Conquering the Academy with Just a Sashimi Knife (Novel) - Chapter 120 - People of the Sword Saint Family (3)

Chapter 120 – People of the Sword Saint Family (3)

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Translated by Jinmu

Read only at Novelbyu.com & Utoon.net

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It was one of those cases where the line between calling it lucky and not calling it lucky was hard to define.

Our foremost values were clearly different. Abel sought the bodies of her missing parents, while I sought to secure mana stones.

Our intentions were different, but our goal was the same. That was enough.

‘The Undead Dungeon.’

Toward that shared destination, I actively sided with Abel.

At that attitude, she first made a blank expression and then nodded.

Even after we finished our meal, we talked for quite a long time. The substance of the conversation was mainly schedule adjustment and the exchange of information.

Abel pulled her chair right up close beside mine. The distance between us was about a handspan.

“It was very close, but Abel paid it no mind and kept explaining. She pulled up a map on her smartphone.”

‘The Undead Dungeon is located right on the border between Switzerland and France. Normally the ownership issue would make this a headache, but this place isn’t popular. There shouldn’t be any procedural problem.’

Whenever an important point came up, Abel tapped the screen with her fingernail.

It seemed she had prepared for quite a long time, because markers had been planted all over the GPS app.

“And because it’s such a deserted dungeon, there isn’t even a separate checkpoint officer there. But we still have to make sure to write down the names of the minimum three people required for entry in the register before going in. Otherwise it violates international hero law.”

The clean explanation, trimmed down to only the essentials, struck my ears clearly and sharply. I found myself impressed.

I was not originally from this world. That means my common sense and knowledge were shallow.

So when I make any kind of plan, I look into materials through various media. But simply skimming things with my eyes had an obvious limit in terms of gathering information.

That was also the reason I had wanted to take on dungeons together with the club members.

To put it frankly, I had relied on the club members for knowledge in general.

I was good at turning my head quickly in crafty ways, but putting things into my head in the first place still felt unfamiliar.

‘To be honest, without them, trying to tackle the Undead Dungeon would have been seriously awkward.’

On the surface, it was a lowest-rank D-class dungeon. But inside it, an S-class demonic beast of the highest rank was sealed.

And it was Draugr, said to be one of the most troublesome monsters to deal with. I had come up with countermeasures, but the path to carrying them out had been blocked.

Yet Abel had grasped it all this thoroughly. Thanks to this unexpected stroke of luck, I could already see the dungeon攻略 going smoothly.

‘Did you understand everything I explained?’

When I fell briefly into thought, Abel asked as if checking.

‘Yeah, more or less. You really prepared a lot all on your own.’

‘…Yeah.’

An embarrassed answer came back. Only then did Abel seem to realize she had pressed in too closely, and her face reddened.

Academy life had already reached about the four-month mark.

At this point, the cliché should have been her failing to hide her embarrassment any longer and abruptly putting some distance between us-

‘Hup.’

-but Abel merely swallowed a small breath. Clearing her throat, she actually narrowed the distance even more. A faint fruity scent brushed the tip of my nose.

‘Pay attention. This is the important part from here on. To begin with, I looked into the procedures, the geography, and the inside of the dungeon little by little……’

After smoothing her hair back, Abel continued her explanation. Between a few strands I could see her cheeks glowing pink.

‘She’s taking this incredibly seriously.’

“That was only natural. It concerned her family.”

Enough that something like us being pressed this close could be lightly ignored. The redness in her cheeks was probably just because she felt warm.

Abel shifted only her eyes and glanced at me.

‘If there’s anything you’re curious about, ask. Shail will come pick us up in only about thirty minutes now. Once we go back to the castle, there won’t be any time for the two of us to talk again until the day we leave.’

‘Couldn’t we just talk through messages for the extra stuff?’

‘…What, you didn’t know? Castle Sigurdr was outside the communication range. It’s a dead zone.’

Ah, right. Their house was in a mountain valley in the Alps.

There was hardly anyone who would contact me, so I hadn’t noticed.

