You’re Right, They’ll Expel Me if I Run into the Store with a Weapon!! - Chapter 52: The Supervisor: "Perhaps a salary cut for the principal of the Japanese branch is in order?" Principal: "Please, anything but that!"

“Quite cold, aren’t we? And here I thought we were friends, to find you’ve been pretending all this while.”

“I’m sorry…”

Where did his earlier bravado go? Sitting at the round table, the principal turned pale in front of the supervisor.

“The punishment can be whatever you see fit…”

“No need to apologize. I knew from the beginning.”

He declared in a light tone.

“You were that kind of person in the past and even now.”

“That kind of person, huh… Ha ha…”

“Yes, you were that kind of person.”

Upon realization that he had been transparent from the beginning, the light faded from the principal’s eyes, culminating in a hollow laugh.

“Regarding this issue with the teachers, I had my suspicions.”

“What do you mean…”

“Do you remember the man explaining the strategy at the airport, Amakusa?”

“Could it be…”

Recalling the incident, Teacher Amakusa shuddered at a certain truth.

“I heard everything from that kid. And by the way, he’s the same type as you, Amakusa.”

“!”

At those words, Teacher Amakusa’s body shook.

“He is, as they say, a former combatant.”

“That means…”

“Yes, he’s a person who was ‘consumed’ just like you.”

This touched on Teacher Amakusa’s traumatic past.

“He’s also one of the adults who, luckily, made it back. He’s against using children for missions so that you might find common ground with him.”

Faced with suddenly emerging truths, Teacher Amakusa was slow to react. However, there was one fact that surprised him the most.

“He participated in the large-scale joint operation five years ago?”

Teacher Amakusa remembered the tragedy known as a major incident.

But the supervisor shook his head to that question.

“No, it was a year ago. I sent him on a reconnaissance mission to a suspicious location… well, you understand.”

“That he survived is… I’m sorry!”

“It’s okay. That’s a natural reaction.”

Apologizing for his rudeness, Teacher Amakusa was met with indifference by the supervisor.

“Many combatants were lost during the operation five years ago, and those who survived lost their combat abilities. I was pleased that you, a survivor, are guiding the children as a teacher.”

“Such generous words are unwarranted.”

“Not at all. These words are meant for a worthy guide, someone like you.”

With that, the supervisor rose from the round table and approached Teacher Amakusa, placing his right hand on Amakusa’s shoulder through the holographic image.

“Your words earlier were splendid.”

“—”

Teacher Amakusa’s thoughts paused at those words.

Coming from the sole authority overseeing combat education, Teacher Amakusa was fully aware of their significance and found himself at a loss for words.

“Right. Now it’s your turn.”

“Yes…”

Letting his right hand fall from the shoulder, the supervisor’s tone lightened, as he floated to adjust his height to meet the principal’s gaze directly.

“I’ll leave the management of Ogino Hiroki to the Japanese branch.”

“! …Is that really okay?”

“No child takes kindly to harsh words. What would go through his mind if we were to transfer him now?”

“You’re right.”

The logical explanation convinced the principal.

“I’ll notify all branches about this matter from the headquarters. There shouldn’t be any complaints.”

The principal was grateful, but while expressing this, he felt as if he saw the supervisor’s mouth twist into a sly grin. Was it just his imagination?

“However, we have a problem on our hands.”

“A problem?”

“Yes, it’s about the children we took into custody after this operation.”

After the operation ended, the headquarters looked after the children who had regained their bodies.

“I was informed they have yet to awaken…”

Right. Their brains were once removed. Even with the technology of combat studies and the power of combatants, recovery from such inhumane acts was difficult.

“No, everyone woke up from three days ago until yesterday.”

However, the supervisor reported an unexpectedly rapid recovery, which surprised the principal.

“! That’s wonderful news! Will you be announcing this, too?”

“That’s the plan. We’re compiling the information for it now. But…”

The supervisor did not share in the joy.

“All of those children had to give up their combat abilities.”

This fact made both the principal and Teacher Amakusa’s expressions waver.

“All were found to have psychological trauma. Heeding their families’ wishes, they’ve chosen to step back from combat studies.”

“…How much do they remember?”

“Up until right before their brains were removed… It’s unspeakable.”

“…How painful.”

Not everything had been resolved.

The scars inflicted on the victims of that operation could become wounds that never heal in a lifetime.

“Then, the memories from when they became soldiers…”

“Of course, there were none. As per the records so far, it seems the memories were stored in the brains that were installed in the soldiers.”

That was what being a soldier entailed.

Connecting the brains of combatants to artificial brains via wireless to activate their abilities was the worst weapon.

The inhumane methods used inflicted severe strain on the victims’ minds and brains.

And, as seen in past cases, while there was suspicion that memories from after being connected to a soldier could remain, there has never been a precedent where such memories existed.

Thus, the only memories that remained were those before becoming a soldier.

“But… there was one who remained.”

“Remained?”

“A girl decided to enter combat studies.”

The fact was astonishing.

After undergoing the worst treatment, there was a child who still wanted to keep her combat abilities. It was unbelievable.

“Who is this girl?”

“The key person this time, ‘Airi Edelman.’ She strongly objected to her parents’ opposition and expressed her desire to stay in combat studies.”

“The girl from the ‘Harmony Operation’… But why?”

The girl with an unknown ability had chosen to stay. The principal asked for the reason, unable to hide his astonishment.

“Memories from after becoming a soldier were absent… but it was a bit different for Airi.”

What was discussed was the content the supervisor himself had confirmed.

“After verifying with her family, something that wasn’t there before the incident had emerged in Airi.”

“Emerged?”

“…She sings. It doesn’t form into a song, but she keeps singing desperately as if possessed by something.”

The principal was skeptical of the supervisor’s statement.

“When inquired about the reason, she repeatedly said, ‘Someone is singing,’ at times through tears.”

“Someone is singing… What exactly happened to her…”

“It’s unclear. But she’s the only child making a recovery. Probably, singing is affecting her psyche in some way.”

Continuing to sing is aiding her psychological recovery.

Or rather, based on what was heard, it’s more accurate to say she’s dependent on the singing.

Without it, the girl wouldn’t have been able to head towards recovery so soon.

“Excuse me for asking, Supervisor, but may I ask a question?”

“Amakusa, yes, I’ll allow the question.”

“What is the name of the song Airi Edelman is singing?”

At that question, the supervisor looked up slightly.

“It’s the ‘Queen of the Night’s Aria’ from ‘The Magic Flute,’ a piece in German by Mozart.”