WE TRIED TRANSLATIONS

Surviving the Assassin Academy as a Professor

Translator: Touch

Editor: Grass

Join our discord to check out the official illustrations: https://dsc.gg/wetried

Chapter 58: The Bell Rings Over Snow-Covered Ruins (3)

“The cover model?”

Even Elize, the neighborhood’s top idiot, knew that The Assassin Times was trash—half of their articles and content were pure garbage.

But their covers were entirely different.

Even Elize knew how incredibly special an opportunity it was to be a cover model.

The Assassin Times was an imperial company. They basically released three types of magazines: weekly, monthly, and a special annual publication. They were by far the largest and only publication about assassins with fame across the entire continent, releasing their issues internationally.

So, becoming their weekly cover model was already a huge deal.

But being on the monthly cover? That was a dream opportunity for countless assassins and celebrities.

One might ask: why would assassins, a profession where discretion and secrecy are crucial, want to reveal their faces and names to the entire continent?

Well, at the end of the day, it was all about the money. The more famous they were, the higher their value and rates.

And the lucky girl who had landed the opportunity to be showcased in their monthly magazine was none other than…

“…Me?”

Gray blinked slowly.

“W-Wait a minute…! The monthly cover model? And it’s not Princess Rebecca, but… me?”

“Yes!! The princess already got featured as last week’s weekly cover model! Don’t you pay attention to what your friends are up to?”

“I’m a sick patient! I’ve been spending most of these days sleeping and resting. How would I know about any of this?!” Gray snapped, before going still.

After a moment, she asked quietly,

“…Why me?”

That was the question gnawing at Gray’s mind more than anything.

The maid glanced toward the door, then leaned in closer to the bed and whispered,

“You know that airship you prevented from crashing with your incredible Illusion Arts?”

“Ah, yeah… yeah.”

Her memory of the entire incident was still a bit hazy. But she had definitely cast her Illusion Arts while riding the airship. That, she was sure of.

“They say that if you hadn’t slowed down and redirected the ship, it would've crashed right on top of the kindergarten in Zone 1. The children were still inside, apparently.”

“Ah, yeah. I already heard about that.”

“Also, you know how the atmosphere at the academy’s been terrible lately, right? Everyone’s acting like we’re doomed or something… But after the princess’s interview, the mood was lifted a little. So the department’s news office decided to pay The Assassin Times to make you their next monthly cover model. They're trying to boost morale at Hiaka. And the agency agreed. You know how the people from the Empire love money.”

“I mean… with my pretty face, I guess it would boost morale…”

And the narrative wasn’t bad, either. Currently, the Assassin Department was pushing the theory that the massive curse-casting hand monster had been those Kreutz bastards’ handiwork.

But here was a cadet—afflicted by petrification, severe injuries, nosebleeds, and exhaustion—who had spread open beautiful wings to protect the children and prevent a disaster. The department couldn’t have asked for a better narrative to push.

And this adorable, beautiful, and lovely girl’s cover image would be perfect to lift people’s spirits.

(Needless to say, all those descriptors were Gray’s own opinion.)

“Hmm…”

Gray scratched her cheek with a blank expression.

“…But is this even okay? I mean, I’m not a princess. I’m from House Habanero, which Hiaka has been trying to keep hidden. Why would the administration suddenly allow me to reveal myself to the world…?”

Indeed, the House of Habanero was one of the few prestigious houses in Hiaka with a hereditary, genius bloodline. Gray’s very existence was classified as a state secret.

“Well, here’s the thing…”

Lucy bit her lower lip in hesitation, glanced outside, and whispered even more quietly,

“You didn’t hear this from me, okay?”

“What is it? What is it?”

“They might be opening up the Assassin Department to the Empire sometime soon.”

“Eh???”

Gray’s mouth slowly dropped open.

It was shocking news.

Hiaka Academy was famously the most closed-off institution on the entire continent. And now, it was going to open up to a foreign country?

Gray’s brain immediately began calculating.

In this upcoming era led by Hiaka, there was a chance she could become the face of the new generation!

She could be the genius cadet showcased on every single front page—and not Elize or Balmung, those annoying children of the Shadowless Constellation○ and the Pitch-Dark Constellation⚉!

“This is amazing, Lucy…!!”

“Totes amazing, girl!!”

Gray enthusiastically high-fived Lucy, then immediately shooed her out of the room.

She collapsed back onto her bed to get some more sleep.

But a sudden thought drifted into her mind.

…Those wings.

…Was that really something I did…?

* * *

Professor Dante said nothing.

He simply walked in silence as Balmung followed behind.

