Ch.261261 – Special Training with Professor Bronze

<261 – Professor Bronze’s Special Training>

Titosoga, who was attending the Eye for Quality lecture with Oknodie, naturally had an acquaintance with Professor Bronze De Estra.

“Titosoga, freshman. A student who always cheerfully dashes out after class is now voluntarily seeking out a professor… Could you be a doppelganger who has stolen Titosoga’s body?”

“I am not! I was just curious about this special training Oknodie is receiving.”

“Hooh. The desire for self-improvement is a good thing.”

Professor Bronze seemed pleased as she poured a cup of tea with a gentle smile.

Titosoga reached out with an excited “Wow!” thinking it was for her, only to be embarrassed as the teacup went straight to Professor Bronze’s lips.

Slurp.

While Titosoga fumed at Professor Bronze who was savoring her tea with irritating relish, Zhang, who was standing beside her, felt quite intimidated.

‘Incredible feminine power. Is this what they call a justice pocket?’

Two mounds bulging as if about to burst through her white shirt looked down like fierce beasts raising their heads.

As expected of a professor.

From the first meeting, she exuded an extraordinary pressure.

“And this student is?”

“I’m Zhang. I’m a friend of Oknodie and Titosoga, and I’ve come to request permission to observe the special training.”

A light interest appeared in Professor Bronze’s eyes.

For a moment, her presence became hazy.

This presence, undetectable by sight alone, far exceeded that of an ordinary freshman.

“You already have a master, don’t you?”

“I received teachings from Master Ryung.”

“The Life Thief who barely made it onto the list of the Ten Great Thieves of the Continent. You have quite the nasty master.”

“Feel free to insult him all you want. Neither my master nor I care much about such things.”

“Pragmatism. That’s not bad either.”

Professor Bronze showed a generous side, as if proving the saying that chest size reflects the size of one’s heart.

After confirming Titosoga’s desire for improvement and Zhang’s pragmatism, she nodded lightly.

“Very well. I’ll specially permit you to observe Oknodie’s training today.”

“We did it!”

“Thank you.”

“Then follow me down without straying.”

Click.

No sooner had she put her teacup down on the table than it retracted into the wall with a rumbling sound.

Ignoring Titosoga’s bewildered stare, Professor Bronze descended through a secret trapdoor that opened in the floor, her formal shoes making clicking sounds as she went.

Oknodie quickly followed behind the professor’s white jacket, with Titosoga and Zhang trailing after.

“Oh right. Tito, Zhang. Don’t step on any stairs except the ones the professor steps on!”

“Can’t I drag the lighting stand down instead?”

“No!”

“Hmph. Do I really have to? My arms hurt.”

“If you carry the lighting stand, only your arms will hurt, but if you drag it, your whole body will hurt!”

“What does that mean…? Huh? What’s going to happen to me!?”

Oknodie followed the professor’s footsteps with a meaningful smile.

Titosoga whimpered as she carried the lighting stand with strained arms.

Though the lighting stand was heavier than most poles due to the attached lights, Titosoga managed to keep up with Oknodie’s pace.

‘She must have some basic training as the daughter of a noble family.’

Despite her seemingly fragile appearance, Titosoga was surprisingly strong.

Still, her clumsiness was unavoidable, and Zhang had to tap her from behind to stop her from stepping on stairs that Oknodie hadn’t stepped on.

“Step one more down.”

“Ah, thanks!”

Just when they were wondering how far these stairs would go, they finally reached the bottom.

“As always, if you complete the task, you don’t have to be my top disciple until the next special training. Now, let me tell you today’s training task.”

Professor Bronze pointed to a wooden box placed in front of the stairs.

“What does that look like to you?”

“A wooden box!”

“Correct.”

The professor lightly kicked the box, sending it flying to the far side of the floor.

Behind it appeared three metal boxes.

Each shining in copper, silver, and gold colors—colors that made one want to open them—Titosoga’s eyes sparkled with a “Woooow.”

Even Zhang, who had seen nobles’ safes as an assassin, rarely encountered such blatant treasure chests, so his curiosity was piqued.

“Then what do these look like?”

“Treasure chests…?”

“Correct. Two out of the three.”

So what’s the remaining one?

An indescribable ominous feeling crept over Titosoga and Zhang.

“Oknodie. Can you identify the real treasure chest?”

“Hmm. This one!”

“The gift inside is yours to keep.”

Click!

When she opened the box, there was a “Treasure Vault Pass” placed on a red velvet lining.

“Wow! Professor, you’re the best!”

“Do you know about the Treasure Vault?”

“It’s a facility where specialized weapons and magic armor for second-year students are stored!”

“That’s right. It will be useful someday. Or you could use it as proof if you’re caught sneaking in by security.”

‘Using an access pass as insurance when caught stealing—what truly Robin Hood-like advice.’

Though Zhang thought this as if it were someone else’s business, when Professor Bronze turned to look at them, the ominous feeling he had earlier intensified.

This was like the “danger sense” felt when a skeleton instructor, frustrated at not being able to skeletonize students in Professor Sadaco’s class, was about to substitute teach!

