I Became the Academy’s War Hero-Chapter 31 : Faculty Meeting (1)

Chapter 31: Faculty Meeting (1)
“…Wasn’t the faculty meeting only held every Friday?”
“That’s for the regular sessions. This time, it’s a special meeting called at the Chairwoman’s discretion.”
Before I knew it, I was walking with Michel toward the small conference room on the fourth floor of the main building.
“But why a special meeting all of a sudden…?”
“The professors were too strongly opposed during the last meeting. So we decided to hold another session. You’d probably prefer it that way, too.”
“……”
I didn’t agree or disagree, but she wasn’t wrong.
The only reason I’d started this in the first place was because I was confident I could persuade them.
And with the Chairwoman herself setting the stage for me, there was no reason for me to refuse.
Still, I couldn’t say I was entirely pleased.
‘This is going a little too smoothly.’
The fact that Michel, of all people, was being this cooperative was suspicious in itself.
Maybe I was overthinking it, but being cautious never hurt anyone.
After all, among all the heroines, Michel Bernhardt was said to be the hardest one to control.
Rubia hardly ever got angry unless her reverse scale was touched.
Francia had a gentle temperament unless provoked.
Edel often acted independently, but her direction was always clear.
Karen could go berserk, but as long as she was restrained beforehand, it wasn’t an issue.
Michel, on the other hand, rarely showed her true feelings—let alone her intentions—no matter the situation.
Who knew what ulterior motive might be hidden this time?
“……”
Even so, it was clear this wasn’t a situation where I could refuse, so I stayed silent.
What did bother me, though, was that unlike before, not a single attendant was accompanying her.
The doors to the small conference room on the fourth floor were wide open.
Inside, the main participants of the meeting were already seated, chatting quietly among themselves.
The Imperial emblem stretched across the front wall caught my eye.
Around the oval wooden table sat seven officials, spaced evenly apart.
I even spotted a familiar face among them.
As soon as I entered, everyone stood up and saluted.
Strictly speaking, it was directed at the Chairwoman beside me.
She gave a perfunctory nod in acknowledgment and took her seat at the center, where the principal usually sat.
After gauging the atmosphere for a moment, I headed toward a seat on the right.
For a simple reason.
‘That way, it’s four against four.’
While I was assessing the lineup, the conference room doors quietly closed.
Without any formalities, Michel immediately got to the point.
“Alright… as requested, I’ve brought Instructor Carter. Let’s begin the hearing.”
“……Excuse me?”
This wasn’t at all how I expected things to go.
‘…So it’s a hearing now.’
As expected, she was no easy opponent.
Frederick Lake smirked inwardly.
Even as he did, his gaze never left Eugene Carter, seated across from him.
Karbenna was an academy that rarely cooperated with outside institutions.
With nearly two thousand cadets and more than enough internal manpower, not to mention generous funding from both the Bernhardt family and the Imperial Court, it had little reason to seek external help.
As such, whenever it did collaborate with outsiders, Karbenna usually held all the power. A prime example was the dispatch missions of senior cadets.
In short, Karbenna chose its collaborators, not the other way around.
‘So under normal circumstances, there shouldn’t have been a problem with this contact…’
Unfortunately, the partner in question was none other than the Imperial Special Task Force—and the one who initiated the plan was Eugene Carter, the living legend of that very unit.
That made the controversy spiral out of control.
Frederick agreed that Carter had indeed been careless in that regard, so he hadn’t bothered to defend him.
However, the backlash took a direction no one expected.
The initial criticism aimed squarely at Eugene Carter somehow shifted its focus.
Before long, the accusations were directed not at Carter, but at Michel Bernhardt.
They argued that the situation had escalated because she hadn’t stopped Carter beforehand.
‘I knew even the Bernhardt loyalists were divided into factions, but I didn’t think Michel’s side was this small.’
Had Eugene gone ahead with the Special Task Force for the beast-slaying training as planned, the opposition would have used it as justification to corner the Chairwoman even further.
But Michel had no intention of sitting idly by.
Before those critics could continue denouncing her, she had brought Carter himself into the meeting—shifting the focus entirely onto a hearing about him.
She must have arranged it all with Carter in advance.
That was why Frederick chose neither to condemn nor to defend anyone. He decided to observe quietly instead.
‘If I jump in now, I’ll just make things more complicated.’
As Frederick kept silent, the head of the Military Studies Department—the de facto leader of the opposition—was the first to speak.
“I believe the overall plan itself was sound, Instructor Carter.”
He started off with a carrot first.
“After all, the Academy has been so focused on training officers for the Empire that it’s been criticized—even last year—for lacking a solid curriculum in beast extermination.”
I understood both the intention and the reasoning well enough.
“…However, no matter how I look at it, that was far too hasty.”
At the man’s remark, Eugene asked with an utterly harmless expression,
“Is that so?”
“There’s an order to everything, wouldn’t you agree? Karbenna has its own system to follow.”
