Broken Possessors of Infinite Regression Academy

It was to be expected. With the Demon King gone, there was no way things would remain calm.
In the society of demons, where strength is power and might makes right, the position of ruler is something any powerful demon would covet.
I’m not sure if the Legion Commanders joined the fray, though.

“Do you have any guesses?” I asked, feigning ignorance.
Elysier’s disappearance was a top-secret matter that even demons wouldn’t dare discuss openly, so I had to pretend I knew nothing.

“I’m not sure,” replied the Sword Saint, shaking her head. “There are rumors of disagreements among the Legion Commanders, but the scale of the civil war is too widespread for that to be the only reason, and there are reports of significant demon casualties.”

“You mean to say that the number of deaths is too high to be attributed to mere disagreements?” I clarified.

“That’s my thought,” she said, “but we can’t completely rule out the possibility that they would go to such lengths to set a trap. Because the Demon King—”

The Sword Saint stopped mid-sentence, her mouth twisting as she clenched her teeth. Blood oozed from her lower lip, which had been pierced by her upper teeth. Beads of cold sweat formed on her forehead.

Her right arm trembled uncontrollably, and her left hand, which was trying to calm it, was also shaking more and more. It was clearly visible, as the sleeves of her clothes were not loose-fitting.

This was a sign that the Sword Saint’s trauma was acting up.

It was a familiar sight to me, as I had a similar trauma, albeit with a different target and degree. The difference was that I had tried to forget it, and had partially succeeded.

Because of this, I knew what to do to get out of this situation quickly. I gently grabbed her right hand, which was covered in cold sweat, and pulled it towards me.

The Sword Saint looked at me with a face drenched in cold sweat in that brief moment.

“What are you doing?”

“I find that this helps.” I learned this from Priscilla. She was a bit more forward with it, but I’m not going to do the same with the Sword Saint.

Her eyes, which seemed to be asking what I was talking about, turned to her captured right hand and then quickly filled with surprise. As I had said, the Sword Saint was no longer sweating or gritting her teeth in pain.

“Really? This… I’ve never felt this way before…” The Sword Saint, who had been fiddling with our joined hands in wonder that such a simple action could ease her pain, suddenly realized what she was doing and gave an embarrassed smile.

“…Was it that obvious, child?”

“You were biting your lip so hard it was about to bleed.” I said as I gently brought my fingers to her lips to confirm. When she saw the bright red blood on my fingertips, another embarrassed smile appeared on her face.

I brought my hand to her mouth and gently stroked it with healing magic. The torn lip healed instantly with a faint green light.

I released her hand after making sure she had calmed down. Her hand lingered as if reluctant to let go, then paused for a moment and slowly moved away.

“There must be a reason why the Demon King’s army is acting this way. The fact that you shared this with me means that you will explain it to me properly later, right?”

“…Yes. I also have other business here.”

“What other business?”

Just as I was about to ask the next question, a commotion erupted from where Ciel was. I looked over to see what was happening.

A male student, who seemed to be from a high-ranking noble family, was standing in front of Ciel with a few friends.

“Are you looking for a fight? Get lost. I don’t have time for your lowly antics.” Ciel said without even looking at them.

The male student slammed his hand on the desk. All eyes were instantly on them.

“You’re the one looking for a fight. Everyone here has worked hard to pass the entrance exam and earn their place in this Academy. But you? You got in just because you had someone to vouch for your identity and abilities. A special case like yours has never happened in the history of this Academy. Do you understand?”

“I know.”

“Yes. I can understand that much. If you’re that exceptional, I can somewhat understand. But why are you, a transfer student, blatantly disregarding us like this? Did I ask you to kneel on the ground or lower your gaze? I’m just asking for basic respect between classmates. Am I wrong?”

He wasn’t wrong. If we looked at the current situation in isolation, it was clear that Ciel’s attitude was inappropriate.

It was understandable that people would be upset if, on top of being the first special admission case in the history of Bellium Academy, Ciel also blatantly disregarded others.

“That’s surprising. I heard that this Academy is solely based on merit. I didn’t expect to hear such words here.”

However, that was assuming this wasn’t Bellium Academy.

“Then, what about you? Can you treat a commoner with lower grades than you like a fellow first-year student? If you can, go ahead and show me. There are a few people over there, so go and greet them with the same courtesy you would show a noble. If you do, I’ll acknowledge what you said.”

“… ”

“Can’t do it? I understand. You probably don’t want to treat a commoner with lower grades than you as an equal just because they’re in the same grade. I feel the same way. I don’t want to treat someone who is clearly inferior to me in every way as an equal just because they’re in the first grade too.”

It made sense. Since the person who brought it up didn’t treat all first-year students equally, Ciel now had a reason to stand by her attitude.

