Chapter 226

Even without that, since suspicious dark mana was detected around Roan today, he had wondered if the authority had gone on strike, but to think there was such a story behind it!

Seeing Harden’s eyes narrow, Roan hastily began acting.

“Ugh… the place where I got hit by the black mage earlier…”

“R-Roan, are you okay?”

“Are you okay, Roan?”

It was an acting performance so natural that even Yusina and Sion next to him were startled.

…Though it wasn’t particularly useful, as Harden became even more certain upon seeing that display.

But even if Harden knew the truth, nothing changed.

For starters, it was hard to overturn the welcoming ceremony he had prepared himself.

And when he had captured more than twenty black mages, rather than giving him a reward, punishing him made absolutely no sense.

If there was any consolation, it was that Roan would receive close management from Professor Kaina.

Harden looked up at the sky and lamented deeply.

‘For a black mage to capture twenty of his fellow black mages. Ah, the end of the world is nigh!’

Drip— drip—

Then, in response to the Holy Spirit’s emotion, a very light rain fell momentarily.

…This was a phenomenon that commonly belonged to ‘Harden’s trivial miracles.’

—Oh dear, what’s wrong with the weather?

—You pathetic fellow, since Student Darc was kidnapped, aren’t the Holy Spirit and the heavens weeping too!

—That’s true! We should have protected him, it almost became a massive disaster!

—Those black mage bastards, if they have something to say, they should come to Acherandir!

Although there were far more cases of letting things pass loosely like this time.

At any rate, Harden asked Tyrmi with a look of disbelief.

“Professor Tyrmi, did anything else happen?”

“Nothing.”

Tyrmi shook her head immediately.

Harden couldn’t tell if he was glad things were wrapped up to this extent or annoyed that things had escalated this far.

In any case, it was about time to end this cringeworthy welcoming ceremony.

“For our academy student to be kidnapped, it is indeed a serious matter! I must have an interview with Darc, everyone return now!”

When Harden instructed in an angry voice, the large crowd vanished without a trace in an instant.

Knowing that something might happen due to the Holy Spirit’s wrath if they stayed any longer, they dispersed with all their might.

…As expected, the Holy Spirit thought it was more convenient to just get angry in many ways.

“Darc, come here!”

“…Yes.”

Roan approached Harden, thinking he only had to pass the final obstacle now.

Grab—

Harden snatched Roan’s hand with a yank, and.

Flash—!

Disappeared with a bright light.

The moment when the ultimate spatial holy magic to move with another person manifested like some simple light-summoning holy magic!

“Phew, I was so surprised that the headmaster came out to greet us in person. Right, Sion?”

“Yes…”

Yusina and Sion sighed in relief as their tension finally unraveled.

Just as the two were also about to return to the dormitory.

A noisy sound echoed from afar.

“Roaaaan!!!”

“They say Roan is back! Where is heee!!!”

A flowing blonde hair and a red-haired guy running stubbornly.

It was Demona and Hector, whom they hadn’t seen in a really long time.

“Come to think of it, those guys were here, weren’t they?”

“Indeed.”

Yusina’s and Sion’s complexions turned slightly tired.

Just looking at them shouting made what would unfold ahead glaringly obvious.

Sion stepped forward and spoke to the two.

“Guys, Roan is—”

“Roan, Roan isn’t here!!!”

“Where, where is he?!”

However, Demona and Hector didn’t even think of listening to Sion’s words and made a fuss as if they would turn the entire school gate upside down.

…In fact, Hector attempted to lift the massive pillar of the gate but failed.

At any rate, doing that wouldn’t make Roan, who had already gone to the headmaster’s office with Harden, appear.

Sion tried to exercise her patience once more.

“I’m saying, Roan is—”

“As expected, didn’t I tell you! I said Roan got expelled, you stupid fanatic!”

“Did Saint Espard really stay behind for that reason!!!”

Demona and Hector were now holding each other and wailing out loud.

As their divine and spiritual beasts, including Banjjak and Eongeongi, joined in, the school gate somehow seemed to become even noisier than before.

Snap—

“Listen when a person is speaking!”

Sion shrieked.

At the same time, holy power burst out from her hand almost instinctively.

“Ugh!”

“Guh!”

Hit by Sion’s holy power, the two let out groans and collapsed sideways.

“Priest’s Rod?!”

Yusina looked at the holy spell Sion used and was startled.

Although the Priest’s Rod was the most basic, it was actually a punitive holy spell!

“S-Sion, where did you learn something like that?”

“Eh? I, I did it without realizing…”

The ‘instinctive enlightenment’ event that only occurs with a low probability when one possesses a top-tier talent value.

Sion had used that rare opportunity on a mere punitive holy spell.

But not being Roan, Sion, who had no way of knowing that fact, examined Demona’s and Hector’s conditions with anxious eyes.

‘A Saintess candidate using a punitive holy spell, what if I get disqualified!’

Since they got hit by a punitive holy spell, it must be extremely painful—

“I thought it would hurt, but it’s fine quickly?”

“Indeed, heretic. It’s nothing compared to what Roan throws.”

“But somehow it feels a bit different?”

““…?””

The Saintess and the Saintess candidate stared with open mouths at the two who were talking leisurely.

“Amazing.”

It was to the extent that even Tyrmi stopped on her way to leave a word.

