Chapter 35
Ominous Contract (6)
Earlier, the corpses Therion had revived were at the bottom of the cliff, so this presence must surely be…
I quickly turned around to see two disheveled and dirty people climbing up the wall and catching their breath.
“Hah. Crazy… Why did the monsters suddenly run away?”
It seemed the monsters they were fighting had suddenly fled.
Apparently tired from climbing the cliff, a knight who had collapsed to catch his breath as soon as he reached the top of the ravine took off his helmet, ran his hand through his hair, and said,
“I don’t know either. But thanks to that, we survived… Oh?”
The knight’s eyes met mine.
“……”
Then, in an instant, he scuttled away on his backside.
“I-I-I.”
“I?”
“Edith Crowell?!”
“Y-you’re alive…! I-I’m not seeing things, am I?!”
“N-no. I see her too….”
I gave a light bow to them as they floundered.
“Hello.”
“…Gasp. Hello! Is it safe here?!”
“…Yes. Probably… And Young Lord Behemoth and Therion have survived as well.”
“……! Even the Young Lord!”
When I pointed to Ethan lying on the ground, their reaction was quite dramatic.
Ah, I just remembered.
This was the knight Ethan Behemoth had saved from the spider monster by throwing his sword.
So he survived, after all.
“You saved me earlier. …I saw you defeat that huge spider monster. I’m sorry I couldn’t help you.”
“It’s alright.”
He was in a life-threatening situation himself, so he wouldn’t have had the chance to help me. Just surviving must have been miraculous.
He asked awkwardly.
“So… are the monsters here dealt with for now?”
“It seems so. Would you like to see?”
I offered them a spot where they could see the entire ravine clearly. He supported his companion to the edge of the cliff, looked over, and let out a heartfelt sigh.
“Wow….”
It must have been both astonishing and hopeful to see the once ferocious monsters lying defeated, and the teachers and knights gathered below the cliff as if alive.
“There seem to be other survivors down there as well.”
“Yes, we’re planning to go down and meet them.”
There was an uncomfortable feeling in my mouth, as if we were manipulating their lives arbitrarily.
However, seeing Therion’s brazen face, something deep in my chest felt cold and calm.
“This is really, really fortunate…”
But the student, unaware of the full situation, eventually hugged the other student and began to sob.
I had just subdued the Gigantic Arachne only to be caught in the collapse, and Ethan, who had saved him, had jumped into a pile of rocks to save me…
They must have had a hard time thinking they were the only two survivors.
‘Right. Go with us to the campsite and confirm that our group is normal.’
“We’re heading back to the campsite. Could you possibly help support Young Lord Behemoth?”
“Oh, of course! Leave it to us.”
I had asked Therion several times, but he had a brazen expression as if saying, ‘Do I, who even eliminated the monsters, have to do this too?’ So I decided to use them instead.
“Th-thank you. I’m… not feeling well. I-I barely survived here thanks to Lady Edith…”
Therion pretended to be weak again and pulled his hood down low.
Thanks to his excellent acting, the two seemed to fall for it completely, looking at Therion with pitying eyes.
So we accompanied them, circling down the ravine.
At the bottom of the cliff, ‘living’ professors, knights, and scouting students were waiting for us.
“Oh! You survived too. I’m really proud.”
“Professor…!”
Overjoyed to see the professor they thought had died, one of the students supporting Ethan couldn’t bring himself to drop him and run, but looked at the professor with tears in his eyes.
‘Actually, he really did die.’
Even the two knights who knew them very well didn’t seem to feel any sense of déjà vu.
They were moving and speaking so naturally, as if they were truly alive.
I turned my head, and Therion, whose eyes met mine, smiled gently.
Once again, I felt uneasy.
And so, with a mix of those who could be embraced and those who couldn’t, the horrific nightmare-like ravine subjugation practice came to a complete end.
We returned to the campsite with the people who ‘survived’ and those who were ‘alive’.
🥀
At the campsite greeting the morning, faint gray smoke was rising from the extinguished campfire.
