Ruth met the student council president during the festival. It was because she sought Ruth out.
She said she wanted a student of the same rank as a pawn for her prophecies.
Ruth, who was lost and confused, visited Cassandra with Beatrice, became the vice-president of the student council in name only, and…
…had her secret as a Regressor exposed.
"…I remember you were never there when I tried to meet you."
"Well, junior, you're no fun. You keep talking about regression and truth every time we meet, it's boring. As expected, someone with interesting reactions like senior is the best."
"Senior… you mean Adam?"
"Of course. Then he's your senior's senior, so he's your senior-senior!"
"...…"
After the festival, she couldn't meet Cassandra even if she tried. Cassandra completely disappeared from her sight, as if avoiding Ruth.
She could still exercise her authority as the vice-president, but she couldn't get any important information from that self-proclaimed prophet who knew she was a Regressor.
And now, Cassandra, who suddenly appeared in this rock salt mine, had put Adam to sleep with a nonsensical joke.
And at the timing when Ruth was about to tell Adam about the regression.
It couldn't be unintentional.
"Get away from Adam."
"Senior is just sleeping. He doesn't sleep well because of all the overtime and all-nighters, so isn't this a good thing?"
"I said get away."
Whatever Cassandra's intentions were, her priority was to protect Adam.
Just as Ruth reached for the old sword at her waist to cut herself and feed it her blood,
Woong!
"Now, now, that's not allowed."
"…!"
Cassandra had somehow appeared next to Ruth and bound one of her arms with magic.
Even though they were both Rank 6, Ruth hadn't noticed a thing despite being on guard.
But even though she was caught off guard, the binding magic itself was weak.
'If I'm willing to get hurt, I can break free with force.'
A little.
Just a little closer, and she could break free from the bind with force, draw Dark Sword, and hold it to her neck.
As Ruth, who no longer hesitated to wield her sword due to countless experiences, was devising a way to subdue Cassandra,
Cassandra, wearing her blindfold, smirked.
"I'm telling you not to draw Dark Sword."
"…How…"
"I know you're a Regressor, so do you think I wouldn't know about Dark Sword? I'm not stopping you from using that demonic sword, but not here."
"Why?"
"Because something underground will react. Just like the tremor and collapse earlier."
Underground? React?
While Ruth was momentarily taken aback by the unfamiliar information, Cassandra looked down with an unreadable expression, tapping the floor with her foot.
As if she could see something beneath the stone floor.
"Something very unpleasant is sleeping underground. Actually, even calling it 'sleeping' is ambiguous. It's not alive."
"…What are you talking about?"
"I think I've given you enough hints. There aren't many things in this world that react to Dark Sword, are there?"
"That's not what I'm asking."
Even Ruth could roughly understand what Cassandra meant. It was true that there weren't many things that would react to Dark Sword.
But the problem was Adam.
"I have Dark Sword, so it makes sense for me, but what about Adam?"
"Hmm."
"Adam has nothing to do with Dark Sword. If you can't explain that, it's just a poor excuse, whether he's asleep or not."
For instance, Cassandra might be lying about Dark Sword being dangerous to prevent her from drawing it.
Ruth, who had become more cautious since her first regression, glared at Cassandra.
"It's understandable that you wouldn't know. It was originally an item that belonged to the self-proclaimed Pope."
"The self-proclaimed Pope? Milia?"
"Anyway, I can't stay here long. I sent a clone here using magic. I'll be returning soon, so please take care of senior."
"No, wait!"
At the very least…
At the very least…
"How do you know all this? You're just a Rank 6, the student council president of the academy, younger than Adam, and yet you know about regression, Dark Sword, and something sleeping underground?"
"...…"
"You appeared when I was about to tell Adam about regression, that was intentional, wasn't it?"
"…You're quicker than I thought. Honestly, I was disappointed before."
"What?"
"To answer our vice president and junior, it's because I'm the Great Prophet! A prophet knows everything!"
Cassandra's answer, with her hand on her chest and a confident smile, didn't convince Ruth at all, but…
She couldn't help but stop at the following words.
"And you should be even more careful about telling him about the future and regression."
"…Explain."
"Explain what? This is a warning. You might think now is the perfect time to confess about the regression to Adam, but it's not. There will be a better time… so wait until then."
