chapter_0149

Mesugaki Tank Enters the Academy –
149

Mesugaki Tank Enters the Academy –
149

Practice Mode? Did you think
this would calm me down?

Ha. Seriously, what a sloppy
fool. Do you think I would be happy if you just unlock any random
feature?

This is seriously the most
useless feature ever!

In Soul Academy, Practice Mode
is a place where you can try out new skills on a scarecrow.

It’s a feature meant to show
you how to utilise new skills you learn.

It’s a welcome feature for
beginners, but for me, it’s not.

Especially now that this has
become a reality where I can’t get by with just a few skills like in
a game.

Your proficiency doesn’t
even increase,

And no matter how much you
train there, it won’t meet the conditions to learn new skills.

What good is a feature where
the only advantage is that you can hit a scarecrow as much as you
want?!

Do I look like a pushover?!

Huff.

I have so much to say, but if
I let it all out, who knows what kind of retaliation I’ll face, so
I’ll hold back, but just know this one thing.

As it was before and as it
will be in the future, you’ll always be stuck as sloppy Armadi in my
heart.

I will absolutely never call
you Armadi ever again.

Get that through your head.

You masochistic perverted
sloppy Armadi!

As I was clearing away the
numerous windows floating in front of me, Phoebe opened her eyes.

She blankly stared at the
ceiling, then slowly lifted her head to look around. Then she saw my
face, froze briefly, and tried to force a smile.

“Lady Allen. Is this
reality?”

‘Yes, it is.’

“Are you a Saint and you
still can’t tell that? What a sloppy fool. Yes, this is reality.
Sloppy Saint.”

Even though Phoebe should have
felt relieved to have escaped from danger, her face remained stiff.

What’s wrong with her?

‘Phoebe?’

“Sloppy Saint? Why do you
look like a guilty puppy?”

“I, uh, it’s just
that…”

Her hesitant smile and
trembling shoulders whenever I called her a Saint.

Hmm. I really hope it’s not
what I think, but there’s always a slim chance.

Could she have realised that
she hasn’t been chosen by Armadi yet?

“The title of Saint
doesn’t suit me.”

Oh no.

This is bad. She figured it
out.

This can’t be happening!

How in the world did she
realise this?

There’s no one around Phoebe
who could have told her besides me.

Alsatine, who has a stake in
her mentor’s whereabouts, wouldn’t be crazy enough to leak it.

And it’s not like Phoebe’s
power has grown strong enough to crush the Church’s schemes by
herself.

As I tried to make sense of
it, I recalled the enemy who had just been tormenting Phoebe and bit
my lip.

Damn it. Nacrad. That damn
bastard must have blabbed.

No one else except that guy,

He had also been used as a
test subject in the past at Armadi Church’s orphanage,

So, of course he would know
Phoebe is a fabricated Saint.

Judging by Phoebe’s
reaction, she seems convinced she’s a fake saint.

Does that mean the memories
from the orphanage have come back to her as well?

Ugh. How am I supposed to
handle this?

Phoebe’s already been
swaying in various ways, unlike the saint in the game.

If she realises her true
identity and all her past memories, her mental state will be
shattered.

First, I need to console her.

No, maybe I should start by
sealing her lips. No, before anything else.

‘How am I supposed to stay
calm in this situation?!’

If Phoebe, whose mental state
is shattered, asks the Church about it, it’ll be a complete
disaster!

It’s already hard enough
seeing this character, whom I liked and have grown close to in the
past, struggle way more than if I wasn’t here and now she might
die!

Instead of saying that,
Grandpa, tell me how to handle Phoebe!

‘What do you mean?’

Is that so?

Seeing Phoebe now, I realised
she’s different from the times she faltered when we were together
before.

She might be pretending to be
strong, but even maintaining such a pretence is enough.

If she can pretend to be
strong even when her sense of existence is being denied, it means she
can hold on to her mental stability.

Has Phoebe grown in her own
way through everything she’s been through?

Back when we first entered the
dungeon, her feelings would have shown clearly on her face.

‘Grandpa, can you really stand
by those words?’

Sigh.
Alright, you want me to trust Phoebe, right?

Fine. I’ll follow your
advice, Grandpa.

But if Phoebe goes astray
because of this, be ready for an Academy dumpster tour.

I take a deep breath and look
around. It’s just Phoebe and me here in this room; no one else is
present.

However, beyond the door, I
can hear the rustling of the priests. They might be able to overhear
our conversation.

So, I can’t say anything about
Phoebe being a fake Saint or anything like that. If that information
leaks, it’s obvious how the higher-ups of the Church of Armadi will
react.

If they act according to the
game’s scenario, Phoebe wouldn’t be able to withstand it now.

There are so many things I
want to tell Phoebe and ask her, but that will have to wait until
we’re in a safer place.

For now, I know exactly what I
need to say to Phoebe.

If I say it normally, it will
definitely be distorted by the [Mesugaki] Skill, right?

