chapter_0267

Mesugaki Tank Enters the Academy –
267

Mesugaki Tank Enters the Academy –
267

Isabel and Phoebe didn’t lift their heads for a long while, even
after I had finished all the rituals.

The sight of Isabel, who looked as if she might burst into tears at
the slightest touch, and Phoebe, whose face was flushed red with
emotion, was quite overwhelming. But I pretended not to notice.

If I accidentally poked at their emotions now, it would be like
lighting a fuse.

Fortunately, Isabel didn’t make a bigger fuss. She headed to her
vault and soon returned with a small pouch.

“This is a subspace pouch. Everything you requested is inside.”

A pouch worth hundreds of platinum coins.

I planned on returning everything once this was over, but there was
no denying the slight pang in my conscience.

If you’re going to be shameless, you have to go all the way, but I
never could.

…Maybe I’ll visit her every now and then after this is all over.
Pretend to pray for her or something. She’d probably like that.
Maybe.

Anyway, I suppose that’s everything I need to set the stage for the
miracle.

Now, I just need the people.

There are only three people I absolutely need for this. Everyone else
is secondary, good to have but not essential.

Since I had decided to tackle this with the minimum number of people,
even if I brought more, it would only be one or two at most.

“Um, Lady Allen?”

While I was going over the plan in my head, Isabel spoke up
cautiously.

“Might I ask what kind of miracle you intend to perform?”

“I’m curious as well, Lady Allen. You haven’t shared the
specifics of the plan yet.”

It wasn’t difficult to explain. I had already told them about being
an apostle and all that, so sharing my plan wasn’t a big deal.

But if I explained it now, I’d have to explain it again later.

It’s an outrageous plan, one that even Gramps said was ludicrous. I’d
have to explain why it would work.

So I’d rather wait until I had everyone involved in the plan, at
least Johan, before I shared the details.

With that in mind, I asked Isabel to bring Johan here, and she nodded
easily.

“You mean Bishop Johan of the Allen territory, correct? Very
well. I will send a spatial mage to fetch him.”

‘…A spatial mage?!’

“This creepy, sloppy family has a spatial mage too?”

Spatial mages were those who specialized in magic related to
manipulating space—telekinesis, teleportation, subspace pockets,
and the like. Not essential, but definitely convenient.

“Yes. Even though I may seem frivolous, I lead a major merchant
guild. One can never have too many spatial mages. Some are contracted
personally, while others work for the guild.”

Right. Isabel might look sloppy and ridiculous in front of me, but
she was still the head of a major guild.

Of course, she’d have to travel extensively and work herself to the
bone. It made perfect sense for her to employ a spatial mage.

This was a stroke of luck. I’d been thinking of borrowing one from
the Newman family, but if the Artea family had one, that was even
better.

‘That spatial mage…’

“What kind of sloppy idiot did you rope into a contract, you
perverted zealot?”

“Could you tell me the conditions you’re looking for?”

Isabel immediately adjusted her posture, sensing the significance of
my interest.

She was a merchant, after all.

‘Alright, then…’

“They need to be able to move about seven people at once. They
need to be discreet. Other than that… Hmm. As long as they aren’t a
crybaby who freaks out over every little thing, they’ll do.”

“In that case, our spatial mage would be a perfect fit.”

“You intend to drive out the Dark Evil God?”

After hearing Lucy’s rough explanation, Johan let out a long sigh.

The apostle of the evil god who had consumed the Burrow family. The
massive dark magic being prepared there. The operation to stop it.

Not a single part of it wasn’t absurd.

If anyone had said something like that, he’d have scolded them for
speaking nonsense.

But the one who had explained this was Lucy—the one who had
performed a miracle in Menestail, the one loved by the Lord.

Could there really be any falsehood in her words?

No, there couldn’t be.

“I understand what you are saying.”

When Johan nodded, Phoebe, who stood beside him, let out a sigh of
relief.

But only for a moment. The instant Johan’s eyes met hers, Phoebe’s
face tensed up again.

Johan had always been strict with Phoebe, knowing her true identity.
She likely still found him intimidating due to those memories from
long ago.

To be honest, Johan still didn’t like Phoebe. Her very existence was
a symbol of the corruption within the Lord’s Church.

However, Johan tried his best to suppress those feelings.

Johan shifted his gaze away from Phoebe and back to Lucy.

“However, you haven’t explained the most crucial part. How do
you intend to banish the power of the evil god?”

“I was just about to get to that, you stubborn bishop. Always so
impatient.”

At Lucy’s rude tone, Phoebe gasped, but Johan remained unfazed.

He knew Lucy well, especially the fierce child she used to be.
Compared to those days, this was nothing.

“And you wonder why kids run away when they see you. You
devilish old coot.”

…Maybe it was a bit more than nothing.

“The plan is simple. We’re going to create a sun right in the
middle of Burrow’s territory.”

“A… sun?”

“A sun?”

“Create a sun?”

Everyone in the Artea family’s reception room voiced their confusion,
but Lucy’s face showed nothing but confidence.

“I’ll explain it to you. In a way that even skeptical fools like
you can understand.”

When Johan first heard Lucy’s plan, he had been filled with doubt.

‘Create a sun? How was that even possible?’

But as Lucy continued her explanation, Johan’s mind began to change.

Despite not being part of the mainstream faction of the church, Johan
had risen to the rank of bishop.

