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223 Episode. Protagonist Adjustment (3)

Lyman, having single-handedly destroyed the face of the Evil God descending like a meteor, fell into Lake Burgi in the west of Aligieri.

He could have avoided the worst outcome of the continent’s destruction, but at the cost of losing nearly half of his body.

His right arm, which had contacted the object, was naturally gone, and his internal organs and bones were burned away as well.

His entire body was destructive, centered around the right side.

Though he had maximized his power after transforming into a demon, the falling object also possessed comparable strength.

However, Lyman currently had only 70% of his strength left.

If the remaining 30% had been restored, he could have ended with less pain; yet, he had knowingly lent that 30% of power to someone he trusted.

After all, he was an entity that wouldn’t die even if he perished together with the meteor.

‘This damned curse turned out to be of some help.’

No matter the damage he sustained, even if his neck and heart were wrecked, he would never die.

But since this was the maximum damage he had experienced, recovery was slow.

Lyman was still submerged in the lake, his body yet to regenerate.

As he sank, memories of his life and the cursed body he had become flickered through his mind.

– Happy Birthday.

His mother embraced him, calling him by the name she had first given him.

Like many other mothers, she rejoiced while holding her newborn child—a sight not uncommon.

But besides that, his mother was always positive, no matter the time or place.

Whenever she saw someone in trouble, she didn’t pass by; and when witnessing injustice, she always intervened, a meddlesome person at heart.

It was convenient to think of her as the kind neighbor everyone knew in the village.

Of course, that didn’t always lead to good outcomes.

One time when he went shopping with his mother at a nearby market, she witnessed a merchant assaulting a young man and, as usual, jumped in.

The merchant flinched upon recognizing his mother and explained the situation.

It turned out the young man was a thief who had been stealing from the market repeatedly, which made the merchant furious.

Even if the thief was in dire straits, thievery was still thievery. Even at just seven years old, Lyman thought in such stark terms.

But then…

– Here, take this. Next time, you should earn money and buy what you need. Understand?

With a kind smile, his mother handed the thief half of what they had just purchased.

Watching the thief eagerly accept it and flee, Lyman sighed.

He somewhat understood his mother’s intentions. It meant that violence wouldn’t solve the underlying issues.

However, Lyman could read the thief’s expression just before he bolted.

Gratitude was nowhere to be found on that face, and later, this ominous prediction came true.

– Fire!

When a fire broke out in the village, his mother rushed in as if she were a rescue team.

Thanks to his mother, who was an extraordinary wizard and scholar, the fire was extinguished in no time.

But the cause of the fire was nothing short of shocking.

– It was that thief that Lady Dantia pardoned before! I let him go, and he repays me with this…!

While restoring the burnt house, his mother flinched at that revelation.

The thief, after receiving mercy, had returned to the market to steal again, and in the process, accidentally started a fire while fleeing.

The instance where goodwill turned into the worst outcome reached Lyman’s ears as well.

– Mom, aren’t you upset? You should track him down and catch him immediately.

Though he didn’t know where he had run off to, considering how many people followed and trusted his mother, they could catch him quickly.

Even if she were a fool, she was a revered sage of the continent.

Yet, her disposition was not as heavy as her esteemed position might suggest.

– Son, listen well to your mother.

That was something his mother always said.

– Just saving one person can change the world.

If you help someone, relationships improve. One could interpret it like that and understand.

But as time passed, Lyman found it hard to comprehend that meaning.

When he turned twelve, Lyman saw a wagon being attacked by monsters while chopping firewood in the mountains.

He considered walking on by, but feeling guilty, he decided to help.

Thanks to his mother’s bloodline, he also possessed impressive magical power, enabling him to swiftly defeat the monsters.

However, due to having only learned simple spells, he focused solely on exterminating the monsters, lacking effective means to protect the wagon.

He didn’t know how to deploy a barrier at that time, so one of the passengers inside the wagon was attacked by a monster that ambushed from behind.

Of all people, it happened to be the princess of the Empire, resulting in Lyman being captured by the Empire.

– Suspicious bastard! Did you do this to the princess?

Hearing the soldier’s words, Lyman was dumbfounded.

He had helped them with his power, yet received no thanks; instead, he was being accused.

The ones who attacked the wagon were monsters, and it felt like his head would split from being branded the criminal.

He had saved a person, just as his mother had said.

But why did it lead to this kind of outcome? Shouldn’t there at least be a word of gratitude, even if there was no reward?

– Why did this happen?

When his mother arrived after hearing the news, she asked Lyman.

– I just did what you said. I saved someone in trouble.

