Chapter 381

“Damn it.”

Professor Lapit’s expression hardened.

The sudden commotion had taken him by surprise.

At first, he had no idea what was happening.

But Armin’s desperate shout made him realize,

That this was all a trap set for Armin.

‘Damn it, how did they find out?’

There had been no warning signs.

That’s why he hadn’t noticed anything.

Armin probably hadn’t either.

He must have been caught completely off guard.

‘He mobilized all the pawns we had planted…’

It wasn’t a rational decision.

It was a decision made solely to save his own life.

Honestly, Lapit didn’t approve of it.

But it was already done.

The exposed pawns were now useless.

Then,

‘I have to save the big fish that’s caught in the net.’

Armin, the organization’s second-in-command…

Lapit didn’t like his obsession with revenge, but he was a valuable asset to the organization.

Rescuing him was the most logical choice.

However,

He couldn’t stay undercover at the academy if he wanted to rescue Armin.

He had to weigh the pros and cons.

‘Tsk, all our pawns in the Holy City have been exposed anyway.’

He made up his mind.

Now that all their agents in the Holy City had been compromised, the benefits of rescuing Armin outweighed the risks.

Then,

‘Huh?’

Lapit, who had been observing the situation with his Eagle Eye spell,

Suddenly widened his eyes in shock.

He had seen Armin surrounded in front of the Tower of Infinity.

He might have dismissed it as a minor inconvenience if he had only considered the numbers.

There were only four of them.

But Lapit’s face paled when he recognized them.

They were all dangerous individuals that the organization had to be wary of.

It was an unbelievable coincidence.

How could they all be gathered in one place at this time?

‘Damn it, this is bad.’

He was about to rush to Armin’s aid.

But at that moment,

*Thwack!*

A loud sound rang out from behind him.

He had been struck on the back of the head.

“Ugh?!”

He cried out instinctively as his body slumped forward.

He had lost consciousness.

A small girl caught him before he could fall to the ground.

It was Riviera.

Why had she attacked him?

“Sorry, Professor.”

Her murmur revealed the reason.

“But it’s dangerous for you to go there. There’s no need for you to risk your life for him.”

Her words would have infuriated Armin if he had heard them.

But there was nothing he could do in his current situation.

And so, the lifeline to Armin was severed.

* * *

*Slash!*

“Argh!”

Armin screamed in pain.

Blood spurted from his severed left arm.

I was the one who had cut it off.

Honestly, it would have been a difficult fight if it had been a one-on-one.

I was still weaker than Armin, the second-in-command of Red Rain.

But I had my amazing female companions to back me up.

My fiancée, Regina.

My friend, Elaine.

And my Holy Church connection, Sister Marianna.

A party consisting of the Empire’s war hero, a genius mage, the best swordsman in the North, and a Guardian Knight…

There was no way we could lose, even against a rampaging executive of an evil organization.

In fact, we were pushing him back with ease.

My attack on his arm was proof of that.

“Argh! You bastard!”

Armin glared at me with bloodshot eyes, his face contorted in rage.

His eyes were filled with murderous intent and fury.

But I just smirked and wagged my finger.

“You’re the one who’s going to die. The world will be a better place without you.”

“Shut up! I’ll kill you!”

“What, am I wrong? Don’t you know about good triumphing over evil? Shall I teach you?”

“I’ll kill you! I’ll definitely kill you! You’re the only one I’ll never forgive!”

He was enraged by my taunts.

I shook my head.

“Why do all the men hate me? Is it because I’m too awesome?”

“I’ll rip your mouth apart!”

He lunged at me with a ferocious attack.

But before I could even move, his attack was intercepted.

By Regina and Elaine.

“Ugh!”

Their combined attack of sword and magic sent him flying backwards.

*Thud!*

He crashed to the ground, unable to break his fall with his severed arm.

“Ugh… Ugh…”

He groaned and struggled to get up.

His face was pale.

Blood trickled from his mouth.

He had been injured internally by the attack.

He was a mess.

The outcome of this fight was already decided.

He was going to die here.

He seemed to sense it too, his bloodshot eyes flickering with fear.

And then a different kind of rage erupted from him.

“Argh! Professor! What are you doing?! Professor! Are you watching this?! Come out here! Come out and save me!”

He screamed desperately.

My eyes narrowed in suspicion.

Professor?

It was obvious that he wasn’t just talking about any professor.

He was talking about an accomplice in the organization.

And…

‘An executive.’

An executive wasn’t obligated to obey Armin’s orders.

Even though Armin was technically his superior, they were both executives.

Even I knew that.

So he must have been shouting so desperately because it wasn’t just an order.

