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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
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“Why is this happening at the end of the semester…”
“I know, right…”
Sighs filled the conference room.
They thought the final exams would go smoothly, but of all things, students, including the daughter of the Nereid family, had disappeared into a dimensional rift.
Complaints from the Nereid family, protests from the parents of other students, and reprimands from the imperial family. The distrust towards the Academy’s leadership, both internal and external, was gradually eroding the principal’s authority.
“At this rate, he’ll be fired before he even completes a year as principal.”
“Don’t say such ominous things, Korn.”
“But isn’t that what’s going to happen if things continue like this?”
“Ahem, ahem…”
“After all the effort we put in to reach this position…”
“We might even face impeachment from the Guild Master.”
Korn, the Guild Master of the Blacksmith Guild, was stating the obvious, so the board member who had tried to refute him simply coughed and averted his gaze.
It was understandable. Three major incidents had already occurred in just one semester.
The Hell Hound Incident.
23 seriously injured. 4 dead.
Among the deceased was the promising talent, Elena Marshall. Along with protests from the Marshall family, her younger brother, William Marshall’s admission to the Academy was put on hold.
The Security Force 3rd Platoon Leader’s Serial Kidnapping Case.
The 3rd platoon leader conspired with a gang to kidnap and sell students, attempting human trafficking.
With the assistance of Johann Quartz, an escort knight of Yeomyeong-gwan, the 3rd platoon leader was apprehended.
The Security Force raided and subdued the collaborating Leech Gang, rescuing the students, but some gang members managed to escape.
The Security Force suspected other collaborators besides the 3rd platoon leader and the Leech Gang, and were currently investigating.
And… the Final Exam Dimensional Rift Incident.
1 dead. 1 seriously injured.
The deceased was Brown Hash. The cause of death was immolation.
According to the testimony of the survivor, Perinne Nereid, they were captured by unidentified humanoid monsters and burned at the stake. She narrowly escaped with the help of Johann Quartz and his companions.
She claimed that Johann Quartz played a crucial role in clearing the rift, and expressed the family’s intention to reward him.
Her testimony was consistent with that of Lewis Cannon and Shuri Retriever, the other survivors. Combined with the testimony of Viola, who was currently receiving intensive care, it was highly likely that they wouldn’t have returned without Johann Quartz’s assistance.
Another noteworthy detail was that the group remained silent about the rewards from the rift during questioning.
It was presumed that Johann Quartz currently possessed the reward. The Academy was willing to negotiate and cooperate with him to confirm the nature of the reward.
“…Hmm.”
“So much to do.”
With summer break just around the corner, it seemed like a vacation was out of the question. Merlin pressed his hand against his throbbing forehead, mentally organizing the tasks ahead.
Handling the aftermath of the Final Exam Dimensional Rift Incident.
Publicly rewarding Johann Quartz for his heroic actions.
Negotiating with the Marshall family and the Kalon Church, who were currently expressing their displeasure.
“Should I just retire?”
He was ninety years old. An age where retirement wouldn’t be unusual for a human.
However, thanks to his status as an Archmage, he could live for another thirty years. His lifelong dedication to nurturing talent wavered slightly.
But who would take his place as principal if he left?
With so many problems piled up like a mountain, whoever became principal would be inheriting a poisoned chalice.
“What a way to spend my twilight years…”
But he had to do what he had to do.
Merlin snapped out of his thoughts and flicked his fingers. A small wave of magical energy emanated from the Archmage’s fingertips, sending a jolt of electricity through the board members.
The board members, their hair standing on end, looked at Merlin in unison, their eyes questioning. He coughed and said,
“I will take responsibility for this matter. You all focus on your own duties. And Gilbert.”
“Yes, Principal.”
“Bring Johann here. I have something to discuss with him…”
“Understood.”
Gilbert, who had been lurking in the corner of the conference room, maintained his composure and left the room. Merlin watched him go, stroking his beard thoughtfully.
“I need to think about what kind of bait to offer…”
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“Johann! Look at this! It’s crawling around! It’s so cute!”
“How is that thing cute?”
How could a tentacled book crawling around in search of freedom be considered cute? Did Dullahans have different sensibilities compared to normal people? I couldn’t see anything remotely cute about it.
