chapter_0179

Mesugaki Tank Enters the Academy –
179

Mesugaki Tank Enters the Academy –
179

Alsatine hadn’t expected such
a dramatic reaction, and as he chuckled awkwardly, Nicki quietly
appeared beside him and handed him a towel.

Alsatine thanked her for the
gesture and wiped the beer off his face.

“Sorry about that. I must
have misheard.”

Karl said, awkwardly rubbing
the back of his neck while smiling.

“You didn’t mishear.”

“Did you really ask if I
enjoy being humiliated by a girl?”

Karl’s expression was serious
as he frowned.

“Yeah.”

“Why?”

Karl’s face was deeply
troubled, as if he couldn’t understand why such a question was even
posed.

“Why, you ask? Are you
seriously questioning that?”

“Of course I’m serious. I’m
a knight of the Allen Family. Being suspected of something like that
is naturally upsetting.”

“…Are you really serious?”

“Let me ask in return. What
made you think that about me?”

“Look at how you behave with
Lady Allen!”

Alsatine’s voice raised for
the first time, challenging Karl’s claims of unfairness.

“When Lady Allen treats you
like a dog, you actually seem to enjoy it! When her demeaning words
soften, you get sad!”

“Ah, so that’s what you
mean.”

“Do you finally understand?”

“What’s wrong with that?”

“What?”

Hearing Karl’s
counter-question, Alsatine pressed his nose bridge hard with the palm
of his hand.

‘Does this guy genuinely
think he’s normal?

I always thought he was a bit
off, but this is worse than I imagined!’

“How can you be an Academy
graduate and still lack common sense? Have you damaged your head
while working as a knight?”

“No. I understand now why
you might find it odd. It could certainly appear that way.”

Karl nodded understandingly.

Seeing Karl’s reaction,
Alsatine downed his drink in one go and shouted out in frustration.

“What do you mean, What’s
wrong with that?”

“Just listen for a moment.
I’ll explain.”

“Fine. Go ahead.”

“First, there’s something
you need to know. It’s about my dream. I always wanted to be an
ideal knight, like the ones in the bard’s tales.”

Karl then went on to recount
the stories of knights he remembered.

The one who guarded his
master’s tomb even after becoming a skeleton knight.

The one who always led the
charge in battle to fulfil his master’s wishes.

The one who was beheaded while
keeping his loyalty even as a captive.

Karl listed many other deeds
of knights from songs and tales.

“Do you know what they all
have in common? They all served ideal masters.”

Karl had no desire to be the
protagonist of a tragedy.

Even if his master’s
incompetence made the knight’s abilities stand out, he didn’t care
for that.

Because Karl wanted to fulfil
his aspirations, not earn pity.

“Think about it. Except for
her slightly rough language, isn’t Miss Lucy close to an ideal
master?”

When Karl first decided to
serve Lucy, it wasn’t out of recognition for her.

He wanted to repay someone who
forgave his flaws and shortcomings, not because he acknowledged and
dedicated his loyalty to Lucy.

However, as he spent more time
by her side, his thoughts gradually changed.

She was someone who would risk
her life for others.

She was a person who could
overcome hesitation if she thought it necessary.

She was someone who didn’t
know how to give up no matter what extreme situations she faced.

She possessed talents that
could overwhelm everyone at the Soul Academy, where the kingdom’s
greatest talents gathered.

“At some point, I
realised. Miss Lucy is the master I’ve always dreamed of.”

How miraculous it was!

The person he intended to
serve for atonement turned out to be the ideal who could fulfil his
dreams!

Even if Lucy didn’t have any
abilities, Karl would have followed her. His gratitude was that
immense.

However, Lucy possessed more
than what Karl had hoped for.

She had the abilities to make
his dreams come true!

How could he not be grateful!

How could he not hold this
bond as something special!

Karl passionately explained,
but Alsatine’s reaction was lukewarm.

“Alright. I understand
that Lady Allen is the person you’ve been looking for. But why do
you rejoice at her mischievous manner and actions?”

“Because it’s Miss Lucy
who does it!”

Lucy treating him like a dog
meant she acknowledged him as her guard dog.

So, it was naturally something
to be happy about.

Using disparaging remarks she
didn’t use with others meant she treated him specially.

So, this too was naturally
something to be happy about.

“I’m not happy about
being insulted by a girl; I’m happy because it’s Miss Lucy doing it!
This isn’t some perverse desire; it’s loyalty!”

Alsatine looked at Karl, who
was shouting with his chest puffed out as if he had no shame, and
then took another drink.

‘In the end, you’re happy
being insulted by Lady Allen.

How is that any different from
being happy about being insulted by a girl?

Sigh. What
a pity.

He looks decent and has
excellent skills, but it’s unfortunate that he’s like this on the
inside.

Getting married is out of the
question.

