The Academy’s Weapon Replicator - Chapter 49

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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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The Academy’s Weapon Replicator Episode 49
Chapter 12: The Traitor (3)
Deep beneath Obsidian.
A chamber lit by the faint glow of torches.
Philly Terst appeared, accompanied by two knights.
“Staying too long is dangerous.”
“I know.”
Philly smiled and answered the man standing before the door.
She opened the door and stepped inside with the knights.
“Good evening.”
Philly greeted the man before her as she always did.
“…Who are you?”
The man who answered was Renjo.
“Is the food to your liking? Is there anything uncomfortable about your stay?”
“…I asked who you are.”
Renjo looked at Philly with displeasure.
For just a moment, Philly’s eyes flicked toward his right side.
His right arm, which no longer existed.
In that instant—
“…Do you want to die?”
Renjo’s killing intent pierced at Philly sharply.
He had caught that brief movement of her pupils.
Yet Philly merely continued smiling with her gentle warmth.
“Of course not. Never.”
“You crazy woman…”
Renjo rose to his feet.
He wore no restraints whatsoever.
As he walked toward her, the two knights moved to block his path.
But—
“Step aside. Both of you.”
“P-Philly, ma’am!”
The two knights were taken aback by her command.
Philly spoke without changing her expression a fraction.
“No, I’d like both of you to leave. I want to have an honest conversation with this person.”
“B-But—”
“Don’t argue with me.”
Philly’s smile deepened as she looked at the knight.
“I gave an order. Do you not understand?”
“…!”
Only then did the two of them step back from Philly, walk slowly to the door, and open it.
After watching her back with concern, they left the chamber.
“You’ve really lost your mind, haven’t you?”
“Yes, Renjo.”
“What?”
“Stop barking.”
At that moment, Renjo’s patience seemed to snap entirely.
In one swift movement, his hand closed around Philly’s throat.
“You crazy…how dare you!”
Consumed by rage, blood vessels burst in his eyes and veins bulged across his forehead.
Yet he never did crush her throat.
When Renjo released his grip, Philly straightened her disheveled clothes.
“You’re not stupid, after all.”
At Philly’s words, Renjo ground his teeth but said nothing.
“It would be far too ‘boring’ to end your life in a place like this.”
“…I don’t know what nonsense you’ve been fed.”
“You’ve known from the start that I’m the Empress. You understand what happens if you kill me—who holds power here and now.”
Philly continued her provocation while reading Renjo’s expression.
In that expression, she found a small certainty.
‘…His entire standard for living is based solely on “amusement.” So it was true.’
Philly had heard Frontier’s words relayed to her by Robert, one of her knights.
The first was to beware the Imperial Palace, and the second concerned Renjo.
Frontier had revealed Renjo’s nature.
A hedonist for whom “amusement” took precedence over good and evil, right and wrong, loss and gain.
Frontier—the more she thought about it, the more peculiar a figure he was.
He treated her, the Empress herself, with such casual indifference. He knew of the Dragon Heart. He had severed Renjo’s right arm.
Beyond that, he seemed to have seen through the very nature of Renjo himself.
‘I’ve never met a hedonist quite like this.’
Philly was certain there was nothing Renjo could do to her.
If he were merely a madman chasing thrills, he would have long since become dust on the gallows.
No matter how formidable his power, an individual cannot overcome the state.
And Renjo had merely ascended to “the highest ranks”—he was no transcendent genius standing apart from all others.
No matter how much he played the warrior, how he seemed to love battle,
no matter how reckless he appeared, willing to throw away his own life for amusement,
there had to be a clear reason he had survived this long with all four limbs intact.
‘Well, that’s no longer the case.’
He surely never imagined he would lose an arm because of a student.
He must have believed he would walk away without a scratch.
“Now that we understand each other’s position, shall we have a proper conversation? Sit there.”
At Philly’s words, though the killing intent didn’t fade from Renjo’s eyes, he rose and shuffled back to his original seat.
Philly sat across from him.
“So what business does this Empress have?”
“First, I’d like to ask you something.”
Philly looked at the empty space where Renjo’s right arm should have been and asked.
“How did that arm get severed?”
“You’re really grating on me. You know it already—that student here did this to me.”
“That’s not what I’m asking. I want to know *how* that student managed to sever your right arm.”
Philly had long since heard of Renjo’s strength.
