Volume 1 Chapter 5.2
Autonomous Thinking Puppets, Sand
Castles are Prone to Collapse Part 2
Translator : PolterGlast
In the cafeteria at
dinner time, which was crowded with students, Jin was eating alone in silence.
As usual, he was
seated by the window farthest from the doorway. Here, he could see the whole
situation and was not likely to be interrupted by anyone.
As he was nibbling on
a piece of bread while listening to his surroundings, he overheard a
conversation that caught his attention.
"......I heard
that all the C-rank students are participating."
"Who the hell is
everyone? I'm not participating. Besides, is this Bennett guy even
trustworthy?"
"You'll know when
you meet him. He's the real deal."
Bennett?
Jin focused his
attention on the conversation he heard.
To summarize the
conversation between the two boys, it seemed that Bennett was planning to
gather students in the bottom 20% of possession points - the so-called [C-rank]
students - and start some kind of aid operation.
Some sort of meeting
was to be held in a warehouse on the school grounds later.
Jin ate the remaining
food in one gulp and decided to follow them as they left the cafeteria.
The technique of
tailing had been drilled into him since he was 10 years old.
In crowded places,
where it is easy to lose sight of the target, he would get as close as three
meters, and in such deserted nighttime streets, he would maintain a distance
that would just barely allow him to see the target. In the case of Jin, whose
face has become somewhat well-known through the recent <Duel>, he needs
to be especially careful.
While being very
careful, he chased after the duo as they walked toward the direction where
there were only a few buildings.
─There should only be a playground over there.
Jin was suspicious,
but his suspicions were confirmed when the duo disappeared into a warehouse on
the outskirts of the playground. The warehouse is large enough to store several
large agricultural machines, so it might be a good place for a large group of
people to hold a secret meeting.
As he crouched behind
a bush to check on the situation, Jin was struck by a sudden misfortune.
"Huh, Jin-kun?
What are you doing here?"
"Wha......."
What a bad
time, this woman!
While holding his own
mouth shut from screaming, Jin glared at Emma, who suddenly appeared in front
of him.
She was probably on
her daily run, dressed in the school's gym clothes, looking downward at him
while wiping the sweat off her face with a towel.
"......Well, I
was just observing some ants, you see? I just spotted a rare species."
"You can see ants
in this darkness?"
"Have I mentioned
that my eyesight is five times that of a normal person? ......Anyway, don't
worry about me, better get back to your training. You've got one last
competition coming up, right? It's none of my business tho."
"There's no
tournament-...... huh? Look, Jin-kun, there are a lot of people gathered
there!"
Jin muttered in a
somewhat half-hearted manner.
"......I wonder
what all these guys doing here? Are they perhaps arguing over the girl they
like?"
"Eh, that sounds
like fun! Let's take a look!"
Jin let out a single
sigh, as if he were spitting out his entire soul, and then switched his
thoughts.
In any case, there was
nothing they prepared to get into that warehouse.
Since they also fall
under the [C-rank] category, it might be possible for them to participate
through the front door in a normal way.
There were no
qualifications or secret passwords for participating in the mysterious meeting,
and the two were able to enter the warehouse without any difficulty.
It was more than
enough space for more than 20 students to gather. The triangular cones, line
drawers, and other equipment were arranged along the walls, leaving a small
space in the center. The bare light bulbs hanging from the ceiling made the
center of the space stand out in the darkness.
"It kind of looks
like a circus stage, doesn't it?"
While nodding in
agreement with Emma's comment, another thought flashed through Jin's mind.
If what he imagined
was correct, this place was──.
"Emma", Jin
whispered, "this place may be dangerous. We should get out of here while
we still can."
"Ah,
Bennett-kun!"
His suggestion was
futilely drowned out by the noise that rose up in the warehouse.
As he was giving up
and watching to see what would happen, Bennett Rohr came in through the sliding
door at the entrance.
The C-rank students
who had crowded into the meeting place were all looking at Bennett with
expectant gazes. The organizer of the meeting approached them with a smile on
his face, and without being instructed, they split into two groups to form a
pathway.
