“It’s difficult,” Nigisor said seriously. “I actually thought about trying fire…”

His friends looked at him in shock.

“Isn’t that a bit extreme?”

“Yeah, maybe a different form of interrogation would be better.”

An interesting suggestion!

“Huh?”

Oripulas’s admiration made the students waver slightly. After all, if a demon who’d served as the Imperial magistrate for 131 years found it worth considering, maybe it was.

“What about drowning them?” suggested one student.

“A clever idea!”

“Or hanging them upside down?”

“A respectful approach!”

With Oripulas’s encouragement, the students began tossing out creative methods with enthusiasm.

Lee Han, who had been listening, interjected with curiosity. “These ideas are fine, but… can we really use these on innocent people?”

“Wardanaz is right. If we can’t tell them apart, there’s no point in such methods.”

Gaiondo raised his hand. “What if we just dunk both of them in water? Maybe the fake will confess!”

Lee Han gave him a light slap on the back. “Yeah, sure. I’m sure that’ll work great.”

---

“So, you want us to fool the students?” one of the criminals asked.

-Exactly. Blend in with the Empire’s upstanding citizens here and hide your suspicious nature.

The Death Knight explained the task to the gathered criminals. Their mission was to mix with ordinary citizens and deceive the students.

“…???”

“?????”

Naturally, the criminals were baffled. They’d been dragged across such a long distance just for this?

Some of the upstanding citizens, equally confused, asked questions.

“Wait, you really brought actual criminals here? Are we allowed to do this?”

-Of course. Everything here today has been authorized under the Imperial law.

“This is ridiculous! You dragged us here just for this?!”

-Are you incapable of learning?

The Death Knight sneered at a young mercenary who had been complaining. With a dismissive gesture, he signaled, and the back door opened as the Death Knights dragged the mercenary out.

“No! No, please—aaah! Aaaaagh!”

Screams of agony echoed from the back.

When the mercenary finally returned, he was as pale as a ghost, trembling and muttering repeatedly.

“I was wrong. I’ll do my best. I was wrong. I’ll do my best…”

-Good. Do your best. Those who deceive well might get leniency, but those caught will face harsher punishment.

The criminals swallowed nervously. The task sounded trivial, even foolish, but the consequences for failure were anything but.

‘But maybe we’re lucky, all things considered.’

As their initial panic subsided, the more experienced criminals, like mercenaries and adventurers, started to think quickly. While they were frightened, this assignment wasn’t the worst. After all, tricking naive students was far better than being turned into dark mages’ experiments.

-Now, wait here. The students are just beyond that area, so keep your mouths shut.

Just as the Death Knight finished speaking, the criminals heard snippets of conversation from the students nearby.

-Isn’t burning them a bit too much?

-How about dunking them in water?

“......”

The criminals’ faces turned pale as the terrifying rumors they’d heard about mages flooded back.

---

“Relax, mage. This test is much safer than the last one,” Oripulas reassured.

“I know,” Professor Rozine replied, crossing her arms, “but it’s not exactly an easy test either.”

That’s true.

Oripulas responded thoughtfully. Although he had encouraged the students’ methods earlier, he knew those approaches were limited and difficult to execute. Such intense interrogation tactics were only effective when you were certain of the suspect’s guilt; they couldn’t be used freely without any evidence. 

Even a student from Ainrogard would get a slap in the face if they went up to an innocent citizen and said, “Sir! Please let us dunk you in water to prove you’re innocent!”

“Alright, let’s start the test!”

Gaiondo walked over, looking nervous.

Then two supposed citizens entered from the opposite door.

“Hello, Mage. I am Ubal, a bookstore owner from Ilainas City.”

“Greetings, Mage. I am Kilvedek, a general store owner from Deep Grove Village.”

Oripulas clicked his tongue as he noticed Kilvedek’s mistake. His attempt to disguise himself had been too clumsy; though he’d stuck close to the truth, his nervous stammer gave him away.

Luckily, Gaiondo didn’t seem to notice.

“Bookstore, general store… bookstore, general store…”

After a moment of careful consideration, Gaiondo turned to Professor Rozine.

“I think Ubal seems suspicious.”

“What makes you say that?”

“Well, don’t people who sell books have twisted and evil souls?”

“……”

“……”

Both Ubal and Professor Rozine were at a loss for words. Rozine quickly shot Ubal an apologetic look.

-I apologize on behalf of the student.

-It’s alright, really…

Kilvedek, wondering if this was some kind of trap, cautiously defended the bookstore owner.

“Uh, I don’t think people who sell books are like that. Many of them are good folks.”

“Oh… defending your competition… something a criminal would never do…”

“Uh, no, I—”

Ubal stammered, confused about whether he should be more assertive in his defense.

Gaiondo, meanwhile, jotted down notes with the seriousness of a detective.

Watching this, Oripulas suggested, *How about using magic?*

“Shh. Don’t interrupt my deduction process, Oripulas.”

