I went down to the living room on the first floor. Primienne, lying on the living room sofa, was having a conversation through the crystal balls.
—Good luck. It’s an opportunity for you to be noticed by Her Majesty.
She appeared to be talking to the Director of Security. I watched her as I leaned against the wall.
“Yes.”
—You’re a noble, so don’t be rash.
“Yes.”
Primienne listened to him with a sullen expression.
—Why is your answer so half-hearted?
“Yes. Ah, no.”
—What? Yes or no, choose one.
“Yes.”
—…Ugh. Seriously, what should I do with you? Don’t you know how to socialize? If you want to be the Director, put effort into your social life. You still have a long way before becoming the
Deputy Director, but society is-
“Yes.”
—Don’t just say yes, yes, do all the homework that I gave you. Go is popular these days, so learn that. Stop bothering with stocks. Just deposit your money to the bank. You’re only losing money, anyways. You still haven’t saved up anything, right? There are rumors in the office that you’ve lost money.
“…”
The nagging continued. Primienne repeated her yes, and no’s with a swelling face.
—I’m hanging up. Seriously, do a good job! If you don’t do well this time, say goodbye to being the Director. Don’t be pushed aside by your juniors. Okay?
“Yes.”
—Ms. Yes. Hey! Don’t you have anything else to say aside from yes? When I was in your position, I couldn’t even imagine giving a short answer like you. What kind of a nut job would talk like that to a Director…
“Oh, my bad.”
Primienne hung up, pretending that she had made a mistake. Then she muttered as she stared at the crystal.
“Nut job, my ass. The director, who?”
“You have a dirty mouth.”
Primienne looked up at me, chewing on her lip.
“You may not have noticed because of my refined appearance, but I’m from the North.”
“Not everyone from the North is so foul-mouthed. They also don’t talk behind someone’s back.”
“…You’ll know it too when you work as a public official, Professor.”
It was then.
Bam, bam bam bam bam bam bam—!
Someone was making quite an impolite racket instead of knocking normally.
—Professor! There’s a report that a Great Tiger has appeared.
“…”
Hearing that, I understood why. I met Primienne’s gaze. We nodded to each other.
“Let’s go.”
“Yes.”
*****
The basic principle of running away— spread out. In an instant, the eight teams were divided into six and ran away. Gwen carried Drent on her back, and Julie was in charge of Epherene, while Syrio lured away the Great Tiger. It was so natural it was a habit, as it was a knight’s duty to protect the wizards during emergencies.
“…”
As a result, Julie arrived at the demon forest. She didn’t mean to, but she ended up being driven there as she was running away. She looked to Epherene.
“Ms. Epherene, are you okay?”
Epherene wore a scowl over her pale face. Cold sweat dripped from her forehead.
“No… a little.”
The knight belatedly checked the wizard’s condition. All she had to do was look down a little to see what had happened. Epherene’s pelvis had been bitten into, tearing apart muscle and flesh to reveal bone underneath. She was caught up in the Great Tiger’s mana as they were fleeing.
“I’m sorry, this is all my fault.”
Julie bowed her head and stretched out her hand. Firstly, she spread out a thin curtain of mana to staunch the bleeding; all the while, Epherene wore a bitter smile.
“What do you mean sorry… it’s not your fault… the tiger is just too… strong.”
“Stop talking now.”
Julie calmly examined Epherene’s wounds, but she could tell her condition at a glance.
“The Knight Syrio… will he be okay?”
“Yes, Syrio is the fastest among us, so don’t worry. Worry about yourself first.”
“That’s good… haa, haa…”
Epherene breathed heavily. But, the smile on her face never left.
“Ahh… I should’ve learned healing magic.”
“Healing magic no longer exists, Ms. Epherene.”
“Ah… I see… but, it’s okay. I won’t die here…”
Epherene was unstable. Her blood pressure and pulse were gradually dropping, and her body felt cold. Julie diagnosed her quickly and rummaged through her pockets, but she couldn’t pack emergency supplies because she was running away in such a hurry.
“We should get out of this forest first.”
This forest had a high magi concentration, which wasn’t helping Epherene’s condition. She closed her eyes for a moment to locate the Great Tiger by spreading her energy out.
…There was no need for that.
Grrrrrrr—!
A growl tore through the air, followed by Syrio’s provocation.
—You’re slow! Are cats that slow?!
—!
The tiger was still distracted by Syrio, but the barrier was still too far away. Therefore, getting out of this forest was dangerous in another sense. If they got too close, it would smell Epherene’s blood and change targets.
“Ah!”
…She suddenly thought of something.
“The relay station.”
Julie quickly took out a map. Fortunately, there was a relay station that was set up by another team in the area. There should be medicine inside.
