New chapter of World Teacher is out! (1/1 chapter)

 

 

Prologue

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“――…ga――…―tou… Respond!” (???)

In the president’s office of the Central Building of some country was said to be the heart of the continent. Normally, it would be a room adorned with marble flooring and lavish decorations, but now it had turned into a scene so tragic it was painful to even look at.

Walls and floors shattered by bombs and bullets, decorations reduced to mere junk. And countless corpses lying scattered. From every single corpse, blood flowed and any observer would know survival was hopeless.

No, there was one figure that was still moving. A single man dressed in a bodysuit-like protective suit that covered his entire body. The man tried to rise from a prone position, but unable to support himself, collapsed again and again. Giving up on standing, he crawled along the ground, then leaned his back against a nearby wall to catch his breath.

Then, he turned on the earpiece-style communicator attached to his ear.

“…Yeah, this is… Code Axel.” (Axel)

『Are you safe!? Report your status!』 (???)

Among the countless corpses strewn about, there was one wearing obviously high-end clothing. Riddled with bullet wounds not just on the forehead but all over the body, the blast’s aftershock had partially deformed the corpse, but it was clear—this was the owner of the building, and the man’s target.

“Target… eliminated. The rest is… cough… clean-up, I guess?” (Axel)

『Wait! That’s the last resort. Escape now!』 (???)

“Ha, haha… That’s impossible.” (Axel)

The man looked at his own body. Several bullet wounds in his abdomen, his left leg lost from the knee down. He had almost no sensation in his left hand, and even speaking was painful. His battered body was the very image of ruin. With the only limb that still moved, his right hand, he pulled a small device from his pocket and disabled the safety lock. It was the detonator for the explosives.

Calculated and set throughout the building, the bombs would surely bring the entire structure down once activated. The immobile man would also be caught in the blast.

『Don’t give up! We’ll send a rescue team immediately! Hey, is the chopper ready!? Permission? Later!』 (???)

The radio on the other end grew increasingly frantic. His partner must have been desperately barking orders, but time was already running out. The moment they tried to stop him, a sound came through the radio, the sound of a door being forcibly opened.

『『『Sensei――――!!』』』 (Disciples)

It was the voices of the man’s disciples. Amidst the clamor, the sounds of five people, men and women, seemed to gather in front of the mic, and their cries rang out.

『Sensei, please don’t give up!』 (Disciple 1)

『We’ll come get you right away, just hang in there!』 (Disciple 2)

『There’s still so much we want to learn from you!』 (Disciple 3)

『You… you promised, didn’t you?』 (Disciple 4)

『Sensei! Sensei… O-otou…san! Otou-saaan!』 (Disciple 5)

Before the operation, he had made them accept that this might happen but it seemed the disciples couldn’t bear it. It made him worry they were still mentally immature, but he also felt joy at the affection they poured toward him.

Summoning his strength, the man gave a command.

“Line up!” (Axel)

『『『!? Yes, sir!』』』 (Disciples)

Perhaps a testament to their training, the once-panicked disciples responded in perfect unison.

“You understand… what I want to say… right?” (Axel)

『『『Never stop moving forward, sir!』』』 (Disciples)

“Then… good. You’ll… be fine. Live on… with confidence.” (Axel)

『『『…Yes, sir!』』』 (Disciples)

Though the disciples were clearly doing their best to hold back tears, their voices betrayed them, they were most certainly crying rivers by now.

“Heh… Sorry about that, my disciples.” (Axel)

『No… it’s fine. They have every right.』 (???)

“Is that so.” (Axel)

『Is it… really impossible now?』 (???)

“You knew… this would happen… didn’t you?” (Axel)

『…Yeah.』 (???)

The reply was a voice that finally escaped after crushing down sorrow and inner conflict.

“I’ve… left behind… something. I can go… with a smile.” (Axel)

『I’ll take care of everything else.』 (???)

“I’m counting on you. Being with you… was… fu…n…” (Axel)

『That’s my line.』 (???)

The man had lost so much blood, his vision faded, and his consciousness was blurring. No matter the outcome, the mission was a success. Everything that needed to be passed on, had been. But one last task remained.

With the strength left in him, the man activated the switch. A faint cracking noise echoed. It gradually grew louder, until it reached the ceiling above the man. Feeling the rubble begin to collapse on him, the man accepted it with his whole body.

And then, the man was–…

 

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