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152nd Episode. Human or Insect (3)

A certain person’s head rolled on the ground and came to a stop in front of Jason. At first, he was bewildered, but the moment he recognized who it was, time seemed to freeze.

The unbreakable Holy Sword, Palera, was destroyed, and the head of Demora Crevasse, one of the 7th League, ended up rolling before his eyes.

Such an unthinkable event occurred twice in succession. And that to a mere Academy student.

There was no way this could be explained unless it was a dream.

“Why the long face? Was that your father or something?”

“….”

Lyman spoke while observing Jason’s vacant gaze. He squatted down, weariedly making a funny face and leaning toward Jason.

“Why aren’t you answering? Could it really have been your father?”

“….”

“Ha, I feel really bad about this. Should I put some makeup on him? I guess a funeral is in order.”

Without considering the state of the other party, Lyman continued rambling. If Jason were genuinely a bereaved family member, he would have been beyond shock, having collapsed from grief.

“You… what are you?”

“Eh?”

“What are you even?!”

Finally, Jason raised his head and asked. His eyes still lacked focus, and his trembling body made his voice unstable.

At that moment, Lyman suddenly wore a displeased expression.

“Ha… I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve heard that since entering here.”

With a sigh, Lyman recalled the past.

Many incidents had occurred since he entered the Academy.

Lyman had secretly solved these problems from the shadows, and he was getting tired of always hearing such questions from the main offenders.

Just moments ago, Demora had shouted, “Who the hell are you to withstand my magic without a scratch?!”

“I’m absolutely fed up. Plus, ‘that woman’ had to build a school in a place like this…”

“What…?”

“Never mind. Let’s just get to the point.”

Even though more strange words reached Jason’s ears, Lyman quickly brushed them off. He poked at Demora’s head and asked,

“Don’t you have any last words about this situation?”

“….”

“Why the silence? Is there nothing to say about ‘insects’ or anything like that?”

Those words pierced Jason’s heart.

He had always viewed everyone around him as insects, treating them ruthlessly. This time, he had to smile and burn the insects, but his body would not move.

He believed he was the only human in the world. Everyone else should be beneath him.

How could a human be trampled by an insect? It simply doesn’t make sense.

Yet, the common sense he had built was collapsing from fear.

“This can’t be… This can’t be happening!!”

Clutching his head, Jason screamed hysterically. At the moment Demora died, all plans became meaningless.

Moreover, he felt his entire life was being denied as he cried out in despair.

“Just kill me! Kill me!!”

Ultimately, Jason pleaded desperately, pressing his forehead against the floor.

His values were completely denied. Even if he wanted to scream that it wasn’t true, all he could do was tremble under the weight of his opponent’s pressure.

At that point, what was the difference between him and a bug trapped in a net?

“Hurry!!”

Now that he realized he was the insect, there was no reason to stay alive. However, he exposed the back of his neck, hoping for a painless death.

And then, a sword was summoned into Lyman’s hand. It radiated a stronger mana than Jason’s Palera.

Such artifacts could be summoned anywhere as long as mana was harmonized.

However, that was only possible with compatible mana. Thus, Jason had been carting around Palera for no reason.

“How can only these kinds of guys become captains of the knights?”

Lyman lamented as he held the sword. Jason closed his eyes, thinking he could finally find peace.

Slash!—

It wasn’t his neck that was cut off, but his ankle. Overwhelming pain caused Jason to scream in agony.

While writhing in pain, he begged Lyman with bloodshot eyes.

“What are you doing…? Just kill me already!”

He pointed clearly to his neck, but Lyman simply sliced off that finger.

“Ugh! Why…!”

He had shown signs of surrender; was it really necessary to go this far?

“After all this… you call yourself a ‘human’?!”

If he were truly a ‘human,’ he shouldn’t harbor such sadism. Indeed, if he were a ‘human.’

“How strange is it? Everyone except for you is not ‘human,’ but ‘insects,’ isn’t that right?”

“Uh…?”

“When it benefits you, you call them pests, but when it becomes disadvantageous, you treat them as humans and change your stance?

Lyman continued with a dry smile.

“This is why I won’t let you go easily.”

“Eeep!”

Thus, Jason had to endure the painful sensation of his body being cut or pierced until the moment of death.

Holes were made in his palms and forearms, and blood gushed from the severed parts like a broken sluice.

But he couldn’t afford to feel unjust. Jason had considered the dying cries of those he had previously killed as a melody.

It was when he was about to be pierced in the waist.

“Stop!”

At the sudden voice, Jason turned his head.

He was still alive. There stood Princess Mirona, with red hair, her face streaming with tears and snot.

“How did you find your way here, Your Highness?”

Even without looking away, Lyman knew who she was. As Mirona called out, Lyman paused for a moment.

Mirona had rushed to the Dantia Pavilion to capture the culprit. She had hastily climbed the stairs to the hill and arrived just in time to witness the current scene.

Mirona’s face turned ashen as if she had seen something unacceptable. Despite being a witness, Lyman showed no sign of hesitation.

“Your expression isn’t looking good.”

“Can we not let that person go?”

Taking a deep breath, Mirona spoke hesitantly, but Lyman just scoffed.

“Yes, yes. I expected you’d say something like that. Your Highness, who can’t even squash an ant, how could you change?”

“What…?”

“The reason for sparing him is obvious, isn’t it? ‘Murder is wrong,’ ‘That’ll only get your hands dirtier,’ something like this, right?”

“…!”

As if perfectly predicted, Mirona gasped, unable to refute. It was quite easy to look into the naive thoughts swirling in Mirona’s head.

“Yes, that’s all true. It’s morally justifiable to act according to those principles.”

“Then…!”

“But do you know what’s truly ridiculous?”

At that moment, Lyman’s cheeky smile turned sharp as a knife.

