I Became the Academy’s Female Delinquent Chapter 13. One Step Closer to the Truth

The sky visible between the grand branches of Yggdrasil was gradually being tinged with the colors of sunset.

The Bifrost, the dimensional road connecting worlds, flickered and disappeared.

A mythical sight that she could never have dreamed of in her original reality.

Elsie, gazing at it with subdued eyes, quickened her pace again.

“How long are you going to follow me?”

“I’m going to watch you go inside.”

Elsie turned back to Thrud, who was following her, with a scowl.

Then, she shifted her gaze to glare at Doyun, who was half-hidden behind Thrud.

“…I’m just going in the same direction.”

“See? Doyun was worried about you too, so he followed you.”

“No, I really am going the same way home…”

Smack!

Thrud interrupted Doyun’s nonchalant reply by hitting him with her tied-up, light pink hair.

“You’ve been acting strange ever since you heard about the tournament from the teacher. How can I let you go home alone when I’m worried?”

With her arms crossed, she began to stare at Elsie with a serious expression.

“And you forgot the way home, too.”

“Ugh?! No, I didn’t! I’m going straight right now!”

Elsie had made a fuss about being able to go back alone as soon as they left the academy.

She almost ended up riding the Bifrost all the way to Muspelheim.

Thrud shook her head, recalling that.

“You idiot, argue about something that matters. You’re the first person I’ve ever seen almost get lost by taking the wrong dimensional road, you know?”

“How was I supposed to know that was the Bifrost!”

‘Why does it look different from the game!’

Elsie’s face turned bright red as if she felt wronged.

Thrud couldn’t help but smile at the sight.

Silver hair and a lovely face illuminated by the sunset, she’s such a pretty girl, but inside she’s a complete rascal.

“So, what’s wrong? You’ve been acting like a lost soul even when Eir and Radgrid came to see you.”

Was the story of the tournament that Reginleif told her that impressive?

Thrud recalled Elsie’s dazed appearance since lunch.

“The tournament… I’m looking forward to it. I get to fight strong people.”

“Then why are you acting like that? You can just participate in that tournament, right?”

“That’s right, Elsie. Let’s have that duel we promised at the tournament.”

“……”

Elsie scanned Thrud, who was smiling brightly, and Doyun, who was giving an awkward smile, with a sulky expression.

“You guys must have heard what the prize for the tournament is, right?”

The Nine Worlds Academy Integrated Tournament,

Yggdrasil Alheim Schlacht.

The prize for this integrated tournament, which was donated by none other than the principal of Elsie’s main academy, was.

Doyun and Thrud answered Elsie’s question in turn.

“A mythical artifact that grants any wish.”

“They called it Ymir’s Horn, I think.”

The first Jötunn. The primordial giant whose entire body was used to construct the world itself after his death.

The prize was even a remaining component of that Ymir.

It was said to grant any wish.

Elsie repeated the words that Reginleif had explained.

What was she thinking, donating such a treasure as a tournament prize?

Whatever the reason, it didn’t matter.

In any case, the existence of the treasure called Ymir’s Horn presented Elsie with one possibility.

That was…

‘I might be able to go back.’

The possibility of returning home from this familiar but unfamiliar world had arisen.

That was enough to change Elsie’s mind and thoughts.

To reclaim herself.

Not simply meaning the lost self of the past.

A world she could call home, a house to return to, a routine, and a life.

‘Being a character I raised and fighting is a special experience, but I still… want to go back.’

Elsie, who had made up her mind, opened her mouth.

“I’m going to win the tournament. I’m going to get Ymir’s Horn.”

“Could it be… are you trying to regain your memories with that artifact that can grant wishes?”

Elsie, unable to reveal her true feelings, nodded awkwardly at Thrud’s question.

“Uh, yeah. Well… that’s right. If it can grant any wish, then I can wish for anything.”

“…Do you really think that’s possible?”

Doyun, who had been lost in thought, spoke cautiously.

“Elsie. I don’t want to pour cold water on your expectations, but… is it really possible to grant any wish in reality?”

Doyun’s point was valid.

The idea of being able to grant any wish was too absurd.