“Please hold on for a little more, Ms. Epherene.”
“I’m telling you I’m fine… hehe. Oh, it tickles.”
“…”
Julie ground her teeth. Epherene’s condition was serious if she imagined sensations.
“We’re going. Lead us to the safest way, Mr. Map.”
Julie spoke to the map. Then, the map marked not only their path but also the current location of the tiger.
“Thank you.”
Julie moved with her head down. Quietly, without breathing, she followed the map’s guidance.
“…We’ve arrived. Ms. Epherene?”
Eventually, they arrived at the well-hidden relay station. However, Epherene had already fainted.
“Oh my…”
Julie threw open the door of the station immediately.
“…”
The first thing was she was the full-body mirror standing up against the wall. Julie looked a little absent-minded in the mirror, as there was someone inside.
“…?”
Deculein, the Professor, was staring back from the other side. Julie instinctively looked back. But, Deculein wasn’t there. She looked at the mirror again. Deculein was still there.
“How is this…”
—Tsk. You saw me.
He clicked his tongue and took a step forward out from the mirror. Julie was confused about what type of sorcery this was, but there was no time.
“…I need medicine.”
Deculein picked up Epherene by Psychokinesis.
“I will take this kid.”
He applied Duct Tape to Epherene’s injuries. It proved a versatile characteristic that could be used in all aspects such as healing, support, attack, and defense. The tape completely stopped the bleeding by blocking the damage to her internal organs.
“You go and save the other knights. They don’t have to walk over here. Tell them to look for my mirror, and I will transport them. Let’s start with the wounded.”
Julie nodded silently in response. Then, Deculein moved back inside the mirror with Epherene.
“…”
Julie was curious about the principles of that mirror. But, this was an urgent situation. Rescue came before curiosity.
“It’s Julie. Professor Deculein is helping with the rescue. Go look for the mirror in the relay stations….”
She ran while delivering the message through the crystal ball.
*****
…Epherene opened her eyes. For some reason, she felt fuzzy. Lights were spinning across the ceiling above her.
“…?”
What happened? Was she dreaming? There’s no tiger?
“…”
Blink, blink. Blink, blink.
She repeatedly blinked until she heard the rustling of papers from nearby.
Schwaaa—
It was quiet and peaceful, like white noise. Epherene turned to glance over.
“Aaaagh!”
The pain began to radiate from her pelvis, but that wasn’t the main surprise she found.
“…You’re awake?”
Deculein sat beside her, watching over her. No, he wasn’t exactly watching. He was reading a book like he wasn’t even interested.
“Just lay down. You’re still being healed.”
“Oh… hmm. Yeah. Ehem.”
Epherene looked at Deculein while lying down. She couldn’t believe that she was looking at Deculein, for some reason. He looked almost grand.
“Uhm, Professor. The tiger… wasn’t a dream, right?”
“It’s not.”
“Oh my. What happened to the knights?”
Schwaaa—
Deculein spoke as he flipped through the book’s pages.
“Nine people were killed, and eleven seriously injured. The injured were transported by Knight Deya alone.”
“…”
Epherene’s mouth fell open. Nine people died, a fact that was too heavy to just consider it as a number.
Schwaaa—
“Is your body okay?”
“…What? Ah… that…”
‘Oh my god. Oh my god. Deculein is asking about my well-being. Is this a dream? There are nine people dead, so it would still be nice if it’s a dream….’
“Are you not okay?”
“Yes? Ah, no. I’m fine. It just hurts a little.”
Epherene spoke while scratching her temples.
“I’m not going to die anyway. I met the future me…”
Clack—
At that time, Deculein closed his book. Then, he stared at her with his scary eyes.
“You don’t know that.”
“…Ah, yes, that’s true.”
“You’ll die if you’re so certain.”
“…Yes, I’m sorry.”
Epherene lowered her head in apology.
—Rustle.
At that moment, someone was listening in. Both Deculein and Epherene looked over toward the open window.
“Huh?”
A cold wind swept through the window, rustling past a note that had been left on the sill. Deculein grabbed the note with Psychokinesis.
“What is it, Professor?”
“…”
Deculein read the note without responding. His expression turned grave.
“What is it?”
“…”
“What is it?”
After her third question, Deculein looked at her. Epherene flinched.
“Shut your mouth.”
“…Yes.”
Epherene tightly closed her mouth as Deculein burned the paper, turning the note to ash.
“Get some rest.”
Deculein stood, dusting off his gloves using Cleanse.
“What? Oh, yes.”
It seemed serious, so Epherene didn’t dare ask about it.
“Right! Thank you, Professor!”
But, she did make sure to convey her gratitude.
