041 – All the Better For It
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[LOL this is hilarious. Write down the superpower you want in the comments, and the first reply determines the side effect.]
(Photo)
LOL this is so much fun.
Let’s try it too.
How about powers we can use on the Arcane Campus?
[Comments]
– Make my daughter Miyeon go crazy for her dad.
ㄴ (Original Poster): She literally goes crazy.
ㄴ ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
– Any human I choose is forced to have s*x with me.
ㄴ Only male characters.
ㄴ (Original Poster): Son of a b*tch ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
– My character becomes seriously f*cking strong.
ㄴ (Original Poster): Only your sphincter.
ㄴ I’ll be able to take the best dumps ever… Thanks.
ㄴ (Original Poster): Save the thank yous
ㄴ Spread ’em, I’m gonna stick it in you!!
– I can freely create any kind of elixir I want, whenever I want.
ㄴ You have to pay the elixir’s value every time you make one, though.
ㄴ That’s no different than what we already do…
ㄴ (Original Poster): ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
– Sealing Copy Bug
ㄴ Every time you copy Sealings, the same amount of money is deducted from your real-world bank account.
ㄴ We like to call that ‘paying to win’.
– No longer get turned on when I see a doppelganger.
ㄴ You especially better hope that’s the case.
– This is a bit different, but the ability to make an author who’s abandoned their novel start writing again.
ㄴ (Author): The author switched the genre to BL when they resumed serialization.
ㄴ Please come back, Author-nim…
ㄴ LOLOLOLOL
ㄴ (Author): The wholesome author suddenly added NTR.
ㄴ KYYYaaaH
—
I launched the assault on the Midnight Auction’s hideout, the location Mehean had divulged.
It matched the information I’d wrung from a trafficker a few days prior through…persuasion, so without hesitation, we stormed their compound.
And because of it.
“Eight eliminated, sixty-four apprehended.”
We’d managed to round up seventy-two traffickers in one fell swoop.
“Transfer all sixty-four apprehended to the Imperial Palace.”
“Understood.”
Remarkably, we’d taken sixty-four of the seventy-two alive.
The odds were high that some among them knew the location of the Midnight Auction’s main base, or…
… the locations of other strongholds besides this one.
“His Majesty will be pleased.”
With a little more time, we might purge a great many of the rat-b*stards infesting the Magocracy’s interior, those we hadn’t been able to find before.
‘I suppose I should say all this is thanks to my future son-in-law?’
Furthermore.
The person who’d handed us the thread to unravel the Magocracy’s corruption was none other than Mehean, my future son-in-law, so…
… I ought to use this as leverage to get him a respectable noble title.
‘Your father’s working hard, Ella.’
Even so, if rumors spread that the next head of the Eloise family was dallying with a commoner…
… the unkind gazes my daughter would endure in society wouldn’t be few and far between. I’d gladly pour funds to acquire at least a Baronetcy for him.
“Commander, I believe you should see this personally.”
The sweep operation was complete, and I was preoccupied with thoughts of Mehean, when…
… my adjutant approached me cautiously, saying there was something I needed to witness myself.
“Let’s go.”
Following the adjutant, we entered a dark alleyway… where a corpse resembling a human lay.
However…
“…”
“…”
Having spent years on the northern border, I recognized it instantly.
Judging by the amount of aether the corpse retained… In life, this creature had been something far removed from a typical monster.
“Judging by the state of the body, it’s clear it died approximately one week ago.”
“A fiend, then.”
A small hole, the epicenter of a crushed skull, marked its demise.
Despite being dead for roughly a week, its body had continued to preserve a massive quantity of aether during that extended period.
‘…Who? How?’
The monster, who effortlessly butchered an overwhelming beast.
Whether fortune or misfortune, that being who slew a non-human seemed to side with humanity.
When the thought arose that a human wielding such immense power couldn’t possibly exist.
A single possibility surfaced.
“..Hero?”
*
Professor Layton, entrusted with the information regarding the Doppelganger, had departed for the Imperial Palace. Apparently, he spent the past week determining whether the data was truthful or false, hence the delay.
Of course, verifying the information’s veracity proved difficult.
Only with the Archmage’s guarantee could he finally extricate himself from the situation, so he claimed.
And apparently, the information I’d unearthed was disguised as knowledge the Archmage himself had uncovered.
‘Nice.’
Thus, the fact that I could repay even a fraction of the Archmage’s countless favors here was all the more fortunate.
“Now, can you tell me about the kidnapping of Meehan and Ella?”
With the Professor’s explanation concluded, we recounted the events of the abduction that occurred on the freshmen entrance day.
Of course…
“..How did you determine the culprit was a Succubus Queen?”
From my perspective, I couldn’t exactly answer with a simple, ‘A talking cat told me.’
Fabricating a plausible explanation was proving difficult.
