Chapter 43
Chapter 43
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 42
Chapter Title: Noisy Screams
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“…….”
Drip, drip.
Her thumbnail had worn down from biting it so much that Aria bit her lip hard in its place and shoved her hand into her pocket.
She had been meticulous with her grooming because she didn’t want to show any unsightly side of herself, but she couldn’t hold back the surge of emotions.
‘They’re already annulled anyway.’
Aria let out a huff of breath. She had known for a long time that Deus and Erika had annulled their engagement.
It was a relationship that had ended anyway.
She thought she could afford to be a little patient.
But seeing Deus’s hand casually rest on Erika’s head made her emotions bubble up furiously.
And watching the corner of his mouth curve up softly made her feel like her eyes were going to roll back.
“Huuuuh!”
She let out a long breath and tried to calm her emotions. She squeezed her eyes shut tight and unleashed her anger and jealousy toward Erika, who was savoring Deus’s touch.
‘It doesn’t matter. Yeah, it’s fine.’
The professor was hers anyway.
She knew the future, so there was no way she could lose.
‘Don’t worry, Professor. I’ll handle everything for you.’
And after they saved the world together, they could live happily ever after.
Her face flushed just imagining it, but then she saw Deus leaving Erika behind and heading to the academy. She quickly turned her body.
Having already mastered the Yellow Dragon Step in the previous regression, Aria arrived at the academy before Deus.
She leaped over the high wall with the same effortless grace as when she’d left.
“Hup!”
The moment she landed, she hurriedly straightened her clothes. Just in case, she pulled out a hand mirror to check if her hair was messy or if anything was on her face.
‘Good.’
Aria was the kind of beauty who turned heads wherever she went. In the past, she might have modestly brushed it off, but now she knew her looks were second to none.
She closed her eyes and sensed the mana.
Her feet naturally carried her toward the academy entrance.
Just then, Deus was greeting the gatekeeper and entering the academy grounds.
“Hello, Professor!”
Aria approached with a bright smile. Deus glanced at her for a moment and nodded.
“Yeah, you’re the student I met before. Aria Rias.”
He remembered her!
After just one greeting! As expected of the professor!
“Yes! That’s right! I heard you were hurt—are you okay?”
She smiled warmly and sidled up to him, but Deus regarded her impassively.
‘Did I come on too strong?’
This was only their second conversation in this life, but she had closed the distance without thinking.
The Deus she knew would probably find it unpleasant.
“Yeah, I’m fine.”
But Deus didn’t push her away. He didn’t reject her approach, and that made Aria’s heart flutter a little.
‘M-My first impression must’ve been good.’
Or maybe he knew she was the top admittee?
Definitely.
He had always seemed to like high-achieving students.
“I hope there won’t be any more anomalies now, right? My friends were really scared, you know.”
She played the part of a concerned student naturally latching onto the professor.
A professor couldn’t brush her off easily, and her prediction hit the mark.
Deus walked with her and answered impassively.
“Yeah, there won’t be any more anomalies like that.”
“I see! That’s a huge relief! But why did it happen in the first place?”
She tilted her head innocently, and Deus glanced toward the main academy building as he casually shared his thoughts.
“Even though the academy was built over a graveyard, the number and power of the evil spirits were too much. The souls buried there weren’t evil spirits to begin with.”
“Really?”
“So I think someone deliberately gathered evil spirits to the academy and escalated the situation.”
“Th-that makes sense!”
A thrilling shiver ran through Aria’s entire body.
‘As expected of the professor!’
His sharp insight always surprised her, and this time was no different.
How did he figure it out so quickly?
She had tried to be as subtle as possible and struggled quite a bit to awaken the angel, but the professor saw right through it!
‘Finding the Spirit Stone was pretty tough. But I’d done it once before.’
For the first three months after regressing, she had left home and traveled the continent.
Releasing evil spirits into the academy was complicated, but with her past memories, she managed it.
‘Worth the effort, though. The professor grew so fast and killed off his original personality in an instant!’
Aria swayed her body side to side, feeling the night air. She was in high spirits knowing her efforts hadn’t been in vain.
“What do you think?”
