#43. Subject

“Hmm.”

I ran my best, but it seems I’m just slow.

The result? I was caught by the goon.

Damn it!

“When someone calls you, you’re supposed to answer, you know?!”

“How am I supposed to know who you are.”

Just being smart, and I get scolded.

This world really is unfair.

“So, who…”

Ah.

The moment I turn my head, I realize,

I really shouldn’t have been caught.

“Don’t tell me you don’t recognize me.”

Ivan Ward, completely wrapped in bandages, stood there.

“All of it, all of it…”

Ivan Ward shuddered for a moment, then began rattling off things I didn’t particularly want to hear.

“It’s all your fault. If it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t have ended up like this!”

“?”

“Expelled from the Academy, abandoned by my family… Damn it!”

What’s this guy even going on about?

I didn’t contribute at all to Ivan Ward ending up like this.

Wasn’t it all his own doing?

I picked at my ear.

“…”

Yeah.

Let’s just say that.

So what?

He says it’s my fault, but maybe he should have held back a bit?

Wasn’t cutting off Kevin’s arm your own choice in the first place? What a crybaby, for a grown adult…

──That’s what I wanted to say.

“Uh, yeah, alright.”

I swallowed the truth down, quiet.

*Can’t* exactly prove anything without equipment…Talking out of turn could get me in deep.

“Then, I’ll put in a good word.”

“Huh?”

“You said it was unfair, right? Since *we’re* the victims here, I’ll see if I can get that suspension lifted.”

Ivan’s eyes, just a moment ago burning with rage,

were different now. Just a normal, clear gaze.

He probably just needed someone to blame. I was just the perfect, unsuspecting target.

But I extended him a bit of grace. No reason to be angry anymore, of course he’d be back to normal.

“Y-You mean it?”

“Don’t believe me if you don’t want to.”

Ivan shook his head, frantic.

“Ah, no! If you’re offering, I’ll take it. Haha…”

“No thanks?”

“Thank you, really. You’re my savior…”

He said his family abandoned him, but, honestly, the thought of being cut from the family registry tugs at you, even for a b*stard.

I patted Ivan Ward on the shoulder a couple of times and walked away.

“Don’t follow me now~”

And just like that, I made it back, safe and sound.

Back, I immediately ran to Professor Cecil. And told her.

“Something happened earlier…”

The perpetrator sought revenge on the victim.

Anyone who pulls that is fundamentally a crazy son of a b*tch.

Ivan’s situation is unfortunate, but, frankly, not my problem.

I told her everything.

What?

Didn’t I promise to ease Ivan’s punishment?

Well…

That was a lie.

“Oh, and…”

*

The Ward family is one of the most powerful in the Empire.

The reason the organizers were tiptoeing around the Ward family, the reason Ivan Ward could still roam around after such a severe suspension, was all because of the family’s immense power.

Of course, they don’t have as much power as the Imperial Family.

Even the Ward family can’t refuse a direct order from the Imperial Palace.

Well, strictly speaking, “Ivan Ward’s free roaming” was less about the family’s power and more about the Imperial Family’s leniency.

A certain amount of courtesy shown to the family.

That’s where the problem arises.

“What in the world, what have you been *doing*!?”

Brought to the manor, Ivan Ward.

He arrived brimming with the expectation of regaining his father’s trust, only to have his cheek violently struck upon arrival.

He would have understood it instantly. That something was dreadfully amiss.

*Smack!*

“Ghk…!”

“Already causing trouble, and you go seeking out the victim yourself?”

All authority regarding Ivan Ward’s ‘extra-curricular punishment’ had been transferred to the Ward family.

At first glance, it might seem advantageous. Acquiring the right not to carry out the punishment at all, so to speak.

But as mentioned before, no matter how high the Ward family soared, they were ultimately beneath the Imperial Family.

To be told, “Handle it yourselves!” didn’t mean that they could actually handle it as they pleased.

It was both a gesture of leniency and a warning. If they did not impose a severe punishment themselves, the Ward family would squander even their remaining chances.

Therefore, the Ward family issued the following decree.

“Ivan Ward is forbidden from engaging in any political activities whatsoever.”

This implied the revocation of his claim to the succession, reflecting the Ward family’s intent to quietly raise their son.

It was the best course of action to preserve the limbs of their precious eldest son.

And Ivan did not abide by this measure.

The fool, consumed by delusions of persecution, committed the outrageous act of seeking out his victim directly.

Ivan possessed sufficient talent for magic, but lacked the intelligence needed to navigate life itself.

