Chapter 133
“Student Council Emergency Directive No. 71.
Annihilate the bandit group that attacked Kepa Village, and confirm the location and destruction of the Red Soulstone.
That means you accomplished all of it, correct?”
A sharp gaze pierced straight through me.
Her overbearing attitude made even the fine hairs on my body stand on end.
Jet-black bobbed hair, thick eyebrows, and tightly pressed lips.
This woman, whose sharp eyes made her look even more fierce, was the vice president of the Student Council—and one of the three people Noah had warned me to keep an eye on.
Neris Rike.
I believed one of the three was Ilesia, the Goddess of Light.
Herka, Sia, and Neris.
I thought Neris was the least likely of the three, but I couldn’t conclusively rule her out.
The thought that the woman standing before me might be the goddess made me feel strangely tense.
“The bandit group has been annihilated.
We confirmed the location of the Red Soulstone and destroyed it.
We remained in the village for an additional day to investigate the Red Soulstone and make sure no further damage occurred.
Aside from the bandit collaborators captured during the annihilation of the bandit group, the other seven bandits are on their way to the Executive Department.”
“……”
Neris stood straight, looked us over, and spoke.
“Very well. You may return.”
Huh? Is that it?
I had expected her to interrogate us harshly.
I seemed to have missed my chance to bring up Park Seoyeon.
“What is it? Didn’t you hear me tell you to leave?”
Stia stepped forward and spoke.
“I, regarding the Red Soulstone……”
“Did you discover anything?”
Neris asked sharply.
Stia was so intimidated that she couldn’t continue.
“No. There was no meaningful information……”
“Anything else?”
Neris sat down and no longer even looked at us.
“I will hear about anything unusual.
But if there’s no need, you don’t have to say anything. Or do you want me to congratulate you?”
Everyone looked at me.
I should be the one to bring up Park Seoyeon, I suppose.
“The bandit group was annihilated in the end, but when we reached their hideout, the bandits had already been wiped out.
By the hand of a single person.”
“……”
Neris looked at me with interest.
“Was she another candidate?”
“No, but she was a young woman.”
“Characteristics?”
“Her name was Park Seoyeon. Black hair, a young woman in her early twenties, of average height. She uses a large cleaver as a weapon and is cruel.
Every bandit she attacked was crushed beyond recognition and buried.”
“……Then you. Are you saying you simply buried the bodies and came back?”
“That’s not what happened.”
Diana, who cared about honor more than anyone, seemed to take offense and immediately objected.
“Decal subdued and captured the bandits who had been exploiting the villagers.
He was also the one who treated the people who had been injured and were slowly wasting away.”
Yet somehow, it sounded as though she was giving me all the credit.
Diana was completely serious.
Was she this angry simply because I hadn’t received a proper evaluation?
I had no interest in being highly regarded by Melbrit.
But seeing Diana made me realize.
I shouldn’t be standing here without any enthusiasm at all.
This time, I spoke.
“Park Seoyeon was a dangerous lunatic.
If we hadn’t fought her and stopped her, the entire village might have been endangered.
And Diana Vanguard was the one who saved my life during that process.”
“……”
Diana looked at me in surprise, not knowing what to do.
“And Stia Harpe. If she hadn’t bravely stepped forward, we would all have been too frightened to enter the hideout and would have run away.
It was a place where it was difficult even to remain standing with a sound mind, and when the fight broke out unexpectedly, it would have been dangerous if Ava, Karen, and Stia hadn’t protected Diana and me.”
If even one of them had been absent when we fought Seoyeon, it would have been dangerous.
Seoyeon was extremely strong, and even Stia and Karen together were no match for her in close combat.
I also thought Ava had played a major role in making up for that slight deficiency.
In fact, since I hadn’t expected anything from her at all, I was all the more surprised.
Of course, if I let my own bias dominate too much, then Karen had contributed the most during the emergency directive.
Because she had healed me with her voluptuous breasts.
Neris listened to me quietly before opening her mouth.
“Understood.
The rewards will be distributed according to a fair assessment of each person’s merit.”
Neris hesitated as though unsure of something, then added,
“I’m not accustomed to saying things like this…….
Your performance was worthy of Melbrit’s name. You’ve worked hard.”
