“And that is the report for this incident.”
“I see…”
Igaras.h.i.+ Toka was listening to the students’ reports in the meeting room. The content of the report was about the dark wolf. With the information regarding the injured being brought up, the conversation was about to come to an end.
“How are Tankun and Kato-kun faring?”
“They… are resting right now in the infirmary… Unfortunately, they will face some difficulties in their daily lives from now… After all, they no longer possess anything below their knees.”
The male student that was reporting had an expression that said that it was inevitable. The two students being mentioned were the duo that were caught up by the dark wolf’s “darkness” and had to be saved by Rikka. However, in exchange for their lives, they lost their legs. Even though they would’ve died otherwise, it wouldn’t be easy for them to organize their emotions.
“I understand. I’m grateful for your report.”
After thanking the student for his hard work, she dismissed him from the room. In the room where only the student council members were left, President Igaras.h.i.+ heaved a heavy sigh.
“You must be tired.”
The girl next to her acting as the secretary spoke up.
“Well, it would be a lie if I say otherwise. After all, I’m only human.”
4 days since the world changed. She hadn’t had any proper sleep. The overall command and operation of the school were being directed by the student council. Although minor decisions were left to those on the spot, the more important ones had to pa.s.s through her. Food, places to sleep, resources. There were so many things that had to be done. There wasn’t any leeway for rest. For the past few days, she was working to the point where it wouldn’t be strange for people without “Stress Tolerance” and “Fatigue Tolerance” to collapse.
(Even so…)
While organizing the reports from the students, President Igaras.h.i.+ pondered. It was about the attack from before.
(There are so many points that seem suspicious)
When all the reports were brought together, she noticed some peculiarities. The monster that appeared out of nowhere and disappeared abruptly like the wind. The fact that it was already injured before their battle. The fact that the monster fought alone despite being a species that moved in packs. The list went on.
(There are numerous possibilities. But most likely-)
While thinking, she heard a knock on the door. When she gave her permission to enter, a male student came in. He wore gla.s.ses and seemed serious.
“Excuse me, I have just returned.”
“Ara, Vice-President Miyamoto. Good work.”
“It was nothing troubling. On the other hand, President must be exhausted… What are those doc.u.ments?”
“They’re the reports about the recent a.s.sault. We’re organizing them right now.”
“Please leave things like that to people like me and her. I think you are working too much. Please take a break from time to time.”
Listening to Miyamoto, President Igaras.h.i.+ gave a small smile. After all, her secretary had said the same thing a moment ago. Did she appear exhausted from the outside?
“Fu fu, I’ll only accept your feelings. I’m fine. After all, I’ll be taking a proper break after this.”
“That’s a promise. It’ll be troublesome if something befalls you. To begin with, if we had subjugated that monster during this fight, there wouldn’t be a need to organize so many doc.u.ments and deal with the aftermaths. But that Nis.h.i.+no stopped me from doing so and disobeyed my orders… This is why delinquents are…”
“You don’t have to speak so badly of him. Despite his appearance, he’s a capable student.”
“President, you seem to expect much from him?”
Miyamoto openly made a face against Igaras.h.i.+ who defended Nis.h.i.+no.
“Well, I’ve known Nis.h.i.+no and Aisaka since middle school. Even then, he was pretty famous. He regularly scored first place in tests and was always serious and active. He was well liked by teachers during that time and no one in cla.s.s hated him.”
“…Is that true?”
Miyamoto showed an expression of disbelief. Igaras.h.i.+ laughed when she saw his face.
“Fufu, everyone has the same response… Speaking of which, Aisaksan’s looks also changed significantly. Back then, she wore gla.s.ses and had black hair… how nostalgic.”
“The past is the past. How is he now? It doesn’t change the fact that he is acting like a delinquent now.”
“Indeed, but I believe that he is just putting up appearances. After all, it isn’t so easy to change one’s nature. I’m sure that he’ll become a great ally in due time.”
“Tsu…! P-President! Are you trying to say that Nis.h.i.+no is better than I am? Impossible! Delinquents are people who only think for themselves! They’re at a different level from us who try to consider the wellbeing of everyone in the group. As proof of that, none of the people around him have good nature! We should chase them away as soon as -”
Miyamoto cried hysterically as if he had reached the limit of his patience. However,
“---Vice-President Miyamoto.”
Miyamoto trembled. Abruptly, the temperature in the room appeared to drop to absolute zero. Her tone was cold. Igaras.h.i.+’s eyebrows clearly indicated her displeasure.
