novelraw Chapter 32
Chapter 32
Chapter 32: Adult Fight (2)
The position of Rudra Academy, conveyed through Professor Daisy, was as follows.
The sparring itself may have been justified, but the duel at the time had escalated emotionally.
As a result, it was unreasonable for a young student to unknowingly transfer their enrollment due to a slip of the tongue made in the heat of the moment.
Since the principal of Rudra Academy had yet to grant approval, if Hyacinth's transfer were cancelled immediately, the matter would be treated as if it never happened.
Reading the document—which one couldn't quite tell was a threat or an official notice—I asked Daisy,
"Is this something that actually flies?"
"It's an outrage. Honestly, I think it's absolutely absurd."
"Then why has this document come all the way to me instead of going into a shredder?"
"The problem is that our principal also wants to avoid conflict with Rudra. You know, don't you? The reason this academy was founded….?"
"Ah."
Right, it was a paper academy set up to pocket government subsidies.
By comparison, what about Rudra? Even if it's treated as nothing more than a vocational school for the sake of a diploma, an academy is still an academy.
Going through various administrative battles, it's certain that Rudra would be at a disadvantage.
"Probably, every avenue will end up blocked. For example, even if Hyacinth tried to withdraw from Rudra and enroll at Demeter…."
"The principal, who puts self-preservation first, might refuse."
"Yes. Enrollment authority falls under the principal's discretion."
"Let's go meet the principal together for now. There might be a way."
"I doubt it, but…. Yes. If you say so, then…."
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And so I went with Daisy to see the principal, and the portly principal listened to our story and furrowed his brow.
"Aren't you going a bit far?"
"Pardon?"
"This is the principal's office, and even granting that Professor Daisy is a full-time faculty professor, Yujin is nothing more than a street stall vendor. Does he have the right to interfere in academy matters?"
"……."
"Professor Daisy, you're a strange one too. Listening to Rudra's side, it sounds like the students got a bit emotional and threw around talk of transfers and whatnot—why would you take that seriously? Hmm?"
"Principal…."
"Hmm. Well, I have an outside appointment afterward, so I'll be leaving."
With that, the principal left his office.
Left alone, the 2 of us looked at each other and simply let out sighs.
"I'm sorry. For this being the kind of academy it is…."
"Don't be. I knew what it was before I came in. It can't be helped. Since we've been turned down, I'll have to look for another way."
"You're still not giving up?"
"I'm not the type to give up that easily."
"That's truly appreciated, but…. Please be careful. The principal is a person who holds grudges…."
An undisguisable revulsion showed on Daisy's face.
"Did something happen?"
"On the first day, I had a dinner gathering with the principal's family, and he told me to pour drinks for them. But when I refused, he spent a whole month nitpicking my work and picking fights over every little thing…."
"Hmm…."
"Somehow, once he found out my surname was Swordcraft, that all disappeared—but that's the kind of person he is."
"Hmm…. Understood. I'll be cautious for now."
Well. What could really happen?
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And something happened.
Starting the next day, the principal came to the snack bar I was running and began finding fault with everything.
"Ahem…. The cleanliness leaves something to be desired, I must say."
"I cleaned this morning."
"If there are few customers, then there are few customers. Is a tenant presuming to talk back to the principal?"
"……."
"So then, what do you do well here?"
"Greasy things. Meat. Fish. Fruit…. I've got everything stocked."
"Is that so? You're saying you're confident in that? Well then, bring me a steak."
Well. That's not difficult.
The Grass Cow's meat. Inherently tough and unsuitable for steaks as-is, but by mincing it together with the fatty portions, working in flour, and then grilling it, it can be served under the name of Hamburg steak.
The principal looked at it and wrinkled his nose as if he didn't like what he saw.
"Somehow this…. It's not pure meat, you put flour in it?"
"Sourcing the ingredients is difficult, you see."
"To run a business at the storied Demeter, one should have all ingredients fully stocked. Tsk…."
He said 'storied.' Just now?
"Well, please try it first."
"Hmm. I can tell without eating it. This is food garbage. Not worth consuming."
Right then and there, the principal stood up and walked out of the snack bar.
"Principal. You need to pay."
"Pay? I haven't so much as touched the food that was brought out—are you telling me to pay?"
"……."
"Hmm. It seems to me that you're someone who simply doesn't fit here at Demeter Academy. From next month, I'll either raise the rent and key money, or I'll have you evicted. Tsk…. Ptooie."
