The surroundings were shrouded in silence.
It was partly because of Dwener’s sudden appearance, but more so because he had just punched Count Zachary.
The shock was brief. The children soon erupted into cheers.
“Wow…! He hit the Count!”
“Is this for real?”
“Is that really our useless principal? This is amazing.”
Amidst the complex web of interests and uncertainties, staying out of it was the wise choice. Even if it was morally questionable.
But to step in and throw a punch in such a situation?
The children were naturally in awe.
“Principal Dwener! What are you doing?”
“Eat this too!”
Smack!
Dwener’s punch landed on Administrator Rieur’s face.
“Ugh, ugh…”
Rieur fell over, blood streaming from his nose. He writhed on the ground in pain, screaming.
“Dwener… how dare you!”
Count Zachary swung his fist. But.
Clang!
“Argh!”
Dwener was wearing full plate armor.
Hitting him only hurt Count Zachary’s fist.
Dwener punched him down again as he clutched his aching fist.
“Ugh…”
Thinking he couldn’t handle this madman, Count Zachary crawled on the ground and stopped before someone.
It was Caron, the empire’s rat.
“Sir Caron! What are you doing? Get this madman off me!”
There were two reasons Caron had stayed silent until now.
First, his loyalty to the emperor.
‘Duke Aziz might pressure the emperor.’
Count Zachary was one of Duke Aziz’s loyal vassals.
Executing him on the spot could make things difficult for the emperor.
Second, there was no concrete evidence yet.
As mentioned before, the old woman’s testimony couldn’t be taken as 100% truth.
Solid proof of the crime was needed.
‘Adonis is no different from Caron.’
Even as the emperor’s sword, the principle is to not act without orders.
‘You might think it’s too incompetent to not judge for themselves, but it’s the opposite.’
Even in clear-cut situations, they don’t act rashly without their lord’s orders.
It was a display of their unwavering loyalty to the emperor.
So in a situation like this, as much as he hated it, Caron had to keep Count Zachary alive.
That’s also why he stayed silent while Administrator Rieur trampled the old woman.
Count Zachary, aware of this, sought Caron’s protection.
But.
“Sorry, that’s impossible. I don’t have the command authority right now…”
“W-what do you mean? Didn’t you just say you had command and split the Tree of Erosion?”
“It has since transferred.”
“To whom?”
“That would be…”
Caron’s gaze shifted behind Count Zachary.
There stood a knight in full plate armor, pummeling Administrator Rieur.
“The 18th principal of Annwood Academy, Principal Dwener.”
Indeed. The highest-rank person here was Dwener.
“This is for the injured children! This is for disgracing nobility! This is just because I’m mad! And this is…”
Dwener glanced at Caron and flicked Rieur on the head.
Flick!
“This is for Caron!”
Did it look weak, or was it just my imagination?
Seeing Caron’s eyes narrow slightly, it wasn’t my imagination.
“Stop! What are you doing to your own side!”
Count Zachary, enraged by the beating, shouted.
Dwener paused.
Own side. Indeed, they were on the same side.
Count Zachary was one of Duke Aziz’s key vassals, and Dwener was someone Duke Aziz had parachuted in.
They might never have spoken before, but they were on the same side.
Yet, he was getting beaten up, so it must have been baffling for Count Zachary.
“Strange. Can a person be on the same side as a pig?”
“What?”
“I’ve never sided with pigs… Oh, are you perhaps one of the duke’s pigs? Then you might be right.”
Calling a pig a pig was a severe insult.
Count Zachary’s jowls trembled.
“Y-you! I’ve had enough!”
“Bring it on! Dwener will take you on!”
A childish fight broke out.
Every time Dwener’s fist struck their faces, the children cheered.
“Yes!”
“Right, to the right!”
With his helmet off, Dwener couldn’t block all the attacks.
Count Zachary’s fist occasionally struck Dwener’s face.
But.
“No words needed!”
“Argh!”
Dwener didn’t back down, and Count Zachary eventually fell, clutching his flattened nose.
It was clear even from a distance. His nose was utterly smashed.
Though I didn’t know why the term “no words needed” was used, it was undoubtedly satisfying.
“Hmph! Not much of a challenge.”
Count Zachary and Administrator Rieur were reduced to well-beaten pork.
Caron stood before them.
‘Is it time to wrap this up?’
Caron would now arrest those two, ending the first day in Carpathia.
Though they’d be confined to their quarters, it would still be quite frustrating for them, who had wielded emperor-like power here.
“Count Zachary, Administrator Rieur. You are under arrest.”
“What!? Can’t we just be questioned normally? I’m not going anywhere!”
“…Take them away.”
Instructors grabbed their arms.
They struggled mightily, but couldn’t overpower the instructors, who were adept at using mana.
