Chapter 40
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 40
Chapter Title: 10. Hide and Seek
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I began investigating Kiel Müller.
Personally, I figured she had the highest chance of being Broker.
As I dug into Kiel Müller, I uncovered a few intriguing facts.
She didn't treat Edward like just a junior colleague—she looked after him like a little brother.
Not only did she guide his academics, but she paid attention to every aspect of his life.
And she was the first to notice his mental instability.
One thing's for sure: it's definitely not romantic affection.
You could tell from the reasons behind her care for Edward.
And that motive was the most fascinating part.
Kiel pitied Edward.
She felt sympathy for him, lagging behind because of her own success.
Did Edward know about this while he was alive?
I already had the answer to that question.
[Senior's pitying gaze is annoying. Talent, abilities—all innate, and she dares...]
It was a memo scribbled in the corner of Edward's research notes.
The handwriting was so messy, like it was scrawled in a state of mental and physical exhaustion.
So Edward knew about Kiel's pity.
Was this what pushed him even further to the brink?
The moment I learned this, I started planning a game centered on Kiel.
It didn't matter anymore whether she was Broker or not.
If Kiel's Broker, I'm lucky. If not, things just got unlucky.
This emotional setup was perfect for the self-made drama I had in mind.
Edward Letver was already a man teetering on the edge of mental collapse.
His inferiority complex and frustration had seeped into every corner of the lab.
A few tweaks, and I could turn it into a Corruption Play.
The kind where a junior, consumed by inferiority, curses his senior and falls into depravity.
While tidying up Edward's lab, I began introducing subtle changes.
First, I left a hint about forbidden knowledge in his study.
A fake draft paper titled Constraints and Advantages Related to Infant Soul Transplantation, placed right on top of the desk drawer.
It was written in a perfect imitation of Edward's handwriting.
Then I pulled out hundreds of sheets of paper and filled them with nonsensical ramblings.
The crude black magic knowledge Edward had just looked into, demon summoning, taboos.
I scribbled about them like a madman.
In the process, I left behind some strange memos too.
[To never fall behind Senior... I must seek a way beyond the limits of the flesh...]
[Break free from the framework of traditional manipulation magic... approach something more fundamental...]
I wrote the sentences with intentional breaks in context.
In a tone that sounded like delirious mutterings from a confused mind.
Next, I sketched an unnatural magic circle on the lab wall.
It was a classic forbidden magic array, but I deliberately mixed in beginner-level mistakes.
To make it feel like a rushed newbie's blunder.
Most mages would spot it at a glance.
This was a magic lineage officially taboo in the modern era.
Kiel will recognize it instantly too.
But no one else could find it. Kiel Müller had to stumble upon it while snooping behind my back.
I shoved all the preparations into a locker after looking around the lab.
Now to plant seeds of suspicion in Kiel Müller.
Timing was the key.
Every Wednesday at 4 p.m., Kiel Müller passed through the second-floor lobby of the lab building.
For her regular meeting with a fellow professor.
I targeted that moment.
Next Wednesday, 3:50 p.m.
I left Edward's lab door half-open and began my calculated performance.
I set up a simple device in the center of the lab that triggered a mana reaction, designed to look like suspicious magic research.
In reality, it was just a harmless glowing orb.
But from outside, it looked plenty shady.
3:55 p.m.
I opened Edward's diary and started muttering in a low voice.
A sort of mic test.
To gauge the volume needed for a whisper to carry.
"...It won't work, it definitely won't. But... I can't fall behind Senior..."
Hmm, better speak a bit louder.
3:58 p.m.
Footsteps approached. A single set. Kiel Müller.
Right on cue. I muttered the line a little louder than before.
"...It won't work, it definitely won't. But... I can't fall behind Senior..."
At that instant, the footsteps passing the door halted.
I looked up and saw mint-green hair through the door crack.
Kiel Müller was standing there. Kiel had stopped and was peering into the lab where I was.
Our eyes met.
I stared at her with a startled expression, like a kid caught red-handed.
"Se... Senior?"
Kiel's face went pale in an instant. Her eyes swept over the lab interior.
"Edward... what, what are you doing right now...?"
I hurriedly flipped over the papers on the desk, putting on a flustered act.
"Ah, it's nothing. I was just testing multi-puppet manipulation theory!"
I awkwardly pretended to hide the materials and waved it off.
A tangle of emotions flashed across Kiel's face—pity, worry, a sense of responsibility.
"......Edward."
Just as Kiel was about to say something.
A colleague professor's voice came from behind her.
"Kiel? What are you doing here? The meeting's about to start."
"Ah, uh... yeah. I'll be right there."
Kiel gave me a complicated look.
Nice expression.
"Edward... let's, let's talk later for now."
Kiel left for her meeting.
The moment she was gone, I slammed the desk.
Bang!
I grinned while spitting out furious curses.
"Damn it! Damn it! Why, why only me...!"
Heavens!
Wait, not quite?
After Kiel left, I immediately started on the other preparations.
She'd probably come looking for a talk once the meeting ended.
But I have no plans to chat.
Edward was a walking ball of inferiority complex.
I needed to make him avoid Kiel.
And that would amplify the suspicion even more effectively.
I moved right away.
The academy had a strictly controlled list of magic materials.
Especially black magic-related ones, which were mostly deemed unfit for research.
I'd prepared a small storage compartment in the corner of Edward's lab, behind the vent grate.
Inside, I placed a few forbidden items.
An infant's first cry—an unpurified soul fragment harvested from a baby less than a week old.
A black crystal shard, known as a byproduct of demon summoning.
A bronze plate engraved with ancient script, recorded as used in forbidden rituals.
I left them there with the chance of accidental discovery.
Betting that Kiel, out of worry for Edward, might sneak a peek into the lab while he was away.
That evening, I left the lab without locking the door.
I rigged it so the vent grate looked slightly ajar through the half-open door.
Now, let's see how this plays out.
The meeting ended.
Kiel sighed as she stepped out of the conference room.
Lately, she had way too much on her mind.
That crazy bastard. He definitely came sniffing around for me.
Just a short while ago, the monster she'd been dealing with.
But the moment he realized she was at the academy, he zeroed in on her as a professor.
[So you were a professor.]
It had given her chills, and she'd cut the connection—but looking back, it might've been the wrong call.
At least if we'd talked...
Kiel shook her head. Even to her, it sounded ridiculous.
Fuck. Like that'd work.
Kiel knew how capable that psycho was—and how impulsive.
If he thought it was fun, he'd act on it immediately.
Damn, damn...!
She was monitoring the academy with her avatars, but it wasn't enough.
No telling where, when, or in which body he'd pop up.
That was the nature of Body Hijacking.
Lost in these thoughts, she arrived at Edward's lab.
The image of Edward from earlier kept flashing in her mind.
Edward...
[...It won't work, it definitely won't. But... I can't fall behind Senior...]
[Damn it! Damn it! Why, why only me...!]
"Edward. I'm coming in... Huh?"
His lab door was still half-open.
She stepped inside.
The desk was a mess, papers crumpled everywhere, remnants of some device emitting strange light.
A textbook space for a researcher losing his mind.
A drawer was slightly open. A bundle of white documents peeked out.
What the hell is this?
Constraints and Advantages Related to Infant Soul Transplantation
Kiel's blood ran cold.
"Fuck, what the hell is this...!!"