ALL NOVEL Chapter 6
Please Read This
Chapter 6
Riley (2)
[…….]
Tap—. Tap—.
On the luxurious round wooden table.
The candlelight swaying in the breeze cast a faint shadow on my cover.
The crimson flame created by the scented candle and the cozy aroma created a serene atmosphere in the dorm room.
I let out a faint sigh as I took in the sight.
[Hah…]
Beautiful.
So very beautiful.
Everything felt fresh.
It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say it felt like being reborn.
The feeling of finally being free from the dusty bookshelf after 300 years was nothing short of miraculous.
The dust-covered bookshelf.
I couldn’t imagine how tough it was for that long to be stuck in that sticky, unpleasant place.
The sweetness of freedom reached after endless endurance was sweeter than anything.
And it was all thanks to that girl named Riley.
Swoosh—.
I looked at Riley, who was hanging her robe on the coat rack.
Although we had a brief chat on the way back from the library, I still had a mountain of questions I wanted to ask her.
Since I didn’t know Riley’s tendencies, character, or background, it was necessary to gradually uncover those details.
For that, conversation was essential.
To break the ice, I tossed out a random topic.
[There are five beds in this room, but you’re the only one here?]
“It’s vacation time, you know.”
She shrugged and continued speaking.
“All the other roommates have left Lutemis Island to go back to their families.”
[Oh really? But why didn’t you go back?]
“I told you, right? I don’t have a family name.”
[…….]
Riley’s reply was short.
But the implications within that answer were countless.
Even ordinary commoners typically had a surname, a family name.
Let alone, even the workers in an ordinary household would have one, making family names quite common.
Those without a family name were usually either the enslaved who weren’t even treated like humans or impoverished people unable to continue their lineage.
In rare situations, there might be fallen nobles who discarded their family names to hide their backgrounds.
There were various other cases, but the commonality among them was that there was no one without a tale to tell among those without family names.
[Could you tell me a bit more, in detail?]
“Of course.”
Though her life hadn’t spanned more than 20 years, it was a story that contained the essence of a girl’s existence.
It seemed this night would be a little longer than expected.
*
“It’s been like this since I was born.”
The girl was born into a world without family.
The usual sanctuary of a home that everyone took for granted felt like a faraway dream to her.
The only place that could be called home was the building of the Thieves’ Guild she belonged to.
“I’m not sure how I ended up in the Thieves’ Guild.”
[…….]
“I just found myself as a member of a thief’s guild when I reached an age where I could understand things a bit.”
Were they perhaps abandoned orphans taken in during the chaos?
Or was it that they kidnapped a regular kid from a normal household?
If not that, was it that they bought a child from a slave dealer at a low price?
One executive mentioned that the guild brought her in cheaply from an orphanage for war orphans, but…
Is that really true?
I have no idea.
The girl knew nothing.
All she could do was meaningless speculation.
Whatever the case, one unchanging truth remained.
No matter what her past was, she was simply a member of the Thieves’ Guild now.
[So you spent your childhood as a thief?]
“That’s correct.”
Nodding her head, she continued.
“I played quite an important role in the guild in my own way. I could do things that grown men couldn’t.”
Her build was small and frail.
Therefore, her efficiency in most tasks was less compared to other guild members.
Instead, she had considerable advantages in certain situations.
For example, entering narrow passages that adult men couldn’t fit into.
Or slipping into particular facilities without raising any suspicion from others.
In this way, the girl had been used as an essential tool of the Thieves’ Guild, despite her young age.
[Tool?]
“Yes. Just a tool, quite literally.”
A tool.
The girl was nothing more than a simple tool to the Thieves’ Guild.
“I didn’t even have a name. The guild members just called me Tool No. 2.”
[No. 2…….]
“Yes. The first one was Tool No. 1 who came before me. Tool No. 1 was a boy in a similar situation to mine.”
[……How were both of you treated?]
“Didn’t I just say? We were literally just tools.”
The guild members didn’t see the young girl as a person.
