The rumor that Elize and Marina’s gang had a bloody fight spread like wildfire among the cadets.
"Oh, really?"
The cadets were always interested in the power dynamics between Moonshadow Institute and Dormant Dragon Institute.
They were especially curious about the skill level of the so-called geniuses in Dormant Dragon Institute.
"Who won?"
"I heard Elize’s leg got busted and she was bleeding from her nose."
"Ah, so a 3-on-1 was too much for her after all?"
"No, you’ve got it wrong. Marina’s group got their arms and legs torn apart. My friend saw them in the medical bay – they were stitching them up."
"Holy shit."
"They lost even with a 3-on-1 and totems? Damn, guess geniuses really are built different...."
And then, at some point, the next question came up.
"But how did Marina survive?"
There was only talk of the fight.
Nothing about what happened afterward, which naturally sparked more curiosity.
One cadet spoke up.
"I heard the new professor stopped them?"
"Who?"
His name was... Dan... something. Dan...
Oh.
"Professor Dante!"
"Who’s that again?"
"The professor who skipped his very first class on his very first day."
"Ohhh!"
That crazy guy?
**
SLAP!
Marina’s head snapped to the side.
It was Black Abyss senior professor Viper who delivered the blow.
"Are you out of your fucking mind?"
"......."
Marina kept her head down and her mouth shut.
She was getting chewed out by the Black Abyss professors one by one.
The reason was simple: any conflict with the White Path could ✧ NоvеIight ✧ (Original source) quickly escalate into a full-blown hellscape.
The chances were slim, but there was a precedent.
"Marina. Look at me."
"......."
"Not only did you pull some unnecessary bullshit... If you were going to do it, you should have killed her. But instead, you came back with your ass kicked. Huh?"
If she had actually killed Elize, it would have been a complete disaster.
But that didn’t mean losing was acceptable either.
By now, White Path was probably laughing their asses off.
After all, they were the ones who came out on top.
"If that new professor hadn’t stepped in and contained the situation, you would’ve been dead. And we would’ve been spared this humiliation."
"......."
Viper was genuinely grateful to the nameless new professor.
The guy had prevented the absolute worst-case scenario.
Not that he was going to thank him openly in this atmosphere, but still.
An unexpected natural disaster.
Stopped by an unexpected person.
"Kurten! Get your ass over here already!"
Around that time, the Moonshadow Institute’s supervising professor, who had been on a rare vacation, hurriedly returned. Viper erupted in fury.
"Hey, Professor Kurten! What the fuck kind of management are you running here, huh?!"
"...I’m sorry, Professor Viper."
After the scolding, Viper stormed out.
Now it was Kurten’s turn. He approached Marina.
"Marina. You really went and did it this time. Didn’t I tell you at the start of the semester to get a grip on that inferiority complex?"
"......."
"Did you wait until I left to pull this stunt?"
"...No, sir."
"Yeah, right. Shit. You know I was across the damn continent with my boyfriend until three hours ago, right?"
"......."
Professor Kurten loosened his belt.
Then, with a swift motion, he pulled it out and gripped it like a whip.
"I don’t hate you, Marina. But you need a good beating. Otherwise, you’ll just keep going off the rails like this."
"......."
What followed was a chilling symphony of slaps and muffled groans.
A common scene in the Black Abyss.
**
Meanwhile, the cadets began to wonder.
Just how strong was this new Professor Dante, really?
"I heard 『Dark Barrier』 blocked everyone’s view, so nobody saw how he stopped the fight."
But no one knew how he had actually intervened.
Even the professors who supposedly witnessed it had no clue.
Then, one cadet chuckled.
"But honestly, Professor Dante can’t be that strong, right?"
"Huh? Why?"
"You guys know my dad’s with the Order of System, right?"
"Your dad? Professor Villemon?"
The Order of System.
A White Path faction that worshipped 「System Integrity⧉」 and was known for having the best intel network.
"Yeah. I snooped through my dad’s stuff while he wasn’t looking, and that professor doesn’t have any assassination records. No activity logs either."
"Hmm. Maybe he was part of some secret White Path assassination squad?"
"Nah. If he was, there’d be some sort of fabricated record, right?"
"Oh, right."
