A terrorist attack occurred at the academy during the final exams.
That news was enough to awaken the spirits of the students who were hurriedly returning after the abrupt suspension of the exams.
"What? A terrorist attack? Seriously?"
"I just contacted the dedicated dormitory staff, and it's true! Terrorists broke in and destroyed buildings indiscriminately!"
"This is crazy!"
The forest where the final exams were held was at a reasonable distance from the academy.
It wasn't close, but it wasn't too far either. The explosions coming from the direction of the academy, the sudden busyness of the faculty and examiners, and the information secretly relayed by some students all supported the news.
"O-our dormitory is okay, right!?"
"It's a blessing that it happened during the final exams. If it weren't…"
"So even Grandis Academy isn't safe?"
It was only natural for the students, who only knew that a terrorist attack had occurred but hadn't heard the details, to express their anxiety.
Students worried about their dormitories, students concerned about their friends and people who remained at the academy, students panicking that Grandis Academy itself might be dangerous.
The chaos was amplified because the terrorist attack happened at the most prestigious school in the kingdom, of all places.
But the chaos quickly subsided.
"Wh-what is this!?"
"Examiner? Was there a lake here originally? And why is the lake dried up?"
"It's not a lake… you're saying the Headmistress created this? With a single punch? While defeating the Rank 7 leader of the terrorists?"
The basin that appeared while they were returning to the academy. Some students even wondered if it was originally a lake that had dried up. That's how massive the crater that greeted them was.
Only after hearing that it was the aftermath of the Headmistress capturing the leader of the terrorists…
"What, so he was caught after all?"
"I heard there were no casualties. It seems like they deliberately targeted the final exams, right?"
"Hey, look at that. Would you want to do anything, let alone a terrorist attack, while the Headmistress is at the academy?"
"…Not at all. Those terrorists are complete cowards. Why did they even attack the academy in the first place?"
"It's obvious what those terrorists were thinking, trying to gain notoriety. But looking at this, forget notoriety, escaping alive is the real issue."
The students realized that the terrorist attack was much less significant than they had imagined.
Buildings? They did collapse. But none of the student dormitories, classrooms, or research labs were damaged, only the outer buildings and some random places.
No casualties, not even a single injury. The terrorists were desperately running away, and since most people were away for the final exams, no one was caught in the collapsing buildings.
The leader of the terrorists? Captured. He was a Rank 7, but he was killed by the Headmistress's single blow. The rest of the terrorists ran away with their tails between their legs.
In the end, they suffered a terrorist attack, but there wasn't much actual damage.
However, despite the lack of real damage, the academy itself looked quite devastated.
"A total of 125 buildings collapsed, the damaged roads and street trees are countless, and besides the direct collapses, quite a few buildings were buried or swept away by the debris."
"What about the property damage?"
"We're still estimating, but… it's expected to be 'considerable.' You're not planning to overlook this, are you?"
"Hey, what do you take me for? Do I look like that kind of person?"
"...…"
"Answer me."
"…No."
"Then it's settled, isn't it?"
Crazy bastard.
Milia muttered curses just loud enough for a Rank 1 not to hear. However, thanks to someone feeding me ridiculously expensive top-grade elixirs, I could hear her perfectly well for a moment.
But I wasn't one to hold a grudge or get upset over such things.
I simply added another pile of documents to Milia's workload.
"Did you… hear that?"
"Excuse me? I don't know what you're talking about. I'm just giving you this because it's work that needs to be done. You understand, right?"
"...…"
Wisely, she didn't say it out loud this time. Yes, it was so much better when she only spoke in her mind, where I couldn't hear her.
But I wasn't just bullying Milia one-sidedly. I was genuinely in a good mood, no joke.
I was truly happy to have a legal slave—no, an illegal slave—after being alone in this damn office.
"You want me to do all of this?"
"It's not that complicated if you actually look at it. Just review everything."
"That's the same thing…"
Milia, who had become a (temporary) member of the Finance Department, let out a deep sigh. It was only 7 hours of work, what was with the fuss?
After the terrorist attack plan, Milia was helping me with my work, just like she had been for the past two weeks. She was already quite helpful, and now there was no problem treating her as a Finance Department employee instead of a student.
The reason was none other than a 'personal deal' I made with Milia. The deal where she asked me to take care of Malton as a sacrifice for the terrorist attack.
That was a fatal secret that Milia couldn't reveal to anyone. Considering that Milia also held the secret of me instigating the terrorist attack, we both had each other's lives in our hands.
And because of that, I could actually trust Milia.
'Well, it's not really a matter of life and death.'
To be precise, I did have Milia's life in my hands, but she didn't have mine. It was a threat, but it wasn't something that could ruin me.
This was due to the difference in our social positions. Honestly, if a single academy student went around shouting, "I'm actually a bishop of the Wish Cult, and the Finance Director instigated a terrorist attack!" how many people would believe her?
Some might be suspicious or question me, but without clear evidence, I could just deny it. If things got really bad, I could even ask the Headmistress for help.
But Milia was different. If it was revealed that a Rank 7 had died in the declining Wish Cult, and that it was instigated by Milia…
Could Milia, who hadn't established a clear position like me, survive within the cult?
'In other words, it wouldn't matter if Milia established her position.'
How much time could she devote to the cult's affairs while remaining a student at the academy and handling the Finance Department's work?
Of course, she had become the youngest bishop, so she would eventually establish her position, but not right now. And that was enough.
