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Saladin didn’t show up for class.

I found out about this after the morning classes on Tuesday ended.

There are no basic physical training classes on Tuesdays and Thursdays. So, I had no chance to see the students from the Opal Black Class from the morning.

While I was handling my tasks in the Teacher’s Office, Instructor Reichardt, who teaches swordsmanship to the first years, walked into the office.

Unlike the Opal Black Class, which only has eight students, other classes with hundreds of students have several instructors.

Instructor Reichardt, who is in charge of the Diamond White Class like Instructor Acheron, had never spoken to me before, so we were on somewhat distant terms.

So, it was quite unusual for him to address me as soon as he entered the Teacher’s Office.

“Uh, Instructor Graham.”

“Instructor Reichardt?”

The elderly swordsmanship instructor, who had nearly a lifetime of experience, seemed hesitant to bring this up, scratching his chin before finally speaking.

“Actually, one of your students hasn’t shown up for my class.”

“…If you’re talking about my student…?”

“Student Saladin al Kamil.”

My expression inadvertently hardened, and seeing my stiff expression, Instructor Reichardt nodded slightly.

“He wasn’t a student with poor attendance, so I was a bit surprised. I thought I should let you know.”

“…Thank you for informing me.”

“Well then, I’ll be going.”

As I saw Instructor Reichardt returning to his post, I immediately used a tracking spell to find Saladin’s location.

However, even with the tracking spell, the student ID showed the location as Saladin’s room.

With a glimmer of hope, I returned to the dormitory to check, but as expected, there were no signs of Saladin in the room—just the student ID left behind.

I still wasn’t sure. Perhaps there was some kind of situation that caused him to skip class.

To verify, I left the dormitory to find the last student who saw Saladin and headed to the Lecture Building.

I remembered all the students’ schedules, so I recalled that Gwen, who was in the same swordsmanship class, was currently in her riding lesson.

Philion Academy, befitting its massive scale, even had a riding arena where students could ride horses.

Since the lesson was currently in session, I asked the riding instructor for permission and looked for Gwen.

When our eyes met from a distance while she was on horseback, she maneuvered her horse toward me, albeit at an incredibly slow pace.

– Hee-haw!

“Ugh! No, please! Stay still! No, not that still! Just walk a little! Aaaah!”

“……”

The horse Gwen was riding halted as if it disapproved of her riding style, stomping its feet and fidgeting.

“W- move! Please move…!”

As Gwen swayed on the still horse, trying to get it to budge, I thought it was lucky she didn’t fall off.

With a short sigh, I felt like she would be stuck like that until the end of class, so I walked over to her.

She turned her gaze away awkwardly and forced a smile as I approached.

“Ahaha… Have you come, Instructor?”

“Is this your first time riding?”

“I never had the chance to ride horses in the mountains. I always wanted to try, but I didn’t think it would feel this awkward not being able to touch the ground….”

“You need to balance while on the horse. It’s only natural it feels uncomfortable when you try to force it.”

“Ugh… You sound just like Instructor Schreiber….”

Schreiber is the name of the riding instructor for the first-years.

Eventually, giving up on calming the horse, Gwen dismounted, and the moment she did, the horse swished its tail and trotted away.

Gwen watched the horse’s retreating figure with a slightly misty gaze before turning back to me.

“By the way, what brings you here, Instructor Ion? Is something wrong?”

“Saladin didn’t come to class. Do you know anything?”

“Ah… Yes. I was actually planning to tell you during lunchtime…”

Gwen rubbed the back of her neck as she spoke.

“On the way to swordsmanship class, he said something urgent came up and that I should go ahead.”

“An urgent matter?”

“He didn’t say what it was, and I didn’t want to pry either. Saladin is a bit… well, you know?”

I nodded.

Saladin was hostile towards all the students in the class.

He was a bit less so toward Batar, who was somewhat ambiguous about being nonhuman or imperial, but even that was more about drawing attention than showing friendliness.

Having received the information I wanted, I was about to leave to look for Saladin again when I noticed Schurz, who had been taking his class far away, spotting me and suddenly turning his horse.

Schurz seemed to have had experience riding before entering the academy, as he approached with far greater skill compared to Gwen.

“Instructor Ion! Did you come here because of Saladin?”

“Yeah. How did you know?”

“I heard from Gwen earlier. …Can I help look for him too?”

