Invincible
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#188
🕑 Added 2025-01-22 18:49:30 +0000 UTCRockefeller (3)
The coughing sounds from the training grounds had greatly subsided, thanks to the acceleration in producing the remedy after receiving the ordered goods.
I asked Mircel, whose complexion had noticeably improved, "How do you feel?"
"Kind of refreshed, maybe. Maybe it's because I've been lying down all this time? Apart from stiff muscles, I think I'm okay."
As Mircel stretched, he suddenly fixed his gaze on something.
Turning my head, I saw an old woman with a walking stick, her joints tightly wrapped in bandages, struggling to approach us.
"Brother, is that our aunt coming?"
"Seems she's gotten a bit better," I remarked, quickening my pace out of pity.
Belen sighed as if relieved, then suddenly glared at me, accusing, "Recently, you've been quite friendly with that Dorosian girl."
"...What are you talking about all of a sudden?"
When I asked back in disbelief, Belen clicked her tongue.
"Tsk. Is it because you've been acting so rashly? You’re oblivious."
Not understanding Belen’s reaction, I narrowed my eyes.
Mircel then pulled at my collar and whispered, "Why is she acting like this?"
"Either she still has a fever, or it's senility. Given her age, it's probably the latter."
I was considering looking into a nursing home for her when Belen suddenly raised her head and became furious.
"What, what? Senility? You brat!"
"My apologies. I didn't realize your hearing was still sharp."
She raised her hand as if to hit me on the back, but being old and injured, she was no threat to me.
"Ouch! My arm..."
As expected, Belen grimaced in pain.
After she regained her composure, I asked, "But if you’re still not well, why did you come out?"
"Well, there’s a debate or something. It gets boring just lying down, so I thought I’d come to watch."
Belen shrugged, looking towards a temporary building where a debate between students and professors would soon start.
Mircel blinked and asked, "When was that built?"
"By the Sculpting Club. It’s just temporary, so that’s more efficient."
"But, brother. Is Rockefeller really okay?"
Considering the current mood, he seemed doomed, but realistically, that wasn’t likely since many professors loyally followed him despite their grievances.
"The professors' opinions will be somewhat considered. He might have to resign, but he’ll keep his life."
This was good for me.
If Rockefeller only got into a difficult situation without dying, I could easily manipulate him to teach me magic as planned.
I walked towards the building, matching Belen’s slow pace.
Meanwhile, a passing group was gossiping loudly.
"All the meat we’ve been eating, Rockefeller brought in sick meat to save money, and they say it messes with your mind."
"And that’s not all; there’s talk he believes in a cult."
"Maybe it’s better not to get the treatment. They say it’s human experimentation on students."
"There’s also talk he's got dementia."
Seeing their serious belief, I couldn’t help but scoff.
At the same time, I re-evaluated Ders, who had made such things possible.
He might be somewhat competent, and though he was a student president and not really villain material, his understanding of people and ability to wear the right mask allowed him to sway the crowd.
With that, I stepped into the building, anticipating an interesting hearing.
But then, Mircel suddenly stopped and asked me with a serious face, "Bro, is that true?"
"Maybe, could be."
"Huh."
Hmm, children are indeed gullible.
***
"Do people really believe all these absurd things?" Leana whispered back.
"Some of the rumors do sound quite plausible."
"Still, doesn’t it seem strange that all these ridiculous rumors are popping up all at once?"
"I’ve heard that in the past, villagers would burn people as witches based on mere suspicion without evidence. It seems ignorance grows when people gather—it’s in our nature."
A senior nearby must have overheard because she glared sharply at us.
"Are you defending Rockefeller?"
Her eyes were fierce, as if she might throw a stone at any moment.
In an atmosphere where opposing views were utterly unwelcome, Silla calmly responded.
"Defending? I was just talking about her husband."
"Her husband?"
"Hersel."
At that name, the senior flinched and quickly averted her gaze.
Watching her, Silla smirked internally.
'What good is their unity? They can’t do anything in front of him.'
It had been a long time since the seniors showed such a demeanor at the mention of that name.