"But that professor? He’s got nothing. No assassination records, no academic degrees, nothing. No faction affiliations either."
The cadet rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
A professor with no past, huh? Was he really that much of a blank slate?
"But could someone like that really be strong...?"
****
Naturally, word of all this reached Dormant Dragon Institute as well.
When they went to visit Elize, they found her surprisingly intact. The incident hadn’t caused any real friction between the Black Abyss and White Path, since the Dormant Dragon Institute members didn’t care much for either faction.
However, the rumor about whether or not Professor Dante was truly strong was an interesting one.
After all, everyone remembered how brazenly arrogant he had acted back when he first introduced himself at Dormant Dragon Institute.
And so, right now...
"Is Professor Dante still refusing to spar?"
Dormant Dragon Institute, first floor. Men’s sauna.
Balmung nodded in response to Kwan’s question.
"Yeah."
The towel wrapped around his head bobbed slightly.
"Heheh... Maybe he’s scared?"
"Scared?"
"Yeah. Isn’t it obvious? Rumor has it he’s actually weak."
"......You’re wrong, Kwan. The professor is definitely strong. There’s no question about it."
"I don’t know. If it were me, I’d do this―"
CRACK!
Part of the wooden sauna wall warped and transformed, forming a pointed weapon that hovered inches from Balmung’s throat.
It was high-level [Alchemy].
"―If it were me, I’d just deal with the guy who keeps pestering me to spar like this, nice and easy."
Kwan chuckled, his smile as obnoxious as ever.
But Balmung just stared at him, expression grim.
‘Kwan Chacha!’
This guy... He hates stuff like this, doesn’t he?
"Get rid of it."
A voice filled with annoyance.
"Y-Yes, sir... Sorry...."
"Professor Dante is strong. There’s no need to say the obvious twice."
At that moment, someone nearby snickered.
"You got any proof? That Professor Dante’s strong?"
It was Kendreik.
Balmung frowned.
"I don’t have proof, but I’m certain of it."
"How can you be certain without proof? You a dumbass?"
"...It’s just a feeling."
Assassins are supposed to keep three-tenths of their power hidden. That’s why there are things that aren’t revealed.
Balmung remembered Dante’s ‘scent.’
A particular scent that only emanated from those who had reached an overwhelming level of power.
‘I didn’t smell it on the first day, but I definitely did last time.’
Balmung had grown up among the strongest assassins in the cartel since he could walk.
He’d been through dozens of assassin factions and met countless powerful individuals.
And the only person who had that same scent as Dante was his own mother — the Black Abyss Star ⚉, the Grand Matriarch Nibelung, one of the strongest on the entire continent.
Balmung didn’t think Dante was on the same level as his mother. The Stars were national strategic weapons, after all.
But even so, Dante was undoubtedly far above the average professor.
The truth was that Dante had invested every single Star Fragment he collected into [Illusions]... but that was something Balmung couldn’t possibly know.
"Tch. What kind of bullshit ‘feeling’ is that?"
Kendreik sneered.
"I asked him to spar with me a couple of times before. But the professor just kept running away."
"Is that true?"
"Dude, why the fuck would I lie about something like that? Professor Dante is all hype."
"Hmm... But all hype?"
"I’m telling you, it’s all just smoke and mirrors. Everyone’s getting fooled, but he’s actually weak as hell."
Balmung’s expression twisted.
He didn’t particularly like Professor Dante.
But hearing someone he had a favorable impression of being trashed so blatantly started to piss him off.
"Shut the fuck up, Kendreik."
Kendreik’s face contorted as well.
"...What the fuck did you just say to me?"
"Maybe he didn’t spar with you because you’re such a revolting piece of shit."
"Oh, and you. Did he avoid you too because you’re a revolting piece of shit?"
"...I don’t know about that. But he’s a busy man."
"Hah, look at this little scared bitch. Pissing himself already."
In Balmung’s mind, it was Kendreik who was the one actually scared.
Maybe that’s why he kept running his mouth about how weak Professor Dante was every chance he got.
"You idiots might be dumb enough to get fooled, but I’m different. Professor Dante’s nothing but a blowhard with a big mouth."
"Hmm... But still, he managed to see through Elize’s [Stealth]. Isn’t that pretty impressive?"
