Ch.6767 – A Pitiful Child

<67 – A Child Who Looks Pitiful>

A cruel dryad obsessed with tree spirits who knows nothing of human hearts.

A demon without blood or tears who divides the vast blackboard into five sections, completes five pages worth of notes at once, and erases everything in less than a minute.

A heretical note-taking hell that delivers second despair by starting a second round of notes on the freshly erased blackboard.

Professor Warerd’s reputation plummeted in an instant.

The students trembled with betrayal.

“The Imperial professors weren’t wrong to call her an uncivilized vine person!”

“Argh, I shouldn’t have been curious about nature magic!”

“If only the professor’s underboob beneath those leaves hadn’t tempted my eyes, I would never have taken this class in the first place!”

Students vented their frustrations to the point of awakening to regional discrimination.

Dorothy extended a helping hand to these pitiful students who had learned the dangers of beauty tactics through practical experience.

“Hey, did you all attend the third period lecture today? I’m selling pages 1-3 and 2-3 for 10 points each. Want to buy them?”

The students shed tears of gratitude.

“I’ll buy them! Please let me buy them!”

“Where did you get such wonderful things?”

“I received a sales request from Oknodie. I didn’t take these notes myself.”

The students who had struggled to take notes finally caught their breath.

From the next lecture onward, they planned to gather in groups of at least five and implement a note-taking area division marking strategy, with each person responsible for a different section, so they wouldn’t have to suffer the same fate again.

Since this was their first encounter with such a situation, they just needed to obtain the notes from this lecture that they couldn’t properly take.

“Thanks. You saved us. Those Imperial jerks would never share their notes with us even if they finished taking them.”

“I agree.”

“But how did Oknodie think to select just pages 1-3 and 2-3? Is it because she’s the top student and so smart?”

“I don’t know.”

This was something Dorothy was also curious about.

So instead of following her usual habit of shutting herself in her room after returning to the dormitory, she knocked on Oknodie’s door.

“Oknodie has a full schedule of classes until fifth period.”

“Fifth period…? There are classes that late?”

“It’s a night class. I asked the instructor, and he said it’s prepared for nocturnal students. But who are you?”

“Dorothy. I’m a classmate who’s been indebted to Oknodie since the entrance exam. I live in room 120.”

“Oknodie has many friends. I knew that, but…”

Hestia couldn’t hide her bitterness.

Dorothy spoke to her in a bright and cheerful voice.

“You’re Hestia, who moved in next door to Oknodie, right?”

“That’s right.”

“How was it? Being in the same group as Oknodie.”

This wasn’t what she had originally wanted to ask, but she couldn’t help being curious.

Being in the same group as the top student Oknodie, who had stood out since the entrance exam.

From Dorothy’s perspective, having indirectly experienced her extraordinary abilities in the “Basics and Understanding of Mana Usage” lecture, it was natural to be curious.

“First of all, it’s intimidating.”

“I thought so. She’s amazing in many ways.”

“Beyond that, I think she’s pitiful.”

“Huh? Oknodie? Why?”

If the youngest admitted student, youngest top student, and record-breaker in all sorts of “youngest” categories was pitiful, then ordinary people like herself would have to be third-world refugees.

“Haven’t you noticed? That child always aims for nothing less than perfection in everything she does.”

“Isn’t that natural for a top student?”

“It’s not natural. Oknodie is only 11 years old.”

“Early education isn’t that rare, even for her age. Children can be precocious.”

“You must not have seen it, but Oknodie used a killing technique in her duel with Lotta, the Imperial fighter. In Professor Platton’s lecture, she took a position behind the Northern Grand Duchess.”

“…That is strange.”

“Do you sense the direction of her early education? This is evidence supporting the theory that Oknodie is an assassin. Following behind a frost mage with the determination to die together is abnormal.”

Hestia viewed Oknodie’s obsession with perfect results as a bad habit stemming from a wrong educational environment.

“That must be it. Being beaten if she doesn’t produce results, only able to survive if she’s the best. If she grew up in such a vicious environment, I can understand.”

“That’s child abuse!”

“Do you think those bloodless, tearless noble families who raised her as an assassin would care about that? If you’ve ever taken on the dirty work of noble families while working as a mercenary, you’d know.”

Hestia is a fairly skilled berserker.

As such, she had participated in a group mission with other named mercenaries from the Mercenary Guild, witnessing the darkness of noble families.

A massive underground facility.

Children imprisoned with chains around their necks.

Some trained as porters, some as sex slaves, some as assassins—a horrific child abuse facility.

It was a terrible sight she never wanted to recall.

“W-wait. So Oknodie’s skill in cooperation… is because she experienced such things?”

“Cooperation?”

“During Professor Warerd’s lecture today…”

Dorothy told her about what happened during the lecture.

The crazy professor’s out-of-control note-taking and Oknodie skillfully taking notes of only the most valuable parts.

