Chapter 158
Chapter 158
Main Building Underground Detention Cell.
Built by stacking bricks mixed with Clovarium powder, this place allowed no magic to function at all.
It was a room where not only criminals within the academy, but also students whose mana had become contaminated and who could no longer control magic, the mentally weakened, and the like were tied up and held for several days.
Of course, Lapin and I were not being treated as criminals; it was merely a temporary detention measure for interrogation the next day.
……However.
Professor Hilda had come here personally.
She looked down at me as I sat leaning my back against the wall.
Those sharply gleaming, chilling eyes.
Yet before I knew it, droplets began to form in them.
“What’s the reason? Why do you…… not listen to what I say?”
Professor Hilda gripped the bars with both hands and spoke as if she were frustrated.
Seeing that 모습, I couldn’t take my eyes off her.
“Why did you do that this time? What were you planning to do if something really serious happened?”
“……I’m sorry.”
“Is saying sorry enough?”
Hilda still spoke in a gentle tone, but her eyes were opened wide.
She was clearly angry.
“Student Villed won’t listen to me in the future either, will you. If something dangerous happens again, it feels like you’ll run off anywhere without hesitation.”
Hilda lowered her head for a moment.
“There’s nowhere I can tie you down…….”
She let out a very small, self-mocking murmur, then looked back at me.
“……Still, I’m glad you weren’t hurt.”
After hearing her words, I stood up from my spot and walked toward Hilda.
“Professor Hilda.”
And as if bewitched, I opened my mouth.
“Why do you go so far as to treat me specially?”
“…….”
Hilda couldn’t say anything.
She tried to speak, then closed her mouth again.
“……Because.”
As she repeated that several times, her voice became hoarse.
As if her throat were completely clogged, Hilda took a deep breath before answering.
“Because Student Villed is my one and only disciple.”
She put particular emphasis on the word ‘disciple.’
She slipped her hand through the bars of the detention cell.
“There will be plenty of dangerous things ahead. No matter what I say, Student Villed will probably chase after danger like this again anyway, so please promise me just one thing.”
Hilda held my hand with both of hers.
“Don’t think lightly of your life. Don’t think only about yourself. Think about the people who would grieve if they lost you…….”
Her hands were warm.
And I could feel a faint trembling.
“If I were to lose you too……. I wouldn’t have the courage to go on living anymore…….”
Moisture seeped into Hilda’s eyes.
Standing in front of her like that, I couldn’t bring myself to give any answer at all.
“So please…….”
“…….”
I could only look at Professor Hilda.
That sight was a tremendous shock to me.
Because I knew ‘Hilda’s true nature,’ this kind of reaction from her could only confuse me.
‘Hilda…… was never this kind of character.’
A 모습 I had never seen even once, not even in the game.
There hadn’t even been a similar scene or line of dialogue.
In the game, Professor Hilda always smiled, was kind, playful, and perpetually relaxed.
But she wasn’t acting right now.
……Rather, the expression she was showing now might be her true self, the one she had hidden even within the game.
‘Because I’m her one and only disciple?’
Nonsense.
Hilda wasn’t the kind of person who would say such things to anyone.
Besides, she already had countless disciples.
As a ‘Scholar,’ I could easily be replaced by students far superior to me.
Moreover, Professor Hilda wasn’t someone who would shed tears and grieve just because she lost a disciple.
……Then why was she showing a different side only to me?
Hilda never told me the reason to the very end.
In the end, I had no choice but to nod first.
“……Understood.”
“You’re just saying that again.”
Professor Hilda shook her head.
“Not just words. I want you to truly understand how I feel.”
Soon, the droplets at the corners of her eyes fell.
“I won’t tell you not to get involved in dangerous things anymore. Instead, I’ll think about how my feelings can reach Student Villed.”
Knowing the future, the words that followed were rather shocking.
