Chapter 98
Chapter 98
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 98
Chapter Title: The Truth Doesn't Get Buried #1
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[Chapter 97] The Truth Doesn't Get Buried #1
Student life flies by faster than you'd expect.
Before I knew it, midterms—the test of how much I'd learned and grown since enrollment—were right around the corner, and I'd spent that time fumbling around.
Of course, I hadn't just been slacking off. I'd put in my own efforts and made some progress.
The simplest indicator of that was this.
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Name: Theo Gospel Angmar lv. 36
Jobs: Half-Fairy lv. 7
Lecher lv. 6
Actor lv. 9
Tamer lv. 7
Mage lv. 7
Talents: 《Clairvoyance》 《Calm Thinking》
Alignment: Chaotic-Neutral.
You are the sole survivor of a fallen noble house.
You must revive your house while evading the enemies who wish to see it destroyed.
Fortunately, you brim with the will to rebuild.
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Back when I first got this system, there were all sorts of shortcomings.
But after secretly peeking at other people's status windows, I realized that even in this ark teeming with heroes, I ranked in the top 50 percent.
In game terms, solidly silver tier.
By ranking, somewhere between 300th and 500th out of a thousand. A far cry from the worm I used to be.
"Hmm."
Yet alongside the satisfaction, a creeping dissatisfaction bubbled up: *Is this really all?*
The lone survivor of Angmar.
The descendant of Demon King Solomon, said to be powerful enough to upend the world's rules—is this it?
It'd be narratively sound to have some dramatic power-up or evolution stage by now, but I was progressing far more steadily than expected.
I still had a long way to go before I could stand on the same stage as powerhouses like Airana Elga, Mirna, or the Hunter party.
Rustle.
In my hand was a newspaper issued within the Arc academy grounds.
The headline screamed: 「Crossbow Hunter Slays Real Estate Broker Sucking Students' Dry!」
Murder, no less.
Killing is strictly forbidden within the Arc.
But this Crossbow Hunter ignores the rules, casually offing people for his goals. That's the psycho protagonist for you...
The thought that those arrows might one day point my way made me uneasy, naturally.
─Did you hear? Someone got killed again.
─It's that new party that came in, right? Crazy, why invite those psychos?
─They're rooting out potential infiltrators in our ranks. Turns out that broker deserved it—renting windowless rooms for ten million coins.
─That's rough.
Eavesdropping, I caught the Hunter party's exploits already spreading like wildfire among the students.
A group of monster-strong folks beating people to death? Of course it'd make waves. And this was straight out of the original story too.
After the Angmar Kingdom fell following the execution of Tyrant Queen Aira, the protagonist Hunter arrived at the bastion of the Arc and first purged internal enemies.
That eventually led to a clash with the saintess, who fell to corruption and became the episode's boss...
Was this the main storyline unfolding before my eyes?
"Theo, results are in."
A voice snapped me from my reverie.
I turned from my chair to see a white-coated female staffer handing me a chart.
"It's been a month since enrollment, and your mana has developed tremendously. You've reached 3rd circle—almost 4th. Impressive growth."
"I see."
"Not 'I see'—you should be amazed! What method did you use? At 3rd circle, you could head to the front lines right now!"
True to her role in student research, she was dying to know my rapid progress secret.
"We should reference your schedule and diet to teach underperforming mages. Maybe it's the class combo...!"
Her fussing confirmed my growth was indeed remarkable.
Feigning ignorance, I asked the researcher,
"On average, how long does it take to go from 1st to 3rd circle?"
"Hmm, roughly ten years?"
So I'd crammed ten years of training into one month. Impressive, yeah. Was the blood of Angmar's Demon King finally awakening?
"Then from 3rd to 4th circle, and beyond?"
"From what I know, another ten years to 4th. And 4th to 5th? No idea—too few samples."
"Makes sense. 5th circle is grand mage territory."
It hit me anew how extraordinary Aira was, hitting 7th circle at barely twenty.
