chapter_0191

Mesugaki Tank Enters the Academy –
191

Mesugaki Tank Enters the Academy –
191

As Johan looked on in awe of
Armadi’s power, the warmth that filled the cavern suddenly
vanished.

With the warmth gone and the
light that dispelled the darkness scattering, the cavern was
enveloped in darkness.

Shortly after, the sound of
something collapsing was heard.

“Lucy!”

It was Benedict’s shout.

Johan, opening his eyes amidst
his confusion, saw Benedict catching Lucy, who was about to fall to
the ground.

“Bishop Johan! Is this a
time to just stand there and watch?”

“…Ah! I’m coming right
now!”

Johan hastily ran over to them
and began to use up the remaining divine energy within him to perform
magic.

‘She must be a child beloved
by Armadi.

A child chosen by the god who
had been silent for such a long time.

The one who had just displayed
a miracle before my very eyes cannot fall here!’

He had travelled through many
troubled regions in the past, offering his service.

Thus, he was more proficient
in this kind of diagnosis and healing work than anyone else.

Johan was soon able to
complete his diagnosis of Lucy Allen.

After wiping away the cold
sweat following the use of his divine magic, the first thing he said
was a sigh of relief.

“She’s fine. She just
overexerted herself and is exhausted. There is nothing wrong with her
body.”

“Really?! If something
were to happen to my daughter!”

“Her condition right now
matters to me as well. Sir Benedict.”

Benedict, who had been raising
his voice in concern for Lucy, closed his mouth when he met Johan’s
eyes.

Though his face was aged and
full of wrinkles, his eyes were stronger and more resolute.

His unwavering gaze,
undeterred even in the face of the formidable Benedict, conveyed his
firm will.

“I cannot be sure how
long it will take for her to regain her strength. After all, Lady
Lucy performed a miracle she was not meant to, nor should have been
able to. However, she will undoubtedly wake up before long.”

“…I will trust your
word.”

As Benedict took a step back,
silence once again settled in the cavern.

But it did not last long.

The Count used his magic to
create flames that brightened the cavern.

“Both of you. Talking is
all well and good, but haven’t you forgotten something important?”

“Hmm?”

“Are you referring to
us?”

As the two, puzzled, looked at
each other, the Count placed a large ball of thread before them.

Seeing the thread protected by
magic, both Benedict and Johan gasped simultaneously.

“How are you doing?”

Karia, asked by an old
colleague, awkwardly shrugged with a wry smile.

“Just so-so. Neither good
nor bad.”

Though Karia had been saved
from the Evil God’s curse after long years of sleep, she herself felt
little emotion.

It was understandable, given
that her consciousness had been submerged deep within her body,
overtaken by the Evil God.

She had hazy memories of the
times when she fought for control against the curse, but that was
about it.

To Karia, the long years she
had been missing felt like a fleeting dream that passed in a single
night.

If there was anything left in
Karia’s memory, it would be just one thing.

‘Light.

Such a bright light.

A light that was warm and
cosy, reminiscent of the sun from childhood memories.

And the image of a beautiful
and cute girl holding it high.

The back of a child who stood
tall, even in the face of great evil.’

“Karia?”

Lost in those scenes, Karia
snapped back to reality at her colleague’s call.

“No, I’m fine, Benedict.”

Had her sleep been too long?

The unyielding knight who
moved with her on the frontline had become an old man.

He barely aged at all in his
youth so she wondered if he could age any further.

Apparently, he could.

Wrinkles had increased, grey
hairs had begun to sprout here and there, and there were many scars.

While he still retained his
former self, time had clearly taken its toll.

“But how about you? From
what I see, you don’t look to be in good shape.”

Though Karia had lost most of
her original strength during her release from the curse, her keen eye
remained the same.

“Me?”

“Shall I point them out
one by one?”

“Go ahead, give it a
try.”

Benedict, who was wearing a
suit that seemed about to burst from his muscles, pretended to be
fine, but it wasn’t enough to fool Karia.

This was Karia’s area of
expertise.

“Burn marks under the
clothes. You, who never thought to wear gloves because they were
annoying, are now wearing them. The slight furrow of the brow when
sitting, likely due to pain, shoulders tensed slightly…

“Stop. Your sharp eyes
haven’t changed at all, even after a long sleep.”

Benedict spoke with a chuckle,
but then frowned as if something was wrong.

“Overexerted yourself?”

“I had a chance to show
my daughter her Papa at his best. It’s been a while since I gave it
my all.”

Benedict, laughing heartily
even while admitting there wasn’t a spot on his body that didn’t
ache from overdoing it after being stuck in his territory for so
long, eventually shrugged his shoulders in pain.

“Your daughter, is she
the one who used to cause so much trouble before?”

“Yes.”

“How is she now? Has she
grown up a bit?”

“She’s changed
drastically over the past year. Though, the changes have made this
Papa nervous in a different way every day.”

“How has she changed?”

“Do you really want to
know?”

Karia nodded without much
thought.

She wanted to hear how the
girl, who had caused so many problems that even the kingdom’s
guardian knight had complained about the challenges of raising her,
had changed.

However, she soon regretted
her decision.

“First of all, let me
tell you how amazing my daughter is.”

How she received the blessing
of God.

How she took the top spot in
the Soul Academy Entrance Exam.