Bennett walked
leisurely through them, making his way to the center of the warehouse.
When he looked back at
the students, they were lined up in a three-column formation without being told.
Perhaps because they were newcomers, Jin and the others were urged to line up
on the far right of the last row.
Emma, who looked
suspicious, asked in a whisper.
"Huh? Weren't
they going to have a debate about who's their favorite girl?"
"Of course, it's
a lie, did you seriously believe it?"
The students in the
center of the front row glared at them, so Jin and Emma hurriedly kept their
mouths shut.
Bennett looked over at
his obedient subordinates with a satisfied expression, cleared his throat, and
then began his speech.
"First of all,
thank you for gathering here. This is the second time we've done this activity,
and it looks like we have quite an increase in numbers. Let's see..."
"Including those
who were not notified in advance, there are a total of twenty-three of
us."
"Thank you for
your report. I see......There are already 23 participants, huh? It seems like
our activities are getting bigger and bigger, and I'm even a little bit
scared."
Jin peered into
Bennett's eyes, smiling wryly, but could not see any trace of malice there. It
is one of Jin's special skills to sense people's malice, but has his sense
become dull due to living in a school where only people of his own age are
present?
Suddenly, Bennett's
blue eyes caught Jin's gaze head-on.
"......Since
there are some newcomers, let me explain once again the purpose of this
activity."
He continued in a
sagacious yet powerful voice typical of someone who was used to being in front
of an audience.
"Those with quick
ears may already know this, but six first-year students have already been
expelled from school. And that's before the end of each month, when the
<elimination> date is still to be decided. This would be impossible
without a <duel>, with all the points on the line."
Bennett's tone of
voice dropped a notch as he continued.
"But the question
remains. Is it really necessary to take such a risky gamble this early
on?"
The other party was
obviously looking at Jin as he spoke, so he had no choice but to answer the
question.
"C-rank hunting,
right? I've heard rumors of it."
"That's
right."
Bennett snapped his
fingers in affirmation. Jin found this gesture rather annoying.
"The six who were
expelled were all C-rank students just like you. Although they were lucky
enough to pass the <screening test>, if they did not do anything, they
would have been candidates for the monthly elimination, in which five students
are eliminated each month. Someone is taking advantage of this situation.
Perhaps that someone
is luring them into a <Duel> with unreasonable conditions, because they
want points so badly that they are desperate for them. Perhaps whispering that
they would give up all their points if they could win. They could even be using
their psychic abilities to intimidate them."
"I thought it was
just a rumor. Is there really such a villainous person?"
"There is no
proof, of course. The result of the duel will not be made public unless the
person himself tells everyone about it. At the very least, I think it's too
much to be true that a single villain is hunting down C-rank students. But some
individuals are taking advantage of C-rank students' weakness and earning
points ─ that's probably the
truth."
According to the
information Jin has gathered so far, the average number of points held by first-year
students is around 200, and although he does not know the level of the C-rank
hunters, he doubts that they are below average.
The culprits are
definitely among the top scorers.
"Well, it is true
that they are just acting according to the rules. It's the school system that
is at fault, the one that allows C-rank students to be preyed upon."
Some of the students
listening to the speech seemed enthralled by Bennett.
"I am sure you
are all aware of this. This academy, which encourages the survival of the
fittest, is so cruel. It is not an educational institution, but only a
battleground. Even the rule of filling out a pledge with the consent of both
parties is meaningless if you are threatened with psychic abilities."
"That's
right!" A voice, raised in terror, rose from somewhere.
"You can tell
this from the fact that the instructor was not present at all, and instead,
sent only those dolls to the <duel> between the students. There is
nothing here to protect you from the attacks of the powerful. ......If so,
there is only one thing for you to do. You have no choice but to become strong
yourselves!"
Almost everyone
present applauded in agreement with Bennett as he spoke more eloquently.
After waiting for the
applause to die down, Bennett declared in a loud voice.
"The rules here
are simple. Each of you will give out five points each, and the top three will
win all the points in the tournament. I'll give you 10 points, which is not a
lot. The condition for winning is to hit your opponent with this rubber knife.
Simple enough, right?"