“She was different from typical Succubi. After careful consideration, I later realized the truth.”
“What do you mean by that?”
“The Succubi we know typically possess alluring beauty to ensnare men, wouldn’t you agree?”
“Indeed.”
“However, Lucy was different. Despite her muscular physique, she could still enslave any man who fell under her influence.”
“If she possesses such power…”
“Exactly. It can only be a Succubus Queen.”
‘Phew..! Successfully persuaded him!’
Thankfully, both Professor Layton and even Ella seemed convinced by my desperate explanation.
“..Doppelgangers, Succubus Queens…”
“Too many monsters are hidden within the Magic Kingdom.”
“Humanity truly faces a perilous situation…”
As the Professor stated, humanity currently teetered on the brink of annihilation.
This was the reason why even in Arcane Campus, players couldn’t just live life engaging in lewd acts.
“Thank you, Meehan. I must depart for the Imperial Palace immediately.”
Believing this information also needed to be reported to the Imperial Palace, Professor Layton hastily took his leave.
‘Hopefully, this information will also contribute to the Archmage’s accomplishments.’
“Meehan.”
“Yes?”
“..What about the sparring match?”
“Ah, that’s right.”
“Ah, that’s right isn’t an appropriate response…”
“Ahaha, I’m alright, Ella. You don’t need to worry so much.”
“But…”
I was grateful for Ella’s concern, but.
Truth be told, this situation was turning out to be a wonderful excuse.
After all…
‘Injured arms and legs, unable to participate in the sparring match?’
In this academy filled with students who claimed to be experts, the probability of me losing a one-on-one duel was 99.99%.
For the record, that 0.01% chance of winning was if Ella happened to be my opponent and conceded victory to me.
Anyway.
‘Isn’t this just pure luck?!’
In this academy, only two people were aware that I could use Skills, magic, that is.
Ella and Isabella.
Professor Layton, for the record, thinks it’s some sort of dark magic using innate spiritual energy, not real magic.
If it were revealed that I could use magic in this situation…
The Mihean’s Sleep Clinic, where I was diligently earning money, would be revealed to be…
‘What is this? This isn’t a sleep clinic, it’s just magic.’
‘This isn’t curing insomnia.’
…a well-crafted scam that forcefully puts people to sleep.
A situation where it was absolutely essential to keep the fact that I could use Skills a secret.
“Thank you for your concern, Ella.”
“Because of your father…”
“Now, now, you mustn’t think such terrible things. The root cause of that incident was me, wasn’t it? What father wouldn’t be angry when his child is taken hostage?”
“…”
Self-inflicted, but I liked it nonetheless.
With an excuse to avoid participating in the sparring match, I could naturally bow out of this freshman mock battle.
For the record, you needed to achieve a high score in the freshman mock battle to receive a scholarship.
“Don’t worry about it unnecessarily, how about we sit somewhere secluded during the freshman sparring day and enjoy a secret little date?”
“…!”
Me, Mihean.
Already a man guaranteed a full scholarship as the Magic Tower Master-nim.
There was no reason to strive for a high score.
‘Tower Master-nim, I’ve done you a solid, so let’s consider that my scholarship waived.’
…
“Waaah!”
“Thrust! That’s it!”
“Kya-ha! These freshmen are totally top-notch!”
The freshmen’s mock battles made for good entertainment.
Hundreds of students sat scattered around the enormous sparring arena, shaped like a soccer field, watching the freshmen engaged in their first duels in the center.
“I definitely made the right decision not to get involved in that.”
“Mihean-nim would win them all, though, wouldn’t he?”
“Except for sleep magic, the results differ.”
“So long as I win in actual combat, not just sparring!”
“I think so too!”
It was within that arena, seated in the very back where students were scarce, that Ella and I were enjoying the match.
“Ah, I’m going to go to the restroom for a moment.”
“Shall I assist you?”
“You never offer to assist me normally, but you do now?”
“Heehee.”
“I’ll be right back.”
“I’ll be waiting here.”
Suddenly overcome by a bodily urge, I carefully slipped out so as not to disturb the spectators.
Limp… Limp…
I was nearly outside the arena when…
Just in case, I cast my surveillance skill on Ella. The moment I observed her from afar…
“Surveillance. Huh?”
—
Ella Eloise (21)
[Abduction] – Activated
[Surveillance] – Ella Eloise
[Sleep] – Activated
[Infiltration] – Available
—
As if she weren’t already a kidnapper… What is with these skill names…
‘Stealth is a perfectly good name, but no, it *has* to be infiltration…’
“..And why, of all things, is *this* one ‘available’ and not activated? I’m not comfortable with this, Goddess.”
—
Ella Eloise (21)
[Abduction] – Activated
[Surveillance] – Ella Eloise
[Sleep] – Activated
[Infiltration] – Activated
—
“Goddess?????”