WE TRIED TRANSLATIONS

Surviving the Assassin Academy as a Professor

Translator: Touch

Editor: Grass

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

Chapter 45: [Main Story] No.1: Treason and Collapse (2)

I was taken aback by the sudden system message.

…A hotfix notice?

Come to think of it, there was that message that kept appearing every time I entered a bugged space.

——

⧉ Tip: [Bugged Space] detected. This area is impacted by a bug and will be patched in a future update. Further details will be provided once a schedule has been established.

Since I had seen these tip messages before, I wasn’t completely surprised by this new notice. 

But still... an actual hotfix?

Living in this world as though it were reality, the idea that something here could be “fixed” felt… strange.

…But I’m glad. It really made no sense for Jinxsite to appear so early.

Not to toot my own horn, but the reason the damage wasn’t worse during our fight against Jinxsite was entirely thanks to me. 

I knew Jinxsite’s habits and attack patterns. I could read the flow of the battle and devise countermeasures accordingly.

If I hadn’t been there…

If the five other professors had gone to fight him without me, they would’ve likely all died, overwhelmed by the 『Curse of Domination』.

And if all those powerful professors had died, Jinxsite would have plunged all of Zone 0 into chaos, spreading its curses unchecked. 

The consequences would have been catastrophic—excessive, even for Hell Mode.

Still, I felt a strange relief after reading the system notice. I didn’t know how the fixes would be implemented or what the compensation would be, but at least there was some sort of safety mechanism in place.

This wasn’t just about fixing the Jinxsite bug. The existence of bugs and the ability to fix them could have serious implications for my life in this game from now on. 

But before anything else... I need to get treated.

I went to the hospital to have my left eye checked and treated. After the healing procedure, I lay in a hospital bed and rested my eyes for a while. 

A few hours later, a status window appeared in my vision, signaling the true beginning of the main game. 

< ⧉ [Main Story] No.1: Treason and Collapse >

So it begins...

According to the information I had obtained, the main story wasn’t supposed to start for another three days. But perhaps Jinxsite’s early appearance had thrown off the original timeline, forcing the traitors to accelerate their plans. 

By now, the assassination war had likely already begun. 

Everything was playing out more or less as I had anticipated.

< ⧉ Phase 1 – Disappearance of Neutral Professors >

Neutral professors from the Assassin, Warrior, and Mage Departments in Zones 0, 1, and 2 had collectively vanished.

As sirens blared across the campus, an emergency broadcast echoed through the air:

“Air raid alert. Air raid alert. To all cadets, faculty, and residents of Zone 0, please evacuate to your nearest evacuation point immediately. I repeat…”

Zone 0 had officially become a battlefield.

< ⧉ Phase 2 – Assassination War >

Assassins from the enemy nation, the Kingdom of Kreutz, launched coordinated attacks on key facilities in Zone 2, the Mage Department.

Shaman Kreutz, the Assassin Department’s dean, along with the branch directors of the Black and White Paths, had anticipated this. They quickly mobilized, leading over a hundred elite assassins to respond.

Normally, I would’ve taken advantage of the ensuing chaos to act in my own interest. But this time, things were different.

In just one night, Jinxsite’s arm count had returned to three. And now, enemy assassins had infiltrated Zone 0.

I had no choice but to deal with both threats.

From the rooftop of the hospital building, hidden behind an illusory wall, I observed the scenery of Zone 0.

Some invisible presences were sprinting across the sky, stepping lightly on air.

● Kreutz Assassin, Ketrak

● Kreutz Assassin, Valhaka

Judging by the textbox showing their thoughts, these weren’t the ones sent to sabotage facilities. They were hunting a specific target.

During the Second Great Assassination War, there had been a sniper who managed to kill a member of the Kreutz royal family.

Today, that sniper’s son was a cadet at Hiaka Academy.

And that cadet… was my student.

“P-Professor! You shouldn’t be moving yet…!”

“Step aside,” I said, brushing past the nurse.

Though pain still throbbed in my eye, I left the hospital without hesitation.

* * *

The sky split open.

A light brighter than the sun pierced through the clouds, carving a radiant vertical line in the ocean-blue sky as it descended swiftly.

A meteorite was falling above Zone 2 of Hiaka Academy.

It was 『Meteor』, a Level 8 large-scale explosion spell.

“D-Dean!!”

A panicked mage shouted toward a bespectacled, middle-aged man.

“Don’t cause a commotion,” said Ezekiel Hiakium.

The Dean of the Mage Department at Hiaka Academy, a Challenger-rated mage and one of the top 200 combatants in the world, stood tall as he raised his hand. 

He activated and deployed the ultra-large barrier 『Turtle Shell Bulwark of Land and Sea』. 

A massive dome-like shield, reminiscent of a translucent turtle shell, spread across the sky. It covered an area twice the size of a football field.

BOOOOM!!

The meteor slammed into the shield with an earth-shaking explosion. A pillar of flame and smoke surged into the sky, scattering debris in every direction. 

But the impact, the sound, and the shockwaves were all suppressed, held at bay by Ezekiel’s defensive magic.

To some, it seemed like the campus had been protected. 

