“The date we’re going back to the Academy’s been decided.”
“Uh, when is it?”
“In two days.”
“It’s liberation! Ah, no! Freedom!”
“Hurray! Long live freedom!”
Maybe it was because they’d been managing top-grade magic stones… no, worshipping them like gods and living like slaves.
The kids exploded into cheers.
“Of course, you’re working until tomorrow. We only leave the day after.”
“…?”
“Move.”
One cold look from Caron was all it took to shut down their complaints.
The kids trudged down toward the lower tunnels of the mine. They looked exactly like real mine workers.
We, of course, were the exception. Caron was examining the wounds on Luna’s arms and legs when his brow faintly furrowed.
“They’re not fully healed yet. Rest until we leave.”
“Huh? I’m fine now. These are just little scratches…”
“Managing your injuries is part of your skill. If the wounds split open again, you’ll just be more of a burden to your teammates. You still don’t get that?”
“Ah…”
“Rest quietly. You two, make sure to take good care of the patient.”
“Keke, we’ll make sure she doesn’t have to use her arms or legs all day. Of course, Rezé will be the one carrying her, not me.”
“Good idea. Do that.”
“…Kiiihh?”
“…Hm?”
A question mark practically floated over both my and Rezé’s heads.
Normally, Caron would have said something unreasonable like, “You’re stronger, so you carry her. But no physical contact.”
It was really strange. Not that I cared, since carrying Luna around was now Rezé’s job, not mine.
No more mining work, and in two days we’d be back at the Academy.
“Haaah…”
But Luna looked even more troubled instead.
“Keke, what’s wrong?”
“Because the day I have to decide is getting closer.”
Lowell’s deadline was almost here.
The contract saying she’d join the Lucid household after graduation.
“What do you think? Should I accept the offer?”
“Do whatever you want, Luna.”
“I-I’ll… just go with whatever Luna wants! A-as long as we can be together, anywhere’s fine!”
Is she outsourcing not just her body but her entire self to Luna?
At this point she was more slave than friend.
‘A personal slave… It would be nice to have one.’
Maybe I should try bribing her with a carrot.
With my friendliest smile, I pulled out the carrot I’d hidden and held it out to Rezé. Then—
“K-kiiiiihhhh!”
Rezé slapped the carrot away and planted both hands on the ground.
A classic four-legged animal stance, complete with teeth bared and chattering in warning.
She looked no different from a beast.
But that wasn’t what shocked me.
‘Rezé refusing a carrot?’
Looked like the “finger on the lips” incident had affected her more than I thought.
Her strange behavior didn’t stop there. She kicked at the ground a few times with her back legs, then charged straight at me.
A wild-boar-style, fierce charge!
But I didn’t get knocked flying.
Bonk.
It was because Rezé was way too light.
“K-kiiiiihhhh!”
She shoved her head against me with all her strength, trying to push me back.
I wrapped my arm around her neck, and it naturally turned into a headlock.
“Keke, a beast baring its teeth at a human. Looks like you need training.”
“K-kiiiiihhhh!”
Rezé hopped around like a rabbit for a bit, then suddenly went quiet.
Judging from the way she licked her lips, she’d safely arrived in carrot heaven.
Well, she looked happy, so it was fine.
“Guuuuuuuuh…”
Even now, Luna still looked deep in thought.
‘Honestly, it’s not like either choice is bad, though.’
Fsss—
Maybe it was because she kept using a brain she normally didn’t. Steam started rising from Luna’s head.
This wouldn’t do. I’d have to help a little.
“Don’t overthink it.”
“Huh?”
“You’re the one who always says thinking too much isn’t good. Remember, Luna?”
“But this is important. Getting help from the Lucid family would be good in a lot of ways… It’s just that you’d be taken as a hostage, and that’s the problem…”
Luna glanced at me.
She was wondering if it was really okay to use me as collateral to gain power for the Lester family’s revenge.
That was what was making her hesitate.
She really was a good kid.
If it were me in that situation, I’d have used the hostage card immediately.
Rezé included. Two-for-one.
Feeling slightly guilty, I patted Luna on the head.
“Just choose whatever you want. Either way, we’ll be together.”
The reason I could say that so easily.
No matter what decision Luna made here, the end result would be the same.
Lowell’s contract only took effect after we graduated from the Academy.
But this game ends before we ever graduate.
Which means there’d be no need to carry out the contract.
Luna stared at me and murmured,
“…Right, that’s true. We’re family.”
Huh…? That’s not exactly what I meant…
But maybe she’d made her decision.
Luna’s eyes shone with more determination than ever.
The next day.
“I’m sorry, but I’m going to refuse.”
“Hm?”
“I mean it literally. I don’t want to become part of House Lucid. I know it’s a good opportunity, but I don’t think it’s right to sacrifice my friend just so I can benefit. And I don’t really like getting parachuted in either.”
Luna clearly stated her refusal.
But Lowell didn’t get angry. She just gave a sly smile and looked at me.
“What about you?”
“Me?”
“Like I said before, you two come as a set, but this one’s separate, right? What if she accepts? Then you’ll have to get in on your own merits.”
“Th-that’s…!”
Luna clearly hadn’t expected this. She looked at me.
Lowell’s gaze was no less intense than Luna’s. She genuinely wanted me.
An offer to become a retainer of House Lucid.
My answer was obvious.
“Keke, I refuse.”
“Tsk!”
“Zero…!”
Lowell clicked her tongue, and Luna rushed over and hugged me tightly.
You might wonder why I turned it down when the game ends before graduation anyway, meaning I could take all the benefits and never pay the price.
