chapter_0076

Mesugaki Tank Enters the Academy –
76

Mesugaki Tank Enters the Academy –
76

Watching the heavily armoured
orcs being slaughtered in front of me, I couldn’t help but furrow my
brow.

Not here either?

Two fully armed orcs weren’t
enough?

Ahh. Damn.

If not here, then where?

While I was deep in thought
with a furrowed brow, Grandpa spoke up.

He’s the same Grandpa who
accurately sensed the presence of monsters when we fell into a trap
set by Agra before.

If he’s detected something,
then it’s definitely reliable information.

‘Where exactly?!’

I sketched a mental map and
used Grandpa’s words to determine the location.

Far to the south-southwest
from here.

I know where that is.

It’s the place with the wall
trap.

It’s the spot where, the
moment one steps on a specific area of the floor, walls appear and
separate the party members.

Luca intends to use that to
separate Arthur’s group and give them a trial.

Now that I understand Luca’s
intention, all that’s left is to run there.

‘Everyone…’

“Sloppy fools! I’ve found
where the Pitiful Prince is crawling!”

At my words, all the
professors present turned their eyes to me.

Initially, the professors were
hesitant about following my instructions, but now it was different.

Seeing that my directions were
proving accurate, they no longer dismissed me as just a student but
were paying attention to my commands.

‘The location is…’

“The weak Pitiful Prince
is at…”

Not a single word was
exchanged among Arthur’s group as they progressed through the
dungeon.

When they first started
tackling the academy’s dungeon, their spirits were high. But now, due
to Arthur’s malfunctioning magic tool leading them astray, only the
sound of their breathing could be heard.

Occasionally, Luca would try
to break the tension by speaking, but only a few words would follow,
unable to lift the heavy atmosphere.

Amidst it all, Arthur was
deeply aware of his mistake.

His misjudgment had put
everyone at risk.

Driven by a desire not to lose
to Lucy Allen, he had used an unreliable item given by someone
untrustworthy, causing this catastrophe.

He berated himself for his
stupidity.

In his fixation on avenging
himself against those who insulted him as the Pitiful Prince, he had
acted like a fool.

Arthur recalled the monster
they had encountered in the dungeon.

He couldn’t forget the image
of the Minotaur, towering above a grown man and swinging a massive
axe while exhaling hot breaths.

Neither the current Arthur,
Jack, nor Matthew was a match for such an enemy.

The overwhelming presence from
its enormous body had made that clear.

It was only because Professor
Luca had drawn a knife from his coat and subdued the Minotaur that
none of them were hurt.

In other words, if it hadn’t
been for Professor Luca, the three of them would have been killed by
the monster without a doubt.

‘Because of my mistake,
those who had gathered to help me almost lost their lives.’

The impact of that realisation
on Arthur was far from small.

He used to think the people in
history who committed foolish acts blinded by revenge were idiots,
but now the idiot was right here.

The only silver lining for
Arthur was that because Professor Luca had been by his side, he had
the chance to correct his wrongs.

Luca, who had become a
professor at the Academy at a young age, truly possessed exceptional
skills.

Given how effortlessly he had
slaughtered the Minotaur, this dungeon was likely not even that
dangerous for someone like him.

If Arthur stayed with him, he
could safely escape the dungeon.

So, he decided to think about
what came next.

First, he needed to apologise
to Jack and Matthew again.

He had already apologised
once, but a verbal apology was meaningless; he needed to offer
material compensation.

After that, he would need to
question the professor who had given him the compass.

Arthur needed to find out with
what intention that item had been handed to him.

Naturally, that professor
would have to face punishment.

Even if the Academy tried to
protect him, he should be properly ousted and receive an adequate
penalty.

It was a clear and undeniable
fact that he had erred.

And then… he needed to
forgive Lucy Allen.

…Regardless, a match is a
match.

While Arthur was navigating
the 6th floor, Lucy Allen had already surpassed the 20th floor,
making his defeat certain.Lucy Allen was an opponent Arthur could
never defeat, no matter how hard he tried.

So, should he mockingly call
himself the Pitiful Prince who had been humiliated by her?

‘Huh. It’s difficult.’

Even though he knew he had
lost, admitting it was still very hard.

Was it because his heart was
too small?

Click.

As Arthur was lost in thought,
he heard the sound of something being triggered.

Looking up, he noticed a spot
under Luca’s left foot had sunk in.

“Oh no.”

At the same time as Luca let
out a brief cry, a stone wall rose, separating Luca and Arthur’s
group.

“No, this can’t be.”

“Everyone! Please step
back!”

As Jack, startled by the
separation from Luca, was about to approach the wall, Luca shouted
loudly from the other side.

Hearing his words, Jack
stepped back from the wall, but then a loud noise erupted from it.

Luca was trying to break
through the wall from the other side.

However, the stone wall
remained solid.

Despite the repeated booming
noises from the other side, the stone wall didn’t show even a small
crack. Eventually, it seemed Luca had given up.

The booming noises from beyond
the wall ceased.

“Everyone! Please wait
there! I will definitely come to rescue you!”

As Luca’s voice faded, the
sound of him running could be heard from beyond the wall.

It seemed like he was trying
to find another way to get to their location since he couldn’t break
through the wall.

With the three freshmen left
behind, Arthur was the first to speak up.

