Chapter 45: Question (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 45: Question (2)
“…And so, as of today, Cadet Saki Ryozo has been reassigned to our Wolf Class. I expect you all to get along. That is all for announcements. Change and gather at the training grounds within thirty minutes. Dismissed.”
Lee Won-bin left the classroom with an expression that suggested even he found the words he’d just uttered absurd. Immediately, the atmosphere in the room turned as chaotic as a crowded marketplace.
“Is this for real? Saki-sama is in the same class as us?”
“The bald instructor said so. He said she requested the reassignment herself. This is insane.”
The cadets swarmed Saki Ryozo, making a fuss as if they were meeting a world-class celebrity.
It was understandable. Among this year’s cadets—often referred to as the ‘Miracle Generation’—she was ranked fourth overall. With a brilliant mind that had earned her the top spot on the written exams and martial prowess to match, she was the very definition of a refined noble lady gifted in both literary and military arts.
Furthermore, she was the daughter of Saki Kojima, the Archery Saint and one of the Seven Stars heroes. In this world’s setting, Saki Kojima held the title of Archery Saint and served as the Prime Minister of Japan.
Unlike the Sword Emperor, Siegfried von Nibelung, who was notoriously prickly and avoided public exposure, Saki Kojima actively utilized his prestige as a Seven Stars hero to serve as the head of the Japanese executive branch for forty consecutive years.
Since Japan in this world was not a presidential republic—much like Earth—Saki Kojima was essentially a Prime Minister for life. At that point, he might as well be called the King of the nation.
Because he was an outlier who behaved quite differently from the other Seven Stars heroes, his external influence was immense. Public opinion held that his voice in global society carried more weight than the other three combined.
Consequently, Saki Ryozo’s status as Saki Kojima’s daughter was equivalent to that of a national princess.
In a world where actual princesses existed, this might not seem like much, but considering the prestige of Japan as a nation, it was staggering.
For reference, the world of Miracle Blessing M announced the hierarchy of nations much more blatantly than Earth did.
The superpower was, naturally, the United States. Following them, proudly, was South Korea. Though the game developers were often cursed for their ‘K-management,’ I actually quite liked this particular setting.
Germany, Japan, the United Kingdom, and China followed in line, but the world was effectively a duopoly led by the US and Korea.
Of course, while Japan might not match Korea in this world, there was no denying it was the fourth-ranked global power. Saki Ryozo was the daughter of that Japanese sovereign power.
That was why I knew she was the cadet most sought after by others, even within the Star Class, which was composed of the children of the highest nobility.
Of course, her elegant beauty played a significant role in why the male cadets were so desperate to approach her.
“Saki-sama, have you really been reassigned to our class?”
“May we ask the reason?”
“Hey, move! You’re not the only one who wants to ask her something!”
“Saki-sama! What is your type in men?!”
Despite the barrage of questions, Saki Ryozo ignored them, merely smacking her lips indifferently. Her beautiful eyelids blinked languidly, as if refusing to even acknowledge their presence.
“Yawn.”
Suddenly, Saki Ryozo let out a wide yawn and began to walk with quiet steps. Hundreds of pairs of eyes followed her every move.
The reason was obvious. They were watching to see where she would sit, each of them eyeing the seat next to her.
It felt as though a bloodbath would erupt over the neighboring seat once she made her choice. Her every movement was the center of intense focus. And yet…
She kept walking. Her eyes were fixed directly on me.
A spark of intelligence suddenly flickered in Saki’s previously lifeless eyes. I tried my best to ignore her gaze.
Anxiety seeped into my chest. As expected, everyone’s attention shifted to Saki and me in an instant. At this point, I shouldn't even be surprised. Saki, having closed the distance, asked:
“Is this seat taken?”
“……”
Her voice was languid yet intelligent. Her hair, tucked neatly behind her ear, was the color of a clear sky. She gestured with her eyes toward the seat next to me.
It was the seat Chloe always occupied. Though she was currently confined to the infirmary with a cold, it was strictly her spot.
Even if I were to be incredibly generous and accept that Saki Ryozo had suddenly been reassigned to our class…
Since the Sword Emperor, a Seven Stars hero, had taken a position as a joint instructor for the class, the Wolf Class was no longer just an ordinary group.
