The tumultuous first lecture had just wrapped up, yet there were still four or five more classes to go.
There weren’t any incidents like the first one, but I still had to battle drowsiness, which could very well be the spy I didn’t know about.
As the first day faded away, and the second and third days passed, I found myself knocking on the principal’s office instead of returning to the dorm as usual.
“Anna, are you there?”
Fortunately, a response came right back.
“Harang… ah, Harang-nim?”
Anna opened the door, her eyes widening in surprise at my unexpected visit.
Well, it’s nice that she finally stopped calling me ‘professor.’
But that wasn’t the important part.
“What brings you here at this hour?”
“Can we talk for a moment?”
With a reasonably serious expression and a low voice, I asked.
Anna glanced around her room, asked me to wait for a moment, and closed the door.
“…”
After a brief moment, I sat across from Anna at her desk, along with the Nameless.
“Is there really a spy?”
I sent a skeptical look Anna’s way, waiting for her reply.
Anna, biting her lips in a cautious manner, responded carefully.
“We don’t have certainty, but we think there’s a high possibility.”
“A possibility, huh….”
I rubbed my chin thoughtfully.
Well, as Anna said, there could be a spy, but conversely, there could not be one as well.
It’s obvious but, as Anna said, there’s a high possibility, which doesn’t make it certain.
It’s all just speculation.
Maybe my wrinkled expression gave it away, as Anna looked down with an apologetic face.
“…I’m sorry, we should have resolved this.”
“No, it’s fine. You don’t need to apologize.”
I waved my hands to dismiss her worries.
Even though I thought that, I had no intention of blaming Anna at all.
…Of course, I shouldn’t act like I’m totally innocent, but I do agree with Anna’s perspective.
Naturally, there’s bound to be something hidden here.
The place is too old for me to remember everything clearly, yet it’s a fact I’ll never forget.
This world is based on a fictional creation, isn’t it?
So it’s common sense that there should be a spy or two among the professors or students at the academy.
And the ones to solve this would typically be the principal or the professors or a competent Imperial guard, but right now, there’s no character who could be called the protagonist at the academy.
The reason for that, with high probability, is me.
I don’t remember doing anything significant, but somehow my small actions must have led to a butterfly effect.
So, isn’t it typical of me, who hates annoying things, to avoid getting involved personally?
Tapping my fingers on the desk, I opened my mouth.
“I also think there are suspicious aspects.”
However, separating that from the current situation, it’s clear that things aren’t looking that good.
That’s the case because…
“I can’t think of any way to find this spy; that’s the problem.”
We have too little information about our foe.
It’s said that knowing yourself and your enemy means you won’t lose a hundred battles, but we know nothing about our opponent, leading only to bad outcomes.
As I said this, perhaps understanding my frustration, Anna spoke hesitantly.
“…I’ve also gone out searching to some extent.”
Anna bit her lips, revealing a mix of regret and nervousness on her face.
“I managed to narrow down a few suspicious individuals, but apart from that, I couldn’t gather any worthwhile info…”
“Hmm.”
Leaning back in my chair, I looked up at the ceiling.
We haven’t obtained any information yet…
While she didn’t offer any additional information and with no protagonist around, I figured things would probably end poorly.
Hearing it directly from Anna left a bitter taste in my mouth.
If I was this frustrated, how must Anna, the principal of the academy, be feeling?
The academy had been attacked abruptly, after all, and it must be on high alert.
Hearing from the students and professors, it seemed like the attackers were there searching for someone, right?
Just thinking it through, the person worth looking for at this time must be Camilla.
Furthermore, only a few professors knew about the fact that Camilla was invited as a visiting teacher, and the students attending my lecture found out that Camilla was coming the day before I got here.
Well, it was me who showed up instead of Camilla, but…
Anyway.
What’s crucial for us now is how to find this spy.
Based on what the principal has shared about the suspects up to now, nothing particularly stood out during my lectures.
There didn’t seem to be any unique traits or unpleasant vibes from Lili or Jackal of the Demon King faction, or from the Saint or Hero of the Goddess’s faction.
