Chapter 178
Chapter 178
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 178
Chapter Title: Wolfram Divided into Five
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I listened to Milmyu's request and fell into thought for a moment.
"...You and I, just the two of us on an expedition?"
"Yes. I don't want to back down anymore either."
"You don't want to back down... You're serious?"
"......Ugh. Yes."
I see.
That's your true feelings. The honest truth you can't hide.
In that case, I should respond to my junior's sincerity with equal honesty.
"I understand your feelings. Here's my answer: No."
Honestly, it shook me quite a bit, but I could make a firm decision.
I'm not the type of person who would say yes to something that's not okay just to be nice...
"......I see."
"Yes."
"...Is there really no chance at all?"
A chance.
Chance, huh.
Is there truly no chance for Milmyu?
"There is."
"I see. As expected, there isn't... Huh?"
"You're far too fragile right now to go on an expedition with me."
"Uh... Um. Ah...... Aha. I expected that much... But...!"
Milmyu tilted her head, narrowed her eyes, let out a deep sigh, made a resigned face for a moment, then steeled her resolve.
She has such a rich range of expressions.
"You said there's a chance, right? So, what do I need to do?"
"...Ho."
Normally, Milmyu would bow out gracefully with 'Understood,' but I could feel her burning desire to go on that expedition no matter what.
Those eyes held the fierce determination of a hunter who wouldn't let prey escape, and I couldn't help but smile.
Come to think of it, why did I shut her down so definitively with 'No'?
Because Milmyu's stats are lower than Aila and the others?
That's a minor reason.
Stats can be covered with items... or Battle Gauntlets anyway. Because Milmyu might harm me? No way. How could such a sweet little chick torment me?
She's defended the 1st-year top spot multiple times, declared her will, seized victory right before my eyes, and yet she hasn't forgotten her. She's a commendable, good kid... So why do I still judge her as weak?
How much more proof could Milmyu possibly give?
...Ah. I get it.
Milmyu is Kelters' classmate.
And right now, I'm unconsciously judging her on the same level as Kelters.
Not the Kelters of this reality, but the Kelters I played as.
Let's see. It's the second semester now.
If I grinded my ass off at max speed, by this point I'd have one stat like stamina or agility at 19, broken through the wall with hundred-pots, and be messing around in Act 6 with Mutmut Howai.
So, am I the type who's like, '...Back in my 1st year, in the second semester, I was popping regular pots with Speldiarabi, headshotting bosses left and right, and you're doing this now?!' Am I that 'Noob-rejecting trash veteran life achievement: D/Z SAGA'?
No, that can't be. Where in the world is there someone as pure as me? Haha. This is troubling.
But I have to acknowledge what needs acknowledging.
I saw Milmyu as just a 'fragile' junior. But isn't it time to recognize her efforts?
"Alright, Milmyu. What was the practical subject for this midterm?"
"Mock hazardous terrain breakthrough."
Hm.
I thought it was sparring, but no.
Mock hazardous terrain... Those who enter the Knight Division naturally spread out across the world. Among them, there are those who become retainers to fine nobles, but of course, there are also middling nobles, frontier pioneers, and in the worst cases, those running with mercenary clans.
And what happens to low-ranking knights working under those 'self-proclaimed ambitious hidden dragons who were born rich but want to eat more'?
What else? They go on expeditions like dogs.
Taboos? Taboos of this world? There are none. The world is still full of unknowns, and grabbing them makes us rich! That's the cry.
Of course, Loengrin strictly forbids it, so they can't do it openly, which makes them go even more covertly.
Digging new mines, finding even one mana spring, or raiding monster villages near settlements to sell the corpses.
'Covert' here means they can't recruit openly, and not recruiting openly means shoving kids in without gear or support—go grind or die trying. It's like running Devil Run hardcode with a maxed Favor of Sosa.
So labor's cheap, humans die easily, and life is undervalued.
That's why this exam demonstrating 'Knight Division survival in any hazardous terrain for emergencies' is real flesh-and-blood training for students whose job prospects are doomed.
This... is training Milmyu needs no matter what path she takes.
"Take 1st place in the midterm. Then I'll go on an expedition—just the two of us."
"...Really?"
"Of course. The reason I won't go alone with you from the start is because you're unreliable."
"Unreliable... me?"
"Think about positions in combat. You know this, but I'm a thorough support right now. When heading out with someone like me, what's the most essential thing?"
"...Combat power to take down monsters..."
"No. Survivability to always escape ambushes. You only have one life."
"...Ah. Then I..."
"Right. What position do you think you're in?"
"...A fighter who can't be the main force."
"Exactly. The most ambiguous spot."
That's right.
Nefti passes as a tank.
Aila's a mid-range mage, so she'll handle herself,
Rudika will kill everything before they approach; I just need to assist with status recovery.
Eve's a pure mage but with overwhelming firepower, so Patrascheu and I cover defense.
Even that Silpia has second sight with Lapis Lazuli.
But Milmyu is different. Her position is too vague.
"And if we get in danger... I'll probably escape thanks to Patrascheu. But you won't."
"Is that the only reason you're pushing me away, senpai? ...Because I'm still weak? Is that it?"
"I've never pushed you away."
"...Huh?"
"I'm just... worried."
"...Worried."
Isn't that better than watching us all die?
"Yes. I understand. Just hearing that answer is enough."
