Epilogue: A New Beginning

In the dark silence enveloping the library’s passageways, two books lay carelessly discarded on the floor.

Those books maintained their bookish silence as always… but eventually, they opened on their own with a flutter.

And so, the pages of those books began to peel away, drifting and dancing through the air.

Soon, the pages, twirling and swirling in the air, gathered together… forming the shape of a person.

What had been mere paper gradually transformed its texture… becoming human.

“…Ugh…?”

“…W-where… am I…?”

The two who had been books until moments ago—Gibul and Cecil—shook their heads as they rose.

“…I’m back… to normal…?”

At that moment.

As they blinked in confusion, the sound of multiple footsteps hurriedly approached.

“Heyyyyy! Gibul—! Cecil—!”

“That’s… Kash and the others?”

Running toward them, waving their hands, were Kash, Wendy, Teresa, and the other students of Class 2, all of whom had turned into books to let Glenn and the others move forward.

“Thank goodness! You guys are safe too!?”

“…Yeah, thanks to you all.”

“It seems all the students who turned into books have returned to their original forms!”

“Does that mean…?”

“Yeah! As expected, Glenn-sensei and Eve-sensei pulled it off!”

The students erupted in excitement over this victory.

“So? Where’s Glenn-sensei and the others?”

“Oh, they’re up ahead.”

“Got it! Alright, let’s all go greet them!”

Nodding in agreement, they said.

The students rushed toward the depths of the library in a lively throng.

—

In the stillness where everything had turned to ash and scorched ruin—

“…I-it’s… over…?”

Sistine’s faint murmur was met with a response.

Glenn slowly lowered his gun.

What remained on the desk was a single book, its pages smeared and stained with ink.

It was no longer readable. Whatever had been written within was now incomprehensible.

Thus, it no longer held the form of a book… it was nothing more than a pile of scrap paper.

The warped legacy of the deranged Alicia III, the forbidden [Secret Tome of A], which devoured people, was now lost forever.

Yet, without so much as a glance at the book.

“…”

Glenn silently turned around.

He walked back toward Sistine and the others, who stood in stunned silence.

And then—

He approached the mound of shredded paper scraps piled up like a small hill.

Until just moments ago, it had been Eve.

Glenn gazed down at the pile of paper with a complex expression, his eyes narrowing—

“…You idiot.”

He muttered just one word, squeezing it out in a small voice.

His back seemed far smaller than usual… and Sistine, Rumia, and Re=L, unable to find words to say to Glenn, lacked the composure to speak at all.

Eventually.

“Heyyyyy! Sensei—!”

Kash and the others came running, their faces brimming with joy.

“You did it, Sensei! You saved the academy again!”

“Yare yare, this academy sure falls into crisis on a regular basis… Give me a break already.”

“Hehe! But I believed in you, Sensei. I knew you’d save us!”

The students, ignoring the stunned Sistine and others, surrounded Glenn, cheering boisterously.

But—

“Uh, by the way, Glenn-sensei… where’s Eve-sensei?”

Cecil’s casual question.

Snapped the students, who had been reveling in the joy of victory, back to reality.

They finally noticed the strange atmosphere surrounding Glenn and the others…

“Huh… wait, yeah, where’s Eve-sensei? Sensei…”

“We haven’t seen her since earlier, and she wasn’t anywhere on the way here.”

And then.

“Sensei. There was a rule against fire in here, so who used flame magic in this place?”

Gibul, surveying the scorched surroundings, asked nervously, beads of sweat forming on his brow.

“Y-yeah, Sensei!? Wasn’t fire supposed to be dangerous!?”

“Didn’t it come with the [Punishment of Shredding]…?”

“…”

But Glenn didn’t respond to their questions, remaining silent.

He silently stared at the pile of paper scraps at his feet.

“Hey… Sensei… no way… it’s not true, right…?”

As understanding slowly sank into the group, the jubilant cheers of victory turned heavy, a leaden atmosphere pressing down on everyone.

“Hey, Sensei… you’re kidding, right? This is just one of your usual pranks, isn’t it? Haha, real funny… so come on, enough already… bring out Eve-sensei… please…?”

