186th Episode. Teacher Radon!(4)

“Was it from the moment you admired my lie non-stop?”

I asked with a surprised expression, and Jenny, seeing that I didn’t understand, began to explain in detail.

“I’ve been watching you lie all this time… I’ve even seen your fighting style. The one that stuck with me the most was the `Switcheroo`.”

-Switcheroo Lv8

A skill that allows me to switch objects with something in my vicinity when I’m in dire situations. It’s a perfect skill for setting up a decoy and running away or deceiving someone, but it consumes a lot of mana.

So, I rarely use it now… but there was a reason Jenny had that skill deeply impressed in her mind.

“Do you remember what you did when I went berserk and you fought the Lycanthropes?”

“I pretended to be dead.”

Back then, thinking I was electrocuted, Jenny had cried. But when I appeared unscathed, her reaction, thinking I was a ghost, was priceless.

“Every time I think back to that moment, it makes me inexplicably angry… but I can’t forget it. I truly thought you had become a ghost with a grudge.”

I had touched on the part Jenny feared the most, so it was no surprise she was mad. That moment was still vivid, and I just discovered a hint that might surprise me.

“Radon’s corpse was fake, and I was caught off guard by that. So I thought about it since yesterday. If I could recreate that method, wouldn’t I be able to grasp `Deception`?”

In that way, Jenny recalled that incident and replicated my skill in the Silver Age.

Her own version of the Switcheroo, or we could call it a clone.

“And Radon was just surprised by my deception, right?”

“….”

It was just yesterday that Jenny was losing her mind trying to deceive me, and here she was, mastering the trick in just one morning.

Even though I didn’t use my mana, it was a result of the trust I had in Jenny.

Indeed. I was unconsciously trusting her.

Seeing Jenny grow so rapidly warmed my heart.

“Anyway, you succeeded in deceiving me, right?”

“Right.”

“Then, Radon. You haven’t forgotten, right?”

“What?”

Suddenly, the warm atmosphere turned chilly. Jenny smiled brightly and suddenly lifted the wooden sword she wore at her waist.

Shwaak!!-

“Whoa!”

My keen senses warned me of the imminent danger. I barely dodged the wooden sword, but Jenny tilted her head in confusion.

“Why are you dodging, Radon? We made a promise yesterday.”

“Promise… Ah!”

Right, I had completely forgotten. The promise to take a hit if I was successfully deceived.

Considering I had openly boasted about it, her actions were completely justified.

But now that I was in this situation…

“Come on, Radon… just take it.”

…I was terribly scared!

Her blue hair fluttering in the wind and her eyes wide open almost made her look like a ghost.

Jenny appeared innocent like a girl, yet she had a surprisingly scary side. If I let my guard down just because of her shy demeanor, I’d be finished in one blow.

“Wait, let me make a mental prayer…!”

“Just take it!”

Smack!-

Just like me…

*

In the eastern prison of the Empire.

The only place in the pleasant eastern region where the environment was not comfortable for residents.

Surrounded by flower gardens, the prison looked like a cursed place.

Even under the Divine Empire ruled by a Sage Monarch, heinous criminals kept appearing. There was a limit to how many could be contained within the iron bars of the imperial palace.

Among them, there were certainly skilled offenders, which meant a stronger and larger prison was required.

Like this Divine prison, boasting the size of a small village.

“I’ll grant you entry. Commander Luthis.”

“Thank you.”

Clank!-

A knight commander received the guard’s permission and entered the prison. The sound of the opening gate echoed in the air.

Before the door could close, the entering commander spoke to the guard.

“May the blessing of justice be upon you.”

Thud!-

As the main gate closed completely, the guards sneered at the praise they had just heard.

Luthis Sentry. The second commander of the Divine Knights. He was indeed a man tightly wrapped in justice, as rumored.

Even the mana-based fingerprint identification results were normal, leaving no room for suspicion.

“Hah… justice can freeze to death.”

Meanwhile, Luthis, who entered the main gate… was actually a spirit disguised as him, recoiling from his own statement.

Spike, the highest spirit and left arm of the Spirit King of Life, Aisha. He was currently infiltrating by replicating Luthis’s body with some assistance.

Because he retained all of Luthis’s memories, there was no chance of being discovered, but this grotesque imitation of a human was quite bothersome.

`This is not just any kind of madness. And the damned Empire is no better.`

Spike looked at the holy sword strapped to his waist, deep in thought.

The red-bladed sword, Rozaria, once wielded by the former Saint. Upon initially infiltrating the imperial palace and pretending to return the sword, he was shocked to see the true nature of those who had lent it to Luthis.

`I never imagined things would be that messy.`

Since he held Luthis’s memory, understanding came quickly. He had suspected something but didn’t think that the figures behind the Empire were the Doomsday guys.

The leaders they referred to as Numbers 1 through 7. Those might be the true powers pulling the strings of the imperial family.

And the Divine Emperor spoke as if he knew them. Contrary to the rumors of being a righteous king, his appearance was the opposite.

The inner workings of the imperial family were utterly bizarre. Reflecting on recent incidents involving the imperial family members in Aligieri made him feel more uneasy.

The Elder Enviel, who caused the Nine-Tailed Fox Incident last year, turned out to be an agent of a demon-worshiper, while Jason Baikel, the first division commander, conspired to swallow Aligieri using the Saint.

This indicated that someone was planning to swallow Aligieri.

It was unnatural for a series of incidents to occur last year as well.

Moreover, it was puzzling as to how they came to possess Rozaria, which had been lost for thirty years.

