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– Ahem, to be honest, I thought it was over the moment your sword got stuck in Berme’s shoulder.

If Berme had relied solely on his regenerative power and hadn’t unleashed that blow that broke his arms, I would have died. I was lucky to have even a moment’s respite before his follow-up strike. Without that, or if he had just kicked me right after, my body would have been shattered.

‘I can’t trust you with my life… I almost died of a heart attack.’

– Silence. The speed of that last attack was beyond what I anticipated. You should be worshiping me for even managing to strike his shoulder.

No matter how it happened, the important thing was that I was still alive. As I tried to calm my trembling insides, I noticed the devils with their lower halves trapped in the swamp of hell struggling to get out.

“Hersel, this stuff is too solid. Can’t you just break it?”

Ricks pleaded with me, causing a smirk to form on my lips. I briefly entertained the delightful idea of leaving them there for the rest of the trial period.

But then, Belman took out a red rod from his pocket.

“No, before that, we should check if the professors are still alive.”

I looked down at Belman with a stern face.

[Belman Tol Gers]

• Blessing

◆ Blessing of the Guardian Scaword

– If protecting something has meaning, then one can say they’ve lived a good life.

He receives double the defense boost when using defensive magic.

Mana recovery speed increases by 1.2 times.

• Trait

> Dexterity

◇ Knowledge Acquisition ◇

Despite having the supposed blessing of ‘Guardian Scaword,’ this fool didn’t help me. He’s an accomplice, too.

I’ll have to put him on the blacklist.

With a wary glance at Belman, I walked over to where the fallen professors were lying.

***

It was already dawn. The night had passed, and the cleanup was nearly complete. The devils were freed by Professor Gomon, who had regained consciousness. The salary-stealing professors, as unfortunate or fortunate as it was, were still alive. We had brought enough antidote to keep them from dying immediately, but severe blood loss was an issue. Ṛ

This is where Belman’s knowledge came into play. He used rare herbs that should have been offered for points in the trial to create medicine. He even sterilized makeshift needles and thread to sew up the severed limbs. His traits, ‘Dexterity’ and ‘Knowledge Acquisition’—which increased his knowledge with every book he read—made this possible.

Of course, it was only a temporary measure given the harsh conditions, and that’s where my own skills shone.

Using the unique authority of my awakened taste sense, a power among the five mana senses, I cast a healing spell.

Belman was strangely astonished by this.

“You awakened your sense of taste before smell? And yet you became a magic swordsman? Is that even possible?”

Well, it was a natural reaction. Only those with the talent for destruction can become magic swordsmen.

I half-closed my eyes and shamelessly replied, “Don’t think that everything written in books is the full extent of knowledge. There’s a whole world out there you don’t know. Don’t be a frog in a well, thinking you know it all.”

I deliberately spoke in a prickly tone to keep some distance. But he just nodded with a look of sudden understanding.

“That’s true… The world is full of things we haven’t yet discovered.”

This reaction. As I suspected, he’s starting to fall under the influence of those Schlaphe types as well.

I tore my gaze away from him and continued casting the healing spell. The surgery was well done, and with the added effectiveness of the herbs, the professors quickly regained their senses.

“Gah!”

“Ugh, my arm…”

It would have been better if they had stayed unconscious. Without anesthetics, the pain from sewing up the severed limbs must have been excruciating. Even so, the thin professor showed his professionalism.

“Ugh, what about Berme? What happened to Berme?”

I replied curtly, “He’s dead.”

“I-I see…”

But Belman couldn’t resist adding an unnecessary detail.

“Hersel beheaded him in an instant.”

The two professors looked at me in shock.

“W-what?”

“Ahem, I expected as much, but to think it ended so quickly…”

Now that I think about it, the spectral incident snowballed to this point. Things got complicated the day I enrolled and ended up visiting Rockefeller, turning the professors’ minds into a field of flowers.

In the end, whether it’s the professors or the students, they’re all dangerous to be around.

Ah, I suddenly want to run away. I wish the academy would just shut down. With so many patients, they could turn the building into a mental asylum.

“Well, anyway, I’m alive. Ugh, can someone help me up?”

The professor, who had tried to get up, slumped back down, so I helped him to his feet.

And then I asked, “By the way, since I took down the Viper, is there any reward?”

“Reward? Well, the Pathfinder headquarters will probably give you a medal. Given that you’re still a student, you shouldn’t expect much in terms of money…”

So, just a medal?

