The Saintess's Gentle Probe
The Academy finally regained a semblance of peace only after the headmaster, having come to his senses as dawn broke, belatedly stepped in to handle the aftermath. For those who had woken in the middle of the night to fight monsters, it had been a long and grueling evening, but for others, it was merely an incident that unfolded while they caught a brief moment of sleep. Well, anyone who could sleep through all that chaos until morning was certainly impressive. Officially, I was just another student who had slept through everything without a clue, and fortunately, that didn't draw any suspicion or separate investigations. The reason was simple: the Saintess, Arie herself, had personally stepped forward to explain the truth of the incident.
The Church held considerable influence even within the Academy, so the words of its leader, the Saintess, carried significant weight. Thanks to her handling of the situation, most students were able to avoid troublesome inquiries. Even those who hadn't grasped the severity of the events began to feel uneasy once they saw the Saintess herself getting involved. Though the Academy buzzed with shocking news from the morning onward, there was one piece of good news as well—the Academy would be entering a period of temporary closure. Since the end of this closure conveniently overlapped with the start of vacation, it was welcome news for students who suddenly found themselves with extra days off. For the professors, however, it was an entirely different story.
Enraged by the professors' incompetent response, the headmaster used this incident as an excuse to summon the entire faculty. If the professors had shown even a little more initiative, the situation wouldn't have escalated this far, but unfortunately, they were experts at dodging responsibility. Sabina had quietly overlooked several recent incidents, but this time she was genuinely furious. It seemed unlikely that anyone would see the professors' faces for a while. Under the pretext of some group mental training, they would probably be locked away on some remote island and beaten senseless by Sabina. It might seem unreasonable, but it was a measure only a Transcendent like her could enforce. And honestly, it was their own fault.
Given the nature of the incident, the Empire would conduct a thorough investigation. The sudden closure was also because imperial investigators were scheduled to arrive and scrutinize every corner of the Academy. The Myers family, identified as the culprits, would soon face intense scrutiny as well. That was the publicly known story. Now, let me share a few details that only I know.
First, the father and son of the Myers family had survived. Originally, both Karl and Pascal were fated to die by Hestia's Holy Sword, but against all odds, they managed to live. Karl, who should have perished on the spot after his defeat, barely clung to life thanks to my intervention, while Pascal, having gained insight from our duel, survived through sheer tenacity until the Saintess arrived. However, officially, only Pascal would be recorded as having survived. Karl had vanished, leaving behind only the faintest traces, so the headmaster and the Empire would conclude that he had attempted an extreme method to achieve Transcendence, only for his body to fail and completely disintegrate. But the reality was different.
The authority I had set up in advance helped prevent Karl's body from disintegrating. Perception. [The demonic energy within the barrier does not mix with the world.] Its original purpose had been to keep demonic energy from deeply seeping into the students' bodies. Though it was a small help, because the mana and demonic energy hadn't mixed, the healers were able to easily extract the demonic energy from the injured students' bodies. Thanks to that, the students weren't suffering from any lingering aftereffects. And that influence had unexpectedly extended to Karl Myers as well. The demonic energy at his core, which should have violently erupted and ravaged his body, instead quietly left him. Even so, Karl's condition was too dire for this alone to save him. There was no way he could survive after recklessly forcing both demonic energy and the Academy's mana into his body in a desperate bid to become a Transcendent.
In truth, the Academy's special mana was... leaking from the magic circle of Ruin slowly forming in the sky even now. Absorbing even a tiny amount might bring unexpected benefits, like curing chronic illnesses or curses, but its very nature was far too dangerous. Absorbing it in large quantities would naturally overwhelm the body. Even if I later extracted the demonic energy and Ruin's mana from his body separately, his already ruined flesh and soul couldn't escape death. The only real hope for Karl's survival was to adapt to Ruin. That was why I sent him to the Tomb, where mana most similar to Ruin's was spread throughout. The Tomb was the most dangerous continent, where countless Transcendents had lost their lives. If he once again overcame the odds and survived there, he would truly return as a Transcendent. It was now up to him. If Pascal's desperate feelings toward Karl hadn't reached me, I wouldn't have even done this much.
He had gained a deeper realization from the 'blue star' I showed him than even the regressor, the hero, the Saintess, or the great pioneer. The four mentioned earlier were already monstrous in their own right, so excluding them, his insight was essentially the most remarkable. What Pascal obtained was the ability to convert his will into power. It sounded grand, but it was a fairly common ability possessed by most Transcendents who could freely wield their will, and occasionally even by exceptionally talented Mortals. So it wasn't particularly special, but the result his will produced was undeniably extraordinary. Pascal had stubbornly survived, and his will had been conveyed to me in the form of 'history.'
