On My First Day Undercover, the Organization Collapsed - Chapter 401

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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First Day of Infiltration, The Organization Was Destroyed — Episode 401
I couldn’t win over someone I couldn’t bend to my will. So where on earth—
With Karen’s admission to the Imperial Knights confirmed, the matches continued.
“We’ll now proceed with the next match. From Edelwein….”
Just as everyone had predicted, Aken Kundel and Joshua Rihart had advanced to the finals.
Every person in the spectator seats, and those placing bets outside the arena, all turned their attention to this match!
The Family Heads present here today were no exception.
In particular, Amos and Daren were concentrating with such intensity that no one dared approach them.
‘Our son must win, no matter what!’
‘Smash Kundel to pieces!’
It was a sort of proxy war.
Two promising heirs from rival families locked in a finals match!
Most predicted a stalemate.
Though many believed Kundel had the edge, there were plenty who backed Rihart just as strongly.
In truth, by house prestige, Kundel held a slight advantage—but this wasn’t a direct clash between families, it was a duel between young students.
And the match unfolded exactly that way.
Bang! Clash!
Heavy Sword Technique against Swift Swordsmanship—a straight confrontation!
The excitement was utterly different from the earlier matches, and the crowd roared.
Of course, not everyone cheered. Some could only swallow their tension.
‘Please, please.’
‘He must win.’
Sigmund and Berhal, to be exact.
Both supervisors’ hearts were pounding.
Because both of them absolutely had to win.
For one side, winning meant breaking even.
For the other, winning was the only way to avoid further humiliation….
‘Damn it. Did I reveal too much?’
The problem was that Joshua was gradually losing ground.
It had started during his match against Karen.
When she charged at him with her whole body and he lost interest entirely, it had broken his focus.
So he’d simply rushed to finish it, deploying the Swift Swordsmanship he’d trained in at maximum speed—and that was the problem.
Karen had inadvertently drawn out Joshua’s full power, and Aken, having already seen that power once, had already prepared his tactics accordingly.
In the end, Joshua was struck by Aken’s sword and rolled across the ground. He’d reflexively thrown his blade as he fell, but Aken only received a shallow wound for it.
That was enough to decide the match.
“Huff, huff.”
“Looks like I took this one, Joshua?”
“Shut up. Want to go again?”
The two of them were on good terms.
Their fathers fought and bickered constantly, but these two had exchanged pleasantries since childhood.
Which was precisely why Delev and Celia were frantic to tear each other apart.
“Ugh!”
Only after Joshua had tired himself out keeping pace with Aken’s Swift Swordsmanship did the match finally end.
“The victor: Aken Kundel!”
“Uaaaaaaaaa!”
Truth be told, Aken had walked a fine line himself, but by methodically pressing the weaknesses he’d analyzed from the start, he’d managed to pull off the victory.
“…I should have won.”
“You’ll win next time, won’t you?”
“Yeah. I wonder when that’ll be.”
Joshua answered blankly as he took Aken’s hand and got to his feet.
Applause poured down upon them both.
“Huh.”
Among those clapping, there were those who couldn’t smile—namely, Daren and the Family Heads of the Western Families.
But their applause was sincere.
After all, their son had given his best.
In fact, had he not done his best, Daren would have been angry even if he’d won.
Still, losing to Kundel was bitter, and thinking of how that wretch Amos would soon rub his face in it made his chest ache.
“That’s our son for you!”
“Congratulations, Lord Family Head!”
“Victory! A true victory!”
Meanwhile, Amos cheered aloud, basking in congratulations from the other Family Heads.
Delev and Celia’s reactions diverged sharply.
“Just as expected of you.”
“……Keep quiet, subordinate.”
With that, all matches of the Inter-Academy Exchange Tournament came to an end.
Sigmund lowered his head with a sigh.
‘I lost, after all.’
He couldn’t bring himself to smile amid the roar of cheers.
Yet he had to smile before the exhausted professors and students.
“Everyone has worked hard. Professors and our students alike. We may have lost, but…… we did our very best. I have no regrets.”
“Dean, if we had only pushed a little harder…….”
“No. You gave your all. Let’s look forward to next time. We’ll prepare even harder then.”
At the sight of his forced smile, the professors and students found themselves at a loss for words.
In truth, it was no simple thing for a man of Sigmund’s stature to come this far and guide students like this, and to work in perfect harmony with the professors.
He could have simply designated one representative to send and then either praised or criticized them based on results—that would have been the end of it.
But Sigmund saw it through to the bitter end, bearing responsibility all the while.
