The Academy’s Ankle Reaper – Chapter 341

He opened his eyes to find himself in a desolate field.

“… Where the hell is this?”

Doubts began to creep in about why he was here, starting with his own identity.

“I am… Atlas Titan. The eldest son of the Titan family. Sure, I’ve faced nothing but scorn from that old man, but eventually, once he’s gone, it’s my destiny to become the head of the household.”

Saying the obvious felt like a need to reassure himself once more. Why, he couldn’t quite say, but he felt compelled to do so.

“I had… entered the Academy, so why the hell am I in a place like this…?”

As he rummaged through his memories, he could recall where he had been before being discarded in this unknown field.

He had certainly left the Titan household, enrolled in the Academy, and had been living in its dormitory; so why had he ended up in a place like this?

“Things are already chaotic enough around here… I need to get out of here quickly.”

Using the staff that was securely in his right hand, he pushed himself off the ground and stood up.

Limping on his uncomfortable leg, frustration bubbled up within him.

His leg may be in rough shape, but the need to escape this place was quite pressing.

It felt like something powerful was happening not too far off.

He had no idea who was behind it, but it was clear they possessed exceptional skill.

Despite the dangerous situation, he couldn’t escape quickly with his injured leg.

Atlas stirred something deep within him that had been asleep.

“Be careful, so you don’t get caught…!”

Black magic began to rise from his body.

He used the thick, oppressive magic as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

—————-

The chaos he was causing was worse than he had anticipated.

Though there was always a reason to kill him, the urgency to locate and deal with him quickly was undeniable.

“At least you’re safe.”

“Don’t worry too much. Unlike before, everyone is doing fine this time.”

If it had been the previous time where egos clashed, it would suggest danger.

Thank goodness this incident occurred while things were back to normal.

“Are you leaving already?”

“I’m sorry. I have to take care of something urgent first.”

“Where are you headed?”

“If the intelligence department had their eyes on us, they might have noticed something.”

The Griffin Knights were indeed doing their job.

Now, it was time to check if the intelligence department was doing theirs.

.

.

.

In an instant, he arrived at the headquarters of the intelligence department.

He hadn’t visited more than a few times, but it always struck him as a gloomy place that could ruin anyone’s mood just by entering.

If everything was functioning properly, the intel department, which monitored from a third-party perspective, should understand what was happening inside better than anyone else.

While this incident was unfortunate, it was still fortunate in some aspects.

The people who had come to see him earlier didn’t quite grasp the nature of the incident, but here, they would surely be able to ascertain the details.

He was confident that if luck was on his side, he could wrap this up today.

Then, it would be time to check on the work of the intelligence department.

“Ebony!!”

“… I expected you would come.”

As he burst into the headquarters, two men bowed their heads.

One was Ebony, the head of the intelligence department, and the other was John Hofston, the captain of the Griffin Knights.

“Even the captain, it seems I’ve found you both at just the right time.”

“We were just sharing our opinions on that matter regarding the young lord’s visit.”

Since it had just happened the day before, it seemed nothing was fully sorted out yet.

It must’ve been a highly confusing incident for them as well.

After all, a double had appeared that looked just like him, wrecked the mansion, and then vanished.

Those who had claimed greater loyalty to him must have been even more confused.

Still, he commended them for protecting Metios.

“I heard Captain Hofston did an excellent job safeguarding the young lord.”

“No, my lord..! I just did what I had to. But… are you really alright?”

Even while answering, Hofston seemed flustered.

He appeared to be treating yesterday’s mess differently, as if he thought it was some kind of test.

He felt responsible for having swung a sword at him.

“Are you in a position to be concerned about my health? Just keep assisting me as well as you have been. Someone could target this place again.”

“I’ll protect it with my life if need be.”

“I have high hopes for you, captain.”

“Yes, my lord.”

Having knelt once again, Hofston cautiously asked him.

“Could… yesterday’s incident have been a test?”

“No, the one you met yesterday was my impersonator. He’s running around the Empire, making a fool of my face. Thanks to that, I rushed here upon hearing the news.”

When they heard the word ‘impersonator,’ both men looked shocked.

“I thought something was off… and it turns out it really was.”

“Right? I told you! No matter what, it didn’t seem like me!”

Unlike Hofston, who had genuinely confused him with the impersonator, Ebony seemed rather pleased to have doubted Hofston.

It seemed they both got deceived by someone who looked exactly like him, but as long as she didn’t doubt, she must have spotted something different.

“Do either of you notice anything off about him?”

“If it’s strange, are you referring to the impersonator of the young lord?”

“Exactly.”

Hofston pondered for a moment before responding.

“… If there’s something strange… it was truly like the young lord.”

“So everyone says. Was he really that identical?”

“It wasn’t just identical; it was the young lord. Even the brooch he wore bore the Titan crest. He had the mannerisms and etiquette of the Titans, down to a tee.”

“Weren’t they all possibly under some illusion magic or something?”

“Considering the responsibility of protecting a family, I have taken precautions against such magic as best as I can. At least it wasn’t such magic.”

Hofston showed him the brooch pinned to his chest.

It seemed to be an artifact that could resist such types of magic.

He had several such artifacts attached to him.

Like everyone else in the mansion, Hofston had no other way to describe it but to say he looked exactly like him.

Yet, Ebony spoke differently.

She indicated that she knew something different; he wanted to inquire about what she had discovered.

“Ebony, everyone says the impersonator looked just like me, so it seems you noticed something different. What did you find?”

“It was a method only I could know. First… I wasn’t there at the scene; I only heard about it later. Everyone else, including the captain, was present in person.”

This was yet another perspective.

Ebony said she had not seen the impersonator directly since she had received reports from her subordinates about the incident.

“The people who saw him in person must have sensed him as the young lord, but from the information relayed, there were quite a few differences.”

So she could look at the impersonator more objectively, then?

“The impersonator closely matched your height, but his physique was entirely different. Unlike you, who has achieved remarkable feats, the impersonator was rather thin and hunched over, making him appear smaller. Plus… he carried his staff around, I couldn’t tell if he couldn’t walk at all because he used it to hit others.”

“It hasn’t been even a month since I showed my face here. There’s no way he could’ve changed that much in that time.”

“Indeed. I was persuading the captain that it couldn’t possibly be you, based on those details.”

The staff, the hunch, the thinness; fragments of information began to piece together in his mind.

He wasn’t quite able to picture it precisely yet, but he was sure that something was taking shape.

“When that guy saw Hofston, he bolted immediately, right? Captain, tell me how you felt when you blocked that guy’s attack.”

“… Compared to the young lord, it felt like a feeble blow.”

“How does it compare to mine?”

“Among regular folks, it was a tad stronger.”

Putting it all together, his impersonator may have looked just like him, but he was someone who appeared thin and hobbled around with a staff, not particularly strong either.

A sudden irritation flared up within him, recalling how Hofston had confused him with the impersonator.

-Whoosh!!

“Did you really think of a weakling as a national decision? That’s just disappointing.”

If you’re going to get confused, at least do it properly!

In disbelief, he smacked his forehead.

“Ugh! So I thought it was a test… it seemed like you were really controlling your strength…”

“Got it, so reinforce the defenses for a while. Warn the other families in the Blade Mountain area. Since I won’t be approaching other families for some time, it’s best to assume anything in the name of the Empire is a fake.”

“Yes!”

As soon as the two men heard his orders, they began to spring into action.

“… Now that I think about it, he might know something.”

While contemplating various possibilities, he recalled something about a Necromancer.