The Suspicious Holy Postman
Bolton shoved one hand into his pocket and jerked his chin toward Lukna’s letter.
“Got yourself a girlfriend, idiot?”
Lukna frowned and regarded him warily.
His balloon-like muscles and the black eyepatch covering one eye made him look like a fearsome pirate—but that wasn’t what bothered her.
What’s bothersome is that this guy is in the student council with Matian.
She was already drawing intense attention from the student council because of that damned club that called her “the light.” The situation was troublesome enough as it was.
“The idiot who used to be a watchlist student starts some crooked club, and now you’ve even got a lover? You’re even putting flowers in your letters?”
“What are you talking about?”
Lukna answered indifferently, thinking she should hurry up and send the letter and leave.
But whether the mailbox was stuffed full or broken, the slot wouldn’t open no matter how hard she pushed.
“Is she pretty?”
Bolton stared at Lukna as she struggled with the mailbox.
Why won’t this open? Clinging to the box, she replied curtly.
“Yeah. Incredibly pretty. The prettiest girl I’ve ever seen.”
“Prettier than you?”
“……”
Lukna, mid-struggle with the mailbox, glared at Bolton with an exaggerated grimace.
He thinks I’m a guy, doesn’t he?
Who compares a woman’s beauty to a man’s?
Seeing her expression, Bolton seemed to realize belatedly how strange his comment sounded and hurriedly tried to explain.
“Y-you’ve got a pretty decent face too, that’s all I meant!”
His reddening face only made things more awkward.
Is that guy into men?
Lukna stepped back from him with a suspicious look.
“H-hey, don’t get the wrong idea! I was just going to ask if you could introduce me to a pretty girl!”
With his bear-like build, Bolton clenched his fists and stomped his feet.
That girlish pout did not suit his rough appearance in the slightest.
“I don’t know any girls.”
“You’ve got your stepsister, Giselle Golden. I saw her visit you last year—she’s beautiful.”
The moment Bolton scratched his chin and said her name, Lukna practically jumped.
“Giselle is off-limits!”
How dare he bring her up! There was no way she’d introduce their deer-like Giselle to someone who looked like he chopped wood in the mountains.
Though somehow, deer and woodsman did seem oddly fitting. Lukna quickly corrected the metaphor to deer and pirate.
“Why are you jumping like that? I’m actually a pretty decent guy, you know!”
“If you’re so decent, go find someone yourself.”
“Haah… What can I do if there aren’t any girls I like around? As you can see, I’ve only got one eye—so my standards are sky-high.”
“So?”
“Chad’s surrounded by girls but won’t introduce me to anyone, Matian isn’t interested at all, and this place is crawling with nothing but dudes. At this rate I’ll end up dating a man.”
Plenty of handsome guys. Not a single beauty.
Bolton tapped his eyepatch and sighed.
Well… it wasn’t entirely unreasonable.
There was the perfectly handsome Matian, Chad with his decadent charm, and the pretty-boy Aaron.
Being around student council members like that would naturally raise anyone’s standards of beauty.
“Then date a man.”
Why was he suddenly acting friendly? Lukna waved dismissively.
“Y-you! How can you say something like that so carelessly?”
Bolton’s ears turned bright red as he flailed his arms.
What exactly did he think I meant? Lukna shot him a suspicious glance before focusing again on the stubborn mailbox slot.
Even though her strength had increased considerably, the blasted thing still wouldn’t budge.
Then suddenly—
The narrow slot opened inward, and a human hand shot out from inside.
“Eek!”
A ghost! Startled, Lukna stumbled backward.
She nearly fell flat on her backside, but Bolton quickly caught her before she hit the ground.
“I’m not a ghost. I’m a postman.”
A voice drifted out from inside the mailbox.
A postman? Why would a postman be inside a mailbox?
And that voice sounds strangely familiar.
She didn’t know any postmen in this world, so it must be her imagination.
“Why are you inside the mailbox?”
“I’m shy.”
Lukna narrowed her eyes at the absurd answer.
“If you have mail to send, could you please put it in here?”
“I’ll hand it to you once you come outside. You’re suspicious.”
