Scumbag Fate System-Chapter 99: Yor Return

Reinhard walked toward the academy gates with a smile.

Yor was returning today after three days away, healing those students’ siblings. When he reached the gates, he discovered he wasn’t alone.

Sirin stood there already with her arms crossed and a small smile on her face. Alice leaned against the stone archway while cracking her knuckles absently. Rika fidgeted nearby with her eyes occasionally flashing purple as she checked the future. Louis paced back and forth while muttering something about weapon modifications.

The entire club had come to welcome Yor home.

"You’re late," Sirin said with amusement when she spotted Reinhard. "We’ve been waiting for ten minutes."

"I didn’t realize this was a competition," Reinhard replied while moving to stand beside Rika.

"It isn’t." Alice chuckled before saying with a grin. "But we expected you to be just as early since we know you also want to see Yor as soon as possible."

"If she knew how long you guys waited, it would make her blush."

"That would be amusing-"

"No. We are not telling her." Sirin says with a sigh, making Alice laugh.

As they waited, Reinhard wondered how the trip had changed Yor.

She spent three days healing students and their families. Confronting the people who’d been hurt by her void power and most likely facing their anger and pain directly.

Would she come back the same confident person who’d left? Or would the experience have shaken her newly gained control?

And what was this "trouble" Victoria had mentioned in her brief message? The attack on the carriage had been dealt with, but Victoria’s tone suggested something more significant had happened.

"Do you think she’s okay?" Rika asked quietly while glancing at Reinhard.

"She’s with Victoria and Professor Chen," Reinhard said. "She’s safe."

But safe and okay weren’t always the same thing.

A carriage appeared in the distance, pulled by two horses. As it approached, Reinhard could make out Victoria sitting beside the driver while Professor Chen’s stern face was visible through the window.

The carriage rolled to a stop directly in front of the gates. Victoria stepped down first, then opened the passenger door.

Yor emerged.

She looked... different. Not in appearance, but something in how she carried herself had changed. Her posture was straighter, and she looked more relaxed. When her eyes found the group waiting for her, her entire face lit up with joy.

"You all came!"

"Of course, we would." Reinhard chuckled.

"You are important to us." Sirin said with a grin.

"And we couldn’t wait," Rika said with a faint smile.

"Plus, I was sure the others would have been here and–" Louis glanced at Alice, who was grinning. "Certain people would have rubbed it in the faces of those who weren’t here."

Yor laughed before rushing over and wrapping Reinhard in a tight embrace before he could react. Her arms squeezed him firmly while her face pressed against his chest.

"I missed you," she said softly. "And I have so much to tell you."

Reinhard returned the embrace while feeling her warmth against him. "Welcome home."

When Yor stepped back, her gaze swept across the others, but then her smile faltered slightly as she noticed something. The way Sirin looked at Reinhard with knowing amusement, and how Alice grinned like she was in on a secret. There was a subtle change in how Rika stood closer to him than before.

"Did something happen while I was gone?" Yor asked carefully.

Reinhard smiled. "We all had bonding moments."

Louis threw his hands up in exasperation. "Where’s mine then? I didn’t get any bonding moments!"

Alice rolled her eyes, then reached over to pinch Louis’s cheek firmly. "Maybe you shouldn’t have locked yourself in the Engineering Department for three straight days!"

"Or you could have just sought us out?" Rika added with a laugh.

"But the modifications were important—" Louis protested.

Sirin sighed while shaking her head. "There’s your answer. You chose weapons over people."

Reinhard chuckled at the familiar banter. When he glanced at Yor, she was watching him with a questioning smile that asked for more details.

"Louis had Alice and me test weapon modifications," Reinhard explained. "But he never actually left the Engineering building to see how the tests went."

Yor blinked before laughing. "That sounds exactly like Louis!"

"I left the building!" Louis defended himself. "I came out twice for food!"

"Twice in three days," Alice said flatly. "That’s not leaving. That’s briefly escaping before retreating back to your cave."

"It’s not a cave, it’s a workshop—"

"With better lighting, maybe," Rika teased.

Everyone started talking at once then.

Louis defended his dedication to craftsmanship while Alice listed all the times he’d ignored invitations to join them. Sirin pointed out that he’d missed two club meetings, and Rika added details she’d seen in her precognition about Louis’s work schedule.

The voices overlapped in chaotic harmony.

