Reina delivered the “truth” about Yujin in a brief and concise manner.
And after hearing everything, Elly…
“…H-He’s a dark mage?!”
“Shh, keep your voice down.”
Unable to contain her shock, Elly cried out, prompting Reina to press a finger against her lips.
Of course, given the nature of the conversation, Reina had already blocked out any external noise in advance. However, she still felt the need to warn Elly. Not just for the moment, but to make sure she understood that such outbursts must never happen again.
“Mmph!”
Elly quickly clamped both hands over her mouth, then glanced around nervously. Seeing this, Reina gently guided her gaze back to herself.
“Don’t act suspiciously, Student Elly. That will only put you in more danger.”
“……”
At those words, Elly swallowed hard and gave a small, trembling nod. Slowly, she lowered her hands and, after hesitating for a moment, she cautiously asked,
“P-Professor Yujin is a dark mage…?”
“Yes, that’s correct.”
Reina spoke with unwavering certainty. Elly’s face turned pale.
She knew Reina wasn’t the type to joke about such things, but a part of her had desperately hoped this was some kind of lie or misunderstanding. Yet, the seriousness in Reina’s expression left no room for doubt. This was the truth.
“H-How…? If he’s a dark mage, how did he become a professor at the academy? O-Of course, I’ve heard about his achievements, but still… A dark mage should have traces of demonic power within them…”
“That was our mistake.”
With those words, Reina briefly explained how Han Yujin had come to be accepted as a professor. Looking back, they never should have let him into the academy so carelessly. But at the time, they had believed it was safer to keep a potential threat close rather than leave it unchecked. The decision to recruit someone so suspicious without thorough investigation had been a clear misjudgment on her part.
Upon hearing this, Elly trembled as she lowered her head.
“Th-This can’t be…”
“I apologize for suddenly burdening you with such dangerous information, Student Elly. But I too am in a desperate situation. Right now, there is no clear way to prove that he is a dark mage.”
Even Headmistress Ines had failed to sense anything unusual when she first met him. If someone as powerful as her, who was one of the strongest among mortals, could not detect it, then no ordinary means would be able to find the demonic power he possessed.
That meant they needed a different kind of evidence. Something different from demonic power itself to prove that Yujin was a dark mage. And so…
“I believe that you know something, Student Elly. The way you reacted when you first saw Professor Yujin… No matter how I think about it, your fear didn’t seem to stem from the mere shock of taking a life for the first time. Isn’t there something you know about him?”
“B-But I really don’t know anything…! I-I mean, if I did, I wouldn’t have been so shocked when I first heard he was a dark mage…”
“In that case, have you noticed anything strange about your memories?”
“My… memories?”
“There are many types of dark magic that interfere with the mind. Among them, high-level spells can even manipulate a person’s memories. However, artificially altered memories often leave behind a sense of discomfort or inconsistency. Are you sure there’s nothing that feels off to you?”
At those words, Elly searched through her memories. Even she had felt that her fear of Yujin had been excessive if it was merely due to the trauma of her first kill.
The thought that her memories might have been tampered with unsettled her, and she forced herself to recall the time she had spent with Yujin in the labyrinth. But…
“…No, no matter how hard I think about it, nothing seems off. Besides, I don’t even know if there was ever a chance for my memories to be altered in the first place… And at the very least, nothing in my recollection feels unnatural…”
“…Is that so?”
“I wasn’t alone at the time, either. Even back then, I felt uneasy about Professor Yujin, so I tried to avoid being alone with him. The members of Hugo’s party were with us as well… No matter how I think about it, I don’t see when he could have altered my memories, and nothing feels out of place.”
“…I see.”
If Elly’s words were true, then there were only two possibilities.
First, her memories had been altered with such precision that she remained completely unaware, and Hugo’s party had also been subjected to some form of mental interference.
Second, Reina had simply been mistaken, and Yujin had not committed any heinous acts in the labyrinth.
But was the first possibility even feasible? Could someone tamper with the mind so easily, without leaving a single trace of resistance or distortion?
More importantly… why would he go to such lengths in the first place?
If it were Yujin, he could have easily ambushed and wiped out Hugo’s party inside the labyrinth before they even had a chance to make an emergency escape. His presence had never been revealed before, and only Hugo’s party knew that he had joined them midway. If Hugo’s party had been annihilated, all he had to do was hide for a short while, and there would have been no chance of him being identified as the culprit.
