༺ A Brief Reprieve (2) ༻

It was early in the morning when Eon had vacated his spot for a meeting with the Dean.

The students of Opal Black were spending an ordinary day, just like any other.

Starting tomorrow, another week would begin.

Therefore, everyone was back at the dormitory, including Marian and Schultz who had returned after being scolded by their elders at home following the end of the royal palace ball.

They were all living out their typical day-to-day routines.

Swinging swords in the practice yard, having casual conversations in the lounge, and studying in their private rooms.

Marian was sprawled out on the lounge sofa as if she were lying down.

“Ah, this is so comfortable…”

Surprisingly, she felt relieved upon returning to the dormitory. Her spirit was worn out after being nagged at by the fastidious elders of her family to the point where it was grating on her nerves.

When are you planning to get married? You should at least have a fiancé. I know someone good, why don’t you meet him…

If only she had a doting grandfather, things would have been easier. Unfortunately, Marquis Kalshtein was tied up on the northern front for at least a few more months. Therefore, she had no choice but to put up with the nagging from the family elders.

In her family home, she always had to be mindful of her actions, wary of others’ gaze. Ironically, she felt more at ease when she returned to the dormitory, which wasn’t even her real home.

It was truly ironic. What could be the reason?

‘Is it because no one cares about what I do…?’

Initially, Marian was conscious of her behavior even in the dormitory, managing her image in front of other students.

However, over the past month, she showed her friends a side of her, soaked in sweat and staggering like a newborn lamb after every physical education class. In comparison, what did it matter if she was sprawled out on the sofa?

Of course, Oznia, who was napping spread out on the sofa, and Titania, who was reading with Marian’s head on her lap (it was a romance novel), didn’t seem to care at all about Marian’s behavior.

Instead, Titania even kindly started a conversation.

“Marian, you look really tired. Shall I make some coffee for you?”

“Huh? No, I’m fine…”

“Okay? Let me know if you need anything.”

And then Titania immersed herself back in her reading.

The sound of the softly turning pages was like white noise. Was that why Oznia had fallen into a deep sleep?

A cool breeze came through the open window, and the rhythmic sound of the turning pages felt like a lullaby.

For Marian, who was already tired, this kind of rest was desperately needed.

The nagging of her family elders was tiring, but the royal palace ball was the tipping point…

She had no idea that Elizabeth and Instructor Eon would appear there in such a way.

And they danced at the ball, and Elizabeth’s bombshell statement.

To dance with only one person at the ball, it was a metaphorical expression that you harbored such feelings for the other person.

Naturally, after that, society was in an uproar. The mere fact that the third princess had a man she was fond of was enough to create a massive scandal.

Of course, it was a masquerade ball, so if Elizabeth later said, ‘That wasn’t me’, it would be over… (There’s a masquerade atmosphere where you enjoy fooling around for a night.) Anyway, everyone was bloodshot trying to identify the man wearing the wolf mask.

Ironically, the main culprits who had stoked the fire in the ballroom didn’t return after just one dance, but that made people even noisier. Because it made them mistakenly think they had gone for a secret meeting.

Of course, Instructor Eon and Elizabeth wouldn’t have that kind of relationship…

“……”

They wouldn’t, right?

She wanted to ask and confirm directly, but both of them had not come out of their rooms since yesterday. It also felt wrong to go to their rooms directly out of curiosity. To begin with, what was she going to ask? Were they possibly in that sort of relationship? That sounded like some gossip-obsessed teenage girl!

She could probably pry if she bumped into them in the lounge or hallway…

Ah, she didn’t know. An opportunity would come someday. They wouldn’t be in their rooms forever, and besides, there were classes starting tomorrow.

Marian settled her body into the soft sofa, entertaining such casual thoughts.

However,

Batar, who had returned from the training grounds, suddenly threw a bomb in the lounge.

“Have you heard? Instructor Eon is leaving the academy.”

“…What!?”

Marian shot up as if she had been struck by lightning.

Neither was it any different for Titania and Oznia.

And so, an unexpected commotion broke out in the Opal Black dormitory.

***

It was a very long time ago.

