“Kazhan…...!”Simon’s eyes welled up with emotion.At this moment, pushed to the brink mentally, the mere fact that there was someone who knew the truth and unconditionally believed him felt incredibly grateful.“First, let me confirm.”Kazhan spoke.“The Priest is Professor Francesca, right?”Simon quickly composed himself and nodded.“Yes.”“Understood. To share the information I’ve gathered first, her barrier is effective across the entire first-year campus.”Kazhan pulled out several detection devices from his subspace.“I tried to contact Neptis-nim with the communication crystal ball, but it was blocked, of course. Once the barrier is fully deployed, it will completely cut off not only communication but also external contact.”Kazhan’s eyes turned back to Simon.“The opponent is a professor-level, and she’s been preparing this barrier for at least several years. It won’t be easily destroyed even if other professors come.”Simon nodded.“What’s the range?”“At a minimum, it encompasses the entire Kizen first-year campus. Her plan must be to completely annihilate over 900 first-year students.”……The thought alone was horrifying.A terrorist attack to kill all first-year students. This was more than just a numerical blow, eliminating the talents who would lead the Dark Alliance in the future.Kizen’s reputation would plummet, and its absolute dominance would be questioned.Nobles of the Alliance, who had lost their children in vain, would rage in fury, and the Alliance would be torn apart by anti-Kizen factions gaining power. Neutral forces, who had been watching, would also shift towards Efnel, and Neptis, blinded by rage, would not hesitate to wage an all-out war with the Divine Federation.This matter could escalate into a full-blown war.Simon felt a heavy weight on his shoulders.“I’ll explain.”Just as Simon was about to begin his story.“Simon!”Kamibarez was coming down the stairs. Mei-rin and Dick followed behind her.“Kami! Why haven’t you left yet?”Simon asked, flustered. She walked up to Simon, her hands clasped tightly, her eyes firm.“The morning after we met the Priest in the Forbidden Forest, remember what I told you?”Simon flinched.“I promised to cooperate with Simon too! Please, let me help.”Simon said with a stern face.“But this is too dangerous…...!”“Oh, shut up! You’re really making people upset, you know?”Mei-rin strode forward, her sky-blue hair fluttering.“Why did you hide such an important matter from us?”“Right, right. This is a bit of a blow to our pride.”Dick followed behind, his arms propped behind his head.“Dick…...!”“I didn’t want to involve you. I understand that sentiment.”Dick grinned.“But what can we do? Kami told us everything, and we’re dying to get involved!”“Just shut up and tell us, Simon.”Mei-rin stepped closer, poking her head right in front of his face.“Who is the Priest, and what are they plotting in Kizen right now?!”“.......”Simon looked back at Kazhan with a hesitant expression. Kazhan nodded.“We were short on hands anyway. Since the Priest’s evil grasp has reached Kizen, everyone is involved one way or another. Here, having allies who believe you is a stroke of luck.”“Of course!”Simon sighed softly and quickly explained the whole situation. He spoke so frantically that he wasn’t sure if they were properly understanding him, but he focused on conveying the information as much as possible.“Professor Francesca…...!”Kamibarez was utterly shocked, her expression blank. Mei-rin clicked her tongue.“I knew it. I somehow felt that woman was a bit sinister.”“Who was it that cried their eyes out listening to her speech a few hours ago?”“Shut up!”Are they really believing all of this?Simon felt a slight warmth in his chest. Putting everything else aside, he felt that his time at Kizen hadn’t been in vain.“I will supplement with my knowledge.”Kazhan spoke.“I’ve been tracking Priests for a long time, and I’ve been operating with all professors and teaching assistants as suspects. Naturally, I’ve prepared for the possibility of Francesca being the Priest.”“Ah…...!”“And considering Simon’s description of the explosion in his story, it’s definitely a ‘Desolater’ curse bomb.”“Curse bomb?”“That’s right. The Deathland you recently visited.”Kazhan’s eyes gleamed.“It’s the same kind that turned Deathland into what it is.”Everyone gasped in horror.So the Priest intended to detonate that dangerous curse bomb in the middle of Kizen? If that happened, not only would students be blown up, but those lucky enough to survive the explosion would turn into zombies.Dick interjected again.“How did Francesca get her hands on such a dangerous weapon?”“The Desolater is stored in the basement of this building, in the ‘Secret Hazardous Material Vault’. Only Kizen’s Toxicology professor and Neptis-nim can enter. It’s highly likely she killed Lang to become the Toxicology professor herself.”It matched Simon’s conjecture exactly.The three of them trembled at the grim truth. To think that her appearance of caring so deeply for Lang was all an act, all hypocrisy.“Simon. Do you clearly remember where the explosions occurred, and how many times?”“Yes, Kazhan.”Simon’s eyes shone intelligently.