To them, she was merely another tool that helped them earn money.
To increase the efficiency of such tools, the guild members had no qualms about passing along skills that they wouldn’t even share with their fellow members.
How to pick locks using lockpicks.
How to pickpocket valuables from people’s pockets.
How to hide between people’s line of sight through stealth, and so on…
The guild provided her with sufficient food and ample free time.
Even after a certain age, they paid her a fair wage for the tasks she completed.
That was how the efficiency of the tool could be maximized.
That was how the guild could achieve greater results.
The girl didn’t actually feel satisfied with her lifestyle.
But she also wasn’t particularly dissatisfied with this way of living.
She simply went with the flow.
She lived day by day following the commands handed down by the guild.
“But still… you may not know, but the Thieves’ Guild is definitely not a good place.”
However, the Thieves’ Guild was indeed a den full of rotten scum.
So, the girl’s each day wasn’t necessarily smooth sailing.
“Suddenly, at some point, guys started to get all riled up.”
[…….]
As time passed and the girl grew, the gazes of those around her gradually changed.
From a tool to a person.
And from a person to a woman.
Little by little, more and more people in the guild began to look at her with lewd eyes.
Eventually, one day a guild member even attempted to assault her in the middle of the night.
[So what did you do?]
“I made an example of him by killing him so he wouldn’t dare to try again.”
[…….]
The girl wasn’t an easy target to just stand there and take it.
She was cunning.
Sometimes cruel.
And at times incredibly bold.
Most guild members were just people living under the sun, who had ended up in the Thieves’ Guild for unavoidable reasons.
But the girl was different.
She had been raised in the depths of this dark world since birth.
The warmth of a household, the comforts of home, the happiness of peace—all the things others took for granted.
She had neither enjoyed nor even experienced any of those things.
Her life within the Thieves’ Guild was her entire existence, and concurrently, it formed her identity.
So, even though there was a physical difference, she and the average guild member differed fundamentally.
It wasn’t surprising that those who tried to assault her ended up as corpses.
“But no matter how many of them I take care of, they never learn. Another one comes at me, and the next day another one shows up.”
[So?]
“What else could I do? I simply escaped from the guild.”
Of course, escaping wasn’t as easy as it sounded.
Common knowledge dictated that death was the only way to leave the Thieves’ Guild.
She undoubtedly faced life and death situations many times.
Seeing Riley alive and well here, I began to understand just how formidable her luck and skills must be.
[Yeah, I get it. Now I understand to a certain degree.]
How she was able to avoid the guards’ gazes.
How she hadn’t triggered any magical device alarms.
And how she could unlock the library’s front door mechanism without difficulty.
Now it all made sense.
Well, really…
If she learned the Thieves’ Guild’s secret techniques, these feats wouldn’t be surprising at all.
[What’s next? You bumped into a high-ranking wizard by coincidence on the street, and the wizard recognized your talent and recommended you to the Academy? Right?]
“Yes, that’s correct.”
It wasn’t exactly a common occurrence.
After all, the main purpose of Lutemis was as an educational institution for noble offspring.
Thus, it was somewhat unusual for someone with no family name or background like Riley to be admitted.
[But it’s not completely unprecedented.]
Each class would occasionally accept one or two non-noble special admissions recommended by high-ranking officials.
And as expected, those noble offspring generally didn’t look favorably on these special admissions.
There were several reasons for that…
But the biggest reason was undoubtedly the class barrier.
At the Academy Lutemis, there were many noble children who hadn’t fully formed their sense of self yet.
Among them were those with a particularly strong sense of superiority, and some students would harass special admissions because they were uncomfortable with attending alongside commoners.
Of course, the Academy had various measures in place to prevent such harassment.
For instance, they would standardize the status of students within the Academy.
Or they would impose strict punishments on students who led the harassment with their status.
Among other policies, of course.
But well…
As you know, it wasn’t that effective.
Being a royal institution, Lutemis was not entirely free from the grip of the nobles.
[…….]
