WE TRIED TRANSLATIONS

Surviving the Assassin Academy as a Professor

Translator: Touch

Editor: Grass

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

Chapter 41: Small Bugged Space (2)

“What is that?” Princess Rebecca asked.

A rift had appeared approximately 4,000 meters above the ground, splitting the sky horizontally as something emerged from the cracks. It looked about three times larger than the sun or moon.

The thing hovered in the air like a suspended taxidermy, exuding a bizarre and grotesque aura.

“Huh... I have no idea!” Elize exclaimed.

“Hmm, me neither. Balmung?”

“…I don’t know either.”

Kwan and Balmung shook their heads, baffled by the sight. Even Kendrake looked dumbfounded.

Naturally, everyone turned to Kaiser.

How the hell am I supposed to know, you dumbasses…?

Kaiser complained to himself, but still voiced the first thing that came to mind.

“…It looks like a totem.”

A totem?

Everyone’s gaze shifted back to the entity in the sky.

Now that he mentioned it, it did resemble a totem.

Totem Arts were supernatural abilities that allowed the caster to control a domain, manifesting overwhelming power within it. However, once anchored to a location, a totem could not move—its critical weakness.

“But for it to be a totem... it doesn’t look like it’s been activated,” someone pointed out.

Indeed, something about it felt off.

Unlike other abilities, totems were notorious for their excessive mana leakage.

Yet that thing exuded no mana at all.

“Plus, it’s floating in the air. Aren’t totems supposed to be fixed to the ground?”

That was another oddity.

A totem floating in midair? Not even a Totem Arts Grandmaster could pull that off.

“Are you sure about it? Is it really a totem?”

“Are you certain?”

The Black Dragon cadets kept pressing Kaiser. Once again, he found himself at the center of their doubtful gazes.

What do you want me to do? Am I some kind of god who knows everything or something? Why the hell are you always so reliant on me yet so damn strict???

…Of course, he couldn’t say that aloud. Instead, he rubbed his chin and pretended to ponder, adopting a serious expression.

“It really is strange. There was nothing about that supposed totem in the intel I received,” Rebecca said.

“Are you talking about the information on the traitors?” someone asked.

Rebecca nodded and elaborated.

“There was intel that assassins from Kreutz would soon infiltrate the academy.”

The cadets responded with annoyed expressions.

“Tsk. Those bastards...”

“Are we at war?”

“Who knows? Neither country wants a large-scale conflict, so it’ll likely just be an assassination battle,” Rebecca replied.

“Huh... Then what about our Assassin Department? Are they prepared to face the intruders?”

“Everyone who needs to know is aware, including the dean. They’ve already made preparations.”

Rebecca replied before looking back up at the grotesque thing in the sky.

“But that thing… wasn’t in any of the intel I received…”

She was certain Kreutz had no weapon like that. Such a thing simply didn’t exist.

Which meant that, at this very moment, something completely unrelated to the international conflict was targeting Hiaka Academy—something unknown to the royal intelligence agency, to the academy’s network, or any other reliable sources of information.

Something that couldn’t be uncovered with money or power.

Rebecca’s delicate brow furrowed.

“How interesting,” she murmured.

At that moment, Balmung noticed something in the sky with his keen eyes.

“Oh, it’s an airship.”

An airship?

Upon closer inspection, an airship was flying toward the rift. It was likely a reconnaissance vessel carrying professors.

However, the ship itself held little significance compared to the overwhelming presence of the grotesque thing emerging from the rift.

Zone 0 was currently in chaos—professors, cadets, staff, and even the Black Dragon Division were in disarray.

Naturally, the online forum Assassin Town was flooded with posts of confusion and concern.

“…For now, go inside and rest. We’ll keep an eye on the situation and act accordingly,” Rebecca instructed.

“Yes.”

“Understood.”

“Dame Reim, you go rest too,” Rebecca added, turning to her maid-guard.

“I will stay by your side, Your Highness,” Dame Reim replied gently, refusing the offer.

Only then did Rebecca realize something. Someone was missing.

She turned to Kaiser.

“Isn’t Gray supposed to be discharged today?”

“…Yes.”

“Why isn’t she here? Where is she?”

Kaiser paused.

Lately, Gray had been obsessively training in Illusion Arts—three times more than usual. She pushed herself so hard she began getting severe nosebleeds, yet she still didn’t stop.

Kaiser had argued with her more than once, telling her to dial it back. Even he thought it was excessive for someone under his command.