“I will not tolerate any more comments that will hurt my friend’s reputation.”
“Tsu…. I-I apologize.”
Miyamoto obediently bowed. It was due to an overwhelming sense of intimidation that silenced all opposition. Seeing that, she gave a smile. Then, the tension in the air dispersed as if it never existed.
“You don’t have to be so worrisome. Just because I believe that Nis.h.i.+no is outstanding doesn’t mean that my trust in you will disappear. I’ll be depending on you from here on out as well.”
“President…”
Just with that, Miyamoto felt better. Realizing how easy it is to toy with him, Igaras.h.i.+ laughed inside her heart.
“Now then, let’s put this conversation on hold. We should get back to work. I have a request for you.”
“What is it?”
“Please gather some people to explore the school’s surrounding. It doesn’t matter how significant it is, so please look for anything that seems unnatural.”
“… By that, you mean?”
As he didn’t understand Igaras.h.i.+’s true intentions, Miyamoto asked.
“…I believe that the attack this time purposely induced by somebody.”
“Wh!?”
Her suspicion shocked Miyamoto and the other members of the student council. A sense of panic could be felt within the meeting room.
“Wh-what do you mean by that, President? The attack this time was purposely induced by somebody?”
Miyamoto repeated the statement in the form of a question.
“Yes, somebody is pulling the strings behind the monster… If we were to consider that possibility, a lot of the things would make more sense.”
“Im-impossible… for such a thing to…”
“Can you say that it’s impossible with confidence? That there aren’t any skills or occupations that would allow someone to control monsters? I’m not an expert in this field, but I’ve heard that jobs like that are a cla.s.sic in games.”
“That’s… but even so! If that is true, what was the goal!? What’s the point of ambus.h.i.+ng others by controlling monsters…!”
“There is meaning in that. ‘Experience’.”
“E….?”
“Humans are gaining experience by slaying monsters. Conversely speaking, doesn’t it make sense for monsters to gain experience by killing humans?”
“That’s… possible.”
“This is merely my speculation, but what if it’s possible for the controller of the monsters to gain a part of the experience earned by the monsters?”
By sending monsters to fight, the person in question could gain experience from a safe distance. If that hypothesis held true, then it would be a powerful method of leveling up. Of course, this is ignoring the fact that this type of strategy is considerably inhumane.
“What… then that means…”
Miyamoto realized the gravity of the situation.
“Certainly, there is most likely going to be another attack. That is precisely why I want some form of a countermeasure.”
“Understood. I will form a team centered around those that possess detection skills.”
“Please, I’ll leave it to you. If you see anyone acting suspiciously around school, please report back immediately.”
“Okay. Please excuse me then.”
Miyamoto performed a bow and left the student council meeting room. After distributing the works to other members, she was soon alone in the room. She was thinking in the room which was filled with silence.
(Now then, I should check within the school.)
Even though she pa.s.sed down orders a.s.suming that the culprit was an outsider, she believed more heavily in the other possibility. In other words, an enemy within the campus. In that case, everyone, including the members of the council, was a suspect. That was why she did not mentioned this in front of others.
(Truly, I don’t know who you are, but you have done something that is a pain to deal with.)
Was it an external enemy? Or was it a parasite within the system? Neither cases were easy to resolve. It was something beyond that.
(Ah, how disgusting. How repulsive. How truly unsightly. F*cking son of a b*tch. Under whose permission are you trying to lay a hand on my possessions?)
The feeling of anger rose up within her. Igaras.h.i.+ Toka was a ruler. She loved to subordinate others and raise them. It always excited her seeing others talking to her with deference. Just a few minutes ago, seeing that Nis.h.i.+no obey her words caused an indescribable sense of pleasure to run through her body. This school existed for her. This skill, the student council, the students, the evacuees, they all existed for her to rule over. She was willing to exhaust herself if that meant she could remain as the ruler. She believed that it was the natural responsibility of those at the top. And precisely because of that, she loathed seeing her subjects being targeted. Everything should be under her control. Loving them, enjoying them, hurting them. An unforgivable sinner had tainted this holy belief. It was absolutely impossible to forgive.
(One who controls monsters… “Monster Tamer” should be the phrase… I won’t allow you to achieve your goals. I’ll make sure I catch onto you.)
While the fire of rage continued to burn within Igaras.h.i.+ Toka, she thought of countermeasures for the future.