Chapter 125
Chapter 125
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 125
Chapter Title: A Long Day
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We left the Chancellor's office as we were and headed toward the central area, where the library, chapel, and such were located, to return to our respective dormitories.
Makina had been silent the whole time, but when we reached the fountain garden, she suddenly turned around.
"Why?"
"..."
Of course, Makina had noticed that I was trying to sabotage her.
There was no sign of anger, but her attitude seemed more impatient than usual.
I debated pretending I hadn't heard properly but eventually opened my mouth.
"Because I knew the Student Council President's original goal."
"My original goal?"
"[Graduating as many problem students as possible]. Wasn't that your goal?"
It couldn't be anything else. No, it had to be that. These were words I'd heard directly from her own mouth.
It was her excuse for turning a blind eye to the fact that I was being ostracized by the other cadets.
"Even so, couldn't you just overlook this situation?"
The words omitted a lot, but since I'd vaguely guessed Makina's original goal from the start, I understood.
"Even if you'd argued it out properly according to the circumstances and procedures, Sir Reynolds and the staff wouldn't have changed their attitudes. It would have just led to another punishment for you."
Everything had always been like that.
Once something started, it never got undone, and it only seemed to head in worse directions.
If she caught on to my despondency and anxiety sinking in so habitually, trust in me as a person would hit rock bottom.
Even so, at least for now, there might still be something I could do.
'At least while the guardian angel is keeping me in check...'
I wasn't someone who gave her particular exaltation, nor did I have a delectable soul.
If anything, I'd been a hollow shell of a person, exhausted for quite some time.
If I had one trait superior to others, it was endurance. I was confident in that.
Anyway, I hadn't been selected as humanity's representative for such reasons, so it was still hard to discern the guardian angel's true intentions.
That's why, all the more, I wanted to be cautious while the key was still in my hands.
"Senior Arma Cruise is right. Sir Reynolds... kept preparing 'signals' the whole time. But..."
Then, an unexpected ally stepped forward.
It was Arthur Usher, who had remained silent until now.
"Sir Reynolds and the staff were keeping us under unusually tight scrutiny. It even felt like they were on guard against the possibility of us using magic."
"What does that mean?"
As the conversation seemed like it would drag on, Judith pushed my wheelchair slowly toward the main building of the Wooden Cross Class.
Judging by the direction, it looked like we were heading to the reception room attached to the library.
There wouldn't be many cadets using the library on a day like today anyway.
A short while later, as expected, we settled into the empty reception room and turned away all approaching staff.
Once Arthur confirmed the area was clear, he spoke up.
"I was constantly watching Sir Reynolds's hands. Because I noticed a specific pattern when he called the armed staff."
So that's why he was so quiet—he'd been observing Reynolds's actions throughout our conversation.
A pattern when calling staff? I hadn't noticed anything like that.
I figured it wouldn't hurt to know if Sir Reynolds had such a pattern, so I prompted Arthur again.
"What kind of pattern?"
"Sir Reynolds would snap his fingers while in a state ready to cast magic at any moment, with his seals formed. That way, an observer couldn't tell if he was about to use magic or call staff. But if you watch whether the contact points for circulating mana touch or not the moment the seals form, you can tell."
"That's beyond me."
The moment words like 'mana' entered the explanation, I gave up on understanding right away.
Since I didn't ask more, Arthur assumed I'd grasped it perfectly and continued.
"Academy cadets deserve protection as students, but there's one exception. And the Student Council President knows that best."
"Rebellion using mana."
"That's when Sir Reynolds gains the authority for summary judgment over us."
Right, there was definitely such a provision in the academy rules.
Rebelling in the first place was something a soldier shouldn't do, but we had the advantage—or lack thereof—of being cadets commissioned before becoming full soldiers.
"For some reason, it felt like Sir Reynolds was continuously provoking the Student Council President. By touching on the one area where she refuses to compromise."
If there was one thing Makina consistently wouldn't compromise on, it was guaranteeing the safety of as many cadets as possible.
With even Arthur stepping up to say so, Makina let out a short sigh and nodded.
"You're right that my actions were with a confrontation against Sir Reynolds in mind. If not today, it would have been hard to counter properly."
"No, in my opinion... this has been in preparation for a very long time."
Makina didn't even twitch at my words.
'As expected, she saw it coming.'
