Chapter 26
Chapter 26
‘It worked!!’
It was the biggest gamble of my life.
I had tampered with the spell in the Grimoire that shattered an opponent’s mind.
I made it sever the mental connection between the Puppet and its doll.
‘Yes!!! Yes!! I did it!! Hmph, what’s so great about the Puppet?! I, Ban, am the best!’
Of course, the Black Flame Dragon even managed to make this over-the-top celebration of mine sound cool.
“You filthy, vile servant of evil! Hell is the only place you belong!”
…It made me cringe, but so what?
I’d won!
“Young Master Ban!! I knew you could do it!! You truly are destined to become a star of the magical world! What are you all doing? Why aren’t you worshiping Young Master Ban’s greatness?! Oh, come now, Linden?!”
“A-amazing, Professor! H-hurrah! Hurrah! Hurrah!!”
Just as even Hans’s over-the-top fussing and Linden’s awkward triple cheer began to sound endearing—
A sudden change occurred.
[Heh heh, you didn’t think this was really over, did you?]
A shiver ran down my spine.
‘No way?’
I slowly turned my gaze, and a dizzying sight met my eyes.
Clack. Clack. Clack.
The doll that had fallen apart was being reassembled.
I’d failed.
‘…It’s over.’
I felt dizzy with dread.
There was nothing else I could do.
Just as my mind began to go blank, another unexpected turn occurred.
[…….]
The Puppet’s doll didn’t move.
It simply stared at me.
Five seconds, ten seconds, fifteen seconds….
For more than a full minute.
Just as everyone began to look at it in puzzlement, one by one—
[…I suppose I’ll be taking my leave for today.]
“……??”
[Consider yourself lucky. Next time, I won’t let you off so easily.]
Fwaaash!
Amid a swirling rush of darkness, the Puppet’s doll vanished.
I stared blankly at the spot where it had disappeared.
‘Why did it just leave? Did it show me mercy?’
It didn’t seem like that.
If anything—
‘…Wasn’t that line from the Puppet the typical thing a defeated villain says when he runs away?’
I wore an awkward expression.
‘Nah, no way. It couldn’t have run away.’
Anyway, I was alive. That was what mattered.
A message appeared, as if to congratulate me.
-You have ‘repelled’ the Puppet’s doll!
-Your renown has increased!
-The contemptuous gazes directed at you have softened among some people!
As if to prove the message, cheers rang out.
They were people who had barely escaped with their lives.
“Waaah!! Long live Young Master Ban!!”
“We’re alive thanks to you, Young Master Ban!!”
“Young Master Ban? I’m a reporter for Gossip Daily! The Puppet was so impressed by your courage that it left. Could you tell us how you feel?!”
And they weren’t the only ones.
With the Puppet’s Barrier gone, Guard forces poured in from outside.
“Black magicians?!”
“So Young Master Ban’s report was true?!”
“The Puppet of the Abyss appeared?”
“But the Puppet retreated, impressed by Young Master Ban’s courage?!”
“Young Master Ban’s courage moved even the Puppet! How do you feel?!”
And so, amid all the commotion, that day’s incident came to an end.
One unsettling message remained, however.
-You have achieved an incomprehensible miracle!
-Some ‘Transcendents’ have become aware of your existence for the first time!
At that moment.
In a declining city far from the Free City,
there was a shabby attic.
It was filled with dolls.
At the center of that forest of dolls sat a little boy.
He had a cute face, but there was something utterly chilling about his eyes.
His irises were filled with blood-red color, with no whites at all.
Just like the ‘doll’ that had appeared before Ban earlier.
That was right.
This boy was the Puppet himself!
A Black Magician of the Seventh-Star Master rank.
But something was wrong with the boy.
“Ugh!!”
A mouthful of dead blood burst from his lips.
A whole lot of it, too.
He seemed to have suffered a serious internal injury.
“Ban…!! How dare you!! Do that to me!!”
Here was a shocking truth.
The Puppet was in this state because of Ban!
In fact, the Puppet had originally intended to kill Ban.
But Ban’s tampering with the Grimoire had done more than simply sever the connection to the doll. It had dealt a devastating blow to the Puppet’s true body as well, leaving him no choice but to retreat.
