Invincible
patreon
#195
🕑 Added 2025-02-05 16:12:26 +0000 UTCDers (2)
Ders had no intention of causing a downfall.
As the student council president, he was supposed to graduate and install another close associate as his successor in place of Ecok, who had been forced to leave early.
Despite already numerous variables and no significant changes from adding more, they had the immense support of the Order of the Sun behind them.
After all, there was no one more fitting than them to normalize the operations of the academy.
Thus, he intended to properly manage the situation.
The issue with Rockefeller will be treated as if it never happened, allowing him to learn magic and plan to erase the repercussions of the Ecok incident that Ders was most wary of.
Of course, it wasn't for free.
He planned to make him extract some money from the Order before he graduated.
Hersel began to descend the stairs.
His neat steps towards the debate hall continued smoothly.
Ders swallowed his saliva.
Despite being among the audience, no one thought to stop him.
'...everyone seems to implicitly agree.'
He had proven his strength enough to be wearisome, and all the significant incidents at the academy had been resolved by him.
The scene rendered his stature and formality meaningless, making Ders tense.
'Indeed, if this wasn't Frost Heart, his fame would have spread across the continent. He would have graduated from the academy long ago and it wouldn’t be strange if he were settled in some position.'
At that moment, when Hersel stepped onto the debate stage, it seemed even the identity of the student council president felt shabby.
"Suddenly, this isn't someone else's problem anymore, is it okay to express a contrary opinion?"
No one responded to his words.
Instead, the students from Adele Hall, who were merely watching while holding their breaths, appeared relieved.
The emergence of someone who could represent their voices was naturally welcomed, despite the risk of losing benefits they had received.
This was a bad trend.
'This is problematic...'
They were just the beginning.
Most students were from Schlaphe Hall, and most of his supporters were too.
However, he was a hero of the slave revolution from Schlaphe Hall who had opposed Buerger Hall and had ascended to Adele Hall.
If people were to choose between him and that man, it was clear many would switch sides.
Ders thought there was no appropriate method.
'Agitation won't work. Instead, if he suggests it, I'll be the one who suffers.'
Moreover, he knew Ecok was the person who caused the collapse of Frost Heart.
Fortunately, the fact that he had been holding the knife yet had remained silent thus far was something to reconsider.
'Then...? I have no choice but to persuade him.'
"There seems to be a misunderstanding. I'm not saying that I will pursue extreme changes soon. It's just that the policies we've grown accustomed to can't be abandoned overnight."
When he reframed it as no immediate significant changes, those who had supported him looked disappointed.
But his priority was not them.
As he cautiously observed Hersel, who nodded his head, "Right, it's realistically impossible."
"But the direction is correct."
Ders planned to convince him to a certain extent by advocating for the cause.
Calming those who were disappointed by his previous statement was also a bonus.
Perhaps because there were many eyes on him, Hersel murmured for a moment then responded, "Possibly."
However, Hersel's following words made Ders realize he was not someone to be taken lightly.
"But you continue to obscure the essence. This place was established to decide on the faculty's treatment. It's hardly appropriate to advocate for improvements here."
Ders kept his mouth shut because Hersel's statement wasn't wrong—the discussion about the direction of the academy was something for the election season.
'He's firm. It's better not to shake him.'
Ders coldly observed Hersel's demeanor.
First, it was crucial to understand what the other wanted.
'I must give boldly what I can. But what exactly does he want?'
If he wasn't hostile, then he'd know that a suitable reward was to be expected.
Retreating even at the cost of causing dissatisfaction among his supporters essentially showed that he was primarily considering their perspectives.
'It doesn’t seem to be a monetary or treatment issue, but perhaps something related to the relationship?'
As soon as Ders saw the faces of Hersel and Rockefeller glaring at each other, he shelved the idea.
Ultimately, nothing appropriate came to mind.
'No choice then. I'll have to ask directly.'