"This exam won't be easy, and I won't help much. But if you overcome it... we can go anywhere, just the two of us."
"......Yes. Definitely. Definitely, just the two of us with senpai."
"Mm."
Yeah.
If you really want to prove you've grown, you have to do it on your own.
Do that much, and we can go anywhere.
"...Hehe. Definitely. Definiteeeely...!"
Seeing that ferocious glint in her eyes, I thought, yeah, she might actually pull it off.
The midterms were approaching soon.
But unlike the last one filled with despair, the convenience store now buzzed with all sorts of energies.
First up, despair in the form of Aila.
"Hm... Regina Cielra. She seems really prepared this time."
"Is that so?"
"Yes. The written part... well, we'll both get perfect scores, but the 3rd-year 2nd-semester practical is sparring again. Short for 'sparring.' Otherwise, achievement presentation. What else could it be?"
"True enough."
The Magic Division, unlike Knights, revolves around market value, so there's no proving yourself in exams beyond research presentations or sparring results. Graduation rank alone can swing salaries by tens of millions; one research achievement by hundreds of millions.
It's a thoroughly realistic curriculum when you look at it.
"A 1-point mana difference is definite, and fighting close-range to secure victory... I've been burned once, so no way I'm falling for it again. I need some way to win... How to overcome that 1-point mana gap..."
Ugh... Steam puffed from her head. Aila slammed her forehead on the desk and started grumbling while scribbling notes with her pen.
"This time... I'll claim total victory for sure."
"Mm."
Milmyu was brimming with enthusiasm in her own way.
And the one with no real thoughts besides that... Rudika.
"Rudika, aren't you preparing for midterms?"
"Hm? Ah... I am doing my best. 'Give your all to everything.' That's what Wolfram told Rudika before."
"Right."
"But... my innate mana is low. Assuming anti-mage battles, I took commissions against grand mages, handled a few... No, experimented... Er, fought them, and got some winning chances? Written exam... well, I'll manage somehow."
"......I see."
"Yeah."
She said it with a natural smile and a wink. Don't smile like that; it's freaking scary.
Ah, I see. Then rest easy.
Next up... the one with truly no thoughts at all.
"Ehen."
"Don't make weird laughs. Nefti."
"Ah... Sorry, senpai. I'm excited for tonight's dinner menu."
"You really have no tension."
"Hmm. But exams aren't that fun? 'Do what you want first.' You said that, senpai."
"......"
"What I want is adventure with senpai. Expeditions. Or manual labor. Or royal guard duty. That's it. Jefrin classes and exams... honestly don't stick in my head well."
"Mm."
She's right.
I told her to pursue what she wants, not that she has to do what she hates.
"Hmm. Regina Cielra's scary. She'll succeed in rebellion against me?"
"To completely crush Kelters somehow..."
"Nefti, how about a two-person expedition? With Wolfram too."
"Ooh... Sounds good. I'm for it?"
But the convenience store's atmosphere, split into two clear camps, was a chaotic mess too painful to watch with eyes open.
The boss bro inside me created a study vibe even during midterms, was a magnificent adult guiding kids right... How could I just stand by?
"You all seem unable to focus on midterms. Then let me make an interesting proposal."
The convenience store boss bro always did this.
When kids came whining about not concentrating, he'd smile and say,
'If you do well next time, want a gift?'
'Gift? What?'
'I know someone at HQ. You know those girl group postcards and bromides stocked in our store, right?'
'...Yeah. The ones where you get one with a 30,000-rin chocolate set.'
'Yeah. Do well, and I'll sneak you one. How's that?'
'.........I'll go study, bro!'
He'd send them off, then deliberately order extras, eat the chocolates himself, and give the kid the cards.
He did know HQ staff, but he bought them with his own tough-earned money.
'Youngjin. Chocolate tasty?'
'Kinda meh.'
'Me too... I like that group too, sigh.'
'Then why make that promise? Money down the drain, cards given away—what do you gain, boss?'
'In return, the kid gained the experience of hitting their midterm goals. So what if motives are impure? Those little things stack up to make good adults. If you accomplish something young, you'll accomplish more as an adult.'
'......Doesn't mean I'll eat more chocolate for you.'
'Cheeky punk.'
Bro said that and stuffed the rest of the chocolate anyway.
Anyway. I want to follow bro's path and give these kids an adult message: Don't take the world lightly, face everything positively and march forward!
They're all staring at me, waiting for my proposal.
Well, I'm just a corner store boss with no money or power for big things, but I can do something.
"Set a goal for this midterm. If you achieve it, I'll grant one wish within my power."
The moment I spoke,
Everything froze.
"Hmmm."
"Hee."
"Hehe."
"Aha."
And without a word, they all pulled out pens and notebooks and started studying on their own.
"......"
Imitating bro's cool move worked; the study atmosphere was created for sure.
But
Why is this?
"A wish... Hehe. Crush Regina Cielra completely?"
"Wish... For a 2-day 1-night expedition, crush Gale and Kelters simultaneously for 1st place."
"In this sparring, no chants allowed even once, handle... no, eliminate... wait, suppress all opponents?"
"...Hmm. Been a while since I slacked on work. Gotta study. You'll count royal guard armor as my gear for sparring, right?"
Their wills were clearly united,
yet my body trembled endlessly with inexplicable dread.