Debt
The reason the Academy fell so easily was entirely the fault of Headmaster Sabina.
If that woman hadn't been so careless with her barriers, none of this would have happened!
"······."
Well… that was only half a joke. Looking at it seriously, this situation was actually quite unfair from the headmaster's perspective.
First of all, her barriers were exceptionally well-made.
Their defensive power went without saying, and their ability to detect anything that passed through them was outstanding.
However, even those versatile barriers had a weakness…
It was that if the intruder's level was low, they could pass through the barrier without any resistance.
It might sound like a fatal flaw, but surprisingly, it didn't cause much trouble.
The only beings Sabina truly guarded against were those who had reached Transcendence.
To her, all other intruders were nothing more than insects.
That was why the barriers she designed were specialized to deal with high-level threats or objects imbued with powerful energy.
The reason Sabina's confidence had remained unshaken through all the minor incidents until now was because she had always successfully blocked Transcendents.
Unfortunately, the recent unpleasant incident had put her in a slightly awkward position, but the Academy's barriers were still fully operational.
Since they were the meticulously crafted barriers Sabina had poured her heart into, under normal circumstances she would have easily caught any intruder no matter how well they hid their presence…
But unfortunately, this time the opponent was simply too good.
The Myers family's heirloom had a long history.
To beings who had reached Transcendence, or objects containing power close to it, history itself was power…
The dagger's abilities, which had existed since its creation, had grown stronger alongside the Myers family's long history.
As a result, the heirloom's authority to "conceal one's presence" had become powerful enough to fool Sabina's barriers, leading to an accident she could never have anticipated.
"Ugh, huu…"
On top of that, the barrier had been shattered not long ago. Sabina had suffered serious damage, and while she was repairing it, she had overexerted herself physically…
With so many misfortunes piling up, she had ultimately fallen into Karl Myers's trap and ended up sealed away.
'…I suppose I'll have to give her some compensation someday…?'
I carefully caught Sabina's falling body.
"Oh? Headmaster? What are you doing here?"
"······?!!!"
Perhaps because of my sudden appearance, I felt a slight tremor from where our bodies touched.
I pretended not to notice and simply lifted her into my arms.
- Clink!
Along with a shattering sound that only I could hear, cracks began to spread across the pitch-black space.
At the same time, the black void that had hidden everything split apart, and the world revealed itself once more.
"Huu, haa… haa…"
Leaning against my chest, Sabina breathed roughly.
She didn't seem fully recovered yet, but if I let her rest like this for a little while, she would be back to normal soon.
Still, those Myers bastards really are vicious…
It's a good thing the seal was sloppy. Who throws someone whose senses have been restricted into a space full of evil energy?
If Sabina hadn't been a Transcendent, she would have relied solely on her mental strength in that lightless space and eventually collapsed on her own.
"Wh-who… are you…?"
Once she had calmed down a bit, she asked me in a trembling voice.
"I'm a student you teach, Headmaster."
I gave a vague answer and immediately set her down.
I still had several things left to do and didn't want to waste any more time.
"W-wait a moment…"
As I tried to leave, Sabina grabbed my collar tightly.
I was about to ignore her and keep walking, but a sudden thought made me stop.
Hmm. It would probably be more gentlemanly to at least sit her down somewhere.
I led her to a nearby park bench.
"Rest here for a while."
Sabina sat down, following my guidance with a dazed expression.
She looked up at me with a face full of questions, but since her vision probably hadn't returned yet, I didn't have to worry about my identity being discovered.
"Tha… nk you."
"No need for thanks, Headmaster. Well then, I'm quite busy, so I'll be going now."
"W-wait! Hold on…!"
When I really started to leave this time, Sabina grabbed my arm again.
There was no real reason to wait for her, but her desperate appearance made me feel a little sorry for her. With no other choice, I stopped once again and listened to what she had to say.
"Your name… what is it…? I'll remember it for sure…"
"······."
…That was a difficult question.
For now, I should give her a vague answer so I wouldn't get caught later.
"You can call me whatever you like."
"…? What do you mean by that…"
"Because my name isn't that important."
When Sabina tried to grab me again, still unsatisfied, I dodged her hand this time and leaped onto the roof of a nearby building.
She was still blind and seemed to be searching for me while seated, but I had no intention of letting myself be caught again.
It was finally time to move.
Recognition.
[Monsters inside the barrier lose their sense of smell.]
Acknowledgment.
[The evil energy inside the barrier does not mix with the world.]
For the students' safety, this should be enough for now.
I'd love to blind the monsters' eyes as well, but since many of them have distorted appearances, messing with their sense of smell is actually better.
Above all, tampering with their vision might put a strain on my own stamina…
And the reason I slightly touched the evil energy was… well, they'd find out soon enough.
For now, I should go find the Saintess first.
* * *
It was a little later than expected, but it didn't change much.
Ever since the third round, Elisha had always handled things well on her own. There was no longer any need to rush and bring Arie into the mix.
In the first round, when Elisha knew nothing, she hadn't gotten close to the center of the incident. So I had led Arie and Hestia, naturally guiding the two of them to resolve it together.
