The Spy
In the dorms, as long as you're back before midnight, everything is fine. Since the curfew is at 12:00 AM, you rarely see anyone heading into the dorms at 6:00 PM, which is dinner time.
That’s because most of the students are nobles, and nobles have plenty of money. They have to socialize, show off their family status, and brag about their lineage. That’s just your average noble.
“Haa…”
But the woman currently boiling soup, who didn't recognize me because of my Concealment Talisman, is different. Serena Rui. She’s the one who entered the Academy but, lacking funds, eventually joined hands with the Black Mages.
Even though she’s working with Black Mages, why is she boiling this pathetic soup without a penny to her name? Obviously, it’s because the Rui family is broke.
Serena Rui receives sums of money that even ordinary nobles couldn't touch. Because she can’t afford to betray the Black Mages, they pay her massive amounts of cash every time. However, her family, the House of Rui, is destitute.
The Academy’s tuition isn't so wicked that a commoner couldn't attend. Eileen is a prime example of that.
“*Sob*… *sniff*… How long… must I live like this…”
And the Rui family’s entire fortune had been the tuition for four years at the Academy. They say the previous head of the Rui family was a wastrel who squandered everything and left behind a mountain of debt. Her family lives in a rotting, trash-heap of a wooden house without a single servant or estate to their name. In the end, she colluded with the Black Mages for the sake of her family. For the record, since the Black Mages bought up all her debts, she has no way to escape them.
“Phew… Serena Rui. You are the next head of the House of Rui. You can’t collapse like this.”
Saying that, she wiped away her tears and scooped up some soup. The soup she was eating was the so-called "Magic Soup" often found in cheap inns. It’s the kind of food where you just add water when it gets low, and if you run out of ingredients, you just buy whatever is cheapest at the market and toss it in. It’s called Magic Soup because it supposedly never runs out.
“I’m jealous… I want to eat meat, too…”
Serena, eating her soup by the window, muttered to herself. Her gaze was fixed on the students sitting on a bench by the road, eating skewers. As she stared at the skewers with a longing expression, drool trickled from the corner of her mouth. The Black Mages only gave her a pittance for living expenses, claiming they were "paying off her debt."
“*Sob*… Mom… Dad…”
Watching her from the side, she looked incredibly pitiful. She’s selling information in exchange for money to keep her family safe, but that money is all being siphoned off by the debts of a previous head she’s never even met. She’s even living off Magic Soup that even commoners avoid.
‘Hmm… honestly, she’s only sold information twice so far, right?’
Then I should just punish her exactly as much as the value of the two times she sold information. It’s a very simple line of reasoning, but it’s correct. If I don't do this, the only other option is to kill her, right?
Having finished my thoughts, I revealed myself.
“Haa… why have you come again? Didn’t I tell you to come only when I contact you?”
Serena looked exhausted, as if the Black Mages had been pushing her harder than she expected. Perhaps she was embarrassed to be caught alone in the dorms at this hour, but she had the lights off, so she must not have been able to see my face clearly. As I approached slowly, the light from the window illuminated me.
“Ka… Kahan? Don’t tell me Kahan is on the side of the Black Mages?!”
“Wrong.”
*Flick!*
“Ugh…!”
I gave her a solid flick to the forehead. Serena’s mouth bled slightly, as if she’d bitten her tongue. I spoke to her as she clutched her head in pain.
“Serena Rui. You’re an Academy spy, aren't you?”
“Kuh… just leave my family out of this… if you have to, take my body instead!”
Saying that, Serena hurriedly took off her shirt to show me what superior genes she possessed. Oh, as expected of a noble lady.
“Fine. I’ll keep it a secret that you’re an Academy spy. In exchange, I want you.”
“…Fine. I expected as much, being a barbarian and all. You can do whatever you want with me. Just please, never touch my family.”
Serena spoke as if she felt relieved. To think I’d see the kind of self-sacrifice I only ever read about on the internet.
“Hmm… then call the Black Mages now. I need to kill them all.”
“…Fine. I’m sure you’ll handle it.”
Serena opened a drawer and pressed a black button. Why is everything a button around here? The author seems to really love buttons. When she pressed it, black smoke billowed out, and soon that smoke took on a form.
“Oh, Serena. My little baby bird. How much you must have missed me to call me so… what is this. Who are you?”
“Uweeegh… ‘Baby bird,’ my ass. Damn it… disgusting! Just die already.”
Crunch… crunch…
I haven't given Qingbing any high-quality food in a while, so I gave it to him as a meal. Qingbing seemed satisfied, wiggling his antennae.
“Yeah, yeah. Oh? What’s this? 6th Circle? You were quite the big shot. Well, I suppose you couldn't be a nobody if you were involved with the Academy.”
The 6th Circle Black Mage became Qingbing’s nutritional supplement. It won’t make him sick to eat trash like this. The blood droplets that fell were crawled upon by Qingbing’s offspring, who ate them bit by bit. Being 6th Circle, it’s a miracle drug for these little guys. A miracle drug.
As I watched the meal with a satisfied expression, I remembered Serena, whom I’d forgotten.
“Ah, right. Serena.”
“Ye… Yes!”
Maybe it’s because I caught the 6th Circle Black Mage so easily. I spoke to her, as she was terrified.
“How much is the Rui family debt?”
“…5 million gold.”