Among professionals, they said he rivaled even Eden Hamerot, and had he not been a criminal, he could easily have claimed a seat among the Zodiac.
The Zodiac referred to twelve human weapons designated by the state.
Osprit, the chancellor of Constelle here, was also one of the Zodiac.
And so was Helldrei of the Zodiac, who had participated in the noble council during the Mistletain incident.
Of course, the Empire had other powerhouses beyond the Zodiac.
Most notably, the Iron Wall of the Northern Region, Anfer de Roache.
The reason Anfer wasn’t in the Zodiac was that the Zodiac must always answer directly to imperial command.
Anfer simply despised that.
In any case, Renjo’s body had long transcended the category of ordinary human.
Even without using Aura, a crude blade couldn’t so much as draw blood from those muscles.
Yet Frontier had done it.
Renjo propped his chin on his hand, and seemed to recall something unpleasant, muttering quietly.
“I don’t know.”
“…You don’t know?”
“I mean it literally.”
Renjo merely said as much.
There was nothing more to it.
Philly laughed.
“Hmm? Surely you can ask the witnesses and learn everything you need to know?”
“…I said I don’t know.”
Renjo clicked his tongue and repeated the same words.
Philly had seen Renjo’s true expression a moment before.
She had read genuine anger, confusion, and resignation.
And based on that foundation, as she interpreted his current answer,
‘…it doesn’t seem like he’s lying.’
He truly didn’t know.
He didn’t know what attack had been used against him.
‘What happened in that fight?’
She had told Renjo to ask the witnesses, but the truth was, Philly had already done so.
The only witness was her daughter, Aten.
But Aten’s answer had been similar.
—I’m not sure. Frontier did something, certainly, but Renjo’s right arm just flew off. At least, that’s what it looked like to me.
When she’d heard that at the time, she had assumed Aten had been too far away to see clearly.
But the person involved doesn’t even know it.
‘Well, I’ll think about that later.’
Philly moved to the main point.
“So, why did you kidnap our daughter?”
…….
“You’re standing before the mother of the girl you tried to abduct. Whether your head stays on your shoulders or not is for me to decide.”
At that smile, Renjo’s tongue clicked against his teeth,
“It’s obvious. Because it’d be fun.”
“Kidnapping a princess?”
“Yeah. Think about it. The Empire would turn inside out. Everyone would be desperate to catch me. Just thinking about it gives me chills.”
Philly studied Renjo’s face again.
‘A lie.’
There was no room for doubt.
Renjo was here now because the kidnapping had failed, but it should have succeeded.
Success was what was supposed to happen.
He’d slipped into the field undetected and reached a place where only Aten and a single student remained.
There was no reason it should have failed.
But even if it had succeeded, what would he actually gain?
What benefit was there in becoming the Empire’s enemy?
Aten Terst is the Third Princess.
While her name carries symbolic weight, she holds no real value in the Empire’s eyes.
There was nothing Renjo could gain from kidnapping Aten.
The Empire doesn’t negotiate over a single princess.
They would only hunt Renjo down desperately and kill him to save her.
That’s what a princess’s life amounts to.
The Empire would draw their swords to save her, but they wouldn’t extend their hand.
Even if it meant the princess herself would die.
‘In other words, the goal wasn’t to kidnap her and then negotiate. The purpose was the kidnapping itself.’
——Be wary of the Imperial Palace.
Frontier’s warning lingered in her mind, refusing to fade.
“Well, that’s fine. I’ll visit again later. If your bed or meals are uncomfortable, just let me know.”
Philly rose without hesitation.
For now, she had no information she could be certain of.
As Philly turned to leave, Renjo spoke.
“You think you’re so smart, don’t you?”
It sounded like the bitter jab of a loser,
like the parting line of someone making a theatrical exit,
like a curse spat out by a coward.
Yet there was something about it that clung to Philly’s ears—an unpleasant resonance.
“With that clever head of yours, think hard about this.”
“…… About what?”
“I’m merely the beginning.”
Renjo was smiling then.
A cocky smile, almost taunting.
“The Empire will be turned upside down.”
A jeer.
“The Imperial Palace will burn, people will scream, and an earthquake unlike any before will tear the Empire in two.”
A parting line.
“When that happens, I want to see what becomes of that arrogant face of yours. That face twisted by your own stupidity.”
——A curse.
“……Sigh.”
Philly exhaled slowly.
