Broken Possessors of Infinite Regression Academy

After destroying all the breeding grounds created by the succubus and returning the next day, I sat idly in the club room, passing the time in a daze. I had skipped liberal arts lectures for two consecutive days, using club activities as an excuse. I just couldn’t bring myself to focus on studying.

The supervising professor allowed it without suspicion, saying that there are always many things to do in the early stages of establishing a club. But in reality, it was the opposite. With the superficial founding purpose being so flawed, there was really nothing to do.

Instead, it meant I had plenty of time to think.

‘…The Demon King is a possessor.’

No matter how much I pondered, my thoughts kept returning to that possibility. If the Demon King was a possessor like Priscilla or Rosalia, and at the same time a regressor, it would explain all her strange behaviors.

Saying the world is false, that we’re trapped in a puppet show, declaring she would never kill me — all of it could make sense. And perhaps, like Priscilla and Rosalia, there was even the possibility that her body had been taken over.

Throughout the regression, having to watch characters endlessly repeat the words and actions from the original story, it wouldn’t be surprising if everything felt less like it was alive and more like programmed NPCs.

Among the four of us, Priscilla and Rosalia had their bodies taken over but were possessors like him.

‘I wonder how the Demon King sees me.’

She might think of me as a fellow possessor like herself, or perhaps as a character who deviates from the original work and acts on his own will.

Just look at Rosalia, for instance. Before I revealed my true identity, didn’t she just think of me as a character from the original story and try to explain things to me with awkward metaphors?

The more I thought about it, the more regretful I felt. If the situation had just proceeded a bit more normally, I would have had plenty of time to think.

The sudden appearance of the sixth legion commander guarding the succubus’s breeding ground, hearing from that commander that the Demon King had predicted this situation, and then the Demon King herself showing up out of nowhere to beat her subordinate nearly to death—things just kept happening.

Moreover, the Demon King, whom I had only known as a ruthless killer, grabbed me and urged me to switch to her side, making it overwhelming just to comprehend the immediate situation.

‘How many more people have been dragged here?’

It had only been a month since I entered Bellium Academy. Yet in that month, I had already found three people who, like me, were brought here. Including the Demon King, that made four.

At this point, I was starting to get curious. Who brought us here, why, and for what purpose? And why did those who arrived earlier act exactly like their original counterparts?

‘I have no idea.’

But no answers came, and my mind remained a tangled mess. I sank into the sofa.

“Mira! We’re he—uh!”

“What’s wrong, Brynhild? Why all of a sudd—eek?”

How much time had passed? Brynhild burst through the clubroom door with all her might, followed by Aria, only to freeze at the entrance. Their eyes widened in shock, rolling restlessly. I looked up at them slightly.

Brynhild was trembling as she took in the clubroom, which had changed drastically since we were first assigned to it, and Aria had a half-panicked expression. It was no wonder they reacted that way, given that I had changed every little detail.

“What are you doing, not coming in?”

“…Are we really allowed to step on this? We don’t have to pay for cleaning if it gets dirty, right?”

“What are you talking about as soon as you arrive? Of course, you’re supposed to step on it. Why else would there be a carpet?”

“Should we take off our shoes? No, I’ve been wearing shoes this whole time, so my feet are really dirty even if I go barefoot. I should wash them first—”

“Just come in. You don’t have to take off your shoes or wash your feet. If it gets too dirty while cleaning, we can just buy a new one later.”

“Buy a new one? This? How much did it cost?”

How much was it again? I recalled the list on the receipt Beatrice had given me. When I told them the price of the carpet, Brynhild and Aria gasped simultaneously.

“Whoa… That’s more than a year’s living expenses back in my hometown if you use it sparingly…”

“Are we really allowed to step on it… right?”

Seeing them tremble at the price brought back old memories, and I couldn’t help but laugh. It was around the time I had just realized I was a possessor.

When I stepped on a carpet that looked expensive at a glance after taking off my shoes, my parents burst into laughter. The butler and Beatrice also laughed as if they found it adorable.

Well, they’ll get used to it eventually. I did too.

“Is everything else just as expensive?”

“Of course. There’s no reason to buy only the carpet expensively.”

“…Did you buy all this with the club budget? Even though it’s Bellium Academy, they wouldn’t give that much money—”

“I bought it with my own money. The budget did come out, but it wasn’t much, so I left it as is. We’ll use it for something else later.”

“Why, why? Is there a specific reason to go this far?”

“We’ll be using this clubroom for the next three years, right? If we’re going to spend our time here under the guise of club activities, we should at least make it look good.”

“Atmosphere…”

Brynhild and Aria seemed completely overwhelmed by the state of the clubroom. Seeing that, I resolved that if they asked about the total remodeling cost, I’d downplay it a bit.

Combining all the furniture here would cost about the same as a decent house. And adding the cost of the workers we had to call in to install everything in a day? It would be an unimaginable sum for those two. I didn’t want to burden them by mentioning specific amounts.

