Turning the Tables (9)

From the fourth floor down to the underground shelter, and from the shelter back up to the fourth floor.

The stairs finally ended, bringing an end to our time inside this godforsaken place called Dubhe Hall.

"There you are."

Senia stood waiting with her arms crossed, her eyes locking onto mine the moment I stepped off the staircase.

To be fair, I had lingered quite a while down in the basement sealing away Kayden and his lackeys. I half-expected everyone else to have evacuated already.

"Don't tell me you were waiting for me?"

"I was."

"...Why? You should've headed down first."

Senia ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠offered no answer to that. Instead, she narrowed her eyes. "Where were you ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠all this time, anyway?"

"The first floor. I had to ensure the demonic beast blood wouldn't trigger a secondary chain ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠explosion."

"...Sigh."

Before I could wonder why she was sighing, she scooped something off the floor and thrust it toward my face.

"What? What are you doing?"

"Hold still. I'm just rubbing charcoal on you."

"Why on earth would you do that?"

"The first-floor laboratories completely caved in. If you're going to lie, at least make it look convincing."

"Ah..."

Only then did her exasperation make sense. Even for someone categorized as a close-range interception vanguard, walking out of a blazing, crumbling ruin without so much as a speck of soot on his clothes would raise immediate suspicion. Senia was concocting a plausible cover so the people outside wouldn't start asking questions.

"Besides, you took far longer than a quick trip to the first floor would warrant. When we get out there, just follow my lead and match my story, understood?"

"...Got it."

Getting interrogated over an oversight like that the moment I walked out would have been a massive headache. Her help was certainly appreciated.

Still... why was she going out of her way to protect me? I couldn't fathom a reason.

I briefly considered asking her point-blank, but quickly dismissed the thought with a shake of my head. The last thing I wanted was to have Senia pierce right through me with a single razor-sharp retort and lay bare what I was really thinking. Once she finished smudging the soot over my clothes and skin, silence settled heavily between us.

We were the last ones rescued from the building, and in the end, every single student trapped inside Dubhe Hall managed to make it out alive.

The spirit mages, who had suffered severe mana exhaustion from having their magical reserves continually drained as hosts, were rushed away on stretchers alongside the gravely injured.

All that remained was to inspect the shelter.

"There are people in here too!"

"Bring stretchers! And hurry up with the neutralizing agents!"

Right on cue.

I had destroyed only one mana circulation device rather than all four, so their limbs were still intact. However...

"Cough, hack!"

"Urrgh...!"

"...Severe demonic energy poisoning. This looks critical."

Failing to shield their airways in time had left them thoroughly contaminated; none of them were in any condition to stand. Inhaling high concentrations of demonic energy within such an enclosed space had utterly wrecked their bodies.

Yet, even as they gasped desperately for fresh air, their venomous glares remained locked on a single spot.

Those bloodshot eyes, brimming with fury, were fixed entirely on me. Before long, one of them found his voice and screamed.

"That bastard... That bastard trapped us in there!"

"He's right! He barricaded the shelter entrance and deliberately triggered a splash-out to reduce us to this!"

Even with them shrieking at the top of their lungs, I had nothing to fear. If questioned, all I had to do was shrug and feign total ignorance. They possessed no evidence whatsoever.

Yet, as it turned out, I wouldn't even need to bother with an excuse.

"You are all under arrest as the primary culprits behind the Dubhe Hall terror incident. Interrogations will proceed while you receive treatment at the hospital, so be well aware. Naturally, your sentences will be carried out the moment you recover."

Before I could even offer a defense, the situation shifted entirely on its own.

All the time I had spent alongside Senia worrying about how to systematically refute their claims felt utterly wasted.

Furthermore, wriggling out of this predicament would prove nearly impossible for Kayden's faction—because Lady Ophelia herself was standing right at the helm of the operation.

"Don't speak such nonsense! If you're going to arrest someone, arrest that lowborn scum!"

"Why are we being detained instead of the commoner who threatened the safety of nobles?!"

"This is outrageous slander! Slander! We're the victims here!"