“…”

But… silence. Glenn maintained his silence, unwavering.

Instead, Sistine, her voice trembling, forced out the words.

“Eve-san… to protect Glenn-sensei… to protect us, she used a fire spell…”

With that, the students, fully grasping the truth, could only fall silent.

For a while after that.

It felt as though time itself had stopped, no one able to move even slightly.

All they could do was stare in stunned silence at the mound of paper scraps.

…Eventually.

The sound of someone sniffing broke the silence.

Some collapsed to their knees.

Some trembled with their shoulders shaking.

Others clutched their heads.

“…Damn it… no way… why…?”

“T-there’s no way that happened… sniff…”

Every student began to weep quietly.

“…Damn it.”

Unable to bear watching the grieving students, Glenn clenched his teeth.

“Glenn-sensei…”

Mabel approached Glenn’s side.

Perhaps she had gathered her torn pages, as Mabel, though slightly frayed, had mostly returned to her original form.

In her arms, she held the now-useless [Secret Tome of A].

“I’m sorry… we caused you all so much trouble.”

Something about Mabel’s demeanor felt a little more mature than before.

“…Mabel?”

“No. Having recovered the [Secret Tome of A]… and with its madness entirely blotted out, I am no longer just Mabel… I am closer to Alicia III. The mad me and the sane me are two sides of the same coin, equally me. Thus, having become whole as I am now… though fundamentally a different person, I am, in essence, as close to the living Alicia III as one could be.”

Mabel closed her eyes as if in silent prayer and let out a breath.

“We were fragmented, mixed with all sorts of noise… but now, at last, I can face you as Alicia III, Glenn-sensei.”

“Sorry, but… I’ve got nothing to say to you.”

Glenn spoke coldly.

“I get it, logically, that you’re a different entity from the Alicia III who created this messed-up Hidden Academy and the tome. But logic doesn’t cut it… not with these emotions.”

“You’re right… your anger is entirely justified.”

Then, with a solemn expression, Mabel spoke to Glenn.

“So… this is my attempt at atonement, however small.”

“…Huh?”

At that moment.

Mabel wove through the tearful students, approaching the mound of paper scraps.

“I… the me from when I was alive… believed I was an utterly failed educator. After all, I created such horrific rules that sacrificed and killed my students… Even if I was consumed by madness, I was no longer worthy of calling myself an educator—I was nothing but a monster.”

“Hey…?”

“But… no matter how much I lost my sanity or succumbed to madness, perhaps in the very last line, I couldn’t abandon my pride as an educator. Now, I’ve recalled everything about the person I was when alive. Surely, now…”

Murmuring such words.

As the students, tears in their eyes, watched Mabel’s actions with bated breath.

Mabel gently knelt… placing her hand on the mound of paper scraps.

“By the authority of Alicia III, headmaster of this academy, I hereby declare: ‘I pardon your violation of the fire prohibition and absolve you.’”

The moment Mabel made that declaration…

The mound of paper scraps was enveloped in a gentle golden light.

“Wha—!?”

A whirlwind swirled, and the fragments of pages began to dance and twirl.

As they danced, the pages, once brutally shredded, reattached and restored themselves one by one—falling to the floor like scattered petals.

Soon, the fallen pages moved as if alive, forming the shape of a person—

And then—

“Nn…?”

Eve, fully restored… slowly opened her eyes.

“…What…? What happened to me…? My head feels all foggy…”

Then, Eve noticed. She was surrounded by the students of Class 2… all of them trembling, their faces a mix of tears and joy as they stared at her.

“What’s with you all… why are you crying…?”

““““Waaaaahhhhhhh—!””””

In an instant, the students rushed her, hugging and mobbing her.

“Thank goodness! Thank goodness you’re okay—!”

“Waaaaahhhhh!”

“Sniff, Eve-sensei—!”

“Eeek!? H-hey, what’s with you all, seriously!? Let go, I can’t breathe—!”

Eve’s eyes widened as she shouted, but the students’ excitement wouldn’t stop.

