Chapter 172
Chapter 172
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 172
Chapter Title: God's Grave Goods
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Theodore clamped his mouth shut after that.
We hurried along in heavy silence until we reached my room.
-Creak.
‘Smoke…?!’
The first thing that greeted me upon opening the door was the thick haze filling the room.
I sniffed in surprise, thinking it might be cigarette smoke, but fortunately, it was the scent of incense.
“Wow, our Executor has arrived.”
Izmel, who was half-reclining on the sofa, propped her upper body up just a little as she spoke.
She was the culprit behind the incense smell, holding a tool for extinguishing the flame in one hand without supporting her neck.
When we first met, she had been impeccably polite, but somehow, she seemed to be getting more and more comfortable around here as time went on.
At this rate, she might start speaking informally to me like she does with her aunt, the Tower Lord Maha.
“Is your body feeling a bit better?”
“Better than it looks.”
“Of course it is. Five cadets from the Black Lily Class swarmed you for healing. You probably don’t remember.”
Izmel was wearing a lavish embroidered robe draped like a nightgown, and underneath it, a black sleeveless top with a stand collar.
It struck me as quite bold attire for winter… but considering the black mages of the Magic Tower, that outfit was pretty average.
“Thank you for gathering here in the middle of the night on my account.”
I said as I sat on the sofa opposite her.
“Theodore was acting so cute, so I tagged along.”
As I sat down across from her, Izmel finally sat up properly.
Unlike usual, her loosely braided pink hair hung down over her shoulders without any accessories.
‘I heard she said she was bored and decided to help?’
She didn’t seem to notice my skeptical expression and muttered, “I couldn’t sleep, so I’m a bit tired,” while rubbing the back of her neck.
“What about Cadet Adrian Nell Elman?”
“He said he wanted to check something out? Something about feng shui…”
“Why on earth would he care about that? My mother puts a lot of stock in that kind of thing too…”
“If it works out by chance, things might go smoothly, right? Maybe that’s why.”
Izmel giggled as she replied.
Then she suddenly stood up, opened the window, and came back to sit down.
“But your idea is similar to mine. I was wondering if there might be a problem with the space itself, so I just performed a purification. The smoke-like stuff is just a volatile substance transformed by mana, so don’t worry.”
“Ah, no need to worry. If anything… thank you.”
Nothing had really been resolved, but this alone was a huge comfort.
As Izmel returned with the uniquely shaped incense burner containing the sticks and its lid, someone leaped in through the open window.
“I can’t guess what Cadet Arthur Usher saw that got him so worked up, but this dormitory is surprisingly rundown compared to the others. Ah… hello.”
The one who entered boldly through the window was none other than Adrian Nell Elman, the owner of the modulated voice from behind the mask and the master of evasion.
Remembering the ordeals I’d gone through because of Adrian made my anger flare up for a moment.
‘Though, to be fair, it wasn’t really his fault.’
Ever since the guardian angel started encroaching on me, it seized any trivial opening to erode my mind.
The reason it pulled those stunts mainly during academy events was undoubtedly to elevate its presence when all the cadets’ attention was focused.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you. I’ve been at this academy for over ten years, but this is the first time meeting you in person.”
“I’ve met you before… haha. We can talk about that later.”
“What an odd topic to bring up.”
At my words, Adrian fiddled with the back of his hooded head and sat down next to me.
What was it… a strangely awkward distance.
Theodore hesitated for a moment before sitting next to Izmel, and now the four of us faced each other across the parlor table.
“So, shall we… start with what Cadet Arthur Usher saw that caused all the fuss?”
Adrian’s manner of speaking was quite distinctive.
Polite and weary, perhaps.
It felt like dealing with a civil servant bogged down by overwork.
“Theodore White asked for help, so I came along, but I’m not really sure what’s going on. Can’t Lady Aegis handle it with prayer beforehand?”
“I’m not religious, and I’ve never had any spiritual experiences like that.”
“Ah, right? That makes sense.”
Unlike other cadets, my position at the academy was that of “the one no one knows why she’s here.”
Somehow I’d ended up being called the Executor, but our relationship with Lady Aegis was too distant for prayers to resolve things.
“How do you even do that prayer thing?”
“You call out to Lady Aegis in the sanctuary until you get a response, usually.”
“…Does she answer?”
It might sound outrageously rude to a devout believer, but I was genuinely curious.
Whether priests who use divine power, priest aspirants, or white mages in the broad sense actually hear God’s voice.
And why people like us ordinary folk don’t hear it.
“Those kinds of spiritual experiences usually only happen in very special circumstances. When you desperately yearn for something with your life on the line, or in a moment chosen by the divine.”