Deus’s question suddenly pierced through, snapping Aria back to attention.
“Huh? What about?”
“This incident. From a student’s perspective, it’s not something you can just let slide.”
“Oh, right. There’s bound to be distrust toward the academy. They announced that withdrawal requests that haven’t been processed yet can be canceled, but hardly anyone did—trust is already broken.”
“Yeah.”
“But I’m going to keep attending! There’s so much I want to learn here!”
Aria actually thought it was for the best.
No need for the professor to waste his precious time on other students.
Deus, who had been keeping his mouth shut, looked troubled, so Aria smiled and reassured him.
“You don’t need to worry too much! The students who stay will stay, and it’ll be the real cream of the crop!”
‘The professor has nothing to worry about.’
I’ll lay all the groundwork without you even knowing.
Do you know, Professor?
The fact that you learned necromancy was thanks to me.
Even black market dealers can’t easily get basic necromancy manuals.
Through this incident, you must’ve gotten plenty familiar with handling it.
‘You keep getting stronger like that. You absolutely can’t die this time.’
Swallowing a laugh inwardly, Aria realized she had followed Deus all the way to the faculty dorms.
“Whoops, talking with you was so fun I followed you all the way here, Professor. Sorry about that.”
“It’s fine.”
‘Aah! I definitely nailed the first impression! Such a kind professor!’
She’d probably thrash around in her room later, replaying the day over and over.
“One thing—mind if I ask?”
Just as she turned to leave with lingering regret, Deus’s voice stopped her.
“Huh? Anything!”
Aria turned back with a beaming smile, full of anticipation as she gazed at Deus.
A question?
What kind of question?
Her radiant smile as she waited so eagerly.
“Are you saying you have no guilt even after terrorizing the academy?”
Cracked.
* * *
“Are you saying you have no guilt even after terrorizing the academy?”
At my single remark, cracks began to form in Aria’s picture-perfect smile.
She tried to smile awkwardly, failing to control her expression.
“Wh-what are you talking about? I don’t know…….”
“Hm, should I spell it out?”
If she was going to play dumb despite understanding, I’d press harder.
“I’m saying why did you awaken innocent sleeping souls and turn them into sinners.”
“…….”
Aria clamped her mouth shut and stared at me blankly, her eyes losing focus.
I continued my stern reprimand with an unchanging expression.
“A grandmother who just wanted to give candy to her grandchild became a grotesque evil spirit that forced academy students to eat her eyeballs.”
“…….”
“An orphanage director who loved children used twisted methods to protect students and put every girl in the second-floor dorm into a coma.”
“…….”
“A child who loved playing around climbed onto people’s beds at night, begging to play and spreading terror.”
With each word, Aria’s head drooped lower.
“Even if you didn’t know what they’d do, you’re the one who awakened those sleeping souls.”
“Do you have proof?”
Her voice trembled low.
It carried more fear than defiance.
“Proof that I did it?”
She pounded her chest and declared boldly. As she spoke, she gained confidence, nodding vigorously.
“You’re suddenly accusing me—there must be a reason, right? Or are you just stabbing at anyone?”
The Aria I’d seen in the game was pretty clever despite appearances.
Normally, she wouldn’t have left traces.
But now, emotionally rattled, she was oblivious to the major slip-up.
“You can’t suspect a student without evidence, Professor. You scared me.”
She giggled, regaining her composure. She seemed relieved that I wasn’t saying anything more.
“Shut up.”
I clasped my hands behind my back and closed my eyes briefly. It was so noisy my ears were ringing.
“Huh? W-was I too loud?”
I shook my head at Aria, who shrank back nervously.
“No, not your voice.”
It was incomparable to one girl shrieking—a chaotic barrage of voices spread out.
[It’s her!]
[The crazy bitch who came a few months ago and stirred us up!]
[I’ll kill her! Kill her! Kill her!]
[I’ll tear into that tender flesh of yours and devour it!]
The powerless evil spirits still lingering at the academy, trailing behind Aria.
Piercing through their voices, I said flatly.
“The souls screaming that you’re the culprit—they’re too noisy.”
Aria’s expression hardened once more.