Chapter 15

Chapter 15

‘Did someone get ahead of me?’

No doubt about it.

There was another Transmigrator besides me who was looking for ‘that.’

‘Lv. 4 Arcane Module [Heavenly Weight Pendulum].’

Though the name came from martial arts, in truth, it was a module created by redesigning an essence extracted from the Earth Spirit, ‘Gnome.’

True to its name, its effect was to generate a special kind of gravitational force on the wearer’s lower body, preventing their feet from leaving the ground.

Since it had an output level of 4, its performance was quite decent—so much so that even if a large truck crashed into the wearer, they wouldn’t be pushed back.

Of course, that only mattered if their body was strong enough to withstand it.

‘In the original, it belonged to Iri……’

Normally, the protagonist would obtain this module around Volume 3 as a reward for solving problems involving second-year students alongside Iri.

After that, it became the possession of ‘Iri Elisbell,’ who took charge of the frontline in the protagonist’s party, and she was shown using it effectively in various situations.

If you followed the plot as it was, it was something that wouldn’t come into your hands until much later, but as long as you knew the location, you could obtain it even in this very early phase.

I had planned to use it myself for a while, then hand it over to Iri when the time was right.

But……

‘Tch. This is a bit absurd.’

I came to check just in case, but to think someone would move so precisely according to ‘my prediction.’

It was so obvious I thought the scenario was highly unlikely, which only made it more unsettling.

‘No, maybe it’s too early to jump to conclusions.’

Maintaining my composure, I continued walking through the hallway, checking the other power boxes.

As expected, there were ‘traces’ left behind.

‘……As I thought. This power box was half-opened. The guy hasn’t found [Heavenly Weight Pendulum] yet.’

In other words, he stopped searching for the module and ran away.

Unfortunately, I currently had no forensic module or application at my disposal.

Still, it wasn’t difficult to narrow down when this happened and who the likely culprit was.

‘During vacation, most areas of the Academy are off-limits.’

That’s because dangerous items like weapons and modules—which students aren’t allowed to handle recklessly—are scattered around, and thanks to that, this hallway was also restricted to students during break.

‘If the culprit had the authority to move freely during break, there would be no reason to leave signs of forced entry.’

Someone with such status at the Academy could easily have obtained a key without having to force anything open.

Even if that wasn’t the case, if they had started the job during the break, they should have already secured [Heavenly Weight Pendulum] by now.

The fact that they hadn’t meant I could rule out Academy teachers, custodians, or VIPs like myself from the suspect list.

‘In other words, the Transmigrator is either a current student or a new recruit. It’s also very likely they’re an outsider.’

The time of the crime was today.

It happened during the entrance ceremony—when access restrictions on campus were lifted and eyes were least likely to notice.

‘So roughly 10 minutes. 20 at most.’

If the guy sensed my presence and ran, the window would have been even shorter.

And…… there’s also a chance he realized who I was.

‘……Should I chase him?’

If I were really lucky, I might be able to track him down and capture him.

I considered it for a moment but then dismissed the thought.

‘No, this is enough for today.’

Maria was attending the entrance ceremony in my place right now.

I had asked her to record footage of the new students, so if anyone of importance—main or supporting cast—had slipped away, I’d know soon enough.

Besides, if I pushed too hard and failed to catch him, it might become more of a hassle later.

‘For now, the module takes priority.’

If I got caught like this because I delayed, I’d be in trouble too.

The chairman of the Foundation sneaking out during the entrance ceremony, wandering the hallways, and breaking power boxes… It couldn’t be more suspicious.

I immediately resumed my task.

I walked along the corridor, opening the power boxes one by one to check them.

Since quite a few of them had already been broken, I was able to save some time.

Had I opened maybe a dozen or so that were still intact?

I finally found it.

‘Got it.’

Arcane Module [Heavenly Weight Pendulum].

With this, I could proceed to the next phase of today’s plan.

Just as I was thinking that—

A problem popped up.

-Hey, did you hear the rumor?

-What rumor?

-This year, the Stingray Group is selecting a special scholarship student!

Stingray.

The moment that name came up, Iri Elisbell perked up her ears.

Even though the entrance ceremony had just ended, the two students chatting seemed quite familiar with each other.

Were they from the same region?

-A special scholarship student? That’s the first I’ve heard of it.

-It was suddenly decided because of the chairman’s return!

-If it’s the chairman of Stingray’s Human Resources Development Foundation… Aaron Stingray, the Crown Prince?! Wasn’t he rumored to have disappeared due to illness?!

