Chapter 44
"Hic, huwaaaaang..."
Regia cried so loudly that it seemed the ward would float away.
Like a young child who had lost their parents.
Her sobbing voice was so pitiful that even Selena, who had been waiting outside, rushed in.
It was chaos itself.
Bang-!
"What's suddenly happened? Someone screamed...!"
"W-Wait a moment, commoner! Don't cling to me while crying! With your face covered in tears and snot......"
"Hic, L-Ladyyyy...!"
"Kyaaaah!!"
"Huhu... What a mess."
A scene continuing noisily.
Perhaps because the remaining memories from the laboratory were so intense, the girl couldn't easily calm down.
In the end, it was quite a while before Regia stopped crying.
"...Sniff."
The girl swallowing tears while sitting on the hospital bed.
A faint trembling was evident in her green eyes.
Though she seemed much more settled than earlier, she still looked anxious.
Her hesitant red lips asked a question.
"S-So... you're saying no one died, is that right?"
"That's right, Miss Regia."
"How many times do I have to tell you before you understand?"
We calmly gave our answers.
Since we couldn't tell the original story as it was, we made up a suitable fiction with some seasoning.
Roughly that we survived thanks to luck.
"The monster suddenly, r-ran away?"
"Yes! Right after you collapsed, it suddenly disappeared again through the ceiling it had broken and come down from."
"B-But, wh-why...?"
"H-How would I know that! If you're curious, ask the monster directly!!"
"Hee, heeek! S-S-S-Sorry...!"
It was a 100% pure lie without a shred of conscience.
Though there were moments of doubt occasionally, thanks to Emilia pushing through with momentum, we were able to get past it.
I should say it was good we had coordinated our stories in advance.
I just lightly added my spoon.
"I was lucky too. I barely escaped from the spot where the monster fell."
"Y-Young Master too... It really seems God was watching over us."
"I agree."
"Th-Thank goodness..."
I had worried what if she didn't believe us, but our protagonist believed us completely to the point of making such worries seem foolish.
Just how pure does one have to be to have such a reaction?
-Ding!
[The target's emotions change.]
(Anxiety, Despair -> Relief)
[Lies have been slightly recovered.]
[Current remaining output: 36.4%]
Thanks to that, I recovered lies quite nicely.
As we were exchanging a few words of conversation like that, suddenly Regia who had been sitting on the hospital bed stood up.
Her legs wobbled unsteadily.
"Young Master. Lady."
"Miss Regia? You should still lie down and rest......"
Wham-!
Before I could finish my concern, warmth pounced on us.
The pilot timidly embraced the snake and vain one sitting side by side with her outstretched arms.
A lukewarm hug dyed the two.
"Hmm?"
"Co-Commoner...?"
While we raised question marks at her sudden action, faint sobbing echoed around.
Regia clung to us as if her tension had been released.
"Sniff... I'm so, so glad you're alive."
"......"
"......"
It was a particularly pitiful mutter.
The nightmarish scene of the laboratory.
Perhaps because she fully realized she had escaped from that time?
The girl buried her face in the warm heat while tightly hugging the two.
How fragile she was.
-Could it be I died too?
-What do I do! Poor Young Master, sniff, Lady...!
Despite being born with such a delicate nature, she didn't let go of her worry for others.
It was a point showing how beautiful the girl's heart was.
Perhaps these aspects are what make me love the protagonist.
I smiled gently while accepting the sobbing pilot.
"You did well, Miss Regia."
Emilia was the same.
The girl's restless hands couldn't bring themselves to detach the pink life form.
She only awkwardly patted her back.
"O-Okay... st-stop crying already."
"L-Ladyyyy......"
Though it was clumsy touching, it was a heartwarming scene to watch.
Because the relationship between the two that had been twisted as much as possible in the original work seemed to be continuing in a somewhat better direction.
I couldn't erase the smile that had slightly popped out.
"What's so good that you're smiling like that?"
"It's nothing. I just thought you two looked particularly beautiful today."
"...Saying things like that won't work on me."
"How disappointing."
Emilia turning her eyes away primly.
Like that, until Regia's crying stopped, we embraced each other for a while.
***
Some time later.
"Huhu, Miss Regia."
"......"
"I didn't know you liked us this much."
"......"
"Crying your eyes out while clinging to us like a young child... Should I say it was really cute?"
"......"
Regia unable to give any answer.
The girl had her head deeply bowed. Her pure white face had become flushed as if about to burst.
Her groans flowing out from shame were truly exquisite.
"You... Stop teasing her already. Are you trying to make her cry again?"
"That would be fun too."
"......"
"Then we'd just have to hug you tightly again, wouldn't we?"
"...You're the worst."
"Thank you for the compliment."
Bullying does not discriminate against people.
Following my own iron rule, I gave the protagonist a grinning tap dance.
***
We received another physical examination.
Though the doctor's opinion was that there was nothing abnormal, it was because Selena pushed for it just in case.
I suppose a teacher is still a teacher even if they seem indifferent.
She was being fussy because the students' well-being was at stake.
Internal injuries, external injuries, curses, imprints, magic.
Only after completing five precise examinations were we able to go through discharge procedures.
It was after half a day had already passed just for that.
"I'm glad all three of you are safe."
Of course, it wasn't over just because we left the infirmary.
