Reviving a Bankrupt Academy: My Financial Battle

"...…."

"...."

Damn it.

What should I do about this atmosphere?

I swear to god, I never imagined the Headmistress would be like this. I couldn't keep running away from her, and I had to give Milia instructions, so I just came back to the office with her.

I just opened a door I didn't even know existed because all the other doors were locked.

And I never imagined the Headmistress would be lying in bed… like that.

"…Um…"

"Ah."

"Uh."

"…Hmm."

This is driving me crazy.

The Headmistress's face was bright red, and I was at a loss for what to do.

Milia was working outside, so…

…was this unavoidable?

"H-Headmistress."

"Uh, w-what, yes!?"

"What you said earlier…"

"J-just forget about it! Let's pretend it never happened! Just, just…"

Why was she acting so unlike herself?

There was a hint of tears in the Headmistress's voice, something even I could recognize. Well, if I think about it the other way around, I would be the same in this situation.

It was my fault for causing the misunderstanding in the first place, even if it was a slip of the tongue.

And the Headmistress had made up her mind and given me an answer, and I had created this situation.

I reached out and…

Grab.

"H-huh…?"

"Look at me."

…grabbed and turned her shoulder.

The Headmistress easily turned around, unbelievably so for a Rank 8. There were faint tears in her eyes.

Sigh.

"Let me say this again. What I said earlier, about loving you, was a slip of the tongue."

"…I-is that so? I knew it."

"But the mistake was definitely mine. You answered sincerely to my mistake."

"...…"

"So, let me ask you sincerely."

Truly.

Hypothetically.

If by any chance.

"Was the answer you showed me earlier, sincere?"

"...…"

"Do you… love me?"

If the Headmistress shook her head here, that would be it. It would just be another addition to my list of embarrassing moments.

I couldn't just stand by and watch my superior, whom I admired, misunderstand and shed tears.

Honestly, I was still half-convinced. There was the difference in rank, the difference in age, and we hadn't known each other for that long.

As I met the Headmistress's teary eyes…

"…Yes."

"...…"

"I… like the Finance Director."

Is that so?

…What do you mean "is that so," damn it.

My mind was a mess.

"I won't ask why. Objectively, I know I'm lacking compared to you in every way, Headmistress, but you must have seen something in me."

"…Yes."

"First of all, I'm truly… happy about your feelings. There's no one who would reject someone as beautiful as you, Headmistress."

"R-really!?"

Honestly, aside from her age, the Headmistress looked like she was the same age as me, or even younger. Even I thought she was beautiful before I became the Finance Director.

I came to my senses after seeing her various sides as the Finance Director, but anyway.

"Th-then, from today…!!"

"Please hear me out first."

"Ah, yes…"

"I'm happy about your feelings, and I think I should accept them as a man. Even if it started with my slip of the tongue, I should take responsibility."

"...…"

"But."

I was the Finance Director of this academy.

That meant I was the one who had to see reality most clearly.

"If you and I were to become lovers…"

"L-lovers."

"Will I be able to push you around like before?"

"…?"

It sounded a bit strange, but well…

The point was this.

"The situation has improved a lot, but our academy is still in crisis. One wrong step, and we'll go bankrupt, and that would be the worst possible outcome in many ways."

"…For my dream?"

"Of course. It's just as we talked about on the rooftop."

I…

…thought the Headmistress's dream was very noble and beautiful.

Rank 8s weren't omnipotent. The Headmistress was a Rank 8 martial artist, but she was weak in calculations and had a terrible sense for money. She was far from perfect. Especially the position of Headmistress of the academy must have been the most unsuitable position for her, who was once called the Mad Dragon.

I didn't know the details, but strength and violence must have been a major part of the Headmistress's life. But she sealed all of that away in an instant by taking the position of Headmistress.

The choice that would influence her entire life stemmed from a dream she had since she was young.

A pure dream that stemmed from her lack of education and her desire to prevent her past from repeating itself.

