How to Survive at the Academy Chapter 59

Glast Subjugation Battle (8)

The matter reported by the Chamber of Commerce employee… was something that should have come to light at some point.

– ‘There is news that private soldiers hired by Golden King Elte have entered Aken Island! It seems like the Gyosu-dong side is planning to take advantage of the chaos to take over the Sylvania branch of the Elte Company and secure new recruits for its top representative, Lortel!

– ‘A lot of the personnel from Elte Trading Company are missing, so they are completely defenseless!’

Everyone knows that time does not wait for me without having to remind myself.

The reason why time feels so fast is probably because I’ve been living such a hectic life.

As I’ve been running around day after day trying to make a living, I’ve already reached the final chapter of Act 2.

It seems like just yesterday that Yenika took over the student center and caused a stir… As I was taking care of test scores, scenarios, and camp work, it had already been half a year since such a major accident had happened.

No matter how intense and thorough you live, if you run so frantically, there will be things that you can’t deal with.

Tasks that cannot be completed due to a busy schedule usually rear their heads again when we are most busy, hectic, and sensitive.

Most of the second act went smoothly without any problems.

Even the ‘Ofilis Hall Occupation Incident’ and ‘The Wise Man’s Battle for the Seal’, which had some twists, were all wrapped up well.

However, there is clearly one problem that stuck out in the process and was postponed without being completely resolved.

In the original, the Golden King Elte was completely defeated and had no chance of making a comeback.

It would be correct to view the fact that he was removed from office a little earlier than expected, giving him time to make a final struggle, as a postponed problem rather than a solved problem.

– ‘yes that’s right. It looks like the Elte Chamber of Commerce is finished with the dismissal plan, but seeing that they accepted the dismissal plan more coolly than expected, it seems like they have a plan.’

– ‘I’m worried that I might end up in trouble with senior Ed. That’s why she called me to check if there were any problems with me.’

– ‘I see. Certainly, she must always be on her guard, as there is no telling what Elte will do when cornered.’

Lortel did mention it when he visited Elte Trading Company. He must have thought of his own way of dealing with it.

Act 2 is a final opportunity to prepare your posture ahead of the second half of the scenario, when ridiculous ordeals begin to arise.

This is the time when Tailly grows in earnest and becomes strong enough to compete with the main characters of the scenario.

The big trials of the second act have almost passed.

Now, with Professor Glast’s defeat, Act 2 must end neatly and clearly.

We cannot allow the remnants of the past to survive and create new, useless variables.

I’ve talked about this time and time again, but my information superiority, which means I can see through all the determined future trends… is my best weapon that I can’t give up to anyone. If you want to survive in this world with a weak body, this is an absolute advantage that you must never give up.

If you are a person who needs to exit in the second act, you must exit in the second act.

Elte is a great merchant with extensive experience in the world of merchants. How big of a factor will it be for him to survive and maintain his power in the end? There is no need to explain it in detail.

I have already experienced enough. The butterfly effect caused by a third-rate villain who should have fallen and left the story at the beginning of the story is enough to shake up the world.

That can’t be helped. Because that third-rate villain is me.

I am prepared to endure that level of upset and resolve the issue.

At least I have to survive. It’s not someone else’s story, it’s my story.

However, if it were someone else, not me, the story would be different.

He corrected Lucy and carried her on his back and walked towards Tailley and the others. Lortel followed behind him, and Yenika belatedly came to her senses and followed him.

“If you come any closer…!”

Tailly shouted, shaking the hand holding the sword. Elvira also glared at me, breaking into a cold sweat.

Soon, just as Taily was about to push the sword up, Ziggs grabbed Taily’s sword handle, lowered it again, and stood between me and Tailly.

“Senior Ed.”

Ziggs, Spear of Vegetation. He was one of the guys who would become a more dependable colleague by Tailley’s side than anyone else.

“We don’t want to fight with Senior Ed. We just want to save Ayla.”

