Chapter 41

<41 - Cease the Fighting> 1. "A cleaner? That struck me as odd. At first, I thought those people had done something to make the sheets all damp. As you can see, beings like me with animalistic traits often have periods of heat." Resident #11 Oaknodie, who lives in the room next to Resident #110 Zenya, extended and retracted her claws from her furry forepaws with a smooth motion. "It didn't smell like being in heat, though. I was curious, so I spied on them and heard peculiar sounds instead." "Peculiar sounds?" "They were having disjointed conversations." "Disjointed conversations? Between Oaknodie and the berserker named Hestia next door?" "Both were talking as if someone else was there. Lonely outcasts with no friends." Monologuing, huh. Isabel felt her heart sinking. 'Oaknodie's still a child.' No matter how much she acted as a guardian, it wouldn't feel the same as having friends her own age. It was quite possible for a friendless Oaknodie to emotionally drift and converse with imaginary friends in her room. But how was she to deal with the crumbling of her own heart upon this realization? "But what's this about a stat stone? She frequently mentioned asking for affection in exchange for stat stones." "Sigh... The stat stone is what that kid calls her beloved rock." "She collects rocks? Wunyanya! She's just like the village toddlers. What a cute hobby." If only I could befriend this cat beastman, Zenya, by giving her a stat stone. However, a sense of regret was fleeting as she quickly came to a realization. "How old are you, Zenya?" "I am 15 years old, nya!" "Ah... Then, you can't be friends with Oaknodie." 15 was still quite young, but it wasn't enough to rival Oaknodie's genius. 'Too exceptional to have peers; such loneliness must be truly pitiable.' Isabel felt profound sympathy. * * Raising favor with the answering door was getting nowhere. "Do you want something?" "Come visit my home." When asked about a favorability item, she subtly made a dangerous suggestion. Room 111.1, where the answering door lived. An invitation to step beyond the wall. You must never enter, of course. There were reports from seasoned inhabitants that the only way out of that door was having someone else go in your place. Under no circumstances should one enter the door. "Oaknodie. You've been spending a lot of time alone lately. Do you have something you're working on?" "Just this and that." "If you're worried about anything, feel free to talk to me. I'm on your side." Today, Isabel was uncommonly kind. So was Arcadia at the tea parties. Wait a minute. It's not even Children's Day yet. "I don't have worries, but I do have something to brag about!" Instead of asking about how to raise favorability with the wall, let's show off. She unpacked her increasingly heavy bag of stones. "You've been collecting stones?" "Look. I've gathered quite a lot, haven't I?" Her serious collection seemed to move Isabel, if the silence was any indication. "I can't eat after this otherwise I’ll be too full, so I'm just keeping it for now." "How many do you have?" "Eight." She had scraped together five stat stones just from around the dormitory ground. [You covertly took a stat stone from the guard's watchtower.] [Sneaking Experience +10] [Stealth Experience +3] [Magic Detection Experience +3] [Sense Presence Experience +2] [You found a stat stone from a nest on top of a tree.] [Climbing Experience +5] [Stealth Experience +3] [Sense Presence Experience +1] [You discovered a stat stone in a suspicious mound of dirt where dogs play.] [Digging Experience +9] [Distracting Experience +4] [Deception Experience +3] [Stealth Experience +3] [You found a stat stone set into a decorative fixture on the wall of the dormitory.] [Climbing Experience +13] [Stealth Experience +7] [Balance Experience +7] [Climbing Experience +3] [Night Walking Experience +3] [You covertly took a stat stone from the housemother's master bedroom.] [Stealth Experience +8] [Lock Picking Experience +3] [Stealth Experience +3] One from the guard's watchtower with [Stealth], another from the nest, one from within a suspicious mound of dirt, and one from the dorm wall; and even one from the housemother's master bedroom. As a new student at the academy, she had managed to gather most of the stat stones available on the island before enrollment. Truly, [Stealth] is a master of all trades. Good job on leveling it up! "The reason the housemother was looking out the window with a gloomy face and sighing since this morning was because of that." Isabel grabbed my ear firmly. "Ouch! That hurts." "I grabbed it to hurt you. Regardless of your love for stones, how can you justify stealing from others?" "That's impossible! The housemother's gloom isn't because of the stone!" "Really?" I snatched my ear away from her loosened