I’m the Slit-Eyed Character at the Academy, but I’m not the Mastermind – Chapter 301

“Are you really just giving this to me? Why?”

“Well… just because?”

Luna frowned. It was a natural reaction. After all, the concept of genuine goodwill didn’t exist in Luna’s dictionary.

“You sound even more suspicious now. Just take it back.”

“This is merely a gift. It’s just my way of expressing gratitude for not getting hurt, thanks to you, Miss Luna.”

“Didn’t I already tell you that your gratitude is enough?”

A seemingly endless loop of conversation ensued.

There was no helping it. As the so-called problem solver of Annwood Academy, I had no choice but to step in.

“Keke, then I’ll just take it. That way, no one will have any complaints, right?”

“…”

“…”

Yuridia and Victoria’s eyes filled with contempt. It was like they were looking at a cockroach rather than a problem solver.

Well, it didn’t matter. As long as I could get my hands on the elixir, I was willing to endure this much humiliation.

It was then that Luna signaled to Rezé, who let out a strange sound and rushed at me.

“Kreeeek!”

Rezé wrapped herself around my leg with her whole body. Even as I pushed her head away with both hands, it was useless. I couldn’t pry her off.

‘Why does this damn rabbit only get brave when she’s fighting me?’

Just when I was about to lose the elixir without any way out, Victoria snapped open her fan, hiding her mouth behind it.

“How crude, to have such pride.”

“What?”

“Why don’t you be honest? The reason you’re not accepting the elixir. It’s because of your pride, isn’t it? Pride that refuses to accept help from an enemy… isn’t that it?”

The one taken aback by Victoria’s provocation wasn’t Luna. It was Yuridia, who was standing next to her.

“V-Victoria! What are you talking about now?!”

“Let’s stop pretending to be so virtuous. It’s ridiculous enough for the strong to show goodwill, but refusing an opportunity because of pride… Now that’s a waste of time.”

Victoria’s hand, holding the fan, trembled slightly. It was then that I understood why Victoria was doing this.

‘She’s trying to provoke Luna’s fighting spirit. To make her take the elixir.’

It was a brilliant strategy, using Luna’s personality. However, this plan had one downside.

Victoria would end up earning Luna’s resentment.

“Truthfully, the reason you got hurt was just because you lacked the skill, wasn’t it? Isn’t that right, Miss Yuridia?”

“What do you mean by that… Ah…!”

Yuridia, who seemed to have grasped the strategy, raised her voice slightly in agreement.

“Y-Yes, that’s right. It’s just that there was nothing else you could do. All you could do was recklessly block with your body.”

“An ordinary person is one thing, but to be a proud, ordinary person is just too much.”

“You two… you really think I’m going to just sit here and take this…!”

Luna lunged forward, grabbing Victoria by the collar, but Victoria didn’t even flinch.

Instead, she lowered her voice, her eyes glinting.

“If you were strong, there wouldn’t have been any injuries, nor would your comrades have had to worry about you.”

“…”

“Take the elixir and get stronger. That’s the true way to protect your comrades.”

The strength in Luna’s hand, which was gripping Victoria’s collar, slowly drained away.

Probably because there was nothing wrong with what Victoria said.

Bineus’ [Heavenly Thunder] was strong, but everyone present had survived it.

If Luna had a higher mastery of the second secret technique and evasion skill of the Lester family, [Moon Shadow], she could have easily endured it too.

“Why are you going this far? What does it benefit you if I get stronger?”

“I just want fair competition. I don’t like being indebted, either.”

“Besides, compared to Teron, you’re much more preferable, Miss Luna. The enemy of my enemy is my friend. Something like that.”

Luna opened her hand and began smoothing out Victoria’s crumpled clothes.

Victoria’s eyes widened slightly, and Yuridia, standing next to her, looked on enviously.

“…Fine. Expect it. I’ll get stronger and make sure I pay back today’s humiliation.”

“I’ll accept your challenge any time.”

“Well, not that it’ll make much of a difference. Oh~ Hohoho!”

Luna clenched the box containing the elixir tightly. You could feel her determination to become stronger just from her grip.

Maybe they noticed it too. Yuridia and Victoria exchanged glances, smiling victoriously.

Choosing to play the villain for Luna’s sake. The Love Aid Club… Just this once, even I had to acknowledge them.

‘Maybe I don’t need to destroy them.’

A club that supported love, something never seen in the original story.

I’d thought about breaking them up because they could create unforeseen variables, but if this is how they are, maybe it’s fine to leave them be for a while.

It was then that Luna spoke up.

“Oh, so we can share this?”

“Pardon?”

“I’m asking if we can split this among ourselves.”

Yuridia and Victoria’s eyes widened at Luna’s words.

Elixirs were incredibly difficult to obtain, both in this world and in the game.

There were countless people who died without even seeing one, let alone consuming it.

And now Luna was proposing to share it. Their surprise was only natural.

“I-It’s not a problem, but… wouldn’t that be a waste?”

“Elixirs aren’t something you can easily come by, you know. It hasn’t been long since you got them… Maybe it’s better to just take it yourself?”

Negative opinions flew in immediately. Luna’s response to that was incredibly simple.

“It’s fine. Rezé is practically family to me. Isn’t that right?”

“Pardon? Th-That is… r-right…”

Rezé twisted her limbs into an odd posture.

This was Rezé’s signature move, a reaction that came out when she didn’t know what to do.

“Ah, there’s a halo behind Miss Luna… it’s blinding.”

“Miss Luna is light itself.”

A content smile appeared on Yuridia and Victoria’s lips.

