Chapter 95 – Labyrinth

I left Stella’s room immediately and knocked on Pina’s door. I had considered forcibly breaking it open, but there was no need.

There wasn’t a single sign of life inside.

I couldn’t find Pina anywhere—not in the training grounds, the mana practice room, or the training hall.

I checked the classrooms too, even our classroom, but again, no sign of Pina.

An hour had already passed since all lectures ended.
Yet I still couldn’t get in touch with Pina.
I couldn’t find her anywhere.
Even when I asked passing students, no one knew her whereabouts.

And most decisively,

Pied Haveron.

That bastard was nowhere to be found either.

That confirmed it.

Pina had been kidnapped.

You could say I’d let my guard down. But I hadn’t expected them to act so suddenly.

Still, this was the Academy.
Even Sedil alone was powerful enough to command respect.

And he wasn’t the only one.

The professors of my courses, particularly Wivir Arkand—that woman alone could thoroughly dispatch most Black Magicians without breaking a sweat.

I hadn’t imagined anyone would be so brazen as to attempt a kidnapping in a place filled with such powerful individuals.
And I certainly hadn’t expected them to succeed.

The Academy’s security was thorough, even to my eyes.
Starting with barriers that detect magi, there were plenty of people who could sense magical energy.

And yet… for Pina to be taken so easily.
Did they have a means to conceal magi?
That seemed highly likely.

Just from Stella’s story, she mentioned that flames created with magi had burned the note.
In other words, there was a way to bypass the Academy’s barriers.

Or perhaps… there was someone within the Academy who could freely use magi.

The one fortunate thing was that they likely wouldn’t kill Pina immediately.

While I couldn’t determine exactly what that gate was, judging by the fact they kidnapped Pina, it seemed they required the power of a spirit.

If so, they would need to keep Pina alive.
If Pina died, she couldn’t summon spirits.
…They might torture her, but at least they’d keep her alive.

What about Nameless? Had they entered the labyrinth?
That possibility seemed high.
They might have accelerated their plans after detecting Nameless’ presence.

Either way.
Seeing how boldly they acted, they must have prepared a solid escape route.

And that would likely be the “back door” of the labyrinth.
The back door that Labyrinth woman kept escaping through so frequently.

They clearly possessed that authority.

“Hey! You keep telling me to speak freely, then create this heavy atmosphere!! What’s suddenly going on?!”

Stella, who had followed me all the way to my room, was trembling and chirping like a little bird.

“What’s wrong with you? Did something happen? Why are you so desperately looking for Pina?”

Regardless of her questions, I pulled out the documents I’d received from Ophelia and quickly read through them.

The geography of Mirinae.
The location of the entrance to the underground waterway.
A rough map of the labyrinth that appeared once you entered.

The map wasn’t definitive information, but it would be incredibly helpful for getting initial bearings.

If it had been my past life, I would have rushed in without even looking at these things, but now that was out of the question.
Whatever I did, I needed thorough preparation.

Going in to rescue someone only to get caught myself would be the most frustrating outcome.

After five minutes,
having memorized all of Ophelia’s documents, I immediately began changing clothes.

“Huh? Huuuh?? Hey! Hey!! Why are you suddenly changing your clothes… Are you crazy…!! Wait, your skin is really pale…”

“Stop making such a racket and go back to your room.”

“Whaaat?! I followed you because I was worried about you, why are you speaking to me like that?!”

“You’re not feeling well either, right? So just go back.”

Stella tilted her head.

“Me? Why?”

“You’re on the same… day as me, aren’t you?”

“…Me?”

One of Stella’s eyebrows raised.

“I’m not, though?”

My body froze mid-motion while putting on pants.

“…You’re not?”

“No. I already finished mine last week.”

Now that I think about it, Stella had mentioned she barely experienced menstrual cramps.
So… had I just misunderstood?

Was she just on edge because she’d been up organizing that information and hadn’t slept?
But that didn’t seem right…? Yesterday, she clearly had that kind of exhaustion, not the kind from lack of sleep.

Tsk, why does that even matter right now?

“Anyway, go back to your room. Go back and…”

Should I add to that?
Would I just be making her worry unnecessarily?

I’m not sure.

“Go back and?”

“Go… take a shower. You smell.”

Stella’s face turned bright red.

“Wh-what, wha-wha-what… What did you say?! I… I-I smell?! Hey! I showered this morning, no…? Last night? Uh, umm… yesterday morning…? When did I—no! Anyway, I did shower! I don’t smell! I didn’t even sweat! And… and I naturally don’t produce odor, okay?!”

Waaaaaaah! She screamed while subtly sniffing herself.

“…You didn’t shower yesterday either?”

“I… I did!”

“Ugh, shit. You’re disgusting.”

Of course, she didn’t actually smell.
For someone who hadn’t showered yesterday, she actually smelled quite nice.

“Anyway, go back. It’s nothing serious.”

“Don’t lie.”

“When an adult is speaking, you should listen.”

“What adult? I’m older than you, you know.”

“How did you even know my birthday? You’re not even trying to hide it anymore.”

“…Anyway, what’s going on? Did something happen to Pina?”

“You don’t need to know.”

I finished dressing completely and pulled my hood down low.
Just in case, I also packed three or four bottles of various potions.

And… bandages.
I grasped the bandages I’d brought from the imperial treasury.

