Episode 192
"Hmm..."
Isollet, groaning while feeling a hazy sensation, suddenly opened her eyes.
".....?"
At that moment, a familiar sight unfolded before her eyes.
The main building of Sunrise Academy, towering high in the center of the Empire.
Numerous附属 buildings and sculptures surrounding that main building.
And, flamboyantly decorated at the center of those buildings, the sculpture of the hero from 1000 years ago, known as the largest sculpture in the Empire.
Each and every one of them were things Isollet had liked since her school days, and still liked even now as a teacher.
But.
"Ah...?"
For some reason, Isollet's face grew pale as she looked at such things.
Because.
The towering main building of Sunrise Academy was half-destroyed, leaving only debris, and numerous附属 buildings were burning.
- Kiiik...
The hero's sculpture, which was virtually the symbol of the Empire, was crumbling, broken in half.
'W-What is this...!'
Isollet, seeing such a terrible sight, tried to scream with an expression of horror.
But.
For some reason, no sound came from her mouth.
'Just what is going on...?'
The words that couldn't be spoken out loud merely drifted emptily in her mind.
- Kugugung...!
Isollet, who had been standing blankly in place for a while, quickly turned her head when she heard a loud roar from behind.
'.....!'
Then, an unbelievable scene entered her field of view.
- Pazik, Pazijik...
The solid defensive barrier that had been created around the academy by the hero's party 1000 years ago, said to be impenetrable even by the first Demon King, was shattering into pieces.
"Krrrrrr..."
"Woooooh!!"
And, pouring down through the gaps of the shattered barrier were.
"Human... find... human..."
"Kill... them..."
Top-class magic beasts that might be discovered once or twice a year at most, and wild beasts eroded by dark energy.
"Damn it..."
Isollet, watching such a scene with a deathly pale face.
"Since it's come to this..."
'W-What?'
Suddenly hearing such words from her own mouth, she tried to back away in confusion.
'Euk?'
But soon, realizing she couldn't move her body at will, she quietly muttered to herself.
'...I suppose I'm having another nightmare.'
Isollet, who had been having frequent nightmares lately due to somehow feeling physically exhausted and stressed, concluded that this situation was a 'nightmare' and sighed.
'An academy being invaded, that's certainly fitting for a nightmare.'
For Isollet, who had the grand goal of nurturing students to lead the future and revitalize the Empire at the academy, this was truly a tailor-made nightmare.
Although her body wouldn't move as she wished, Isollet, who was shaking her head left and right, soon thought this.
'If I stay like this, I'll wake up from sleep on my own.'
And from that point, she drew the sword hanging at her waist and began heading somewhere.
"I must... protect everyone..."
Before she knew it, her heart had merged with her dream self.
Heading straight into the center of the pitch-black wave of enemies.
.
"Kyaaaaah!!"
"N-no!!"
"Please save me!!"
Screams could be heard here and there.
A place that should be safer than anywhere else, a place that should overflow with happiness more than anywhere else, was being dyed in blood and screams.
"R-run away!"
"Wait a moment! The students are..."
"Let go of me!!"
Far in the distance, faculty members could be seen frantically fleeing the academy.
Seeing them like that, a thousand fires of anger rose in my heart, but at the same time, I understood.
Overwhelming enemies beyond the level they could handle were swarming in droves, so it would be stranger if they weren't afraid.
"...Euk."
But.
If one is an educator, shouldn't they save the students, or at least flee together with them?
Even if they couldn't fight back, they would certainly have the ability to evacuate students who hadn't evacuated yet, yet these so-called teachers were the first to flee from the front.
The magic beasts hadn't even crossed the temporary barrier yet, couldn't they at least help up a student who fell while running away?
Is this the academy I wanted?
Is this the appearance of a teacher I admired?
Is this the future I hoped for?
"Huap...!"
"Just hold on a little longer, we need to buy time until support arrives...!"
"There's a student inside the debris! Please help!"
Right beside me, the maids in charge of the school were running around busily.
Of course, the maids were skilled as well, but even though they were less capable than the teachers, they were desperately running here and there.
"Professor Isollet!"
Laughing emptily at such an ironic situation, I was heading toward the temporary defensive line that had barely held off the enemies for a moment when.
"That way is dangerous! Join us and fight together!"
I stared at the maid who urgently ran to me and grabbed my arm.
"Professor Isollet, you're not thinking of going in there, are you?"
"...It's impossible. No matter how skilled you are, that would be suicide."
"Rather than that, how about recomposing yourself here and fighting with us?"
And, the few conscientious professors who remained at the academy to establish a defensive line also urgently spoke to me.
"...Ha."
What a relief. There are still people like this left.
No matter how much the Empire may be covered in darkness, as long as small sparks like these people remain, hope that can burn again at any time exists.
That's why I.
Today, for these sparks, I am willing to throw this body of mine into the inferno.
That is the duty of a knight.
The duty of a teacher with disciples.
And the path everyone should aspire to.
