༺ The Black Wizard, The Investigator, and The Saintess ༻
Niolle was frozen as she looked down into the pit. Judging by the condition of the soil, it seemed to have been dug up recently. After all, the blood smeared in the pit had not yet clotted. There had been someone here just moments ago.
Did the person in the pit miraculously regain consciousness and dig their way out from the inside? Or did someone dig the ground to rescue the person?
“⋯⋯⋯⋯.”
There were faint footsteps that remained.
Footsteps heading east, towards the student residential area. It hadn’t rained today and the wind was calm. The trajectory of someone who had left this place in a hurry was clearly drawn. If Niolle decided to, she could chase after them.
There were many reasons not to go, though.
It wasn’t like someone she knew was involved nor was it certain and above all, it was likely dangerous. As such, it wasn’t something that had to be done or was necessary. A veritable mountain of reasons, indeed.
There was only one reason to follow. Because it seemed like someone was in danger.
It was meddling. She already knew what kind of end meddling in any affair brought, having seen it with her own two eyes. The Lestman Viscounty fell into ruins after extending undue kindness to others, after all.
So, let’s stop meddling in suspicious incidents that occurred at night and leave it to someone else. Niolle repeated this to herself, thinking and trying to shake off any lingering regrets.
Step.
After taking a step, Niolle let out a sound that was halfway between a laugh and a babble. Her toes were pointing towards someone’s footsteps. A clear posture that indicated she would follow.
“……Aheuheu.”
Right, where else could her parent’s blood possibly go? She would obviously live as she was born. As her parent’s daughter.
Born into a family poorer than city merchants, having never consumed a single elixir, she had not yet achieved 『Fill』.
Though she had steadily learned the cultivation technique passed down by her household, she had not yet achieved 『Tuning』.
However, it was different in the case of 『Breakthrough』. When it came to sensing the flow, she prided herself on having eyes that were second to none. While blinking, she could see countless traces invisible to others, sharply clear.
The target was about 175cm tall, weighed around 70kg, and was right-handed.
The suspicious person in her imagination had fled, retracing their footsteps. Driven by her sense of justice, Niolle began her pursuit.
===============================================================
While wrapped in a black hood, Bennett stopped running through the alleyways of the student residential area. And then, he laid down on the ground, pressing his ear to the surface.
Light footsteps. They were getting closer. The decision was precisely towards Bennett.
“…..Tracking?”
Was it the presence he had felt when fleeing? He thought he had escaped by erasing his tracks, but it seemed he had been caught. Bennett’s skills in fleeing, honed over many years as a Black Wizard, were top-notch. It would be impossible for someone with mediocre skills to find his trail.
Therefore, the one who had followed him was a skilled tracker.
Who could it be?
Did that wizard attach someone to monitor the sword? Or was it the wizard himself who had hidden the Demonic Sword? Perhaps it was another Black Wizard. But in any case, no matter the circumstance, shaking off the pursuit was the right thing to do. Expectations should always be pessimistic and the worst-case scenario should always be considered.
Wrapping his body in mana, he kicked off the ground. Bennett’s body shot out like the wind. His plan was to first distance himself and hide.
To make tracking difficult, he jumped over walls of deserted roads, stepped on tree branches, and used 『Delayed Fall』 Magic to fly through the air for a moment. All while scattering his tracks as he moved. It was a masterclass of fleeing.
However, the pursuer was a step ahead. A league above skill-wise.
The pursuer was definitely slower. When he accelerated explosively, they couldn’t keep up with Bennett’s speed. Yet, after a short time, he could invariably hear the approaching footsteps again.
He was definitely faster. But if he was still being caught up to, it meant the pursuer was completely predicting and tracking Bennett’s movements.
“Tch……..Are they watching from the sky or something?!”
Looking up at the narrow sky blocked by the alleys, there were no familiars in sight. If he had spotted any suspicious bats flying around, he would have intercepted them long ago.
As Bennett tried to escape the pursuit, his movements suddenly stopped. He realized there was only one way left to run. A building of the Church of the Goddess was in front of him.
