Chapter 49: The Black Wizard, The Investigator, and The Saintess
Niolle was frozen as she looked down into the pit. The condition of the soil suggested it had been recently dug up, and the blood that spread across the pit had not yet clotted. Someone had been here just moments ago.
Did the person in the pit miraculously regain consciousness and dig their way out from the inside? Or had someone dug the ground to rescue them?
There were faint footsteps remaining.
Footsteps heading east, towards the student residential area. It hadn’t rained today, and the wind was calm. The trajectory of someone who had left this place in a hurry was distinctly drawn. If Niolle decided, she could chase after them.
There were many reasons not to go.
It wasn’t like someone she knew was involved, nor was it certain, and above all, it was likely dangerous. It wasn’t something that had to be done or was necessary. A mountain of reasons, indeed.
Yet, there was only one reason to follow. Because it seemed like someone was in danger.
It was meddling. She already knew the kind of end meddling in any affair brought, having seen it with her own two eyes. The Lestman Viscounty had fallen into ruins after extending undue kindness to others, after all.
So, let’s stop meddling in suspicious incidents that occurred at night and leave it to someone else. Niolle repeated this to herself, thinking and trying to shake off any lingering regrets.
Step.
After taking a step, Niolle let out a sound that was halfway between a laugh and a babble. Her toes pointed towards someone’s footsteps, a clear posture indicating she would follow.
Aheuheu.
Right, where else could her parents’ blood possibly go? She would obviously live as she was born—as her parents’ daughter.
Born into a family poorer than city merchants, having never consumed a single elixir, she had not yet achieved Fill.
Though she had steadily learned the cultivation technique passed down by her household, she had not yet achieved Tuning.
However, it was different in the case of Breakthrough. When it came to sensing the flow, she prided herself on having eyes that were second to none. While blinking, she could see countless traces invisible to others, sharply clear.
The target was about 175 cm tall, weighed around 70 kg, and was right-handed.
The suspicious figure in her imagination had fled, retracing their footsteps. Driven by her sense of justice, Niolle began her pursuit.
===============================================================
While wrapped in a black hood, Bennett stopped running through the alleyways of the student residential area. Then, he laid down on the ground, pressing his ear to the surface.
Light footsteps. They were getting closer. The direction was precisely towards Bennett.
…Tracking?
Was it the presence he had sensed while fleeing? He thought he had escaped by erasing his tracks, but it seemed he had been caught. Bennett’s skills in fleeing, honed over many years as a Black Wizard, were top-notch. Someone with mediocre abilities wouldn’t be able to find his trail.
Therefore, the one who had followed him was a skilled tracker.
Who could it be?
Did that wizard attach someone to monitor him? Or was it the wizard himself who had hidden the Demonic Sword? Perhaps it was another Black Wizard. But in any case, no matter the circumstance, shaking off the pursuit was the right thing to do. Expectations should always be pessimistic, after all.
Wrapping his body in mana, he kicked off the ground. Bennett’s body shot out like the wind. His plan was to first distance himself and hide.
To complicate the tracking, he jumped over walls of deserted roads, stepped on tree branches, and used Delayed Fall magic to fly briefly through the air, scattering his tracks as he moved. It was a masterclass in fleeing.
However, the pursuer was a step ahead. A league above skill-wise.
The pursuer was definitely slower. Even when Bennett exploded into speed, they couldn’t keep up with him. Yet, after a short while, he could invariably hear the approaching footsteps again.
He was certainly faster. But if he was still being caught up to, it meant the pursuer was completely predicting and tracking his movements.
Tch, …are they watching from the sky or something?!
Looking up at the narrow sky blocked by the alleys, he found no familiars in sight. If he had caught sight of any suspicious bats flying around, he would have intercepted them long ago.
As Bennett tried to escape the pursuit, his movements suddenly halted. He realized there was only one way left to run. A building of the Church of the Goddess loomed before him.
