Chapter: 59
The spear wielded by the third-year senior is fast.
He’s someone who has passed countless training sessions, exams, and dungeons.
He’s bound to have more practical experience than me.
His physical specs are also impressive.
Even if this guy is below average among the third-year NPCs, how can my specs, having just reincarnated six months ago and only just arrived at the academy, compare to a senior who has trained for years?
So, this is a matchup I should originally lose.
In a normal situation, at least.
But I have the power to turn this situation upside down.
First of all, there’s the existence of my Iron Wall skill.
No matter how fast the third-year senior swings his spear, my Iron Wall reacts faster than whatever he’s aiming for.
So, the senior’s attacks are just something I need to deal with.
[Slowly. Don’t get ahead of yourself.]
Next, there’s Grandpa’s presence.
If the Iron Wall thickens my defense, Grandpa makes up for my lack of combat experience.
Having fought in countless battlefields and grueling fights, there’s no battlefield unknown to him.
He’s like a navigation system guiding me on the road to victory.
And most importantly,
“Dizzy Senior♡ You’re so outclassed♡ Do you think you can hurt me with that pathetic spear?♡”
“Shut up!”
“Ahaha. After three years at the academy, you can’t even take down a newbie?♡ You’re just so lame♡”
“Will you be quiet?!”
I can manipulate my opponent’s emotions at will.
At first, I didn’t understand what it meant to shake my enemy’s feelings during our fight.
But after sparring with Possell, Karl, and various knights from the Alrn family, I realized that shaking someone up has deeper implications than just taunting.
Just look at this third-year senior.
At first, he attacked me steadily, but now he’s become emotional.
He can’t hide his intentions.
He now values hurting me over weighing the pros and cons.
He doesn’t even think about reading my intentions.
That’s because he fell victim to my Mesugaki skill’s taunt.
This is an incredibly effective debuff!
A debuff that has him consumed by his own emotions, unaware that he’s being influenced by a strange power!
Moreover, when my opponent gets angrier, my stats increase as well.
When it comes to performance, the Mesugaki skill is indeed a cheat skill!
But it stings to think I have to pay for it with my speech and reputation!
I blocked the spear aimed at me with my shield and gauged the distance between me and the third-year senior.
No matter how many steps I take, I can only close the gap by two at most.
That’s enough to decrease the distance.
According to what I learned from Grandpa, the spear-user should feel a sense of danger at this range.
However, the third-year senior shows no signs of awareness.
He’s lost his composure.
[It’s time to bare my fangs.]
Grandpa liked to compare Holy Knights to crocodiles.
He would say that a crocodile waits beneath the water for a chance, and when it spots an opening, it launches in for the kill.
At first, I thought it was a lame metaphor from a legendary knight, but I realized it’s quite fitting.
That’s how Holy Knights fight.
[Now!]
As the third-year senior thrusts his spear at me again, Grandpa shouted.
Without a moment’s doubt, I moved my body in response to his words.
I was sure that Grandpa wouldn’t make a mistake here.
The senior, caught off guard by my sudden approach, tries to pull back, but it’s already too late.
In this very moment, the spear-user’s opportunity has vanished.
Now, it’s my turn.
I raise my mace and bring it down with all my might.
This motion feels natural to me now.
It’s my ultimate move, acknowledged by even Grandpa as flawless.
Crushing heads.
The third-year senior shut his eyes tight, expecting the worst.
However, the worst conclusion he anticipated didn’t come true.
I halted my hand at the last moment.
As he carefully opened his eyes, the third-year senior saw my mace hovering right before him, and his legs buckled as he collapsed.
‘Good job!’
“Ahaha. Dizzy Senior, you were so confident, and this is all you’ve got? So lame.”
Seeing my forced chuckle due to the Mesugaki skill, the third-year senior’s face turned a lovely shade of red.
Sorry about that!
But once the underdog build was discovered in Soul Academy, your fate was sealed!
If you wanted to complain, you should’ve gotten stronger!
No matter what, I would’ve found a way to conquer you anyway!
[Quest Clear!]
[Rewards will be given!]
I tightened my fist upon seeing the message window that popped up in front of me.
The skill called Underdog gives me a fixed damage bonus of 5% when fighting enemies that are 20 levels above me.
In typical situations, it’s hard to utilize, and it becomes entirely useless in the later stages, but this skill is essential.
Even for the tricks I plan to use in the future.
If I hadn’t acquired this, that would’ve been a real downer.
Especially since I hadn’t received most quests I was supposed to get during the academy entrance ceremony.
The most painful of which was the quest called ‘Student’s Worry.’
At first, when I received it cluelessly, it seemed like a trivial side quest, but if you dig deep, the rewards are fantastic.
I definitely should have gotten that.
Sigh. Maybe I’ll try talking to someone about that next time.
“You’re really strong!”
As soon as I put away my shield and mace, Frey rushed over to me.
“Aren’t you lacking fights? Let’s go again right away.”
‘No, thanks.’
“Hey, you lame-o. You’re a chicken, repeating yourself again?”
“Uh.”
“Great job today, Young Lady.”
“You too, Alrn Young Lady.”
After somewhat shoving Frey away, Joy and Karl approached me.
