The Villainess Whom I Had Served for 13 Years Has Fallen - Chapter 418



418 – On Repentance. -1-

Darkness settling in the room.

Finished with lessons, I was, scribbling notes, the flickering lamplight my only company.

[Special Class Observation Log.]

To grasp the currents of these students, growin’ each day, writin’ it all down was damn near essential.

Already ten days gone since the classes began. No real leaps forward, but we’re breakin’ ’em out of their molds, so no need to rush things.

Plan on makin’ ’em feel the growth real soon, through a formidable foe.

“Haaa…”

-Knock. Knock. Knock.

“Yeah, come on in.”

Hans, just back from his own lessons, came in with steam risin’ off a tray holdin’ tea and some small treats.

“Saintess.”

“Oh, Hans.”

“Didn’t think you’d had anything to eat, so I brought some simple refreshments.”

“You shouldn’t have bothered….”

Hans must be tired too, just finished his own classes…why’d he bring all this? Still, feelin’ kinda good about it, I gave him a small smile. My mouth was feelin’ kinda empty anyway.

“Another hard day done, eh?”

“It’s nothin’.”

“Haha.”

I took in the aroma of the tea Hans offered, asking quietly. It was a familiar scent.

“Is this… mandrake tea?”

“Yes, that’s right. I brought it because they say it’s good for relieving fatigue.”

“Ah.”

I really don’t like mandrake…

I had to keep my expression in check in front of Hans, but it was a tea leaf I’d had so much, I just didn’t feel like it. I’d drunk it countless times while modifying Malik and mandrake.

-Try this one too.

-If I eat any more, I’ll turn into a mandrake-human.

-Eat it. It’s good for you.

-Why don’t you try some too, Boss?

-Ahem…

Hans, noticing the subtle change in my expression, looked at me and voiced his concern in a low voice.

“I apologize. I will bring out a different tea.”

“No, it’s fine. I’ve just had too much, haha… I’ll just drink this.”

“I will brew you a different tea next time.”

“Thank you for your consideration.”

-Slurp…

He really doesn’t need to be so formal.

Hans’ stiff, formal demeanor made me let out a short, hollow laugh, then I leaned back in my chair, enjoying the moment of ease. If I said anything, he’d surely say he didn’t want to show a dishevelled form before ‘God’.

“Busy, you are.”

“They are…friends of strong character, you see.”

“Haha…makes it all the more interesting, I suppose.”

For someone aiming at being a bum, he moved around plenty, fatigue bound to pile up. Though, truth be told, a Sword Master’s body wouldn’t accumulate even a smidge of weariness, but the fatigue of a slacker who liked to loaf was another story entirely.

“Tired, this one is.”

I let out a short grumble, eyes flicking to the clock on the wall. One o’clock already, and still no sign of Elisia?

“Lady Elisia, has she not arrived yet?”

“No, today she said she was off to hunt a Death Knight.”

“Ah, off to hunt a Death Knight, is she… Wait?! A Death…Knight? Are you speaking of the third-class monster?”

“Haha…that is correct. I too was quite surprised to hear it, but Lady Elisia hasn’t been fainting as often lately, so she thought she might be able to manage it.”

“Haha…”

Just the healing arts students and a Death Knight subjugation? Elisia’s eccentricities, a ripple of their own, had me clicking my tongue in disbelief. No matter how favorable the matchups, taking down a Death Knight with only students was madness.

“That means she’s grown that much, I reckon.”

Hans shook his head slightly at my exclamation of wonder.

“Haha…I honestly wouldn’t know.”

Honestly, I don’t know either.

“And what might you be teaching these days, Hans-nim?”

“Lately, we’ve been tackling the Stonehide Troll.”

“…You mean the troll with skin like rock?”

“Yes.”

“That… isn’t that a troll resistant to magic? I heard even seasoned mages have a hard time with them.”

“And doing so well without even fainting…”

“…”

This one seemed like a tough cookie, too.

Hans looked at me, asking what a saint like *me* was teaching.

“I… teach Acnegoblins…”

“…The goblin-spider hybrid…?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“Haha… is that even possible for students to manage?”

“Seeing as *he* doesn’t faint, I’d say it’s possible.”

Hans wore the same expression I’d worn just moments before and shook his head. He must be thinking the same thing as me.

“Haha…!”

“Hahaha!!”

We let out awkward laughs and gulped down our tea. No matter how you looked at it, it *had* to be that teacher from that group.

“Still, he’s late today.”

We’d finished lessons together the first day, coordinating our pace. But after that, hardly ever did we finish at the same time. Each of us had their own way of teaching.

If I came in early, Hans would come in late.

Conversely, there were days when everyone came in early, and *I* wasn’t there. We were used to it by now.

“The healing faculty students must have a lot to say.”

“Haha… if *I* were a student, I’d want to avoid Lady Alicia.”

“Me too, same here.”

“Haha…”

Not a lie, it really was scary.

Anyway.