He was tired of the endless blood and war, and was fed up with the killing and slaughtering.

Whether it was a human or a monster, blood was the same red color. The unpleasant smell of blood, thick on the armor, never went away. The flame of anger, which seemed like it would burn forever, was not eternal. Tired of the meaningless slaughter, even counting numbers became meaningless, and I found myself mechanically repeating the battles.

That was me during the end of the war.

Day in and day out, I swung my spear. It was like that yesterday, it is like that today, and it will be the same tomorrow.

I have a tomorrow, but most soldiers do not. They survived yesterday and today, but there is no guarantee that they will be alive the next day.

In fact, I was no exception. At some point, if I could no longer maintain my focus, if I were suddenly ambushed by several demon army commanders, if the thought of endlessly turning this repeating wheel disappeared.

Like an item whose magic power has been cut off, at some point, the power would just switch off.

That’s when I first had this thought. Not to become stronger, not to slaughter more monsters.

That this pointless war must end now.

Then I heard some news. The news was that the Human Alliance and all the remaining demon army commanders were about to engage in a great battle.

It was a historic battle later known as the Ragnarok Plains Battle, but when I heard this news, I thought of something else.

Wouldn’t the Demon King’s castle be empty now?

No matter how many demon army commanders are defeated, the war does not end.

The Demon King who caused all of this must be killed.

Other people might not be able to withstand the poison at the center of the Demon Continent, but perhaps I, who was already half a demon…

With that thought, I set off for the Demon King’s castle.

Nobody joined me on this journey, and nobody saw me off.

It was a natural consequence since I had deliberately left without telling anyone, but all the comrades who had been with me, all the people I had loved, had already left my life.

So, there was no one for me to lean on or rely upon. And vice versa.

Back then, it was definitely like that.

The moment I returned to the dormitory, I was immediately surrounded by students.

“Instructor! Is it true that you are leaving us!?”

There were tears welled up in Titania’s eyes. It looked as though she would burst into sorrowful tears at any moment.

“……”

Oznia silently clutched my sleeve. She didn’t say a word as usual, but her eyes told me everything. I could feel the desperation in her trembling violet eyes.

“Oh, do you have to go?”

Gwyn gripped my other arm with a trembling hand.

“Please don’t go. I’ll try harder in the future. I still have a lot I want to learn. Swordsmanship, lessons…! So… please don’t leave.”

The voice of Gwyn, who was always so energetic, was unusually subdued. She looked like a child paralyzed with fear.

“You’re leaving? All of a sudden? Why on earth?”

Marian, who usually looked haughty and prickly, now had a face full of confusion and anxiety.

“Did we do something wrong? Or, could it be pressure from the royal family? Wait a second, I’ll write to my grandfather right now! Then he’ll bring the Northern Army, even if…!”

It was a ludicrous misunderstanding.

And besides whether it was possible or not, if it were to happen, it would be a civil war.

“Calm down, Marian.”

“H, how can I calm down!? If such a thing was going to happen, you should’ve told us beforehand! If you were going to leave just after a month, it wasn’t the time to be… to be relaxed…!”

I had no idea what kind of relaxation she was referring to.

Saladin let out a deep sigh and shook his head despondently.

“It will be a real disaster if you leave like this. Without an instructor, who will properly teach these kids? Including me.”

His tone was sour, but I could sense the undeniable dissatisfaction in his gaze as he covertly looked at me.

“Honestly, I stayed at the academy because of the Instructor. If the Instructor leaves like this, isn’t that a bit… quite irresponsible?”

Schultz also chimed in, casually pushing up his glasses.

“I may not be as much as the other students, but I think I’ll miss Instructor Eon if he leaves like this. There were still many things I wanted to learn. At least in our class, I think we need the Instructor now.”

Batar just shrugged his shoulders from a distance, as if suggesting that what had happened was not my fault.

“…Haa.”

I let out a long sigh that came out spontaneously.

All the students were sincerely sorry that I was leaving and were sincerely trying to stop me. Including Elizabeth, who was not present at this moment.

I thought we had only known each other for a month.

It seems we had become attached without realizing it.

Both me and the students.

I slowly opened my mouth to these students.