“W-wait! Ouch! Why did you touch the severed part?!”

“My mistake.”

With Belman’s help, I carefully assisted the two professors back to the group. The others were resting, and Professor Gomon was putting the instructors’ heads into a sack. As I approached, Professor Gomon stood up and sighed in relief.

“Phew, you’re all still alive.”

“Yes, thanks to these two students.”

“Ha, I heard about it, Gomon. You got taken down by Berme, too?”

Gomon scratched his head.

“Ha ha, yeah, it was tricky facing two instructors in a row. I almost died, to be honest.”

“But you survived, didn’t you?”

“Yeah, that’s true. Anyway, Hersel Ben Tenest, you’re quite the capable young man.”

The professors seemed unusually excited, their smiles stretching wide.

“Ha ha, those Roaming Band guys are in for it now.”

“Absolutely. They’ll want to hide in a hole when they hear that the Viper was killed by a student.”

“Oh… This might even draw attention from the higher-ups.”

The ‘higher-ups’ that the skinny professor mentioned undoubtedly referred to the Pathfinder Elders, the top echelon. But I doubted they would actually come. Even if Gomon and another professor, with the help of the students, had managed to take down Berme, it wouldn’t have garnered that kind of attention.

I was planning to rest a bit longer.

Plop.

A drop of water hit the ground.

Rumble!

The sky flashed with lightning, and the sound of thunder followed. Then, rain started pouring down.

Professor Gomon turned to the group and spoke.

“Well, this is sudden. It’s starting to rain. We should get going. There might still be traps left, so let’s keep moving. I’ll take the lead, so don’t worry.”

We walked in two lines, getting soaked by the rain. As Professor Gomon had predicted, there were still traps remaining, so we had to stop to dismantle them.

With nothing else to do, I turned my head slightly and made eye contact with Leana. Her lips seemed to curve up into a slight smile. But when she quickly returned to a neutral expression, it was clear she didn’t want me to see her smiling.

It was likely that she was satisfied with having saved the kids, considering her nature.

“Alright, it’s done. Let’s go.”

After Professor Gomon finished dismantling the traps, I resumed walking, taking my gaze off Leana. The path we were on was far from the location of our fortress, so it wasn’t exactly on the way back.

I had decided to join them because I wanted to check the condition of the prisoners with my own eyes and discuss Melin’s situation further.

By the time we reached the Schlaphe camp, all the students were standing with their weapons drawn. Silla stood in the center, glaring at a certain spot with a murderous look in her eyes. The objects of their hostility were four men.

***

“Well, are we late?”

“Arsys, this is all your fault. We got lost because of that fairy’s curse you were hit with.”

It was the voices of Arsys and Aiman from Luon’s group.

As we joined Silla and the others, Professor Gomon asked, “What’s going on here?”

Arsys scoffed.

“Just look at them. Those kids behind them—they’re the enemy, right? So why haven’t they been killed yet? I don’t get it.”

Aiman chimed in as well.

“You say they’re from an enemy group, but are you all going soft? What if we let them live and they come back to kill us later?”

On the surface, their logic seemed valid, but deep down, they were only acting this way for the thrill of it.

They were maniacs, obsessed with killing kids.

Most of the students glared at them, while Professor Gomon coldly said, “The academy will handle that. You should step back.”

It was a slightly surprising sight, and my mouth fell open a bit. Professors usually don’t interfere in student conflicts during practicals.

It was quite unexpected for him to take an interest and speak up in this situation.

Arsys looked at him with wide eyes and asked, “What? Why are you suddenly speaking up now when you’ve been quiet all this time?”

“I’m speaking as a Pathfinder, not as a professor. Those kids behind you are prisoners, right? Then the ones who captured them have the right to decide their fate. But you didn’t catch them, did you? So you have no say in what happens to them.”

If word of this reached Rockefeller, they’d probably get into serious trouble, but that was none of my concern. My focus was solely on Luon, who was staring at me silently.

Step by step, he walked toward me.

“Hersel, I understand that saving those kids was your plan. Is that true?”

I looked into his murky eyes and nodded.

“Yes. I’d advise against any foolish thoughts. Unless you want to die here.”

I deliberately spoke harshly.

Now was the time to sever all ties with him, whether or not he had any goodwill toward me, regardless of the past. Time was running out. The first act boss battle of Frostheart would start soon.

As I drew a clear line, I heard Luon laugh.

“Hahhaha.”

