Aftermath – 1

After Max regained consciousness, Cordelia and I were dragged around as a sort of observers, being questioned as part of the investigation. I thought there might be some consideration since it was exam period, but there was none. We’ll have to take our exams separately later. The Academy seems to be treating this as quite a serious matter. It’s understandable, considering the precious child of a ducal family nearly lost her life during class. Cordelia, whether aware of this or not, kept grumbling about wanting to get the exams over with.

The investigator from the security force was using an unused classroom as an interrogation room. Just before meeting with him, a rather haggard-looking Helford trudged out of the interrogation room. His eyes were sunken, as if he’d been suffering for the past two days. He’s probably one of the people most affected by this incident. I carefully asked him if he was alright, wondering if he was still alive.

“Are you okay?”

Helford stared at me silently with his eyes heavily ringed with dark circles, then shook his head. Seems he’s not okay. It’s the first time I’ve seen him look so drained. I thought about offering some words of encouragement but decided against it, thinking it might be like adding fuel to a fire. He looked at me, sighed deeply, and spoke.

“Thanks for your concern. If it weren’t for you, it could have been much worse.”

Helford expressed his gratitude as I was about to enter the interrogation room. I felt somewhat embarrassed and just scratched my head.

“Come in.”

A low, gloomy voice called me from inside the interrogation room. I took a deep breath and slid the classroom door open. I’m feeling nervous even though I haven’t done anything wrong.

I’ve lived such an exemplary life that I’ve never even spoken to a police officer, both in this life and my previous one. Finding myself suddenly involved in such a major incident and being investigated makes my body stiffen automatically.

“Sit there. No need to be so tense. Duke’s heir, you are currently here as a witness, not a suspect. I swear there will be no coercive questioning.”

The investigator was a man who appeared to be between his thirties and forties. Sunken eyes, a dark aura emanating from his entire body, a voice and expression utterly devoid of cheer. There’s not a trace of vitality in him—I’d believe it if someone told me he was undead. A true slave to his work. Just by looking at him, you can tell how busy and hectic his life is.

My already tense body stiffened even more. Perhaps intending to ease my tension, he smiled awkwardly. His smile—the kind where someone unaccustomed to smiling forces just the corners of their mouth upward—only made his impression more grotesque.

I sat down nervously. Sitting in the middle of a spacious classroom, with only a desk between me and this intimidating man, consumed more of my mental energy than I had anticipated.

“Everyone reacts that way when they first see me. The Deneb young lady was almost in tears earlier.”

It seemed like he was making a joke, but it didn’t sound like one at all. The investigator’s voice had almost no modulation. Combined with its low pitch, it sounded even more frightening. Talking about making Cordelia cry while looking like that—he really gives off criminal vibes.

“It’s really nothing special. Just explain in detail what happened that day. As I mentioned earlier, Duke’s heir, you are here merely as a witness, so there is no compulsion whatsoever.”

“There’s not much to tell. During the midterm exams, I sensed mana from a student who was dueling with Cordelia. I judged it dangerous on my own and intervened in the middle of the test, colliding with him. Afterward, his condition seemed unstable, so I took Cordelia and ran away.”

The investigator stroked his chin, deep in thought. His stubble looked quite rough, as if he’d been too busy to shave properly. After being lost in thought for quite some time, he finally spoke.

“Why did you judge it dangerous?”

“Well, his aura, or atmosphere, suddenly changed. It’s complicated to explain…”

It’s a headache trying to explain that sensation to someone who can’t sense mana. There’s a feeling you get when someone intends to use mana. Something similar to killing intent, perhaps? I carefully chose my words.

“Ah, that’s fine. I’m not completely unfamiliar with it. I understand.”

The investigator said, lightly drawing upon his mana. He nodded as if he had understood what I was trying to say.

“Since Instructor Helford said he felt the same sensation, it seems certain. Next, what do you mean by his condition seeming unstable?”

I described in detail the state of Max after he took my hit, then broke free from Helford and charged at us.

“His eyes were bloodshot, and his muscles had abnormally enlarged compared to before. Blood vessels all over his body were visibly protruding and pulsating excessively.”

The investigator muttered something after hearing my words and scribbled busily in his notebook.

“Yes, thank you very much for cooperating with the investigation. I think you can go now.”

“Is that it?”

This is even less than I expected? I’m a bit taken aback that he’s telling me to leave when I’ve been sitting here for less than five minutes. The investigator provided additional explanation, seeing my bewildered expression.

“Well, it’s not like you had regular contact with him; you were just caught up in the incident at the scene. You can think of this as a kind of formality, simply for cross-verification of testimonies.”

He’s saying it’s just a show investigation.

“Since we finished quickly, would it be alright if I asked a few questions?”

I decided to ask a few questions since the investigation was over. Nothing to lose. In movies, when people persistently ask questions, the officials eventually give in and provide some information.

“Fine. Ask away.”

He readily agreed. I didn’t expect him to permit it so easily.

“Um, this might sound funny coming from me, but is it okay to talk about this stuff freely?”

“Of course not.”

He stated firmly.

“But you’re just a victim who got caught up in the incident. And your friend nearly got hurt. In such a situation, I’m not shameless enough to ask for your cooperation in the investigation and then completely clam up. People need to be flexible, don’t they?”

The investigator grinned. I decided to reflect on my earlier thoughts about him being undead-like or grotesque. Unlike his appearance, he was quite a humane person. I decided not to hesitate and ask what I was curious about.