[I pray that a miracle happens for my father...]
Despite being a family that had already caused more than its share of presumptuous miracles, it was, in a way, an incredibly shameless wish. Still, I gladly granted it. Pascal's survival thanks to the Saintess had been purely a matter of his own luck, but the path to survival I gave Karl was decided by my judgment. My reason was simple. I pitied both Karl and Pascal, and I wanted to give them a chance as well. Especially Karl—there was one hidden story about him. A twist that neither the Empire, the Myers family, nor even the regressor knew. A story that would have been forgotten forever if he had died as he was, since he never told it to anyone. Karl had cherished his son Pascal more than anyone else. But being unable to be honest, he had never shown it outwardly, and right up until the moment of his death, he hadn't said a single kind word to his son, keeping it hidden to the very end. All to ensure that the arrow wouldn't point toward Pascal.
In front of Elisha and Hestia, Karl had coldly evaluated Pascal, as if he had been using him unilaterally. Only Karl had noticed at the time that Pascal was barely clinging to life, and he had created a path for Pascal to survive in case he himself failed. Until now, Pascal's life had always ended before Arie arrived, making it a meaningless act, but in this cycle, having gained insight, he had fortunately endured and narrowly received Arie's treatment. It was a moving story. A son who wished for his father to live, and a father who wished for his son to live. If either of them had harbored different feelings, the opportunity wouldn't have come to them. But an opportunity was just that—an opportunity. Whether they seized it depended entirely on what they did from now on. As long as the only variable, Elisha, didn't do anything drastic out of unforgiveness.
The news of the Academy's closure prompted students staying in the dormitories to begin packing their belongings. Usually, many students remained at the Academy even during closures or vacations, but since the Empire's investigation was imminent, it was better to vacate the dorms to avoid unnecessary trouble. Students with difficult family circumstances would unfortunately have to stay behind.
"So, does that mean the assistant plans to remain at the Academy as well?"
"Not for that reason, but unless something special comes up, I intend to stay here. Saintess."
"Hehe... When it's just the two of us, you can call me Boss, you know."
That... wasn't it usually the other way around? I had been hoping she might allow me to just use her name, so I nearly made an incredulous face, but then it occurred to me that Arie might actually prefer being called "Boss" over "Saintess." After all, she still hadn't given up on becoming the boss of an evil organization, no matter what anyone said. Noticing her gaze, I resolved to occasionally use the title she wanted, at least when we were alone.
"Understood, Boss."
"That has a very nice ring to it. Hehe..."
Her tastes were certainly unique. Anyway, it had been a while since I'd met Arie in her student capacity. Since I had a feeling why she had come, I decided to apologize first.
"Um, I do feel sorry about it."
"Yes?"
"Pardon?"
"?"
"?"
What? She hadn't come to confront me?
"I've been quite busy lately, so I haven't been able to give you any practical lessons..."
"Hehe, that's fine. Yulia and I have been busy as well, so it couldn't be helped."
Arie answered kindly, as if she truly didn't mind. Judging by her smile, which was a little creepy but seemed genuine, she didn't appear to regret missing the practical lessons at all. Then why had she come? If she had no business, she wouldn't usually move at all, so if she had gone out of her way to visit, it meant she wanted something. Surely she wasn't going to ask me to do organization activities? As expected, this woman's mind was hard to read.
"Then, what brings you here, Boss...?"
"Well, I just... thought that I wanted to see my assistant today. Would that be a bit troublesome to say, coming from the Saintess?"
"I'm the one who's troubled. I'll get stoned for it."
"Hmm..."
Arie stared at me intently before speaking in an incomprehensible tone.
"Looking at you like this, you seem similar, yet not quite..."
"Pardon?"
"Hehe, it's nothing."
Arie looked at me with a slightly dissatisfied expression. Was something bothering her? As I was watching her carefully, wondering if I'd made a mistake in something I'd said, she smiled faintly and asked,
"By the way, are you hurt anywhere? There were quite a few students who came for treatment after being attacked by monsters."
"No, I'm fine. It's embarrassing, but I was asleep until morning, so I didn't even know anything had happened."
"...You were asleep?"
"I tend to sleep quite deeply..."
"It must have been very noisy, though. How curious."
She seemed unconvinced by my words, but I stood my ground. What could she do if she didn't believe me? There was no way for her to confirm it anyway. Seeing my completely unperturbed expression, Arie tilted her head slightly.
"It doesn't seem like a lie."
"How could I lie in front of the Boss?"
"Hehe, well... Let's leave it at that for now."
Arie wore a meaningful smile. In that moment, I realized why she had come to see me. Was I... being interrogated right now?