“We need to move.”

“What?”

“Prince, what do you mean?”

“Luca told us to wait, but
staying here is not an option.”

“Then we might miss Luca!”

Jack cried out in a panicked
voice, but Arthur was resolute.

It’s true that moving
recklessly might make it difficult to reunite with Luca.

Arthur understood that.

Yet, he insisted they had to
move because this place was a dead end.

“Jack. The monsters here are
too powerful for us to handle. If we encounter them in a place with
no escape route, what do you think will happen?”

The outcome was clear without
needing further explanation.

Annihilation.

The three of them would die.

Sacrifice? Miracle?

There would be none of that.

The three of them.

Three individuals with assured
bright futures.

Would meet their end by the
monsters of this dungeon.

“But…”

“Even if we miss Luca, won’t
the result be the same?”

In place of the speechless
Jack, Matthew voiced the question. Arthur nodded in agreement.

“That’s right, Matthew. My
plan might just be a desperate attempt to extend our survival time.
However, in a situation where we don’t know when Professor Luca
will reach us, securing an escape route nearby seems to be the best
option.”

Arthur spoke calmly, but the
expressions of the two others were not receptive.

Jack and Matthew had ended up
here because of the magic tool Arthur had used. From their
perspective, trusting Arthur’s words was difficult.

‘The consequences of my
actions are coming back to haunt me so quickly.

How should I convince them?’

As Arthur began to ponder,
footsteps echoed from beyond the passageway.

They were too heavy to be
human.

Given the number of monsters
the group had faced so far, it wasn’t hard to guess who the owner
of those footsteps was.

“Minotaur.”

“No, no, no!”

“Oh, God.”

A massive figure, tall enough
to almost touch the ancient temple’s ceiling, revealed itself in the
passage now blocked by a suddenly-formed wall.

‘I was too late in my
judgement.’

Arthur drew the sword from his
waist and stepped to the front.

Although as a battle mage,
Arthur’s proper place would normally be behind Jack, now was not
the time for that.

Having brought them into this
danger, Arthur had to stand at the front.

‘Even if it was a
meaningless act of desperation. I had to make an effort to take
minimal responsibility.’

“Let’s try to buy some
time. If we see an opening, we’ll escape.”

‘I didn’t know if I could
create an opening, but I had to give it my all.

At the moment when I steadied
myself, ready to face the Minotaur with a resolve to risk my life,’

“Hey there, big ox ♡,
are you a b*tch in heat with that kind of a face?♡ Ha♡ Drooling
and charging towards a man like some kind of pervert♡”

A cheeky voice that didn’t
suit the life-threatening situation echoed, and the Minotaur’s
movements froze.

Arthur saw her.

A girl whose hair was
unusually tangled as if she had been running desperately.

She wore the smile that Arthur
always found hateful but now seemed somewhat reassuring.

‘Ha. I must have been really
cornered.

Why does seeing that smile
make me feel relieved?’

“Sloppy weaklings,
charge.”

‘Grandpa! Thank you so
much!’

That was close!

If it weren’t for Grandpa, I
might have been looking elsewhere and arrived too late.

Would I have been able to save
those people then?

Seeing the professors, who
easily subdued the Minotaur and checked on Arthur’s group, made me
sigh in relief. Thank goodness. Really, thank goodness.

If I had been late and
couldn’t save those people, how much would I be suffering alone right
now?

Ha. Now, all that’s left is
to finish the dungeon, right?

That should be easy.

The power we have here is
incredibly strong.

Even if Agra tries some
tricks, we can smash through them.

Great. Let’s finish this
dungeon as quickly as possible and head back.

It’s not that far from the
Academy, so we should be able to get back before sunset.

While I was thinking this,
Arthur slipped out from between the professors and walked towards me.

What? What is it?

Considering what I did to
Arthur, seeing him approach was frightening.

But I saved his life, so he
wouldn’t be angry, right?

Right?

“Lucy Allen.”

‘Y-Yes!’

“Go ahead, Pitiful
Prince.”

Arthur only raised an eyebrow
slightly at being called Pitiful Prince and didn’t show any other
reaction.

“First, I must thank you.
I heard from the professors. You played a significant role in our
rescue. If it weren’t for you, Jack and Matthew would have been in
danger because of my mistake.”

Watching Arthur bow his head
made me feel awkward.

Who knew the day would come
when Arthur would thank me!

I thought he’d hate me for
life!

“And I concede my defeat
in this challenge. Your talent is genuine. Though you are arrogant,
you deserve to be.”

I didn’t know how to respond
to Arthur, who was speaking so earnestly.

Whatever I said, the
[Mesugaki] Skill would twist my words into something weird.

Ugh. How do I respond without
ruining the mood?

Ding.

Just then, I heard the sound
of a message alert.

What is it? Did I just clear a
quest?

Hmph. Armadi.

At least you’re good at
rewarding me in times like this.

As I thought that, I checked
the message.

[Agra is watching you.]

I realised I was seriously
screwed.

A magic circle appeared on the
floor, centering around Arthur and me.

“Miss!”

Before a shocked Karl could
react, the light from the magic circle flared up and separated us
from our surroundings.

And when the light of the
magic circle faded again…

Arthur and I found ourselves
thrown deeper into the Old Temple of Kolhiti.

Damn it.

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