He quickly scanned the map of the vicinity in his mind. And then, he came to a conclusion. If he bypassed the building of the Church of the Goddess, he would be caught.
Was it a coincidence or was it the tracker’s strategy?
It seemed certain that the pursuer was on the side of the Purple Tower Wizard……that is, the faction hiding the Demonic Sword. Otherwise, there would be no reason to follow so secretly and persistently.
Even if they led him to this building, it was impossible for them to be a part of the Church of the Goddess. If that was the case, they would not have come alone, but in a group, accompanied by Paladins.
Ignoring uncertainties and focusing on certainties, the pursuer had buried the Demonic Sword in the ground. It was intended to be used for personal purposes.
That alone would make the Church of the Goddess rush in, eyes burning with a holy fire. Whether a Black Wizard or not, a wicked item that corrupted people was considered highly negative in their doctrine.
Thus, the Church would also be an uncomfortable location for the pursuer. Moreover, a Saintess with a rather bad reputation was residing in the church building. Known for being willful and unmanageable, she would not forgive a group causing trouble at night.
This……could be used as a neutral zone.
If the tracker had any sense, they would not start a fight inside the church building. If a fight could be avoided, a conversation wouldn’t be that bad of an idea.
===============================================================
The fleeing man was terrifyingly fast. Had she lost track of him even once, she would have never found him again.
It seemed he had noticed Niolle was pursuing him partway through. She wanted to catch up to him, to ask what exactly had happened in the pit and if it was as bad as she had imagined.
She would advise him to repent and pay for his sins. If it was refused after confessing before the Goddess and receiving a proper punishment, she would fight with all she had…….was what she was going to do, but…
“⋯⋯⋯?!”
Why would the suspicious person go into a church building?
Was he running to confess after hearing her telepathy? Niolle knew all too well that couldn’t be the case. If the world were that kind, her family would not have fallen into ruin.
Whether by mistake or intention, it was an opportunity for Niolle. She had heard that the Saintess resided in the building. If a commotion arose, not only the Saintess but also officials of the Church of the Goddess would swarm out. Thus, they could stop the suspicious individual.
She followed the trail. Crossing a beautifully decorated garden and stepping on an external drainpipe, she grabbed the balcony railings with her hands. With a heave, she pulled herself up onto the balcony.
A person in a hood ─ judging by the protruding Adam’s apple, he was a man ─ was waiting there. He asked with caution.
“……What is your purpose?”
Niolle wanted to ask about what she went through last night and the connection between the dug-up pit and him. But, alas. Oops.
“⋯⋯⋯⋯!”
She didn’t have her whiteboard. Niolle grabbed at her throat in frustration.
===============================================================
The pursuer was a gentle and sweet-looking female student. She was unarmed and did not have a gaze filled with killing intent. Seeing she was unfamiliar, she must be a new student.
Wondering if perhaps it could be a simple misunderstanding, Bennett asked her purpose.
“……What is your purpose?”
“⋯⋯⋯⋯!”
“Silence, huh…..”
Was she trying to probe him? Or was she biding her time to understand the situation? Bennett raised his guard and continued to speak.
“I do not know what you’re plotting, but it is bold. Merely possessing and hiding a Demonic Sword is enough for the Heretic Inquisition to fall upon you. I’m sure you weren’t unaware of that risk.”
“⋯⋯⋯⋯?”
“If you are not going to speak, I shall try guessing.”
“⋯⋯⋯⋯.”
Bennett piece together the puzzle in his mind. The reason why the faction backing the Second Prince hid a Demonic Sword in such a conspicuous place……. If they were intending to be caught on purpose, everything would make sense.
He came to a perfect conclusion.
“Is your plan to use the Demonic Sword as a pretext to find fault, frame someone as a Black Wizard, and purge the factions opposing the Second Prince inside the Academy── namely, the faction of the Third Prince?”
“⋯⋯⋯⋯?!!”
The pursuer’s expression crumbled. It was the look of someone who had been hit in the back of the head with a hammer. Of someone who had let something significant slip. Bennett gained certainty.
