Chapter 117
Despite the numerous challenges, the formation of the Crusaders was progressing as planned.
The most critical member, Yoon Haul, had been successfully recruited.
Her training sessions were frequent, and it seemed like my provocations had sparked something within her.
Where she got the idea of growing old together was a mystery, but whatever it was, it had clearly motivated her.
Lee Han naturally became involved, following the original storyline, and Solia agreed to join after she made a proposal herself.
Adela accepted the invitation with surprising ease, though it made sense considering her deep-seated hatred for the dark mages.
It seemed that her guilt over not being present during the incident with Duke Becken was the driving force behind her quick decision.
The threat had become real, and she understood the necessity of stopping their forces and protecting the Cube.
The full details would be discussed during our upcoming meeting, but I was confident she would join the fight, regardless of the danger.
All that was left was…
“Hey, Seymour.”
“Whaph?”
Seymour mumbled around a mouthful of donut. After failing to register for the right classes, he had ended up with a schedule full of physically demanding courses.
Sweating profusely from his recent combat class, he was currently recharging his energy with the sweet treat.
It must have been a tough day because he practically inhaled the donut in one bite.
For someone from a noble family who usually cared about appearances, he didn’t seem to mind eating like this.
“I have a proposition for you.”
At my words, Seymour blinked, his expression turning wary. It was the kind of look that said, “What kind of trouble are you going to drag me into now?”
He had a point… I hadn’t exactly built a reputation for reliability.
“No thanks.”
“Who do you think paid for that delicious donut you’re stuffing your face with?”
Seymour choked.
“Hey…!”
“Let me rephrase the question. Who do you think is funding that cozy dorm room you’re sleeping in?”
Ever since this semester started, Seymour’s tuition had been covered by Han Taesu, thanks to my request and the fact that some misunderstandings about Seymour had been cleared up. Han Taesu also didn’t see it as much of an expense, which was the main reason for his generous support.
The implication was clear—my word could make or break that arrangement.
“You wouldn’t throw me out on the streets, would you?”
That was a bit harsh.
But honestly, threats work best sometimes.
“Alright, fine! I’ll do it.”
Seymour grumbled and clenched his teeth, agreeing without even knowing what he was agreeing to.
But then…
“So, what are we stealing this time?”
That’s a bit of an overreaction.
I smacked him on the back of the head.
“It’s not stealing, it’s protecting.”
“What? Did you already steal something?”
Technically, since the Cube wasn’t originally mine, you could argue that we did “acquire” it. But this wasn’t the time for semantics.
“Listen carefully. I’m not going to repeat myself.”
I glanced around to make sure no one was listening, then cast a Silence spell.
The sudden quiet made Seymour nervous, and he swallowed hard.
“What are you doing?”
I wasn’t as skilled as Lee Han, so the spell wouldn’t last long, but it would be enough for what I needed to say.
“Why did you hide it?”
“Hide what?”
Instead of answering, I pulled out the dead pigeon I had found in Seymour’s desk drawer and tossed it onto the table.
“…!”
It might look like just a dead pigeon, but it was actually a cursed object, a type of dark magic totem.
I couldn’t determine the exact spell because dark magic operates under different principles, but it was definitely some kind of warning.
There was no way Seymour hadn’t noticed.
He sighed and looked down.
“I wasn’t trying to hide it… I just thought I could handle it myself.”
“How many times has this happened?”
“This was the fourth.”
“You have a death wish, don’t you?”
Curses like this aren’t immediately lethal, but they build up over time and can cause permanent damage.
If mishandled, they could contaminate your mana core, preventing you from using magic properly.
Whatever the case, the intensity seemed to be escalating, and the next curse could take any form.
The amateurish quality suggested it was crafted by necromancers and rogue students, but it was still a serious threat.
Seymour was in a precarious position.
He was slowly integrating with the students of the regular magic department, but he hadn’t earned their full trust. Meanwhile, he was seen as a traitor by the necromancers.
If the necromancer uprising played out as it did in the original story…
He’d be one of the first targets.