And with that,
Cassandra disappeared as if she had never been there, before Ruth could even respond.
Ruth quietly gritted her teeth at that mirage-like disappearance.
'I have to find her when we get back.'
She vowed to not just find Cassandra, but to make her stand before her, and then quietly lifted the sleeping Adam. He was quite light.
She sat on the rock and had Adam lean against her chest as a pillow so he could sleep comfortably. It wasn't out of any ulterior motives; a woman's chest was objectively soft and good to sleep on. That was all.
It was a part of her body that usually only got in the way during battle because it was too big, but she was quite fond of it at this moment.
She pulled up his coat to cover his neck and gently hugged him, feeling his heartbeat and breathing.
"…Sleep well, Adam."
Ruth, who knew how much Adam worked overtime and all-nighters and how rarely he came to the dormitory because they were living together,
Agreed with Cassandra's words about him needing to sleep. She stroked Adam's hair as he slept peacefully and quietly looked at his face.
She gathered the surrounding wood debris and rubbed them together with her aura to create a fire. It was to keep Adam warm and to see his face more clearly.
And so, Ruth gazed at Adam's sleeping face.
Continuously.
…Continuously.
***
[Chain Binding]
Crack!!
"Huff… huff…"
"…Stop it now, Student Chloe."
"Shut… up…!!"
[Chain Binding]
Crack!
"You've been doing this for hours. Even I, a Rank 1, can clearly see that you've reached mana exhaustion."
[Chain Binding]
How many times had she already used magic? How many times had she collapsed from exhaustion?
Even so, Chloe couldn't stop using [Chain Binding]. It was partly thanks to adult Chloe's training, but more than that, she couldn't accept it herself.
'I couldn't catch him.'
Why did she desperately train in magic with adult Chloe's help? To become Rank 6? To become the Archmage's top disciple?
No. It was because she didn't want to feel that sense of helplessness she felt at Circe's laboratory again.
But it was no different this time.
'If only, if only I were a little stronger.'
If only she had a little more mana left, if only she had increased her mana capacity enough for adult Chloe to take over…
She could have grabbed Adam's hand with [Chain Binding]. Adam wouldn't have fallen into that damn hole.
That's why Chloe was desperately trying to widen the hole even now.
[Chain Bind—
"Cough! Cough!!"
'Stop it now. I said you wouldn't die from mana exhaustion, but at this rate, you really will.'
'How can you be so calm! Adam, Adam fell down there…!!'
'Because I know he's alive. And although it's annoying, that last-place bitch also fell, so he'll be safe.'
'Then you're saying we should just do nothing!?'
'No way. I'm telling you to recover your mana first. And let me tell you, I'm not calm, I'm just suppressing and not expressing my emotions. In situations like this, you have to… avoid simply getting angry.'
Adult Chloe's voice was faint but trembling. Chloe, who had been agitated, slowly took a deep breath at those words.
She didn't know exactly what her future self had gone through with Adam, but it must have been a common occurrence.
Adult Chloe was prioritizing reason and efficiency over emotions.
'It's more efficient to recover your mana than to recklessly use [Chain Binding] like this. If you truly want to save Adam, just listen to me.'
'…What in the world happened in the future that you're so used to this?'
'Adam is Rank 1, and I'm Rank 7. It was only natural for enemies to target him.'
Leaving adult Chloe, who answered with those brief words, behind, Chloe, who had finally calmed down, looked back in a state of near exhaustion.
Auditor Marcus, who had been trying to stop her, was there.
"I apologize for my outburst earlier. I was too agitated."
"It's alright. It seems like your relationship with the Finance Director isn't that of an ordinary student and staff member, so I understand. Do you consider the Finance Director your mentor?"
"…Something like that."
"I've already contacted the royal family and the academy, so don't worry too much. Ruth also followed him down, so he'll be fine. After all, he managed to get out safely even when he fell with me."
Fell with you?
Chloe couldn't help but narrow her eyes at those words she couldn't ignore, but she soon shook her head. Now wasn't the time to be concerned about that.
First, she had to recover her mana and focus on widening the hole. It was a trivial task compared to the size of the tunnel, but she felt like she would go crazy if she didn't do anything.
