Chapter 8: Admission test (7)

“No, what is this absurd situation! A monster appeared in the entrance exam hall!!”

“Exactly! And in a group with Her Imperial Highness, the Princess Royal, and the Tower Master’s successor! This is clearly an assassination attempt!”

“Before we discuss whether it’s an assassination or not, we must first determine how an underground dungeon entrance with monsters was set up in the sacred examination hall of this magic academy!”

Could these be the same people who were leisurely drinking tea and laughing just this afternoon?

“We must first find the political mastermind!”

“We need to find the culprit who committed such an act magically!”

The female professors yelled, veins bulging in their necks, not wanting to be outdone by others.

“…I understand what you’re all saying. So, let’s go over this one by one, step by step.”

****

*Clap.*

The Vice Principal, seated in the middle of the conference table, lightly clapped her hands.

No professor dared to raise their voice at the Vice Principal, who held the most neutral position and was stronger than any other professor present.

“First, Professor Emila. Are you the one who managed the examination hall for Group 13?”

“Yes, yes!”

Everyone’s gaze turned to the woman with a pale expression.

She was the supervisor of the examination hall where the accident occurred, and the primary person in charge.

“Th-the exam proceeded normally! All twelve groups entered the examination hall without issues, and as you can see from their test results, they all successfully dealt with the monsters that were scheduled to appear and came out safely.”

From Group 1 to Group 12, all exams proceeded normally without any problems.

“But only Group 13 had such an incident….”

“What about the examination hall surveillance?”

“Of course, I continuously monitored the examination hall! However, no one was visible on the surveillance magic stone connected to the hall. That’s why I reported it immediately!”

Professor Emila did her best with the initial response.

Not a single person from Group 13 was visible on the surveillance magic stone where they should have been, and as soon as she sensed something was wrong, she immediately raised the alarm and moved quickly.

“I-I didn’t know a magic circle for teleportation to another place had been installed…! I was in the administration office to begin with!”

“Is there a possibility that a dimension gate leading to another place was set up in advance, and then activated as soon as the ‘target’s’ turn came?”

“Professor Atina! That’s too much! Are you saying I did that?! It wasn’t me!”

“Enough. Professor Atina, do not make arbitrary assumptions during the investigation.”

At the Vice Principal’s quiet warning, the atmosphere in the conference room grew even colder.

“Maella, Yulien, Sirsy. Combining their three accounts, they said they were teleported to a place similar in appearance to the examination hall, and fought against various monsters there.”

The Vice Principal picked up the three statements laid out before her.

“They said monsters appeared that were difficult to kill even with 4th-circle magic in a single blow.”

“Yes, and they said that the moment they arrived at what seemed to be the final area, they lost their memories.”

“They clearly stated they faced a massive demon at the end….”

The contents of the statements, written in three different handwritings, were all consistent.

“Then, after they faced that demon, what happened in the monster’s space that was visible through the magic circle opened behind the examination hall? Until we entered.”

And very coincidentally, the most crucial part was missing.

“Let’s review the video one more time.”

The Vice Principal moved her magic staff and infused mana into the crystal ball in the center.

Faculty members busily moving around the examination hall.

Something resembling a dimensional gate opened at the exit of the examination hall where Group 13 entered, and the faculty members entered inside.

And they saw it.

Traces of a terrible battle, and three individuals sprawled as if they had been attacked by an enormous monster.

The Imperial Princess Maella embedded in the wall.

The Royal Princess Yulien sprawled on the floor.

The Tower Master’s successor Sirsy leaning against the wall near the entrance.

“…These three weren’t severely injured, at least….”

And only after those who entered from the exit descended the stairs into the open space could they see her.

“Liliana.”

A single blonde girl, her entire body charred black as if scorched by fire, bleeding from the corner of her mouth, collapsed in a massive crater.

They saw one mage, unconscious and barely breathing, as if her life could cease at any moment, yet still clutching her magic staff tightly in her hand.

“Empress Maella, Princess Yulien, and Lady Sirsy all said they fainted as soon as they saw the demon. While the possibility is low….”

“Given the traces of battle, it’s possible that someone fought the demon.”

“If that’s the case….”

A single possibility surfaced in everyone’s minds.

While the others collapsed the moment they faced the massive demon, the blonde girl alone protected the three and confronted the demon.

“Could it be….”

“It’s within the realm of possibility, but this is all we know for now.”

The Vice Principal moved the video magic stone to another spot.

“Until Lady Liliana wakes up and gives her statement, we have no choice but to wait patiently.”

****

I squint my eyes open.

An unfamiliar ceiling, familiar interior.

‘It’s the infirmary.’

A place where injured characters in the magic academy often find themselves.

The blanket was thin, but the bed was cozy, making it feel like I could sleep soundly and comfortably, as if I were in a hotel.