Even if Seymour wasn’t targeted now, during the eventual Ardel Academy siege, the dark mages wouldn’t leave him alone.
“I’m forming a Crusader team.”
“What?”
“We’re going to fight those bastards. Once you’re in, there’s no turning back. You won’t get another chance.”
Compared to the other main characters, Seymour was weaker, had lost the backing of his family, and wasn’t familiar with regular magic.
That’s why he had no choice but to join the Crusaders.
The necromancers were up to something. Eventually, there would be a war at Ardel Academy, with casualties on both sides.
Whether we were the victims or they were, the dark mages Seymour had once admired would be behind it all.
Seymour blinked, overwhelmed by the flood of information.
The Silence spell was wearing off, so I squeezed out the last bit of my mana to extend it.
We didn’t have much time.
“Choose.”
“The… the scale of your proposal is a bit too big. Can I have some time to think it over…?”
No, it’s actually safer to be inside the Crusaders.
I looked at Seymour and spoke calmly.
“Make your choice clear. Don’t waver.”
This might be the last lifeline I could offer him.
“If you don’t grab it, you’ll die.”
* * *
In the underground club room of Ardel Academy, six people had gathered. They were all prepared, with soundproof and vision-blocking barriers in place.
Seymour still looked uncertain, but he didn’t seem like he was going to back out. In fact, he appeared to be taking the situation more seriously than anyone else.
Yoon Haul, exhausted from her recent training session, lay sprawled on a table, while Solia sat quietly, understanding the gravity of the situation from Lee Han’s words. Adela, with a resolute expression, waited for me to speak.
I stood at the center of the room.
“How much have you all heard?”
I started by asking Lee Han, who shrugged and replied.
“I’ve told them most of it. Including the Cube.”
“You said we were forming a Crusader team.”
“And that we’d be fighting those guys, right?”
At this point, the most pressing issue is the imbalance of information.
I’m planning to establish a secret organization within Ardel Academy.
Everyone knows that much, but there’s a divide between those who know the truth about the Cube and those who don’t.
Furthermore, if we consider those who are aware of the actions we’ll soon take, everyone holds slightly different pieces of information.
Today, I’m going to lay all my cards on the table.
Why do we need to protect the Cube?
I’ll also reveal the information Yoon Haul has been so curious about.
But how?
I can’t just say something absurd like, “This is a novel, and dark mages are going to rise in power and start a war.” No one would believe that.
Even if I claimed to have seen the future, it wouldn’t make sense that I could see further ahead than Yoon Haul.
I need a more convincing excuse.
The method Lee Han discovered in the original story.
“Have you ever heard of Karakter?”
“Uh… isn’t that the dark mages’ base? I think I’ve heard the name before.”
When Adela cautiously raised her hand, Lee Han nodded.
“That’s right. Their base. Wasn’t it completely destroyed in the last war?”
It was the place where the dark mages finally disappeared.
After that, those who operated openly quickly vanished.
The last war was a complete victory for Ardel, and restrictions were placed on dark magic.
It was around that time that the Necromancy Department, weakened in power, began to clash constantly with the Magic Department.
Another war would be necessary to completely eradicate the remnants of the Necromancy Department scattered across Ardel, so the conflict was awkwardly patched up into its current form.
Seymour, who knew this situation better than anyone, remained silent but agreed with a firm gaze.
“I’ve been there.”
“…!”
At my bombshell statement, Adela’s expression froze for a moment.
It’s not a place that an Ardel Academy student can easily visit. Most people, except some in the Necromancy Department, wouldn’t even know it existed.
That could only mean one thing: I had connections with them.
Adela seemed on the verge of asking how I managed to get there but closed her mouth instead.
Does she think it’s something better left unheard?
But I’m not planning to avoid the conversation.
If I’m going to lie, it’s better to go all the way.
It’s a treacherous place surrounded by desert on all sides.
I didn’t find Karakter’s headquarters, but I did manage to enter a facility on the outskirts.
I spoke calmly.
“That’s right. I intended to go in. There’s no excuse for that.”
