I Possessed a Character in an Academy Without a Protagonist – Chapter 7

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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
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‘Hmm……?’

Madam Lichtenburg tilted her head after finishing a simple errand and returning home.

Erica, who had left not long ago, was back and sitting in the living room.

The sight of her silently sitting and eating cookies, with her back of the head trembling, made Madam Lichtenburg want to laugh because it looked cute.

It was Erica’s habit to indulge in sweets when she was angry.

Since she seemed to have not noticed Madam Lichtenburg’s return yet, she decided to admire Erica’s back a little longer with a smile.

‘He’s crazy. He’s crazy. He’s crazy!’

Erica shook with anger as she constantly stuffed cookies into her mouth.

No matter how she thought about it, it was embarrassing.

She felt like she would die of embarrassment.

I bowed my head to a mere commoner.

And then I suddenly apologized, even using honorifics.

Although it was because she was startled after seeing blood, it was something her pride could not tolerate.

However, her misunderstanding was not entirely groundless.

Who would think someone standing upright in a neat school uniform with a sturdy body, directly staring at a noble, was a commoner?

From the way he suddenly spoke casually to a noble he was meeting for the first time, he already seemed far from a commoner.

‘But what happened……’

As she consumed sugar and her excitement subsided, a new question arose.

The pool of blood inside that warehouse.

And Schlus Hainkel looking exhausted as if he had stayed up for 3 nights.

Just what had happened?

There were no visible external injuries.

So it couldn’t be due to an injury.

“Hemoptysis……?”

What other way was there to spit out blood without external injuries?

Erica couldn’t think of anything other than hemoptysis.

Could he be suffering from an incurable disease?

“Huh?”

Incurable disease.

And an abnormal entrance exam score for a commoner.

As these two connected, Erica let out an exclamation.

She had heard a similar story before.

Someone who had no talent suddenly awakened to magic at a late age, displayed tremendous abilities, and then died suddenly within a few years……

She heard he had sold his lifespan to a demon. In exchange for his lifespan, he gained magical talent.

What if Schlus Hainkel was the same?

“That crazy bastard……”

Then it would explain the hemoptysis, his exhausted appearance, and how a mere commoner took the top spot.

The suspicion that started from a small amount of evidence soon became a conviction within Erica.

‘Hmm……?’

And Madam Lichtenburg, who had been quietly observing from behind, displayed a subtle smile.

Hemoptysis. And crazy bastard……?

Seeing Erica muttering incomprehensible things to herself, Madam Lichtenburg’s worries only deepened.

***

Alright.

Schlus Hainkel.

Now I know this guy is the ultimate sunfish among sunfish.

I’ve also accepted the fact that I have to maintain the top spot at the Imperial Academy for the entire first semester with this body, although it makes me a bit dizzy.

What’s done is done.

Well, if I combine my knowledge and abilities as an author, I should be able to manage somehow.

…… Or not.

“But Ms. Mary……”

“Yes?”

I’m eating a meal right now.

No, the term ‘meal’ is too modest.

Right. I’m having a feast.

A feast that rivals a royal banquet.

“Didn’t you say you only do cleaning? Why the meal……”

But the problem is that the one who made this is not me, but Ms. Mary.

She clearly said she was just a caretaker.

It was also her who told me to find an attendant myself if I wanted to assign miscellaneous tasks.

“You’ve become so frail, but you’re not even being hospitalized. How could I not feed you? As a mother with a son, I couldn’t help myself.”

“Ah…… I’m sorry for worrying you.”

“If you’re sorry, then eat.”

“Thank you. I’ll eat well.”

Is this a mother’s heart?

Even in this world filled with conspiracies and schemes, there was someone with such a warm heart.

I don’t remember creating such a character.

Ah. That’s because she’s not a character I made. I get it now.

“My contract period ends today. The school will probably arrange for you to select an attendant the day after the entrance ceremony. I’ll leave some food before I go, so make sure to eat well until then.”

“Thank you so much.”

I can’t thank Ms. Mary enough.

Not only did she save my life, but she’s also being so kind to me.

“Then I’ll get going.”

“Yes. Take care, Ms. Mary. If you ever have any difficulties, please contact me.”

“You want me to ask a student for help?”

“Because you’re my savior. If there’s any way I can help, I’ll do my best.”

“Even your words are enough.”

“……”

It’s not just lip service.

Ms. Mary gathered her modest belongings and left the mansion like that.

Considering she’s a character I didn’t create, she’ll probably live quietly and die quietly without interfering with the main story.

