Ch.7777. Damn Commoner

Inside the rattling carriage, I was rolling around with my hands and feet bound.

I could understand tying my hands, but why my feet? Did they think I’d run away?

This kind of treatment was new to me, though everything that had happened so far was absurd anyway. My daily life had been far too luxurious for a commoner.

‘I’ve been living too comfortably.’

While I hadn’t properly experienced it, this world had its own aristocratic system corresponding to its class structure.

So it was natural for commoners to be looked down upon.

There were probably quite a few people who had issues with me being a commoner until now.

They just left me alone because messing with me—overrated as I was—wasn’t easy.

Hmm… overrated? With all I’ve done, I can’t really argue against that.

Of course, not everything would have spread, but achievements like acing the entrance exam and being immediately recruited to the student council were enough to make people think twice about bothering me.

Not to mention I always had the Imperial Princess by my side… making it awkward for anyone to mess with me.

So why were these people taking me away? Because they didn’t know? Or were they just stupid despite knowing?

Whatever the case, they’d definitely found something to line their pockets with. That’s the kind of people they were.

The Zivchak Family, where the now-deceased Diggers was born and raised… I could only describe them as a family of loudmouths.

It wasn’t that they lacked ability, but they were unlikable because their self-interest was so obvious.

Calling them hyenas would be appropriate, I think.

CLUNK!

“Ugh.”

Just then, the carriage hit something and shook violently. I almost bit my tongue.

As expected of a cargo carriage. The ride quality couldn’t compare to an imperial carriage.

As the carriage continued to rattle, I decided to untie the ropes binding my hands and feet first, before I ended up rolling all over the place.

The method was simple. I just put them in my inventory and that was it.

‘This really is cheating.’

It seemed I wouldn’t have to worry about losing my physical freedom if I was ever restrained by something again.

With my hands and feet free, I could feel comfortable enough despite the rattling carriage.

Maybe because I was more comfortable now, I started wondering if I’d done something unnecessary.

Who had been by my side? The Imperial Princess on my left and the Duke’s daughter on my right. If I’d borrowed just one word from either of them, I could have easily resolved the situation.

Even without that, simply receiving protection as a student of the academy would have been enough to avoid this.

In fact, before they arrived, the Chancellor had personally come and assured me that with the academy’s reputation, there would be no problem if I resisted.

But I chose to be captured. The Chancellor must be wondering “Why on earth?” after hearing about the situation by now.

Of course, there was a reason I allowed myself to be captured.

The Zivchak Family. There was an item I needed to collect from there.

I’d been planning to steal it someday, and I couldn’t miss this opportunity that had presented itself.

And while I was at it, I could deal with the conspiracy they were plotting. Then I’d wait for Celia to come rescue me.

‘A perfect plan.’

I could figure out the details when I got there.

With that thought, I waited for the carriage to arrive.

How much time had passed? The rattling of the carriage gradually subsided and then stopped completely.

Soon, a man opened the door and shouted.

“Get out!”

Trash Zivchak. The head of the Zivchak Family.

By the way, his wife’s name is Dirrty.

Trash and dirty… was this a fated meeting?

Whatever the case, I decided to follow his orders for now.

So I casually stepped out of the carriage, but Trash was startled and began shouting loudly.

“What! How did you untie yourself?!”

Come to think of it, I was supposed to be tightly bound and unable to move properly.

No wonder he was surprised when someone like that stood up and walked out normally.

I casually showed him the rope I’d taken out of my inventory and replied calmly.

“You didn’t tie it properly, it came undone by itself.”

“Don’t lie. You secretly untied it to escape, didn’t you?”

“Then tie me up again.”

“I was going to do that without you telling me!”

Diggers really took after his father. There was definitely a satisfaction in poking him and getting an immediate reaction.

Trash ordered the knight beside him, who took the rope I was holding and began tying my hands and feet again.

“We have to walk from here, so do you need to tie my feet too?”

“What should we do?”

“Don’t be swayed by a mere commoner! Tie him exactly as before, even if you have to drag him!”

So with my hands and feet tied again, I was dragged along the ground, held by the rope around my feet.

These clothes were bought by Celia, and they’re going to be ruined. I’ll have to collect compensation for the clothes when I steal the item later.

“Let’s see how long that composure lasts.”

Unaware of my evil intentions, Trash just snickered, thinking he was the more wicked one.

The Zivchak Family estate had three areas to consider.

Actually, there were four, but one was just their living space where they ate and slept, so it wasn’t worth mentioning.

Anyway, of the three areas, the first was a forbidden book repository disguised as an ancient book repository.

The second was the secret warehouse where the item I wanted to steal was located.

The third was the basement where I was being dragged to now.

The basement was usually a space they used for their dirty work, and it was magically isolated from the outside world and inaccessible by normal means, making it perfect for such activities.

But if I let myself be dragged all the way there, things might get troublesome… so I decided it was time to make my move properly.