-They say he returned recently?

Anyway, apart from the usual scholars, the Crown Prince is forming a Special Class with students he personally selected.

Rumor has it someone’s already been picked from the Technology Department.

-Wow, that would be a total jackpot! If you’re favored by royalty and get hired by Stingray, you might end up as an executive in 30 years…!

-Exactly.

That’s why you need to keep your act together.

Right now, corporate sponsors are probably watching our every move.

So that’s how the system worked.

While walking through the corridor, Iri checked the surveillance cameras installed here and there.

She never liked those things to begin with, but the idea of corporations observing her through them made it even more unpleasant.

But there was no helping it.

As long as she was under their watch, the only choice was to act as quiet and outstanding a student as possible.

‘Special scholarship student, huh?’

Yeah, that sounded perfect.

If she got selected, she’d have a connection to Stingray’s VVIP.

Maybe she could reach her goal much faster than she had expected.

And if the chance arose, she could directly ask that damn Crown Prince about her brother’s whereabouts…

‘Lucky.’

That thought made her even more motivated.

If it meant that, then she could easily endure being monitored by cameras 24/7.

Besides, there seemed to be more blind spots than she had expected.

Enough to sneak some breaks when needed.

‘They said we were getting some free time earlier……’

She decided to check right away.

The Academy’s internal messenger app displayed a holographic interface in augmented reality.

She frowned as she checked the schedule.

‘After lunch…… Ugh. Gun training on the first day?’

The afternoon had “Introduction to Arcane Studies” and “Marksmanship.”

It looked like they had placed two core classes from the Tactical Combat Department’s general curriculum on the first day.

Unfortunately, both were areas Iri wasn’t confident in.

Especially marksmanship.

‘What should I do……’

She fiddled with the module socket on the back of her neck, then sighed.

Nothing she could do.

Well, she’d manage somehow.

Just as she was thinking that—

“This concludes the morning session of the Tactical Combat Department. Well done, everyone. Please reconvene after lunch.”

The female android who had led the class spoke politely to the students.

“Good wor—oh.”

Standing in the front row, Iri reflexively started to bow, but stopped mid-action.

That’s when she noticed the choker-shaped LED on the android’s neck.

She tried to cover it up somehow, but it was already too late.

A few of the other new students who saw her did that burst into giggles.

“Pfft! She just bowed to a tin can!”

“I used to do that too back in elementary school~”

“Haha, that’s cute.”

Iri’s brow furrowed.

Her brother had told her once—

In the city, showing courtesy to an android was as embarrassing as calling your teacher “mom.”

Of course, Iri couldn’t understand that at all.

Where she came from, androids lived alongside humans with barely any distinction.

She had received help from those beings they called “tin cans” more times than she could count.

“…….”

But Iri held it in.

It was just a fleeting incident anyway.

She couldn’t afford to cause a problem.

If she could just endure the heat in her face for now...

“I know who you are.”

It was then.

A male student who had been behind her walked up to Iri and spoke to her as if they knew each other.

He was at least a head taller than her.

“You're Iri Elisbell, right?”

“…You know me?”

“Of course. You’re the ‘Bitch Stray Dog of Fallen,’ aren’t you?”

“You…!”

She hadn’t imagined someone here would know that nickname.

Iri glared sharply and warned the male student.

“Don’t ever call me that again.”

“Whoa, look at those savage eyes. You gonna stab me or something? Can’t hide that ex-con vibe. Too bad, can’t really cover it up.”

“I warned you…”

“And what if you did?”

“That was the last time. I won’t hold back anymore.”

Iri growled as she spoke.

The guiding android, sensing the hostile tension between them, tried to intervene, but it was no use.

The other students merely made a show of trying to stop it, with no intention of truly intervening.

The Academy was fiercely competitive, and if someone broke the rules or harmed another student and got penalized, it only benefited everyone else.

More than that, the name ‘Fallen’ had piqued their curiosity.

“Trying to hide it, huh? But your attitude gives it all away. Didn’t they say Fallen’s full of runaway glitch-cans? And the criminals there huddle together with those machines and do all sorts of messed up crap…”

“That’s enough.”

Iri couldn’t take it anymore.

In the next instant, she kicked the male student without hesitation.

He flew several meters and slammed into the wall.

A kick powerful enough to kill a normal person.

But…

“Ah~ that hurts~. Think I broke a bone~.”

The male student returned to his original spot as if nothing happened.