He had no choice but to rely solely on his own abilities, honing his
skills relentlessly. He was one of the top five experts in divine
magic within the current Lord’s Church.

And so he understood. As absurd as Lucy’s plan sounded, it was
feasible.

“I think I’ve explained it well enough for even a monkey to
understand.”

Once she had finished, Lucy stretched her shoulders, but Isabel and
Phoebe still looked bewildered.

Johan could understand their feelings.

“It’s unstable. Extremely dangerous. And there are no
precedents. It’s a gamble.”

Even Johan, who had fully understood Lucy’s words, had to summarize
the plan this way. Simply agreeing would have been strange.

“What’s your point, stubborn bishop?”

“It’s simple, Lady Allen.”

Right now, Johan was…

“I very much want to be part of it.”

…an odd one indeed.

‘Here was someone loved by the Lord, willing to risk her life to
save others.

She was ready to sacrifice her life to defeat the evil god and save
humanity.

And I could stand by her side? Even participate in creating a
miracle?

Ha! If that were possible, I’d wager what little time I had left
without hesitation!’

“However, Lady Allen, I do have a few suggestions.”

“Speak up, stubborn bishop.”

“Yes. In the initial phase of the plan…”

On my way back to the dormitory after leaving the Artea estate, I
praised myself for bringing Bishop Johan into this.

Originally, I intended to bring Johan as a precaution and to provide
legitimacy for Phoebe’s involvement, but he ended up playing a much
larger role than I anticipated.

Since the plan was based on knowledge from the game, there were
unstable aspects, and Johan had used his expertise in divine magic to
stabilize them.

Thanks to him, the gift I had prepared for Tariki became even more
perfect.

Of course, it still wasn’t complete. There was one more step needed
to put the final touch on the plan.

I needed the strength to protect us until the sun was complete.

According to Alsatine’s report, the Burrow territory was already
fully consumed by the evil god’s power.

If we began preparations to create a sun there, every person in the
territory would attack us.

If it were just a few people, I could handle it alone, but if the
entire territory moved against us, it would be a different story.

That would be beyond my ability to manage.

Even if I brought Karl or Alsatine, it wouldn’t make much difference.

They wouldn’t fall, but they wouldn’t be able to perfectly protect
the miracle amidst a crowd.

The best option would be to use Benedict and the Allen family
knights. But they were too conspicuous. If they started preparing for
an expedition, everyone would know something was up.

The same went for others. They either drew too much attention or
couldn’t be trusted to follow my orders.

Adri was the closest fit for what I needed, but if I took her, there
was a risk she might be purified too.

After pondering all this, I finally decided to use a forbidden
measure.

“…You want to take my true form with you?”

“Yes.”

The airhead fox’s true form.

I was going to ask the Master of the Forest for help.

Thinking about it, the airhead fox was the perfect choice.

She had the power to hold off a crowd.

She was always holed up in the forest, so no one would care if she
disappeared.

And, on top of that, I trusted her to keep our secret.

Even knowing all this, I had delayed asking her until the very end
for a simple reason.

“The guardian of the forest exists solely to protect it. No
matter how much I owe you, there are some lines I cannot cross.”

I couldn’t predict how much I would have to give up to ask the Master
of the Forest to leave her domain.

But there was no choice now.

This was the best move I had left.

So, I would abandon my dignity.

To save the people of Burrow.

To screw over Tariki.

To smash Nacrad’s face in with a mace.

To conquer a new dungeon.

“Are you listening?”

I approached the airhead fox, who had taken on a human form and was
now sitting on the bed, lecturing me.

I let my breath touch her ear, which was twitching in anticipation,
despite her furrowed brow.

“Really?”

“Eek?!”

“I’ve prepared something you’d love, you disgusting perverted
fox. Aren’t you curious? Hm? Perverted fox?”

“I… I won’t be swayed by such words.”

“A bunny girl. Don’t you want to see that again?”

The moment I mentioned the bunny girl, the airhead fox fell silent.

Ha. You damn perverted creature.

I knew it.

“Pfft. Why? Does it remind you of before? Of course it does. You
ogled every inch of me, didn’t you? My nape, my collarbone, my
armpits. Like the disgusting pervert you are.”

“I-I never did such a thing.”

“Who was it that begged, ‘Please step on me~’? Strange, I swear
I smell garbage right in front of me.”

The airhead fox’s profile showed her eyes trembling violently.

She was torn between instinct and reason.

“S-Still, no means no! This is a duty embedded in my very soul!”

“Oh? So you don’t need any of it?”

“That’s right!”

“Guess I have no choice~ I’ll have to throw away the collar I
prepared for the masochistic perverted fox~”

“…A collar?”

“Forget it. Maybe I’ll give it to that sloppy mutt instead.
Heh, he’d probably love it…”

As I giggled and rambled, the airhead fox suddenly grabbed my hands.

The strength of her grip was intense, and I was slightly taken aback,
but she didn’t seem to care.

She simply knelt on the floor, shouting desperately.

“No! You don’t have to do that! I will help you! No, please
let me help you! I beg of you!”

In the end, you couldn’t win against your own instincts, could you?
You trashy perverted fox.

To think something like this is the Master of the Forest. If the
creatures of the forest saw this, they’d be horrified.

Well, whatever. That’s the final piece in place.

…

Sigh. Life, really.

Bring it on, Tariki.

I’m about to unleash all the pent-up anger, humiliation, and rage
inside me on you.

So don’t expect to die peacefully.

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