<609 - Delicious Linked Quest (33)>
The guard position at the Gift Academy, unlike that of an instructor, isn’t very popular.
This is largely due to the terrifying criminals living there, many of whom can cast magic stealthily despite being shackled with control cuffs.
“Senpai. Isn’t the magic we can use as guards far superior to the weak magic they can use while restrained?”
“You only know one side of the story. Weak magic, when cast stealthily, can’t be detected at all.”
“What does that matter?”
“If it’s an attack spell, at least it can be detected. But try to cast a very subtle curse. There are numerous techniques that are so hidden they won’t even trigger a body scan if someone tries.”
“Are they going to secretly escape with a location-detection curse or something?”
“No. They’re casting curses like hair loss, body odor, the curse of becoming unpopular, the curse that attracts bugs, and the curse that repels animals.”
“…”
“What a bunch of pathetic losers.”
After five years of working as a guard, accumulating points for promotion, the new guard felt a chilling fear from the senior guard’s words.
Hair loss, body odor, and being unpopular.
These were all descriptors that pointed to the senior guard.
“So if I spend another five years here, I’ll end up as someone who, like you, is avoided by female guards, and the prisoners will shun me, with nothing but life points to my name?!”
“I may not know what your life will be like in five years, but I can tell how you think of me…”
The senior guard was deeply hurt by the barrage of facts but decided to calm down and console the new recruit, feeling pity for the naive newcomer who had volunteered for this harsh job.
“Working here doesn’t necessarily only rack up points. There’s also the advantage of being able to train every week at the [Special Training Room].”
“I’ve heard the rumors that guards who come out of the Great Prison have become oddly skilled due to some deal with the prisoners… Is the Special Training Room really that effective?”
“Of course. The mechanism of the Special Training Room is designed to drain the strength from the prisoners.”
“Wow! Is that really true?”
“Though you have to compete fiercely in the mana disaster zones in the Student Dormitory Zone, there’s none of that here. You just train at an appropriate level, and your mana will naturally increase.”
“Ooh!”
“That’s not all. To protect their mana, prisoners use their mental power to keep it safe, so if you go in front of a prisoner and hurl insults to distract them, you can gain even more mana that week.”
The new guard finally realized why the senior guards often had such bad tempers toward the prisoners.
So that’s the reasonable justification behind the bullying!
“On the flip side, the prisoners might cast a few curses at you, but what’s the big deal? You can just get stronger and shed those later when you eventually make it to the ground!”
“Your words make sense, Senpai!”
“Now go and try your first practice. Head over to the prisoner room where you felt most uncomfortable as a guard and break that criminal’s mental state to suck out their mana.”
To become a true man, one must graduate from being a virgin; to become a true guard, one must graduate from a friendly relationship with prisoners!
The new recruit embraced their mission for growth and headed towards the room where the Evil Sage Guakjo, known for his malevolent Mana Flow Technique that often led mana circuits astray, was imprisoned.
Just then, a female guard passing by greeted him.
“Hello.”
“Oh, yes. Hello, Senpai.”
“Thanks for your hard work during your shift.”
The new recruit was suddenly overwhelmed with emotion.
There stood a female guard with long hair who didn’t emit any unpleasant odors and didn’t spout dreary comments!
All the goodwill toward the senior guard he’d felt moments ago plummeted into suspicion that perhaps that person was just filthy and contemptible.
‘Oh? But was there a female guard in our level?’
Immediately, the guard pulled out a small manual that should be consulted during work hours.
━━━
[Great Prison Guard Manual]
Hello.
You are about to work as a guard in this Great Prison. This manual contains the rules and guidelines that must be strictly followed for your safety and the stability of our Great Prison.
Be cautious not to violate these guidelines in any situation. Remember, you will not be held accountable for any incidents occurring within the Great Prison if you disregard this manual.
Please adhere strictly to all precautions.
1. Before starting your shift, check all doors to ensure they are locked. If even one door is left ajar, a spirit-turned prisoner could be attempting to escape.
2. If you hear laughter in the hallway, immediately chant an exorcism incantation and protect your inner mental power. This is a scheme by prisoners to drive guards insane and isolate them.
3. Never enter the darkness. Inside the dark, all manner of grotesque beings summoned by the prisoners roam without guards’ knowledge.
