How To Live As An Academy Extra Villain

115 – Ellie (1)

The day after the duel. Instead of heading to the classroom, I walked towards the healer’s hut. I had received treatment from the Saint and was fine for the time being, and I wanted to avoid running into Eugene who had left immediately.

“You’ve given it your all. Indeed, you are a true Saint…”

The healer with beige hair, Tespira, murmured as she examined my shoulder.

“But still, be careful for a while. I will prepare medicine that is good for inflammation, so drink it twice a day. And do not carry anything heavy, under any circumstance. Alright?”

“I will keep that in mind. However, about the medicine you gave me last time… I don’t know if I should say this, but… the effects are too good…”

“Oh? Well, that’s a good thing then. You don’t have to worry. It’s all part of the process of recovering yourself.”

“Well, that may be true…”

“Oh, come on. And you might be able to have a little fight with the boys. Even though we don’t know who they are, that female student must be having a great time.”

Tesphira lightly tapped my shoulder and smiled. I left Tesphira’s hut and returned to the main building.

The reaction of the first-year students I encountered was dramatically different from before. They either glared at me like an enemy or flinched and avoided eye contact. On the other hand, there were some who approached me in a friendlier manner, but their numbers were not large.

It seems like it will take more time for the aftermath of the duel to completely dissipate.

“Edwin Reed Gongja?”

I turned around at the sound of someone calling me. A well-dressed woman was gazing at me with interest.

“Who are you?”

“I am Eda. I have brought a letter from the master for you.”

The woman held a letter envelope made of high-quality paper. And on its exterior, I saw a name I was familiar with.

‘Eli.’

***

Since Selene’s work was finished, I now had time to focus on Eli’s matters.

But why did Eli send the letter like this? Instead of sending a regular letter parchment like always, what was the reason for choosing to use a person?

The question was only answered after I opened the letter. Eli said he really wanted to see me and included the date and location two days later in the letter.

The letter also mentioned that he chose to send a person to prevent unnecessary troubles, and after reading it, to burn it without fail.

I followed Eli’s instructions and disposed of the letter immediately. However, something didn’t feel right. Do ordinary people usually send letters like this?

Although I was filled with the desire to leave immediately, Eli had specified the date and location. It was better to follow it. I decided to first obtain permission to go out.

“Hey, Edwin. Where are you heading?”

“Evangelin. Good day.”

“Yeah, sure, sure.”

The blonde woman who greeted me extended her hand. Her ears stuck out elongated like a rabbit’s.

“I’m on my way to get permission to go out from the professor in charge. There’s a place I have to visit for a moment…”

“So? But Erasmus wouldn’t be here now. Give it to me. I’ll stamp it for you.”

“Uh…”

I hesitated for a moment, but there was no appropriate reason to refuse. I followed Evangelene up to the tower where the principal’s office was located. It had been several months since Walter’s incident, but the view was unchanged, not a speck of dust different from before.

“…A visit?”

“Yes. I have somewhere to go.”

“…Ah…”

“Evangelene?”

“…No. Well, I suppose I should go on a visit…”

Seeing my excuse, Evangelene let out a sigh. But soon she nodded and handed me the stamp.

“Here, it’s the permission slip. I hope you return safely.”

“Thank you. Then, I’ll be going…”

“In that case, want to sit for a moment? There’s something I wanted to discuss with you.”

As I tried to quickly leave after receiving the permission slip, the principal stopped me. Upon hearing his voice, my eyes involuntarily closed.

I had a feeling that I wouldn’t like coming to the principal’s office. Even without knowing what story the principal wanted to share, it was obvious.

“A great incident occurred this time, didn’t it? Winning against a warrior in a duel. There won’t be another student like you in the academy’s history.”

“…I got lucky.”

“What? Luck?”

Evangelene’s eyes widened upon hearing my words. She then burst into laughter.

“Oh, you. It seems like you’re underestimating yourself too much. How could such a victory be achieved by luck alone? Well, I’m not in a position to say. Even I didn’t see it coming, after all.”

Luck was just a word thrown around carelessly. I couldn’t say that I knew about Eugen’s story. But Evangelene’s words took a completely different direction.

“I looked for your entrance examination report. The evaluations of all the examiners were the same. You had enough talent to excel, but you were held back by your temperament and mana crystallization…”

The principal’s words were something I had never heard before. Come to think of it, one of the examiners who examined my mana seemed to be hesitant.

“You could have remained stagnant without overcoming your temperament. But who would have known that you would transform so completely and come back from the expedition?”

“…”

It’s an impossible task without putting in the effort. This time, the results were achieved based on such efforts. How could I dismiss it as mere luck? And… Ah, no.

The principal unexpectedly extended a favor to me, which was both surprising and disconcerting. I had actually been prepared to receive criticism instead.

By messing up the first step to fulfilling Evangeline’s wish, I had made a complete mess of things.

“…Aren’t you going to scold me?”

“What? Why would I scold you?”

