In the underground beneath the desert, after the commotion had passed, the Skeleton, who had been admiring the clear night sky, smiled at the scene of the sky he had encountered after such a long time.
“How fascinating. Was the night sky always this beautiful?”
The night sky, as engraved in the memories given by the original, had always been a symbol of endless misfortune. So why was the night in the present world so sparkling?
Perhaps the original didn’t want me to be curious about the world outside.
If I were curious about the external scenery, I might try to leave this place and venture outside.
The Skeleton thought that Erginas’s worry wasn’t unfounded.
If he had stayed here for years, with that vision etched into his mind, he would have surely searched for a way to leave.
“However, Erginas, why did you not take the fairy’s memory from me? If you wanted me to stay here forever, you should have taken those happy memories as well.”
If you had, I wouldn’t have such a desperate longing as I do now. The Skeleton chuckled softly, turned away from the sky, and sealed the ceiling.
“The scene from earlier... no matter how many times I think about it, it doesn’t make sense.”
I understand that various bombs and scrolls were combined to enhance the explosive power. It’s also likely that the shock from the explosion affected the scrolls in some way.
But why did this result in breaking Erginas’s magic, causing the ceiling—which should have remained intact even during a major disaster—to collapse?
“Oh, God. What exactly did you teach that child?”
With a painful headache, the Skeleton muttered in lament and created an illusion in the air.
It was an image of destruction from the landscape that still lingered in his memories.
There’s still a few months left, so I’ll focus on analyzing this for now.
I can’t leave unknown phenomena to exist without understanding them.
As the Skeleton was deeply immersed in his world, a piece of information reached him: someone had entered the dungeon’s entrance.
Hah. This place, where visitors rarely come once in years, and now two groups arrive in one day.
It can’t be a coincidence. Could these be the ones who followed that cocky brat?
Luel. That guy. How could he not catch something like this while sticking close to that brat?
How is it that everything else has aged over time, but his stubbornness remains unchanged?
The Skeleton grabbed his staff, thinking he would express his disappointment the next time he saw him.
From the energy emanating from the intruders, they seemed to be the followers of the Void’s Evil God. Perfect timing.
The modern mage gave me a fresh idea. If I use him, I can easily toy with them.
“Shall I take out my frustration on these guys, for the annoyance caused by that brat?”
The Skeleton let out a playful laugh and began to move.
“...Should we really be receiving such a reward for doing nothing?”
The mercenary captain, seeing the gold coins I handed him, displayed a cautious attitude.
He mentioned that they didn’t do anything for money, and that receiving so much would actually put them in a difficult situation.
Watching him wave his hands, I nodded and took out a few more gold coins from my pocket.
“Y-Young Lady?!” “What? Is this still not enough?” “No! It’s really fine! We just—” “Hmph. Fine, I’ll be nice and play the fool for the greedy old man. Go ahead, take as much as you can.” “Please, Alrun Young Lady. If you do this, I won’t be able to look Benedict in the face.”
In this strange situation, where one side wanted more, and the other begged me to stop, the mercenary captain ultimately surrendered.
Realizing that any more words would make things worse, he reluctantly accepted the money I offered with a pale hand.
“You said you didn’t need money, but look at how quickly you’re taking it when the amount pleases you. Scaring a fragile little girl and extorting money like this... you’re such a vile man.” “...No, I said I didn’t need it, but since you insisted, Young Lady...” “Right. I gave it voluntarily. So don’t get angry. I’m so scared of you. Are you short on money? If so...” “I don’t know what I’ve done wrong, but please spare me, Alrun Young Lady. I’ll really be torn in half if I go back to Benedict!”
Seeing the mercenary leader kneeling and begging, trying to manage a whole army of mercenaries, I felt a mix of amusement and sympathy.
Only people who are used to using money like this can act this way.
“Just take it and stop talking. Don’t pretend to be virtuous while talking about gratitude. A mercenary obsessed with money is just an absurd knight.” “...No matter how much you say that, this is too much.” “Why?” “...No. Thank you for your advice. I’ll keep it in mind.”