“Among those who have spouted such nonsense in their lives… not a single one ended up well.”

Lyman had lived over 300 years. If the listener knew that fact, they would realize such words were not empty.

Not to mention, those who had influenced Lyman’s life often said similar things.

However, as I just mentioned, the results have always been…

“But even then…!”

Screech!—

Mirona, her weak heart leading, tried to dissuade him once more. But Jason’s head had already floated in mid-air.

No one could tell when it was sliced off.

“This guy isn’t even the captain of the knights assigned to guard you, Princess. He was just trash who wanted to grind up thousands of students.”

“….”

“Of course, I’m not forcing you to accept such harsh moral judgments. I just want you to get your head straight.”

Jason’s head wasn’t the only thing rolling on the ground.

Another unfamiliar man’s head lay on the floor, likely the culprit who manipulated the barrier, as the princess guessed.

And when she arrived, Lyman had already resolved everything, landing her in the current situation.

“Honestly, doesn’t this strike you as odd?”

“Eh…?”

“How can such a guy sit in the position of the captain of the knights, being openly connected to that fanatical group?”

If that image hadn’t appeared on the platform back then, she might have never known. Seeing that image had shocked Mirona deeply.

There was also something even more suspicious.

“Moreover, today the vice principal and principal were summoned by the Magic Guild due to the orders of the royal family.”

“That was a coincidence… No…”

It was too ambiguous to call it a coincidence.

From Mirona’s perspective, it was incredulous. Could it really be that the royal family, which had given birth to and raised her, would do such a thing?

“I just told you, didn’t I? Get your head straight.”

Amidst her swirling thoughts, Lyman approached and extended his hand.

Though she felt dizzy, she could tell that Lyman wasn’t her enemy.

After all, even if his methods were extreme, he had saved the Academy.

“We can’t hide any longer. We must fight against the truths that will come to light going forward.”

She had always hidden in the box of ‘kindness.’ Shrinking at the danger of her own strength, she had run to that box for safety.

But as a result, she hadn’t noticed what was happening outside.

Even though they said the position of a princess held weight… she had never actually gauged that weight precisely.

Thus, she hadn’t tried to discover the true nature of the royal family.

She knew her father would be angry if she did.

“Knowing the truth isn’t an act that leads to being hated, is it?”

Though she trembled inside, she grasped Lyman’s hand.

And she made a resolution.

To become the student council president.

*

With the barrier restored, the incident was concluded.

No more monsters were flooding in, and the Royal Guard was completely defeated. The faculty’s mana also returned to its original state.

By this time, Lyman and Mirona must have met in the Dantia Pavilion.

There, Lyman would probably be saying, ‘You’ve been gaslit by the Emperor,’ while both held hands.

‘It seems there’s no significant issue.’

Back in the academy, I was able to reunite with Jenny, Luska, and Mary. As expected, besides Luska, the others looked rather gloomy.

“You’re safe, Radon.”

However, upon seeing me, their expressions quickly faded. Of course, they weren’t wearing bright faces.

They certainly wouldn’t feel good facing their past mistakes.

“Hey there, buddy.”

Mary was similarly cautious. She had previously been oblivious, but after training with Lyman, she had discovered the hidden truth.

That there was ‘something’ parasitizing within her body.

“But I’ll keep it a secret and continue on as usual.”

If revealed, she’d risk her friends’ safety. Though she intended to take that secret to her grave, it would inevitably explode in Chapter 5.

“I’m glad you’re okay, Angela.”

“Ah! Don’t hug me so hard!”

Luska cherished her sister, now a saint, in a tight embrace. The gloomy Jenny and Mary couldn’t help but smile at the sight.

Mary teasingly placed a caterpillar on top of Angela’s head. Upon realizing it, Angela screamed and bolted, while Luska grabbed Mary, preparing to give her a merciless punch.

The mood was rather lively. Panting, Angela stepped next to me and Nebia, looking quite wary.

“Uh…?”

Everyone’s eyes shifted toward Nebia. Nebia, who met their gazes, flinched in surprise.

The atmosphere suddenly turned icy. That was because Nebia was in cahoots with the Royal Guard.

She was well aware of this, hence, unable to expose her heart before them.

Of course, while giving her speech from the platform, Nebia had revealed all the truths. They must have witnessed it openly.

So, Jenny took a step forward and spoke.

“Saint Nebia, if you’re okay, could we talk…?”

“No. Is there really a need to talk? Don’t we all know what I’ve done?”

However, Nebia simply took a step back and retreated.

“But you spoke honestly! So…”

“You don’t know my true feelings.”

In the end, Nebia turned her back and walked away.

She believed it was unacceptable to mingle among them with her dirty, hidden feelings.

『Even if you’ve confessed, teaming up with an evil organization was your own choice. How would it feel comfortable to confess now?』

As Muto said, Nebia’s anguish would last for a while. Moreover, the academy’s treatment of her wouldn’t be long in coming.

Still, being a saint, she would likely escape expulsion, but her real punishment depended on her own decisions.

『Are you just going to stand by? If she leaves, it’ll be a disaster for you.』

‘I know that without you saying.’

To catch up with the hastily walking Nebia, I ran. Just as I began to catch up, someone appeared in front of her.

“Professor Radian?”

Radian, blocking Nebia’s path with his large frame, appeared to harbor no malice from his expression, but I was curious about what he wanted with her.

He took Nebia to a secluded spot, saying he had something to discuss.

“Hey, Muto.”

『What’s up?』

I gestured toward them, and Muto clicked his tongue.

『Tch. Do I really have to handle this annoying thing myself?』

“Want to experience some raindrops?”

『Ugh… this filthy mess.』

What could they possibly need to talk about alone? I held my breath through Muto, eavesdropping.

 

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