All of them gestured widely while someone laughed and another person protested. It was a nice chaos, the kind that only happened when people were completely comfortable with each other. Reinhard smiled at this but glanced to see the happy tears gathering in Yor’s eyes. The trip really did help her a lot since she seemed far more open to showing her true feelings.

But this made him curious. What exactly happened? He doubts that her healing the students would be enough to create such a change.

"As amusing as this is... We do have a pressing concern." Professor Chen’s voice cut in with a sigh.

Victoria nodded and said. "The attack on our carriage wasn’t random."

Everyone paused and fell silent immediately.

All eyes turned to Victoria, whose expression had grown serious.

"What do you mean?" Sirin asked sharply.

"Someone specifically targeted Yor," Victoria explained. "They knew she was in that carriage. They knew she’d left the academy. They even knew which route we’d take."

Reinhard felt his mind shift as he narrowed his eyes. "How did they know all that?"

"That’s what concerns me," Victoria said. "The trip was arranged quietly. Only a few professors knew the details... When we’d leave, which students we’d visit, and our planned route."

"You think professors leaked the information," Reinhard said.

It wasn’t a question.

Victoria nodded grimly. "It seems a few professors might have revealed things they shouldn’t have. Whether intentionally or through careless talk, I’m not certain yet."

Everyone processed this in shocked silence.

The idea that academy staff might be working against them or at least couldn’t be trusted was deeply unsettling.

"I will look into it more thoroughly," Victoria promised. "But for now, you should enjoy yourselves and catch up properly. Yor’s been looking forward to seeing everyone again."

"Thank you, Professor," Sirin said formally.

Victoria nodded, then turned to leave with Professor Chen following silently behind her. They headed toward the main academy building while leaving the students alone.

The group stood in uncomfortable silence for a moment.

The joy of Yor’s return had been dampened by the revelation that someone was actively working against them.

Sirin broke the tension first. "We should head back to the club building. But let’s grab some food to take with us first. Yor probably haven’t eaten properly in days."

"The carriage food was terrible," Yor confirmed with a small smile.

"Then it’s settled," Alice declared. "Cafe first, then club building. We can catch up properly there."

"No matter what threats exist," Sirin added while her voice firm with determination, "we’ll be careful and make sure Yor stays safe."

Yor shook her head gently. "Not just me. We’ll make sure everyone is safe. All of us together."

The correction made everyone smile. She was right, this wasn’t about protecting just one person. They were friends, and they’d protect each other.

"Come on then," Louis said while already heading toward the nearest cafe. "I’m starving, and I want to hear what happened during this attack."

They all followed while falling into a comfortable walking formation. Yor stayed close to Reinhard while Rika walked on his other side. Alice and Louis led the way while arguing about food choices. Sirin brought up the back while speaking with Yor and Rika.

But Reinhard was lost in thought.

The information leak about Yor’s departure bothered him. Not just that it had happened, but the pattern it suggested.

During Yor’s trial, five professors had seemed to know about her void control abilities before the demonstration. They’d voted in her favor immediately, almost as if they’d been briefed beforehand.

The issue is how did they find out? He doubt they could have gotten past the guard unless the person spying was extremely strong.

In which case, why go that far?

And then now, professors were leaking information about Yor movements to potential attackers. Were these connected? Was there a group within the academy gathering information about Yor specifically? And if so, why?

What made her valuable enough to spy on and potentially kidnap?

The answer seemed obvious.

Her void manipulation ability was unique and powerful. Anyone who could control void distortions would be incredibly valuable to the right buyer. But there was something else. Something that made Reinhard uneasy.

If people were spying on Yor and gathering information about her abilities... were they also gathering information about the people around her?

About him?

The thought was almost amusing. Here he was, worried about being discovered, when there might already be people watching him closely without his knowledge.

Spies watching a spy.

The irony wasn’t lost on him.

"Reinhard?" Yor’s voice pulled him from his thoughts. "Are you okay? You look worried."

He smiled before squeezing her hand in assurance. "Just thinking. Nothing important."

"If you’re sure..."

"I am." He glanced at the group around them.

Yor smiled but didn’t reply and simply leaned against his shoulder as they walked.

For now, they could pretend that everything was simple.

But Reinhard knew better.

Someone was watching them and gathering information. And until he figured out who and why, none of them were truly safe. The game had just gotten significantly more complicated.

And Reinhard intended to win.