“So, why did Max do that?”

“That’s a bit of a long story. On the surface, it was due to drug side effects.”

“Drug?”

Of course, I roughly knew the nature of the drug, but I acted surprised as if hearing about it for the first time.

“It’s a drug that supposedly awakens those who can’t use mana and enables them to do so. One side effect is excessive aggression. According to Max, he had the drug under his tongue and swallowed it when he started losing the duel. He did use mana with the help of the drug, but he couldn’t control himself due to the aggression caused by the side effects.”

“When you say ‘on the surface,’ does that mean there’s another reason?”

The investigator scratched his head, seeming troubled about answering.

“We’re investigating that aspect. This drug isn’t something an ordinary Academy student, especially the youngest son of a poor baronial family, could easily obtain. There’s clearly some backing, but he won’t open his mouth.”

He lowered his voice and whispered quietly in my ear. The youngest son of a poor baronial family. Indeed, sons of poor lower nobility who neither stand to inherit the family estate nor have much money would be quite easy to manipulate. Even commoners who managed to enter this academy would have some exceptional qualities compared to these poor and incompetent noble children. It would be much easier to draw in someone who needs to become independent but lacks money, ability, and prospects. “We’ll employ you as a knight or retainer in our family if you do as we say”—who wouldn’t accept such an offer?

“Since he’s a student, we’re refraining from using mind-opening magic, but given that we’re dealing with a ducal family… yes, it seems that will happen soon.”

Mental magic. While it’s generally known that the Duke and Duchess Deneb take a hands-off approach to their daughter’s education, it seems they’re not willing to sit back when faced with such a direct threat. They must be quite angry.

I expressed my gratitude to the investigator who had shared such detailed and confidential information, and stood up.

“Thank you for telling me. I’ll be going now.”

“Yes. Take care.”

The door of the interrogation room closed.

“Now that midterms are over, let’s go have some fun somewhere!”

Cordelia, who only finished her exams on Wednesday due to the investigation, shouted excitedly. Typically, the first semester of freshman year ends all exams by Tuesday, allowing students to relax on Wednesday and Thursday. She was extremely disappointed, claiming she had lost a day.

Perhaps because of this, as soon as the exams ended, she gathered me, Hestia, and Seol-ah. She invited us to hang out together, also intending to apologize for the various inconveniences caused because of her.

This is the first time I’ve been with Cordelia since our conversation on Monday. I eventually managed to escape that day by flinging the door open and shouting to Hestia that our conversation was over. Cordelia seemed quite dissatisfied, as if she felt the ending was incomplete.

So I was quite tense before today’s meeting, but fortunately, she seemed no different than usual.

“That’s a good idea. Where should we go?”

Hestia agreed with Cordelia’s suggestion. Being human, she too probably wants to relax during the week after exams. Seol-ah also agreed. Since I didn’t particularly mind either, I didn’t object.

“Alcohol!”

“Rejected.”

Hestia cut off Cordelia’s words sharply.

“Why?!”

“I don’t like alcohol. It’s not good for your body and has absolutely no benefits. And it’s strange to drink in the middle of the day anyway.”

Hestia turned her head away abruptly. Cordelia clung to her and started acting cute.

“I don’t mean we’d drink right now. First, let’s all go back to our dormitories and prepare, then meet again in the evening for drinks.”

“No.”

“Aw, don’t be like that. Hestia, you can just drink tea.”

Despite Hestia’s firm refusal, Cordelia seemed reluctant to give up and continued pleading. Hestia’s heart seemed to waver slightly as she glanced at Cordelia over her shoulder.

“I’d like to have a drink with all of you too.”

Here came Seol-ah’s supporting fire. Cordelia’s expression brightened. In contrast, Hestia’s expression soured. Simultaneously, all three heads turned towards me. Six eyes pierced my face at once.

“It’s 2 to 1. It depends on Mikhail’s choice. What do you think?”

Seol-ah asked me. What should I do? Honestly, the thought of drinking with this group makes me worried. First of all, Cordelia, by Hestia’s own admission, doesn’t have good drinking habits, and Hestia herself doesn’t seem to have a high tolerance either. I’ve never drunk with this body, so I don’t know my own capacity.

Cordelia’s blazing eyes full of desire versus Hestia’s expectant gaze saying, “You’ll take my side, right?” I turned my gaze toward Seol-ah.

‘Don’t you want to see Hestia drunk?’

While I was pondering, Seol-ah mouthed silently without making a sound. Hestia drunk, huh.

“Let’s go.”

I can’t resist that. Honestly, I want to see it. At the Eve Party, she restrained herself, and even during meals, she never touched alcohol. I’ve never had a drink with her.

“Mikhail!”

“Then it’s 3 to 1.”

“Get ready and meet at the main gate at 6!”

Hestia shouted at me. I deliberately avoided her eyes. While she huffed and fumed, the other two came to a conclusion in perfect sync, set the appointment at the main gate at 6, and instantly darted into the dormitory.

“See you at 6.”

“Whatever, really. I won’t be responsible for anything that happens.”

Hestia seemed quite shocked that I didn’t take her side and kept expressing her displeasure before heading into the dormitory. I stood there, staring at her retreating back, before hurriedly returning to my dormitory. Though I pretended to feel a bit sorry in front of her, honestly, I couldn’t stop myself from humming happily.