Prophet (Not)
An old-fashioned room.
Bookshelves stretched wide like those in a study, packed tight with theology books.
The interior was spacious, simple, and free of unnecessary decoration.
It reflected the owner’s personality.
The headmaster’s office.
The room where the head of the academy stayed was nearly colorless.
Even as I stepped inside, I unconsciously held my breath.
“......”
An old man with graying hair sat there.
His body looked frail with age, but an overbearing force churned around him.
‘So this is... Valter Droit.’
His presence was overwhelming.
A chair had been placed across from his desk.
When I hesitated for a moment, the old man gestured for me to sit.
Our eyes met.
“Please, sit.”
“Yes.”
Only then did I take my seat.
Expressionless, he stared at me with deep eyes.
‘He kind of looks like her.’
Even without blood ties, maybe a father was still a father.
In that strange chill, I could see Javert in him.
Valter Droit.
A legend said he had snapped thousands of Cultists’ necks with his bare hands.
In inquisitorial circles, he was treated like a myth.
At the same time, he was the foster father who had raised Javert.
Going by the rumor spreading around the academy, that made him my future father-in-law.
“......”
I didn’t speak rashly.
After a long wait, the old man broke the flat silence.
A gentle smile rested on his old lips.
“Student Viktor?”
“Yes, Headmaster.”
“Good to see you. We briefly crossed paths when arrangements were made after that informant arrest.”
A soft tone.
Even with a mere student, he kept formal speech, rigidly polite.
“I think this is our first real conversation.”
“It’s an honor. I’ve heard your heroic stories until my ears wore out.”
“Heh heh, that’s embarrassing...”
Despite that overwhelming force, he seemed warm in his own way.
Of course, I couldn’t let appearances fool me.
This man was one of the strongest on the continent.
He was the one who had ended the war against the Cultists.
He had retired now, worn down by age, but he was still far from someone to underestimate.
“Ahem.”
Valter cleared his throat lightly.
Then he moved into the topic.
“Sorry for calling you so suddenly.”
“Not at all. It’s fine.”
“Do you know why you were called here?”
After a brief greeting, he went straight to the point.
Direct speech, as if he disliked roundabout talk.
Even that way of speaking resembled Javert.
Valter’s air quietly turned colder.
“Well...”
How was I supposed to explain this?
As I hesitated, the old man added a few words.
“Chief Investigator Javert.”
“......”
“I heard a rumor going around recently. That you and Chief Investigator Javert have a daughter around ten years old.”
“Uh...”
“I’d like an explanation.”
“Well, actually, Professor...”
“Surely you aren’t about to pin this on Javert.”
“......”
Something.
Yeah.
My spine went ice-cold.
‘Fuck.’
If I said one wrong thing, it felt like an orphan-maker punch was coming straight at me.
Our poor Lua.
She had barely gotten a dad, and now she was at risk of losing him again in days.
Even by International Non-Orphan Association standards, this was out.
If you were going to say someone had parents, they had to stay alive at their side until at least age three.
Forget three years, Lua hadn’t even made it three weeks, so her non-orphan career was no different from the countless actual orphans out there.
‘Mother...’
(Not RGM.)
Lua was on the verge of becoming an orphan.
Cold sweat ran down my face.
Valter was smiling, but his eyes weren’t.
That terrifying force pressed down on this poor almost-orphan.
“Even if she is only my foster daughter, she is precious to me.”
“......”
“When was it?”
He was asking when, roughly, I’d had a child.
The office grew even colder.
‘Fuck.’
I had never even been scolded by my own parents (because I didn’t have any), and now I was getting scolded by someone else’s parent in real time.
No, biologically speaking, Valter wasn’t even Javert’s father, was he?
I was just getting chewed out by someone.
All kinds of noisy thoughts swirled in my head.
I pulled myself together and slowly opened my mouth to explain.
“First, I should clear up the misunder...”
“I’m joking.”
Then,
a single line cut between my words.
“...Excuse me?”
I froze, and then I saw the smiling headmaster.
The grim force around him had already withdrawn.
The corners of his wrinkled mouth curved up.
Valter tilted his head as if telling me to relax.
“Please, relax.”
“Well...”
The mood had changed so abruptly.
As I sat there stiff and awkward, the old man laughed heartily.
“Even if I look this worn down, I’m still the head of this academy. There’s no way I’d believe such an absurd rumor.”
Valter went on.
“I’ve been with Javert since she was little. If she had met someone and had a child, there’s no way I, her father, wouldn’t know. From the look of it, this was just mischief from a few students who enjoy gossip.”
“......”
Fair enough.
It was strange.
If your daughter had a child, how could the father who raised her not know?
Even if it happened before she joined the academy staff, it made no sense.
“Unless... she somehow got into trouble without me knowing?”
“How could that be possible? Please spare my life.”
“Heh heh, I was joking to the end.”
“You’re more cheerful than I expected, Headmaster.”
“Thank you. I try to live that way as much as I can.”
Looks like I’d been used for his little amusement.
The old man laughed lightly, without being frivolous.
I had no choice but to let out a breath of relief.
‘You scared the hell out of me.’
I steadied my breathing, pretending I was fine.
Even with his force restrained, Valter’s presence was incredible.