“Okay. Go rescue him. I don’t really want to fight either.”

I guess I misunderstood his solemn appearance, but I also have no intention of fighting Taily.

“If you go all the way from here, the road will be almost clear. It’s too cumbersome to explain the situation in detail, so ask him after you rescue Ayla. Since he was kidnapped with me, he will explain everything to you.”

“Senior Ed… Then…”

“I have urgent business to attend to. I have to go. So get out of the way.”

A moment of silence.

There was a brief exchange of glances between the group following me and Tailley’s group facing me.

Ziggs lowered his gaze, looked at Tailly for a moment, and then nodded. He straightened his outstretched arm toward Taily and retreated to one side with Taily.

When the two people who were actually leading the punitive force got out of the way, the rest of the party swallowed their saliva and also got out of the way to one side.

I also glanced at Lortel and Yenica and walked steadily along the opened road.

As I passed by on the street, I felt a sharp gaze staring at me.

Taking Yenika, who had reverse-summoned all the spirits, Lortel, who was wearing a robe, and Lucy, who was sleeping soundly… I headed toward the exit.

When I looked back, Tailley and his group had gathered their ranks again and were looking in our direction.

“Taylor.”

It’s a face that looks like it saw something in vain. It’s understandable.

Still, there is still a lot of work to be done inside the underground waterway.

Although I caught a few small named bosses and a few monsters along the route… Aspectology researcher Kum, the demon from the revived underground waterway, Cyclops, and explorer Glast still remain.

One of those bosses, Lortel… I can’t help it. Because right now, Elte’s work is more urgent.

Since Lortel is a conditionally hostile boss to begin with, it doesn’t really matter if you skip it.

There will be many other difficult and arduous trials. That experience and reward will become your blood and flesh.

In particular, withstanding Glast’s Aspect magic would be so painful that it would be too much for the human mind to handle.

“Good luck.”

There was no need to explain the situation in detail or give lengthy encouragement.

After saying just one last word, my companions and I hid ourselves in the darkness of the underground waterway.

Tailley and the others stayed still as they watched me moving away…

In the end, I didn’t say anything.

*

My gait became faster.

I, Yenica, and Lortel waded through the water and headed toward the exit.

“My father’s fall from office is already certain within the Chamber of Commerce, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t a way to turn the situation around.”

Lortel summarized the situation in a calm tone.

“In the end, the downfall of Elte Trading Company was based on the theory of responsibility. The decisive cause of this downfall was the business loss from the accessories trade… If we are free from this responsibility, we will be able to survive for once.”

“then…”

“Yes… I’m trying to get evidence that this business loss is the result of manipulation.”

Originally, Elteda should have fallen after being stabbed by Lortel in the battle for the Sage’s Seal.

There wasn’t even a chance for a comeback. The responsibility for the loss of equipment should have been stamped on the seal as soon as it was assumed.

However, so far we have only heard news that the passage of the dismissal bill is certain, but no news that it has been properly passed…

“Are they waging a power struggle using the internal forces of the Chamber of Commerce?”

“If it had gone according to the original plan, the motion for dismissal should have been passed quickly without even a chance for such resistance, but it seems that the plan was pushed forward and did not proceed smoothly.”

I knew very well that thanks to that, Elte was able to secure enough time to return to Sylvania.

“I will turn over all the materials from the Chamber of Commerce branch, but there will be no evidence that can change the situation. I am not stupid enough to leave such evidence behind.”

“Then the conclusion will be the same as last time.”

“Yes. The surest way would be to capture me directly and make me reveal the whole truth, whether by torturing me or something else.”

Whatever it is, the most certain thing is to directly catch and kill Lortel, who was the central point of the plan to overthrow Elte.

“No, Ed!”

It was a process of quickly organizing the situation and thinking of a plan to deal with it.