Anyway, as a result…

“Because of you, our family is now…!”

Raine Ortiz had reported every single transgression of Ivan Ward’s in excruciating detail, and this incident had reached the Emperor’s ears without delay.

The already precarious position of the Ward family swiftly eroded.

“Just what is so important about that boy…?”

“It matters not in the slightest what Raine Ortiz is. That one is simply, simply someone you must not provoke!”

“Ah, Father…”

“Why do you commit actions you cannot possibly take responsibility for!”

After all the drawn-out talk, it can be summarized succinctly.

The Ward family was now royally screwed.

*

After that, everything was quiet.

No further incidents occurred, and the exchange event concluded uneventfully.

No news of Ivan reached me.

I wasn’t particularly curious, so it didn’t bother me.

It felt like a net loss.

I hadn’t properly tested my equipment, and I was left with nothing but bothersome complications.

What was the point of the exchange event?

Lunia Academy had obtained the right to host the next exchange event.

Well, that’s good news. Hosting an exchange event is the utmost honor for an academy.

So, what about me?

Second-year students cannot participate in the exchange event. The right to host the exchange event that the academy obtained held no great merit for me, soon to be a second-year.

Of course, I expect the Academy to offer some sort of compensation. The problem is, whatever they give won’t mean a thing to me.

I contemplate it.

What have I gained from all this?

“Nothing.”

Coming all this way for nothing more than a childish quiz game and a pathetic little brawl.

Even that wasn’t properly organized, most likely due to the Pellet Academy’s complacency.

I was significantly disappointed.

The newly developed equipment. The newfound knowledge.

I firmly believed I could put them to good use, but in reality, nothing went as planned.

I can’t go back like this!

Before returning to the Lunia Academy, I desire to at least properly finish one test, whatever it may be.

So, what should I do?

Line up Kevin and Charlotte for a firepower test?

That’s a decent idea, but a slightly better option exists.

“You’re really going?”

Charlotte asked as I prepared to leave.

A voice tinged with concern. The prickly Charlotte I knew had noticeably softened, as if she’d grown fond of me.

“I have a lot of regrets.”

“Regrets?”

“Something like that. Departure is at three, right? I’ll be back before then.”

“That’s a given…”

The place I’m heading is a certain nobleman’s residence.

The Ward family’s mansion, belonging to the most powerful family in the Empire… *formerly*.

It’s just easier to resolve conflicts myself than to leave them to others.

That’s just my nature.

I’m easily bothered, but I’m not particularly fond of entrusting ‘tasks’ to others.

Call it a matter of trust…

Issues like this need to be settled face-to-face.

And there’s something to gain from the Ward family, too.

“I’ll be back soon.”

“…Alright.”

I took out the teleportation device I had created previously. This would get me to the Ward family’s mansion without wasting any time.

“Wow, extravagant.”

As the device activated, a mansion far larger than the Ortiz family’s appeared.

No, not appeared. It would be more accurate to say *I* moved.

I briefly considered calling someone out, but the guards didn’t seem like the type to be easily swayed.

You can’t meet a Duke that easily, after all.

Then…

“Looks like I’ll have to trespass…”

“Roughly… is that the office over there?”

I hazarded a guess at the location of the office, then shifted myself into the room.

Teleportation truly was convenient.

“Wh-who are you!?”

A stranger appearing out of thin air.

The middle-aged man, presumably Duke Ward, looked panicked, reaching for the guards.

I didn’t bother to stop him. It was all the same to me, whether he called them or not.

“Your Grace.”

“Guards!”

“I have something to discuss with you.”

“Who are you, I ask!!”

It’s only right to answer when asked, wouldn’t you agree?

From my subspace pocket, I produced a crumpled student ID.

“My name is Rein Ortiz. You know me, yes?”

Immediately, the Duke’s expression hardened.

“…What business brings you here?”

So, he *does* know me.

I was aware that the Imperial Family had been involved in the previous incident.

If I had to deduce the reason, it would probably be because of me.

And that’s when it struck me.

Could I possibly…use my existence to my advantage with these people?

“I have a request to make.”

“…Money? Is that it?”

“Hardly. Money like that, I could simply ask the Imperial Family for it and they would provide it.”

What I desired was singular.

Test subjects that were legal to acquire, but without having to go through a convoluted process.

The Ward family was the perfect prey.

“These days… you’re finding things difficult, yes? Your standing within the Empire is steadily dwindling. I can resolve this for you.”

“What do you want?”

I answered with a cheerful smile.

“I would simply like to borrow your son.”