Broken Possessors of Infinite Regression Academy

Sword Saint introduced ‘Karna,’ the former commander of the royal guard, as her first disciple. Karna was a talented knight, but the problem was that she had a very fragile personality, unable to live up to her prestigious name.

Karna was crushed under the weight of being Sword Saint’s first disciple and the burden of Sword Saint’s attention. Even though she desperately pretended to be okay in front of others, she suffered silently when alone.

In the midst of this, she made a fatal mistake while dealing with the demons that invaded the empire’s territory, inadvertently killing some humans who turned out to be hostages.

Tormented by the thought that Sword Saint’s name would be tarnished by her actions of killing innocent humans, Karna was eventually consumed by her guilt and transformed into a monster before her mentor’s eyes.

“…If only she had endured a little longer.”

Sadly, Karna’s instinctual actions turned out to be the correct ones. Those humans had actually been brainwashed by the demons long before. The truth was only revealed after Karna had already turned into a monster.

Fortunately, the corruption took place in the Royal Guard’s training ground, and the fact that Sword Saint was nearby and she was unarmed was only luck.

“She was the only monster captured alive by the Empire.”

Since most corruption occurs on the battlefield, where the only option is to kill, being captured alive is truly fortunate.

In any case, Karna, the only killer captured by the empire, was confined to an underground prison in the palace to find a way to return to humans and became the subject of all kinds of biological experiments.

Numerous experiments have been conducted, such as inviting several high-ranking priests from the Starlight denomination for a huge amount of money to bless her, beat her to the brink of death, or, conversely, not giving her any attention for a while.

“……And they all failed.”

However, Karna remained only a killer, and she never came back to her senses in any of the experiments. Eventually, the empire began to give up on Karna and consider disposing of her.

I couldn’t say for sure how Sword Saint felt about it, but regardless, it was a sorrowful situation.

Sword Saint looked at Karna with a conflicted expression and said, “I regret having to send off my first disciple like this… But I must do what I have to do as Sword Saint. I can’t let myself be bound by sentimentality for the sake of old ties…”

After we arrived in the basement, Sword Saint’s mouth, which had never risen since then, sank even lower.

‘Well, she must be feeling pretty bitter about it.’

Honestly, my feelings were closer to pity than regret, but it wasn’t entirely devoid of empathy. After all, I’ve lost quite a few comrades myself.

But beyond that, I couldn’t help but feel a bit off about Sword Saint. Our first meeting was a disaster, and while I received apologies and compensation afterward, the first impression I got from her hasn’t faded. There was also the fact that she seemed oddly interested in me, even though we had only met for the first time last Saturday and hadn’t really seen each other for more than four days.

It’s not like I was emotionally closed off or anything, it’s just that we hadn’t had much physical interaction.

‘Well, I guess Sword Saint had reasons to be wary.’

Of course, aside from that, I understood why Sword Saint had been emitting hostility towards me since our first meeting. From her perspective, having experienced such a precedent with Karna, she probably didn’t want to subject Brynhild to the same experience as her, even if it meant she’d face some backlash.

If that’s the case, I think it should have been better if she called me separately to ask for answers from me first and then decide what to do with that information.

Karna began to thrash and growl, saliva dripping from her mouth as the chains rattled and dug into her skin, causing crimson blood to trickle down.

“She’s been exposed to the scent of humans for too long, which is why she’s like this now. It’s time for us to leave. But before that, I’ll just give her a potion for treatment. Would you like to come along?”

“I’ll stay here.”

“Understood. Take care. Be careful not to provoke her too much.”

With a last glance at Karna, Sword Saint disappeared into the depths of the underground prison. Once I confirmed that Sword Saint’s footsteps were no longer audible in the distance, I cautiously surveyed the surroundings.

The defensive spells were only in place assuming Karna’s escape, and there were no magical treatments on the chains. There shouldn’t be any problem with intrusion from the outside.

Phew…

I breathed a sigh of relief silently. What I was about to do required considerable determination. Whether I succeeded or failed, if Sword Saint found out about this situation, it wouldn’t just end with a few words of reprimand.

Using magic, I transformed my body into mist and passed through the iron bars. As the scent of humans grew closer, the strength with which the murderer struggled instinctively increased.

There’s no turning back now.

If not now, who knows when I might encounter another murderer. It was necessary to resolve this curiosity here and now.

Honestly, I didn’t think I would change into such a state regardless of whether I accumulated karma or not. Even though I had killed so many in my previous world, I had remained unscathed.

But in this world, where such a concept existed, I couldn’t afford to not be prepared. There was a possibility, however slim. Turning into such a state was definitely out of the question.