However, Yenika, who had been following closely behind me, suddenly tugged on my sleeve. She was so sudden that she almost dropped her lucy for a moment.

Yenika walked straight ahead and stood in front of the road, raising both arms to block the road and trembling.

“You can’t follow Lortel, Ed.”

“Yenika?”

“You’re going to get hurt again!”

Jenica herself probably didn’t expect her voice to be that loud, but she was so startled that she whimpered and quickly covered her throat.

“Right now, Ed, don’t forget that you were kidnapped and imprisoned and only managed to escape. I don’t know the details, but going to retrieve the Golden King Elte again in a body like this is too much…!”

And Yenica turned her gaze towards Lortel, not me.

“Did you forget that it was just yesterday that I collapsed from overexertion?!”

Yenika is not good at getting angry at people.

I’m not used to raising my voice or even asking questions, so I can’t help but hear my voice becoming sloppy here and there.

Nevertheless, Yenica did something unfamiliar and glared at Lortel.

“It’s a matter of Elte Company. Strictly speaking… it has nothing to do with Ed… I don’t want Ed to get hurt anymore…”

Even when she gets angry, she gradually lowers her voice because she wonders if it’s okay to do this, which is very typical of Yenika.

And the tone itself is not wrong.

In any case, Elte’s fall and everything else are just Lortel’s circumstances.

From a perspective that does not know my situation, honestly, no matter what the power structure of Elte Company is, as long as I am healthy, there is no problem.

Although it is a straightforward theory, there is no way it will work on Lortel.

If the situation has progressed this far, there is no way Elte will leave me alone, as I am giving off the impression that I know the whole story of the company.

Aside from that, it would also be possible for them to get me involved in this somehow by making excuses…

“Senior Yenika is right.”

Contrary to expectations, Lortel affirmed Jenica’s words. I thought the two were good friends, but…

“I guess it’s just my selfishness that gets Senior Ed involved here. It’s right that Senior Ed is just taking care of himself in a safe place.”

“I’m grateful for that, but unfortunately, it’s not about someone else.”

I can’t make these kids understand how important it is to get Elte off the stage.

If you can’t explain it, you have no choice but to just push through it. Since it is an urgent situation anyway, there is no better condition to use the excuse that there is no time to explain.

“Huh? Senior Ed?”

“It’s not about anyone else, so let’s leave quickly.”

At those words, there was silence.

It didn’t seem like I had said anything very special, but for an instant, there was an emptiness as if time had stopped.

The answer came from Lortel first.

“What do you mean, Ed?!”

No, Yenika came first.

Lortel opened his mouth to say something, but ran backwards a few steps as if his feet were on fire. Even her ears turned red, making it look like she had been attacked unexpectedly.

“Move now! There’s no time!”

If Elte had indeed invaded Sylvania’s living quarters, it would not take long to locate Lortel and reach this underground waterway.

Inside this underground waterway, there is everything Elte wants.

Lortel Kecheln can prove that the loss from the sale of gear was a ploy to bring down Elte.

And I, Ed, will support the credibility of that testimony.

Even the actual seal of the wise man that he had worked so hard to purchase.

It is impossible for the academic faction, led by Principal Obel, to remain silent due to the intervention of the third force, but at least in the midst of this uproar, they will not have the power to even care about Elte.

We don’t know what Elte will do in that gap.

“What are you talking about, Ed?! Isn’t this a stranger’s story?! Are you two no longer strangers?! Because you have a contract with Lortel? Well, right?! If Lortel loses control of the company, Ed will also have trouble receiving magic engineering supplies. Is that why you are doing that?! Yes, then you are definitely not the rest!”

Suddenly, as if my brain was spinning, I felt like Yenika’s ability to judge the situation had doubled compared to usual.

Jenica caught up with me as I rushed out and came up with an excuse that I hadn’t thought of yet.

Yenika…is she smarter than I thought??

“That’s right!”

“Right! Mm! Mm!”