Wanting to appear non-confrontational, Ders asked with a gentle smile, "This is rather unexpected, but let me ask you one thing, Hersel Ben Tenest. You've been the one to end every incident that has occurred. You probably don't have a good impression of the faculty who only take action after things happen. Why is that?"
Hersel approached with a chuckle and whispered softly in his ear, "I plan to keep quiet about the Ecok matter. No need to be too cautious."
Ders was momentarily puzzled but seized the moment to ask, "...Is there something you want?"
"Hmm, there might be something," Hersel replied ambiguously, making Ders narrow his eyes.
'He doesn't intend to harm, but wants to interfere? What does he mean, does this guy want to toy with me?'
If so, it was a success.
He had been unable to catch the rhythm until now.
"Shall we have a serious discussion for a start?" Hersel suggested and moved towards the center.
Ders swallowed hard and fixed his gaze on Hersel's face.
"You asked me earlier. Despite not feeling well-disposed towards the faculty, why did you step in? Aside from personal feelings, I think they handled things quite well."
Maybe what he wanted was simply a diversion.
It probably was.
No matter how much he thought, he couldn't come up with anything else.
'Thinking about it, do I even possess something that would satisfy him? He comes from a wealthy family, and he has more power than I do as student council president. I felt this from the moment he intruded here without any interference.'
Ders thought it might be enough to just agree with him, but in front of many who had heard his previous statements, it was not something he could easily retract.
"Yes. After the incidents occur. But look at this place now. The fortress has fallen, and students have lost their homes. Even securing food is a major difficulty. What are the professors doing?"
Hersel scoffed.
"What are they doing? They're faltering, held back by the students. It's a time when they should be busy gathering money."
Ders was worried he might have touched a nerve, but the tone of Hersel's voice seemed more excited than displeased.
Ders relaxed his eyes and looked dumbfoundedly at Hersel.
'Indeed, he's enjoying this situation. Maybe he has a hobby for debates or something...’
Then logically countering would be the right approach.
Pandering or appearing to lose would only make things more boring.
"They should have been prepared earlier. You must have heard the rumors too, that the elders will be coming soon? To get a better understanding of the academy. That's practically a warning for the professors. Yet, they haven't been proactive in alleviating the students' hardships. No matter how tight the timing, they should at least show some initiative. It just looks like they're ignoring the students."
The most significant influence in assessments was the student.
Yet, ignoring them and focusing only on rebuilding the fortress was clearly a mistake.
Ders thought there was no counterargument to this.
However, Hersel retorted, "If it's about alleviating hardships, restoring the dormitories should come first."
"Even when most are homeless now?"
"It seems you've forgotten what this place is about. Being homeless is a daily occurrence for a pathfinder."
Ders narrowed his eyes and scanned the faculty as he spoke, "So, are we supposed to just let this slide?"
"Don't just think emotionally, let's pursue practicality. If we take responsibility for this crisis as you say, it might be right that they pay. After all, they are the ones in charge. But if we simply conclude this situation with punishment, what's left? At least, shouldn't that responsibility lead to aiding in the academy's recovery?"
Ders silently listened to these realistic words.
Punishment would only relieve temporary anger, and practically speaking, his suggestion did make sense.
But that was only if it were possible.
"I doubt the professors have a way to restore the fortress. Would an employer hire a gardener who turned a flower bed into a wasteland to do the job again?"
Hersel closed his mouth.
Ders thought he had left no room for rebuttal, but that was only for a moment.
The slow rise of Hersel's lips.
This flow was undoubtedly in the direction he desired.
"Probably not. So, what if someone with a solid background could help? A group that loves love, tolerance, and forgiveness and also has a lot of money, I know such a group exists."
Ders twitched his shoulders.
'Could it be, this guy... Is he planning to draw funds from the Order through me?'
Feeling a chill, Hersel suddenly widened his eyes in surprise.
"Ah, has our student president already prepared everything for this? I wondered why you kept omitting discussions about reconstruction every time you talked about the future. So, there was a method, and there was no need to mention it, right?"