He covered his mouth with his hand and trembled slightly. Even as he looked at me, his eyes were filled with such madness that it made my skin crawl.

Luon had an intensity about him that was terrifying to the point of being unsettling.

“Hoo~”

Luon exhaled and suddenly opened his eyes wide. Then he leaned in close to my ear and began to speak, his words dripping with murderous intent.

“I don’t know what happened to you. But I know what your true nature was. This change in you isn’t something that can be explained by saying a person has changed. It’s enough to make me think you’re not even Hersel anymore. Ah, but none of that really matters, does it?”

Finally, he extended an invitation to the game he was planning.

“Whether you’ve changed on the inside or truly transformed, I know now that you’re an enemy who needs to die. So, things will be interesting. I’ll send you an invitation when the time comes.”

After speaking calmly, he gave me a sinister smile.

“Let’s head back. Arsys, Aiman, Kurel, think of it as savoring the moment. Bread always tastes best when you’re starving.”

Luon turned away abruptly, and the three men, looking bewildered, followed him.

I stood there, watching them until they disappeared completely. Beside me, Limberton spoke up.

“He’s really a creepy bastard. I’ve seen plenty of scumbags, but there’s something different about him… something…”

Indeed, Luon was different from those three, who acted out of pure pleasure. While those thugs hurt others, knowing they would feel pain, Luon felt no such concept or empathy.

He also didn’t derive satisfaction from feeling superior or flaunting his power. I suspected it had something to do with the fundamental difference in his motivations.

I wasn’t sure what that motivation was specifically, but…

“Everyone, be cautious of him.”

I warned the playable characters and supporting characters around me.

The Luon extermination battle was so difficult that multiple protagonists had to risk their lives to defeat him.

***

My business at the Schlaphe camp was done.

After discussing what to do with the remaining kids with Professor Gomon, I made a single suggestion.

“How about sending them all to the Ben Tenest family?”

“What? All of them?”

“Yes, that’s the idea. Actually, our family runs several orphanages.”

Our household’s matron is known as a kind noblewoman, with a well-crafted reputation for being exceptionally good at maintaining appearances. Naturally, this image is supported by countless calculated acts of charity.

It’s not just the orphanages. There’s also a scholarship program that binds talented individuals with shackles, and a free meal service that turns the poor into lazy, obedient cattle.

“Our matron will likely raise these kids to be laborers who will tend to the estate. If they’re offspring of the Roaming Band, they’ll be strong and well-suited for the work.”

“But… that means you’ll be granting them imperial citizenship. Why do you have to phrase it like that…?”

“A slave doesn’t necessarily have the word ‘slave’ written on their forehead. That’s the kind of woman our matron is. She commits evil deeds, but she does so legally.”

That’s the fate that awaits the offspring of the Roaming Band.

Then, on the fourth day, no one moved to score points.

After all, the events of the third day had left everyone exhausted. Besides, the recent losses from gambling, coupled with the burning of their food supplies, had left them starving.

Even though we had salvaged and distributed the food from the Roaming Band’s base, it wasn’t nearly enough to feed all the students and the captured members of the Roaming Band.

With that, the fourth day naturally passed as a day of rest.

On the morning of the fifth day, I woke up with the intention of tackling the task I had postponed.

My plan from the start had been to find the artifact and score full marks in this trial.

“Limberton, Aslay.”

I called out to the sleeping guys, but they showed no sign of waking up, probably because they were exhausted.

With no other choice, I decided to head out alone in search of the artifact.

The wolves and the Roaming Band had been dealt with, so there shouldn’t be any danger.

“I’ll be back soon.”

Leaving them to sleep a bit longer, I opened the gate of the fortress.

But Belman was standing outside.

He had a string of fish tied together in his hand, which he held out to me.

“Take this.”

I looked at him warily. After all, he was already on my mental blacklist.

“What’s this?”

“All I gave you was jerky. I didn’t provide the two days’ worth of food I promised. Take this as compensation. I went all the way to the river to catch them.”

It seemed he had been worried about it, even though I had forgotten.

I accepted the fish, not wanting to outright refuse. Then, a thought crossed my mind, and I asked Belman a question.

“Now that I think about it, you know how to read runes, right?”

The artifact contains runes that even I, a user, don’t understand.

I had always been curious, so this seemed like a good opportunity to learn more.

I wasn’t particularly keen on it, but maybe I should take him along.

If he’s around, I might be able to decipher it before the Empire gets their hands on it.

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