“Han Siha… you…”
Disappointment flickered in Adela’s eyes, but only for a brief moment.
Her reaction was completely unexpected.
“Are you out of your mind?”
“As long as I came back alive, isn’t it fine?”
If this were the original story, she would have buried me with a single word, but now she’s seriously worried.
Is she wondering if I’ve been caught or blackmailed?
Well, some of those things did happen, but I left that part out.
“So?”
“I heard things I shouldn’t have heard.”
Everyone believed that the dark mages had been utterly destroyed and could never rise again.
Even if they were gathering strength in secret, Ardel was confident they could crush them if they tried to rise again.
That confidence, or rather arrogance, would be their downfall.
“They’re going to use the Cube.”
It’s an object that was lost helplessly decades ago, but it possesses tremendous power, even if no one knew how to use it.
If they manage to operate five Cubes using a magic condenser, they could easily obliterate Ardel. They could gather immense magical power to realize their plans.
Now, Adela and Yoon Haul’s eyes turned cold as they finally understood how dangerous the Cube truly is.
“So… even after all that trouble…”
They had tried to steal the Cube.
They tried to protect it.
I turned to Seymour and asked,
“Did you know about the Cube?”
“I’d only heard the name. No way that kind of information would reach a mere second-year student. I really didn’t know.”
If Seymour had managed to endure a few more months in the Necromancy Department, he might have learned the truth.
Judging by how things are unfolding, it seems they’re slowly gathering their forces.
“Is it really okay for just us to know about something this important?”
“We have to keep it to ourselves.”
The fewer people who know, the safer it is.
For the Cube, and for my life.
Thud.
I placed the Cube I had been holding on the table.
“This is the Cube.”
“…You had this all along?”
Unlike some of the others who had seen the Cube before, Seymour turned pale with shock.
Even though I was suppressing its energy as much as possible, just the word ‘Cube’ seemed to overwhelm him.
“Isn’t this supposed to be a ridiculously dangerous object, according to you?”
“If we leave it out there, it’ll become even more dangerous. We have no choice; this is the first thing we have to do.”
Protect the Cube.
“We must never let it be taken. I’m going to guard it with my life.”
The moment I spoke these words calmly, I locked eyes with Yoon Haul.
He blinked, his face full of deep thoughts.
“So, the thing you wanted to protect was…”
“The thing you wanted to protect was… Cube, Cube, damn it…”
Bang bang.
“So, the thing to protect… was the Cube…”
Huh?
For some reason, Yoon Haul, face flushed, was banging his head against the desk.
Since he’s such an eccentric type, I just scratched my head and let it slide.
“Is everything roughly sorted out?”
“Yeah… I think it is.”
“Sorted out… completely!”
Yoon Haul nodded vigorously, his face still red.
The others looked at me with dazed eyes.
Too much information had been exchanged in such a short time.
The truth about the Cube, the future that’s about to come, and the imminent danger that could cost us our lives.
Everyone seemed to realize the gravity of the situation and remained silent.
Soon, dark mages will attack Ardel.
They’ll do it to get their hands on the remaining Cubes.
Obviously, I can’t stop them on my own.
With a voice full of conviction, I spoke.
“From now on, I’m going to put everything on the line to stop this.”
“….”
“If anyone wants out, you can leave now.”
These words were said with the certainty that no one would leave.
In my words, Yoon Haul and even Seymour swallowed hard and stiffened.
“Dozens, hundreds of people might die, and that could include us.”
“….”
“But to prevent that number from reaching tens or hundreds of thousands, I need your help.”
This is likely an unavoidable main story.
“We gathered to protect Ardel, right?”
For a moment, their eyes flickered.
Ardel. As heroes of the original story, they respond to their convictions.
Perhaps they instinctively sensed their fate.
“I gathered the people most suited for this task.”
No matter what kind of brutal fight lies ahead, they’ll have no choice but to participate.
These are the five most talented students in all of Ardel Academy.
The burden that comes with having the talent of a genius.
“So, then.”
I didn’t feel the need to say anything more.
I stepped back, having said all I needed to.
“Who’s with me?”
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