Chapter 176: Careful Alignment

“I brought this up thinking it might reassure you — but maybe it wasn’t a purely good thing?”

“Why should I feel reassured hearing that the professors are innocent?”

“That old professor in charge of the Awakened Special Class. He’s the one who helped you with the Sky-Blue Aether matter last semester, and you’ve had meals with him periodically, right?”

I had never mentioned Professor Radbisin’s name directly in front of the original protagonist.

Even so, Reysir was able to figure it out.

Not only had the First Imperial Princess, Fjodra, mentioned that the professor’s specialty was “Aether Attributes,” but…

‘It’s likely because I was visibly shaken when Professor Radbisin stood up to give his speech!’

Since it was a fact that would be revealed soon anyway, I wasn’t particularly flustered that Reysir knew.

I just felt a bit bitter.

All my efforts to be careful with my words, hoping the original protagonist wouldn’t notice him, had been in vain.

“To seek him out and announce your arrival at the Academy even before the vacation is over means you trust that professor that much, doesn’t it?”

I couldn’t deny it.

I had already grown quite attached to him.

Because I had prematurely concluded that he was a character unrelated to the original work.

I had assumed, on my own, that since he would focus only on research within the safety of the Academy, he wouldn’t suddenly pass away.

That was why I had followed Professor Radbisin without any guard, inwardly regarding him as my mentor.

To think he was actually one of the major characters who could be killed off whenever the author felt like it.

“So? Were you worried that I’d feel betrayed by him and get hurt?”

“Yeah… but seeing your attitude, I guess I worried for nothing. You hadn’t even considered the possibility of him betraying you, had you? If someone like you thinks that way, he must be a truly good person.”

That was exactly the problem.

Every student in the Awakened Special Class, including Reysir, the original protagonist, would soon come to respect and rely on him emotionally.

‘Could there be a more perfect figure to sacrifice?’

He was a “plot device” designed to shatter the students’ mental states, plunge them into deep depression, and maximize the atmosphere of the angst genre.

Thinking about it made me regret getting close to Professor Radbisin.

The reality that I had to feel this way was so sorrowful and unfair.

However, now was not the time to wallow in gloomy emotions.

I had to prevent this novel from diving straight into the angst genre.

“You saw it too, didn’t it? The way he looked troubled and kept glancing at the paper with his speech written on it. How could I not notice that he was suddenly forced into a role he didn’t want? This isn’t a matter of trust.”

“I suppose that’s true.”

I spoke while minding my expression and voice, trying to appear nonchalant.

Fortunately, Reysir nodded and agreed with me without further comment.

“And, while this is a slightly different context… I don’t think the reason the professors found out about the ‘Awakened Special Class’ so late was based on any ill intent.”

“Huh? Earlier, you said it was to allow the students to build their skills while trusting the professors.”

“I did. But I never said it was to raise them as capable soldiers.”

“That’s… not what it meant?”

Reysir looked puzzled for a moment before a look of realization dawned on him.

However, his thoughts didn’t immediately turn positive.

“If the students don’t build their skills and don’t follow the professors into the Demonic Realm, their lives will be in danger. So, you think it’s a minimum measure to protect the students?”

“That’s what I think, but you still seem skeptical.”

“Even taking measures to keep students from dying is ultimately just about not losing soldiers who will clear the Demonic Realm.”

Dissatisfaction and reluctance were etched on his face as he spoke.

In his eyes, I probably looked like I was defending the Imperial Family.

But of course, that wasn’t my intention.

“The method of shoving students into a mysterious device to check for Awakening and then forming a special class is excessively coercive and easy to cause resentment, isn’t it? Even though there were other ways, the Imperial Family chose this method.”

“Doesn’t that make them even worse?”

“Yes, it’s bad. But would such bad people, who don’t even consider things like that, worry about what would happen if trust wasn’t established between students and professors? Would they have looked for a solution?”

“…… No. I don’t think they would have.”

Reysir set aside his negative emotions for a moment and listened to my words with a serious attitude.

“I think so too. Someone who wanted to prevent at least the worst-case scenario must have intervened and adjusted the situation.”

“That ‘someone’ would be…”

“Circumstantially, I suspect it was Her Imperial Princess Fjodra.”

“Since she’s also in the Awakened Special Class, did she do it for her own safety…?”

It seemed Reysir had no intention of evaluating Fjodra positively.

It was natural, given the grudge he had held against the Imperial Family for a long time.

‘That’s why even in the original work before the remake, Reysir couldn’t form a good relationship with Fjodra.’

If Fjodra had offered even an unofficial apology to Reysir—if she had even boasted about how hard she tried to help him—things might have been different.

Only at the moment of her death did Fjodra confess that she was sorry she couldn’t easily say she was sorry.

That was the only scene where she spoke her true feelings.