But in reality, things weren’t so perfect.

The 「Peaceful Star ☮」’s barrier, which had been protecting the academy until now, was broken.

This barrier could impose numerous debuffs on unauthorized intruders. Now, with it damaged, Kreutz's assassins could freely infiltrate the academy, slipping through the damaged barrier’s gaps.

“Quick! We must move quickly! Ugh…”

“Dean…!”

Ezekiel fell to his knees, clutching his chest. The immense strain from casting grand magic had taken a toll on his heart, a side effect of the spell. 

Unfortunately, that was the moment the assassins appeared before him. 

“It’s Ezekiel!”

Damn… already?

Weapons drawn, the assassins charged toward the dean.

“Die, Ezekiel!”

But just then...

Splurt! Thud!

The head of the leading assassin burst apart, his skull crushed by the weight of a descending axe. 

The weapon embedded itself into the ground with a sickening crunch. 

The intruder next to the dead man met a similar fate. He suddenly felt the floor cave beneath him.

“Agh!!”

By the time he regained his senses, he was being sucked into the ground. Once he was thirty meters deep, his body was crushed into pulp.

The axe embedded in the ground flew upward and returned to a certain man’s hand. Another person stepped forward beside him.

“…You’re late, you damn rats,” Ezekiel muttered while clutching his chest.

“Hehe. What a sight. Didn’t think I’d get to see a Challenger-rated mage on his knees today.”

It was Chief Professor Baekwa, the White Path’s branch director.

“…Stand up. There are many eyes watching,” said Chief Professor Betelgeuse, the Black Path’s branch director.

Standing behind them were the elite professors of the Assassin Department.

“You damn rats…”

Despite his curses, Ezekiel knew that this was a rare sight.

How long had it been since those two last stood side by side?

It must have been nearly 15 years, ever since the end of the Second Great Assassination War.

After that, the two of them had never come this close unless it was for official events. 

And one last person stood with them.

The traitor who had been scorned for decades—the king of these rats.

The Assassin Department’s dean, Shaman Kreutz.

“We’re here, Ezekiel,” said the man with the plump body.

“…Old Man Shaman. Let me ask one last time. Will you stand with us against them? Even if they’re your family?”

“What nonsense are you spouting? Of course I’ll fight with you.”

Once a traitor, always a traitor.

That was the phrase that had followed Shaman throughout his life.

But he had no intention of proving it right or wrong today. He simply wanted to protect the academy as one of the adults responsible for the cadets.

“…Battalion. To think you would go this far… If I had known, I would have killed you when you were young.” Shaman muttered to himself.

Rumble…

His eyes glowed blue as a tremendous amount of mana surged from his body.

That was when Ezekiel had a thought.

Hiaka was truly a foolish nation.

The conflict between the Black and White Paths had always been an age-old, petty feud between the moronic rats who called themselves assassins.

He had even heard that Baekwa and Betelgeuse—the two boss rats—were on the verge of fighting each other just three weeks ago.

These rats were all so foolish.

Hiaka was a foolish nation with foolish assassins...

Yet, now that the academy faced a crisis, they had come together.

Ezekiel clicked his tongue.

…Still, it’s not that bad here.

At the end of the day, when it was time to fight together, they always showed up.

Even the professors who used to be complacent and lazy were standing behind them.

By now, they were all probably burning with vigor and resolve.

We must protect them all. Ezekiel thought to himself. 

The cadets, the nation’s future—they had to be protected.

The Mage Department’s dean finally got back on his feet.

A few days earlier, the board chairman had officially assigned him the responsibility of leading this conflict. He had also given orders to the three special assassins and their squads to support him.

Messages began to relay directly to Ezekiel via telepathy.

« Our apologies, Dean Ezekiel! The infiltrators got past us! Some have breached into Zone 0! »

There was a bitter taste in his mouth. It was a lapse on his part. He should’ve known things wouldn’t go as planned. Wars never did, after all. 

…Please protect them as best as you can.

Ezekiel decided to trust the remaining professors in Zone 0 to protect any cadets, civilians, and bystanders.

« For Hiaka’s eternal glory! »

Shaman Kreutz shouted the battle cry.

At last, the assassination war had begun.

The incident began with the blaring of a siren during a supplementary class for repeater cadets.

At the time, Forte, Dominic, and Hwaru were with a neutral professor named Gula.

According to Professor Gula, a hole had opened in the barrier nearby, and dozens of assassins had infiltrated the campus. 

They were hopelessly outnumbered, so Gula and the cadets retreated to the nearest evacuation point for the time being.

Forte remained calm, but Hwaru trembled with fear. Dominic, too, was overwhelmed by the situation.

One of the academic staff approached and attempted to reassure the frightened Hwaru.

“Cadet. Cadet! Calm down.”

“Y-Yes…”

“It’s okay. Everything’s going to be fine. There’s no need to be afraid.”

“Ah, yes…”

“We’ll be safe as long as we stay here! There’s no way the intruders can get this far! Trust me, alright? There’s absolutely—”

Shplack!

The staff’s head exploded mid-sentence.

A stray bullet, fired indiscriminately from afar, had struck him dead.