Oh… fine.

“And anyway, it seems a bit harsh to dunk both of them in water.”

Exactly!

Oripulas mentally gave Gaiondo a slightly higher score.

“So, I’m going to keep talking to them. Eventually, their weaknesses will show.”

Using magic would probably be more effective…

With their limited experience, the Ainrogard students really only had magic to rely on. The goal of today’s test was to use magic creatively to identify suspicious behavior in everyday situations.

“Kilvedek, you defended your competitor. May I ask what kind of general store you run?”

Kilvedek, wondering if this was a trap, nervously responded, “I, uh… I sell a bit of everything. In a small village, you can’t be picky about inventory.”

“Do you sell Imperial magazines?”

“Yes, occasionally…”

“What about the Toberiz series?”

“Oh, yes. Some folks in town read it.”

“How much does one cost?”

“F-five copper coins each…”

Gaiondo noted in his pad: “Kilvedek, +50 points.”

“Now, Mr. Ubal, the ‘evil bookstore owner.’”

“It’s not an ‘evil bookstore’…”

“Tell me about your bookstore.”

“My store is located in the Empire’s most beautiful city. In the evenings, you can see the sunset over the western sea, hear the sailors’ songs mixing with the temple bells…”

Gaiondo scribbled in his notes: “Ubal, -50 points. Too sentimental.”

Suddenly, he realized something and asked, “Wait, Ubal. Isn’t Ilainas City near Baldrogard?”

“Yes, indeed. Baldrogard students often visit.”

“……”

Scribble, scribble, scribble!

Gaiondo’s quill scratched furiously as he wrote, “Ubal, -5000 points. Baldrogard spy!”

---

While waiting, Priestess Siana entered, carrying a teapot and cups.

“I thought you might be thirsty, so I made some tea.”

Ubal and Kilvedek, touched by the priestess’s kindness, expressed their gratitude.

“Thank you so much.”

“Thank you, Priestess.”

Kilvedek, who was even more on edge than Ubal, felt particularly comforted. Even in this hellish, terrifying magic academy, there was still a sliver of light—the priests serving the gods.

As he sipped his tea, he thought perhaps he should have gone to the temple more often back in his village.

“Have you finished?”

“Yes.” “Yes.”

“Well, then… who is the criminal?”

Siana crossed her arms and asked arrogantly.

The two men blinked, taken aback by her sudden change in demeanor.

Uh…

Wait… what?

“Quickly, answer! Ubal, tell us. If you don’t answer, that makes you the culprit.”

“I-I’m not a criminal.”

“Next, Kilvedek.”

“I… grrk…”

Kilvedek’s tongue felt as if it had adhered to the roof of his mouth, almost as if his body had changed to prevent him from lying.

Seeing this, Siana jumped up, clapping her hands excitedly.

“Got you! Got you both!”

“Um, Siana…?” Professor Rozine asked, visibly shocked by her display.

Siana straightened herself, calming down as she adjusted her robe.

“Apologies, Professor. I got a bit carried away.”

Is she really a priest?

When Oripulas muttered this question, Siana waved it off.

“Ah, a demon would question a priest, wouldn’t they?”

That’s not what I meant…

“Professor, I added a truth-revealing potion to the teapot beforehand. It’s extremely bitter, so it needed to be disguised as tea.”

“...Excellent work, Siana.”

Professor Rozine finally recovered her composure and praised her. Siana accepted it with pride before leaving the room with a light step, having solved all the puzzles.

After she left, Oripulas turned to Professor Rozine.

*Um, Mage… is it normal for priests to behave like this? She seems… different from the priests I’m used to.*

“I always

 support and encourage my students’ growth.”

This isn’t growth, this is… upheaval…

Oripulas looked thoroughly shaken. He never imagined that a priest would resort to trickery and enjoy it so much.

‘Maybe I’ve been out of touch for too long…’

As he pondered this, Batreck entered the room with a teapot.

If it’s a truth serum, it’s a good idea. But it won’t work now—the last student already used it.

“Damn it! That Wardanaz!”

---

After every method imaginable had been exhausted on the suspects—one criminal even having been burned with a hot iron—it was finally Lee Han’s turn.

Oripulas, pleased from witnessing the recent incident, commented.

This is a promising student, but being last, he’s at a disadvantage.

Professor Rozine nodded in agreement. The more fatigued people were, the harder it was to find the truth. Emotions could easily be mistaken for fear or exhaustion, making it difficult to discern sincerity.

“Hello, Professor,” Lee Han greeted as he entered the room.

“Come on in!”

As Lee Han approached, the two suspects entered from the opposite side.

Upon seeing them, Lee Han immediately pointed to one of them.

“That person is the criminal, isn’t he?”

Amazing! How did you know?!

Oripulas and Professor Rozine both shot to their feet in astonishment. How could he have known right from the start?