[Blue Archive] I am the Trinity Checkpoint Chief – Chapter 124

“Shouldn’t we surrender?”

The Arius administrative officer—the only student in the Branch School who could claim such a title—was lost in deep anguish. The proposal from the dust-covered student was chillingly serious. She had just survived a skirmish thirty minutes ago.

Countless words were exchanged between surrender and resistance. The one undeniable truth they all agreed on was this:

The war would be lost.

Since the so-called “Eden Treaty Incident,” the Arius Squad was branded as traitors. Their fierce resistance had claimed the lives of many comrades, but it was also a judgment that ousted their sole rallying point.

Hakari Atsuko was of imperial blood. Before Madame took over, her family held sway.

In the entity called Arius, with the princess purged, the only remaining pillar was Madame. The leader who mended long-standing divisions and recreated everything Arius stood for was both an object of worship and the source of all ideology.

Having met her a few times, the officer wondered: what was she thinking, the one who ordered the princess’s assassination without blinking? She had suffered a significant failure. The blade aimed at Trinity and Gehenna had broken, and Arius was being driven to ruin.

“Surrender? Absolutely not! That’s absurd!”

A voice erupted in opposition to the student’s proposal, igniting the spark of what promised to be a protracted debate.

“I’ve defended Arius from those Trinity bastards before, and I’ll keep this Branch School safe from them until my last breath. I believe the administrative officer will follow Madame’s path. You won’t sign any surrender documents!”

Now that she thought about it, that student was a die-hard hawk. The officer merely watched her speak without considering her own opinion.

“But we have to save the students!”

“I don’t believe Madame would ever agree to surrender! We must follow her orders to the end!”

“No matter what happens, we have to hold out! We can never surrender!”

Soon, more students joined the argument, creating a cacophony. The officer—who, with the Basilica’s prayer room cut off, was effectively the senior administrative officer—let out a sigh of despair.

“What the hell is Madame even doing?! We need to urge her to surrender right now! This is madness!”

No one dared enter the vast Basilica prayer room. Just yesterday, Madame had summoned the officer there to discuss defenses, but after a firefight at dawn, the entrance was found collapsed.

What was our leader, our student council president, doing? Surely she wasn’t lying dead, her body left to rot.

Trinity’s invasion spread faster than rumors, so few students knew, but they likely shared the same thought. They were simply too awed by the title “Leader” to even attempt entry.

…At this point, she’s probably cold.

The student who had unexpectedly inherited all authority had no desire to take on the responsibility of recovering her predecessor’s body. Surrendering and handing it over to Trinity seemed the best option.

“—Then I’ll shoot you. There’s no way Madame would order a surrender!”

Pssht.

The muffled shot from a silenced pistol was quickly drowned in the chaos.

The sanctity of the administrative office, respected since the era of the Hakari family, being violated in such a way was hard to witness. The officer, dazed, stared at the bullet hole in the ceiling, then buried her head in her arms.

The war would be lost. But who could have known that the proud Arius Academy would fall so miserably?

The officer had to reach a conclusion.

The war was lost.

The Branch School had fallen to ruin.

“…Send the telegram.”

The eyes of the student advocating resistance twisted in anguish.

***

[You, the students of Arius, swore loyalty to her and were prepared to fight on despite dwindling supplies…]

A girl from the former Eastern Command stared at the radio.

[Further resistance is futile. As the senior administrative officer, I declare an immediate ceasefire. Every moment you continue fighting only prolongs the suffering of non-combatants and injured students…]

Crack.

The radio, thrown into the rubble, ceased its electronic hum and died.

In Kivotos, a student ID is everything. Arius Branch School’s surrender meant its records, like the school itself, would be devoured by Trinity and vanish without a trace.

It wasn’t just her fate. She’d become stateless overnight. Once poised to take on the world as enemies, now she’d live as a student of a soon-to-be-shattered Branch School. The name “Arius” would linger, though.

…That can’t happen.

The wretched thing called hope in her heart exerted its allure. Since barely surviving the battle at the Cathedral of Communions, the girl had resolved:

She would survive, no matter the cost.

The once-ornate Basilica prayer room was now a lifeless ruin. Madame’s body was nowhere to be found, nor was she residing there. She had simply vanished, like dust in a breeze.

What the hell happened? The vivid bullet marks on the stone walls and pillars spoke of no small skirmish. Yesterday, they said the princess held a ceremony here… Could an unforeseen disaster have struck during it?

What could an incapable girl do? There was no way to know. Silently donning her gas mask, she moved on.

Her destination was the choir room. She was curious about what lay in a place shaken by gunfire just ten minutes ago. Perhaps Madame had abandoned the ruined prayer room and relocated to the choir room.

Crossing a long corridor, a massive door appeared. The girl reached for a side door to enter.

For a moment, she glimpsed two figures through the gap.

…!

Before she could process, she spun around. Trinity might already have infiltrated, so she cracked the door slightly to peek. With a faint creak, her view widened, revealing a man and a woman.

The woman wore a white dress… a familiar face, seen multiple times. Misono Mika, leader of the Pater Faction.

Wait. Then the other one—

“You okay, Mika? No serious injuries?”

“…”

Rumors about Shalle’s Sensei circulated widely.

They said the advisor was so blessed by the divine that he effortlessly charmed girls without realizing it, and the hundreds of wedding rings he’d one day receive were merely his karma. Believe it or not.

A figure who once commanded a corner of Arius now looked lovesick. The girl observed, pondering.

Life’s a mess.

Even if Saori Jomae had killed him, the plan’s collapse wouldn’t have changed, but his survival was a significant variable. His heroic tale of ending the chaos in Abydos District was a favorite among many.

So, a key figure who should’ve died survived, shattering morale.

Maybe she should finish the job now…

Click.

She loaded a grenade into the M32’s revolving chamber. It might not suffice for Misono Mika, but it was perfect for Sensei. Amid rubble and at this distance, aiming was tough, but a direct hit would leave no trace.

Aligning the sight and slightly raising the angle, she took care not to waste her only grenade. Her finger rested on the trigger.

“Sensei… you came all this way for me…? Why… even so…”

“I told you. You’re my princess.”

“H-hic…?! Sensei, saying that… ugh…”

“…”

Misono Mika was crying. Muttering something, perhaps self-blame, as Sensei gently patted her.

“…”

The Mika she knew was the Pater Faction’s leader and a coup’s mastermind. What was she now?

A tearful girl, yearning for an adult to lean on… almost pitiable.

“…Tch.”

A waste of time.

Killing Shalle’s Sensei would gain nothing. She never fully bought into Madame’s rhetoric, and her sense of Arius identity was faint. No need for bloodshed.

Better to head to the black market or Trinity. Forging a student ID would cost a bit.

Maybe take up a part-time job or simple requests.

How about Abydos District? Since Sensei pacified the area, mercenary work had dwindled, but construction jobs reportedly held steady. A few weeks could earn her enough.

The girl casually removed the grenade from the M32 and quietly closed the door, erasing her presence.

Emotions pushed to the back of her mind were useless. Even if he was Sensei, the man who saved Trinity’s princess, he wouldn’t extend a hand to her.

As the gas-masked girl vanished into the Basilica’s depths, peace settled for the first time in a while.

***

The columnist gazes at a photo.

On the Basilica’s rooftop, Trinity’s flag flutters.

Well shot.

The composition and context are compelling. Worth at least one article.

She’s decided to write the column, but the issue is the title.

• 
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  ·

Amid her thoughts, a light flicks on.

A brilliant title comes to mind.

[War and Peace]