chapter_0294

Mesugaki Tank Enters the Academy –
294

Mesugaki Tank Enters the Academy –
294

It had been nearly a year since Ruel had started accompanying Lucy.

Their first encounter was far from ideal, but over time, Ruel had
come to care for Lucy as if she were his own kin. He regretted deeply
that he no longer had a physical body to protect her and instead had
to push her into battles herself.

Naturally, Ruel knew Lucy quite well by now. Despite her bratty
demeanor (thanks to the blessing from Armadi), he recognized her
goodness beneath it all.

Though she often appeared fragile, when it was time to act for
others, she would endure any pain with unwavering strength and
integrity.

She was surprisingly susceptible to loneliness and had been so
frequently disliked by others that she simply assumed no one would
care for her.

Usually practical, she occasionally acted in ways that defied all
logic, and when focused, like now, she lost awareness of her
surroundings and stared fixedly at whatever captivated her.

After receiving the forms for drafting a dungeon from the
Dungeonology professor, Lucy had secluded herself in her room
immediately after classes, poring over the papers.

Normally, Lucy would have spent every last moment at the training
grounds until sunset, then practiced her divine powers late into the
night. But today, she had abandoned her entire routine, completely
absorbed in her dungeon project.

It wasn’t that she was under a tight deadline—she had three weeks
to finish, according to her professor. Rather, Lucy was fixated on
this project for one reason: she was utterly delighted with the
process itself.

“This is perfect for a weak-point strategy gimmick, but how do I
hint at it without being too obvious? Just leaving it in plain sight
is too boring. So maybe…”

Ruel smiled as he watched her moving her pen, unaware she was
thinking out loud.

Could the chance to create her own dungeon really bring her this much
joy? He supposed it was understandable. After all, anything related
to dungeons had always thrilled her to no end, so it would’ve been
stranger if she ‘weren’t’ grinning from ear to ear.

Under normal circumstances, Ruel would have scolded her for skipping
meals and agonizing over her work like this. But not today. Seeing
Lucy so excited was a rare glimpse of what a young girl her age
should look like—a child who’d once felt so bound by duty she
hardly ever enjoyed herself. Ruel decided to let her have her fun.

“Oh, come on! It’s full already? I barely put anything in! Are
they even letting me make a dungeon here? Ugh. Alright, let’s take
out the complex gimmicks and…”

Watching her struggle, Ruel could tell that creating a dungeon was
much harder than it seemed.

He’d only ever approached dungeons as a conqueror, but now he
realized the forces of evil likely spent significant time and effort
crafting their labyrinths. Maybe that’s why they’d been so
furious when he and his comrades had torn them apart.

“What? I can’t use this gimmick yet? Why not? It’s a basic
tactic for dungeons!”

He wanted to give her a tip as he watched her struggle. But knowing
Lucy’s pride in her dungeon skills, Ruel decided to hold back and
wait until she asked him for help, just in case.

Preparing answers in advance, he was eager to help—partly out of
genuine affection, and partly in hopes that Lucy might exclaim,
‘Grandpa! You’re amazing!’ Such rare praise from a
granddaughter-like figure warmed the heart of the revered paladin
who’d long been regarded as an aloof saint.

But alas, Lucy didn’t ask him a single question. She wrestled with
her challenges alone, thinking through mistakes, finding solutions on
her own.

Ruel’s hope rose and fell each time she looked like she might ask
something, only to sink back into concentration. She kept scribbling
away well past midnight, through dawn, the sunlight now peeking into
the room as she worked, veins visibly red in her tired eyes.

‘Is that girl incapable of feeling fatigue?’

Having gone to bed around dusk and risen with the sun, Rina looked at
Lucy hunched over her desk and approached Ruel.

‘Did she get up even once?’

‘So she got up briefly, then returned and picked up her pen again.’

‘My, I wonder what kind of monster of a dungeon she’s trying to
make.’

Rina muttered that Lucy might end up giving first-years lifelong
trauma. Ruel chuckled.

‘Maybe so. But knowing Lucy, it’ll still be absurdly hard.’

Lucy tended to unconsciously measure others by her own standards.
After years of being belittled by others, she simply didn’t realize
how far she exceeded the norm.

Just look at the tasks she assigned to her companions—tasks she
thought were ‘manageable.’ Those recipients were challenging
themselves everyday to merely meet her expectations.

As it was, her companions were extraordinary individuals like Arthur,
Joy, Frey, and Phoebe. Without them, somebody might have already died
from overwork.

‘It’s obvious. She’s going to create some labyrinth, thinking,
‘This is easy,’ and it’ll be a nightmare that nobody can finish.’

Ruel couldn’t bring himself to argue with Rina’s prediction.

‘And then, when the professor tells her to revise it, she’ll go
back and make it a bit easier, but still leagues beyond first-year
level.’

‘Yes, indeed. And that Pitiful Prince, despite being a prodigy, will
look at the dungeon and think, ‘I’m supposed to beat this? Me? What
nonsense!’”

Lucy, especially when it came to dungeons, was completely incapable
of holding back.

‘So before she submits it, let’s screen out anything too extreme.
No point wasting time.’

Ruel found himself admiring Rina’s thoughtfulness. Maybe the incident
in Burrow had softened her heart.

As he marveled at her mature demeanor, Rina gave a sly grin, her
fox-like face alight with a certain longing.

‘It’s just that once this task is over, Lucy promised to wear the
bunny outfit.’

‘I can’t wait! Last time, her bunny girl look nearly drove me
insane, and now, with her powers enhanced… if she’d trample me
with that look of disdain…’

Ruel winced as Rina’s face softened, her longing gaze unmistakable.

He had no words.

Rina was both dignified and powerful, yet the mere mention of Lucy
turned her into something revoltingly shameless. Yes, Lucy’s
appearance was striking; now, her allure had reached the point where
one glance could leave you speechless.

But still, she was just a child! If he still had his physical form,
Ruel would have whacked Rina on the head with his mace and given her
a good lesson in decorum.

‘I’m done!’

Just as Ruel’s disgust peaked, Lucy’s voice rang out, full of joy
as she jumped up.

‘Grandpa! Look at this! I worked so hard on it!’

‘Old man, hurry up and take a look. This dungeon’s so amazing, your
outdated brain couldn’t even imagine it!’

How many times did he have to tell her to keep that [Mesugaki] Skill
filter in her head? She seemed too elated to notice.

As much as Ruel would’ve liked to tease her and see her pout, he
found himself unable to ruin her joy today. He decided he’d even
hold back on any harsh criticism and instead focus on the positives.

With this resolve, Ruel began examining the dungeon Lucy had created.

The first thing that caught his eye was its surprisingly small size.
It looked as if Lucy could finish it in under ten minutes. Was it too
short for a proper test?

Curious, Ruel held back his question and kept reading.

Of course, Lucy had her reasons.

Her dungeon was short, but also not.

‘Yes, exactly! When players meet a certain condition, the dungeon
changes appearance, and they have to fulfill new conditions to
proceed!’

An intriguing idea. Perfect for evaluating problem-solving skills.