Bennett smiled at Jin,
as if he could see right through his doubts.
"...... Oh, and
of course, no students above B-rank, including me, are allowed to participate.
In other words, everyone here has a chance! I'll be responsible for cracking
down on any dishonest behavior. Well then, let's get started. You decide on the
pairings so that there will be no complaints."
The participants began
their preparations with expressions full of ambition and hope.
In a school like Heiberg,
where it is difficult to turn the tables for the bottom scorers, this seemed
like a revolutionary move. The five-point entry fee is not that much, and if
one wins the tournament, the reward is huge. This is a genuine charity.
Even so, Jin was still
unable to acknowledge this.
Because there was no
benefit for Bennett in this deal.
"......You look
dissatisfied."
As he was about to
leave without being noticed, he was stopped by someone from behind.
He thought about
ignoring it, but that wasn't going to happen because Emma had already looked in
his direction.
"No, I just
thought I'd refrain from joining today. I haven't made any preparations after
all."
"Are you perhaps
the type of person who can't believe in unconditional goodwill?"
As if to counter Jin's
argument, Bennett went on.
"In that case,
you can rest assured. I have an objective, as well. ......As I mentioned
earlier, the nature of this school is a survival battle between the weak and
the strong. If that's the case, then my strength alone will eventually reach
its limits. That's why, I wanted a group of people with whom I could work
together in friendly rivalry."
"Why did you go
out of your way and choose C-rank students?"
"Haha, you call
it [choose]? Do I look like such an arrogant guy? ......They were the first to
ask me for advice. I thought the situation they were in was terrible, so I just
helped them out this way. To be honest, the objective I just told you about was
an afterthought to reassure you."
His rational argument
is flawless. There is not even a hint of malice.
"Well, I'll still
go back to the dormitory quietly for today. Right, Emma?"
"Eh, let's at
least observe-...... Ah, wait!"
Bennett did not try to
stop Jin from leaving.
With the occasional
cheer at his back, Jin clenched his fists and headed back toward the night
path.
Impatience swirled in
his heart.
─That guy is dangerous.
Even if Bennett was
really hosting the meeting out of goodwill, the fact that he had more than 20
subordinates after only two weeks or so of enrollment was undeniable. Moreover,
all of them are truly grateful to Bennett, and some of them are even enthralled
by him.
On top of that, he has
that psychic ability.
It is so powerful that
he does not even need to hide it from those around him, and for that reason is
feared by the entire school.
Originally, Jin had
planned to target one of the students who were exempted from the entrance exam
early on. One of the potential targets was Bennett, but it seemed that he
needed to revise his plan a bit.
Perhaps because he was
taking it so seriously, he was unaware that he was being called from behind.
It was only when he
was tapped on the shoulder that Jin remembered Emma's presence.
"I finally caught
up! You just keep going further and further ahead."
"......A~a, sorry."
"I've been
wondering for a while, you should be having fun more often. It's not just about
Jin-kun, though."
"I'm always
having fun. Look at this big smile of mine."
"You've got a
really expressionless face, you know?......"
After chuckling,
Emma's expression turned unusually serious.
"Jin-kun, you
see. I'm having fun every day meeting so many kids who are in the same
situation as me. Here, people are not afraid of me just because I have a
psychic ability. ......That's why, Jin-kun. You shouldn't make such an [I won't
believe in anyone!] face. The world is actually not that bad."
"......Yeah,
yeah."
Before they knew it,
the student dormitories came into view. The women's dormitory is on the other
side of the classroom building, so they had to part ways here.
As she was leaving,
Emma waved her hand and said.
"You've been
talking to Nina a lot lately, haven't you?"
"I don't really
remember, but I hear people interpret it that way."
"Please be nice
to her! She's always looking so lonely, too."
"Ah-......."
Emma was standing
right under the streetlight. Her outline was framed by the gentle light, and
Jin couldn't help but squint his eyes.
She lives in the
light.
She is a little too
dazzling for people who live with dark secrets - liars like Jin and Nina.
While he was thinking
about what kind of sarcasm he should return, Emma turned her back to him and
started to walk away.
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