But Saki sitting right next to me was a different matter entirely. Even if she was a character whose presence in the story faded quickly, she was still one of Leon’s women.
In other words, from my perspective, Saki Ryozo was a massive burden.
It seemed she had developed some interest in me after the incident at the Buffalo Dungeon, but I needed to maintain a proper distance from her.
Besides, our first meeting hadn't exactly been on the best of terms.
“That’s Chloe’s seat.”
“Oh, really?”
Despite her question, Saki Ryozo sat down as if it were the most natural thing in the world. I stared at her, momentarily stunned by her audacity.
“…What are you doing?”
“If she isn't here by the time of the morning briefing, she’s either late or not coming, right? Considering the location of the girls' dormitory, it’s more likely she’s not coming than just being late. Besides, what’s with ‘your seat’ or ‘my seat’? It’s first come, first served.”
I had no retort. Her logic left no openings. If Chloe had seen this, a bloodbath would have undoubtedly ensued. I let out a soft groan.
The murmurs of the other cadets reached my ears. Still, after my duel with the Sword Emperor, they couldn't openly criticize or ignore me anymore.
Even though it had been a duel of the mindscape, invisible to the naked eye, to the students of Joaquin Academy, I was a Special Admission Student of significant standing.
When I glanced around, the cadets cleared their throats and began busily heading off to change.
A few were still looking for a chance to speak to Saki, but they eventually gave up and left, hoping for a better opportunity later.
Once most of the cadets had cleared the room, Saki stared at my face for a moment before rummaging through her things and pulling out two bars of yanggaeng.
“Want one?”
The memory of the sickeningly sweet taste of that red bean jelly seemed to linger in my mouth. I immediately shook my head.
Saki pouted and tucked one bar away. Then, she peeled the wrapper off the remaining one and began to savor it. Her quiet eyes suddenly snapped wide open.
“So good.”
“……”
The more I got to know her, the more her image shattered.
I was dying to ask why she had transferred to the Wolf Class, but the morning training session was imminent.
I let out a short breath and stood up to go change. Regardless of my movements, Saki continued to chew her yanggaeng with a blissful expression.
“Saki, aren't you going to training?”
“I’m an archer. Mental cultivation is more important for me than running around outside. Consuming sugar like this is my own form of training.”
Saki Ryozo emphasized her point by raising an index finger, her face still looking soft and content. I let out a hollow laugh and headed toward the door.
“Oh, and.”
Saki called out in a low voice, stopping me.
“Don’t call me Saki. Call me Ryozo.”
“What?”
“Friends call each other by their given names instead of their surnames, don’t they?”
“Speed Weapon calls you Saki.”
“Well, he’s him. Anyway, work hard at training. I’m going to take a nap.”
Having brushed it off like that, Saki Ryozo’s head nodded a few times before she slumped onto the desk and fell fast asleep.
I stared at her for a moment as she drifted into a peaceful slumber. Then, leaving behind a reflexive chuckle, I made my way to the locker room.
* * *
At that same time, in Cheorwon, Gangwon Province.
In front of the Buffalo Dungeon checkpoint, yellow tape printed with the logo ⌜NO ENTRY - AGENT LINE - UNDER INVESTIGATION⌟ was tangled in a messy perimeter.
In the distance, inside the entrance, agents wearing sunglasses that looked like they belonged in a Western film were interrogating a checkpoint employee seated in a chair.
“—So, what did he say before entering the dungeon?”
“T-That… he said he was worried about the cadets and had to go in and check on them.”
The employee spoke while glancing nervously at the agent’s face, his tension palpable.
One of the agents pushed up his sunglasses and indifferently noted the employee’s words in a notebook.
“Was there anything else unusual?”
“…Well, let’s see. Ah, come to think of it, for some reason, that guy took anti-personnel armaments with him. I didn't think much of it at the time, but he did look a bit pale.”
The checkpoint employee began to recount the situation fluently as the memories returned. The agents’ sunglasses glinted as they recorded his testimony.
It wasn't particularly unusual for someone to die in a dungeon. Entering a dungeon swarming with magical beasts required the resolve to put one’s life on the line in the first place.
Therefore, investigations into fatalities within dungeons were rarely conducted with much scrutiny. However, this case was ambiguous.
Since it was a dungeon filled with magical beasts, the agents deployed were graduates of hero academies.
