“Wait! I need a detailed explanation!”
These were the words Godner shouted as soon as I, the recipient of the certificate, sat down.
‘It seems Teron instructed him.’
Well, it was a valid question.
Fighting dozens of ants is something even Daike can’t do at the moment.
If I were stronger than Daike, it would mean the strategy needs to be revised.
That’s why he was asking Caron.
If it was true that I alone dealt with dozens of ants.
‘Come to think of it, it’s strange. Why give me a certificate?’
He told me not to stand out, yet this is too conspicuous.
It didn’t seem like something Caron would think of.
Rather, it would have made more sense if he had given me a significant amount of demerit points.
‘And we should have coordinated our story beforehand. Fighting dozens of ants alone, what is he talking about?’
Well, it was actually possible for me. I have [Divine Imitation].
I could have cleared them out with a single [One Flash].
‘But from the perspective of the other students, it’s impossible.’
The monster Daike couldn’t do it, but a suspicious guy did?
It was the perfect scenario to be accused as a demon and burned at the stake.
‘No matter how you think about it, it’s not a plausible excuse Caron would come up with…’
Thinking this way and that, the excuse had too many flaws.
Perhaps sensing my thoughts, Caron spoke up.
“There was an unaccounted path. Zero discovered it and single-handedly collapsed it to block the way.”
“That happened…”
“How about it, is this a sufficient answer?”
Caron glanced at me briefly.
It was a sign to respond in the same way if anyone asked.
‘The path I supposedly collapsed must have been prepared by Caron.’
If evidence was presented, everyone would nod in agreement.
Maybe he broke a normal wall and pretended there was a path there?
“What? Where did you go… you were struggling on your own, weren’t you?”
“Keke, but someone bit my head off without knowing that. Quite unreasonable, don’t you think?”
“Right. But wait, you’re not talking about me, are you?”
I gave Luna a grin.
Yes, that’s right. It’s you. Oompa Loompa Doopity Doo~.
Crack!
Luna, who had been looking at me for a moment, bit my head.
Go ahead, keep biting. It only hurts for a moment~.
Of course, even amidst all this, the students’ complaints continued to erupt.
“Even so, 10 merit points is too much. There’s a problem of fairness in the midterms…!”
“It’s no use telling me.”
“What do you mean…?”
Caron hesitated for a moment before speaking.
“It’s an order from the Principal.”
“The Principal!?”
“Wait, is that the Principal’s seal!?”
At the bottom right of the certificate.
The seal of ‘Principal Dwener’ was stamped.
‘Ah, so that’s what it was?’
That’s when the puzzle in my mind clicked into place.
The lie about my exploits, and the excuse full of holes that didn’t seem like Caron’s style.
‘It was the result of Principal Dwener’s influence?’
Then the students quieted down.
If the highest authority of Annwood Academy issued the certificate, what could they do?
They must be thinking in their heads.
‘The kid got lucky.’
‘No casualties and safely ended. From the perspective of someone who only receives reports, they’d want to give something.’
‘It was a situation where his own neck could have been on the line.’
‘Well, it was an emergency. I admit that.’
…and other similar thoughts.
As no one spoke up, Caron stepped back onto the podium.
“Now, finally, let me explain the purpose of the commendation and reward session. Does anyone know?”
“To motivate by awarding merit based on achievements, isn’t it?”
Caron shook his head.
“I’m not talking about the literal meaning. I’m talking about the meaning, the significance behind it.”
It was quiet. Even Yuridia, Teron, and the top students.
No one answered.
Because no one had taught them this.
“In fact, where you’ll go in the future is not much different from here. It’s not much different from the academy.”
Being evaluated and judged.
Human value is quantified into numbers and recorded.
“Evaluating people by converting them into numbers might be considered bad. But think about it. When you work with someone, on what basis will you evaluate them?”
Appearance? Conversation? Morality? Expertise?
It takes a considerable amount of time to assess someone.
Understanding a person is not an easy task.
“Quantified evaluations help in such cases. If there’s something like a certificate, it makes the evaluation of that person stand out even more.”
Of course, there are people who realize this late and start to put in the effort.
But from the evaluator’s perspective, there’s no way to know that.
Even if the person who started late catches up, those around them won’t know it.
“Work hard. Your efforts now will grow you in the future and save your life.”
The expressions of the students became serious.
Their first real combat. And the first evaluation they received about themselves in their lives.
They must have realized they had been too excited since the entrance exam.
“Oh, and of course, I’ll help you get jobs. That is, if your evaluation scores are good.”
The students laughed.
Maybe because the word ‘life’ seemed lighter compared to the word ‘job’.
‘Silly fools. Do they know how hard it is to get a job!’
They wouldn’t be laughing if they knew about South Korea’s youth employment rate.
“And one more thing. Before criticizing others, take time to reflect on yourself.”
Teron was grinding his teeth.
He seemed unable to control his emotions.
“That’s it for today’s lesson. Rest well. If you’re injured, try to rest even more.”
What came back to Teron was mockery.
Caron left the classroom, but no one else did.
They didn’t leave because they didn’t know what Teron might do if they upset him.