"Then maybe she’s just a fraud too. Maybe that so-called 「Silent Star○」 actually died because her [Stealth] got seen through too."
This was getting on his nerves.
Balmung stood up.
Then he threw out a single line.
"Kendreik. Watch your mouth from now on."
"What?"
"Choose your words carefully. Unless you want a hole in your skull."
"......."
A sneer spread across Kendreik’s massive face.
A fight was about to break out.
Kwan trembled, startled, visibly flinching.
"Hah. You little fuck. Where do you get off...?"
Both were from the Black Abyss, but they’d always been at each other’s throats.
Their cartel backgrounds were similar in size and influence.
"...Get out. Before I decide to kill you."
"I was leaving anyway, you chicken-shit asshole."
That fucking bastard... Balmung muttered under his breath.
As he stepped out of the sauna, he couldn’t shake off the thought.
Professor Dante was definitely strong. But how strong?
‘I need to confirm it myself.’
Balmung decided to seek out Marina and ask her how Professor Dante had actually stopped the fight.
Before Rebecca grabbed him by the shoulder.
"Balmung."
"Yes, Your Highness."
"We’ve got a mission. Let’s go."
"I’ll get ready."
He grabbed his sniper rifle.
Guess he’d have to ask after the mission was over.
****
"Good afternoon, Professor."
A member of the Academy’s police unit, the ‘Disciplinary Division,’ came to see me. He bowed his head multiple times, expressing his gratitude.
"It’s all thanks to you for intervening, Professor. Not a single one of the four involved ended up dead or disabled... But if anyone had died, phew. It would’ve been a nightmare."
For martial artists, the most critical outcome of a fight is whether someone dies or not.
Thanks to advanced healing techniques, it’s rare for injuries to result in permanent disability. But once someone dies, it’s nearly impossible to bring them back.
My guess was that White Path and Black Abyss had reached a silent agreement to avoid antagonizing each other over this incident.
"But, Professor... Is it true?"
"What is?"
"Bianca, one of Marina’s friends, said that Professor Dante was incredibly strong...."
The Disciplinary Division member’s eyes sparkled.
The students were already buzzing with talk about it in their 【Script】 feeds.
"Everyone’s curious about what happened inside that 『Dark Barrier』. But the ones involved aren’t saying a word about you, Professor. It’s just fueling more curiosity."
Why are those girls avoiding any mention of me?
I thought it over, and then it hit me.
‘It’s about their market value.’
Those three delinquent girls all specialized in the [Totem] system, one of the 12 Ability Classes.
But I had twisted and neutralized their powers using [Illusions].
Inside the realm of [Totems].
Their [Totem] abilities had been rendered utterly useless by a mere novice professor.
If word of this got out, their market value as assassins would take a huge hit. It’d be humiliating for them.
"Assassin battles are often kept confidential. I hope you understand."
"Ah, yes, of course. My apologies."
I sent the disappointed Disciplinary Division member away.
Now it was time to visit Elize.
According to the doctor, Elize had sustained internal damage in various organs due to her poor control over her mana. However, her injuries weren’t severe.
I headed to the infirmary.
As soon as I entered the private room, Elize waved at me with a bright smile.
"Professor!"
As if she wasn’t the same girl who had just been tearing people’s limbs off like a maniac.
"Are you feeling okay?"
"It hurts."
She then lifted her leg, which was wrapped in white bandages. Her expression remained as cheerful as ever.
Just in case, I checked her 【Script】 feed. As usual, there were hardly any 【Thoughts】 in her mind.
"Here. I bought this for you on the way here."
"Wow, what is it?"
The get-well-soon gift was a strawberry shortcake. For some reason, her pink hair made me think of it.
"Thank you, Professor. I should be the one buying you something...."
"It’s fine."
"But I don’t really like strawberry cake that much."
"What?"
"Hehe. Sorry, but I like blueberries better!"
A minute later, Elize was shoving the cake into her mouth. Chomp chomp. She was eating so vigorously that I couldn’t even tell if she was chewing. Every time she bit into a strawberry, her expression would briefly show a look of pure bliss. ‘Mmmm....’