4. If you hear someone running around upstairs, do not go to warn them. There may be prisoners attempting to ascend to a higher level by opening the jail door behind you.
5. Do not use radio communication. Prisoners’ Mana Control Techniques surpass yours. All communication carries the risk of eavesdropping, signal hijacking, and voice phishing.
6. If a senior guard asks for points, never agree or send them. All facilities in the Great Prison are free, and only prisoners would request points.
7. Do not recite mana flow techniques taught by prisoners. You risk falling into their power and becoming a puppet forced to obey their commands to restore your realm.
8. All guards on each level know each other’s faces. If a guard other than [Newbie] brought by the Chief Guard appears, try to pass by nonchalantly and send a rescue request. A prisoner who has acquired guard attire has taken down at least one guard and will not be weaker than you…
━━━
No wonder the guard didn’t emit the usual stench and didn’t provoke such unpleasant feelings akin to encountering a monster; their voice was refreshing!
That wasn’t a guard; it was a prisoner who had taken down a guard!
A chill ran down the new recruit’s spine as he brushed his arm, hearing a voice that should never be heard from the adjacent wall.
“Hmm. So there was such a book?”
“What?!”
[Alteration Technique]
[Hide]
With such perfect Mana Control Techniques that the new recruit only thought of her as part of the rock, the gray-skinned girl reached out and snatched the manual from him.
As the realization sunk in that he could not resist even when her hand sliced across his neck, the new recruit froze.
At that moment, a multitude of figures flooded into view alongside the earlier guard.
“Search the guard’s pocket. There should be keys for passing through the doors of each level. Ah, no need to bother with fingers and eyes. We need to authenticate using biomagic for the safety of the guards.”
The Evil Sage Guakjo.
A man dangerous enough to warrant adding a precaution against puppet mastery in the Great Prison Guard Manual appeared alongside the fake guard.
“Oh, that’s fine. I’ve already finished stealing and copying the techniques! So, it looks like this newbie guard has outlived his usefulness. Anyone want him?”
The prisoners shook their heads, terrified to even look at the quaking new guard.
A wolf humanoid with bulging veins in his face, exuding a ferocious demeanor like a beast, slowly glanced at the recruit, truly making him feel like he was about to be killed.
Thinking he had narrowly escaped death, the new recruit realized that all the prisoners were focused on just one man.
His eyes, void of hope, seemed to be gazing into the dark abyss where all of the world’s hope had vanished.
With hair of ominous purple and a face even more unsettling in its lack of expression.
Despite the lack of any will, he commanded the attention of all the prisoners.
“Velocasio, just give the command. He may not be a desired guard, but he is a resource that can be ‘consumed’ if we’ve made up our minds.”
“When in human form, I don’t like human flesh… But, if told to, I could eat it…”
The strong of Level 4, the Evil Sage Guakjo, alongside the Wolf Humanoid Rosinante, with the female guard and the mysterious girl also chiming in.
“What will you do then?”
“If we throw him into the Level 5 sealing door, he will get roasted and become human barbecue! I don’t really keep that sort, but if it’s necessary, you can eat him, Senpai! It could be all flashy like the Demon King’s Army!”
This cruel man doesn’t even hesitate to partake in human flesh, like it’s perfectly normal for him!
Within extreme fear, the new guard felt despair before those expressionless eyes that conveyed no will.
His racing heart could no longer bear the fear and stopped.
*
“No, he’s going to die! Hurry, save him! We need an eyewitness to assure that Velocasio functioned as our leader!”
Amidst the cries from Oknodie, the prisoners blankly stared down at their fallen guard.
“Why would a criminal learn healing spells? Only those beaten up by us during school days would learn that.”
“I learned self-healing to use when being chased.”
“Me too.”
“Me as well.”
“…You guys are really useless.”
Seeing this, Ishtar used the healing spell she learned from Yufi, who was a comrade in the Warrior Party and a Saintess, to revive the guard.
Upon realizing that he would now be resurrected as the witness, the perpetrator of the escape and the great villain, Velocasio felt deep sorrow and regret.
“…!”
As the senior guard secretly followed, worried about sending the newbie alone, he interpreted the new recruit’s emotions with [Emotion Recognition Spell], completely unaware of how there could be such inhuman monsters.