His body had left a clear imprint in the wall he’d crashed into.

“Seriously, gotta respect the temper of those Fallen criminals~. You can’t find a trace of civilized manners in them.”

Grinning slyly, the male student pointed his thumb at the corridor ceiling.

There, a surveillance camera was recording everything.

“Get it, Fallen?”

“You little…!”

At that moment, Iri realized she’d walked into a trap.

And as if delivering a death sentence, the male student added,

“You’re f*cked.”

“There are two things to report.”

After the entrance ceremony, Maria sent me the footage she had recorded along with her report.

“What is it?”

“First, someone apparently forced open the power box in the hallway connecting the 23rd floor, the Science and Technology Building, and the Main Classroom Building.”

“……”

…Yeah, that was me.

I nodded with a calm face.

The news had spread faster than expected.

I didn’t seem to have been caught yet, but Maria might have already figured out it was my doing.

Not that I had any intention of confessing.

“…Any suspects?”

“It’s an area with no security cameras, and the power box security is outdated, so it’s hard to track.

The investigation team suspects hacking, but it seems unlikely.”

“Then it’s not something we need to concern ourselves with. You may skip this kind of report in the future.”

“Yes, understood.”

Maria bowed slightly, looking apologetic, and I casually changed the topic.

“What’s the second report?”

“Ah, it seems there was a conflict among students.”

“Was it one of our students?”

“No, but one of them is the son of a high-ranking officer in Milennium Technology’s Security Department.”

A treasured scholarship candidate from a rival company.

It likely meant he was a confirmed Militech scholar.

The fact that Maria reported such a fight to me meant one thing.

“You’re saying the other side was Iri.”

“Eh? Ah, yes, that’s correct.”

Maria reacted with slight surprise at my response.

“What’s wrong?”

“Oh, no, I was just surprised you figured it out before I even said it.”

It was an obvious deduction.

There’s no reason for me to step in unless the issue is related to the Special Class, and Iri wasn’t even one of our Stingray scholars.

And among the main characters, the only one who would get into a fight with another student on the first day was Iri Elisbell.

Seriously, that problem child...

“What would you like to do?

Even if she’s a girl you’ve marked, considering our relationship with Militech, it may be best to pretend we know nothing.”

I may have marked her, but Iri wasn’t officially in the Special Class yet.

So she was saying there’s no need for us to cover for her if she caused trouble.

Getting involved would only irritate our rival company for no reason.

No matter how much the Stingray Group dominated the city as a mega-corporation, some level of diplomatic relations with other companies was still necessary.

“Also, according to our investigation, this Iri Elisbell… she’s from the Fallen Area.”

Fallen Area.

New Valhalla City was divided into six zones, from the luxurious Elysium for the upper class, through Sectors A to E.

And then there was the outer edge.

A slum that didn’t belong to any sector — that was Fallen.

If Sector E was a lawless inner-city zone crawling with Mafia and other crime syndicates, Fallen was considered an entirely separate world, outside the city itself.

If Sector E was a place where public authority barely reached, then Fallen was a place where it didn’t exist at all.

Even the Anti-Rain, which protected citizens from monsters, didn’t fall there, making it an easy target for [Arcane] creatures that slipped past the city’s outer wall.

It was a district where androids with ego errors and non-human beings not even considered citizens gathered.

Iri was from that place.

“What would you like to do?”

Maria asked with a displeased expression.

The original Aaron would have discarded Iri, no matter how much of a genius she was.

Aaron had harbored extreme hatred for the slum-dwellers of Fallen.

But I was different now.

Even if Maria found it strange, I had only one choice to make.

“I’ll meet with her first.”

“Understood.”

Maria immediately made a call somewhere, then began to guide me toward the student affairs building.

“This way.”

Not long after, I arrived in front of the counseling room where Iri was being held.

As I stood by the door, I could hear yelling from inside.

-So you’re saying it wasn’t your fault?! Do you want to get expelled?!

-But I told you, he provoked me first?! I didn’t do anything wrong…!

“Phew……”

I could already picture the situation inside and let out a sigh.

I quietly opened the door and stepped in.

A teacher who had been inside turned at the sound and, startled, quickly bowed.

“M-Mr. Stingray!? What brings you here…?”

I ignored them cleanly.

With just a quick glance, I found Iri sitting in front of the teacher, her hands cuffed.

“Iri Elisbell.”

I called her name.

And at the same time—

The start of the main story.

The message announcing it filled my vision.