How she defeated countless
geniuses there and was considered the kingdom’s future strongest.

How the child, who once
worried about making friends, now had many people close to her.

Up to this point, it was fine.

After all, the once daunting
knight had turned into a doting father.

Since Karia had similar
experiences, she gazed at him fondly.

But the problem came next.

“And just recently, she
started calling me Papa again! Papa! How sweet and precious that
sounds!”

He went on and on about how
cute and lovable his daughter was and how well she treated him. It
was unbearable.

‘I don’t know if I should
say this, but honestly, it was a bit disgusting.

Lucy. It’s a wonder you didn’t
turn out worse.

You must have disliked having
such a foolish father.’

“Oh dear, did I go
overboard?”

“You already said
everything, you idiot.”

“Ha ha. My apologies. We
should get going since people are waiting for us.”

“Wait, before that. I
have one thing to ask.”

“Hmm?”

Karia then brought up the
image of the girl who held up the sun.

Was it simply a vision she had
seen? If what she saw with her own eyes was indeed real, who was that
girl? Could she meet her?

Benedict, who had been
listening attentively to everything Karia had held back until now,
raised the corners of his mouth and stood up.

“Don’t worry. You’ll meet
her soon.”

“…So it wasn’t a
dream.”

“That’s right. And one
more thing. It was all her—the one who found you, saved you, and
purified you. When you meet her, make sure to thank her.”

“Don’t worry about that.
Do you think I’d turn my back on someone who helped me?”

“No, I don’t. I know you
wouldn’t.”

“And Benedict, thank
you.”

Even though Karia expressed
her gratitude, Benedict didn’t respond. Instead, he lightly waved his
hand and walked outside.

Then, almost in passing, a man
who looked to be in his mid-twenties entered.

As soon as he came in and saw
Karia’s face, he froze in place.

‘Who is he? Judging by how
hard he is trying to hold back tears, he doesn’t seem to be just a
casual acquaintance.’

While examining his face more
closely, Karia suddenly recalled a name but then quickly shook her
head.

‘That fool wasn’t someone
who carried himself in such a formal manner.’

“Master.”

However, her denial was
shattered by the words the man spoke, his voice choked with emotion.

“…Alsatine, is that
you?”

“Yes, your foolish
student.”

“Really?”

Unable to believe it, Karia
repeated the question, and Alsatine responded with hand gestures that
only the two of them understood.

It was real.

The kid who once cried his
eyes out, begging her not to leave, had now grown into a proper
adult.

Time certainly is frightening.
The brat who used to be so disrespectful had grown up like this.

“So, I guess getting
older means becoming more mature? You even know how to speak politely
now.”

“I couldn’t live my whole
life as a backstreet urchin, could I?”

“Enough with the chatter.
Come here.”

Instead of talking more, Karia
pulled Alsatine into a hug.

‘Ha… this guy. He’s grown
so much.’

“And you know what? When
you speak so formally, it feels unbearably awkward.”

“But, Master…”

“Shut up and speak like
you used to.”

“…Alright. Damn it, you
old woman.”

“That’s better, you
little brat.”

It didn’t take long for the
voices of the two, now laughing and trading barbs, to be drowned out
by the tears that flowed from their eyes.

[Evaluating Settlement…]

The first thing I checked
after waking up was the rewards.

No matter how shameless and
perverted Armadi could be, he always ensured proper rewards.

Given that I had suffered
because of his mistake, I expected something substantial this time as
well. But all I saw was the message [Evaluating Settlement…]

Are you serious, Armadi?

According to Grandpa, a whole
day had passed since I collapsed, yet all I got was [Evaluating
Settlement…].

What have you been doing all
this time?!

Get to work!

Do you think it’s fair that
your Apostle has to escape death multiple times while you laze around
like an unemployed bum?!

While I screamed internally, a
sudden dizziness hit me, and I collapsed forward.

“How many times must I
tell you to rest? Your body was already in bad shape, and now you’ve
pushed it to its limit. You need to rest.”

‘I know that…’

“Shut up, you lovestruck
Fox. Do you think I don’t know what even a sloppy pervert like you
understands?”

My body was in the worst
condition.

Thanks to the perverted Fox
using up all her energy before, my already weakened body then
performed an impossible miracle.

Even one of these feats would
require a considerable rest, but I did both simultaneously.

She said it was already a
miracle that I ended up in this condition and nothing worse.

Thanks to that, I found myself
having to live as the sickly Mesugaki girl I once joked about
becoming.

It was quite troublesome.

There were so many things to
do during the vacation! With this body, I can’t even train properly!

Ugh. I hope I don’t end up
wasting the entire remaining two months. That would be too painful.

Isn’t there a way to quickly
recover? While I worried about how to speed up my recovery, a message
appeared.

[Confirmed that you saved the
victim from the Evil God. Additional rewards granted.]

…Huh?

[Although the seal of the Evil
God of Fire Vahda was broken, you subdued and resealed him.
Additional rewards granted.]

Wait, hold on.

[You defeated Evil God Agra
and performed a miracle despite his interference. Additional rewards
granted.]

Lord Armadi?

[Settlement complete.]

[Confirmed the completion of
the ‘Savior of Menestail’ quest.]

[Rewards will be distributed.]

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