“If you understand those feelings, then Student Villed won’t do dangerous things anymore, right. I won’t just force you; I’ll try so that my sincerity can truly be conveyed.”
Hearing that, my thoughts became complicated.
What did Hilda want from me?
My life?
……No. That wasn’t it.
If my body or life had been her only objective, she would have dragged me into an abyssal prison where not even light could enter and locked me up long ago.
Even without imprisoning me, she could have monitored me every single day.
Hilda was the kind of person who could do that—and a powerhouse with the strength to carry it out.
Yet she hadn’t done any of that at all.
Then there was only one answer.
‘……Is she respecting my self?’
Professor Hilda Annebrier, a newly appointed professor.
At the current point in time, before the appearance of the ‘Calamity,’ she was an overwhelmingly powerful top-tier figure in the world’s hierarchy.
A being destined to inevitably become an enemy of Ren and me in the future.
And also an utterly unforgivable, heinous villain.
I knew the horrific evil deeds she had committed over many long years. The things she would go on to do were no different.
I opposed her and would never forgive her.
I could say with certainty: there would never come a day when Hilda became my ally in the future. Nor did I have any intention of recruiting her as one.
‘Then why is Hilda going so far for me……?’
She was showing me limitless affection.
At first, I thought it was mere interest, whim, or intent.
But…….
Hilda was showing me the face behind the mask, one she hadn’t revealed even in the game.
My heart grew tangled.
“……Then. See you tomorrow, Student Villed.”
With those words, Hilda smiled at me and left.
How much time had passed after Hilda left?
……Footsteps began to be heard.
Not just one or two.
At least four, maybe five sets of footsteps……?
Soon, the shadows receded, and the owners of those presences were revealed.
It was Ren’s group and Professor Ruber.
The professor let out a sigh.
“Do you all have a hobby of making things difficult for me?”
“Professor, those of us who were at the scene also bear responsibility. And if we want to show how much we trust our companion, this was the only way.”
“……Do as you please.”
Creeeak—!
The detention cell opened. Ren and Luga looked down at me as I sat there.
“Ah, Mr. Villed.”
……No way.
Ren and Luga entered the detention cell.
Bang—!
Just like that, the prison closed and was locked.
The next cell was the same.
I heard the voice of Princess Arlhardt.
“Lapin. Stay still for a moment. ……Judging by your eyes, it’s safe. I’ll guarantee it. When tomorrow comes, I should also speak to the professor.”
It was absurd.
I looked at Ren and spoke.
“……What a reckless stunt.”
“It’s not a reckless stunt. I also bear responsibility.”
Ren was showing me a dazzling smile. One I could no longer bear to look at.
“Thank you for bringing back our companion, Lapin. And thank you for coming back alive, Mr. Villed.”
“…….”
I avoided Ren’s gaze and gave no reply.
Narrow-eyed Luga was grinning silently as he looked at me.
His stare was far too irritating to simply ignore.
“Hey, Narrow-eyes. Why did you come?”
“Well, me? I just, uh… followed along because it looked fun.”
Luga replied cheerfully with his arms crossed.
“Come to think of it, Dedencman. I don’t believe I’ve ever formally greeted you.”
“What, lining up to suck up to someone getting punished with stable duty?”
“Haha, I’m not lining up to curry favor with the Dedencman family. I’ve simply taken an interest in you.”
I waved my hand dismissively.
“Get lost. I don’t like men.”
“Hahaha, you know how to joke.”
Luga laughed heartily, then opened his mouth again.
“But there’s something I’ve been curious about for a long time. Do you remember Rekorox?”
Of course I remembered.
I had corrected the flawed strategy and reorganized things efficiently.
“The man with the sword, the Weeping Man. He was the strongest monster on the first floor of Rekorox. But what did you see in me that made you entrust that difficult mission to me? There were people stronger than me there.”
Luga grinned.
There wasn’t even time to hesitate. Lies wouldn’t work on him.
It was better to tell the truth immediately.
