Surviving as a Con Artist at the Academy

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22 Chapter. Rest and Friendship (1)

With Chapter 1 wrapping up, only the aftermath remains.

As the main characters take their first steps in growth, an existence thought forgotten will arise.

The protagonist, Lyman Begilius, who is more important than other characters, where might he be and what is he doing? The students are on the verge of death by Lycanthropes, yet where is he in this dereliction of duty?

In truth, Lyman was observing the entire situation. With five Lycanthropes appearing compared to just two in the main story, he must have been quite flustered.

However, seeing him not rushing in suggests he believed we would handle it well on our own.

By now, he is probably outside the Academy’s barrier. He figured out the location of the mastermind behind this incident.

But how did he foresee the future when he is not even a prophet?

No matter how much of a protagonist he is, isn’t his laid-back attitude a bit excessive?

Yet, one thing needs to be understood.

While fantasy protagonists often have distinct passions and signs of growth, there’s none of that for Lyman Begilius.

He is already a complete being who has acquired everything.

*

A man wearing a turban and mouth cover was greatly flustered in the middle of the forest.

Firstly, all five Lycanthropes had been defeated, resulting in a breakdown of control.

Secondly, an absurd situation arose where he was chased by a mere Academy student.

And on top of that, he was bleeding everywhere.

“Where do you think you’re running off to?”

One student strolled out from the darkness with the moonlight illuminating the grassy field.

With white hair that could stand out even in the dark and beast-like blue eyes, the student whose name tag read Lyman Begilius slowly approached.

“How about we call it a day for tag?”

“Ugh…!”

The agent could not accept the current situation.

He was an elite assassin affiliated with the Viole Family. Ready to give his life for the family.

He had mastered various assassination techniques and even specialized in the magic to control monsters.

To control a monster, one must be stronger than the target. If incompetent, the caster becomes prey, but the agent had never faced that situation.

He was even capable of taming five or more Lycanthropes. His skills were indirectly proven.

Therefore, a mere student shouldn’t be his match. He could easily take care of him with just a finger… so why was he running away?

“Who are you… really?!”

“Can’t you see the uniform? I’m a student here.”

“That’s a ridiculous lie! There’s no way a mere student could sever my wrist!”

The agent desperately clutched his severed wrist, shouting in anger. Meanwhile, Lyman appeared as unperturbed as if he were in his own home.

Even though this gruesome scene wouldn’t end unless at least one of the two was dead.

For a still immature young student, every nerve would be frozen, making it hard to move.

Even with a good weapon, there was no guarantee of effective defense. In such a heart-wrenching atmosphere… that student was only holding a pair of chopsticks.

The agent’s wrist was not severed by a blade, nor burned away by magic. If such a horrific act occurred simply by waving around a pair of chopsticks, would anyone believe it?

‘I can’t let it end like this.’

I must survive and protect Young Master Travel. I’m curious about his identity, but there’s no way around it unless I kill him.

There are not just five Lycanthropes.

“Grrr!”

Three hefty werewolves suddenly leapt out from the darkness, baring their teeth as they charged at Lyman.

These were surplus Lycanthropes.

The young master said he wouldn’t mind having more as long as he had the financial flexibility.

Initially planning to release only two to cut down on waste, he was able to round it up to five due to his generosity.

The surplus were intended as reinforcements in case of failure, but it couldn’t be helped. He had to survive first.

While that unknown student distracted the Lycanthropes, the agent would shoot a poison needle. The target would faint immediately upon being hit and then he would behead them to finish.

Believing in that plan, the agent harbored a small hope. As the moment arrived, he pulled out the poison needle and shot it.

Lyman casually swung his chopsticks. With no hindrance from the small stick… the event happened in an instant.

Swoosh!—

Crimson lines appeared on the Lycanthropes’ bodies before they exploded into pieces.

The chunks of the slain creatures and blood splattered like a fountain.

And the flying poison needle was caught between Lyman’s chopsticks.

There was no outside intervention. He merely used a small wooden stick to butcher the brain and heart along with the entire body.

In a split-second moment that couldn’t even be followed by the eyes.

“I usually preferred to spend Friday nights munching on snacks, but you’ve made it all dirty.”

“H-hah!”

Despite flaunting such a spectacle, Lyman remained unfazed, his exhaustion not apparent.

The agent was paralyzed by the realization that there was no chance of winning.

As if struck by a calamity, he turned to flee in a panic.

“Your family is quite pathetic.”

“Huh?”

Thud!—

Lyman, with movements akin to teleportation, caught the agent from behind with a single punch, knocking him out.

“I had hoped your young master would turn out differently, yet how is he the same as the Viole House Head from 30 years ago?”

“……”

The agent, losing consciousness, could not hear those words.

But even if he did, it was mumbling that no one would understand anyhow.

“I was the stupid one to have expectations.”

There were no more trivial words.

Lyman bound the agent to ensure he couldn’t escape. And with the memory of their encounter completely erased, he left the scene.

Eventually, at dawn, the agent was discovered and captured by the Imperial investigation team.

*

After that incident, I had to lay in the hospital for an entire week.

The shoulder wound from being bitten by a wolf while running at the end had opened up. The immense mana consumption also resulted in hospitalization.

Due to forcing myself to move in a weakened state, I lost consciousness.

In Aligieri Town, beside the Academy.

I was leisurely resting in a large hospital there.

On the day, the faculty members, who arrived late upon learning the situation had concluded, found me collapsed and moved me to this hospital.

It’s customary for them to arrive only after the incident is over.

