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239th Chapter: The Strongest Spirit (4)

While I was inside Diora’s belly, about three hours had passed outside.

To me, it felt like only 30 minutes had gone by, so it seemed that time worked quite differently inside and outside.

The curse that was overwhelming inside must have distorted that flow.

‘The endurance show against the spirit power lasted a whole three hours?’

I was quite shocked at how long I had struggled inside.

During those three hours I was in Diora’s stomach, quite a few events had transpired.

The knights who witnessed me getting eaten were paralyzed with fear and tried to get me out.

They used all their swordsmanship and available sacred magic, but it was utterly ineffective.

No matter how much they slashed, they couldn’t deal even a single point of damage to Diora’s body. It was impossible to make her nauseous enough to vomit me out.

Sacred magic fared no better. No matter how advantageous the match-up, facing the highest-level spirit Diora was beyond their means.

Lighting a lighter against an iceberg won’t make the entire iceberg melt.

“I really caused everyone a lot of trouble.”

“Well, would it have been different? If we had been negligent, a young student would have been sacrificed.”

Even if they protect a young student, it doesn’t bring them any benefit.

I can’t imagine the head of the family, Harkel, giving out medals while exclaiming, ‘You are honorable knights!’

They tried to save me, even with a chance to escape.

Unaware of their intentions, I hurried to contract with Diora, but their actions felt quite grateful.

“I even contemplated asking the village lords for help instead of directly attacking the spirit.”

“That would have been pointless.”

“Of course. To them, we wouldn’t appear as good people.”

Given that they were affiliated with the Viole family, receiving a warm reception would be difficult.

Considering that Harkel was about to swallow this village and engage in labor exploitation.

The burden of treating people carelessly in response to Harkel’s orders would weigh on me soon.

Yet, I couldn’t just throw our family’s issues aside and rebel.

“I heard that there are two more students from Aligieri here besides you two. I was going to inform them of your status, but…”

Jenny and Mary had already ventured deep into the forest where the spirit resided.

It seemed they had headed to a distant mine, so it would take time to call them back.

Since this was initially just the two of them’s mission, it felt odd to call them back now.

“If you hadn’t miraculously escaped, we would have been unable to sleep with our arms wide open. Thank you for returning.”

“Thank you? I owe you all the gratitude.”

I could sense the noble will and clear spirit of sacrifice in their eyes.

For a knight, possessing a sense of duty shouldn’t seem remarkable, yet it was surprising they were under the employ of the Viole family.

It felt as if a very righteous holy knight was begrudgingly working under the Demon King.

Their will was proven since they didn’t falter against the highest-level spirit.

“But did the spirit do anything while I was inside?”

“Ah, thankfully nothing happened. In fact, at first, its power was so overwhelming that we couldn’t act hastily.”

They indeed were courageous. Yet, who knew what would happen if they randomly hit the fearsome Diora?

So initially, they refrained from acting rashly and waited to see how the situation unfolded.

If a certain girl hadn’t rashly attacked…

“That girl suddenly attacked the spirit, and the spirit screamed in a threatening manner. That’s when we decided to rescue you.”

I saw Luska curled up underneath a tree.

She looked like an introverted hermit who had no intention of coming out of the shade.

Moreover, she seemed shy to show her face in front of me.

“That girl completely lost it upon seeing you get eaten. No matter how much we yelled for her to stop, she didn’t listen at all.”

Seeing me potentially dead had made Luska lose her grip on reason.

As a trace of that tremendous rage lingered, she bore wounds upon her hands and forearms, hiding her face.

“And then, she transformed into a fox with nine tails and launched a relentless attack. Do you know what was surprising?”

I asked, curious about what was so surprising.

The answer that came was jaw-dropping.

“No matter how much we attacked, we couldn’t even scratch the spirit’s scales.”

“…!?”

“Such talent for just a student is indeed questionable. Of course… she collapsed right after landing that one hit.”

Though she failed to take it down, inflicting a wound on Diora’s body was a significant achievement.

