Ch.8181 – Perhaps It Sounded a Bit Strange

<81 – Did That Sound a Bit Strange?>

[You correctly identified the true purpose of the Troll’s Dilemma in Retired Hero Destroyer’s lecture.]

[Situational Awareness Experience +15]

[Thinking Ability Experience +10]

[Willpower Experience +5]

[You acquire 500 points as a challenge achievement bonus.]

The compensation for this hidden lecture was less than the previous one.

To be honest, the first lecture was more difficult!

A shepherd who skins sheep and stuffs human corpses inside.

A human troll who trains monster trolls with drugs and exploits them.

Though the contexts are similar, the difficulty is easier.

Suspicion of humans.

Distrust was already planted in the first lecture.

It’s naturally much easier to find the crime of someone you’ve been suspicious of from the beginning than to find the crime of someone you never suspected, right?

‘But somehow it feels different.’

While the Academy’s incidents stem from “difficulty,” Professor Destroyer’s adventure tales originate from fundamental human “desires” and “malice.”

There are many malicious characters at the Academy too, but people that evil are truly rare.

‘What kind of adventures has Professor Destroyer been on since 15 years ago in this cycle?’

I feel a bit anxious.

If I don’t graduate from the Academy with excellent grades, does that mean I’ll have to go out and live in such a harsh world?

After hearing just two adventure stories, my romantic notions about rural villages have been completely shattered.

If I went down to farm, I’d have to worry about being captured by villagers and spread as fertilizer as a strange outsider—that’s the level of civility we’re talking about.

And it’s not just about being careful around villagers.

A passing black magician could obliterate the entire village in a single day.

For a comfortable isekai life, even after graduating from the Academy, I’d need to accumulate wealth, fame, and power to endure the harsh cost of living in big cities for the rest of my life.

* *

‘For that, I need to diligently collect points.’

The result of which is the flags I’ve laid out in the principal’s lecture hall.

“Flags for sale!”

The senior class students looked at the flags with gloomy faces, repeatedly licking their lips.

“Damn. How many are there?”

“Living life solo, I see.”

“This is depressing.”

It’s nice that everyone comes to look, but…

Wouldn’t you like to buy some?

“Buy some flags!”

“Wow. There’s even a purple flag.”

“Buy some flags!”

“I really want one.”

“Buy some flags!”

“Wasn’t the accordion pork belly at lunch today delicious? Though it was outrageous that they charged 10 points for an extra piece of meat.”

Seriously, no one is buying.

As tears welled up in my eyes from frustration, the chatting students panicked and fumbled.

“Ah, don’t misunderstand. We’re not trying to make fun of you.”

“Then why isn’t anyone buying?”

“Because we’ve all spent our points.”

“What? Was the accordion pork belly that delicious?”

“It was good, but that’s not where all our points went. We spent our points buying flags too.”

“But no one else has as many flags as I do!”

“There is one person.”

Just then, someone entered the lecture hall.

With a face so bright it embodied the saying “radiating light,” it was Giselle with his completely empty bundle.

“Miss Oknodie. You’re a bit late.”

“Hmph. Uncle Giselle. Everyone says they have no points. How many flags did you sell to make them like this?”

“I sold out. I meticulously sold every last fake flag.”

If I had known this would happen, I should have sold all my remaining flags to Uncle Giselle!

Thanks to him, the total number of flags for our team has increased tremendously.

===

□Oknodie Team – Total 63

-Oknodie: 30

-Zigoku: 14

-Hestia: 11

-Lotta: 8

===

But this situation has become quite ridiculous.

The fake flags that Giselle released.

Who knows how many he sold, but every senior class team now has at least thirty or forty flags as a baseline.

“Our team has 112 flags!”

“Hoho. Don’t underestimate the wealth of the maritime nation of Florence. For the team I, Arcadia, lead, buying 100 flags is nothing!”

“Don’t underestimate the wealth of the Empire. Our FriedChicken faction has secured a whopping 122 flags!”

“Even 112 was too few!”

That’s right.

The overall number of flags has increased.

Almost to the point of inflation.

“How are you planning to clean up this mess after selling so many?”

“I simply sold items according to the probabilities I disclosed in advance.”

Giselle’s kind smile makes me freshly realize that he’s a black market dealer.

More than half of the flags held by other teams are fake.

The probability of collecting only real flags among them is practically non-existent.

“Excuse me, Oknodie. You just said you’re selling flags, right?”

“Oh? Would you like to buy some?”

“If possible, I’d like to buy three.”

“Then that’ll be 100 points each, so 300 poin—mmph!”

“Oh my. Miss Oknodie misspoke. It’s 1000 points each. A total of 3000 points.”

Giselle, who was standing next to me, covered my mouth and quoted a ridiculous number instead.

The student who had inquired about purchasing openly expressed her dissatisfaction.

“The person I’m dealing with is Oknodie, not you, Giselle. Don’t butt in from the side and raise the price.”

“Miss Vanilla. The value of goods varies depending on the circumstances. Moreover, these flags are 100% guaranteed winners without any probability games. It’s only natural that their value would increase.”