No wonder the Hunter party needed a combined assault to take her down.
I wondered who would win if current Aira fought current Hunter.
Aira hadn't evolved into the Massacre Queen yet, so her combat power might lag the original.
Likewise, without Aira stirring civil war in Angmar, the Hunter party likely hadn't racked up exp from major named villains.
Both were weaker than in the original plotline.
That was my conclusion.
And therein lay my path to survival.
* * *
"Marmar, you there?"
I knocked on Marmar's door, but no answer. She must be out; no signs of life.
Busy, huh.
I'd planned to revisit the Fairy Forest's Wish Pavilion with her, but had to turn back disappointed.
I knew the way to our old adventure club hideout, but going alone was risky.
Ended up with some free time. Maybe wait on a park bench nearby in case she returned?
─Kyarr!
─Let's go together─!
From my bench, I spotted pairs of guys and girls reveling in youth and love.
The Arc, a hero-training institution, encouraged cadet romance, so couples overflowed, and scenes like this were commonplace.
Swoosh.
Elga and Mirna's faces flickered in my mind.
Days since getting booted from Elga's dorm. Days since stealing Mirna's lips. They'd vanished, as if to show their anger.
No classroom visits, no dorm door answers.
Tricky.
Is romance always this hard? Can a harem even work here?
Just handling Elga and Mirna was tough; no clue on Aira or Professor Stella.
Especially Stella Bellhawk—who knew where she was or what she was doing.
No classes either.
Her recklessness had her on the verge of excommunication from her house.
Maybe I should track down Professor Stella.
She was 132, with about 30 years at the Arc as student and prof. She'd seen it all.
Like when Lioness head Reinhardt and Draco's Sir Elric were students.
Or tales of Saintess Priga Nightingale's student days. Or about Theo Gospel, whose name matched mine.
She might not spill easily, of course.
But I knew ways to loosen lips. I turned toward her lab.
Knock, knock.
"Anyone there?"
Rustling from inside. Someone's home, but no reply.
"Professor Stella? It's Theo Gospel."
─Ah.
A short voice from within.
─You alone?
"Yes."
The door clicked open. A slender finger grabbed my face, yanking me inside.
For a second, I thought I'd been kidnapped.
But Professor Stella pulled me close, peeked outside, and scanned the hallway.
"No one's around, but you're really alone, right?"
"What's going on?"
She acted like someone on the run. When I asked, she shut the door and clicked the locks instead of answering.
Locking us in?
Alone in a sealed room with a mature beauty like Stella, I tensed and pressed,
"What's this about?"
"Nothing much. Lately, lots of people visiting me."
"Visiting?"
"The ones I brought in are causing trouble on campus!"
It clicked.
The Hunter party. I'd heard she'd pushed to bring them here.
Their messes naturally backfired on their recommender.
"So Theo, why're you here? The board send you? To check on me?"
The image of colorful-robed mage elders popped up. Hadn't seen them in ages, so I shook my head honestly.
"No. I'm not involved. Just came to ask something."
"Hmm, questions, huh. You taking any classes from me?"
"Tamer Training and Fairy Studies. We even talked during lectures."
"Oh, right."
Stella seemed out of it. The lab I'd tidied last time was trashed again.
Worn underwear and stockings shed like snakeskin everywhere. Living here?
Her deep navy hair was a tangled mess.
Face grimy like days unwashed, shirt wrinkled untreated.
Only her skin-tight shiny leather pants looked decent. But the slippers peeking below were shabby and worn.
This was a great house's lady?
Shocking in a different way from Elga, Mirna, or Aira. And the booze stench—whew.
Ugh. Dizzy just being near.
"If you're busy, should I come back?"
"Nah. So, what questions?"
"Like you suggested, I dug into the Adventure Club. But records are scarce—someone erased them on purpose, maybe."
"Adventure Club, huh."
Stella's frantic demeanor calmed a bit.
"Tell me what you found. I'll share accordingly to your level."