Because I had her on a leash, I could actually trust Milia more than the other staff members.
"You can finish that today and go home. As promised, you don't have to worry about attendance or exams."
"…You'll give me the subsidy too, right?"
"Of course."
"Sigh… Alright."
I wasn't making her work for free. That wouldn't be efficient. I decided to give Milia freedom regarding attendance and exams, and even provide her with living expenses and a subsidy.
The former wasn't difficult with my authority as Finance Director. There were actually students who couldn't even pay Grandis Academy's tuition and had to work part-time, although they were rare.
As for the latter, well, I assumed she wouldn't have any money since the Wish Cult was declining. I felt a strange sense of camaraderie with her.
Due to those circumstances, Milia came to work for the Finance Department, albeit unofficially.
'But I still need to be careful.'
Of course, even if she worked for the Finance Department, I wouldn't tell her about the academy's financial situation or the risk of bankruptcy. The tasks I assigned to Milia… were mostly paperwork.
Reviewing those damn proposals, rejecting documents that whined about needing more budget, finding loopholes in reports, simple approvals and payments, and so on.
These financial documents were so fragmented that it would be impossible to grasp the academy's overall financial situation with them. It was like trying to determine if the entire house was clean by closing your eyes at home and picking up a single speck of dust.
In many ways, it was fortunate that Milia was competent.
'I don't think she was originally competent in this area…'
Judging from her grades on the deserted island midterm exam, I remember her being more focused on carpentry skills than practical work and response capabilities. In fact, she was quite passive in conversations and interpersonal relationships.
Was that all an act, or was this current behavior an act?
…Honestly, it didn't matter.
'Whether it's a yellow cow or a black cow, as long as it does its job, that's all that matters.'
Whichever Milia it was, as long as she did her paperwork well, that was all that mattered to me.
"Then, I'll be going to the Headmistress's office for a bit, so please take care of the documents. And if you need anything magical, you can use the equipment over there."
"…You mean Professor Circe?"
"She agreed to be processed as equipment, so you can just call her equipment."
I offered to return 0.1% of her salary, and she happily signed the equipment list, thanking me.
Did I give her too much? I should give her half that next time.
Leaving Circe, who was desperately massaging her bare scalp, I left the office.
And entered the Headmistress's office right next door.
'Why don't they just install a door in the wall?'
Why did I have to go out into the hallway, knock, and then enter? I didn't complain because installing a new door would cost money, but it was strangely inconvenient.
Anyway, as I entered the Headmistress's office,
"Get out."
"Yes."
Click.
I was told to get out, so I got out. And without hesitation, I went back to my office—
"Wait! You're supposed to try again at times like this! Why are you giving up so easily!"
"You told me to get out, so I got out."
"So! You're supposed to read the atmosphere and act all apologetic instead of actually leaving!"
"Why should I do that?"
"Because!"
The Headmistress, who had stormed out,
Glared at me with a resentful look.
"Because the Finance Director was living with a female student!"
"Firstly, Ruth Spero disguised herself as a male using chest bandages and qi to alter her skeletal structure. Even you, Headmistress, couldn't tell that Student Ruth was a woman. I naturally thought Student Ruth was a man."
"Oh."
"Secondly, I reported to you on the day I started living with Student Ruth, and you were persuaded and agreed to it. Also, I left the dormitory and lived in the office for two weeks starting the next day, so to be precise, I didn't even live with her for a full day."
"Well…"
"Thirdly, I only found out that Student Ruth was a woman yesterday. It was her own mistake, and even if it was discovered, it's ultimately Student Ruth's fault for hiding her gender considering her rank, not mine as a Rank 1. Any objections?"
"…No."
"Then let's go in. We're busy, and it's a waste of time to argue about this."
"Yes…"
If the Headmistress was truly angry, it would be one thing, but it was hard to forgive her for nitpicking like this when she knew I wasn't really at fault. If it were any other time, I would have just endured her complaints, but this was a crucial time.
Still, seeing the Headmistress's dejected figure as she went in was a bit sad…
Squeeze.
"F-Finance Director…?"
"You know I'm not trying to lecture you, Headmistress. I was truly frustrated, and I'm busy."
"Hmph."
"I'll do this, so please calm down."
"…I'm not angry."
The best way to appease an elderly person is to massage their shoulders. As I approached and massaged the Headmistress's shoulders, she grumbled but adjusted her posture to make it easier for me.
By the way, her shoulders were incredibly stiff. This was Rank 8? My hands hurt. My fingers were really throbbing.
No joke, I didn't think I could massage them for more than a minute.
Fortunately, the Headmistress seemed satisfied before my fingers went numb and gave me a signal that she was okay. Thank goodness.
"I'll… let it slide this time. Because I know the Finance Director isn't the type to do anything inappropriate even if he lives with a female student."
"I don't even have time for anything inappropriate in the first place. I just sleep when I go to the dormitory, what else could I do?"
"That's true, but… anyway."
I felt a pang of sadness for my work-life balance, but I quickly pulled myself together. My fingers still hurt. Was it this hard for a Rank 1 to even massage the shoulders of a Rank 8? It was tough being a Rank 1.
Well, putting aside the pointless complaints…
"About the terrorist attack yesterday, and today…"
"…Yes."
"Including the one that just arrived, we've received about 20 letters."
And…
"All those letters contain words of comfort and donations."
"...…"
"The estimated amount has already extended the academy's lifespan by a year."
"…!!!"
This staged terrorist attack…
…was a huge success.