The Spy in the Auditorium

The moment those words left my lips, the once-noisy auditorium fell into complete silence. No one moved, as if they were all chewing over what I had just said. Then, perhaps because I had invested a fair amount into my Intelligence stat, a male student adjusted his glasses and raised his hand.

"Could you explain what you meant by that?"

"You cannot even comprehend something so simple?"

Truthfully, I did not understand it well myself. I bought as much time as possible, squeezing every last drop out of my Intelligence stat. What I needed to focus on right now was the message that had suddenly appeared.

A spy in the auditorium. What exactly did that mean? The word "spy" itself felt oddly out of place. It was not phrased as "an evil organization is hiding here—go crush them." Just that a spy was lurking somewhere. What even counted as a spy? Would someone illegally copying academy textbooks and leaking them outside qualify?

'No, do not overthink it.'

The system was likely referring to a spy from an organization hostile to the academy. I had no evidence—just a gut feeling.

…Still.

'Which organization could it be?'

Tinesy Academy featured quite a few factions in the original story. From cult-like groups to outright evil organizations, even the Demon King's army led by the busty Demon Queen. If I listed them all, the number was considerable. Which one was it this time?

'I really have no idea.'

Was this how a non-virgin slut heroine felt when searching for her child's father? In the end, the only conclusion I reached was simple.

'I have no choice but to force it out.'

I still lacked any concrete information. All I knew was that a spy existed. In that case, making them confess might be the better option.

"There is one piece of trash here emitting a rather unpleasant stench. If you come forward now, I shall at least spare your life."

"Trash?"

"You would understand more easily if I said 'spy,' would you not?"

"That is impossible!"

The person who jumped up the moment I mentioned a spy was completely unexpected. Elena Ines.

'This is ridiculous. Why is she acting up now?'

I had planned to observe the students' expressions after announcing the spy's presence, but I never expected Elena to draw aggro from the front lines.

"What is the matter? Did I strike a nerve?"

"No, it is just… that cannot be right! A spy in the academy, and right here of all places?"

"…She has a point."

Honestly, I wanted to ask why the Wind Blade one-trick pony was getting involved. I felt like shutting her up, but her words were surprisingly worth considering. The original story did mention spies infiltrating the academy, but that happened after the evil organization's existence had already been exposed to the students and after several incidents had already occurred. In other words, they slipped in through the cracks of a broken internal system. Not like now, when the academy was still pristine.

"You took the entrance exam yourself, so you should know how thorough the academy's screening process is."

"…Wait a moment. That is an excellent observation, Elena."

"Huh?"

The academy's hobby was investigating students' backgrounds. Anyone who smelled suspicious was filtered out automatically. Yet this one had not been caught. That meant there was nothing problematic in their background.

…Ah.

'No issues in their background, and a group with the technology to even deceive the professors.'

"So it is the Finger."

"…!!"

The moment I uttered "Finger," I spotted a male student whose expression visibly changed. Found you.

Without hesitation, I launched a Wind Blade straight at him. Both of his arms twisted in unnatural directions.

"Kuh, kuaaaaagh!!"

"Silence, trash."

I stepped down from the podium and approached the trash writhing on his knees, screaming. Just as I was about to confirm whether my guess was correct—

"Kiren Montella. You had better explain what is going on here."

A group ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠had surrounded me in a circle. Some held swords, others wore wide-brimmed hats and carried staffs. They were the professors of Tinesy Academy. Among them, the one holding a sword—the equivalent of a high school disciplinary head—spoke with a menacing face that looked like it had been carved from pure intimidation.

"Explain yourself. I shall give you one final chance."

The implication was clear: fail, and they would kill me. Their reaction was understandable. They had placed me on stage to give an encouraging speech to the students, only for me to cripple one student's arms. However—

Showing them evidence would suffice.

"Still unable to realize it? Well, ignorance is not a sin, so I shall generously overlook it."

The spy had collapsed on the floor, either from exhaustion or pain. I lifted his body and tore open the upper part of his shirt. A necklace shaped like a cross immediately came into view.

'Bingo.'

And when I ripped the necklace off…

Dark purple mana began flowing out from the fallen student's body. Normally, mana could not be seen with the naked eye. But there was one exception—when mana became contaminated by something impure.

"That is… contaminated mana?!"

"He was hiding that much mana? It is enough to pollute the entire auditorium!"

"But how did that guy even notice it…? I did not feel anything at all!"

"Is this really the time to say that?! Shut his mouth first!"

At that moment—

"Disappear."

A clear, pure voice rang out, and the murky mana vanished without a trace. Then someone walked toward me.

"Student Kiren. Come with me."

It was the person who had been giving that passionate speech earlier. The principal of Tinesy Academy.