I’ll probably never see her again. Unless I seek her out.

I have a really strange feeling.

Perhaps I felt more attached to her because she was the first character I met in this novel world who I didn’t know about.

While the others gave off a strong impression of being fictional characters, Ms. Mary felt like a real ‘person’.

“It’s strange.”

By the way, I kept feeling something was off.

There are definitely parts in this world that I didn’t describe.

For example, the pedestrians walking on the streets.

Or the numerous staff members working at the Imperial Academy.

But just because I didn’t describe them doesn’t mean absurd things like dragons wandering above the academy would appear.

It would ruin the plausibility after all.

Ms. Mary is definitely not a character I created.

Even though my memory is a bit hazy, I can recall the names of even the extras, so that much is certain.

If she was a character I didn’t describe, there was no need to add her as the former caretaker of the single dormitory room.

It would have been sufficient to have a setting where the single dormitory room was neglected until an attendant was hired.

Which means Ms. Mary wasn’t just an arbitrarily added character.

She was added for a reason. To avoid creating a flaw in the plausibility.

And the clue to that is definitely in the novel I wrote.

Even though she’s a character I didn’t describe, there must have been a passage that at least alluded to her in the text I wrote.

As my thoughts reached that point……

“Oh fuck.”

A curse slipped out as my brows furrowed.

Mary Ayle. The ‘former’ caretaker of the single dormitory room.

Now that I think I know who she is, I dashed out of the mansion while spewing curses.

I had no specific destination in mind.

Somewhere Ms. Mary might have gone.

Believing she probably headed towards the residential area, I simply ran towards the nearest alley.

“Fuck, fuck, fuck.”

In the very beginning of the novel. I had written a very brief description.

The Kingdom’s Intelligence Agency had one collaborator among the Imperial Academy staff.

But as soon as his contract period ended and he left the Imperial Academy, his value disappeared.

He had become a bomb with no value but only the risk of exposing the Intelligence Agency’s activities.

In the end, the Intelligence Agency assassinated him.

If my guess is correct, ‘he’ would be Ms. Mary.

Honestly, I don’t know what I was thinking when I wrote that description.

It wasn’t foreshadowing or something that would affect the story later.

It was just one of the countless useless settings in my novel that naturally came up while writing.

And because of that thoughtless act, a person is going to die.

A character I created with a few words becomes a living, breathing person in this world and dies.

“Damn it.”

The flow of mana beyond that alley was unusual.

A very faint mana reaction that ordinary people couldn’t detect at all was leaking out.

I could instantly identify its nature.

A perception-blocking barrier. A low-grade barrier that only blocks sound and sight with a small amount of mana.

Predicting what might be happening inside that barrier, I accelerated and ran even faster.

“Ugh…… Urgh……”

“Shh. Shhh.”

“……”

Right after turning the corner, my entire body froze.

What appeared beyond was Ms. Mary, groaning with a pale face after being stabbed in the abdomen.

And a burly man covering Ms. Mary’s mouth.

As soon as I saw him, I felt like I knew his name.

After all, there was only one man with that level of muscularity in the Intelligence Agency.

The field agent, Iskandal.

“Who are you…… Hah. Shit. We’re screwed.”

“……”

1 second. Our eyes met and there was a moment of silence for 1 second.

I’m not sure what my expression was like at that moment.

But one thing was certain, I was in a state of excitement to the point where I had no room for thinking.

“You need to die too!”

“……!”

Iskandal drew his knife and charged straight at me.

The tip of the blade was thrust into my face with lightning speed, and I reflexively ducked to avoid it.

“Kuhuk!”

But at the same time, Iskandal’s knee kick struck my solar plexus.

In that brief moment, my concentration broke and my vision went black. By the time I barely regained my sight-

“Damn it-”

Iskandal was on top of me, holding the knife in reverse grip and stabbing down.

I barely stopped the knife that was plunging down with a ferocious speed by grabbing the man’s hands and guard.

…… No, it wasn’t me who stopped it. Iskandal could pierce my chest at any moment if he wanted to.

“Ugh! Urgh!”

“Sorry. I have no ill feelings, but since you saw this, you have to die. Any last words?”

Fucking nonsense.

You crazy bastard.

But thanks to that, I bought some time.

“…… Guess not. Then farewell.”

My hands trembled and the balance of power was disrupted, causing the knife to gradually descend.

Just before the tip of the knife touched my chest, I chanted inwardly.

‘Selection and Concentration. Use on Strength.’

