I Possessed a Character in an Academy Without a Protagonist – Chapter 143

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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
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“Phew… Damn…”

Inside the rattling carriage, the man pulled a cloth across the entrance and shrugged off his robe, revealing a blood-splattered torso.

He examined himself, a healing potion clutched in his hand.

There wasn’t a single tear in his clothes.

“Huh. I thought I would have at least been grazed.”

He sighed in relief and collapsed onto the carriage floor.

He had encountered his counterparts.

Five of them.

It had been similar to that time he had infiltrated a hotel to assassinate a mage hired by the Empire, only to run into two assassins sent by the Kingdom to eliminate a different mage.

He hadn’t expected to face other assassins again.

“Were they just… unskilled?”

He replayed the fight in his head.

Despite being beastmen, their movements and attacks had been clean and precise.

He had heard that the assassin training program in the South was relatively new.

They must have trained relentlessly.

And yet, he had emerged unscathed.

“Am I… strong?”

Taking on five skilled assassins… It was something he wouldn’t have even dreamt of before.

He used to rely on stealth and subterfuge, sneaking into enemy camps to slit the throats of sleeping knights.

He had become significantly stronger. His mana capacity had increased as well.

Was this… puberty?

“Ah.”

His rapid improvement had coincided with his failure to enter the Imperial University.

The shame of botching an entire mission had driven him to work tirelessly, accepting every request that came his way.

And then Schlus Hainkel had appeared. He couldn’t afford to slack off.

That seemingly harmless mage had toyed with him every time they met…

Schlus Hainkel seemed to grow exponentially stronger with each passing day.

If he wanted to catch up, if he wanted to free his sister from that monster’s clutches, he had to become stronger.

Much stronger.

Perhaps his desperation, his unwavering determination, had been answered by the heavens.

Hertlocker considered the possibility, then—

“No way.”

—dismissed it.

There were no gods. Aegis was a lie. And even if there were gods, they weren’t worthy of worship.

How could an all-powerful, benevolent god exist in a world filled with starvation and poverty?

It didn’t make sense.

“Heh heh… That idiot Schlus.”

He chuckled, remembering the events of the night.

Schlus, who always acted so tough and composed, had cowered in a room, using his friends as shields.

He hadn’t even tried to help them.

What a coward.

“I can’t believe I fought for that idiot.”

A wave of irritation washed over him.

What did Emilia even see in that spineless mage?

He would have to tell Emilia about this.

It would surely disillusion her. She wouldn’t waste any more time pining for that pathetic excuse for a man.

Yes, he had saved Emilia.

This trip hadn’t been a complete waste.

Hertlocker smiled, closing his eyes, a sense of satisfaction warming his chest.

The return trip was uneventful.

It was hard to believe this was a warzone.

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Under a moonless sky, I galloped across the plains, Iris clinging to my back.

“Can the horse even see anything in this darkness?”

“I can see just fine.”

“I’m not talking about you, Schlus. I’m talking about the horse.”

I hadn’t considered that. I could see perfectly well in the darkness, thanks to my mana-enhanced senses, but to the horse, it would be pitch black.

Was it simply following my hand signals, blindly trusting me to guide it through the darkness?

Ah…

That was unexpected. I had thought it disliked me. But it was galloping at full speed, trusting me completely.

It seemed to have more faith in me than I had in it. If I told it to jump off a cliff, it probably would.

Was this… tsundere behavior?

“We’re about to pass through the enemy encampments.”

“Hmm…? And?”

“Hold on tight.”

“Kyah?!”

I expected the enemy to be waiting for us.

They had sent hundreds of soldiers into the Great Forest to eliminate me, and they had failed. They would be desperate to stop me now.

I pushed the horse to its top speed.

“What?”

I was wrong.

We passed right by the enemy encampments, their torches flickering in the darkness, but no one emerged.

We even passed a group of infantry, and they didn’t try to block our path.

They weren’t oblivious to our presence.

I could see the beastmen soldiers staring at us, their eyes wide with fear.

They weren’t ignoring us. They were too afraid to approach.

“It’s Schlus and the Saintess! Open the main gate!”

We reached the Fourth Castle without incident.

The massive gates swung open, and we rode through.

“Schlus, don’t be too surprised when we get inside.”

“Surprised? Why?”

“Just… don’t be surprised. It’s good news, so don’t worry.”

