Chapter: 87
“Hold out?”
Are you seriously telling me to hold out against an opponent that I’m not even sure I can withstand right now!?
I mean, does this pathetic god even have a conscience?
I’m about to die because of you—shouldn’t you at least give me something to work with?
As I grumbled and checked the message again, another phrase caught my eye.
[Reward: Short-Term Buff (prepaid)]
Ah. So you weren’t just chatting with me but giving me a quest?
And who the heck even says “prepaid”?
What’s up with that?
I saw a phrase I’d never encountered while playing Soul Academy, and my confusion was quickly lifted.
The feeling of exhilaration rising within me.
It felt way stronger than the buff I got from the Mesugaki skill—like this was some sort of divine power!
Ah, I see. What a pathetic god.
You mess around with me like a toy, but when the toy’s about to break for real, you start to panic, huh?
Come to think of it, you butted in the last time I almost got taken out by an alchemist too.
Guess I’m a pretty entertaining toy for you?
Well, either way, I’ll gratefully accept what you’ve given me, Armadi.
I mean, as a god, shouldn’t it be a given that you take care of your worshippers?
But if I throw a tantrum, you might just hit me with some weird penalty, so I’ll just keep my mouth shut.
The Apostle of the Evil God had his crimson eyes fixed on me and Joy from above.
Long black hair.
A coat that flowed down to his calves.
His intimidating size loomed over even such a baggy outfit.
This was the apostle of the darkness, the Evil God Tariki.
Naklad.
Great. The first one to show up is the worst of the bunch.
“Lady Alrn. That one is—”
“Joy, stay behind me.”
“Clumsy Young Lady. You’re shaking in my shadow.”
He nodded slightly and conjured a magic circle in his palms.
Now, I may be completely clueless about magic, but I recognize that spell.
Naklad is always using that particular magic during his first assault on the Academy.
A barrier of isolation.
It perfectly separates the inside from the outside.
I remember professors from the Academy took several minutes to break that thing.
When I went to the square for the first assault event, I had to hold out for three whole minutes, right?
Three minutes.
Typically, I’d think that’s a ridiculously short amount of time, but why does it feel like an eternity right now?
Taking a deep breath, I raised the divine shield in front of me and gripped my mace tightly.
If I’d known this was going to happen, I would have worn armor!
I don’t know if it would matter against him, anyway.
Just as I finished preparing, Naklad elegantly landed in front of us.
“Hmph. So young and weak. I can’t believe you’re blessed.”
Naklad scrutinized me from head to toe, speaking disdainfully.
“I don’t usually take pleasure in killing children like you, but you can blame the god that chose you.”
‘You don’t need to tell me; I’m always blaming him!’
“Always blaming him, huh? What a pompous brat.”
“Pompous?”
I get it; I can see why that nickname came about.
Naklad does have a bit of a chuuni vibe going on.
His eyes are bright red, while the rest of him is covered in black, and he’s even basking in the powers of darkness.
Users have taken to calling him “the chuuni apostle” instead of Naklad, probably for that reason.
“Pompous. Is that so? Can’t even begin to understand the gap in our powers.”
While Naklad spoke, he conjured a small black sphere above his hand and hurled it my way.
The wall of danger sends alerts.
Over and over.
Until my head’s buzzing with the word “danger.”
[Defend!]
Hearing Grandpa’s voice within the chaos, I spread the divine barrier.
The moment the barrier formed, the black sphere exploded right in front of me.
My hair whipped about as the gust from the explosion sent shards flying everywhere.
The barrier, struggling to endure, began to crack and eventually shattered.
At least the force had been significantly reduced.
I expanded the divine shield and braced myself on my feet.
To hold out.
To protect Joy behind me.
After the explosion finally subsided, I lowered my shield slightly to see Naklad casually floating above me, lazily summoning a few more spheres around him.
“Do you still think I’m being pompous?”
I can endure the explosions those spheres create.
Under normal circumstances, I wouldn’t be able to handle it, but I’m feeling confident with the buff from this pathetic god.