“…Thank goodness… really…”

“You’re right…”

“Nn.”

Sistine, Rumia, and Re=L were also teary-eyed.

“With this… all the victims of the [Punishment of Shredding] within this academy will return to their original forms.”

“Tch… that’s one hell of a classy move you pulled there… Not that I’m gonna thank you or anything.”

Glenn, with a complicated expression, looked away.

The [Pardon] issued by Alicia III herself, the headmaster of this Hidden Academy.

That was the only way to save the victims of rule violations in this Hidden Academy.

“I see. Even in your madness… deep down, you loved your students, didn’t you?”

“I… don’t know. Whether the living me prepared such a loophole in this academy’s [Unique Law Barrier] for that reason, or if it was just a whim…”

“Whatever. She’s long gone… let’s just call it a nice story. Still ain’t forgiving you, though.”

Mabel gave a wry smile at Glenn’s sulky tone.

“…So? What happens to this Hidden Academy now? What about you?”

“The Hidden Academy itself will remain as it is. Of course, those horrific rules are gone now. …As for me… this is goodbye.”

“!”

When Glenn turned back.

Mabel’s form had already begun to blur, becoming translucent.

“…My role is over. Now, I’ll return to my proper form.”

“So… you’re disappearing, huh?”

Unsure of what to say, Glenn fell silent.

“Glenn-sensei… I saw in you a true educator who genuinely cares for his students… and I have a request.”

“Probably a misjudgment, but… what is it? Lay it on me. I’ll at least hear you out.”

“…The [Akashic Records]… do you know that term?”

Glenn’s eyes widened at the sudden mention of the word.

“Yeah, I’ve been hearing it a lot lately.”

“I see… then he is indeed… making his move.”

“…What… do you know?”

Mabel looked straight at Glenn and said.

“Glenn-sensei. This world… this nation… will soon face ruin. In hindsight, that deranged [Secret Tome of A] was originally meant to create a power to oppose that ruin… though it warped into a mistaken path in the end.”

“…!”

“If you choose to stand against the coming ruin… you must draw closer to the truth.”

“The truth?”

“Yes. The origins of this nation and the secrets of the royal bloodline. And about [Melgalius’s Sky Castle] floating in Fejite’s skies, and the [Akashic Records]. The living Alicia III recorded a fragment of her pursuit of these truths in me… in [Memoirs of Alicia III].

If you choose to fight against this destruction… if you care for the future of this nation and this world… take me in your hands. Someday, I’m certain it will aid you.

My journal and the fairy tale [The Magician of Melgalius] will surely guide you.

If you find it too heavy a burden… entrust me to someone else you trust. Carefully… to someone untouched by that man’s influence…”

“…That man? Hey, don’t dodge the most crucial part!”

“I can’t. It’s already been censored, and I have no record of it. He could be a young boy, a young man, an old man… perhaps even a woman.”

“What the hell!? So basically, no hints at all!?”

“That’s why this is a gamble of sorts. I’m entrusting this to you, believing that you, who would risk your life for your students, are not one of his pawns… Please, Glenn-sensei… I beg you… protect this nation… this world…”

And just like that,

Mabel—no, Alicia III’s form had vanished without a trace.

Left behind was a tattered journal—the genuine twenty-fourth volume of [Memoirs of Alicia III], not the fake Maxim had been given.

Glenn gently picked it up. As he did, a flurry of loose pages fell out, which he gathered and haphazardly tucked back in before flipping it open.

…As expected, it was in code. This would be a pain to decipher.

Or rather, he wasn’t even sure if his code-breaking skills were up to the task.

Skimming through it quickly, the unfamiliar array of ciphers made it seem utterly indecipherable.

“Yare yare. I’d really rather not deal with such a hassle…”

But—the [Akashic Records].

A term Glenn had encountered time and time again.

Perhaps it was time for Glenn to finally confront it.

“Well, saving the world… that kinda grandiose stuff doesn’t really click with me… but protecting my students? That’s my job as a teacher.”

Muttering to no one in particular, Glenn tucked the journal into his coat.

