Chapter: 138
Is having more people in a battle an advantage?
We could go on forever nitpicking this, but generally speaking, this proposition is true.
Having more people in a battle tends to be advantageous in most cases.
Just look at games, right? The harder the boss is to face, the more people join the raid for a reason.
And that’s exactly the case now. I have a ridiculous spec for a first-year student at the academy, you know?
I think I could take down about two parties by myself. In fact, during practical training, I easily crushed one party.
But I can’t handle all these people surrounding me alone.
If I trust the Word of the Fox, they number close to a hundred.
Hahaha. Seeing all these people gathered just to take me down is insane. I must’ve racked up quite the karma. It’s daunting to think about.
But, well, thanks to my Mesugaki Skill, I might look unfazed on the outside.
Suppressing the tension in my heart, I scan those here to raid me.
Instead of hiding, I boldly lift my head, causing confusion to spread across the students’ faces.
They seem to think I have some sort of trap prepared.
Not like the old Lucy Allen who wouldn’t know better, but the current me is a capable and nasty girl. There’s no way I’m unprepared for this.
To be honest, besides asking Phoebe to cast wall magic to buy time if they charge recklessly through that open space, I’m not really prepared at all!
Just as I’m enjoying watching the scene, Arthur finally makes his appearance.
It’s about time.
To be honest, if we were fighting head-on, I wouldn’t stand a chance against them.
If Benedict were here, he’d knock them all away with one punch. Even if it were Karl right here, he’d be handling them with ease, but I’m still not there yet.
If I were in my second year, things would be different, but I haven’t even finished my first semester.
I could hold out for a bit, but eventually, I’d be overwhelmed by numbers and defeated.
Even if my party were here, that outcome wouldn’t change. I might manage to hold out longer, but the end would still be defeat.
So why am I not running away? Am I seriously thinking of getting a reality check from these guys for all the karma I’ve racked up?
Of course not. I don’t plan on getting schooled by those idiots at all.
Do you know how much it sucks when all sorts of negative thoughts invade my mind when I’m getting schooled?
Unfortunately, unlike the Sloppy Fox, I’m not a masochist wanting to go through that hell.
So why I’m here is simple: to defeat this hundred-strong crowd. To seize the loot they have.
“Ah.”
The voice I casually let out resonates throughout the open space. It’s a bit louder than I thought, but not bad.
Joy really is talented with magic. It’s just that she messes up big time whenever something important comes up.
What if I hadn’t been heard just now? Then I would have had to rely solely on my volume.
“Hello ♡ Are you all here to bully a small girl with your pervy, lustful ways? ♡”
The moment I uttered those words, the gazes of those surrounding me turned toward me.
Their expressions were mostly disbelief. It was only natural. What I had just said wasn’t quite fitting for the situation.
“Aren’t you ashamed? ♡ Gathering like this because you’re scared of a small, cute girl? ♡ Didn’t you want to run away crying to mommy? ♡ Huh? ♡ Cowardly perverts? ♡”
However, it didn’t take long for anger to simmer amidst that disbelief.
Even Karl, a knight from the Allen Family, couldn’t withstand my Mesugaki Skill provocation.
How could the academy students, who haven’t even fully matured yet, endure it?
Gnash. Gripping sounds from the hands holding weapons. Cursing. Frowns deepening. And the ecstasy rising inside me.
Today, the Mesugaki Skill was doing its job perfectly.
“The Pitiful Prince is no different ♡ Gathering people because he lacks confidence in his party ♡ Have you forgotten the word honor? ♡ Though, I guess a foolish prince who loses to a Foolish Young Lady wouldn’t know such things ♡”
“Shut it! Lucy Allen! His Highness Arthur has gathered us to punish your misdeeds!”
Another guy, trying to instigate Arthur into losing his composure, took the bait.
I don’t know his name, but judging by his fiery gaze, he must be a noble supporting the royal family. The type who values honor. Easy to toy with.
“Misdeeds? ♡ What wrong have I done, you Shoddy Trash? ♡”
“Everyone knows what you did during this practical training, how can you deny it?”
“Ah~ ♡ That? ♡ Why is that my fault? ♡ Isn’t it the fault of you weak maggots? ♡”
As I spoke, I could see anger spreading among the crowd.
Normally, this situation would be controlled by Arthur or the other party leaders, but even they seemed too flustered by my words to notice what was happening around them.
While the fuse to the bomb burns, none are aware.
It’s going exactly as planned.
