novelraw Chapter 123
Chapter 123
Chapter 123
A few weeks had passed since then.
Honestly, I wanted to throw Lexus straight into the Academy and grind him immediately, but there were many things to handle before he could work properly.
First, he needed a new anti-aging surgery, replacing the worn-out modules, and swapping out his arthritis-ridden legs with mechanical ones.
The meeting with Chairman Stingray was also postponed until just before the Academy’s summer vacation ended, so I spent my time as usual, handling Foundation work or checking on the condition of the Special Class students.
In the meantime, a few things had happened.
“Oooh. So this is the famous Trinity Academy. Damn, it’s huge and fancy. Stingray Tower can’t compare to this place.”
“Welcome, Lexus Bane.”
Lexus had officially received an Academy pass and started working as a private tutor for Stingray scholarship students.
From now on, he would commute daily to the Stingray Foundation Academy office, teaching the students.
His personal life might have been a mess, but when it came to work, he was thorough. As long as I gave him some basic guidelines, there would be no need to worry further.
After clearing up all my piled-up work, I took about a week’s vacation. I gave Maria the same amount of time off.
And then……
[Notification]
‘Liberator’ has been sold.
Sale Price: 5000P
[Achievement Unlocked]
Sold an item in the shop for the first time.
Achievement Points: +200P
‘In the end, I couldn’t use it. Damn it.’
The item I had saved to deliberately trigger an android rebellion ended up being sold. Since the Student Council was already established, there was no longer any reason to keep it.
‘Araya, that bastard…….’
If it weren’t for him, I could have staged the rebellion myself and secretly enjoyed watching my kids fight their way through obstacles from the best seat in the house.
But considering that I obtained a new Arcane Module thanks to the ‘Outer God’ he summoned, maybe it wasn’t such a bad outcome after all.
‘And the price of the Liberator was substantial.’
Perhaps because it was the key item in Act 3 of Part 1 in the original story, the selling price of the ‘Liberator’ was as high as clearing an entire episode.
‘I’ll never know exactly why an item that should have belonged to Ashita-kyo in the original ended up in my hands, since Araya ended up dead…….’
Still, I could confirm that in due time, even without the Liberator.
This vacation, I planned to spend in a Hunting Ground.
The day before vacation.
Right before the end of work hours.
As usual, I called Evangeline from the staff lounge, where she was playing, and explained that I would be away for a week. I had already told the Special Class students.
Evangeline looked very uneasy when she heard my words.
“H-Huh, I won’t see you for a while……?”
“It’s just a week. I’ll be back soon, so behave.”
“Can I not come with you?”
“That would be difficult.”
At my immediate answer, Evangeline’s expression darkened.
Then, stammering, she spoke again.
“Y-You may not know this, but your soul and mine are bound together. If we’re apart too long, it will be bad. So please, return quickly……”
A soul bond, huh.
I hadn’t known that.
It seemed that the reason Evangeline kept tagging along at my side wasn’t just because she liked me.
Hearing that made me wonder if there was some way to take her into the Hunting Ground with me, but unfortunately, the only ticket available in the Point Shop right now was for the ‘Violet Hunting Ground.’
Maybe if the shop level went up, I could get access to higher-tier Hunting Ground tickets, but for now, it was impossible. Which meant there was no way to buy an extra ticket and take her with me.
Hmm. That was troublesome.
After some thought, I decided to be honest.
If it was Evangeline, maybe she could come up with a clever idea. More importantly, if I didn’t explain and the bond suddenly broke, she might take it too hard.
“Evangeline. The truth is, I’ll be heading to another world for this week.”
“W-What? Another world!?”
“Yes. It’s a special technique discovered by my family. But in that world, the ‘soul connection’ you speak of will likely be severed.”
Since it was a place where even the will of the world could be eluded temporarily, my bond with her would simply be cut.
“Then you shouldn’t go!”
“If there’s no other choice, then yes.”
If Evangeline, who had only just been revived, were to disappear the moment I entered the Hunting Ground? I’d rather give up farming than let that happen.
When I answered, she asked again.
“B-But you must go, mustn’t you?”
“It would be best if I did.”
“Then go. If I carefully manage my mana and avoid that cursed rain, I should last a week just fine.”
“You don’t have to push yourself.”
“I told you, it’s not pushing myself. What’s good for you is good for me as well. It’s already pitiful enough being stuck in this child’s body, but if I end up dragging down my soul’s companion as well, I’ll be endlesly mis… mi… anyway, endlessly sad.”
I had thought she was just like any other child, carefree and happy every day, but she turned out to have such deep thoughts.
‘If only she had remembered the last word properly.’
She probably meant to say ‘miserable.’
“…Anyway, have a safe trip.”
“Yes. I’ll be back.”
I placed my hand gently on Evangeline’s small head, stroking her silky golden hair.
She smiled brightly, and I stood up, pleased.
But before I could leave the lounge—
“Ah, wait a moment!”
Evangeline clung to my leg and handed me something. It was a small trinket made of bits of plastic strung together.
“This is a charm I made! Even though I’m not what I used to be, it should still be useful, so take it with you!”
“…Thank you.”
A charm from the little witch, huh.
Quite cute, actually.
With that thought, I left the lounge, exited the office, and returned to the Stingray mansion in Elysium.
Then, inside my well-secured room, I strapped on the package I had prepared in advance and tore the Violet Hunting Ground Ticket.
-----
[You are entering the Violet Hunting Ground.]
-----
And so, I set foot into a new world.
Trinity Academy Special Dormitory.
Stingray scholarship dormitory fitness training room.
“Hmm… let’s see. Is everyone here?”
Lexus Bane glanced at the chicks huddled before him.