‘But I couldn’t help it. Considering the long distance between the faculty residence and the Academy.’

A serene hospital room with cool breezes blowing in.

Yet the ensemble of visitors here was dazzlingly exquisite.

“Meow.”

The first guest was a cat that came in through the window. I was curious as to what it used as a step to get up here on the second floor.

It wasn’t a dazzling guest, but it came daily, adorably displaying its affection and warming my heart. Petting it was quite therapeutic.

The second visitor was from a knight order of some kingdom.

Aligieri is a magic institution frequented by commoners and royals alike. Those who came to see me were knights from a small nation located on the outskirts of the Papias Empire.

They expressed their gratitude for me, stating that thanks to me, their prince was saved. They had also fainted due to the assassin when they should have come sooner.

With their earnest offer to request anything they wanted, I asked for a magical tool that allowed me to write a journal even in my current state.

The reason was for the newspaper. If I merely lay around, my decay rate might rise.

Fortunately, since the incident ended, the increase in the decay rate had slowed down.

‘Surely the impact of -1000 was significant?’

The third visitor was Trisha Marelin, the head of the Newspaper Department.

She showered me with compliments upon seeing me again. The fact that I was writing a newspaper even while hospitalized deeply moved her.

I was only writing because I didn’t want to die, but she mistook it as diligence, which was quite amusing.

Normally, it would be considered normal to tell someone not to overexert themselves and to rest.

Anyway, I handed her the newspaper I had written.

Through Trisha, I heard good news. More students were reading my articles. That meant more people were encountering my lies, thus continuously reducing the decay rate.

‘It was worth risking my life to wave around three fishing rods!’

The fourth guest was Professor Radian Verselin and Cage Revola, the head of the Combat Department.

Entering the room, they maintained a solemn atmosphere but weren’t excessively intimidating.

They had merely come to inquire about the peculiarities of the day.

They informed me that the culprit behind the release of the Lycanthropes had been caught. It was quite good news.

Then Cage reprimanded me out of the blue. He complained that I had ruined his prized fishing rod.

Although no significant penalties were imposed…

‘He has three more similar fishing rods back home, yet he still pouts.’

The fifth guest was Travel Viole.

I had been wondering why he hadn’t shown up.

He had veins popping on his neck. He hadn’t published the articles I had requested.

The moment he started making even a slight excuse, he’d raise the noise level. Considering this was a hospital room, he was indeed a proper lunatic.

What came next was even more ridiculous. He threatened that if it was discovered, we would both end up in prison.

I had nothing to fear. After all, I had an astounding self-defense system common to modern people.

“Do you have evidence?”

“What?”

“Do you have any evidence? When did we ever have a transaction?”

There was no material evidence to prove the relationship between him and me. We had met, but there were no records of a transaction.

In a frenzy, Travel poured out everything to me. Because I hadn’t taken any money, he claimed to have the financial leeway to tame additional Lycanthropes.

That’s right. Unlike the two from the original story, the reason it had grown to five was… because I hadn’t accepted any money from this guy.

I was slightly surprised that he actually managed to prepare money to set up a house for my family.

Moreover, he persisted, saying, “It is only natural for you to help me since I helped you!” … Seriously?

‘This is some serious gaslighting.’

As you can see, I’m a patient. Even with a haggard appearance, it’s justifiable.

Using that image, I acted all pathetic, shouting, “Ouch! My body hurts!~” and spat out Travel’s words.

He insisted he’d definitely make me his partner, but that wasn’t going to happen.

Before long, he was apprehended and thrown into the underground prison.

Seeing the process carried out smoothly, it seemed like the aftermath of the incident had come to an end.

“Today’s the last day of my hospital stay. Is it about time for the midterm evaluations?”

From the midterm evaluation point onward, the prologue of Chapter 2 would unfold.

The incident begins with an elder from the Continental Magic Guild. After the midterm evaluations, he will visit the Academy to search for something.

‘The structure of the Academy would surely fall apart once that man visits.’

I still had time until then.

I judged that there wouldn’t be any more visitors, and just as I was about to close my eyes for a bit—

Creak—

Suddenly, the window opened. I happily turned my head, thinking it was another cat, but surprisingly, a person was squeezing through the window.

Given the narrow estimation, it seemed nearly impossible for anything other than a beast or a child to pass through. But there was only one person capable of doing so, and they were right around me.

“Hey, friend!~”

“Ahh!”

Mary dove onto my bed after intruding through the window.

I screamed for help as Mary landed on me. Even though I only had one day left, I was still a patient—what was she doing?

If her body hadn’t been so compact, I might have needed to re-hospitalize.

“I missed you!~”

“If you missed me, you should have come in through the door. Why the ruckus through the window?”

“This is much more thrilling and fun!”

I could never comprehend the criteria of fun for Mary. And what on earth was the reason for her visit?

“I brought lunch. Want to try some?”

It was a bento filled with bugs.

“Are you out of your mind?! Who would eat something like this?”

“Why not? It’s delicious. Munch munch….”

She casually chewed and swallowed it with no hesitation, all while wearing a bright expression that made my wonder soar to the universe.

“Are you really not going to eat it? It’s sweet like marshmallow.”

“If it tastes like marshmallow, then the dust piling up in my dorm must taste like honey.”

“Oh! I’m not the only one here. Jenny came along, too.”

“What?”

Knock knock—

Before she finished her sentence, I heard a knock.

I flinched upon seeing the door open.

A girl with flowing blue hair stepped into the hospital room.

Surviving as an Academy Scammer.