Then, he walked toward Eve, who was still surrounded by sobbing students, hugged and mobbed, her eyes wide as she flailed in confusion—

The incident, which began with a duel over educational philosophies, had come to an end.

First, Maxim’s academy reforms—naturally, they collapsed.

This was because, shortly after, it came to light that several martial faction bureaucrats in the Ministry of Education, influential members of the academy’s board, and Maxim himself had been involved in significant bribery.

The one who uncovered this was, surprisingly, Celica Arfonia, who had slipped out of the academy just before Maxim’s appointment, supposedly on some errand.

Acting on a tip from Rize Filmer, who had caught wind of the higher-ups’ movements, Celica had secretly moved to crush Maxim and his faction’s tyranny. She visited key figures one by one, sometimes physically ruining them, sometimes socially destroying them, using aggressive, borderline-criminal methods to gather evidence of their misconduct.

Using the evidence Celica collected, Rize skillfully lobbied the relevant parties, condemning Maxim and driving him from power, allowing Rick to triumphantly return as headmaster.

However—even with such damning evidence, Maxim’s backers still held considerable influence, and a direct confrontation might have had uncertain outcomes.

But for some reason, Maxim accepted Rize and Celica’s accusations with surprising compliance, stepping down from the headmaster’s seat, which he had so stubbornly clung to, with shocking ease…

“I wasn’t yet fit to lead others… I’ll start over from zero.”

…Leaving behind those words, addressed to no one in particular.

And with Maxim’s resignation and the collapse of his educational reforms, the model class was, of course, abolished.

The model students, caught up in the incident and suffering significant mental trauma, were sent back to their hometowns. They were handed a complete set of transfer exam guidelines by Rize, with the condition that they were willing to start over and study diligently from scratch.

Thus, the Alzano Imperial Magic Academy was, for the most part, restored to its former state.

However, there was one thing that did not return to how it was before.

That was the newly added “Military Training” class.

This, being a directive from the imperial government, was apparently non-negotiable.

It didn’t take up an excessive amount of time, but “Military Training” was incorporated into the academy’s new curriculum as one of its classes.

That said, there were hardly any complaints from the academy’s students regarding this change.

After all, the instructor for this class was an exceptionally beautiful tactical training officer dispatched from the imperial army. Though she always seemed slightly irritable and discontent, she taught with hands-on guidance.

This tactical training officer was, naturally, highly popular among the boys, and even the girls found her cool, stylish, and wonderful, so there was no room for complaints.

And then—

““““Eve-sensei~!”““”

“Ugh, enough already! Seriously, you lot—stop clinging to me every single time, it’s annoying!?”

“Won’t you have lunch with us today!?”

“Hey, hold up! We bought some bread for Eve-sensei today, you know!?”

“Excuse me! Do you really think Eve-sensei would eat such plain bread!?”

“Alright, alright, I get it! Quiet down! Stop making a fuss, ugh!”

From then on, at the Alzano Imperial Magic Academy, it became a common sight to see Eve, dressed in instructor’s attire, being dragged around by students here and there.

“Hmph… I’ll never again say something like ‘I’m worthless’… no way.”

Glenn, as always, watched Eve from a distance.

“After all, you’ve already become someone those kids need.”

Muttering this to himself, Glenn turned his back on Eve, who was being swarmed by students, and began to walk away.

“…Still, I really don’t like you.”

Yet, as Glenn walked down the corridor, a faint, gentle wry smile played on his lips.

“O-Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow—! H-Hey, you lot, don’t pull so hard!?”

Meanwhile, Eve’s expression remained as grumpy as ever… but somehow, she didn’t seem entirely displeased.

“Man, that woman as an instructor… why do things keep getting more complicated?”

With a single sigh, Glenn, walking away, slipped his hand into his pocket.

What his hand pulled out from his pocket was… the notebook, [Memoirs of Alicia III].

“Can’t these troublesome things just come to an end already?”

Shrugging his shoulders, Glenn toyed with the notebook in one hand, deftly spinning it with his fingertips.

The notebook twirled like a windmill, spinning round and round—