Chapter 20.1

Since the day after the duel, Zeke hadn’t touched us as promised.

The duel was settled as “canceled due to an accident”, which was probably one of the reasons why Zeke’s honor was not damaged. Regular Department students shuddered at the sight of this duel, “The nobles will bring out military magic tools if they feel like it,” and the Hero Department students were satisfied with the scene.

The result left a lump in my throat, but perhaps this was good for now. If we undermine the status of the Hero Department, it would create a huge backlash. The gap between the two departments should be bridged step by step. At least since then, Zeke had not been involved in discriminating against the regular students. He was so quiet, it was as if he was a different person. The other students might not have noticed it, but there was definitely something that the regular students gained from this duel.

For the time being, school had returned to normal. During lunchtime, I was on my way to the cafeteria with Glan when I noticed Elysia in the courtyard. I called out to Glan.

“I’ve got an errand to take care of, so go ahead.”

“Yes. Wait …you’re not going to have me save your seat then run off to flirt with a beautiful woman again, are you?”

“That was a misunderstanding.”

I dismissed Glan’s vulgar intuition and headed towards the courtyard. Elysia was sitting alone on a bench. Even though it was lunchtime, she didn’t seem to be eating anything and looked to be brooding.

“Elysia, what’s wrong?”

“…Tweight.”

Elysia slowly turned around. Her eyes weren’t full of their usual energy.

“Did Zeke do something to you?”

“…That’s not the case,” Elysia said, dropping her gaze. I sat down next to her.

“I think you’ll find it easier if you talk.”

“…You’re so kind.”

“The effect of counseling is not to be ignored. I used to have periods of mental instability, but each time I got better with counseling from someone close to me.”

“Hmm… the person close to you was the one who came to the front of the school the other day?”

“Yeah, that’s pretty much it.”

“Hmph.”

With the current exchange, she recovered a little. It was a piercing “hmph,” but it was much better than a fading voice.

“Zeke said the duel was about revenge.” In a small voice, Elysia told him.

“…Oh, I remember you saying something like that.”

“What does Tweight think about revenge?”

I arched my eyes at that question.

“Are you asking me if revenge is right or wrong?

“Yes. Do you…think revenge is stupid?”

Perhaps that was the problem that Elysia was facing right now. I didn’t know why she was having such a hard time. I did not know how it happened. But I was sure what she was looking for here was not the most popular words in the world, but an honest answer from me.

“…No, not really.”

Is revenge a foolish act?

I replied in the negative to that question.

“The goal of revenge is sometimes a reason to live. It is not uncommon for those who have been deprived of their loved ones and have suffered unbearable pain to survive on the basis of revenge. The world may see this way of life as twisted, but… there are people in the world who cannot live without being twisted.”

During the Great War, there were several soldiers in the institution who became vengeful demons. The suffering they had was tremendous. A person who has been robbed of their lovers, wives, children, friends, or all of them, could not live as before. The desire for revenge may be akin to a survival instinct. People who have suffered unbearable pain will protect themselves with a vengeance before they become dead men.

“Besides, revenge can be a deterrent to conflict. If both sides are afraid of retaliation, there will be no conflict in the first place.”

The wars of nations are often suppressed by it. They flaunt their armed forces against each other in order to clearly convey the risk of retaliation.

“…So you’re saying you don’t disapprove of revenge?”

“In the broad sense, yes.”

In response to my vague answer, Elysia tilted her head, “What do you mean?”

“Often, people who seek revenge are caught up in destructive thoughts. They don’t think about what will happen after they take revenge. They even think they can die.”

“Do you really need to think about the future? Because for that person, revenge would be the goal of their life.”

“Revenge is the process of regaining what has been lost. Even if you achieve it, it will only bring the negative back to zero, not the positive. Don’t you think it’s too sad to end your life in the middle of the positive days that lie ahead?”

“That is…”

One of his colleagues in the institution had survived and died in battle because of his vengeance. That person died as soon as he achieved his revenge. His last will and testament was one word: ‘Vain’. No wonder. Revenge is a process of regaining, not a process of gaining something new.

“In that respect, Zeke’s revenge was productive. If I had been defeated in that duel, the students of the Hero Department would have been allowed to be more selfish than ever before in the future. With the power of the aristocracy, the reason for the duel could be fabricated. There was no justification for the revenge, but for those in power, justification can be given in any number of ways.”

Elysia looked mildly surprised as if my praise for Zeke was unexpected. I was only talking from the perspective of revenge. I was not saying that all of Zeke’s actions were praiseworthy.

“I mean, if you’re going to do this, it’s got to be productive revenge.”

I expressed my thoughts and then took a glance at Elysia’s expression. She was deep in thought, and I asked her a question.

“Elysia… Who are you targeting?”

Elysia responded to that question with a fake smile. “It’s not that I want to do anything like that. But, well, yes. I’ll keep in mind what you said…”

With that, Elysia stood up from the bench and turned on her heels.

Let’s keep that in mind, huh?

That was obviously a line that wouldn’t have come out if she wasn’t thinking about revenge.

“It’s hard to be… as normal as other people.”

There are obstacles on the battlefield, and there are obstacles in everyday life. After letting out a deep sigh, I made my way to the cafeteria where Glan was waiting for me.

◆

At that time, even though I had noticed that something was wrong with Elysia, I didn’t try to go deeper into it. Somewhere in the back of my mind, I thought it would be solved with time.

But it wasn’t.

I should have stopped Elysia as she walked away and had a more serious discussion with her. Having grown up in the midst of the abnormality, I was not familiar with the fragility of ‘the ordinary life.’ I was immediately reminded that the ordinary can turn into the extraordinary at a moment’s notice.