Published at 10th of July 2019 11:00 am

Chapter 271: Side chapter - Rimuru’s Elegant Escape Play - 22

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The day finally came.

And we were fully prepared.

Even the poison tiger looked enthusiastic about it. If things went according to plan, victory will not be too difficult to attain.

Of course, I myself wasn’t going to fight. So I would just be cheering them on.

“Master, will we be able to win?”

I answered these anxious questions without hesitation.

“How should I know!”

Yes.

Will we be able to win? Are they still thinking in such weak terms?

It’s not about questioning yourself. We’ll win! That’s the kind of intensity you needed…

“Don’t worry. We will win!”

“Yes, Julius is right. Do what you have to do and don’t think about anything else. If everyone fulfils their roles, we will surely be victorious!”

Oh, Julius and Karma. You guys do say such good things sometimes.

Yes, that was exactly right.

Just give it a try. If it doesn’t work, then we’ll think about it when the time comes.

We won’t have a chance of winning if we’ve given up before even starting.

“Exactly! It seems like Julius and Karma really understand it. Well, just give it your all. I and the other teachers will be watching!”

“Yes!”

“Yes!”

“Yes!”

Perhaps those words encouraged them, because all of the hesitation and worry seemed to disappear from the students.

They would be fine if they could continue like that.

Still, Julius and Karma were two people that thought very differently, and yet they had come a lot closer than I would have expected.

One of them was a noble. And a royal heir.

The other was the son of a soldier. A beastkin, who are connected with monsters.

They stood in very different positions, but they helped each other unpretentiously.

This fact alone showed that this survival training had worked.

Create a dangerous situation and expose the true nature of people.

It was a drastic form of treatment, but it had succeeded this time.

In this world now, beastkin were a part of humanity.

Even goblins and orcs were part of a group known as demi-humans, who were in the same group.

And yet, there was still a strong, deep-rooted prejudice there.

It would be hard to be rid of it completely, but I always thought that children could overcome this barrier known as prejudice with ease.

No, perhaps it was still difficult.

It took a lot of time to change the way people think, and it was better to do it slowly.

You can tell someone to start liking someone they hate, but they won’t come around to it so easily.

However, I did feel that if you ignored the opinions of adults, and relied only on your own eyes, ears and experience to judge others, you would have a surprisingly different way of looking at people.

You would be able to see things more honestly…but maybe I was just being idealistic.

Well, there was no point in forcing it, as irritating as it was.

When you become an adult, you are exposed to the harshness and waves of injustices in the world.

And so I wanted their time as students, at least, to be a time where they could live with fairness without being affected by birth or race.

During this time, your personal abilities and determination was everything—that was how things should be.

Equality and fairness were not the same.

People are not born equal.

It was not possible for everyone to be the same when they varied in gender or abilities. Once you add circumstances such as parents and the countries policy, things become even worse.

We should eliminate inequality as much as is possible. Adults should help children and be as fair and accurate as possible when evaluating the students.

It wasn’t about giving everyone first-prize in order to be equal. Every student should be looked at individually and treated correctly based on that.

And so, in this special school environment, I had decided that the symbol of adulthood that is the states expectations, should have no reach here…

And yet these ‘Humanity Emancipation Alliance’ people have challenged this right to my face. They must really want to die.

Even I had to make compromises instead of pushing my beliefs onto others. How could they be so selfish?

To bring in their differences in class into a space that is supposed to be fair… It was a violation that could never be forgiven.

I would have to think about how we would handle this in the future, as well as a punishment for Magnus. At the very least, something will have to be done to make them stop influencing the school.

I had hoped that the graduates of the school would become teachers to take charge of the next generation, but that made this early part all the more important.

This was something that required serious thought.

In any case. Magnus had to be dealt with now.

I looked at Julius, Karma and the other students and smiled. Just then, the magic circle that Magnus and the others had set up began to glow.

It seemed that they had come, just like they said they would.

And since they came all the way here, they deserved the warmest welcome.

Now, how would it go down?

Well, I guess I would relax and watch this fight with the students until the end.

◇◇◇

Julius and Karma stood in the front as they greeted Magnus and the others.

Magnus saw them and his eyes bulged.

The people he had thought that he’d killed were alive, so it was no wonder he was surprised.

“You’re alive…”

While Magnus was surprised, there was something about him that seemed relieved as well.

Perhaps he had struggled with the decision.

“Yeah. Sorry to disappoint you. But I’m fine.”

“Me too. And not a single teacher died.”

“What?”

“Is that true?!”