Then,

‘There’s an executive among the professors?’

My mind was telling me that it was true.

It was the only explanation that made sense.

‘So that’s how it is.’

My mind raced.

I had to adjust my plan to the new situation.

And I quickly found the answer.

‘I’ll lure him out here.’

I raised my hand slightly and gestured to the others.

It was a signal to stall for time.

They understood.

They had probably realized that there was another spy the moment they heard Armin mention the “Professor.”

As if to prove it, they didn’t attack him. They just surrounded him.

Armin continued to scream in frustration.

“Professor, why aren’t you coming out?! Come out here and save me! Save me!”

He was desperate, his life on the line.

‘Good, if I keep this up…’

I thought he might take the bait.

“Ugh, Witch! Witch, what are you doing?! Are you betraying me?! If you’re not, then come out here and save me! Then there won’t be any problems! Witch! Come out here, Witch!”

“Cough, cough.”

I coughed, covering my mouth with the back of my hand.

‘Damn it, why is she involved?’

I bit my lip.

But it wasn’t that strange, when I thought about it.

She was an executive of the organization too.

But she was also…

‘My friend.’

I knew.

She considered me her friend too.

We had already shared our secrets.

She had told me that she was an executive of an organization that was trying to destroy the world, and I had told her that I was an extra who wanted to become a hero.

We were friends who had shared such important secrets.

So I had to protect her.

‘I have to shut him up.’

I made up my mind and charged at Armin without hesitation.

He was already a mess.

I could finish him off on my own.

“M-Max?”

“Your Grace!”

I heard surprised voices calling out to me from behind.

It was understandable.

I was the one who had told them to stall for time.

But it couldn’t be helped.

I had to silence Armin before he could say anything else.

“Ugh, you bastard!”

Armin glared at me and desperately tried to gather his energy.

But I ignored him and kicked off the ground.

*BOOM!*

Like an executioner delivering the final blow.

*Slash!*

My blade ripped through the air.

“Argh!”

He screamed in frustration and attacked me.

But,

My blade was faster and stronger.

*Slice!*

His head flew off.

It was over.

* * *

*Sip*

The Saint took a sip of tea.

She had been discharged from the hospital, and her condition seemed to have improved.

She was still wearing an eyepatch and bandages over half of her face, though.

“You did a great job, Max. Thanks to you, we were able to eliminate all the spies who were hiding within the academy.”

She seemed pleased.

It was understandable.

Internal enemies were the most dangerous.

She couldn’t help but be happy that they had been eliminated.

I was relieved as well.

Those thorns in my side had been removed.

“I’m glad it worked out.”

“Hehe, yes. And please thank Elaine for her hard work.”

“Alright.”

“Ah, but there’s still one unresolved issue.”

She changed the subject, her eyes gleaming.

“The Professor.”

“That’s right. Thanks to your dedication and hard work, we’ve discovered that there’s an agent of Red Rain among the professors. It’s outrageous. An enemy agent in our sacred academy.”

…Well, Armin was an enemy agent who had been in our sacred academy too.

I chuckled inwardly and said, “We need to find him and eliminate him.”

“Indeed. I’ve already asked them to investigate all the professors. They’ll find something.”

“Yes, I hope so.”

My words were vague because I didn’t have high hopes for the investigation.

It was difficult to find an agent of Red Rain who was determined to stay undercover.

No, was he even undercover?

Maybe he had been a professor all along.

That would be the best way to avoid suspicion.

In the end,

‘I have to treat all the professors as potential enemies.’

There were only three professors I could trust completely.

My fiancée, Regina, Karen the magic professor, and Lawrence the archery professor.

I knew for sure that they had nothing to do with Red Rain.

It meant that I had to be careful around all the other professors.

“Hehe, yes.”

She seemed to understand the meaning behind my words, but she didn’t say anything.

“Ah, by the way, Max. Do you have any suspicions?”

She asked.

She wasn’t talking about the Professor.

She was talking about the Witch.

She must have heard the report about what had happened.

My heart skipped a beat.

But I just tilted my head, pretending to be clueless.

I used all my acting skills.

“Hmm, not really. If I did, I would have told you, just like I told you about Armin.”

“Hehe, of course.”

She smiled.

But I couldn’t read the meaning behind her smile.

‘…If her identity is exposed, she’ll be eliminated.’

I couldn’t ignore this any longer.

It would be best to tell her to leave the Holy City for her own safety.

But,

‘She wants to graduate.’

I wanted to protect her until she graduated.

No… I wanted her to be safe, always.

I would do anything to make that happen.

Anyway,

‘I need to talk to her seriously.’

I decided to talk to Riviera about something I had been avoiding.