Come to think of it, when was the last time he had followed behind an adult like this? He couldn’t quite remember. At some point in life, he started only ever walking alongside his peers.

It was late at night. The professor kept moving deeper into the darkness.

“An assassin must love the darkness.”

That was a phrase his mother used to say all the time. She was the only person in the world to have been chosen by the 「Pitch-Dark Star ⚉」.

Thus, Balmung’s home was always dark. And he hated it.

Even so, he had no choice but to follow the professor deeper into the shadows, despite the dread growing in his heart.

As they walked, Dante’s earlier words clashed with the turmoil of thoughts in Balmung’s mind.

The professor had told him not to dwell on what they had lost.

But only those thoughts of loss kept swirling in his head.

Even now, hundreds of posts flooded the Assassin Town forum every day—cadets expressing their desire to drop out of the academy. Others mocked them, saying losers like that wouldn’t amount to anything anyway.

Balmung had read every one of those posts and replies, chewing on his nails the entire time.

His mind branched into darker tangents.

Why was I born into this kind of family?

Why was I born in this era?

Looking back on his life, every moment in his past was filled with pain.

He’d heard that thirty years ago, during his mother’s youth, the world had lived through an era of peace.

Even just ten years ago, they said the post-war victory brought a time of revival and hope. People had been motivated to live their lives fully again, with hope in their hearts.

So why was I born in this era…?

…Ah, fuck.

It was happening again. He was focusing on what he had lost.

The lesson he’d barely begun to grasp from the professor felt like it was slipping away.

He quickly opened his mouth.

“Professor. Um…”

Dante didn’t answer.

“We’re supposed to focus on what’s remaining… right?”

No reply.

“That, um… the eight million hika you mentioned earlier. We should just focus on that… right? I mean, since the other two million are already gone…”

Still, the professor remained silent, continuing forward. The quiet made Balmung even more anxious.

“But still, I keep having these awful thoughts. Like… what if we also lose those eight million? We’re still constantly losing, aren’t we? Hiaka has been bleeding out…”

No answer whatsoever.

“What’s going to change from now on…? I mean, if we had twenty million before… and it was reduced to ten… and now we’re left with just eight… But I’m sure you’re right, Professor. We should focus on what’s left, right…?”

The professor didn’t say a word.

“Professor…?”

If Professor Dante had said even a single word—anything at all—Balmung might have felt comforted.

But he said nothing.

With that same silence and empty expression as before, the professor simply walked deeper into the darkness. Balmung’s unease only grew.

“It’s not just me, you know, Professor?” he said quietly. “On Assassin Town...”

He hesitated, then shook his head.

“Ah, I apologize for constantly whining. But even on the forums, people are thinking like me…”

He grew increasingly agitated.

“They’re saying Hiaka is doomed. That we didn’t just lose the assassination war to Kreutz—we got wrecked. That the country’s rotting from the inside out… That’s why Chief Battalion defected. That’s why the war even happened. Some even say that monster hand thing crawled out of the sky because the country is cursed…”

He began pouring out all the thoughts he had kept buried, thoughts too dangerous to speak aloud.

“It’s nonsense, right? It’s all fucking—ah, I’m sorry. I mean… it’s all bullshit. But why does that bullshit keep swirling around in my head? Why do I keep thinking Hiaka’s already finished? That it’s just a ruin buried in darkness? I’m sorry. You told me not to focus on what we’ve lost, and yet…”

Still, the professor gave no reply. He didn’t even look at him.

A reckless urge crawled up Balmung’s throat.

“Just how far are you taking me?!”

He snapped before he could stop himself. When he realized what he’d done, he was already standing in front of the professor, blocking his path.

“Ah…!”

Balmung froze beneath the weight of those emotionless pink eyes. He couldn’t believe he had done something so insane. Panic rose in his chest.

“Uh, I, well… I didn’t mean—” he muttered, trying to salvage the situation.

Then, at last, the professor spoke. 

“Did you get all the echoes in your head out?”

The low voice jolted Balmung fully awake.

“Pardon? I… I…”

He bowed deeply.

“I apologize, Professor. Truly. I got too worked up and—”

“But you still haven’t understood, have you?”

“…Sir?”

“Whether it’s eight million, eight hundred thousand, or zero hika—none of that matters.”

Balmung slowly raised his head.

“…Then what does? If that’s not what matters, what does…?”

“I told you already, didn’t I? Your judgment is what matters.”

The boy gazed at him, his expression still bewildered.

“You and I live in different worlds. In fact, every human lives in their own world. It seems I need to put it in even simpler terms for a fool like you.”

