Chapter: 398
Since stepping into this world, I’ve been living under countless stares—sometimes so intense, they feel like daggers of hatred.
Maybe it’s because I’ve endured such brutally blunt gazes since my days at the mansion and all through my time at the academy, but I’ve grown attuned to the emotions behind people’s looks.
For instance, right now, the people from the Art Guild are glaring at me with a burning intensity.
Just like that pervy apostle and those creeps I saw on the street not long ago, they’re putting in the effort to embed my image in their minds.
But this old man? He’s different. He tried to mimic the other Art Guild members, but he couldn’t capture the underlying madness that came with it.
Even when I openly insulted him, while others in the guild were tuning in to my words, he was just scowling.
With these two facts, I was certain that this guy wasn’t part of the Art Guild. So, I summoned my divinity and locked it in my eyes.
The new-found divine energy I had after passing the anniversary of the mummy instantly followed my will and revealed the power hidden within the old man.
Within the harmony of the divinity held by the Art Guild members lurked a sinister force.
Well hidden it may be, no one could perceive it, but they certainly couldn’t deceive me.
I’m the apostle of the Lord and the enemy of the Evil God, after all.
Once I recognized his true identity, I suddenly had the urge to have some fun and let a smile creep up on my lips.
It wouldn’t even be a problem to expose that creep’s identity. The pervy apostle wouldn’t doubt my words. It would easily reveal that he serves the Evil God.
But, you know, if things went that way, that idiot would have plenty of time to go on a rampage.
It’s obvious. He’d be like, “Who are you to doubt me?” dragging out all sorts of lousy rumors to whine about how some innocent girl is trying to bully him. He would cause quite a scene until he meets his ugly end.
So, I think I should make him blurt out that he’s a fraud himself. We’ll see him lose his temper and rush at me in rage.
I approached the old man with a composed expression.
“Excuse me, sir. I’d like to ask you something.”
“…What is it?”
The old man, upon seeing my innocent face, appeared confused about why I was approaching him.
“Why are you staring at me with such grotesque eyes when you can’t even stand straight?”
But that was just the beginning. No sooner had I spoken the words than his face turned beet-red.
The fury leaking from his twisted features was enough to make a crowd of kids burst into tears, but unfortunately for him, it didn’t intimidate me in the slightest.
Instead, his anger brought me the thrill and joy that came from my Mesugaki skills.
Yeah, this is it. It needs to be clear that poking at him makes him jump.
Having found a delightful new toy to play with, I couldn’t help but snicker as I continued.
“Are you angry?♡ Want to scold me?♡ Go ahead!♡ I’d like to see what a feeble old man like you could really do, though!♡”
I leaned in, almost inviting him to hit me as I noticed his tightly clenched fist flying toward me.
Though his fist was surprisingly strong, given those crinkly wrinkles, it was still just a pathetic flailing from my perspective.
Honestly, Arthur swinging his fists wildly while begging for a single smack would seem more intimidating.
As I grabbed the old man’s fist with ease, I applied subtle pressure between the knuckles.
He seemed unable to bear the pain of his wrist twisting and dropped to the floor, howling.
“A-Are you that happy that I’m holding your hand?♡ Kneeling down to express gratitude, huh?♡”
“You… brat!…”
“Pffhahaha♡ I know it’s your first time holding hands with a girl, but come on, it’s kind of gross♡ I feel like throwing up♡.”
“Lady Alrn! You should stop this! No matter who you are!…”
Just as the guildmaster shouted, trying to stop me, the follower of the Evil God took off his mask and unleashed his true power.
As the harmony of the Art Guild’s divinity faded, it was replaced by emptiness.
It was an energy that could be anything because it was nothing. Existing merely because there was no existence.
The follower of the Evil God attempted to invade my space with his energy, but that was impossible.
My divinity from the Lord filled the void with light.
Seeing the follower’s expression turn pale as he realized the disparity between us, I couldn’t help but laugh out loud.
“Pathetic~♡ You can’t even control your emotions~♡ Your acting is so flimsy~♡ To be weak enough to be overwhelmed by a small girl~♡ And you’re just a useless cock, can’t even stand straight?♡ Why on earth are you even alive?♡”
“Y-You… Ugh!”
The old man was about to explode with rage, but before he could, my foot connected with his nose.