“…I know it may not sound like something I would say, but this incident will only make the academy more chaotic. The heroes and their sponsors have already been criticized before they even had a chance to establish their reputation. So…”

“It’s okay. Trials always come unexpectedly. How can one be called a hero if they can’t even overcome that? And I’ve already talked to Eugene. I know about the complications between the two of you.”

“You know?”

“Yes. I considered stepping in myself, but that girl really trusts you. So, I decided to just observe for now. Hopefully, things will be resolved well enough at this point, right?”

“That…is true…”

However, despite his words, the principal’s expression revealed a troubled demeanor. Perhaps he was pondering Selene’s thoughts.

The spirit summoner who was intended to join the hero party had practically drifted away, so it was natural for him to have many thoughts.

In reality, I am not much different from the principal.

“…I’m sorry.”

“Hehe, it’s fine. It’s not your fault. Now go on. I must have kept you for too long.”

“Understood. Well then…”

“Yes, yes. Be careful going down.”

After Edwin left, the principal’s office was filled with silence. Evangeline recalled Professor Cadric’s report, detailing the duel between Edwin and Eugene.

Although she hadn’t explicitly told Edwin, the shock she felt upon hearing the news was indescribable.

The spirit summoner, her childhood friend, was originally destined to become Eugene’s third star. So she had thought that everything would go according to plan.

But something completely different had happened.

Fate is the same for everyone. Although it may occasionally twist and turn, its end is always the same. Even for elves, humans, and even heroes.

Evangeline had only seen one person deviate from that pattern. Even within the collective consciousness of the elves, she had found no clue.

“Hey, Edwin. Your opponent was none other than a hero. He was destined to be victorious.”

On the other hand, she couldn’t help but feel a sense of excitement. The appearance of an irregular being was like a drug to someone living a dull life. It was enough to put off achieving the mission of civilization and just observe its outcome.

She couldn’t predict what kind of impact his existence would have on the hero. Evangeline couldn’t fathom it. Her mind was as hazy as a fog.

“…Those who stray from the path can only step on thorns…”

***

I left the tower of Evangelin and walked through the corridor when suddenly someone opened the door and ran into me.

“Ah!”

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The person who ran into me ended up falling backwards instead. It was a woman who was sitting on the floor.

The stack of documents she was holding scattered and fluttered in all directions.

“Are you okay?”

“Huh…? Huh? Yeah, I’m fine. Sorry, I didn’t look ahead properly…”

The woman turned out to be Professor Cresselia, who recently took over as the professor in charge of first-year Devilology. Her large glasses and haphazardly tied hair showed a strong intellectual enthusiasm. Just looking at the dark shadows under her eyes made me feel tired.

Professor Cresselia had been mentioned in Eugene’s story, but she didn’t seem to have a significant role.

It was mentioned that the content she taught was incredibly profound, and that she was an authoritative figure in Devilology with no equal.

“Here they are. If you’re okay, can I help you carry them?”

“You’re quite kind. I’m fine. As a professor, I can’t burden a student with tasks… Let’s go and do your work… huh?”

I collected the papers that had fallen to the floor and handed them to Professor Cresselia. Her gaze, which always rejected any help I offered, focused on one spot.

“Oh my, what a beautiful bracelet. The craftsmanship is delicate. Where did you get it? It seems like the work of a skilled artisan.”

Professor Cresselia’s gaze was directed at my wrist. There was a bracelet worn there.

The bracelet was an item found in a cave named Aenna. I had visited it before coming to the academy. The cave had peculiar murals and peculiar patterns engraved on the outside of a box, which suddenly came to mind.

But the item didn’t have any special qualities in my memory. Besides its name “Blessing of the Old God” and the effect of slightly enhancing physical abilities, there was no other mention of it.

It was almost forgotten, but thanks to Professor Cresselia’s mention, I briefly revived that memory.

“I also obtained it by chance. I’m not sure which workshop it was crafted in…”

“Is that so? That’s a shame. I thought of visiting once too. Alright then, go ahead.”

“Alright…”

“Well, take care. See you in the next class.”

***

Cresselia waved goodbye and watched Edwin until his back completely disappeared. She stared at the spot where he had been for a long time.

I rose from my seat, but the events from a moment ago remained vivid in my mind.

“…It’s Astarte-unni’s bracelet.”

At first, I doubted my eyes. I never would have thought that I would encounter that item in a place like this.

However, the more I looked, the more convinced I became. The bracelet was undoubtedly someone that Crecellia knew. Even the small scratches were in the exact same position.

Even though countless years had already passed, the memories in my mind remained vivid.

“So…an adversary? Is that child…?”

Crecellia recalled the appearance of the male student who had just helped her. She thought of his tall stature, jet-black hair, deep and melancholic gray eyes, and an impression that seemed cold at first glance but was full of dignity.

“…Finally?”

Crecellia felt a burning excitement. She even felt the illusion of her already cooled heart fiercely pounding. She turned around again, but the image of the male student had long disappeared.