“Well, from where I’m standing, it simply looks like you’re turning a blind eye because you don’t want to face the issue.”
At Eugene’s cynical reply, the expressions of the opposing members gradually stiffened.
The Head of the Military Studies Department sighed and gave Eugene a disdainful look, as if gazing upon a pitiful fool.
“Intentions are easily corrupted depending on one’s position or situation. You’re no exception, Carter.”
“…Because I’m from the Special Task Force?”
“I wouldn’t go that far… but we can’t ignore the implications, can we?”
“……”
“The so-called legend of the Special Task Force, who had been in seclusion for years, suddenly joins Karbenna as an instructor… then immediately tries to arrange a joint operation with the Task Force? Anyone would question his motives. Wouldn’t you agree?”
The department head concluded with a meaningful smile—an expression that clearly said, Go on, try refuting that.
But Eugene Carter responded without the slightest hesitation.
“Before being a legend of the Special Task Force, I am the legend of Karbenna. And, beyond that, one of the Empire’s greatest heroes.”
“…So what?”
“I know there are those who see me as nothing more than a lackey for the Special Task Force. But if that logic holds, then there’s equally no reason I can’t side with Karbenna, is there?”
And besides—
“After that incident, I was cast out and discarded by the Task Force. And you think I’d plan all this for them? Now that would be the real nonsense.”
As Eugene laid out his rebuttal, the expressions of those on his side gradually brightened.
Frederick inwardly let out a scoff.
‘Idiots. I told them over and over—if you try to beat Carter in an argument, you’ll lose every single time….’
Sensing that the flow of the discussion was turning against them, the Cadet Commander stepped in next.
“Fine, let’s say, for argument’s sake, that we proceed with the training as planned. Then how do you intend to handle the cadets’ safety?”
“I plan to deploy Special Task Force members to security duty.”
“And authorization?”
“Already secured.”
“…Lieutenant General Alvin himself approved the deployment?”
“It’s for the sake of the Empire, after all.”
Flinch.
When the Cadet Commander hesitated, unable to respond, Eugene tilted his head and continued.
“If I may speak frankly, the Empire’s defensive frontlines are deteriorating by the day. Order and procedure are, of course, important—but the beasts won’t wait for us to get our paperwork in order. Given the circumstances, this was the best course of action.”
The firm conviction in his final statement silenced the entire room.
“……”
“……”
…That sealed it.
Frederick, who had been quietly observing the situation, was just about to wrap things up with a closing comment when—
“All things must be measured by their efficiency relative to their cost, Instructor Carter.”
A new voice suddenly cut in.
It belonged to the head of the pro-Bernhardt faction and the man who had been the first to oppose this entire plan.
Dale Wedmeyer looked at Eugene with a detached expression.
“……”
So, he finally decided to speak.
Dale Wedmeyer—the Director of Planning and General Affairs at Karbenna.
As the head of the Planning and General Affairs Department, he oversaw all budgeting and finances of the academy, making him the second most influential figure after the Dean.
The others could be easily shut down with logic, but not this man.
He had the power to strangle any plan he didn’t like under the pretext of “budgetary concerns.”
If I provoked him and he froze the funding, things would get messy fast.
‘Well, I’ve already thought of a countermeasure for that.’
As I quietly watched him, Dale smoothed his neatly trimmed beard and asked in an interrogative tone,
“How many cadets are expected to participate in this training?”
“…Over three hundred are enrolled in the course, but around eighty will take part in the field training.”
“Too few.”
That answer caught me off guard.
“Do you know when Karbenna last conducted a joint operation with the Special Task Force, Instructor Carter?”
I recited the information I’d already researched.
“As I recall, September of year seventy-two.”
“Right. It’s been five years since the two factions last clashed.”
Dale leaned forward, resting both arms on the table.
“It’s about time we put old grudges behind us and joined forces again.”
“……”
“If you truly planned this operation for the Empire’s future, then I have no reason to oppose it.”
“But, Director…!”
Despite the Head of the Military Studies Department’s protest, Dale continued without hesitation.
“And for something like this, the bigger the better. In fact, why not expand it to include all second-year cadets?”
That would actually be fine by me, but…
As I remained silent, a sly smile crept onto Dale’s lips.
“However, to organize an operation on that scale, we’ll need more time, won’t we?”
“Time… you say?”
“Yes, time. We’ll need to allocate the budget, coordinate with the Faculty Office to revise the curriculum, and obtain cooperation from professors and instructors. Surely that would take at least a month, wouldn’t it?”
Ah.
So that’s how you’re going to play it.
Perhaps thinking my silence meant surrender, Dale folded his arms and looked down at me.
“Let’s delay the operation’s start date, Carter. That way, everything will proceed smoothly.”
My response had already been decided.
After glancing briefly between Frederick and Michel, I folded my arms as well and leaned back in my chair.
Then, with a firm expression, I muttered lightly,
“I refuse.”