When did these two start hanging around?
Well, I guess Karl’s a bit of a stalker, so it makes sense he came to see me, but what’s Joy’s reason?
‘Thank you. But…’
“It was nothing. But forgetting our lame friend aside, what brings you here, Clumsy Young Lady?”
“I came to talk about something.”
Joy’s expression is serious. She must have some words about the Third Prince.
Ugh. This is awkward. It’s not something I can just refuse, either.
How can I change someone’s nickname once they’ve been given one?
“Can you spare a moment?”
‘I’m sorry, but…’
“Clumsy Young Lady, do I look that free?”
“Are you busy?”
‘Yes!’
“Of course, I don’t have the luxury to lounge around like you, Clumsy Young Lady.”
“Lounge? I specifically came here because of you.”
I can roughly guess what’s behind Joy’s knitted brows.
She’s trying to persuade me for the sake of the Third Prince, who might get hurt because of me, and also for me, who would be hated by him.
Even if she looks like a villainess, she is a good person at heart, after all.
I just wish the demerits of the Mesugaki skill were a bit less painful.
‘I don’t need help.’
“Help? Clumsy Young Lady? From me? Hahaha.”
Her obvious sneer made her expression grow colder.
Ugh. Sorry, Joy.
But can you understand that I have no choice in this?
I can’t change my reputation with the criteria I have for nicknames, can I?
“…Do as you please.”
Watching Joy turn her back and walk away, I sighed internally.
Will I ever be able to raise my affection level to 70?
No matter how I think about it, I only see a future where I die a miserable death after spending half a year at Soul Academy.
[Living as a loner isn’t that bad sometimes…]
‘Grandpa. You’re so noisy.’
Do you not know that pretending to comfort someone is worse than saying nothing?
Shut up, Grandpa. Before I stuff you in the academy’s restroom.
Sigh. Well, what good will it do to keep being gloomy?
I should focus on what I can do right now.
‘Karl…’
“Hey, lame-o. You’re done working, right?”
“Yes? Yes, for now.”
‘Follow me.’
“Follow? I have work to do.”
*
Today’s final plan requires the sun to have set.
I need to venture into an area of Soul Academy that only opens at night to find an item.
“Lady. The academy is closing soon.”
As I talked about my plan to head outside the academy, Karl restrained me.
‘I know.’
“Lame-o. Do you think I wouldn’t know that?”
“But how do you plan to get out?”
Soul Academy closes its gates after 8 PM.
After that, no one except certain professors can go in or out.
However, there’s a gimmick that allows you to escape and roam around the night at Soul Academy.
Originally, this secret passageway would only be discovered around the latter half of the second year, but if you memorize its position, it can be used even since the first year.
‘Karl. Follow me.’
“Lame-o. Follow me.”
I led Karl toward a corner of the Soul Academy’s garden.
And I walked towards a wall made of plants, blocking the path.
Normally there’d be branches or walls to secure it, but this path is different.
It was designed that way from the start, so aside from the plants sticking out, there’s no reason to be blocked.
With my eyes closed, I walked forward, and the massive wall surrounding the Soul Academy revealed itself.
“Lady. Isn’t this a dead end?”
‘Nope.’
“Lame-o. Are you going to keep talking back?”
“Sorry about that.”
This looks just like an ordinary wall, but there’s a hidden gimmick.
As I ran my palm along the bricks of the academy’s wall, I found a loose brick unlike the others and pressed it down hard.
With a creaking sound, a passageway appeared.
“This is…”
‘Didn’t I say there was a way?’
“Are you still doubting my words?”
“Uh, no. Is this another revelation from Armedi?”
‘Exactly.’
“Think what you want.”
Every time I unleash something wondrous with my knowledge of the game, the reputation of the pathetic pervert god grows, and that irks me so much.
While it’s a suitable excuse, crediting it to an inept god seems absolutely unfair.
If only he had been a god who actually helped me, I would have happily given credit.
I mumbled that internally as I stepped into the passage.
Once outside the academy, I touched somewhere on the wall, and the passage vanished from sight again.
“How curious. I never knew there was something like this at the academy.”
I suppose so.
This gimmick is long forgotten as the academy’s history has stretched on.
I won’t get into detail, or it’ll just get annoying.
“So, Lady. Where are you planning to go?”
‘To Alsetin’s tavern.’
“Alsetin’s tavern.”
“I know the one you’re talking about, the one where gamblers gather in back alleys.”
‘That’s right.’
“That’s exactly it.”
“Lady! You shouldn’t gamble!”
As I nodded, Karl panicked.
He said he’s seen many lives ruined by gambling, causing me to let out a deep sigh.
‘Karl. I’m not going there to gamble.’
“Hey, lame-o. Do I look like someone who would be dumb enough to do that?”
Am I insane enough to gamble there?
If I started gambling with a bunch of scammers, I’d end up being fleeced of everything I had.
There’s no way a veteran like me at Soul Academy would pull a stunt like that.
“Then why?”
‘I’m going to meet the owner.’
“I need to meet the lame-o running that place.”
A black market dealer named Alsetin.
I need to procure an item from him for the sake of my affection level.
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