That level of skill was beyond what any ordinary professor could achieve; at least a department head or principal could only manage that.

Only someone of that standing could face a top-level spirit or elemental.

Of course, Luska poured all her strength into inflicting that wound and ultimately collapsed.

But that undeniably surpassed the capabilities of an ordinary student.

‘Did my death possibly trigger a considerable amount of stimulation?’

Seeing me being eaten unlocked a torrent of overwhelming power within her.

Perhaps, even without a full moon, she could activate her true strength.

Yet, in exchange, terrifying memories settled in her mind.

It was an absolute travesty for a friend to be devoured alive by a monster.

So, I slowly approached Luska.

Noticing my movement, Luska turned her head suddenly, as if her keen sense of smell had picked up my approach.

I could see what her reaction meant without a shadow of a doubt.

‘It’d be best not to approach thoughtlessly. Though she’s covered, she’s probably embarrassed to the point of turning bright red.’

‘Agreed. If I rashly spoke, her excited fists could easily smash my face.’

I heard Muto and Aisha’s subtle warnings, but I didn’t need to worry.

‘But if I just leave her like this, it’ll be hard to converse properly in the future.’

Luska was none other than my roommate.

The room had already been changed once, and it couldn’t be altered again unless we graduated.

We would be living together moving forward, so we couldn’t remain in an awkward situation.

“Luska.”

“…!”

As I approached and called her, Luska scooted back while squatting.

Not moving her legs but rather sliding on her butt made me almost burst into laughter.

That movement reminded me of how monkeys would waddle away. I used to see that on TV all the time.

“I’m fine now. The spirit won’t come out anymore.”

“….”

As expected, Luska was too burdened to open her mouth easily.

Then Aisha, heeding my command, snuck up to her and tickled her ribs with her feathers.

“Hehe…, hehehe….”

“….”

“Hehehe….”

“….”

“Hahaha! Stop!!”

In the end, unable to endure the tickling, Luska swung her fist into thin air.

I was close enough to almost be hit but managed to evade it easily with ‘Maan.’

Ultimately, Luska, who had been holding in her embarrassment, finally showed her face.

Tears had streaked down from beneath her eyes, and her face twisted in shame looked as if it could spontaneously ignite at any moment.

“This is embarrassing… so embarrassing!”

It had become apparent that she had acted frantically to try and save me.

If my friends witnessed this, they would likely whistle and take an interest in the situation.

For Luska, who was inherently sharp on the outside yet couldn’t be honest, this was embarrassingly humiliating.

It was like receiving a love letter meant to be thoroughly hidden, stuck onto a public document.

“I already said I’m sorry.”

“Is it really something that can end with an apology? You’ve put me through so much stress…!”

“…”

“So from now on… value your life.”

Luska’s tearful face began to soften.

“When you got eaten a moment ago… it felt just like back then.”

“When was that?”

“When I heard the news that my mother had passed away.”

Her mother’s death had been the turning point in her life.

It was her mother’s death that had led to her desertion as a soldier and her admission to Aligieri.

The nightmare of that time had taken on a similar weight to the earlier incident.

“So please. Just like Angela… you are important too.”

As she said that, Luska hugged my waist.

Since I was a bit taller, her face was buried into my chest.

Her tight embrace felt stifling rather than thrilling. It was genuinely suffocating.

Because her grip was growing stronger.

“U-um, can you let go now…?”

“….”

“Really, let go. My waist… my waist is going to…!”

“….”

“Stop it! Just listen! My waist! Please!”

With Luska’s incredible strength, her back hug was painful for me.

“Oh… my waist….”

“Sorry.”

“Control your strength better.”

“Got it.”

Luska looked sheepish and walked with her head down.

I had to clutch my waist as if I were an old man as I moved.

She told me to cherish life before, but now she was trying to cut mine away with her grip.

“But you still can’t handle being tickled well.”

“Did you find it fun?”

Suddenly, Luska lifted her head sharply, her eyes wide open.

