episode_0047

“···How annoying.”

“Hey, get up. As a senior, I even let seven of you attack at once. And you still lost.”

“So pathetic. Aren’t you ashamed? Why are you alive? If it were me, I’d have hanged myself. Aren’t you sorry to your parents?”

“Don’t shout, I know you’re just exaggerating. Injuries inside the dueling arena’s barrier are just illusions. I clearly saw you listening to the explanation earlier, these guys must be deaf.”

“Hahahaha! Look at them bawling!”

“···Yes, yes, as you wish. Since the disciplinary committee told me to stop, this lowly head of the management council must stop. ···Consider yourselves lucky.”

“Remember the victory conditions? Hey, don’t cry. Who told you to lose? You challenged us first. Abolish unfair rules? Know your place.”

“Oh? They’re here. Let’s go get some parfait. Me? ···Right. As you can see, I’m doing well. Though it would be better without that purple-haired bitch. She made all our club members quit. But that doesn’t mean the management council will disappear.”

“Running away? ···Are you kidding? There’s no way I’d lose to that greenhorn bitch. Ah, it’s driving me crazy! She keeps asking me to duel.”

“Who are you trying to provoke? Shut up, just! ···She’s the child of the Demonic Spear, after all. Honestly, I’m a bit nervous. Still, what can she do if I don’t fight her? Huh? I’ll win, I tell you! I’ll crush her later.”

“Student Council President Oppa… no, President-nim, how are they doing these days? They’re too busy to meet me. It’s too much. ···Honestly, aren’t I better than the Vice Student Council President? I’m even younger. That Lera bitch. I haven’t liked her for a while. I should pick a day and challenge her sometime.”

“By the way, do you know where Martin went? I clearly called him here. Haven’t you seen him? Haa… that bastard must have gone to hit on the junior girls again.”

“It’ll be troublesome if he causes trouble again this time. The President-nim told me not to create any sudden situations for a while. ···You guys? Aren’t you following quickly? Let’s go.”

***

In the afternoon, I waited for Irene at a quiet cafe outside of school. A moment later, I saw a girl of similar build walking towards me.

“Alright, Violet. You said you found something…”

“That’s right. I found a piece of information related to the entrance ceremony incident!”

I immediately took out my smartphone and played the conversation I had recorded with a voice recorder. Immediately, Irene’s purple eyes widened in shock, forming an arc of astonishment.

Irene, barely suppressing her surging excitement, opened her mouth.

“How did you get this? These voices, they’re the Chairman and Kroshel! How did you record it?”

“It’s an internal secret, I can’t say. Hehe.”

“···By any chance, did you infiltrate the Chairman’s office or the board meeting building? You didn’t, did you?”

I had a hard time reassuring Irene.

She soon calmed down. With her finally composed, we continued our conversation.

“Yes, just as I expected. Although we still don’t know how they summoned the demonic beasts.”

“I did well, didn’t I?”

Irene stared at my face, then sighed.

“Don’t do such dangerous things next time.”

“Understood.”

Before we got deep into the conversation, we ordered two cups of tea each.

Irene ordered black tea, and I ordered milk tea with whipped cream and various toppings. Our ordered teas arrived.

I raised my cup and took a sip, and the warm, sweet taste enveloped my mouth.

“Isn’t it too sweet? If you drink it like that, all the tea’s fragrance will disappear.”

“Irene, you should try it too! It’s super delicious.”

Irene quite vehemently refused my suggestion. She must not like sweet things.

As the sugar hit my brain, I felt more relaxed. Now the conversation might actually progress.

“···Those guys, they definitely used the phrase ‘distinguish between jade and stone.’ What could that mean?”

“It seems they have their own criteria for what they need at this school.”

We put our heads together and shared opinions, but no answer emerged.

“What if we just release this recording to the media and the internet, and contact investigative agencies or the inspection bureau?”

A counter-argument immediately flew back.

“It’s impossible. Even the previous accusation was treated as a simple accident, and not a single article was published. This kind of unknown recording?

It’s useless. They’ll claim this recording was fabricated. Later, the data itself might even disappear.”

Listening, I realized Irene was right.

Even on Earth, it was rare for politicians or businesspeople to completely collapse based solely on recordings or minor evidence.

Instead, it was more common for them to counterattack and bury the accuser.

A villain falling apart after a single accusation is a sight only seen in morning dramas.

Furthermore, in this world where might precedes law, it wouldn’t be surprising if even stranger things happened than on Earth.

“Besides, a gate that artificially summons demonic beasts? Unless we can prove that method, no one will believe our claims. We’ll be labeled as conspiracy theorists or fake news.”

As expected, it must have been a useless argument.

Suddenly, her expression became tinged with worry.

“Violet, you haven’t shown this to anyone else, have you?”

“No, I haven’t shown it to anyone but you.”

“Then that’s a relief. Never, ever, recklessly disclose this data. You could be in danger.”

