SWNOVELXO Chapter 184
184. Teacher Radon! (2)
Jenny’s lies continued in a desperate fashion.
Each time she failed, a slap echoed, and despite feeling that pain, Jenny kept trying without a care.
Though I was only lightly hitting her, the fishing rod I held was no ordinary one. So, I had prepared a small fishing rod instead of Leviathan.
While it was nearly at the level of a flick, I had never seen anyone withstand it dozens of times.
“Again!”
Still, the lies continued. Jenny had a teary expression, clearly feeling a bit dizzy.
In that moment, her red-tinted eyes almost triggered my protective instincts, yet I simultaneously felt her fierce determination.
But…
Snap!
“Ouch, ouch, ouch!”
The result was the same. Even though I boasted about having Professor Radian behind me, it didn’t matter.
It was the weekend, so it was unreasonable to expect any faculty to be around besides the duty staff.
It was ridiculous, but the absurdity of saying such things made it even funnier.
“Ugh…!”
“How about we stop for now? Time has already flown by.”
“No, just one more time, please. Okay? I’m begging you.”
“No more. Just like you have a headache, my shoulders are hurting too.”
Despite my best efforts to comfort her, Jenny’s face was still filled with desperation and passion.
How long did she want to lie to me? Exactly, she likely wanted to hit me back as much as I had hit her.
“And this isn’t the only chance you’ll get. Let’s take it easy.”
“….”
Upon hearing that, Jenny finally quieted down. The flame that had been burning in her eyes cooled, leaving only teary glimmers.
Holding back her anger, Jenny said, “But why aren’t you playing the role of a master? When were you so confident… have you already lost your nerve?”
Despite her slender appearance, there was a dizzying intensity in her expression.
`You’re letting me off easy without finishing me off? Do you think I’m that weak?` It was an expression that could well fit a fallen soldier from a period drama.
Until now, pretending to be a wise sage up in the mountains didn’t feel all that great anymore.
“At first, it seemed fresh, and I felt excited, but the more I think about it now, the more embarrassed I feel.”
“….”
It was reminiscent of a time when I was a teen in the throes of adolescence.
After everything was said and done, suddenly thinking, `This doesn’t seem right.`, or `I want to amend this.`
More than anything, what was most mortifying now was that I had hit Jenny way too much.
“Ugh… I clearly tried my best… why couldn’t I achieve even one success?”
“I’m really sorry…!”
Jenny wailed like a child, jumping into my arms.
Coincidentally, Jenny was a top class student in the Combat Department and a trusted rising star in the academy.
She was popular and always held a high position with overwhelming strength.
If you only heard that description, she seemed like the quintessential charismatic student… but most often, one crucial fact was very easily forgotten.
She was still a girl who hadn’t even reached her twenties.
“This is so unfair! It feels like I held a sword but couldn’t even manage a single stance before losing!”
“This wasn’t exactly that kind of match, though.”
“No, maybe for you Radon, it’s as easy as eating a meal, but to me, it was a serious competition. A contest between classmates is a matter of pride!”
Bam—
The fire of her determination was igniting again.
Why is she so terrifyingly intense? Can’t she tone it down a bit?
I was already feeling guilty enough; please, just behave?
“But you’re just too strong. Even when I attacked with a sword, it felt like you were toying with me barehanded.”
“There’s no need to compare at that level….”
Fortunately, her fighting spirit began to wane again. But judging by the words she spoke, it seemed she still hadn’t let go of her stubbornness.
Seeing her like that made me uneasy… Honestly, I would have felt wronged too.
“Do you know how many times we exchanged blows?”
“Umm….”
They say a tree won’t fall after ten strikes, but Jenny had made a hundred attempts and hadn’t tricked me even once.
One hundred attempts. That meant she had also been hit a hundred times.
“I’m at a loss for words from how sorry I feel.”
To think Jenny could handle this much after being hit was impressive. After all, it was damage hitting her from both sides.
“But how long are you planning to stay in my arms?”
“Ah…”
In that moment, Jenny suddenly felt something strange and blushed, pulling away from my side.
In her sheer unfairness, she couldn’t see straight. The fact that she unconsciously hugged me only added to her embarrassment.
“Could you forget about what just happened? I lost my cool and just…”
“It’s fine. I understand completely.”
Jenny, now blushing, returned to her girl-like self, a stark contrast to her previous demeanor consumed by the desire to win.
“Maybe I really don’t have a talent for lying after all?”
“….”
Putting aside everything else, in the realm of `scammers`, Jenny was barely better than a child threatening with a kitchen knife.
Her attempts at lying were just all over the place and didn’t yield any results.
To deceive others requires improvisation, but she didn’t have that down pat. In contrast, I could manipulate others’ psychology and even change myself to fit my needs.
For Jenny, it must have felt like an insurmountable wall.
“I think I set the difficulty level too high. I’m sorry.”
“You can stop apologizing now. I’m the one who’s underqualified here.”
Jenny’s downcast words made me swallow hard.
At that moment, an awkward feeling was trying to dominate my mind.
“Wait? Isn’t that Lyman?”
Jenny exclaimed with wide eyes. I tried to turn my head to see the protagonist appearing.
But at that moment.
“Hold on.”
I turned my head half-heartedly.
That could have been a big deal.
“Jenny, you’re not lying again, are you?”
“No… this time it’s the truth…”
“Is that madman really here for something?”
“It’s not just Lyman. I was too focused to notice, but… Saint Nebia and Princess Mirona are here as well.”