When I looked at her with a bit of pity, one corner of Abel’s mouth twitched. Then she immediately protested.

“Geom-ma, you just thought it was because our house is in the mountains, didn’t you! It’s not for the reason you’re thinking, it’s because of the security around Nibelung territory!”

Did all the women in this world come with telepathy as a passive skill?

Media was like that, and so was Ryozo, and now Abel too.

The moment any thought crossed my mind, they seemed to drag it right out.

If that kind of ability really existed, it would be incredibly creepy.

…Then again, if it did, they would have realized long ago that my existence itself was out of place. It was a secret no one had ever shared, one that only I alone held.

That someone might exist who knew I was not of this world… it was an unexpected hypothesis. If such a person did exist, what kind of effect would that have on me?

If they were an ally, that would be nice, but if they were an enemy, things would become troublesome.

‘Well, there’s no way that would happen.’

I laughed inwardly for a moment, then opened my mouth.

‘It sounds like you’ve already looked into the route and all that. But isn’t the most important issue the remaining party member? It’s just you and me. We’re short one person.’

‘Eh? Why are we short one person?’

With a face that clearly said, What were you talking about, Abel asked back.

‘Shail’s here.’

‘Huh?’

‘Shail is also a graduate of Hoakin Academy. On top of that, she’s an Association-affiliated Senior hero.’

“…What kind of nonsense was that?”

* * *

On the drive back to Castle Sigurdr, we were climbing the steep slope. Perhaps because she was tired, Abel fell asleep in the back seat almost as soon as she got into the car.

‘Well, she did explain everything so passionately. It makes sense she’d be tired.’

I sat in the passenger seat so Abel could sleep comfortably. Then I pulled hard on my seatbelt to make sure it was doing its job properly.

For the next thirty minutes, this strap was more or less my lifeline.

“Vroooooom.”

* * *

At Castle Sigurdr, after the three young people had departed.

Only the Sword Emperor and Charon remained standing blankly before the fortress.

Watching the rear of the vehicle disappear from sight in an instant, the Sword Emperor quietly murmured.

“Shail’s driving is still rough as ever.”

Charon covered his forehead and replied.

‘…When she returns, I’ll give her a stern talking-to.’

The Sword Emperor shook his head and laughed heartily.

“Leave it be. There haven’t been any accidents thus far, have there? And Shail’s driving does save us time.”

‘If that’s what you say…….’

‘Anyway, enough of that part.’

The Sword Emperor’s laughter stopped. He looked at Charon with calm eyes.

‘The children have gone, so we adults ought to roll up our sleeves too. You’ve made the preparations, haven’t you, Charon?’

Charon shifted his gaze away slightly.

‘The preparations have at least been made.’

‘Then let us depart at once.’

‘…Sword Emperor.’

‘What is it?’

Feeling the difficulty of it, Charon opened his mouth with effort.

“Even so, I think this is all rather too sudden. To visit the Association so abruptly……”

‘The fact that the Spear Saint barged in amounts to an invitation to me. So naturally, I should answer it, shouldn’t I?’

‘Even so, there is a high chance the Association side will take such a visit poorly at this point in time.’

At that worry filled with concern, the Sword Emperor merely tilted his head slightly.

‘You know as well as I do. In this world, one must repay in kind what one receives.’

‘This could turn into open violence if matters go badly.’

The Sword Emperor’s thick brows rose in a figure-eight shape, and then he cut the concern down sharply.

‘They’ve begun investigating Kang Geom-ma. As his guardian, I had a duty to send them a warning.’

‘……’

‘This isn’t about doing what pleases us. Anything that could become an obstacle to Kang Geom-ma was something we adults should deal with for him. That boy was still far too young. The reach of his own hands was still limited.’

The Sword Emperor’s voice was cold as ice.

Charon knew very well that there was no turning back such a resolute attitude. Once the Sword Emperor had set his mind on something, he had never once let it soften.

Before long, Charon let out a sigh and nodded.