With a satisfying crack signaling the break of his bones, the old man rolled to the floor and collided against the wall, trembling a few times before passing out.
With the old man’s fainting, the powers hiding his true identity melted away, revealing a man who couldn’t be older than his mid-twenties beneath the old skin.
“…What the hell.”
“What do you mean ‘what the hell’? Your guild’s standards are apparently low if you can’t see through such a pathetic ruse.”
As I shot back at the guildmaster, I hummed happily as I stepped out of the meeting room.
It felt so good to play with such an entertaining toy after a long time. It was incredibly refreshing.
[Lucy.]
‘…What’s going on, grandpa?’
Hearing my grandpa’s unusually stern voice, I stopped my humming and glanced at his mood.
[Do you genuinely not know why you did this? ]
‘Oh, um…’
Did I make a mistake just now? I feel like I moved a bit too emotionally, but in the end, the result was good, wasn’t it?
I managed to prevent the Art Guild from falling into a trap and even discovered the lurking follower of the Evil God. Oh, maybe…
‘Are you talking about getting too close to the follower of the Evil God without caution?’
[I know your strength, so would I worry about that? ]
‘…Um, then what is it? I seriously don’t get it.’
[Aaah.]
At my grandpa’s exasperated sigh, I couldn’t help but flinch. When Kyle and Erin asked if something was wrong, I shook my head and replied it was nothing, heading quickly toward the reception room.
[Do you really think it’s appropriate for a noble young lady to be so loud and brash? ]
‘…Oh, that’s what you mean?’
[Then how could there be a greater misstep than this! ]
‘No, well, have I not blurted out harsh things at the enemy before?’
This wasn’t the first or second time I had insulted my foes to provoke them.
‘It’s not like I can control myself; I just naturally end up saying those things.’
[Where do you think you are fooling me! You forcibly started saying those things midway! ]
‘It was because it would make them furious, you know.’
[This is not a matter to treat so lightly! A girl who hasn’t even been betrothed should not be saying such words! I might permit others, but I won’t allow it! ]
He seemed genuinely serious, and his lecture could go on forever.
Of course, I wasn’t really listening to him. All that noble etiquette stuff was smashed to pieces long before I ever set foot in this world.
With my Mesugaki skills on deck, there was no way I’d be able to recover that status, so what was the point of taking his admonishment seriously?
*
Just as grandpa’s scolding reached its end, the forlorn face of the pervy apostle returned to the meeting room.
It was evident where this sorrow stemmed from: mourning the old man who had lost his skin to the follower of the Evil God.
The pervy apostle made a heavy heartache into a smile and told me what happened after I left the meeting room.
“Thanks to you, Young Lady, things went smoothly. The one who pushed the issue the hardest was the Evil God’s follower.”
With the identity of the follower revealed, the public opinion swayed, and the plans laid out by the Art Guild crumbled.
“In turn, we’ll be tightening our internal regulation now. There could be more infiltrators around.”
After saying this, the pervy apostle looked more sincere than usual and expressed his gratitude.
“I’m truly grateful, Young Lady. If it weren’t for you, we might not even have realized that someone infiltrated our faction. And we wouldn’t have been able to pay our respects to Bishop Yurik.”
As he continued with his head bowed, he asked me if there was anything I wanted in return.
He was eager to repay the favor for being the savior of the guild.
Hearing that, I quickly spoke without much thought.
“First, gather all your pervy expertise and share it with that pathetic Erin. She’s already lacking as it is; I feel so embarrassed just looking at her.”
“Of course, I’d gladly do that for Lady Erin.”
“And just like you did at the end-of-term party, do it again now. Your touch is gross and disgusting, but I’ll tolerate it this once.”
“I’d be honored to do so. I’ll gladly oblige.”
“Lastly, please deliver a message to that stupid old geezer who fell to the Evil God. I’d like to tell him something for being such a pathetic fool.”
The pervy apostle lifted his head abruptly at my last request, meeting my gaze, his eyes reddening and lips tightly pressed together.
“I, Prete, swear on the name of the goddess to ensure your voice reaches Bishop Yurik. I will make sure that the beautiful young lady’s condolences will free his spirit!”
I didn’t respond to the pervy apostle and instead turned away.
Then, from behind my sight, I heard the sound of tears hitting the ground.
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