Chapter 79
Chapter 79
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter Title: Great Escape - (1)
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Three days had passed since the academic presentation.
Swordsmanship Instructor Chiron had noticed the recent changes in Sophia.
Slash.
The straw dummy was bisected. It was absurd power for a mere wooden sword swing. Truly the makings of a Swordmaster.
But Sophia, who had just sliced through the dummy, seemed to struggle for breath. She thrust her wooden sword into the ground and took deep breaths for a while.
"...Hoo..."
Cold sweat beaded on her forehead, and her eyes shook as if unfocused.
This was clearly not the usual Sophia.
Chiron crossed his arms, deep in thought.
'The Swordmaster qualification exam is right around the corner, so she's probably tense.'
At the recent demonstration, Sophia had realized just how much attention was on her. Nearly every knight order in the kingdom had been eager to recruit her.
For a mere cadet, that kind of pressure must be immense.
'No matter how much of a genius she is, she's still a kid.'
Chiron decided that was the reason.
However...
Crack!
"Arghhh!"
Something felt off.
Beating the Knight Faculty cadets like dogs in the summer heat was the same as always—no big issue.
Throwing murderous glares at the protesting Knight Faculty cadets was classic Sophia. Nothing wrong there.
"Sophia... why aren't you eating? It's a lunchbox. And it even has meat."
"...Not hungry."
But the fact that Sophia hadn't eaten anything so far was a clear problem.
Normally, she'd stuff her face with dog food or scraps as long as they had nutrients. Yet today's Sophia hadn't touched a single meal since training began.
So, today's Sophia was undeniably strange.
As Swordsmanship Instructor Chiron, he had a duty to check on his cadet's condition.
Especially since she was one of Erebos Royal Academy's risk factors—Sophia Aquilova, who could go berserk at any moment.
"Aquilova, your sword carries too many distractions. Is something wrong?"
Sophia shot him a frantic look at Chiron's question.
"Ch-Chiron..."
"...Aquilova, didn't I tell you to call me Instructor as usual?"
"Chiron, I-I have a question."
For once, Sophia's lips trembled as she hesitated. Chiron frowned and nodded.
"What is it? Need advice on swordsmanship? Or about the Swordmaster qualification exam?"
"No, since you're weaker than me, that wouldn't mean anything..."
"..."
It scratched his pride badly, but he held back.
Instead, he kept his arms crossed and waited for her to continue.
Finally, Sophia swallowed dryly and spoke.
"...Do you know... why the chapel's closed?"
"Huh?"
Chiron tilted his head.
It was news to him.
*
Sophia and Elise had learned of the chapel's anomaly that very morning.
As expected, Elise had skipped class, and Sophia had headed to the western garden of Erebos Royal Academy in hopes of scrounging lunch.
But the chapel door, which should have been open, was firmly shut.
A crudely made wooden sign dangled from the doorknob.
[Operations Suspended]
"..."
Elise scowled as she examined the sign's text closely, then turned away.
"...Mutt, this your doing?"
"What? Why would I do that?"
Sophia snapped back sharply.
Their relationship was far from friendly, tension crackling between them.
"..."
"..."
After an eternity of silence, Elise broke it. She spoke cautiously.
"Really... not you, mutt?"
"If anything, wasn't it you, snowflake?"
"..."
"..."
They exchanged glances.
In that brief moment, their interests aligned.
"F-First, let's check out this situation."
"Y-Yeah. Agreed."
Dogs and monkeys joined hands in the face of unprecedented events.
Priest Leo had vanished without a trace.
Overnight, no less.
Dreadful possibilities flooded their minds.
Elise shook her head and said,
"...I'll head to the church first. This is obviously weird..."
"I'll... ask the instructors during morning lessons."
"Okay. Meet back here at lunch."
Elise spun on her heel and bolted toward the church, dignity forgotten in her full sprint.
"That priest isn't actually affiliated with our church branch... so we have no way of knowing where he went."
The senior church priest explained awkwardly.
Of course, Elise had no intention of sympathizing.
"Isn't finding out your job?! Ugh, you idiots!"
"...No need to get so angry..."
