༺ Academy Conquest (4) ༻
“Busy, soooo busy…”
Findenai grumbled next to me while carrying an axe on her shoulder. Despite her complaints, the corners of her mouth were drawn into a smile.
At first, I thought she liked the axe, but after hearing her words, I realized it wasn’t just that.
“Evil spirits are easier to handle than I thought.”
“…It is because they did not wake up because they wanted to.”
Findenai, who had stopped walking at my words, turned her head slightly, her large crimson eyes looking at me curiously.
“What do you mean?”
“If they had woken up because of their own desires, it would not have ended so easily.”
“…Can you explain it in a way that’s easy to understand?”
Findenai got annoyed for no reason. I didn’t need to explain everything to her, but since we had a bit of distance left before we got to our destination, I continued speaking to organize my thoughts as we moved forward.
“When I first arrived at the academy three months ago, I had many doubts while alleviating their resentments and keeping the evil spirits in check.”
“Hmm.”
“Among them, the biggest question I had was why the evil spirits, who should have been dormant, suddenly woke up and possessed such strong powers.”
It wasn’t enough to take someone’s life, but it was enough to intervene with reality.
This applied not only to the residents of Setima, but to all the evil spirits filled with malice and enmity within the academy.
Findenai made a strange expression.
“Why’s that a question? They could just be evil spirits with strong grudges.”
Although such cases are extremely rare, they did exist.
For example, there was that widow I met on the carriage to Loberne. She held such deep grudges that she could harm the living, a truly exceptional case.
Of course, it was also because she projected herself to Illuania. It temporarily amplified her resentment.
Anyway…
“That is absolutely impossible.”
“Impossible?”
“Yes, I cannot explain it to you in detail, but I am certain of it.”
Because it wasn’t like this in [Retry]. Even if there were ghost stories in the academy, they were just side quests and nothing significant.
But looking at the current situation, it had already gone too far to just be a simple side quest. This was something on the level of a main quest crisis.
“Um, isn’t it because of Master’s presence?”
Findenai started speculating, but I shook my head.
“At the time, I was an inexperienced novice who had not learned necromancy. Even if I had come, it would not have had any effect on the spirits.”
Findenai, who was trying to find an answer, tilted her head and pondered. In the end, she gave up.
“You’re not asking me to find the culprit, are you? According to Master, there’s someone who awakened the souls in the academy and made the evil spirits stronger, right?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
The girl with black hair…
Setima’s Angel awakened and gained power through that ‘someone’.
She would not have been able to accomplish anything alone.
After all, she was a manifestation created by the hopes of Setima’s villagers.
Just like Maalkus, who created the Human-Bone Centipede through countless corpses, the true identity of the girl called Angel was that she was created by gathering the wishes of the people of Setima.
And someone gave her power.
“So, you’re telling me this because you found out who it is?”
Findenai, who confidently spoke her thoughts, smirked.
Swinging an axe suited her better than using her head.
“Yes, I found out.”
I didn’t know who it was until we arrived in Loberne.
Although the incident itself had gone beyond the realms of common sense. I found out who it was.
More precisely, the culprit had even revealed themselves to me directly.
“But now is not the time to focus on that. First, we need to resolve the incident before confronting that person.”
“Okay.”
The place we arrived at was the women’s dormitory. As we climbed the stairs and reached the second floor, we saw a large man with his head split in half in the middle of the hallway.
[Here you are.]
It looked as if he was embracing people.
As soon as Findenai saw him, she furrowed her brows.
“This is the second floor of the women’s dormitory, where all the girls are in a coma.”
“He is the one who made them unconscious.”
“Hmm, what kind of evil spirit is he?”
He was a pitiable spirit. His intentions were pure, but his actions ended up being no different from a wicked act.
“He was a man who ran an orphanage in Setima. It seems like he remained exactly as he was, trying to protect the children until the moment he died by embracing them.”
Just like the sword I held in my hand.
He was like the Bushi, who had subconsciously guarded the main entrance on the first floor. That spirit also believed that he was protecting them, but in reality, he ended up trapping the students in their dreams.
“You have been carrying this burden for too long.”
I gently extended my sword towards him, but the aura blades never appeared. The Bushi, in his sword form, trembled, not wanting to harm him.
He wanted me to know that the spirit had no ill intentions.
“This is different from the kids in the gym. Whether it was intentional or not, that evil spirit caused numerous female students to fall into a coma.”
[…….]
“If you will not do it, then I will.”
However, when I raised my mana and enveloped it in blue flames, the Bushi suddenly fired a sword aura and cut down the evil spirit.
[Here you are…]
The fragmented spirit sprawled on the floor and fell. I calmly reached out my hand in front of it.
“Release the children.”
[Here you…]
“It is okay to go to sleep. I will take your place.”
The soul then turned into a cluster of light and disappeared. Like the others, it was now resting.
From some rooms, I heard the sound of students falling off their beds.
Since they had just woken up from their endless dreams, it would take some time for them to regain their senses.
“Findenai, take the students outside to join the others. There may be some of them who cannot move on their own.”