Schurz’s normally calm expression now showed a hint of concern and worry.

I thought that maybe he was still holding on to what happened yesterday. Even if he didn’t mean it, part of Saladin’s injury was due to Schurz’s actions.

However, that didn’t mean Schurz should feel responsible for Saladin’s disappearance. I had no certainty that it was related to yesterday’s incident, and as an instructor, I couldn’t condone a student skipping class.

“I can’t allow that.”

“But—”

“That’s enough. If you have something to tell Saladin, do it after he returns. I’ll take care of finding him.”

Schurz, seeing I wouldn’t budge, appeared unable to argue and eventually bowed his head, saying he would leave it to me.

I left them to focus on their class and walked away from the riding area, lost in thought.

It was becoming clear now.

I still didn’t know whether Saladin voluntarily went missing or if he had to skip class due to some problem.

But this was definitely a concerning situation.

By the rules, it would be best to report this to Headmaster Heinkel before things got worse.

Saladin is not just an ordinary student like most of the Opal Black Class.

If the First Prince of Al Kamil suddenly vanished from the academy and something were to happen, it was easy to imagine it could turn into a serious diplomatic issue.

Suddenly, the words of Instructor Rilya rang in my mind.

Saladin’s political standing is very precarious. If I report this to Headmaster Heinkel, he would immediately mobilize the guards, and might even contact the Capital City Gendarmerie.

What would happen to Saladin’s situation if the incident escalated and was resolved afterward?

‘He may not be a child at eighteen, but… honestly, he’s not quite an adult yet.’

What could be a minor infraction for a student could grow to irreparable proportions.

Perhaps this is what Saladin intended, but…

The last sighting was roughly three hours ago. Judging by the fact that he left his student ID in his room, it’s unlikely he went out the front gate.

It’s hard to believe a foreign student from a distant land would know about the back paths leading outside.

In the end, my instincts told me that Saladin was still somewhere on campus.

Where did he go?

Why did he disappear?

Thinking about Saladin’s fierce hostility towards everyone, I recalled Instructor Rilya’s words about how he fled the country like a runaway.

“…….”

When I fled the village, avoiding Ella’s traces, I too distanced myself from people and bore hostility until I met Charlotte.

That was out of anger, yes, but also fear. I was afraid of getting hurt in relationships again.

If I were Saladin, I would definitely seek out a place to be alone. But he probably doesn’t know this area well.

So, somewhere familiar yet not frequented by many.

Ultimately, after going around in circles, I found myself near the Opal Black Dormitory.

Saladin spent most of his time here, except for classes, so it made sense to me that he might be around.

Focusing my senses, I searched for any sign of Saladin. Searching the whole city would be tough, but this shouldn’t be too hard.

Ignoring the heavy footfalls of the guards, the laughter of students in class, and the rustling of grass and leaves, I concentrated on finding just one voice.

Maintaining my focus, I suddenly heard a familiar voice from afar.

-Damn it… why….

Within a desolate, empty place, I sensed a lone presence that wasn’t moving.

Saladin was alone at the top of the back mountain.

I followed Saladin’s presence along the forest path and soon reached the summit.

“Ha…”

Saladin was sitting under the shade of a tree, looking out at the sprawling forest view.

He seemed so lost in deep thought that he didn’t even notice someone was nearby, continuously exhaling deep sighs.

I approached Saladin deliberately making noise to draw his attention.

“There you are.”

“Wah!? I-Instructor!?”

Saladin jumped in surprise at my sudden appearance, tensing up and stumbling backward as he got to his feet under the tree.

He seemed to realize he had done something wrong.

“U- how did you find me…? Ugh! W- what is it? Are you going to discipline me again? It won’t matter even if you—”

“Discipline is not the issue.”

“What…?”

From the start, I had no intention of reprimanding Saladin or punishing him or even questioning why he skipped class.

After all, I figured he wouldn’t properly listen to me in this situation, so I grabbed Saladin somewhat forcefully and slung my arm over his shoulder.

“W- what’s going on!? What are you doing…!”

Saladin squirmed in panic, but his resistance was nothing more than the weak wriggling of a worm compared to when I once choked the Dragon Legion Commander.

“You’re coming with me.”

“What- Aaaah!”

Without waiting for Saladin’s response, I quickly began descending the mountain path.

The sensation of flying down the ground made Saladin scream in sheer panic.

 

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