[Blue Archive] I am the Trinity Checkpoint Chief – Chapter 114

The room where the Sanctus Faction’s leader resided now bore a gaping, circular hole.

Witnesses said everything blocking that lone girl was pulverized. She vanished from Trinity General School’s watchful gaze, retreating to a place—perhaps known only to her.

The Tea Party descended into chaos. Nagisa-san, overcome with shock, collapsed and was rushed to the general hospital’s emergency ward.

“Is the Justice Task Force a bunch of rabble? Don’t you all know what’ll happen if we don’t find her? Time is critical!”

Sayuri-san’s plea resonated with many, but the situation was deteriorating.

During a private meeting with Mika-san in a safehouse, Seia-san began coughing up blood. Convulsions and hemoptysis persisted during the ambulance ride; reports said it was so severe that without emergency transfusions, it could’ve been fatal. Rumors spread that blood seeped from all seven orifices.

Contact with Schale was cut off. It was a quiet night, so Sensei might’ve gone home, but even personal contact was unreachable…

Is something brewing? Is another crisis looming over Trinity, just as we caught our breath? Some are even calling for another Tea Party meeting.

Fortunately, time proved a potent remedy. The Tea Party chamber began gathering information.

[Hikari-san, additional reports came in. There was an argument just before Mika-san’s escape.]

[An argument? About what?]

[When Seia-san collapsed, some administrators accused Mika-san of being the culprit. In the process, a student blaming Mika-san’s visit assaulted a guard…]

The secretary’s words drew a sigh. The situation’s origin was already grave.

[That bastard… I mean, administrator. Handle the discipline. I won’t interfere.]

[…Understood.]

The Tea Party’s chaos worsened. An hour later, security martial law was declared, escalating to emergency martial law after Seia-san’s coma was confirmed. All three student council presidents were incapacitated again.

Should I be grateful Nagisa-san didn’t revoke my authority? The Proxy once again shouldered all duties.

Under the guise of an “informal meeting” rather than a Tea Party, the chamber’s doors opened. Administrators who hadn’t left for the day gathered, struggling to resolve the crisis. As the convener, I bore the duty of delivering a speech.

[No matter how much you wring a chicken’s neck, dawn will come! We’ve already overcome the worst, and I’m certain we won’t fall after a single step. Trinity—]

Trinity’s chaos could only be quelled after emergency measures.

But stability hasn’t returned. Nagisa-san returned within hours, but Seia-san remains comatose, and Mika-san is missing. The former’s medical team mentioned possible brain death, heightening the unease.

At this point, I wondered if something had happened in Gehenna too. The administrator was absent, and next was Leader Hina’s turn.

Ring ring ring—

[Hikari? What’s up this late?]

[Just checking if things are calm.]

Linking Gehenna’s Prefect Team clubroom, hundreds of miles away, to Trinity might seem far-fetched, but I, still haunted by the “Eden Treaty incident” nightmare, thought it plausible.

I don’t know how Leader Hina took it. She paused briefly.

[…Nothing much today. Just cleaned up some northern Gehenna warlord factions and sent a few thousand escapees back to prison. Did Makoto contact you behind my back or something?]

[No, that’s a relief. Have a good night… Oh, let me know if you hear anything from the Checkpoint.]

I wanted to chat more with Leader Hina, but a new report forced me to cut it short. A secretary administrator, panting as if deserving a raise, rushed in.

“S-Sensei’s been reached! He said to connect via the office line.”

Phew, at least one reliable person remains. I excused myself to Hina and hung up. The bustling communications room quickly patched the call. I picked up the vibrating receiver, its alarm ringing.

[Hikari?]

[Are you safe, Sensei?]

***

[So… if I understand correctly, Sensei, you’re with Jomae Saori?]

[Yeah. Trying to rescue the Arius Squad.]

I doubted my ears.

What, telling a Trinity General School student about this? Rescuing the war criminal Arius Squad? From who? And you’re with Jomae Saori?

How hasn’t that girl shot you? Is it some Schale-special bulletproof vest?

[Sensei, just speaking my mind, no offense.]

