It was fun to finally see the opponent's poker face crack.
Looking at Adrian's bewildered expression, Arivelle continued with a chuckle.
"I am not lying. But it won't happen right away just because rumors are spreading. However, there is no doubt that the chances of that happening will increase."
"…the end of the world, no, just what are you talking about…?"
"For now, just focus on school life. Anyways, you'll find out sooner or later. The academy is also doing its best to prevent that."
Having said that, she handed Adrian a piece of paper with a smile.
"Why don't you take a look at this first?"
It contained a big symbol.
"I asked you about the devil earlier, right? It's because of this."
"Yes?"
"This is the symbol of a group called the 'Purifier'."
Adrian's expression turned solemn.
'He knew this too?'
Thinking so, Arivelle calmly continued.
"It's not well known to the public, but they're a pretty infamous group of devil worshipers. They've been identified to be the ones behind Princess Lirielle's attempted assassination and the monster sabotage."
Devil worshipers.
Like the name suggests, it's a group of people that worship the devil, the enemy of all mankind, as a god and seek its resurrection.
Their existence is like that of a cancerous tumor to society.
"With already two attacks on the Princess, there is no guarantee that there will not be a third."
"…Why are you telling me this?"
But instead of answering, Arivelle just wore a mysterious smile.
She's already given enough information about the plan. She can't say any more than this.
Thinking so, she took something out of the drawer.
"
"
If she can't tell him the details, shouldn't she at least show her sincerity?
"Would you like to take this?"
It was a small black 'card'. On the surface, it looked nondescript, but Adrian's eyes widened when he saw it.
He was being quite expressive.
'…Does he know what this is?'
As she was thinking that, she heard from the other side.
"…Is it okay for the President to just hand out things like this?"
"…"
Arivelle paused for a moment. His words were implying that even the president shouldn't just give away something this valuable to others.
Does he really know what it is?
No, there's no way.
Even within the academy, this is something that only a very few people, including her, know about. If he knows what this is, it's not just simply about being smart to put pieces of info together. It's almost psychic.
'But, maybe.'
Arivelle asked once more with some anticipation.
"You sound like you know what it is?"
"This, in a week's time, at the Berkeley Hall—"
Adrian couldn't speak any further.
It was because Arivelle burst out laughing at such a natural answer.
'Ah, truly, a fine piece.'
This man always subverts her expectations.
She couldn't remember when was the last time she met someone like this.
"Just take it. People with as much bad luck as you will need it."
"…"
Well, since he entertained her this much, she figured he deserved a reward.
"If you know what it is, then you should know how it works. Use it properly, get what you need, and then show me the result. If I like it, I'll give you an additional gift. Fair?"
Adrian stared at the black card.
"…Never thought I'd get homework from the President."
"Oh, speaking of," Arivelle said lightly, "I actually do have homework for you."
Adrian sighed. "…I just walked right into that, didn't I?"
"Yes?"
"How are you getting along with the hero candidate and Princess Lirielle?"
Adrian's face immediately soured—so much that even Arivelle blinked at the change.
This was the guy who didn't flinch at devil worshipers attacking the academy, and yet this question made him look like someone just told him his house burned down.
"…Well, I'd love to. I really would."
Meanwhile, everything about his body language screamed, "God, please, no."
"Then try to get along with them."
"…Do I get to ask why?"
"Yes."
She smiled, far too calmly for what she was about to say.
"Otherwise… the world will end."
"…"
Adrian gave her a long look. Not angry. Not shocked. Just… tired. A look that said, "Really? That's your reason?"
Arivelle only laughed. To her, it wasn't even a joke.
In the end, everything hinged on those three people.
●
The end of the world…
I walked without aim, replaying those words in my head.
Do I understand them? Not even close. I mean, how exactly am I tied to something like that? I can barely handle my coursework, let alone Armageddon.
In games, "the end of the world" just means bad ending. Restart, reload, problem solved. But here? No save points. No retries.
'…Yeah, I'll deal with that later. Future-me can stress about it.'
For now, I had something else in my hand.
The black card.
On the outside, nothing special. But in reality? A key to another world.
One the main character was never supposed to get. Even most of the faculty don't know it exists.
And honestly, I can see why.
If you hand this to someone too early, it completely breaks the game. Balance gone. Story pacing shredded. It's like giving a first-year student a warhead and saying, "Good luck on your midterms."
"…Didn't think I'd actually get it, though."
Maybe it was a reward for clearing the emergency mission. Maybe just bad luck disguised as a gift.
Either way, I'm not exactly thrilled.
'The scenario's off schedule.'
The Purifier shouldn't even be showing up for months. People are still finding their classes, and we're already knee-deep in cult conspiracies.
Which means…
"…Guess I've got to move faster too."
It's the point where the main character and the final boss intertwine. Whether I like it or not, it's obvious I'll get dragged into the scenario sooner or later.
I exhaled slowly, trying to line up my thoughts.
The enemy in question? A notoriously vicious early boss, the kind that earned the charming nickname of "newbie cutter."
Yeah. Real confidence-boosting title, isn't it?
Even with [Last Resort], considering their specialty… yeah, there's a very real chance I could die.
'But with this…'
I turned the black card over in my palm.
Things could end up being much easier than I expected.
It all depends on how I use whatever I pull out of the space this thing opens.
Alright, checklist time.
— The Monster Research Department.
— The Vision Warehouse.
— Percy's one-time "I owe you" ticket.
If I combine all of these properly, I might actually pull something off that makes fighting the Purifiers a bit less suicidal.
'…It's possible.'
Yeah. Possible. Not safe, but possible.
"Ah, here you are. I was looking for you."
My train of thought screeched to a halt at the sound of a voice.
The Knight Faculty Dean, Roderick Baltador, was standing in front of me.
"You were looking for me? What's the matter?"
"Your class is still undecided, but there was a notice from the Academic Affairs Committee that you can't fall behind because of that. Take this."
"…"
Hold up. The Dean himself is personally giving me notices now? Since when am I that important?
"It's a temporary class. You can take classes together with these students starting tomorrow."
I scanned the list. My hand started to tremble.
No. Nope. Absolutely not.
"…Is this correct?"
"Is there anything wrong?"
Is there anything wrong? Sir. There is everything wrong.
I pointed at the list with all the enthusiasm of a man about to step on a landmine.
Class President: Lirielle Elissandre La Caldwell.
Vice President: Elize Kingsley.
I didn't even need to scroll down the rest of the list. Two names were enough to ruin my week.
Class President: Lirielle Elissandre La Caldwell.
Vice President: Elize Kingsley.
That's it. I can already smell the scent of my own funeral incense.
"…Is this correct?" I asked, hoping there was at least a typo somewhere.
"Yes."
"…Why is the Student Council President taking classes with the freshmen?"
"Ah, right. About that."
Roderick smiled like a man who enjoyed handing out death sentences with a polite bow.
"It's the President's order, so it can't be wrong."
"…"
Ah yes, the ultimate reasoning. Straight from the holy scripture: Because I said so.
And then it clicked—her little "homework" from earlier.
Try to get along well with them.
…Right. Of course.
I suddenly understood the meaning of those words. And at the same time, I suddenly understood the meaning of homicide.