Ders immediately wanted to shut his gaping mouth.
It was because of being misled by such talk that these kinds of people emerged.
"Truly like a student council president, you had everything thought out.”
"Planning to stretch your hand to the Order before you graduate, I see."
"Brilliant, Ders. I really made the right choice voting for you."
Ders's head grew heavy.
It was easy to get financial support from the Order.
It would improve the students' perceptions, and even if the truth about Ecok being the culprit came out, he might escape responsibility.
However, the biggest problem was the enormous amount of money involved.
'Crazy. Do they even know how much it costs to restore the fortress?'
If he didn't do something immediately, he would be in a tough spot.
But then Hersel approached, clapping his hands.
"The Order wouldn't just stand by and watch us suffer, right? We should at least give our president a round of applause, shouldn't we?"
As the applause began, Hersel whispered in his ear again.
"It's possible, right?"
"...The amount is beyond reason. It’s impossible."
"Hmm, how about this?"
Ders's eyes widened.
The words he uttered were quite tempting.
"Convince them that it’s no different from buying a stake in Frost Heart. You know, don’t you? The Order is very interested in the arcane relics."
For some reason, as he said, the Order had been collecting artifacts from the arcane.
And this place was a breeding ground for Pathfinders searching for such things.
If he could convincingly argue that they could influence future workers, they might just invest.
"But still, the amount is absurd..."
"Well, adjust that yourself. Just give it a try for now. The more money they invest, the more of a stake they are buying, you know."
Ders instantly understood his point.
With a huge investment, they could more freely conduct missionary work, and likely gain many followers.
And these would be Pathfinder followers.
'It's outrageous, but honestly, it's tempting...'
Of course, Frost Heart is still under the empire's control, but if turned into a site for religious activities, who could say anything?
There would be a justification for the massive investment.
They couldn’t suppress personal religious freedoms, after all.
"So, what you ultimately want is for the Order’s money and the faculty’s punishment to be written off?"
"Think about it coldly, Ders, if it had been others instead of them, do you think they could have handled the crises that have occurred?"
Ders clenched his teeth.
Although they had been discredited for propaganda, he knew their competence.
The capability they demonstrated in performing tasks was astonishing enough to drop one's jaw at times.
It's just that the incidents this time were beyond manageable proportions.
That there were this many survivors was nearly miraculous.
Ders saw Hersel in a new light again.
'At first glance, he seemed like someone who was just out for his own gain, but he's a deep thinker.'
However, this thought didn't last long.
"How vile, Ders, you plan to evade the crisis with money?"
Emeric stood up suddenly, shouting loudly.
Berthnal chimed in from beside him.
"Yes, that's your way. I can roughly guess the whispers you've been muttering to him all along."
The room grew noisy with their voices.
"Why are they acting like that all of a sudden?"
"Who knows?"
Emeric, undeterred by their reactions, glared and shouted, "Give it up, Ders, Hersel Ben Tenest is not a man to be dazzled by mere money."
Berthnal nodded.
"Right, Ders, Hersel Ben Tenest is not that kind of man. Now, show them, Emeric."
"Don't do that."
They must be Hersel's associates.
Ders, clueless, tried to read Hersel's expression.
However, his attention was caught by a stack of documents that Emeric had pulled out.
'That, that's...'
Judging by the student council's seal on it, it was definitely sensitive information that shouldn't have been disclosed.
It contained details about the manipulation of funds distributed to clubs and the collusion with political factions.
'Why is that there!'
Ders had thought all such documents were lost when the fortress fell, so this was a considerable shock.
As his face turned pale, the words he had exchanged with Hersel not long ago flashed through his mind.
"Is there something you want?"
"Hmm, there might be something."
Only then did Ders scrutinize Hersel's face.
'This guy. He’s not satisfied with crumbs; he wants to devour the whole seat!'
There was only one phrase that could express my feelings at that moment.
"Those, those madmen..."
After a period of quiet, they’ve gone mad again.