[What’s on your mind?]

[If I tracked your phone’s IP and arrested Jomae Saori, no one would object. Why are you doing this? Trinity’s in an uproar.]

I heard his awkward laugh. You probably didn’t expect my call either.

Sensei explained his reason for traveling with an attempted murderer. “Madame” abandoned the Arius Squad after their failed occupation of Trinity and Gehenna, leaving Saori nowhere to go but to Sensei.

Schale’s honorable advisor said, “I couldn’t just abandon her.” Typical of him, but given who we’re talking about…

[Sensei, personally, I urge you to stop.]

[Looking after students is my job.]

[If you’re taking it professionally, I can only beg you to stop. Do you know how many students are searching for her? She’s Trinity’s enemy.]

Trinity General School endured a war that’ll go down in history. Not caused by our alma mater, nor a preemptive strike by our rival Gehenna, but by the Arius Branch School—a long-fallen heretic group that committed terrorism. The High Cathedral was reduced to ashes.

It’s only been days. Fate isn’t set, so I, rising to Trinity General School’s supreme authority, had to wage an unthinkable counter-revolution. Dragging students to prison to seize power.

Nagisa-san nearly died, and the Tea Party chamber was targeted. It’s vivid in everyone’s memory.

[I don’t understand.]

[…I’m sorry, Hikari.]

[Since it’s Schale’s domain, I’ll say no more. But Sensei, Mika-san’s missing, and Seia-san’s collapsed. Know that the Tea Party is shaking.]

A warning. Is Arius the only school out there?

Trinity General School isn’t a charity or a punching bag. The academy needn’t uphold scripture; if one cheek is struck, a fist is diplomacy. Trinity has the freedom to act without hesitation.

[As Proxy, I express grave concern over Schale’s actions. I can’t speak for Gehenna, but I believe Leader Hina would react similarly.]

The radicals—not just Pater but the Tea Party’s extremist factions—will love hearing this.

[…So—]

[Let’s let it slide quietly for today.]

Sensei seemed to fumble, perhaps not grasping my words. But the social experience—cafeteria meals—he’s amassed didn’t vanish. Within five seconds, a question flew back.

[Hikari, can I take it you won’t arrest Saori?]

[Do as you please. I promise neither Nagisa-san nor Sayuri-san will leak this call. Though I can’t guarantee it’s not being tapped…]

[…Thanks, Hikari. But why?]

Because I think you’re someone who proves your worth with this much investment. Like with Abydos High School or how students trusted you during the “Eden Treaty incident.”

[At least you’re not acting without gain.]

So, Sensei.

[I might not contact you for a while, so I’ll say it now: Have a good day.]

“Madame”—Beatrice—resides deep within an ornately decorated chapel.

The Arius queen wields infinite authority by canon law. That she established it herself is hardly relevant.

What student would dare challenge her?

Lately, the queen’s mood has been sour. Things weren’t going as planned.

The “Arius Squad”—Jomae Saori—failed and fled. They captured the princess, but the squad escaped.

What went wrong? The queen, a progressive adult, could easily pinpoint the cause.

Two figures of concern: an adult and a student.

The “Sensei,” noted by Gematria’s researchers.

The prevailing opinion is to win him over, but the queen deemed him dangerous. An obstacle to her plans.

The Eden Treaty nearly collapsed. Without Sensei, Trinity would’ve fractured.

Yet he overcame everything, thwarting her attempts with talk of coexistence.

Incomprehensible.

This unfathomable adult must be eliminated to dominate both academies.

…Or perhaps not. A Trinity student stands in the way.

The “Proxy”—Yamatsu Hikari—turned Arius’s ambush into her opportunity.

Seizing power in the chaos of absences,

Purging opposing internal factions,

Maintaining her position at the pinnacle even after the crisis.

The assassination attempt failed miserably. Her heart still beats, strong.

A figure to be wary of, as much as Sensei.

She knows how to concentrate national strength and where to direct it.

…

Hmm, come to think of it.

Now’s the time to focus on eliminating the Arius Squad.

The queen, capable enough to discern this, is no ordinary adult.