Chapter 21: One of Us Dies (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 21: One of Us Dies (2)
The Principal's office at Joaquin Academy.
"So this is what happened..."
Seong Yu-chang explained the recent turn of events to Ryozo. Even while speaking, he constantly checked his phone. Just in case an emergency report came in saying Parsi Academy had been "erased from the face of the Earth."
He knew how deeply Kang Geomma cared for Joaquin Academy.
And he knew all too well how much the Heavenly Sword despised nobles, which made Seong Yu-chang all the more anxious.
Seong Yu-chang didn't view Parsi Academy favorably either.
However, the nobles were being crushed under the overwhelming presence that was Kang Geomma. And the more they were pressed down, the more they bulged outward at the sides.
The nobles' backlash kept growing, and they demanded a way to vent their discontent.
That was the decisive reason Parsi Academy had been established. Terrified of the Heavenly Sword, the nobles had funneled their children into a different academy.
The Hero Association had served as a bridge between the Heavenly Sword and Parsi Academy.
Ever since Seong Yu-chang became the Association President, the Association had functioned as a mediator.
Regardless.
'The Heavenly Sword understood everything.'
That was why he had accepted the founding of Parsi Academy without a word of complaint.
'If only they hadn't provoked him, there wouldn't have been any problem.'
If only they hadn't...
The problem was that they had gone ahead and done it anyway.
Episode: One of Us Dies
"So the bottom line is that the Heavenly Sword and the Sword Princess went to Parsi Academy to drop a threat?"
That was Principal Ryozo's question as soon as he finished explaining the situation. Seong Yu-chang was momentarily struck speechless.
He had come to borrow her intellect in this unprecedented crisis, but her reaction was lukewarm at best.
"Parsi Academy is on the verge of disappearing from the Earth right now, Principal..."
"It almost was, but didn't you attach the Sword Princess to the Heavenly Sword's side to prevent that?"
Ryozo replied nonchalantly, flipping through a document.
"I-I know the Heavenly Sword usually listens to you and the Sword Princess, but...! His reaction when he left was completely different from usual...! If we leave it like this, it'll be a total disaster, Principal!!"
"Is that really a disaster for us here at Joaquin Academy?"
"Priinciipaaal!"
As Seong Yu-chang cried out in anguish, Ryozo let out a deep sigh. She rested her elbows on a stack of documents and entwined her fingers.
"Association President, you made two mistakes."
"...Two? What mistakes do you mean...?"
"First off, assuming that the Sword Princess would be cooler-headed than the Heavenly Sword was a mistake in itself. My husband—though he might seem reckless on the surface—is the most calm and level-headed person I know."
"...Isn't that a bit biased?"
"Keep listening."
"Yes..."
Ryozo continued.
"Common sense dictates that if he were someone who simply did whatever he pleased, he would have killed off all the demons during the 2nd Human-Demon War and called it a day, right? But he didn't. Because he knew that if he did, humans would just end up fighting among themselves. He spared the demons because he viewed them as a 'necessary evil.' The Heavenly Sword has an exceptionally sharp eye for reading international politics."
It wasn't mere flattery. Though the Heavenly Sword's words and actions could be somewhat extreme, his temperament was far from cruel enough to utterly ruin a faction. Seong Yu-chang fully agreed with that assessment.
"He might look like an active volcano, but the Heavenly Sword is a man who knows when to cool down. The Sword Princess, on the other hand, is the exact opposite. People seem to be deceived by her appearance, but she is the most belligerent person I know. The only one comparable to her would be the Sword Emperor. You know what the Sword Emperor's personality is like, right, Association President?"
"..."
At the mention of the Sword Emperor, dismay washed over Seong Yu-chang's face. Damn it, why didn't I think of that?
"If the Heavenly Sword had gone alone, it would have ended with just one principal dying. But with the Sword Princess joining him, there's a strong chance the scale has blown way out of proportion."
"Isn't a principal dying already a major problem?"
"Compared to an entire institution vanishing, it's a bargain."
He couldn't argue with that.
"You're remarkably calm, Principal. As if you knew this would happen."
"It's less that I knew and more that I deduced it."
Ryozo shrugged. Seong Yu-chang instantly realized she was lying.