Oh, come on. Please say it in a way that makes sense.
It’s too coincidental for such famous celebrities to randomly show up here.
Even if it’s a free weekend, the likelihood of them appearing here is…
“Wait…!”
Suddenly, chills swept down my spine. In an instant, I felt an overwhelming presence behind me, causing me to freeze.
Whether the saint and princess were actually here or not… that presence could not be mistaken for anyone else’s!
At that moment, I couldn’t deny that Jenny had lied. I turned to look behind me.
“Huh?”
No one was there. That chilling presence had vanished without a trace.
It was strange. There should have been someone here just a moment ago.
That didn’t mean Jenny had lied. The saint and princess genuinely existed beside my spirits.
`Then maybe…`
With a stuttering action, I slowly turned my gaze. Just as I was returning my eyes to the front.
“Are you looking for me?”
There stood a demon. At the same time, that chilling presence returned.
Lyman appeared like a ghost, smiling at me, and I found myself frozen by that smile.
“When did you get here?”
“I’ve been here since Jenny said, ‘Oh, it’s Lyman.'”
Jenny, standing behind Lyman, awkwardly grabs her neck. This time, it wasn’t a lie, it was the truth.
Lyman then darkly and sarcastically said, “Just now, I heard some idiot call me a madman…”
Shit, did I say something wrong? I wanted to shout, but before Lyman, my mouth just sealed shut.
Lyman already began looking around, pretending to wonder `Who could it be?` The grin he wore made it all the more eerie.
“Just like back then.”
In my first year, I had a similar experience after calling that guy a jerk in a practical exam.
This must be what déjà vu really means.
Ultimately, I ended up with that guy grabbing my shoulder.
“Shall we have a little chat together?”
“What… chat?”
“What else would it be?”
At that moment, his smile turned into a sinister smirk.
“You know very well what I’m talking about. I heard everything you just said! You little shit.”
What should I do? Should I get into my role and desperately claim it wasn’t true?
No, it was too late for that. Plus, with Jenny there as a witness…
“Radon didn’t say that.”
Huh?
Jenny spoke up.
What did she just say?
“Radon didn’t bring that up.”
Jenny reiterated.
I hadn’t misheard her at all.
“….”
“….”
Lyman, of course… I too was left speechless, feeling as if I had just taken a hit to the back of the head.
Jenny had undoubtedly heard me say `madman` with my own mouth. Yet she tells such a lie? Why?
“Is it true?”
“Yeah.”
“Don’t bullsh*t me and tell the truth.”
Lyman pressed her mentally. Nevertheless, Jenny replied firmly.
“Radon didn’t say that.”
“….”
With that short phrase, Lyman was left bewildered. I was equally taken aback.
I had expected déjà vu from that practical exam day. Because of Jenny’s honesty back then, I had been dragged up to the roof.
But this time was leagues apart from what happened in that practical exam.
`Is it that the results of my training are showing?`
I felt so proud.
So admirable.
As a master, infinitely proud.
To think they’ve grown this much…
“Are these idiots acting crazy together?”
“Ouch, ouch, ouch! Stop it! That hurts!”
“See! You really are a madman!”
Of course, as a price for that, Lyman began to stretch our faces like rubber.
In an instant, my once delicate cheeks turned into burst dumplings.
Only after Lyman released his grip could we resume our conversation.
“Ouch, ouch, ouch… What brings you here? You’re the last person I’d expect to see training.”
As I rubbed my sore cheeks, Lyman responded.
“I came to get those two. They’ve been busy running around since this morning, and now they’re napping in a place like this. And one of them is a princess.”
I spotted Princess Mirona sleeping on a bench. She was using Muto’s tail as a pillow… Huh? Muto?
“Hey, why are you acting like a pillow here?”
I rushed over to Muto and asked, and he answered.
『This friend agreed to write this for me.』
Saint Nebia was writing the manuscript that Muto was supposed to write. Despite using the bench as a desk, she was completely engrossed in it.
“Oh, you’ve come, Radon-sunbae.”
“Why is Saint Nebia writing this?”
“I was just curious and touched it, and my hands started moving on their own. Writing isn’t so bad after all.”
Saint Nebia spoke cheerfully. Today, her green hair seemed to shine brightly.
She had a tendency to get carried away once she felt a spark of inspiration. That tendency peaked when she became the villain in the main story.
“Can I write this for a while?”
“What?”
“I heard from this snake friend that it wouldn’t matter if I just made a rough composition.”
That wasn’t technically wrong… but could that be allowed? The plot was already so convoluted.
“Then I could try too?”
“What?”
I was taken aback by Lyman’s bombshell statement.
“I heard it was a hastily put-together manuscript, so I don’t think anyone would mind my joining in.”
“Even so, think about it logically. If you two write this as a relay…”
Just as I was questioning that, Jenny suddenly cut me off and jumped in.
“Can I try writing too?”
Even Jenny chiming in made me stick my tongue out.
Maybe Jenny felt a bit left out and wanted to chime in somehow.
Why does she have to be interested in something like this…
『Oh ho ho, this smells like a masterpiece.』
“Shut up.”
Muto’s whisper made me dizzy for a moment… and then I heard a sound stoking the flames in a burning house.
“Radon, how about showing it to Crona and Mary as well? If asked, they might help too!”
“Ugh….”
At the horrifying suggestion, I lost my words.
Surviving as an Academy Scammer.