Chapter 260
Chapter 260
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 260
Chapter Title: The Unveiled Truth (5)
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For the woman who was the headmaster of the Royal Magic Academy ten years ago to become the vice headmaster of a provincial school.
She wasn't the type to lie in front of a special correspondent, so it must be true.
But why? Why would she make a choice that would instantly ruin the career she'd built through a lifetime of success?
What could possibly be at this school?
Alpheas, too, was suspicious.
Though they had recently resolved their old grudges and grown closer, she had been reluctant to take the vice headmaster position until the very end.
“Olina. You…”
“Be quiet for a moment. We can talk about that later.”
When Olina shot him a frustrated look, Alpheas quickly shut his mouth.
Meanwhile, Killain's eyes darted around. A rapid calculation of profit and loss was running through her head.
A trivial misunderstanding had caused this situation. No, could this even be called a misunderstanding?
It was simply Olina's whim.
But if a 2nd Class Archmage was being whimsical, one had no choice but to play along.
Killain hurriedly dropped to her knees and prostrated herself on the floor.
“I'm sorry! I've made a mistake, not knowing my place. I should have informed you beforehand, but I had no idea you felt that way, Miss Olina, and I just…”
There was no other choice but to beg unconditionally.
When she had a rational justification to crush someone, Olina became the most terrifying person in the world.
Hundreds of her former students held leadership positions in various sectors of society. If she so much as uttered a word, not only could Killain be barred from the Teachers' Association, but she could also be permanently exiled from society.
“I will issue a retraction article immediately. Please, give me one last chance! I will handle this situation somehow.”
Olina let out a long sigh.
If it were that simple, she wouldn't have created such an atmosphere in the first place.
The magazine had already spread throughout the world, and it was impossible to collect every copy. Even if she did, she couldn't erase people's memories.
“Issuing a retraction will only make the incident bigger. Don't create unnecessary buzz.”
“Then what should I do?”
Killain lifted her head, tears streaming down her face.
The woman who had walked in with her head held high had, in just ten minutes, reverted to the greenhorn correspondent she was when she first joined the Teachers' Association.
“Run special features for the next two months. Divert attention with sensational articles—corruption in various schools, teachers sexually harassing students, organ trafficking on the front lines of the magical society. I'll give you the sources. Shirone and Dante's names must never appear in the magazine again.”
“Yes, yes, I'll do that.”
“And… apologize to Shirone.”
Still on her knees, Killain turned to look at Shirone.
Shirone's face was an open book of complex emotions.
He was angry, it was true, but seeing Killain fight and then grovel to protect her livelihood also made him feel a sense of pity.
Perhaps it was because she was an adult. The life of an adult, where a single mistake could end everything.
“I'm sorry. I'll do anything I can to compensate, so please, just one more chance…”
Shirone didn't want to hear it.
He wanted to scream that if she was going to act like this, she shouldn't have caused the trouble in the first place, but that too would be pointless.
It was so mortifying to watch an adult fifteen years his senior crawl on her knees and press her forehead to the ground that he could barely look.
“That's enough. Just go. It's already in the past. We can't turn back time. But if you get the chance later, I'd appreciate it if you apologized to my parents.”
“Yes, I'll go see them right away. I'm truly sorry.”
Olina gave a bitter smile.
Most students would be similar, but Shirone was especially straightforward. A cleverer child wouldn't have let Killain off so easily.
‘Then again, he's a child far removed from desires like fame or fortune.’
A characteristic of those who have realized the Immortal Function is their metaphysical way of thinking. They have an extreme lack of thirst for worldly things, pursue ideals, and show a deep interest in worlds beyond imagination.
Regardless of Shirone's disposition, Olina didn't want to cast Killain aside.
Even in a monarchy, the power of the press cannot be ignored, and she was smart.
Besides, she was well-regarded among special correspondents, so it was far more advantageous to keep her by her side than to groom a new one.
“Killain, you are a capable person. Make sure a mistake like this never happens again. Let's have a meal together once this is over.”
“Thank you! I swear, nothing like this will ever happen again!”
“Alright, you may go.”
Killain bowed repeatedly as she backed out of the room.
With that, Alpheas and Shirone had little left to say.
She had chosen the best possible solution for the current situation, and Killain had tasted a hell of her own, which soothed their feelings to some extent.
Olina turned to Shirone and said,
“I'm sorry. It was my oversight. Although, strictly speaking, it was this old man's.”
Alpheas covered his mouth and gave a dry cough, looking embarrassed.
Shirone forced a smile.
This didn't resolve all his feelings, but for him, who had no one else to rely on, the presence of Olina and Alpheas was a sturdy pillar of support.
Alpheas comforted Shirone.
“This too shall pass. The final exams are coming up, so clear your mind and focus on them. Before you know it, everything will be back to normal.”
“Yes, thank you. I'll be on my way.”
Shirone expressed his sincere gratitude and left the headmaster's office.
The main players in this incident were all gone, but a sense of tension still lingered in the office.
Olina closed her eyes, lost in thought. Then, she looked at Alpheas and asked,
“Do you really think so?”
Alpheas didn't answer.
For a moderately serious matter, time is the best medicine. But Shirone's case was different.
What they were thinking about wasn't the issue of Shirone's humble origins or whether he deserved to attend a magic academy.
“We can only wait and see. Perhaps… nothing will happen.”
“I suppose so. But…”
Olina trailed off.
Just as Alpheas said, talking about it now wouldn't change anything. They could only hope that the terrifying bomb hidden within this incident would not surface.
