<342 - The Child Who Knows the Correct Answer>
On my way out of the Upper Class Mana Enhancement lecture, a thought suddenly crossed my mind.
How has the training of the Mana Flow Technique Manual for Maids, which I obtained to pass on to Titosso, been going?
I definitely asked Reap to assist with it.
Since the second class on Thursdays is free, should I go check on how it’s going?
I sneaked a visit to the Group Training Ground, borrowed in Reap’s name, and requested a permit to enter. The door opened without a moment’s wait.
Seeing the door open so promptly, it seemed Reap had set things up in advance.
As expected, our maid knows how to get things done.
However, what I saw inside the training ground made me doubt my eyes.
“Heeeng ing ing. This position is too hard!”
“Stop whining. As a maid, you should be able to handle this movement with ease.”
Reap’s strict training and Titosso’s heeing cries were exactly as expected.
“Don’t drop the bucket. You must develop a sense of balance so precise that even the slightest tremor of a teacup is not allowed, for only then can you master the Mana’s Constant Flow.”
“Can’t I just live as a cleaning maid?”
“April, you are still far from the standards of a cleaning maid.”
“Bark bark! They say I’m lacking! I’m lacking!”
“…Why is that silly beast, Happy, training with us?”
“You just didn’t know; Happy is another tail looking after the foundation’s beast students.”
“That dumb Happy!?”
“Grrr. Happy’s not dumb!”
It was somewhat expected to see Spy Maid April and Beast Maid Happy rolling around diligently.
“Please tell me what I can correct.”
The unexpected figure was Chapter Boss Hestia, a remarkably large berserker, who was among the trainees mastering the Mana Flow Technique Manual for Maids.
“There’s nothing to nitpick. Time is the best remedy, so don’t rush; if you continue to train steadily like this, you will see results.”
The scene of her, with arms thicker than Titosso’s waist, learning the Maid’s Mana Flow Technique was quite bizarre, but Hestia looked serious about it.
Seeing her with sweat beading on her chin, soaking the floor during training was even more bewildering.
“Reap! Since when has Hestia been here?”
“She came voluntarily from the first training session.”
Hestia hadn’t yet mastered the Mana Flow Technique. It wasn’t surprising that she was coveting such techniques.
Wasn’t she the one who came to the academy hoping to grasp opportunities that the Empire and Border Region would not grant?
“Oknodie, do you think it would burden me if I learned the technique alongside Titosso?”
“Not at all! I was just surprised. If it’s Hestia, you could certainly learn other techniques as well.”
Just as Sing uses methods that sacrifice life span to increase damage output by leaving safety behind, Hestia’s method, which actively utilizes the characteristics of a berserker, was also popular.
The Mana Flow Technique for berserkers that can activate simultaneously with the technique when HP or mental power drops below a certain ratio.
This dangerous technique, which deliberately inflicts damage by inducing a false state to initiate the action incorrectly each time, cannot even be started unless one’s body is sufficiently strong.
‘Bladiburst is the perfect technique for Hestia!’
Those who previously learned other mana techniques and increased their physique would get goosebumps from this unconventional operation and wouldn’t be able to follow through with their actions.
Even if someone hadn’t learned other techniques, they wouldn’t be able to withstand the induced false state without training their body to extremes, causing their actions to stop halfway through.
Only berserkers like Hestia, who truly trained their body to the limit yet had no connection to the Mana Flow techniques, could engage in the Bladiburst technique.
“If you want Hestia, I could teach you another technique. What do you think?”
“If I master that technique, its power would surely be even greater?”
“Of course!”
“It’s likely to have even more potential than the Maid’s Mana Flow Technique.”
“That must be the case, right? The entry difficulty is on a completely different level.”
“Then for that technique, I’d need to keep my body in large, sturdy shape, right?”
“To achieve a height of 2m30cm in the future, this technique must be mastered!”
“Then it’s unnecessary.”
Today, there are too many NPCs surprising people.
“I’ve had enough of body training. Building muscle and making my body strong. Once I experienced being alone, I realized—this isn’t the strength I want.”
“Then what kind of strength does Hestia desire?”
“You.”
“Me?”
“A body that can save everyone with the smallest height. A body that allows everyone to survive together, not just alone. That’s the body I want to cultivate.”
Such blissful words.
I’d much rather become a body like Hestia’s!
Growing from 133cm to 230cm is much harder than growing from 190cm to 230cm.
