Chapter: 67
As usual, after finishing my early morning training, I was on my way back to the dorm to wash up.
I noticed a crowd gathered around the bulletin board.
Could it be the new announcement for today?
I turned around and headed toward the spot.
“Excuse me?”
“Move, you noobs.”
The people were very accommodating.
As I caught their attention, they quickly parted to let me through.
You know, if they weren’t making faces like they just spotted a cockroach, I might have thought it was kind of nice.
Having grown used to this kind of treatment, I weaved through the crowd to check the announcement.
[Announcement Regarding the Soul Academy Dungeon for the Semester]
Just as I thought.
The Soul Academy holds a dungeon every semester.
It’s a made-up dungeon created by the academy, and it has roughly 100 floors.
The layout is your typical labyrinth-style dungeon.
Every ten floors, there’s a boss, and the difficulty increases the lower you go.
Each level has different themes, so proper preparation is essential.
However, what sets this dungeon apart from the others is its emergency escape feature.
If someone enters a crisis in the dungeon, the magic within recognizes them and will whisk them away to safety.
That way, students at the academy can tackle the dungeon without any real danger.
Originally, this feature should have triggered during the entrance exam’s dungeon too, but thanks to that meddling Agrra, things turned chaotic.
Being a Soul Academy student doesn’t mean you have to raid this dungeon.
However, fishing through the dungeon offers appropriate rewards based on how many floors you clear, so it’s better to dive in.
Especially for the first three parties that fully conquer the dungeon, there are special rewards.
When playing the game Soul Academy, the most vital thing was to be among those top three parties.
Whether or not you received those rewards would change your future comfort level.
For the rewards in the first semester, it might be okay to forfeit this time, but other rewards were absolute musts.
Of course, I have no intention of passing on the first semester’s rewards.
The pride of the rotten Soul Academy won’t let me miss out on that!
As I read through the academy’s announcement, I stumbled upon something interesting, worried that the reality might differ in some way.
Who knew I’d come across this line in the first announcement?
There was no way I would’ve seen something like this right after enrolling—because I couldn’t have that curse from Agrra.
“Regarding the incident during the entrance exam: Collaborating with the Church of the Lord, we ensured the Evil God couldn’t intervene. Additionally, through thorough monitoring, we prevented any… accidents…”
This sounds credible enough.
When Agrra gets involved in the academy dungeon, this kind of statement pops up, and thereafter, Agrra doesn’t show up again.
So, if I wanted items I could farm thanks to Agrra’s curse, I had to venture into outside dungeons.
Although there are exceptions…
For the time being, I can focus on traversing the academy’s dungeon without worry.
Is the rest just the same stuff?
Nope! There’s something different… Huh?
‘This time, new students can’t enter the dungeon unless they are in a party of four including returning students or professors. If a professor accompanies them, they ensure safety but won’t aid in the dungeon clearing, so please keep this in mind.’
What? Hold on a sec!
If you’re not in a party of four, you can’t get in the dungeon?
Why?!
Curious, I looked down, and the reason was written below.
The announcement was lengthy, but to summarize:
They claimed to take utmost precautions, but there’s room for variables or accidents.
Returning students who are accustomed to dungeon raiding can cope, but new students are different.
Many haven’t tackled anything other than the entrance exam dungeon, making them ill-equipped to handle this.
Thus, this measure was implemented to ensure their safety.
No. This doesn’t make sense!
A party of four?
I get the idea they’re going for, but isn’t this overkill?!
For safety, a party of two should be enough!
With this rule, people like me, who are already loners, won’t even get to enter the dungeon!
Why the over-the-top reaction?
The game didn’t do anything like this!
They never insisted on a party of four unless heading out for outside dungeons!
What’s the difference, huh?!
Is it because there was an incident in the entrance exam dungeon?!
Ugh, damn it. I don’t even know.
I’ve got to clear the dungeon for that reward, but how should I go about it?
Alright, even if Professor Karl tags along, what about the remaining two?
Where am I supposed to find people who are willing to join me in the dungeon?
“Four people?… That’s a problem.”
Ah, wait! There’s one person.
Someone who’s managed to alienate herself from the rest of the world.
Following along was Frey, who had been reading the announcement beside me, frowning and pouting her lips.
Should I take her?
Sigh. I can’t believe I’m at a point where I have to consider bringing along this troublemaker.
If I have to make that choice, I may as well just enter solo.
But wait! I can’t go in by myself? Damn it!
What’s even worse is that even if I take Frey with me, I’d still be left with one person short.
The rewards for the first semester dungeon raid aren’t improved, so it wouldn’t be a big deal to skip this.
But…
“Lucy Alrn.”
Who is it now? I feel like my head’s about to explode!
If you’re about to mess with me, I’ll take that frustration out on you.
Just as I turned my head, I met a pair of icy blue eyes looking down at me.
“Arthur.”
“Poor Prince.”
I accidentally called out his name due to the surprise of running into him after intentionally avoiding him since the entrance fiasco.
