-653- Reality tends to be even more cruel

"What?!"

Charl was completely stunned.

"'Your dream will surely be destroyed.'"

This sentence made Charl unable to remain silent in any way.

Even Sigmund abruptly looked up, looking at Rozen.

"You've discovered something?" Sigmund stared at Rozen intently, asking in a low voice.

Rozen didn't hide anything and straightforwardly voiced his speculation.

"How do you think 'Cannibal Candy' deals with the missing items after each attack?"

The magic circuits were consumed to enhance their power, that's why they disappeared.

The students vanished because their deaths couldn't be confirmed, inviting the intervention of their backers, so they were hidden.

"But there are more than twenty missing students. How could they be hidden by the assailant?"

Rozen pointed this out.

That was the problem.

You see, the Walpurgis Royal Academy of Machinart was an autonomous region, holding great authority and control over the students and automatons within the academy.

Imagine, when Rozen first arrived at the academy and stood at the gates, didn't he see a building that resembled a military fortress?

There were even gun muzzles at the gates, not aimed at the outside of the academy, but towards the inside.

Although it was to prevent automatons from being taken out without permission, the guards were on constant alert. Under such strict vigilance, it was nearly impossible to secretly remove a corpse without being noticed.

Unless the assailant could fly.

Therefore, to Rozen's knowledge, there were very limited means to discreetly remove a body without detection within the academy.

Many murderers were exposed during the process of handling corpses. Even if they buried the bodies, loose soil would remain. Disassembling the bodies would leave traces of blood. Even just moving the bodies could leave behind hair and skin. Yet, the 'Cannibal Candy' could make more than twenty bodies disappear without a trace. This was not something a mere student could accomplish.

Rozen's calm words made Yaya, Charl, and Sigmund's expressions gradually turn pale.

Because they could hear the implications beneath his words.

"Are you saying," Charl's voice trembled, "that perhaps the 'Cannibal Candy' is not just a student and is backed by a massive force?"

"That's most likely?" Rozen calmly stated, "The academy is protected by the Disciplinary Committee and the Security Force. Even though the academy has autonomy, its territory is limited. The places to hide people are quite restricted. Conducting a thorough search in such places is not a difficult task."

As a result, even up to now, the academy had not found a single victim, nor any trace of 'Cannibal Candy'.

What did this indicate?

"It suggests that the assailant has hidden the bodies in places that even the Disciplinary Committee and the Security Force wouldn't search."

Exactly.

It's not that they couldn't be searched, but rather they wouldn't be searched.

This was not an impossible feat.

Even within this academy, some places were not to be searched by the Disciplinary Committee and the Security Force.

For example, the headmaster's residence.

For example, important workshops.

For example, warehouses where precious automatons, magical books, and magical implements were kept.

These were places that the Disciplinary Committee and the Security Force were not allowed to search.

'Cannibal Candy' could easily hide the bodies in such places.

The question was,

"Do you think these places are easily accessible to everyone and people can just casually store or hide unknown corpse?" Rozen spoke indifferently.

"As crucial institutions within the academy, it's impossible to do this without having some clout, right?"

That's why Rozen said there was a massive force behind 'Cannibal Candy'.

Only with this, could the assailant freely enter these places.

Only with this, could the assailant leave no traces, because with a backer, they had enough capability to clean up after themselves.

Perhaps someone was complicit.

Perhaps they themselves controlled a massive force.

Regardless of which, it proved that this force could wield substantial privileges within this autonomous academy, enabling them to achieve all of this.

So...

"It's possible that this time, we're targeting the academy itself, the professors, or even the Disciplinary Committee and the Security Force, and perhaps even the executive branch of the Night Party," Rozen said this to Charl, who was growing paler by the moment.

"Offending such a force, can your journey in the Night Party really proceed as planned, and can you ultimately become the Wiseman?"

A highly practical question was now laid out before Charl.

Just as Rozen had said, the enemy they faced this time might be even more fearsome than they imagined.

It's not about the enemy being powerful, but about the significant influence the enemy held.

If the enemy truly was the academy, the professors, or even the Disciplinary Committee, the Security Force, or the executive branch of the Night Party, then for Charl, who wanted to succeed in the Night Party held within this academy, offending them would definitely not be a good thing.

One misstep, and Charl's dream might truly be shattered.

The adversary was someone with such capabilities.

In summary, Rozen had to tell Charl,

"It might be better for you not to get involved in this matter."

Rozen told her this mercilessly.

"This is not an enemy you can handle at your current level. Stop while you can and leave."

These were the words Rozen wanted to say to Charl.

What kind of joke is this!

Charl really wanted to shout out loud.

However, her voice seemed as if it was blocked in her throat, causing Charl's mouth to tremble constantly, unable to utter a single word.

Seeing Charl like this, Sigmund spoke as if he were deeply sorry.

"Let's go, Charl," Sigmund made a choice for Charl.

So, Charl bit her lip, clenched her fists, and finally lowered her head, unable to say another word.

A while later, Charl, accompanied by Sigmund, left this place.

Her figure seemed as if it could collapse at any moment, appearing so fragile and vulnerable.

"Miss Charl,"

Looking at Charl like this, even Yaya couldn't help but say to Rozen with a sense of sympathy.

"Aren't we being too cruel to Miss Charl?"

However,

"For her, this is already good enough,"

Rozen sighed, turned his head, and looked back in Frey's direction.

"After all, reality tends to be even more cruel."

A whisper unheard by others came from Rozen's mouth and disappeared.

Like this, Charl left this place.

Only Rozen and Yaya remained, continuing to monitor Frey's surroundings.