Of course, I was filled with dissatisfaction.

Stop looking like you’re gazing at a well-raised daughter! I’m the one who raised her, you know!

Most of all, my name wasn’t mentioned in Luna’s words.

When she said, “Rezé is my family,” it was basically like saying she and Rezé would share the elixir, leaving me out.

Perhaps feeling my gaze, Luna giggled and said,

“It’s a spur of the moment. You can be my family too.”

“Pardon?”

“Let’s be family.”

Pfft!

Cough!

Yuridia spewed blood from her nose, while Victoria coughed it up from her mouth.

Rezé’s ears turned bright red.

To have such a reaction to the suggestion of becoming family… Their minds were clearly full of impure thoughts.

…Well, I might have been thinking along the same lines.

“I’ll have to decline.”

“Aww, why? Be my family. I’ll treat you well. Please? Please?”

Did she genuinely want to be family with me? Luna pleaded with unusual cuteness, her voice dripping with affection.

The idea of a man and woman forming a family without a blood relationship—Luna had no clue what that really meant.

“Keke, it’s quite difficult. You see, being family means living together.”

“Well, we’ll live together later anyway. What’s wrong with becoming family a little early?”

“…You’re saying we’ll live together?”

“Yeah, isn’t that obvious?”

How on earth was that obvious?

Though I felt a bit dizzy, it wasn’t too hard to infer what Luna was thinking.

‘She probably means it in the sense of friends living in the same house.’

Waking up in the morning to drink coffee together with tousled hair, eating meals, chatting amicably.

Going out to play together, coming home to rest.

We might even build a little rabbit house in the garden for Rezé.

A future like that… would be quite pleasant…

‘…Not a chance!’

I wasn’t too fond of the idea of having a Pufferfish Rabbit as a pet, but living with a cat that bites people was even worse.

So, living with Luna was absolutely out of the question…

“If you don’t want to, then I guess I’ll just have to share it with Rezé alone.”

“Keke, yes, family should live together. That’s what makes them family, after all.”

“See, I knew you’d understand.”

Luna smiled brightly. Yes, the future is unpredictable, so what’s the harm in pretending to be family for a little while?

Life, after all, is meant to flow like water, like the wind.

What? You think that’s shameless?

Not at all. The elixir was worth that much. Enough for me to bear the penalty of being Luna’s family, even if only briefly.

“If I stay in this overly affectionate space, I’m going to die from blood loss.”

“J-Just wait and see! I won’t retreat like this next time!”

Yuridia and Victoria staggered as they left the room. With every step they took, bright red blood dripped onto the floor.

“Weird girls.”

“Keke, let’s not mind them. We have more important things to focus on now.”

“True.”

Luna opened the lid of the elixir box and placed each one on the table.

The three elixirs shimmered with a brilliant light, each making its presence known.

Even I, who had played the game thousands of times, couldn’t help but gulp.

“Which one do you want? Pick one each.”

“Keke, Miss Luna, you should take the best one.”

I handed Luna the B-grade elixir from the Lucid family. It was a remarkable elixir that increased all stats by 3 and the magic power stat by a whole 10 points.

I had my own sense of honor. All three elixirs had been acquired thanks to Luna, so giving her the best one was only fair.

“I-I’ll take this one!”

Rezé quickly snatched the crimson elixir.

This was the secret elixir of the Rownter family, increasing all stats by 3, magic power by 10, and permanently enhancing mana recovery speed by 10%.

To take the initiative like that… This rabbit had no sense of gratitude.

‘Well… this is how I wanted it to turn out anyway.’

I looked at the remaining elixir, Victoria’s.

Victoria’s elixir increased all stats by 2, but boosted the divine power stat by a massive 10 points.

Divine power was a stat that became incredibly powerful in the later stages. It was an essential stat for someone like me, who’d be fighting demons frequently.

‘The Rownter family’s elixir, which permanently increases mana recovery speed, is good, but… it’s not absolutely necessary for me.’

I was planning to obtain ‘that’ during the summer break. Something that would make me not have to worry about mana recovery speed or mana at all.

‘The hidden piece of infinite mana, Uroboros.’

Well, that’s something for the distant future. For now, I had to focus on the final exams and tracking the black mage.

Which meant I needed to take the elixir and get out to begin the search.

The problem was…

‘It looks and smells like…’

Victoria’s elixir looked like poop… no, it actually looked like poop.

I suddenly remembered a famous internet debate back on Earth. Whether to eat curry that tastes like poop or poop that tastes like curry.

That’s exactly what this situation felt like. The only difference was that I didn’t have a choice.

‘I’m destined to eat the poop-tasting elixir.’

Rezé was glancing at me, worried I might suggest trading elixirs. She seemed relieved when I didn’t bring it up.

Though she’d been insolent, I’d let it slide this time. The increase in magic power would maximize the potential of Rezé’s [Mana Bullet].

But she’d still be punished. A suitable punishment would be making her fight a demon barehanded.

Surrounded by a room filled with flowers, gifts from admirers, Luna raised her elixir and declared,

“Alright! Now we’ll die on the same day, at the same time!”

Luna, what are you talking about? This isn’t some brotherly oath under a peach tree.

Well, it did feel a bit like that. Although there were no peach trees, the flowers served as a substitute.

Of course, I had no intention of keeping any promise to die on the same day.

“I’ll get stronger and protect everyone.”

“M-Me too… I won’t run away. I-I’ll try…”

“Keke… We have a long way to go.”

With that, we each swallowed our elixirs. The taste…

It was curry-flavored.

–TL Notes–
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