Chapter: 517
I don’t know much about the fairies that exist in Soul Academy.
Back when players enrolled in the academy, fairies had already become a fantasy.
They don’t appear as either monsters or allies in the game, and even when they pop up in a flashback, they only show limited information. I had practically no information about them.
The most I could gather was that the endings they faced were far from happy.
So when I saw a quest window that mentioned the word “fairy,” my eyes went wide.
If it’s about the fairy’s dream, it must be talking about the fairy forest, right?
Fairies that were buried in darkness long ago and fell into an eternal slumber.
The place where the Fairy Queen I encountered in that hikikomori’s trial lies asleep. A place I couldn’t enter no matter what when this world was still a game. Can I actually go there!?
Am I really going to a dungeon I have no idea about? A new event!
New skills! New NPCs! New dungeons! New monsters and patterns! The resolution of the breadcrumbs I scattered!
Is this how the DLC I could never access from beyond the monitor comes out!?
Filled with excitement, I looked down at the blue window, staring hard at the words while tilting my head.
[Long ago, the Fairy Queen fell into a trap set by the Evil God of Darkness. Heroes tried to rescue her, but after countless sacrifices, they had to concede failure. The wizard, who thought they couldn’t achieve it themselves, sealed the fairy forest into eternal slumber with the bitter failure in their heart. Even now, the fairies are dreaming. Dreaming happy dreams of flying in a green forest with playful smiles. How long will they continue to dream? Is fading away in happy dreams their only remaining conclusion? Is there no way for them to awaken from their dreams?]
[Please share your conclusion.]
[The reward for this quest will change based on your achievements.]
…My conclusion?
What conclusion?
After reading the quest that seemed to be cobbled together with cryptic phrases two times, I furrowed my brows and leaned back.
Isn’t this just asking me to go to the fairy forest and solve the problem?
But why does it sound like it’s telling me to choose for myself?
So far, everything dangerous or disgustingly horrifying was forced upon me, but why are they acting all considerate this time?
In hindsight, there’s really no difference from usual, yet for some reason, I’m getting mad.
It feels like one of those caution graffiti under toys. ‘We are not responsible for whatever happens.’ Those convoluted phrases written in tiny print.
What’s even more annoying is that regardless of whether I like this phrase or not, I have no choice.
A rotten fish starving for new content wouldn’t just leave an unexplored area alone!
Damn it! Shoddy God! You know everything, don’t you!?
You know I have no choice but to go and put the blame on you no matter what happens! That’s what it is!
Trying to release the rising frustration by thumping the bed, Erin, who was dozing off at the head of the bed, slowly lifted her head.
And when she met my gaze, she sprang up, flailing.
“Ah, Young Lady! You’re awake!?”
“Don’t you see?”
“How do you feel? Is there anything strange? Are you thirsty or hungry?”
“Sloppy Erin, does it make sense for a maid to nag her master? Stop acting like a frisky cat and shut up.”
“…I’m sorry.”
Calming Erin down, I closed the blue window and turned on the lights in the room.
It’s still quite early morning, but that doesn’t mean I can sleep. Let’s hear what happened after I collapsed.
“That Young Lady.”
“Meow? Meow meow meow?”
“…Yes?”
“I responded in cat language because the cat kept meowing. Now, cat, answer me.”
“Uh, I, uhm, meow?”
“Pfft. You do that just because I told you to? Our cat is a dog cat?”
“Meow… no. That’s not it. Young Lady, haven’t you grown a bit taller?”
“Hey, dog cat, even you should know there are things you mustn’t touch. It’s true that I’m a nice, kind, and cute girl, but I’m no pushover who’ll tolerate being played with.”
I honestly like Erin, but making fun of my height is something I can’t overlook.
The shoddy pedo god has firmly established himself in the sky, so there’s no way I’d grow taller.
That pedo bastard would be a pervert who’d let himself be stomped by a girl while making absurd noises.
There’s no way he’d allow me to grow taller.
“No, this time your maid is right.”
The sloppy fox that had been napping under the window stretched along with her voice and then jumped down in a single bound.
“Lucy, you’ve grown a bit taller. I, who has been watching you closely, can guarantee it.”
Hearing such a creepy line from the sloppy fox gave me chills, but regardless, I trusted what she said.
A pervert who loves pretty things so much that they’d sell their own soul won’t make a wrong judgment about my appearance.
A bit worried, I suddenly sprang from the bed and stood in front of the dressing table.
‘H-Hey, Grandpa.’
[You’ve grown. About 1 or 2 centimeters, right?]
‘Right?! My eyes aren’t deceiving me, right?! I really grew taller, right?!’
The reflection in the mirror clearly showed that I had indeed grown taller.