And even then, she didn’t reveal everything.

‘Because she hid her growing romantic feelings for Reysir until the very end!’

The important thing here was that Fjodra was someone who could hardly be honest.

She even willingly endured being hated as a representative of the Imperial Family and being treated as a villain.

Even if the person she liked resented her instead of knowing her heart, she bore it silently.

She was likely trying to do the same this time.

That was why I—.

“Perhaps the order of events is the other way around.”

“The other way around?”

“Whether she used her age as an excuse or the excuse that an Imperial’s duty comes before an Awakened’s duty, there were ways to get out of it. I mean, she might have entered the Academy and taken authority over the Awakened Special Class just to protect the students who were forced into a death zone against their will.”

—I intended to defend Fjodra.

She would surely try to control the Imperial Family so they wouldn’t cross the line and work to protect the students of the Special Class.

‘Even so, having to endure looks of hatred just because she’s royalty… it’s too pitiful.’

Furthermore, if there was a “public enemy” within the group, the atmosphere would become incredibly hostile.

As someone who wanted this novel to be a healing story, I couldn’t just stand by and watch.

“Karbaldr, do you… think the First Imperial Princess is a good person?”

“I’ve only spoken based on my deductions from the circumstances. If you don’t clearly distinguish friend from foe, you’ll regret it someday.”

“……”

“I’m not arguing that you should blindly trust Her Highness. It’s too early to make a judgment. I’m just saying we should keep the possibility open.”

“If that’s your opinion… I’ll try to watch the Princess without prejudice. Let’s talk more about this later.”

It seemed I had managed to get the first button through the right hole.

Reysir even seemed inclined to finalize his decisions after sharing opinions with me, rather than judging alone.

Even if a series of events occurred that made Fjodra look like a villain and caused a misunderstanding, I would have the opportunity to correct it.

‘How fortunate was that?’

I nodded quickly to signal my understanding of Reysir’s words.

Then, I put on a deliberately serious face and brought up a new topic.

“That aside, about the ‘Awakened Detector’…”

“Yeah, what about it?”

“Don’t you think it was developed incredibly quickly?”

“It does feel that way, doesn’t it? It’s only been two months since research on the Demonic Realm and the Awakened began.”

“If so, then it’s only a matter of time before technology advances enough for portable detectors to be created and distributed.”

“I guess so?”

Reysir blinked, his expression asking why I was suddenly talking about this.

Since I had laid the groundwork, it was time to get to the main point.

“Isn’t it already being said that it’s the duty of the Awakened to clear the Demonic Realm? As the damage from the Demonic Realm increases, that opinion will only get stronger. If someone hidden their Awakening completely and it’s discovered later, wouldn’t they end up making enemies of both Awakened and non-Awakened alike…?”

“I suppose…?”

“Perhaps it wouldn’t stop at just being criticized. There’s a chance they’d be treated like a criminal and pushed into dangerous Demonic Realms that others avoid…”

“That makes sense.”

The protagonist of another novel nodded with a grave expression, listening intently to my words.

It was very close to the reaction I wanted, but it was slightly lacking.

Because of that, I had to add the following words.

“Come to think of it… that senior who sat behind us earlier was carrying heavy books instead of using her Inventory, wasn’t she…?”

“Huh? She was.”

“…She must have done that to hide the fact that she’s an Awakened.”

“Probably.”

“…Looking at it long-term, don’t you think it might be a relief for that student to have ended up in the Awakened Special Class now?”

“Uh… wait a minute?”

He finally seemed to notice that I had brought this up with a specific purpose.

I had hoped Reysir would think of that library member himself and go offer her comfort and advice on his own.

“Karbaldr. Are you telling me you want me to go to that senior and help her see the situation positively? Because you’re too shy to approach a stranger and talk to them first?”

“…It’s not like that.”

“Then what is it?”

“Am I not from a Ducedom? My words could be misinterpreted as me siding with the Imperial Family.”

There were other reasons, like not wanting to form personal ties with a character who might die at any moment, or the worry that me suddenly approaching her would lead to a character break.

Also, there was the possibility that my words wouldn’t carry any weight as a mere supporting character, while the words of the protagonist, Reysir, would be accepted positively.

There were many reasons, but since I couldn’t say them, I swallowed them.

“You could have just explained the reason from the start and asked me to pass along the message. Why did you beat around the bush talking about the development speed of the Awakened Detector?”

“I was just worried someone might ruin the atmosphere of the lecture, and I felt I had to do it because you’d probably reach some weird conclusion on your own.”

“Aha! You mean you thought it would be too embarrassing if I praised your kind heart for worrying about others and marveled at what a sweet person you are, right?”

“……”

‘Was it just my imagination, or did Reysir’s teasing seem to have leveled up?’

I certainly hoped it was just my imagination.