Rising Tension

“…It’s finally over.”

Lunch after successfully completing the flight training.

Gartel walked with a much-relieved expression.

Because the basic adaptation training was finally over.

The diving training the day before hadn’t gone very smoothly, but fortunately, nothing had happened today, so he let out a sigh of relief.

“Phew.”

What if something happened to Yena again, or if another cadet’s flight equipment malfunctioned…

He had been troubled by various worries.

But since the concerning situations he had worried about didn’t occur, his mind became lighter.

‘Surely Yena must be innately proficient in movement.’

He even had the leisure to evaluate the cadets like this.

“The more I see her, the more I want to bring her in…”

Gartel smiled while lighting his pipe.

Yena Freud──

The more education progressed, the more his desire for her grew.

Although Rina and Wolf and others with outstanding talents were plenty attractive, Yena was by far the one he wanted to bring in.

Even though she had experienced a near-drowning crisis yesterday, didn’t she show an excellent attitude by completing the training without showing much of it?

Technical talent far superior to others.

The composure to overcome the fear an officer should have.

Although barely a month had passed since the class life began, he had already discovered two strengths Yena possessed.

He really wanted her as a successor.

For me, who needed a capable administrator, I wanted someone with a clever brain and strong mental strength rather than overwhelming power and ability.

By that standard,

Yena was perfect.

“Sip, phew…”

Was that why?

Gartel smoked his pipe, recalling the face of Erika von Rosehild, the girl who always greeted him with a bright face.

He couldn’t help but be interested.

Isn’t she the only friend of Yena, who has such outstanding talent?

It was an easy fact to infer, seeing them always going around together.

‘She’s a decent cadet.’

He twitched his brow while stroking his beard.

It wasn’t just because she was Yena’s friend that he paid attention.

Not bad skills and talent.

As her abilities had been improving on an upward curve recently, he naturally came to pay attention, you could say.

There was a need to watch her future progress.

She’s not receiving training from another instructor, but her movements are improving – isn’t that proof that she’s been training hard on her own?

It was his favorite type of cadet.

She’s probably smart too, seeing how she’s growing her capabilities on her own without any special training.

“Hmm.”

It’ll be interesting to see how she develops from now on.

Thud─

Gartel curled his eyes while tapping the ash from his pipe.

Then he stepped towards the cafeteria.

He was starting to get hungry, and it was lunchtime anyway.

“Administrator.”

“Oh, it’s you? Good timing. Let’s have lunch together.”

He gestured to the secretary who appeared just then.

Inviting him to eat together.

“Huff, huff! Th-There’s no time for that.”

“Why are you so out of breath? Did something happen?”

But that couldn’t happen.

“We’ve found the item you requested.”

“What?”

Shocking words came out of the panting secretary’s mouth.

“This morning, one of the investigators luckily secured equipment presumed to be Cadet Yena Freud’s.”

Gartel’s face hardened as soon as he heard his words.

“You’re saying I can see it right now?”

“I prepared it in advance, anticipating you’d say that.”

“Please guide me.”

“Yes, this way please.”

Then he moved hurriedly.

The news that the search mission he had requested from the secretary the day before had been successfully completed – Gartel clenched his fist and headed to the office at that story.

His heart was beating violently.

Even the mind tempered through long years as an officer, even the emotions dulled through a long life, couldn’t stop the current excitement.

Thud─! Thud─!

The bold footsteps represented that state of mind.

‘They found it in just one day?’

Although he had been terribly hungry until just before, he didn’t feel it at all now. His relaxed mood was quickly tinged with urgency.

It couldn’t be helped.

Soon he would be able to see the cause of Yena’s accident with his own eyes.

Whether it was an accidental malfunction due to rocks or fish.

Or if someone had tampered with it or some other external factor.

“You’ve already completed the investigation, right?”

“Yes, we’ve identified the reason for the damage and have compiled related data in advance.”

“I see. However, I’d prefer if you didn’t tell me now. I want to hear the explanation while seeing it directly.”