Because the situation was so sudden, I wasn’t able to explain everything to Yenika, but just by looking at her appearance at the time, she was able to make reasonable inferences… she was definitely at the top of her year.

I was tempted to ask how this person carrying Lucy ended up like this, but when I showed that I was busy, Yenika just ran along while holding the oak cane in her arms.

The first thing to do is to return to the Sylvania branch of the Elte Company and determine how things are going.

It’s good that Elte is prevented from doing anything strange there. At least until Tailly finishes the final chapter well.

So I ran with all my might towards the exit for a while. I was already exhausted, but carrying Lucy on my back made me quite out of breath.

As we continued to advance through the underground water, which seemed to continue endlessly, traces of battle were occasionally visible.

I thought it was probably a trace of Tailly’s passing. From the very beginning, you have to deal with a large number of demonic golems and mid-bosses in the underground waterway… so it was worth it.

And as we got closer to the exit, there were huge battle marks left behind.

Mid-boss in Act 2, Scene 2.

Hatton, a senior demonic golem, and Dorothy, a third-year student in the pension department.

The demonic golem Hayton was completely crushed, and its fragments were spread around the entrance to the waterway, while Dorothy was lying unconscious.

“It was absolute chaos.”

The beginning of Phase 2 is not that difficult. Tailley’s current specs would have been at a level where he could break through in a straight line with almost no obstructions.

This was my first time traveling backwards from the secret laboratory to the underground waterway, so it felt quite refreshing to arrive late and see the traces of the battle.

I quickly ran to the entrance and looked around to assess the situation. Demonic Golem Hatton’s life has completely ended.

I also looked at Dorothy, who was lying down, and her face was full of spit marks and tear marks, as if she had fainted from fear.

Anyone who saw it would think it was torture. Considering Tailley’s personality, that wouldn’t be possible.

“Tailly, despite being a true senior, he behaved horribly. At times like this, there really is no blood or tears.”

I sighed as I looked at Dorothy’s collapsed face. Still, Dorothy is a person who cannot be looked down on in any way, but I never thought she would be destroyed so horribly.

“Uh, yes! That’s right!”

After saying that, Yenika answered in a strangely excited tone. I didn’t specifically ask for an answer…?

“That’s a bit violent! Hmm!”

“Senior Yenika…”

Lortel was looking at Yenica, who wiggled her fingers and answered, with strangely pitiful eyes.

The argument is, why lie if you’re going to get caught anyway? I was suspicious of that appearance, so I looked down at Dorothy again and realized that I had seen the shawl covering her body before.

This shawl with lots of cute cosmos embroidery was definitely something that Yenika wore over her school uniform.

Now that I thought about it, I looked at Yenika again, wondering why she was wearing only her school uniform. Yenika whimpered, hiccuped, and screamed.

“I’m sorry! I lied!”

“You did it, Yenika?”

“I didn’t mean to do this, but I ended up doing it this way and that, and it ended up like this! But I’m not the kind of person who doesn’t have blood or tears…! Don’t get me wrong! It’s true… It’s true…”

“No, I… I’m sorry. I said that because I didn’t know you did it.”

The sight of him bandaging his arm and defending himself made me feel sorry for him, so I couldn’t help but apologize.

“I did it because I didn’t have time to explain my situation… Ed…! Don’t misunderstand…! This… I should start talking from when the mug flew at me… but… “Don’t look at me like you look at a violent person…! Don’t look at me like that!”

There was no way for me to know what Lortel was thinking, but it was still necessary to hear about Yenica’s situation.

Because I needed to know what was going on outside while I was stuck there.

“For now, let’s listen to the story as we head towards the exit!”

Now that you’ve come this far, all you have to do is take the long stairs and you’re right outside.

Being trapped inside this damp, deep underground waterway, I felt disconnected from the outside world.

First, go out, breathe in the outside air, and think about your immediate course of action.