If Ciel had been able to do what she asked of the other student, she probably wouldn’t have reacted so sharply. She would have responded more gently.

“And if you don’t believe in my abilities, I clearly told you to come to the martial arts training ground after the afternoon class. I said I would be there all week to show you my skills. If you’re not here to just talk and you’re confident in your abilities, get lost. I’ll show you then.”

The male student who had started the argument had no counterargument, even though the logic was on his side. He quietly left, having put himself in a self-contradictory position because of his own actions.

The words “noble” and “commoner” meant nothing here. This was Bellium Academy, where, in extreme cases, a commoner could speak informally to a member of the royal family if their grades were higher.

After that incident, the area around Ciel became even more deserted. As a result, Karna’s reputation soared as she was the only one who could talk to other students without hesitation.

“She’s very confident in her abilities.” The Sword Saint, who had been observing the entire conversation between Ciel and the other student, smiled with interest.

“Yes, I can vouch for her.”

“Hmm… I see. But isn’t that insufficient?”

“What do you mean?”

“I think we haven’t had our second lesson yet since the first time we met… Am I correct?”

.

.

.

Fortunately, the ironic situation of the Demon King receiving instruction from the Sword Saint did not come to pass, as there was an even more urgent matter at hand.

“Me?”

“Yes. His Majesty the Emperor suggested that at the time of the counter-offensive, it would be beneficial to have the Saint boost the morale of the troops. After all, the Saint is a symbol of hope for humanity, just like the Hero.”

It was a request for the Saint to participate in the war.

“Of course, it is not mandatory. How dare we force someone chosen by God to do something so blasphemous? The healers will be in charge of the healing magic, so you won’t have to be on the front lines yourself. All you need to do is be a symbol of hope under the protection of the Royal Guard.”

“…So, I still have to leave the Academy, don’t I?”

“Yes.”

Rosalia glared at me, her eyes narrowed, after receiving confirmation.

‘You said nothing would happen.’

Her lips, filled with anger, formed the words. It was only natural for Rosalia to react this way, as it was my plan that led her to become the true Saint.

Rosalia, who was chosen as the Saint after performing a miracle, quickly resolved the religious conflict that arose when the church collapsed, but her own position also skyrocketed.

It was shocking news for Rosalia, who had intended to just pretend to be the Saint and do nothing.

‘I’m not completely blameless…’

I felt a sense of injustice. Who could have guessed that the Goddess would choose Rosalia as the Saint? The Goddess, who has been silent for days, despite my attempts to communicate with her.

However, I didn’t voice my thoughts. It was obvious that doing so would only make the situation worse, so why would I be crazy enough to do that?

“…Okay. But I have a condition.”

“What is it?”

Rosalia agreed more readily than expected. As I was thinking that this was unexpected, Rosalia looked at me and smiled slyly.

“Assign Mira Crate as my escort. That’s my condition.”

“… ”

So she wanted someone to accompany her. Rosalia gave me a ‘so what?’ look when our eyes met.

In fact, I had intended to take responsibility anyway. Whether intentional or not, it was technically my fault. The other side had taken the initiative, so it didn’t really matter now.

‘I’ll just think of it as taking a few days off.’

At least, dealing with the remnants of the Demon King’s army would be easier than memorizing the scope of the upcoming final exams.

With the Royal Guard present, even if a Legion Commander were to appear, I would be more concerned about how to make it look like I was just an ordinary student rather than how to capture them.

“When do we leave?”

“The Demon King’s army is constantly retreating, so it’s not certain, but I think it will be in about two weeks.”

“Two weeks… I understand.”

After receiving my confirmation, the Royal Guard, unbefitting of his position, bowed deeply to his waist and left with light steps. As soon as we were alone, Rosalia laughed like a villain.

“I’ll never die alone…! You’re coming with me…!”

“I know. I was going to take responsibility anyway.”

“Huh? Huh?”

“It’s kind of my fault that this happened, so I should take responsibility, right?”

“Well, you’re not wrong, but…”

Rosalia pouted and complained with a sullen face. It wasn’t the reaction she had expected.

Of course, she immediately cheered up when I smiled and ruffled her hair a few times.

.

.

.

And the very next day.

“Is this the second time? Come on, feel free to attack.”

We were facing the Sword Saint, who was holding a wooden sword. It was a huge improvement from the last sparring session where the Swordsaint had fought with a twig from the street or a teaspoon due to her trauma about the Demon King. Now, she was holding a wooden sword.

Everyone was surprised, but I had to hide my mixed feelings.

‘… It’s not because of me, is it?’

Of course not. Just because I held her hand to calm her down, it didn’t make sense for her to be able to hold a wooden sword now.

It was probably my overactive imagination.