Surviving as a Con Artist at the Academy

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66th Chapter. School Starts… School Starts….

Everything I could do during the vacation is now wrapped up.

First and foremost, I completed the contract with Muto. The affinity is still low, but considering it was accomplished in just a week, it was an incredible achievement.

I was able to supplement my swordsmanship and enjoy a comfortable rest while staying at the Chain Silver Mansion.

There weren’t only Jenny and I exchanging swordsmanship there. There were also seasoned knights ready to risk their lives for the Chain Silver Family. Accepting their offer to learn from them, I managed to learn how to wield a sword even without a fishing rod.

– Basic Unarmed Swordsmanship Lv2

While they might not be as free as the head of the household, the knights didn’t have too much time on their hands either.

Whenever Gerard went to the Empire on railroad duties, high-ranking knights always followed in his wake.

Though the knights I met were rookies, they were still my teachers during this break.

I wondered if I could learn the Chain Silver Style that Jenny practiced. I secretly held onto that hope, but it was a family secret that I couldn’t learn.

The Chain Silver Style explosively increases physical abilities upon mastery. That’s also why Jenny is strong.

Only those related to the Chain Silver Family can learn it, and even if it was an enticing sword style, I had no choice but to give up.

———————–

< Radon Crawler (16) >

Race: Human

Grade: 1

Job: Outlaw (Experience: 340/1000%)

– Health: 30

– Strength: 28

– Intelligence: 30

– Tenacity: 31

– Mana: 44/44

– Spirit Power: 30/30

[Special Skill List], [Life Skill List], [Combat Skill List], [Magic Skill List], [Spirit Power Skill List]

< Artifact List >

< Magical Device Manufacturing List >

———————–

‘It’s definitely getting harder to level up by just one.’

The transition to Outlaw has caused my stats to rise at a painfully slow rate. During the vacation, I barely earned 2 stat points.

However, what I learned during my time in the mansion wasn’t limited to swordsmanship. Between the mansion and Silver Town, there were numerous magical libraries.

There were even some useful spirit powers that were hard to find in the Academy library, and although they were few, I was able to acquire quite a useful spirit power.

———————–

[Spirit Power Skill List]

– Curse Infliction Lv3

– Curse Aura Lv3

———————–

I upgraded both curse skills by one level. Now, it doesn’t just end with reducing an opponent’s energy.

At my current level, I can set the curses I desire as I please.

I experimented on a nearby soldier. Borrowing the gloves he was wearing, I placed a curse on him.

[Curse – Cannot Wear Bottoms]

[Release Condition – Bow deeply to the user for 10 seconds]

Curses can only be set within possible limits.

The knight who saw it shrugged it off as a joke, but as the 10 seconds passed, his bottoms fell off, exposing his bare skin. Even after he tried to pull up his bottoms, they just slipped down again.

Fortunately, I did this in a secluded place, so it went unnoticed. I lifted the curse shortly after.

He was the knight who taught me swordsmanship, so I wouldn’t want to act ungratefully toward him.

‘Although I’m still feeling the stinging slap from back then.’

And the biggest advantage was… I somewhat alleviated the misunderstanding that I was a scammer.

Just considering that made me feel that this vacation was worthwhile.

Even though they aren’t my real parents… Rotas, Skilla, and Amy are the only biological family I have in this world.

Watching them return to the mundane world with Gerard’s help filled my heart with pride.

Since they had quite impressive specs, they could contribute in any field. As long as they remain safe, they would be a great insurance in emergencies.

The end of vacation came, and the first day of school arrived.

To ensure the princess’s safe return to the Academy, a luxurious carriage was waiting in front of the mansion.

Originally, I wasn’t supposed to ride it, but Jenny readily allowed me to sit next to her.

As the carriage moved along the road, the knights stood in formation, saluting it like it was a red carpet.

The village residents sent off the Lord’s daughter with bright smiles.

My family was waving their hands amidst it all. I waved back at them as part of the family.

“Hmm… Time flies. 40 days felt like just 4 days.”

“Maybe that just means you had a fun time?”

Jenny looked at me with a rosy smile. It felt like there was a pure charm in her bloom, captivating everyone around.

It was hard to believe she was the same fierce girl I first met. Now that she looked at me as if relying on me, I couldn’t help but feel a bit burdened.

“But hey.”

“Huh?”

Suddenly, Jenny leaned closer and asked. With her face so close, I felt a chill run down my spine.

Why did her expression suddenly become serious?

“Thinking about it, Radon’s dorm is a double room… Is there someone living with you?”

Everyone knows that double rooms in the 3rd-grade dorms are the most inconvenient.

So, Jenny would be curious about who I shared a room with. I explained to ease her worries.

“Everyone has a double room, but I have a single room all to myself. It’s just fortunate that the residents of the 3rd grade are an odd number.”

“Phew… Thank goodness.”

“What’s that about?”

In that moment, I sensed a chill in Jenny’s tone.

“What do you mean… I was curious if there was someone sharing my space.”

Hearing her speak felt like a ghost was whispering, giving me goosebumps. If there was someone sharing the room, it seemed like she wanted to have a “one-on-one face-off” with them.

Especially if that someone was a female student.

『A good spectacle indeed.』

‘Shut your mouth before you get turned into a twisted figure.’

Upon hearing that, Muto stifled a chuckle beside me. I figured I would soon need a plan to keep this spirit in check.

However, the ominous feeling shattered with Jenny’s next words.

“Still, it doesn’t matter. After all, they’re just a cohabitant.”