As victims of this accident and simultaneously the closest witnesses, we had to be investigated.
"I truly have nothing to say about yesterday's accident. It was my oversight for not noticing in advance."
Selena apologizing while bowing her head.
We who were sitting side by side on the sofa stared at her with sour expressions.
After always seeing her stiff like a wooden statue or drunk, seeing such a proper appearance felt unfamiliar.
Her red eyes were sunk in darkness.
"Well, shall we hear your excuse at least?"
"The black magic used in this accident was a completely new form of infiltration technique that deviated from existing methods."
"You're saying it was a technique the academy side had never dealt with before?"
"That's right."
"Hmm."
It was content that appeared in the original work too.
The cultists who had shown no movement for the past few years.
The world thought they had been annihilated during the 'Great Subjugation' period, but they had simply been building their strength in unseen places.
To achieve their desires.
"It seemed meticulously prepared. Even experts in the field had trouble."
"I heard it would take at least a week to interpret the new black magic... How were you able to come find us in just 2 hours?"
"Well, because we're Galimar."
It was a clear answer.
Galimar.
An educational institution where only those called the best on the continent gather.
Heroes who were active during the Great Subjugation period, former Imperial Knight Commanders, Magic Tower elders, Church cardinals... It was an academy created by gathering numerous geniuses.
It's different from the bottom up compared to those tree bastards whose roots are blood and slaughter.
Though we experienced an unexpected accident, it was still resolved quickly.
The response to this will surely become more certain in the future.
'An internal traitor leaked information too... In many ways, this accident may have been unavoidable.'
If blame were to be assigned, it would be Selena.
As she was the exam supervisor, I thought she would receive the biggest reprimand as an example.
The professor who was in charge of supervision in the original work couldn't avoid dismissal, so at the very least she would be stripped of her position as chief professor.
Of course, since there was no serious damage and she was the dean's direct disciple, she would receive some immunity, but it seemed she couldn't avoid demotion to a regular professor.
Is this the sorrow of office workers?
"......"
Suddenly the liquor bottle she was holding looked pitiful.
Unable to endure the bitterness of life, the woman gulped down alcohol.
Her purple hair became disheveled.
"Hah... I'm ashamed to face you all who were caught up in this accident. The academy side is also preparing compensation for the damage. The dean will tell you the details later."
"I understand."
The formal introduction was over.
"Then, let's move on to the main point. I'd like to hear the story from those involved in this incident."
"I'll speak."
"Student Yuda. In detail from beginning to end......"
After that, there was a thorough investigation.
Perhaps wary of cultists appearing again after several years, various questions came.
I told the story I had made up in advance, like what I had answered to Regia.
"That's what happened."
"......"
Perhaps because of the content with many holes?
Selena made a perplexed expression.
Of course, she didn't press or push me.
When I said my memory was hazy because I was terrified at the time, she only nodded as if understanding.
Pressing in the first place would be strange.
We were in the superior position in this incident.
Even if they searched the laboratory, I had manipulated most of the traces, so the academy had no choice but to believe our testimony.
I smiled broadly at the situation flowing as I intended.
"...I understand for now. Let's end the investigation here."
"Thank you for your hard work."
"Ah, lastly."
Selena stopping us as if she had thought of something.
"Please return home early. The academy's atmosphere isn't very good either."
"Did something happen?"
"While you were in that basement... There was an incident at the academy too."
An explanation continuing quietly.
"Several assailants appeared in the shopping district."
"The shopping district... That's not far from the dormitory building."
"The method was also hijacking teleportation. It seems the intention was to divert attention from the midterm exam kidnapping."
"So what happened?"
"Thanks to the professors' quick intervention, the situation was resolved in 6 minutes. We succeeded in instantly killing 28 out of 30 assailants, but the rest immediately escaped using teleportation."
"Were there any casualties...?"
"None reported so far."
"That's a relief."
"Well, there might be hidden victims we don't know about."
Selena rubbed her brow as if it was troublesome.
The woman who had been taking deep breaths quietly soon brushed back her purple hair and said:
"Anyway, you should be careful just in case."
"Thank you for your concern."
Well, I suppose it's a good story for now.
I slowly stood up from my seat.
I thought this was a fairly good wrap-up.
Though it's about time for the next episode to start... I felt like resting for now.
'Come to think of it.'
I wonder if she's waiting.
Since I hadn't returned to the dormitory for two days straight, maybe she's worried.
Of course, I know it's a frivolous fantasy.
"Huhu."
I should thoroughly pet her tail when I return.
While chewing over thoughts of the fox, I quietly took steps towards the dormitory.
I didn't know then.
"......"
An empty dormitory.
Not even a trace of presence is felt in the space where only silence has settled.
The air lingering particularly chilly dyes my cheeks.
The shopping basket wasn't visible.
The fox wasn't visible either.
The current time is 11 PM. If she had gone shopping, it was more than enough time to have returned already.
The shopping district usually only operates until evening.
-Several assailants appeared in the shopping district.
-The shopping district... That's not far from the dormitory building.
-Were there any casualties...?
-None reported so far.
-That's a relief.
-Well, there might be hidden victims we don't know about.
It was certainly not a coincidence that the previous conversation brushed my ears.
After being lost in thought for a moment in the sinking darkness, I soon burst into a hollow laugh.
"Ha."
Baob.
These sons of bitches.