It was not Magnus who reacted to Karma, but the guard knight Clad and the research teacher, Irina.

“It is too bad for you, but yes, it is true.”

Said Old William as he stepped forward, proving that Karma was speaking the truth.

There was no point in hiding it.

Someone had suggested that the teachers could hide and then spring a surprise attack. But that idea had been rejected.

The students wanted to fight fairly and openly.

Aside from winning, this fight also had the purpose of finding out what Magnus’s true intention was.

This was the will of all of the students.

I want to know if they truly betrayed us, said Mondo.

Perhaps Magnus had an entirely different intent? Said George.

As students from NNU Magic and Science Investigation Academy, both Marsha and Aina wanted to believe in Magnus.

And it wasn’t just the NNU students, because Julius and Karma were the same.

Especially Karma. He had been friends with Magnus, and so he had an even stronger desire to believe him.

There must be a reason behind his actions! He declared.

They betrayed us.

Perhaps they were being naive.

Still, they had decided to believe them.

And all I would do is watch.

-Regardless of the outcome.

Irina was the first to regain herself.

She quickly took stock of the situation and decided on their direction.

“…It can’t be helped. And there is no turning back now. I will ask you all just in case, are there any of you who agree with the Humanity Emancipation Alliance?”

Irina said as if this was a final warning.

Though, unsurprisingly, there was no answer.

“I see. Well, that’s too bad…”

There was a chilling glimmer in Irina’s eyes.

The eyes of someone who knew what had to be done.

“I do not think that my way of thinking is wrong. And so the rest of you should have conviction and-”

“Enough of this. If they do not agree with us, we should kill them all!”

The person who had interrupted Irina was a figure in white robes who had been standing silently behind Magnus.

A combat teacher called…

“Berna! What the hell are you…”

“Exactly. We can’t act without foresight just because some people don’t understand our views…”

Yes, yes, it was Berna.

Incredibly competent as a combat teacher but with a forceful personality.

He was usually very quiet, and wasn’t very close to any of the teachers.

Though, I hadn’t heard of any problems until now…

Magnus and Irina tried to warn Berna, but he just snorted.

“The Demon Lord is our enemy. The very idea of humans and monsters helping each other makes me sick! Don’t the rest of you also have a hatred for Demon Lord Rimuru? Then you should hate anyone who sides with him!”

Apparently, Berna had a hatred for me.

And according to his words, so did Magnus and Irina.

Unfortunately, I had no idea why that was the case.

Berna continued.

“Julius. Even you should have a reason to hate Demon Lord Rimuru. Anyone from the Kingdom of Ingracia should understand how I feel! If you could only dauntlessly face the Demon King, none of the other students will suffer!”

He said to Julius.

It would not be odd for someone from the Kingdom of Ingracia to hate me?

After all, the place had once been a central pillar of politics, finance and culture. It had the proudest and most advanced city.

And Tempest had taken their place now, causing the decline of Ingracia. It was true.

However.

I had my reasons as well.

I thought, but I continued to listen quietly.

“…I see. Your older brother is Reiner, wasn’t it? He plotted together with my brother, and then father died… But don’t you think it is too much to force the responsibility of the plot on the Great Demon King?”

Julius did not have the best impression of me, and yet his reasoning was surprisingly decent.

Instead of pushing the blame onto everyone else, he understood correctly the consequences of your actions.

“Bah, shut up! As long as you continue to act so cowardly, my allegiance will never be towards you!”

Unlike Julius, this Berna had a very narrow way of looking at things.

He was so sure that his way was the right way, and he had no intention of allowing his mentality to change.

He would only support thoughts that were advantageous to him. A most dangerous kind of person.

“Listen, Berna. It’s true that the Great Demon King Rimuru is unfair and does whatever he wants…”

What? Julius, it looks like you haven’t had enough training yet…

“…He’s selfish and erratic. And it goes without saying that it was his influence that caused our country to fall from the position of leader of the west countries. However…”

Yes, keep going.

But more importantly, I was interested in a certain student who kept looking at me.

It seemed like the words ‘selfish’ and ‘unfair’ triggered the glances towards me…

Could it be that this student was saying that I was those things?

“It is also an unarguable fact that the Great Demon Lord gave our country another chance!”

Hm? A chance?

What are you talking about, Julius? I wanted to ask, but now was not the time.

“I’m going to speak very clearly, Berna! I hate Great Demon Lord Rimuru. However, I do not believe that all of his actions are evil. And we made plenty of mistakes ourselves. He left the school in Ingracia, and even if we are no longer the center of politics or finance, he showed us a way to survive as a place that exports culture. He even opened the great transport system called a train! These facts prove that he is acting fairly. You cannot argue with that!”

