On the outside, Singh was making jokes to lighten the mood, but inside, he was shaken by a huge shock.
‘My intent to slice those who mocked Oknodie with my sword ended up putting Oknodie in an awkward position.’
The instructor wasn’t fooled by Oknodie’s nonsense.
“I’ll say it again. Your shallow excuses won’t work. If you can’t pay the fine, I’ll officially file charges with the Student Council for obstruction of duty and violence against staff.”
“Really?”
“If this goes to an official trial, you should be prepared for a bigger sentence.”
“I don’t mind going.”
“What?”
“It’s not only you who is confident, instructor. I’m confident I can push for a trial according to the school rules too.”
Oknodie wasn’t fooled by the instructor’s nonsense either. After all, there’s likely no facility that provides early education on schemes quite like the Foundation.
The daughters of nobles.
She was only thinking of chopping up the ones who openly badmouthed Oknodie and provoked violence.
Singh regretted it.
Regretted getting to know Oknodie.
Ever since he met her, he kept seeing his own shortcomings.
“Obstruction of duty and violence against staff. Instant fine of 10,000 points. If you refuse, there will be no compromise.”
“There’s no proof of intention and it’s my first offense, though?”
“…Fine of 100 points.”
Paying a mere trifling amount of points, Oknodie quickly cleared her charges.
The female students who were laughing at her in front of Singh flinched.
“Is it really okay to be released so easily?”
“This is strange, instructor!”
“Shut up.”
The instructor glared at the female students with a very angry face.
“You put me in a trap. The story and the situation were completely different. I was lying in wait to witness an attempted murder by a delinquent, not to fall into a trap.”
“W-we didn’t mean it that way!”
“I really didn’t expect Oknodie to come here. Seriously, instructor.”
“Do you not trust us? We… had no one to rely on but you! Sniffle.”
Panicking, the female students began to cry.
The instructor crushed the magic crystal ball he held in his hand with force.
The flames that blossomed in his hand erased the crystal ball without a trace.
“You and I have no relationship anymore. So let me clarify; the crime of disrespecting an instructor won’t be brushed aside so easily.”
The female students’ faces fell, knowing their excuses would carry no weight.
The trio of female students glared at Singh, Oknodie, and the instructor with spiteful faces before leaving.
“Don’t involve the instructor in troublesome matters.”
“Is that something you can say, instructor?”
“Ahem. Ahem. I’m busy, so I’ll take my leave.”
The instructor, trying to assert some authority, quickly left, embarrassed.
In the end, it was not Singh’s sword, but Oknodie’s tongue that resolved the situation.
“How embarrassing.”
Singh knew this.
In a real sword fight, he might be able to defeat Oknodie.
However, there are situations in the world that cannot be handled with just swords alone.
This was one of them.
If you fall for the trap laid by the enemy, swinging your sword can lead to your own demise.
“Singh, seriously. How can you fall for such a minor trap? We have a long way to go together after graduation.”
“I feel ashamed.”
“Ugh. Lift your head. Are you going to show such a gloomy face in front of your sister?”
It was a false image, but…
Those words came rushing back as he saw the ghostly image of his younger sister Lin peeking out from behind Oknodie.
Whether this was intentional or coincidental, the ghost mimicking his sister was quite skilled.
Even a real younger sister would have looked at him like that.
“From now on, you shouldn’t wield your sword lightly, you know?”
“I wasn’t wielding it lightly.”
The reason he wields his sword is for revenge on behalf of his sister.
He never forgot that.
It wasn’t a trivial vow.
“Really?”
Oknodie seemed doubtful.
The sword he intended to draw for her honor was no light matter.
“The sword I drew for you was never light.”
Her eyes, usually filled with knowing confidence, showed surprise.
Oknodie’s eyes, filled with uncertainty, were not her usual self.
Losing her words, her hands wandered aimlessly in the air, unsure of how to aim.
The atmosphere overlapping with the ghostly image of his sister behind him might not just be his imagination.
Swish.
As his hand reached towards Oknodie’s head, she flinched, finally noticing as his hand almost reached her scalp.
Smack.
