—————————————————————–
Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
—————————————————————–
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
“Schlus Hainkel. Return to your seat.”
“I’ve already submitted the exam artifact.”
“I know. Return to your seat.”
“May I ask why?”
“No.”
“…”
Ludwig was blocking my path. He’d refused to explain why. I had to guess. Perhaps he was allied with those who opposed me.
That seemed plausible.
“What’s happening outside?”
“All the more reason you shouldn’t leave, Schlus Hainkel. Obey my orders.”
“You have no authority over me, Head Professor.”
“If you disobey, I’ll have you expelled.”
“Try it. I dare you.”
“…”
Ludwig was a perfectionist, a strict adherent to rules. And he held himself to the same standards. He wouldn’t abuse his authority to expel a student for no legitimate reason.
“Schlus Hainkel.”
“Yes.”
“You’ll regret this.”
“…”
Iris had cleared a path for me. There was no guarantee I wouldn’t regret it, but it was the best option.
“The great Count seems to have a loose tongue. Stop me if you can.”
“You…!”
I left the building, ignoring Ludwig’s enraged growl. He hadn’t erected a barrier to stop me. He seemed intent on letting me go.
“Oh…”
I’d said “Ludwig” for a reason. I stopped before reaching the main gate. Sergei stood there, a smirk on his face.
He seemed to be simply standing there, but I could hear the whirring of his internal circuits.
“Professor. Step aside.”
“Hmm? Step aside? There’s plenty of room on either side of me.”
Physically, perhaps. But every simulation I ran ended with me being slammed into the ground by Sergei if I tried to pass him.
I shifted my weight, preparing to draw Vafe.
“Let me put this simply. You’ll die if you leave.”
“By whose hand?”
“I can’t tell you that. So please, just stay at the Imperial University. We’ll guarantee your safety.”
“Who’s going to guarantee your safety?”
“What…?”
“If I cut you down, I’ll no longer be under your protection. I propose a rematch.”
“Heh… Ha ha ha ha!”
Sergei’s boisterous laughter stung my pride. I’d been serious. He was stronger than me, but a fight to the death was different from a spar. It would give me a slight edge.
“I forfeit.”
“What?”
“Go ahead. Do what you want. Live or die, it’s your choice.”
“…”
Sergei stepped aside.
He was letting me go this easily? I was suspicious. Was this a trap? Would he suddenly attack and restrain me with mana-suppressing shackles?
I remained on guard as I passed him. But he didn’t attack.
“Oh! This wasn’t my advice, but someone told me to watch the skies!”
“…”
Sergei yelled dramatically.
It must have been classified information.
The skies? I had no idea what he meant, but he’d risked revealing it, so it must be important. I’d keep it in mind.
“Thank you for the advice.”
“…”
I bowed to Sergei and headed towards the main gate.
I needed to assess the situation. I had to find out what was so dangerous that Sergei had personally tried to stop me.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
“I’ve nurtured a tiger cub.”
Sergei sat down on a bench, sighing. No one had ever defied him so openly when he’d tried to stop them.
Even high-ranking nobles would at least flinch. But Schlus Hainkel had practically challenged him. It wasn’t recklessness. Schlus Hainkel wasn’t the type to fight a losing battle.
“It must be chaos out there by now.”
Sergei closed his eyes, imagining the scene outside.
Smoke billowing, blood flowing… Today was the day of the Great Purge, ordered by the Emperor.
The Imperial Police and counterintelligence had incurred the Emperor’s wrath through their repeated failures. They hadn’t even been able to identify all the Kingdom’s spies, and the Imperial University had been attacked twice by the cult.
One of those attacks, if not for Schlus Hainkel, could have destroyed the entire university. The Emperor, convinced that the cult had gained too much influence in the capital, had resorted to drastic measures.
He’d ordered raids on all suspected cult gatherings and individuals, authorizing lethal force if necessary.
The Imperial Police couldn’t carry out such a widespread purge, as it would inevitably involve innocent citizens.
