Chapter 40
Chapter 40
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 40
Chapter Title: Rescue and Festival's End
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40
9
“Damn it….”
Louis moved his hands bound by the mana restraint cuffs.
The clinking metal wouldn’t break no matter how much strength he applied.
He couldn’t use magic to sever them either, since his mana itself was under control. Escape was impossible.
‘Where the hell did they catch me…?’
Even during the festival, he had come all the way to the Federation spy hideout to check if Theo Agrit’s plan was proceeding properly.
But the moment he entered the hideout, he was struck from behind and woke up restrained to a chair.
His betrayal had been exposed.
He was certain of it, even without anyone pointing it out.
Louis rolled his eyes.
The furniture arrangement and the sealed space confirmed it was a hideout.
However, it wasn’t one of the Karmut Federation hideouts he had frequented until now.
There was a bloodstained altar right in the center of the hideout.
“Ha, did they sell me off to some cult….”
Cults didn’t shy away from human sacrifice.
Louis, who knew this well, let out a hollow laugh.
To think his life would end in crisis the moment he betrayed his homeland.
He’d be lying if he said he felt no injustice, but he had no regrets.
Louis Lefersha had betrayed the Karmut Federation of his own will.
Joining hands with Theo Agrit and resolving Bayford’s issues together had been a choice worth making.
“Better than wasting away as the Federation’s tool.”
He wouldn’t be a disposable pawn someday.
He had decided to betray his homeland himself, and he was satisfied enough with the fact that he had helped Bayford’s residents beyond any calculation of gains and losses.
As if on cue, the door burst open with a loud bang.
Facing impending death, Louis closed his eyes.
Something poked at Louis’s cheek.
“Senior. If you’re awake, open your eyes.”
“You…? What…?”
He opened his eyes at the familiar voice.
Standing before Louis wasn’t a cult leader or a Federation spy—it was Theo.
“Why are you here…? Did they catch you too……?”
“What are you talking about? I came to rescue you. Seeing you talk nonsense means you’re fine.”
Theo sighed and nodded toward the door. Leon, who had followed him, sliced through the mana restraint cuffs binding Louis’s hands.
Ethan then helped Louis to his feet, like passing a baton.
Just moments ago, Louis had calmly accepted his end.
But this situation lightly surpassed his common sense and understanding.
“You came to rescue me…?”
“Yeah, I came to rescue you, as I said. What, you think we came here for a stroll?”
“No, I mean… does that even make sense……? Informants are supposed to be abandoned once they’re exposed…?”
“Seeing all this nonsense, you must not be okay after all.”
Tsk. Theo clicked his tongue.
For someone who had stormed into enemy territory to save Louis, he was remarkably relaxed as he added curtly,
“We’ve taken care of all the spies and their contacts. The liaisons in Bayford have been handled too. Now no one knows you betrayed the Federation. Well, except these guys. I’ve already explained everything.”
Leon and Ethan nodded slightly.
Thanks to these two acting unfazed even after knowing he was a Federation spy, Louis’s sense of absurdity completely evaporated.
“In fact, you’re basically the new boss among the spies now. Survival of the fittest, so the Federation will trust you even more. And with this, I’ve kept my promise.”
Louis pressed his forehead at the sight of Theo nonchalantly cracking jokes.
That composure and resourcefulness made him feel like he’d lose his mind just being around him.
No, by that logic, Louis had already lost his mind.
“…Thanks.”
“If you’re grateful, just do well from now on.”
He neither asked nor explained the meaning behind the gratitude.
Theo simply stepped out of the hideout first, followed by Leon and Ethan.
And Louis Lefersha followed behind them as well.
10
“…It’s so peaceful.”
I muttered blankly at the Tea Club booth with not a single visitor.
The Esterro Academy festival had safely reached its second day.
Miraculously, there were zero casualties. The explosions were spectacular but mostly just shattered barriers, so actual damage was quite minimal.
Even that had been fully repaired overnight, with the barriers reinforced completely.
The academy administration had invested more personnel in security, so the decision was made to continue the festival without interruption.
Of course, that came at the cost of the assistants who worked through the night repairing the damage with magic….
Still, the number of visitors coming to enjoy themselves carefree had significantly decreased compared to yesterday.
It was the site of a bombing just the day before, so it couldn’t be helped.
Thanks to that, my workload had lightened, which was actually a good thing.
“You’re the only one who’d call it peaceful the day after a terrorist attack.”
“It is peaceful. No one’s getting kidnapped like yesterday.”
