༺ Stalkers of the Academy ༻
Time remaining until the first class── 3 days.
===============================================================
Saintess Tara disliked the Church of the Goddess.
She disliked the boring and useless formalities of them, the complicated and twisted procedures, the constraints that a Saintess must act a certain way, the silent atmosphere, and the endless babble of words.
A Saintess must be modest. A Saintess must set an example for the believers. A Saintess must not be promiscuous. A Saintess must speak properly and beautifu…….
A veritable mountain of words demanding something.
Someone had once said she should be grateful, as she was born a commoner and had experienced a dramatic rise in status. What was the problem when she didn’t have to worry about going hungry for the rest of her life?
Someone had once said how she could refuse to do certain actions because of her personal human emotions when God gazed upon her so kindly. Wasn’t she happy to have been assigned the most glorious task?
Someone had once said, since it had come to this anyway, she should just go with the flow. What’s done is done and it can’t be helped, can it?
However, Tara didn’t desire any of the things they listed. She never did.
Miss Tara, formerly working for a clothing store, knew the mysterious principle of trade. Demanding money while pushing something unnecessary to someone’s chest was called forced purchase.
The very, very minor thing that Tara wanted was stubbornly unprovided, yet they threw things like money, status, and honor at her, saying ‘How about it? Isn’t it nice?’. As such, how could it not be infuriating? How could it not be suffocating?
So, Saintess Tara’s personality became twisted.
She firmly decided to act exactly the opposite of what the religious order instructed her to do.
===============================================================
According to the rules that a Saintess of the Order must follow, the Saintess’s attire should be designed in a modest form that covered the figure.
This was to prevent various negative effects, such as the Saintess getting a lover and eloping, or to prevent the uneducated from rushing at her when she went to the back alleys for volunteer work.
She did it because she was told not to.
She utilized 200% of her experience as a clothing store girl. She tailored the voluminous Saintess attire to make it completely tight-fitting. Just enough to reveal her navel. She also generously cut open the area of her cleavage.
She also removed the sleeves, making the shoulders and armpits visible. It was because the rules emphasized not to show the shoulders and armpits carelessly.
She bought black lingerie that was semi-transparent and tied with strings. It was because the rules stated that underwear should not be transparent and should most definitely not be tied with strings.
She made a daring slit in the skirt hem. It revealed her hips and even the panty strings. It was because the rules said that was not allowed as well.
She did everything that she was told not to do, gritting her teeth through the process.
“……Are these clothes or a rag?”
Obviously……she, who was the one wearing it, felt like dying of embarrassment!
But she didn’t give in. If it meant smearing mud on the face of the Order, she was more than able to endure a bit of shame. She got used to wearing it as she went about.
Thus, the monster known as 『Couple Destroyer』 was born. Like sunflowers turning towards the sun, when she walked down the street, half the heads of the pedestrians turned, tracing her figure with their gazes.
And as a result of that, a few couples’ darling romance was absolutely shattered.
The attempt to fuck over the Church of the Goddess didn’t stop there. She dropped all honorifics and loaded up her verbal artillery with casual speech. When a noble offered a large donation asking for the Saintess’s blessing, she swore at them inwardly, hoping they would go bald.
(The exception was when she was asked to bless a newborn baby. That she did quietly and with all her sincerity.)
She made her room an utter mess, deliberately eating powdered snacks on top of the carpet. She never attended prayer services despite the Priests’ pleas. She even skipped volunteer work.
She always scowled and glared at others. She ignored greetings. She retaliated if cursed at. She even attempted to spread scandals by meeting m……en, but as expected, that was a bit much.
However, because of her attire, unsettling rumors spread easily even without her needing to even lift a finger.
The reason the Saintess of the Church of the Goddess was suddenly attending the Academy was precisely because of this. Unable to handle her rebellious spirit, the Order sent the Saintess to the Academy as a means of exile, hoping she would change her ways.
Thus, a naughty, disobedient Saintess, dressed in an extremely provocative and lewd manner, appeared at the Academy.
===============================================================
Consequently, the Saintess’s daily routine closely resembled that of a chair warmer. Also known as a salary thief. She woke up, attended classes, and then slept. But at the current moment, when the Academy hadn’t started yet, even the middle process was skipped.
She woke up and slept. And then, repeat.
If she really got bored, she went to the library to read a book. If she still had time left after this, she pondered how to further upgrade her Saintess attire (which seemed to retain about 45% of its original form). It had now gotten to a point where if she so much as twitched, it might no longer qualify as clothing, so delicate adjustments were necessary.