That very image had now impressed the members of Telvir.
“Dean Sigmund.”
It was Berhal who had come forward.
Sigmund extended his hand first.
“A fine match, Department Head.”
“We learned much from it ourselves. Thanks to you…… our students have grown considerably.”
Sigmund nodded.
Yurio, whom he had once tried to scout directly.
Who could have foreseen that the girl named Karen beside him would perform so admirably?
“I’ve seen the caliber of Edelwein. We’ll return with humility and next time, we’ll cultivate our own strength to challenge you again.”
“I’ll be waiting. Next time, it might be good for us to visit your academy as well.”
Sigmund stiffened slightly.
‘What if Edelwein comes and wins…….’
Even now, he was inundated with inquiries from parents asking to transfer or enroll at Edelwein. If that were to happen……!
“Well, well, let’s discuss that matter slowly. Ha ha.”
Sigmund, striving to maintain the cordial atmosphere, suddenly asked a question.
“But tell me, what exactly did the Second Years train in?”
“They underwent sleepless training. Not just the Second Years, but all the students.”
“……The kids look perfectly fine though?”
“Had it not been for Teacher Ziel, they would have fallen asleep before the matches and couldn’t have competed.”
Sigmund’s expression grew peculiar.
‘Could they have used some kind of drug?’
“No, please don’t misunderstand. Teacher Ziel has a unique method that only he can employ—he forcibly activates the body’s mana.”
“Activates the body’s mana…… forcibly?”
Sigmund went blank for a moment at this method he’d never heard of, unable to grasp what was meant.
“Yes. I don’t fully understand it myself. He was pestered so much that he explained it once, but I couldn’t comprehend it.”
“Ah…….”
“Anyway, something about widening the path through which mana flows and blowing mana into the center of mana circulation, doing something with it…… honestly, I’m not certain.”
Berhal shrugged as well.
“Even if one understood the principle, one couldn’t replicate it.”
“An extraordinary…… person indeed.”
“Yes. Since the Steelheart Family has been officially restored, I suspect they’ll become one of the Empire’s leading Houses before long.”
“Mm.”
That was quite an interesting matter.
‘I should arrange contact soon. Should I send a goodwill envoy to the Steelheart Family?’
Naturally, this thought belonged to Sigmund alone.
Already, numerous Family Heads were watching Ziel with keen eyes.
Part of it was that the Head of Kundel and the Head of Rihart were present at this event, but fundamentally, they had come all this way because there was ‘profit’ to be gained.
That profit was none other than Ziel, now restored and poised to act fully as a Family Head.
If they could at least become acquainted with his face, they could forge connections later and perhaps accomplish something…….…
“The closing ceremony is scheduled to take place. Delev Kundel, Celia Rihart. There will be awards and presentations, so prepare yourselves accordingly.”
Ziel, disregarding the Family Heads’ expectations, departed with the students.
The Family Heads, who had been watching for the right moment, could only stare blankly at the space where Ziel had stood.
Meanwhile, Amos and Daren caught sight of the Family Heads’ expressions and stifled their laughter.
‘So what, I told you it won’t work?’
‘I couldn’t persuade them either, so where—’
It seemed Ziel’s conversation with these two would have to wait for much later.
* * *
The Closing Ceremony took place.
This year’s Festa saw the Sword School secure victory once again, just as they had the year before.
“In conclusion, by total points, I hereby declare the Sword School the victor of this year’s Festa.”
“Aaahhhhh!”
The cheers of the Sword School erupted through the air.
“In particular, the ‘Labyrinth Exploration’ and ‘Northern Realm’ events operated by the Sword School’s Second Years received high praise, leaving a remarkable impression in artistry, aesthetic appeal, and exploratory quality.”
The Arcane School contingent’s faces fell.
Another defeat.
Yet unlike last year, the margin in total points was not so overwhelming.
More importantly, their efforts had been sufficiently rewarded.
“Finally, I will announce the Best Event Award. The Arcane School’s ‘Become a Mage!’ Congratulations.”
“Oh! Our Arcane School!”
“We have the best event!”
Professor Emeric’s eyes glistened with tears.
The feeling of having his efforts recognized!
But there was someone else he needed to thank.
‘Thank you, Zephyros.’
Without Zephyros, this achievement would have been utterly impossible!
Who in the world would have conceived an event letting participants directly cast 5th Rank Magic?
All of it had been possible because of the Magical Tools Zephyros had created.
This year’s Festa had produced a result that lived up to its name—where neither side had to bear wounds or feel dejection.
After the event awards came the individual honors.
