SWNOVELXO Chapter 135
TLed by NolepGuy
Chapter 135
Dead of night.
Sitting at my desk, pondering the reasons behind my failed magic, I let out a deep sigh over the unresolved questions.
“The theory is perfect, so what’s the problem…? Tsk, maybe it’s too perfect, and that’s the issue.”
My notebook was filled with crooked handwriting.
[December 23rd]
Practiced Magic: Fireball
Outcome: Successfully manifested the magic circle in the air, but it disappeared before reaching the target. Failure.
·
·
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[January 13th]
Practiced Magic: Fireball
Outcome: Successfully created the Fireball, but due to lack of accuracy, ended up burning Gomtangi’s tail. Failure.
[January 15th]
Practiced Magic: Meteor
Outcome: Nothing appeared. Failure.
A month of grueling effort had only resulted in mastering a single Fireball. Even that was an unreliable dud that couldn’t hit its mark.
“Haha… F*ck.”
What is this?
Getting stuck at the basics.
I had planned to learn step by step from the fundamentals, but the reality of not even being able to take the first step made me laugh bitterly.
The notes I wrote today weren’t much different from yesterday’s… While I felt my efforts were meaningless, the small signs of progress kept me from giving up.
In battle, even a tiny spark could be the key to victory. Just like how bringing a single 1,000-won rose to a date could increase your chances of forgiveness when you’re late, having more cards to play made dealing with others much easier.
“Have I run out of steam now…?”
Just as I was about to raise my middle finger in reverence to the god who seemed to be mocking me from somewhere, thinking the world was conspiring against me—
-Ding!
A clear notification sound rang in my head.
“What the…?”
Even an omnipotent god doesn’t want to hear curses, huh? If it had been a little later, I might’ve committed blasphemy—what a shame.
“But why a quest, all of a sudden?”
It was a notification I hadn’t heard in a long time.
The notification that I thought had abandoned me after not appearing for a while. The clear sound felt like it was greeting me, saying the Possessor’s Privilege was still intact.
‘If you’re going to appear, why not show up more often? Why only occasionally?’
It’s an awkward date to show up just to say New Year’s greetings. Smiling wryly at the belated Blue Window, I shook my head.
“Screw off.”
-A quest has been generated.
“Not doing it.”
-A quest has been generated.
As I tried to ignore it and scribble in my notebook, the persistent notifications made me slowly lift my head.
The Quest Window wouldn’t stop ringing until it was checked.
When I was younger, this thing woke me up more than once. Just as I was about to greet my growth plate—ding. When I lay down for a nap—ding. I’m convinced this thing shares some blame for my height not reaching 190.
“Sigh…”
What kind of request is it this time?
The most recent quest was to rescue Yuria from a dungeon.
I remembered reluctantly following it because of the enormous reward called the Hand of Rehabilitation.
It was an infuriating quest that nullified my resolve to never help anyone again.
Honestly, I wanted to ignore this quest.
I didn’t want to interfere with the protagonists’ growth anymore; it was time for them to develop on their own. I couldn’t spoon-feed them forever, and 80% of me was determined to refuse.
But at the same time, I was curious.
The Status Window always dangled rewards that weren’t easily obtainable.
The penalties for failure were relatively light, while the rewards for success were generous—that had been the Status Window’s pattern so far.
In my younger days, it had offered absurd traits like the Genius of Weaponry as rewards, and even Aura, which was impossible to acquire at a young age.
During my Academy Days, it had dangled rewards like raising favorability with key characters or boosting stats.
All of them were rewards that couldn’t be obtained easily.
I knew how much time it took to increase physical strength by just 1 point. While it varied from person to person, going from 100 to 101 required an unimaginable amount of time.
As the novel progressed into its later stages, everyone’s stats became standardized, and even a mere 1-point difference in stats had created a gap as vast as heaven and earth.
Knowing the importance of paying attention to such details, I was honestly both glad and annoyed by the reappearance of the Quest Window after such a long time.
‘What is it this time?’
I hoped it wouldn’t be something that heavily impacted the story.
With a trembling heart, I slowly raised my head to look at the Quest Window that appeared before me.
And then.
“F*ck.”
I cursed.
*
[Q. The Knight Who Always Protects Her.]
There is a beautiful girl.
A girl with a smile as radiant as fully bloomed cherry blossoms and a delicate beauty like baby’s breath.
She has never faced great hardships in her life. Her exceptional appearance made people considerate of her and treated her like a gem.
Of course, when she stepped into the larger world, she was often scratched and hurt by the hands of those who envied her.
Experiencing criticism for the first time.
Bullying.
Neglect.
It was truly difficult, but even so, the girl liked and loved people. It was her late mother’s dying wish and the love her parents had taught her.
She doesn’t think deeply about her appearance. She believes it’s ordinary and assumes her friends see her inner self, not her looks.
What a fool. A complete fool.
A fool who doesn’t even know how to wield the weapon of beauty. Well, that’s part of her charm, though.
One day, a ball is held at the Academy the girl attends.