I walked past Milia, who was watching the tentacled book inch along with wide-eyed fascination, and picked it up with the tongs I had made two days ago.
Even I didn’t want to touch a tentacled book with my bare hands.
The book, held in the tongs, tried to wriggle free, pushing against the metal. But I was used to this by now.
I firmly gripped the tongs and flipped the book over, like grilling a piece of meat. I didn’t know how it worked, but surprisingly, the book seemed to feel dizzy.
Was this… a book?
“Don’t bully Squishy too much! It’s a good kid!”
“A good kid…? Squishy?”
A good kid from a dungeon filled with Patchwork Golems made from stitched-together human parts? Had she been brainwashed?
I stared at Milia intently.
That book had a history of trying to escape by brainwashing its handlers.
Strangely, it had no effect on me. Maybe because I was a possessor? Anyway, that wasn’t important.
I tossed the book onto the desk, slipped my arms under Milia’s armpits, and lifted her up.
Hmm, outwardly, she seemed fine.
“What are you doing! Put me down!”
I questioned Milia, who was kicking her legs against my chest in futile protest.
“Milia, tell me, what do you like the most?”
“Hmm~ Johann?”
“What do you dislike?”
“Carrots.”
Was she a child?
“Do you remember the name of the toy I made you?”
“Scooter!”
…It seemed like she wasn’t brainwashed. I put Milia down and picked up Squishy, the tentacled book that was watching me cautiously.
No matter how many times I touched it, it felt like I was holding a live octopus. I had to tie it up somewhere or it would try to escape again if I left it on the desk.
I pulled out a metal chain I had made for practice and wrapped it tightly around the book. It couldn’t escape after all this, right?
It seemed like the tentacles only had the strength of a child.
“Hmph…”
“That’s a dangerous object. It’s not a toy.”
“But it ate carrots for me…”
Was that your motive?
“Give up before I tell them to put extra carrots in your meals.”
“Oh, fine! I’ll give up!”
She still looked at the book longingly, but she wouldn’t touch it after I said that, right? I put the book away in a corner and picked up the tools I had been working on. I planned to focus on creating new tools before dinner.
My experience in the dimensional rift made me realize that relying solely on my shovel wasn’t enough.
To comfortably survive in this shitty world, I needed a way to supplement my firepower and acquire one or two useful tools. It was an investment in myself.
Nurturing the talented individuals around me was good and all, but it was meaningless if I was weak.
“Johann, what are you making?”
“This.”
I put on a glove with a device attached to the back of my hand and aimed it at the head of a straw doll I had placed in a corner of the workshop.
When I pressed the switch located near my wrist, a small bolt shot out from the device with a soft click, piercing through the air. It flew in a straight line and lodged itself in the straw doll’s neck.
A miss.
“Wow…”
It was still a prototype, so the accuracy wasn’t that high.
I needed to make some fine adjustments. Perhaps adjust the tension of the mechanism or relocate the switch to prevent wobbling when pressed. Or maybe I should just start over from scratch.
But once completed, it would be a valuable tool.
For synergy with my abilities, stealth was more advantageous than flashiness.
“You’re making something interesting again.”
“Self-improvement is important.”
“Well, if you say so. It’s a bit unsettling that you’re making assassination tools. Anyone would think you’re an assassin, not an escort knight.”
She wasn’t wrong.
But it couldn’t be helped.
I didn’t possess superhuman strength like her, capable of lifting a carriage with her bare hands.
I glanced at Renny, who was leaning against the wall by the door. She yawned and looked at me, her face showing signs of exhaustion from work.
“What brings you here?”
“You have a visitor. Go to the reception room, now.”
“A visitor?”
Me?
Renny chuckled at my surprised reaction and shrugged.
“The Security Captain is here. It seems like it’s about that dimensional rift incident… put on a shirt. Unless you want to be mistaken for a pervert.”
The Security Captain.
It had been three days since I returned from the rift. It seemed like the aftermath was finally beginning.
“Milia.”
“Yeah?”
“Don’t touch the book.”
“Okay!”
She was good at giving quick replies. I roughly patted Milia’s head and left the workshop.
Time to milk them for some cash.
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Thanks for the chapter!