But this? He’s clearly just messing around.
Once I let my guard down and those barriers start to crack, he’ll be serious about ending me.
Could I withstand that kind of firepower?
‘What do I do?’
[Yeah, it’s tough right now… but we can use the fact that he’s overly confident against him.]
‘Even if I land a hit, I feel like it’s just going to end up being a wasted effort.’
[That’s not the point. Let’s provoke him so that he’s too focused on the barrier breaking to even think about you.]
Grandpa’s strategy was straightforward:
Since the apostle of the Evil God would want to defeat me in the most humiliating way possible, he’ll think of me as a plaything.
I’ll use myself as bait to get Naklad riled up, and with my Mesugaki skills, I’ll make sure he’s too frustrated to pay attention when the barrier inevitably crumbles.
It’s a solid plan, old man.
I took a deep breath internally.
With a confidently smug smile on my lips, I dropped my shoulders, letting them relax as though I felt no tension at all.
“Hey, you want attention from a girl like me, huh, pompous brat?♡ You’re such a pitiful adult lacking self-esteem that you have to dress like that.♡”
Naklad’s eyebrows furrowed into a line.
He’s a character who typically wears his emotions on his sleeve, so I bet that stung.
But that’s still not enough.
“What are you talking about?”
“Oh? Pompous brat, do you really think you look alright in that getup?♡ Seriously?♡ You’ve got the trashy taste of an adult!♡”
Did he just think responding was pointless?
Naklad hucked one of his spheres at me.
I’d seen that coming.
I’d already prepared a barrier ahead of time, so this one would be thicker and sturdier than before.
It could definitely withstand Naklad’s explosion.
As the smoke faded and Naklad’s face became visible, I grinned wide.
“Seriously, throwing a tantrum over a little teasing?♡ Is it okay for an adult to lack this much patience?♡ Aw, are you just an adult who looks old on the outside but is really a child on the inside?♡”
“Shut up.”
“Oh sure~ A piece of trash like you probably believes in a trash god!♡”
The moment I mentioned the Evil God, an overwhelming exhilaration surged through me.
At the same time, Naklad’s straight eyebrows turned diagonal, and his forehead wrinkled.
Good. Let’s keep this going.
“Admit it, you’re a trash god!♡ It must be why you made a pathetic, sorry excuse like that your apostle!♡ A dumpster-diving piece of trash!♡…”
Before I finished, Naklad launched every black sphere surrounding him at me.
Gotcha.
Apostles just can’t handle it when you badmouth their god.
I reinforced my barrier with divine energy as I braced for the explosion.
“Joy!”
“Clumsy Young Lady!”
“…What? Yes!”
“Run! I’ll buy us some time!”
“Run away! That pompous brat can’t touch me alone.”
“But—”
Joy’s eyes waver.
She’s wrestling with fear and her conscience, flooded with uncertainty.
This is why nice people can be such a pain!
If it were Visi, she’d have dashed off before I could even say a word!
“Would you kindly disappear?♡ A useless toy like you is nothing but a nuisance!♡”
After saying that, I refocused on my barrier.
This buff from the pathetic god is pretty darn good, huh?
I’m starting to feel a bit accustomed to this newfound strength.
The problem is, it doesn’t help me close the gap between Naklad and me.
Hey, pathetic god, if you want to help, why don’t you do it properly?
What good is this if it’s all you can do?
As the explosion faded and smoke cleared, I heard footsteps behind me.
Thank you, Joy.
For listening to me.
I was worried you might be the kind of heroine who would rush forward, shouting “Lady Alrn!” while trying to save me.
“That’s downright disrespectful.”
Once the smoke cleared completely, I could hear Naklad’s sharp voice.
“You’re the garbage that serves that pathetic Armadi.”
“Well, isn’t that better than being the apostle of the gloomy piece of trash Tariki?♡ At least I’m not a loser with low self-esteem!♡”
“Damn brat.”
