I Become a Secret Police Officer of The Imperial Academy

Chapter 43

After dealing with all the demon brats at the orphanage, I returned to the house on the hill.

Still feeling nauseated, I stepped out onto the terrace on the second floor to get some fresh air.

Marco followed me out.

“It’s far too late to back out now, miss.

You dug back into the mess that was swept under the rug with the young master’s life.”

It sounded like he was accusing me of disturbing Julian’s grave.

He may have said it without much thought, but his words hit the mark.

Marco lit a cigarette from his pocket.

I wanted to ask him for one, but instead, I pulled out a pack of those lousy herbal cigarettes and tried to calm myself with their smoke.

“Who said I was quitting? It’s just… I’m having a hard time.

Yeah, it’s because today’s duel was tough. The class was tough….”

Marco patted my head and gave my back a few reassuring taps.

I’d let myself get weak for a moment.

I shouldn’t be showing this side of myself.

“If you say so.”

That thought made me push Marco away.

When I glanced down below, I noticed someone watching us.

Even though it was the slums, it wasn’t the sort of hour you’d expect people to be awake.

“What’s wrong?”

“Someone was watching from below.”

Marco stubbed out his cigarette on the railing.

“Guess they’re envious of a house like this.

I’ll head back inside and toss the remains into the incinerator.”

“…Alright.”

If I jumped over the railing right now, I’d probably just break a leg, nothing more.

Even that would heal quickly.

Shaking my head to dispel the thought, I went back to work.

This picturesque hilltop house ran much more efficiently than the old underground mansion.

We no longer bothered with vague standards like sparing obedient demons or implanting explosive spells in the brats before releasing them.

Now, we simply disposed of all of them, cleanly and without exception.

The old practice of sending them back to the farms with explosive implants had been absurdly inefficient.

Julian had stubbornly insisted on it, but without that hassle, things were much simpler now.

Demons or humans who knew anything about their kin or their hiding spots were locked in the conversation rooms.

The rest were beheaded on the guillotine and hung upside down for a day.

Draining their blood made them burn better.

The blood went straight into the sewers.

The stench of decay in the sewers was so strong that a little rotting blood wouldn’t draw attention.

Back then, burning everything whole had been far more nauseating.

Once the ashes were cleaned up, they were also dumped into the sewers.

Simple and efficient.

Compared to the massive manpower and extravagant spending of the past, the efficiency of this method was worlds apart.

If we’d operated this way back then, we might’ve eradicated the demons entirely by now.

But there’s no “if” in the past.

This system wasn’t entirely my idea.

It came about after long discussions with Marco, the butler, and myself.

The demons were beginning to fear us again.

Even in the back alleys, there were no drunk demons openly loitering in bars. Those still on the streets wore hoods or robes.

The thuggish demons with massive builds who used to strut around arrogantly were mostly dragged up to this hill. They were nowhere to be seen.

At this rate, perhaps they’d all leave this country soon.

A country so ragged and patched that calling it a nation feels embarrassing.

But it’s still Alicia’s home.

It thrilled me to know the demons were afraid again.

Seeing them roam the streets as if Julian’s death meant their worries were over had filled me with such hatred.

With those thoughts swirling, I continued the work in this blood-soaked room—decapitating demons and hanging their heads upside down.

“Miss, it’s about time to head to the academy.”

“Ah, already?”

“Yes, you should get cleaned up and changed.”

A hot shower, scrubbing myself with soap, might help clear away this suffocating feeling.

I went to the shower room, washed thoroughly, and put on my academy uniform before leaving the house.

Instead of using the secret passage through the slums, I took the regular roads to avoid smelling of sewage.

When I entered the classroom, Ethel, her face heavy with dark circles, approached me as if to speak, then slumped back into her seat with a sullen expression.

Another day of endless lessons.

Lessons, lessons, and more lessons, even during lunch.

I didn’t move from my seat, staring blankly ahead.

Not that I was paying attention to the classes.

For some reason, last night’s scenes wouldn’t leave my mind.

It was just a bit more intense than usual. That’s all.

There’s nothing wrong.

Demons deserve to die, after all.

That’s how it’s supposed to be.

I was probably just unsettled because I’d handled it too ruthlessly.

In front of children, you’re supposed to be careful even when killing a single rabbit.

Someone said something to me just now.

I didn’t catch it.

When I didn’t respond, they walked off somewhere.

I was a little hungry.

Maybe I’d use the money Marco gave me to buy a sandwich later.

“…Hey, come with me.”

As I was lost in thought, a demon put a hand on my shoulder.

That filthy beastly smell, those damn animal ears, those inhuman eyes.

It must be lunchtime.

The classroom was empty of other students.

Didn’t it learn its lesson after Theo beat it last time?

Demons often don’t learn, no matter how much you educate them.

I grabbed the hand on my shoulder, pulled its arm, and drove my knee into it as I stood.

The arm twisted into an unnatural angle.

As it screamed at the sight of its broken arm, I kicked its face.

I was about to finish it off when I remembered we were inside the academy.

I handed the half-blood over to two frozen-on-the-spot students.

“Take it to the infirmary. It was just a little prank; I didn’t think the arm would break.”

The two seemed like they might protest but eventually carried the half-blood out without complaint.

Then I resumed my thoughts.

The conclusion? Who cares?

But someone had been watching.

“…Ellen.”

“What, Ethel?”

“I can’t just leave you like this anymore.”

“What do you mean?”