Ryozo had anticipated that he would contact the Sword Princess. And that far from acting as a deterrent, the Sword Princess might actually become the trigger for what was to come...
Despite foreseeing all of this, Ryozo hadn't taken a single step to stop it. That meant she had a plan.
Intelligent as Seong Yu-chang considered himself, discerning Ryozo's grand scheme was beyond him.
She was someone who had successfully rebuilt Joaquin Academy in her early twenties, earning a reputation for having a mind deeper and more profound than almost any principal in history.
"...I shall trust that you have everything thought out, Principal..."
Having no other choice, Seong Yu-chang decided to put his faith in Ryozo. She responded with a faint smile.
By the way...
Didn't she say he made two mistakes?
"What was the second mistake?"
"..."
Ryozo paused briefly before speaking.
"Today was my day."
"...Pardon?"
"An odd-numbered day..."
Ryozo repeated the words with a look of quiet resentment.
"It was an odd-numbered day."
Who could have known?
That Ryozo and Abel's daily lives were a continuous, silent war.
* * *
A bloody storm blew through Parsi Academy.
When Abel growled while leveling Nothung at him, the Principal of Parsi ultimately tucked his tail. For the Nibelung family to unsheathe Nothung meant they were accepting a battle.
Parsi Academy had essentially used the Exchange Meeting as a pretext to declare war. Any excuse he tried to make would sound feeble.
Besides, if he tried to wriggle out of it any further, he likely envisioned a future where Parsi Academy was "deleted"—not by Abel, but by me.
"One student from each year. A total of three representatives will be selected and sent to the 'Exchange Meeting.' Detailed terms will be added..."
The Principal of Parsi wrote the pledge, pronouncing each syllable as he went. With the tip of Nothung shimmering near his forehead, his handwriting was an atrocious scribble that looked like crawling earthworms.
"There don't seem to be any particular issues for now."
After Karon reviewed the document several times, the situation was roughly settled. Still, proving that he was a principal in name at least, Mr. Parsi spat out at the end:
"You had better keep the promise written there. The promise that the losing side will disappear. I—no, the students of our Parsi Academy will make sure to crush your arrogant pride."
We didn't treat that threat too harshly. Not only had a legitimate battle been agreed upon, but the phrase 'the students of our Parsi Academy' carried a surprisingly resonant ring.
I was glad he wasn't purely a petty coward. Burning with a competitive spirit only makes breaking them that much sweeter.
Whether Abel or I voiced it out loud, we were undoubtedly thinking the exact same thing.
A hero holding Miracle Blessing M diverged quite a bit from the dictionary definition of a hero.
'Then again, that's just an excuse on my part.'
To tell the truth:
We weren't fully grown adults yet.
We still yearned for a fire to boil within us.
* * *
My original plan was to return straight to Korea and report the situation orally to Ryozo.
But Abel insisted we rest for the day at Castle Sigurd. She claimed it was to recover from travel fatigue...
"It didn't even take two minutes to get here, though?"
Abel exercised her right to remain silent, leaving her defense attorney, Shail, to step up in her place.
"The Heavenly Sword truly possesses not even a rat's dropping worth of tact."
"If you know I lack tact, shouldn't you explain it to me?"
"A woman who explains everything loses her charm."
"...What the..."
I shifted my eyes toward Karon.
He merely shook his head, reminding me that this was Switzerland, a historic neutral nation.
Bound like a criminal, I was escorted to Castle Sigurd, and thus a day passed.
"Mmmmmm!"
As she stepped through the castle gates, Abel stretched lazily.
Basking in the clear sunlight, a fresh radiance glowed across her skin. Perhaps because she had slept at her childhood home for the first time in a while, she looked exceptionally refreshed.
"..."
I was not.
Far from unwinding, I had stayed up all night, accumulating toxins in my body.
Although I had long since maxed out my [Body Rank], meaning I felt no physical exhaustion, my soul felt ten years older after a single night.
"Safe travels, Heavenly Sword, Young Lady."
Shail and Karon saw us off.
I wanted a longer, warmer reunion, but given the circumstances, we had to leave in a hurry. Disappointed, I stared at their faces as if trying to engrave them onto my retinas.
Huh?
For some reason, these two...
Look younger than they did ten years ago?
Even considering that Shail wasn't much different in age from me, the rosy blush on her cheeks looked like a young girl's.