“Aha!♡ Are you mad?♡ That’s cute!♡ Getting genuinely worked up over some playful taunts!♡ That’s a definite fail as an adult!♡”
The moment I wrapped up that sentence, the wall of danger alerts chimed in my ears.
I lifted my shield right as Naklad threw a punch.
There’s no way I could withstand that overwhelming power in my current state.
I gritted my teeth and braced myself, but even that had limits.
My body lifted off the ground.
Bouncing off the floor a few times, I scrambled to get back up when the alarms from the barrier blared once more.
From every direction.
There was no way to tell where to defend!
No matter where I blocked, it wouldn’t be possible to stop them all.
I quickly moved my shield to cover the most optimal angle, but “optimal” doesn’t equal “perfect.”
From the shadows on the ground, spears crafted from darkness shot up to strike me.
Some of them collided with my shield, but too many slipped through!
“Guh! Ugh!”
It hurts.
I can’t even tell where I’m injured because everything just aches everywhere.
All I feel is intense pain.
“Now do you understand your situation?”
As my mind filled with the word “pain,” Naklad’s voice broke through my thoughts, pulling my gaze up to him.
There he was, doing a commendable job masking his emotions.
Hah. What a total jerk.
“Hmm. Haven’t crumbled yet?”
Just as he said that, Naklad flicked his fingers, and something pierced my abdomen.
It burned.
The blood flowing from my stomach felt as hot as lava, as though it might sear me into a pile of black ashes.
I wanted to succumb to the overwhelming pain, but my skills wouldn’t let me.
They clung to me, forcing me to stay conscious.
As I desperately tried to hang on, a rugged hand grabbed my hair and yanked me up.
“Answer me.”
I could see Naklad’s face; I could see my own death reflected in his eyes.
Fear.
Fear surged within me.
That emotion I had long forgotten came pouring down like a torrential rain, threatening to break the dam in my mind.
I wanted to ignore him, but the shade of fear was too dark to erase.
“What answer do you want?”
What should I say?
What kind of reply does he expect?
I couldn’t make sense of him, so I stupidly cracked a smile.
“Ha.”
A ridiculous laugh escaped my lips as a black sphere fell before me.
Ah, crap.
…
A ringing filled my ears.
A piercing sound echoed ceaselessly.
Simultaneously, I could see Grandpa shouting something, but it was all muffled.
Am I dying? Maybe.
How? Who knows.
Probably not a pleasant death, though.
My teeth rattled.
As pain surged down my spine, the feeling of chill settled in.
Every effort to conquer the fear weighed down like torrents against the dam bursting within me.
The metaphorical frog in my throat could only croak out, “I’m done for.”
I’m dying.
I’m going to die.
With all my bones seemingly breaking,
being toyed around like some sadistic plaything,
in the most humiliating way possible.
Maybe it’d be better to just bite my tongue off?
If I’m going to end up as a mere toy for him, I’d rather take matters into my own hands.
“Still alive, huh? You think I’d grant you a peaceful end after you insulted Tariki?”
I heard his chilling voice closing in on me.
Now’s definitely the time to bite my tongue.
“Just stay there; I’ll fetch that girl back over here.”
Girl?
The one who was with me?
Joy.
It’s Joy!
“You’ll know the sin you’ve committed.”
…No, please. Not that.
I can’t let my favorite character die because of my mistake.
No way.
I can’t—
The moment I sunk into resignation, a new thought crept in.
Amidst the fear and pain, the words “no way” echoed through me.
That word slowly inflated and pushed back the surging terror momentarily.
In that instance, sanity crept back into my thoughts.
‘Armadi’s mercy.’
As my body healed, the dam holding back my fear was rebuilt.
Ah, darn it.
That annoying penalty from the Mesugaki skill is the worst!
One traumatizing lesson and bam! I’m drowning in fear in an instant!
It’s tough relying solely on my willpower and overcoming fear.
“Pompous brat!”
I stumbled to my feet and called out his name again.
At that, the being that was turning away paused.
“What? Are you running away out of fear?♡ How pathetic!♡”
I can still hold out.
I’m not backing down.
I’m a tank, after all!
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