What I saw were just ordinary appearances and the normal level of ability you’d expect.
Their performance during the lectures didn’t leave much to be disappointed about.
The real issue was that there were a few overly enthusiastic individuals who the students disliked.
“…”
Somehow, it seemed that the more I thought about it, the further I drifted from catching the spy, and my head began to throb.
Surely there must be a way…
While Anna and I were pondering with our hands on our brows, the Nameless, who had remained quiet until now, spoke up with a relaxed expression.
“Master.”
“What is it?”
I didn’t like how calm he looked while I was in distress, so my voice came out rather brusquely.
But Nameless seemed unfazed, shrugging his shoulders casually as he continued.
“We could just call out that spy ourselves, right?”
“…What?”
“Huh?”
At the moment Nameless finished speaking, both Anna and I wore strange expressions.
…What on earth is he talking about?
“As if that’s easy…”
I let out a deep sigh and began to explain to Nameless when suddenly I realized something.
Had there been anything he said thoughtlessly up to this point?
No, there hadn’t been.
Whether it was something insignificant, it ultimately turned out to be helpful advice for me and the situation.
And above all, it wouldn’t be right for a master to scold a disciple for just throwing out an idea.
Who knows?
Unlike my aging mind, perhaps the youthful Nameless might come up with a revolutionary idea.
With a smirk, I spoke to Nameless.
“Go on, tell me.”
“Yes.”
Nameless smiled back at me, nodding his head.
“…Huh?”
Anna seemed unable to grasp the situation, tilting her head in confusion.
Then Nameless continued.
“The attackers who came to this academy initially heard the information about ‘Camilla’ and came looking for her. They weren’t sent by anyone.”
This was precisely proven by what I said earlier.
When I first met the king of the dead, that Reaper fellow, I had suspected he might be affiliated with the Demon King and asked him about it.
But didn’t Reaper say he wasn’t under someone’s orders?
Of course, he could have been lying to us, but considering that he had mentioned the Transcendence as his personal ambition, the odds of that were extremely low.
So, assuming there are teachers at the academy who might have leaked information, what kind of connection could the spy have with Reaper?
Nameless suggested that they probably didn’t have a deep relationship.
The reason being, when the attack occurred, it seemed like the academy was faltering until I stepped in.
If the spy had a close relationship with Reaper, meaning they were on the same side, there would have been no reason for them not to act during the perfect moment of chaos at the academy.
However, Nameless seemed to think that this wasn’t enough to solidify his assumptions and continued.
The main reason he thought this was related to what happened afterwards.
According to Anna, even after the attack, there seemed to be some leakage of information, prompting her to initiate an investigation.
If that’s the case, wouldn’t it mean the spy wanted the academy to fall into chaos rather than to assist Reaper?
This would also make sense of why the spy leaked information to Reaper.
Using an enemy to contain the enemy.
They’d have a chance to let Reaper do the dirty work while staying clean and unscathed.
If Reaper succeeded, that would be great.
But even if he failed, the spy wouldn’t incur any losses.
And the reason they resumed their activities may have been when I was done working at the academy as a visiting professor, thinking it was the right time with a major player gone.
After explaining all this, Nameless looked at us.
Both Anna and I nodded along, listening attentively to his plausible points, but there was one question that lingered.
“So what do you mean by coaxing?”
Up until now, Nameless had explained that the spy and Reaper were separate factions, but he hadn’t really described how they shared the same goals.
Did Nameless recognize that too? He shrugged slightly and spoke.
“Well, if another individual with a similar goal appears, wouldn’t the spy move?”
“…Oh.”
So coaxing meant…
We put forth a trusted individual to lure that spy in.
Of course, it wouldn’t be easy.
If the person we trust has a deep resentment against the academy, or at least has no grounds to attack, the spy wouldn’t budge.
But Nameless, smiling as if he had the perfect candidate, spoke.
“Isn’t it perfect to use Cheonma Church in this situation?”
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