chapter_0021

Mesugaki Tank Enters the Academy –
21

Mesugaki Tank Enters the Academy –
21

Ominous predictions never
miss.

When I was momentarily
distracted after dealing with the goblins, I had forgotten that
Possell is someone who can push people to their limits.

I must have been out of my
mind. How could I ask someone whose job is to mercilessly train
knights to make me undergo the same?

From the moment I spoke up, he
mercilessly drove me into hell without hesitation.

You think I’m exaggerating? I
wish I were exaggerating too.

Sincerely, I do.

Specifically, here’s what
happened: Possell cancelled his original promise to only push me to
the second floor.

As a result, I found myself in
the position of leading three other knights from the start to the end
of the dungeon.

Up to this point, it was
manageable.

Leading people to conquer
dungeons was something I’d done countless times in games.

Apart from the headache of
suddenly having to think in reality instead of 2D on a monitor, I
could bear it.

But then he even made me
fight.

I showed him how I trembled
after dealing with a goblin, yet he still forced me to fight. Does
that make any sense?

He should at least consider
the fact that I’m a delicate lady!

Well. Fine. Even then, I could
manage.

After all, Possell only
assigned me two or three opponents at a time.

Handling that many goblins was
manageable. Although I had a lot on my mind, I knew I had to get used
to it.

But then he also made me
disarm various traps.

On top of that, the guys who
were going slowly out of consideration for me suddenly picked up the
pace, and I was struggling just to keep up.

Honestly, from the middle
point onwards, I couldn’t think of anything except how exhausted I
was.

Like that, I passed the second
floor, then the third, fourth, fifth, and sixth floors until I
reached the boss room.

Ugh. I can finally see the
end.

Once I get past here, it’s
over, right?

I was really exhausted.

How much did I struggle to
have already reached level 3?

There’s no place on my armour,
weapons, or clothes that isn’t covered in blood.

Because I was so focused on
the mission, I didn’t realise it, but I must smell terrible right
now.

As soon as I get out of this
dungeon, I’ll need to take a shower.

“We’ve already reached
the boss room. Captain, isn’t this fast by our standards?”

“It’s fast. Considering
we moved with Miss Lucy, it’s even more impressive. That means her
leadership was exceptional.”

Ha! Of course! Who do you
think I am?

I’ve spent 13,000 hours in
Soul Academy!

I’ve memorised every dungeon
that exists in Soul Academy, so isn’t it natural for me to lead
efficiently?!

You guys have no idea how much
effort I put into optimising to set the speedrun record in Soul
Academy!

“Miss Lucy.”

‘Yes?’

“What.”

Just as I was secretly
enjoying the knights’ compliments, Possell spoke to me.

“The boss battle in the
dungeon can be dangerous, so please stay back and just watch.”

‘Got it.’

“Do as you like.”

Rest? Sure, I got it.

I’m not so eager that I
would refuse an offer to rest.

Although there are no
particularly dangerous bosses in the Evans Dungeon, it’s still a boss
fight, so you guys handle it yourselves.

Anyway, even if you guys
fight, I still get experience points, so I’ll quietly take the back
seat.

When Possell opened the
dungeon door, the boss that had been waiting inside revealed itself.

It was a being without its own
will.

Created long ago by someone
but then forgotten and abandoned in the depths of the dungeon.

A being made of rock, without
a heart, only following the orders of its creator.

A golem.

Guess we’re lucky.

Golems rarely appear as the
boss in the Evans Dungeon.

They are harder to defeat than
typical bosses, but they offer better rewards. That’s why, when
people seeking Ruel’s Mace encounter a golem, they usually cheer.

I used to be the same way back
when I was deep into Soul Academy.

It’s not the smoothest ride,
but the speed and power alone make it a first-rate tank. So to
encounter a golem now is quite the surprise.

Not every moment in life is
tough!

Well, considering I possessed
a Mesugaki while playing a game, it’s like I used up several years’
worth of bad luck at once!

How can one live if they’re
unlucky all the time!

“It’s been a while
since we faced a golem.”

“Captain, will you
proceed as usual?”

“Of course. Ferby, draw
its attention.”

“Understood!”

At Possell’s command, the
Bald Knight charged forward.

The power of his heavy
footsteps, which cracked the stone floor beneath him, was remarkable.

What seemed like a distance of
several dozen metres was closed in an instant.

Sensing its opponent, the
golem raised its arm.

The golem’s movements were
extremely simple.

From top to bottom, a downward
smash.

The Bald Knight wasn’t so
careless as to be hit by such an obvious attack that even I could
predict.

Boom!

The golem struck only the
afterimage of the Bald Knight.

As dust scattered, Karl and
Possell followed closely behind the Bald Knight.

The golem, noticing them,
swung its remaining arm to fend them off.

Although Karl and Possell
could have easily dodged, they didn’t.

Instead, they charged directly
at the golem’s arm.

Just as it seemed they would
collide with the golem’s arm, Karl, who was at the front, swung his
sword.

When the massive fist, as
large as an adult man’s torso, collided with the thin sword, the
outcome seemed obvious at first glance.

However, common sense is not
very useful in a fantasy world.

The victor of the clash
between the sword and the golem’s arm was the sword.

The golem’s arm was flung
upwards, exposing its body.