While they might not have come from the world’s most prestigious Joaquin Academy, those who graduated from the second or third-ranked academies were scouted by the Hero Association under the executive branch.
After all, graduates of Joaquin Academy would never work as civil servants for low pay and a pittance of a pension.
Even in a dungeon where deaths were common, a body usually remained. When a missing person report was filed, agents were sent in to identify and recover the remains.
Shim Du-jun, the lead investigator for the Buffalo Dungeon case, furrowed his brows in suspicion. There were too many unsettling details.
When the investigation team led by Shim Du-jun had entered the dungeon for a preliminary search, every member’s eyes had widened in shock.
Despite being veterans among veterans, they had never seen such a sight. A mountain of flesh and blood made of Buffaloes.
They had heard that cadets from Joaquin Academy had visited, but this was far beyond the capabilities of mere students. According to the employee, those cadets had returned safely, but…
The biggest problem was that the body of the employee who had supposedly gone in out of concern for the cadets was nowhere to be found. It was as if he had never existed.
It wasn't as if he could have crossed the stone gate, either. The stone gate of the Buffalo Dungeon—one of the more popular ones—had never been opened.
Shim Du-jun’s gaze naturally drifted toward the dungeon log. He had already identified the cadets’ names, but there had been no progress.
Joaquin Academy was a place of extraterritoriality. Even agents under the executive branch could not conduct an investigation there without a warrant.
Furthermore, the possibility of superiors issuing a warrant to search a place that was a playground for the children of the high nobility was remote.
“This is driving me crazy.”
As Shim Du-jun muttered bitterly, he saw a woman approaching the checkpoint. Though it was his first time seeing her, her attire allowed him to identify her.
“Hello, Agent Shim Du-jun. I am Instructor Kim, an instructor at Joaquin Academy.”
The woman approached and offered a polite greeting with a bright smile. Caught off guard, Shim Du-jun gave a stiff, awkward nod.
“I’m here because I heard an investigation related to our academy is underway.”
“Ah, yes. A few days ago, after four cadets from Joaquin Academy visited the dungeon, a checkpoint employee vanished without a trace.”
Although the Hero Association and Joaquin Academy were strictly separate organizations, Shim Du-jun found himself explaining the current situation as if possessed.
“Mmm, I see.”
A sharp, thin smile played on Instructor Kim’s lips. Suddenly, Shim Du-jun was struck by a violent sense of wrongness.
How did this woman know his name when they hadn't even introduced themselves? Furthermore, the Association’s investigations were conducted in top secret.
No matter how prestigious Joaquin Academy was, they shouldn't have known. So how did this woman know and arrive at such a perfect time?
As surprise and horror began to mix on Shim Du-jun’s face, Instructor Kim pulled out a lollipop and popped it into her mouth.
“So, the only people who know about the situation here are the employee, Lead Investigator Shim Du-jun, and your team members, right?”
“…!”
Shim Du-jun’s head nodded mechanically. It wasn't of his own volition.
“Hmm, I see. I’m sure the higher-ups who sent you know as well, but that’s none of my business.”
Instructor Kim smiled brightly. Then, her expression suddenly froze, and she snapped her elegant fingers.
“Mmph! Mmph!”
Not only Shim Du-jun, but his team members and the checkpoint employee as well, found their bodies frozen, able only to emit muffled groans as if their mouths had been zipped shut.
Instead of his life flashing before his eyes, Shim Du-jun’s mind raced to guess the identity of Instructor Kim and the mysterious power she wielded. it was his final struggle as an investigator.
The Association defined beings like this woman as Half-Human Half-Demons. But the public had a different derogatory term for them: humans who had made a contract with a demon. The world called them ‘Villains.’
Instructor Kim walked past them toward the dungeon entrance. Without looking back, she snapped her fingers once more.
Whoosh—
A wave of purple embers swept over the men like a tide. Because their mouths were sealed, they couldn't even let out a single scream before they were incinerated in the blink of an eye. A wall of fire consumed his retinas. That was the last scene Shim Du-jun remembered.
A few minutes later, the charred remains of human shapes collapsed one by one. Only then did Instructor Kim turn her head slightly, a crooked smile on her face.
“It’s good to be diligent at work, but you all were far too unobservant.”
With those words, she hummed a tune and entered the dungeon. The jewels on her earrings swayed, emitting an eerie, sinister light.