He scanned the map of the vicinity in his mind and came to a conclusion. If he bypassed the building of the Church of the Goddess, he would surely be caught.
Was it a coincidence or the tracker’s strategy?
It seemed certain that the pursuer belonged to the faction hiding the Demonic Sword. Otherwise, there would be no reason to follow him so secretly and persistently.
Even if they led him to this building, it was impossible for them to be a part of the Church of the Goddess. If that were the case, they would have come with a group of Paladins instead of alone.
Ignoring uncertainties and focusing on certainties, the pursuer had buried the Demonic Sword in the ground. It was intended for personal use.
That alone would make the Church rush in, their eyes burning like holy fire. Whether a Black Wizard or not, a wicked item that corrupted people was considered highly negative in their doctrine.
So, the Church would also be an uncomfortable location for the pursuer. Moreover, a Saintess with a rather bad reputation resided in the Church building. Known for being willful and unmanageable, she wouldn’t forgive a group causing trouble at night.
This…could be used as a neutral zone.
If the tracker had any sense, they would not start a fight inside the church building. If a fight could be avoided, a conversation wouldn’t be a bad idea after all.
===============================================================
The fleeing man was terrifyingly fast. Had Niolle lost track of him even once, she would have never found him again.
It seemed he had noticed she was on his trail. She wanted to catch up to him, to ask what exactly had happened in the pit and if it was as bad as she had imagined.
She would advise him to repent and pay for his sins. If he refused after confessing before the Goddess and receiving a proper punishment, she planned to fight with all her might… at least that was her intention, but
…?!
Why would the suspicious person go into a church building?
Was he running to confess after hearing her telepathy? Niolle knew all too well that couldn’t be the case. If the world were that kind, her family wouldn’t have fallen into ruin.
Whether by mistake or intention, it was an opportunity for Niolle. She had heard the Saintess resided in the building. If a commotion arose, not only the Saintess but also officials of the Church of the Goddess would swarm out. Thus, they could stop the suspicious individual.
She followed the trail. Crossing a beautifully decorated garden and stepping on an external drainpipe, she grabbed the balcony railings with her hands. With a heave, she pulled herself up onto the balcony.
A person in a hood—noted by the protruding Adam’s apple, he was clearly a man—waited there. He asked cautiously.
“What is your purpose?”
Niolle wanted to ask about what she had experienced the previous night and the connection between the dug-up pit and him. But alas, oops.
“…!”
She didn’t have her whiteboard. Niolle grabbed at her throat in frustration.
===============================================================
The pursuer turned out to be a cute-looking female student. She was unarmed and didn’t possess a hunting gaze. Seeing she was unfamiliar, she must be a new student.
Wondering if it could be a simple misunderstanding, Bennett asked her purpose.
“What is your purpose?”
“…!”
“Silence, huh…”
Was she trying to probe him? Or was she biding her time to understand the situation? Bennett raised his guard and continued to speak.
“I do not know what you’re plotting, but it is bold. Merely possessing and hiding a Demonic Sword could attract the Heretic Inquisition. I’m sure you weren’t unaware of that risk.”
“?”
“If you’re not going to speak, I’ll take a guess.”
Bennett pieced together the puzzle in his mind. The reason the faction backing the Second Prince had hidden a Demonic Sword in such a conspicuous place. If they intended to be caught on purpose, everything would make sense.
He formulated a perfect conclusion.
“Is your plan to use the Demonic Sword to create a pretext, frame someone as a Black Wizard, and purge the anti-Second Prince faction within the Academy—namely, the Third Prince’s faction?”
“…?!!”
The pursuer’s expression crumbled. It was the look of someone who had been struck in the back of the head with a hammer. They had let slip something significant. Bennett gained certainty.
The truth behind the Demonic Sword’s burial was a chillingly ruthless struggle for succession.
It was an excellent opportunity. In fact, it couldn’t have been better. If political strife stirred the Academy, it was exactly what a Black Wizard would wish for. The wicked scheme of the Purple Tower Wizard must proceed. Bennett drew the Demonic Sword from his waist and laid it on the ground.
