episode_0053

“Khhuk?”

Rolling pathetically on the ground, I—formerly the lowest-ranked member of the hero’s party and now the heir apparent of the Grave family—let out a ragged groan.

“What the hell… is this…?”

“You still don’t grasp the severity of the situation, do you? Our trust has been utterly shattered. In that case, of course—”

“No!”

Just before a rough boot could connect with me, Chris reached out.

Logically, her hand shouldn’t have been able to reach—yet my body was yanked toward her as if seized by an invisible force.

It was such precise mana control that even I was stunned. When did she get this strong?

She hadn’t even learned any potions or techniques to help with that yet.

“Oppa!”

“Are you okay? Are you hurt anywhere?”

Cecilia and Chris rushed toward me, already patting me down for injuries.

“Ughhh…!”

“I told you not to do anything stupid! Honestly—”

Grumbling, Cecilia began pouring divine energy into me—far less than usual, but honestly, this was better.

“Oppa…”

“Chris. I… need a favor.”

“Huh? What is it?”

Gazing at the slit-eyed gang standing with their arms crossed and the coins scattered across the ground, I forced out a strained whisper.

“Pick that money up for me…?”

How much is that even worth?

If I lost that, I’d have practically no discretionary funds left.

Sure, I could earn it back eventually—but it wasn’t like I was so generous that I’d just hand it over to people who refused it in the first place.

“The… money? Alright.”

Chris handed me off to Cecilia and began carefully collecting the coins scattered on the ground. Watching her, one of the slit-eyed men scoffed.

“Know your place. Still trying to deceive us? How tragic. To think you’d disrespect us to this extent. We’re well aware of the financial situations of Academy students like you. But platinum coins? Not even gold? Really?”

Ah.

That’s what the problem was.

I’d prided myself on being frugal—someone familiar with poverty. But apparently, living too long in this world had dulled my sense of money.

A single platinum coin was worth nearly 100 million in my old world’s currency.

Not that the Graves, who had so much wealth they could stack platinum coins into literal towers, would bat an eye at such amounts. Chris herself managed several times that sum while handling the family’s affairs.

The rest of the hero’s party hadn’t known hardship either.

Eliya was a princess.

Cecilia, as the daughter of Count Rustal and the Saintess, received donations so vast they dwarfed most noble families’ incomes.

Even Lucilla, the only commoner among us, had been born with talent—trained by knight orders and later selected as a hero, ensuring hefty sponsorships from multiple nations.

So, despite believing I’d lived frugally, it was all relative.

Ordinary folks used copper and silver. Gold coins were for the wealthy. Platinum? Good luck seeing one without being high nobility.

“Counterfeit coins. Seems Academy kids these days have gotten bold. But I’m merciful. I’ll give you one last chance.”

“……”

Chris, now done collecting the money, stared daggers at the slit-eyed man with an icy expression.

“Oppa.”

“Try to understand. In their eyes, this is fair.”

Even if these underworld types were reckless, short-sighted thugs—they weren’t stupid.

If they picked fights with Academy students stronger than them, they knew they’d end up subdued in seconds.

So they only showed themselves when confident of victory.

Annoying? Sure. But that was their choice.

“And you’re still telling me to hold back? Seems to me they have zero intentions of letting us walk away peacefully.”

“That’s not… what I meant. You really confident?”

“Of course! Leave it to me.”

“No, I’m not asking if you can win—”

“I know, Oppa. I’ll just stop at their limbs.”

Chris cut in, quick to reassure me.

“Just… limbs? Just that?”

“Who do you take us for? Even without Lucy here, that much is easy.”

…I don’t believe this.

But before I could argue, she carefully set the money pouch beside me and strode forward confidently.

—Thud!

“There. Barrier’s up. If you’re thinking of running, don’t bother. Just fight, you pathetic worms.”

“Is this mockery? If you’re this unserious—”

“Shut it, you lowlifes. Bullying kids doesn’t make you hot shit.”

Even the quiet brute at the back finally lost his patience and stepped forward with a growl.

“Little lady. Seems you’ve been sheltered too long in that Academy of yours. We wouldn’t dare pull this stunt if we weren’t damn sure we—”

“—only prey on people weaker than you? Yeah, I know. Now shut your mouth.”

“Tch. Harsh words.”

“Easy, easy.”

The slit-eyed man waved off the angered brute like it was nothing.

“Must be confident in your skills, huh? Let me educate you. The real world doesn’t play by Academy rules. Enemies won’t wait for you to chant spells.”

“Gh—kuh!”

“Eric! Don’t push yourself!”

Dammit.

I wanted to say they picked the wrong target—but one hit had already wrecked me.

Sure, I took a solid hit—but I hadn’t expected my body to be this frail.

“Ugh…!”

“You okay? Sorry, I’m… not sure how much healing this needs…”

I nearly deflated at that.

Cecilia’s usual battlefield healing was for people dangling between life and death.

Of course, this barely phased her.

Too much divine energy could make my organs swell—so moderation was key.

“I’m… fine. I can handle it.”

The soreness from rolling on the ground paled compared to real pain.

“More importantly… stop Chris.”

“Why?”

“If this keeps up… it won’t stop at limbs.”

She’d been angry when she handed me the pouch. Very angry.

She’d even laid down a barrier.

Chris, who usually kept her emotions tightly controlled, had no restraint left when pushed.

If Eliya was a loose cannon, Chris was a time bomb.

“Dodge if you can. If.”

“Hmph. Must think you’re hot shi—GWAAH?!”

His words didn’t even start before they ended.

—Thud!

Just like me moments ago, the brute went sprawling across the ground.

Only difference?

He no longer had limbs.

“Disappointing. But then, what else could I expect from losers who try extorting Academy students?”

“H-Huh? My… my legs… uh?”

Dumbfounded, the brute stared at his severed limbs like he couldn’t process it.

“We’re retreating!”

Credit where it’s due—their leader acted fast.

Abandoning allies wasn’t an easy call.

And yet—

“You think I’m letting you run?”

Before she even finished speaking, they hit the ground too.

“W-What the hell is this?!”

“Doesn’t hurt, right? Courtesy of me.”

She flicked her fingers.

“Here you go!”

Their severed limbs flew to her feet, stacking neatly.

“Cecilia?”

“Eric. Sorry.”

“Huh? For wha—ugh?!”

Darkness engulfed me as something struck the back of my neck.

———

“How is he, unnie?”

“Knocked out. He won’t wake for a while.”

“You sure did it right? What if Oppa wakes up mid—”

“He’s sedated. It’s fine.”

Even reassured, Christine still looked uneasy—a stark contrast to the girl who’d just casually hacked off limbs.

The three on the ground finally realized something was wrong.

Two girls—chatting normally after dismemberment.

“So? That means I can go wild?”

“Yeah. Just don’t kill them. You already set the barrier—do whatever you want. I’ll stay here with Eric.”

“Hmm… feels like I’m getting the short end here.”

“Oh? Want to swap? If you’re confident you can heal Eric without waking him, be my guest.”

“…No. My bad.”

All Christine had done so far was break things for Eliya—far simpler than delicate healing.

But the flip side?

Breaking things was her specialty.