CH 88

[Perfect Plan]

I probably wouldn’t forget the memory of preaching to a horse for the first time in my life for a while.

After hitting Horsie’s head to make him regain his sanity and preaching to him on the rooftop where we crashed, I run through the academy and return to Iris’s place.

I hang a board with the word ‘Reflecting’ written on it on Horsie’s neck, tie him to the side of the house, and head for my room in Iris’s place; there I find Higaki hanging upside down, having gotten caught in the trap I had set up with Shishū in case there’s a tresspasser.

“…Well, umm. I see you got back early.” (Higaki)

“The heck were you up to by messing up my room?” (Sakurai)

I go outside and make use of firecrackers and Flame Sword to launch an improvised firework, and hand Higaki over to the disciplinary committee members who come over to check on the situation.

The suspect then makes an incomprehensible statement, saying, “I know I said I wanted to start over, but I wanted that hanging scroll, after all. I thought no one would find out if I take it during the race. I’ll have you show it to me when I get back,” as she gets dragged away.

Are you guys okay with having a boss like this? – When I say so, the disciplinary committee members make bitter smiles, pretending not to hear me.

Having to deal with both me and Higaki, these guys sure have it hard.

“Alright, now to get to the matter at hand.” (Sakurai)

While thinking of having Higaki clean up my room in a maid outfit when she gets back, I take the large number of firecrackers I made with Amanai from my room that has become a mess and go out to the city.

By this time, I must have gotten disqualified for getting off course, and the one who takes the first place of that race should be Julia.

That said, the course is covered all over with mud due to the power of Iris’s magic.

Even if they’re going to restore it first or continue the race as is, the scheduled competition time will end up being extended, all the same. In other words, some of the participants will be held up at the venue for as long a time the competition gets extended.

In case of students of the adventurer academy, I bet some will get bored, give up on the competition, and go out to the festive city to play, but in case of the disciplined lot of the military academy, they will probably remain at the venue to cheer for their comrades.

However, the strength of fellowship is both their strength and weakness.

To be more specific, almost every one of them go out to cheer, so even if a suspicious person sneak into their inn, they can’t notice it.

If Julia’s villa isn’t protected by the royal guards, I would sneak in there as well.

“Still, for even the teachers leading them not to be around, I wonder if preventing crime even cross their mind.” (Sakurai)

While setting up firecrackers, I think about the future.

Thanks to Amanai’s ad lib, the events that lead up to Julia turning to demonization can be controlled for the time being, but that doesn’t change the condition which requires Amanai to ‘win in a one-on-one fight against Julia after being recognized by the surroundings’.

However, there is a problem with that condition.

It is not ‘win in a one-on-one fight against Julia’ part, but ‘after being recognized by the surroundings’ part.

To be honest, I noticed Julia’s clear weakness in the previous race.

If Amanai take advantage of that, there’s a high possibility that even the current him can defeat Julia.

Julia’s, or rather a combat alchemist’s trait is that they gain combat power by ‘alchemizing an item into something else’.

The ‘Royal Money Warrior’ style, which converts the monetary value of an item into combat power, is one that spends abundant gold and silver treasures to increase the fighting power as an individual.

On the other hand, however, their combat power basically depends on items.

The lower the quality of items to convert, and the smaller the number of items that can be carried, the lower the threat level of the Royal Money Warrior.

“That’s exactly why the impact of having or not having an item box is huge.” (Sakurai)

Unfortunately, there is no item box in this world.

In other words, items must be physically carried, and there is a limit to the number of items that one person can carry.

Of course, there are ways to carry a large number of expensive items such as jewelry and precious metals.

However, the more one carry, the more they have to consider so that they don’t get in the way in the battle.

One way is to prepare a special carrying means such as remodeling the school uniform like me or bringing a luggage bag, but in that case the number of items that can be carried will be limited depending their sizes, so it doesn’t completely solve the problem.

In the end, a realistic compromise on the number and quality of items to be carried must be made.

The disadvantage of a combat alchemist is that they have to manage the items to use in addition to the magic power to activate their skills, which in turn leads to the existence of one clear weakness— they are vulnerable to ‘protracted battles’.