Maintaining his speed, Possell
dove into the golem’s opened chest and delivered a punch with all
his momentum.

Boom!

The instant Possell’s fist
struck the golem, the entire dungeon vibrated.

Perhaps because of the
shockwave, I got hit by a falling stone from above. Rubbing my head
in pain, I barely managed to lift my head.

There stood the completely
shattered golem, destroyed with a single punch.

Seriously, that was insanely
strong. Even though the golem’s patterns are simple, it’s not a weak
boss in terms of specs.

If we put it in game terms, I
wonder what level Possell would be.

He must at least have
NPC-level specs from the latter part of the game.

“Miss, it’s safe now. You
can come over.”

Okay, it’s evident even
without being told.

As I slowly approached
Possell, the golem’s crumbling body scattered and a door appeared in
the centre of the dungeon.

It was a door leading back to
the dungeon’s entrance.

At the same time, a table also
appeared in front of the door.

So this is how the dungeon’s
clear rewards manifest in reality? What could it be?

Usually, the rewards for
defeating a golem are excellent.

On the table was a brooch.

If it’s a brooch from the
golem in Evans Dungeon, it’s got to be the Brooch of Protection.

An item that sacrifices itself
in place of the wearer when they are in danger.

At Soul Academy, it’s
essential to carry a few of these around.

It lets you escape situations
where you would normally face game over.

There were a few tricks
involving it, but I wonder if those would work in real life.

Given its excellent
performance, it’s also a hard item to come by. I never expected to
see it here.

“Oh, it’s the Brooch of
Protection.”

‘Captain…’

“You fool, Possell. Do you
know what this is?”

“Of course. Many lives have
been saved on the battlefield because of this.”

Really? So it does function
properly in reality too.

Though I don’t know exactly
how, it seems it can save the wearer’s life.

Then, for now, it should go to
you guys who often face real combat.

“Miss, you should take it.”

‘Me?’

“Me? This kind of item suits
clumsy ones like you.”

“It’s fine. We have many
similar items too. Think of it as a commemoration of your first
dungeon conquest.”

Possell’s words made the
other two knights nod in agreement.

Hmm, well, if you’re giving it
to me, I won’t refuse.

The more Brooches of
Protection, the better! They’re truly valuable items!

By the time we finished our
dungeon run and came out, the sun was directly overhead.

We went in early in the
morning and came out in the afternoon, so it took about three to four
hours.

Given that we moved at maximum
efficiency, it took longer than expected.

When we returned to our camp,
the knights resting there were still asleep exactly where they had
collapsed earlier.

Even if they were exhausted,
shouldn’t they be doing something other than just sleeping during
their break?

Back when I had a busy
schedule, losing my rest time to sleep always felt like such a waste.

“Wake up!”

As soon as Possell shouted,
the knights sprang up.

They looked rather pitiful,
like puppies hastily waking up to the sound of their owner’s
arrival.

“Have you rested enough?”

“Yes!”

“Good. After having a meal,
we will resume training! Get your meal ready as soon as you’re
awake!”

“Understood!”

Watching them move busily as
soon as they woke up, I headed towards a maid who was silently
waiting at one of the tents in the camp.

Ah, that was tough.

I need to clean the blood off
my weapons and armour, take a bath, eat something, and then rest for
a bit.

“Miss Lucy?”

‘Yes?’

“What?”

“Where are you going? It’s
time to train.”

‘What?’

“Huh?”

“Weren’t you the one who
asked to be treated like the other soldiers?”

Well, I did say that.

But I meant it in the context
of the dungeon!

‘Thanks to your rigorous
training, I’m feeling more stable now, so I think it’s okay to rest a
little.’

“Can’t we catch our
breath for a moment? I’m really exhausted.”

I looked at Possell with that
sentiment, but he just responded with a smile.

‘No way?’

“Seriously?”

The next day, I entered the
dungeon again with Possell, Karl, and Ferby.

As you can tell from the
lineup, it wasn’t the group I had hoped for.

I wanted to go in with just
Karl.

It would make finding Ruel’s
trial location easier.

Going in with just Karl would
make it a perfect crime—forcing him into loyalty and sealing his
lips.

I even had a reasonable
justification.

Training isn’t effective with
all of you around.

To make it more like real
combat, I need to go inside with just Karl, the minimal safety
measure.

I planned on being stubborn
and solving it that way.

But Possell didn’t allow it.

If I were in perfect condition
like yesterday, maybe, but not now. He said I couldn’t because I was
too exhausted.

Honestly, I felt wronged.

Who put me in this state?

It was you who pushed me from
midday until late at night yesterday!

Of course, thanks to that, I
didn’t have time for any useless thoughts the whole day!

Even when I went to sleep, I
passed out as soon as my head hit the pillow without dreaming at all!

Yeah, that’s true!

Ugh, it’s so frustrating!

Anyway, I couldn’t convince
Possell, who was concerned about how Benedict would feel if I got
hurt.

Well, it’s not a big deal.
It’s not like there are no other options.

Although I was trying to avoid
it because it might be a bit dangerous, what else can I do when
Possell is so adamant?

Are you listening, Possell?

If I get in danger, it’s all
because of you!

…Maybe I’m being a bit
unreasonable.

In any case, so what is this
method? It’s to take advantage of the traps in the dungeon.

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