Chapter 63
Chapter 63
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 63
Chapter Title: Back to the Academy (3)
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The sharp voice that rang out suddenly made me jump in surprise, and I whipped my head around.
There stood Daisy, glaring at us with a dissatisfied expression.
I had no idea why she was wandering around so late at night, but I accepted her pointing it out and checked my current posture.
“…”
I looked at my posture objectively and fell silent.
It was definitely a position that could lead to misunderstandings.
Better late than never, I hurriedly pulled away from Marley.
In the process of correcting her posture, I'd unconsciously ended up in an embarrassing position.
It wasn't like I had any lewd intentions or anything.
Hmm.
“Ahem.”
Marley seemed to realize how embarrassing that position had been too, her face tinged with a subtle awkwardness.
After glaring at me for a moment, Daisy quickly inserted herself between me and Marley, splitting us apart.
Seeing Daisy on high alert like a cat wary of strangers, I scratched the back of my head.
“Sorry. Yeah, it does look pretty suspicious.”
Knowing full well how much Daisy cherished Marley, I meekly apologized.
At that moment, Marley—who'd been a bit awkwardly quiet—shook her head.
“You don't need to apologize.”
“Huh?”
I'd figured I'd just take a little scolding from Daisy, but out of nowhere, Marley stepped up to defend me.
“You're just helping with my training. It'd be unfair for you to take the blame.”
“..”
I was a little touched.
For the prickly Marley to take my side over Daisy's.
“…”
Daisy also seemed surprised by Marley's reaction, her eyes widening a bit.
Fortunately, she didn't look upset or anything.
Marley lifted my lowered head and faced Daisy squarely.
“And you hug Raden and sleep every week too.”
“Eep…”
“So honestly, I'm not sure if this is even that big a deal.”
Marley's counterattack was devastating!
Daisy's cheeks flushed bright red at her words.
She knew full well that what she did every week to replenish her vital energy was even more embarrassing.
“Um…”
I gauged the mood and minimized my presence.
It felt like butting into their conversation would only backfire on me.
“Anyway, it's way too late. We should head back.”
Realizing the topic was against her, Daisy changed the subject while her cheeks were still red.
At her words, I checked the time.
I'd been so focused on training that I hadn't noticed the hours slipping by.
As a professor, I didn't have a curfew, so it was fine for me, but it was very late for the students Daisy and Marley.
Judging by the hour, Daisy must have come looking because she was worried Marley hadn't returned yet—it was definitely late enough to worry.
Most people in this world would be fast asleep by now.
“Hmm. Let's head back. Training ends here.”
Marley checked the clock too and looked mildly surprised, then nodded and stood beside Daisy.
“Oh, and is the dorm supervisor still up?”
Marley flinched at Daisy's question.
“That person. Not asleep?”
“Yeah, she's up unusually late tonight.”
A look of dismay crossed Marley's face.
Even a hero of her caliber apparently found the dorm supervisor a tough opponent.
Makes sense—people who manage dorms like this are always tough as nails.
“It's fine. I left the window in my room open, so you can climb back in that way.”
Daisy said it casually, like scaling the wall was no big deal.
For superhumans like them, it probably wasn't hard, but if they got caught, they'd be in for a world of trouble.
That's why I offered an alternative.
“Why not just go with me?”
“Huh?”
“I'm a professor, after all. If I tell the supervisor we were training late and ask for a pass, she might let it slide.”
Daisy pondered my suggestion.
“Yeah, our supervisor does go easy on professors, so she might…”
“Well, you two could probably scale the wall no problem, but what if you wake up some sleeping students? That'd be awkward.”
“True.”
In the end, we decided to head back through the front gate with me.
Daisy led the way with a much more relaxed expression, striding confidently into the dorm.
“Hup…”
As we opened the door, we saw the supervisor dozing off in her chair.
She snapped awake at the sound, instinctively putting on a fierce scowl as she shot to her feet.
“Do you know what time it is?!”
She was about to let loose, so I quickly cut her off.
“Haha, good evening, Supervisor.”
“…And who might you be?”
I pulled my professor badge from my pocket.
“I'm Raden Daven, professor in the Swordsmanship Department.”
The supervisor, mid-rage, saw the badge and instantly switched to polite mode.
“A professor? What brings you here…?”
“Actually, I've been personally training these two students in swordsmanship. We ran a bit late.”
“Ah… I see… But why would a professor be training these two…?”
The supervisor gave a slightly suspicious glance.
I hadn't expected that reaction and felt a bit flustered, but thinking about it, it did look shady.
A young male professor training two beautiful female students late at night?
Anyone with a bit of imagination could spin some unseemly tales.
I smiled and dispelled her doubts with an excuse.
“They're aiming for the swordsmanship graduate program.”
“Ah…”
The supervisor immediately understood and gave Daisy and Marley sympathetic looks.
Just like that, I not only got us a pass for tonight but permission for them to return late in the future due to training.
***
After that, academy life proceeded surprisingly smoothly.
The restaurant Laura and Yumi had set up in disguise drew massive crowds every day.
Rainy and Vine adapted seamlessly to their professor roles.
For some reason, the Divine Studies students—who'd always worn benevolent smiles—began exuding a dark, gloomy aura after those two took over.
There was the incident where the Archery Department turned into a jungle overrun with plants due to a sudden craze for growing them.
But no additional raids, no sudden strongest-student tournaments.
No hidden dungeons unearthed, no purging of demon-spy professors.
For a hero party that attracts chaos everywhere, this was a stellar performance.
No arguments.
Those peaceful days continued until finals ended, and the eagerly awaited last day of the semester arrived.
As usual, Raden, Daisy, and Marley met at the training grounds.
With everyone watching tensely, Marley squeezed her eyes shut and began gathering holy power in her hand.
The surrounding air vibrated with her immense holy power, and a golden light sparkled in her tiny palm.
After building it up for a while, the raging holy power suddenly calmed, and Marley snapped her eyes open.
She moved her small lips, chanting her ultimate finisher.
“Heavenly Demon Death Beam!”
KABOOM!
A massive beam of golden holy power mixed with refined mana shot across the training grounds toward the straw dummy.
BOOM!
The dummy—made of special materials and having endured countless wooden swords during training—turned to ash in one hit from her Heavenly Demon Death Beam.
“…”
“…”
Daisy gaped in awe at the insane power.
I was equally shocked by the sheer destructive force.
Only Marley calmly regarded her handiwork as if it were natural.
Looking at the composed Marley, I swallowed hard.
Marley, who'd trained with me every day, had perfectly mastered my Heavenly Demon Death Beam.
Even one Heavenly Demon Death Beam was enough to make the Demon King quake and the Four Heavenly Kings panic.
Two of them? Overkill.
If the Demon God were watching, he'd probably clutch his forehead and collapse, while the Goddess cheered and smacked his empty head.
Talk about power balance breaking—though this world didn't have patches.
Feeling the lingering traces of that immense holy power, I grinned.
Four Heavenly Kings, you're done for! Demon King, you're mine!