Conquering the Academy with Just a Sashimi Knife (Novel) - Chapter 100 - Resolution (3)

Chapter 100 – Resolution (3)

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Translated by Jinmu

Read only at Novelbyu.com & Utoon.net

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About an hour before daybreak.

I was sitting absentmindedly in front of the dark dormitory desk, arms folded.

The dim eastern horizon helped me organize my thoughts better than artificial lighting would have, so I deliberately did not turn the room lights on.

I unfolded my arms and picked up a single sheet of paper lying on the desk.

It was a document Weapon had printed out, listing the personal details of those suspected of being villains.

== ==

▣ Personal Details

1. Heo Beol Jjang – Assistant instructor for second-year Star Class.

2. Kilgamesh – Administrative office supplies manager.

3. Ebiya Shiro – Gardener for District 8 of Hoakin Academy.

4. Chae Seo-in – Assistant instructor for third-year Ordinary Class.

5. Ling Xiao – Dorm supervisor of Dormitory D.

== ==

As I slowly lowered my gaze from top to bottom, I muttered:

“…So there are five.”

I had expected them to be positioned in various places, but I hadn’t thought their posts would be this varied.

From instructors and staff to a gardener and a dorm supervisor.

There were only five of them, but they were the sort of identities that could blend thoroughly into every corner of Hoakin Academy.

‘Do they prefer jobs that don’t stand out and give them a wide range of movement?’

However, there was no one matching the `professor` Choi Seol-ah had mentioned.

According to her, a grotesque figure who was the minion of the Second Legion Commander, Kuarn.

As I had said before, with the First Legion Commander sealed away, the demonoid with the greatest power among demonkind right now was Kuarn. Of course, this was still a world where the Demon King stood unshaken as the final boss.

He was an unknowable existence about whom almost nothing had been revealed, to the point that the public even questioned whether the Demon King truly existed. As such, for present-day humanity, Kuarn was the most immediate threat.

And it seemed that on the demon side as well, the Second Legion Commander was treated as the true leader in practice.

That professor, the minion of Kuarn, would surely be the core and beating heart of the villains within the academy. If I caught that bastard alone, the villain bastards spread throughout the academy would come trailing in one after another.

Resting my chin on my hand, I tapped the paper lightly with my fingernail.

“I wish it were one of these pieces of trash……”

Of course, given how changeable cover identities were, it was only natural that they could switch.

And Choi Seol-ah had said that bastard was a pervert who made a great show of emphasizing his professor status…. So there was a high chance he wasn’t among these people.

‘This is irritating.’

I closed the paper and got out of the chair.

Then I shifted my gaze toward the window. The eastern horizon was rising over the ridgeline.

As I stared blankly at the scene, the noisy thoughts in my head gradually faded away.

I watched the newborn sunlight for a long while before checking the wall clock.

Seven in the morning. There were two hours left until the time I had arranged to go to the headmaster’s office with Weapon.

A few hours earlier, when I had asked him at the hospital to go to the headmaster’s office with me, Weapon’s reaction had really been….

When he asked whether he should show up dressed in a tuxedo, I had bluntly told him to just come comfortably.

Then again, Media came to see me often enough, but normally an ordinary cadet had few chances to have a private audience with the headmaster. No, it was practically safe to say they had none.

…Even taking that into account, Weapon’s reaction had been too much. When someone’s fussiness went overboard, it became a disease.

The original plan had been for me to go to Media alone, but I made a small adjustment and decided to take Weapon with me.

The reason was simple. Weapon, who was famous for how well he could talk, would do the explaining in my place.

And while Ryozo had been hospitalized, he had served as the brains behind the villain-exposure investigation. He also knew the inner circumstances better than anyone else among us, and he was an explanation addict. Was there anyone more suitable than Weapon?

‘…Well, that’s not the only reason I’m taking Weapon with me……’

There was a resolve I had solidified while looking up at the night sky from the hospital.

The stars, dimmed and blinking faintly because of the resplendent moon.

Insects endlessly swarm around a small lamp. But they would never dare charge at the sun.

When faced with an overwhelming existence, no living creature dares kindle fighting spirit. Because that was instinct for survival.

The more middling your standing and strength were, the more likely you were to get dragged into pathetic incidents. One alone was not enough. I had come to feel that both were needed, through a certain person.

‘Sword Emperor Siegfried.’

