Chapter 38
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 38
Chapter Title: 10. Hide and Seek
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I emerged far from the Saintess's extradimensional barrier.
Right after the Saintess died.
I had hijacked her body, then immediately switched back to a male one just now.
The moment her lifespan ended, I escaped into a body I'd prepared in advance.
'Ercella was an unexpected variable, but everything went according to plan.'
I hadn't brought Ercella's body with me.
I had no intention of using it.
I decided to stop caring about Ercella altogether.
That she'd judged my antics as a suicidal ploy and tried to kill me for it.
Or that in the final moment, she'd realized I wasn't actually trying to die and let go of her killing intent.
'For my sake, not peace... What a ridiculous motive.'
The contradiction of trying to kill me out of concern for me.
It was truly ironic.
'Fucking bitch. Thanks to her, my death is now set in stone.'
In that last instant, Ercella had seen my future.
She alone had witnessed the ending of this B-movie I'd scripted.
The Saintess's foresight fixed the future in another sense.
From the moment the one person who could alter foresight died, my future was effectively locked in.
Should I be happy about that?
'Using the Saintess's body might let me change it, but I have no plans to.'
I shrugged and answered Broker's call.
[Alive or dead?]
"Alive."
[Too bad. What happened?]
I gave Broker a quick rundown of the situation.
Creating the duplicate, confronting the Saintess, escaping.
I skipped the part about her sealing my death.
"How'd the deal with Blue Moon go?"
Blue Moon had been negotiating with another kingdom to topple the Empire.
It was a diversion of sorts.
While all eyes were on the living symbol of the Empire—the Saintess—Blue Moon made their move.
[It wrapped up successfully. The issue is they used a different route than the one you provided.]
Wary of my potential influence, maybe.
'I was genuinely trying to help them.'
"As long as the deal closed, I don't care. I didn't tamper with their side anyway. So what are they up to now?"
[Hunkered down in the kingdom. Looks like they'll rely on them for a while to build strength.]
"Any word for me?"
[None. Ludwig plans to control info going your way. Use you only when needed.]
How disappointing.
The original plan was to meet Blue Moon after killing the Saintess.
Play around a bit, have some fun.
'Too bad, but unavoidable. I showed Blue Moon too much of my hand.'
Enough to make them suspicious.
I started brainstorming my next move.
Not that it was much— just deciding what I wanted to do.
"Ella's still with your avatar, right?"
[Yeah. Right now... Huh. Yep, sword training.]
'Ella and Ceres both need to grow first.'
Unfortunately, playing with them would have to wait.
'Time to weave Blue Moon, Ella, Ceres, and Arbelia together.'
To reach this B-movie's finale, I needed a stage where everyone converged.
A messy backdrop would ruin the tight plot.
I hatched a plan.
'At minimum, Ella, Ceres, and Arbelia need to be tied to one spot.'
Ella and Ceres had to become understanding rivals and companions.
'And give Ceres a shot at striking Blue Moon.'
So, Blue Moon needed a reason to hit that gathering spot directly.
Considering all conditions, what fit best?
"An educational institution."
[...Huh? What'd you say?]
An academy would let Ceres and Ella cross paths naturally.
Arbelia could join seamlessly too.
'The Empire has only one real educational hub.'
"The Academy."
[W-what?]
Broker's reaction felt off.
"You at the Academy right now?"
[What nonsense. No way.]
Broker joined late, after I started playing.
Motivated by money, obviously.
I still didn't know why he wanted artifacts money couldn't buy.
'Efficiency boost, tuition, debt. Plenty of guesses. Probably one of those.'
I'd brushed it off at first, uninterested.
Now curiosity stirred.
'If my hunch is right, I can scale this up bigger than planned.'
Thinking back, Broker's tone and actions with Ella might hold clues.
A subtle protectiveness toward a kid.
Pretty humane for someone in the human-trafficking trade.
'Called her "kid," I think.'
If Broker was inside the Academy,
he'd be either a student or a teacher. One or the other.
Now I was intrigued.
Very intrigued.
'Gotta snag a professor spot at the Academy.'
This was impulsive.
I'd eyed a slightly different path originally...
'But this looks way more fun.'
Options abounded: fastest or slowest route.
Fastest: Hijack a current professor.
Or blackmail the dean into a temp gig.
Slowest: The "proper" way—earn a PhD and get appointed.
'At my level, a PhD would be quick.'
With base knowledge, 1-2 years tops.
But why bother?
'No need to take the long road when shortcuts exist.'
None at all.
The straight-and-narrow slow path is for idiots.
I chose the fastest.
'Time to hijack an Academy professor.'
Broker's device kept buzzing.
[Hey, hey! The Academy what? What're you planning now?]
"Nah, nothing much. Just pondering Ella's future."
[Fair. Can't have her trailing you forever. She's got her own life—]
"Ah-ha."
That was it.
Broker froze mid-sentence.
He sensed something off.
[Hey. You didn't... right?]
His voice grew frantic.
[Answer me. Hey!]
"..."
[Fuck, hey! Touch me and I won't go quietly. I'll take you down with me. Count on it.]
I couldn't hold back the laughter.
It leaked through the phone.
"You're a professor. Aren't you."
[...Son of a—]
Call cut off. Broker hung up.
I tried calling back. No dice.
He'd gone radio silent.
'Hidey-hide.'
Don't let me see your hair.
I arrived at an inn room on the outskirts of the capital.
Before me lay materials scraped from newspaper ads: Academy open house flyers, promo booklets, faculty intros, papers, even alumni lists.
All for scouting hijack candidates.
"Not everything's here."
For precise targeting, I needed the full faculty roster with quirks listed.
Caution was key now.
One shot at this.
'Killing the Saintess drew too much imperial attention.'
Her existence was secret, so no headlines.
But key players knew I was alive—and her killer.
They'd be watching for odd shifts in imperial behavior.
'They've got a rough idea of my ability now.'
Time to infiltrate the Academy.
And uncover Broker's identity while at it.
Next day, I hijacked a suitable body, donned a student's uniform.
A boyish face. Not a real enrollee.
'Magical surveillance? Easy to fudge.'
I slipped through the crowds unnoticed.
No re-enrollee, yet no one batted an eye.
I headed to the bustling library.
Shelves of thick tomes. I pulled [Current Faculty and Staff Roster (Latest Edition)].
Flipping pages, I memorized details: bios, office locations, schedules...
Scanned other names too.
Powerful department heads, profs with odd specialties.
'Hm?'
My gaze halted at one spot.
A page with a photo: mint-green long hair, woman.
Her face? Who cares.
Faces all blur to me.
What grabbed me was her record.
[Manipulation Specialization]