episode_0053

Another two weeks passed like that.

Damian can now at least counterattack me, and Millia’s bow skills have become more useful than her swordsmanship.

Damian and I comforted Millia, who was feeling helpless and fumbling with her rapier.

“What’s that? When you’re a beginner, your skills improve quickly. As you practice your swordsmanship, you will continue to improve. Don’t worry.”

“Yes, Millia. You were able to come this far thanks to your hard training in swordsmanship, right?”

“I guess that’s it…?”

Other than that, nothing special happened.

Well, from what I could tell, it was only something that happened inside the Academy.

I tried visiting the guild to raise money, but for some reason I couldn’t find a suitable request.

Marquis Ludwig’s reply has not yet arrived.

—-

Meanwhile, Friede came to see me.

That day, I was eating lunch at the cafeteria of the special building as usual.

Thinking about what’s left in just over a month.

It was just me and Nigel in the restaurant.

Calix hasn’t returned yet and Asha missed lunch today.

At that time, Friede opened the door to the restaurant and came in.

Academy uniform as always.

He was wearing a fur coat and holding a letter in his hand.

Friede looked around a little and then walked towards me.

It was an unusual thing. Although her hostility was slightly weaker than before, she still frowned at me when she saw me and didn’t even talk to me first.

I looked up at Friede, who was standing in front of me with an expression full of puzzlement.

There were definitely still wrinkles between the eyebrows… but the expression was subtle.

The hazel eyes did not contain contempt or hostility, but rather bewilderment and suspicion.

What’s going on…?

Did you catch some clue that I didn’t know about?

If so, that’s a good thing.

Although I don’t think Friede would have been that active. You never know.

“What is it? Do you have something to say to me?”

“If you weren’t there, why would I have come looking for you, barbarian? Since it’s important work, let’s eat and come back to my room.”

Friede left those words and immediately went back.

It’s important. If it’s important at this point, it’s probably going to be about the prisoner, right?

This is probably not the time to be eating.

I put down my fork and stood up.

Anyway, this is enough to eat.

“Nigel, I wake up first. I don’t know what it is, but it looks urgent.”

“Yes, I will wait in the room after cleaning up.”

I asked Nigel to clean up after me and headed to Friede’s room.

—-

Friede’s room, which I visited after a long time, still looked ugly.

Could it be that living in a room like this has distorted my personality in some way?

The interior is so horrible that even priests will turn into crazy cultists if they spend just a week here.

The door I had smashed before was in good condition, as if it had been recently repaired.

It was changed to an iron door instead of wood, and the hinges seemed to be several times thicker.

“So, what’s going on?”

Friede, who was waiting on the sofa, looked at me and pointed to the chair on the other side of the table.

Are you telling me to sit down first?

I walked over to the chair and sat down. The leather cushion that touched my buttocks was quite soft.

There was a half-empty wine glass on the table.

It would be natural, but I didn’t have my glass.

Friede, who had been waiting for me to sit down, finally opened her mouth.

“They said they would find evidence that there were beastmen hiding in the underground waterway, but it’s already been a month. Did you find anything?”

“…I don’t have it yet.”

It was a hesitant answer.

…Well, I haven’t been there yet. I was planning on going now.

I didn’t know Friede would urge me first.

Did he listen to me more seriously than I thought?

“Ha… I was foolish to expect that. It would be difficult if I did this.”

Friede sighed and held out the letter he was holding.

At the end of the tightly written imperial language, Palun’s seal was stamped.

“This is news from the north. A report that a large-scale beastman army is gathering on the border of the Sky Mountains.”

Friede crossed her arms and legs.

His attitude seemed to be that he was not happy with the current situation.

“In the north, there is an army of beastmen…?”

“The news is from ten days ago, so the main force of the Imperial Knights is probably already heading to the north. Because that’s a normal response.”

My mind suddenly became complicated.

At this point, a large gathering of beastmen? Was something like that in the original work…?

I don’t know. The current North isn’t mentioned in detail in the game.

Although it is certain that there was no war-level bloodshed.

The thoughts continue one after another.

Was this why Miliciya was able to openly attack academy students?

Taking advantage of the opportunity where a significant portion of the island’s power escaped to the north?

But, the timing is not right. There’s still a month left for mid-term training.

Why are you moving now? Are you trying to hasten the attack…?

No, no. That can’t be possible.

That doesn’t make sense.

There is no need for that.

I shook my head unconsciously.

In the first place, unless the academy students came out and dispersed, it was impossible for only about 20 warriors to attack them openly.

Because they will not achieve proper results and will eventually be surrounded and annihilated.

So why?

Still, I couldn’t figure it out.

“First of all, as you said, if by some chance there are prisoners infiltrating the islands… the purpose of that show of force would be a deception to divert the attention of the empire to the north. The problem is that there is no basis for such a claim.”

Friede shrugged her shoulders.