“What……?”

The man’s expression turned to shock.

The knife stopped. No, it was now gradually rising.

My extremely thin arm was pushing back an arm more than twice as thick with muscle.

And instinctively, I freed one arm and drove my fist into his jaw.

Crack!

It happened in an instant.

It was the first time I saw my arm move that fast too.

Without even leaving an afterimage, the arm that shot out left nothing in its path.

The thing that should have been there, namely the head, was gone.

I might have been in a daze for about 3 seconds while watching that horrific sight.

Blood and flesh rained down from the sky with a thud.

“Hah…… Hah……”

Dyed completely red, I pushed away the headless corpse and stood up.

It was an extremely unrealistic scene for an ordinary citizen who had been holed up in a room, scribbling away.

Just as I was trying to comprehend what had happened, no, what I had done……

I remembered Ms. Mary and hurriedly ran to her.

To her, who was lying as if dead with a pale face.

“Ms. Mary! Ms. Mary! Can you hear me?”

“Ah. Schlus……”

Ms. Mary turned her head and looked at me.

Relieved that she was alive, I quickly examined her abdomen.

Blood was gushing out in real-time, forming a puddle.

Even I, a layman when it came to medicine, could tell she was in a critical condition based on the amount of bleeding.

I pressed my left hand against the wound and applied pressure with my body weight.

But the blood didn’t stop at all and simply leaked out next to my hand.

Is there anything to use for compression? Like a string or rubber band?

“Schlus. It hurts……”

“Endure the pain. You have to in order to live.”

“Schlus.”

“Stop talking. You need to conserve your strength.”

“Schlus.”

“Please stop talking, I said.”

Turning around in annoyance, I saw a watch in Ms. Mary’s hand.

A small pocket watch that fit perfectly in her delicate hand.

Why this in a situation like this……

There’s nothing suitable for stopping the bleeding.

Should I carry her to the hospital like this?

“I promised to give it to my son…… Will you promise to deliver it……?”

“Give it to him yourself. Stop saying weak things.”

“Please……”

“Ha. Fine. I’ll deliver it. Happy now?”

“……”

“Ms. Mary?”

“……”

A chilling sensation struck me.

The fountain of blood that had been vigorously spurting through my hand had also stopped.

I turned my head.

Ms. Mary was stiff with her eyes open.

I gently placed my hand on her neck and checked her pulse.

There was no pulse. In other words, she was dead.

With trembling hands, I closed Ms. Mary’s eyes.

Then suddenly, I remembered something I had seen in a documentary before.

That even after the pulse stops, human hearing and brain survive a bit longer.

“Yes. I will definitely deliver it. To your son…… Definitely……”

Pressing my mouth close to Ms. Mary’s ear, I whispered repeatedly.

That I would surely, no matter what, carry out her last wish.

Because she saved my life, I would at least fulfill her dying wish.

“Fuck……”

Footsteps were approaching from afar.

It was from one person.

There was no need to confirm who it was.

The protagonist, Siegfried Hertlocker.

I pried open Ms. Mary’s tightly clenched fist.

I picked up the pocket watch inside. A simple pocket watch without even a chain attached.

Unable to contain my anger, I had to leave the scene immediately.

Leaving Ms. Mary behind.

*

What happened after that?

I don’t remember well.

I immediately crossed the street wall and returned to the single dormitory room, and first washed off Iskandal’s blood and flesh that covered my body.

That’s when I found out.

That my right shoulder was dislocated and all my fingers were broken.

“Hey, you bastard. What kind of exercise do you do to end up like this?”

“……”

I went straight to the hospital and got an earful from the doctor.

Fortunately, no bones were broken, and all the fingers and shoulder joints were dislocated.

They put them back in place and wrapped them tightly with bandages.

After the procedure, I went out to the terrace for a moment and leaned against the railing.

My arm throbbed with pain.

“Phew……”

This is a world inside a novel.

A fictional world.

It’s not reality.

I would have thought that I’m just here to see the ending and return to the real world, and I don’t particularly care what happens to this crazy world.

Whoever dies or gets hurt in this world, it would have been none of my business.

“Fucking hell……”

But a person died.

It wasn’t a fictional character I created.

It was someone I had no knowledge of.

In this fictional world, a non-fictional character was living and breathing.

The moment she died, the wall between fiction and reality crumbled.

From now on, I could no longer perceive this world as fiction.

Along with that, a personal emotion took root in my heart.

Hatred. Absurdly enough, I was hating the protagonist I had created.

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