Academy’s Undercover Professor-Chapter 284: Mercy Within Steel (1)
After revealing everything, the Liberation Army member was promptly taken into custody by the police that Passius had called.
Ludger and Passius remained behind, silently reflecting on what the captured operative had told them.
“We already suspected something was going on underground, but the fact that they’ve joined forces with black mages... that complicates things.”
“It didn’t seem like a lie. He wasn’t particularly high-ranking, so he didn’t know much detail—but even what he did know is significant.”
“He said he was a third-class informant, didn’t he?”
“Yes.”
Passius nodded.
According to the captive, he was a third-class operative whose job was to covertly gather and report on external activity.
In other words, a disposable tail.
Because of that, he wasn’t privy to much information.
Ludger found it ironic.
“They claim to want a world of equality, yet they assign ranks and divisions among themselves.”
Passius let out a bitter chuckle at that.
“In the end, they’re no different from the nobles they claim to despise.”
“In a way, they’ve achieved their vision of equality—ironically enough.”
“But forming an alliance with black mages definitely crosses a line.”
“It may just mean they were that desperate for power.”
“The Liberation Army isn’t that weak. They still have several executive-level figures.”
“And now those executives are joined by black mages.”
“So it seems.”
Even as Passius spoke, he kept stealing glances at Ludger.
“Why do you keep looking at me like that?”
“Huh? Oh, that is...”
“Is it because of what that Liberation Army operative said?”
Passius recalled the words of the man who had just been taken away.
He had confirmed that the Liberation Army was working with black mages on some underground operation.
Had that been all, it wouldn’t have raised such concern.
But the problem was the other information the man blurted out.
—Se, Seorn! One of our agents is hidden among the Seorn students! I was supposed to make contact with them!
The desperate cry on the man's face as he shouted that.
It was what fueled Passius’s current anxiety.
“Don’t worry too much about it. He was clearly trying to shake us with a lie.”
“No need to comfort me. He was serious. And he didn’t seem like the type to be clever enough to throw out false intel in that situation.”
“......Professor Ludger.”
“Thinking back on it, the fact that there wasn’t one would’ve been stranger.”
With that, Ludger began to walk again.
Passius naturally followed beside him.
“......What do you plan to do?”
“This concerns the lives of students. I’ll handle it as the situation demands.”
“Will you really be all right?”
“I don’t understand the intent of that question.”
“You’re a teacher, aren’t you?”
“That’s only a surface-level identity. One I can cast off at any time.”
“......”
With Ludger speaking so firmly, Passius couldn’t press the matter further.
“I understand. Then the first priority is to find that student.”
“If what they said is true, and we’re dealing with a first-class operative, then they likely know quite a bit.”
Just as Ludger and Passius stepped back out onto the main street—
“Professor Ludger!”
A familiar voice called out.
From a distance, Aidan came running toward him.
“Aidan?”
Where was his mentor, Caroline Monarch? Why had he come alone?
It wasn’t a coincidence if he had come looking for Ludger like this.
And he’s not alone.
Alongside Aidan was his usual companion, Leo.
Had they come to ask something?
Ludger considered that possibility, then narrowed his eyes.
Aidan and Leo’s expressions were far more serious than usual.
Aidan, who had been smiling so brightly just before the trip, now looked utterly frantic.
“Excuse me a moment. The students are looking for me.”
“Yes. I’ll wait here.”
Ludger nodded to Passius and approached Aidan.
He looked over the two boys, who had stopped in front of him and were still catching their breath.
“Aidan. Leo. What do you think you’re doing? Wandering off from your mentor during a field trip and running around the city calling my name out loud. Do you two have no sense of shame?”
In the middle of such a serious situation, their reckless behavior only added fuel to the fire—Ludger was in no mood to be kind.
Ordinarily, Aidan would have scratched his head and apologized with an awkward smile.
But not this time.
“It’s just... we felt like we had to tell you, Professor Ludger.”
“Tell me what?”
“It’s about Leo.”
