Chapter 93 : Chapter 93
Chapter 93 The dead talk a lot.
“Haa, for such a thing to…….”
Veridian looked at Professor Keller’s lab and shook his head.
“The items are perfectly cleared away, but something is a bit strange.”
Allegri, having looked around the room here and there, tilted his head. He pressed the empty wall firmly with his hand.
Olivier, who came together, said, ‘I’ve already looked around. Nothing comes out.’
“Even if there was a problem, he wouldn’t be a person to leave as if fleeing like this; something is strange.”
“Since he made such a deal, wouldn’t leaving like this be the only way?”
Allegri, receiving Veridian’s words, stared intently at a thin line in the corner of the room.
“Hmm?”
“What is it?”
“The line here feels somewhat awkward. There’s also a feeling that something smudged on the ceiling and floor.”
Veridian, hearing Allegri’s explanation, stroked his beard and carefully examined the line in the corner.
“It’s a distortion. Hmm…….”
He placed his finger on the spot where the color seemed slightly smudged and infused mana. At that moment, a thick wavelength spread throughout the entire room.
“Someone cast distortion magic.”
Veridian moved his hand along the line.
Pazzzt.
As if a veil was burning, the distortion of light sparkled and gradually disappeared.
“What is this?”
At the unfolding scene, Olivier let out a scream of astonishment.
Allegri also couldn’t help but be surprised.
The truth they faced was gruesome, itself. Blood was scattered in every corner. Furniture, books, tools, and such were torn, broken, ripped off; it was hard to find anything intact.
The climax of this sight was Keller’s corpse. He hung on the wall without even being able to close his eyes. His hands, forehead, and feet were fixed with things like giant awls. A sharp sword was stuck in his left chest where the heart is.
“No, what on earth is this?”
Veridian tried to touch Keller’s body with a trembling hand.
“Principal.”
Olivier blocked Veridian.
Allegri also nodded as if Olivier’s action was correct.
“Principal. We don’t know what kind of magic might be cast. If you touch it rashly, you might suffer a mishap.”
“……Right. That is correct. I must have been too shocked and let my feelings get ahead.”
Veridian swallowed his bitterness and raised mana onto his palm.
Blue light spread widely and slowly caressed dead Keller’s body.
“There is nothing that could be a danger. So let’s take Professor Keller down.”
Olivier and Allegri pulled out the awls stuck in Keller’s body one by one. Keller’s dangling body.
Veridian looked at it pitifully.
Keller’s body, with hardened blood plastered on it, was moved to the floor.
Veridian swallowed a sigh and closed Keller’s eyes.
“My friend. What exactly did you do to end up like this?”
Olivier and Allegri bowed their heads at the words where pain could be felt. Because they knew well why Veridian felt sorry.
The general manager of the martial arts tournament where Keller’s son had an accident was Veridian. That tournament had an unusually high number of accidents. But Veridian did not stop the martial arts tournament. The reason was that it was a golden opportunity to make Saint-Denis Academy’s greatness known to the King and nobles. And the result was…….
Veridian had knelt and apologized to Keller. Saying he was blinded by performance and did something he shouldn’t have. The apology didn’t end that day. Veridian repeated the apology whenever there was a chance. Saying that although he couldn’t be forgiven, he would still beg for forgiveness with all his might.
“I should have paid more attention, I am sorry. I am truly sorry.”
A solemn atmosphere continued.
Veridian put his hand on Keller’s body saying he wanted to bury him personally. It was then.
Flash.
A subtle light twinkled from Keller’s mana circle.
“P, Principal?”
“Did you do something, sir?”
Receiving the questions, Veridian shook his head. And he placed his hand on Keller’s mana circle.
“The mana circle is broken but…… don’t tell me?”
Veridian infused mana into Keller’s body. The mana that became a white line drew lines following the broken mana circle. The lines became a pattern, and the pattern made a frame.
And within that frame, Keller’s face bloomed.
Veridian reversed the flow of mana and stopped Keller’s face from flowing.
“It is the Memory of Oblivion. We need to transfer this…… let’s find if there is a crystal in the room. If it’s a crystal of appropriate size, we can transfer it.”
Olivier and Allegri started searching every corner of the room.
Veridian looked at Keller’s lifeless face with pity. Saying, ‘I will surely listen to your words. I will do at least that for you.’
***
I sat in the waiting room and moistened my throat.
Although the time spent fighting Egbaldo was short, the consumption of mana was significant, so I needed to put everything down and rest for even 10 minutes.
But…….
“Why are you acting like that here?”
Egbaldo is looking at me with fire in his eyes. Literally, he is looking only at me.
“I won’t get a hole in me just because you look like that, so could you go over there?”
“No. There is something.”
“What on earth is there?”
There is no answer to the question. He just stares intently at my face.
‘Did he go crazy in the head due to the shock?’
His eyes seem a bit strange too somewhere…….
“This isn’t the Maxim I knew.”
“What you knew wasn’t everything.”
Egbaldo’s facial muscles stiffened. His pupils shook too.
‘He’s flustered.’
Should I call this honest as he looks, or say he’s an old man on the outside but a child inside…….
“Ma, Ma…… xim.”
Odekerkh, who entered the waiting room energetically, stuttered.
Well, he originally stuttered, but this time he stuttered with a different feeling.
“Why is, that person…….”
“I don’t know either. Try telling him to get out.”