‘Maybe I should have chosen everything myself?’

To be honest, I hadn’t planned on splurging from the start. I originally intended to decorate it in a moderately antique style. But when I asked Beatrice for furniture recommendations for the new club, it somehow reached my parents’ ears.

Thanks to that, even I was speechless when I first entered here.

“Hey, Mira. I’m going to sit here, okay? Really sit?”

“That’s what the sofa is for, so just sit already. Why are you so scared?”

“Wow, it’s so soft…”

“You can tell it’s expensive just by the feel…”

As soon as Aria sank into the sofa, she let out a small exclamation of admiration. Brynhild, after asking me several times, finally closed her eyes tightly and threw herself onto the sofa, looking as if she was about to melt.

“……”

Our eyes met. The two of them finally seemed to come to their senses, blushing. They showed no signs of wanting to get up.

“By the way, where’s Priscilla? She’s always with you.”

“She’s with the saint candidate. She said she had something to talk about. But what about you guys? Did you go to the imperial palace?”

“Oh, right!”

Brynhild bounced up like a spring.

“I heard you almost turned into some sort of killer or something. Are you okay?”

“You sure took your time asking. There’s no chance of that happening, so don’t worry.”

“Are you really sure? Really? If you turn into a killer, Mira, I’ll cry my eyes out.”

“If you were going to hear the news, you should have listened properly. When we first met Sword Saint, she was exuding murderous intent but didn’t do anything in the end. Why do you think that was? Because she was sure I wouldn’t change.”

“…Is that how it works?”

“Are you really a hero?”

Brynhild turned her gaze away with an embarrassed expression. Once again, Aria was beside her, trying to defend her by saying, “Since she pulled out the holy sword, it means she has enough potential, right?”

In fact, it made sense for her to lack a sense of urgency at this point. It’s only around the middle of the first part that multiple incidents occur, prompting her to start realizing her role as a hero.

That means if I keep Bellium Academy safe, Brynhild’s realization of her powers as a hero will be delayed.

‘Not that I intend to let the academy be destroyed.’

The idea of being dragged back home was unacceptable. Especially if it meant being dragged away because the academy was destroyed and I had nowhere else to go.

“Hmm… okay! If you say so, Mira, it must be true. Anyway, Sword Saint also asked me to thank you again. She said she would definitely repay you later.”

“……”

I shook my head internally. Her statement showed no intention of hiding her suspicions. She was openly suspecting that I was the reason Karna returned to normal.

“All I did was stand next to that person, waiting for Sword Saint to return, and luckily witnessed the process of her return. It feels overwhelming to be thanked for that.”

“She probably feels sorry for exuding so much murderous intent toward us. She apologized to Aria and me three times, bowing her head. Eventually, we had to beg her to stop.”

—Knock, knock.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the club room door. Aria, who had been lounging on the sofa, quickly sat up.

“Who could that be?”

“Who knows. Maybe Priscilla?”

“If it was Priscilla, she wouldn’t have knocked and come right in. I don’t think it’s her.”

—Knock, knock.

“Is no one inside?”

The knock echoed again, this time accompanied by a woman’s voice. It was a voice I had heard before.

‘Roxanna Astriere.’

She was a member of the Astriere family, which the succubus created to infiltrating into the empire a long time ago. She was a half-succubus who had once tried to seduce me and failed.

“I think I know who it is. It’s that woman who opposed you joining the student council behind the Crown Prince’s back last time, right?”

“Yeah, it’s her voice.”

“Hmm… But why would she come here?”

Aria tilted her head in confusion.

“Who knows. We’ll find out once we open the door.”

As I approached the door, Roxanna knocked a third time, continuing her persistent wait. The soundproof door, designed to let us hear outside while keeping our voices from leaking out, seemed to be working perfectly.

“You finally opened it. Hello, Mira Crate. It’s been a while, hasn’t it?”

As soon as I opened the door, Roxanna greeted me energetically. Her pink hair fluttered behind her head, and below it, her chest, rivaling Rosalia’s in size, bounced noticeably.

“I thought you wouldn’t even want to make eye contact with me.”

“Oh, come on. That was ages ago, why bring it up now?”

Roxanna laughed and nudged my abdomen with her elbow. Even though she was only half-succubus, her actions were incredibly natural. Her tone and behavior had become much more lively. It made me wonder if this lively woman in front of me was the same one who had vehemently opposed my entry into the student council.

“So, what brings you here? As you can see, we’re in the middle of club activities.”

“Oh, about that.”

Roxanna took a neatly folded piece of paper from her coat pocket and unfolded it.

“Ta-da! Application for membership!”

“…An application for membership?”

“You know that our academy allows for multiple club memberships, right? Since the student council is technically a club, it’s not an exception. So I thought I’d apply to join yours!”