Isn’t it like opening a gift box?

He wanted to see it without knowing anything.

He didn’t want to ruin this trembling feeling filling his chest just yet.

“Understood.”

“Thank you for understanding.”

Gartel smiled gently and patted the secretary’s shoulder.

“Is it here?”

“That’s right.”

[Storage Room No. 3]

In the white corridor,

A wooden sign standing straight up.

Creak─!

Gartel opened the white iron door without hesitation.

“This is it.”

“It was really badly damaged. I’ve never seen one broken like this before. The results are just as shocking.”

The secretary quickly ran to the cabinet located in the corner.

“Here it is.”

In his hands when he returned was a heavy bundle of documents.

Trudge─ Trudge─

Gartel received those materials while nodding his head.

There was no separate answer.

He focused on the scene before him to the extent that he completely forgot even the act of opening his mouth.

He silently circled around the terribly broken equipment.

Rustle─

While flipping through the bundle of papers in his hand.

[Most of the detailed functional parts such as hip protectors and parallel supports are lost. Overall, the damage rate is severe. Judging from the degree, destruction due to explosion is presumed…]

The first paragraph was an assessment of the exterior.

The finely torn and shredded appearance and some parts that couldn’t even be collected showed how big the accident was.

‘What a relief…’

Gartel sighed and stroked his chest.

How much trouble must she have been in?

The more he looked at that broken equipment, the more he felt how great a crisis Yena had experienced at the time, especially considering she was likely caught in a huge explosion.

What if her entire lower body had been involved in the accident?

She would have been paralyzed from the waist down by now.

It was chilling just to imagine.

“Haha, crazy…”

But the paragraph below instantly turned his troubled mind into a blank slate.

It was shocking content to the point of losing one’s senses.

[The direct cause of the malfunction is the damage to the magic stone, it is presumed that the unstable structure of the crystal interacted with the user’s strength and was completely destroyed due to mana rampage. Relevant reference materials are below…]

Because of this text saying the magic stone was the cause?

No, that’s not it.

Although this is surprising, it was nothing compared to the paragraph right below that hit like a hammer to the head.

[There is a high possibility that artificial impact was applied to the magic stone before use. For detailed related information, refer to the reference materials and academic information on the following page…]

Artificial impact.

It was just two words, but it brought enormous anger.

‘Who on earth.’

Who could it be?

Crunch─!

Gartel showed a venomous look while crumpling the document hard.

The bewilderment was soon replaced by indescribable anger.

The dreaded hypothesis had come true.

Some damn bastard had tampered with Yena’s equipment.

And tried to kill her.

It was absolutely unforgivable.

Whether for personal grudges or for a greater cause, trying to eliminate a cadet was unacceptable.

Moreover, in the case where the target was a magic officer candidate, who could be said to be the most important to the country, it could be seen as a lack of patriotism to try to harm the Empire’s precious talent.

In simple terms, it was a serious crime.

Regardless of that,

He was fuming just for the reason that they had messed with Yena.

“This would be the report submitted by the investigation team.”

“Yes.”

“Other than them, no one knows yet?”

“That’s correct.”

The secretary, having removed his previously docile attitude somewhere along the way, answered in a disciplined manner with his arms and legs at sharp angles.

Because he had seen Gartel’s expression.

Having served by his side for years, he had enough sense to understand that the administrator was very indignant.

That’s why he was answering carefully, lest he be caught out.

“Give word to the investigation team who were in charge of this search and report writing. Tell them not to disclose this matter to anyone.”

“Understood.”

“And one more thing.”

Thud─!

Gartel threw the documents onto the desk.

“Find out exactly who the bastard is that planned this dog act, even if it takes time.”

“Yes, yes!”

And he continued, his eyes flashing.

The secretary flinched and raised his neck.

‘I’d like to see the face of whoever it is.’

He would absolutely not let this slide.

He started the investigation because it was Yena, but the current anger wasn’t just because it was her.