While saying that, he ran up the stairs. Lortel and Yenica quickly followed suit.

After crossing the long stairs, I eventually came out into the underground water.

The refreshing air filled my lungs, and the open night sky came into view. Before I could finally feel the sense of openness in my heart that I had finally emerged from the stuffy underground waterway…

“…”

The sight before my eyes was different from what I expected.

The entrance to a fairly wide, marble underground waterway.

One of the carriages parked there clearly belonged to Lortel Kecheln.

Before entering the underground waterway, were employees waiting outside the entrance?

However, most of the employees had already been subdued.

One, two, three…. There were so many mercenaries that I could not count them all on my fingers, and they were surrounding the entrance to the underground waterway.

“It was faster than I expected, father.”

“I threatened the merchant’s staff and they said you headed to this channel. There are still a lot of holes in personnel management, Lortel.”

Despite the starlight in the night sky, the darkness surrounding the entrance to the waterway is still dark.

Under normal circumstances, there would be no way the academics would have allowed that number of mercenaries to enter.

However, the majority of the academic staff is focused on repairing the damage to the Trix building… and the rest are dispatched to search for Professor Glast.

Tailley, who was the first to discover Professor Glast and gave chase, quickly gathered his colleagues and continued the chase, but the response of the faculty members, who had only heard the news through reports, was a bit slow.

If we tried to subdue Professor Glast by following the procedures with the faculty in the first place, it would be late and there would be no way to know what would happen to Ayla. Therefore, it is not impossible to understand Tailley’s dogmatism.

Still… it would have been nice if the faculty had stopped Elte from entering the university…

A mistake like this… The fact that Elte is a meticulous person probably also played a part.

“How did you cross the bridge that leads to Aken Island? That’s the only entrance.”

“There is no need to use a bridge if you can cross the water.”

Taking advantage of the darkness of the night, they brought a mercenary force into the academy on several small ships. The initiative is truly like that of a snake.

“The academic department will make a big issue of it.”

“At least it’s better than losing my life. Isn’t it right? If I can finish all the affairs of the Chamber of Commerce here and now, I’ll accept any large-scale condemnation or posthumous responsibility.”

The once splendid and dazzling appearance had faded a lot.

Elte’s appearance, which seemed to make money run out just by looking at it, was suddenly replaced by a simple and inconspicuous outfit. Although some of the accessories were still valuable, it was true that they had become much shabby compared to their former grandeur.

This is a person who has reached the edge of the abyss and is holding on to a rock sticking out of the cliff.

Because of their desperation, they do not rashly predict their enemies.

Is it really true that a mercenary group of this size was brought in to deal with three or four students?… Someone who doesn’t know you might think that this is an overreaction.

“If Principal Obel steps forward in person, a merchant like me will be put down in an instant. I have to get everything done before then.”

“If you can take advantage of the chaos and get a seal, it couldn’t be better than this, right?”

Elte responded to Lortel’s question with a smile.

This noisy bachelor incident is a genius opportunity for Elte.

If you don’t take advantage of the present, you will never get another chance.

“I have no intention of leaving this stage yet, Lortel.”

I quietly raised my head and looked at Elte.

Act 2 fake boss. The villain ends up getting stabbed in the back by Lortel and leaves the stage.

Looking at that sturdy face… I didn’t feel as bad as I thought.

He is selfish, inherently evil, and does not hesitate to kill for his own glory and prosperity, and has no hesitation in taking advantage of others.

I know.

No matter what the story is, the existence of a painted villain is essential.

If there is a protagonist who is good and noble and inspires everyone, there must also be a villain who is born evil and has a shabby character and meets a miserable end.

It is an ironic fact that in life, it is easier to become a villain than a protagonist.

If you live your life trying to do your part, it is a common occurrence to be seen by someone as a villain without blood or tears.

Of course, Elte went too far. She is someone who has repeatedly crossed the moral line that must be maintained.

