ALL NOVEL Chapter 48
On my way back to the dormitory, I happened to run into Levi. To be precise, Levi spotted me first and came running over.
“Hey! Violets! Here!”
Levi, fidgeting, handed me a small white shopping bag.
“Thanks for last time…”
“What’s this?”
When I opened the bag, a small, unidentifiable box was inside.
“It’s… cake. Enjoy it!”
He left those words and dashed away.
– If someone saw this, they’d think it’s a bomb. –
– Sweet stuff sounds good. –
Back in the dormitory, I looked at the cake box that Levi had given me. Opening the tiny box revealed a mini cream cake the size of my palm, decorated with strawberries.
Taking out a dagger, I cut a corner and popped it in my mouth. The soft cream was impressive. So sweet.
After a little taste, it left me wanting more, so I cut a whole piece and popped it into my mouth. The crunchiness of the strawberry and the softness of the cake was pure artistry. I even licked the cream off my fingers.
– Not bad. Where did he buy this? –
– I’ll ask him when we meet in class. –
Everyone was praising it.
After eating about half of the cake, I started to feel a bit full. I was contemplating saving it for later when someone came to mind.
– Where’s Daphne? –
– She doesn’t seem to be back yet. Probably studying in the library. –
I had eaten too many cookies and drinks that Daphne brought. Even I thought it was a bit much.
So I figured she’d love to have this.
– Wow! What a great idea! –
– I agree! –
As the others enthusiastically agreed, I placed the cake on Daphne’s desk and went back outside. While eating the cake, I started craving something else. It’s a hassle, but I have to go outside the school again.
– I want tteokbokki. –
– Spicy fried noodles too! –
– We’ve got cup ramen and onigiri, and sushi, but why not those? –
Though I’ve become a cute girl, part of Violet still has memes from the Korean Peninsula embedded in her soul. I could eat without kimchi, but I’ve been wanting something spicy lately.
– Let’s buy some hot sauce. –
– A substitute for the quail. –
Chatting excitedly with other clones, we walked down, and in the distance, I spotted familiar shimmering silver hair.
– It’s Daphne! She’s here! –
I excitedly waved and started to run when I suddenly stopped. There were other people surrounding Daphne. Even from afar, the atmosphere seemed off. It looked like she was caught up in a troublesome argument.
– What’s that guy doing! –
A rough-looking fellow, flanked by two lackeys, was bothering Daphne. Behind her, there was a girl I hadn’t seen before, trembling in fear.
I didn’t recognize her, but her messy blonde hair and unpleasant looks gave off a bad vibe. She looked like one of those low-life punks they call “Golden Sun.”
I placed my hand on the adjacent wall. Clone 71 was summoned across the wall.
– Assess the situation. And other guys, prepare bricks! –
– Understood. –
Clone 71 approached and eavesdropped.
“Do you really think it’s right to drag someone who says they don’t want to go?”
“What’s with you? I just wanted to play with her! Who are you to stop me? …”
“Enough! I’ve seen you dragging her against her will! Just let her go already.”
“Ugh… sniff… Ugh…”
“Hey, it’s okay. Don’t be scared.”
It appeared that Daphne was stopping those punks from bothering a female student. Peeking from behind the wall, I could see a determination in Daphne that I hadn’t usually seen.
The blonde hooligan’s lecherous gaze roamed over Daphne. I could see his gaze linger uncomfortably on her chest.
– Hey! Where are you looking?! –
– Let’s kill him! Kill him! –
After assessing her looks, the guy chuckled.
“Hey, let’s do this. You can take her, but you’re coming with us. How’s that?”
“Excuse me, but I have to decline. I absolutely dislike people like you.”
Hearing her refusal, the blonde jerk sneered. Then, he reached out toward Daphne.
His filthy hand was heading straight for her!
– That son of a dog! –
– Hey! Let’s go! –
Five clones materialized from the wall and prepared to leap over.
But the hand never touched her.
– *Ping!*
“Wait! What the hell!”
Immediately, a pale green barrier materialized, deflecting his hand without hesitation.
A hemisphere shield surrounded Daphne and the trembling girl. She swiftly turned around and began to lead the girl away from the thugs. The punks were pushed back by the barrier.
“What’s this! Damn it! Hey! Didn’t that barrier break?!”
“Why the hell is it so strong?!”
Despite their kicking, the barrier, powered by Daphne’s unique ability that withstood mid-level monsters, couldn’t be penetrated by them.
Calmly, without changing her expression, Daphne brought the quivering girl along and left the scene. The punks got shoved out by the barrier.
“Ah, what a pain in the ass!”
The blonde punk, irritated, drew his sword.
Oh, look at this guy.
The moment the sword’s energy flashed, we leaped from the wall at the same time.
Targeting the thugs’ heads!
Our combined weight struck them hard.
“Gravity Strike!”
– *Thud!*
“Ugh!”
“Ugh!”
“Uwaah!”
<Critical Hit!>
[Attacking from behind activates the Resonance Trait: Back Injury. Damage increases!]
The thugs fell face-first to the ground after taking the hammer hit.
“Take that! Daphne! Let’s get out of here quickly!”
“…Rugilinn? What are you doing here?”
“No time to explain. Let’s move!”
As I escorted them away, other clones who had subdued the thugs checked their status.
“Ah… Who the hell are you…?”