For that dream, the Headmistress wore a hat that was the most unsuitable for her in the world.

Wasn't it reason enough to help her, knowing that her dream was about to crumble against reality? That she had tried her best, but the situation only worsened?

"To be honest, I don't have much romantic interest in you, Headmistress."

"…I could tell."

"But more than that…"

"…?"

"I… admire your ideals."

Wow.

I never thought I would say such embarrassing things.

I turned my head away after saying that, but I caught a glimpse of it. The Headmistress's jaw dropped.

I was also embarrassed, so please don't say anything.

"…And if the academy goes bankrupt, the place where we can be together will disappear, won't it?"

"Th-that's…"

"I dare say, this academy…"

──This is our home, Finance Director.

──Home?

──You're an orphan, aren't you, Finance Director? Now this academy will be your hometown and your home. I promise you, with my life.

It was a fragment of an unknown memory that surfaced after the festival.

It was strange that I didn't remember it then, but now I remember.

A conversation between the Headmistress and me, but one we never had.

But at this moment, that conversation felt so familiar.

"…I think of it as home."

"Finance Director…"

"Is that… not allowed?"

"Of course it's allowed!"

Embrace.

Wow.

So soft.

"Headmistress?"

"That answer is enough for now. It really is!"

"…I don't know how I became the one answering, but…"

"But it truly is enough."

"I'll give you a proper answer once the academy is fully normalized."

"Yes! Our home, you mean!"

This is driving me crazy.

She's old enough to be my great-great-grandmother, so why is she so cute and lovable… crazy.

'I'm going crazy.'

What was wrong with me? I kept making slips of the tongue that I've never made before, and I heard strange voices near Chloe.

I was frozen in an awkward position, unsure what to do with the Headmistress who had just embraced me, when…

"Huh?"

"Headmistress?"

"This… huh? What?"

"Headmistress!?"

The Headmistress suddenly started touching me… wait, what are you doing!?

The Headmistress, who had been quietly hugging me, suddenly reached her hands into my armpits, neck, and chest.

Frozen in place by that unknown touch,

'Are we really going to go all the way?'

No, that's a bit…

I just said something really nice, and the atmosphere is—

"…It's not my imagination."

"What? What do you mean?"

"The Scabbard of Dark Sword."

"That artifact? We should be looking for it…"

"…It's inside your body, Finance Director."

"Excuse me?"

Huh?

What??

"I'll believe that was a bad joke."

"It's… true. I can feel a familiar presence inside your body. To be precise, in the area of your heart?"

"What? How is that possible? How could something that big fit inside my body?"

"It seems like it was absorbed?"

So, you're saying the Scabbard of Dark Sword was absorbed into my heart?

Does that even make sense? And did the scabbard even have that kind of function?

Seeing my dumbfounded expression, the Headmistress also responded with a flustered look.

"I-I didn't know the scabbard had this kind of function either. Um, do you feel anything strange, Finance Director?"

"Nothing strange…"

…That's not true.

There were the slips of the tongue and the strange voice I heard.

Was this all because of the scabbard? But for an artifact like the scabbard to be absorbed into my heart, the effects seemed a bit underwhelming, didn't they?

If I had gained some powerful ability, it would be one thing, but even when I tried to sense mana or aura, it was no use.

"What should we do about this? An artifact merging with the heart…"

"Are there no similar cases?"

"No, among the artifacts I've seen during my travels, there were some that bound to the body or soul like this. But…"

"But what?"

"…Usually, artifacts like these have severe side effects because of their powerful effects. To be precise, the effects vary depending on the wearer, so the severity of the side effects also varies."

"So if it's an incredibly powerful ability, the side effects are also incredible?"

"That's right. In the first place, the only artifacts capable of this are those empowered by Dark Sword or the sacred relic. Even if it's an artifact, it's still just an object, so how could it merge like this?"

Come to think of it, that was true. No matter how powerful an artifact was, merging with the heart like this couldn't be common.