I'd realized this incident had been planned long ago because of the unease I'd felt toward the staff all along.
The staff moved so stealthily against cadets that their presence went unnoticed, showed no signs of fatigue despite grueling labor, and as revealed today, their weapon handling was no amateur work.
"I didn't notice, but apparently one of the staff at today's graduation ceremony is a skilled magic swordsman. What kind of coincidence is that?"
Makina, like me, had already somewhat anticipated this situation, so she didn't need a long explanation.
But I didn't voice the part that concerned me most.
'The staff are accustomed to seeing cadets' corpses.'
Why was that?
Aegis Academy had a very long curriculum, enrolling at age 10 and graduating at 25, essentially investing most of one's childhood and adolescence.
Not all students graduate normally over this long period.
With nearly a thousand students living there, it's natural that some die from illness or accidents.
But is it plausible that the staff became adept at handling corpses just from those rare cases?
'It's an absurd assumption, but if the academy... is closer to death than I thought... then we...'
I didn't know what sparked the 'cadet rebellion' Theodore mentioned, but cadets who were relative novices couldn't easily triumph over an armed force accustomed to death.
I didn't say it aloud simply because I didn't truly trust Makina.
"Understood. In any case, I won't be able to act as Student Council President until the spring semester starts, so yes, I was planning to force it through with stubbornness today."
Makina admitted her mistake more readily than expected.
Probably because she wasn't wearing the heavy mantle of Student Council President right now.
"This is the first graduation ceremony that's been such a mess. I hope next year is different."
With that, Makina, seeming frustrated, removed her epaulet, hung it on her arm, nodded in farewell, and left.
Our conversation ended there.
Arthur headed to the Thorn Crown House with a thoughtful expression again.
"Then shall we go too?"
After going through something so absurd, the day felt unusually long.
But now we were finally alone.
I had no choice but to add one more worry to Judith, who was already tired.
"Judith. It seems the group following me—no, the 'Executors'—has expanded to civilians too."
"...Haa."
Judith let out a sigh laced with complicated emotions, then slowly stopped the wheelchair.
"Is that why you requested discharge? Is someone threatening you in the infirmary?"
"It's the opposite. Lately, I've been feeling an indescribable tension. Like the trust they've built up on their side could collapse any moment and backlash would hit."
"Yeah, that makes sense. In that case, the failed talk with Sir Reynolds this time might make things even more of a headache."
"I don't think it'll be that bad."
It would be a bit annoying to pry into, but I could just gloss over it.
My body was healing smoothly, and once I regained some mobility, leaving the infirmary would be no big deal.
What worried me was how unstable the cadets' emotional state felt, to the point of being almost fanatical.
"It's strange—I didn't realize it before, but the cadets' condition seems incredibly unstable."
"You're right about that."
Judith started pushing the wheelchair slowly again.
The infirmary was just ahead.
I'd been confined to the intensive care room due to mobility issues, and once back in my room, I wouldn't see Judith for a while.
Judith seemed to keep pondering something, slowing her steps, then finally made up her mind and spoke.
"I was debating whether to tell you in this situation."
"...Debating?"
"Theodore's in trouble."
"Wait, what?"
I grabbed the wheel to stop the wheelchair, and Judith yelped 'Oops' as she hurriedly pried my hand off.
I twisted my waist to meet Judith's eyes directly.
"Trouble? Is he spouting nonsense?"
"No, it's not Theodore himself. It's his surroundings."
Judith frowned, seeming conflicted again, then slowly met my eyes.
Surprisingly, it was effective in calming me down.
I settled back comfortably, turning my head slowly, and Judith spoke while standing in front of me.
"For some reason... he's become quite isolated in the Thorn Crown House."
Theodore and Arthur were famous.
Not just for black magic and swordsmanship respectively, but also for being isolated far from other cadets.
But that wasn't the isolation Judith meant, which had always existed.
"You mean he's being ostracized?"
I'd somewhat picked up on it from Judith's unusually reticent attitude.
"But who? How? And why target Theodore of all people?"
The puzzling part was that Theodore was no pushover who could be messed with.
"Would Theodore just sit still if he were being ostracized?"
Even if despised in his family, the White family's influence, and Theodore's own power...
No sane person would foolishly target him just to bully someone.
"That's the problem. Theodore isn't fighting back."
"..."
Her words left me speechless.
This was another unexpected twist in an already complicated situation.