“Wow, that’s a lot. I’ll pay it all off. In exchange, you’re my toy. Got it?”
Tremble, tremble…
She was terrified at the word "toy." She seems to be thinking of torture or something similar, but that’s too much. Barbarians don’t do torture. We just kill them. If I were going to do something bad, I would have killed her already. Well, I didn't bother correcting her.
“Understood, Master.”
“Oh… ‘Master’ sounds good. Okay! For now, use this for living expenses.”
Many students bought Luck Talismans and Courage Talismans from me for the midterm exams. Since I sold them for 100 gold each, I already have plenty of money on hand.
“Hiiik…! 500 gold…!”
Serena’s hands trembled as she held the 500 gold. She didn't tremble when I was about to do something bad to her, but she trembles at money? This, this is a talent perfectly suited for a stereotypical NTR story. But that word doesn't exist in my dictionary.
“Here. You’ve received 500 gold, so it’s a contract. No need to read it, just sign.”
“Understood.”
Serena signed immediately. For the record, it’s much better than the average medieval slave contract. It even guarantees human rights; how great is that? The only condition added was that she could only feel affection and sexual desire for me.
“Alright, then I’m off to pay off some debt.”
“Yes!!”
I left her in the dorms, standing at attention, and moved slowly.
“Qingbing. Spit out what you ate earlier.”
Ptooey.
What Qingbing spat out from the shadows was the Black Mage’s heart. I told him not to eat it.
“Now. Find out.”
Tracking Talisman.
When I attached it to the heart, the tracking talisman sensed my will and led me to where I wanted to go. It was the base where this guy had been staying. Following the tracking talisman, I arrived at the Lucian Kingdom, which was much further away than the Academy.
“Wow, so you were the rats hiding in the Lucian Kingdom? This isn't cost-effective.”
“Dark Energy!”
“Wow… look at that pathetic skill name.”
I flicked the black sphere flying at me with my hand.
Whoosh!
“Tattoos…? Is he a barbarian from the North! He has 6 tattoos! He’s a Great Warrior!”
“Everyone, be careful… Ugh!”
The Black Mages hurriedly backed away, calling me a Great Warrior. Seeing this, I naturally threw a talisman behind them.
KWA-A-A-A-A-ANG!
The Ignition Talisman exploded, and the five guys gathered behind them were blown to bits.
“He really is a Great Warrior.”
“This is… a… curse…”
Thud.
Even though the Ignition Talisman only grazed them, the intense heat eventually caused the Black Mages to collapse.
“Was that 6th Circle guy the leader? They’re all 4th Circle. Alright. Eat the heart from earlier and eat all these guys too.”
“Kurrrr…”
Qingbing only ate the heart of the 6th Circle Black Mage. Qingbing yielded the remaining 4th Circle Black Mages to his offspring. His maternal instinct is no joke.
“As expected of my Qingbing! How admirable…”
“Kurk! Kurk!”
While playing with Qingbing, the offspring finished their meal. I told them not to eat the paper, so they ate everything except the paper.
“Oh ho… wow, the principal is 5 million gold. Including interest, it’s 300 million? That’s massive.”
How on earth did the previous head of the Rui family get caught up in such a vicious loan shark scheme? Well, there were plenty of people like that on Earth, so it’s not an impossible setting.
“Why should I use my own money? If there’s debt, I can just take the debt.”
Looking at the place written on the paper, it was a loan shark firm I didn't know. Since Eileen wouldn't know about a place like this either…
“Tsk. Should I have kept one alive?”
In the end, I returned to the Academy with the debt bonds. But I soon found out where their headquarters were.
“‘Look At Me Capital’? Those are guys from the Carber Kingdom. I heard they were so low-quality that even Carber was looking for an excuse to get rid of them.”
“…Is that so?”
The Carber Kingdom. It’s the country where our Magic Department’s runner-up, Serdian von, belongs. Serdian’s family, the House of von, is a Marquisate, no less.
“Hey. Serdian.”
“Yes! Brother!”
“‘Look At Me Capital’ in your kingdom. They touched my toy, you see.”
“…I see. I will contact my father immediately.”
As expected of our Serdian!
“Tell the Marquis to see me sometime later.”
“…!!! Understood!”
I’m someone even the Emperor seeks out. The Marquis threatened to deal with them within a week, and the guys who were trying to defect to the neighboring Ermadine Kingdom were eventually hit by a Meteor and vanished from this world. With this, Serena Rui’s debt vanished from the world!
“Th-this is…”
Tremble, tremble…
A newspaper article spread throughout the Academy.
“Crazy… just what kind of person is he…”
I had only heard of them through rumors. I had always been tormented by Black Mages, and I even had nightmares about their sticky gazes. I knew they wanted her body, so I never gave it to them. This was my last line of defense.
“Hey.”
“…Master!!”
Hug!
But now, it’s okay. He even wiped out the debt entirely! Even while I was writing a letter to send 300 of the 500 gold I received last time to my family, a letter arrived at the dorms. It said some barbarian had suddenly visited and given them a whopping 5,000 gold. So the 500 gold really was meant for living expenses.
“Wh-who is this woman again!”
“Kahan… did you add another one?”
Of course, there were other women by his side, but…
“Master… when will you eat? I’m ready anytime… hehe…”
Aren't I already completely his now, anyway? I might be able to leave the others, but I am unconditionally Kahan’s. Serena’s eyes gleamed with madness.