Saying that, the principal even spat on the ground in front of the snack bar before leaving.
"Well…. My goodness."
“Ha.”
”Haha”.
Even the easygoing me was angry.
Throwing the principal straight into a Subspace and killing him there would take no more than 1,500 seconds. Cool-headed as I am, I could do it anytime, but…. Handling it that way would only make things worse.
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Late at night.
As I was pondering how to cleanly finish off the principal, someone knocked on the snack bar door.
"Hello…. Manager."
"Come in. Professor Daisy."
"As I said before, working hours are over, so. Call me informally."
"Understood. Miss Daisy. Come on in."
"Hey, Miss…? Miss?"
"You seemed younger than me, so I called you that. Is it uncomfortable?"
"N, no. Ahem. That's true. Hehe…."
Daisy sat down and looked at the menu, then nodded.
"Master. The evening menu, please!"
"We don't have one."
"In a novel I read a while back, a national secret agent ordered like that—I see that doesn't exist in reality."
Saying that, Daisy laughed to herself as if something was funny.
"Looks like you read a lot of novels."
"Of course. Do you read much, Manager?"
"No. I'm not particularly fond of it."
"There are books from the Dilia Bunko that have spread over the past few years that I like…."
"What kind of books do you like?"
"I really like this author Dilia's [A Summer That Shines Like Jewels]! Would you like to read it?"
"I'll read it if I get the chance sometime."
I shook my head, finding Daisy's sparkling eyes a bit much.
More than anything, right now I was neither in the mood nor in the circumstances for reading such a book.
"Come to think of it, Manager. I heard the principal's…. harassment has begun."
"Yes. That's right. He came today, ordered food, didn't eat it, didn't pay, spat on the ground, and left."
"Good heavens…."
"So I have something I'm worrying over—will you hear me out?"
"D, don't tell me you're talking about pulling out of the shop or something? Surely not…."
Daisy's expression stiffened.
"No. That's not it. But my concern is something that only Professor Daisy can resolve."
"M, me?! Th, that so…. I see…."
"Yes. Only your answer matters."
"Uh, ahem…. I see. Having graduated from Themis, the all-female academy…. So finally, the first spring of my life is coming my way…."
"Professor. I'll get straight to the point."
"Yes, yes! My proposal is to first, as a fr, friend, with room for development…."
"Do you want to transform this Demeter Academy into a place where students can dream and move toward their futures?"
"Nehe?"
"Professor—do you wish for the students to proudly graduate from this academy and spend their lives with the pride of having grown under the tutelage of Daisy Swordcraft?"
Gone was the rambling she'd been doing just moments before; Daisy, face now calm, nodded.
"I do. If I could do that, I'd gladly give the rest of my youth to it."
"Good. Then I'd like to borrow your strength."
"My strength, you say…."
I explained to Daisy what I intended to do going forward, and her face immediately flushed with bewilderment.
When I asked whether she thought the plan could succeed, she was even more bewildered.
"Do you think there's a chance of success?"
"Th, there is a chance, but what comes after is the problem. What to do about that…."
"That I'll handle myself. The only thing that matters is a single vow—that no matter what happens, you will not forget the heart that looks out for the students."
"That…won't change."
"What a fine expression. Then let's have ourselves an adult's fight—the kind children cannot."
"An adult's fight…."
That's right.
In this affair, Yuna, Silen, and Hyacinth will need to step aside for a moment.
Because it's a far too brutal and dirty fight for children to witness.
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Leaving Daisy behind, who had agreed to move as I wished, I opened the door to the Subspace.
"Milé. Have you been keeping well?"
"Senior…. Something sweet…. Please give me something sweet…."
"I brought Pickled Peach. How many slices do you want?"
"A, a lot…. A lot…."
"3 slices? Hmm, 3 slices isn't enough. 5 slices? You greedy thing."
I sneered, and Milé's face crumpled all at once.
"Stop teasing me…. So what do you want?"
"Milé. Let me ask you one thing. Once you leave here, you're planning to report all my secrets to your master, right?"
"Of course. I'm full of intent to betray you."
"Is that so? Then take a look at this."
I pulled it out from my pocket.
"Paper…?"
"It's a letter sheet. Sent by a rather troublesome one."
"A troublesome one, you say…."
She tilted her head, and then letters engraved themselves onto the sheet.