`And… the problem lies with the Emperor’s children.`

As Spike roamed the imperial family, he uncovered another shocking fact.

It is said that the Divine Emperor has three children. The two eldest are from his legitimate wife, but the youngest is from a concubine and is often ignored.

Since he hadn’t cared for them much, only a handful of citizens knew the face of the youngest.

An emperor who treats everyone equally? He realized that was all nonsense.

But that wasn’t the end of it.

`I never imagined I would see that child’s face…!`

Among them, Spike was able to see a painting of the youngest. Surprisingly, it bore a close resemblance to the Saint who lost her life thirty years ago.

For now, he reported this matter to Lord Shaikar via telepathy, but he didn’t receive a return command. He was instructed to investigate further.

`Yes, I came here to investigate more.`

That day, all the prisoners he had captured, including Heidern, were inside this prison. He needed to find out what the Empire planned to do with them.

As Spike had personally captured them, he had enough justification to be here.

Moreover, the target of impersonation, Luthis, was a fanatic believer of the Empire.

It wouldn’t be a problem if he learned some dangerous confidential information.

“Are you asking to see the condition of the prisoners you transported last time?”

“Since I captured them myself, I’d like to check how they are doing.”

Spike entered the prison building of tremendous size. In the dim atmosphere, he saw many cells set up.

This was only the first floor. It seemed simple since this place was for the prisoners with the lightest sentences.

“They must go down deep into the basement. I will guide you.”

“….”

Following the guard’s guidance, Spike descended to the basement. After quite a long descent, the guard opened his mouth.

“Is it true you’re Commander Luthis? I’ve heard rumors about your overflowing sense of justice.”

Spike acted based on Luthis’s memories.

“Hahaha! So what do you see me as? Once I catch those evil beings threatening the Divine Empire, they’ll fall into hell, not this prison.”

“Indeed.”

Hearing that, the guard smiled and continued.

“Then it wouldn’t matter if you knew. Our Empire is planning something great.”

Feeling ominous from the guard’s words, Spike finally reached the lowest level of the basement.

At the end of the stairs was a massive door, blocked, but with the guard’s gesture, it opened.

Beyond the door that only those connected could enter was a drastically different scene.

“What is that…?”

It also had a dark atmosphere with cells, but it felt different, somehow.

There was a vast glass wall, and inside, a wide white space caught his eye.

It was a space for confinement, but it didn’t feel appropriate for holding prisoners.

Moreover, a giant magic circle was laid on the floor, with a strange scent wafting up.

“What kind of ritual is that?”

“RE-Union.”

“Are you saying you resurrect the dead…?”

“You know well. As you can see, the ritual is already in progress.”

In the center of that magic circle was some kind of spike. It looked as if it had been a giant beast’s claw and was stained red, as if someone had already been punctured by it.

Around that magic circle, several corpses lay collapsed…

`Those people…!`

They were the prisoners Spike had been looking for. Including Heidern, they looked dry as if their nutrients had been sucked away.

“In order to resurrect the dead, great mana and life force are required. We’re using prisoners, not civilians, so it won’t be a problem.”

“Certainly… that seems to be the case.”

“It has just entered the first stage of the ritual, so shapes will start to appear.”

At that moment, the magic circle began to ripple. In that space, not only the felons’ corpses but also the sorcerers conducting the spell were present.

As they amplified the incantation, the spike gradually started to take shape. Specifically, it was soaked in blood.

The blood grew larger and morphed into the shape of a person. That crimson form began to take on flesh… and transformed into a woman with flowing white hair.

“What the…!”

“Did you see? That’s RE-Union. You can resurrect someone with just their skin or blood.”

“….”

Unable to speak at the sight of the guard with a creepy smile, Spike could only watch.

At that moment, he saw someone being dragged towards the magic circle.

-Let go! Do you not know who I am!

The prisoner throwing a fit was Travell Viole. He was also merely a sacrifice for this sorcery.

“He’s still not fully resurrected. A bit more mana and life force needs to be infused.”

As the guard spoke, Travell was laid near the magic circle. Other prisoners were similarly dragged and laid out.

Bound up and unable to move. At that moment, Travell saw the woman forming in the center.

-Huh…? Who is that woman…?

Suddenly, alarm bells went off in Travell’s mind. His expression turned to one of horror.

-Are you saying… they are going to sacrifice me to resurrect that woman?

No one answered him.

-Don’t be ridiculous! Why should I become a sacrifice for that woman?! That’s my life’s shame… it would disgrace the honor of the Viole Family!

Who that woman was… the ritualists didn’t care. The only thing that mattered was the power she held.

-Please, don’t do it!! Aaargh!

Spike silently watched as the prisoners lost their lives.

At that moment, as Travell, along with the others, had their lives transferred to the woman…

“….”

The woman slowly began to open her eyes.

*

“…!!”

“Why the sudden shock? You suddenly stopped hitting.”

Clink-

While swinging the wooden sword as a punishment, Jenny accidentally dropped it.

Lost its purpose, it rolled on the black floor, and Jenny’s hand, holding it, started to tremble.

“Not again….”

Jenny panicked as she unintentionally looked at her shaking hand.

It was an unusual sight for her, which made Radon tilt his head in confusion.

So that’s why she had been experiencing trembling hands lately.

But what could be the cause? Even using mana to detect it didn’t reveal anything.

“Why…?”

What could it be?

An ominous feeling surged, making her stomach turn cold.

A longing yet very sorrowful energy was present.

Surviving as an Academy Scammer.

 

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