Chapter 285: Brave Rookie
After Ssosia tweaked the system, the Four Celestial Lords were assigned to all of Fantasy's training centers.
Like other beings, they became stronger the higher the education course they were in: elementary, secondary, or tertiary.
There was another advantage their existence brought me.
Previously, my copies had to personally write letters to Alex and the Imperial Princess.
But I no longer needed to do this.
My subjects began to do this work instead of my copies.
Essentially, the amount of work I could do at once had quadrupled.
"Not four, but five times. My husband seems to have forgotten how to count."
"And you seem to be having trouble thinking critically, my wife. I shouldn't be part of the count."
With the decrease in the activity of my copies, my mental fatigue also decreased.
And this was very important.
After all, it meant that I could fight at any moment and bring forth my maximum power.
If the director, suddenly sensing danger, decided to fight me, I would be in perfect condition and completely prepared to answer her challenge.
But this didn't mean that I would rest all this time.
"Greetings, Hero. I am an archaeologist who has long surpassed Lanuvel in all aspects, and this is my cowardly wife. I know I am the first to speak to you, but I am not at all a suspicious person… Agh!"
"Be silent, my useless husband. Let me, your incredible wife, explain everything myself! Sir Hero, we are noble aristocrats from the Northern Continent, and the Holy Empire can attest to our identities."
I infiltrated the Rookie Hero's group to gather information.
Why was I targeting a newcomer?
"Oh! I'm always welcome to having new companions around!"
… Because they were easily fooled.
They would never refuse the help of those who were ready to join their group since it allowed them to kill others easier for the sake of accumulating experience points.
That was why they brought in those who couldn't adapt to life on Earth, wasn't it?
Newbies treated this vicious world like an RPG game.
They worried about whether they could kill a person for about a day and then easily chopped them like bamboo the very next morning.
"Isn't that amazing, hubby? These kids were still in kindergarten when you first came into this world, and now they're experiencing what you've gone through."
"Not really."
The fact that I was so old made me depressed.
They were still newbies, so the rank of their "Karma" skill wasn't so high yet. Likewise, however, they were yet to learn all the bitterness of going on an adventure.
Regardless, the locals would be nice to them as long as they agreed to work for free.
I wanted to observe what they were doing and analyze where their journey was going. If I deduced that everything was going right for them…
I would immediately take action.
► Regret: Fewer and fewer students are interested in going on an adventure. We continue to receive complaints about the journey being too difficult. Even still, it is unlikely to change for the better anytime soon.
'Thanks for the explanation, smart and beautiful Trainee Teacher!'
Time was on my side despite having quite a long time pass.
There were many powerful and highly experienced students from the secondary and tertiary education courses, but even they couldn't pose as hindrances to me.
► Excitement: Recently, my senior colleagues have been holding meetings frequently. They are even joined by other elders, whose faces I haven't seen because they've always been busy prior to this issue. This is pretty amazing.
The fact that the faculty was forced to meet so often only confirmed the fact that my plan worked.
We needed to keep this up!
My decision to become the Rookie Hero's companion and watch him turned out to be rather boring, though.
Well, I couldn't blame him. He was called a beginner for a reason.
Many of the newcomers impatiently pounced on monsters after just checking their level, causing them their deaths.
They were so idiotic that I started to think that Sieg's first trip was incredible after watching them.
… Relatively speaking.
1 year, 2 years, 5 years, 10 years …
Data was collected little by little.
However, I couldn't collect any information on other continents since the hopeful newcomers retired or died after embarking on their journey and failing almost instantaneously.
But it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that the Central Continent was completely in my hands.
That aside…
⤷Mom: Ungrateful son, let me tell you how cute and nice your little brother is. (7:32)
⤷Mom: Surprisingly, even the Head of the District Police Department personally came to say hello today. (16:15)
⤷Mom: He worries me sometimes. I don't think he should be sent to kindergarten. He's too smart for that level of education. (17:23)
⤷Mom: You should see how adorable he is when he touches my smartphone with his little hands. (8:61)
⤷Mom: Son, listen to this. I feel as if my body has become lighter than before. I can even play tennis longer than before now. (7:34)
Mother's vile second son had won over her heart!
