Chapter 337

Chapter 337

The students shook their heads as if it were a truly pitiful situation.

A moment later, Demona, who had barely regained her senses, spoke with a tearful face.

“You can’t fine me! I was trying to submit this instead of that gold coin in the first place!”

Only then did Demona pull out the items she had taken from the tent.

“How dare you bring this kind of trash!!!! Do you want to get fined even more!”

Timothy grew even more furious.

“T-then, I will go home and bring you another one!”

Demona blurted out anything she could, determined to avoid such an absurd fine.

She was already receiving plenty of sensible fines, so she had to at least do this much!

“Then I guess it can’t be helped.”

“Huh?”

─ ???

But no one expected that to actually work.

Timothy grumbled and continued.

“Hmm, when do you plan to go? Actually, I can just send a designated request this week. Let’s visit your family together.”

“Huh?”

Demona tilted her head blankly.

Why was the conversation suddenly going in this direction?

Either way, Timothy seemed to have already finalized all the plans.

─ Heek, having to go back to her family with the professor.

─ Poor Wicronon…

The students sniffled, looking at Demona standing with an expression as if she had lost her family.

Roan spoke to Demona.

“Still, you won’t have to enter Professor Uli’s warehouse this week.”

“That’s true, but…”

Demona spoke with a slightly anxious face, as if something was bothering her.

“The day before I was kidnapped to the school, my parents told me, ‘Never bring any professor home under any circumstances.’ Did they somehow predict this?”

“…I don’t think so.”

Even for Wicronon, the family of sages, if they could predict something like this, they would be prophets rather than sages.

“Phew, what a relief.”

When Roan shook his head, Demona let out a sigh of relief.

‘I don’t think that’s something to be relieved about though.’

Isn’t it true that she was going with a professor anyway?

Roan couldn’t bring himself to say this much.

But then, a question suddenly popped up in his mind.

‘Did this girl not even know she was going to enroll, even after hearing that the day before?’

At that rate, it was more accurate to say she was gritting her teeth and pretending not to know.

In a way, it was extremely characteristic of Demona.

Roan let out a deep sigh without realizing it.

“More importantly, Assistant Joy! It doesn’t matter what happens here, come with me. I hear a ruin was excavated near the school!”

“Ah, yes, Professor.”

─ Uh, Assistant, what about us?

The students who hadn’t submitted their pop quizzes yet asked Joy, who was preparing to leave at any moment.

Joy thought for a moment and spoke.

“Everyone, please take out the items you brought.”

As the students rustled to take out their items, Joy glanced over them and eventually nodded.

“Yes, it is finished. I will record it. If you ask about your scores next class, I will answer.”

─ What?

“Well then, excuse me.”

Swoooosh—!!!

Joy immediately spread the Wings of Kezir and flew up into the sky.

Although she did not stand out much, including her student days, Joy was an assistant who had rolled and tumbled under Timothy for over ten years.

She possessed the skill to grasp the nature of items brought by freshmen at a single glance.

In any case, only the freshmen were now left behind in the empty clearing.

“What do we do now, Roan?”

Since there was still plenty of class time left, Rafia asked.

Roan replied nonchalantly.

“It’s not like this is our first or second class. It’s over, so let’s head down now.”

“Ah, right…”

Thinking about it, it really wasn’t a big deal.

* * *

“Then have a good class, guys~”

“Yeah, Rafia, do your best!”

“Best…!”

“Hmm? Riel, what are you going to do until ten o’clock?”

“No…”

The friends, who had spent their remaining time stopping by the commercial district to buy necessary items, waved goodbye and split up.

When Roan, Sion, and Demona said they had to leave early because they had to attend Diar’s class,

Rafia and Riel also said they would go to the training ground early to practice, and

“Hmph! In order for me to become a master of Sacred Combat strategy, I should also start moving early!”

Hector had also made such a claim while snorting.

Sion spoke with a deeply regretful expression.

“Uh… I don’t think you need to do that, Hector.”

No matter how she thought about it, it seemed difficult to make significant progress in Sacred Combat strategy merely by going to class a bit earlier.

Unless he were to enter some cave and read tactical manuals for ten years.

However, Hector greatly misunderstood Sion’s words.

“Uhahaha! As expected, you think so too, Sion?!”

“Huh? What?”

Since Hector was so delighted, Sion tilted her head, wondering if she had said something wrong.

Roan corrected her misunderstanding.

“It’s just that he’s stupid.”

“Ah, right? …No, I don’t mean that Hector is stupid…”

Sion nodded nonchalantly but quickly denied it upon realizing she had spoken words unbecoming of a saintess candidate.

Hector, who was just grinning, asked suspiciously.

“What is it? Didn’t you mean that I can become a master of strategy without even having to work hard?”

His expression was so serious that Sion hesitated over how to answer without hurting him.

“I mean, you… um… even if you work hard, won’t you be a bit lacking—no, of course you’re already wonderful…”

However, no matter hard Sion tried, the words ‘Hector is wonderful at strategy’ would not come out.

A saintess candidate had to refrain from hurting others, but she absolutely could not tell a lie!

In any case, by that point, Hector, who was finally able to grasp the meaning of Sion’s words, flushed.

“You are really too much! Is it okay for a saintess candidate to be so inconsiderate of others?”

“I-I’m sorry.”

Sion lowered her head when Hector protested in earnest.

At that moment, Demona, who was watching from the side, shrugged and spoke.

“Sion is really something. Why beat around the bush and make someone feel bad when you can just say he’s stupid?”

“Stupid Demona, what are you talking about?!”

Sion shrieked at Demona, who seemed to not understand the situation at all.