Jenny returned to her bright expression. Contrary to my expectations, she showed no trace of jealousy.

“Even if it were to develop into something real, it would actually be a good thing for Radon. He wouldn’t be as lonely as I was in the past.”

Rather, it was a look that worried me for being alone. She had had many lonely moments, regardless of her luxurious status.

Who knows how she would have grown if she weren’t a duchess.

After the incident that had frozen an entire village, Jenny wanted to isolate herself. She couldn’t even dream of going outside without a drug that temporarily suppressed her powers.

Because of her, the Chain Silver Family’s standing wobbled, and those who were envious of her father looked to exploit that weakness.

She felt tremendous guilt toward the villagers… toward her father. Eventually, rumors spread, and her peers, who once played with her, became hard to find.

Plus, with her mother passing away… losing her last place of emotional support led her to ultimately make a resolution.

To lift that cursed burden for sure.

The reason Jenny exerted herself was not merely to gain recognition from others.

She aimed to raise her own power as much as possible to suppress her rampage.

Every time she recalled her miserable childhood… she always took up a sword.

Being the type of girl she was, she would never despise someone who helped her gain control.

Gerard was so invested that he even went as far as to prepare a home for my family within his territory.

When she heard about my curse, Jenny likely felt a sense of kinship toward me.

After all, she had once been angry about having to face a similar plight… she was very vulnerable to guilt.

So she might have developed some feelings for me.

“Radon. What did you think about me during the beginning of the term? Back when I treated you carelessly.”

With her delicate fingers, Jenny touched my hand cautiously. I could feel her regret through her graceful gestures and shy expression.

“I thought I was still all alone. I feared that my friendship with Mary and Crona was only temporary, but it turned out that I wasn’t the only one suffering due to a curse.”

“….”

“But without knowing, I kept blaming you. What were you feeling back then?”

I felt indignant, of course. Even if I was not the original Radon, the damned curse was still the reason things turned out the way they did.

Thus, I voiced my honest feelings.

“At the very least, it didn’t feel good. If I didn’t do what the curse commanded, I would be in serious trouble, and it just so happened that it endangered your mood, so I thought I was going to die.”

“Then I….”

“But it’s not all your fault either. We’re both victimized in a similar way, so why blame anyone?”

At that moment, I did feel sorry for Jenny, but her remorse far surpassed my own.

Still hung up on things, Jenny seemed to have developed some form of obsession with me.

“Radon, if something difficult arises, please tell me.”

She delicately placed her hands on mine and lifted them up.

“I’ll help you with anything.”

As sunlight streamed through the gaps, Jenny’s words stirred a strange feeling within me.

It felt like there was something unusually special in her words, more than just sympathy for a fellow sufferer.

But considering that Jenny had lived as a loner, there were bound to be many dulled places in her mentality.

Furthermore, I was the first friend who shared a similar situation. It would be odd for her not to care.

“Anything at all?”

“Yes. Absolutely everything!”

“Then….”

I smiled softly.

“Shall we visit a haunted house together?”

“Let’s leave that out!”

“Or how about a midnight visit to the cemetery….”

“Absolutely not!”

Her formerly pristine face turned a shade of pale blue.

I had merely tossed out a playful remark, but watching her reaction was surprisingly entertaining.

*

“Did everyone do well?”

As the carriage crossed through the warp gate and touched down in Aligieri Town, Jenny was filled with excitement.

Considering it was the first day of school, the town residents were parting the ways to make room for the carriage.

This town, which I hadn’t seen for about a month, hadn’t changed a bit.

“Everyone looks the same. The steak place we visited before is still there!”

“Of course. That’s an Aligieri specialty.”

It’s the place that sold steaks that recover over half health points. If that place were to go down in the game realm, it would hurt me too.

As we passed through the unchanged streets, we soon entered the academy’s main entrance, where a multitude of carriages were congregating.

And it was at that moment when Jenny, getting off the carriage, inhaled the air of the academy after such a long time.

– Beep.. beep!

– Beep… beep beep!

“Huh?”

“….”

As something approached on two legs, Jenny took a deep breath. It wasn’t a person, but it walked like one, and stared at us intently.

It looked stiff and awkward, resembling a mannequin but was too clunky to be that, and too small and not large enough to be a doll or golem.

“What are these things?”

Jenny displayed her wariness toward the strange entities. However, they scanned us with infrared rays emitting from their eyes.

Just as I was about to summon my sword—

– Jenny Chain Silver, Radon Crawler, Recognition Complete. Congratulations on the start of the school year. Beep.

– May you have an enjoyable academic life. Beep.

“Huh?”

“….”

After stating that, the mysterious metal doll turned and left. Looking around, I noticed there were similar beings roaming all over the academy.

I couldn’t help but wonder what exactly had happened during the vacation, as that look flickered across Jenny’s face.

They looked like machines, resembling a sort of golem. I used to feel unease because they operated under the same mechanism as robots.

Wasn’t this supposed to be a pure fantasy world?

‘Of course, such advanced technology likes sci-fi wouldn’t make an appearance here.’

These beings are artificially birthed spirits. Their consciousness is simply connected to those spirits.

This mirrors a transcendent spell crafted by the Great Sage Dantia.

The creators’ ingenuity in interpreting artificial intelligence in a fantasy context is impressive indeed.

How could someone think of shooting a Terminator in a magic academy?

That’s right. The final boss of this chapter 3 is precisely those guys.

Surviving as the Academy Scammer.