The truth of the Demonic Sword’s burial was a chillingly ruthless succession struggle.
It was an excellent opportunity. In fact, it couldn’t be better. If political strife stirred up the Academy, it was exactly what a Black Wizard would wish for. The wicked plan of the Purple Tower Wizard must proceed. Bennett drew the Demonic Sword from his waist and laid it on the ground.
“I thought it was a valuable item and stole it. That is all. Here, I am returning it. I’m not foolish enough to get involved in the high and mighty’s battles. I will not interfere, so stop the pursuit.”
“⋯⋯⋯⋯!!!”
The pursuer, startled and flustered, took a step forward, reaching out her arm. Bennett grabbed a laundry rack placed on the balcony and threw it towards the pursuer, scattering the clothes to block the view.
Bennett jumped down from the balcony and ran off.
===============================================================
Niolle reflexively knocked away the flying laundry rack and brushed off the fluttering panties from the air. And then, she stopped. It was a sudden brain freeze from the overflow of information.
What exactly did I just hear?
Niolle was dumbfounded. Before anything, fortunately, what was buried in the pit was not a person but a Demonic Sword. The suspicious person who had dug up the ground was not a murderer but a thief. It was a minor misunderstanding.
This incident was not about someone being buried alive and killed.
Rather, it was about a case where several people might burn to death due to collateral damage in the future.
Niolle’s expression was filled with worry and concern. She felt like crying a little. Sure, she was meddling. But wasn’t it a bit too much to get involved in the ruthless competition between the Second and Third Princes because of just that? It was a matter that could easily vaporize the neck of a mere fallen noble.
But still…To think of framing someone using a Demonic Sword…..
After hearing the news of the Second Prince pacifying the underworld, she thought they were now looking after the Empire’s citizens even in those dark places. Now, it seemed not out of goodwill but perhaps to cultivate something akin to an assassination squad.
“……Huuuuh.”
Let’s calm down.
It was said that even if captured by a goblin tribe, one could survive if they kept their wits. Perhaps this too could pass without much incident. Once back, she would have to consult with Selv……..
“Who’s out there?”
“⋯⋯⋯⋯!!!”
A woman’s voice came from behind the thick curtains of the balcony door. Niolle glanced at the Demonic Sword on the ground, then at the sky, before bolting. The Church of the Goddess would take care of the Demonic Sword properly.
She ran away frantically. After running for a while, she sat down against the wall of the female dormitory building, catching her breath. It was only then did she realized.
“⋯⋯.”
Her right hand was still clutching the panties tightly. She had grabbed them when knocking away the laundry rack, and in the heat of the moment, she had forgotten to drop them.
Unfolding them revealed risqué underwear that could only be worn when tied to the sides.
She had become the Panty Thief of the Academy…….!!
===============================================================
What’s all this commotion in the middle of the night?
Startled awake by the clattering noise coming from beyond the balcony, Saintess Tara groggily furrowed her brows and opened the balcony door.
“What in the world.”
The Saintess blinked.
She rubbed her eyes, thinking she wasn’t fully awake yet, but the shitfest remained exactly the same.
Deciding she should just outright wash her face, she went downstairs to the 1st floor, scooped a bucket of water from the well, splashed herself with cold water, wrung out her wet bangs, and even brewed and drank a cup of tea on a whim.
And then, she returned to the balcony.
The laundry rack was overturned, clothes finished washing were scattered on the ground, and for some reason. A long sword laid neatly placed. The sword had Seal Magic on it, so she tried releasing it.
-Are you my new Mas…….
“『Artifact Seal of the Brilliant Three Rings』”
It was a Demonic Sword.
When examining the crime scene thoroughly, she noticed one piece of underwear was missing.
To summarize comprehensively, someone had sneaked into a church building belonging to the Church of the Goddess, knocked over the Saintess’s laundry, and taken a pair of panties, leaving a Demonic Sword as a gift in exchange.
“……Seriously, what in the world is this?”
She was so bewildered that she wasn’t even angry.
