Gathering Wives with a System

Chapter 240: Death Of Overlord, Eleanor Weiss

The words dropped into the air and stayed there.

Silence filled the table, heavier than before.

Professor Catherine set her spoon down and looked at each of them in turn—Isaac, Alice, and then Celia.

Her expression was calm, but her eyes carried weight.

”You kids should stop worrying about the Governor. You were dragged into this matter needlessly. Let the adults handle it.”

Isaac shook his head immediately. ”I’m going to be the Lord. I can’t step away from this issue now.”

”You will be a Lord, correct,” Professor Catherine replied evenly, ”but let us handle the Governor. He was planning to annihilate the forces of all three universities stationed in Fortified City 89. We have our own reasons to seek revenge as well.”

The three of them—Isaac, Alice, and Celia—looked at each other across the table.

They didn’t speak, but the exchange of glances carried unspoken questions.

Professor Catherine noticed and clarified before they could push further.

”Don’t misunderstand. We’re not keeping you away because the issue is too dangerous. When the time comes, we’ll call on you. For now, though, we can deal with the Governor ourselves.”

Isaac leaned back slightly, crossing his arms. ”Weren’t you worried yesterday about the Governor’s forces returning? Are you sure you can handle everything on your own?”

”Until yesterday, Master had no plans to fight him directly,” Professor Catherine explained. ”She would’ve supported you if needed, but she wasn’t going to confront him herself. For all his faults, the Governor has supported Fortified City 50 for past decades.”

”However?” Isaac asked, sensing the turn in her words.

”However, now Master knows he was planning to kill countless Awakeners to conquer the Fortified City 89. His greed has become too large. That changes everything. Honestly, she’s angry. Don’t get yourselves involved in this matter. It’s for your own safety.”

Isaac frowned.

He thought Eleanor intended to eliminate the Governor outright.

”You can’t just kill the Governor without dragging him down from his position. If you do that, the public will riot.”

Professor Catherine chuckled softly at his serious tone. ”Relax. We know how to handle matters like this.”

Alice broke in. ”Will the Vice Principal be safe? The Governor is shrewd. He must have prepared contingencies in case he was caught and the Sword Empress stood against him.”

”His contingency plans were his forces,” Professor Catherine said with a short nod.

”So?” Isaac asked, his brow furrowing.

”The Governor underestimated Master. He probably discovered she isn’t actually Overlord rank,” Professor Catherine explained.

The table went silent.

Alice’s eyes widened.

Celia froze, her hand stopping halfway to her glass.

Even Isaac, who had considered the possibility, felt a jolt of surprise hearing it confirmed.

”You all might not know this,” Professor Catherine continued, ”but during the rescue operation for Selene, when we raided the assassins’ headquarters, Master was attacked by a naga. The naga came after her because she believed master wasn’t an Overlord. Now, ask yourselves, where do you think she got that information?”

”From the Governor,” Alice said quietly.

”Correct.” Professor Catherine’s answer was sharp and certain.

The silence returned.

Each of them sank into their own thoughts.

Isaac remembered that operation clearly, as if it had happened yesterday.

He had stood against the leader of the assassins that night, the same man Eleanor later killed.

The memory of Godrick’s face came back to him.

His anger, the frustration, the certainty that Fortified City’s leadership was corrupt.

Isaac hadn’t forgotten it at all.

’The leader of assassins was angry at our city’s management. He called it corrupt.’

Back then, Isaac thought Godrick was simply misled by the naga faction.

Now, knowing the true nature of the governor, he realized the truth.

However....

’Godrick hated the city.’

’But he never knew he was just working for the Governor.’

The thought made his stomach turn.

Celia finally spoke, her voice quieter than usual. ”What do you mean the Sword Empress isn’t an Overlord? She’s been in Fortified City for nearly a hundred years. Her ascension to Overlord rank was witnessed by many.”

She looked down for a moment, trying to collect herself, then lifted her gaze again.

”That kind of thing isn’t easily faked.”

Isaac noticed the faint change in her tone.

Celia was trying to hide her emotions, but the weight of the conversation had reached her.

The mention of the Governor seemed to churn her emotions her more than she wanted to admit.

Even so, she forced herself to stay involved.

Professor Catherine leaned back, folding her arms loosely. She didn’t answer right away, letting the question hang in the air.

Her eyes lingered on Celia before shifting to Isaac and Alice, as if gauging their reactions again.

”I suppose I can tell you this,” Professor Catherine said. ”The Overlord of Fortified City 50, Eleanor Weiss, is master’s grandmother. She died ten years ago while stopping a monster invasion.”

”What...?” Celia’s voice cracked, her eyes widening.

Alice straightened in her seat, her fork frozen halfway to her plate.

Isaac simply stared.

Only he knew the whirlwind of thoughts that had sprang his head.

Professor Catherine’s face was calm, though her words were anything but. ”A monster invasion was detected. Master went with her grandmother’s team to confront the monster before it reached the city.

”The monster was stronger than anyone expected. In the end, the entire team was killed, including the Overlord, Eleanor Weiss. Only Master survived.”

Silence fell again.

The clinking of cutlery and quiet chatter from earlier seemed like it never existed.

”Back then, Master had two choices. She could reveal the death of the city’s only Overlord rank awakener and protector, but that would have plunged the city into despair.

”Without an Overlord, our defenses and public order would have collapsed.

”Worse still, the other human cities—though allied with us—would have seen it as an opportunity to take over. You know well enough that alliances don’t erase rivalry.”

Isaac nodded slightly.

He did know.

The balance of power between the fortified cities was delicate.

News of Fortified City 50 losing its strongest guardian would have set off a chain reaction.

”So Master chose a different path,” Professor Catherine said. ”She used an artifact to disguise herself. She took her grandmother’s place and became the pillar of humanity this city needed.”

Sword Empress carried the weight of her grandmother’s death, the city’s safety, and the role of an Overlord while living as if she had died.

That day the granddaughter of Eleanor Weiss was killed.

Only Sword Empress survived.

And she could never live as ’herself’ again.

That was the burden she decided to carry.

Alice finally set her fork down.

Her hands were trembling slightly. With her compassionate nature, she couldn’t help but worry about Sword Empress.

”So all this time... the Sword Empress we see isn’t an Overlord, but...” Alice bit her lips.

She didn’t even know the name of the protector who sacrificed her identity for them.

”Yes.” Professor Catherine inclined her head. ”And master’s name is Eleanor Weiss too. The name was given to her by her mother, who wanted her to be like the Overlord.”

She said those words with a smile.

But that only made Alice bite her lips harder.

What had the Sword Empress thought?

Did she ever curse fate, believing she was always destined to live as someone else?