His blood splattered across the faces and uniforms of the trio and Professor Gula.

Hwaru immediately dropped to her knees, too paralyzed by fear to even scream.

“Shit…! Everyone, get over here!” Gula shouted. 

He hurriedly locked the building door and led the three cadets down into the basement.

“Fuck… Fucking hell…! I thought it was just a rumor. Never thought this shit would actually happen…!”

The only thing they could do right now was take refuge and try to escape as far as possible.

While huddled in the basement, Dominic spoke up.

“Professor. What about heading to the shelter?”

“What was that, punk?”

“Um, isn’t there a transfer port nearby? It leads to the underground shelter. We could go there! And if I’m not mistaken, you have the port key, don’t you, Professor?”

“…You little shit. How the hell do you know that?”

“Ah, I’m sorry. That’s… insider knowledge from my line of work, so I cannot tell you my sources.”

“What kind of bullshit is that? Anyway, no! We’re not going there!”

Gula was the kind of professor who always voiced his complaints aloud and took slacking off to an art form, so much so that he ranked No. 3 in the “Most Disliked Professor” community poll on the Assassin Town forums.

Dominic frowned.

He knew that if they went to the underground shelter, they’d be completely safe.

It was a facility meant for high-ranking officials only… but if they could just get there, survival was almost guaranteed.

So why was Professor Gula refusing to go?

Was it because they were just cadets? Was he looking down on them?

In the end, the four of them spent half a day holed up in the basement of the evacuation point.

Gunfire and explosions echoed from above. The sounds of combat never ceased.

It was unusually long and intense, especially for a battle between assassins.

Every time they heard footsteps nearby, Hwaru would start crying or whimpering, which only made Gula scowl and snap at her to shut up.

Tension rose, drop by drop.

As the sun began to set, Gula started muttering to himself constantly.

“Fuck. Why the hell am I stuck down here with these damn brats that needed supplementary lessons…?”

Hearing that only deepened the cadets’ fear. 

Then, as night fell, Gula received a message and suddenly shot to his feet. 

“Oh fuck! Hey, everyone, run!”

“Eh? Why?!”

“No time to explain—just run! Get up! I said RUN, goddamn it!!”

Gula burst through the door with the three in tow. Not long after...

BOOOOM—!

The building behind them exploded into smithereens.

Zone 0, which they saw again for the first time in hours, was in worse shape than they could have imagined.

Buildings were reduced to debris, and infrastructure lay shattered.

But Gula, sensing the surrounding killing intent, didn’t stop. He ran toward the forested mountains, and the trio had no choice but to follow.

His scowl deepened. His muttering grew louder.

“Fuck this… why me…? Why the hell do I have to be stuck with a bunch of useless brats I don’t give a damn about…?”

He kept ranting on and on as they ran. 

Finally, Forte couldn’t take it anymore and snapped.

“Professor. Is that really something you should be saying in front of us?”

“What was that, you little shit? You tryna lecture me now?”

“Please, just stop it! We can hear you, you know?!”

“Shut the hell up, punk! I’m already pissed off as it is…!!”

Forte flinched at Gula’s outburst and had no choice but to fall silent and follow in fear.

And once again, Gula’s muttering only grew louder.

Eventually, as they passed by a sentry post built into a large tree in the forest, he reached his breaking point.

“Fuck…!!! If I’d known about this, I should’ve just agreed to retire last year…! All this just to suck up a little more research funds… An era of peace?! Peace, my ass! This is all because of those damn royal maggots…!”

“Um, Professor—”

Forte tried once more to speak up.

“Shut your damn mouth, Asimov! You little—!”

Gula suddenly stopped midway through his outburst.

Click—

He then raised his gun and aimed it at Forte.

“…Professor?”

The three cadets stood frozen in place.

“Huh? What are you doing, Professor?!”

“Professor Gula… don’t tell me you’re a traitor too?” Dominic asked, visibly shaken.

“Get lost!!”

“P-Professor…! Since when… No, why are you doing this!? Please don’t do this!”

“Why the hell not?!”

All three cadets stared in fear and shock at the response. 

“Why shouldn’t I do this, huh?! Why the fuck should I NOT ditch you three right here, huh?! Tell me!!”

Gula erupted in rage. 

At this point, Hwaru burst into tears, completely consumed by terror. 

“Get lost!! You useless repeaters! I’m done dragging you hindrances around! I need to save my own skin and survive, goddamn it!!”

“P-Professor…!” Forte muttered.

“If you don’t get lost, I’ll put a new hole in your skull to breathe through. Got it?!”

In the end, Forte clenched his teeth, grabbed Hwaru’s hand, and took off running, with Dominic following behind. 

“Get lost, you shits! Good fucking riddance!”

After the three cadets vanished into the trees, the professor stood quietly in place, his expression softening immediately.

And strangely enough, he didn’t flee.

He simply stood there, motionless, staring in the direction where the cadets had fled.

“…Haaa.”

Eventually, the professor turned around... to face the assassins of Kreutz approaching him from behind, beyond the trees.

“…Damn it,” he cursed.

Then he quietly added, muttering to himself, "Why me...?"

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