There was a possibility that the rumors were exaggerated.

But now that she knew of the possibility, Elsie had only one choice.

‘If only I could go back.’

If only she could go back, she could call this feeling an obsession.

“We won’t know until we try. So I’m going to get it. I’m going to win the tournament, no matter what.”

Elsie vowed in a strong tone, as if she were self-hypnotizing.

As if responding to her determination, the wind blew.

The leaves on the ash tree fell and scattered.

The sunset deepened even further.

The three arrived at a dilapidated place on the outskirts of the city, presumably Elsie’s home.

The building looked somewhere between a house and an abandoned building.

Awkward glances were exchanged.

“It’s quite close to the academy, so I guess it’s on the outskirts of the city… but is this really your house?”

“Don’t ask. I don’t know either…”

“S-Sorry…”

Doyun looked at Elsie with disbelief.

Elsie, who was presumed to be a young lady from a prestigious Asgard family.

The condition of the house was too bad to be her home.

A small, two-story Midgard-style building with high ceilings.

It could only be assumed that it had a rather nice appearance in the past.

‘It looks like a completely abandoned house.’

A collapsed fence, a rusty gate, cracked exterior walls and windows.

In addition to these, there were traces of neglect everywhere.

“Thrud followed me here this morning, so it must be my house, right…?”

Elsie, unable to be sure, looked at Thrud as if to confirm.

“The address your teacher gave me is right here. I didn’t notice it this morning, but now that I see it again, it’s really eerie…”

“Yeah… if it’s right, then that’s good. Thanks…”

Elsie waved goodbye to Thrud and Doyun.

A gloomy shadow fell under the sunset sky.

Elsie’s back, as she trudged towards the dilapidated house, looked pathetic.

“It doesn’t seem like there’s a caretaker either…”

Thrud, who had waved back, looked at Elsie with an uneasy expression.

Elsie opened the door and went inside.

Come to think of it, the lock on the front door was broken.

“I’m worried about leaving that innocent girl alone in a place like that…”

“Considering Elsie’s skills, wouldn’t she be okay?”

In response to Thrud’s concern, Doyun replied, recalling Elsie’s strength.

But what came back was Thrud’s sharp gaze.

“I’m worried about Elsie’s feelings! You inconsiderate jerk! Elsie has been so troubled all day.”

‘Didn’t she spend half the day happily fighting…?’

Doyun soon realized that Thrud had the ability to read minds.

So he just nodded silently.

A quick glance at Elsie’s house showed it sinking eerily into the shadows created by the sunset.

Creak.

As she pushed open the front door, the old hinges screamed.

The fatal flaw of the broken lock on the front door didn’t matter.

With the house in this state, she should be grateful that there was even a door.

Thinking that, Elsie examined the house, which she hadn’t seen properly in the morning.

“I was too distracted by Thrud this morning to notice, but… the inside is more intact than I thought?”

The stairs leading to the old room where Elsie had regained consciousness.

Next to it was a small kitchen and a somewhat antique table.

To Elsie, it felt like a two-story house that was a little bigger than a studio apartment.

“It’s strange. It doesn’t feel like a fantasy, but it’s hard to call it modern… I guess you could say it has that Aesir Saga game-like allowance.”

Unlike the dilapidated exterior, the interior was decent enough.

To the extent that the outside appearance seemed to be just the external theme of the house.

After looking around the first floor, Elsie plopped down on a fluffy-looking sofa.

On the table in front of the sofa was a letter that she hadn’t noticed.

“A letter?”

Judging by the fact that the letter was unsealed, it seemed that it had already been read.

“I don’t remember reading it, of course. If there’s no one else in this house, then the one who read this must be…”

It was just a guess, but it was most likely Elsie from the past that she didn’t know.

“Elsie’s past…”

Elsie, who was like his own alter ego in the Aesir Saga.

If that Elsie had a past, then it should at least be the time he had cultivated.

Elsie stared at the envelope for a moment before taking out the letter and unfolding it.

***

-To. Elsie Adorenchia.

As a member of the great Adorenchia family, consider yourself lucky that the punishment you received was only this much.