Relishing the long-awaited rest, I quietly asked Hans how his classes were going. Ruin must be interfering, I wondered if he was having any difficulties, that’s what I asked Hans.

“It’s alright.”

Hans spat out the short reply and continued.

“Ruin, who I thought would ruin the class atmosphere, seems to have given up and is keeping up well, and the other students are matching pace and keeping up too. I was also surprised when he came back from being thrown into the Orc cave without being seriously injured.”

“Unexpected for a greenhorn. I thought he’d throw a tantrum.”

“Haha… It got quiet after I left him alone in an Orc cave with, shall we say, particular tastes. Of course, I put up a barrier.”

“…?”

For some reason, a familiar image popped into my head. A zoo, watching alligators in cages, that’s what it was.

-Uwaaah!!! Fucking! Fucking!!

-Hey…hey!!! Those b*stards’ eyes look weird!

-Hey… seriously… seriously…!!!

Hans, who had gifted Ruin with a cruel memory, gave a small laugh and muttered to himself, clearly pleased.

“Turns out I’m quite suited to teaching.”

“…”

“I think Ruin understands my heart too.”

“Haha…”

Hans, with a quiet smile playing on his lips, cautiously posed the question that haunted every teacher. For a master, boasting about their disciples was a common thread of conversation, after all.

“Master, which student do you believe is most likely to achieve the greatest accomplishment?”

“Hmm?”

“Haha… The atmosphere amongst the Magic Faculty students these days is quite unusual, you see.”

“For you to say that… it means you already have a student in mind, no?”

“I’ll speak after hearing your answer, Master. It feels rather presumptuous, and I’m a little shy to go first.”

“Haha… I…”

I returned Hans’ smile with a small one of my own, then gazed into the flickering lamplight, lost in thought. They were all progressing so well, it was hard to distinguish one from the other.

Hannah was working diligently in her own way.

Mikhail, being exceptionally talented, was certainly showcasing the aura of a protagonist.

Malik was, without a doubt, perfect.

Rohan and Luke were… well…

Ah.

I recalled the student who had been showing frightening growth lately, and said to Hans,

“The student I believe most likely to achieve the greatest accomplishment is ‘Baylin’.”

“Bay…lin?”

“Yes.”

Lost in silent contemplation, Hans finally let out a small chuckle, recalling their first encounter and remarking,

“You mean that friend, the one with practically no presence?”

“Yes, that’s correct.”

“Baylin… To be honest, I was surprised too, how little presence that friend has. Like cursed, his presence was just so…thin.”

“You felt that too, Hans?”

“Yes, it was unsettling.”

It was a family trait, even.

Baylin’s family, even the parents, their presence was so faint they were used for comic relief in the novel.

-…

-…

-Eek! How long have you been there!?

Yuria’s flustered expression was described in the novel, I remembered it.

I smiled faintly and said,

“The student who seems poised for the greatest growth is Baylin. And the student who will likely undergo the biggest change is Histahnia Hanna. Such extraordinary talent, you see.”

“I thought so too.”

Hans nodded, smiling. Now it was his turn to answer a question.

“Who does the Saint-sama believe to be the Magic Department’s greatest ace?”

“Oh… a quiz?”

“Haha, indeed.”

I smiled faintly, lost in thought. These kinds of quizzes weren’t bad.

Should I say Ruin, the Magic Department’s pride, who had nearly as much screen time as the protagonist in the novel? Or maybe Shartia, blessed with royal blood?

Neither, probably.

There was a genius who never got to shine in the novel.

A small smile touched my lips as I spoke to Hans. Seemed like, when I thought about a suitable talent, nobody else quite fit the bill.

“Tetra Schoen.”

“How did you know?”

“I thought so.”

“I figured the Saint would say Princess Chartia, or maybe Ruin.”

I gave a small nod, addressing Hans. Geniuses with exceptional magical talent always had something… off about them.

“I actually know another genius, just like you, Schoen.”

“…The Saintess, perhaps?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

Hans shuddered, remembering Olivia’s might from back at the Academy.

“The Saintess is truly a monster, isn’t she.”

The talent Olivia displayed at the Academy was beyond anything any other mage could achieve.

“If the Saintess had continued her research into magic, she would have become an even bigger monster.”

“Probably. Even if she couldn’t reach Grand Mage status, she could probably take on several archbishops alone.”

“Haha…”

Hans shivered, forcing an awkward smile.

“I know it well, having been thoroughly crushed in a mock battle.”

After about ten minutes had passed, Hans glanced at me, then asked in a low voice.

“Um… Saint.”

“Yes?”

Hans, gripping his teacup, endlessly raised and lowered his head. He couldn’t keep his lips still, like a man struggling to voice something difficult.

I spoke to Hans.

“Speak comfortably.”

Don’t worry, speak comfortably.

“Unless you’re asking me to introduce you to a woman, you can speak comfortably.”

“…That is…”

“Yes?”

-Squeeze.-

“…I want to give Ruin his magic back.”

The unexpected question brought an awkward smile to my face.

“…Hmm.”

This needed thinking over.