Ludger’s sharp gaze shifted to Leo.
The boy, usually composed and sarcastic, looked terrified.
He tried not to show it, but his clenched fists trembled unmistakably.
Suddenly, Ludger recalled the words of the Liberation Army operative from earlier.
No way...
He pushed that uneasy thought away and asked.
“Tell me everything. Don’t leave out a single detail.”
“Leo.”
Aidan spoke his name gently.
Leo hesitated. He still wasn’t sure if he could bring himself to say it.
Then, Aidan placed a hand on his shoulder.
Leo looked at him in silence.
When his eyes met Aidan’s unwavering, honest gaze—he made his decision.
“I...”
Leo began, and confessed everything to Ludger.
* * *
About an hour earlier—
“Are you okay?”
“You...”
Leo knew exactly what Aidan’s question meant.
And that only made him more exasperated. No, beyond that—furious.
“...You’re asking if I’m okay? Do you not understand what’s going on right now?”
“Leo...”
“I’m with the Liberation Army.”
Since he had already been found out, there was no point in hiding it. Leo revealed his identity to Aidan.
“And for this mission, I was ordered to orchestrate a massive terror attack—to put you all directly in harm’s way. Got it? The person you thought was your friend this whole time is actually a liar and an international terrorist.”
“Leo.”
“Don’t call me that!”
Leo’s voice exploded without meaning to.
It was uncharacteristic of him to lose his composure—usually, he remained calm no matter what.
Which only showed how desperate and cornered he was now.
“What are you looking at me like that for? Worried? You should be running straight to the authorities to report me! What the hell’s wrong with you?!”
His voice was filled with anguish, as if he were trying to purge himself of everything inside.
“I lied to you! To Taishy, to Iona! To everyone! And yet you still think of me as a friend?!”
What Leo wanted was for Aidan to curse him.
To grab him by the collar and punch him, screaming, “Why did you do it?”
That would’ve made it easier to endure.
But Aidan didn’t say anything. He just listened.
That silence tore Leo apart.
“Haa... haa...”
After pouring everything out, Leo was gasping for breath.
He didn’t even have the strength left to do anything else.
“......Yeah. Pathetic. What’s the point of all this? It’s over.”
“It’s not over yet.”
At Aidan’s words, Leo looked at him like he’d completely lost his mind.
“Leo. You didn’t want to follow their orders, did you?”
“......So what.”
“I’m sorry I overheard you, but... I know you didn’t have a choice. They’re holding your family hostage. Anyone would break under that.”
Aidan’s voice was steady.
“But even then, you still tried to resist them.”
“What good is that? It’s over already!”
“The attack hasn’t happened yet. And you... you have information that could stop it.”
Leo stared into Aidan’s eyes.
They weren’t saying those things to cheer him up—he could tell Aidan meant every word.
Aidan truly believed it wasn’t too late.
“You...”
“You have to tell someone.”
“Tell who? Do you really think anyone will believe us? We’re just students.”
“Then we tell someone who would believe us.”
“Who, exactly?”
“Professor Ludger.”
“......”
Leo’s expression twisted with disbelief.
“Are you insane? You think Ludger Cherish would actually believe us?”
“Why not?”
“That man—someone like him would be more likely to lock me up and throw away the key. People who are obsessed with rules and principles are all the same!”
“No. Professor Ludger isn’t like that.”
“And how would you know?”
“Then tell me—if not Professor Ludger, who else? Is there anyone else more suited?”
“......”
Leo couldn’t offer an answer.
Even if he reported it to a regular teacher, there was no guarantee that person’s report would be taken seriously by the people who needed to hear it.
But Ludger was different.
He had made a name for himself at the Arcane Chamber presentation recently. The mentors participating in this field trip were all keeping an eye on him.
“Leo. You have to decide.”
“......It’s already too late.”
“No, it’s not too late yet. Depending on what you do, this can be changed.”
“What can I possibly do alone?”
“I’ll help you.”
Aidan answered without a moment of hesitation.
“What?”
