Chapter 1: Do You Admit Your Guilt? I Admit You’re a Fool!
The office of Argen Academy.
The academy, which had been severely damaged by a demon attack, was quickly restored thanks to the power of magic.
The teachers, who had been reduced to a state where their forms were barely recognizable, were rebuilt, and the building that housed the office, protected by Argen’s powerful magic that had consolidated over many years, was one of the few structures that still retained its shape.
Under Argen’s leadership, who had already memorized every detail of the academy in her mind, the reconstruction succeeded, making it hard to believe that they had been attacked by demons just months ago.
“You…”
Stella, the girl who was the dean of the rebuilt Argen Academy and a member of the hero party of salvation, stared in shock at the woman in front of her.
It was someone who shouldn’t have been here.
“I’m sorry for dropping by suddenly, Argen.”
“… There’s no need to apologize for that.”
“Um… I have nothing to say.”
A beautiful girl with long, sea-green hair and sharply pointed ears gazed at Argen.
With her slightly taller-than-average stature, she still looked youthful, prompting Argen to click her tongue.
“You elves really don’t age.”
“Well, from a human perspective, being long-lived makes that only natural. An elf’s prime lasts a very long time. Of course, in a few hundred years, I too will start to age.”
“That’s absurd…”
“And speaking of you, Argen Isis, you haven’t aged at all.”
“I’ve become a grand magician, so as long as I have magic power, I won’t age or die.”
At Argen’s words, the girl who introduced herself as an elf nodded.
“Ha… So? Why are you here?”
Argen sighed deeply at the elf’s unchanged appearance despite the passage of hundreds of years and asked what brought her here.
The girl opened her mouth as if she had been waiting for this moment.
“I heard that the current hero and saint came to the academy. And that there…”
She mentioned that they had already taken down two high-ranking members of the Demon King Army.
With that statement, Argen’s expression hardened as the girl spoke with excited eyes.
Finally, with a trembling voice, she said to the girl, “You… still can’t let go of your past.”
The girl tilted her head as if she couldn’t understand the strange words.
It felt like she had heard a statement that should not have been uttered in relation to someone completely unexpected, causing Argen to gasp.
“And you… didn’t you play a huge role in taking down the members of the Demon King Army? We are still a hero party.”
What on earth was she talking about?
The man who had been their central figure had long since disappeared.
Moreover, Argen, who had found and was raising a child who was essentially her disciple, could not comprehend the words of her former companion, the elf.
In astonishment, Argen shouted at the girl, “Wake up, Mirnel! Our era has long since passed…!”
“Argen… you’ve become dull. I came with expectations because I heard you took down members of the Demon King Army, but it’s unfortunate.”
At the elf girl’s sincerely regretful words, Argen’s expression crumpled.
Then, with a pitiful look on her face and a strained voice, she said, “Have you forgotten what that guy said? For old fogeys like us, we just need to guide the younger generation so they can do well.”
“So that’s why you’ve been serving as the academy’s dean? It makes sense; it’s typical of you, Argen, to follow someone you admire.”
“…”
Argen lowered her head deeply.
“Still, thank you. Thanks to you, it will be easy to approach the current hero.”
Watching the girl leave the room after only saying she was off, Argen walked over to the sofa and sat down.
“Unable to let go of the past…”
The hero and saint who once saved the world were already dead.
The saint, who had sacrificed her body to seal the Demon King for the hero, who was too weak to defeat the king, had died.
And the story was that the hero, who loved that saint, went into hiding in shock.
Though she searched all over the world, there was no hope of finding someone strong enough to rival or surpass him if he deliberately chose to hide.
Hundreds of years had passed since then.
No matter how strong a human might be, given how she twisted the laws of magic, it was long past the time they should have died.
Argen sat on the sofa, closed her legs, and buried her face in them.
“That bastard…”
Recalling the happy adventures from that time when the world was on the brink of catastrophe.
Thinking of the man she loved… Argen quietly wept.
*
‘I’ve finally returned.’
As I looked around the rebuilt academy, I felt anew how incredible the power of magic was.
There was much talk about whether it could truly be rebuilt in such a short time, but in the end, it happened.
‘I kind of wish it had taken longer.’
That would mean that I would have to delay my return to the academy.
…
Or maybe not?
‘Anyway…’
Thinking that I would have to spend another year here gave me mixed feelings.
I thought to myself that I had rested enough, but after such a long break, isn’t it natural for everyone to feel that way?
It’s like after resting for a long time, not wanting to get back to work, but regardless, I have to return, so such thoughts are meaningless.
That was exactly how I felt.
‘Ah…’
I don’t think it’s a bad thing.
The reason I started having these thoughts is undoubtedly due to how dreadfully boring the classes in the Department of Sacred Studies are.
Isn’t it possible to read scriptures in an interesting way?
Considering the nature of religious people, even a slight change would make them furious, so the excuse of “for interest” certainly wouldn’t work, but that’s how I feel personally.
At least confessions seem somewhat bearable…
If I had been healing kids at the swordsmanship department, would I have disliked returning?
It may be somewhat greedy of me, but it’s human nature to want to live doing what they want.
I’m no different in that regard.
Though I have lived as a saint for a long time, I’ve done so out of necessity and have not completely become a saint in heart…
That may be the reason why tasks that seem obvious to other clerics, like reading the scriptures or praying to God, feel incredibly dull to me.
If, while the other nuns joyfully prayed, I were to act bored, wouldn’t I be suspected?
Even though it’s not the appearance of a saint, I’m just tolerating it; I don’t particularly enjoy attending classes in the Department of Sacred Studies.
I would much prefer to treat someone injured in a spar at the swordsmanship department…
“There must be new students among them…”
I nodded at Stella’s mumbling.
I am looking forward to it.
As I mentioned earlier, the most attention-grabbing thing right now is the new members of the hero party.
Well, it’s a bit different to call them a new hero party.
‘It’s a bit ambiguous to say that someone who was already part of the hero party is returning as a new member.’
Considering the difficulty of recruiting them into the party to defeat the Demon King.
Especially since it’s reality now, it can feel more frustrating.
“I wonder what the new students will be like.”
“I heard they’re in awe of our seniors.”
“Really?! Does that mean I can be respected?!”
Uriel’s eyes widened as she asked about the fact that most of the new students respect the seniors.
Well, it’s understandable.
Their respect for second-year students would undoubtedly be greater than for third-years, right?
‘After all, they took down members of the Demon King Army.’
However, even though they didn’t directly confront them, they handled most of the minions, and that alone deserves respect.
Most children of this age probably wouldn’t even have seen a demon.
Unless they were in an area with heavy magic, seeing a demon is quite rare. Even when demonic activity is rare, such chaos occurred in what was considered the safest place, the academy.
It wasn’t just a simple attack; it was Maleficent, who intended to descend here and open a dimensional gate connecting the empire to the demon realm, which is why they were easily defeated.
Even when the most crucial element in the plan, the Lif vessel, was weakened so much, there was no way it could unfold as intended.
Additionally, with the grand magician Argen being there, they calculated their location and forcibly brought them here to defeat them.
Thinking about the events from last year, it was just that last year had been strange.
Anyway…
‘I’ll do my best.’
At this moment, there’s nothing else I can do except this resolution.
After all, I need to see if I’ve returned to the academy.