I wished she knew I couldn't sleep at night because of this, even after I had already buried my face in the cheeks of my cowardly wife.
"Do you not know how uncomfortable I am when you do this? And don't wipe your snot on my skin!"
"It's your ass."
"Who cares! Just don't wipe it on me!"
Today, the journey of another Rookie Hero ended.
Everything went smoothly at first.
For three months, he learned the basics of combat from Alex and then traveled with Lanuvel, the archeologist.
His companions were the Mermaid Princess Aqua, Saintess A, and Holy Knights Commander Tomato.
He also had two Brave users in his party.
But that was all.
"Sir Hero, do you know Mollan?"
"N-no."
"Trust in Mollan, and the truth shall be revealed before you."
"Sorry, but I already believe in another religion on Earth. I cannot betray it."
"All is fine. Mollan is benevolent even to heretics."
"Heretics?"
"Only those who believe in another religion have to pay a fee in the Holy Mollan Empire."
"What?"
Did Earth no longer teach what taxes were? These heroes seemed to have no knowledge of it.
The knight explained everything to the stupid hero.
"In the Holy Mollan Empire, you will be charged an additional fee on the purchase of any goods. Hotel room prices will also be higher for you compared to the prices offered to the followers of Mollan."
"I know what taxes are. How much would the increase be?"
"Everything will be sold to you at double its original price."
"Huh?"
"It's not that hard to understand. They'll be twice as expensive for you. You'll also be charged for using flush toilets."
"What?!"
The overly rational logic began to irritate him.
What was causing his dissatisfaction?
"The Divine Being is benevolent to everyone. Therefore, his faithful followers have to put up with the fact that they live side by side with heretics. The extra fees are just a small payment for the moral damage they receive daily."
"Damn…"
"Sir Hero, are you still going to enter the territory of the empire?"
"…Yes."
To avoid the toll, the Hero and his companions pretended to be followers of Mollan's Teachings.
However, they were quickly seen through.
They didn't praise Mollan or pray to him every day, after all.
Just forgetting to do it once or twice could be considered an honest mistake, but since it had been repeated endlessly, the citizens couldn't help but accuse them of fraud and treason.
On the other hand…
"Oh! You must be His most loyal follower! May Mollan bless you even more! Mollan."
"May the patronage of the fair and righteous Mollan be with you! Mollan."
I was an exception.
Even if I didn't reveal that I was the First Apostle of Mollan's Teachings, the rest of the followers bowed their heads before me, showing their respect.
Additionally, since Ssosia was my wife, no one dared touch her even though she was a heathen.
Ssosia should be grateful!
"Pf… I don't even care anymore."
After paying a fine, the Hero's pockets were left empty, making it more difficult for him to continue the journey. The thought about having to clean up some ruins or rob a tomb alone made him dizzy and nauseous.
Therefore, he took extreme measures.
"Let's kill the Demon Lord." Said the Rookie Hero in such a tone that made it seem like he decided to fight the main boss immediately due to his boredom playing an RPG game.
How naive.
It didn't take long for him to be stopped by one of the Celestial Lords, who was guarding the entrance to the Demon Lord's castle.
What was her name again?
"You worked hard to get here, Hero. Since I betrayed my people to prove my loyalty to the Demon Lord Parmamon, I have been expecting your arrival."
Oh! The Lord of Betrayal!
Flapping her snow-white wings, she slowly descended to the ground.
Her clothes resembled the outfit of an angel.
Hoping for the effect of reflecting the Divinity skill, she covered only the innermost parts of her body. She had a bow in her hands, and a spear hung diagonally on her back.
"Sir Hero, leave her to us and move on."
"I'll only leave after undressing… defeating this angel."
"Haha! Don't worry. We can handle her ourselves."
Some of his companions stayed behind to deal with her, but none of them could even mount a proper resistance against her.
"C-coward!"
"How fast!"
"Get down and fight fairly!"
"You only have a spear for decoration!"
She only pretended to fight on the ground.
