I Became the Academy’s War Hero Chapter 54

When I asked calmly, Meriel scratched her forehead and asked back.

“…You get told you’re shameless quite often, don’t you?”

“Enough to hurt my ears.”

“Sigh…”

Leaving her sighing in exasperation, I turned to Rubia first and explained the whole situation.

Given her personality, it wouldn’t have been strange if she had been startled by the story, yet her reaction was rather composed.

Then, I shifted the topic back.

“I apologize for threatening you earlier with that talk about Dellowell. Let’s have a proper discussion now.”

Nothing could be gained from a mere formal exchange secured through intimidation.

If everyone’s attention had been drawn to it, only for the lid to open and reveal an empty tin can, all that would come of it was public ridicule.

In the short term, the one who would benefit most from this exchange would, of course, be Michel Bernhardt.

For her, an outsider of the Bernhardt Family, an exchange with the Magic Tower held considerable value in itself.

After all, she was still a member of the Bernhardt Family.

Unlike people such as Halenber, who were merely pro-Bernhardt, she was an insider. To remove her from the Chairwoman position, they needed justifiable cause to do so.

The method they had used so far was, nine times out of ten, pressure through results.

And the frequent complaint that “the Chairwoman of the Imperial Academy can’t keep clashing with a princess” was merely a bonus.

Naturally, the fact that her relationship with the Special Task Force had become distant would also have worked in their favor.

But once I stepped in, that part had become vague.

For now, people still thought we were at each other’s throats whenever we met, but even that perception would completely change after the summit.

Especially regarding the Special Task Force, people would soon say that our relationship had improved by 180 degrees.

And the event that would drive a wedge into this flow of change was the upcoming technical exchange with the Magic Tower.

‘It’s also a declaration of war against those damned Bernhardt bastards.’

There was another reason as well… but since it was still just speculation, I decided to leave it at that for now.

The real issue began from this point onward.

While Michel and Karbenna would gain greatly from the technical exchange, the Duel—Mallet faction, on the other hand, would gain absolutely nothing.

That must have been the reason behind Meriel’s lukewarm attitude.

In the past, cooperation had been possible because both sides benefited, but now, that wasn’t the case anymore.

So, I decided to make the first move toward my silent counterpart.

“I have some valuable research material that could be useful for the Duel Symposium. What do you think?”

I threw out a topic that could be the most sensitive one to them.

Make Academy Great Again, also known as MAGA.

A character-raising simulation game where you nurture numerous characters—including the main ones—and ultimately raise the academy’s reputation.

In this game, the ones who determined the academy’s overall ranking weren’t the royals, the parliament, or national officials.

The Academic Evaluation Service—AES for short.

They were scattered all over the world, entering academies under concealed affiliations and identities, and at a certain point, they began their real work.

Usually, by the second semester, people had a rough idea of who the evaluators were. From that point on, they roamed freely throughout the academy, without any need to hide.

The evaluation concluded around the end of the year, but the results were announced around February. Karbenna’s last comprehensive evaluation had been a B―.

Though no one paid much attention during the early part of the new semester, as the third year—the so-called “cursed year”—approached, everyone began to care deeply about them.

If the academy’s reputation depended on the evaluators of the Academic Evaluation Service,

then the Magic Tower’s reputation depended on the Duel Symposium.

A grand event held once every four years at the headquarters of the Magic Union, Duel Eldrin.

For members of the Magic Tower, who devoted their lives to magic, it was the most important event of all—but for outsiders, it drew little interest.

As soon as that name came out of my mouth, the expressions of both women changed drastically.

The first to react, as expected, was Meriel.

“…What did you just say?”

“You heard me correctly.”

“And what makes you think you can speak so confidently about it? You know nothing about Duel, and even less about us, the Mallet faction….”

“Well, I wouldn’t say I know nothing.”

Though it was partly a bluff, it wasn’t entirely untrue.

I had managed to restore some of my fragmented memories as an Episode Gazer, and on the way here, I had been gathering information about Mallet nonstop.

With Rubia still looking unsure of how to respond, I continued.

“One of the reasons the technical exchange was initiated back then was that—Duel’s comprehensive evaluation of Mallet.”

At the word evaluation, Meriel flinched.

“Comprehensive evaluation: Rank E. Second-to-last among all divisions of the Magic Tower, and dead last within your school of magic for twenty consecutive years. Am I correct?”

“……”

“You attempted to overturn that poor reputation through a technical exchange with Karbenna, but due to certain incidents, the exchange was suspended—and yielded no results.”

“…And what of it?”

Ignoring Meriel’s openly hostile glare, I smoothly shifted the topic.

“I understand. The Mallet branch suffers from severe geographical disadvantages, after all.”

The Magic Tower, by its very nature, was a group that acknowledged and studied the existence of magic.

However, the Ribenia Empire was a representative holy nation—and up until just two hundred years ago, it had refused even to acknowledge the existence of magic.

Even though the 17th Emperor, Luprecht, had proclaimed freedom of religion, over 90% of the Empire’s citizens still believed in the Ribenian Orthodox Faith.

Since the Magic Tower itself was an organization dedicated to the study of magic, there was no way the Empire would ever cooperate with them willingly.

To make matters worse, their neighboring region—Dellowell—was considered the very symbol of Orthodoxy, which must have been maddeningly frustrating for those involved.

They must have thought, “Do you think we enjoy being last place for twenty years straight?”

“Besides, the great Master Aleph, who held the position of Tower Master for forty years, has been absent for eight years now.”