“…?”

Iris’s cryptic words puzzled me.

It was late.

The residents would be asleep.

We would enter quietly, exchange a few words with Pelaine and Kane, then return to the hotel to rest.

“Waaaaaaaaaaagh!!!”

“Schlus! Schlus! Schlus!”

“Hey! Make way! Make way for Schlus and the Saintess!”

Ah…

I hadn’t anticipated this.

All the knights had gathered to greet us. And it wasn’t just the knights.

The residents had come as well.

Despite the late hour, the streets were brightly lit, as if it were midday, and the cheers were deafening.

Pelaine emerged from the crowd and walked beside us.

“Schlus, Saintess Iris! Welcome back! We heard about the successful negotiations and the battle in the Great Forest!”

“Did you leak that to the public?”

“It’s good news! Everyone should share in the joy.”

“….”

So it was her fault. I resisted the urge to smack her on the head.

I was exhausted and wanted to sleep.

Suddenly, I felt a newfound respect for Kane.

He had fought for over forty hours without sleep, and the first thing he had done upon returning was participate in a duel and then preside over a war council.

He might be incompetent, but he was still a superhuman.

“Was everything quiet within the castle walls?”

“We had an incident with about forty enemy spies, but—”

“When? Where? Who was injured? Who died?”

“Schlus, what did I just say?”

I leaned towards Pelaine, raising my voice, and Iris tugged on my sleeve.

She had said it was all good news…

“There were no fatalities. Schultzenburg was injured, but—”

“Injured?!”

“Just listen… She’s made a full recovery, thanks to a high-grade healing potion.”

“I don’t care. Iris, we need to—”

“I know. I need to check for any internal injuries. I’ll go see her now.”

“I’ll escort you to the infirmary.”

Iris took my hand and dismounted, disappearing into the crowd with Pelaine.

As she turned to leave, she winked and mouthed something.

Praying for… something.

I couldn’t quite make it out.

“Schlus Hainkel! An incredible feat!”

“Imperial Knights Commander?”

“I heard you single-handedly defeated two thousand enemies! Magnificent!”

“What…?”

Kane appeared out of nowhere, spouting nonsense. I hadn’t even encountered two thousand enemies.

“I only killed about three hundred. Why are you believing these baseless rumors?”

“Baseless?! We saw it with our own eyes, through the observation spell! Two thousand infantry entered the Great Forest, and only a thousand returned!”

“What…”

I was about to argue, but then I realized… I had personally killed or incapacitated about three hundred enemies. But what about the beastmen who had fled in terror, running deeper into the Great Forest?

They would have likely died of exhaustion or starvation.

Seven hundred missing soldiers wasn’t an unreasonable number.

And they had sent two thousand soldiers into the Great Forest… I hadn’t realized there were so many.

They must have mobilized every available soldier.

“Come on! Wave to the crowd! They’re all here to see you!”

“….”

The cheers were deafening, and I felt a blush creep up my cheeks.

I reluctantly raised my hand and waved. The cheers intensified. My eardrums were about to burst.

“I heard you repelled the spies. Well done.”

“It was nothing. Trie did most of the work.”

“I see…”

I knew Trie was strong, but now I truly understood the extent of her power.

I had had the advantage of surprise, the darkness, and a weaker enemy. It had been more of a slaughter than a fight.

But Trie had faced forty highly skilled assassins, alone, with no element of surprise.

My achievements might seem more impressive, but she had faced a far greater challenge.

“I think I’ll visit the infirmary and then turn in for the night.”

“What are you talking about? You deserve a hero’s welcome!”

“What?”

What was he talking about? Just as I was about to ask—

“Whoa!”

“Men! Our hero has returned! Let’s give him a proper welcome!”

“Yes, sir!”

I was pulled from the horse.

Kane lifted me effortlessly and tossed me into the air.

“Schlus! Hooray! Hooray!”

“Whoa!”

I was being crowd-surfed.

They tossed me nearly three stories high. Or maybe it just felt that way.

I felt dizzy and nauseous, but it wasn’t entirely unpleasant.

I was starting to get used to the cheering, when—

“Oof!”

“Ah…”

I landed on the ground with a thud.

Wait a minute.

My back.

I think I broke my back…

You did that on purpose, didn’t you?

Get Iris, you bastards.

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