The Saintess’s duties were more numerous than one might expect. She had to participate in all kinds of holy places and, in case of a major event, led Priests and Paladins to resolve it. She also had to write letters of gratitude to those who made large donations.
Since she pushed such tasks onto the Priests below her, she inevitably had time to spare.
And in the midst of such a boring routine…..
“⋯⋯⋯⋯.”
The incident of exchanging panties for a Demonic Sword occurred.
The catastrophe on the balcony was still ongoing. The Saintess swung the Demonic Sword she picked up in the air. Which fucker did this, huh?
A Demonic Sword of itself was a serious crime.
The reason was simple. It was far too immoral and destruction was inevitable at a certain point in time. The attempt to infuse a weapon with consciousness had been around since ancient times, but there was only one successful method; trapping someone’s soul within the weapon.
A soul trapped in an inanimate lump of metal would suffer endless agony. It could think, but would not be able to move; similar to being trapped in a narrow coffin, unable to twitch a single muscle.
That was why a ‘good Egosword’ could not exist.
No matter how noble the soul, being confined in a close space would drive anyone insane after about 300 years. The final destination of all Egoswords was becoming a corrupted Demonic Sword.
Thus, the mere fact it could speak was enough to judge it as a Demonic Sword. After all, there was no other method to create one besides infusing it with a soul. This was why it was sealed upon hearing just the first phrase.
“Is this a provocation?”
If it was just about throwing a Demonic Sword at her and walking away, she might just think it was done out of annoyance because they got involved in troublesome matters with the Church of the Goddess. But smashing the laundry drying rack and taking panties seemed like a clear provocation no matter how she went about it.
How could she catch the culprit? Just as the Saintess was pondering this, there was a knock at the door. And then, a female Priest peeked her face through the gap.
“Um, excuse me, Saintess.”
“I’m not going. Whatever you’ve called me for, I won’t do it. I won’t go.”
“They just paid for a consultation fee. They said they wanted to see the Saintess, so……”
“I told you I’m not going. Do you want to see another slash added to the Saintess attire?”
The threat, which was dizzying just from the sound of it, made the female Priest’s face turn pale. However, the matter was too important to back down, so the Priest clenched her eyes shut and continued.
“P-Professor……Professor Alejandro has something urgent to say!”
“A Professor?”
Alejandro Menuba. The Professor in charge of 『Introduction to Basic Elements』.
He was talented but annoying. How should she put it? Every part of his accent was dripping with self-love; his narcissism was so strong that just looking at him made her stomach turn. After all, he acted as if half the world should be in love with him. She really didn’t want to meet him.
But still, he was a Professor. In addition, if any ordinary household had paid such a high consultation fee that it would make their knees go weak, she would have to meet them regardless. It was important to fuck over the religious order, but being true to herself was also important.
Fair trade must be maintained.
If a fair price was paid without any discount, one rightfully deserved the goods that came with it.
Saintess Tara strapped the Demonic Sword to her waist and went down to the reception room.
===============================================================
Professor Alejandro stroked his mustache and spoke gravely.
“It was undoubtedly sorcery.”
“?”
“I have been pondering for a long time. How could I, who have reached the Metamorphosis realm…….have been deceived by the Illusion Magic of a wizard who couldn’t even reach Metamorphosis? Then this morning, as sunlight seeped through the window, a beam of light brushed past my mind. It was undoubtedly the grace of the Goddess.”
“There’s no sunlight in the Goddess’s symbols, though.”
Professor Alejandro didn’t care one bit. As if he had been possessed by a spirit, he was busy spilling his thoughts. The Saintess quietly erected a mana barrier. After all, his spit was flying onto her.
“I clearly heard it then. Alejandro, do not be dismayed. That Purple Tower Wizard used sorcery! That’s right! Black Wizards used the souls of pitiful victims to enhance the effects of their magic! That bastard definitely used Black Magic……There is no doubt about it!”
“Yes, well……..So what?”
“The Professor that entered the Academy this time is actually a wicked bastard of a Black Wizard! He disguised himself as a Professor and infiltrated our beloved Academy! I shall report him! For the safety of the students and the future of the Empire, I cannot stand by idly. Please handle this urgently! If the bastard notices we are tracking him, thus erasing his traces and running away, what will we do!”
Thanks to the 30-minute symphony of ‘I didn’t lose because I lack the skill’, the Saintess was able to understand the entire story. It seemed that the Purple Tower Wizard, newly in charge of 『Countermeasures to Illusion Magic』, had landed a metaphorical blow on Alejandro.