Ohh. There were a few spots I didn’t like, but his estimation of me was more positive than I had expected.

Still, it did hurt a little that he was so clear in saying he hated me.

But well, it was his honest opinion. And I wasn’t in a position to complain.

“You’re weak! It’s because you say such things that Ingracia is looked down upon! Never mind this. I don’t want to hear anymore. If that is your opinion, you can fall with the others!”

Julius’s attempt at persuasion failed, and Berna unsheathed his sword.

As if on cue, Magnus, Irina, Clad and Rozari also pulled out their swords.

People with different mindsets often found it difficult to talk.

It was unfortunate, but this fight would not be resolved through talking with each other.

And like that, the fighting began.

◇◇◇

There were five of these Humanity Emancipation Alliance people including Magnus.

However, it seemed to me that these individuals were not completely united in will.

Well, they were humans after all. There was no way that they would all think exactly alike.

And so I had already factored in the possibility of such anti-Demon Lord organizations popping up…

Now, what would happen?

Irina and Rozari could fuse with demons, apparently, and so they supported the others with magic.

However, with three A-rank knights here, one poison tiger may not be enough.

Magnus and Berna were especially strong.

This looked like it would be a tough fight.

Berna was the first to move.

He unsheathed his sword, full of animosity and went straight for Julius.

It was the poison tiger who stopped him.

It jumped out in a quick motion and blocked the attack with Voice Canon.

Unlike the last fight, the poison tiger was moving so smoothly that it seemed like a different monster entirely.

Which was no surprise, because Karma’s friends were behind it and giving orders.

There was a kind of telepathic way that monsters could communicate, and they could understand each others’ will.

“Tsk! Very sly!”

There was also the support of various magic spells, which meant the poison tiger was greatly enhanced in terms of combat ability.

It had been beaten by Magnus the last time, but now it seemed to have the advantage against Berna.

“Let me help.”

Clad said as he joined Berna.

They would fight the students later and focus on the strongest enemy. It was a good decision.

However, things would not be so easy.

After seeing Berna struggle, Irina and Rozari immediately activated some magic.

They were trying to dispel the magic buffs on the poison tiger and replace them with weakening magic.

However, Irina and Rozari’s magic was just erased by the students.

“Impossible! How is our magic being beaten by student-level magic!?”

I could understand her surprise.

She knew how the students were just a few days ago, and she could not have predicted that their magic would surpass hers in that amount of time.

But that was the reality.

Not only Marsha, but the other magic students had learned to use the magic cards.

Each student learned one spell.

They were given one card each, and it contained a type of magic that they were good at.

Strategy-wise it was not going to be possible to have them learn more than that in just a matter of days.

And so I had them focus on just one spell that they were good with.

And then they were separated into groups and then into smaller teams.

For instance, there were fifteen that learned healing magic.

They were then separated into five teams of three.

There were three in the front.

Julius, Karma and Mondo. And then of course, the poison tiger.

In other words, there was one team for every front guard. And there was one team left-which meant there were three people who could move freely.

Mondo was inferior to Julius and Karma in terms of combat ability, but he was quite brilliant when it came to defense. “But I can’t do that…” he had hesitated at first, but he eventually accepted the important role after much persuading from the others.

With six people taking turns healing them, the front guard would be able to fulfill their roles just fine, unless they received significant damage.

And of course, it wasn’t just healing magic that was being used.

There was support magic, interference magic, defense magic and attack magic as well. Everyone had their own role.

In fact, it was because of the few students who were in charge of interference magic that Irina’s spells were being erased now.

The enemy only had two people doing magic.

They may have been much more capable, but that was with the old style of magic.

This new type of magic was much faster when activating and had short cool down times.

So even if the students were less capable, they could team up and overwhelm Irina quite easily.

“We can do this! Let’s continue to protect them!”

Marsha shouted.

As if encouraged by her, the students grew more determined.

And like that, the battle of magic shifted to the students’ favor…or so we thought.

“What is this? This magic. As annoying as this is, I never would have predicted that such magic exists. Still, they’re not the only ones with a trump card.”

Irina probably thought that this new magic was the result the teachers’ research.

It seemed like she stopped focusing on it and switched gears.

An incredibly calm person, as befit a researcher.

And with that, she took out the trump card she had been hiding from her ‘storage space.’

“I will ask you one last time. Will you really not join us?”

“Master Irina! You are wrong. Trampling over the opinions of others and forcing your will onto them, is that not oppression! Isn’t that the method that you hated the most!?”