The fact that we turned a blind eye to your combat aptitude, which wasn’t even worthy of a Skjaldmær, was only because we saw great potential for divine manifestation.

***

“Skjaldmaer… Anyway, what’s all this about combat aptitude and divinity?”

Skjaldmaer was a sub-class of Valkyrie in the Aesir Saga.

The letter confirmed that remnants of the Valkyries clearly existed in this world as well.

Elsie shook off her distracting thoughts and read the letter again.

***

But even that fell short of expectations.

Even as I write this letter, I am beyond disbelief.

What would have happened if the Lord had known all this truth?

He would have thrown you, the shame of the family, into the river of Niflheim, letting you be swallowed by Ginnungagap.

***

“Wow… isn’t this family completely insane?”

***

So remember, you have no talent.

The reason you have been favored by the Lord is thanks to your brother, who is outstanding in his abilities.

Midgard seems like the perfect place for you. Rot in that sewer where everything flows.

You will never set foot in Asgard again.

***

“This Elsie, what kind of life have you lived…”

***

-PS.

Your brother was worried about you leaving for another world, so he packed this for you.

Kvasir, honey water that grants wisdom to the drinker.

If you’re going to live and die alone, you should at least have some wisdom, right?

It’s a precious item. Drink it for the sake of your wonderful brother.

\*

“…….”

Elsie folded the letter, which was full of shocking content.

“Who wrote this?”

The sender was not indicated anywhere on the envelope or the letterhead.

“I wondered what kind of family it was, but it’s just a household that sends crazy letters like this.”

Elsie threw the letter on the table.

An unknown sense of unease welled up.

“…Was Elsie abandoned by her family?”

Is Elsie’s body reacting because of the cruel content of the letter?

Suddenly, she felt a dull heat.

“Damn it, what’s wrong with me?”

It felt like her body and mind were not in sync.

Elsie got up and staggered towards the sink.

Splash!

Elsie plunged her face into the cold water basin and washed her face lightly.

“I, I think I’m finally coming to my senses…”

Ever since reading the letter, her physical condition had been unusual, as if she had been startled by something.

The contents of that letter would not leave her head.

**[Shame of the family. You’ve been abandoned.]**

“Well, I’d better get some sleep.”

Elsie, whose condition was rapidly deteriorating, hurriedly went up to the bedroom.

**[Incompetent bitch.]**

‘If there’s any Kvasir left from the letter, I want to drink it.’

The magical honey water, Kvasir.

In the Aesir Saga, it was an item used as a legendary recovery potion.

‘Judging from the contents of the letter, the effects seem to be different from the game, but…’

Anyway, it’s magical honey water.

‘If I drink it, at least this headache and fever will go away.’

Creak.

The desolate appearance of the bedroom, with only a bed, a cabinet, and a mirror.

It was exactly as she had seen it in the morning.

Elsie started searching the room, grasping at straws.

She was trying to find the Kvasir honey bottle.

In the game settings, Kvasir had to be stored in a Kvasir bottle.

Otherwise, it would lose its effectiveness.

“I didn’t see it on the first floor… unless the past Elsie drank it all, it might be here…”

The composition of the room was too simple, so there wasn’t much to look for.

Before long, Elsie found a small glass bottle rolling between the bed and the wall.

“This is…”

A ‘strange glass bottle’ crafted as Kvasir.

Inside the bottle, a small amount of amber liquid was sloshing around.

Elsie felt like she had been hit hard on the head.

“This isn’t a Kvasir honey bottle… and what’s in it isn’t…”

The real Kvasir is a reddish liquid.

This was not the magical honey water, Kvasir.

A swirling glass bottle with two snakes entwined around it.

The amber liquid inside.

It was an item she had seen in the game.

Elsie, who had figured out what it was, trembled as she held the bottle.

A tasteless, odorless poison.

Whoever drinks it will eventually die.

“The poison of Nidhogg, the poison dragon that gnaws at the World Tree.”

Then…

The past Elsie drank Nidhogg’s poison, not Kvasir.

“Elsie… did she die…?”

Before Elsie possessed her, this Elsie had died.

It was the moment of reaching the truth.