I wasn’t sure whether I had phrased it skillfully, but I felt relieved that I had done what I needed to do as the leader.
Melbrit, the Hero Academy, was a hopeless institution, but everyone who had accompanied me on the directive had approached it with unwavering seriousness.
There was no reason to begrudge them a few extra words.
Should we leave now?
I turned to the side.
Stia seemed to have something she wanted to say.
“Um, may I ask you one question?”
“What is it?”
“I’m curious why you haven’t asked about the Red Soulstone.
Personally, I thought that identifying the source of the Soulstone was no less important than annihilating the bandit group in this emergency directive.”
“……”
Neris seemed to think for a moment before replying.
“We had already been investigating the source of the Soulstone.
When we learned that the bandits who had retreated from the northern front possessed Soulstones, the student council president decided to issue the emergency directive.”
The Red Soulstone.
The most dangerous substance in this world.
I didn’t know the details, but I knew why Stia was so concerned about it.
Among all of us, she must have had the strongest desire to prevent any more victims of the Red Soulstone.
“Recently, Soulstones have begun appearing not only on the front lines, but also near villages where people live.
We have more or less identified their source.”
“The source of the Soulstone is……!”
“I’m not sure whether I should tell you this based on my own judgment.
But I suppose it won’t matter. I believe you’ll be able to meet me in the Dragon rank before long.”
As Neris said this, she stared intently at my face.
What was that supposed to mean? Was she implying that she wanted to keep me nearby and personally beat the hell out of me?
I would go there anyway, if only to meet Neris.
“The Demon King’s Army is showing troubling signs of activity.
The Red Soulstones are flowing in from the front lines. The number of enhanced monsters has also increased tremendously compared to before, making this a dangerous situation.”
“Do you mean the Demon King’s Army might launch an all-out attack?”
“That’s right.
I’m going to the front lines tomorrow as well. I hope you can quickly reach the point where you can do your part.
A real threat is approaching. When the time comes, we Hero candidates must be able to stand and fight to protect the people.
In that regard, you are an exceptionally talented group, rarely seen in recent years.
Although one of you is somewhat lacking in dignity……”
……Her gaze stung.
It seemed I wasn’t the only one in Melbrit being watched closely by the goddess.
I supposed it was only natural, considering I had shamelessly flirted with her when we first met.
But threats to the world and the like were the least of my concerns.
Right now, meeting the goddess and having sex with the women of Melbrit were more important to me.
That objective had not changed.
“I’ve spoken for too long.
The matter of your rewards will be dealt with later. The first thing you’ll notice is that the evaluation scores in your student handbooks have changed.
Return to your respective positions. And…… Karen?”
“Ah, yes!”
Neris suddenly singled out Karen and glared at her coldly.
“You are standing too close to that man.
Move away.”
“……Yes.”
Karen moved half a step away from me, her face downcast.
“You are Hero candidates.
Do not forget that you must set an example. In particular, it is unacceptable for a woman of Melbrit to associate so intimately with a man.”
“……”
Just as I thought.
Exactly as my first impression had suggested, she seemed like the personification of Melbrit’s stifling principles.
She was especially rigid when it came to relations between men and women.
“You may leave.”
Though we were practically driven out, strangely enough, I didn’t feel bad.
Of course, Karen, who had been reprimanded for standing too close to me, looked a little depressed.
“This is the first time I’ve thought I hated Melbrit……”
I casually fondled Karen’s breasts.
“It’s all right.
I’ll try to secure a route for Karen to get to the Eight-Colored Shell Castle.”
“Ah. Mmh……. Yes.”
Stia sighed.
“Karen. You can’t indulge Decal. Didn’t you hear what Lady Neris just said?
The Demon King’s Army is becoming increasingly active. And there’s also the matter of the Red Soulstone……”
I groped Stia’s breasts as well.
“Ah, ah…… Decal……”
“I want to touch them.”
“I told you, you can’t.”
“I want to touch them.”
“……”
Seeing Stia fall silent, Diana said incredulously,
“What was that about indulging him?”
“……”
Stia seemed to have nothing to say. She simply stood there with flushed cheeks.
Just then, Ava, who had been watching us, spoke.
“Um…….
Are all of you really dating Decal?”
"……." "……." "……."
This time, even Diana fell silent.
"Though he has a girlfriend already."
"W-Who?"