Marsha answered Irina’s question.

They were words of persuasion that were both a rejection and a plea.

Irina’s expression was full of pain for an instant-

But she quickly regained her calm.

“Yes… I am a failure as both teacher and researcher. I have a tendency of prioritizing my own emotions instead of what is right. I never had the right to teach you in the first place. But still… I cannot bring myself to forgive Great Demon Lord Rimuru! I know we could never beat him in an honest fight, but still, I want to hit him just once. We cannot allow our plan to leak.”

Irina seemed to have some deep hatred for me.

We weren’t acquaintances, so where did it come from…

It was difficult.

She might have tried to address her grievances to me directly, but it would not have seemed very realistic at all.

She must have decided that there was no choice but to quietly make preparations and take control over the world from the shadows.

They couldn’t win in an honest fight, so they had to move from the back.

I would have done the same, and it seemed like the right decision-that is, had it not involved the school.

There were things in this world that you just could not do.

“Master…”

“If you at least promised you wouldn’t interfere—no, no attachments. I must be resolved.”

And then with perfectly clear eyes directed at the students, she administered to herself the thing she was holding.

It was a syringe filled with liquid.

Irina, who was well versed in herbs, had formulated it herself. It seemed to be some kind of strengthening agent made of various concentrated medicines.

“If magic doesn’t work, then I will just use this body to cut my way through. Now, those of you who are ready, let us fight!”

There was no hesitation in those eyes now.

It was not the face of a teacher, it was the face of a warrior.

And Rozari…

“Magnus, I will be of use to you as well!”

So saying, she injected herself with the medicine, just as Irina had.

Irina and Rozari’s muscles expanded as a strength that exceeded human limits entered them.

According to ‘Appraisal,’ there power was just as strong as Berna and Clad, who had Greater Demons inside of them.

It was an insane increase in power.

On the other hand, I also just noticed that Magnus had not called a demon at all.

He was fighting the three defenders with his own ability.

Julius and the others had planned to bear all of the attacks without concern towards anything else, until the poison tiger had taken out at least one knight.

And so it was lucky for them that Magnus had not been going all out…

But now that Irina and Rozari had joined, the sense of balance in the fight had crumbled.

◇◇◇

“If Miss Irina joins, we will fight her!”

Brown and two other combat teachers shouted as they joined the fight.

I would have liked it if the students handled everything, but I guess it couldn’t be helped.

If you compared Irina and Rozari, you would see that Irina was overwhelmingly stronger.

So even with four A-rank teachers against her, Irina was managing them quite well.

Irina’s fighting style was magic fighter.

You directly converted magic energy into attack power and attacked with it.

It was why she was able to fight weapon-wielding teachers with her fists.

“Very well. If you wish to protect the students, come and stop me!”

And that was how the battle between Brown’s team and Irina began.

While Irina was being attacked by the four teachers, Rozari was still free.

The remaining students were no match for her now, and the situation immediately became dangerous.

It was Mondo who acted first.

“Woahhh!!”

With a shout, Mondo rammed into Rozari, just as she was about to disarm the magic team.

This meant that Julius and Karma would have to deal with Magnus without him, but it was a good decision.

Mondo could not defeat Rozari.

However, he could buy them some time.

I was looking forward to seeing what he would do in the rest of the fight.

As for the fight between the poison tiger and Berna and Clad, it was at a stale-mate

“Damn it. Blasted beast!”

“Don’t get so worked up, Berna. We will only be defeated it you do not keep your calm.”

“You don’t have to tell me that!”

A stale-mate here meant that the students were doing very well.

There was support from the magic team and directions from the beast people.

They were functioning well as a group.

The outcome of this battle would depend on the tide.

If just one of the main fighters on the enemy side fell, then we would gain a huge advantage.

But if the poison tiger was defeated, the students would lose for sure.

It all depended on making the right decisions and the healing of the magic team.

It was a heavy role for these students with little experience, but I could only pray that they would do their best until the end.

And the last group.

Julius and Karma vs Magnus…

Magnus must be struggling with something still, because his sword seemed slower when it came to a direct fight.

Perhaps Magnus did not wish to hurt his friends.

He had looked pained when Julius and Karma had tried to persuade him.

Regardless of his true feelings, it was nearly time for the fight to end.

The heart was a complicated thing, and it was difficult for people to truly understand each other.

But if you still wish to do so, then there is no other way then to clash with your real feelings.

It might cause you to break apart, but that cannot be helped.

I thought such things as I continued to watch the fight.

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