At the ball, many ladies flaunt and refine their weapons. The girl was no different.
Even if she thought appearance wasn’t everything, the desire to look beautiful was instinctive for women.
But what if.
What if the day came when the girl lost her beauty?
If her once-beautiful skin became covered in freckles.
If her fresh smile turned into one resembling a rotten pumpkin, would the people by her side still remain?
The girl would cry.
She would cry sorrowfully.
She would be left behind.
And…
The shadow threatening the girl is drawing closer.
(!) Protect the girl, ‘Yuria,’ who has lost her beauty.
1. Find ‘Yuria,’ who has temporarily lost her beauty, at the ball. (0/1)
2. Protect ‘Yuria’ from the heretics. (0/1)
Reward: Information of Vitality/Hidden Magical Talent/Mana +100
Yuria: White Magic Lv.1
Failure: The Saintess of Light, ‘Yuria,’ falls into darkness.
Ah…
Staring at the brightly glowing Quest Window, I muttered under my breath.
“Damn.”
*
Balls are, after all, one of the most frequently appearing settings in fantasy novels.
They’re places where many Sub Male Leads compete to dance with the Heroine first, or where villainesses plot schemes to torment the Heroine.
The novel I possessed was no exception.
The Academy’s ball was meant to be a place where fresh youths could unwind, but beneath the surface, it was pitch black.
It was a place where people mocked the dresses worn by commoners, gossiped about the evening wear of fallen nobles, or even poured wine on the dress of a noble lady they didn’t like—a venue where violence was practically legal.
And the ball event mentioned in the Quest Window contained such heavy content that those actions would seem like mere pranks in comparison.
Sitting at my desk, twirling a pen, I fell into deep thought.
“Why, of all things, does it have to be this episode?”
There are so many other episodes, after all.
This episode was closely tied to Ruin.
Just a little…
It made me worried.
***
[Ball D-3]
Outside the Academy grounds, in a certain dress shop, a pink-haired girl stood on tiptoes.
“Wow… So pretty.”
With melancholic eyes, Yuria gazed through the glass window at a white dress, letting out an awestruck exclamation as if enchanted.
Three days until the ball.
Yuria, who had come to buy a new dress to replace the tacky dress she was always ridiculed for, couldn’t bring herself to leave the vicinity of the dress shop.
The pure white dress held Yuria’s steps in place.
It was so expensive, a luxury item that seemed like it should charge you just for looking at it.
It was a dress far beyond the reach of Yuria’s impoverished wallet, but at least looking at it didn’t cost anything.
Yuria shook her head and turned away with difficulty, suppressing the smile that had unconsciously crept onto her lips.
“Yeah… A dress? What dress, given my circumstances?”
Yuria envied the other students.
She envied the excited backs of the Academy girls entering the shop to buy dresses.
If she had the financial means, she would have liked to buy at least one, but relying on a scholarship for her livelihood made it an excessive luxury.
Hiding her bitter feelings, Yuria trudged along.
After walking for quite a while, she arrived at the bustling market stalls, let out a deep sigh, and rolled up her sleeves.
“Well… Second-hand isn’t so bad, right?”
A thrift clothing store piled high with clothes discarded by nobles.
Rolling up her sleeves, Yuria briskly walked in. Buying used clothing that someone else had worn and discarded was embarrassing, but she wanted to avoid the sneers about her tacky dress this year.
When she stopped in front of a heap of clothes, Yuria plunged her hand deep into the pile and pulled out a crumpled, yellow dress that resembled an old rag.
It was full of wrinkles.
The dress gave off a musty smell, but it was still more presentable than the one she currently owned.
“Found you…!”
‘Ah…’
Compared to the pure white dress she had just admired, this dress was utterly shabby.
She regretted not coming straight here instead of looking at the dresses in the shop.
It made her feel even more pitiful.
Choosing clothes in a place like this.
Feeling happy about finding a decent dress here—it all just felt pathetic.
She hung her head and stood there for about a minute, feeling dejected.
“Hmm…”
A pleasant, deep voice reached Yuria’s ears.
A man stood beside Yuria and asked in a small voice.
“Are you planning to buy that?”
“Ah… Yes.”
“Hmm…”
Yuria didn’t lift her head.
She was ashamed of herself.
The man, unfazed by Yuria’s demeanor, began rummaging through the pile of clothes.
-Rustle.
-Rustle.
“Personally, I think…”
The man pulled out a red dress from the pile.
After holding it up against Yuria’s body and nodding to himself, he spoke again in his pleasant voice to the still-downcast Yuria.
“I think this dress would suit you better.”
“Ah… Thank you.”
“Don’t mention it.”
“But who…”
Yuria turned her head to look at the man who had picked out the dress for her. She was curious about who was being so kind and found his voice too sweet to ignore.
And the moment she saw the man’s face.
“Huh…?”
A foolish sound escaped her lips.
“It’s been a while, Miss Yuria.”
“The world’s most handsome butler, at your service.”
Ricardo stood before Yuria.