Moreover, recently, he had slain a whale spirit and even destroyed the Black Sun, so his status within the academy was beyond human.
Just when Silla thought academy life would be easier for a while, Leana belatedly reacted.
"He’s not my husband."
"Huh?"
Silla blinked in surprise.
"What’s with the slow response? That’s three beats slower than usual."
Typically, the immediate response would be to either retort sharply or ignore it entirely.
Noticing the anomaly, Silla flashed a mischievous smile and began teasing Leana.
"Speaking of which, you seem to be avoiding something lately. I thought it was because of Dorosian."
"...That’s been the case for a while."
"Not to this extent, right? You didn’t use to go out of your way to avoid Hersel like you do now."
Leana easily conceded.
"That’s true..."
Even now that Dorosian was gone, if Hersel was nearby when going to get her rationed meal, she would deliberately turn towards a distant serving area.
Silla, who had been grumbling in pain at the time, decided to unleash all her pent-up teasing at once.
"Why do that, huh?"
But just then, an interruption broke the flow.
Bellman, looking haggard from making the cure, approached.
"Here you are."
Silla asked indifferently, her mood spoiled, "Have you finished making the cure?"
"Not yet. But thanks to the Alchemy Club’s recovery, it should speed up."
"Must be a break then. But why come here?"
Bellman, who had been getting only about three hours of sleep a day, was hardly in a position to spare any time for naps, and Silla couldn’t understand why he would be here.
"Today is important. This debate might give us a glimpse into the academy’s future."
Despite his words, Bellman immediately closed his eyes upon sitting down.
Judging from the faint snoring sounds, he was undoubtedly asleep.
Silla sighed lightly and shook her head.
"Knowledge does make one weary, doesn’t it?"
Just then, the hall erupted in cheers.
Ders was ascending the platform, and Silla, gazing down at his handsome figure, recalled his reputation.
'I've rarely seen him, but I've heard so many good things.'
His comforting presence, his kindness in listening to each student’s concerns,
And his support from the faculty, providing welfare to the attendants, making him popular among them as well.
Furthermore, he managed the clubs and students' freedom without overly restrictive rules, earning him the nickname 'the staff of the students.'
But Silla, who had been severely affected by the Ten Elites, knew his true nature vaguely.
'Using the Ten Elites as scapegoats, yet he’s always played the victim when they act out.'
While the Student Council had always appeared troubled by their powerlessness,
Whenever the Ten Elites proposed outrageous rules, some were reluctantly accepted, and for others, he staunchly performed an act of refusal for the students' sake.
According to Emeric, this deceit had helped increase his popularity.
'Wait a minute. Speaking of Emeric, that guy doesn’t seem normal either. Is he reliable?'
As Silla suspiciously eyed the back of Emeric’s head, the cheers suddenly turned to jeers.
Rockefeller, dubbed the root of all evil, had appeared on the opposite platform.
"There he is, that quack professor!"
"We heard the truth. You have a hidden child and secretly embezzled academy funds to send him abroad, didn’t you?"
"Is that all? He dragged around a Pathfinder who had lost limbs, playing on people's sympathies to collect donated money. They even say he hit people if they didn't listen."
Many stones began flying toward Rockefeller.
However, he did not just stand by; his eyes widened as he swung his cane.
Pop, pop, pop!
The stones, propelled by telekinesis, embedded themselves in the faces of those who had thrown them.
Rockefeller sighed as if he found them pitiful.
"Be thankful there are no expulsions at Frost Heart. There is no other place in this world that would accommodate your intelligence."
Those who were bleeding from the nose clutched at their faces and protested.
"Look at that. He's resorting to violence against students."
"You all saw it, too, right? He threw stones at my face."
While some agreed with their plea for sympathy, others in the same faction shook their heads.
After all, they were the ones who had thrown the stones first.
It seemed there were not only fools who would tolerate such behavior.
Silla expressed her confusion at the unexpected scene.
"What's going on? I thought they were just blindly demanding Rockefeller's resignation."
She wasn't expecting an answer, but Bellman, who had woken up at some point, adjusted his glasses and replied.