Until now, it had been one peril after another. Each time, I had relied on experience and wit to break through the situation.

But now things were different. People around me had started getting entangled.

Ryozo being hurt, and Leon being targeted by the villains, were surely consequences of the actions I had taken.

I felt no regret. At the time, I had only acted to survive and to prevent the story’s proper course from being twisted.

If I were going to blame myself for each and every such thing, then my very falling into this world in the first place would have been the mistake.

“……”

I closed my eyes and opened them again. The high-risen sun cast itself across my face. The pouring sunlight felt like someone’s gaze.

I stared back at the sun as well. The direct light made my eyes ache, but I did not close them. A strange competitive fire blazed in my pupils.

‘Martial power alone is not enough.’

What I needed was a foundation to support it. Something so great that no one would dare encroach.

An absurd emotion welled up in me anew.

The past came to mind, when I had done all kinds of insane nonsense just to live while conforming to the original story. A small laugh escaped my mouth.

But I could no longer stop, and I had already steeled my resolve. If I wanted to keep moving forward, I could not avoid responsibility and risk.

I headed to the shower room to wash up. By then the hour hand on the wall clock was already pointing at eight.

* * *

Inside the headmaster’s office.

Three giants sat encircling a broad table in the center.

At the center sat Sage Media with the window at her back.

On her right sat the Sword Emperor, Siegfried, and on her left sat Altair, the head of Auditore.

Even while doing nothing more than sitting there, the mere presence of those three made the air physically heavy. To an ordinary person, the atmosphere would have been severe enough to choke them.

Within that icy silence, Media opened her mouth. Her coldly controlled gaze fixed on Altair.

“…So what you’re saying, Al, is that that bastard old man Cladi was the trigger, right?”

“Yes, that’s correct. It seems that man persuaded the Elder Council. In addition, the demonoid’s appearance during the midterms was also his doing.”

“…Then was this finals incident connected too?”

“It’s still under investigation. It’s only been less than two days since we began looking into it.”

Altair answered matter-of-factly. Though he was called the Old Man of the Mountain, he was two years younger than Media. Altair added an explanation.

“When we examined Elder Cladi’s expenditure records as well, we found that he had previously hired the murderer contractors known as the Undertakers.”

“The Undertakers? Those human-butcher bastards who dispose of garbage?”

“According to further investigation, we received a report that the last place they were seen was a port near Avalon Island.”

“…All the way to Avalon Island……”

The anger deepened on Media’s face. The teacups on the desk trembled, and a suffocating killing intent rose from her.

Jjaeng!

At last, the teacup shattered while still in the Sword Emperor’s hand. The Sword Emperor stared blankly into the empty air where the teacup had been, then let out a sigh.

“Media, calm yourself at least a little.”

“Does it look like I’m in any state to calm down right now? What, you want me to sit here drinking tea leisurely like you? I’m an educator. I’m someone with the duty to keep every cadet attending this academy safe. And yet it was people inside the academy, and not just that, but bastard old men who are supposedly elders.”

There was not a trace of playfulness left in her voice. Her gaze had cooled beyond mere anger.

The air was stretched taut like a rubber band pulled to its limit. The Sword Emperor set down the broken fragment of the teacup handle.

At the sound of it tapping against the table, the Sword Emperor’s expression hardened. He spoke in a low voice.

“You are not the only one who is angry. Have you forgotten that my granddaughter is also a cadet at this academy? And-”

The Sword Emperor paused for a moment and gestured toward Media.

Altair too was wearing a dark expression where the Sword Emperor’s glance pointed. Media had no choice but to fall silent.

“……”

His granddaughter Chloe was also a cadet here at Hoakin Academy. Moreover, she was one of the direct victims who had been hurt during the midterms.

That was right. Media alone was not the only one among the three who was boiling with rage. The other two, both parents, were also suppressing emotions that were seething fiercely.

But that had only held until just before this explanation. Even superhuman restraint had now reached its limit.

The Sword Emperor asked Altair:

“Is the evidence sufficient?”

“We gathered it over two months with the power of Auditore and put it through repeated verification. We’ve finished it to the point that we could exterminate them immediately without issue.”

“…I see.”

Silence flickered for an instant, and then killing intent flowed from the Sword Emperor’s eyes. The books in the bookcase trembled violently and fell to the floor all at once.

“Tonight……”

Knock, knock.