To be honest, I was a bit concerned about this part.
If Riley was being bullied for being a special admission, the chances of trouble arising in the future would be quite high.
Even if the bullying was mild, it didn’t seem like it would foster a positive environment for her to practice magic.
Worried about this, I decided to ask her a question.
[Is there any bullying at the Academy?]
“Bullying?”
Riley pondered for a moment before answering.
“There was some in the beginning.”
[What about now?]
“It’s fine now. The kids who bullied me are no longer around.”
[Oh really?]
In response to my question, Riley nodded and continued speaking.
“Yes. A friend named Michael from the Bailarc family helped me. He even warned the bullies.”
[Ah, I see.]
“Since then, well, the bullying naturally disappeared, and I’m getting along well with the other students.”
Well, that’s a relief.
Even though most nobles had a sense of superiority, not all of them did.
Some true nobles prioritized the stable lives of their subjects over their own privileges.
There were a few such nobles who raised their children in a manner that fostered good character.
It seemed that Michael Bailarc was one of that sort of friend.
Hmm.
By the way, the Bailarc family…
Was there such a noble family in the Empire?
I’m not sure.
It might be a new family that arose while I was cooped up in the library for 300 years.
In any case, the important thing was that there were no longer any students bullying her.
This meant that there would be no external factors hindering her practice of magic in the future as well.
Good.
Really good.
Compared to earlier episodes, this could be considered the optimal environment.
Of course, due to the Academy’s rules, there might be some minor restrictions on practicing magic…
Even considering that, living in the Academy was still incredibly advantageous.
The smooth life at the Academy might seem a little boring from my perspective…
But really, who cares?
No matter how dull or predictable life at the Academy might be, it would definitely be more enjoyable than being stuck in a dusty bookshelf for 300 years, right?
Of course, it wouldn’t be.
If I complained about the current situation, it would be akin to a spoiled act of bad fortune.
[Alright. I got it. Then let’s get along well from now on. I’ll definitely train you to become the great magician who will be remembered in history.]
“I’ll do my best as well. I look forward to your guidance…”
It was just at that moment.
Bang! Bang—! Bang bang bang bang—!
[……?]
“……?”
“Hey! Aren’t you going to open the door?”
A sharp shout came from outside the door.
[Huh?]
Hearing that, I couldn’t hide my astonishment as I turned to Riley.
[What’s going on?]
“Yes?”
[But you said your roommates all went back home for vacation? Who is that…??]
“Hey! You crazy girl! Are you not opening the door? Do you have any idea where I ended up sleeping because of you? Open the door right now!”
Bang bang—!
[……Who is that?]
“Um…”
“Hey! Open the door! Why is it locked again!? Aaaah! Aaaah! That commoner brat!”
[…….]
I watched the madly banging door and waited for Riley’s response.
Soon, Riley cautiously opened her mouth.
“Actually, that was a lie.”
[What?]
“My roommates didn’t go back home. The reason they weren’t in the dorm room is that I locked the door.”
[……?]
What kind of weirdo is this…
Wait a minute.
Even if that’s the case, does that really justify cursing so much?
Calling someone a commoner brat, no less?
It was clear to anyone that this was bullying, right?
[So… are you being bullied?]
“Yes.”
[But earlier you said it wasn’t true.]
“It was a lie.”
Wha—what the…
[Then, could it be that thing about how Michael helped you, and the bullies disappeared was also—?]
“Oh, that story?”
Riley smiled for a moment before continuing.
“I don’t have such a friend.”
[……?]
“That was a lie. Michael Bailarc is just my imaginary friend.”
[What?]
I was so taken aback that I responded with disbelief.
[What kind of ridiculous lie is that?]
“Umm…”
After swallowing her words for a moment, Riley immediately replied.
“Didn’t the magician tease me with an imaginary student too? I thought it looked fun, so I tried it myself.”
[…….]
“To be honest, it’s unfair if I’m the only one being treated like this.”
Wow, wait.
This girl is really a complete weirdo.