Ch.272272 – Same Incident, Different Responses

<272 – Same Incident, Different Responses>

The various organizations responded quite differently to the Silkworm People’s attack.

“Please keep our people from going there. It would be troublesome if they get involved in the incident and their evaluation scores drop.”

The Camella Corps disciplined their members.

The power of the Camella Corps stems from the “Slave Contracts” provided by Camella and the loyalty of masters who exploit the labor of slaves by managing these contracts.

Those who actively use these sinister contracts for personal gain had no reason to help with the public cause of subjugating the Silkworm People and rescuing the kidnapped freshmen.

‘With the contribution points those idiots gave me thinking they were getting free power, I could do anything… but why should I help?’

There was no reason to waste the contribution points she had worked hard to collect.

If she was going to collect, she should take her time until the sophomore opening ceremony to charge up plenty of contribution points.

Then she would dominate the school year with slaves who were absolutely loyal to her through contracts.

She would pick and choose male students to her taste, and treat female students like doormats.

Dreaming of the day when she could freely unleash her desires, Camella chose not to get involved in this situation.

* *

“We will immediately move to subjugate the Silkworm People.”

Ishtar judged that this was a good opportunity for the Hero’s Guard to gain practical experience.

“Isn’t it too early?”

“We can’t focus too much on training a guard that isn’t even a regular hero party. I’ve taught them enough skills and combos through accelerated learning.”

Unlike her childhood friend Yufi’s concerns, the Hero’s Guard didn’t show much agitation when encountering the Silkworm People.

“They look quite human-like.”

“They seem fluffy and soft.”

“Focus. We’ve learned enough that not everything pretty is good.”

The Hero’s Guard members actively empathized, thinking of Ishtar and Yufi.

-We don’t have much time, but to get stronger quickly, we need to build resistance.

-Fortunately, Yufi’s divine healing spell is quite effective, so let’s start by building slash resistance.

The method of building resistance was both simple and brutal.

The hero slashes, and the saint heals.

By resisting out of the desire not to be cut and to survive, their combat abilities naturally increased.

It definitely helped.

They could feel themselves getting stronger as they actively applied the techniques they were taught in real combat.

However, after repeatedly being slashed by a sword, screaming, and rolling on the ground every time they made eye contact, any faint respect for the hero or admiration and obsession for a beautiful woman disappeared.

“This damned woman! This face-valued woman! This evil woman who thinks she’s so great!”

“Die, you monster! You disgustingly strong woman! Let’s see how long you can stay arrogant!”

“This is for everyone who has suffered at your hands!”

Ishtar felt an uncomfortable feeling.

Though they were clearly shouting at the Silkworm People, why did it feel like they were directed at her?

“It’s because they don’t feel respect.”

“I thought I tried hard enough.”

“Maybe the training intensity is too low, making them forget their gratitude.”

“You’re right. Since we can’t increase training time, we should increase the intensity from now on. We’ve done enough slash resistance training, so we should train impact resistance with a spiked mace.”

Not realizing that their venting would return as greater misfortune, the Hero’s Guard diligently subjugated the Silkworm People and, incidentally, rescued people as well.

They used the newly taught skills well, maintained high morale, and their formation wasn’t bad.

‘That was a successful practical exercise. I guess I’ll need to beat them about twice as hard from now on.’

Ishtar and Yufi returned satisfied with the Hero’s Guard’s first real combat experience.

* *

“Captain, let’s ambush those who went to hunt the Silkworm People when they return exhausted. Isn’t that a genius idea?”

“Genius my ass. Would a privateer do something that would get them marked by the authorities?!”

“Argh!”

The third-rate pirate member with a pirate flag stuck in his backpack collapsed after being hit on the head with Zigoku’s gun handle.

Though he shot his gun just for fun, Zigoku’s violence was so threatening that he could probably slice monsters with pure strength alone, which was too intimidating for the incompetent students who joined piracy due to lack of skill.

Zigoku didn’t criticize them for being weak.

Piracy was originally a profession for small fry, beggars, and criminals.

But there was one line he couldn’t tolerate.

“Listen up, you lot. Privateers shouldn’t upset the authorities who turn a blind eye to piracy. Outside, we need to be careful of countries, but here it’s the Academy.”

“So you’re saying we shouldn’t rob freshmen?”

“Time and place matter. If the Academy finds out someone is attacking students who bravely returned from being caught up in an incident, would they let it slide?”

“Ohh, as expected of Captain Zigoku who’s been a pirate for ten years without getting his head chopped off!”

“Our captain has secrets to his longevity!”

“Amazing that the captain’s head hasn’t been on the chopping block for ten years!”

These kids know something.

Zigoku wiped under his nose with his finger, feeling oddly proud.

“If you understand, then we’ll rob the pockets of freshmen returning from the student council building. Those selfish bastards who care about club activities while their friends are being attacked by Silkworm People deserve to be robbed by pirates!”

Armed with novel yet practical logic, the pirates ambushed club members on their way home.

“Please don’t take my textbooks…”

“I’ll be expelled if I lose this hand-carved staff and carving knife… sob.”

“Please spare just this black bread. Without it, I’ll have nothing to eat but weeds… huh-huh-huuuh.”

The pirates were taken aback.

These freshmen were already being heavily exploited by their club seniors, leaving nothing worth stealing.

Their situation was even worse than the pirates who stole from others but at least didn’t go hungry!