**

'It has been a while since I entered the principal's office directly.'

The principal's office was not a place one could easily access even in the game. My complete lack of interest in romancing the principal played a part, but even accounting for that, it was never meant to be an easily accessible location.

"Make yourself comfortable."

After I sat on the sofa, the principal brought over a cup of coffee she had brewed. Now that I thought about it, this was the first time I had seen her this close. Beatrice Tinesy, principal of Tinesy Academy and one of the few great mages.

"Here, drink."

"My thanks."

I took a sip of the coffee Beatrice had given me. Warm mana spread throughout my entire body in an instant.

'She enchanted the coffee?'

The muscle pain I had accumulated over the past few days of being tormented by Eli disappeared in a flash.

"This is excellent coffee."

"Heh, I knew you would appreciate it."

After emptying her own cup completely, Beatrice set it down. Then, crossing her legs, she continued.

"I will be direct. How ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠did you know?"

"Know what?"

"The spy. How did you know there was a spy?"

I have no idea either. I saw it on the status window.

…If I said that, they might cancel my academy admission on grounds of mental illness, so I held back. Fortunately, I had already prepared a response for this exact question.

"Such an unpleasant stench was spreading throughout the entire auditorium. It would have been stranger if I had not noticed."

"But that mana was clearly coming from the necklace—"

"How unpleasant."

Similarly, I crossed my legs as well. Leaning back against the sofa, I rested my elbow on the armrest and propped up my chin. Then I spoke.

"Do not compare me to the likes of you."

In short: ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠I am different from you. Meaning, I would not tell them how I did it, but I had figured it out somehow. Would this work?

"…Well, considering the performance you showed during the entrance exam, it is understandable."

It worked! In that case, I should not miss this timing and take the lead instead.

"There is one thing I would like to ask."

"Go ahead."

"Something like this has happened. What does the academy intend to do about it?"

A spy had infiltrated the academy as a student. This would be a significant blow to the academy's reputation. If they failed to handle it properly, it could cause quite a stir.

"You do not need to worry about that. I already have something prepared."

"Is that so."

"Yes. By the way, you have been speaking casually to me this whole time?"

"It is a habit. I hope you will overlook it."

Honestly, I did not need to speak formally to avoid losing Arrogance points. But the reason I could not give up speaking casually—

It made money. Of course, simply speaking casually would not dramatically increase my Arrogance points, but even this much was worthwhile.

"Well, I suppose geniuses always have something extraordinary about them."

"I appreciate your understanding. So, may I leave now?"

"Yes. And I will give you a reward for what happened today later."

They were even giving me a reward? An emergency quest giving 500 Arrogance points plus an additional reward. Hey, status window. Are there no more quests to spit out?

Unfortunately, there did not seem to be any.

Just before leaving the principal's office—

"One last thing I am curious about."

"You certainly have a lot of questions."

"You seemed to know about the organization the spy belonged to—the Finger."

"I do."

The Finger. A cult that handled the fanatical groups within Tinesy Academy. They claimed to be ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the fingers of their sealed god or something along those lines. Their goal was, naturally, the resurrection of that sealed god.

"…That is all I know."

I actually knew a bit more, but I deliberately did not say it. If I revealed too much, they might torture me while shouting, "You bastard, you sold out your own comrades, you spy!"

With that, I safely escaped the principal's office.

**

The very next morning. And the first class of the academy.

On my way to the assigned classroom, a large poster on the bulletin board caught my eye.

[Heart-Pounding Survival Game!]

It was a poster about an event held by the academy. An event I had never seen in the original story.

'So this is what the principal meant by countermeasures.'

A competition that generously distributed prizes and benefits. Even just participating would grant you decent equipment for free. For students lacking equipment in the early stages, it was the kind of event that would make their eyes spin.

'She certainly knows how to use her head.'

When I entered the classroom, the students who had already become close were talking about the competition among themselves. As I was looking for a place to sit—

"…?"

Why is she here?

I saw Eli sitting in a corner of the classroom. I was not mistaken. There was no way I would mistake someone I had been rolling around with for six days.

I walked over to her.

"What are you doing here?"

"Oh! It is Kiren!"

"Yes, it is Kiren. So, why are you here?"

Eli was clearly my senior, was she not? Even if she seemed a bit slow, she was definitely not stupid enough to mistake her own class.

"Ah, that?"

Eli pulled an ice cream out of her bag and handed it to me as she spoke.

"The principal told me to keep an eye on you. So I got demoted to first year."

"…What?"

Principal Beatrice. She said everything was over in front of me, yet behind my back she assigned someone to monitor me. What a terrifying woman.

"…But why are you telling me this?"

"…Was I not supposed to say that?"

"Usually, no."

Thank goodness the monitor was Eli.