“If that’s what you want, I’ll look you up later. Eyes don’t disappear, even on a severed head.”
With that.
Philly left the room.
* * *
Discharge came quickly.
After all, Aten had fully healed me.
I returned to Constelle shortly after.
Aster, Siebel, and Elodie worried about my absence over those few days, but I deflected their concerns well enough.
The dejected expressions on Siebel and Elodie’s faces bothered me more than I wanted to admit.
And then.
“…I’m sorry?”
Aten blinked at me in confusion.
I spoke up.
“What I mean is, you don’t have to follow me around anymore.”
“But what do you…?”
Aten’s tone suggested she didn’t understand.
I scratched my head.
Fair enough—this was partly my own oversight for not explaining sooner.
I’d simply grown used to Aten trailing behind me without realizing it.
“You were following me around because of Dragon Heart, weren’t you?”
“…!”
“I’ve already told the Empress everything about Dragon Heart, so there’s no need for that anymore.”
Aten was undoubtedly someone Philly had sent to extract information from me—like a spy, in a sense.
…Well, “spy” might sound too sinister.
Since she was going to be assigned to Constelle anyway, it made sense for her to be in my class, and if she could gather intelligence on Dragon Heart in the process, all the better.
That was probably the extent of it.
But I’d already told Philly everything I knew about Dragon Heart.
There was no reason for Aten to exhaust herself following me anymore.
The stares and whispers from everyone around us must have been quite stressful for her.
This was freedom, in a manner of speaking.
“Now you understand, right? From now on, just live your school life however you want. Make some friends.”
“…I see. So you knew all along.”
“Well, it was obvious enough.”
The Empire’s princess trailing after a boy she’d only just met.
No matter how you looked at it, that was strange.
“Anyway, I need to get to the cafeteria.”
Despite Aten’s cold demeanor, one conversation with her revealed elegance and humility in equal measure.
She’d make friends easily enough.
My presence would only get in the way.
‘And I don’t have to worry about anything either—that’s convenient.’
With luck, I might even repair things with Aster.
Philly mentioned the spell she’d cast wasn’t particularly strong.
This was what they called a win-win.
With that light feeling, I walked toward the dining hall.
Or rather, I was walking.
“…Say, wait a moment.”
“Yes.”
A reply drifted from behind me, right on cue.
Aten was still there.
Still following me.
“Didn’t I just say you don’t need to follow me? Do what you want at school.”
“I am.”
Aten said it with that expressionless face of hers.
“You told me to do as I wish, so that’s what I’m doing.”
What was she talking about?
When did following me become what she wanted to do?
I tilted my head, thought hard about it, and when I couldn’t make sense of it, I asked her directly.
“…Why?”
At my question, Aten blinked for a moment, then looked down, then to the side, then up at the ceiling.
…She seemed to need quite a lot of deep thought for this one.
And the answer that came out was.
“…I don’t know.”
“…”
What is this?
Was she messing with me after all?
Had my earlier suspicion been right all along?
But Aten seemed to be wrestling with something profound, and then she looked at me with a serious expression.
Frontier.
“Huh?”
“I’m not strange, sir.”
“What? Sorry?”
“You said I was very strange, but I’m not strange, sir.”
Ah, that’s what he’d mentioned a moment ago.
“No, I didn’t mean you were strange like that.”
“I know. I understand.”
“Oh, you do?”
Then why?
Aten seemed to struggle finding the right words, her lips working soundlessly before she spoke to me with that troubled expression on her face.
“I’m not strange, sir.”
“Right, so—”
“No, sir.”
Aten cut me off.
It was probably the first time she’d ever done so.
What followed from her lips was—
“The fact that I follow you around, sir.”
Like a dam breaking.
“That I myself want to do it,”
As though she couldn’t contain it.
“That I still don’t know the reason—all of it.”
As if she were pouring out the very heart of Aten herself in words.
“None of it is strange, sir.”
The words spilled toward me.
…….
For a moment, I had no answer.
After saying this, Aten pressed her lips tight.
She seemed worried whether her words had gotten through properly.
“……All right. Do as you please.”
I replied.
In the end, I didn’t know why she followed me.
And since she herself didn’t know the reason either,
My allowing her to follow in my footsteps had ultimately become an act of not knowing either.
“Yes, sir.”
Within that brief answer, a small smile bloomed across her face.

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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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