Unknowingly swinging her arm, Oknodie swatted his hand away.
The stunned look on her face lingered for a moment.
Quickly shaking off the confusion, her face broke into a mischievous grin.
“Worried about me? That’s a hundred years too early! I’m Oknodie, you know? A little commotion like this doesn’t faze me at all!”
Had she caught the mood?
Singh let out a chuckle.
“Well, from now on, I’ll be swinging my sword at the bushes.”
“Huh??”
“As a swordsman, shouldn’t I have the hobby of swinging my sword at bushes where enemies might be hiding?”
“That sounds like an expensive hobby!”
“I’ve saved up enough to pay a fine.”
While others would see Singh and call him a madman, it’s better to take the initiative rather than remain quiet and only get used.
As long as he wasn’t a hindrance, Oknodie would have more freedom to move around.
He couldn’t be the brother who becomes a hurdle for his sister.
…Although which sister he was referring to, he wasn’t sure.
*
Oknodie broke down.
Zhuang’s firm conclusion after hours of watching Oknodie.
“Oknodie. You only need one cursed doll to pass through the cursed swamp.”
Why was Titosso, who typically makes only one doll with a blank expression, now making a dozen?
“Look, Oknodie. Professor Pinkberry is only watching you.”
“It’s too late! You, tell me the three tips for escaping a vehicle inspection during a disguise!”
“Basics and Understanding of Disguise, Vehicle Inspection Tips, Concealing Weapons, Refusing to Allow Inspection of Possessions, Assault During Forced Interrogation…”
“What? You were listening properly?”
“…The subcategories of Disguise include Makeup Techniques, Size Compression, Size Expansion, and Voice Alteration.”
“That was supposed to be taught starting next week…”
“The items to attack are Camela’s cosmetics in the dormitory, Mana Refinement Techniques for body transformation, seniors’ disguise methods, and the bard’s experiences.”
“…Hah. Now I get it. There’s no value in listening to such obvious stuff from the class top student; it’s boring, right? Fine. Either way, only you two are listening, I’ll show you what I’m capable of. The next lecture is going to cover a ton of ground!”
Suddenly, she was rushing through the lecture, answering questions that hadn’t even been asked.
“Oknodie, that’s not a window into the dormitory; it’s a squirrel hole!”
In a daze, she attempted to sleep in the wrong place.
Zhuang narrowed his eyes at her suspicious appearance.
Could this kid really be…
“Be honest.”
“Huh?”
“Did you go behind my back to pull off a tasty assassination or something?”
Did she sneak off to commit an assassination!?
“Your symptoms match perfectly. The thrill of taking a life, the silent screams of those who should die, the sensation of life fading conveyed through your fingertips. Are you distracted by that taste?”
“No!”
“Then why do you keep feeding that plant friend of yours, who’s crying that it’s going to burst from being overfed?”
The Howling Mandragora, with its face screaming in agony while holding its full hands of feed, startled Oknodie into grabbing the feed back.
Fortunately, unlike goldfish that would eat until they burst, the Mandragora had a higher level of intelligence.
“I actually have one concern.”
“I hope that concern is worth more than the difficult Disguise lectures coming up.”
Even under Zhuang’s sharp retort, Oknodie spoke dreamily, as if wandering through a dream.
“Someone who usually looked like a needy child suddenly said that the sword drawn for you was not light.”
He was so surprised by that statement that all of Zhuang’s memorized notes spilled from his sleeves.
As the Howling Mandragora froze in fear and couldn’t even emit a goo, Zhuang moved closer and actively questioned.
“So?”
“When a weak and young seedling suddenly does something they never did before, you get cautious because they might get hurt or break. You understand, right?”
Zhuang thought quietly about it.
How could the child who looked like the strongest kid in the world compare themselves to such a weak, cute existence?
Did Oknodie perhaps express how she felt after visiting the Director’s Mansion?
“So what do you want to do about it?”
“Um…”
As Oknodie continued, Zhuang realized that even if the child went through mental struggles in the Foundation, they truly must have suffered tremendously.
“Favorability with a veteran player is probably meant to be used as a shield, not for love. I know that, but I still want to try out a little bit!”
