chapter_0195

Mesugaki Tank Enters the Academy –
195

Mesugaki Tank Enters the Academy –
195

The reason the thug suggested
a disguise was simple.

The issue with entering the
auction house was the existence of Lucy Allen herself.

So, if I were no longer Lucy,
there wouldn’t be any problem.

Up to that point, it made
sense. It seemed like a decent proposal.

However, the moment I saw the
disguise costume the thug brought, I shook my head in dismay.

A black parasol to block the
scorching sunlight. A wide-brimmed black hat to cover my noticeable
hair. On top of that, a fluttering black dress.

Being familiar with Japanese
culture to the point where I had no aversion to creating [Mesugaki]
characters, I knew what this outfit was called.

Gothic Lolita.

An outfit often worn by
characters with hidden agendas or a dark inner side.

‘Excuse me. Thug. Are you a
pervert?’

“Thug. Why are you mixing
your personal preferences into the disguise? Such blatant perversion
is not just disgusting; it’s creepy.”

“No! It’s not like that
at all!”

The thug had his own reasons
for handing me this outfit. I could disguise my noticeable face with
the parasol and hat, and cover my fair skin with the long dress.

Ladies in such outfits often
had introverted personalities, so it wouldn’t be strange if I kept
silent, allowing me to hide not only my voice but also my distinctive
speech patterns.

I understood the utility of
the costume.

However, understanding didn’t
mean liking it!

The idea of wearing such
clothes was unappealing, and now I was being told to voluntarily put
them on?

Would I do that?!

“It looks like it would
suit you.”

The fox above my head mumbled
something, but I ignored her.

Instead, I stubbornly insisted
to the thug, asking if there were any other outfits.

Despite my complaints, he
could only offer an awkward smile.

“Time is the issue.”

If we had the luxury of time,
we could have managed a different disguise.

If I had informed them a few
days prior, we would have had several options.

But I had arrived here just
two hours before the auction started.

With nothing prepared and no
time to get ready, the thug’s current suggestion was his best
offer.

“If you’re thinking of
purchasing items rather than enjoying the auction, sending an agent
is also an option. Here, this is what’s listed…”

The thug said as he handed me
a list.

I took it but didn’t read it
seriously.

I already knew what was on the
auction list by heart.

There are two types of items
in the Nig Auction House.

The first type consists of
rare and valuable items, noteworthy enough to be listed.

Items that attract many people
willing to buy one of them.

The second type includes items
deemed miscellaneous by the auction house.

They continually alternate
valuable and cheap items to the auction to give people a break and
some breathing room. Among these, the former type is always fixed,
while the latter is decided randomly each time.

And usually, when users say
they’ve hit the jackpot, it’s generally found in the latter
category.

I came here aiming for both
types.

With the knowledge unique to a
veteran and my steadily improved [Appraisal] Skill, I believed that
combined with my high luck attribute, I could definitely score big.

Therefore, I really wanted to
participate in the auction if possible.

I lifted my eyes from the list
and stared at the Gothic Lolita dress hanging on the rack, then
sighed and lowered my head.

Grandpa’s voice broke my
contemplation as I kept mumbling to myself.

‘Yes. I hate it.’

‘Of course.’

It wouldn’t be strange at
all to see a cute girl wearing it.

Granted, the colours are
somewhat gloomy, but that’s all. Depending on the person, it could be
considered cute or pretty.

But that’s solely from the
perspective of an observer.

The story changes when I think
about wearing it and standing in front of others.

‘It’s similar, but
different.’

Indeed, there is a mix of
embarrassment in my feelings. However, this emotion cannot be merely
described as embarrassment.

There are too many words to
describe the feelings contained within.

If I had to categorise it, I
would say it’s aversion.

An aversion to femininity.

It hasn’t even been a year
since I possessed Lucy’s body.

A lot has happened during that
time, but I still consider myself a man.

Even though I’ve gotten used
to wearing skirts due to the semi-forced Academy uniforms, there’s
still a limit.

Such frilly and cute clothes
are a bit much.

They are more normal than the
clothes in Lucy’s wardrobe, but still…

‘That was unavoidable back
then!’

Grandpa! I had almost erased
that black history from my memory, do you really need to bring it
up?!

‘Besides, back then, it was
under the condition that only the perverted Fox would see!’

In the end, all the party
members got to see me in the Bunny Girl costume, but that wasn’t my
initial plan.

I only intended to show it to
the perverted Fox and bury it in my heart.

That’s how eccentricity
starts.

Acting foolishly alone at home
feels completely different from doing so in front of others.