“In order of explosion: Magic Bullet Firing Range, Magic Technology Hall, First-Year Male Dormitory, and the Learning Center.”“She spread them out quite well.”Kazhan looked back at the three.“You guys will have to stop the bombs. This is a matter of life and death. If your resolve isn’t strong enough, just escape before the barrier fully deploys…...”“I’ll go to the male dormitory.”Dick replied before Kazhan could finish.“I guess I’ll go to the Magic Technology Hall. My club members are there too.”Mei-rin said.“I-I’ll go to the Magic Bullet Firing Range!”Kamibarez said. Kazhan nodded.“Good, decisive. Disarming the Desolater’s magic circle is beyond your level. So use a simpler method. Put the Desolater into your subspace.”“Huh?”“I’ve confirmed that Kizen’s Desolater is activated by an ignition magic circle. If you put it in a personal dimension like a subspace, the ignition command will be completely nullified.”Dick looked at Simon with a bewildered expression, pointing at Kazhan. It was a question of who this person was.Kazhan cleared his throat and said.“I’m from the Thieves’ Guild.”“......Wow, no wonder!”No wonder he felt so familiar; he was a student from the same information-related field.Then Mei-rin smirked.“There’s a superior version here~”“W-What are you talking about! Hey, in the end, merchants win. The Information Guild sells information for money.”“Enough chatter, take these.”Kazhan pulled out the very same glasses Simon had used from his subspace and handed them to everyone.“If the explosion happens in just two hours, she’s likely already set up the Desolater. She’s undoubtedly hidden them with illusion magic or something similar. If you wear these glasses, you can nullify the illusion and see them.”Mei-rin took them, put them on, and grumbled.“I felt it earlier too, but why is the design so tacky?”“Mei-rin, Kazhan is a repeat student.”“You’re so handsome, Senior!”She quickly changed her attitude.“That’s enough. Just call me Kazhan. We don’t have much time, so move quickly.”“Yes!”The three of them each took one location, and whoever finished first would go to the Learning Center.Then Simon and Kazhan descended the basement stairs together.Thump.Tap.Since it was Erebos’ Night, all the lights were off, giving the basement a perpetually gloomy atmosphere. The two moved quietly.“Until all the Desolaters are neutralized, we must absolutely avoid engaging Francesca.”Kazhan said, handing him mana-powered night vision goggles.“If she ignites the bombs, a catastrophe will occur. Until your friends put the bombs in their subspaces, you must focus on tailing her as much as possible.”“Understood.”The two successfully passed through the basement and arrived at their destination.A large, firmly closed door was visible. It looked less like a room and more like an air-raid shelter.“She seems to have already gone inside.”Kazhan sprayed something on the floor to check for footprints and then spoke.“We don’t have much time.”Simon bit his lip.“Just waiting here for Francesca to come out is a waste of time for both of us.”“I agree. I’ll wait here and tail her when she comes out. You collect information from Lang’s research lab on the top floor of this building, then rendezvous with Pier.”“Yes.”Without the Legion’s power, Simon wouldn’t be much help if a confrontation with Francesca occurred. As Kazhan said, joining Pier was the top priority.Having made his decision, Simon quickly ran up the stairs.First, he stopped by Lang’s research lab on the 4th floor of the building.Since the door was locked, he opened a window in the hallway and used Overlord to create a temporary foothold on the wall. He walked along it, then smashed the window and entered.Crash!Simon landed lightly and looked around.For a Kizen professor’s research lab, there was nothing particularly grand. Only documents, books, and a bed; it was more like a study or a lounge than a research lab. It seemed he had lived and slept here until his death.Simon frantically pulled open the drawers in the lab.‘Professor Lang was likely controlled by Francesca.’He had heard that Lang’s health was normal three years ago.Since his health had severely deteriorated over the past two years, Francesca must have done something during that time.‘If there are any traces left…...’Simon, who had been rummaging through the drawers, stopped moving. Then he sharply turned his head.Squish, squish.A green slime popped out from behind a picture frame. Simon watched it with a slightly tense expression, backing away.The slime seemed shy, reluctant to come out from behind the frame.Then a hole opened in the middle of the slime, and it transformed into the shape of a tongue and mouth.[Prêtre]It spoke!It was a very difficult pronunciation, but it sounded like ‘Priest’. It also had a slight nuance from the Baldwin Kingdom in the Far East.Simon cleared his throat and replied in the same accent.[Francêsca.]Then.The slime’s mouth opened wide, and it spat out two items from inside.One was a notebook.And the other was Lang’s professor ID.“......!”Simon put the professor ID in his inner pocket and quickly opened the notebook.‘He left something like this?’It was Lang’s diary.
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