Meriel mocked openly, sounding half exasperated as the name of her spiritual pillar was brought up.

“I thought you didn’t give a damn about this side of things, but it seems you’ve done quite a bit of research. I suppose that reclusive life of yours must have been quite boring?”

Ignoring her sarcasm completely, I simply continued listing off the information I knew.

“So, with the absent Master Aleph gone, the Second Seat—Seer Gustav—is currently leading Mallet. But its public reputation continues to worsen.”

“……”

“Well, perhaps it’s too late for that now, but if things remain as they are, Mallet might soon face the dissolution procedure that has only ever occurred once in the history of the Magic Tower.”

Bang!

Before I could even finish my sentence, Meriel slammed the table, enraged.

“If you dare insult the Master’s name one more time, I’ll erase you without a trace.”

“……”

Oh?

That was quite an interesting reaction.

She was indifferent when I mentioned Aleph, yet as soon as Gustav came up, she exploded.

‘Shall I try to pull a little more out of her?’

I still lacked information, after all.

Pretending to be slightly startled, I widened my eyes, maintaining a mildly surprised look. Meriel’s expression gradually softened.

She bit her nails anxiously, showing signs of unease.

Feigning hesitation, I spoke again.

“Don’t get so worked up over the words of an outsider who barely knows anything. You and I both know the truth doesn’t matter anyway, don’t we?”

“……”

“Whether it’s unfair misjudgment or a cold, harsh reality, what matters is that such evaluations exist. Whether through bribes, shortcuts, or threats—if you can overturn those evaluations, society will gladly provide a justification on your behalf.”

Perhaps something I said struck a chord, because Meriel leaned forward slightly and asked,

“…Why are you so interested in Mallet’s reputation? It shouldn’t concern you in the slightest.”

“It’s not unrelated.”

It had significant ties with Rubia and served as the first line of defense that would allow Dellowell to protect Karbenna.

It was also a place that would help both Rubia and me grow stronger.

“The Magic Tower that collaborates with Karbenna for the technical exchange can’t afford to be treated like a perennial loser, can it?”

“If that’s what you think, then why did the one twelve years ago act as he did? He scorned tradition, ignored procedures, and only sought to tear everything apart.”

“Tradition can also be another word for bad habits. If you don’t evolve, you perish—that’s common sense, isn’t it?”

“It’s funny hearing that from you. The result of all that ‘change’ you so passionately preached ended up being drug addiction.”

“……”

She really hit a sore spot.

I averted my eyes slightly and replied quietly.

“…Because I couldn’t change myself at all.”

At least, that was the kind of man Eugene Carter I remembered had been.

He was always critical of others, but when it came to himself, he was lenient and overly optimistic.

He believed in his own talent but not in others’ efforts, neglecting even the most basic training and tactical preparation.

Yet the achievements he gained along the way made him overlook the fatal risk of complacency… and the price he paid for that was enormous.

Those were the seven years of downfall, and the next six would be the journey to overcome them.

That much remained unchanged—both here and in reality.

While I remained silent for a moment, the other’s attitude softened somewhat.

“Very well. Let’s hear it, then. What exactly are you planning to do?”

I grinned.

“I’ve heard Mallet ranks first in Duel when it comes to dealing with evil spirits… is that right?”

At the top floor of the Tower—inside the Tower Master’s chamber.

A middle-aged man sat at a massive horseshoe-shaped desk, stroking his thick mustache as he quickly flipped through a stack of reports.

Eight presenters stood before him, hands clasped behind their backs.

A suffocating silence filled the room, broken only by the rustle of turning pages.

After reviewing the reports for quite some time, the man glared at his disciples with eyes full of disdain.

“…And you dare present this garbage to me?”

Master Gustav. The current Tower Master of Duel—Mallet, holding the title of Seer, with the rank of Jusso (就緖).

His fields of expertise were curses, servitude, oblivion, and memory manipulation.

He threw all the reports from his desk onto the floor in frustration.

“You bring me such worthless trash, smiling as if it’s worth something? Unless you’re trying to disgrace me, Gustav, personally….”

Then suddenly, he realized someone was missing from the room.

“What is this? Why isn’t Agent Meriel here?”

“……”

The disciples exchanged uneasy glances.

“No one knows?”

Finally, the youngest disciple at the end raised his hand and shouted,

“S-She said an urgent matter came up and that she would report to you this evening!”

“Oh… really?”

Though he merely repeated what she’d said, Gustav’s anger flared even hotter.

He slowly rose from his seat and pulled a wand from his robes.

In that instant—

“Ggh…!”

The youngest disciple’s body was lifted off the ground.

“And you call that an answer?”

“M-My apologies!”

Even as the disciple clutched at his throat and flailed in desperation, Gustav’s expression remained unchanged.

In fact, a faint smile crept across his lips.

“With less than a hundred days left until the Symposium, the so-called top disciple dares to ignore the Tower Master’s summons… An ‘urgent matter’? She’ll ‘report this evening’? Does that sound acceptable to you? Hmm?”

“No, sir!!”

The other disciples could only lower their heads and shout loudly in unison.

“M-Master… he can’t breathe…!”

“…And to think fools like you are my senior disciples—no wonder Mallet never progresses. Tsk.”

He withdrew his wand, releasing the spell that had been strangling the boy.

While two disciples helped the gasping youth to his feet, Gustav gave a cold, curt order with a flick of his eyes.

“The girl who claimed to have urgent business—bring her to me immediately.”