Whoosh—!

Of course, right after that, she dove into the ground and leisurely departed.

Sion, like a superb student, could find points to learn from the professor’s actions.

“Saintess, this way…”

“Hmm?”

Sion grabbed Yusina’s sleeve, dragged her a few steps, and then used a stealth holy spell to start fleeing.

“S-Sion, when did you learn this kind of holy spell again…!”

A freshman who just enrolled using a punitive holy spell and even a stealth holy spell!

Yusina was beginning to find this batch of freshmen terrifying.

However, Sion spoke to Yusina with a reliable face.

“If you hang around with Roan, you naturally get to know it!”

Although Sion wore a proud expression, thinking that it was a truly accurate explanation in its own way.

“…?”

Yusina still couldn’t understand.

Meanwhile, at the school gate where Demona and Hector remained, tilting their heads.

“Demona~ Hector~ Is Roan back?”

“Finally returned…”

Rafia and Riel had come out with joyful hearts to greet him, but what was this.

Far from seeing Roan at the school gate, they couldn’t even see the people who had gone out with him.

Rafia tilted her head and asked.

“Guys, what are you doing here?”

“Eh?”

“Hmm?”

At that, Demona and Hector also tilted their heads.

As if they didn’t even know what they were doing either!

…It was a sight that would make Roan lament that they had become much stupider in just two days if he saw them.

Fortunately (?), the two who weren’t quite to that extent soon recalled their business.

“Ah! Rafia, Riel! They say Roan was indeed expelled!”

“T-That’s right! When we came here, there were only Sion and the Saintess Yusina!”

“W-What?!”

“Unbelievable…!”

It was the moment fake news that made absolutely no sense was created in Acherandir.

* * *

When Roan, whose wrist was grabbed by Harden, closed and opened his eyes once.

Whoosh—

The place was already the familiar headmaster’s office, not the Acherandir school gate.

‘No matter how much I think about it, I shouldn’t get so used to the headmaster’s office.’

Roan was slightly disappointed, but since the situation was set up like that every time, there was nothing he could do.

Regardless of Roan’s thoughts, Harden swept his gaze around the headmaster’s office and shouted.

“You outrageously commendable brat! Just what on earth are you doing outside!”

Roan had never in his life heard the word commendable used in such a negative tone.

But this time, he truly had no reason to hear such words.

Roan replied with a calm expression.

“I really intended to travel quietly this time. But the circumstances were not favorable…”

“The circumstances were not favorable, you say!!!”

Harden had never regretted so much the fact that his capacity to burst with anger had vanished since becoming a Holy Spirit.

It meant he was that frustrated.

“Just how unfavorable must the circumstances be for you to exterminate the Jelsroin order on your way, and bring back twenty black mages?”

Harden didn’t even include the ordinary story of finding a dark magic tool in a normal shop.

Roan also had something to say.

“It’s true. We were attacked on our way, and if you think about it, I was also attacked first by the black mages…”

Roan spoke in a feigned wronged tone!

Roan really intended to just find the Balance of Light and Dark and quietly slip away, so what could he do if the black mages, including Oslo, attacked him out of their own guilt!

…Fortunately, it was an excuse possible because Harden was not watching all those circumstances in detail.

If he had, he would have known that Roan was lying subtly.

‘Well, I’m a black mage anyway.’

While lying might be a sin to a devout priest, there was no black mage who lived without lying at least once.

Besides, Roan had a few things that would make Harden shut his mouth for sure.

“I heard the Jelsroin order attacked because of the headmaster’s emblem.”

“…”

“I heard that during the private audience, Jelsroin also knew of the blessing I have and tried to call out the headmaster.”

“…”

As Roan expected, Harden couldn’t say a word.

His words were entirely correct.

‘This guy is threatening me to just let the subsequent matters go…’

The attack by Jelsroin was strictly Harden’s fault, so his intention was to cover up the kidnapping commotion that followed.

It was also a proposal with no particular loss for Harden, such that he had no choice.

“Well, that… No, wait a minute.”

“?”

When Harden was about to yield to his intentions but stopped and frowned, Roan tilted his head.

Is there something else?

Flashhh──!!!

[Gasp! Master, I can’t see… Oh, I can see better now?]

‘You got hit by it last time.’

Harden flashed his holy power once, then clicked his tongue and grumbled.

“What a cheeky brat.”

The supreme Holy Spirit of the empire was utterly dumbfounded.

That a mere freshman who just entered the academy had debated so fiercely with him and eventually achieved what he wanted.

Even the professors who excelled in this school naturally crawled at his single word.

How could this guy be so insolent yet clever!

Still, like a true adult, Harden knew how to acknowledge it if the opponent was right, regardless of status, age, or race.

…Harden didn’t realize that a true adult wouldn’t emit holy power to provoke a student in the first place.

At any rate, confirming that there was no justification or benefit in arguing further, Harden gestured for Roan to sit.

“Yes, I will handle that myself. More importantly, sit down for now.”

“Yes.”

Roan wanted to escape the office immediately but complied obediently for now.

Since he had already been struck by holy power once, talking back further could lead to big trouble.

Harden narrowed his eyes and glared at Roan’s lucky pouch.

“Tsk, I shouldn’t have given you the lucky pouch. Let me see what you brought back.”