So why would he go to the trouble of interfering with their minds one by one? From Reina’s rational perspective, it was a possibility that was difficult to accept.
Besides, she had only heard reports about what had happened inside the labyrinth, but if there had been any reason to suspect Yujin of being a dark mage, wouldn’t Hugo’s party have been on guard or tried to escape? That would have been the logical choice from the start.
And yet, dismissing the first possibility entirely made the second one feel too simplistic.
More than anything, when Reina considered Yujin’s tendency to reveal his identity as a dark mage and almost seem to enjoy it, the first possibility didn’t seem entirely impossible. They had no way of knowing what kind of power he possessed, so debating whether it was realistically possible or not felt almost ridiculous.
It was complicated. But at the very least, one thing was certain—there was nothing more to learn from Elly.
When Elly first heard that Yujin was a dark mage, she had been utterly shocked. She didn’t seem to know anything about it, and her expression had darkened.
“I’m sorry, Elly. It seems I’ve put you in danger by saying something unnecessary.”
“Ah, no… I know you didn’t have a choice, Professor Reina… But, um, if what you’re saying is true, then Professor Yujin really is a dark mage, isn’t he?”
“…Yes.”
“Th-Then… maybe it’s better to know the truth rather than be unaware and get caught up in something terrible at the academy. S-So… you don’t have to feel too guilty about it.”
“…Thank you.”
Hearing Elly say that made Reina feel a little lighter. Elly, on the other hand, was visibly startled by Reina’s gratitude.
P-Professor Reina just thanked me.
To her, Reina had always seemed like someone who wouldn’t bleed a single drop even if pricked with a needle. That made it all the more surprising. She never imagined Reina could show such a vulnerable side.
“…Haah. That brings us back to square one. In that case, the only option left is to track down Hugo’s party again…”
“H-Hugo’s party…?”
“…Yes. In fact, there’s one more person besides you, Elly, whom I suspect might know something about Professor Yujin.”
Someone else who seemed to know about Yujin? At those words, Elly asked cautiously.
“Who… who is it?”
“The scout of Hugo’s party, Mirien. When I reviewed the report from when we assessed your performance, I noticed she reacted suspiciously.”
“M-My score…”
Recalling her score, Elly’s expression briefly darkened. It was only natural; she had completely failed the test.
But Reina continued speaking as if she didn’t notice or simply didn’t care.
“In fact, I started suspecting Professor Yujin from that moment. Back then, the dark mages were actively stirring up trouble, and since a demon had appeared on the fifth floor, I found it suspicious that a mage just so happened to join the party that encountered the demon.”
“Oh…”
Elly quietly parted her lips at this new revelation. The fact that dark mages were actively moving behind the scenes wasn’t common knowledge among students, after all.
“When I questioned them, trying to connect Professor Yujin to the dark mages… Mirien, the scout of Hugo’s group, reacted as if she knew something. At the time, the other two Hugo and Krom were defending him, so I couldn’t push any further. But now that it’s practically confirmed that he’s a dark mage, there’s no reason not to approach her.”
“I-I see… But what if she doesn’t know anything, just like me?”
“Judging by how she reacted when I asked about Yujin and the dark mages, this time might be different. If you only reacted based on your instincts when you met him, she might actually have more solid grounds for suspicion.”
“I-Is that so…”
“Anyway, Elly, there’s one thing you absolutely must remember.”
Reina firmly grasped Elly’s shoulders and spoke in a grave tone.
“Under no circumstances should you act suspicious in front of Professor Yujin. Do you understand?”
“…Y-Yes! I understand!”
Faced with Reina’s serious warning, Elly nodded her head frantically. She steeled herself, vowing not to let anything seem unnatural in front of Yujin…
***
That afternoon, during the practical combat training class.
Bang!
As she watched the magic circle shatter, Elly let out a dazed groan.
“Ah, ah…”
“Oh my, student Elly. You seem to be having trouble focusing.”
Sure enough, despite her earlier determination, she was trembling uncontrollably and had failed to cast a single proper spell during the practical training.
“Are you feeling unwell?”
Beside her, Yujin was guiding her with a smile…
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