“You two pick one each as well.”

“Professor… didn’t you just say only two out of three are treasure chests?”

“I did.”

“Then what’s the third one…?”

“A dud, of course.”

“Hmph. I don’t want a dud.”

“As a student who’s taken the Eye for Quality lecture, isn’t this a chance to show your skills? Try to guess correctly.”

Encouraged by Professor Bronze, Titosoga stared intently at the silver and gold boxes.

“May I ask what’s in the treasure chest?”

“There’s a convenience store voucher inside.”

“Then I’ll take the silver box!”

“Hooh. Is there a reason?”

“The color of a treasure chest can be determined by the rich owner’s extravagance to indicate the grade of the treasure inside, or special metals might be used to safely store the contents. Silver boxes have a characteristic of easily discoloring when left unattended for long periods!”

“And?”

“If a silver treasure chest shows discoloration, it means there’s no owner managing the box, and the contents have either been stolen or the owner has died and the box has been forgotten!”

“So you weren’t sleeping during lectures.”

“Hehe. Any chance for extra attitude points?”

“Would I give extra points just because you didn’t sleep? Such a greedy one. Just open the box.”

“Wait.”

Zhang very seriously stopped Titosoga.

“Tito. Let’s switch.”

“No way. I think this is the right one.”

“I’ll give you 10 points.”

“10 points…? Do you hate duds that much?”

“Actually, I wanted the convenience store voucher.”

“Liar. You said assassins shouldn’t weaken their bodies with junk food unless it’s for building tolerance, and you never even go near the store. I know your preferences, you know.”

Usually a pushover, but showing such discerning judgment at times like this!

Zhang tried to maintain a shameless expression while hiding his anxiety.

“Actually, I was wondering how far I could go with a convenience store voucher.”

“How far?”

“You know, right? There’s a secret service at the store where they lend you ‘books’ if you know the exact title.”

“Ah-ha. Of course I know.”

“Using a convenience store voucher just for black bread or borrowing a book seems too grand. I thought there must be something more hidden.”

“And you’d buy that for 10 points?”

“I was hoping you’d sell it at that price if you didn’t know its value. Now… I might buy it for 100 points.”

The price jumped tenfold in an instant!

Titosoga looked at the box with narrowed eyes.

“1000 points!”

“…Ten times more expensive from there?”

“I’m interested too. I don’t want to hand it over unless it’s for 1000 points!”

Having taken the Eye for Quality lecture, Titosoga must have sensed some value in the convenience store voucher.

But this was still 10 times lower than what Zhang had initially thought.

He gladly transferred 1000 points on the spot.

“I’ll take the convenience store voucher then.”

“Go ahead.”

The last remaining gold box.

Titosoga approached the box with pouting lips.

“A 1000-point dud. I got the points, but somehow I feel like I lost.”

Titosoga pressed the button on the box with her finger.

What happened next was instantaneous.

The box opened with a clunk, and a long, crumpled, spring-like arm reached out from inside.

Titosoga, grabbed by the head, hiccupped without even being able to scream, and her body was yanked into the box like a doll.

Clunk, clunk.

Her limbs hit the outside of the box as the hand pulled roughly like a crocodile swallowing its prey, and Titosoga’s lighting stand caught at the entrance with a thud.

Annoyed by this, the long hand shook Titosoga violently back and forth, until Professor Bronze’s leg kicked the top of the box with a thud.

With a pop, the box opened wide, and the hand trembled and released Titosoga. Professor Bronze elegantly extended her finger and burned the hand with her cigarette.

“KIEEEEEEEEEEEK!!!!!!”

With a terrible scream like an otherworldly evil spirit, the box rattled and the long hand lunged at Professor Bronze.

WHACK!

With an even louder sound than before, Professor Bronze’s formal pants kicked the long arm.

The long hand, trembling with a tremendous noise, shook with fear as it groped for the outside of the box, then slammed it shut from the inside with a bang.

“…Tito. Are you alive?”

“Hic… hic…”

Titosoga was too shocked to speak properly.

Zhang, who had sensed something ominous about the remaining gold box but never expected something this severe to jump out, felt guilty and laid Titosoga’s head on his lap.

As Titosoga could only cry without speaking, Zhang applied ointment to her bruised limbs and even poured a potion on the particularly dark bruise on her wrist where the long hand had grabbed her.

After finishing the first aid, Zhang, now realizing that professors were naturally more fearsome than seniors, asked in a much more cautious voice.

“May I ask what that was just now?”

“A mimic. It’s an imitation monster that hides behind objects that are good for concealment. It’s a common trap set by targets when you’re playing the role of a vigilante.”

“Why is such a mimic here…?”

“Didn’t I say I’d tell you the training task?”

Oknodie asked from behind.

“Is the training to avoid mimics?”

“No. From now on, finding and trapping them in boxes is today’s training task.”

Professor Bronze smiled kindly as she pushed the empty silver box with her foot toward Oknodie.

“Where is the mimic?”

“On the path we came from.”

The stairs they had just walked down.

Among them hid vicious mimics like the one they had just seen.