Louis sighed, his words hitting the mark.
He was currently the Tea Club booth’s sole visitor, but he didn’t seem interested in the tea, so we were just chatting.
“More importantly, what about the thing I asked?”
“It’s only been a day since you asked—don’t nag. I looked into the Precursors and their ties to the homeland, but all I could find out was that the organization colluding with the Federation spies is called the Precursors.”
“We won’t get much further for now. Let’s put it on hold.”
The place where Louis had been imprisoned yesterday was 213A Vitrock Street, District 6.
It was one of the hideouts of the Precursors who had tested Jeist before.
It was evidence of sorts, but it was clear digging deeper wouldn’t be easy.
We needed to uncover the truth eventually, but we had to be careful not to stir up a hornet’s nest.
“You must’ve been watching the booth well. No visitors, though.”
“We have one. The president.”
Kane and Merrill, back from their outing, bantered.
Louis nodded in agreement with Merrill calling him a visitor, but Kane shook his head firmly.
“How is that a visitor? He clearly just came to hang out. He doesn’t count. Doesn’t count.”
With that, Kane grabbed my shoulder and pulled me up.
“Good work this morning. Time to switch. Go enjoy yourself.”
“Got it. But… couldn’t three of us switch?”
It was something I’d been thinking since yesterday.
When I asked about the somewhat inefficient setup, Merrill smiled bitterly.
“I don’t have friends, you see. The president’s just hanging out with me.”
“That’s too much, Merrill. Am I not a friend, but this?”
“You’re the president.”
Their relationship was a bit too subtle to call friendship.
Well, if that was the reason, I could understand.
I’d struggled quite a bit myself before getting used to going around alone.
Especially eating alone in places full of friends or couples, or going to festivals—it was hell.
I nodded along, and Kane teasingly added,
“You’ve got tons of friends, yet you’re playing the loner card.”
“I didn’t have friends back then either. And even now, I wouldn’t say a lot.”
“Oh right, you used to have a pretty fierce personality.”
Would you normally say that to someone’s face?
Though Kane was referring to the original Theo, not me.
Still, it felt oddly strange….
“Anyway, good luck.”
No need to stick around after the shift change.
I dragged Louis along as I left the Tea Club booth.
External visitors had decreased, but the festival’s energy was about the same as yesterday.
If anything, fewer people made it easier to enjoy.
We wandered a bit and watched the Sculpture Club’s performance.
I wasn’t sure if slicing ice blocks made with freezing magic on the spot could be called sculpture, but it was flashy.
Watching the ice being carved made me crave shaved ice for some reason.
As I smacked my lips thinking about shaved ice, Leon appeared and let out a small exclamation.
“Delicate yet swift. Is that the Dartena School?”
“Ooh, really? That’s impressive!”
Ethan was a set with Leon, as usual.
I’d gotten used to them joining seamlessly, so I didn’t react much.
“…More importantly, you two have been hanging out a lot lately?”
“Really? It’s just ’cause we see each other often thanks to you, right?”
Ethan bantered.
No, you two pop up together even when I’m not around.
Anyone would think you’re a combo meal.
Was this the power of being sociable?
I couldn’t wrap my head around this part, but oh well, it was good they were getting along.
“No need to check the Tea Club booth today?”
“Already did.”
“Then that means we can play. Let’s see, today’s events….”
Ethan rubbed his chin, pondering.
Just then, a small boy running up while looking back bumped into Ethan’s leg.
Thanks to Ethan’s massive size, the boy fell backward.
“Huh, you okay?”
Ethan immediately crouched down and extended a hand to the boy.
But before grabbing it, the boy stared at his fallen chicken skewer with a teary face.
The moment I saw that face, I flinched involuntarily.
His short blond hair gleamed with luster, and his teary eyes were a deep jade green like jade.
His flawless skin made him look less like a person and more like a doll, delicately raised.
He’d probably grow into quite the handsome man. Even in real life, not just graphics, his features were stunningly refined.
The boy’s name was Ludwig von Kusbeuk.
The third prince of the Tekat Kingdom, who would later be called the Prince of Compassion.
However, he looked quite different from my memory.
In Broken World, his first appearance was as a child pretending to be mature beyond his years, while also showing traits befitting the Prince of Compassion.
He’d never made a face like this over a single chicken skewer.
“Up you go, you okay? Not hurt anywhere?”
Unaware of the circumstances, Ethan helped Ludwig up.
Ludwig, still teary-faced, nodded while staring at the skewer, and Ethan even handed over the wedge potato he’d been eating.