Diana answered reflexively.
"No! It doesn't really bother me. I'm just asking out of curiosity."
It seemed to bother her quite a lot.
"An elf."
"……Tch. Elves are a race that's absurdly pretty without exception."
Isti was rather pretty.
She wouldn't lose out even in comparison with a goddess.
Perhaps because it had been quite a while since I'd last seen her, I found myself wanting to meet her even while fondling Karen and Stia's breasts on either side of me.
"Why? Were you thinking of applying to be his girlfriend?"
"W-Who said that!"
Girlfriend wasn't an option.
Now, what empty slots did I have left?
I already had a cock warmer, a slave, a bitch, and a fairy…… Should I make a cum receptacle?
"Want to be my cum receptacle?"
When I said it seriously, Diana pointed her hand at me.
"Gasp! Don't use magic. The three of us will get electrocuted!"
"You just need to stop touching my breasts! What? What are you asking the young lady of House Vanguard to receive?"
It seemed she was too embarrassed to say the whole thing aloud.
Abba watched Diana and me bicker, then spoke.
"……Miss Diana seems to have feelings for Dekal as well."
"……."
Struck right on the mark by a third party, Diana flinched.
"I understand that Dekal is popular. Is it because he's handsome?"
"Well, that's not entirely wrong."
"You'd be even cooler if you showed a little humility, Dekal."
Stia pointed that out.
As if taking revenge, I kneaded Stia's breasts.
"……Hnngh. And you could cut down on this shamelessness, too."
Boldly fondling the breasts of female candidates in Melbrit.
It was only possible because the corridor was empty and the girls had given me permission, but I still felt a strange thrill.
Was it because the school had drawn a line and forbidden it? It made me want to trespass even more for no reason.
"Even so……."
Abba smiled.
"Thanks to Dekal, I was able to complete a difficult mission far beyond my abilities.
Thank you."
We all looked at Abba.
"No one thinks you were inadequate.
And it certainly wasn't thanks to me."
"Oppa's right."
"……."
Abba scratched his head bashfully.
He was a good guy.
I even liked that he wasn't obsessed with women.
……He isn't after my ass, is he?
I let go of Stia and Karen, then opened my student handbook to check.
"Ah, our scores changed.
Everyone, check yours."
I had gone from Wolf to Bear.
My total score was 1,132 points.
The points I'd earned from the additional mission were far greater than those I'd lost while I was away.
I'd been raising my score as if I were being chased, but now I had some breathing room. About 400 points to Dragon. Easy, honestly.
I could move up to Dragon as early as tomorrow.
Just thinking about making Neris pant already had my cock hard.
"Hmph……."
Diana closed her handbook as though it were only natural.
Judging by her expression, she seemed quite satisfied to have entered Bear.
It was the same rank as her older sister, Tilia Vanguard.
"Oppa! I'm Wolf now. I'll catch up soon."
"I'll be looking forward to it, my cock warmer."
I hugged Karen and gently ruffled her hair.
"I'll be moving up soon, too."
"You want me to hold you as well?"
"No……!"
"I want to hold you, Stia."
"Kngh…! D-Do you think I'll indulge you just because you're acting like a badly behaved child?"
Though she said that, Stia couldn't resist my childish begging and obediently let herself be held.
"Let's all meet in Dragon."
"That might be difficult for me……."
Abba trailed off uncertainly.
"I was a candidate who wasn't even sure why I was in Wolf to begin with. I mean."
"Have some confidence."
This time, Diana spoke.
"Abba. Just as Dekal said, you did your part.
Don't disgrace your family by being unable to trust yourself unless you get permission from others for every little thing."
"……You're right. You're absolutely right. Thank you, Miss Diana."
"Even if you can't be as shameless as Dekal, you need a little shamelessness."
Somehow, I had become the representative of shameless people.
Well, after creampieing all three women here, I didn't exactly have anything to say.
Noble ladies from prestigious aristocratic families. Precious talents of Melbrit. With such valuable things hanging around me, I wanted to creampie them all the more.
I wanted to get them pregnant. And I wanted to see them awkwardly holding their swelling bellies, eventually raising my children.
To that end, I also had to work on making the 「Eight-Colored Clam Castle」 safe.
I liked that plan.
Shall I act like the shameless bastard I am?