Worse still, this wasn’t just an ordinary internal injury.
“Why won’t my Puppet Art work? Gyaaah!!”
The Puppet moved his hand.
But the doll lying on the floor didn’t budge at all.
Whatever Ban had done, the mental connection to the doll wouldn’t reestablish.
The very source of his Puppet Art had been gravely damaged.
In that instant, Ban’s face came to mind.
-You’re a coward.
The gaze had been supremely arrogant.
When he looked at it, it felt as if he himself had become an insect.
“Don’t make me laugh. I’m the Puppet. The great Puppet… Ugh!!”
The Puppet vomited blood again, and his eyes flickered ominously.
“I’ll never let this go, Ban. Never!!”
And so.
In a place where Ban could not see, a dangerous spark began to grow.
The incident that day sent ripples far and wide.
The trading company connected to the Rapalt Ducal House had, in fact, been an organization of Black Magic users.
And even Puppet, infamous throughout the Empire, had made an appearance.
The incident had come right on the heels of Balik becoming a Demon-Contracted Human, and the rumors grew so rampant that people were saying things like:
—Could the Rapalt Ducal House be in league with the Black Magic users?
I clicked my tongue.
‘This is going to be a pain to clean up.’
I was having a hard time of my own, too.
I’d ended up receiving a Commendation from the Guard.
“Let’s give a round of applause to Lord Ban for his great service!”
Clap, clap, clap.
The Guard’s knights applauded.
“Now, please accept this. Here is your Commendation.”
—In recognition of Ban Ecclesia’s service, this award is hereby bestowed.
I frowned deeply to myself.
‘Who needs a Commendation like this?’
I’d said it time and time again: I was becoming a professor so I could quietly enjoy the perks.
But it seemed that, even before I’d become a professor, all I was doing was drawing pointless attention to myself.
‘And the wording on this Commendation is annoying, too.’
At the end of the lines praising my service, it said:
—From this day forward, the Guard declares itself your eternal ally.
What did “ally” mean?
It meant fighting alongside someone against their enemies.
In other words, if the Guard was my ally, that meant I’d have to fight the Guard’s enemies, too.
…Of course, it was just a formality. It had no binding force whatsoever, so that was a forced interpretation—but I just didn’t like any of it.
‘And they barely gave me any reward money. What is five hundred Pena supposed to be?’
While I was voicing my complaints inwardly, a burly-looking man approached me.
“Ban, I can hardly believe how much you’ve changed. It seems like only yesterday I was running around cleaning up after the trouble you caused.”
He was famous.
‘Sir Gordon, the head of the Guard!’
As befitting the head of the Guard in the Free City, the city with the highest crime rate in the Empire, he was a formidable man.
A knight of Gladiator Class and Sixth Sword Rank, no less.
For reference, a mage’s level was expressed in Star Ranks, while a knight’s was expressed using the number of their Sword Rank.
“I look forward to working with you from now on.”
As if I’d look forward to that.
I don’t want to!
I wanted to say that, but I changed my mind.
My business instincts had kicked in.
‘Someone at the level of the head of the Guard could come in handy someday.’
“I should be the one saying that. I know that the peace and safety of this Free City are all thanks to the Guard’s blood, sweat, and toil.”
The head of the Guard looked deeply impressed by my words.
Just like his appearance suggested, he was the sort who was easily moved and quick to warm up to people.
“Ha ha ha! You really have changed. Still, I appreciate you saying that. Let’s get a drink sometime!”
When I left the Guard, an unexpected person was waiting for me.
“…Come talk with me for a bit.”
It was Emily.
We headed to the office of the trading company I’d visited before.
I tilted my head at the sight of the place, which had somehow changed.
The furniture was almost all gone.
“Are you moving?”
“Our trading company went bankrupt. So we have to clear everything out.”
It was an unexpected answer.
I quickly figured out what had happened.
‘The Rapalt Ducal House has cut off its tail.’
Someone had to take responsibility for this incident.
Even if it hadn’t been intentional, they had effectively entrusted debt collection to Black Magic users.
“We won’t just walk away irresponsibly. As a gesture of apology, we’ll forgive the debts of everyone who owes us money. We’ll use the family’s influence to search for the missing, and if we can’t find them, we’ll provide their families with appropriate compensation.”