Potatoes again, of all things.
Fortunately, Ludwig’s face brightened at the sight of the wedge potato.
Judging by Ethan’s attitude… no, by the reactions around, no one seemed to realize Ludwig was a prince.
“…Young master!”
Ludwig flinched at the strong voice.
The one running from afar was a knight in light armor.
Her long white hair draped over the shield on her back—she was someone I knew well.
Page Winchester, Ludwig’s bodyguard knight.
A commoner who rose to imperial squire knight solely on talent and was assigned to protect Ludwig.
By the time Ludwig earned his title as Prince of Compassion, she’d be an indispensable figure in any discussion of the strongest knights.
“Maintain your dignity, young master.”
“Y-Yeah, got it, Page.”
Unlike Ludwig, who was munching on the wedge potato with a relaxed expression, Page eyed us warily.
But only for a moment. She scanned my face and Leon’s, then gave a short nod.
“Young masters of the Hilfenberg Duke Family and Agrit Count Family. I apologize for our young master’s rudeness.”
“You’re….”
Leon seemed to recognize Page then.
He reflexively checked Ludwig’s face and moved to bow, but Page shook her head.
Calling him young master instead of prince suggested this was unofficial, with his identity hidden.
“…I didn’t expect to meet here.”
The quick-witted Leon dropped the formalities.
I nodded, fully agreeing.
Instead of replying, Page bowed briefly in greeting and left with Ludwig.
“You know them?”
“Something like that.”
“Who? Some nobles you know?”
But the oblivious Ethan had no idea who they were.
Even Louis was eyeing him suspiciously, as if to say, no way….
This guy really has no tact.
11
The festival’s finale was a massive campfire.
The campfire lighting up the darkening sky had a mesmerizing pull that made you stare blankly.
Louis had left to dig a bit more into the Precursors.
I’d tried to stop him, but… he’d pull back if it got dangerous.
For now, I was with Leon.
Ethan was here too, but busy roasting whole potatoes over the campfire.
Wasn’t 70% of Ethan made of potatoes instead of water?
As I cracked such silly jokes, Choco was roasting marshmallows on a stick next to Ethan.
Why wasn’t this animal afraid of fire?
And how did it know they taste better grilled?
I’d completely given up trying to understand, just shaking my head.
“The festival’s ending….”
I muttered blankly.
The plan to prevent the terrorism preemptively had gone up in smoke, but the outcome wasn’t bad.
No casualties, Federation spies crushed, and we helped Bayford.
I’d enjoyed the festival plenty, so I was satisfied.
What to do if variables popped up next time.
We’d resolved this one safely, but no guarantee for the next.
I pondered briefly, but no solutions came to mind.
Just have to handle it somehow.
Thinking about it, it’d been three weeks since arriving in this world.
Felt like months, but only three weeks.
Days were so long….
“You seem lost in thought.”
Leon asked casually.
I debated what to say… and just went with what came to mind.
“Just spacing out.”
“Your face looked serious.”
“Then I must’ve been seriously spacing out.”
Leon chuckled.
I shot back at him.
“And you? You look like you’re thinking a lot too.”
“I won’t deny it.”
“What about?”
“…About my limitations. Every time something happens, I’m always too late or stuck just helping from behind.”
What was this guy saying?
You calling yourself lacking is the real self-deprecation.
I pressed my forehead without thinking.
I’d forgotten for a moment, but Leon Hilfenberg was originally like this.
His sense of responsibility went beyond obsession—it was the foundation of his being.
He tried to take responsibility even for things that weren’t his fault… so he was probably blaming himself for my involvement in all these incidents.
“Haa…….”
Oh man.
I pressed my temples with my thumb.
“You’re an idiot beyond saving.”
“What’s that all of a sudden?”
“Who told you to charge ahead? I never asked you to come first. Just do what you can. And what’s this ‘only helping’? Being helpful is a huge deal.”
“But….”
“No buts. No arguments. You need to build some self-love.”
He wished happiness for others but never considered his own.
He ran around believing those who worked hard deserved reward and those in despair needed salvation, yet refused either for himself.
That was Leon Hilfenberg.
I knew it, but… it still rubbed me the wrong way.
There were limits to self-sacrifice.
This won’t do.
I needed to hammer it in firmly so this hopelessly kind guy didn’t veer off track.
Right on cue, remembering our prior promise, I gazed at the blankly burning campfire and asked,
“What’re you doing this weekend?”
This weekend was holy sword farming time.