“Luga. Your movements have efficiency and restraint. That’s far superior to others. I just thought that if I squeezed that efficiency to the limit somehow, you could win.”
“Hmm.”
Luga stroked his chin as he replied.
“Dedencman, you’re more honest than you look.”
“Honest, my ass. Why would I lie over something like that?”
“Hahah… that’s true.”
Luga nodded repeatedly and then took a step closer.
“Then. I’ll be in your care next semester as well, Dedencman.”
Luga smiled and extended his hand toward me.
I didn’t take it and instead glared at him.
“I told you, I don’t like men.”
“……Huh? That’s not what I meant either. I just meant let’s get along, so give me a handshake.”
“Get lost.”
“Well now……. That’s quite a misunderstanding you’ve got there.”
I never shook his hand to the very end.
“Student Villed, did you sleep well?”
When I opened my eyes, I saw a familiar black-haired man—Lahan.
He was smiling at me from behind his glasses.
“Since it’s underground, you can’t tell night from day, right? It’s morning now. It’s time for the meeting you promised with Professor Ruber.”
He opened the detention cell door.
I stepped out.
When I looked toward the neighboring cell, I saw Lapin sleeping soundly.
Even if sleeping Lapin couldn’t hear me, I still spoke.
“I’ll be back.”
“……You were planning to come back here again, Student Villed?”
Lahan asked very carefully. I answered as if it were obvious.
“Of course.”
“Mm…….”
Lahan nodded and walked down the long corridor with me.
He didn’t say anything else to me, nor did he give me another look.
……That was how we arrived at the professors’ wing of the main building, at Ruber’s laboratory.
This was my second time here.
The first was shortly after my spar with Ren, when I received the Scholar proposal.
I steadied my breathing and opened the door to the laboratory.
Professor Ruber, sitting at the table with his fingers interlaced, looked at me.
“Good morning, Professor.”
“Sit.”
Ruber gestured toward the chair in front of the table.
I sat down and faced him.
……Ruber was the one who spoke first.
“Let’s talk about the incident during the comprehensive exam. I already heard from the assistant. You used Spirit Grass, didn’t you? After hearing that report, I conducted an experiment under the same conditions. However, I was unable to treat the side effects.”
Ruber opened his hand.
“I’ve always thought you were peculiar.”
In his palm was a small pouch, barely large enough to hold a few coins.
“The amount of mana capacity you possess is about this much. What this pouch can hold is, at best, a few small coins.”
Ruber’s gaze changed.
“And yet. From this pouch, you’re pulling out this book. And even this desk.”
As if to demonstrate, Ruber tapped a large book and the desk.
Naturally, they were volumes that could never be stored in such a small pouch.
“It’s a phenomenon that defies common sense.”
Ruber stared straight into my eyes.
“I won’t pry into the secret you’re trying to hide. However, keep in mind that it’s only a matter of time before others notice your capabilities as well.”
He spoke with emphasis.
“Whether they’re allies or enemies.”
His eyes narrowed slightly as he looked at me.
“That was a long preamble. Now I’ll get to the point.”
He interlaced his fingers again and spoke.
“At Yggdrasil Academy, there is a provision called an autonomous major. It’s a special exception granted only to a select few recommended by professors.”
Hearing that, I could already predict what would follow.
“I intend to recommend you for the autonomous major—and furthermore, into the Finders curriculum.”
My second meeting with Professor Ruber.
Once again, he was making me an offer.
“……Is that even possible?”
“I’ve already finished discussing it with Chancellor Tot.”
After hearing Ruber’s answer, my thoughts raced.
At the same time, I came up with a brilliant scheme.
I had to suppress the laughter that nearly burst out.
I desperately wiped all expression from my face and spoke.
“I refuse.”
“And why is that?”
“Graduating from there is difficult, isn’t it. It sounds troublesome, so I don’t want to.”
“…….”
Ruber looked at me, completely at a loss for words.