When driven into a corner, people inevitably lose their grasp on reason. Had they possessed a shred of rational thought, they never would have sputtered such absurdities.

"Haah... fine, let's hear it. What exactly did Junon do to you?" Ophelia sighed, indulging their ridiculous claims with cold disdain.

Encouraged, Kayden's lackeys raised their voices in unison, clamoring over one another.

"The cloth he brought was packed with artificial mana stones and demonic beast blood! Because of that, we couldn't cast a single spell before being overwhelmed!"

"And that wasn't all! He smashed the mana circulation device to prevent the shelter from functioning properly!"

"And when we tried to escape, he—"

Having pieced together the gist of their frantic accusations, Ophelia let out an incredulous snort.

"So what you're claiming is... that Junon here acted entirely on his own, subdued every single one of you, and locked you inside the shelter?"

"Yes! Exactly that!"

Hearing that a single student had overpowered thirteen of them was absurd enough to warrant mocking laughter. On top of that, they claimed he had dismantled the circulation system and engineered a splash-out specifically to trap them. To any objective listener, it sounded like the ravings of madmen. But as evident by their bloodshot eyes, they were long past thinking straight.

"Then where is your proof?"

"...!"

At the mention of proof, their voices died in their throats.

It was the exact tactic they had used against others for years: conceal evidence, manipulate investigations through backroom politics, and then sneer with a haughty, "Do you have any proof?" to evade accountability. Yet now, the tables were turned. They were screaming for someone else's punishment with veins bulging in their necks, but possessed not a scrap of evidence to back it up.

In short, they had checkmated themselves.

"Not even worth discussing further. Take them all away."

"Let go! That bastard locked us in! It wasn't us, it was that son of a—mmph!"

"Be quiet."

Ophelia personally oversaw the removal of the conspirators, who were now treated as criminals in all but name. The ensuing investigation would undoubtedly focus on extracting their confessions.

Well, fine by me. The outcome had diverged slightly from my original expectations, but it posed no problems.

Just then, however... the world violently spun on its axis.

"Junon!"

"..."

"Hey, stay with—!"

What is this? Did the sudden drop in tension trigger vertigo?

...I couldn't tell. My eyelids grew impossibly heavy, and my body simply refused to obey.

"What happened to him?"

"I don't know either. He just collapsed out of nowhere..."

"Suddenly...?"

"Let us examine him first."

Even though she had been standing right next to him, Senia couldn't fathom what had triggered this collapse.

It's certainly not the work of a spell or curse...

Since no magical residue registered on her senses, interference from external sorcery was ruled out. Had he been exposed to the splash-out? That made ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠even less sense. Junon had taken every conceivable precaution against contamination. Even while dealing with the rampaging spirits, he had been composed enough to toss her a protective hood. He exhibited none of the well-known symptoms of demonic energy poisoning.

Which left only one possibility...

The physician finished his examination and delivered his verdict.

"He is not suffering from mana exhaustion. It appears... he simply pushed himself far beyond his limits."

Not mana exhaustion?

Mana exhaustion had been the sole remaining plausible cause. To collapse merely from physical overexertion? It defied belief.

Dubhe Hall was a tall structure, but running up and down its flights of stairs was hardly enough to drive someone of his conditioning to complete collapse. Right before the rescue, he hadn't even looked particularly winded while climbing. And when facing down the frenzied beasts and runaway spirits, he had meticulously adjusted the party's formation to deflect danger, ensuring he rarely bore the brunt of the physical strain alone.

"We will transfer him to the infirmary for now. Miss Senia, please accompany us just in case."

"...Understood."

With every passing hour, the questions surrounding Junon only seemed to multiply.

When I opened my eyes, a ceiling I had grown all too familiar with filled my vision.

"Hah... back in the infirmary again."

Being hauled into a medical ward was baffling enough, but the room was noticeably dim. Quite a bit of time must have passed since I lost consciousness; the window showed that night had already fallen, even though the incident had occurred in the middle of the afternoon.

"Just what happened to me...?"

I scratched my head in bewilderment and pushed myself upright on the bed. Right on cue, a nurse stepped into the room.