But this was the result.

The eyewitness had fainted for a long time, so even with his mother’s arrival, he couldn’t be released.

In such a situation, Lyman questioned his mother.

– Why are you so fixated on being good?

There were more strange points; peeling away layers of an onion just revealed more.

Why was someone so revered on the continent, like his mother, living in an isolated village of natives in the woods?

Why, with such tremendous power, did she not flaunt it, running a small academy in that tranquil place?

Curiosity burned within him, and his mother finally responded.

At the same time, he learned about her background.

– Don’t get it twisted, Vegir. It’s not the good that defines me; it’s `humanity`.

His mother revealed that she didn’t even know who her parents were.

Abandoned in the mountains as a baby, she was taken in by the natives, who had once been savage and had transformed upon seeing her.

From then on, they raised her as their own, and as they abandoned their nature for her sake, she chose to meet their expectations.

– No matter how savage, the heart of a person can shine like gold. That’s why I’m thankful for being born in this world.

– …

– And… I’m truly thankful you were born as my son.

At those words, Lyman had nothing left to say.

That was who she was, after all. His mother.

Thanks to the testimony of the princess, who had regained consciousness, Lyman was able to go free and was welcomed back home by his master.

– You’ve returned.

His master was not human.

It was the Thousand-Year Fox, known as Radon Crawler, with nine tails and fox ears.

Transforming into a human form, Radon Crawler sighed heavily and shared another piece of news.

– That emperor still hasn’t changed his petty ways.

– What kind of person is he?

Makia from Divine. A figure who gained enormous trust from the last emperor by subduing many demon races, and ultimately ascended to the current emperor.

Even as a crown prince, he was highly trusted as a hero, but deep inside, he was said to be an unfathomable madman.

No, the citizens still admire that emperor; how could he be called a madman?

One could see that from the `Tactical Martial Arts` competition held during his time as a crown prince.

Though he possessed outstanding skills, he was powerless before his mother, the Great Sage, and held a grudge against her afterwards.

– Just over that?

– …

As far as a legitimate duel had gone, the emperor’s inferiority complex was off the charts.

That’s why his mother lived far from the imperial capital.

Perhaps that resentment was the reason he had been locked away in a cage all this time.

Every time Lyman heard such concerning information, his mother’s words lost their persuasiveness.

– The heart of gold is a bunch of bull.

Then one day, amid a stormy night, someone was found collapsed in front of the academy.

To his surprise, it was a young girl, her soles worn as if she had traveled a long distance.

And even more astonishing was…

– P-princess?

With hair as shiny red as rose silk and ethereal features, it was undoubtedly the princess he had rescued from the wagon that day.

It was astounding that she had braved the storm to reach such a far distance from the royal palace.

First, he guided her to a warm room and offered her some food.

She appeared quite starved, hastily devouring what was provided.

But why? Why had the princess, on such a long journey, been left in this condition?

News from the imperial capital would have taken a long time to reach this area.

– You’ve been deposed?

That one line clarified everything.

The reason for her deposition was that she admired someone her father despised profoundly.

Naturally, that reason wasn’t publicly known; instead, a false claim of contact with demon races had been pinned on her to justify her expulsion.

Since the demon races were something the citizens detested deeply, it was a perfect pretext.

Moreover, Emperor Makia had lost his younger sister, Mela, to the demon races when he was a child, so the citizens didn’t protest.

– I’m so wronged. I only respected one person.

When asked who that was, the princess pointed at his mother sitting in front of her.

Yes, it was indeed the Great Sage Dantia Aligieri.

The one mentioned turned red with embarrassment upon hearing that.

– And… I’m truly grateful for what you did back then. I wanted to meet you at least once…

The princess expressed great gratitude to Lyman, who had saved her that day.

Due to having fainted for a long time, she had missed the chance to meet him face to face.

So, she had come all this way just to convey this message.

– Just for that…

Lyman fell into deep contemplation upon seeing her severely worn feet.

Since he saved her that day, he felt an immense sense of betrayal. Helping others seemed to yield no reward or even a simple word of thanks.

If he had heard even a single word of gratitude, he might have continued to nurture that sentiment, but Lyman had never once received such words from anyone.

People were too busy looking up to him as the child of the Great Sage for the matter to resonate in their hearts.

– Thank you so much.

Yet now, for the first time, those words moved him.

It was certainly no lie.

She had traveled to deliver that message, her whole body, including her feet, becoming a tapestry of wounds—was that not genuine?

– I’m Maya from Divine. I look forward to working with you.

It was the moment Lyman’s heart fluttered upon seeing the girl for the first time.