“…Are you all right?”
At my question, Emily looked at me strangely for a moment.
“…Ban, you really have changed.”
“……”
“Actually, I asked to see you because I wanted to apologize. For everything—from what happened in the past to this incident. I’m sorry.”
“You don’t have to apologize for what happened when we were engaged, do you? I think I was the one who acted immaturely and did wrong.”
“No. This incident made me realize that you’d become twisted because no one recognized your genius. I never even tried to look back and understand you.”
Emily looked straight at me as she spoke.
“I’m truly sorry, and thank you for what you did this time.”
A cold sweat ran down my face.
‘…Did I just set off a flag?’
Emily was an important character in the scenario.
Someone I mustn’t get deeply entangled with.
‘I have to handle this well!’
It was difficult.
I couldn’t get close to her.
But what if I treated her coldly? That would set off a flag in its own way.
After thinking it over, I said:
“There’s no need to worry about it. It’s true that I was in the wrong. More than anything, aren’t we strangers now?”
“…That’s…”
“Don’t misunderstand. I’m not saying this because I have any hard feelings toward you. Quite the opposite. I think we shouldn’t be bound by the relationship we had before, for the sake of both our futures.”
Drawing a boundary without making it unpleasant!
This was the best I could do.
But Emily responded in a way I couldn’t understand.
“Ban, you really…”
“……??”
“You’re being considerate of me because you’re worried that staying close to you might put me in a difficult position with my family, aren’t you?”
No?
I just mean we should literally keep our distance from each other.
Emily let out a sigh.
“Our family’s out for your blood after what happened. In the end, it was because of you that a huge disgrace came to light. Father, in particular, was furious.”
Duke Bolman.
He was a petty man who held a grudge like nobody’s business.
“I’ll try to hold them back as much as I can, but I’ve lost almost all my influence in the family over this, so I won’t be much help.”
I looked troubled.
No, they’re the ones who did something wrong. Why are they blaming me?
It was exactly the kind of thing you’d expect from the most small-minded family in the Empire.
I’ll have to come up with some kind of countermeasure.
A good idea came to me before long.
“Emily, are you going to just give up and stay down?”
“…No, I can’t do that. I’ll make a comeback, no matter what.”
“I’ll help you. Look into the Riehel Mine.”
“That’s the place our family just acquired. Why there? Could it be…?”
Emily’s eyes widened.
During the bidding process for the Riehel Mine, the core members of the Rapalt Ducal House had committed major acts of corruption.
I’ll use Emily to slip poison into the Rapalt Ducal House! That’ll keep them from paying attention to me for a while.
“Ban, you…”
“Don’t misunderstand. We’re strangers now. I’m only telling you this for my own benefit, not for your sake.”
“……”
“If you really want to thank me, then get me one of the things I mentioned.”
“What thing?”
“The Heartstone of the Frozen Sea.”
“!!”
It was an S-rank Elixir.
I need to get stronger.
I’d realized that through this incident.
No matter how much I left the future of the world to the protagonists, I still needed the strength to protect myself.
And that’s not all. I’ll need strength for the entrance exam coming up soon, too.
My plan was to fail the troublesome protagonists and send them off to other academies.
But there was a problem.
When I looked over the list of applicants to the Magic Faculty, there were no fewer than three protagonists.
Two of them are fine.
The first—
Katrinne.
She was the true protagonist I’d met before.
For some reason, she’d gone and applied to Rubiness Academy after all.
That was fine. She was still insignificant, so I could fail her fairly and send her to another academy.
The second—
Joanna.
The most infuriating character.
She was such a nasty protagonist that she’d ranked first on the list of characters I wanted to smack on the head.
But that was fine, too.
Her personality didn’t matter to me.
Joanna’s life is relatively uneventful.
Compared to the other protagonists, who would go through all sorts of major events and disasters, she was a protagonist whose future would be relatively “quiet.”
Exactly the kind I wanted.
I planned to let her pass.
The problem was the last person.
Why did it have to be him?
I swallowed a groan.
Libel.
The second true protagonist of Hero Academy, and an overwhelmingly powerful protagonist.
One day, he would be called “The One” and become a living legend.
The nuclear bomb I needed to avoid most of all had applied to Rubiness Academy.