“Isn’t that right? ♡ If you lot weren’t a bunch of Shoddy Trash, you wouldn’t even be getting wrecked by a small girl ♡ No problem at all, right? ♡”
“That’s!…”
“Ah~ ♡ You didn’t want to admit you’re trash ♡ Feeling sorry? ♡ Wanting to win at least by cheating, but I’m ruining that for you? ♡ Shouldn’t have been born a Shoddy Trash in the first place ♡”
“Lucy!!! I’ll kill you!”
As soon as I finished my line and smirked, someone mad with rage shot forward.
That face is one I remember. A girl who always picked fights with me ever since I crushed her during the academy entrance exam.
What was her name again? I think I called her something like Shoddy Young Lady or Trash Young Lady? Something along those lines.
Anyway, thanks. Extra-chan. You’re the starting point for my plan’s completion.
You see, people tend to fear starting things. But once someone steps up and takes action, it’s easy for others to follow.
Just like how when the light turns red, if someone walks beside, it’s natural to follow them.
Look now. As soon as you, the extra, stepped forward, other academy students started charging too, didn’t they?
Arthur, who belatedly came to his senses, raised his voice, but it holds no significance.
If that was the plan, he should’ve cleaned things up before the bomb exploded. Trying to stop it after it’s gone off is pointless, right?
“Upset? ♡ Are you upset? ♡ Hahaha ♡ Watching you run is just like cockroaches skittering around ♡ Disgusting ♡”
Is having more people in a battle a good thing? As I mentioned earlier, in most cases, it is.
But, changing it a little, there are times when it’s not.
And this is one such instance.
In a situation where soldiers who should follow commands lose control and move as they please, having many people becomes a disaster in the bad sense.
Forward units focused solely on the enemy, neglecting the fact their comrades might fall.
The rear units, unconcerned about the front units getting caught up, prepare their attacks.
Those who should coordinate are lost among the waves of the front.
Even those tasked with controlling the chaos are engulfed in their own rage.
It’s barely begun, yet many have become incapacitated, thanks to their own comrades instead of me.
Do you see it now?
They are not a collective.
How can a disorganized, uncontrolled group be called a collective?
They are just individuals united by the single desire to give me a reality check.
It’s all going according to plan.
If my opponent gathers a collective to target me, I’ll just think of utilizing that against them, and the strategist advice from Grandpa completes this plan.
Now the key is to buy time. Until the chaos that started now becomes completely unmanageable.
And that’s the one thing I excel at.
No matter what anyone says, I’m a tank.
“DIE!”
The extra, who lit the fuse of this situation, charges at me fastest with her sword drawn.
Hey, extra. While we aren’t close, you’ve picked plenty of fights with me before, right?
I’ve said it before, but you easily get caught up in your emotions, which makes your moves predictable.
Even without the Iron Wall Skill, I can tell how to counter your sword.
As I moved my shield, I effortlessly block the extra’s attack, feeling the shock significantly lessen.
Parry activated.
Her sword isn’t hard to counter at all.
If my Parry Skill activates and reduces the impact more, I can easily move as if her sword never even touched me.
I step forward with my shield, approaching the extra and grabbing her by the collar, lifting her up.
She wriggles and resists, but there’s no way she can escape my grip.
The gap of power between us is just too huge.
What’s it like to dangle from a smaller girl’s grip?
The extra deserves to be thrown back to where she came from.
After watching her fly through the air, I clenched and then relaxed my hand.
Definitely feeling lighter than usual.
Is it that activating my Mesugaki Skill angered nearly a hundred people gives me this buff?
In this state, I might even be able to land a hit on Karl.
This means I can’t bring out my mace today.
If I swing it wrong, I’d probably send someone to the grave.
Sure, if it’s a regular injury, Phoebe or the professor will heal them, but if they head straight to the Shoddy God in one hit, that’s impossible, right?
I still don’t want to kill anyone.
So today, let’s go with just my shield and bare hands.
Looking down at my hands, I lifted my head and noticed the crowd surrounding me hesitating.
Seems they’ve come to their senses after seeing the extra fly like a plane.
That won’t do. You guys need to stir up more chaos.
“What’s up? ♡ You cowards? ♡ Scared to rush in? ♡ But why aren’t you running away? ♡ Did you pee yourselves? ♡ Hahaha ♡ Such a coward! ♡ You should hurry back and ask mommy for milky! ♡”
Come on, bring it on.
I’m here to play with you, who are so much weaker than me.
Consider it an honor.
Shoddy Trash.
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