“…”
“Thank you for saving me.”
Standing tall, he looked back at her with a gaze that could kill.
“I remember everything. The Professor has cured me-“
“There’s no need to be thankful.”
Baam—!
Deculein closed the door behind him.
“…Haa, he must be shy.”
*****
Meanwhile, there was an emergency meeting at the prison. Each person around the table wore a grim look as a heavy atmosphere oppressed them. This was thanks to the Great Tiger that appeared.
“If… if it’s a Great Tiger, we should abandon Reccordak….”
He killed nine knights with a single blow and crippled eleven people. If this were a war, he would be close to a General in rank.
“…It’s the best solution.”
Those were the words of the warden, whose complexion had lost all color.
“Let… let’s leave Reccordak. The second line of defense-“
“I disagree.”
“That won’t do.”
Gwen and Julie objected. Deculein glanced at the two.
“Why not?”
But, the Imperial Knights refuted their opposition.
“It’s a Great Tiger, a Great Tiger. They are looking down at us from the mountain right now, and it’ll be hard to protect Reccordak unless someone like Lord Zeit comes.”
“We can run while the prisoners buy us time. Don’t you think so, Professor? The Great Tiger is a variable no one expected, so Her Majesty would understand.”
The Knight Derek asked Deculein. Then, the hall went silent for a moment. Everyone in the conference room, including Ihelm and Julie, looked to Deculein.
“That’s a reasonable plan. If there’s no one to step up.”
“That’s right. The Professor is very insightful-“
“No!”
Julie stepped up as expected. Deculein shook his head as if he expected it. Upon seeing Deculein’s reaction, the Imperial Knights burst into laughter. Their ridicule was directed at Julie.
“The tiger should not cross this barrier. When it enters our mountain, no knight will stop it, and all the villagers in these mountains will perish. Every one of them. Not a single person will survive.”
“…”
Deculein’s icy gaze focused on Julie.
“Syrio, you went up against the Great Tiger.”
Then, all eyes were on Syrio. He shrugged.
“Hmm. I couldn’t go up against him; it’s too strong. Wow~, I didn’t know that beasts could be faster than me. I barely made it away.”
“See. It’s no time to worry about the villagers.”
The Imperial Knights glared at Julie. She clenched her teeth, and Deculein tapped his fingers on the table.
Tap— tap—
Tap— tap—
It was like a metronome. The knights drew their attention to him, and everyone held their breath in silence for him to speak.
“That tiger will go over the barrier. He is aggressive, so that he will attack the barrier several times a day. Just as Knight Deya has said, there will be no way to pursue him if he enters the mountain. So, I’m asking. Is there someone who would hunt the Great Tiger beyond the barrier?”
He looked around. There was no one. Syrio was already injured, Gwen and Raphael looked unsure, and the Imperial Knights were all looking the other way. But there was one person.
Julie raised her hand.
“…I-“
“Good.”
Deculein nodded. The people in the conference room roughly knew what he would say next: to abandon Reccordak. Then, he looked at the face of each knight there in turn.
“It seems like there’s no one else, so I’ll do it.”
“…”
“…”
Silence hung like a curtain over them. Julie froze with her hand raised, and the rest wore ridiculous expressions. One knight cleared his ears to verify if he heard correctly. However, Deculein continued calmly amidst all the shock.
“Why are you so shocked? You said I’m a wizard that can rival Rohakan….”
*****
…In the prison’s hospital room.
Epherene, who was about to fall asleep under the haze of painkillers, woke up at the sudden sound of the door opening.
“…Weah?”
“Ms. Epherene! Are you okay? I heard about what happened!”
It was Allen. Epherene grinned after confirming who it was.
“Oh, yes… am okay… hihihi…”
“You don’t look fine.”
She shook her head at the flustered Allen.
“No, okay, but, hihihihihihi.”
“…”
Epherene, as she tottered, looked like a ghost. It was needlessly frightening. Allen, stepping back, *crunch* – stepped on something.
“…What’s this?”
“What? Ah…”
The note that Deculein burned earlier.
“It’s a note that Professor Deculein burned. I don’t know who it’s from… hihihi.”
Epherene laughed again because she felt itchy, and Allen took the remains of the note with a light smile.
“After reading the note, his expression suddenly became stiff… hehehe.”
“Oh. I see~. Why did it become stiff?”
“I don’t know… keke.”
Allen gathered the debris and pretended to throw it into the garbage can but instead used the magic [Replay].
Clack— clack— clack—
The ashes gathered in his hands and burned again, returning to their previous form.
“Hehe, hehehehe. Keke.”
Allen was wary of Epherene, but soon enough, the note returned to its original form.
“…”
Allen’s expression went blank.