‘Understood.’

‘Don’t worry. If it’s you and me going, what concern should there be over a mere quarrel?’

‘…It has already been more than twenty years since I stepped away from the field myself.’

‘Hahaha, now then, when a man who reached the Warrior rank at twenty-five says such a thing, it doesn’t even sound like a joke.’

“At that, the sunlight gleamed off Charon’s spectacles.”

‘Even now, when I hear your epithet, it makes the hairs stand on end.’

The Sword Emperor added with a lift of his lips.

‘Charon the Rakshasa.’

‘……’

‘It seems I’ll be relying on your support again after a long time.’

Shail gripped the wheel tightly. Fixing her sharp eyes on the road ahead, she stomped on the accelerator.

Ahead of us appeared a corner that looked bent almost 270 degrees.

The corner of Shail’s mouth twitched, and then she spun the steering wheel around with one hand.

My pupils followed the wheel, spinning like a vortex too. My life and death were in this maid’s hands, damn it.

Whiiirl.

Violent but experienced handling. With a satisfied smile, Shail pushed the speed even higher.

“Watching the whole thing unfold before me, a groan slipped out of my mouth on its own.”

“That reckless-driving maid is a Senior hero?”

Within the world of `Miracle’s Blessing M,` there existed the Association, the organization that governs heroes.

Under the banner of more efficient management, the Association classified heroes.

Put simply, it was a division system similar to a tier system from some famous game.

There was just one difference: only three categories existed.

From the bottom upward, they were `Junior,` `Senior,` and `Warrior.`

The Association itself evaluated each hero’s performance and estimated a score.

Of course, academy cadets were excluded from that. Supposedly because a cadet’s true role was study. This world really did protect human rights in oddly specific corners.

‘That may not be entirely bad, actually.’

“For reference, while the actual score itself is confidential, which category a given hero belongs to is made public. It is called Hero Points, shortened to `HP.`”

“If you hear `HP,` you probably think immediately of a green health bar. But in truth, the world of Miracle’s Blessing M had no separate `Health Point` stat at all.”

Well, even for me, someone dropped into this world, the concept of a `health bar` didn’t really feel all that tangible.

If anything, if health bars and potions really existed, I would have welcomed them.

“But the world of Miracle’s Blessing M is a merciless reality to me.”

“When arms and legs can fly off if things go wrong, and people are constantly ending up in hospital, what else is there to say?”

“Looking back on it, it really is kind of ridiculous……”

“The most basic stat systems are missing.”

“Not just health, but mana, experience points, and even levels are absent from this mobile game……”

“Of course, plenty of gamers were captivated by that distinction, but many people also said it was inconvenient.”

Because in a gaming landscape where numbers were taken for granted, only a ridiculously plain interface floats there by itself.

And yet, in that game that caused so much argument, something roughly equivalent to a rating system did exist: `Hero Points.` It was a strange world where alienness and familiarity coexist.

Anyway.

Roughly speaking, Bronze through Platinum would be `Junior,` Diamond and Master would be `Senior,` and Grandmaster and above would be `Warrior.`

The difference in the number of members in each tier was also enormous.

Ninety percent of heroes belonged to Junior, and the remaining top ten percent were divided eight to two between Senior and Warrior.

This was the point.

That beautiful maid driving recklessly beside me.

The shocking thing was that Shail was part of the top ten percent of heroes.

“I had thought she was an unusual maid, sure……”

“But to think she was a Senior hero, and not only that, a graduate of Hoakin Academy, cradle of the next generation of heroes.”

Only then did I understand why public safety and guarding were included among Shail’s duties. There probably wasn’t any better security system than her.

‘Mr. Geom-ma, did you have something to say?’

“Without taking her eyes off the windshield, Shail asked.”

Even so, she seemed to have noticed my gaze.

I chose my words for a moment. The hesitation was brief.

In the end, I would have to go to the Undead Dungeon with Shail.

“And given her standing, she would likely be the one in the role of leader for Abel and me.”

