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I sat in the chair and sipped my coffee.

For a brand I had never seen before, it tasted pretty good. I thought I was quite knowledgeable about this field, but it seemed that was not the case.

Seeing sugar next to me, I hesitated for a moment before spooning in about two spoonfuls to stir. Perhaps influenced by Elena, I’ve recently started to feel that a bit of sweetness isn’t too bad.

“You’re using good sugar, Viktor.”

“Ughhhh…!!”

“Is there nothing but screams? Your mouth keeps making the same sound, and it’s getting tiresome.”

“Shut uuuup!!! I’ve already told you everything!! Just let me gooo!!!”

The man collapsed in front of me. Viktor shouted at me with a crimson face. The thick veins across his body were grotesquely popping out. Using my aura, I twisted his ki, causing the mana in his body to flow backwards, which led to this phenomenon.

Even if he wanted to move his body, it wouldn’t respond, and only pain sought him out, causing Viktor’s face to no longer resemble that of a living person.

I tossed him the clues I had found in his house, even if they’d get a bit bloody. At this point, they weren’t that meaningful given the situation.

“This can’t be all. Do you think I’m doing this just to find evidence that you researched something taboo in the Empire? You already know it well, so why act like such an idiot?”

“If you’re so great, then go find it yourself… Aaaagh!!!”

As I manipulated my aura again, blood gushed from Viktor’s already red mouth, soaking the floor. It felt like someone was squeezing his heart. Definitely not a pleasant feeling. Clutching his chest while writhing on the floor, he could no longer contain himself and screamed while repeatedly slamming the floor.

“I’ll tell you!!! I’ll tell you!!! The second elemental theory!! That place!! That place!!!”

When I pulled out the book he pointed to, the bookshelf shifted, revealing a new space. On the wall was a door, seemingly enchanted with magic. As I stood there staring blankly, Viktor gasped for breath and continued.

“Y-You’ll find what you’re looking for inside. But if you act rashly, this whole place will explode. You may be fine, but what’s in there? Can it truly stay safe? Only I can…”

“That’s enough.”

I didn’t wait for Viktor to finish and pulled out the dagger I had hidden in my coat. Seeing him so boastful, I was certain there would be evidence of what I wanted inside. After that, the words spilling from Viktor’s mouth held no value to me.

As I infused my aura into the dagger, the Dragon Heart embedded in the blade resonated with the aura, producing a low sword cry. The aura drawn from deep within my dantian began to expand my senses throughout my body. I could see what needed to be cut.

Slowly slicing the dagger through the air, the magical energy I felt from the door vanished without a trace. The enchantment that had been placed on the door was destroyed, causing it to no longer hold the magic and letting it flow into the atmosphere. Viktor, who had been so confidently boasting, now found his mouth hanging open in shock.

Opening the wall door, I casually skimmed through the papers inside and spoke to Viktor.

“Thanks for the information, Viktor Edwards.”

*

After Heniwei’s corpse was discovered in the Ruden sewers, it goes without saying that Estellia Academy was thrown into disarray. Though he had already been designated as a wanted man, the death of someone who once was a professor was naturally a big deal.

The discovery of Heniwei felt as if the flow of a previously stalled story had begun to move again. It’s not that nothing untoward happened in the meantime, but regardless, Elena, the main enemy in this world, was the Heretics, and whether dead or alive, Heniwei was tantamount to the signal for that grand story.

Who killed him was still unknown, but what mattered now was the fact that he was a Heretic, and now I wasn’t the only one who knew this fact.

It was time to move.

Heniwei’s body revealed Divine Power from Foreign Beliefs that had not been detectable while he was alive.

Simply discovering this could lead to the conclusion that he had been killed by a Heretic, but the traces of long-standing Divine Power found in his heart and major meridians made it clear that he had indeed been a Heretic.

As a result, the documents Orcus had previously discovered were recognized as belonging to Heniwei, which would grant him the authority to mobilize the Imperial Army officially. ‘There are still Heretics hidden within Ruden’, the minimum justification to move the army had been secured.

Thus, while Orcus was given the opportunity to cleanse Ruden, he was a cautious man.

He resolved not to act immediately just because one fact was revealed. Instead, he decided to delay slightly. At first, Orcus planned to inform the public about Heniwei’s death but intentionally omitted the fact that he was a Heretic. Rather than stirring public sentiment as is, he wanted to make it a simple talking point, and this, as he anticipated, worked well.

After all, Heniwei’s friends likely had no need for information they already knew.

By quietly hinting that Heniwei’s corpse was in the hands of the Imperial Family, he aimed to pressure them subtly. Ultimately, the goal was to draw them into the light of day, mired in anxiety.

