Ā Chapter 08
>”Talking about ‘mission’ and stuffā¦ā¦.”
While I was dumbfounded, my surroundings changed again.
This timeā¦ it felt like a school.
>’Not that I’ve ever been to a school or anything.’
Neatly arranged desks and chairs, pens and paper on top of them, and even the sound of a bell from outside. This must be what the fancy private school nobles supposedly attended, I thought, and then I realized a bit late that my clothes had also changed.
“Wowā¦ā¦.”
I couldn’t help but admire the soft fabric that clung to my body.
The cape covering my shoulders and swaying at my waist, the shirt, and even the pants were all made of smooth, pitch-black material. The Emperor and Adeline were also looking down at their own bodies with equally bewildered faces.
“Hey, Ren! You bastard! What are you doing dragging me into this too!”
Silphy, having rolled up its narrow pupils to check above its own head, shrieked. It seemed quite displeased that its neatly severed head was now wearing a beret just like ours, tilted to the side.
“Huh? Are you going to answer? What are you trying to do by dressing us all up in these strange clothes?”
>”I would like all of you to act as members of the Committee.”
Perenustus pushed away the whining Silphy and said something strange again.
Looking at the faces of the other three, who were shocked, I honestly felt a little relieved. It meant I wasn’t the only one who didn’t understand what the hell was going on.
>”I have judged that Aurelia can be applied as an important variable to add diversity to my worldview. And also to study how the curse my alter ego so recklessly cast will activate.”
“What does that have to do with these clothes! And what’s this Committee? Didn’t those old men dump that on you to clean up your messes?”
>”Correct. Pain shared is pain halved, so I wish to share it.”
Adeline momentarily failed to control her expression and mumbled a curse under her breath. Seeing that, the Emperor quickly moved half a step forward to shield Adeline.
>’Seeing him act like that, maybe he really does like her.’
“Hey, no matter how you look at it, suddenly trying to drag everyone down with you like a drowned ghost isn’t right! Especially since these two are Academy top students!”
While everyone else was speechless, only Silphy protested more and more vehemently. Even as silver blood not only dripped but began to flow, Perenustus calmly turned his body toward the two top students.
>”I believe you two understand.”
“ā¦ā¦Yes.”
“Yesssā¦.”
The pair of Academy top students answered reluctantly, looking very displeased.
>”Good. Now that Aurelia has a name, let’s formally introduce ourselves. This is our Academy’s top student, Leonas Hargpetar Yuleitanis.”
Perenustus pointed to the Emperor.
>’This one or that one, they all have names that are hard to memorize.’
Thinking I would probably never be able to memorize his full name, I looked at the man introduced as the Emperor, no, Leonas. Leonas smiled his habitual smile and gave a small nod.
>”And this is Vilatea Perniciosa Venisike.”
This time, Perenustus pointed to Adeline. Adeline, who had been hiding behind Leonas, stuck out only her head and greeted me with her eyes, just barely visible.
The name Adeline suited her much better.
>’Well, for a beauty like her, any name would probably suit her.’
When I waved my hand and said hello, Adeline snapped her head away and hid her body behind Leonas again.
Perenustus, who hadn’t seen that because he was busy restraining the thrashing Silphy, spoke to me as if giving a warning.
>”They’re both impeccable honor students, so Aurelia will have a lot to learn from them.”
“ā¦ā¦.”
>”My expectations for Aurelia are high. Just as my worries are great.”
I suddenly became curious.
“Ah, I see. Since you mention itā¦ What exactly do you expect from me? Shouldn’t you explain what the Comedy-Tragedy Total Quantity law is specifically?”
>”I think it’s still a bit early to give you that answer.”
Was he saying I was too lacking to have a high-level conversation?
Even though I hadn’t said it out loud, Perenustus blinked once as if to say, ‘How did you know?’
>”I hope this will be an opportunity for Aurelia to learn the pressure and responsibility of those who carry out their given roles, and I also hope for a thorough reflection.”
“ā¦ā¦.”