I’d been thinking it over ever since Caron and Lowell had their little clash.
‘If I choose one side now, I’m cutting off the other.’
No.
I’d be giving up every offer that came my way from now on. I’d be basically bound to House Lucid.
And then I realized: if the problem is that my choice cuts ties—
If I just don’t “choose,” the problem goes away.
That wasn’t the only reason, though.
‘If I sign in a situation like this, I’ll be stuck in the weaker position until the game ends.’
Elixirs, intel, money, artifacts—
They’d give me what I asked for, but only the cheap stuff.
From their perspective, I’d already be a fish in the net.
But if I don’t sign anything and keep House Lucid, Caron, and others all wanting me?
I can milk more benefits without ever putting my name on anything.
Think of it as driving up my price.
‘And then, right before graduation, when my value peaks, I cash out.’
That was also the reason I turned down Adonis’s offer.
‘Well, the fact that the Imperial Knight Order is an absolute pain doesn’t help either.’
A group where the apex of raw power is gathered. A place where strength smashes common sense and logic.
If I could help it, I didn’t want to get involved with even one of them.
“Haah… I’m really going crazy here. Has my family’s prestige fallen this far?”
“Yeah, I don’t want the family. A personal relationship with you, Lowell, might be a different story.”
“Huh…?”
Both of us turned to look at Luna. Even I hadn’t seen that one coming.
Lowell narrowed her eyes.
“Don’t tell me… you’re asking to be my disciple?”
“That’s exactly it. A disciple doesn’t have to work for House Lucid, right?”
She was right. In this world, a disciple wasn’t obligated to follow their master.
If anything, making a name elsewhere often raised the master’s reputation.
‘But a master does have an obligation to properly train their disciple.’
And House Lucid, one of the Eight Great Families, valued honor more than most.
Coming up with such a clever loophole—genius. The only problem was—
“So basically, you’re saying you’ll take everything you can get and then run, right? And you think I’ll agree to that?”
Lowell wasn’t the sort to allow that.
No sane person would accept a deal where the other side only took and never paid back.
For the first time in a while, the aura of a mad lion flared around Lowell.
But Luna didn’t shrink back. She stood proudly in front of her.
“No, it’s actually the opposite.”
If we became disciples of Lowell—
“You’d be famous as the one who raised three heroes.”
A brief silence followed.
So, that’d be me, you, and the rabbit.
The three of us would all become heroes, is what she meant?
“Pfft—fuhahahahahahaha!”
Lowell burst into loud laughter.
I’d probably be laughing like that too if I weren’t one of the people she was talking about.
Wiping tears from her eyes, Lowell spoke.
“I like it. My disciple should have at least that much guts.”
“So… you’re saying you accept?”
“Yeah. It’s a bit of a shame, but… even like this, I feel like it’ll be beneficial in a lot of ways to tie a connection.”
Lowell shook hands with Luna. Though for some reason, her gaze stayed fixed on me.
“Well? Aren’t you going to take it?”
“H-huh!?”
The person Lowell reached her hand out to next was none other than Rezé.
“You two come as a set. It’s a loss on my end, but what can I do. I’ll take her.”
“H-how could someone like me possibly b-be a disciple…”
“You wanna die, or be my disciple?”
“P-please accept me as your discipleeeee!”
Still on her belly, Rezé squirmed forward and raised her right hand to grasp Lowell’s.
Then Lowell came over to me and held out her hand.
“Keke, I get us, but you’re really taking Rezé as a disciple too? Are you sure about that?”
“Yeah. I don’t know… she reminds me of someone.”
Someone she resembled.
Most likely Lowell herself.
Lowell, who had once locked herself inside the cage called “ordinary.”
Seeing Rezé hiding in her box had probably reminded her of her old self.
“That’s not the only reason, of course. I checked, and her midterm rank was single digits too.”
Thanks to her outstanding performance in the Battle of Carpathia, Rezé had placed 4th.
She’d even beaten Teron’s ranking, so from the outside, she was clearly elite talent.
“And this year’s class is a golden generation, right? To place in the single digits among kids like that? It means she not only has solid fundamentals, but she’s hiding something more.”
“Keke, then I have no idea why you’re taking me as a disciple when I only ranked 18th.”
As she shook my hand, Lowell suddenly squeezed hard. I was naturally pulled toward her and forced to bend at the waist.
Lowell whispered in my ear.
“I heard everything from my sister. You… can really do Sky Splitter?”
Sky Splitter, the technique Rodelin had finally succeeded with, focusing every bit of force into a single line and cleaving down.
I’d shown it once before in my fight with Lucia. Looks like Lucia had mentioned it.
Well, in my case it was only possible because Divine Imitation boosted it to A-rank.
‘Now that I think about it, Lucia didn’t look that surprised back then.’
Maybe she was simply used to “genius” types.
There were plenty of monsters around Lucia on her level.
But for Lowell, who wasn’t a genius, being shocked was only natural.
“That makes you even more tempting. I’ll raise you well. Then we’ll go kill that bastard Legion Commander together.”
“Keke, do I look insane to you?”
“Who knows? Even if you don’t want to, you’ll end up going.”
Lowell chuckled and tossed something at me. I caught it easily.
An ID plate embossed with the sigil of a roaring lion.
Beneath it, the name “Lowell de Lucid” was clearly engraved.
[Main Quest #8 ‘Receive the Proof Token!’ has been cleared.]
–TL Notes–
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Such cliff hangar! But Reze is showing her mother heritage with that Boar charge!
Caron favoribility keep rising!