Chapter 42: Summoning of the Council of Elders -2

“Come out for a moment, Silvia. Let’s talk, Mom and I, hmm?”

“What is there to talk about with Mom! I don’t want to hear it, so go away!”

Silvia’s single shout from inside her private dormitory room.

Chairman Forte, standing outside, could only look at the firmly closed door with a troubled expression.
She was trying her best to appease her angry daughter, but Silvia’s anger showed no signs of subsiding.

“Silvia, you were attacked by the Magic Eater, weren’t you? Let’s go to the infirmary to at least check your condition.”

Forte pleaded, knocking on the door again.

On her way back to the main building, she had been confronted by Silvia and had confessed the truth.

The Saintess and the next Hero, who had rushed to the scene after witnessing the explosion at the Coral Hall.
By the time she met them, her daughter had found out everything.

It was because Silvia had immediately pieced together the situation after hearing Anastasia’s passing remark about the recommendation for resignation before facing the Magic Eater.

Thanks to that, her disheartened daughter had immediately pulled away from Forte’s arm and run away.
In the end, she had to leave the aftermath to Professor Dolores and the board of directors’ members and follow her to the dormitory.

And since then, she had been desperately trying to get Silvia out of her room.

“I’ll explain to the professor so there’s no misunderstanding, okay? It was all Mom’s doing, and you had nothing to do with it…”

“Do you think she’ll believe you? If you were Professor Anastasia, would you believe that?!”

Of course, this time too, only her daughter’s anger returned.
Rather, click, she even locked another latch and shouted in anger.

“I already started off on the wrong foot because of my mistake! I was racking my brain to make up for it, to at least not be hated! Why did you have to interfere and do that! Waaah!”

Hearing her burst into tears, Forte clutched her aching chest and sighed.

‘Why on earth did I do that?’

She should have found out more about this Professor Anastasia before making a decision.
Not only had she committed a great discourtesy to a blameless professor, but she had also deeply hurt her only daughter.

‘I should have known when Dean Roakan personally appointed her.’

Although he was an eccentric and optimistic old man, Bardon Roakan had an unparalleled eye for distinguishing between jade and stone.
If he was the talent he had pushed for, it was natural that there would be no major flaws.

But she had acted recklessly just based on what was revealed on the surface.
Due to the fact that her opponent was a black mage and her only daughter’s unusual attitude, she had jumped to conclusions.

‘I should have judged and acted more carefully…’

It was also very unusual for Silvia to be so obsessed with a teacher.
As a mother, shouldn’t she have supported that bond instead of foolishly tearing them apart?

As she was rubbing her forehead with her right hand in belated regret.

“Madam Chairman!”

A board of directors’ member who had rushed from the other side of the corridor.
He was a direct subordinate she had sent to evacuate the students in relation to the Magic Eater’s appearance.

“What is it, Ferenc? Have all the students been evacuated? Although the Saintess has gone to join them, to prepare for any unforeseen circumstances…”

“Th-that’s not what’s important right now. A new report has just come in. Something much bigger than the Magic Eater has happened.”

“…What do you mean, Ferenc?”

Something big has happened? Even more serious than the Magic Eater incident?
Forte frowned at Ferenc’s incomprehensible remark.

Now that the Magic Eater has infiltrated the academy grounds, what other matter could be more important?

At the chairman’s hardened expression, Ferenc wiped his sweat and quickly reported.

“A report came in from a person from the Magic Tower via communication magic, Madam Chairman. The Council of Elders has made a move.”

“…The Council of Elders?”

Forte replied, biting her lip.

“Did they dispatch a special task force in relation to the Magic Eater subjugation? With the necessary magic tools and countermeasures to deal with it?”

The special task force, a direct force under the Magic Tower, composed of elite magicians with exceptional talent.
A historic legion personally founded by the great magician Medea of the Ruby Lake, who was a companion of the first Hero.

Weren’t they combat specialists who would be dispatched on the orders of the Council of Elders when an enemy threatening the Magic Tower appeared?

“W-well, that’s true, but… to be precise, the situation is different.”

But Ferenc did not give a clear answer to Forte’s question.
Rather, he just babbled on with words that made the situation even more confusing.

“Of course, the special task force did go to the Coral Hall area. But they didn’t come to catch the Magic Eater. They came with a completely different person as their target.”

“What have you been talking about since earlier, Ferenc? You know I don’t like it when you beat around the bush, right?”

She finally frowned at the incoherent nonsense.

“If the special task force didn’t come for the Magic Eater, then what did they come for? Are they going to sit there and eat popcorn while the witch’s experiment is on a rampage?”

“The Magic Eater is already dead, Madam Chairman.”

At that moment, Ferenc said something completely unexpected.