That was Orcus’s intention.

Originally, it might have taken a little time to oust them, but filtering out the Heretics among those Heniwei had connections with wouldn’t take that long. After all, I’d read the original material; even if the situation had changed, the number of existing Heretics may have diminished, but most of the significant players remained the same.

The academy Heniwei belonged to, and the groups in the original that were named after villains, were found in only one place, making it easy to specify. This was information known only to me, but it wouldn’t be too hard to fabricate it as if obtained from a Heretic.

Instigation and fabrication… even if it’s fabricated, the truth is still the truth, right? Regardless, as long as it helped, that’s what mattered.

“Wow… how does interrogation turn the floor into a sea of blood like this? It doesn’t look like there are any external injuries at all.”

Orcus observed Viktor, who was collapsed on the floor, as if examining a dead body. Although he had lost consciousness, he still breathed; it was cruel.

“Why? Do you want to try it? If you manage it well, it can be slightly painful but more beneficial than a massage.”

“Are you crazy? No thanks.”

As I joked and flicked my fingers, he waved his hands in a horrified manner. Turning his gaze back to the evidence obtained from Viktor, Orcus picked it up with his Divine Power-wrapped hand and started examining it with a frown.

“Is this it? I got it quicker than I expected. Let’s see… contamination of the source of the institution, the worsening conflict between local nobility and central nobility…. the overthrowing of the alchemy tower?! You were planning to blow up that massive clock tower right in the middle of the city instead of seizing it?!! Are you guys insane? Oh, and there’s this too: assassination of the royal family. They originally planned to kill us at the Academy, it seems. What a mess.”

As Orcus reviewed their plans, he was both furious and incredulous as he looked at the papers. It was as if he was mocking them, thinking that even if they executed their plans as initially intended, it would still fail. Yet despite that, Orcus’s cold eyes examined the documents intently.

Having reviewed all the contents, Orcus carefully folded the papers and magically stored them in his spatial pocket. With the presence below hinting that the Imperial Army he had summoned had arrived, it seemed they were finally here.

“Now, let’s start heading back. We don’t need to take care of the cleanup ourselves.”

“Are you sure it’s okay not to stay on site? That’s not like you.”

Orcus smiled at this.

“By now, haven’t we fed them just about everything? If they can’t clean up after this, then that just makes them fools. I’ll have to work hard to prove that their position isn’t just for show. If not… it’d be time for another shake-up. They better do well if they don’t want their rank stripped away. Isn’t that right?”

This guy… casually saying such harsh things.

It seems this guy intends to test the current Imperial Army’s capabilities. It’s understandable since they captured the Heretics that the Imperial Army so long failed to catch with just two students. It wouldn’t be surprising if doubts arose individually about the Imperial Army’s abilities.

While I assumed Orcus held some blame for having such thoughts, I didn’t dissuade his decisions. Regular clean-ups aren’t a bad idea for any organization.

After all, they were one of the Empire’s elite groups, so they should manage just fine. As Orcus said, they should at least have the ability to defend their own interests.

All I had to do was well. Just that.

*

After that event, for a few days, I could enjoy school life with a calm mind. After the Heniwei incident wrapped up, I could let go of my worries completely.

Surely, elites are elites; shortly after my return to studying, the Imperial Army rounded up everyone involved. Regardless of the information I provided, I thought it would take time to track down the others, but it seemed they might have had a blacklist in place. Their speed of operation was no joke.

After all, the one who brought this issue was also the next heir to the imperial throne, which must have added some pressure. Especially as what he brought was related to Heresy. They had been quite sensitive to that issue from the start, which likely led to this outcome.

“Half of the thirty places identified as Heretic strongholds have already been annihilated… Who could have done this? Was it the same person who killed Heniwei? Or was this an internal silencing among the Heretics? I can’t tell.”

As I read the progress report I received as a related party, I scratched my head in confusion over the unresolved questions.

I knew the flow of the original was twisted, but I couldn’t even begin to guess who this person was. They unexpectedly stopped acting at some point. What could their motivation be? Did they have a grudge against a specific Heretic? If that’s the case, it would be understandable.

“Oh, I miss Elena.”

Faced with a chain of questions, I finally gave up thinking. Knowing just a bit seemed to lead to more distracting thoughts. Let’s wait until I gather a little more evidence and then think about it again.

At any rate, as I methodically resolved one case after another, I felt that the end was not far off. The Heretics. Once I find a way to eliminate these guys, I would be able to enjoy a peaceful life without worries like now.

The finish line was not far away.

.

.

.

Exactly two days after I thought that, I received word from the Imperial Army that Elteman Edelweiss had been captured by the Heretics.

What the hell.

 

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