“Stop crying and come here. What? You can’t leave unless you recruit two friends to the club room? Get lost, you crazy bastard!”

The pirate member shook off the club member clinging to his arm and threw him to the ground, disgusted by his story of misfortune like a multi-level marketing victim.

Then several shadows appeared before them, announcing the arrival of strangers.

“Who goes there!”

“People who have come to save the oppressed students.”

“C-Could it be the club seniors!?”

“Wrong. We are the Western Nobility Alliance, composed of freshmen.”

“Tch, I got scared for nothing. Shoo, shoo. This isn’t a playground for young masters.”

As the pirate member mockingly waved his hand, a jelly sphere stuck to his head.

“Wuburururup!?”

“This is the versatile magic <Jelly Ball> that can be used as protection when jumping from heights to prevent cartilage damage, as a safety rope when climbing cliffs barehanded, and as a barrier against attacks from monsters and seniors when aimed at the face. Taste this magic that’s too good for the likes of you.”

The Western Nobility Alliance members, who had experience struggling with this jelly ball while learning ‘How to Escape Water Torture with the Power of Faith,’ only released the jelly ball magic after enough time had passed for the pirate member to faint but not die.

“Ugh, this guy is vomiting jelly!”

“What cruel magic…!”

While the pirate members were in disarray, Andersen extended his hand to the student lying face down on the ground, his cape fluttering.

“Come this way! Give us half of what you have, and we’ll save you!”

Andersen’s Western Nobility Alliance had perfectly grasped the pirates’ way of thinking and appeared at the right time.

The plan was perfect, but they failed to grasp just how poor the club members were.

“Such cruel people! Tearing half of our textbooks, trying to control our grades too! No matter how much beggars they are, this is a violation of learning rights!”

“How can they threaten us to give up either the hand-carved staff or the carving knife? They’re worse than pirates!”

“Cruel people who would split black bread in half. When such vicious people graduate, they’ll make outrageous statements like ‘let them eat meat if they run out of wheat’ because they don’t understand why commoners starve!”

The Western Nobility Alliance, who couldn’t imagine students being so poor, suddenly became the villains, while Zigoku’s pirate band represented the feelings of the poor.

The students who got up from the ground with their shabby appearance, not even brushing off the dirt on their knees, glared at the Western Nobility Alliance with resentful expressions and shouted:

“You evil nobles! Rather than being exploited by you, we’d rather become pirates!”

“We’ll escape the club somehow, so please accept us as pirates!”

Both Zigoku, who came to steal supplies but ended up with more mouths to feed, and Andersen, who came to raise his honor but became a villainous noble, faced equally unwanted outcomes.

* *

While Zigoku’s pirate band and the Western Nobility Alliance engaged in a meaningless battle with reversed roles of good and evil, the <Organization That Plays with Oknodie> issued a major mobilization order.

Due to many members being scattered for insect collection or gathering ingredients, the assembled personnel didn’t even reach one-tenth of the total organization, but those who did gather were quite remarkable.

Hestia. Zhang. Sing. Irene. Ppyoi.

Those with enough confidence to overcome the final exams without converting questions and answers into points rushed out of the training room when called.

“Who’s this?”

Hestia was puzzled upon seeing Ppyoi in bikini armor.

“She’s my friend! Right?”

“Right-! Anyone who knows the benefits of bikini armor is a friend!”

Just one more noisy person added to the group.

The advanced class members ignored it.

Irene praised Oknodie.

“Honestly, I’m surprised. I thought you gathered people just to play when you were bored, but now you’re initiating a proper organizational activity to rescue children in trouble. I’m genuinely impressed.”

“Hmph. That’s mean. Have you been looking at me that way, Irene?”

“Yes.”

“…I’m actually a good kid, you know?”

“Everyone thinks they’re good.”

While Irene readily came to help Oknodie, unlike Hestia and other students who agreed with everything and coddled her, Irene had a cold edge.

It probably had nothing to do with her being the Northern Grand Duchess from the perpetually winter north, or a master of ice magic, or having a grudge from having her dodgeball taken during the sports festival.

Probably.

“Zhang~!”

Upon arriving at the scene where the Silkworm People had appeared, a fragile-looking female student who could pass for a tragic protagonist in a romance fantasy cried out and threw herself into Zhang’s arms.

“…Who are you?”

“Waaah. It’s me, Titosoga!”

Zhang’s expressionless face showed great agitation.

“I’m shocked. I didn’t realize someone’s impression could change so much without a lighting stand.”

To think that Titosoga, who always appeared weighed down and intimidated while carrying a heavy lighting stand, had such high feminine charm!

In fact, I was incredibly shocked to think that the lighting stand might be a perception-disrupting magical tool given by her sister to keep bad men away from Titosoga. This level of suppression could rival glasses that halve a person’s charm just by wearing them!

‘Or was it that she seemed like a crazy person carrying a lighting stand, so I didn’t notice her charm before?’

While Zhang was lost in these irrelevant thoughts, Oknodie asked a practical question.

“We saw the Hero’s Guard returning on our way here. What did they do?”

“They just yelled at me saying they didn’t come to rescue something like a lighting stand, and that as a freshman I should act like a grown-up and graduate from lighting stands…”

The hero acted like a hero indeed.

Everyone had similar thoughts as they steeled their resolve.

“Then let’s go deeper into the silkworm habitat where the Hero’s Guard didn’t touch!”

The Organization That Plays with Oknodie advanced vigorously toward the depths of the silkworm habitat.