The former only makes you feel
a brief moment of self-reflection, but the latter becomes a black
history that makes you cringe for life!

Do you know how painful it is
to remember that moment when others saw you in the Bunny Girl
costume?!

I never want to experience
that again!

…

Huh?

Ring of Changing Light?

While replying to Grandpa and
casually flipping through the list, I noticed an item that shouldn’t
be there in this auction list. I raised an eyebrow. I roughly know
what that is.

It’s an item where two rings
make a pair and when magic is imbued into them, the colours change.
When one ring changes colour, the other one changes as well.

I know it’s usually used to
set certain meanings for different colours to send urgent messages.

I remember it appearing in a
side quest.

It’s fairly valuable but not
so expensive that it’s classified as a high-end item; it’s usually
considered among miscellaneous items. So why is it on the list?

Finding it strange, I asked
the thug, and he replied that he handed me a list of all items
available in this auction.

So, this included not only the
Auction House-provided list but also every other item in the auction?

‘You should have told me
that earlier!’

“Hey, thug. You should have
mentioned that earlier. Is your head so full of thoughts about women
that you can’t think straight about anything else? You wretched,
incompetent pervert.”

“I’m certain I did mention
it!”

Did he? As I glanced to the
side, Possell gave an awkward smile.

Maybe he did mention it and I
just didn’t hear it.

This is all Grandpa’s fault.

Bringing up the Bunny Girl
outfit story and making me so miserable!

Anyway, it works out well.

Now, I can send a proxy
without worry.

If I list the items I want to
buy and set the priorities, they’ll take care of it for me. I felt a
weight lift off my shoulders and leisurely looked through the list.

A gem that absorbs magical
power?

Oh, this is here too. It would
be great to give this to Joy.

If she consistently imbues it
with magic, it will grow into something quite useful.

Wasn’t this the item that
increased efficiency during administrative work?

This one would be perfect for
Benedict.

And this…

While thinking over what to
buy with my current budget in mind, I suddenly froze upon reading a
particular sentence on the list.

‘Mr. Ki, this…’

“Thug, is this item really
available?”

“Yes. It isn’t anything
particularly impressive, but I heard there weren’t many items
available this time, so they had no choice.”

Upon hearing the thug’s
explanation that he got this information from the person in charge of
ordering auction items, I frowned and stared at the sentence.

[Stone Tablet That Shines When
Imbued with Divine Energy]

At first glance, this looks
like a miscellaneous item.

When someone who walks the
path of God imbues it with divine energy, it emits a bright light,
and that’s it.

It had no practical effect
whatsoever.

Though there were murmurs
about the cryptic phrases in its description and how each tablet had
a different explanation, most users didn’t pay much attention to
it.

Still, people were thrilled
when it dropped.

Despite its insanely low drop
rate, it fetched a high price at the store or auction house.

Merchants who collect items
related to the Church of Armadi buy this at high prices.

However, a few weeks after the
game was released, the evaluation of this item flipped.

A user revealed that this item
was a clue or key to obtaining specific equipment.

Since then, the Stone Tablet
That Shines When Imbued with Divine Energy became an essential item
to keep if you had extra space while raising a character with divine
energy.

If you were raising another
type of character, it was better to sell it off without a second
glance.

But here’s the thing.

Right now, I’m on the path
of a Paladin.

And since the Sloppy Armadi
wouldn’t leave me alone, I couldn’t change my job either.

I started to get a headache.

The Stone Tablet That Shines
When Imbued with Divine Energy is insanely expensive.

It’s so outrageously
expensive that even if I invested my entire current budget, it would
still be tight.

If I end up buying this, I’d
have to abandon all my plans.

Not only would I have to forgo
the gifts for several people, but also Yui’s bracelet, another
essential item.

This is huge.

Posting about this appearing
in the auction house would make me the talk of the town.

But I can’t just blindly
purchase it.

Because I don’t know whether
this is a clue tablet or a key tablet.

I don’t need a clue.

I’ve memorised everything
about it, so there’s no reason for me to search for a clue.

However, I need the key.

As someone who uses divine
energy this is a game changer for me.

Can I distinguish between the
two?

It’s possible.

The [Appraisal] Skill will
immediately reveal the truth.

In other words, I still need
to go to the Auction House to confirm it.

“Lady Allen, what will you
do?”

The thug, perhaps pressed for
time, urged me with an awkward smile.

Behind him, someone holding a
Gothic Lolita outfit continued to show it off.

Should I be myself as a man?
Or should I be a veteran player of Soul Academy?

The decision wasn’t
difficult.

The former was just useless
pride, but the latter was reality.

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