So, at great expense, he’d hired every Crow in the capital. He’d decided to use the Crows’ dirty hands to cleanse the city.
“Haa… This is going to get messy with him involved.”
What would happen when Schlus Hainkel entered the fray?
The Crows’ client was the Emperor.
Schlus Hainkel, a knight directly under the Emperor’s command, outranked even the Imperial Police.
Would he stand idly by as the Crows rounded up and killed “innocent” civilians? Even if he simply tried to stop them, it would be a disaster. And if he fought them… it would be a catastrophe.
It would give the Emperor the perfect excuse to eliminate him.
“Was it so important that you had to leave?”
Schlus wasn’t a fool. Even without an explanation, he should have realized the gravity of the situation when two professors tried to stop him.
Yet, he’d chosen to leave. It wasn’t mere stubbornness. Sergei knew there had to be a reason.
“Good luck.”
Schlus would have to face the consequences of ignoring his warnings.
Sergei had offered him a cryptic piece of advice, without revealing classified information, but he doubted Schlus had understood.
If he hadn’t, he’d be torn to shreds…
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
A cafe in the old district.
Eric pushed himself up, coughing, brushing debris from his clothes. The cafe had been reduced to rubble.
“Damn it…”
His head throbbed. He tried to remember what had happened. He’d cornered one of their agents, whose recent behavior had been suspicious, and had started questioning him.
The agent had begun chanting something strange, his body glowing red. Hertlocker had yelled for everyone to get down.
Eric had instinctively erected a barrier around the agent. Then, an explosion… And then, nothing. He’d woken up amidst the rubble.
“Hertlocker… Hertlocker…!”
Eric stumbled through the debris, pulling out mangled corpses.
‘Were they all killed?!’
Panic set in, and he frantically dug through the rubble, ignoring the broken fingernails and bleeding fingers.
“Director. There won’t be any survivors in there. It was the epicenter of the explosion.”
“Haa… I thought you were dead…”
Eric’s legs gave way in relief.
Hertlocker and Emilia emerged from behind the rubble, unharmed. They must have erected their own barriers.
“So this is the suicide bomb they used at the Imperial University…”
The three of them surveyed the scene and sighed.
Ten agents had been in the cafe for the meeting. Seven were dead. It had been a makeshift barrier, but the explosion had been powerful enough to breach it. If not for Eric’s quick thinking, they would have been killed as well.
“W-We should leave. The Imperial Police will be here any minute—”
BOOM!
Another explosion in the distance, before Emilia could finish her sentence. And another. And another… Explosions rocked the old district, sending plumes of black smoke into the sky.
The three of them stared in disbelief.
“Hertlocker! Didn’t you say there was a Crow summons?!”
“Yes. All Crows in the capital.”
“Oh my god. The Empire has finally lost it.”
“What? What do you mean?”
“They’re purging the city…!”
Eric’s voice trembled.
He’d anticipated this. That the Empire would resort to extreme measures to eliminate the spies, even if it meant destroying the old district.
He’d considered the Crows a likely tool for this purge. And using the Crows would allow the Empire to blame the violence on an unknown client, hiding their own brutality.
“We’ll use Escape Route 3.”
“Yes.”
The explosions were likely Asylum suicide bombs, but the Crows wouldn’t limit their attacks to the cult. They had to escape before the Crows came for them.
They slipped into an alleyway, heading towards the sewers.
Thud!
“Damn it.”
Something landed in front of them, blocking their path. And behind them as well. Black hooded cloaks. Eric instantly recognized them.
Asylum cultists.
He pretended not to know.
“W-Who are you?”
“…”
“Step aside—”
“It’s no use, Director. They’re not here to talk. Draw your weapon.”
“Damn it.”
Hertlocker shoved a dagger into Eric’s hand. The hooded figures drew their swords.
There would be no negotiation. Only combat.
The three of them stood back-to-back, surrounded.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
[Your Text Here]