The surrounding priests panicked at her outburst. After all, a single word from a Saintess Candidate could cost them their heads.
As Elise growled like she might grab the senior priest's collar, he finally surrendered.
"We'll dispatch personnel to investigate right away."
"Report back today. Or the cathedral we just rebuilt might collapse again."
"Y-Yes, ma'am!"
Elise ground her teeth and stormed off.
'Priest... suddenly?'
Why had Leo left the chapel without a word? If it was just a short absence, his personality would've prompted at least a heads-up.
No, it wasn't about personality.
From what she'd heard, Leo had only been assigned to manage the chapel at the start of last semester.
So, with various circumstances piling up, it wasn't entirely implausible for him to leave abruptly this semester.
But...
'Vanish without a single word? Who does that?'
Elise had relied on Leo so much; she believed he saw her as special too.
It felt like a crack had formed in that belief.
"Ugh..."
Shivering at the chill running down her spine, she headed to Ophelia Hall.
As she trudged down the hall looking exhausted, maid Helena tilted her head.
"Miss, what's wrong? You look pale."
Elise grimaced upon seeing Helena.
"Miss Helena... the priest's gone... just this morning..."
She pleaded with a woeful expression.
Helena frowned in response.
"Miss, that priest stopped by Ophelia Hall early this morning."
"What?!"
Elise jolted upright in shock.
"The priest was here? When? Why?"
"Before breakfast."
Helena explained with a puzzled look.
"...He said he was going out for some air... and took Void with him."
"Void?!"
"Yes. Made breakfast very peaceful and quiet today."
Helena smiled nonchalantly, but Elise's face hardened.
"Took his daughter... and vanished? Without a word?"
An ominous premonition gripped her.
*
Rumble, rumble.
The carriage shook violently on the unpaved road.
"Hoo."
Gazing at the receding Erebos Royal Academy through the window, I let out a lazy yawn.
My luggage was just a small bundle, plus a wide-eyed child resembling Isolde who was now peering excitedly out the window.
Void was thrilled about this trip.
"Finally leaving the Academy."
Of course, not permanently.
No matter how much I flew or crawled, I was still a priest assigned to Erebos.
But with the cathedral's collapse and church management shakeup, oversight on me had loosened—that much was true.
Thanks to that, I'd scored nearly a month off.
It took half-arguing my way into the dean's office, but...
"Well, a whole month's vacation isn't bad."
"Piest!"
"It's not 'piest,' it's Leo."
"Piest!"
"...Do whatever you want."
The reason for bringing Void on this vacation was simple.
I wanted to show her the world.
Whatever the case, for Void—born in Erebos—the Academy was her entire universe. I felt bad watching her cooped up like a caged bird.
As her guardian, I figured it was time to broaden her horizons, so here we were.
It wasn't a hassle anyway. When I offered to take her for a walk, Helena's face lit up with smiles.
"So, where to, sir?"
The coachman's question snapped me from my thoughts.
Our destination was already set.
"To the Libel region, please."
"Oh my. Out to the western outskirts? Long way out."
"It's my hometown."
The place where I'd spent my childhood right after possessing this body.
The region with the orphanage village.
Home, in the vulgar sense.
Vacation or not, I had no money for resorts, so a quick trip home was it.
"Wonder if everyone's okay."
I murmured, watching the Academy fade away.
I didn't think they'd screw things up.
From the academic presentation, the current party was clearly a stronger squad than in the original story. They'd smash Act 4 like cake.
I'd left a note just in case, so nothing to worry about.
*
At lunchtime, Elise and Sophia regrouped at the chapel, pooling their intel.
With no useful info gained, Sophia eventually attempted wall-climbing and found a small note on the attic desk.
"There's a note?"
"Gimme! Quick!"
"O-Okay. I'll read it."
Bowing to Elise's urging, Sophia unfolded the note.
It held just one sentence.
"...Heading far away. Back soon...? Believe in you all...?"
Sophia read it aloud, and Elise's expression darkened.
"...Far away?"
For them, the key part wasn't the promise to return soon, but 'heading far away.'
Especially with that final line about believing in everyone.
"...Ah?"
No matter how you sliced it,
Wasn't this a farewell from someone leaving for good?