But if she doesn’t want it, she doesn’t want it.
I resolved to respect Hestia’s wishes.
“The Maid’s Mana Flow Technique emphasizes appearance, so the existing bulked-up muscles must be repeatedly compressed to achieve a slim physique.”
“Just as I had hoped.”
“Titosso is originally small, so her time spent in compression will be short, but Hestia, on the other hand, will take quite a long time to compress due to her larger size.”
“As for patience, I’ve done that my whole life. Just having a method is enough for me.”
“Then, while we’re at it, let’s also have Hestia train with Sing!”
“Thank you.”
I thought Hestia would be too busy due to her personal training, so I left her alone until now, but if I had known she would be this happy, I should have taken better care of her sooner.
“Then, let’s meet for lunch after class on the weekend!”
“Lunch? I could see you from breakfast.”
“I have classes on the weekend too!”
Hestia’s face turned pale.
“Wait a moment. Now that I think of it, Oknodie has thirteen lectures… How on earth do you plan to find the time?”
“When there are no lectures and no assignments?”
“That’s impossible! If you’re planning to skip assignments to help me out, then please don’t overdo it!”
Honestly, it’s not a problem.
I’ve already completed all the fixed assignment answer sheets I could prepare in advance!
*
“I need help, my lord.”
A bald man dressed like a monk.
That was basically how Myung So seemed to Professor Bronze.
Professors from the Border Region rarely interacted, but Professor Bronze stood out among them.
So, it was odd to hear a help request from Myung So.
“I knew you were digging around behind Primer, but it seems things aren’t going well. You found all the quirky professors rejected by other professors.”
“It’s related to Oknodie.”
“You know she’s my disciple, right? Don’t mess around with other people’s disciples.”
In the face of doubtful eyes that seemed to question whether he was envious of this child’s talent, Myung So strongly denied such a notion.
“I teach the illegal ways without forcing them upon others, saying only to apply it to my own life, so I have no intention to meddle unnecessarily.”
“It doesn’t seem like you have ill intentions. Then what does our loyal and pious Eastern Priest want?”
“There were professors showing signs of malice regarding access to information about Oknodie. Professor Sadako. And Professor Destroyer.”
“It’s only natural to be sensitive when protecting a student you have your eye on. I don’t believe my teachings are inferior, so I allow it.”
“Your attitude shows a different degree from that, Bronze Professor. I sensed something secret that shouldn’t have been known.”
It’s unusual to interfere in another professor’s private matters, but I couldn’t ignore this matter related to my marked rogue disciple.
[Mana Barrier]
After casting a barrier to block external noise, Professor Bronze returned to an upright posture from his cocked-back sitting position, crossing his legs.
“Is it related to following Primer, a first-year student?”
“I suspect collusion with the Foundation.”
“…You realize how absurd that sounds at this moment, right?”
“I presume you’ve heard the news that the rebel professor Raeb was assassinated after trying to kill Oknodie with the Foundation’s backing.”
“I’ve heard something that a gossipy blacksmith spilled.”
“That first-year student, Primer, has been revealed to be mediating the recruitment of Professor Raeb.”
Myung So had been instructed by the principal to keep watch over Oknodie for an extended time or investigate information related to her.
He was more than capable.
His reliability for information is very high.
“I also suspect Professors Sadako and Destroyer, who saved Oknodie from the curse.”
“Are they professors tied to the foundation, taking on difficult tasks to hide Oknodie’s secrets?”
“The Foundation has never been this overt, but they aren’t even trying to hide their activities surrounding Oknodie.”
The suppressed dark emotions rippled in Myung So’s deeply entangled eyes.
It wasn’t difficult for Professor Bronze, called the greatest of his time, to get a glimpse of his real feelings.
“Yet, you’re looking for even more convincing proof.”
“I found Oknodie’s unreasonable class attendance. If the professors are assisting in that, the thirteen courses she’s enrolled in, plus her overly relaxed behavior and perfect assignments, all make sense.”
“Is what we should uncover the assignments?”
“Please secretly infiltrate Oknodie’s room and determine the situation. Check for any evidence that assignment answer sheets have been passed along or used.”
It was unappealing for Professor Bronze to see a rogue’s disciple swayed by the Foundation as well.
“One hour should be enough.”
Without further ado, Professor Bronze infiltrated Oknodie’s personal dorm room.
And what he found was an answering sheet packed with correct answers for the second semester assignments that hadn’t even been assigned yet.
