I Became the Childhood Friend Who Commits Sui**de

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Pale skin. A lifeless face.

At first glance, she looked like a sickly child.

But upon closer inspection, there was a strange sense of unease.

She appeared almost corpse-like, devoid of the vitality of life.

Next to the White Lamb was a girl with an arrow lodged in her chest.

Yet the wound was nowhere to be seen. Unless the arrow was a toy or if it had penetrated her and she was healing, such a state was impossible.

“…What have you done to that girl?”

The arrow couldn’t possibly be a toy. That was the Pink Hawk’s own arrow.

So it was clear that White Lamb was the cause of this abnormal situation.

Did she not fully die before being healed?

The probability was slim.

An ordinary young girl couldn’t survive being struck by her arrow.

White Lamb replied calmly.

“I thought about it, but does this girl really have to die?”

“That’s a meaningless question. The reason she’s dying is that she’s human.”

“If that’s all there is to it, then should I die too? After all, I’m human, not a demon.”

Has she not completely discarded her values as a human?

If she’s feeling sympathy for another human and wishing to protect her, that’s not good.

Such questions are quite dangerous.

While she might not think much of it, if it reaches the ears of other demons, it would surely cause a ruckus.

Especially to those like the Gold Lion or Red Dragon, who hate humans even more.

“Miss White Lamb, before being human, you are a demon. You are cooperating to exterminate humans for the sake of our kind. Do you think that girl can live like you?”

“We don’t know. She might end up becoming our ally.”

That was utter nonsense.

Losing the opportunity to argue, she tried to change the subject.

But before she could, White Lamb spoke again.

“So, I will give everyone a chance.”

“….”

In the scene that unfolded, the Pink Hawk was taken aback.

A sight she had never once imagined appeared before her.

The corpses littering the street began to rise one by one.

She felt a presence behind her.

Surely, the ice knight she had defeated earlier stood back up with pale skin.

White Lamb spoke as if she had no idea what she had just done.

“But it’s better than dying, right?”

At that moment, the Pink Hawk realized that something about the girl was broken.

*

On a dark night.

Shin Woo steeled himself and moved to the meeting place.

Why here, of all places? The boy thought it was quite morbid, but he opened the closed door.

The sight of the science room after six months was desolate.

All the instruments and desks that had been there were gone, leaving only a vast empty space.

“Since that day, we moved the science room. This place is abandoned now.”

“…You look fine.”

Just hours before, in the boardroom, the Vice Principal had been bloodied and tied to a cross.

Though only a few hours had passed, he had returned to his usual well-groomed appearance.

He smiled meaningfully and said.

“It’s all thanks to you for agreeing to the deal. As long as I have the Holy Grail, I can never be defeated.”

Was this truly the right choice?

Betraying humanity and siding with the demons?

He decided not to care about such things anymore.

What mattered to Shin Woo now was only one thing.

Reuniting with Hana.

So even if it wasn’t the right choice.

The boy resolved to walk this path.

“So, what are you going to tell me?”

“Oh, you mean the academy’s flaws. Of course, I will. But there’s something you need to be cautious about.”

The Vice Principal spoke softly and lowered his voice.

“If you’re thinking of making it known to others, it’s better to give it up. In politics, media, business, whatever it is, it’s ultimately that board of directors at the top.”

“I’m not planning anything that extreme. I just want to solidify my resolve and build my allies.”

Even if there aren’t many, some of the boy’s friends would probably believe him.

If they don’t, he can show evidence.

Of how rotten the academy is.

“Alright. Then follow me. I’ll show you the academy’s real face.”

They carefully moved.

This time, they headed to the underground where sunlight did not reach again.

But it was different from before.

It was much deeper and darker. The air was thin, making it hard to breathe.

“How far down are we going?”

Images flashed by through the iron mesh of the elevator.

It just kept descending endlessly.

“This is nothing compared to the magic circle.”

By saying that, he was now making Shin Woo uneasy.

Still, whatever lay ahead, he was already prepared.

He had gone through unbelievable events multiple times.

Finally, the elevator stopped, and they set foot on the ground.

The sight before him was less shocking than he had thought.

In fact, it was much cleaner and neater than the underground he had seen before.

It felt like a secret laboratory.

Bright lights and white corridors.

It was hard to believe it was underground.

Moreover, since arriving here, it had become much easier to breathe.

Perhaps it was due to an artificial air circulation system, he guessed.

“Follow me.”

Shin Woo followed the Vice Principal down the long corridor.

There were many closed doors, but it was impossible to guess what lay beyond.

Finally, they entered the room at the end of the deepest corridor.

Despite the spaciousness, it was a meaningless space devoid of anything except for a pedestal in the center.

“What is this…?”

Surely, there was no shocking sight.

At this point, he began to doubt whether the Vice Principal was just teasing him.

But the Vice Principal walked seriously to the middle of the room.

And then he picked up a small vial placed on the pedestal.

“This is it.”

“Huh?”

“This is what I wanted to show you.”

That tiny vial?

It didn’t seem to have any peculiarities at a glance.

It had no markings, so he had no idea what it was, but could this really be such an incredible object?

Well, Shin Woo felt skeptical.

“What is that?”

In response to the boy’s question, the Vice Principal fiddled with the vial and answered.

“It’s refined holy water.”

“…Holy water.”

It was a familiar term. Though he would hardly use it in daily life, it felt familiar to his ears.

That day, everything had twisted six months ago.

When the girl called Longinus had pierced Hana with a spear.

The red blood and clear water flowing from his side.

She referred to that water as holy water.

“Could this be Hana’s…?”

“Similar but wrong. This is just a fake made to imitate that.”

So it meant it was made from the holy water that came from Hana.

While that was definitely a bit unpleasant, it still wasn’t as shocking as he’d thought.

“The problem is its raw materials. Come this way.”

Out of the blue, the Vice Principal moved toward a blank wall.

Though intrigued, Shin Woo followed his words.

And then he pressed a hidden switch that was nearly impossible to see unless looked at closely.

Immediately, the wall opened, revealing a secret space that hadn’t been visible before.

Upon seeing that, he realized why the Vice Principal had brought him here.

“This holy water is made using human blood.”

On the other side of the glass wall was filled with corpses.

A multitude of bodies crammed in a chamber far wider than this place, piled high as if to create a mountain of corpses.

“Those corpses were merely sacrificed offerings to fill this one vial. What do you think?”

What do I think…?

It was horrific. It was the most horrifying scene the boy had ever seen.

Moreover, the corpses were not even intact. They looked more like dried-up mummies, as if they had been drained of blood like vampires.

“Why on earth…?”

He couldn’t comprehend.

What could this holy water possibly be that it had killed so many people?

That’s right, the academy, which was supposed to be training heroes to protect humanity, was directly involved.

Having seen this, he could no longer say that the academy was on humanity’s side.

They were no different from demons. No, even more brutal than demons.

“This holy water can unleash the potential of humans. It means you can become incomparably stronger. Just like consuming magic cores.”

Just for that, so many people had to sacrifice their lives.

Just for that one thing.

“So, the commission is probably welcoming the current assault on the apostles. They can create holy water using more human blood. The blood scattered throughout the city will be turned into holy water to strengthen you.”

“Wait. What do you mean by that? Are we using holy water?”

The Vice Principal chuckled cynically and countered.

“Are you going to play dumb? You already know in your head that the only humans using that holy water would be the academy’s students. In the first place, to the old folks, you are nothing more than a convenient resource for emergencies.”

“….”

The academy was far uglier and dirtier than Shin Woo had imagined.