And like clockwork, my Mesugaki skills kicked in flawlessly.
If I slack off even just a little, I really would regret it.
“…A week has passed, and your filthy mouth hasn’t changed at all. Well, you’ve lived your whole life that way, so I guess there’s no hope.”
Arthur smirked at the mention of “Poor Prince,” raising one corner of his mouth as if to taunt me.
I might not see his affinity gauge, but I could still sense it.
I’m pretty sure it’s in the negative range.
“Blasphemous Lucy Alrn. I have a proposal for you.”
‘…What’s that?’
“What do you want?”
“Normally, I would punish you for your blasphemy, but this is the academy, is it not? I am a prince, but not really. You are a lady, but not in the usual sense.”
Arthur dramatically spread his arms, drawing the attention of those nearby.
The temperature of the gazes was strikingly different; soft and warm towards Arthur, and piercingly cold and heavy towards me.
Hundreds of eyes felt like they might crush me with their weight.
If it weren’t for my Mesugaki skills forcing me to hold my ground, I might have crumpled.
[Should I call it creepy or clever?]
‘What are you talking about?’
[That guy is deliberately creating this atmosphere.]
He knows very well that people are looking at him kindly and eyeing me with disdain.
So, he deliberately chose this crowded area to speak to me.
[His intentions are all too obvious; he’s trying to pressure you into accepting whatever proposal he’s got.]
‘…What is he trying to say?’
[I doubt it’s anything positive.]
I already figured that out.
There’s no way Arthur, who probably despises me, is going to offer something good.
“So I have a proposal. Will you listen?”
‘Sure, shoot.’
“I do have two ears, Poor Prince.”
He’d set up the entire scene, complete with a threatening undertone, dripping with faux consideration.
Arthur arched an eyebrow at my snark and continued slowly.
“You are exceptional enough to crush me while calling me pity. Some might say a genius has emerged.”
What in the world is he on about?
A genius?
I’ve never heard anything like that before!
I might have overheard someone mumbling about a troublesome young lady.
[He’s just trying to butter you up.]
‘Why?’
[So he can bring you crashing down later.]
“That got me fired up. I don’t have the same ability as you, but I grew up hearing I’m a genius too.”
Arthur paused dramatically, as if signaling that it was a moment for everyone to focus.
“Shall we make a bet?”
‘A bet?’
“A bet?”
“Indeed. A bet of who can delve deeper into the dungeon in a day.
If you win, I shall gladly forgive your blasphemy. I’m quite magnanimous, you see. Even if you lose, you have nothing to lose. You only have to bear the sin of blasphemy. How about that? A proposal with no downside.”
[Refuse that.]
As soon as he finished, the old man shouted harshly.
[On the surface, it sounds like he’s offering you a chance at forgiveness. But that’s not how it is. This is a plan just to humiliate you legally.]
Usually, someone who proposed something like this wouldn’t do it unless they were pretty sure they’d win.
They’d go to any lengths to get the win, making me lose face.
The old man expressed that merely considering his proposal was pointless.
[The most malicious aspect is that nothing is clearly laid out.]
If I win, I get forgiveness, but what does that even mean?
Arthur will only pretend to be magnanimous while still harboring resentment—and my reputation won’t change one bit!
Then what if I lose?
What will I have to deal with?
In simple terms, it was a blank contract drawn up for his benefit alone.
[With public sentiment as is, if you reject him, they’ll label you a coward or a scaredy-cat. But who cares? Where could you possibly fall from here?]
I mean, I know Arthur could plot something outlandishly degrading, but I’m confident I’ll win against him. Still, there’s no reason to accept an offer stacked against me.
Reputation?
It’s already in the gutter; there was nowhere lower to fall!
As I began to open my mouth to refuse the proposal, a message popped up in front of me:
Ding
[Challenge from Arthur.]
[Arthur has challenged you! Win this battle!]
[Reward: Special Ticket from Stophe.]
Sadi, you pathetic deity.
You’re watching me right now, aren’t you?
And you want me to accept this challenge.
Isn’t that right?
If your goal was to tempt me, you did hit the nail on the head.
An item that could instantly boost the troublesome young lady’s favorability!
I’d usually have to endure a ridiculously annoying quest just to get that doozy!
And you’re offering me a free opportunity to pick it up?
Hah, damn you.
What is your true intention?
Are you looking at something I can’t see, like some divine observer?
Or are you really just a pathetic perverted god who wants to see me humiliated?
While I usually wouldn’t put it past you, considering your typical behavior…
Whatever.
I know I can beat anything a game NPC can throw at me.
“Alright…”
“Fine by me, Poor Prince. I accept your proposal.”
[Are you crazy?!]
As I nodded my agreement, the old man yelled out frantically while Arthur grinned widely.
“Looks like someone’s feeling confident?”
‘Of course.’
“Of course! I can’t possibly lose to you, Poor Prince!”
You may also like Mesugaki Tank Enters The Academy