At the time, he’d asked, “You’re already better than Professor Dante. Why are you pushing yourself this hard?”

Gray had smiled briefly, then her expression turned unreadable. The usual cheeky protruding fang was gone.

Kaiser, who had excellent insight into others’ emotions, couldn’t read her face.

“I have to widen the gap, you idiot,” she eventually said, laughing it off—but Kaiser had no idea what thoughts were running through the mind of that gray-haired girl.

She continued training so hard it weakened her immune system. And with the early winter chill, she eventually caught a severe flu.

Even then, she kept training until she collapsed from excessive blood loss. That was when she’d finally been hospitalized.

She was supposed to be discharged this morning.

But she hadn’t returned to the dormitory.

“…I’ll check in on her.”

Kaiser called Gray using his crystal ball watch.

She didn’t pick up.

“Damn it. Why isn’t she answering?”

* * *

“If those are just the hands... how big is the main body?”

“What kind of monster is this big...? Do you know anything about it, Professor Toy?”

“No. I’ve been in more dungeons than I can count, but I’ve never seen a creature like this. In fact, monsters don’t usually get that massive unless they’re dragons…”

While the professors muttered among themselves, trying to assess the situation, I was lost in thought.

There were a few points I needed to mull over.

First, this Bugged Space was approximately 50 meters in diameter, and it was about to unleash an overwhelmingly powerful opponent.

Yet, the one on Mount Stargaze had been 1,000 meters wide—twenty times larger.

I didn’t know if size correlated with danger, but it was certainly an unsettling fact.

What in the world is up with Mount Stargaze? And why is Eve there...?

I pushed the thought aside. I wouldn’t find the answer right now.

Second, how exactly should I handle this situation?

…It’s not as bad as I thought.

Glitches in games weren't always a bad thing.

For instance, the monster Jinxsite was originally meant to be summoned while hidden under the 『Curse of Concealment』.

But right now, its form was clearly exposed, as if it were affected by Detection or Insight magic.

If it had been summoned while still concealed, the academy might have been completely obliterated.

In other words, since we’d noticed it before it was fully summoned, we had time to prepare.

“Why don’t we just attack it and see what happens?” Professor Viper suggested.

Leo jumped in, alarmed.

“Are you crazy, Professor Viper? We don’t even know what it is yet.”

“Well, we have two chief professors with us. I don’t think we’ll lose to whatever that thing is.”

“We must not! That is a reckless decision.”

As the two of them argued, the chief professors wore equally cautious expressions.

“I think we need to discuss this further,” Senior Professor Collider said, attempting to mediate.

Leo then turned to me.

“What do you think, Professor Dante? Do you sense anything? No matter how hard I try, I can’t feel anything from it at all.”

Sigh…

Living as a person of interest meant that no matter what I wanted to do, everyone was interested in my opinions and actions.

The chief professors, Viper, and even Collider looked at me, awaiting my response.

I hesitated for a moment but decided to speak honestly.

“…That is a totem monster.”

They were visibly surprised by my statement. One of the chief professors stepped forward, asking for more details.

“Is it a creature you know?”

“I encountered it a long time ago. There is no main body to speak of. Just seven arms attached to a single head.”

The chief professors exchanged puzzled looks.

Despite appearing to be in their 30s or 40s, these veterans were actually in their 70s or 80s. They had spent decades exploring dungeons, and yet none of them had ever seen this creature before.

And now, a much younger professor with supposedly far less experience was claiming to have encountered something they hadn’t.

“The seven arms each wield different curses, and the monster won’t begin its invasion until all the arms are summoned,” I explained.

“Are you certain of this?” one of them asked.

“If what you say is true, can we stop it here?”

“I’m not sure…”

I made some calculations in my mind.

Currently, three arms emerged from the rift. In other words, we could cut down three of Jinxsite’s arms ahead of time to reduce its overall power.

We had two chief professors on the ship, formidable in their own right. 

However, the odds that they’d walk away unscathed were low.

And I need to make sure they survive. No matter what.

There were a total of eight chief professors in the Assassin Department. The three neutral ones had already betrayed us, which left only five on our side.

If we lost two more here, we’d be hopelessly outmatched against Kreutz’s assassins in the coming battle.

“Wouldn’t it be better to sever those three arms now?” someone suggested.

“There’s a problem,” I replied. “Until the curses are activated, we can’t tell which arm wields which curse.” I paused briefly, then continued. “If it’s a low-level curse, the chief professors will easily tear the arm apart. But if we’re unlucky and it’s one of the 90-series curses, I can’t guarantee their safety.”