If it’s possible…

Whether or not karma accumulated in the soul, I didn’t think it mattered much. I just needed to prepare for any unexpected situations with a spell stored in a magic tool.

A spell to dispel abnormal conditions.

It’s highly unlikely to work anyway.

I decided to experiment with it without much expectation. The thought of it being impossible crossed my mind.

Supposedly, it was due to karma accumulating in the soul if one transformed into such a state, so there was no way a simple abnormal condition dispelling spell would work.

Of course, I learned it because it was useful. In the other world, it was considered a top-tier spell that every archmage had to master as an essential spell, despite it being non-existent in this world.

“Kyaah! Kk, ack?!”

“Shh, calm down.”

Approaching Karna, who was struggling to the point of wanting to bite me, I gently pressed down on her head with my left hand. I examined the chains binding her body. There were no signs of them breaking yet.

“Mmm… Kkk…”

Karna, unable to overcome the force of my pressing, only emitted a half-muffled scream as she shook her head, partially stifling her groans. With my left hand pressing firmly on Karna’s head, I used magic with my other hand.

Since it was a spell that didn’t exist in this world, like a healing spell, it would undoubtedly attract the attention of the Mage Association. They would rush to find out whatever magic they could.

After the thought-driven incantation ended, a slightly brighter light, closer to mint than the usual green of a healing spell, enveloped Karna’s body. Her head drooped downwards.

“……”

Suddenly, a sense of foreboding washed over me. The fact that the screams had stopped and the struggling ceased was unsettling. The creature, which just moments ago had been unable to catch me and was restless, now seemed to have completely drained its aggressiveness.

“……Ugh.”

‘What… is going on?’

Despite the tangled, greying hair and the cracked, dry lips, as soon as the unmistakable sound of a human voice emanated from beneath, a chill ran down my spine.

This was definitely human words. I was sure of it.

‘But… didn’t they say it’s because of accumulated karma in the soul?’

Wouldn’t that be resolved with an abnormal condition dispelling spell?

Wait a moment.

I delved deep into my memories, over ten years old now. The spell for dispelling abnormal conditions actually had a different, hidden name. The creator of the spell, holding a peculiar belief that the human soul is perfect and cannot be corrupted or tainted, had concealed the true name and published it under a different title.

Both names were so ridiculously long in the other world’s language that I had simply brushed it off, hearing it with one ear and letting it go with the other. But what did the person who figured it out say?

I desperately sifted through memories over a decade old, and eventually, I succeeded in recalling it.

A spell born from the hands of a mage who held the belief that the human soul is perfect and cannot be corrupted or tainted, a spell to purify corrupt and tainted souls.

Soul Purification…

The moment I recalled this fact, the tension drained from my arm. Karna’s head gradually lifted.

.

.

.

“Dorothy, Captain!”

Bam bam bam bam bam!

Late at night, Dorothy, who was sorting through documents, raised her head at the sound of someone knocking loudly on the door, calling her name urgently. It sounded incredibly frantic.

“Come in.”

As soon as permission was granted, the door was roughly pushed open. Someone rolled in. It was the Vice Captain. Her hair, falling down to her waist, was a mess, and her armour looked like it was thrown on haphazardly.

Normally, I would have told her to keep her dignity as a royal guard, but she seemed to be in a pretty urgent situation, so she decided to move on without pointing it out.

“What’s going on? It’s so late.”

“Um, I… I…! I have news about the former Captain of the Royal Guard…!”

“Calm down first and speak slowly. What about him? Has something happened to her?”

Dorothy, of course, was well aware of the former Captain of the Royal Guard, Karna, and why she had ended up in such a state. But mentioning that fact was practically taboo. The transformation of a Royal Guard into a murderous fiend was a perfect topic to shatter morale.

Despite Dorothy’s instructions to calm down, it took a while for the Vice Captain, who had been gasping for breath, to finally speak up.

“She… She’s regained her sanity.”

“……!!!!!!”

After that, everything became a blur. The only things remembered were rushing out of the room and, when coming to, finding oneself in the underground prison. Inside, most of the Royal Guards who had already heard the news had gathered. Knights who had been staring blankly beyond the iron bars recognized Dorothy and parted to make way.

Dorothy advanced slowly. Beyond the thick iron bars, she saw the figure of Sword Saint, holding Karna tightly in her arms, her silvery hair matted with dried blood. Karna, sobbing in Sword Saint’s embrace, looked nothing like the murderous fiend.

‘…How…?’

In disbelief, Dorothy’s gaze fell upon an unfamiliar figure. Standing in a corner of the prison was a boy, wearing a bewildered expression.