“It smells.”
“Excuse me?”
Luna muttered about a smell.
Her gaze followed Caron as he left.
Could she have noticed? That Caron was looking out for her?
‘That oblivious Luna?’
It was true she received too many merit points.
A total of 8 points.
Overshadowed by Alex, who received 12 points, and Yuridia, who received 9 points.
The perfect score for securing a high rank in the midterms.
‘Caron, you made it too obvious!’
The fact that Luna noticed said it all.
I was preparing an excuse for Caron.
Luna frowned.
“It was the same from the beginning, but now I’m sure. It’s a smell I’ve recognized from somewhere. But when was it?”
However, what Luna said had nothing to do with the current situation.
Of course, she wouldn’t have noticed.
Our Luna is a child who eats without noticing.
“Luna.”
“Huh?”
“There’s no smell. Unless you’re a dog.”
“Right. Try getting bitten by a dog once.”
“Excuse me?”
As I turned my head, what greeted me was Luna’s wide-open mouth.
In the principal’s office of Annwood Academy.
The 18th Principal, Dwener, was humming to himself.
“I wonder if my gift was well received, Zero.”
Dwener reminisced about what happened yesterday.
When he heard about the incident in the anthill, he was extremely worried. Then Caron arrived.
It was only natural to blame him.
He was the instigator, no, the responsible party for taking the students into the anthill.
“Eeee! How could such a thing happen! How could you handle this so carelessly!”
The students could have been killed.
This wasn’t just a simple accident.
Therefore, Caron had no choice but to hang his head in shame.
“I apologize. It was my oversight for not checking thoroughly.”
“Does saying sorry fix anything?”
“…”
“What? Now you’re going to ignore my words?”
“No, sir. I apologize.”
“Why do something you’ll apologize for?”
“I’ll be more careful.”
“In my time, I tell you! We checked everything thoroughly!”
“I will make sure to do so from now on.”
“Eeee! How could such a thing happen! How could you handle this so carelessly!”
“I apologize. It was my oversight for not checking thoroughly.”
“Does saying sorry fix anything?”
“…?”
The same repertoire started to repeat.
A parrot-like repetition of reprimands for nearly 30 minutes.
No, more like venting frustration.
But Caron was fine.
After all, it was an incident that occurred due to his own failure to check thoroughly.
For Caron, who had been through numerous trials and tribulations, such reprimands were nothing.
Except for just one thing.
‘This guy… Does he not realize he’s repeating the same thing?’
The funny thing was that Principal Dwener was completely unaware of it.
That the same, mindless conversation had been repeating for 30 minutes.
Not even realizing what he was currently saying.
Where else could one find such an incompetent person?
“In my time…”
Again, the same words repeated.
Caron decided. He had to leave the principal’s office immediately.
For a spy, patience is a fundamental trait.
Dwener had exhausted Caron’s patience in just 30 minutes.
‘Change the topic.’
What topic could divert the incompetent Dwener’s attention and allow him to escape from here?
Caron’s mind began to whirl frantically.
Even more busily than when he had escaped from the supposedly inescapable Kelt Fortress 15 years ago!
‘I’ll have to throw him under the bus.’
The incredibly annoying guy. He decided to sell out Zero.
Being a rat dreaming of survival, he would try his best to corroborate the story even if something unexpected happened.
“Eeee! How could such a thing happen! How could you handle this so carelessly!”
Timing it was easy.
Dwener kept repeating the same words.
“In fact… there was a hidden space.”
“A hidden space?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
He wasn’t talking about revealing the location of the hidden ant breeding ground.
But a man-made space he created to deceive people.
After sending the students with the instructors, he returned to the anthill and erased all traces of Zero.
Footprints, hair, the smell of a tracking scent, etc.
After that, Caron had no choice but to ponder.
The external issue was solved, but there was one internal issue left.
‘The instructors’ eyes are the problem.’
No one had seen Zero.
Others might say that’s not a problem, but it was bigger than it seemed.
Let’s assume it’s Zero’s turn during the merit and demit point meeting.
“Next is Zero. He wasn’t in my area.”
“Me neither.”
“Same here.”
“That’s odd. He’s not on the list of deserters either?”
The instructors’ eyes are not mere holes in the wall.
They vigilantly monitored the students even in the chaos.
But not a single instructor saw Zero?
It was bound to be suspicious.
Eventually, Caron chose.
Boom!
Whish…
He broke a wall to create a new space.
‘In the midst of chaos, a new path was discovered, and Zero was trapped there. And I found and rescued him.’
A moment of life and death with dozens of ants chasing.
‘He collapsed the entrance with his strength, blocking the ants’ pursuit.’
A plausible yet believable story.
The evidence was created right in front of them.
Although the color of the newly made stone wall was different from the rest, it didn’t matter.
The anthill was under his control.
Information, too, could be controlled as much as needed.
“Hmm… To think there was such an incident. It couldn’t be helped then. To have a hidden space even in that chaotic situation…”
“It’s all because I failed to check properly.”
“No, it was my overreaction. By the way, what was the name of the student who was trapped?”
“His name is Zero.”
–TL Notes–
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