Chapter 26
Chapter 26
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 26
Chapter Title: What Happened at That Festival (1)
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A commotion had broken out.
Every time I went out, something happened, so maybe I should just hole up in my room.
Enoch called in the student council cadets with such indifference now that I wondered if his emotions had gone numb, and had them clean up the scene.
Arthur had to go in for questioning because he'd been there, dragging his sick body along, and Theodore followed after him on the pretext of repairing his damaged seal.
And once again, I was confined to the infirmary wing!
"I really don't have a single injury."
"All cadets who come into contact with magical beasts must undergo mandatory quarantine, so please understand."
Arguing with the doctor who was just following procedure wouldn't change a thing.
I had no choice but to nod and flop back onto the bed spread-eagled.
-Thud!
The mattress was well-maintained, so not much dust puffed up.
I stared at the dust motes sparkling in the sunlight and let out a sigh.
'Guns are useless against magical beasts, huh.'
If it had been a musket instead of a pistol, things might have been a bit better.
Even so, for it to keep moving after taking two shots at such close range...
It was utterly frustrating.
"Eight rounds left now..."
Bullets could be requisitioned, but the issue was ordering them without going through the family.
Cadets received their essentials through their homes, except in special cases.
If I were some wastrel shooting up the academy for no reason, that'd be one thing, but a son who'd been living normally asking for extra bullets out of the blue wouldn't go over well.
'I don't want to worry them.'
I'd been unfilial enough as a kid.
I didn't want to add any more.
My plan was just to graduate quietly, help with Mother's business without causing trouble, hold out until I could marry some cheerful, healthy spouse and start a big happy family...
Tension easing, I rubbed my dry face to chase away the drowsiness creeping in.
"Alright. Let's go all the way."
Was the magical beast that targeted me today the same one that killed Kael Ace?
Even if it was, it was probably just a discardable pawn.
Otherwise, they wouldn't have sent it charging in with two well-trained magic swordsmen present.
'The evidence is probably gone by now. And making me stick in the student council's minds over and over—is that part of the plan too?'
The student council would move on this incident as usual, no doubt doing their utmost to track down the culprit.
But I didn't think the culprit would be caught so easily.
"Cadet Arma Cruise. Coming in."
Just as I was rolling around on the bed to vent my frustration, Enoch returned from his report.
'So tiresome~ This whole scene is so damn tiresome~!'
An empty infirmary room, Enoch Clarke, white ceiling and white silk wallpaper, checkered tile floor.
The scenery I'd stared at endlessly for a week was back after just half a day!
"Oh, are you hurt?"
But Enoch's arm now had a white bandage I'd never seen before.
As I sat up in bed, he waved me off.
"It's just a scrape, and since it was from a magical beast, it got a bit of holy magic treatment."
"I'm the one quarantined without even being grazed, so a scraped wound counts as seriously injured."
I grabbed his protesting arm, rolled up his sleeve to check the bandage.
Of course, I wasn't dumb enough to unwrap it—just checked if blood was seeping through or if it was badly swollen.
"So, any new developments?"
"No. The beast wasn't registered, and we couldn't identify the tamer. It was a short-term mutation, so we took it down without much trouble."
"Of course."
"......"
I noticed the absinthe-green eyes peeking through Enoch's bangs trembling in confusion.
He'd handled it maturely enough, but this incident had clearly taken a toll on him mentally too.
"Looks like I'm in hot water again. Is this just that kind of year? Guess I need to lay low."
"Ah..."
"Hm?"
"Nothing."
"Doesn't sound like nothing."
Enoch pulled his arm free from my grasp and cleared his throat awkwardly.
"Just... you seem to be taking it more calmly than I expected."
"Ah, I've got no energy left to be shocked anymore. So, how long do I have to stay here?"
"Just tonight. I need quarantining too, so another cadet will come after I leave."
"Enoch Cadet—mind if I drop the formalities? Anyway, you've had a rough time too. Sorry things turned out this way."
Sorry—the most uttered phrase lately.
My half-assed apology skills had improved so much I was liable to mutter one in my sleep.
To shake off the pessimistic thoughts dominating my mind, I decided to keep up a bright front.
Enoch explained that Arthur and Theodore would also be quarantined in the infirmary wing like me, and Theodore would need an extra day for the resealing ritual.
"But about this seal thing."
"Yes."
"Do you have one too, Enoch Cadet?"