When I used formal language, the mercenary captain panicked and shook his head. If he had done this earlier, it would have been so much better.
“Next time you’re called, come immediately. If you don’t, I’ll tell Papa that you threatened me.” “I’ll come no matter what, even if I have to throw my life away.”
After parting with the mercenary captain, I returned to my friends, only to find Arthur and Joy’s gazes were rather peculiar.
“Why are you looking at me like that?” “I know the Alrun family isn’t very wealthy. Where did all this money come from, I wonder.” “I’m curious about that too. You said you didn’t need any money, yet you handed over a bunch of gold coins.”
Well, it’s true that the amount of money I gave earlier was too large for a noble family’s young lady to casually give away.
If someone who didn’t know the situation saw it, they’d probably suspect I got caught up in something strange, right?
Just a few months ago, I definitely wasn’t in a position where I could toss around that much money.
That is, until the perverted monk handed me an absurd sum.
‘As you’ve heard, the jewelry with the Alrun Young Lady’s portrait is being sold so successfully that even our best efforts can’t keep up. Thanks to that, our followers are dying in happiness.’ ‘Had the Young Lady not kindly allowed us, such a miracle wouldn’t have happened. Therefore, it’s only right that we give a portion of the profits we made from the jewelry to the Young Lady.’ ‘Don’t worry about the small details. We use what we need from the net profits and give you the rest.’
The money the perverted monk gave me wasn’t in gold coins.
Platinum coins. A huge amount of money, worth ten gold coins each. I had five of those coins in my pocket.
When I saw the shiny coins in my pocket, I couldn’t help but suggest making more jewelry.
Wait! Think about it! The amount of money that could run a large estate for a year just appeared in my hands in an instant! If I just endure the embarrassment for a while, how much could I earn?!
The perverted monk gladly accepted my suggestion and promised to call me after he had everything perfectly prepared.
When I saw the passion in his eyes, I immediately regretted saying anything, but by then, it was already too late to back out.
...That perverted monk. What kind of preparations is he making that he hasn’t contacted me for so long?
The longer this drags on, the more uneasy I get. Is this the feeling of a prisoner awaiting execution?
Anyway, when I explained that the profits from the jewelry were due to my sales, my friends naturally accepted it.
They must have seen how quickly my jewelry spread.
“If you’ve made so much money, how about spending some on us?”
“Are you asking me to spend the money I made by selling my body on the pitiful prince? Well, I guess I have no choice. A helpless noble must kneel before royalty...”
“Helpless? What do you mean by helpless? If I set my mind to it, I could erase someone like me from this world!”
While bickering with my friends, I immediately headed to the dean’s office.
As the Skeleton told us, I needed the dean’s permission to intervene in the barrier.
I didn’t think it would be hard to get his permission.
After all, the dean already had a collar around his neck—how could he refuse my request?
“I’m sorry, Alrun Young Lady. It might take a bit longer.”
However, the dean’s response was different from what I expected. He was sweating and seemed to be in trouble.
“Have you gotten too old to remember things? Do I need to remind you what kind of collar is around your neck?” “I would love to grant your request immediately, but as you know, there are too many things involved in the academy right now.”
If things were as they were before at the academy, the dean would have happily allowed me to intervene in the barrier.
However, the situation had changed drastically. The academy was now a proxy battle between the 1st and 2nd queens, and much of the dean’s power had been stripped away.
“Please give me a little time. Once the midterms are over, I’ll guide you to the place with the barrier magic.”
His earnest plea didn’t sound like an excuse.
Was it physically impossible? I could probably intervene in a more vicious way, but doing so while there’s a normal path available would be madness.
There wasn’t much time left until the midterms, either.
“Ah.”
Wait.
How much time is left until midterms?
...
Two weeks?
Only two weeks left!?
Realizing this shocking fact, I immediately stood up and rushed out of the dean’s office.
This chapt𝙚r is updated by freeωebnovēl.c૦m.
This is bad!
I had planned to actually study this time to raise my intelligence!
If I don’t, I’ll end up living with an intelligence of 58 again!
That can’t happen!
This is a matter of my pride!