"Do you really think all these people are just mindlessly joining in the criticism without thinking?"
"You're awake? But wasn't that the case? Everyone here signed the petition with those people."
"The substance is different, the grievances they hold are legitimate. It’s not just about the hierarchy; there was also a lot of talk about suppressed freedoms, Silla, even you mentioned it."
Silla nodded.
"That’s true? Sometimes the intensity of the training seemed too merciless."
"That’s it. Not all those demanding Rockefeller's resignation are fools. Many are hoping that his stepping down might bring some change."
Bellman murmured thoughtfully.
"The ones Rockefeller should really be wary of are these people. He needs to win back the public's favor to survive this crisis..."
However, Rockefeller's recent actions, even if in self-defense, were clearly a poor move.
As murmurs filled the hall, Ders addressed the students.
"It is not right to throw stones at a professor. In fact, it's wrong to do that to anyone."
Ders' pointed tone instantly chilled the atmosphere.
His voice had a compelling force that drew people in.
More importantly, the common sense he articulated enhanced his dignity.
Silla swallowed, sensing another reason why people were enthralled by Ders.
"What? He just spoke a few words, but his impression completely changed."
As Ders' gaze shifted from the students he had addressed to Rockefeller, he smiled benignly.
"I will apologize on their behalf for their radical behavior. To treat someone as a criminal without any proper investigation is crossing the line, even in my opinion."
Then, with a regretful expression, he lowered his gaze.
"Of course, I understand it was self-defense, but I can't say that the professor's actions were right. There were other ways he could have handled it."
Silla found herself nodding unconsciously.
She stopped herself mid-nod when Bellman murmured beside her.
"...That Ders, a brilliant orator."
"What now?"
"As I said earlier, Ders' camp has a different makeup of supporters. One side is emotional and blindly supportive, while the other side makes rational judgments. They are like oil and water; they can't mix unless they share the same sentiments."
Silla narrowed her eyes thoughtfully.
This guy, he’s decided to become an encyclopedia.
"But with his recent statement, he's managed to hold on to the different factions."
Silla deliberately kept her mouth shut.
As expected, Bellman continued talking without being asked.
"His sensible speech and showing no malice towards the enemy won him the trust of the intellectuals. It seemed he was signaling that he would not let the debate be dominated by emotions. And by pointing out Rockefeller’s somewhat excessive defense, he even managed to keep the emotionally driven supporters in line."
Silla leaned on Leana’s shoulder, tuning out the rest.
"It looks simple on the surface, but quite chilling things are happening..."
As Bellman was nearly finished, Silla chimed in.
"Exactly."
"Is it because I haven’t slept properly? It feels like I’ve been talking to myself."
"No? I’ve been responding the whole time."
Bellman nodded and then sank back into his chair.
Silla looked at him with pity.
Even a smart mind turns foolish without sleep.
***
Ders pulled out some documents.
But he quickly shook his head as if to say it wasn't necessary, and simply set them down on the podium.
"These are quite absurd suspicions. Let's set them aside for now and focus on what's realistic and discuss that."
His voice carried no hint of reprimand or any similar emotion.
Instead, it had a relaxed tone as if he was open to having a conversation, and Rockefeller faintly smiled.
With a slightly admiring look, he thought...
'Now that I think about it, this guy was different from the previous student council presidents.'
His power was almost at the top, just slightly less than the Ten Elites.
His academic performance was also excellent.
Above all, what stood out the most among all the student council presidents was his unprecedented high approval rating.
"In fact, we don't really know much about you, professor. We know you're a military veteran from another country, but we have no idea which unit you were in or what your responsibilities were."
Rockefeller asked calmly.
"Is that really relevant to our discussion right now?"
Ders responded, shaking the stack of documents.
"Yes, it is. Knowing your background, how you came to be here, and other various details will make it easier to address these numerous suspicions."
His point was valid.
If you want to understand what kind of person someone is, knowing about their environment and their past life provides a good clue.
"First, just to confirm, what country were you born in?"
Yet, even to Ders' straightforward question, Rockefeller was not quick to respond.