At my question, Enoch lifted his hair to show the back of his neck.
"Mine's a tattoo. Special admits who hate jewelry get this procedure instead."
I had no magical aptitude, so to me it just looked like Enoch showing off his nape.
In any case, his seal would change form if he broke his no-magic promise, so it not being visible now was normal.
"Isn't the neck a bit dangerous?"
"It's just on the skin, and mine isn't as potent as a white cadet's seal, so no issue."
"Hmm."
A seal was essentially a mana detection device.
Different from the restraint cuffs the student council had put on me during that murder frame-up.
Restraints blocked mana use; seals just detected it and reported violations.
"If it's like Theodore's seal... is his bracelet different somehow?"
"Yes. Seals scale in strength proportional to the wearer's mana capacity, so for white cadets, that high-powered bracelet breaking is what injured him."
"Made too sturdy, and it backfired."
With zero magical aptitude, I'd never needed to use magic in the academy.
So unlike other cadets, I didn't wear a seal device or get the procedure.
A magic swordsman could swing a sword to defend themselves, but mages had to suppress instincts and stay cautious—must be inconvenient in all sorts of ways.
"No penalties for the cadets involved this time?"
"If you count quarantine as a penalty, then just that."
"Silver lining in the misfortune."
Enoch earnestly replied that he felt no misfortune at all, then bowed his head.
I bowed deeply back, as if returning a toast, and kept waving until Enoch left the room.
What followed was a desperate struggle against boredom.
Having only the intro to sacred studies textbook was a silver lining in the misfortune.
I cracked it open, sleep hit me like a truck, and I passed out.
The next day, near noon.
Cleared with no issues, I finally returned to the dorm and collapsed onto my bed in relief.
I'd slept plenty, but the fatigue wouldn't lift.
I clutched my throbbing head and groaned.
"Next lecture... none. Better this way."
Condition was crap, but if not now, I wouldn't get to think about what came next.
I sat up, pulled out the notebook and pens I'd hidden in the desk drawer behind a panel.
Flipping to the first page, there were the same messy fragments that still looked like ravings from a madman.
Top priority: verify if these fragments were real.
Information was too scarce right now.
Plus, I hadn't gotten them legitimately—using the drug Theodore made for self-hypnosis—so recreating it alone was impossible.
-Theodore, that drug of yours worked like a charm. Make me another?
No way I could say that.
Why had my clumsy hypnosis attempt worked so easily? No clue.
Maybe I had latent hypnotist or medium talents.
Anyway, no desire to stray from a proven method.
So I racked my brain for some way to get Theodore to make another Theodore Special.
But that conundrum resolved itself unexpectedly.
***
"Se-Senior!"
Amethyst-like sparkling purple hair with a white silk ribbon swayed before my eyes.
Shirley, whom I'd dolled up like Aegis from myth, was a mess.
"Arma! Snap out of it!"
In my fading consciousness, Judith and Shirley took turns calling my name, trying to rouse me.
Shirley, heedless of her dress getting ruined, desperately pressed on my abdomen where blood kept gushing out.
"Who... who did this?!"
As my awareness blurred, Judith's cold hand slapped my cheek.
"Arma, the culprit. Who's the culprit?!"
Culprit...
I couldn't remember well.
It felt like a whole chunk of memory had vanished.
I thought Shirley had impressive strength holding my gut.
Then suddenly recalled I had only seven bullets left and asked where they were (-Where's my ammo?), then rambled about whatever popped into my head, like where am I?
Consciousness wouldn't stay under control.
'Ah, so I got shot.'
On reflection, getting framed for murder must've been a fun, unique life event.
Less than three days after taking a rock to the head and getting treated, now my gut was pierced and I was teetering on death's door.
If I could turn back time to the student trial, I'd piggyback Makina on the stand and dance.
"Be-Better... to get tried twice... easier on the mind..."
"Arma! The bastard who did this to you! Who is it?!"
The one who did this to me?
Who knows... My mind was in no state for rational thought anymore.
Hard to believe the blood soaking Shirley's dress hem and overflowing was mine.
'Right, definitely...'
Was it temporary hallucination from blood loss?
The spilling blood gathered back into my abdomen, the bullet wound closed, and time seemed to rewind three seconds before I was shot.
Of course, that was impossible.
It was just the brain's computation at work.
In my blurring vision, I recalled the one who'd aimed the gun at me: 'Arthur Usher.'