“A tool of the emperor dares to arrest me! Caron! You will pay for this!”
In the original story, this is where both sides would back down, and things would end ambiguously.
But.
“…Stop.”
“That’s right! It seems you’ve realized your mistake. Though my mood is already ruined. I might accept an apology if you bow deeply…”
“…Kneel.”
“Yes, kneeling is good. Hahaha! That’s where you belong. Isn’t that right?”
“…Kneel quickly. So I can easily cut off your head.”
“W-what?”
“Eek!”
Count Zachary froze, and Administrator Rieur, sprawled on the ground, began to tremble.
“Do it now… before I rip you apart messily.”
Caron’s face was twisted into a grotesque expression.
Though he usually maintained a perfect poker face, his emotions were now bleeding through.
‘Did emotions break through the mask?’
The grotesque expression resulted from his efforts to keep a poker face while his emotions broke through.
“Ugh…”
“I feel like throwing up…”
“…I think I can draw a demon’s face from now on.”
Was it Caron’s grotesque face, or the impending disaster everyone could sense?
The cheerful mood from Dwener’s actions had turned heavy.
Caron’s state was not normal. He looked ready to tear those two apart.
‘Caron has extraordinary patience. What could have shaken him so much?’
As I puzzled over Caron’s character, I realized something.
Yes, there was a change.
A small but significant change that affected Caron emotionally.
‘Luna was injured…!’
Severely injured, standing at death’s door.
Given that those two were responsible for the Carpathia invasion, Caron’s anger towards them was natural.
Had they not committed their corruption, the old woman wouldn’t have turned to the demon, and Luna wouldn’t have come here.
He had barely contained himself, but Count Zachary had crossed the line.
“Sir Caron! Calm down. Why are you doing this!”
Count Zachary started trembling, his body naturally lowering.
Caron, the empire’s rat and a master of torture. Even high-ranking nobles feared him.
Why didn’t Count Zachary fear Caron?
Because he knew Caron wouldn’t punish him without the emperor’s order.
But Caron was different now, and Count Zachary realized that.
‘He shouldn’t kill them…!’
If Caron beheaded Count Zachary here, a political war between the emperor’s faction and Duke Aziz’s faction would begin.
‘The war between the two factions starts in Chapter 4. If it starts now…’
The story would become so tangled I wouldn’t know what would happen.
My greatest strength—knowing future events—would be useless.
I wanted to stop Caron immediately, but it was impossible.
Caron was ready to tear apart anyone who stood in his way.
Tap.
But someone did stop Caron.
The world’s Don Quixote, Dwener.
“Calm down.”
“…Move.”
“Death is too lenient for them. Don’t you think?”
Caron met Dwener’s gaze.
Was it because they were too incompetent to bother with, or was there another reason?
Caron’s face returned to normal.
“I order you by the authority of the principal. Move them to a secure location and begin the investigation.”
“A secure location?”
“Why, you have that place, don’t you? So cozy, full of rats.”
He was referring to Caron’s torture chamber.
“…Are you serious?”
Caron’s question was natural.
He couldn’t tell if Dwener was serious or trying to save his allies.
And I couldn’t tell either.
‘This is the first time this story happened.’
It was the first time, so I had no idea what Dwener was thinking.
“Anyway, Caron, you overthink things.”
“…What?”
“I mean, just do as you’re told! Do you want a written order?”
“It’s not that…”
“If it’s not, then move! Why are you so talkative! Go!!”
Dwener’s scolding left Caron no choice but to act.
As Caron and the two pigs disappeared, the children’s gazes focused on one place.
The old woman and Alex, who was holding her.
Ashes were scattering around them, a sign of the old woman’s body slowly disintegrating.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to hurt you… I only wanted those men dead… I ended up being used.”
“It’s okay. Considering what you’ve been through, this is nothing…”
“No. No matter how wronged I was, I shouldn’t have caused others to suffer. Thank you for correcting my mistake.”
“…No punishment can truly bring comfort, but I will strive to ensure they receive the punishment they deserve for their crimes.”
The old woman, looking at Alex, gave a faint smile.
“Thank you. But it’s alright. You don’t have to do that.”
“Excuse me?”
Did she see something in her final moments?
There was a glimmer of longing in the old woman’s eyes.
“I don’t want you to get hurt because of my grudge.”
” … “
“Live well. All of you… Thank you for believing in me.”
The old woman’s body turned to ash and scattered with the wind.
Dusk gave way to darkness, and the ashes sparkled in the twilight.
“Move to your respective accommodations as per the instructors’ directions!”
The ashes lit the way as they scattered.
It was only later that they realized the darkness and cold had settled in.
The light was bright and warm.
–TL Notes–
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