Watching her eat reminded me of how she wolfed down food back in the student cafeteria. She always had this endearing way of eating that made it look like she was really savoring every bite.
I, on the other hand, often got asked if I’d already eaten because I ate so mechanically.
"You said you didn’t like it."
"Did I?"
"Yes, you did."
"Hmm. Why did I say that? It’s delicious. Want some, Professor?"
I looked at the cake, which was now a completely demolished mess, and shook my head.
"Anyway, it’s a relief that you weren’t seriously injured."
"Mawao."
"...You can swallow before you speak. Anyway, focus on recovering. If you need anything, just let me know."
I started to get up.
Gulp.
A sound echoed in the room as she swallowed.
Then, Elize quickly opened her mouth.
"...Ah, um."
I turned to look at her.
Her cheerful expression had faded.
"Thank you...."
"I told you, it’s nothing."
"No, it’s just... Earlier... I got scolded a lot. The Disciplinary Division said I was almost expelled."
"Well, yeah. If you’re an assassin, you should’ve killed them where no one could see."
"What?"
Elize blinked in confusion.
"Killing is bad, Professor."
She wasn’t wrong.
But coming from her, of all people...?
I was about to get annoyed when she spoke up again.
"But... um..."
After a moment’s hesitation, Elize asked cautiously.
"Why... did you help me...?"
Why indeed.
A soft echo reverberated through the hospital room.
"What kind of question is that?"
"...Huh?"
"Does there need to be a reason to help someone?"
"Hmm. But other White Path professors asked me the same thing. They asked why Professor Dante helped me. But I didn’t know what to say...."
I paused for a moment, thinking it over.
Elize’s intentions aside, her question was loaded with implications.
I wasn’t part of the White Path. Other neutral professors had stayed out of it. There were potential risks involved.
Yet I still intervened. Why?
Obviously, to increase our 【Affinity】 score.
That’s still what I was thinking as I stood here, even after buying the most expensive cake just to get a few Star Fragments out of her.
"I don’t know."
But I couldn’t exactly say the vile truth out loud, could I? It’d be better to wrap it up in a nice, plausible package.
Because you’re a student in my class...
Because it’s a professor’s duty...
Something like that.
Even though I had those convenient excuses ready to go, for some reason, the words rolled around on my tongue, unspoken.
Because I was curious too.
Why did I step in?
"Yeah. Why did I do that?"
Things had gone my way, so there was no real crisis. But looking back, it was definitely a dangerous situation. I’d known that at the time, too. And yet, I intervened.
Was it just because I was annoyed? No.
Then a thought struck me.
Maybe the [Relationship] system added in this [DLC] was slightly different from the usual [Affinity] system we knew.
After all, a relationship isn’t something you build alone.
After tracing my thoughts through that line of reasoning, I finally reached a single conclusion.
"Well... You have to help people, don’t you?"
"Huh?"
Elize tilted her head, puzzled, but inside, my conviction started to solidify.
Casual conversations.
Making balloon animals for her.
Watching her happy expression.
And the moment when Elize’s [Relationship] score towards me increased by 5 points — maybe, just maybe, my own [Relationship] score toward her also increased by 5 points.
"You have to help each other out. You know, those of us without dads."
I said it with a faint, almost absurd smile.
"......."
Elize’s mouth clamped shut, as if she couldn’t fully comprehend it.
Then, very slowly —
Her eyes widened.
"Oh."
Like she was recalling a conversation from a few days ago.
Her gaze drifted somewhere distant.
"Oh... That’s right."
A dazed, cotton candy-like voice drifted out.
The corner of her mouth, still smeared with whipped cream, slowly curled upward like a crescent moon.
"...That’s right. We... we don’t have dads..."
It was slightly different from her usual smile.
There was some inexplicable sense of satisfaction within it.
"......."
Then Elize spoke up brightly.
"Oh, then!"
"What?"
"Why don’t we make a club? You know, for people without dads."
"Huh?"
"We could invite Balmung and Gray too. And Kendreik — he has a dad, but it’s like he doesn’t..."
"......."
This kid is seriously a little off her rocker sometimes.
But still, it wasn’t so bad.
┃ Relationship Increased: Elize [20] (▲15)
┃ Reward: Star Fragment × 15
This too.