Unless it was a remnant of Dark Sword or the sacred relic, which were said to be created by gods… Dark Sword?

"Is it because this is the Scabbard of Dark Sword?"

"Actually, according to the dwarves' historical records, it was sheathed in Dark Sword for hundreds of years, suppressing its power. It wouldn't be a problem if it absorbed Dark Sword's power during that time."

"Do you know how to remove it?"

"…It does come out when you die."

Okay, I understood everything.

For some reason, the scabbard was absorbed into my heart, and there was practically no way to remove it.

This wasn't just a minor inconvenience.

'The cult will try to kill me if they find out about this.'

According to the Headmistress, if I died, the scabbard would be separated from me, so the cult, trying to retrieve the sacred treasure, would immediately target my life.

Another secret I had to absolutely protect was added to the list. And I was going to sell it, that's my money!

Then, at the very least…

'Shouldn't I try to get some use out of it?'

It was a powerful artifact, after all. Even if I couldn't sense it now, it must have some extraordinary ability.

Let's think positively. I had seriously considered the Archmage's offer to give me his eyes recently.

Couldn't I at least escape from being a Rank 1 with this?

"Do you know what kind of ability it has?"

"Well, since it's absorbed into your heart, it will react in some form if you infuse your heart with mana or Aura. I'll do it."

The Headmistress immediately placed her hand on my chest and projected her aura into me, sending chills down my spine.

Just a small amount of this aura could easily blow my body to pieces. I couldn't help but feel nervous.

The Headmistress's aura entered my heart and…

Came out.

"?"

"?"

It went in, came out, passed through, gathered, and even surrounded my heart.

But even after trying all that…

There was no reaction.

"Uh… don't tell me."

"Do you have any idea?"

"Among the artifacts I've seen, there were some that only reacted to the wearer's own mana or Aura…"

"…You mean…"

"So, the Finance Director has to infuse it with mana or Aura himself, but…"

But I'm Rank 1.

If I were even Rank 2, it would be one thing, but a Rank 1 can't use mana or aura at all. I'm just an ordinary person.

Then…

"I can't use it?"

"...…"

"Headmistress. Answer me."

"…That's right."

No, seriously.

Are you kidding me?

Is this what they call casting pearls before swine?

"Then, even if I can't use its power, there wouldn't be any side effects, right?"

"…It's not that there's no power, but that the Finance Director can't use it because he's Rank 1. There will still be side effects."

Wow.

So it wasn't a pearl necklace, but a bomb necklace?

No, wait, maybe the slip of the tongue was the side effect? That's much better than worrying about unknown side effects.

—So you're really going to leave it like this? It doesn't seem like a good idea.

Well, no matter what, I should at least figure out what the side effects are…?

"Huh?"

"Finance Director?"

"Didn't you just hear a voice?"

"What? A voice? This room is soundproofed with my Aura, so that's impossible."

—There's no way Adam would welcome that guy. Of course, it's good for blending in.

What? Not welcome him? Blend in?

While I was flustered because I kept hearing voices despite the Headmistress's words,

Knock knock.

"Um… Finance Director? You have a visitor."

"A visitor? I told the Head of Academic Affairs not to let anyone come up."

"Well, the professor insisted that he had something to say."

"The professor?"

Milia, who had been keeping her head down as if she was uncomfortable facing the Headmistress, was standing behind the door after knocking.

And behind her were a familiar face and an unfamiliar one.

"…Student Chloe? Professor Alon?"

"F-Finance Director."

"Finance Director, and Headmistress."

Was that voice from earlier Chloe approaching?

And the one accompanying Chloe was Professor Alon from the Illusion Magic Department.

He had a much better complexion than at the entrance ceremony, but with a somewhat dubious smile.

"I came to make an urgent proposal, like last time."

—That fucking traitor bastard. Because of this guy, the academy…!!

"…?"

Wait.

That voice, what did it just say?