It was obvious. I didn’t want to get into big trouble either.

The conversation paused for a moment. Irene was lost in thought.

After a long silence, as if she had decided something, she met my eyes.

“Violet, thank you for helping me so far. However, let’s end our meetings here. I’d like you to stop with this.”

I was astonished by her sudden declaration.

“What? Why? I’m doing this because I want to.”

“Thank you for getting the data. But it’s too reckless! What were you going to do if you got caught? Above all, Violet. You’re a student.”

“You’re a student too, though?”

“I’m relatively okay. I have my parents’ reputation, and I can receive the protection of the Helios Clan. But, Violet. What about you? I’m not confident I can protect you too.”

“What if there’s a way not to be in danger?”

“There’s such a way? Ah, surely not…”

I called her to a secluded spot inside the building and then summoned a clone.

“Ta-da!”

“Ah, your unique ability…! Wait, your clone, can it be controlled from a long distance?”

“Yeah, my clone is a bit special.”

Only then did Irene’s face relax a little.

“You should have explained! I thought you secretly snuck into some building, like you were lying flat on your stomach eavesdropping on the student council president’s conversation last time.”

“Oh, right. I forgot to explain.”

“Sigh…”

For some reason, she looked at me with a pathetic expression.

But why?

I felt a little wronged.

“I’m telling you again, don’t overdo it! I appreciate your help, but I’m also hiring people separately to investigate various things. You don’t necessarily need to help. Your willingness is enough.”

“I told you not to worry!”

After exchanging a few minor words, we quietly parted ways. Before leaving, Irene said something to me.

“Oh, right, Violet. I heard a rumor, be careful of a guy named Martin Pereira.”

“Pereira? That name sounds familiar. Is he perhaps a relative of that management council president guy?”

“More precisely, he’s her younger brother. It’s just a rumor, but they say he’s a scoundrel who harasses junior female students. So be careful, and don’t forget to contact me if it gets urgent.”

So there was a guy like this too. I should be careful.

As I was heading back, a question suddenly arose.

‘Why am I doing this?’

What’s the reason for doing something like this, knowingly taking risks? It’s not like I ever dreamed of being an apostle of justice.

-Irene is one of the important characters in the original story. If we get close…-

-What will you do by getting close? She’s not even the leader of the Helios Clan yet. That’s a story for the main plot five years from now.-

Perhaps because it was a realistic problem, everyone became a little more serious.

-Yes, now that I think about it, Irene isn’t wrong. Actually, no one would say anything if we pulled out now. We volunteered to help, didn’t we? Since she requested it, it’s okay to withdraw.-

-I agree. You haven’t forgotten why we’re still attending this damn school, have you? We came for the student ID. Earning money is the top priority.-

Opposing opinions also emerged.

-Hey! Are you just going to leave this school, which keeps killing people and doing strange experiments?-

-So what? It’s none of our business, is it? Professor Albert also said they were low-level guys. And it’s almost true. What does it matter what happens to others?-

-What about guys like Irene or Lucian? And Daphne?-

-They’re alive and attending Aegis Academy five years from now. Our roommate? I’m not that psychopathic narcissistic witch. So Daphne will never get hurt because of me in the future.-

Those of us making realistic arguments began to increase.

It was a reasonably valid argument, so honestly, I was a bit swayed.

-We don’t know when the school will fall, but it’s obvious it’ll be much later. It’ll last at least a year.-

-Honestly, this spy game is getting a bit tedious and annoying! Do you know how irritating it is to crawl through air ducts and encounter cockroaches or house centipedes?-

-A game? Hey! Number 12!-

-Was I the only one who thought that? Wasn’t this a game?-

At Number 12’s unexpected jab, we all flinched.

Come to think of it, am I really taking this seriously?

Do I even have a sense of the problem?

Am I doing this out of a sense of justice?

-We’re busy enough just taking care of ourselves. And what if the fact that we were test subjects gets exposed?-

-You don’t need to worry for now. Think about what that student council president was blabbering about. They know nothing about us. They even have incorrect information about unique abilities.-

-Not at all! We were just lucky.-

That’s right.

Perhaps, we were just lucky.

I was someone with no verified identity or proper entry records. The bald research director hired a broker to insert fake records into my blank-slate identity.

Because of that, the board probably couldn’t pinpoint exactly who I was either.

Just recalling my memories from when I transmigrated, I illegally entered the academy city hidden in a suspicious cargo compartment. The name ‘Violet’ I have was given to me by that research director.

If they investigated a bit more thoroughly, it was highly probable they would figure out my records were fake, even if they didn’t discover I was from the research lab.

-Anyway, Irene is right. We need to be a bit more serious…-

-…We certainly lacked a sense of crisis.-

Seriousness, huh? Perhaps we’ve all become so desensitized to death that we’re just seeking stimulation.

My head was throbbing again, so I returned to the dormitory.

For some reason, I kept craving something sweet today.