The Saintess didn’t take it seriously. It was probably just a grand mistake made by Professor Alejandro, who was practically bursting with an inferiority complex. This wasn’t the first time such an incident had occurred either. About four times a year, Alejandro would make such false accusations and squeal to the authorities.
So, she also knew the solution to this.
Though she didn’t know who it was, she would go to the Purple Tower Wizard. And by saying. ‘Please send Professor Alejandro a chocolate or something as a gesture of goodwill.’, everything would be resolved.
He was as quick to defuse as he was to blow up in anger. A little lip service from the Purple Tower Wizard in question would smooth things over. He would probably say something like, ‘Your talent shines like a star! I misunderstood before. I apologize.’, and then fawn over them like that.
Then, she would have to meet him, huh.
After letting Professor Alejandro’s rant enter one ear and go out the other, the Saintess declared the end of the consultation time and got up. She thought it might be nice to take a walk for a change while looking for the Purple Tower Wizard.
===============================================================
Meanwhile, at the same time.
Black Wizard Bennett felt that an in-depth investigation into the Purple Tower Wizard was necessary. He pondered the specifics of how the Second Prince’s faction intended to attack the Third Prince and when it would happen. Furthermore, the more concrete information he had, the easier it would be to use.
There must be more to their plan than just a Demonic Sword. The Purple Tower Wizard’s womanizing behavior, visits to lingerie shops, and other seemingly meaningless actions must have had a purpose.
The Wizard still had many secrets. And the appropriate way to uncover those secrets…….was through stalking. Bennett changed into an Academy uniform and melted into the crowd.
He would keep an appropriate distance while stalking the Purple Tower Wizard.
===============================================================
Meanwhile, at the same time.
Niolle was looking at the panties while in contemplation. She had to return them. But how? Who was the owner in the first place? Since they were hung on the balcony laundry rack, the voice from inside the balcony door……must belong to the owner of the panties.
She briefly tried imagining the hypothetical situation. She would go to the building of the Church of the Goddess with her whiteboard in hand. And then…
[I am looking for the owner of these undergarments!]
Was what would be written on the whiteboard she was holding up high with both arms. And if she wandered around doing that…….
No, that’s too much. No matter how she thought about it, the scene was weird. It might be better to return them to the balcony under the cover of night. Niolle tucked the panties away.
Then came the second dilemma.
It was regarding the Second Prince’s evil schemes. A huge storm was about to hit the Academy……. Many would die or be dragged away. Even those without fault would get caught in the turmoil. After all, as heavy of a weight that imperial blood was, the aftermath would be just as severe.
[Can’t I stop it?]
She wrote on the whiteboard. While looking at the sentence, she thought deeply. Could she, with just a bit of short-sightedness, stand against the storm and protect the peace of the Academy?
“⋯⋯⋯⋯.”
No, she wasn’t alone.
The man who ran away with the Demonic Sword. He said he stole the Demonic Sword because he thought it was valuable, but upon reflection, that was a strange thing to say.
How did he know it was a Demonic Sword?
To Niolle’s eyes, the long sword the man had left on the balcony looked ordinary. In the first place, didn’t Niolle chase after him thinking he was burying a person? She only knew it was a Demonic Sword because the man said so.
In Niolle’s mind……that man seemed to be trying to thwart the Second Prince’s evil plans. The only reason to run away with the buried Demonic Sword was that. Perhaps, he was actually on the side of justice and righteousness.
He had run away, mistaking Niolle for an ally of the Second Prince, but if they met again, perhaps they could clear up the misunderstanding. And then, she could seek his cooperation. After all, Niolle wanted to stop a bloodbath from occurring in the Academy, so they could work together to prevent it.
In order to meet that man again…….
The people who buried the Demonic Sword. The Wizard and the beauty. Those two. They were the key to this incident. Let’s stalk them. She was going to gather information and thwart their evil plan.
Furthermore, if that man was also trying to stop the Second Prince’s schemes, he would eventually follow that Wizard. There might be a chance to encounter him again during the stalking process. Alright, Fighting. You’re not alone, Niolle. Let’s stay strong.
Niolle got up energetically to look for the duo. The Wizard and the Beauty.
===============================================================
“Someone is stalking us. Three people.”
“Why would three people be stalking a new Academy professor?”
I couldn’t help but snort at the absurdity. What had I even done to have three people follow me? I hadn’t even taught my first class yet, you know?