If I, one person, can sacrifice myself to become the fuse, it is something I absolutely must do.
"Professor Isollet!!"
"...Professor!!"
Thinking that, as I tried to head inside the temporary defensive line, the people who were constructing the defensive wall rushed at me.
"Everyone should know that if this defensive line is breached, no matter how hard we fight, it will be useless."
"But...!"
"And, there are still students inside."
Saying that to them, I.
"If I don't make it out alive, please convey this to my father."
In a quiet voice, I conveyed the words I had always wanted to say.
"...I apologize for always causing trouble to the family."
And jumped into the defensive line.
"........."
And, a moment of silence flowed.
"Krrrrr..."
"Woooo..."
Soon, the gazes of the magic beasts that had been wandering around the defensive line and organizing their formation all focused on me at once.
"Huu..."
Looking at those guys, I stroked the beloved sword I always carried and took a deep breath.
"...Eut."
At a sudden thought, my breathing became disrupted.
"Where might that guy be."
This sword was a gift Frey gave me when I was young.
To me, who was a knight candidate at the time, he gave it to me with a bright smile and support to pass the exam. This sword, which could be called the finest famous sword in the Empire without any shortage.
Since that day, except when washing and sleeping, it had never left my side for even a moment.
Why was that?
Simply because this sword cut well, and I had become too accustomed to it?
Or was it because of lingering feelings for my first disciple, who had now fallen, but once shook my life, which had nothing but swords, with a pure smile?
Or perhaps, simply because I missed him.
"Huu..."
Shaking off distracting thoughts, I take a deep breath.
Then, the magic beasts and wild beasts began to prepare for battle as they looked at me.
- Uuuung...
I regulate my rough breathing caused by tension.
I adjust the posture of my hand gripping the hilt.
Gathering refined mana into my beloved sword, I focus on the opponent before my eyes.
"I'll cut down as many as I can."
Having finished combat preparations, I looked at the swarm of magic beasts charging at me all at once.
'If only I could break through the wall today...'
Specifically, at what was beyond the swarm.
- Jiijing...!
Looking at what appeared to be the leader of the magic beasts, a Dark Golem the size of the academy main building.
'Then, I could make that guy my companion on the journey.'
Muttering that to myself, I took one step forward.
- Pazijing...!
And, a flash of light shone.
.
"Eugh, ugh..."
My vision is blurry. My head hurts as if it's splitting. My whole body is screaming to save it.
"Kulok..."
Seeing blood being coughed up, it seems the organs are injured too. Well, with all the bones in my body shattered, it's only natural the organs would be wounded too.
- Kikik... Kigik...
In a bleak situation where I couldn't even guess how many more minutes I could last, I raised my body while gritting my teeth, using my beloved sword as a support.
"Haha, hahaha..."
Soon, I let out an exhausted laugh.
"I did... it."
Everything around is covered in blood.
The swarm of magic beasts and wild beasts that had been baring their fangs at me were all cut in two with a single stroke.
- Pazuzuzu...
The Dark Golem with its central core destroyed was completely wrecked, leaking black liquid.
- Jjanggeureang!
"Finally, I did it."
Only after confirming that not a single enemy remained before me did I drop my sword and collapse on the spot.
"Keueok..."
Coughing up a large amount of blood, I quietly muttered.
"...What a relief."
And right at that moment.
- Clap clap clap!
From somewhere, the sound of applause began to ring out.
"Amazing, amazing."
Soon, that guy's voice echoed all around.
"To think you'd defeat all the enemies."
Hearing that voice, I gently closed my eyes.
"The magic beasts are one thing, but... how on earth did you catch the Dark Golem?"
Frey, who had been continuously approaching me.
"Let's see..."
Stopping right in front of me, he examines me with an expression full of curiosity.
"...You broke through the wall?"
Soon, Frey asked with a surprised expression.
"How does it feel to become a Sword Saint? Isollet?"
Until then, I had been lying on the floor listening to his words and exhaling rough breaths.
"You've fallen, Frey."
I said in a feeble voice.
"What, judging by that reaction... you already figured out I was the mastermind behind this incident?"
"...Kulok!"
Then, he crouched down and looked at me while asking that.
"Since when?"
"I had my suspicions... from before. But I only became certain just now when I gained mana detection ability and realized... that you were controlling everyone."
"...Ha."
When I answered while looking straight into his eyes, he let out a laugh of disbelief.
In him, I couldn't find any trace of the pure eyes from the past at all.
"Well, good work. Since there's some old affection... I won't kill you with my own hands specially. If I leave you like this, you'll die soon anyway."
"Why... did you do something like this..."
"Well? What's a person who's going to die anyway going to do knowing that?"
Though I asked him with difficulty, only mockery was floating on his expression.
"Usually, villains in this kind of situation let their guard down and reveal their entire plan, then get into trouble. I hate that sort of thing."
"........"
"Anyway, thanks to you, I had a good show. Well then, I'll be going."