Odekerkh sent a look with the feeling of ‘How can I do that?’
Egbaldo looked at me and Odekerkh alternately. And he tilted his head as if it was even stranger.
“Maxim! You went…… to the finals…… why?”
This time it was Adellian. She opened her eyes roundly as if flustered and looked at me.
“I’m curious about that too. Is Michelle okay?”
“She is here.”
Michelle, who was standing behind Adellian, raised her hand and peeked her face out.
Thanks to Adellian’s healing magic, large wounds couldn’t be found. Although it was a face that looked a bit tired.
“Really strange. The Maxim I knew didn’t mingle with people.”
“So that is…… no. Let’s just say I changed after surviving death.”
“Ah! You said you survived death. So it was because of that?”
Egbaldo opened his eyes roundly with an ‘Ah!’ sound as if he realized something.
Bang!
Along with the door opening, Piontek laughed loudly.
“I heard the semifinal was super bland, Egbaldo…… you are here…… huh?”
Even if you ask me with your eyes, I cannot tell you the reason.
Because I am also extremely curious why he is here.
Anyway, I want to rest quietly for a bit and recharge mana, but I can’t because of these people.
“Can’t you give me 10 minutes to rest? I want to be alone quietly.”
Since it’s a moment where frankness can be used as a weapon, I tried to wield it somehow.
But…….
“Wouldn’t it be difficult to put this guy in another place?”
Barthe, I don’t know when he woke up, is standing behind Piontek with his head bowed like a sinner.
A sigh came out naturally. I should give up resting. Like Piontek’s words, if we put Barthe in another place, we don’t know what might happen to him.
Toot! Toot!
The sound announcing match preparation rang out.
All of us looked at Piontek.
“How long do you need to rest?”
“Huh?”
“No, you said you needed time to rest. Is 10 minutes enough?”
“What are you planning?”
Piontek smirked toward me. Then he took out bandages and started wrapping them around his arms and legs.
“Where did you get that? No, why are you wrapping that?”
“You just rest. I will take care of everything.”
I don’t know what he is thinking.
Piontek, with bandages wrapped, left the waiting room.
I looked at Adellian and Odekerkh alternately asking with my eyes what Piontek’s thought was.
The returning answer was shaking heads, ‘I don’t know.’
“This match is Cadet Dwight and Cadet Piontek!”
Don’t tell me?
“Catch him. Don’t let him go up to the arena.”
Starting with Michelle, Adellian and Odekerkh ran out.
I also ran following them.
“Stop it!”
I shouted toward Piontek stepping up to the arena.
Piontek waved his hand toward my direction. With a face full of remorse like an old man going to die.
“Piontek!”
“Do, don’t do it.”
Despite Adellian and Odekerkh’s shouts, Piontek didn’t budge. He stood in the center of the arena and waved his hand toward the spectators.
“Wasn’t his injury serious?”
“Right. Look, he’s wrapping bandages even now.”
“But he’s doing the semifinal? The opponent is Dwight?”
“He’d want to run even if he dies. It’s the semifinals. If he endures here, he goes to the Royal Guard.”
“Wow, damn. Worth risking his life.”
The voices of spectators chatting about Piontek’s appearance entered my ears.
I opened the path of mana wide so I could take out mana anytime.
‘This time I go in immediately and stop it.’
“Don’t mind it! What you worry about won’t happen!”
Piontek shouted looking at me. He shook his bandaged arm vigorously as if telling me to trust unconditionally.
“W, what is he thinking?”
“Shouldn’t we go and stop him even now?”
Odekerkh and Adellian said while approaching close to the arena.
At that time, Michelle grabbed their arms.
I stared at Michelle. Not someone who speaks her thoughts strongly usually. But now she is acting, not just speaking.
“Trust him.”
At Michelle’s words, Adellian and Odekerkh nodded and stepped back.
I also lowered my sharply honed senses and looked at Piontek.
Piontek, reading our atmosphere, smiled and shook his fist.
“Greeting each other!”
Following the referee’s words, Piontek and Dwight shook hands.
Adellian swallowed a big breath, perhaps nervous.
Odekerkh also watched Piontek with a serious face.
“Hmm. He won’t be a match…….”
Egbaldo said tilting his head, I don’t know when he came out.
“He knows too.”
“Then isn’t it better to stop him?”
“Since he said not to.”
“Hmm. Hmm. Hmm! Is that so?”
Egbaldo looked at me with his arms crossed. Exuding a feeling that he might know something.
“Start!”
With the command, Dwight drew his sword.
Piontek also lifted his spear and shook it here and there.
“Wait!”
At Piontek’s shout, Dwight crumpled his face.
The referee approached Piontek and asked the reason for stopping.
“Well.”
Piontek glanced at me repeatedly.
At this, I couldn’t help but burst into a hollow laugh.
“His tricks are really.”
I shook my head and headed toward the waiting room.
“Huh? Maxim. Where are you going?”
“You, aren’t watching the match?”
Piontek isn’t doing that to tell me to watch the match right now. He’s doing that to tell me to go to the waiting room and rest.
“I don’t have to watch.”
Bang!
I turned my head at the impact sound.
The floor was smashed by Piontek’s spear.
“Ugh.”
And he sat down frowning as if in severe pain.
With this, it became certain.
“Cadet Piontek forfeits!”
That he went up to the arena intentionally to buy me time to rest.
Thank you. So I will definitely win.