Chloe, who had returned to the inn with Auditor Marcus, washed her sweat-drenched body and sat on the bed.
'Can't we go to Adam now?'
'It's too far. We could go if we push ourselves, but you won't last even five minutes with your current mana.'
'Let's try it anyway.'
'Are you serious? This isn't just mana exhaustion. You could really fall into a coma.'
'Adam could die.'
'…Alright.'
In the end, adult Chloe was also worried about Adam.
Despite Chloe's seemingly reckless words, adult Chloe nodded. She would have said the same if their situations were reversed.
Chloe drank the high-grade elixir she had brought as a reserve and was about to meditate to recover some of her mana when…
Woong.
'No… wait, what's this?'
'What? What's wrong?'
'Don't tell me, don't tell me…?'
Adult Chloe's voice wavered. But Chloe couldn't believe the emotions in her voice.
It was a voice filled with shock, confusion, and fear.
Adult Chloe hurriedly borrowed Chloe's mana and constructed a new spell.
[Immutable Barrier]
A Rank 7 defensive magic that Chloe had once seen in a book. A magic that was said to withstand even a dragon's breath once.
But why was she using that magic now, here?
'He's coming.'
'Suddenly? Who's coming that you're like this? Is it the Headmistress?'
'If it were her, I wouldn't be like this. It's unbelievable, but the one coming now is from the Empire.'
'What? Are you talking about Master?'
'Not him, but in a way, he's even more dangerous to me in my current mental state. He's not someone who prefers fighting, but I don't know what will happen if he discovers my existence.'
She understood that it was dangerous for a higher mental entity like adult Chloe to be discovered. It was fine with her master, the Archmage, because he focused on the physical 'eyes' rather than mental entities, but if she was caught by other high-ranking mages, they would drool and come after her.
Even if she was a Rank 7, adult Chloe would have to be discovered by someone at the level of the Archmage, a Rank 8.
Soon, Auditor Marcus's flustered voice was heard from beyond the door.
"It's an honor to meet a Rank 8! I knew you were staying with the royal family, but I never imagined you would come in person…!!"
"Please don't stand on ceremony, I am but a humble worker. My skills are insignificant, so there's no need to bow."
"How could I dare not? Thank you for helping the kingdom, Surveyor."
'Surveyor!'
It was a name Chloe couldn't possibly not know. She was currently at Grandis Academy, but she was originally from the Empire.
If the biggest eccentric among the ten Rank 8s in the Empire was the Elven Archmage, the most peculiar ones were the Surveyor and the Sculptor.
Those who reached Rank 8 not through magic or martial arts, but through surveying and sculpting.
If he was the Surveyor, it made sense why adult Chloe was so guarded. He was unmatched in surveying. He could 'survey' even adult Chloe through the [Immutable Barrier].
As if to prove that,
"May I go upstairs for a moment?"
"Of course! But there's nothing much up there."
"Haha, it seems there's an interesting subject for surveying."
"Excuse me…?"
Thud. Thud.
Chloe heard the Surveyor walking towards her room.
And with both Chloe and adult Chloe speechless,
The 'surveyed' door was disassembled and forcefully opened.
"Hmm? Isn't this the disciple of the Archmage?"
"It's an honor to meet you, Surveyor."
"Hmm… There's no need to be so formal with me. By the way, it's a shame. I saw a truly interesting subject for surveying."
The Surveyor was an elderly man with a hunched back. A small, unimpressive-looking, shabby old man.
But his eyes held an unfathomable depth and countless geometric shapes.
The Surveyor, who was looking not at Chloe, but at the spot where adult Chloe was with the [Immutable Barrier], soon smiled and turned away.
"Disciple, please give my regards to the Archmage. It seems he's been particularly interested in my eyes lately, as always."
"Ah, yes."
"Even I wouldn't want my eyes gouged out for touching the Archmage's disciple. Then, please rest well."
Thud.
The Surveyor left with a smile, but neither Chloe nor adult Chloe could say anything.
He didn't do anything, just looked, and yet…
The [Immutable Barrier] cast by adult Chloe, a peak Rank 7 mage, was 'surveyed' and shattered.
The fact that the high-ranking magic, which could even withstand a dragon's breath, couldn't withstand the gaze of the old man…
Both Chloes couldn't help but break out in a cold sweat.