grip and put distance between us. "Uuuu. Isabel... I trusted you. How could you do such a terrible thing." "People will misunderstand if they hear you've been sneaking into rooms and stealing stones. Why is the housemother feeling down?" "She’s sad because she doesn't have a boyfriend!" It was true. <Event Concerning the Housemother's Troubles> The housemother has her worries. Namely, spending the flower of her youth at the academy and losing the chance to meet men! We should introduce a fine gentleman to our teacher, who is losing confidence as a woman. It’s perfectly fine for the player to introduce themselves with pride. After all, that's what the event is for. <Type "Old Maid but a Beauty with Makeup"> Those who like this kind of character actively pursue the housemother's favor and even share tips on winning her over. It's a favorite route for those who enjoy games like adult ones! It's not to my taste, so I've never pursued it. "Haa. I lost out for worrying." "Then let's head to the training grounds. What you said about..." "Right. Let's keep it just between us two." Many people were visible on the way to the training grounds. Everyone had their own way of spending the time before the entrance ceremony. A thief guild graduate roamed the academy grounds, exploring the buildings. A druid student dozed off on a bench, basking in the warm sunlight. A sadistic girl who finds a new 'puppy' to play fetch and teach commands like 'sit' and 'fetch' while throwing a frisbee. Giselle and others, who ask instructors about how to accumulate and use 'points' as they adjust. "Didn't that frisbee girl just now seem to be making people do strange things?" "It's fine. That person is a masochist." "...Oaknodie. Where did you learn such words?" "Masochist? That's common knowledge. Even kids know as much." "...Next time you have a visitation with your housekeeper and maid, make sure to invite me. I have something to tell them." "I'll think about it." For 10 minutes, she jumped over pavement blocks of different colors, fully absorbed in the game. Isabel touched my shoulder to bring me to attention. "We're here. This isn't the way to the training grounds." [I played the pavement block jumping game for 10 minutes.] [Balance Experience +3] [Rhythm Experience +2] [Long Jump Experience +1] [Playing Alone Experience +1] Hehe, so fun. With a beaming smile, we were about to enter the training grounds when we noticed a crowd gathered in front. There seemed to be a commotion, with people raising their voices as if a dispute had broken out. "Looks like there's a fight. Should we just pass by?" "I want to see!" "...You never miss a spectacle, do you." Everything was fine until we reached the crowd, but then there was a problem. I was too short to see over the crowd...! Isabel chuckled at my hopping behind the spectators and slid her arm under my armpits. "AHAHA! That tickles!" "Don't move, it's hard enough to lift you as it is." "Hnngh... huh..." "No making weird noises." "Hmph. But it really is tickly." In the end, instead of holding my armpits to lift me, she gave me a leg-up just as Son O-chun did—it was like riding a wooden horse. "Don't fidget, it hurts my neck. Just stay still." "Okay." I rested my hands on Isabel's head and stretched up to see above the crowd and into the center of the noise. And, oh, it looked bad. "Is she that mercenary? The only advanced class student from the Western Mercenary Alliance." "That's right. Only a mercenary could have such ridiculously huge muscles. An ignorant commoner who doesn't know mana cultivation techniques to compress muscle. Keke." "Disgusting. Her physique is just like a gorilla." "Yeah. And a berserker at that." "Eww~. Could it be that all those berserkers dropped out because they not only lost their mind but also attacked their own allies?" "What if she actually never went berserk but pretended to be insane to knock out all her competitors?" "Kyaa~ That's so dark!" <Group Competition (2) Event> Berserker Hestia. The B group advanced class students are collectively bullying one of the A group advanced class students, Hestia, in their desire to monopolize the use of the training grounds facilities. Hestia, tormented by the tyranny of the B group, might rip people apart if she gets angry! But if people get ripped apart, wouldn't the B group students have to be a little cautious around A group? The choice to assist Hestia or to leave her be is yours, the player! <The Frenzy of Hestia>. An early awakening trigger event for the chapter boss has appeared. 'What the heck? Is this some new kind of suicide tactic?' If Hestia flips out, she really could tear limbs apart. Author's Note (Afterword) Thank you for the 5 coins donation, Prism-nim. It looks like ostracism to others To players, it's someone about to be torn apart