In the second round, when Elisha had begun moving in earnest, Hestia and Elisha had set out first. I had sent Arie separately at the very last moment to wrap things up.
However, starting from the third round, thanks to Elisha's growth in skill, she and Hestia had been able to resolve the incident with plenty of room to spare.
From then on, instead of having Arie join them, I guided her to handle other tasks.
I had judged that until Karl Myers truly entered the Academy, it would be better to have her help the students.
Of course, there was the nuisance named Yulia, so I had to shake her off properly…
But that was an incredibly easy task.
"Hehe, what brings you back here?"
"······."
"Oh dear, it seems the holy relic you took last time wasn't to your liking. Unfortunately…"
"Sabina and Paern aren't coming."
"······."
"Stop wasting time with meaningless stalling."
"Hoo… hoo…"
Arie let out a small laugh, as if trying to hide her flustered emotions.
The method to separate her from Yulia was simple.
I just had to make Arie come to me of her own accord.
If the thief who had stolen the holy relic appeared again, it was obvious she would approach alone out of concern for Yulia's safety.
Well, from Yulia's perspective, Arie's safety as her charge would be the bigger worry…
Arie's face stiffened as she forced a smile.
Her effort to maintain her usual expression was admirable, but she couldn't hide the tension beneath it from my eyes.
It seemed she was still afraid of me.
"…Your acting skills are still the same."
"Pardon?"
"I've told you before, but your acting is actually quite entertaining. Unfortunately, you don't seem to have any talent for hiding your true feelings…"
"······."
For a very brief moment, the corner of Arie's mouth twitched.
She was clearly holding back her anger in silence.
Tsk. Did I tease her too much?
It seemed her pride had been wounded by the fact that someone like me—who had suddenly appeared—had seen through the inner thoughts she had hidden so well even from Yulia, her closest companion.
Did she think she had hidden them quite well?
Well, seeing how well she hid them from others, she probably did have a real talent for acting.
It was only because I already knew she was acting that it seemed sloppy to me…
"…Anyway, it would be best if you didn't tell anyone that I came here."
"Why?"
I didn't answer her stiff question and simply kept my mouth shut, as if telling her to figure it out herself.
It wasn't anything special. It was just that getting too involved with me would obviously invite unnecessary suspicion.
Whether she understood my intention or not, Arie quietly nodded and said,
"Hehe, you must be quite shy."
"······."
"Now that I think about it, my assistant has a similar disposition…"
- KWAANG!!!
At that moment, a massive explosion rang out from far away, accompanied by a blinding pillar of light.
Arie and I turned our heads toward it at the same time.
"That is…"
"It's probably the Hero."
Judging by the thick smell of blood, it seemed Pascal—overcharged with evil energy—was rampaging.
While Hestia and Elisha dealt with him, I planned to take Arie and destroy the magic circles hidden throughout the Academy.
Those circles transmitted the blood shed by people to a central point while also infusing the monsters with evil energy.
To prevent the creatures from becoming even more violent, we had to deal with them in advance.
"Since we still have some time, I'll show you something interesting."
"…?"
While Arie was distracted by the pillar of light, I casually pressed my hand against the ground.
- Crack!
Cracks began to spread across the ground, centered on where my hand touched.
Arie tried to step back, thinking it was dangerous, but she stopped when she saw the small magic circle that appeared.
"Do you know what this is?"
"Hehe…"
"…To put it simply, it's a magic circle that excites monsters. I just pulled out one that was hidden here."
"You said it was hidden… So does that mean someone installed it without the headmaster noticing?"
"That's right. It's probably deeply connected to the monsters that suddenly appeared."
Whether she found it hard to believe or not, Arie simply nodded quietly with a thoughtful expression.
It was understandable. Trust was one thing, but the person telling her this was the thief who had stolen her holy relic…
It was only natural for her to be suspicious.
"Why are you telling me this?"
As expected, her response was icy cold.
Well, I figured this was unavoidable.
My goal was simply to move together with Arie. It wasn't to earn her trust.
Therefore, there was no need to give her the answer she wanted to hear.
"I showed you because you were close by."
If I had to give a reason…
"And don't trust Sabina too much."
"Is this an attempt to drive a wedge between us? Hehe, unfortunately, I already know that the headmaster is a good person."
"To be precise, I'm saying don't trust her abilities too much. To you, this incident may seem like a low-probability accident, but even louder troubles will occur in the future."
"Hehe, is that… a terrorism warning?"
…No, it's not.
"…I'd appreciate it if you thought of it as a warning. If the Academy is truly precious to you, destroy every similar magic circle you see."
"How am I supposed to find ones that even fooled the headmaster's eyes?"
"Hmm, that's true…?"
I pretended to ponder for a moment before casually tossing out,
"Follow me."
"Hehe, and what if I refuse?"
"As payment for taking the holy relic, I'll specially make it so that Sabina owes you a debt."
"…Pardon?"
"It means that once this is over, you'll have the chance to receive compensation from a Transcendent."
In front of Arie, who tilted her head with a confused expression, I quietly smiled.