The only evidence I have is my vague testimony.

With that, it would be difficult to convince even a noble, let alone an empire.

“What if I believed your words and brought the knights of the empire into the system, but what you said wasn’t true? What if the purpose of that army was not simply a diversionary operation, but really had the intention of invading the North? The North will become more dangerous as the power is lost. So, I expected you to bring some kind of evidence…”

Friede stopped talking and looked at me.

I sighed again, as if I was truly pathetic.

I was so upset that I made up various excuses.

“No, I was also busy preparing for various things. Develop the skills of those who can compete with Beastin, and obtain silver.”

What about “? It probably won’t be of much help at the first-year level anyway. How much did you save?”

“That…”

Hesitantly, I explained the situation to Friede.

I asked Asha to save a lot of silver, but I can’t buy it and use it yet because I don’t have the money.

“I’m not kidding, it’s really…it won’t work. First, follow me.”

Friede got irritated and stood up.

“Where are you going?”

“You said your friend was half-human, Asha, right? To that guy’s room.”

It was an unstoppable step, a mixture of irritation and confidence.

I hurried after him.

—-

Fortunately, Asha was in the room.

Perhaps surprised by Friede’s unexpected visit, Asha looked back and forth between me and Friede with her eyes wide open.

“What’s going on, Hashal? You came here with Friede.”

“I don’t know either. Friede suddenly dragged me in.”

As soon as I heard about silver, I headed straight here.

Did you even want to see it with your own eyes?

“With this amount, it’s not bad.”

Friede looked at the pile of silver bars and smiled slightly, then turned to me.

“Savage, how many people did you say you raised? What is the weapon?”

“Well, there are two students. Damian, the top student in the knight department, and his friend Millia. The weapons are a great sword, a rapier, and a bow.”

To begin with, there were only five people who could use their full strength. Among them, only two are close to me.

But why are you suddenly asking that?

“Two people? Two people? Really, it’s so ridiculous… No, actually, all first year students are there.”

Friede, who was muttering to herself, raised her head and threw something at Asha.

Asha hurriedly grabbed hold of him.

There was a dull, clanking sound of metal.

“Uh, huh? What is this? Money bag?”

Inside the leather pouch was a bunch of gold coins.

“It’s a request. One each of a great sword and a rapier. The base is made of black iron, and the surface is plated with silver. Make silver arrows for the remaining amount. It will take two days, right?”

“Yes? Uh, yes. You can make it in two days…but it’s silver plated. Just like what Hashal said last time, why all of a sudden?”

Asha asked back as if she was curious.

Friede clicked her tongue and bent down to face Asha.

The eyes of the two people came closer to the distance of one span.

“Listen carefully, Mr. Half-Race Junior. Because this is advice given by a senior.”

The tone was low and gentle, as if giving friendly advice.

Although the content was absolutely not like that.

“If you want to be a merchant, absolutely. Customer’s circumstances. Don’t ask. A businessman who asks that kind of thing is likely to go bankrupt within a few years… or be found dead. Did you understand what I said?”

“……”

Asha closed her mouth.

Friede smiled in satisfaction and lifted her waist.

“So, this is enough, right? When it’s completed, give it to the two guys, and keep the remaining arrows in reserve. Savage, you are following me again.”

Friede grabbed the doorknob, as if he wanted to go back to his room because the business was over.

Oh my, I couldn’t believe it, but you were planning to provide me with silver with your own money.

I’ve been misunderstanding this person all along.

From now on, I will call you Friede.

“Thank you. The great Friede!”

I expressed my gratitude with the utmost respect.

If you give me money, you are a senior.

Friede’s body suddenly stopped.

His neck creaked as he turned towards me, and his expression was filled with astonishment.

There was a lot of chicken meat growing on the neck exposed above the collar.

“It gives me goosebumps. Don’t say things like that.”

Friede barely uttered those words and staggered out of the room.

—-

I returned to Friede’s room.

Friede calmly sat down on the sofa and took a sip of wine, as if trying to forget the unpleasant memories from before.

“Once the weapon is completed, we will begin searching the underground waterway immediately the next day. There are five of us, you and him, me and Sir Nigel.”

“Even if I say so, Damian and Millia are regular students?”

I guess the only time regular students can go out freely is after they reach their second year?

In your first year, you have to live only according to the academy’s curriculum.

Because that’s the rule.

“That’s no problem. It’s about one or two regular freshmen. It’s enough if I tell them that I can at least give them an external field trip under my authority. Unlike you, I have a somewhat trusted status within the academy.”

Friede smiled confidently.

I smiled too.

“Oh, Senior Friede. Oh…!”

I ran out of the room to avoid the flying wine glass.

Still, I was glad that most of the issues I was worried about were resolved.

With this, we will be able to naturally start investigating the underground water, and if the five of us search together, we will find something.

I just have to wait three more days.

—-

The next night.

The system was engulfed in flames.