“Would you mind not addressing me so casually by name? I have no reason to listen to such lectures. And what are you to Oknodie that you can interfere so freely?”

Obviously, he’s my teammate!

As I was about to answer energetically, Giselle covered my mouth again.

“Miss Oknodie is still a tender-hearted child. I can’t confidently say she fully understands the importance of commerce. I’m helping her as her advisor to ensure she profits.”

Even so, 1000 points per flag is too much.

Giselle isn’t someone who wouldn’t know the value of points, so what is he thinking?

“A thousand points is excessive.”

“Then unfortunately, these flags will remain without an owner.”

“Kuh… I’ll buy them. 3000 points it is!”

But she’s actually buying them?!

Flags aren’t worth that much!

“Hmph. I thought Miss Oknodie would react that way.”

Giselle said with a smile.

“Before the sale, could I have a moment alone with Oknodie?”

“I don’t know what your business is, but make it quick. The lecture time is almost up, and we don’t know when the principal will arrive.”

Grumbling but waiting patiently, Vanilla.

Keeping a slight distance from her, Giselle spoke in a low, measured voice.

“Miss Oknodie, you mentioned before that the value of a flag is 100 points, correct?”

“Yes.”

“That value probably comes from a careful examination of the benefits obtainable from flags and their quantity. The actual value of one flag is indeed close to 100 points.”

“That’s right!”

“That’s the problem. For some reason, Miss Oknodie knows and is confident about the value of the items, but others are not.”

Now I understand what Giselle is trying to say.

“Since others don’t know how expensive these items are, they’ll buy them even if the price is greatly inflated!”

Collect flags.

That’s all the principal said.

What rewards come from collecting many flags, how precious those rewards are.

What penalties come from collecting fewer flags, how severe those penalties are.

No one has any of that information.

Unlike the actual value of 100 points per flag.

The value of flags can vary tremendously depending on each student’s imagination and fear.

“Even considering that, isn’t 3000 points ridiculously expensive? Especially since the number of flags has become a mess because of you, Uncle Giselle.”

“The number three sounds strange in a situation where no one knows how many real flags anyone has, but Vanilla surely has her own calculations.”

The team Vanilla belongs to is the Third Princess’s team, considered fringe and outcasts even within the Imperial senior class.

“You mean Yayoi’s team?”

“…Are you referring to the Empire’s Third Princess by her first name?”

“What’s the big deal? We’re classmates at the Academy.”

“I’m impressed you have the courage to do so, even for a powerless princess. Sometimes I envy Miss Oknodie’s boldness.”

“You might improve your courage if you attend the Adventurer’s Night Action lecture. Would you like to join me?”

“While tempting, I must decline. I’ve already selected all the lectures I wish to attend.”

Unlike the Second Princess Massgakki who goes around with followers, the Third Princess Yayoi has no followers, friends, or outside supporting forces.

Even the students in her team seem to have reluctantly raised their hands because they didn’t want to team up with frontier folks, not because they were particularly impressed by Yayoi’s character or power.

Of course, this character is also one of the playable characters and belongs to the “Late Bloomer” type.

She’s a character who struggles at first but will eventually rise if you hold on—like a promising tech stock or blue chip that will surge in the later game.

‘Is this a team with enough cohesion to spend 3000 points just to win a group project?’

===

□Yayoi Team – Total 69

□Oknodie Team – Total 63

□Ishtar Team – Total 58

===

If I had to pick a team that would benefit from our team losing 3 flags, it would be Ishtar’s team, the female hero’s team, rather than Yayoi’s team.

If our team loses 3 flags, we’d have 60, and if their team gains 3 flags, they’d have 61.

The flag rankings would be reversed.

“…?”

But that calculation only works if there are no fake flags.

Is it even possible for a team to gather that many flags without fake ones like our team did?

“Oknodie. Can you decide quickly? Are you selling or not? I offered 3000 points. Let me tell you in advance, I won’t buy if you raise the price any further!”

“I’m sorry. I’ve decided not to sell the flags.”

“Why?! Even though I’m paying 3000 points?”

“You’re offering 3000 points because you desperately want to get real flags, right? Any team other than mine might have fake flags inflating their numbers.”

“If you know that, sell them quickly!”

“But Vanilla, you’re not buying these flags for your team, you’re buying them to give to the hero. To gain the hero’s favor.”

“…!”

“I don’t want the flags to go to the second-place team.”

Vanilla was so surprised she hiccupped.

“H-h-how. How did you know I was going to give the flags to the hero?”

“All the lectures you’re taking are exactly the same as the ones the hero is taking.”

The 981st senior class students are all basically playable characters.

Each character has their own goal at the Academy.

Among them, Vanilla’s goal is to surpass Yufi, the saint who sticks close to the hero, and become the hero’s closest best friend.

What kind of character she is.

What she thinks.

What principles drive her actions.

I can recall all of that if I just put my mind to it.

“…How did Miss Oknodie know that all the lectures Vanilla takes are the same as the hero’s?”

“Hmm… that’s a secret!”

Giselle’s eyes showed admiration and suspicion, while Vanilla’s eyes reflected fear and wariness.

That statement just now… I wonder if it sounded a bit strange to the NPCs?