Chapter 163
When he explained the situation, Reina made an unusually angry expression.
"Don't tell ... you were planning to investigate The Seven Mysteries of the Academy all by yourself, Clael?"
"U-uh?"
Reina usually wore a gentle smile like a loving mother... but precisely because her face was so well-ford, when she got angry, it was intense.
She wasn't raising her voice, nor was she distorting her face.
She rely furrowed her brows slightly and sharpened her gaze... and yet, that alone made it feel like being glared at by a dragon.
"Surely, that can't be the case, right? Facing a deadly curse all alone, Clael... that's just unthinkable, isn't it?"
"N-no... you're right..."
Overwheld by her intensity, Clael nodded repeatedly.
He wanted to believe she wasn't truly angry... but he couldn't help feeling like a child being scolded by their mother after a long ti.
"O-of course... I only wanted to confirm if the incidents caused by the Seven Mysteries were really happening, and once I had proof, I planned to report it to the headmaster."
It wasn't a lie. It was the truth.
Even Clael didn't believe he could solve everything on his own.
He simply intended to do what was expected of him as a teacher and leave the rest to the higher-ups.
(I an... this is test season, I can't just do everything myself...)
"Even now, I only stayed because Reina called out to ... well, it's not your fault, but if the ghost in the music room hadn't noticed , I would've left right away, you know?"
"I see... then I was careless to call out to you. I'm sorry..."
"No, no, I'm the one who should apologize..."
As Reina's expression shifted from anger to one of apology, Clael bowed his head in relief.
That should resolve the issue.
He had panicked when Reina appeared... but one of the Seven Mysteries was resolved. Six remained.
"By the way... what other mysteries are there?"
"Let's see... first, there's the black book your friend saw. The Black Cursed Book of the Library."
Using his knowledge from the ga, Clael began explaining the Seven Mysteries in order.
'The Music Festival of the Dead'
'The Black Cursed Book of the Library'
'The Thirteenth Step to Hell'
'The Witch After School'
'The Death-Summoning Cherry Tree'
'Mary in the Toilet'
'The Seventh Mystery You Must Not Know'
Those are the seven.
All of them are strange phenona that occur within the academy grounds. They won't kill instantly, but if left alone, they could cause great damage.
"So, what exactly is the final, seventh mystery?"
"Well... even I don't know that."
That was a lie.
However, since the seventh mystery could only be known by soone who had solved the other six, Clael pretended not to know to avoid suspicion.
"This is sothing I heard from an upperclassman when I was a student. Probably, the students in the 'Dark Magic Research Club' would know."
The Dark Magic Research Club was one of the academy's unofficial clubs.
The na sounded terribly sinister, but in reality, it was just a gathering of students with a case of chuunibyou.
In the ga, they only appeared during the Seven Mysteries event, giving various hints to the heroine and the route characters.
(By the way... it was also a mber of that club who released one of the sealed mysteries.)
In short, they were both the cause and the helper.
"Well, that doesn't matter now... it's already late, so go ho. It's nearly ti for dismissal."
"Um... you're not going ho, Clael?"
"I have to clean this up."
Clael looked around the music room.
Instrunts that had been played by the ghost lingered in disarray.
At a glance, none of them seed broken... but still, he couldn't just leave them like that.
"I'll help you."
"No. Students have to go ho now—it's the rule."
Clael firmly refused.
Even if Reina was a Saint, that didn't matter.
Once dismissal ti passed, all students had to return ho.
It was a rule clearly stated on their student IDs.
"The Grand Shrine's carriage is probably waiting, right? Go on, hurry."
"............Alright."
Reina showed her dissatisfaction openly on her face, but a rule was a rule.
Once she saw Clael wouldn't budge, she reluctantly left.
"Clael... you know this already, but investigating the Seven Mysteries alone is not allowed, okay?"
"I swear to god I won't... is that good enough?"
"......That's fine."
Reina gave a polite bow and left for ho.
"Now then..."
He returned the instrunts to the shelves one by one... and then, there was one more thing to do.
Clael sat down at the piano.
"The song... it's different from the ga, but this will do."
Composed by Gabriel Fauré... 'Requiem'
Relying on mories from his past life, Clael began to play the piece.
The Music Festival of the Dead, one of the Seven Mysteries, was a phenonon born from the regrets of musicians who died chasing success but lacked the talent to achieve it.
After the battle, Reina... since she was a poor perforr, the route character would play a requiem to send the spirits to the afterlife.
(Even though Reina's Holy Arts probably purified them perfectly... I an, I was soone who once aid to be a musician on Tube too. I get how they feel.)
In the now-silent music room, Clael's solo performance echoed.
His fingers danced across the piano keys, bidding farewell to the restless souls.
A few days later, rumors spread of a sad yet beautiful piano lody coming from the music room—but Clael kept telling himself it wasn't his doing.
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