“A 90-series curse…?! It’s that powerful?!”

The chief professor’s expressions darkened.

Indeed, among Jinxsite’s seven arms, one wielded a 90-series curse.

It wasn’t always the same 90-series curse. They varied each time I encountered it in the game. But on rare occasions, it could be Curse No. 96, the『Curse of Instant Death』.

And as the name suggested, it was a curse that instantly killed its target.

“But ultimately,” I said, “striking it now would technically be the best way to minimize casualties.”

“I see. If we sever the three arms ahead of time, its power will be reduced nearly in half.”

“Attacking it now would be most efficient… but those who attack it could die. Is that it?”

One of the chief professors smirked.

Such was the fate of assassins.

We were like missiles—unleashing our maximum output in a single burst to eliminate the enemy.

And we were expendable. No missile was expected to remain intact after exploding.

Despite that, these professors had survived into their 70s and 80s, a testament to their skill, instinct, and luck.

“My recommendation would be to retreat, make more thorough preparations, identify the curses, and then launch our attack,” I suggested.

“But if we delay, won’t more arms appear?”

“Correct.”

“…And to identify its curses, we will have to make it feel threatened and force it to cast them,” another said grimly. “Therefore, we cannot simply throw a bunch of sheep at him. We will need a tiger. Someone strong enough to draw out and identify its curses...”

The chief professors were quick to grasp the situation.

“For now, let us hold a strategy meeting. Gather up, everyone.”

With the explanations out of the way, the strategy meeting resumed.

Once again, Leo opposed the idea of attacking right away, while Viper insisted on charging in.

But in the end, Viper’s opinion prevailed.

“Are we just going to stand by and do nothing while an unknown enemy reveals itself in our skies? Just because we’re afraid of losing our own lives?” he declared.

Personally, I wasn’t entirely happy with the decision. But it wasn’t the worst possible move, either.

We would have to fight it eventually.

“Then, I shall now cast my totem,” said Chief Professor Toy. “We will initiate combat immediately afterward.”

“Understood. Professors, make sure you equip yourselves with the 「Parachute Magic Tool」.”

Once I confirmed mine was all good and secure, I pulled out 「Liberator ⁺₊⋆」, and prepared for combat.

Crackle! Whirrr ─

Powerful mana sparks burst from Chief Professor Toy as a storm began to swirl around us.

It was the effect of his totem.

Rumble…

A fluorescent tombstone emerged from the ship’s deck floor.

『 Sanctuary of Fireflies 』

It was a top-class, level 8 totem.

Within its domain, all allies could use 『Blink』 and 『Air Walk』 multiple times for a short period of time.

Using this totem, Chief Professor Toy had once assassinated 52 Kreutz assassins in under two minutes with just five men. All of them returned unscathed.

“180 seconds until totem activation!” Professor Toy shouted.

But suddenly, a line in the textbox caught my eye.

【 Gray: Ugh… Why is everything shaking…? 】

What on earth?

Why were Gray’s thoughts showing up here?

“Get ready, everyone! We will initiate combat in 170 seconds!” Professor Toy reminded us again.

“Understood! Deploying telepathic comms!”

The countdown had started.

【 Gray: Why is it shaking so much…? It’s making me so dizzy...】

Wait… What’s going on?

She wasn’t supposed to be anywhere near here. And if she was… she couldn’t stay.

The airship could crash during the battle. That’s why everyone had to wear 「Parachute Magic Tools」.

【 Gray: Ah, what the hell… Did I drink too much? Why is everything shaking…? 】

I turned and sprinted back into the ship’s bridge.

Leo noticed and shouted after me. “Professor Dante? Where are you going?!”

“I must check something inside the ship!” I yelled back, vanishing through the doorway. 

Once inside, the captain turned toward me, startled. 

“Looking for something, Professor?” 

“Is there anywhere someone could be staying inside the ship?”

“This airship is only meant for rescue missions, so aside from the bridge and the deck… Oh, there’s the engine room.”

The engine room?

Unlike mechanical engines from the real world, airship engines here were powered by『Levitation Stones』, which were warm, glowing stones that exuded a calming, pleasant energy. 

I raced to the engine room and swung the door open, flipping the switch to turn on the lights.

There she was.

“…Whoa, you scared me.”

Gray was huddled under a blanket, her ashen-gray hair sticking out.

“Geez… Why’d you turn the lights on…?”

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