>”For honor students like Vilatea or Leonas, who grasp ten things when taught one, I explain ten times, a hundred times. But for Aurelia as she is now, no matter how long, detailed, or kindly I explain, it’s useless because she’s a bug. So I am presenting a learning process that matches her level.”
“Wowā¦ā¦.”
While I was speechless from sheer absurdity, Vilatea cautiously raised her hand.
“Professor, to be honest, I don’t understand this situation either. Leonas and I are at a really important time, about to graduate from the Academy. This Committee thing is a bitā¦”
Vilatea, closing her mouth just before harsh words came out, urgently signaled to Leonas. Judging that getting dragged into this wouldn’t be good for his future either, Leonas carefully suggested.
“Professor, instead of incorporating us into a Committee like this, what if we let Aurelia experience a trial class at the Academy?”
“A trial class?”
>”Yes. Think about my case.”
“Ahā¦ Vilatea is a student who transferred to this side after participating in a trial class at the Academy.”
Vilatea nodded eagerly, her face full of anticipation. Perenustus thought for a moment, then shook his head.
>”All of us here are people who have experienced Aurelia firsthand. As you know from experience, Aurelia is a very serious error.”
“Ah, calling me an error over and over again even though I’m standing right hereā¦ā¦.”
>”Just seeing that Aurelia’s entire village got contaminated proves she’s not normal. To be honest, I’m not even sure myself whether Aurelia is a controllable bug, or if deletion is the only answer.”
The word ‘deletion’ struck my ear like thunder as I was grumbling.
I instinctively understood. ‘Deletion’ meant that this man, who could arbitrarily send me to strange places and change locations in an instant, could also erase me entirely.
Goosebumps rose on my back.
Perenustus looked at me, clearly tense, with a strange expression, then continued speaking.
>”So I cannot send her to the Academy. I don’t even want to imagine what kind of disaster would happen if the students got contaminated. Leonas and Vilatea are competent, so I’m asking this favor because I’m confident they won’t be contaminated by this serious bug.”
He glanced at Silphy and sneered.
>”My expectations for you two are higher than for this idiot who was so helpless.”
“Hey! Calling your own alter ego an idiot!”
Silphy flared up. Again, Perenustus completely ignored Silphy.
>”Get me satisfactory data while working with Aurelia. Of course, I will reward you.”
“Rewardā¦ you sayā¦ā¦.”
>”Well, I’m thinking of assigning you to the world you want with 100% reflection. If you want to move to an entirely different genre, I’ll guarantee that too.”
Leonas’s eyes sparkled. Perenustus looked at Leonas, who had been easily hooked, then turned his body toward Vilatea.
>”Vilatea, you’ve already experienced it, haven’t you? How hard it is to move to a completely different genre. You know better than anyone that unless you get a chance like this one, it’s practically impossible.”
Vilatea and Leonas, their hearts swayed by the bait, looked at each other. The two model students’ deliberation was much shorter than I expected.
>”ā¦So, what should we do from now?”
It was Vilatea who spoke first.
Perenustus spread his hands as if he had expected that.
>”There are a few things I want to check as a top priority, so let’s all go to the place where Aurelia used to live. I’d be grateful if you could go and find out in detail what kind of books Aurelia got, how she got them, how much she read, and how much she understood.”
“Then is Aurelia returning to that world?”
>”No.”
Perenustus firmly shook his head at Leonas’s rather cautious question.
>”Since a major error has occurred in that world, it has been fixed until the cause analysis is complete. It’s a completely frozen world, so you can just go and observe carefully.”
Perenustus shoved Silphy, which he had been holding by the scruff of the neck, toward us.
>”You go too, Silphy, and check if there’s any possibility of your body being restored.”
“Huh? If I investigate properly, you can reattach my body?”
>”Go and find out whether it’s possible or not. Yourself.”
Perenustus checked his watch and spoke.
>”Any questions? If not, go nowā”
“I have a question!”
I raised my hand.
Having apparently thought there would be no questions, the four people including Perenustus showed bewilderment on their faces. Perenustus tilted his head as if to say, ‘Go ahead, tell me.’
Pointing at the sudden classroom-like scenery, I asked what I was really curious about.
>”When your own abilities are this great, why don’t you just go yourself?”
