Mistaken for a Masked Munchkin

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Javert's lightning-fast rescue.

Thanks to that, every member of our group made it back safely.

Though we did all end up looking like soaked mice.

'Still, what a relief.'

Honestly, I had been a little scared.

Even if we called the faculty, there was no guarantee they would arrive in time.

In the worst case, I had even been considering drifting through the deep sea and holding out until support arrived.

Ding-!

-Category: Food

-Grade: B-

-Status: Sweet, Salty

-Description: A candy with a blue tint, as if modeled after the sea. When consumed, the user is granted the [Underwater Breathing] effect for 30 minutes. Its flavor is said to blend sweetness, saltiness, and the taste of the sea in harmony.

I had also put a candy in each of the kids' mouths.

The problem was that everyone's Stamina had bottomed out.

They were all exhausted, which would have made surviving in the ominous deep sea difficult.

So I had wondered if even I, the one in relatively decent shape, would have to push myself...

'She was fast.'

Less than five minutes after I operated the Crystal Orb, Javert had tracked us all the way to the bottom of the deep sea.

She appeared out of nowhere and hauled us up in an instant.

Immediately afterward, with her red hair streaming through the waves, we were shot up onto dry land.

Looking down at us, soaked to the bone, Javert handed us the towels she had prepared.

"Is anyone hurt?"

Her voice was so matter-of-fact it was almost dry.

And with that, our return ended successfully.

We had escaped the deep-sea field.

'It's over... really over.'

Only then could I catch my breath.

The kids were moved inside the cruise ship and treated by the school nurses.

Alice still had not regained consciousness, and Caitlin had collapsed from exhaustion after draining her mana to the limit.

Carmilla rested in my arms in bat form, and Ranne also had small wounds left from the fierce battle.

Since everyone had pushed themselves so hard, they were all told to take absolute rest.

"Mm."

I was tired too, but compared to the other group members, I still had some energy left.

Because of that, the faculty had no choice but to question me about what had happened.

I gladly cooperated with them.

If I had to explain anyway, it was better for me to shape the story first.

I had also given my group members a rough heads-up, so they would match their stories to mine on their own.

"...That was how we escaped, and Professor Javert happened to find us. That is all."

I explained what had happened in the deep sea step by step.

Naturally, I hid some things and made up others.

It would be troublesome if I blurted out even the parts that could put suspicion on me.

Just imagine saying that a monster several hundred meters long suddenly appeared, and I summoned an Apostle of the Evil God to tear it apart.

'I'd be put on the extermination list right away.'

Even I would have jumped and run.

So I had no choice but to give them only the edited version.

When I finished the story and sat there smiling, the woman on the sofa opposite me opened her mouth.

"...Student Viktor."

"Yes, Professor."

Red hair flowed down like burning leaves.

Between those petals, straight green eyes were staring at me.

'Javert.'

The Chief Investigator, and the woman I served as Direct Aide.

Right now, she was also the one questioning me.

I was facing her alone in a cruise ship cabin.

Aside from the two of us, there was not the slightest presence in the room.

"You said that during the tag activity, you were looking for a place to hide and jumped into the sea with your group members."

She paused, then continued.

"Immediately afterward, you were swept away by an unknown current. When you came to, you were in another space, and it turned out that place was a deep-sea Cultist Branch... Is that correct?"

"It is exactly as I told you."

"You found it, then. By chance."

"Yes, by chance."

Javert went through the procedure, confirming whether she had understood correctly.

I answered her with shameless agreement.

Her distinct green eyes sank a little deeper.

"And inside, a battle even broke out..."

"That is correct. As it happens, I have something to show you regarding that part."

Srrk.

I took something from my clothes and placed it on the table.

A Crystal Orb I personally carried around.

Beyond the transparent surface, part of the situation at the time had been recorded.

Of course, I had tampered with even this, so the angle would oddly slip away during the parts I wanted to hide.

[Kuuuuung-!]

[Fuck! These bastards never end...!]

[Something big is coming from behind!]

The footage only showed a fierce battle.

It was more than enough evidence to prove that we had clashed with the Cultists.

As usual, Javert stared at the flashing Crystal Orb screen for a long while with lifeless eyes.

"I heard that after several hours of battle, the space collapsed."

"It disappeared. It has become a space that no longer exists."

"In other words, there would be no point in the faculty searching for it."

"Unfortunately, yes."

"..."

Javert fell silent for a moment.

Her eyes were cold, as if deeply submerged.

"You are always like this, Student Viktor."

"Hm? What do you mean?"

"I mean that you seem to get caught up in strange incidents quite often. It happened during the practical as well. Were you not involved in a similar matter? Afterward, you even found the hidden informant among the faculty. And without stopping there, a similar incident happened again. This time during the School Trip."

"What an amazing coincidence."

"This incident was resolved too. Not only did no one die, there were not even any serious injuries."