Yet Hector actually nodded in agreement.

“Yeah, you can just say it shortly. If you beat around the bush, the listener feels bad instead.”

“……?”

Sion turned to Hector with a dumbfounded expression.

‘T-that was the problem?’

Logically, shouldn’t he be angry about being ignored in the first place?

Sion spoke as if testing the waters, just in case.

“Sacred Combat talentless Hector…?”

“Hmph! It makes me feel bad, but I can tolerate it. A misunderstanding is something you just have to correct.”

“???”

Sion was truly astonished.

These guys were truly the ultimate idiots!

Regardless, Demona and Hector nodded to each other and spoke.

“Tsk, to think the day would come when my heart is understood by a heretic.”

“Tell me about it, fanatic. I don’t want to be like this either, but Sion is just so frustrating~”

As the two shrugged and shook their heads at the same time, Sion now became extremely heated.

Seeing that, Demona delivered the finishing blow to Sion.

“Look, you would also be fine with me calling you ‘stupid Sion’ now, but you would get angry if I called you ‘unqualified saintess candidate Sion who beats people with a club, fires off punitive holy magic like it’s nothing, and has no hesitation in swearing,’ right?”

“That…”

Sion nodded without realizing it.

Hearing it, being called just stupid Sion was much simpler and made her feel better.

Stare─

Then, she suddenly locked eyes with Roan, who was staring at her.

In Roan’s eyes, very complex emotions could be glimpsed.

Pathetic, sad, contemptuous, disappointed, dumbfounded, and so on…

‘Those two are completely different things in the first place!’

Only then did Sion realize her state and took the appropriate action a saintess candidate should.

“You, this dummy Demona…! Priest’s Switch!”

“Ack! See, look! You’re getting angry!”

“You went too far this time, heretic.”

“Shut up, Hector! You’re bad too, Priest’s Switch!”

“Geh! It stings!”

Originally, if anyone made such dismissive remarks to a saintess candidate, whether it was the former or the latter, they would have no right to complain even if they had a limb severed (?) instead of just receiving punitive holy magic!

Sion even brandished the staff she had received from Harden, firing off the Priest’s Switch indiscriminately.

‘I need to learn the next level of holy magic quickly!’

Sion was burning with academic passion for punitive holy magic, which she had never thought of in her life.

Roan watched the three of them with an awkward expression.

‘I don’t know where to start pointing things out.’

First of all, it was absurd that Demona and Hector, despite being repeatedly struck by the Priest’s Switch—which was strictly a punitive holy magic—only ended up saying “it stings,” but

Sion’s resistance to using punitive holy magic had dropped much more than he had expected.

Of course, since the reason was what it was, there would be extenuating circumstances, but it would still be quite annoying if she got caught.

‘I’ve invested so much insurance in her, she can’t fail to even become a saintess!’

Roan thought so and called Sion.

“Sion.”

“Priest’s— Yes, y-yes?”

Sion, startled, canceled the holy magic and looked back at Roan.

“Phew, saved by Roan.”

“As expected of Roan~”

Only then did Demona and Hector let out sighs of relief, rubbing the areas that throbbed from being beaten by the punitive holy magic.

…To say it again, even if the Priest’s Switch was simple, it was an amazing feat to stand perfectly fine after being beaten like that.

It seemed they were pouring all of their talents into resistance against punishment and curses.

Roan looked at the two with a contemptuous gaze and spoke.

“If you hang out with stupid people, you become stupid too.”

“Ah…”

As the old saying goes, ‘He who touches pitch shall be defiled,’ or ‘One should not go where the crows gather!’

Sion nodded like someone who had attained a great realization and calmed her excitement.

‘As expected, since we share a room…!’

Roan had spent a lot of time hanging out with the two, so he was someone she had a lot to learn from.

Of course, if Roan had heard that, he would have snapped, ‘Who said I hung out with you?’

In any case, Roan turned around and spoke.

“If you understand, let’s head to class.”

“Ah, yes!”

Sion immediately gathered Noeul-ie and Pallangi and walked right behind Roan.

Watching that, Demona nodded with Hector in satisfaction.

“Look at that. As expected of Roan~ He knows our minds perfectly!”

“Indeed. If someone just calls you stupid like that, there’s no reason to feel bad.”

Hearing those words, Bel clicked his tongue.

[Master, is that right?]

‘I told you, if you hang out with stupid people, you become stupid too.’

[Ah!]

Truly, it was a law of nature that truth is easy to know but hard to practice!

Meanwhile, Demona, who had been watching Roan and Sion walk away, realized late and shouted.

“Ah! I take the next class with Roan! Roan~ Wait for me~”

“Tsk tsk, you weakling. You can just find the classroom yourself.”

Demona, who was about to run, grew angry at Hector’s idle remark.

“How can I find it! Gacius? Cormorant? Anyway, it’s a building that’s barely used, so I don’t even know the classroom number!”

“It’s Cassius Hall…”

Furthermore, even Hector, who had never even been to Cassius Hall, knew the name of the building.

But already Demona was running, stomping her feet in pursuit of Roan.

Watching her back, Hector shrugged and shook his head.

“What an idiot. I’m really worried about who would ever take her. Isn’t that right, Eongeongi, Silsil-ie.”

Eong-eong-eong— Drip, drip—

Upon hearing their master’s words, the divine and spiritual beasts shed what they could with all their heart!

Hector nodded with a satisfied expression and stroked the two.

“There, there, I know your hearts completely.”

Eong-eong-eong-eong—!!!

…For some reason, Eongeongi’s bloody tears seemed to have increased.

In any case, Hector also began to move his feet in order to become a master of Sacred Combat strategy (?).