“The special task force has already confirmed the death of the magical beast. It seems Professor Anastasia and Her Highness the Saintess worked together to defeat it.”

“The Magic Eater… is dead? This quickly?”

Is that even possible? It hadn’t even been an hour since she had left her to deal with it.
Although she was a skilled person who could subdue a top-class combat golem in a single blow, her speed was unrealistically fast.

“No, wait. More than that.”

She was momentarily dazed by the unexpected news.
She opened her mouth to resolve the question that followed.

“If the Magic Eater is dead, then the special task force has no business here, right? What else did they come to the scene for?”

“Well, the Council of Elders wants to hold a hearing for Professor Anastasia. For killing the Magic Eater on her own, without consulting the special task force.”

“What did you say?”

“Isn’t one of the special task force’s jurisdictions the research of biological weapons related to the witch Altra? It seems they are taking issue with the fact that Professor Anastasia did not follow the established procedures.”

Her mouth fell open at the unexpected answer.

A terrifying monster that had suddenly appeared within the Klomes Academy.
Instead of praising the professor who had defeated it, they were going to use it as a pretext to summon her to the Magic Tower?
And even when she had risked her own life to fight it?

‘…What on earth is the Council of Elders thinking?’

Although it was absurd, upon reflection, it didn’t seem like a baseless whim.

‘Unless they have another motive, they wouldn’t use the name of the Council of Elders to make such an unreasonable demand.’

Although they used the noble name of the Council of Elders, in reality, they were a den of opportunists who would never move unless there was a clear benefit.
Although they were cooperative on the surface, to Chairman Forte of the academy, they were also the most dangerous political enemies.

Forte de Garcia, who had risen to the position of chairman at a young age with only her skills and determination.
Weren’t they the old, worn-out foxes who looked down on her arrogantly and urged her to become a puppet of the Council of Elders?

She felt a vague sense of unease at their sudden action.

Creak…

The firmly closed dormitory door slowly opened.
Then, peek, Silvia, with tear-stained purple hair, timidly poked her head out.

“S-Silvia? Are you feeling a little better now?”

Forte, inwardly relieved, smiled warmly.

“What was that just now?”

Silvia, her face hardened, looked back and forth between Forte and Ferenc and asked.

“Professor Anastasia… what happened to her?”

“How can this be? Instead of praising her for risking her life to stop the magical beast, you’re going to use it as a pretext to discuss her punishment?”

“This is the academy, not the Holy See, Your Highness. Klomes is fundamentally a facility under the Magic Tower that follows its regulations. We are just doing our job, so I would appreciate it if you did not interfere.”

“What did you say? Are you serious?”

Antiopea glared at the man in question, her anger flaring.

An ordinary person would have flinched in fear at her fierce gaze.
But perhaps because a rotten fish is still a fish, the commander of the special task force did not even blink and faced the Saintess confidently.

“I don’t know if you know this, but the handling of biological weapons related to the witch Altra is a matter that our special task force’s research team has exclusively handled for generations. This is also in accordance with the will of the great magician Medea, Your Highness.”

He spoke in a condescending tone, as if scolding a child.

“It is proper procedure to consult with us before dealing with a magical beast like the Magic Eater. Isn’t it a courtesy that should be shown to the special task force, which works tirelessly to prevent the return of the witch?”

“…”

“Since she proceeded with the killing arbitrarily, bypassing this, we have no choice but to hold her heavily responsible. It is no different from destroying a creature that should have been the property of the Magic Tower.”

“Property? Destruction? Is that the right expression to use for a monster that could have eaten the students? If the response had been a little late, there would have been casualties!”

“In the end, there were no casualties, were there? Then there’s no need to argue over it.”

She was at a loss for words, but the commander of the special task force did not budge.
He snorted lightly and retorted, glancing at the completely destroyed ruins of the Coral Hall.

“And even if there had been casualties, it would have been nothing more than a sacrifice for the greater good. If we could have captured the Magic Eater and studied it, we might have been able to save more lives, wouldn’t we?”

“…Ha!”

Thanks to whom were there no casualties?

She was well aware of the cunning of the Council of Elders.
One of the reasons she had decided to observe was to protect the naive Alber from those old foxes.

But she had never imagined that they would pick a fight over the subjugation of the Magic Eater.

Of course, since it took some time for the situation to be reported, it might be somewhat understandable.
After all, even a diligent firefighter can’t reach a fire scene in the blink of an eye.

But even so, shouldn’t they not show such a shameful attitude to the professor who had dealt with the magical beast on their behalf?

‘To accuse a person who has fulfilled her duty as an educator of a groundless crime.’

