Ch.66Midterm Exam – 9

Not long after hearing from Aria that the Sword Saint had come to the academy, I received a summons from the Chairwoman. It was just as I had expected.

I went to find Priscilla, who had shut herself in her room to practice separation, delivered the news, and then, to borrow Priscilla’s expression, “shared some warmth” before heading to the Chairwoman’s office.

It had been quite a while since I’d last been here. As I reached the top floor, I ran into Brunhild, who was just coming out of the Chairwoman’s office. Upon seeing me, she waved cheerfully.

“Mira, you too?”

“Well, that’s how it is. The Sword Saint called for me, right?”

“Yeah. She said she wanted to ask how you’ve been since it’s been a while since she’s seen you. We just had a casual conversation about various things. Like how I’m doing at the academy, how my midterm grades were. Plus, I got to meet her first disciple.”

If it’s the Sword Saint’s first disciple, that must be Karna. Seems like she brought her here. The Chairwoman must have known about the murderous spirit, so they probably came to inform her that Karna had completely recovered from that state.

“She also asked if I’d made any friends, and I told her that you and Aria were enough for me. She just laughed and said I should do as I please.”

Brunhild whispered to me in a subtle voice. Come to think of it, it had only been about two months and a week since I first met Brunhild at the entrance ceremony.

Yet it was quite surprising that we had become close enough for her to call me one of her only two friends, alongside Aria, who had been her childhood friend.

Of course, I might not be on exactly the same level as Aria, but the fact that she would say something like that indicated a considerable degree of intimacy.

It’s not like Brunhild was the type to open up quickly—she barely interacted with other people.

“Being called one of the Hero’s only two friends—should I be honored?”

“If you’re grateful, don’t forget our promise. You absolutely have to help me buy desserts, okay?”

“Is that why? If you’d like, I could hire those people outright and have them make nothing but desserts all day.”

“Who asked for that kind of help? Just stand in line with me.”

Brunhild giggled and waved goodbye, saying she’d see me later. Left alone, I knocked on the Chairwoman’s door. A voice from inside responded as if they had been waiting.

“It’s open, come in. Everyone’s waiting for you.”

As I entered, the Chairwoman, with her incredibly tall stature and wearing a suit so tight I wondered if it might burst, greeted me warmly, her legs crossed as she sat.

Across from her on the sofa were the Sword Saint, dressed in something resembling a loose yukata, and Karna, who looked unrecognizably different compared to when I first saw her.

“Ah, hello! It’s nice to meet you!”

Without anyone asking her to, Karna stood up and bowed deeply. I wondered why she was being so formal when she was clearly much older than me.

“I couldn’t properly greet you before because of the circumstances. I’m Karna! I look forward to getting along with you!”

“…Mira Crate.”

I awkwardly accepted her greeting. The Sword Saint watched us with a fond smile. Once the introductions were over, the Chairwoman patted the seat beside her.

I went over and sat down. Despite my considerable height, sitting next to the Chairwoman, who was over two meters tall, made me feel relatively small.

“I’m glad to see you again. Have you been well, child?”

“I’ve always been doing fine. How have you been, Sword Saint?”

“Naturally, I’ve been extremely busy but happy.”

The Sword Saint, with eyes full of affection, glanced at her disciple.

“I also got to use my strength after a long time. I’ve grown quite dull over the years.”

Come to think of it, the Sword Saint might be able to match that black energy to some extent. The thought suddenly occurred to me.

I wasn’t certain about it. She was someone who had been overwhelmed to the point of developing trauma against the Demon Lord, so we’d have to see who was stronger. I’d have to casually bring it up when sparring with the Demon Lord later.

“But why is Ms. Karna here…?”

“When I mentioned I had business at the academy, she insisted on greeting her benefactor. So, would that be possible?”

“Permission can be granted at the Chairwoman’s discretion. With the Sword Saint’s endorsement, hardly any nobles would raise objections. However, please ensure there’s minimal gossip. Bellium Academy is not a place just anyone can enter. Even if they come with your recommendation, Sword Saint.”

“Our Karna is not just ‘anyone,’ so don’t worry. She’s such a shy and delicate child. If she receives too much attention, whether positive or negative, her head might just explode.”

“I-It’s not that bad… Master…”

The Sword Saint’s manner of speaking hadn’t changed at all, even in front of a dragon who had lived for over a thousand years. I wasn’t sure if the Sword Saint was just brave or if the Chairwoman was simply broad-minded.

However, one thing was certain: if you only considered appearance rather than actual age, their way of speaking to each other wasn’t problematic. They both looked to be in their early thirties at most.