“What about you, Master?”
“I have extinguished all urgent fires.”
I tightened my grip on the sword; I resolved most of the incidents that occurred even before the barrier was completely formed.
But if a bit more time passed, it could have been really dangerous.
“Now, I am going to work on the barrier.”
“…Are you sure you’ll be fine alone?”
I turned to look at Findenai, who seemed concerned about me. She continued speaking while taking a cigarette out of her pocket and putting it in her mouth.
“It’s my first payday in a week.”
Zwoof!
The cigarette in Findenai’s mouth erupted when it came into contact with the flame I created. She quickly took it out of her mouth, stomped on it with her foot to put out the fire, and glared at me.
“Oh, for fuck’s sake!”
“No smoking in front of me. Did you already forget that after not seeing me for so long?”
“Ah, shit! Forget it, go away! I won’t save you even if you die.”
Ignoring the grumbling maid, I once again headed towards the main building of the academy.
Night had gone on for too long.
In order to face tomorrow just a little less tired, it was necessary to end this situation right now.
* * *
The wind on the rooftop felt stronger than before.
If memory served me right, the last time I came up here was when I had a brief coffee break with Erica.
[You came?]
And just like back then, a girl awaited me on the rooftop.
[It’s been a while.]
The girl with black hair waved her hand towards me with a smile.
I nodded and calmly stood in front of her.
“Why did you cause such a commotion?”
[…]
“Didn’t you tell me before I left? That you’ll prepare for their peaceful rest.”
[That’s right.]
The reason I believed that Setima’s villagers would find peace even if I left the academy was because of this girl.
She was their hope, an amalgamation of their desires.
[When you were gone, I thought about it carefully.]
As the girl slowly raised her hand, a small spirit popped out like a will-o’-wisp.
It soon began to grow, transforming into a haggard girl.
However, the haggard girl assumed a posture reminiscent of a crucifixion. But what supported and bound her was Angel’s hair.
The hair, entwined like a vine, tightly encircled the haggard girl’s emaciated body.
[Is it really okay for the villagers to close their eyes?]
“…”
[They were peaceful people who were mercilessly killed for no reason. They cried out to God, not to seek revenge, but for salvation…]
“…”
[They were people who didn’t even have thoughts of revenge, and yet they still want to follow the very same God who didn’t help them even after their deaths…]
“…”
[They were people who, even while being tortured, shed tears and pleaded for forgiveness for the kingdom’s soldiers.]
Angel’s hair began to extend further, and with that, the haggard girl gave off a sinister and threatening aura.
[Was it just ignorance?]
“Even if that is true, it is already over.”
[…You’ve always been like this.]
As if angered by the fact that I didn’t take her side, Angel’s hair squirmed and pushed the ground so hard that cracks began to appear on the floor.
[You’ve always prioritized the living.]
“…”
[Even after listening to our voices, being able to see us, and talking together! Why can’t you understand us?!]
Through her rebellious outcry, I felt her intense hostility trying to push me away.
[Even if the whole world doesn’t understand us, shouldn’t you, at least, stand on our side?]
“There is a natural order to everything.”
I raised my hand and forcibly endured her enmity as I replied.
“I have been fighting for you.”
There were times when I protected the villagers when they were being tormented by other spirits.
“I listened to your stories.”
There were originally more spirits of Setima’s residents, but for three months before my dismissal, I worked hard to put them to rest.
“I deeply empathized with you.”
Typically, when people die, they would often take the form they had when they died.
The villagers of Setima showed grotesque appearances. It indicated the amount of suffering they endured before dying.
“But because I genuinely empathize with you, I have to draw a clear line.”
[…!]
Blue flames blossomed around me.
The lingering spirits from Setima, who hadn’t left yet and had a sense of responsibility, joined me to help.
“Even if it sounds cruel, it cannot be helped. The dead should remain dead. Do not cross into the boundary of living.”
[You…!]
“Setima’s villagers were foolish? They didn’t seek revenge because of their ignorance? Yes, that could be true.”
In reality, most people would probably think they were foolish.
After all, how could they wish for the person who caused harm to them to receive forgiveness from God?
But…
“Even so, it is not for us to judge what is right or wrong in that.”
[…Don’t be ridiculous.]
“I do not make judgments. I merely listen to the spirits.”
[Don’t spout nonsense!]
“You, in the name of happiness for Setima, have passed the point of no return; you twisted, distorted, and perverted their wishes.”
A girl.
The entity known as Angel moved for the sake of the nameless girl who wished for the happiness of the people of Setima.
But the one who was named Angel had…
Twisted and distorted that wish.
To achieve happiness for the villagers, she decided she must inflict the same amount of suffering.
To protect, she thought to show her power to the academy, becoming a threat in their eyes.
It was truly sad. If I had been with them, Angel wouldn’t have become this corrupted.
Although it’s regrettable because we once cooperated for the sake of the souls of Setima…
“But now, you are an evil spirit.”
I clenched my fist and approached her.
“So, I must exorcize you.”