The professor’s voice was flat, but strangely gentle.

“Your judgment is the world.”

Just one line.

That single sentence sent ripples through Balmung’s mind.

My judgment is the world…?

“The world grows larger or smaller in proportion to one’s judgment. Without judgment, the world does not exist.”

“…I’m not sure I understand…”

“Do you know where you are right now?”

Balmung blinked.

He had followed the professor for half an hour—maybe more—but hadn’t registered where they were.

Thinking back, they must have climbed relatively high. The path had sloped uphill the entire time.

“You don’t know where you are. You didn’t observe or judge the ground beneath your feet. You didn’t judge the scenery around you. You didn’t judge the direction you were heading in. You were pondweed, drifting wherever the current took you, and ended up here by sheer coincidence.”

Balmung was speechless. 

“You say Hiaka has fallen? That’s a shame. The moment you made that judgment, the Hiaka in your world had already fallen. Even if you came to me for advice, I’d have nothing to say—because my Hiaka hasn’t fallen yet.”

To his own disgust, Balmung wanted to ask, Then what is your Hiaka, Professor?

What kind of Hiaka did he live in, that he could say such things while all the other cadets saw collapse?

But even he knew that would be too presumptuous—and besides, what answer could change how he felt?

He simply lowered his head.

Then…

“So you’re curious about my Hiaka.”

The professor spoke again, as if reading Balmung’s thoughts.

“Then I shall show you.”

“…You’ll show me?”

“Yes. I brought you here for that reason.”

Without another word, the professor resumed walking uphill.

From that point on, Balmung followed behind in silence, like a man under a spell.

Was it really just up ahead?

A Hiaka from a wholly different world… A Hiaka that this gentle, enigmatic professor could assert with such certainty that it had not fallen…

Was it really up ahead?

They walked a few more steps before Dante reached the top of the hill.

Soon after, Balmung stood at his side.

“Behold,” the professor said. “This is my Hiaka.”

The world opened up before Balmung’s eyes.

All they’d done was climb the mountain behind the school and look down from the cliff.

It was late at night.

The city should’ve been reduced to ruins during the war.

And yet, from this height, the world below shimmered with light—far too much light for a dead city.

A world, alive and writhing, stretched out before him.

“What about the places farther away?” Dante asked, guiding his gaze.

Sure enough, Balmung saw magic circles glowing where battle damage had once scarred the land.

Even the shattered lighthouse of the 「Peaceful Star ☮」 had been repaired and now cast its light across the city.

Buildings were lit up. Through countless windows, signs of life flickered and moved.

“And the place we just came from?”

They turned around. 

Down below, the glow of cigarettes marked the Disciplinary Enforcers, still guarding the site of the ghoul attack.

The headlamps of medics crawling through rubble, searching for survivors beneath the fallen clock tower.

The headlights of vehicles ferrying the wounded to hospitals.

All of them glowed with life—flickering, surviving, holding on.

And Balmung himself had just been there, fighting alongside them.

He stared in silence, overwhelmed.

The duo fell into silence, a silence so deafening that even their breathing felt muted.

Then, the professor’s voice stirred the stillness.

“You called Hiaka, ‘a ruin buried in darkness,’ didn’t you?”

Balmung turned to him.

“Unfortunately,” Dante said, “my Hiaka is far too bright for that.”

At last, Balmung felt the small, echoing world locked inside his head begin to crack.

Could… Could it be true?

The professor was right.

His judgment really was the world.

The moment he had judged Hiaka to be ruined, his version of the world had followed suit.

But others, those who still believed Hiaka was alive, their world still shone.

Inside the place he had labeled a ruin, people were living. Fighting. Holding on.

Glowing with hope.

“The department administration and the faculty—including myself—are preparing for the new era to come,” the professor said. “And when it arrives, Hiaka will place a great bet. Whether that bet will pay off, no one knows. But you will be part of that wager. You will be one of the leaders of Hiaka’s revival.”

Balmung stared at him, his eyes bewildered by the professor’s words. 

“You must figure out what you have to do on your own,” the professor said. “So, fill your mind with better echoes. Once you’re sure of what they are, come find me again. If that day comes, and we view the world with the same judgment, only then will I be able to advise you.”

With those parting words, he turned and walked away.

He didn’t wait for Balmung to follow.

Even after the professor had vanished into the shadows, Balmung remained where he was, staring down at Hiaka Academy.

For a very… very long time.

If you wish to read ahead, there are 10 advanced chapters available right now!

Join our Discord for the official illustrations and the fastest updates on releases! https://dsc.gg/wetried