“I said I’ll help you.”
“......Are you seriously insane? Don’t you realize how dangerous that is? You could be arrested as an accomplice!”
“Then we’ll just have to make sure that doesn’t happen, right?”
“......”
Leo was left speechless by Aidan’s cheeky confidence.
His lips moved as if to say something, then fell silent again. Shoulders slumping as if in resignation, he finally let out a faint smile.
“......You really are the biggest idiot I’ve ever met.”
“Thanks. I’ll take that as a compliment.”
* * *
Leo told Ludger everything.
How he ended up involved with the Liberation Army, and exactly what they were planning to do in the capital. 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚
Honestly, even as he spoke, Leo thought he was insane.
Several times while explaining, the urge to stop and question himself rose up—Should I really be saying this?
But in the end, he said it all.
And once it was over, there was even a faint sense of catharsis.
Ludger, having listened to everything, stood in silence, staring at Leo.
That gaze—so composed and unreadable—felt unbearably heavy and terrifying to Leo.
The breathless tension hung in the air until finally, Ludger opened his mouth.
“Leo. If what you’ve said is true, then ❀ Nоvеlігht ❀ (Don’t copy, read here) your family is currently being held hostage. Your mother and younger sister, correct?”
The first thing Ludger said wasn’t anger or condemnation. It was confirmation.
“......Yes.”
“You had no choice but to follow their orders.”
“Yes.”
“But that doesn’t erase the wrong you’ve done. You did leak information from Seorn to the outside. Am I wrong?”
“......No. That’s all correct.”
Leo had already decided he wouldn’t make excuses. There was no point. He accepted it.
“And yet you came to me. To try and change this situation.”
“......Yes.”
Leo thought of his family. Then of the friends he’d made at Seorn. Of all the moments he had experienced there.
Both were too precious to give up.
But to protect one meant letting go of the other.
“Then first, we’ll have to save your family.”
That’s what he had thought.
“What?”
Leo blinked, not understanding.
“Why do you look so surprised?”
“I—It’s just, my family is...”
“I said we’ll save them. You told me they were taken as hostages.”
“Y-Yes, I did. But... why?”
Leo couldn’t help but ask.
His family were the ones being held. Not Ludger’s.
Ludger had absolutely no obligation to help them.
And yet, he had said he would.
“Leo. Who am I?”
“Professor Ludger Cherish.”
“Exactly. And if a teacher wants to help his student—is that such a strange thing?”
“......”
That was the second time today Leo had been left unable to speak.
What Ludger said was obvious.
He was a teacher. Of course he would help his student. It was the right thing to do.
But no one ever actually did that obvious thing.
Leo had believed that this man would be no different.
Sure, Ludger had accomplished incredible things. He clearly wasn’t an ordinary teacher.
But in this regard, Leo had assumed he’d be just like the rest.
“Leo.”
“......Yes.”
“Right now, in this moment—it’s enough to just say thank you.”
Leo felt something hot rise from deep inside his chest.
He lowered his head.
Maybe, somewhere deep down, he’d always known.
That thinking no one would help him had been his own narrow view of the world.
He just didn’t want to admit it.
Because admitting that there really were people in the world who were foolishly kind, or unwaveringly dutiful, would mean that everything he had mocked until now... was wrong.
And that was laughable, wasn’t it?
He’d always claimed that no one would help him—yet inwardly, he’d been desperately hoping for someone to do just that.
How contradictory could one person be?
He called himself rational.
Calm.
Always calculating.
But to say all that and then be proven wrong—how humiliating was that?
These people were truly foolish.
Aidan, who said he would help him without hesitation.
Ludger, who calmly agreed after hearing the full story.
To be among people like that...
“I really am a fool too.”
And somehow, being among these fools—
Leo didn’t mind it at all.
Drip. Drip.
Tears fell from Leo’s bowed head.
“Truly... thank you.”
It was the first time he had ever cried.
The first hot, earnest tears of a boy who had once sworn he would never cry—no matter what.