This incident was not only a direct threat to one cadet, but could also be seen as an attack on one of the children I cherish and teach.

What does that mean?

To me, an instructor,

It’s like throwing down a challenge.

Telling me to try and catch them.

Saying that someone who can’t even keep their class safe has no reason to be in the position of an instructor.

Grind─!

Gartel clenched his jaw and curved his mouth into a smile.

‘I’ll gladly play along.’

For the first time in a long while, his heart was set ablaze.

He would definitely uncover who it was and confront them.

“Immediately dispose of any unnecessary materials. There might be a culprit among the instructors, so for now it’s best if only the two of us know.”

“Yes!”

“Then shall we go now? To eat.”

“I-I’ll escort you.”

Gartel left the storage room with that resolution.

Then he headed to the cafeteria.

With his head hurting now, it seemed he should at least fill his empty stomach.

---

“Hello?”

“What is it?”

“Shouldn’t you know better?”

A bright sky.

In contrast, Helena’s gloomy face.

“…Come this way.”

I stepped in the direction she was leading.

How much she was watching…

Even in that brief moment, Helena looked around, shifting her gaze here and there, wondering if someone was watching her meeting with me.

Fortunately, there was no one.

Even Rina and Erika had left quite a while ago.

I have some tact too, don’t I?

I approached after checking the surroundings, even for a smooth transaction with her.

If someone were to see me meeting privately with Helena, even if it wasn’t awkward, it would be troublesome all the same.

Thud─!

How far had we walked?

“You even scouted out a location in advance, I see?”

I finally looked around Helena, who had stopped walking.

It was a dark alley.

And it was a street in a desolate open space near the building we had met at the day before, with not a single person in sight.

It seemed she had prepared thoroughly.

I admired the effort she had made to find such a secluded area, as if determined not to be caught in this current reunion by anyone.

“The materials?”

“You really…”

Of course, I had no interest in anything other than the information I had requested.

I just held out my small palm to Helena.

Rustle─!

She handed over the documents while squinting one eye.

Just five sheets of paper.

Although it was a very thin thickness compared to the major textbooks and tactical manuals I had seen so far, the content was not little.

“Hmm, you investigated a lot, didn’t you?”

It was substantial and very informative.

The entire surface was full of Imperial language and reference materials.

I’m glad I warned her.

It must be thanks to the caution I left with Helena.

She must have investigated thoroughly as she adores Rina so much.

She probably gathered information obediently without any tricks, thinking there was an enormous figure behind me as a backer.

“Don’t do anything to Lady Rina.”

“I’ll decide when I judge whether what you’ve investigated is correct and useful.”

“……”

Helena chewed her lip as if it was humiliating.

Whether she did that or not, I held the folded papers that had been on my chest. Then I narrowed my eyes and turned the cover.

Rustle─

One page.

Rustle rustle─

And another page.

“…As expected.”

As time passed, a smile blossomed.

My lips, which had only been twitching at first, now formed a crescent.

My upper body, which had been calm, shook up and down, immersed in joyful and pleasant emotions. I licked my lips and smiled with my eyes.

This is truly satisfying content, isn’t it?

[Data. Wolf von Streman and Unknown Man]

A title that could be attached to an art piece.

The black and white photo below it.

As the text said, it contained an image of Wolf having tea and meeting with an unknown middle-aged man in the middle of the night.

There was still no direct evidence that he was behind the accident the day before.

However, I found out that he was plotting something while having secret conversations. This alone was a great gain.

“This is similar to what I investigated.”

I nodded with satisfaction.

“Does that mean you’ll go along with my proposal?”

“That’s right.”

“Haah, I understand…”

Helena exhaled while closing her eyes tightly.

She was relieved at the thought that Rina might not be harmed.

“For now, let’s see this too.”

And I cut off that atmosphere.

I hadn’t seen all the papers yet.

Wasn’t there one left?

Information about me──

Only after checking if she had faithfully carried out the first proposal I had handed over could I end this long conversation.

“Haah…”

With Helena’s sigh as background, I turned over the last page of paper.