If it weren’t for the crowd beyond the partition, I probably could have slept even more deeply.

What to do.

I don’t know what discussions took place while I was recovering mana in my sleep, but considering the effects of the healing sleep magic, it’s probably about 7 hours after I killed Andromalius.

The room was bright, but with a hint of dimness somewhere, it seemed night had fallen.

Yet, if so many people were gathered in the infirmary, it could only be one of two things.

Either the examination hall had turned into a complete pandemonium due to numerous indiscriminately opened gates.

Or they wanted to hear the situation from the survivors who, by sheer bad luck, entered that monster dungeon and miraculously returned.

Since most of the silhouettes beyond the curtain appeared to be adults, it seemed closer to the latter.

“Uhm….”

I subtly make a sound.

Exhausted and groggy, I slowly lift my eyelids.

“Where is this…?”

“Are you awake?”

“…….”

In front of me was a strict yet benevolent-looking elderly woman with white hair tied back, wearing glasses, staring at me with an unreadable expression.

“…Professor Vivian Edinburgh?”

“You know me.”

“Yes. You’re the Vice Principal….”

The Vice Principal of this magic academy, effectively the number two, and one of only two ‘8th-circle’ mages in the entire academy.

‘Dangerous.’

My mental barrier is fine.

But her intuition, honed by years of experience, must be sharper than anyone else’s.

Half-hearted words won’t work.

If that’s the case….

“What about my teammates?!”

I make the first move.

“What happened to the other three?!”

“Calm down, all three are safe.”

“Ah. That’s a relief…. Ugh.”

I clutch my arm.

I wasn’t particularly injured, but my arm just happened to tingle at the perfect timing, as if it had gotten cramped while I was asleep.

“Are you alright? Healing magic is….”

“I’m fine. Phew, phew. All three are safe, right? Right?”

“Yes. In fact, you were the most severely injured. …What happened?”

“Ah.”

Bingo.

So, they don’t know what happened.

Since none of the three seemed to know what happened inside, everything has gone according to my script so far.

“…A massive demon.”

“Yes, I heard that from the other three. What did that demon do?”

“……It checked each person’s face.”

“What?”

‘Get a grip, me.’

‘Imagine all truths being exposed to the Demon Lord.’

‘Imagine explicit images from your smartphone being uploaded to a group chat.’

‘Imagine saying ‘I like yuri bishoujo games’ when asked what games you like on a blind date.’

“Th-that demon said, ‘This isn’t her. This isn’t her either. This woman… is a mistake.’”

“So, it was looking for something?”

“Y-yes, I think so.”

“What did you do after you saw the demon?”

“…….”

The time to resolve the contradiction and mystery is now.

“…I wanted to kill it.”

“What?”

“My family was murdered by demons.”

It’s not a lie.

Liliana, the s*ave human, lost her family to the Demon Lord’s army.

It wasn’t a demon, but aren’t the Demon Lord’s army and demons both part of the demon race?

“I was scared and terrified, but… I couldn’t back down. Because demons must be killed. And to do that, to become stronger, I wanted to enter the magic academy.”

“…….”

It’s true.

My life’s goal and one of my survival routes is to slay the Demon Lord, and to do that, I must become even stronger here.

“So I fought, but….”

“What happened?”

“……It was a complete defeat.”

‘The demon.’

“Completely played with me.”

‘I was.’

“Its attacks didn’t work.”

‘By me.’

“In a single blow, I think I was slammed into the wall.”

‘By myself.’

“Before I lost consciousness, I remember what it said in its last moments.”

“What was it?”

“Uh, well….”

‘What should I say?’

‘I decided what meaning to convey, but I hadn’t firmly decided on the demon’s exact words.’

“…‘Not the child of prophecy’?”

“!!”

Professor Vivian’s eyes flickered for a moment.

“H-has the demon ever said anything else like that?!”

“N-no. Only that far….”

“…I-I see. I’m sorry. I got too excited.”

She had every right to be excited.

Hearing that a demon was searching for the Child of Prophecy — the protagonist who could awaken the ‘Philosopher’s Stone’ — how much must the Vice Principal’s heart have sunk?

“You’ve returned safely. It’s a miracle. But I hope you won’t take such reckless actions next time.”

Vice Principal Vivian said with a benevolent expression.

“We can’t afford to lose our top-ranked freshman, can we?”

“Huh…?”

“We expected it from the traces of battle, but to think you actually fought a demon and survived. And while saving the other three, at that.”

“Ah, th-that’s….”

*Rustle.*

“You’ve worked hard. Rest well.”

Vivian hugged me and lightly patted my back.

*Smirk.*

‘All according to plan.’

And just like that, I became the top-ranked enrollee of the Lily Academy.