interview.

The tea, the pastries, and the quaint little table at Panda Café had become the setting for a strangely civil but emotionally charged exchange.

Snow, regal and poised as ever, sat with an elegant calm, yet her presence felt dominating.

She and Emilia talked—well, mostly Emilia talked—about life in the academy, the general department’s pace, her relationship with Reina, and her first impressions of certain events last semester.

It wasn’t long, not really.

For a “girls’ talk,” it was relatively brief.

But the emotional weight behind every exchanged word made it feel like an hour passed in the span of mere minutes.

And though Riley sat at the same table, sipping the now-cold tea Snow had half-finished, he didn’t speak much.

His job—apparently—was to occasionally correct exaggerated details from either of them, or step in when things became too tense.

He was, for all intents and purposes, a background character in what should’ve been his date.

Eventually, as the last sip of tea was swallowed and the last polite smile exchanged, Snow, perhaps out of mercy—or amusement—decided to let her junior off the hook.

“Is that all your really asking for Senior?”

“Yes.”

“But-”

“I know it may seem a bit unreasonable but trust me it’s matters that involves the great mother’s words”

“A-Alright…. I’ll do my best!”

With a timid bow and whispered thanks, Emilia quietly excused herself.

She clutched the handle of her bag close to her chest and offered Riley a small, warm smile before stepping out of the café and disappearing into the morning light.

Riley watched her figure fade beyond the glass door.

Then sighed. “You didn’t have to tease her that much, you know.”

Snow, still seated across from him with her arms loosely folded, gave a soft “fufu” laugh, tilting her head with feigned innocence.

“Why not? It’s not every day I get to act passionately affectionate over you,” she said sweetly. “Wouldn’t you call that a rare treat?”

“You know what you did,” he replied dryly. “And just so you’re aware, whatever you’re thinking about me and Enna, it’s not like that.”

Snow raised a brow.

“She’s just a cute junior I’ve helped from time to time. She’s a close friend of Reina’s, and well… we’ve gotten to know each other more since then. I wasn’t lying about helping her a bit earlier today either. She needed someone to talk to.”

“Mmm~ I know. I can see that clearly.” Snow gently tapped her finger against the edge of her cup. “I just wanted to act like that for a bit. No real reason. Maybe I was just… a little jealous.”

Riley blinked.

Before he could respond, Snow added in a quieter, more cryptic tone, “And besides… I think you’re the only one who still thinks it’s nothing.”

“What did you say?” Riley asked, leaning slightly forward. He hadn’t caught the last part.

Snow turned her head with a mischievous smile, her snow-white hair shifting like silk in the light. “Oh, nothing~”

And just like that, the atmosphere shifted again.

“Anyway… did you enjoy it?” Snow asked, setting down her teacup with an elegant clink, her gaze gleaming with a mischievous glint.

“Enjoy what?” Riley raised an eyebrow.

“My action of affectionate love, of course.”

Riley gave her a look—half amused, half tired. “Well… of course I enjoyed it. It was flattering, in a completely terrifying way. But was that really necessary?”

“Why not?” Snow replied, her tone airy. “It’s not like we’re trying to hide it anymore, right? Might as well lean into the wave.”

“You do know most of those waves are poisonous, right?” Riley replied dryly.

“Who cares~” she sang with a casual shrug, as if rumors, reputation, and imperial politics were nothing but passing breezes.

“I guess we’re going all out now, huh…” Riley muttered under his breath, leaning back in his chair.

But Snow simply smiled, her icy-blue eyes half-lidded as she looked at him. “Trust me. This isn’t even the climax of it.”

Her words sent a quiet shiver down Riley’s spine. He exhaled slowly. Snow being Snow, he told himself. This was just her usual brand of chaos in a porcelain cup.

Still…

“But,” he said, shifting his tone more serious, “you probably shouldn’t tease or scare Junior Enna too much.”

Snow blinked. “Why?”

“We actually need her to feel comfortable around us. Closer, if possible. Making the wrong impression now might ruin our future chances with everything we’re trying to build… especially the whole ‘together with the others’ part.”

Snow tilted her head, narrowing her eyes slightly. “Hmm… Why is she that important?”

Riley hesitated for a moment, then leaned in.

His voice dropped to a quiet whisper, his lips just beside her ear.

“…Her real name is Emilia. She’s the Saintess…. I thought you already knew though….?”

Snow’s entire posture froze.

Her hand, which had been gently twirling her spoon, came to a sudden halt.

Slowly, almost robotically, she turned toward Riley. Her eyes widened ever so slightly, but the weight behind them hit like a tidal wave.

“You’re joking…”

“I’m not.”

“…It would seem, I may have just made the biggest political mistake of my life.”

Watching Snow’s reaction Riley lightly chuckled, before looking at the sky….

‘I just hope the goddess is happy with the favor I’ve asked for….’

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