“Wow, all of you are young, so young. Being young is a good thing.”
From first years to fourth years.
All of them in their early twenties.
Out in the world, people praised them as future leaders or scorned them as slaves who had sold their souls to megacorps. But in Lexus’s eyes, they were nothing but naïve little chicks.
Damn, looking at their taut skin made him envious. If only he could have continued getting anti-aging surgeries, he too would have kept that kind of elasticity. Truly unfortunate.
“Mr. Bane.”
A Stingray staff member observing beside him called his name.
She was both his assistant and his overseer, placed by the Crown Prince to make sure he did his job properly. Thanks to her, slacking off was out of the question.
He grumbled inwardly for a moment, but even without an overseer, he intended to do his best.
His creed was to work thoroughly in return for payment. And the money he had received from Aaron was more than enough to soothe the bitterness of his lost ten years.
“My name is Lexus Bane. Uh… what was it again? I don’t remember the official title… Teacher? Anyway, I’ll be teaching you for a while. Chairman Aaron Stingray hired me.”
With a half-joking, half-serious tone, he finished his introduction by saying they should treat him like a lofty teacher.
Some of the chicks grimaced at that.
Well, no surprise.
His appearance was far removed from that of a teacher.
His hair was disheveled, his beard unkempt, and his face yellowed with a hangover from the night before.
He was wearing a suit for his first day, but simply changing clothes didn’t erase over ten years of living like a mess.
Then again, even the Academy wasn’t free of such instructors or professors. Instructor Nishiyama, who had been fired in the second quarter this year, was a prime example.
So for Academy students, a “good-for-nothing educator” wasn’t exactly shocking.
But the fact that he introduced himself as “hired by Chairman Aaron Stingray,” and that they had been dragged out during their precious shortened summer vacation, left the students annoyed.
Chairman Aaron recommended him?
So he got in through connections? I thought at least our Chairman was different from the rest.
Ugh. All adults are the same.
I heard all the broken turrets are being replaced with Stingray-made ones.
So his speech during the meeting was all hypocrisy?
And why drag us out during vacation? If he got in through strings, why not just keep things civil?
‘Oh-ho, look at these brats.’
Lexus sharply caught the undercurrent among them. With his Wizard Module-equipped eyes, he could see the real-time chats the students were sharing over SNS floating above their heads.
‘So you’re telling me training’s begun, but their heads are all somewhere else?’
Unbelievable.
Back when he worked with the police and the Stingray Security Division, rookies had been so scared they couldn’t even look him in the eye.
Time was a cruel thing indeed.
‘Well, can’t be helped.’
He’d been paid enough to do the job properly.
He’d just have to show them directly.
“Alright, I’ll explain today’s training.”
“So, everyone, grab the datab—”
“No. Put that away.”
“Excuse me?”
When the assistant tried to step in, Lexus blocked her and stepped forward.
“These brats need their manners fixed first. How dare you look at an adult like that?”
“P-Please wait, Mr. Bane.”
“This is all because our Crown Prince is too soft-hearted and spoiled you rotten. He’s too damn kind for his own good.”
The resentment he’d held since being unfairly dismissed ten years ago had long since dissolved under the sacred power of Credits.
Having received enough money to more than compensate for lost time, Lexus’s image of Aaron had already transformed into something close to a saint.
“Training’s simple, you chicks. Just come at me with everything you’ve got.”
“[…Everything we’ve got? Are you saying modules are allowed?]”
One male student wearing an LED mask asked. Oh, yes—he was one of the troublemaker students Aaron had specifically mentioned.
“Hey, that’s a cool mask.”
“[Forget the mask. Just answer the question.]”
“Yeah, yeah. Use modules, use whatever the hell you want. If it’s not enough, drag in some Militech bastards and fight me together.”
At the mention of Militech, several students bristled. Proof that his provocation worked.
“If you beat me, I’ll hand over my entire paycheck from the Chairman. And from then on, all my training sessions will be free time. But if I win, you’ll crawl like dogs in front of me. Got it?”
Murmurs spread.
The students looked flustered, but most seemed to think, “Not bad.”
“Alright, I’ll take that as agreement. I’ll count to three. Power up your modules or draw your weapons, whatever you want.”
He started counting.
“Three.”
Some still thought he was joking, dawdling about. But the masked boy and a girl beside him immediately took battle stances.
Those two weren’t bad at all.
“Two.”
Others began activating their modules while glancing around nervously. Excitement spread like a wave, and chatter dwindled.
“One.”
Finally, Lexus took his stance.
And then—
“Begin.”
The battle started.
And it ended in less than five minutes.
The ones collapsed on the ground were the students.
The one left standing was Lexus.
“Well? How was that? Think you can handle it?”
He sneered down at the sprawled-out students. Their eyes reflected shock, confusion, and in a few, awe.
Wh-What the hell? He’s ridiculously strong!
I thought the Chairman brought in some weirdo, but I guess not…
I trusted him from the start.
Bullshit.
Even now, some students couldn’t turn off their SNS apps. Lexus couldn’t help but laugh. He’d heard about the new generation’s SNS addiction, but this was something else.
And why the hell was Aaron’s reputation rising when he was the one fighting?
‘Looks like you’ve become quite the educator in my absence.’
Back then, the Aaron he’d known was nothing but a slaughter machine in the body of a twenty-something.
In just ten years, that arrogant Crown Prince had turned into a patron beloved by the students.
Truly, they said even mountains and rivers changed in ten years.
Clicking his tongue in disbelief at the passage of time, Lexus waved at the students again.
“…Come at me again, brats.”
He would drill them thoroughly. After all, he’d been paid enough.