第２４７掘：人の恋路を邪魔する奴は…… (Part1)
**Chapter 247: Those Who Get in the Way of Love...**
...Yeah, this continuous update streak isn't normal, so it won't last.
I’m serious.
Those who get in the way of love...
***
**Side: Popuri Lancer – Principal of Lancer Magic Academy**
"Hic... *sniff*..."
I let out a sob as I worked on the documents required to wipe away my recent blunder, fulfilling the conditions Eris-san had laid out.
Dammit! What is with her? She was just one of the people sitting there during the lecture, looking at me with pitying eyes. And yet, when I actually talked to her today, she turned out to be completely black-hearted!
How did she realize that my "sobbing" back at the inn was a calculated strategy? For that matter, she could have shown a little sympathy!
But no matter how much I complained, the situation wouldn't change. If anything, I felt like if I had just apologized sincerely from the very beginning, things wouldn't have gotten this dire.
"Principal, I understand your feelings, but if you stain those apology and aid-related documents with tears, Eris-san will only..."
"I know! That woman with the half-baked chest! Samantha’s are way bigger!"
"Actually, Eris-san is quite well-endowed herself."
"Shut up! Anyone with big ones is the enemy! Honestly, she forced such cruel conditions on us."
I let out a heavy sigh.
"Most of this is your own fault, though. You should have just apologized honestly from the start," Lara remarked.
"There isn't an organization in the world that admits total fault right out of the gate. You know that, don't you, Lara?"
"Yes. Usually, the standard procedure is to hush things up internally. Normally, both sides have secrets they don't want unearthed."
"Exactly. Even if there weren't any, I was hoping to manufacture a minor slip-up on our end so we could settle things with a 'let's both forget this happened' approach, but..."
"Every single move was effortlessly parried, and we were hit with a painful counter-attack instead. To put it simply, we completely underestimated the opponent's caliber."
"Hmph."
Crying wouldn't start anything, and it certainly wouldn't finish it. Besides, if there were any flaws in these documents, there was no telling what that Eris woman would say.
For now, I drafted the treaty text exactly as instructed and had Lara check it.
"...Yes, this seems to be in order. All that's left is deciding the scale of the compensatory goods we'll be sending to Zilba and Enaria."
"Infuriatingly, Eris-san said she’d pick out items tomorrow that would please them without hurting our pockets too much."
"They really are extraordinary, aren't they?"
"Yeah. As far as negotiations go, they’re top-tier. Honestly, if only I could just use magic to settle this by force..."
"Please, absolutely do not do that. While it would be easy to overwhelm them with military might, the Academy would certainly cease to exist."
"In which sense? Blown away by my magic, or erased politically?"
"Both."
Well, Lara was right. If I went all out, that’s exactly what would happen. Still, I really wanted to pull one over on those people just once.
"Hmm?"
My eyes fell upon the personal requests I had signed with Eris.
* Do not interfere with actions directed toward us transfer students.
* Disclose magic research contents upon request.
* Exempt from basic classes upon request.
* The Principal shall bear all necessary expenses during the six-month stay.
* Et cetera...
Yeah, this was incredibly unreasonable. At the time, I was completely swept up in the momentum of the room and felt I had no choice but to sign.
It was a harsh set of terms, but if it meant not having to announce our massive blunder to every nation... was it cheap?
As I stared blankly at the contract, reminiscing about that moment, I noticed something unnatural.
"What does this mean?"
"Is something wrong?"
"No, there’s just something strange about this personal contract I signed with Eris-san..."
"Did Eris-san make a mistake?"
Lara immediately leaned in to look at the document.
"It’s this first one. 'Do not interfere with actions directed toward us transfer students.' Isn't that phrased weirdly?"
"Indeed. Instead of 'Do not interfere with the transfer students' actions,' it says 'actions *directed toward* us transfer students.' That is odd."
The two of us fell into thought. We were wondering if we could exploit this mistake.
Even though it was a personal contract, a mistake was a mistake. If we pointed it out, it would force her to go through the trouble of rewriting it. Perhaps, just maybe, we could use this as leverage to regain some ground in the negotiations.
I viewed the sentence as a mere error, but...
"No way..."
Lara’s eyes widened in shock. It looked as though a terrible realization was racing through her mind.
"Lara, what is it? Does this sentence have a meaning other than a typo?" I asked tentatively.
"No... this sentence means exactly what it says."
"Huh? If it means 'do not interfere with actions directed toward us,' it implies they don't mind being messed with. Isn't that just a nuisance for them?"
"Principal, that is the true intent. It means *anyone* can interfere with them. In other words, if some ignorant, foolish student picks a fight with them, it all becomes *our* responsibility. Furthermore, this clause explicitly states that we don't even have the right to stop the person committing the foolish act."
"What...?"
Clinging to a faint hope, I voiced the first possibility that came to mind.
"M-Maybe it's about outsiders? Like, to prevent us from intervening in their troubles just to cancel out our previous mistakes?"
"That’s possible too. But in a contract with the Principal of the Academy, would she include something unrelated to the Academy? It would be almost meaningless. This is a blatant declaration that they are going to investigate the Academy's internal structure. And if they find any flaws, they’ll strike..."
"And things will get even worse?"
"Most likely..."
We can't lay a finger on them, and they've accounted for every angle?! *Eeeek!* What is wrong with that woman? She’s terrifying! Truly terrifying!
"Uwaaaah..."
"Principal, pull yourself together! Crying won't help. Right now, we have to think of a way to get this clause amended. If we don't, the Academy's standing will be completely gone. Well, it’s already practically gone, but it’s clear as day that some meritocratic student who doesn't know the situation will try to pick a fight."
"M-Meritocracy getting in the way at a time like this... W-What do we do?!"
"Calm down. First, we will issue a stern warning to all faculty and students to ensure no one is disrespectful to the transfer students. That should act as a deterrent for now. Surely, no one wants to draw our personal ire."