[Investigation Details on Yena Freud]

Starting with a grand title like before, numerous lines of text were lined up.

It was writing that could be seen as thorough surveillance.

Starting with the name──

What kind of background she had, what her parents’ jobs were and why they died, records of mana amount and physical grade, and finally, time-based activity information.

This wasn’t even a character setting book.

It was an astonishing level of investigation details.

However, I didn’t tremble in fear at the fact that they had dug so deeply into me.

Rather, I wanted it to be this detailed.

It was to check if there were any points different from the settings I knew.

The more, the better.

And I,

Only after reading it two or three times repeatedly did I take my eyes off it.

Is it the same?

The expected result came out.

Although my body and name had changed, judging from the fact that the surname Freud was the same, I had guessed there weren’t any major changes, and now I could finally be certain.

There was nothing different at all.

Rather, I learned facts I didn’t know.

Isn’t it clearly written here on this document, the address of the house I lived in before entering the military academy?

I should remember this.

There might be a use for it someday.

I had only thought about visiting my parents’ graves in the past but was at a loss as to how to do it, but I unexpectedly gained an escape route.

I might be able to find clues if I visit the house.

Of course, that’s if I can go outside.

“This is good.”

“Phew…”

Helena took a deep breath when I gave a positive answer.

She didn’t cut off my words like before.

There was nothing more to check.

Admirably, Helena had brought the materials without any tricks, so it was right to give her some breathing room if she cooperated like this.

If you give the whip, you should give the carrot.

Just keep pushing?

A cornered rat becomes fierce. No matter how much Helena cares for Rina, if she’s only pressured, she might take extreme actions.

I could be confident.

It was a lesson learned from leading numerous soldiers in the past.

“Let’s investigate this man and meet again. You’ll be curious anyway, so think of it as cooperating together.”

“… You mean you’ll share?”

“No, how could that be? There’s no benefit for me. Instead, I’ll cheer you on earnestly from the side.”

Helena frowned as if dumbfounded.

“Then is this the third favor?”

“Not at all. Isn’t there a premise that when you make a proposal, you completely finish that matter? You can think of it as a follow-up investigation.”

“……”

“If you don’t like it, let’s terminate the contract here and now, and pretend today never happened.”

She formed deep furrows on her forehead at the successive conversations.

It was sophistry.

For the imperial princess’s side, which had formed an amicable relationship with the Streman family, there was nothing to gain by digging into Wolf.

Rather, it was a great risk.

If they were caught, it would be like being discovered smiling in front but sharpening knives behind, so it was a loss.

However, Helena had no other choice.

“Of course, I have no intention of touching this again once this investigation is completely finished. If that happens, Rina’s status as a cadet will be guaranteed too.”

She had to protect the imperial princess.

“…I understand.”

She answered in a thin voice and left the place.

At a fast speed like last time.

Tap tap tap─!

The answer was positive.

But her expression wasn’t.

She must be lamenting why she’s being dragged around by a single cadet like this. I could tell just by looking at her back.

Her hair,

Swayed fiercely due to her intense movements.

“I’m looking forward to it.”

I had no particular thoughts about Helena’s reaction.

I just looked at her departing in the distance and anticipated the future, hoping she would quickly find out who the man with Wolf was.

If it’s the one who tampered with the diving equipment?

I intended to use everything I could use and then cruelly finish him off so that he could never plot such a conspiracy again.

I planned to do anything to protect my safety.

Pangs of conscience?

Acts of mercy due to moral sense?

How could I feel such things?

This is a turbulent period before the outbreak of the Great War.

It’s a situation where the world is in chaos, where the majority of people lose their lives by harboring such leisurely feelings.

Would I leave room in such circumstances?

“I need to handle it so there are no future troubles.”

That was my creed.

To clean up so that once stepped on, they can never stand up again.

“Phew.”

There was nothing more to see in the alley.

I turned and moved my steps without hesitation.

Click─! Click─!

With more time left than expected──

To train.