Stench

“…You took quite a while, Teacher.”

“I’m sorry. Were you waiting long? It took some time to calm Orca down.”

“No. It’s fine. I prepared some snacks – would you like some?”

“Sure. I’ll have some.”

Orca and I joined Anastasia as if nothing had happened.

Orca still seemed unable to properly process my sudden revelation and wanted to talk more…

But if we took too long, Anastasia would get suspicious.

Well, that wasn’t the only reason.

Orca might not realize it, but the orphanage children seemed quite fond of her.

With that many kids swarming her at once, it’d be overwhelming.

“Kyaha! Your hair’s so cool, unnie!”

“You little…! S-stop! Stop that!”

“Whoa, what was that?! Something awesome grew on your back! Show me! Show me!”

“Urk…! Ack! D-don’t pull! It hurts! T-teacher! Help!”

I took a bite of the cookie Anastasia handed me.

The crispy texture and chocolate chips scattered throughout filled my mouth with sweetness.

Just as my mouth started feeling dry, I took a sip of savory milk.

…Hmm, delicious.

As expected of Papal Court food.

Even though it was just a chocolate chip cookie, its quality ranked among the best I’d ever eaten.

The Academy had gourmet dishes too, but they felt too extravagant to buy with my own money.

So I usually just stuck to my usual meals.

“…Um, Teacher.”

“Yes?”

Anastasia spoke to me as I was enjoying the fantastic cookie-milk combination.

“Orca’s asking for help… Are you sure it’s okay not to assist her? If she gets angry…”

“Ah, that’s fine.”

What was she worried about?

She seemed concerned Orca might explode in anger.

“…Fine? You say?”

“Orca is weak against children.”

“…Weak?”

“Yes. What do you think would happen if other people treated Orca like that?”

We both looked at Orca.

She was already lying flat on the floor, completely conquered by the children.

Some kids were pulling her hair, others poked her cheeks, and one bold child was even jumping on her stomach.

Anastasia paled seeing this, but the expected outburst never came.

“…?”

“She would’ve grabbed them by the collar and yelled long before it got to this point.”

“I-I know that from rumors… But why now?”

“I told you. She’s weak against children.”

Orca remembers killing many of her own childhood friends due to her past mistakes.

Since those friends were children at the time, she can’t bring herself to harm any kids now.

You could say it’s like Trauma.

Once dark thoughts surface, they don’t easily subside.

If left alone, Orca might wither away like dried squid, so I decided not to help.

I’ve learned the best approach in these situations is to give no time for brooding.

These children clearly like Orca anyway – having her mind thoroughly occupied might help her recover.

“Did something happen to her?”

“It’s personal. I can’t discuss it.”

“B-but… seeing her reaction…”

Anastasia’s curiosity was piqued.

I sighed. I knew she didn’t mean harm… but this was extremely sensitive.

Not something I could share without permission.

The problem was her persistent personality – the type who’d do anything to save her doomed father.

If she stayed quiet and asked Orca directly later?

…I didn’t even want to think about it.

“She’s a Demon Possessor.”

“…Yes? I knew that already.”

“And she just recalled something from her past. That’s all I can share.”

“From her past…”

Anastasia wasn’t stupid.

After this much explanation, she’d understand it was highly sensitive information.

Even without knowing specifics, she could infer seeing children triggered Orca’s Trauma.

“That… I’m sorry for prying.”

“No. Orca chose to come here herself.”

Truthfully, I hadn’t wanted to hypnotize Orca.

Her Main Quest was relatively simple.

Mostly solving problems caused by the demon possessing her body and her resulting social status.

Due to her special circumstances, she didn’t solve cases with others – most quests required solo resolution.

What does that have to do with not wanting to hypnotize her?

Because Orca causes most of her own quests.

Like I said earlier – she rejects anyone who approaches her.

I wanted her to gain more experience before solving this.

But no choice now. The scenario’s been broken since the Prologue.

Must improvise from here.

“Ahaha! Unnie’s fun! Let’s play more!”

“Just don’t kill her, okay?”

“Okay!”

“S-save me…”

The peaceful day continued differently than expected.

This tranquility couldn’t last – this world was destined to fall apart.

But for now, I wanted to enjoy this peace.

***

“…Strange.”

The Second Princess, Stella, fiddled with a Bishop chess piece while maintaining her displeased expression.

“They couldn’t find who’s behind this?”

“That’s what they said. Why, surprised?”

“Of course I’m surprised. That’s only natural.”

Everything was utterly bizarre.

The scarecrows clearly targeted the Princess and the Watcher.

A terrorist act by those dissatisfied with current society.

That much was understandable. Many resented the Church’s recent radical actions and the controversial Imperial Family.

Some fool might think attacking the Academy was feasible.

But events following the terrorist act defied comprehension.

“Terrorism. This was clearly terrorism expressing dissatisfaction with society.”

“You don’t need to say it three times. I saw them targeting you and the Watcher-nim too.”

“Then why! Why hasn’t any statement been released?!”

“Why ask me that…?”

This incident couldn’t have been orchestrated solely by that dead teacher.

He was a swordsmanship instructor. While not completely ignorant of magic, hardly exceptional.

Yet he supposedly altered the scarecrows’ magic-science hybrid algorithms and armaments unnoticed?

Equipment jointly created by Academy faculty?

Impossible. Anyone capable of that wouldn’t need terrorism.

The current power-hungry Imperial Family would never let such talent slip away.

Even at the cost of several imperial bloodlines, they’d want them.

There must be accomplices. Organized crime.

“Their motives make no sense. This incident clearly involves criminal organizations…”

Terrorism inherently involves extreme expression of opinions.

Political and social messages are inevitable… yet it was too quiet. As if someone artificially suppressed the noise.

There should be some commotion, but hearing nothing made her skin crawl.

“What did the Principal say?”

“That old hag? Same as always. Told me to focus on studying like a proper student.”

“She’s right.”

“Right about what, Charlotte? I’m a victim of terrorism. I need to know what’s happening.”

“But they couldn’t find anything? Then stop worrying and rest. As you know, the Academy has capable people. Others will handle it.”

“…”

Not entirely wrong.

Even through royal eyes, the staff here were exceptionally competent.

That old hag had an eye for talent.

…Which made Stella more uneasy.

“That’s precisely the problem. Academy faculty are struggling with the investigation despite this much time passing.”

“…!”

“Noticed?”

When experts in their fields couldn’t find leads after this long, possibilities narrowed drastically. Two extremes remained:

First: The culprits surpass the faculty.

Second: Faculty found clues but can’t disclose them for some reason.

“Both scenarios lack plausibility. For the first – people surpassing them are rare celebrities. Most hold key government positions. Them attempting to overthrow the state? Absurd.”

“…But the second makes no sense either. The Principal already confirmed no other traitors, right?”

“Correct.”

But there’s a saying:

When you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains – however improbable – must be truth.

Stella gazed at the letter she’d received with complicated eyes.

The Imperial Family lacked manpower to assist the investigation, apologies…

The letter itself seemed ordinary.

But refusing help for such a major incident?

True, the current Imperial Family avoided aiding others due to power struggles… but…

It stank.