“I thought it was a valuable item and stole it. That is all. Here, I am returning it. I’m not foolish enough to get involved in the affairs of the high and mighty. I will not interfere, so stop the pursuit!”
“…!!!”
The pursuer, startled and flustered, took a step forward, reaching out her arm. Bennett grabbed a laundry rack placed on the balcony and threw it towards her, scattering the clothes to block her view.
Bennett jumped down from the balcony and ran off.
===============================================================
Niolle reflexively knocked away the flying laundry rack and brushed off the fluttering panties from the air. Then, she stopped. It was a sudden brain freeze from the overflow of information.
What exactly did I just hear?
Niolle was dumbfounded. Luckily, what was buried in the pit wasn’t a person but a Demonic Sword. The suspicious person who had dug up the ground was not a murderer but a thief. It was a minor misunderstanding.
This incident was not about someone being buried alive and killed.
Rather, it hinted at a case where several people might end up burning to death due to collateral damage in the future.
Niolle’s expression filled with worry and concern. She felt like crying a little. Sure, she had been meddling. But wasn’t it a bit too much to get involved in the ruthless competition between the Second and Third Princes over just that? It was a matter that could easily vaporize the neck of a mere fallen noble.
But still…to think of framing someone using a Demonic Sword…
After hearing the news of the Second Prince pacifying the underworld, she had thought they were finally looking out for the Empire’s citizens, even in those dark places. Now it seemed it wasn’t out of goodwill but perhaps to cultivate something akin to an assassination squad.
Huuuuh.
Let’s calm down.
It was said that one could survive even if captured by a goblin tribe, as long as they kept their wits. Perhaps she could navigate this without too much trouble. Upon returning, she would need to consult with Selvi…
“Who’s out there?”
“…!!!”
A woman’s voice came from behind the thick curtains of the balcony door. Niolle glanced at the Demonic Sword on the ground, then at the sky before bolting away. The Church of the Goddess would take care of the Demonic Sword properly.
She ran away frantically. After running for a while, she sat down against the wall of the female dormitory building, catching her breath. Only then did she realize…
…
Her right hand was still clutching the panties tightly. She had grabbed them when knocking away the laundry rack and, in the heat of the moment, had forgotten to drop them.
Unfolding them revealed risqué underwear that could only be worn when tied at the sides.
She had become the Panty Thief of the Academy!
===============================================================
What’s all this commotion in the middle of the night?
Startled awake by the clattering noise coming from beyond the balcony, Saintess Tara groggily furrowed her brows and opened the balcony door.
“What in the world.”
The Saintess blinked.
She rubbed her eyes, thinking she wasn’t fully awake, yet the chaos remained exactly the same.
Deciding she should just wash her face outright, she went downstairs to the first floor, scooped a bucket of water from the well, splashed her face with cold water, wrung out her wet bangs, and even brewed and drank a cup of tea on a whim.
Then she returned to the balcony.
The laundry rack was overturned, clean clothes were scattered on the ground, and for some reason, a long sword lay neatly placed. The sword had Seal Magic on it, so she attempted to release it.
“-You are my new master…”
“Artifact Seal of the Brilliant Three Rings.”
It was a Demonic Sword.
Upon examining the crime scene thoroughly, she noticed one piece of underwear was missing.
To summarize comprehensively, someone had sneaked into a church building belonging to the Church of the Goddess, knocked over the Saintess’s laundry, and taken a pair of panties, leaving a Demonic Sword as a gift in exchange.
Seriously, what in the world is this?
She was so bewildered that she wasn’t even angry.
My site has received a lot of DMCA notices, lol. From now on, I will update the MTL on https://darkmtl.com/.
The site is fast and lightweight because there are no ads yet. However, the theme is different from Cybor-TL, so take some time to familiarize yourself.
Support me by donating at least $10, and you'll have the right to request any novel from Novelpia (excluding 19+ content) using a newly developed tool.