In that case, I might as well
speak like a Mesugaki.

“Sloppy Saint♡ Do you
think I care about your sloppy and stupid opinions?♡ I’ll call
you whatever I want. Got it? Sloppy Saint?♡”

Phoebe, I’m not sure how
much Nacrad has told you, but I assume you’ve heard something about
me.

You know I’m associated with
Armadi, right? That’s why I called you a Saint.

Don’t waver. Don’t worry.

“Lady Allen? What do you
mean by that?”

“Curious?♡ Are you
curious?♡ Puhah♡ But what should I do?♡ I have no intention of
telling you right now♡”

“What?”

“Stupid Saint*♡ Even if
you wait, you won’t understand?♡” (*Informal speech)

Trust me and wait.

Not long from now, your
curiosity will be resolved.

I’ll tell you that you are
the Saint chosen by Armadi.

Worried that Armadi might
think differently? Who cares?

If he’s upset, he can
descend himself and tell us who he thinks the Saint should be.

Silence is a form of
agreement, after all.

‘See you later.’

“See you later. Unlike
someone here, I’m very busy, so I’ve got to go.”

‘Hold on a moment. Lady
Allen, I still have so much to tell you. I haven’t even had the
chance to thank you, and now you’re already leaving.’

Phoebe hurriedly rose, but
Lucy was faster in opening the door.

Seeing Phoebe standing
upright, the Bishop and other members of the Church of Armadi waiting
outside widened their eyes in amazement.

“The Saint is awake!”

“What a miracle!”

“Thank you, Armadi!”

“Lady Allen, thank you so
much! It’s all thanks to you.”

“Enough, move aside, you
trash priests. Your stench is making me sick.”

Lucy wore an expression of
genuine contempt, causing the church members to hurriedly step back,
creating an opening for her to exit the room.

Several priests and the Bishop
trailed behind her, expressing their gratitude, but Lucy didn’t even
pretend to listen.

As if she hadn’t helped Phoebe
for their sake.

“Saint, are you okay?”

“How do you feel? Is
there any discomfort?”

“Are you thirsty?”

Phoebe, staring blankly at
Lucy’s retreating figure, assured the priests surrounding her that
she was fine.

After some time, once the
Bishop had returned and calmed the situation, Phoebe, left alone,
leaned against the wall and reflected on Lucy’s words before she
left.

‘Lady Allen called me a
Saint till the very end.

The Apostle of Armadi herself
said that.

Did she really not know that I
am a fake Saint? That wouldn’t make sense. The one chosen by Armadi
would definitely be able to distinguish between the real and fake.

Lady Allen must have known
everything and still told me that I was worthy of being the Saint.

Her tone wasn’t exactly kind,
and I did feel a bit angry even while hearing such touching words,
but still.

I couldn’t help but be moved
by the fact that Lucy, an Apostle of Armadi, acknowledged someone as
lacking as myself.

Sir Ruel, you were right. Lady
Allen might have a rough way of speaking, but she is definitely a
kind person.’

Phoebe brushed her face as she
looked at the tear stains spreading on her blanket.

Even though she tried to
remain as composed as possible, it didn’t erase the mental shock
Phoebe had experienced.

The realisation that all her
childhood memories were lies.

The fact that, despite living
her whole life striving to be a person befitting the title of Saint,
she was actually a fabricated, false Saint.

These two truths were enough
to shake the very foundation of who Phoebe was as a person.

Thinking it was only natural
she didn’t fit the role because she was never a true Saint to begin
with.

But, even if she consoled
herself, promising to become a more devout person from now on, how
could that shock be easily overcome?

Yet, Phoebe felt saved by
Lucy’s words before she left.

Because of that, even now, as
she couldn’t stop the tears from flowing, she kept telling herself it
was okay.

She was able to gain the
certainty that she could improve herself.

After a long time, Phoebe
finally stopped crying and, with a sigh, looked at the bedspread, now
a mess of tears and snot.

‘Crying out loud once seems
to have made me feel a lot better.

…Lady Allen told me to wait
before she left.

I’m sure it means that despite
having many questions and things I want to say, I should wait.

Not to act alone on my whims
and to wait for her.

If those words came from the
Apostle of Armadi, then they surely have significant meaning.

Originally, I was thinking of
moving on my own…

Yes. I should wait. If it’s
what the Great Armadi desires. If Lady Allen has a plan. Since I was
saved by her, I must follow her.

So, what should I think about
in the meantime?

Hmm. Perhaps I should think
about how to express my gratitude to Lady Allen?

What does she like? This is
something worth pondering over.

I should consult with Joy.

Since I’m at it, I’d like to
prepare a gift that would make Lady Allen say thank you.’

Imagining Lucy blushing and
hesitatingly saying thank you made Phoebe smile softly as if she had
never cried.

‘I don’t know if it’s
possible, but I’ll try my best.’

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