Just as the Sword Emperor’s mouth opened, a knocking sound rang out from the direction of the door.

“Headmaster, I’ve come without warning because I have urgent business.”

The atmosphere, which had been escalating, was doused in cold water for an instant, and the minded of all three went blank.

As if waking their senses, the voice from beyond the door sounded again.

“This is Kang Geom-ma.”

* * *

When Kang Geom-ma announced who he was, the door to the headmaster’s office opened.

A chillingly cold aura rushed out through the crack in the door and swept across Weapon’s face.

His body was already stiff with tension, and now he felt like he couldn’t breathe. While Weapon poured out cold sweat, Kang Geom-ma casually jerked his chin and said:

“What are you doing? Let’s go in.”

“Uh, uh……”

Unbothered by the savage current of air, Kang Geom-ma stepped inside. Weapon moistened his dried lips with his tongue and followed behind him.

The moment the inside of the office came into view, Weapon’s eyes flew wide open. Books lay scattered messily across the floor, and the wall and floor were etched with cracks that looked newly made.

But more than anything, what shocked Weapon most was the lineup of those seated on the sofa.

Media was there, which was only natural since she was the headmaster, but the Sword Emperor, Siegfried, was there as well.

And the old man facing the Sword Emperor was giving off an atmosphere that was hard to put into words. With embarrassment and bewilderment spreading across her face, Media asked:

“Our Geom-ma! Wh-what brings you here!?”

“As it happens, I had a little free time, and I came because there are things I need to tell you, along with what happened during the finals.”

“Ah, that. Right. Um, and your friend next to you is… Speed Weapon, was it!? One of the members of our travel club!”

“Y-you know my name? Headmaster?”

Weapon jumped in surprise and stammered. Media gave a bright smile.

“It’s my hobby to memorize the names of all the academy cadets little by little. I hardly get to see their faces, but still, I’m the headmaster, aren’t I? We’ve spent three years together, so if I send them off without even knowing their names, that wouldn’t reflect well on me as an educator! Of course, every once in a while I do get a little forgetful.”

“…That only proves, Media, that you’ve gotten old.”

As if he had been waiting for it, the Sword Emperor seized on her words.

“Hey, Zig! Is that really something to say in front of a child!?”

“You embarrassed me in front of the cadets before too, did you not?”

“Wow! This bastard, how is it that even with your whole head gone white, you’re still just as petty as ever!?”

While the Sword Emperor and the headmaster bickered, Kang Geom-ma casually tossed a remark at Altair.

“Weren’t you supposed to have returned to Sicilia?”

“Media called for me urgently, so I took a private jet yesterday and arrived in Korea in a hurry.”

“…Auditore has a private jet too?”

“What a foolish question. Surely you don’t mean to tell me you don’t have one?”

“……”

Without answering, Kang Geom-ma clicked his tongue. Altair laughed heartily, then suddenly his eyes gleamed.

“That aside, you’ve got even better eyes than you did a few days ago. Truly, you’re more and more our kind with every passing day.”

“…That’s insulting.”

“Hahaha, it’s praise, praise!”

A warm exchange passed between Kang Geom-ma and Altair, and Weapon’s mouth fell open.

That easygoing old man was Altair, head of Auditore? The only thought that came to mind was that it was insane.

The shock on Weapon’s face lasted only a moment before anxiety surged up a beat later. It was because Kang Geom-ma had asked him to explain things in his place.

He had accepted at once because he was an explanation addict and because this was a rare chance to see the headmaster’s dazzling beauty up close….

But to have to brief a lineup that was practically an all-star cast, it would be a miracle if his jaw stopped trembling long enough for him not to bite his tongue.

Weapon’s pupils shook wildly from side to side. What should he do? Should he just say he couldn’t do it after all? His thoughts spiraled on without end.

Kang Geom-ma glanced at him. Then he lightly patted him on the shoulder.

“Just do it the way you always do, Weapon.”

Weapon’s trembling eyes settled back into place. The pounding of his heart gradually weakened too.

“President, if you’re saying it like that.”

At his resolute reply, Kang Geom-ma grinned and then gave a loud cough. All eyes turned this way.

“The friend standing here will explain things in detail for me.”

At those words, Weapon nodded and stepped forward. He swallowed once, cleared his throat, and loosened his tongue.

Drawing in a deep breath, then letting it out like something he was spitting forth.

“I will begin the explanation.”

He began to pour out his words.