But then, betraying their expectations, she flew high into the sky, pulled back her bowstring, and rained down volleys upon volleys of arrows upon them, which marked the beginning of her one-sided massacre.
"Hmm. She follows my orders well."
She proved that the years I spent teaching and honing her wasn't for nothing by showing me that her wings weren't just for aesthetics.
It was like watching a battle between a fighter jet and a tank.
It was obvious who would emerge the victor.
But the Hero, blindly believing that his companions would win, charged onwards, never once looking back to check on them.
It didn't take long for him to be blocked by an elven couple, though.
"Stop."
"You're not allowed to go any further."
I knew their names, but I didn't care and decided to skip introducing them.
"If you go on like this, then why were their names and lore even necessary, cowardly hubby?"
"To make it easier for others to understand."
After much deliberation, I decided to name them Lord A, B, C, and D.
It was easier to remember, and no one would be offended.
"Oh! You're the Lord of Legends, Yasuho of the Wind!" Shouted someone from the Hero's Party upon coming across the elf who looked more like a hero than the Hero himself.
He was wearing blue pants and a cape that seemed like it was handmade by a master craftsman.
All in all, he was just like what the Legendary Hero was supposed to be.
"Hmm. Am I that popular?" Yasuho asked with a smile.
"Yes. Many have heard of an elf who can drive any female crazy but has been enslaved by his own wife."
"I see."
Sighing, Yasuho drew his blades instead of making excuses, wielding a sword in his right hand and a dagger in his left.
He didn't have the Holy Sword Nucleon, but his swordsmanship was still one that shouldn't be messed with.
"Sir Hero, I have long wanted to fight Yasuho, the Lord of Legends, to find out which of us is stronger." Brave A stepped forward as he made a bold declaration, only to lose his head after only a moment.
Alex had deceitful skills, but the real rogues were the royal elves.
Yasuho, the second husband of the pathetic Third Elf King's sister.
He had already lived for quite a long time. Combining that with his talent and hard work, it became impossible for anyone to overcome him through efforts alone.
Oh! Well, unless I was the one fighting him myself.
Talent and hard work were nothing before Mollan's teachings, after all.
"Faster than the wind?"
Moreover, he wasn't alone. Someone else was standing behind him.
"Darling, you are too slow."
"I-I'm sorry."
Yasuho moved faster after hearing his wife's complaints.
At that moment…
"We need to catch his wife and hold her hostage against him! This is where we'll meet our end otherwise!"
One of the Hero's companions voiced out an "ingenious" plan.
"His wife is a Celestial Lord too!"
"If my memory serves me right, she's Silvaras, the Lord of Death."
"I heard that nobody has ever survived against her."
"It's all a bluff. After all, the only got going for her is her husband."
Secretly receiving instructions from me, Yasuho didn't immediately kill the Hero but played with him for a while.
Because of this, the fools in his party thought that they had a chance to grab his wife while the Hero restrained the Lord of Legends.
As a result…
They were all beautifully cut in half.
When I divided the skills between the four subjects, I decided to give her a little more, although she was already strong.
"They don't take me seriously since you're too weak, honey."
"I-I beg your pardon…"
"The greatest Elf King, Elfheim, has entrusted you with his most beloved sister. Therefore, as my husband, you should work harder."
"You're only a sister to him.."
"What did you say?"
"I'll try even harder for you!"
All of the Hero's companions, except Ssosia and me, had perished.
Lanuvel, sensing danger, wanted to run away, but Hanjo dealt with her.
As for the Hero himself…
"Give me five seconds… Done. Sorry about that. I sent my mother a message. You can deal with him now."
"As you wish."
The second reason I targeted newbies was that they had the latest smartphones.
I wasn't certain, and perhaps it was just me, but I thought the internet connection was even better with the latest tech.
At that moment…
[Account access verified.]
[Initiating the retinal authentication process.]
[Look at the camera.]
[Initializing…]
[Welcome, Vice President Kang Han Soo.]
"Stop. Don't kill him yet."
In the smartphone I borrowed from my junior, a suspicious message appeared.