“……”
“Miracles without form, passed down only orally, and hard to define as divine responses—spiritual events like that. They often lead to awakenings, but it’s hard to explain exactly what they are.”
Special miracles that happen only to a rare few who yearn desperately.
It was a difficult truth.
I needed Lady Aegis’s help more than anyone, but it meant my desperation hadn’t reached her.
“That’s tough. Let’s stop with the irreverent questions.”
“I don’t mind. I’m a theorist too.”
Adrian’s objective attitude, despite being more devout than anyone, left me confused.
He was reverent, yet utterly irreverent in another way.
I shook my head at Adrian to signal my intent and fell silent.
‘How should I explain this?’
To put it bluntly, I was afraid of each passing day and didn’t want to graduate.
All we knew so far was that our limited time alive ended right there.
At this point, where I didn’t even know if I was doing well or poorly, the guardian angel was becoming more and more human-like.
‘Ah, that’s what I should ask.’
I straightened my posture and spoke.
“Do you know of a religion that uses the hawk symbol?”
“Huh? Religion out of nowhere?”
Izmel, who had been listening with her chin propped up listlessly, slumped even further.
“We’re here to talk about what happened to you, right? The onlookers think you got attacked by Cadet Arthur Usher and bled, but actually, you self-harmed because of a curse. That’s why we’re gathered, isn’t it?”
“It’s all connected.”
“…I don’t get it.”
I crossed my arms and tapped my elbow with my fingers.
It was a tic born of anxiety, but there was nothing to be done.
‘From the moment the guardian angel started possessing me, I began making a name as Aegis’s Executor.’
Which was why, with the guardian angel’s influence over me growing—embodied in Evon—I couldn’t shake the thought that the religion using the hawk symbol was connected to it.
So I had to track down Collette, who was clearly tied to that indigenous faith, and with theologian Adrian right here, this was the perfect opportunity.
“I recently learned that there are multiple groups revering me as the Executor.”
“Yes, and?”
“One of those follower groups had a member go missing recently. At first, I thought she’d just gone into hiding after getting tangled in the academy’s dirty business, but…”
As I continued, Izmel’s expression grew more and more puzzled.
Even I, the person involved, felt that way—what must it be like for Izmel hearing this for the first time?
“She was kidnapped. Along with Dylan, the dorm captain of the Wooden Cross Class.”
“Who?”
“Dylan the cadet.”
The one who reacted to my words was none other than Adrian.
Even with the mask, anyone could see he was visibly flustered and anxious.
‘What’s this…’
Could I trust him and keep going?
Feeling uneasy, I glanced at Theodore.
Theodore didn’t even look my way before opening his mouth.
“What Arma Cruise needs is emotional rest.”
He continued immediately.
“The reason I asked for your help is solely to defend against the intermittent loss of mind and body that Arma Cruise suffers due to the curse. There are no other reasons. What I said earlier was just delirious nonsense.”
“Huh, wha?”
Why throw sand in the rice now that it was done?
While I couldn’t hide my bewilderment, Adrian, who had been gauging our reactions as he listened, cautiously interjected.
“It does seem connected…”
He appeared to be 2 or 3 centimeters taller than me, but with his shoulders hunched, it was hard to gauge his build.
Still hunched, he rummaged inside his cloak, pulled out a writing set, and began scribbling.
〔Hazard Island Indigenous Faith: Salvation Reincarnation Thadesism〕
〔Hawk God That Devours the Martyr’s Heart〕
〔Cult Based on Aegis’s Birth Myth〕
〔Presumed Original Text: Aegis Reborn from the Heart Offered by the Martyr in Aegis’s Birth Myth〕
Then he underlined the last item, “Heart Offered by the Martyr…,” and emphasized it.
“You said you’ve recently been hailed as Aegis’s Executor…”
“……”
Next, Adrian circled the “Hawk God” entry.
“The indigenous god of Hazard Island, Thades, who bears the hawk symbol, has a unique Hazard Island legend of resurrecting the dead Aegis.”
He trailed off there, hesitating to draw a conclusion.
Looking at the notes on the paper Adrian had scribbled, I said,
“The locals who believe in Thades are searching for a martyr, then?”
“…That’s highly likely.”
“Huh? This is turning out bigger than I thought.”
Izmel, who had been half-reclining, straightened up.
I folded the paper on the desk and tucked it into my bosom.
‘If I die as Aegis’s Executor, I become the martyr.’
To some group on Hazard Island, I needed to be the martyr for the creation goddess Aegis.
Then, all those countless misfortunes and miracles that had befallen me were ultimately grave goods prepared for my death.