"Oh, you're awake?"

"Just woke up. I was a bit startled to find it pitch-black outside."

"We were worried because you were out for so long. How are you feeling? Any pain or discomfort?"

"No, I feel completely fine."

At my response, the nurse gave a satisfied nod and explained that it appeared to be simple exhaustion. She added that they had run a full battery of tests while I was asleep, but acute fatigue was the only conclusion they could reach.

It certainly felt that way. To be hospitalized without a single ache in my body was surreal.

"Still, late-onset symptoms of demonic energy poisoning can occasionally crop up, so we're keeping you admitted for just tonight."

"Mm... understood."

At least no professor could chew me out for skipping lectures tomorrow. Small mercies.

The nurse handed me an informational sheet and instructed me to hit the call button immediately if I experienced any secondary symptoms.

"Is there anything else you need?"

Anything I need... Ah.

"Could you bring me a newspaper, if there's one available?"

A massive catastrophe had just unfolded, and keeping track of how the world was processing the fallout was vital for my plans.

A few moments later, the nurse returned with a freshly printed evening edition. Skimming through the front-page articles, I realized the outcome had diverged substantially from the timeline I once knew.

"...At this rate, they're probably plastering this all over the central board at Megrez Hall."

The scale of the scandal had grown exponentially. Unlike in the past timeline, where it had ended as mere internal oppression coming to light, this had escalated into a catastrophic event that almost claimed numerous lives. The public fury was palpable.

First came the similarities.

Just like in my previous life, Lady Ophelia presented a mountain of undeniable evidence, exposing the conspiracy orchestrated by Kayden's faction down to the finest detail. The faculty and staff who had assisted them were dragged into the light as well. The backroom deals, suppressed evidence, and silenced witnesses were laid bare before the entire nation, triggering unprecedented outrage across the Principality.

With their corrupt practices exposed to the world, the aristocratic bloc's influence would suffer a crushing blow.

Then came the differences.

Originally, this incident had marked a gradual shift in power, slowly chipping away at noble privilege.

Now, however, 'gradual shift' was hardly the right phrase.

"'Those Who Returned Alive Against Overwhelming Odds, and the Sinners Who Did Not.'"

Below that headline, the editorial posed a sharp question: Is raw firepower truly the only standard worth pursuing?

'Those who returned alive' referred to the students assigned to Class C and Class D. The 'sinners who did not' pointed squarely at Kayden's cabal, who had been banished to Class F—though now, they were simply convicts. Rather than a mere turning of the tides, the narrative had completely overtaken them.

If anything...

"It's a complete reversal."

An article like this held immense weight. By raising doubts about whether the academy's traditional bias toward flashy offensive magic was truly the right path, it fundamentally challenged established doctrine. The chronic shortage of vanguard trainees would begin to correct itself, yielding undeniable benefits for the coming wars.

Whatever the cost, the gains far outweighed the losses.

Yet... why did my chest feel so tight with unease?

"*Sigh*."

Even with the crisis resolved so cleanly, the sigh that escaped my lips wouldn't fade.

Knowing that news of the catastrophe at Dubhe Hall would spread like wildfire, Senia had left strict instructions with Goden, who had arrived on the scene early, to reassure their teammates that she wasn't seriously hurt and would return shortly.

"I explicitly told you I was fine. Why did you bother coming all the way here?"

"Say what you want, you're still my teammate, haha!"

Senia hadn't expected Goden himself to show up in her ward.

"Did you pass my message along to the others properly?"

"Of course I did! If I hadn't, Charlotte and Michel would've sprinted through the hospital doors by now."

"Well, that's true enough, but..." That still failed to explain why he was standing in front of her.

"Sounds to me like there's something you want to ask me in private. What do you actually want?"

"Mmh. Sharp as always, aren't you?"

"Stop beating around the bush."

At her deadpan glare, Goden suddenly broke into a broad grin.

"Didn't you spot someone back there worth recruiting into our team?"

He leaned in, his eyes gleaming with intense curiosity. That legendary eye of his—the one that never failed to sniff out raw, unpolished talent—was shining once again.