—Is this the hamster that Yujin borrowed power from? Hmm…. Reasonably talented, I'd say. But it's as good as flirting with my Mastermage. I remembered. You…. We'll meet someday….
I folded away the letter sheet from Demociela, who had begun murmuring something. Milé still hadn't grasped what had happened and merely tilted her head.
"That letter sheet…. It's a method of communicating by manipulating ink from a distance. It requires an extraordinarily advanced level of skill—exactly who is this?"
"It's Demociela, one of the Demon King's Four Heavenly Kings."
"What?"
"Demociela. That mad Queen of the Dream Night. The one with 4 black wings and red eyes…. The one who fought your master."
"Are you insane? Why, why are you having a conversation with Demociela?! Y, you're a demon-hater, senior. You'd want to kill every single demon and then skin them and dry them in the sun, wouldn't you?!"
"That's right. You know me very well."
"Then why…. D, Demociela?! That mad queen who fought your master to a draw?!"
She demanded the truth from me, and I had no choice but to recite some appropriate version of it.
"As I was leaving Thunder Strike, she set her sights on me. I may be top-tier among Superhumans, but…. She is clearly a Transcendent. How could I beat her."
"Th, that's true…. That's true, but…."
"The problem is that she genuinely wants to fight me, and I've agreed to it."
"Ah. My condolences, Senior. Could you let me out? I'll just run away. Senior, you just…. Win safely and build achievements beyond your master's, while I pray for you from a neighboring country."
"That I cannot allow."
"Why?! I don't want to get dragged in and die?!"
Hmm.
I'm sorry, but it's already too late.
"I used your Mana Pattern to draw a scroll and completely wrecked that madwoman's plan. So Demociela…. Memorized it."
"What…? Wait a moment. Don't say it. Please don't say it. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have asked. So please don't say what she memor…."
"Demociela memorized your entire Mana Pattern. She'll find you wherever you go."
"You said it! This person said it! I told you not to say iiit!!"
"Anyway, both you and I have been marked by Demociela alike."
"I hate this…. I really hate this…."
Milé hugged her knees and began to cry.
Why are you crying like that?
The main point hasn't even started yet.
"The problem begins from here. Even a master who is broad-minded, caring, and always kind—when it comes to the matter of Demociela…."
"Setting aside your description of master…. If master and Demociela were to fight, it would cause a national-scale disaster."
"And Demociela would want to eliminate variables—she'd come for us first, before your master. And you, whose Mana Pattern has been memorized…."
"Are…second after senior, or maybe first to die…?"
"Correct. You're clever after all."
"I hate this! I didn't want to get the right answer!! Uwaaaaah!!"
Milé began sobbing as if she might break out in full-on wailing.
"Don't worry. When the time to die comes, I'll be with you."
"You call that comforting me?!"
"And if one of us—you or I—dies, I'll die first."
"Ugh…. Th, that…. Thank you, Senior."
"Anyway, since we've both been marked by Demociela, returning to your master's side is now far off for both of us. So, Milé. You'll have to help me, won't you?"
"……."
"Or are you planning to return to the Mage Tower with Demociela's tracking brand on you?"
"N, no. It's just…. So…. Hah…. Really…."
Milé, still hugging her knees, buried her face and murmured.
"Senior. I have conditions."
"What are they?"
"3 meals a day. Give me something sweet."
"Granted."
"Let me do research freely every day."
"That's impossible. I'll have tasks for you too. But…. I'll accommodate you a little."
"And don't say you'll die before me. If senior dies, I die too anyway."
"Understood."
Only then did Milé lift her head and look at me.
"Are you resentful of me?"
"Yes. Senior…you're a bastard…."
"You're right."
"A bastard…. A bad guy…. A wretch…. Phew…. Really…. If it weren't for you, senior, I really would've hit you…."
After grumbling tearfully for a good while, Milé finally rose from her spot.
"Milé?"
"It can't be helped. Until the Demociela matter is dealt with—I won't report to master, and I won't betray you. Is that good enough?"
"Yes. That works out perfectly."
I extended my hand to Milé, and we were finally able to look at each other and smile.
"Then, Milé. First directive."
"Yes."
"Make 2 fake IDs, then get a professor qualification certificate under those identities. Can you do it? I'll give you a week."
"Hey, you lunatic!"
No.
Milé. You can do it.
Your senior here believes in you.