“At this point, my mind leaned toward speaking frankly.”

‘I heard from Abel earlier. She said you’ll be accompanying us to the `Undead Dungeon` too, Ms. Shail……’

‘Yes, my skills are lacking, but I will do my utmost not to become a burden to Miss or Mr. Geom-ma.’

When modesty went too far, it started sounding like a joke.

To hear someone at the level of a Senior hero, effectively at least instructor-class or above, say, `I hope not to hold you back.` Anyone hearing it would find that absurd.

‘To be honest, it is I who am sincerely grateful to you, Mr. Geom-ma.’

‘…Pardon?’

Shail looked toward Abel reflected in the rear-view mirror. Abel slept soundly, breathing softly. A gentle smile touched Shail’s lips at the sight.

‘Before entering the academy, Miss Abel was always lonely. There was no one in Nibelung territory her age besides me, and with her personality, she wasn’t the type to actively build friendships with others either.’

“I was a little surprised.”

Shail, who normally only knocked and then vanished without a sound, was speaking fluently now. Her voice and pronunciation were as clear as an announcer’s.

“I don’t know whether Miss Abel told you, but I graduated from Hoakin Academy.”

Shail turned the wheel half a rotation with one hand. With that skillful movement, the scenery beyond the window flipped like film strips.

“The reason I was able to attend the academy, and the reason I’m still alive even now, are both thanks to Nibelung.”

“Shail’s honest story continued. Her expression was calm, but the content itself was anything but dry.”

“Ten years ago, I was taken in by Miss Abel’s parents, who are now no longer with us. Before that, I was in a center, or rather, an orphanage.”

‘I see……’

“At my reaction, Shail let out a soft laugh.”

As if trying to lighten the air that had started to grow heavy.

“Who in this world lives without some sort of story? I was one of the lucky ones. There are so many crooked nobles out there, and yet I ended up employed by House Nibelung.”

“It was the sort of statement that made sense. In a noble society filled with trash, there probably weren’t many houses as upright as Nibelung.”

“And beyond that, I can only remain grateful to Miss Abel’s family, who saw potential in a mere maid like me and let me enter the academy.”

“You’re amazing too, Ms. Shail. To be Senior-class at twenty-one… you must have had talent.”

‘I owe too much to Nibelung. The only way I could repay them was by simply working hard. I cannot say I had no talent, but in front of Mr. Geom-ma, I would probably only seem ordinary.’

“Inside the car racing at two hundred kilometers per hour, there was a quiet trace of regret in Shail’s tone. The contrast created a tremendous sense of dissonance.”

“In any case, even my accompanying you into the dungeon was entirely my own request.”

“You asked to come, Ms. Shail?”

Shail nodded.

“It concerns finding the parents of the young lady who gave value to my life. In fact, I was the one who said something to Miss Abel first.”

“Ah.”

Shail turned her head slightly toward me. A fine crescent hung at the corners of her eyes. It was the smile of an older woman.

“So this is what an adult is……?”

“I cleared my throat and changed the subject.”

“That aside, what exactly did you mean when you said you were grateful to me?”

‘…Mmn.’

Suddenly, a sound of Abel stirring in her sleep came from the back.

At that, Shail smiled faintly and then moved only her lips as she spoke.

“I was a special advancement student too. Maybe that’s why, every time I see an article about Mr. Geom-ma giving someone a proper lesson these days, it feels so satisfying.”

“…Ah.”

“That said-”

“Then her gaze came to rest on me. The fact that she was looking away from the road while driving at such a terrifying speed sent a scream all the way up to the tip of my throat.”

Shail quietly giggled, then opened her mouth with practiced shamelessness.

“-don’t you think a tracksuit is a little too much for a date outfit? Miss Abel must have been pretty angry~”

‘……’

“I almost said something, then thought better of it. Because this biker-gang maid was the one holding the wheel.”

“Before long, the silhouette of Castle Sigurdr appeared beyond the front windshield. Then came another brilliant snap of Shail’s gear change.”

“Vroooooom.”