“…She’s not fainted, huh?”
The blonde punk groaned and tried to rise. He was tougher than we thought. Since he fell forward, he couldn’t see us, but apparently, one hit wasn’t enough to take him out.
– *Thump! Thump! Thump!*
I was hitting his head with the hammer when he finally fell, sticking his tongue out.
“People will be passing by soon. We need to get moving!”
“Got it!”
We looted the wallets and smartphones of those low-life punks and de-summoned ourselves.
I wondered if I should’ve stripped them of their clothes too.
“Are you okay?”
“Thanks to you, I got out quickly. Thank you!”
Seeing Daphne smile made me feel relieved that I helped. I couldn’t let those pathetic punks have my beautiful roommate.
“Thanks for your help!”
The girl Daphne saved kept expressing her gratitude as she left. Originally, I just intended to snack some more, but it seemed like things escalated a bit.
That’s enough for today; I should just head back.
“Want to go eat cake?”
“Cake?”
“I actually got a gift…”
***
Separately from punishing the punks, the outside crew had stopped their work and was slacking off.
In fact, the will to work had vanished in recent days.
Since discussing the recording transcript with Irene, a skeptical feeling gradually spread among the Violets.
– Shouldn’t we do something? –
– Too bothersome. Why should I? –
I didn’t know.
As we kept repeating the same tasks, we fell into a state of ennui.
The fact that we hadn’t gained any real results until now contributed to the loss of motivation.
The grand plan to abduct the researchers from the underground facility was currently on hold. We couldn’t solve the issue of how to extract people. All we had left were meaningless piles of footage collected from inside.
– Shouldn’t we analyze these? –
– I don’t know, it’s bothersome. –
Before I knew it, everyone had stopped working and was lying on the floor.
– Aren’t we supposed to go out? Deliveries? –
– Deliveries? I quit. One minute late and they threw a fit asking for a refund! –
Violet, lying on the mat, spoke to another clone rolling around next to her.
– Wouldn’t it be easier to find the protagonist and relay what we know? –
– That’s a good point, but how do we even know if the protagonist is in the Scholarship Officer position? –
– We still don’t know if the Scholarship Officer is male or female. –
The other Violets, who had lost motivation, agreed to look for the protagonist. The underground facility was too vast, and it was hard to inspect crowded places. Above all, there was a limit to personal effort.
– Let’s contact the Inspection Bureau. If we mention the protagonist’s name and ask for a contact… –
– As if they’d actually give it to us. –
The Inspection Bureau was one of the few organizations we could trust within this academy city.
The official name is Central Dispute Adjustment Inspection Bureau, abbreviated as CDAIB. It’s the workplace of the Scholarship Officer.
In typical gacha games, protagonists take on the role of a manager or commander supervising characters from the back. However, in some works, protagonists join hands with their comrades and dive into the battlefield. The Scholarship Officer was an embodiment of that trend.
In a dictionary sense, a Scholarship Officer refers to an educational civil servant who supervises and advises on practical education in a school.
However, in the world of Crimson Scholar, the term ‘Scholarship Officer’ holds another meaning. They perform the regular duties of that educational official but also have the political role of mediating the interests among various clans and schools managing the Academy City.
Yet, the conflicts among the Awakened Ones and the power struggles between clans, corporations, and various secret societies that occur in darkness don’t resolve easily through conversation.
So, in practical terms, the Scholarship Officer serves as a resolver who bulldozes through all the discord among corporations, schools, clans, and the federal army.
After the teapot agreement, the academy city’s restricted military power also constitutes its strongest force.
Suddenly, I thought of the whereabouts of the bag that got lost last time.
– Did the Scholarship Officer take it? –
– I’m not sure who took it. For now, there’s a high possibility that someone like us has it. –
– What about the chance that a casual insider picked it up? –
– The multi-dimensional bag is a top-tier relic. If rumors spread even a little, all sorts of people would flock to that dungeon, but there haven’t been any signs of that yet. –
– Someone with information could have done that. Someone like us. –
– True. As long as we exist, there could be another reincarnator too. –
Suddenly, Clone 7 raised her hand and made a new suggestion.
– What if it’s a time traveler? –
– What? –
– Someone who traveled back in time by some means. Ether is a substance that creates miracles, right? –
– That’s absolute nonsense in this context. Oh, if that were true, we’d better pack and run. –
– Why? Ah, right. –
The Violets quickly understood the reason. When they thought about it, there was a deep-rooted feud between the Scholarship Officer and the future Violets.
– Can’t we just persuade them through conversation? –
– Do you think that’s possible? Assuming the future me came here, we’d be like baby Hitlers in front of a time-traveling Jew. –
– Or like Bin Laden in front of an American. –
The strange analogy brought up by Clone 8 sparked voices of discontent among us.
– Eww! Comparing us to Austrian lunatics or terrorists! –
– Clone 8, reflect on that! –
– Reflect! Reflect! –
Startled, Clone 8 had no choice but to lower her head amidst the other Violets’ criticisms.
– Ugh… I’ll reflect. –
– You’ve reflected? Then that’s enough. Don’t do that again! –
What had seemed like a potentially productive conversation abruptly ended here. We still had no idea where the bag was and everything felt bothersome.
Yet, after lying around helplessly and making a fuss, I felt a bit better.
Though my motivation was still lacking.