@
The final exams were over.
Last semester, the break started right after the exams, but in the second half of the year, there was one more event on the schedule.
The graduation exam for the senior class.
As it was the academy's biggest festival, observed by all students, the atmosphere on campus was vibrant.
Shirone's final exam result was 6th in Class Four.
First place was Dante, followed by Sabina, Closer, Boyle, and Pandora.
Below Shirone were Iruki and Nade.
Shirone, who had tremendously improved his biggest weakness, theoretical knowledge, over the past year, was satisfied. On the other hand, Iruki and Nade seemed shocked by their poor performance on the written exam and were dazed for a while.
When factoring in the practical exam scores for the overall total, Shirone's rank was an impressive 3rd place.
Dante was 1st overall, followed by Iruki.
In any case, since he had defeated Dante, the overall 1st place student, in the Two Thousand Round, many students narrowly favored Shirone as the top candidate for graduation.
However, his reputation wasn't what it used to be.
Because his background had been revealed, the students who once followed him began to distance themselves, one by one.
Among them were some who openly made disparaging remarks to Shirone.
Shirone's feelings were hurt each time, but he didn't let it show.
Killain kept her promise and published no more articles in *Spirit Magazine*.
According to what he heard from Olina, she had visited his parents and begged on her knees.
Everyone falls into a slump at some point in life, so Shirone thought of this, too, as a passing wind.
And perhaps it might have been.
But the single article about Shirone published in *Spirit Magazine* returned as a massive storm, one that surpassed everyone's expectations.
One day, with fifteen days left until the graduation exam, an incident occurred that shook the magic academy.
Clank! Clank!
A contingent of forty fully armed knights marched through the aristocratic district of Tormia. They were soldiers escorting a single carriage.
The carriage, adorned with a golden crown, was so enormous one could eat, sleep, and relieve oneself inside.
Even the most prominent nobles dared not frown at the procession of armed soldiers occupying the road.
So it was only natural that the guards at the academy's main gate were scared out of their wits.
When the carriage stopped at the main gate, the academy's security system was thrown into chaos.
The head of security came running out of breath, and after reading the document handed to him by the lead knight, he turned paler than before and sprinted to the headmaster's office.
“Headmaster! We have a huge problem!”
The head of security burst into the headmaster's office without waiting for a reply to his knock.
Olina, who disliked people with no manners, scowled.
But seeing the nearly fifty-year-old head of security on the verge of tears, she put her feelings aside.
“What is it?”
“Th-there's… someone here to see you… no, just look at this!”
Instead of explaining with words, the head of security placed the document on her desk.
More curious than tense, Olina picked up the document and read it carefully.
“Haaah…”
Putting the paper down, Olina pressed a hand to her forehead and sighed.
“Wh-what should we do? Should I let them in?”
“Of course you should. How could we possibly turn them away? Guide them this way. I'll go out to greet them as soon as I'm ready.”
“Understood!”
The head of security skipped even a farewell and scurried away.
Olina considered chasing after him to give him a piece of her mind, but she could understand how he felt. He was probably terrified, his mind completely blank.
“So… it's finally happened.”
Olina propped her chin on her hands, her elbows on the desk.
What she had feared had finally come to pass, but she had never imagined it would be someone this important.
‘Then again… they couldn't possibly stay still. Not after seeing that article.’
Could this perhaps be a good thing for Shirone?
Given his personality, he might despise it, but considering his future and his life, it was certainly close to a blessing.
“In any case… I should go out and see.”
Olina quickly changed her clothes and left the headmaster's office.
@
As the house-sized carriage crossed the garden, students stopped in their tracks to watch.
The sheer size of the carriage was surprising, but it was the first time armed soldiers bearing weapons had entered the academy.
“What? What's going on?”
“Did a war break out somewhere? Why are knights coming to the academy?”
Murmurs rippled through the crowd, but the knights paid them no mind and continued on.
Finally, the carriage came to a halt in front of the academy's central building.
The knights kept their hands on the hilts of their swords, ready to draw at the slightest sign of trouble as they surveyed their surroundings.
Students who had heard the rumors gathered one by one. Eventually, a crowd of hundreds surrounded the carriage.
And yet, the carriage remained motionless, as if nailed to the spot.
Having been notified by Olina, Alpheas came out first to greet them.
But even with the appearance of the academy's former headmaster, the knights did not lower their guard.
“Headmaster, what is all this? Did something happen at the academy?”
Alpheas couldn't say anything to his students.
Even after hearing from Olina, he had been half in doubt, but seeing it with his own eyes, the situation was beyond anything he had imagined.
Atop the roof of the crown-adorned carriage stood a lion statue sculpted from gold.
There was only one nation on the continent that used the lion as its symbol.
Alpheas had only just rushed over, so he hadn't heard the full details, but if *they* had come, the reason was obvious.
Shirone.
The mistake Killain had made had ultimately led to this.
‘No, should this be called a crisis? For Shirone, perhaps…’
Just then, the carriage door swung open, and an old man with sharp, piercing eyes stepped out. The knights parted to make way, and he walked forward, his mouth set in a stubborn line.
Age had made his gait unsteady, but the venom in his expression was anything but ordinary.
Leaving the escort of the knights, he scanned the surrounding students, then with a stiff and arrogant expression, he pulled a scroll from his robes.
The scroll, too, was of the highest quality paper, bordered with gold.
“I am Ordos, administrative official of the Kazra Kingdom and envoy acting under the King's command!”