"Is that not what you would call luck? Even after going through such a huge ordeal, everyone was able to stay safe."

"It is luck. Undeniably so. Unless all of it was an inevitability arranged by someone's hand."

"Oho. Who might you be pointing at?"

"You, Student Viktor."

Her distinct businesslike, direct way of speaking.

Cold thorns rose from her.

I quietly listened.

"You must know it yourself. There are far too many suspicious circumstances."

"I only told you what happened as it was."

"Have you perhaps forgotten? The Purgatory Floor 70 Unauthorized Clear Incident. I suspect you as the culprit in that matter, Student Viktor."

"Of course I know."

"Do you not think a situation like this will worsen those suspicions?"

"How could I not? I am terribly frightened. I heard the culprit will be killed on sight as soon as they are identified."

"You know well. That was the Headmaster's order. The culprit will not be arrested, but immediately executed."

Executed.

A faint pressure sat in that word.

But I answered without the slightest flinch.

The Jester Mask smiled broadly, creating an unknowable innocence.

"So?"

"...?"

Culprit.

Killed on sight.

Immediate.

Regulations.

"What will you do if I really am the culprit?"

"..."

"Will you kill me? Immediately. As regulations dictate."

"That is..."

"Which will you value more, Professor? Your student? Or regulations?"

"...Please restrain yourself from any further unnecessary jokes or idle chatter."

"What if it is not a joke?"

"..."

A cold silence formed.

She looked at me. I looked back at her. Her eyes were like deeply withered blades of grass, so I could not read what lay beyond them. To her, I must have looked the same. We stared at each other for a long while.

""...""

Was that death?

If I confessed the truth, would you clench your fist without hesitation?

With the hand that had saved me moments ago, would you pierce my chest and pull out my heart?

'I wonder.'

Would you shake off your hand as if nothing had happened?

Would you feel at ease after keeping the regulations?

Would you wear the same dry expression as always?

If so, when would you cry, and when would you live with regret?

Questions tangled in a complicated knot. Sharp tension scratched down my spine.

"..."

"...Pfft."

Just as the silence reached its peak.

As if I had planned it, I let out a small laugh and broke the tension.

The deathlike quiet loosened.

"It was a joke."

"..."

"I have told you several times now, haven't I? That this has nothing to do with me."

"..."

Javert stayed quietly silent.

Matching that silence, I rose from the sofa.

"I will be going now. I believe I have told you enough of what you needed to hear."

"...Yes."

Javert did not stop me.

Her expression was as inorganic as ever.

Only her eyes were darkly stained, as if clouded with thought.

"Hehe."

Satisfying.

It was the reaction I had wanted to draw out of her all along.

As I was about to leave the room, I suddenly remembered something and stopped in place.

"Ah... Come to think of it."

I almost forgot.

I turned toward Javert and asked the most important question.

"About this tag activity. How did the results turn out?"

"...?"

"Obviously, it was our group, right? First place."

"..."

What?

A man had to do what he had to do.

***

Back at the lodging.

Crushed by fatigue, I collapsed onto the bed.

The soft blanket wrapped around my body, as if soothing the hardships of the day.

"Ueeergh..."

My consciousness swayed along with my body.

It felt like if I closed my eyes now, I could knock out for about twelve hours straight.

But I forced strength into my eyelids and held on.

There was still one task left in this long day.

"Status window."

With that short call, a blue window colored my vision.

The contents I had been too busy to check appeared.

Several screens followed one after another, overlapping.

Ding-!

[Main Quest]

-Title: Calamity from the Deep Sea

-Objective: Infiltrate the Cultist Branch hidden in the deep sea.

[You have achieved a stunning feat, wiping out the branch!]

-Rewards will be distributed. Please check your status window.

Ding-!

[Chain Quest-01]

-Title: What Lies Buried Beneath

-Objective: Wipe out the Cultist Branch hidden in the deep sea. Defeat the deep-sea monster 'Leviathan (Project Leviathan).'

[You have killed the monster through an ingenious method!]

-Rewards will be distributed. Please check your status window.

Ding-!

[Chain Quest-02]

-Title: For All the Alices

-Objective: Defeat 'OZ,' the head of the Chimera Project belonging to the Cultists.

[Through outstanding combat prowess, you have defeated the target (clone)!]

-Rewards will be distributed. Please check your status window.

Ding-!

[Sub Quest]

-Title: Catch Me If You Can!

-Objective: Become the group that survives until the very end of the tag game.

[Through agile strategy, you have led your group to victory!]

-Rewards will be distributed. Please check your status window.

Ding-!

[Hidden Quest completed.]

-Title: Ruler of Evil

-Objective: Offer sacrifices and summon an Apostle of the Evil God once. Win one battle through appropriate command.

[You have achieved an impossible feat!]

-Special rewards will be distributed. Please check your status window.

Now.

Shall we open some rewards?

===

It is Rin and Lua.

That was the swimsuit illustration.

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