“Oh, I should tell the child too. Karna will be attending here soon.”

“Here, you mean?”

“Not as a formal student, and she’ll return to her position as Knight Commander within half a year at most.”

I glanced at Karna. Our eyes met. She shyly averted her gaze. I could guess why she was acting that way. It was because of her age.

The Sword Saint had previously introduced her as his only disciple and the former Knight Commander of the Royal Guard, and it had been about seven years since she became a murderous spirit. That meant she was quite a bit older than she appeared.

She was definitely in her twenties, possibly even thirties. It would be embarrassing for someone that age to attend the academy with students more than ten years younger.

“Isn’t she too old to attend the acade—”

The moment I uttered the word “old,” the gazes of all three people sharpened. Sensing the strange atmosphere, I promptly closed my mouth.

Come to think of it, that group had quite a high average age. The Chairwoman, being a dragon, was beyond counting, and the Sword Saint, despite her incredibly youthful appearance, was of a respectable age.

As for Karna, she was in an extreme situation where her points of comparison were either academy students or the Chairwoman and Sword Saint.

“…It’s nothing. Let’s continue with what we were discussing.”

Going further would only make things worse. I chose to keep my mouth shut.

I absolutely had no intention of belittling her. I was genuinely thinking that she had long passed the age to attend the academy. And Karna seemed embarrassed about it too.

Besides, if I were to add up the time I lived in my original world, the time in the first world, and the time in this world, I would be quite old myself, so why would I bring that up?

“Ahem. The reason I’m telling you this, child, is because you and Karna are already acquainted. You’re connected in a way, so I wanted to ask you to take good care of our Karna. But I haven’t come empty-handed—please treat her well, if only for the sake of my sincerity.”

The Sword Saint pulled out a well-packaged vial from her loose sleeve and held it out to me.

Unlike typical potion bottles that were round with cork stoppers, this one looked more like a test tube with a stopper made of some unusual-looking metal. The liquid inside was almost blue in color.

“It’s pure elixir, not diluted in the slightest.”

“Why are you giving this to me…?”

“Think of it as a sort of bribe.”

“I don’t think giving me something like this while asking me to take care of her will change much.”

“That’s not true at all. Many things will change. The difference between having no one to share your heart with and having even just one person is quite severe.”

The former was probably referring to the Sword Saint herself.

Her greatest achievement came about simply because the Demon Lord had gone easy on her, and due to the trauma from that time, she couldn’t even properly hold a sword. She couldn’t tell anyone that humanity would simply perish the moment the Demon Lord got serious.

Now, the Demon Lord would likely never get serious against humans again, but it was still too early to reveal that.

The Sword Saint and I exchanged a few conventional topics after that. Like with Brunhild, we talked about academy life and my midterm grades.

“Once again, I entrust our Karna to you.”

And the request to take care of Karna, which was inserted several times throughout our conversation.

“Um… could we talk just the two of us for a moment?”

“By all means.”

“They’ll be having a private conversation, so go ahead.”

Karna, who had been smiling with an ambiguous expression beside us, carefully made such a request, perhaps unable to bear it any longer. The Sword Saint and Chairwoman readily agreed.

The two of us went out into the hallway. Since the entire floor was the Chairwoman’s office, the corridor was empty. Karna stopped at what she deemed a sufficient distance and bowed her head.

“Thank you again for saving me. I’m truly indebted to you. I don’t know how to repay this kindness…”

“It was just a coincidence. I wasn’t trying to help you specifically. There’s no need to feel indebted.”

“But the result is that I was able to return to being human because of you. Regardless of your intentions or purposes, I received salvation through you. So of course I should be grateful. Ah, don’t worry—I’ve been consistently telling Master that I returned because of my own merit. But…”

“She doesn’t believe it, does she?”

“Yes. You understand. It seems she’s decided not to pry if I’m trying to hide it, though.”

Karna gave an awkward smile. Seeing her expressive demeanor made me wonder what fate the original Karna might have met.

It was just speculation, but since they were already considering “disposal” when I visited, she probably never appeared directly in the original story. If she did, it would have been just a brief mention in a line or two.

“So, I was wondering… could you answer one question for me…?”

“If it’s within my capacity to answer, sure.”

“As Master said, soon Master will come as a special instructor, and I’ll be attending here for a while… but…”

It took quite some time for the next words to follow. As if she had finished preparing herself mentally, Karna squeezed her eyes shut and opened her mouth.

“Do, do I have to wear a uniform…?!”

“…Why are you asking me that?”