I Became the Academy’s War Hero-Chapter 20 : Do You Really Have to See Blood? (5)

Chapter 20: Do You Really Have to See Blood? (5)
Lieutenant General Walter, judging that there wasn’t enough alcohol, ended up bringing out even the liquor he had personally stashed away and began downing it enthusiastically.
He really did have an endless amount to say.
I only sipped moderately.
The last thing I wanted was for my withdrawal symptoms to worsen again due to reckless drinking, so I didn’t forget to keep hydrating in between.
Anyway, thanks to Walter—who, once thoroughly drunk, began pouring out every little story that came to his mind—I was able to roughly piece together what had happened between us.
And I also learned just how much of a bastard Eugene Carter had been during his academy days.
‘I’ll need to take some of it with a grain of salt, though….’
The conversation, which seemed like it would go on forever, finally came to an end around midnight.
When I stood up, saying it was too late, Walter raised a finger and said he had one last thing to tell me.
“Let me give you a warning. Don’t trust the Bernhard bastards too much.”
“That’s pretty random. What’s that supposed to mean?”
“I can’t go into details. I’ve got my own circumstances.”
“Circumstances, huh….”
I could already make a few guesses.
Walter emptied the remaining liquor, then grimaced as he exhaled a long “Khh—.”
“…Anyway, just be careful. The Chairwoman isn’t the type to openly take sides.”
“That’s true.”
“He might say okay now, but later pretend he never agreed and change his tune completely.”
He wasn’t really the type to go that far—
—but I didn’t bother saying that aloud.
I left Room 304, staggering a little as I headed outside.
Moonlight streamed softly through the wide glass window.
With the pleasant buzz of alcohol and the cool air, it was the perfect night for a quiet walk.
As I carefully descended the stairs, the front lobby came into view. Beyond it, I could see the reflection of the library.
While I was absentmindedly looking in that direction, a familiar face appeared before long.
Long blue hair, bright black eyes, a short black cape symbolizing the Mage Tower, and several books precariously held in her left hand.
‘…At this point, isn’t she basically a resident ghost?’
It was Rubia Magnus.
She moved her wand, slowly closed the large door, and then infused it with mana to lock it securely.
I stood there, quietly watching her.
It wasn’t until three minutes later that she finally noticed me.
“Whoa—Eugene?!”
“We’ve been running into each other quite a lot lately.”
Well, even in the game, she—along with Francia—was one of the heroines whose movements were easiest to track.
Library, classroom, private room, dormitory.
She rarely ever strayed from those four locations.
On the other hand, there were heroines whose whereabouts were almost impossible to guess.
Edel Ribenia, in particular, was one of them.
Rubia dashed up to me in an instant and came to a stop.
A natural smile formed on her lips.
“Heading home now?”
“I found an interesting book. I got so caught up reading that I lost track of time, hehe.”
“If you’re heading back, let’s go together.”
Saying that, I started walking ahead.
From the way Rubia moved behind me, I could sense a bit of hesitation.
“…Are the cadets doing all right?”
After much hesitation, the words barely came out, as if forced.
“Yes, they’re fine.”
At my answer, she lowered her head, looking guilty.
“If I had spoken out more strongly back then, the artifact wouldn’t have been misused like that….”
“It’s all over now, so you don’t need to worry too much.”
“I heard there were injuries, though.”
“In sparring, injuries are inevitable.”
“But still….”
“It won’t unfold like that next time anyway.”
Even after that, Rubia continued to look dejected.
As we left the Mage Studies Hall and walked toward Building G, I was sorting through what I should say to her when—
All of a sudden, my steps came to a halt.
“Eugene?”
“……”
Following the blatant sense of hostility, I turned my gaze.
Far away, I could faintly see red energy flickering. The source was the rooftop of Building E—two of them.
At the same time, my ability window began to blink rapidly.
Animal Instinct (S)
Quickly perceives and reacts to specific situations.
※ The more frequently the user experiences a situation, the higher the rank rises.
One of the five unique abilities possessed by Eugene Carter.
Animal Instinct was rooted in the human body’s primal physiology—something rarely classified as an actual ability.
Some of those who had been exposed frequently to special situations had developed senses so sharply that they treated them as possessed abilities.
It was an ability most war heroes like me, Eugene Carter, had, and among the heroines, Karen Rosefield fell into that category.
As an inquisitor who had walked through countless hells, her ability was an astonishing EX rank.
Putting that aside.
“…They don’t seem intent on hiding themselves.”
Whether they were underestimating the target or overconfident in their skills.
At my mutter, Rubia’s expression also hardened as if she had picked up on something.
The murderous intent was so dense it showed even from a distance; there wasn’t so much as a shadow of anyone nearby.
Well, that was obvious.
Two rookie assassins who couldn’t even hide their presence were aiming for my neck — that was what I could assume.
‘How the hell did idiots like these get into Karbenna?’