Honestly… I probably wouldn’t need them.
But Arisa always used to say:

‘What?! I don’t wear them for style! If you wrap them tightly like this, it reduces the risk of wrist injury when you throw a punch! It keeps your wrist fixed firmly, making it more stable!’

If the strongest chimpanzee I knew said so, it must be true. Plus, with Luna’s divine power infused in them… they’d be useful somewhere.

I crumpled the bandages and stuffed them in my pocket.

Fortunately, I knew how to wrap them securely around my hands.
I’d helped tie Arisa’s bandages a few times before.

“…Are you going to fight?”

Meanwhile, Stella kept throwing questions at me.

Should I tie her up in the room again?

No… not today.
In a situation where I couldn’t guarantee a 100% return, I needed someone who could report my situation in my place.

Silina could do that role, but she was too conspicuous. And if people saw Silina sending messages to the Duchy of Eustetia, it might create unnecessary misunderstandings.

I should probably tell Stella.

“Hey.”

“Yes?”

“If I don’t return to the Academy by the end of the weekend, please contact the Duchy of Eustetia.”

“…What?”

Who would be able to directly contact the Duchy of Eustetia?

Sedil Mershdoff.

“Go to the headmaster and tell him I asked for this. He’ll connect you to the Duchy of Eustetia. Then pass along this information. Tell them I haven’t returned for two days.”

“Y-you, what exactly are you saying? Where are you going? Huh? Where could you possibly be going that makes you say such things?!”

Stella, turning deathly pale, let out a shriek.

“Just do me this favor.”

At the word “favor,” Stella’s eyes widened, but it didn’t work at all.

“No. Absolutely not. I’m coming with you. Something happened to Pina, right? I’m going too. And you don’t need to ask me for favors—you can just set up scheduled messages for this kind of thing.”

“You’re too damn weak to come along.”

“Ha, hah! Hmph… No, I’m not! I’m at the 4th Circle now. The level of magic I can use has changed. I’m sure… I’m sure I can help! Like during the entrance exam, I can help conserve your stamina.”

“You might die if you come. Actually, you probably will die.”

“…Like during the entrance exam, you could protect me.”

“You’re pretty shameless, aren’t you?”

“Ugh… Fine. You don’t have to protect me. I can take care of myself now.”

Stella wore a resolute expression and immediately turned around, walking out of my room.

“Anyway, I’ve made myself clear. I’m going with you. I saw the information while you were reading it—I know how to get there. So… if you leave me behind, I’ll find a way to follow you.”

Then in a serious voice, she added:

“…If you want me to die, then abandon me.”

And with that, thud, the door closed.

“Is she trying to blackmail me now?”

I stepped outside without the slightest hesitation.

***

“Hah… hah, haaah… ugh, ugh… hah…!”

Stella, who had prepared herself and chased after me, was gasping for breath.

“Y-you… haaah… You really were going to abandon me! Hah… How can you be so heartless?!”

“I clearly told you not to follow me.”

“I-I… haaah… I said if you wanted to see me die, then abandon me!”

Clicking my tongue, I turned and walked toward the Academy’s main gate.

“S-so… where are we going?”

“You said you saw.”

“…Actually, I didn’t.”

“You little…”

I whipped my head around and glared at Stella.

“What! What do you want me to do! It’s your fault for believing me!”

Stella stuck out her tongue, and I was so flabbergasted I couldn’t even speak.

Was she turning her back to hide her expression?
For Stella, that was quite clever.

“Tsk, shit.”

“What ‘shit’! Are you going to hit me?! Huh?! Go ahead! Hit me— Aaaack! Gasp… Y-you, you actually hit me?! You really hit me!!”

I gave her a firm knock on the head with my fist.
I hit her a bit hard.
It probably left a bump.

“If you’re going to follow, shut up and follow. I’ll explain the situation as we go.”

“…Ow, that hurts… But, then… if I’m not at the Academy, who will contact anyone if we don’t return?”

I handed my Terminal to Stella, who was walking timidly behind me while rubbing her head.

“Set up a scheduled message on this.”

“A scheduled message? Hmph. So you… were planning to wait for me from the beginning?”

“Before I beat you up and tie you down like last time, shut up and set the schedule.”

“Ugh… Would it kill you to speak nicely for on— What is this? This is literally a last will and testament!”

“It’s not a last will. I don’t plan on dying.”

“…Really?”

“Yeah. You, me, and Pina. We’re all definitely coming back.”

Stella, with trembling hands, took the Terminal and gulped before setting the scheduled messages.

There were two scheduled messages in total.
One for Sedil, and another for Silina.
The message to Sedil was set for two days later, and the one to Silina for one day later.

My primary goal was to find Pina and return within 30 hours.
If I could return by then and cancel the scheduled messages, there wouldn’t be any problems.

“Done. So, how do we get out now? There’s a guard watching the main gate.”

I casually tossed the Terminal Stella had returned to me into some bushes. It was an unavoidable choice since the messages wouldn’t send if I took it with me.

Later, when we returned, I would have to ask—no, order—Pina to retrieve it as repayment for saving her.

“We sneak out, of course.”

“How do we sneak out?”

I smirked and turned my head.

Directly in front of us, a guard was eyeing us suspiciously.

Looking at that guard, I clenched my fist.

“If no one sees us leaving, then it’s sneaking out. What else would it be?”