Karon was well past sixty, yet at a glance, one could easily believe he was in his forties. There were no noticeable wrinkles, and dark shoe polish seemed to cover the roots of his hair. Living his whole life in Switzerland with its good air and clear water—did he undergo some kind of rejuvenation?
It was a relief to see them looking healthy, but I couldn't feel entirely at ease.
'I'll have to ask Lycan once he comes back.'
I summoned a bolt of lightning out of the clear blue sky. I had demonstrated it several times before Karon and Shail, but their eyes and mouths always gaped open. The fact that my method of transportation was lightning seemed to deliver a fresh shock every single time.
KABOOM! CRACKLE! ROAAAR!
Seeing their final farewells, we vanished literally like lightning. From Abel's perspective, we returned to Joaquin Academy in the blink of an eye.
Having fully replenished our stamina (Abel alone, that is), we headed to the Principal's office.
Ryozo greeted me with a sullen expression and a somewhat chilly demeanor. Foolishly, only then did I remember that yesterday had been an odd-numbered day.
I whispered in her ear, promising to take full responsibility for the day after tomorrow. Only then did Madam Principal soften her expression. I was slowly being drained to death.
Anyhow.
Hearing the story, Ryozo nodded her head. She then had Choi Seol-ah summon a staff meeting.
Having just caught wind of Parsi Academy's sinister scheme yesterday, the entire faculty assembled in perfect order. The eyes of every attendee burned with fiery rage.
Amidst the thick tension of impending war, Principal Ryozo opened the meeting.
"Yesterday, the Heavenly Sword and the Sword Princess went directly to Parsi Academy and confirmed that it is indeed true they requested an Exchange Meeting with us."
Lee Won-bin gritted his teeth.
"Those rotten bastards!"
"Principal! Give the order! In place of the Heavenly Sword, I will go and flatten Parsi Academy myself!"
His fierce determination made it clear he was ready to strike Parsi Academy the second Ryozo gave the command.
Sitting among them, Choi Seol-ah chimed in with wholehearted enthusiasm. Was she truly this dedicated to Joaquin Academy? Highly doubtful.
She was just desperate not to lose her paycheck. Choi Seol-ah was a money-grubber who would pretend to hesitate before immediately defecting if Parsi Academy offered better terms.
As Ryozo remained silent, the overheated atmosphere in the room gradually cooled down. Seong Yu-chang, who had slipped into his seat at some point, glanced at me before refocusing his gaze on her lips.
"The stage is set."
Ryozo despised long, rambling speeches like those from a high school principal. She got straight to the point with brevity.
"Let us erase Parsi."
Madam Principal declared her will.
"Let us wipe them out—legally."
A brief silence fell. The next moment, as if they had synchronized beforehand, every staff member stomped their feet and stood up.
Snap.
They gave us a sharp, crisp salute without a word. Raw, feral passion coexisted with the intellect of educators.
'Ten years of peace, huh?'
They, too, had held back for a long time.
It was about time they grew eager for a fight.
* * *
Afterwards, in the Principal's office.
The four of us—me, Ryozo, Abel, and Seong Yu-chang—held a separate meeting. A glittering assembly consisting of a Seven Star, the Academy Principal, a giant of nobility, and the Association President.
The major issues had been resolved at the faculty meeting. Now was the time to exchange opinions on the details.
"Since things have come to this..."
Seong Yu-chang spoke with a heavy groan.
"The Association will act as the host for the Exchange Meeting. We will forward the same details to Parsi Academy immediately. Do you agree?"
"Yes."
"Yes."
"Let's do that, Association President."
Unanimous. Wiping his forehead with a handkerchief, Seong Yu-chang continued.
"Then, first, we need to select one representative per grade level, but time is tight before the Exchange Meeting. We will leave that selection to the discretion of each academy."
It was my turn to step up.
"Why drag it out?"
Shifting my gaze away from Seong Yu-chang, I looked at Ryozo. Her face was pale after being harassed by a 'certain faction.'
"For the 1st year representative, Leon. For the 2nd year, Abel."
I intended to purge those pests once and for all while I was at it. I hadn't made a big fuss and stormed out yesterday morning for nothing.
"I'll handle selecting the 3rd year representative."
Time for a little chat, Princess Victoria.