If he exploits that weakness, Amanai will be able to defeat Julia. However, there’s a problem with that way of fighting.

Let alone the event clear condition ‘after being recognized by the surroundings’ part, there’s a possibility that way of fighting to end up creating a dissatisfaction in Julia, who prefers a straightforward, head-on fight.

“Well, if Amanai were to suddenly employ a hit and run tactic to win after being recognized to be Julia’s match, booing might not be the end of it, I guess.” (Sakurai)

Julia may end up saying something along the line of – So you don’t want to fight seriously… in that case – and enter the demonization route.

It’d be okay if the damage is directed only to Amanai, but it’d troublesome if the aim of her animosity is also pointed at me who is cooperating with him, and in that case, it’ll be difficult to say how the matter of Fool’s Necklace would turn out.

Anyways, first things first, I have to get Amanai be recognized by the surroundings, and get the adventurers and knight apprentices to acknowledge him as superior by the last day of the academy festival.

“Well, the only way that came to my mind is to have Amanai participate in the competitions properly while I do whatever I like under everyone’s watch so that their evaluation of him rises when comparing us!” (Sakurai)

The poorness of my human nature and communication ability are unrivaled, they’re high-leveled in the negative direction.

I don’t know how to raise my reputation as a person; if I do, I wouldn’t have been marked by the disciplinary committee. Fufu, in comparison, becoming a problem child is a piece of cake.

In any case, now that’s decided, I will have to survive to last minute in the round-robin tournament, and bring it to ‘between Amanai and I, which is more adequate to fight against Julia?’ kind of situation.

Alright, let’s actively sabotage the opponents~!

It won’t be a problem as long as it’s not a serious criminal act.

What? Trespassing is a serious crime nowadays? Don’t sweat the details.

“The firecrackers will be more effective if I set them up inside than outside, and at this hour, someone would definitely see me, or at least my figure, heading toward the inn. Then, I will be suspected while they are investigating for the offender. If I give obvious hints tomorrow during the competition, the rumor will spread on its own, and my evaluation will go down, whereas the evaluation of Amanai who fights decently will rise in comparison.” (Sakurai)

Umu, it’s not a bad plan, even if I do say so myself.

Unless there’s an evidence, no one will be able to take any direct action on me, and then, the hate on me will accumulate on its own.

It will lead to a decrease in my evaluation and give people an illusion that ‘that guy is much better in comparison’ when they’re evaluating Amanai.

Fufufu, how is it? This plan to completely throws away public opinion on oneself in the ditch.

This is a perfect plan that only I can come up with…!

“Alrighttt! I’ll do my best to set up the firecrackers!” (Sakurai)

If I use the power of Shishū skill, I’ll be able to quickly finish the wiring of the fuse; it’s really troubling how useful this skill is!

I wonder if I should set up traps on the balconies while I’m at it~? Oops, I have to be careful and not let my guard down so as not to make a blunder and leave any evidence.

Un, I sure am a really hardworking and diligent guy.

Don’t you think I should get a correction to my level up as a reward from the world? Will the world give it to me, I wonder? Well, of course, it won’t.

“Tsk, the world is one stingy bastard.” (Sakurai)

While saying so to myself, I walk in the corridor where many doors are lined up. Beyond the doors are the rooms where the knight apprentices stay.

Given that the distance between each door is longer than the usual, I guess multiple people are staying in each room. It’s like the rooms of an inn where you stay during a school trip.

Then, I open the door of the room labeled ‘Staff Room’ where the teachers stay, in which I thought would be the most difficult place to set up the firecrackers unnoticed.

At that moment, the strong smell of blood hits me.

In the room that open up in front of me, there are several middle-aged knights who looks like teachers of the military academy laying down on blood pools with a man who seems to have cut them down standing among them.

He is a boss character with long gray hair that looks like a tail, clothes which looks like a rider suit, and a rugged two-handed sword, ‘Indestructible Sword Eckesachs’.

“Hm? What, there’s still someone left?”

It’s Nanashino Katsumi.