“…In recognition of two students’ services in protecting Edelwein Academy’s security and safety, and in preventing danger before it could strike, I hereby present medals of honor and scholarships. To Delev Kundel and Celia Rihart, Second Years of Edelwein Academy Sword School. Please step forward.”
Applause poured down toward the platform.
It was a medal presented directly by the Dean of Edelwein Academy.
The highest grade of honor one could receive from the Academy!
Delev and Celia, bathed in cheers and applause, were simply overjoyed.
Delev especially had to fight back a smile at the thought of finally receiving a scholarship.
“Furthermore, His Imperial Majesty learned of this matter and has personally issued commendation, granting both students an additional imperial citation along with a Special Imperial Scholarship from the throne.”
“Wow!”
At the mention of the Imperial Family, everyone stirred in amazement. While their deeds certainly merited it, no one had expected the throne to move so swiftly in presenting commendation and scholarship.
‘How much is the scholarship?’
Delev’s eyes went wide when he caught a glimpse of the certificate.
The amount was a staggering 100,000 Cel!
Since the Academy’s scholarship was 20,000 Cel, combined that came to 120,000 Cel.
Of course, Delev’s debt was 400,000 Cel.
Paying it all off was naturally impossible, but with 120,000 Cel, he’d already clear thirty percent!
‘If the Crow remnants just come two more times…’
“Delev? Your certificate.”
“Ah, yes. Dean. My apologies.”
He was lost in that blissful reverie when it happened.
Just as the moment came for him to offer remarks, Celia dropped a bombshell.
“I, Celia Rihart, do not regard this glory as my own personal achievement. I offer my gratitude to Teacher Ziel, who aided me in this incident, to the Academy Security who handled the matter swiftly, and to both the Academy and the Imperial throne for recognizing our merit. Therefore, I intend to put this scholarship to meaningful use. I plan to donate the full amount to a foundation for the poor of the city.”
The next instant, cheers erupted from all sides.
“As expected of Rihart!”
“Remarkable! The house certainly raised her well!”
“My lord, how does your young lady always come up with such admirable thoughts!”
Daren’s shoulders rose with pride as he cheered.
For the Rihart house, it was hardly a large sum. Thus Celia’s choice was utterly political and utterly predictable.
It was little more than buying support with pocket change.
The problem was Delev.
The satisfied smile on Celia’s face was so infuriating he could barely stand it.
Of course, Celia had no knowledge of Delev’s circumstances whatsoever.
She had simply stepped forward and declared her intention to preserve her image before he could do the same!
……
All eyes now turned toward Delev.
Everyone anticipated the same words.
Delev finally opened his mouth, his voice trembling.
“I too…… do not regard all of this as personal glory…… but rather wish for all people to move in a good direction…… *chokes*.”
A sigh rippled through the crowd.
But it was a sigh of approval.
“To think he felt so deeply…….”
“Goodness, how profound his heart must be.”
“Family Head, the young master’s heart seems truly tender.”
Celia flinched.
‘Now he’s even acting to outmaneuver me…….’
Not a soul understood Delev’s genuine despair.
Berhal, observing this, turned to Ziel beside him.
“You’ll be receiving a commendation from the Imperial Palace soon as well, won’t you? Are you planning to donate it?”
“No. I’m not.”
“I see.”
It seemed better to exchange it for silver coins and give it to the Berte Trading Company, which would help the poor far more effectively.
In fact, if you thought about it, that was still a donation.
‘Of course, now that his family has been restored, he must need plenty of funds. Perhaps he’ll actually be receiving donations instead?’
In Berhal’s estimation, countless noble families would soon go to great lengths to make contact with Ziel.
The donations and goods they sent, claiming to assist in the reconstruction of his house, would make for a most plausible justification.
“Then you’ll be heading to the Western Region during this break.”
“Yes. Now that I’ve completed home visits for all my students, I plan to go to the Western Region and attend to my territory.”
Just as expected.
‘So his time remaining at the Academy won’t be long.’
“Ziel, I think you should begin preparing your thesis during the break. After all, if you’re going to retire, it would be better to do so with a professorial position…….”
“Am I retiring?”
“Yes? Well, your family has been restored, and if you need to attend to your territory…….”
“I don’t see how that’s incompatible with remaining at the Academy.”
“Pardon?”
Ziel’s mind had already mapped out his entire plan.
A way to fulfill his role as a teacher at the Academy while managing his territory!
“Now I should go prepare for the final event.”
Ziel headed toward the venue where the masked ball would be held.
Berhal, watching his departing figure, felt a profound sense of relief wash over him.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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