Chapter 29: A Changed Story

Haruki slowly deactivated his Mist skill and began making his way back to the academy. He walked through the city as usual until he spotted a Frostval soldier beating an elderly man who could barely defend himself.

Haruki slowly approached the soldier. Without saying a word, he grabbed the soldier by the shoulder and delivered a powerful punch with a swift movement.

"You bastards..."

Haruki dragged the soldier away from the elderly man and continued punching him.

"What the hell is your purpose in invading this kingdom?!"

"Do you really think I’m going to tell you?.."

The soldier’s response only fueled Haruki’s anger. He drew his dagger and, with a swift motion, severed the soldier’s head.

Blood sprayed violently, splattering across half of Haruki’s face and staining his clothes.

Haruki continued walking, searching for any Frostval soldiers still roaming the city.

Suddenly, the desperate screams of a young boy calling for help reached his ears from the ruins to his right.

The boy had run out of places to escape. With nowhere left to go, he pressed his back against the dead end, trembling in fear.

The two soldiers drew their swords, preparing to attack the boy. However, before they could make a move, both suddenly collapsed as if something had slammed down upon them.

Behind the soldiers stood Haruki, who was using his gravity magic against them.

He increased the gravitational force, making it feel as though an incredibly heavy object had crushed the two soldiers.

Unable to withstand the immense pressure, both soldiers succumbed to the force, their eyes bulging as they died.

Haruki then approached the boy.

The boy looked terrified of him. Noticing this, Haruki gently patted the boy’s head and gave him some food from his system inventory.

After that, Haruki walked out of the boy’s sight and continued his massacre.

As he wandered through the city, he encountered numerous soldiers who were still occupying the kingdom.

"Oi, didn’t your commander tell you that there’s a ceasefire in effect right now?"

"Yeah, I know. What do you want, brat?"

Without warning, Haruki swiftly decapitated the soldier. He did the same to the others standing nearby, leaving only one soldier cornered and trembling in fear.

"Oi, tell me where the white-haired man with bluish eyes is."

"I-If you’re looking for Lord Azrath, I-I won’t tell you!"

"Oh, is that so?"

Haruki then beheaded the last soldier.

He glanced down at his clothes and hands, which were now covered in blood.

"Even I’ve gotten used to killing..."

Haruki slowly made his way back to the academy, afraid that he might lose control of himself if he continued any longer.

His gaze was empty as he continued walking as though nothing had happened.

"So, this is how the continuation of the novel is going to unfold..."

After walking for nearly half an hour, Haruki finally arrived at the dormitory.

As he entered the academy, several students happened to catch sight of him, their eyes widening at the sight of his blood-soaked appearance.

Realizing that he had become the center of attention, Haruki immediately headed to his room, leaving a trail of blood droplets behind him.

Upon reaching the door to his dorm room, he slowly reached for the handle and turned it.

"W-WAAH!! H-Haruki?!"

"W-What happened to you?!"

Those were Magnus’s words as he stared at Haruki in utter shock, unable to comprehend why the latter was covered in blood.

"I beat up some of the invading soldiers."

Magnus clearly found Haruki’s explanation hard to believe, but he could only stare at him for a few moments.

"B-Beat them up?"

*I’m pretty sure that was a lot more than just beating them up...*

Haruki then searched for some clean clothes to change into. Every now and then, he glanced at Philip, who was still unconscious.

"Oi, Magnus. Why has he been unconscious for so long?"

"Gee, I wonder who could’ve beaten him into unconsciousness~"

Magnus replied sarcastically, turning his gaze away.

Haruki then picked up his spare clothes and left the room, heading toward the bathroom to wash away the blood covering his body.

Fortunately, there were no other students around, allowing Haruki to walk casually into the bathroom without attracting any more attention.

He washed himself using the water that had already been prepared. Afterward, he also washed the bloodstained clothes.

As he scrubbed the fabric clean, his thoughts became increasingly tangled between the invasion and the mysterious statue he had discovered earlier.

*’The Sovereign of the Unwritten.’*

"What the hell could that thing be?"

"What am I even thinking about?"

Haruki continued washing his clothes until he had finished. He then changed into a fresh set of clothing and carried the now-clean garments in his hands.

He stepped out of the bathroom and went outside for a moment to hang them up to dry.

Once he had finished, Haruki headed toward the infirmary to check on Teacher Lukas.

His expression grew slightly uneasy as he thought about the teacher.

...

Haruki now stood before the infirmary door. He slowly reached for the handle and pulled it open.

Inside, he noticed that everyone who had previously been attending to Teacher Lukas had already left, allowing him to approach without any difficulties.

Except for Aelin.

Teacher Aelin was the only one still beside Teacher Lukas.

As Haruki approached, he noticed that Aelin had fallen into a deep sleep on the bed beside Lukas.

Haruki took a wooden chair from the room and sat down on Teacher Lukas’s right side, while Aelin remained on his left.

He stared at Teacher Lukas for a moment before shifting his gaze toward Aelin.

*’Teacher Lukas was never a particularly prominent character in the original novel.’*

*’As for Teacher Aelin, she wasn’t even mentioned in the novel at all.’*

Haruki lowered his head and clenched both of his hands.

*’It seems my presence really has changed the course of the story.’*

"H-Haruki?.."

Haruki quickly raised his head and saw Aelin waking up from her sleep.

"T-Teacher Aelin?"

Their eyes met.

"Did you come to check on Teacher Lukas?" she asked.

"Obviously. Why else would I be here?"

Haruki replied in a teasing tone.

They chuckled briefly before Aelin turned her attention back to Teacher Lukas, who remained unconscious.

Noticing her gaze shifting toward him, Haruki gathered the courage to ask a question.

"Sorry for asking this, but... what exactly is the relationship between you and Teacher Lukas?"

The moment he asked, Haruki immediately felt guilty for bringing up such a question in a situation like this.

Aelin simply offered him a faint smile before answering softly.

"Teacher Lukas was once just a child who had lost both of his parents."

She paused for a moment before continuing her story.

"His parents were killed because of their status as commoners."

"Back then, I came across a house that seemed to be abandoned, so I decided to investigate."

Haruki listened attentively to every word.

"When I forced the door open, I found Lukas lying on the floor. He was still just a child, and he was starving."

And that was how Haruki learned everything about Teacher Lukas’s past and discovered how the two of them had grown so close over the years.

"Since then, I’ve come to regard him as my own younger brother."

Haruki let out a small laugh upon hearing the story of Teacher Lukas’s past.

"Even now, Teacher Lukas hasn’t changed much, has he?"

Haruki then turned toward Lukas and smiled.

’I know you won’t die that easily,Teacher Lukas’.