Well, I’d already achieved my purpose of being brought onto the Zivchak Family property, so there was no need to be dragged around anymore.

I quickly put the rope in my inventory and ran away. My destination was, of course, where the secret warehouse was located.

Since I’d put the rope they were using to drag me directly into my inventory, I was immediately discovered.

“…He’s escaped!!”

“Catch him right now!!”

They started chasing after me, but I’d already put considerable distance between us.

Thanks to using dash cancel while running, the knights who were just doing Trash’s errands couldn’t keep up, and the distance between us kept growing.

It was a very easy chase. Until Trash, growing impatient, started firing magic.

BOOM!

CRASH!

The fireballs he shot began destroying and burning the ornamental trees.

Originally, they were attacks aimed precisely at me, but because I avoided them with my evasion skill, they hit the trees beyond me.

Since the magic passed through my body at an angle where I should have been hit, Trash shouted in surprise.

“What… was that story true…!”

He kept saying out loud things he should have just thought to himself, making it easy to understand the situation.

Apparently, he had heard rumors about me but hadn’t believed them until now.

It couldn’t be helped. Most rumors coming from the academy were exaggerated.

There were even rumors that Celia was taking girls one by one and making them cry… so it wasn’t strange that he didn’t believe the rumors about me.

But even so, my joining the student council should have been confirmed information, yet he tried to capture me with just this level of knights?

That’s what I really couldn’t understand.

“Haha, interesting! So student council members are different! But I too am a former academy student council member! A mere first-year like you will be finished the moment I get serious!”

Ah, right. He’s a former student council member? Thanks for the explanation, I’d forgotten.

It was nice not having to worry since he explained everything himself.

After that, Trash’s magical attacks became even more intense.

At the same time, he began controlling his magic more precisely as if trying not to damage anything else, and at this level, he did seem like a skilled practitioner.

Well, he was the parent of Diggers, who had been the vice president of the student council. This level of skill was to be expected.

The knights who had been chasing me were nowhere to be seen now. They seemed to have realized this wasn’t their place and fled.

“You! That’s as far as you go!”

WHOOSH!

Realizing his attacks weren’t working, Trash now tried to block my path by creating a wall of fire pillars.

I stopped and looked back to see real skilled knights gathering one by one beside him.

Seeing me seemingly cornered, Trash began to wear a triumphant expression.

…But this was a technique I could break through with my evasion skill, so I just passed right through it.

“What?!”

Trash hurriedly removed the fire pillar barrier in panic, but by then I had already arrived right in front of the building where the secret warehouse was located.

The door is locked? So what? I’m going in through the window.

Of course, the window was also locked to prevent it from opening, but…

CRASH!

A window is just a window. Whether it’s locked or not doesn’t matter when breaking it.

Of course, acting this wild wouldn’t do me any good, but it was a better choice than being dragged to the basement obediently.

Even if not, having come this far, there was no turning back. I would only run toward achieving my goal.

“Catch him! Catch him!”

Trash’s urgent voice could be heard from outside. It was natural. He knew there was a secret warehouse beneath this building.

The building I jumped into was like an annex of the Zivchak Family.

However, it wasn’t being used much and was only occasionally cleaned. Trash had created a secret warehouse in the basement of this place.

Since it was hidden with magical devices, anyone with even a little knowledge would notice it immediately… but there would be no reason to bring someone to an unused building. In a way, it was a clever move.

“Damn commoner! Come out right now!”

Trash, who had chased me to the front of the building, started firing magic through the broken window again, but I dodged it with swift movements. His magic, fired in haste, lacked control, and as a result, holes began to appear all over the building.

Fearing the building might collapse entirely if this went on too long, I quickly opened the door to the secret warehouse.

The method was simple. If you lifted the portrait of Trash, a magic circle would appear, and you needed to channel specific mana into it.

Since I obviously didn’t have the ability to do that, I had to choose an even easier method.

So… if I just stabbed this magic circle with a knife and parried…

CRACKLE-!

As the magic circle was destroyed, the door to the secret warehouse opened.

Opening it this way meant it would never close again… but I only needed to open it, so it didn’t matter.

“What on earth… huh…”

By this point, Trash seemed too shocked to be angry, looking at me with a dumbfounded expression.

You should have been more careful when bringing in outsiders.

Don’t worry. There are only a few useful things in here anyway, so I’ll just take what I need and leave the rest.

‘Oh right, I need to collect compensation for my clothes.’

How much was this outfit again…? I can’t remember exactly, but since it was a gift with Celia’s heart in it, I should receive at least that much in compensation, right?

Hmm… if I were to collect an amount equal to the value of the Imperial Princess’s heart, what’s in here wouldn’t be enough.

But… since you provided the item I needed, I’ll let the clothing compensation slide even if it’s a bit short.

This is all your own doing. Don’t blame me.