From that day on, his mother accepted Maya as her disciple.

And his mother said:

– You don’t need to resent your father. If you become someone even better, no one will say anything against you.

When Maya heard those words from the esteemed sage she respected, her expression reflected awe and admiration.

However, since his mother was taught by Radon Crawler, the two naturally grew closer.

They spent time fishing together, hunting beasts to eat, and the more time they spent together, the longer they laughed.

For Lyman, Maya was the first person whose presence shone like gold.

‘I wanted to stay with her until the moment I died.’

But that was not to be.

When he turned twenty, that damned emperor secretly became a Demon King through a contract with an Ancient Evil God, and Maya died because of that curse.

As a price for becoming a Demon King, his bloodline was cursed in return.

Lyman discovered the cause of Maya’s death through his mother’s powers and erupted with rage.

That wrath, exceeding limits, began to warp Lyman’s body.

Filled with malice driven by anger, he truly became a demon.

Because of that, Lyman saw his true form for the first time, and it happened that he was spotted by people, spreading the news that Dantia had allied with a demon.

‘Did I keep my promise this time?’

The more he recalled that day, the more his body moved as dictated by his hatred.

Now, he wondered if destroying the meteor had been the right choice.

Lost in such thoughts and sinking deeper into despair, a sudden movement caught him.

Swoosh—

Something wrapped around his body.

Thinking it was a net discarded in the lake, he realized it was a fishing line dropped from above.

The thing that bound Lyman tightly began to lift him up.

It didn’t seem like ordinary fishing skill.

Splash!—

“D-did you have fun swimming?”

“…”

Lyman, pulled out of the water, beheld Radon Crawler fishing on the back of a crow spirit.

*

After pulling Lyman out of the water, I transported him to a nearby forest.

His body was still wrecked, but it would regenerate soon, so no special measures were required.

Sitting on a tree, Lyman asked.

“What happened?”

“It’s all settled. The Magical Banquet incident is over now.”

Thanks to my performance disguised as Enviel, the Bloodymir School and its followers had quieted down.

Moreover, the combat outside the village ended in our victory.

Now, only the aftermath remained.

“If you’re gone, who will play the role of Enviel?”

Lyman inquired.

That was indeed a pressing concern of the aftermath.

The power I had borrowed would soon return to Lyman, and continuing to play Enviel would only raise suspicions.

But that didn’t mean I didn’t have a substitute.

“You can leave it to that Spirit of Life, Spike. It performed well as the second captain.”

Being a top-tier spirit meant it wouldn’t be easily discovered either.

As I explained the solution, Lyman forced a bitter smile.

“What about everyone else?”

“Everyone is fine. A few got injured, but their lives aren’t in danger.”

“Alright…”

Lyman gazed out at the lake stretching before him and the Aligieri Town beyond.

Memories of fishing there with Maya 300 years ago came to his mind.

For Lyman, it was a location he couldn’t discard from his memories.

He had mentioned that in the worst-case scenario, he would destroy this vicinity and the continent himself… but thankfully it hadn’t come to that.

“Thank you.”

“What?”

“I truly appreciate it. Thanks to you, we were able to prevent a disaster.”

He expressed gratitude to the friend who had allowed him to avoid that outcome.

Yet it was still too early to thank anyone.

“By the way, there’s something about Princess Mirona. She has reclaimed the Holy Sword Rozaria she used in her past life.”

“Why is that?”

“Rozaria amplifies the spirit and enhances its wielder.”

That meant…

“Her memories from her past life have returned.”

“What…?”

At that, Lyman’s expression hardened like stone.

It wasn’t a negative thing, but being unprepared in heart posed a problem.

“I met the princess directly, and she immediately asked for you.”

“So?”

He questioned what answer I had given her.

“What do you mean?”

I flashed a bright smile as I said.

“I told her you were here.”

“…”

“I went ahead and pulled you out.”

I could see the steam rising from Lyman’s head.

But he was in no condition to move.

“Damn it, you’re such a romantic.”

“You bastard!”

“Well then, I’ll be going!”

“Hey!”

I left Lyman, who was fuming with anger, behind and made my exit.

Just then, a sound indicating someone was approaching from beyond the woods reached my ears.

Rustle—

With red hair brushing against the branches, a girl stepped in front of Lyman.

With an expression that was hard to articulate, she looked down at the greatly changed Lyman.

Lyman, whose emotions were unprepared, blushed, and I watched the scene unfold as I faded away.

“Lord Radon makes a graceful exit now.”

Hehe, I had always wanted to say that.

Surviving as an Academy Scammer

 

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