“I told you—I saw you in the slums last night, hugging some man. Not at your mansion.”

“Did you now?”

I stood up from my seat.

Walking over to Ethel, I placed a hand on her waist and casually led her out of the classroom.

If we kept talking here and someone else walked in, the conversation would get interrupted.

I took her to the spot where the kid whose arm I twisted had tried to hit me earlier. It was nice and quiet.

Not the best memory of being here, though—getting hit was disgusting.

“Alright, so what is it you’re trying to say?

Do you think I roll around in bed with Marco for money?”

I leaned in and whispered into Ethel’s ear, speaking softly as if I were one of those cabaret dancers in lingerie, delicately mocking her.

“…Isn’t that exactly what you’re doing?!”

“It’s far more sophisticated and, dare I say, more active than that.

I’ve told you this time and again, but you’ve never understood.”

“Don’t talk in riddles, Ellen.”

It’s not riddles; it’s the truth.

Honestly, what could make her think I was selling myself to Marco at my age and with my status?

Has she been reading too many trashy romance novels? Or is she just naturally this dim?

No, she’s always been like this—her mind is a field of flowers. That used to be endearing.

Now, though, it’s starting to grate on me.

“It’s not a riddle—it’s reality. But what do you expect me to do about it?

Just stop worrying about how I live my life.”

“…I’ll tell Theo about this. He’ll make sure you’re restrained, even if it has to be by force.”

“And what does he have to do with this?”

“Before you turned into this, all you ever did was trail after Theo like a lovesick puppy!”

Yeah, I changed.

That’s why I’m starting to hate Ethel.

But what am I supposed to do when even I hate the person I’ve become?

“Do whatever you want. If that guy has any shame, he won’t even show his face in front of me.

By the way, Ethel, all of this—everything I’ve become—is because of the demons, isn’t it?”

I pushed her against the wall and locked eyes with her.

I didn’t hit her.

I didn’t draw the gun from my pocket or pull out a dagger.

This was just a conversation.

“I lost my family, and even when I was doing fine with you, a fork still found its way into someone’s neck.

It wasn’t my fault. It was all because of the demons.

So why are you acting like this is somehow my doing?”

No.

No.

Ellen isn’t someone who lets her emotions rule her, who can’t distinguish what should and shouldn’t be said.

I scratched the back of my thigh with my right hand.

That helped me snap out of it a little.

I buried my pitiful expression deep in the trash bin and plastered a bright smile back on my face.

“Forget what I just said—it was a joke.

Anyway, Ethel, you’re in no position to judge me. Neither is Theo, nor Isabel, nor Diana.”

I turned and walked away.

Ethel stared at my retreating back like she wanted to bore a hole through me.

I half-expected her to cast a spell at me.

Thankfully, she didn’t.

I sat in silence for a while, killing time, before finally heading to the slums on shaky legs.

Not a single demon could be seen on the streets.

To this magnificent world, I raise a toast.

Though sadly, I had no drink in hand.

Ahahaha.

Ethel’s Perspective

My friend is selling her body.

No, it’s probably even worse than that.

She goes out at night to meet strange men, embraces them on balconies in plain view, wears scandalous outfits with only a robe to obscure her face, and lets others hold her by the waist as they walk.

Every time I saw her, I was furious.

But I couldn’t bring myself to intervene, thinking maybe this was something Ellen had chosen for herself.

Then there was her face—the same face she wore when she was dying inside.

Her lips were cracked, with traces of blood as though she’d bitten them.

Her once-bright eyes were shadowed and dull, and her shining white hair was lifeless and brittle.

Her crimson eyes, which used to glow under the light, now seemed dim even in the sun.

I knew.

I knew telling her to stop and join a monastery wouldn’t work.

Ellen always acted like she cared about us, but she kept a line we could never cross.

If we tried to approach, she’d just retreat further.

That’s why I once crossed the line completely and had her live with my family.

But all it did was make her convictions stronger.

She was right—I’m stupid and naive. Just a girl living a girl’s life.

It was my fault.

My fault Ellen turned into this after we visited Theo’s mansion.

If only I’d said the right things.

If only I’d cared for her more.

If only I’d kept her from meeting the Hanton couple’s son.

Even so, no matter how much of this is my fault, I can’t accept what she said.

She once told me, “If you think you’re freeing me from my pimp, shouldn’t you also respect my freedom not to be free?”

At the time, I was too stunned to reply, but that statement—it was just a lie dressed to look like the truth.

How can I leave her alone?

If Ellen were content with her life, I’d keep quiet.

But when someone is so visibly falling apart, you have to stop them.

I stared at Ellen’s back as she walked out of the classroom.

Blood was dripping from her thigh.

She looked so utterly broken that I started to cry.

She must have been blackmailed by some gang.

Otherwise, someone as strong as Ellen wouldn’t have fallen apart like this.

She didn’t look like this when she hit me or poured water over me.

She would’ve brushed it off like it was nothing, with a faint smirk.

And yet, I couldn’t just leave her like this, no matter what harsh words she said or how cruelly she treated me.

It’s funny, I suppose, that I didn’t confront her directly. I couldn’t handle her alone.

So, as always, I went to Isabel, Diana, and Theo, begging them to help Ellen.

To save her from whatever situation she was trapped in.

Ellen once accused me of arrogance, of presuming I could save her.

But I thought about it anyway.

I will save her.

From meaningless hatred and from this wretched reality.

Whether it’s the right thing to do, I don’t know.