I recalled the conversation I’d had with Walter earlier.
‘…Surely Michel wouldn’t have switched sides in that short a time.’
Even granting, a hundred times over, that she really intended to watch me, she wouldn’t choose an extreme option like this.
There were plenty of less troublesome ways to bind my hands and feet than assassination.
Still, Walter had warned me to be careful of the Bernhard lot.
Which meant—
Members of Bernhardt other than Michel were after my neck.
Thinking back to Walter’s remark about having his own circumstances, it was likely the enemy collaborator was someone from Karbenna.
‘I can already narrow down the candidates a bit….’
Well, it wasn’t like there were only one or two people in Karbenna sympathetic to Bernhardt.
For now, listing candidates was the best I could do.
I watched the two assassins, who were still waiting in ambush, with caution and asked quietly.
“…Is there any decent weapon in the Mage Studies Hall?”
Rubia lowered her voice in response.
“If we search the storeroom we’ll find something quickly. Most are replicas, though….”
“That’ll do.”
Keeping my gaze upward, I continued.
“A replica of Lukezax. That should work.”
“Lukezax….”
“You don’t need me to explain, right?”
“…Yes.”
Rubia nodded slightly while keeping her eyes fixed.
“But I’m not sure if any are left. Even though I’m very interested in artifacts, I don’t know the exact inventory….”
“If there aren’t any, just bring me any sword.”
I held out my hand.
“I’ll hold them off here. Lend me your wand for a moment.”
Rubia looked slightly surprised for an instant.
“…You had a magical education too, Eugene?”
“Of course.”
I had once been called the Empire’s future.
Compared to mages from the Mage Tower like Rubia, I was pathetic, but I could certainly hold my own against beginners of that level.
Even now, despite being a has-been.
When I maintained a firm smile, she hesitated a moment and handed me her wand.
“…Wait just a bit!”
Then she sprinted full-out toward the Mage Studies Hall.
I immediately looked up and shouted loudly.
“Cut it out and come down now, will you?”
‘…There are too many unclear things, and that worries me.’
Jack Brown, the assassin given the assignment, remained unable to shake his doubts even up to the moment of the operation.
Recalling the conversation he’d had with the retainer Oliver during last night’s briefing, he frowned.
“The target is that famous Eugene Carter. He’s a has-been, but he did tremendous things for the Empire.”
“That’s only true of the past, though.”
“I thought our role was to eliminate those who posed a threat to Bernhardt. How could someone who was so devoted to the Empire become a threat?”
“Listen, Jack. Judgment isn’t the tool’s job. The tool only executes orders, isn’t that so?”
“…….”
“You and I are in the same position. If told to die, we die; if told to kill, we kill.”
“Hmm. That’s quite unpleasant to hear, coming from those treated even below the retainer.”
“That doesn’t mean we intend to leave Bernhardt, does it?”
“…Of course not. What could we do if we left Bernhardt? Forget what I said earlier.”
“Good.”
“But are they even human we can handle? Mightn’t it be better to hire assassins of a higher class than us?”
“Don’t worry about that. We’ll have the place drugged beforehand.”
“Well, we can only trust you. We’ll carry out the operation as briefed.”
“Be careful not to expose your identities, Jack. If you get discovered, I’ll have no choice but to eliminate you.”
They’d cloaked the area using soundproofing and illusion magic to cover everything. A choice to prevent any possible witnesses.
They planned to dispose of the bodies using artifacts, leaving almost no trace.
Both the weapons used and the clothing worn during the mission would be immediately burned after securing safety.
Even if traces remained, the chance of identity exposure was practically zero.
‘If anyone gets caught it’d be the weird one. At this level, that’s normal.’
After all, the more people involved, the more variables and the greater the risk of discovery.
So Jack and his top subordinate waited in a two-man team at the scene.
They were about an hour late, but Eugene Carter left the Mage Studies Hall as scheduled.
The problem was, he hadn’t come out alone.
“…What do we do, boss?”
“…….”
Time was short.
Decisions had to be quick and decisive.
Jack Brown drew his razor-sharp dagger and said,
“Kill them both.”
After exchanging glances with his subordinate, they simultaneously hid their bodies completely with stealth magic.
The moment they cleared the Plaza of Glory, they would dive in a square and aim for the heart and neck at once.
This wasn’t an enemy camp; in such a situation, he couldn’t block both vital points simultaneously.
Even if by some miracle he managed to defend, then they’d just use poisoned needles and magic to make openings.
They kept timing their move, but the target suddenly didn’t move.
Then she paused and murmured something, and the female of the two bolted toward the Mage Studies Hall.
“She’s running away! What do we do?”
“No, that’s actually good. Our target is….”
Just then.
A taunting voice came from below.
“Cut it out and come down now, will you?”
The Eugene Carter standing on the ground was looking up at the rooftop of Building E where they were standing.