She wanted to punch that annoying face, but as he said, this was the academy, not the Holy See.
She couldn’t carelessly touch a person from the Magic Tower, so she was suppressing her anger.

“I have a question, you from the special task force.”

Anastasia, who had been silent, finally opened her mouth.
Crunch, crunch, she crushed the small candy and asked, looking at the commander of the special task force.

“You said you were going to hold a hearing for me, right? But is this a matter that has been discussed with the dean and the chairman in advance?”

“Discussed?”

Dietrich, the commander of the special task force, frowned slightly at the rookie professor’s insolent question.

“You are in a position to be summoned by the Council of Elders, Professor Anastasia. That means you are not in a position to argue. So just shut up and follow me quietly.”

The warlock, who was standing there with her hands in her pockets, glaring at him with her eyes wide open.

Dietrich replied coldly, looking at her as if she were an insignificant insect.
His annoyance was growing at the arrogance of the greenhorn who didn’t know her place.

But the greenhorn’s impudent question was not over yet.

“Well, didn’t you come to arrest me for violating the ‘principles’ of the Magic Tower? Then it’s only right that you follow the principles as well.”

“…What?”

“What’s wrong? I don’t think I’m wrong.”

At Dietrich’s question, the young warlock casually tucked her silver hair behind her ear.
The lollipop stick, with traces of having been chewed, she threw it on the dirt floor as if to show off and asked in an indifferent voice.

“Are you going to summon me for not following the procedures of the Magic Tower, but you’re going to completely ignore the internal procedures of the academy?”

…This impertinent b*tch.

“The Council of Elders is an organization that practically reigns over the academy, Professor Anastasia.”

He sighed, reminding her of the hierarchy that was common sense for anyone affiliated with the Magic Tower.
He knew she was a barbarian from an uncivilized country, but he was annoyed that he had to teach her even such an obvious fact.

“In other words, the will of the Council of Elders comes far before the authority of the dean and the chairman. Trivial formalities can be omitted as needed…”

“What a convenient principle. You only have to follow it when you want to.”

“What did you just say, Professor Anastasia?”

“I’m saying that before I violated the regulations, I was fulfilling my duty as a professor of Klomes, you from the special task force. I defeated the Magic Eater to protect the students, that’s all.”

Wondering if he had misheard, he glared at her, but the warlock just retorted with an impudent attitude and a sneer.
She looked at Dietrich and his subordinates and shot back calmly.

“You want to accuse me of ‘destruction of property’? At least proceed according to the academy’s procedures. If a summons doesn’t come through the dean, I have no intention of responding to the summons either.”

After finishing her words, the warlock narrowed her eyes and glared at Dietrich.
A declaration of war, filled with a very blatant refusal, came out of her mouth firmly.

“I am a foreign black mage who is only registered with the academy. A warlock from the far Northeast, with no connection to the Magic Tower whatsoever.”

“…We would prefer to handle this matter peacefully, Professor Anastasia.”

He gave a stern warning to the greenhorn whose pride was so high it pierced the sky.

“I know your black magic skills are excellent. But that doesn’t mean you’re invincible. If you don’t follow our orders meekly, we’ll have no choice but to use force.”

The information that the new black magic defense professor’s combat ability was excellent was widely spread within the Magic Tower.
But the elite magicians belonging to the special task force were also no different in their individual skills.

Of course, if they fought one-on-one, the warlock’s skills would be relatively superior.
After all, she had defeated the Magic Eater, the natural enemy of a white mage, without any prior preparation.

However, they were a large number, while the warlock in front of them was just a single person.
They were different from the special task force, who had practiced to create the ultimate synergy by working together, from the very beginning.

Crucially, wasn’t the special task force trained by a distinguished magician who was once renowned within the Magic Tower?

“Nathaniel of Sagittarius.”

Flinch.

Dietrich sneered, seeing the warlock’s eyelids twitch slightly.
As expected, even a black mage from the countryside could not be unaware of this famous name.

“If you’re a magician, you must have heard of him. All of us in the special task force have trained our combat magic to the extreme under him.”

An unparalleled genius who had awakened the unique spell of photon manipulation at a relatively young age.
Although he had refused to stay in the Magic Tower and had become a court magician, he was a respectable senior who had willingly trained his juniors at the request of the Council of Elders.

Unfortunately, he had died after failing to ascend to a higher rank, but wasn’t he still a legendary figure who was not forgotten in the Magic Tower’s Hall of Fame?

“So follow our instructions meekly before you get a big nosebleed, Professor Anastasia. Otherwise, we will immediately…”

“Pfft.”

It was at that moment.
The young warlock, who had maintained a calm, expressionless face all along.

A sharp sneer appeared on her lips in the shape of a crescent moon.

“So, you’re saying it’s no big deal?”