Unless he meets someone
exactly like him, he’ll have to live alone for the rest of his life.’

Alsatine thought this but
didn’t say it out loud.

He knew that Karl would
undoubtedly shout; What’s living alone if it means I can stay by Miss
Lucy’s side!

“Alright! I’ve answered
properly. Now it’s my turn to ask.”

“You want to know why I
followed Lady Allen here?”

Alsatine naturally used a
spell stored in his ring while he was talking back to Karl.

“Hmm. A soundproofing
spell?”

“Well noticed. It’s hard
to recognize since it’s different from commonly known magic.”

“I don’t distinguish it
by sight. I figured it out by listening to the sounds.”

Alsatine chuckled at Karl’s
response, realising he had detected Nicki’s breathing stop.

‘His skills are definitely
impressive. Even though Nicki works in the Underworld and usually
erases her presence while waiting, he still manages to sense her.’

“Well, enough of that.
Just answer the question.”

“It’s simple. The person
I’m looking for is here.”

“The one Miss mentioned,
Karia?”

“That’s right. My
mentor.”

Though when they were
together, he used to call her aunt more often than mentor.

As he mentioned her name, Karl
folded his arms.

“She must be a precious
person to you.”

“She picked me up when I
was dying and raised me.”

Alsatine giggled as he
recounted his past.

Abandoned in an alleyway right
after birth. Having to beg for survival as soon as he could walk.
Getting beaten nearly to death for not meeting quotas. Then, being
picked up by chance.

“Most of what I have now,
I learned from her.”

Maybe it was because he was on
the verge of a long-awaited reunion, or perhaps it was the alcohol,
but Alsatine’s lips were looser than usual as he talked about his
past.

Listening to the deeds of
Karia coming from Alsatine, Karl murmured quietly.

“She’s an amazing
person.”

“Isn’t she? She even
tackled dungeons with Sir Benedict Allen in the past.”

“…What?”

Seeing Karl’s stunned
expression, Alsatine chuckled and continued.

“I’m not joking. I’m
telling you beforehand because you’ll recognize her when you see
her.”

“You mean, Lady Karia,
who was once called the shadow of the royal palace, is your mentor?
Ha. If you’re going to lie, at least make it believable.”

“It’s the truth.”

Despite Alsatine’s smiling
words, Karl showed no signs of believing him.

‘It was understandable. How
could anyone believe that a figure once considered legendary
alongside Benedict could be the mentor of an informant living in the
back alleys?’

Alsatine shrugged, as if he
didn’t expect Karl to believe him, and moved on to share another
memory.

After taking a whole day off
to rest, I checked the items in my inventory one more time.

Where I’m heading is more
dangerous than any other place I’ve been before. After all, it’s the
place where the Evil God who controls fire is sealed.

In the world of Soul Academy,
there are numerous gods.

These gods are closer to the
tangible deities you’d find in Greek or Roman mythology rather than
omniscient and omnipotent absolute gods, so their behaviour patterns
are quite human-like.

Usually, when many people
gather, groups are formed, right? The gods in this world are the
same.

They are divided into a group
centred around the sloppy and perverted Armadi and another centred
around the petty Agra.

The former group wishes for
the preservation and stability of the world, while the latter hopes
for its destruction.

They clung persistently to
their arguments and eventually realised that words couldn’t resolve
their differences, leading them to war.

In the end, Armadi’s side won
and sealed the Evil Gods in various parts of the world, thus ending
the war.

However, there was one thing
the gods did not anticipate.

Even if they were sealed, a
god is still a god.

Their powers naturally
affected the surrounding environment, creating things that shouldn’t
exist in this world.

That’s precisely what large
dungeons are.

Not something created by
Agra’s power, but rather abnormal environments spawned by the Aura of
the Evil God.

As long as the Evil God is
anchored there, it will never disappear.

A place where catastrophe will
begin the moment the seal breaks.

Do you understand now why
there’s a quest to save Menestail from disaster?

There is someone there
attempting to break the seal.

Armadi wants me to stop it.

This upcoming opponent is
stronger than anyone I’ve faced so far.

Nacrad? Compared to the enemy
I’ll meet this time, he’s sloppy. Even comparing them is an insult.

The Alchemist? That one might
seem powerful within his dungeon, but someone like Karl could handle
him well enough.

But this is different. This
opponent can overwhelm even Karl.

Do you think it’s possible to
take down such a monster?

Of course. That’s exactly why
I’m here, isn’t it?

That assumption only holds
true if we aren’t prepared.

Why would I insist on fighting
my opponent fairly?

The basic principle of battle
is to give your enemy the worst and your allies the best.

After finishing my inspection
of the items, I stretched.

Alright. I’m ready to show the
enemy just how troublesome a Veteran can be.

I’ll quickly wrap up this
annoying task and then visit Joy’s territory for some fun!

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