Also, an unexpected ambush was waiting for us.
“B-but they were all dead…?”
“What are you talking about?”
A professor wrapped in bandages was gesticulating at the other professors who had returned alive.
Students who had rushed over happily began to whisper among themselves when they suddenly encountered this scene.
“Professor Ella, you certainly… you said you’d analyze and prove it was a mimic, and then…! I saw with my own two eyes that everyone died!”
“I did what? Professor Evento, your words are too harsh!”
“It seems Professor Evento wishes we had died.”
“That’s not what I meant…!! How on earth did you come out of there?!”
Eventually, the argument spread into a full-blown dispute.
More and more students gathered to witness this unusual spectacle.
The students who had been hugging us and crying tears of joy at so many people returning alive from the ravine were now absorbed in watching the professors’ fight.
Amidst the commotion, I needed to slip away quietly.
As I was looking for a chance to escape through the crowd, I noticed something strange.
‘Hmm…?’
But… isn’t this too many?
The number of students gathering kept increasing.
…Thanks to Ethan’s efforts, the number of monsters that rushed to the campsite was less than expected. But still, too many were alive.
It’s hard to believe that Professor Evento could have dealt with all those monsters.
At that moment, Ian came running last.
“Edith!”
“Ah.”
Behind him was a knight riding a dazzling white horse.
The knight wore solid alloy armor complete with a helmet.
The emblem on the horse’s back was elaborate.
‘…The Imperial Knights.’
It was the Imperial Knights.
Fortunately, it seemed that Ian had quickly arrived at the campsite with Camilla and called the Imperial Knights in time.
Perhaps thanks to that, while there were occasionally students wrapped in heavy bandages, not a single corpse was visible.
The sensation of all the little things working together organically felt unfamiliar.
Actions taken impulsively without calculating the best move were coming back to me like a reward.
Good intentions return as miracles…
I was suddenly reminded of a rule of life I had long forgotten.
“…Young Lord Behemoth is over there.”
“Thanks! I’m glad you made it back alive. Let’s talk more later!”
“Okay.”
I gestured with my chin towards the students supporting him to Ian, who was urgently looking for Ethan.
Ian left me with just a brief greeting and quickly ran in that direction.
…But the Imperial Knight who seemed about to follow him to Ethan Behemoth didn’t stop his horse and kept approaching.
…Why does it seem like he’s coming this way?
“Are you student Edith Crowell?”
Finally, the horse stopped in front of me, and a gentle, mature voice flowed from inside the helmet.
‘What now.’
“…Yes, that’s me.”
“Thanks to you, we arrived in time. I can’t help but express my gratitude.”
“But Lord Gardwin made the call.”
“I’ve been informed. That Lady Crowell worked hard to make it happen.”
“Ah….”
‘Is he trying to give me credit for this?’
Ian’s unexpected pass left me feeling uneasy. Surely he didn’t push it onto me because he didn’t want to be caught?
The knight’s gentle and polite attitude made it even more so.
“I know it must be difficult at your young age, but would it be alright to ask for your statement on a few things you witnessed in the ravine?”
A statement.
Suddenly, looking back, I saw the professors fighting as if they were about to tear each other apart, Therion with a face as white as snow that was clearly an act, and two students supporting the blood-covered Ethan.
‘Ah, perhaps.’
I guess I look the most composed out of everyone.
“Yes, I’d be glad to help.”
I nodded.
It’s actually fortunate, as I can eliminate all suspicious circumstances by tailoring my statement to fit my intentions.
I gave Therion a sidelong glance meaning ‘don’t do anything foolish while I’m gone,’ and followed the knight.
From behind, I could still hear the professors arguing.
“I-isn’t this strange? Alright, let’s say, for argument’s sake, that you all survived. But what about the students? How could they have returned alive from there! They’re just students…! Even we almost didn’t make it!”
“It seems you owe your life to those very students’ first aid, isn’t it a bit shameless of you!”
It was the sound of Professor Evento facing a backlash.
I could rest easy about that side.
🥀
Thank you for reading! ♡