Nevertheless, I don’t have any ill feelings towards him.

The reason Elte blocks our path so tirelessly is… ultimately, to survive.

I don’t want to remain as a villain who fell from the turbulent stage and was defeated and eliminated.

That’s how… to survive.

That is separate from how clean a person one is. It is something that every living person longs for.

For me, that’s never too far away. Because I was in that situation.

So, I did not condemn Elte morally.

However, I also have no intention of making concessions.

– Rumbling!

– Quang!

The earthquake came without warning.

Elte, the mercenary group brought by Elte, the captured employees of the company, and Yenica and Lortel were not expecting this at all… They quickly lowered their bodies due to the sudden shock.

It’s on a different level from the shock when Lucy broke through the ground.

While the heavens and earth were shaking as if they were going to turn over, I quickly adjusted my posture.

There was a flash of light in the sky for a moment, and lightning struck various places in Sylvania.

‘Demon World Arrival’, a high-level constellation magic that can only be used when the seven major stars in the night sky form a straight line and are clearly visible to the eye.

Among Professor Glast’s Aspect magics, this is the largest.

The enormous amount of mana circulating in the air meets Professor Glast’s aspect magic, and reacts to the aspect magic circles that were previously engraved here and there in the academy.

Soon, the sound of explosions echoed everywhere, and magic towers so huge that it hurt my neck just to look up began to rise up here and there.

The scale is bigger than you can imagine. It seems as if each magic tower can pierce the clouds. It is so high that it would take half a day just to climb to the top.

This is Professor Glast’s magic tower construction event that takes place the moment Taily and his group enter the entrance to the secret laboratory.

In order to chase Professor Glast, who escaped into the Magic Tower, the only way is to head to the entrance of the Magic Tower in the deepest part of the secret laboratory.

– Quang! Quang! Quang!

Each magic tower acts as an antenna that absorbs the magic power of each star.

It’s not one, but two… three… four… eventually reaching ten.

If you want to twist providence, you have to do something like this.

As if that were being said, the final stage of the story rises.

-Woe!

As if reacting to the enormous magical power, Lucy, who was on her back, opened her eyes wide.

“Reviving the lion?”

Then he lifted his head, looked at the sky, and muttered to himself.

I stood up straight under the dark red mana procession that embroidered the night sky.

Even as the world was shaking, Elte was staring straight at us.

If you go beyond this, the stage of the story appears.

I understand the feeling of gritting your teeth and trying to survive and somehow make your way to the top of the stage.

However, unfortunately, Elte’s journey ends here.

It is not a beautiful story of encouragement and punishment unfolding on a well-decorated stage.

In the fierce competition for survival among the eliminated villains… the act of judging good and evil in detail is just laughable.

Elte no longer has a given role left.

If it is a greeting that is not favorable to me and has no possibility of having a positive influence or helping me in an emergency.

It’s a pity, but I have to leave the stage now. I have no intention of getting out of the way here.

Because I have to survive too.

*

– Boom!

Tailley and the others were able to penetrate almost in a straight line from the underground water to the monster lab.

It was partly because the monsters blocking the path were not that strong, but more than anything, all of the large paths had already been cleared.

It was clear that Ed Rosstaylor had cleared a path in advance while escaping.

The traces of battle are clean, and there is no waste in the movement lines.

I wondered if they had set up a trap to harm Taily and his group, but there was no trace of it.

Even when they reached the Soul Library, Ed had completely finished it and there were no enemies left.

Was Ed Ross Taylor really… just thoroughly rooting for Tailley and the others?

So, what exactly is this ‘urgent matter’ that Ed, who quickly left the underground tunnel, was talking about?

In this situation where the teacher’s building has been destroyed, students have been kidnapped, and the police station has been stolen… what can be done more urgently than this?

With that question in mind… Tailley and the others continued to advance deeper into the secret laboratory.

Now we must save Ayla.

That fact was most important to them.