It seems she didn’t appreciate being pointed out about her weakness.

As a playful revenge for her earlier bear hug, I poked her sides with my finger.

“Hahaha!”

As expected, she couldn’t withstand even a bit.

“You really!”

“Weaklings.”

“Oh really now, is that how you’re gonna play?”

But Luska’s eyes lit up as she started poking my side.

It was an undeniable tickle compared to a simple poke, yet I didn’t respond.

“What’s up with this? I can’t last even a second… why are you…?”

“Who knows?”

“Take off that outfit. You’re not wearing any protective gear, right?”

“What nonsense are you saying? Hey! Hey! Hey!”

Is she really out of her mind? She’s actually trying to pull up my clothes to see my bare skin.

There’s nothing to see!

But the fun ended here. In front of us was finally an entrance to the ruins without a gatekeeper.

What on earth is hidden here that warranted placing the strongest spirit as a guardian?

Full of curiosity, I stepped into the entrance of the ruins.

“Ah!”

But it felt like I hit a transparent wall, and I felt a sting on my forehead.

“What’s going on… huh!”

Immediately, Luska also bumped into the same invisible wall with her face.

I waved my hands in that empty space but realized I couldn’t move forward; I was blocked.

It felt like being surrounded by a wall made of air.

“It’s a barrier.”

The knights who had followed us said.

One of them, who looked skilled in magic, touched the barrier and spoke.

“This is a highest-level barrier. Its structure is complex and convoluted, and it’s sturdy enough that we can’t break through with our strength.”

It was the knight’s assessment that breaking through would take about a week.

Waiting a week was far too long.

However, aside from obtaining immense power capable of shattering this barrier, there seemed to be no alternative.

‘Just seeing how powerful this barrier is gives off a suspicious smell.’

『….』

‘Did you hear? This is your debut performance.’

I had acquired the power to execute that method.

Now it was time to speak the name of the key.

“Diora.”

At my call, a dragon’s shadow the size of a house emerged from behind.

The knights around me gasped and stepped aside, and soon a fearsome dragon with immense spirit power revealed itself.

“This creature is…!”

Seeing Diora, Luska had no choice but to be awestruck.

Those tentacles were undoubtedly that which she had faced before. But now, it wasn’t an enemy.

“Don’t worry. It’s an ally now.”

“What are you…?”

I decided to explain later. For now, Diora’s mouth was already itching to open.

[Spirit Power: 150/170]

Just summoning her had reduced spirit power significantly.

Using the remaining 20 stat points, I increased it from 150 to 170, so that was a relief.

At any rate, the preparation was complete.

“Diora. That barrier….”

Destroy it, I commanded as Diora’s purple irises began to illuminate.

In the instant, immense spirit power and mana began to gather in Diora’s mouth.

“Uh… huh?”

The sheer force was enough to leave even me, her contractee, astounded.

The energy gathering in her mouth felt as if it would explode like a volcano at any moment.

Sensing that risk, I quickly ordered her to slightly adjust her direction.

Kwaaaah!-

A powerful ray shot out from Diora’s mouth.

With a roar, the unleashed spirit power created an immense backlash that made both the knights and Luska lose their balance and fly away.

The overwhelming destructive force pierced through the barrier like paper, and fortunately, I had directed it upward so it didn’t hit the ruins.

Instead, it broke through the sky, clearing the clouds and altering the weather.

As it continued to expand beyond, an enormous explosion occurred, painting the entire sky in violet hues.

It could be observed even from the fields dozens of kilometers away, beyond the village and this forest.

“Shit….”

The overwhelming destructive power escaped from my lips involuntarily.

[Mana: 0/190]

[Spirit Power: 0/170]

Shooting just one beam had exhausted all the power needed for battle.

If I were a firepower enthusiast, I would have felt unparalleled romance…

Thud-

Yet I didn’t desire a romance that could make me faint with my eyes rolled back.

Surviving as an Academy Scammer.

 

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