In his prime, rumor said he stormed a Cultist Branch barehanded and came out after tearing every member limb from limb...
‘Yeah.’
Honestly, one brief glance was enough to make the two balls between my legs tremble.
Still, I couldn’t just fold here.
I lifted my chin instead, as if nothing was wrong.
Polite, but not meek.
“In that case... could you tell me your real reason for calling me here?”
“Oh, not a single sign of shrinking back.”
“Because I know you won’t harm me.”
“Hmm.”
Valter nodded, apparently satisfied.
Then he continued.
“I wanted to confirm something.”
“Confirm?”
“Javert... this is the first time that child has taken on an aide.”
“Come to think of it, she did say it was a first since she became faculty.”
“That’s right. I suggested it to her several times, but she’s terribly stubborn.”
“She is persistent. I feel there’s a lot to learn from that too.”
“As her father, that’s pleasant to hear.”
A gentle smile.
“A student chosen by that stubborn child. I wanted to speak with you once.”
“I’m not sure you can call it a choice.”
“I know. I heard there was a certain deal.”
“Sounds like Investigator Javert told you.”
“She tries to report everything. She values chain of command, rules, and discipline more than her life.”
Principles, discipline, order.
Javert had lived with a noose around her own neck.
“I heard you’re under suspicion from Javert.”
“That’s right. As the culprit behind the unauthorized clear of Purgatory Floor 70.”
“Purgatory Floor 70... quite the mystery case. The floor boss was found split in half, and no clues were found at the scene.”
“For some reason, she put me on the suspect list.”
“I’ll apologize on her behalf.”
The old man smiled awkwardly.
Then this was the moment.
“There’s something I should tell you about that.”
“Hmm?”
I spoke quietly.
“It was me.”
“...?”
“The unauthorized clear of Purgatory Floor 70.”
I dropped it out of nowhere.
A question mark seemed to rise over the old man’s head.
Then his old eyes slowly narrowed.
“I was the culprit.”
“......”
Silence settled in the headmaster’s office.
Valter’s atmosphere darkened.
His old lips smiled.
But it was cold, not kind.
“Ahem... is that some kind of joke that’s popular these days?”
“No. I mean exactly what I said.”
“I don’t understand why...”
“Should I show you proof?”
I reached into my clothes.
I pulled something out and set it on the desk.
Ding-!
[Contaminated Holy Water]
-Category: Accessory
-Grade: C-
-Status: Contaminated
-Description: A byproduct of holy water left over after purifying something. It no longer shines. Faint traces of undead and draconic energy seem to remain.
The scale I got after hunting the Floor 70 boss.
This was the holy water left over from purifying that scale.
As expected, it was soaked with traces matching the Undead Dragon.
It might not be enough to prove the clear itself, but it was more than enough to prove I had faced the Floor 70 boss.
‘That was enough right there.’
Floor 70 never opened unless it was cleared.
It would not open unless the raiding party was wiped out or the floor boss was hunted.
Under those conditions, if someone brought back traces of the boss and stood there alive, it could only mean one thing.
They had hunted the boss.
“......”
The old man was briefly speechless.
The puzzled look vanished, his eyes filling with shock.
Still, Valter steadied his breath, trying not to show it.
“...I didn’t expect you to confess with your own mouth.”
“I often move outside expectations.”
“I’m curious why you’re acting this way.”
“I simply didn’t want to make the academy my enemy.”
“Hmm.”
The old man’s force began climbing my shoulders again.
The air felt like the moment before a storm, sharp and unstable.
Valter asked in a straight voice.
“May I ask a few questions?”
“Of course.”
“I want to know your method. I also think highly of your combat ability, Student Viktor, but I didn’t think it was enough to butcher the Floor 70 boss like that. Were you hiding your strength at the academy? Or was it related to that unusual power you normally use?”
“I wasn’t hiding strength. I just used a little trick.”
“It seems you don’t intend to explain that trick.”
“That’s correct.”
“Then, your objective?”
“My objective.”
“I mean your objective in clearing Purgatory Floor 70. Surely you’re not saying you did it for no reason.”
“That would be ridiculous.”
I shrugged.
After thinking for a moment, I found the most fitting answer.
“You could call it world peace.”
“...?”
It might have sounded idiotic, but it was the core truth.
If Purgatory wasn’t cleared in advance, things would become very dangerous later.
I tapped my mask with my finger.
‘I came here lightly, but...’
Now that I had played my big card, this gamble couldn’t stop.
I hid my brightly twisted smile behind the mask.
I calmed my breathing.
I was getting ready to ram straight in.
“Headmaster.”
From here on out, this was an all-out lie.
From this point, I planned to trick the old veteran in front of me.
“I have one special ability.”
“An ability...?”
Valter’s eyes narrowed again.
After I showed the holy water, the force he gave off had changed completely.
A razor-thin stalemate.
One mistake and I could be subdued before I could do anything.
Still, without a hint of wavering, I kept talking.
“I can glimpse the future.”
The old man’s eyes wavered.
As if I had been waiting for that, I took off my mask meaningfully.
“Have you ever heard of a prophet?”
Alright.
Let’s see if I can pull the academy’s strongest man onto my side.
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