As my eyelids grew heavier, he seemed to lose interest, and with an expression that had grown cold, he turned to leave.
"Frey..."
To him, I squeezed out my very last strength.
"Swords... exist to protect people."
I began my final admonition.
"Swinging a sword at people is something that should only be done to protect..."
Then he stopped walking, turned his head, and glanced at me.
"Otherwise."
I barely finished my words in my fading consciousness.
"...Someday, the one stained in blood will be you."
And quietly closed my eyes.
"............"
And the long silence that began.
In that silence, I lay with my eyes closed.
'Yes...'
I tightly gripped the sword I had been holding, and muttered to myself.
'...Come, Frey.'
This was the last trap I had laid before dying.
Having reached the realm of Sword Saint, I could freely control my body's condition, so I completely eliminated my body's vital signs and feigned death.
Since I was barely maintaining a life that was about to end with transcendent mental strength on a body that was essentially already dead, even if the Demon King came, they wouldn't be able to discern my condition.
"Hmm..."
I had already noticed that he had been looking at my sword with greedy eyes since earlier.
Surely, he would come to my side to retrieve my sword.
The moment he touches my sword, I will pour all my mana into it as my final struggle and make it go berserk.
My disciple has walked a twisted path and become a monster that destroys everything.
It would be fitting for me, his teacher, to take that life.
- Teobeok, teobeok.
As I was thinking such thoughts while barely holding onto my fading consciousness, he started walking toward me.
It seems my disciple intends to disappoint me until the very end.
- Swuk...
Before I knew it, Frey, who had arrived right in front of me, carefully lowered his body.
- Uuuung...
Immediately, I began preparing to pour mana into the sword.
"...Euk."
At the same time, the sound of grinding teeth.
'.....?'
At the moment I questioned that sound, something warm fell on my chest.
- Tuk, tuduk...
Soon, as more and more warm drops fell, I was wondering whether I should open my eyes a crack to check the situation, right at that moment.
"Euheuk..."
I heard sobbing.
"Eukeuk, eueu..."
At first, I thought I was hearing things, but soon the sobbing sounds that continued to be heard were definitely coming from right in front of me.
That's right.
Frey was crying sorrowfully.
Holding me tight, with his face buried in my embrace.
"Sister... I'm sorry..."
Frey, who had been wetting my embrace with tears for a while.
"It must have hurt a lot...?"
Soon, he whispered in a quiet voice while stroking my back.
"Just rest well for a while."
Saying that, lifting his face from my embrace and quietly laying me on the floor, Frey said.
"I will definitely give you a happy ending."
Saying that with a trembling voice while swallowing his tears, he quietly rose from his spot.
- Swuk...
And, he reached his hand toward my sword.
'......'
The preparation was already complete. If I just poured mana in, the sword would go berserk. And Frey would certainly die.
Perhaps the monster who would destroy the Empire and burn the world in the future, I could stop him right here and now.
That is what I must do as his teacher, as a knight of the Empire.
And what the whole world wants.
- Seureung...
But why is that?
I can't put strength in my hand.
Have I simply become too exhausted to even grip tightly?
Or has my heart grown weak at this point?
Or perhaps, have I finally vaguely realized the identity of the discomfort I felt whenever I saw his evil deeds, something I had always felt was almost within grasp?
- Tek...!
While thinking such thoughts and losing consciousness.
Frey carefully placed my hand, still holding the sword, on my chest.
It is a traditional culture of the Empire to pay respects to a knight who died in war or battle, and to the sword that was with such a knight.
"...Goodbye, sister."
Thanks to that, I, who had been desperately holding back my trembling eyes, cautiously opened them a crack.
Because there was something I definitely wanted to confirm.
'.......Ah.'
And, that action had value.
'Frey.'
The boy before my eyes, kneeling before me who was growing cold.
Was shedding tears from pure silver eyes, just like when I first saw him.
'You are.....'
Since his parents passed away, I had never seen those eyes.
'Could it be......'
No, that's not it.
Perhaps he was.
No, originally he was.
'From the beginning, always like that...'
My consciousness completely faded, right at that moment.
.
"Huaaaaaak!!"
"Kyaaak!?"
Isollet, who had been groaning in bed, screamed and sat up.
"F-Frey! Where is Frey...!"
"Y-yes?"
Soon, Isollet, who had said that with a pale face.
"...Huh?"
Looked around, then asked while gasping for breath.
"Where is this?"
"Th-this is home. Sister."
"......"
At those words, Isollet, who had a blank expression.
"Frey."
"Yes?"
"Frey was... hmm... what was it?"
Soon grabbed her head and muttered.
"I can't remember well. It feels like it was some important memory..."
"Did you have another nightmare?"
"...I suppose so."
Then, to Aria, Frey's younger sister, who asked with a worried expression, Isollet answered.
"By the way, could you bring me a letter?"
"A letter? Why a letter all of a sudden?"
Asking Aria for a letter, she muttered in a quiet voice.
"...There's someone I want to meet."