How she appeared to be looking at the blackboard with emotionless eyes, as if she had experienced such trials many times before, but was actually lost in thought.

“Let’s be good to Oknodie.”

“Yes. We should.”

Though they had little previous connection, Hestia and Dorothy strengthened their friendship based on their shared belief that Oknodie was pitiful.

It wasn’t the way Oknodie had planned to improve Hestia’s social relationships, but as long as the destination is reached, the path doesn’t matter.

At least Hestia’s chances of suddenly snapping and becoming a mass murderer had diminished.

* *

Meanwhile, while Dorothy was busy selling note copies to other students for points.

Oknodie arrived at the Knight Department’s outdoor classroom to attend the fourth period Wednesday lecture, “Ranged Weapon Mastery.”

“My forearm muscles are still sore.”

“I pulled the bow too much.”

“I should have just done javelin throwing.”

“Isn’t a pistol the best? You just pull the trigger.”

“So you’re going to take classes with that red-haired madman?”

“Ah, that’s a bit…”

“I’m scared I might get shot standing next to him.”

Lower-class students, who had fewer required credits than upper-class students, generally looked happier.

Just having a more relaxed schedule of suffering under professors with various personality issues was enough to maintain good complexion and mental health.

“Young pillars of the continent! Today’s lecture will again divide you into groups according to your main weapon for training.”

The reactions of the archery group students upon seeing Oknodie were divided into exactly three categories.

“Hello, Oknodie!”

“Are you using a longbow again today?”

“It’s amazing how you can draw it with those thin arms.”

Group A students who honestly admired her strength.

“Oh, startled me.”

“Right. Oknodie was here.”

“Aren’t you scared you might get hit by something?”

Group B students who feared her gradually spreading notoriety.

“…She’s still just a child. Not someone to be so wary of, especially in this Ranged Weapon Mastery lecture.”

“Skola is right. We have nothing to fear.”

“No matter how good Oknodie is, she can’t beat Skola in archery!”

Descendant of the divine archer.

One of the most famous supporting characters in archery among Imperial students, and the “ADC” position commonly found in the Academy.

Skola and his group of followers formed the third group.

“Those guys, aren’t they being disrespectful?”

“How dare they speak so challengingly to Oknodie.”

“Oknodie, say something back to them.”

But the person in question had no complaints about the situation.

“Huh? It doesn’t really matter, does it? Archery isn’t exactly my specialty. I’m not that amazing at shooting. Hehe.”

“No, anyone could see you were no joke!”

“That’s right. The ability to draw a bow that even adults struggle with and hit targets accurately at just 11 years old isn’t something just anyone can do!”

For some reason, the Group A students started getting angry on her behalf.

‘This person was born to shoot a bow in the first place, how could anyone beat that?’

In any game, ranged specialists handle ranged weapons at an almost perfect level.

There are rare unpopular mine characters who have terrible accuracy despite being in ranged positions, but at least the Skola I know isn’t that type of character.

“Now, I’ll explain the skills we’ll be mastering today.”

Until the instructor began his explanation, I was lost in my own thoughts.

‘Well, it’s only the second lecture, so all this fuss won’t amount to much.’

If the first day was about hitting stationary targets, the second lecture would be about hitting moving targets.

I’m not lacking confidence in my skills, but it’s not a lecture where I’d show off extraordinary abilities either.

I don’t have confidence in beating Skola, who’s considered tier 1 ADC in both speed shooting and long-distance shooting competitions, nor do I have any reason to compete with him.

“The archery group’s average skill level is excellent, so we’ll be advancing to the curriculum originally planned for the fourth lecture.”

“What??”

“Don’t worry, it’s nothing major. Just a simple obstacle course where you try to hit as many targets as possible while moving—mobile shooting competition.”

“Wow. We’ll get to see whether Oknodie or Skola sets the better record.”

“The score is worth 10% of the grade, but you can make that up with extra effort later, so just think of it as casually shooting arrows and having fun.”

But now they’re springing a surprise test worth 10% of our grade by advancing the lecture schedule.

Even the students who had been looking at Skola and me with excitement turned pale as they realized the sparks would fly their way too.

“Why, why are you doing this!”

“We’re still beginners!”

The instructor scratched his head while looking at me.

“Professor EveningShooter said that even with a child in it, the archery group’s skill level is good enough to advance the curriculum significantly.”

“That’s wrong! Look at Oknodie’s arms. Can she even properly draw a bow with those delicate arms?”

“Look at her height. She’ll trip trying to jump over obstacles and end up crying!”

“Don’t you feel sorry for Oknodie?”

“……”

These guys using me as an excuse are the same ones who were praising me and encouraging a showdown just moments ago.

“I’m fine!”

Feeling somewhat annoyed, I raised my hand energetically to make an impression on the instructor.