Some might say it’s just the difference of one finger’s length, but this change holds special meaning for me.
I thought I’d never be able to grow tall as long as I had the Mesugaki skill.
I thought as long as that shoddy pedo god flaunted his absurdity, I could never grow!
I’ve grown taller!
I got taller!
What is this?
Why did it happen?
Why did my height, which never changed even when my divine level increased and my body underwent transformations, suddenly grow!?
There must be a reason!
Now, with my intelligence rising, pulling me out of the ‘fool’ title, my brain soon presented one answer.
A miracle.
The Miracle of Purification!
That’s what made me grow!
It’s clear! There’s no other factor that could have made me taller!
…Oh? But if I think about it this way, doesn’t it seem a bit strange?
My height not growing is a penalty of the Mesugaki skill.
And I, that is, Lucy, was bestowed the Mesugaki skill by the shoddy god.
The Miracle of Purification ultimately must be the power to dispel the corrupt, so why does it affect the Mesugaki skill?
Is it because it’s a miracle? Is it such an awesome skill that it resolves all penalties, regardless of friend or foe?
But if that’s the case, my way of speaking should change normally too, right?
Why is there no change in my way of speaking?
Is it that with the power I currently possess, I can’t completely lift the penalty of the Mesugaki skill?
…
Ugh. My head hurts.
I can’t grasp the exact mechanism of the skill, so I’m lost.
Yet a few things are certain.
The Miracle of Purification is a means to save me from the Mesugaki skill!
And to achieve perfect salvation, I need to possess more and nobler divine essence than now!
Lastly, I have achievements necessary to raise my divine level!
[How long will the fairies continue to sleep?]
My answer to the question presented by the shoddy god is simple.
The night is over.
Now all that remains is to snatch the blankets from the sleepyheads wrapped in darkness.
Hoo.
Hoo hoo hoo.
Shoddy god. You said you’d grant rewards based on my achievements, right?
Got it. I’ll prepare a magnificent sight for you.
A scenery so amazing that even that pathetic loser Agra would have to admire it.
There won’t be any breaks for a while. There are things I need to prepare. Various procedures to surpass. Many people needed to wrap this up neatly.
There’s plenty to do.
Ah. Of course, I have to tackle the midterms before that, but that’s no problem.
I’ve been studying with Joy all this time, and with my drastically raised intelligence, what’s there to worry about?
Alright! Come at me! Midterms! I’ll show you that I can crush you without the help of Dice God!
*
As the dawn broke while I was drafting plans on paper all night long, I left the room.
I still haven’t finished the ideas, but for now, seeing my friends is more important.
I heard from the sloppy fox, Karl, and Erin that my friends were fine, but I still want to see them for myself to relax.
Most importantly, I have to tell them that I’ve grown a whopping 1.3 centimeters!
Feeling like my uniform, tailored to perfectly fit me, was a bit snug, I chuckled and lifted my chin.
[That little growth shouldn’t mean your clothes don’t fit.]
‘Shut up! What do you know about clothes, old man?! Don’t ruin my mood and just stay quiet!’
[Oh. Did you grow just a bit taller and bring your puberty along, too? ]
Ignoring Grandpa’s nagging, I moved my feet and saw many students gathering in the academy square, chatting away.
What’s this? Why are so many kids gathered here making noise since dawn? It looks like there’s some kind of announcement.
Ugh. Even if I stand on my tiptoes, I can’t see past this tall guy. Why’s this lanky dude getting in my way?
“Hey.”
Putting all my annoyance into my voice, the person standing in front turned to me with a furrowed brow. The moment he met my eyes, he freaked out and stepped back.
“Shoddy Giant.”
“Yes. Yes!”
“Get lost. You stink.”
“Okay! I’ll get lost!”
Lucy’s hidden skill, human intimidation, is still effective.
Walking the naturally cleared path, I arrived at the announcement and took in the new notice posted today.
Hmmm. Maybe it’s because I grew taller, but it’s easier to look up than before.
[Notice Regarding Academic Leave of Absence]
…A leave of absence?
[In light of the recent incident, we feel a great responsibility…]
[We will refurbish the facilities and supplement the staff…]
[The upcoming midterms are postponed to the next semester…]
No. No. Wait a moment. Midterms are postponed?!
Then what about all the studying I’ve done so far!?
What about all the effort I’ve put into studying for one midterm!?
My site has received a lot of DMCA notices, lol. From now on, I will update the MTL on https://darkmtl.com/.
The site is fast and lightweight because there are no ads yet. However, the theme is different from Cybor-TL, so take some time to familiarize yourself.
Support me by donating at least $10, and you'll have the right to request any novel from Novelpia (excluding 19+ content) using a newly developed tool.