“Just give it to me, Kim Lukna.”
“Kim Lukna?”
Lukna frowned.
Did he just call her Kim Lukna? Like someone who knew her real identity as Kim Hayoon?
“I called you Lukna. You must’ve misheard.”
“Who are you?”
Even if she gave him the benefit of the doubt about “Kim Lukna,” how did a mere postman recognize her by voice alone?
That was far too suspicious.
Especially after the break-in in her room a few days ago, she couldn’t let this slide.
Bolton, who had been watching the situation, cracked his knuckles and stepped forward.
“Yeah. Who are you to know this idiot’s name?”
With that, he hoisted the massive mailbox clean off the ground.
The box, which had been bolted down, tore free with a crunch as Bolton shook it vigorously left and right like he was mixing a cocktail.
“Aaaah! Please put me down! I’m dizzy!”
A weak scream echoed from inside.
“Y-you beastly cadets!”
At that moment, a bespectacled postman came running toward them from afar.
“Y-your Hol— I mean, Lord Nairon! Please stop harassing him!”
The postman grabbed Bolton’s sleeve and pleaded for him to stop.
There was something so reverent about his demeanor that Bolton awkwardly set the mailbox down.
“Thank you, Cadet.”
The postman bowed politely to Bolton and hugged the mailbox.
“Lord Nairon, are you all right?” he asked the mailbox—then made the sign of the cross.
What kind of postman is that devout?
Both the one inside the mailbox and the one crossing himself were undeniably suspicious.
“The gentleman inside is my colleague. He’s extremely shy, so he must have climbed in while collecting the mail.”
“A shy man who somehow knew my name?”
“H-he has nearly all the cadets’ names memorized. He’s in charge of this district.”
“A postman memorizes cadets’ names?”
Lukna glanced at Bolton.
Arms crossed and wearing an intimidating expression, Bolton nodded approvingly. “Impressive sense of duty.”
“Exactly! Duty. Haha. He even checks whether the packages he delivers arrive safely.”
With that, the postman lifted the entire red mailbox.
“Hup!”
Despite his frail appearance, he was incredibly strong.
“Wait. Where are you taking the mailbox?”
“To deliver the mail inside to its destinations.”
“Don’t you usually just take the mail?”
“If you think inside the box, you can never become extraordinary, Cadet.”
Was he seriously lecturing her right now? Lukna blinked in disbelief.
She glanced at Bolton for confirmation, but he nodded solemnly. “Rigid thinking is bad.”
Was Bolton stupid, or was she the overly sensitive one?
“Cadet who looks sensitive.”
The postman addressed Lukna directly. She instinctively answered, “Yes?”
“Is that express mail?”
He glanced at the letter in her hand.
“Ah, yes. The faster the better.”
“I’ll have it delivered within two days.”
Since both his hands were occupied with the mailbox, he gestured toward the leather satchel slung over his shoulder.
With a doubtful expression, Lukna slipped the letter inside.
“Then I hope we meet again, Cadets.”
After bowing politely, the postman disappeared toward Wigratz College, where the student council room was located.
Wigratz College, 3rd Floor — Student Council Room
At a time when all students should have been in class, Matian was receiving a visitor.
A very unusual visitor who had emerged from a bright red mailbox.
“Fortunately, there are no immediate complications yet, Young Lord Matian.”
The silver-haired man withdrew his hand from Matian’s chest and let out a relieved breath.
He was Nairon, the Empire’s High Priest.
Though he wore thick glasses and a postman’s uniform, he was unmistakably the High Priest.
Jerome, the Chief Priest who accompanied him, stood by the door keeping watch.
“I was actually planning to seek Your Holiness myself. I’m grateful you came in person,” Matian said as he fastened the shirt he had left loosely open.
“The seal on the Demon’s Egg has grown unstable. The matter is grave, so I came to check on you personally.”
Inside the Demon’s Egg was the Demon King sealed long ago by the heroes during the Demon War.
If the seal weakened, it would naturally affect Matian, who carried a fragment of the Demon King’s soul embedded in his heart.
“I thought my heart pain had been worsening lately. So that’s why.”
“The Red Eagle has begun moving in earnest.”
