I Became the Must-Have Character of the Academy City

Chapter 20

Rustle, rustle.

Ichinose mechanically solved problems, turning pages as she went.

Questions designed to cleverly twist wording or play with numbers were now answered in seconds.

"No-se~ Let's stop here and go grab dinner."

"I’m not done reviewing yet. Please wait."

As always, Ichinose gave Noah, who had taken over her bed, her usual response.

Noah’s presence wasn’t a distraction.

Ichinose had even come to use Noah's constant attempts at conversation as an additional challenge to increase the difficulty of her studies. It was perfect for honing her concentration.

"Mmm... I’m bored."

Noah stared intently at Ichinose’s collection of stuffed animals scattered across the bed.

A dragon plushie with tearful eyes and a shark plushie were among them. They all looked adorably dumb in their own way.@@@@

"No-se, what did you say their names were again?"

"I told you last time. They’re Woowoo and Blueby."

"Woowoo and Blueby... Right, those were their names."

Noah could tell.

Her aloof friend had slept with those stuffed animals in her arms just last night.

Ichinose’s scent lingered strongly on them.

Meanwhile, Ichinose, sitting at her desk and solving problems while casually chatting, paused when she came across a question related to the southern region.

"Noah."

"Hm?"

"Have you ever been to the south?"

"No, but I’ve heard about it from my dad. He said it’s not really a place people can live."

"I figured as much."

"What else did he say... Oh, he mentioned it’s a good place to build experience because of the abundance of monsters."

According to Noah, the south was exactly as people knew it:

A land overrun by monsters spawned by the Void Whale, which had exponentially reproduced.

A hiding place for heinous criminals who couldn’t integrate into society, forming their own groups.

From an ordinary person’s perspective, it was a place with no value as land.

"So, why the sudden interest in the south? You’ve never been curious before."

"It was in the problem book, so I thought I’d ask."

"Oh-ho~ Well, Miss Curious, how about taking a trip to the south with this big sis of yours?"

"That’s creepy. Stop talking weird."

Ichinose rejected the idea nonchalantly, solving the last problem before picking up her smartphone.

"Experience..."

Her eyes caught a blank profile with no photo, drawing her attention for a moment.

***

Meanwhile, Rohan searched the dead man’s smartphone, quickly extracting useful information.

As he moved, he kept a video playing to prevent the screen from locking.

He double-checked the information on the phone, scanning through the group members’ faces.

"One down, five to go."

Rohan moved swiftly, tossing the man’s corpse—still gagged with a sock—into the dark bushes.

He commandeered the driver’s seat, wiping the blood from his knife onto the passenger seat before rummaging through the car’s interior.

Pills of unknown purpose, cigarettes, a lighter, alcohol, some coins, and tokens were scattered around.

The coins jingled in his hand.

"Well, at least I earned fare and meal money."

The only noteworthy item was the firearm in the passenger seat.

It was a model he’d never seen before.

"Looks like an automatic pistol."

"Excuse me, but this is private property. You’re not allowed here."

The group’s attention snapped to him all at once.

Then, grins spread across their faces, amusement flickering in the dull monotony of their night.

"Oh, really? What a shame. What should we do about that?"

The largest of the beastkin strode out of the factory, positioning himself in front of Rohan.

This was the muscle of the group, the one with the highest stamina and defense.

From Rohan’s recollection, he was a canine beastkin.

"You should leave now," Rohan said boldly.

The beastkin chuckled, extending his hand toward him.

"How about a cigarette first?"

"A cigarette..."

Rohan pretended to fumble in his pockets, miming as if handing something over.

As their hands made contact—

[Granting Target a Weakness]

[The target is now vulnerable to physical attributes.]

At the same moment, the beastkin’s nose twitched.

"This smell of blood...?"

The wind had carried Rohan’s scent to him. Just as realization dawned—

Rohan cloaked himself in magic and thrust his knife forward.

Thud! The blade pierced through thick muscle as if cutting tofu.

"Guh...!"

Without hesitation, Rohan slashed upward, tearing through to the neck.

No significant strength was required. The blade sliced through bone like it was brittle straw.

"Now three left."

The beastkin collapsed with a loud thud.

The remaining men quickly suppressed their shock and readied themselves for combat.

"What’s this? A kid who knows how to use a knife properly, huh?"

"Goddammit! I hadn’t even gotten my coins back from that bastard!"

"If you’d bought the cigarette butt earlier, it would’ve been free, dumbass."

Even as they exchanged meaningless banter, a thick, murderous intent shimmered in their eyes.

Rohan noted with interest how quickly they overcame their initial surprise.

***

Screech! Screech!

The sound of spray paint filled the air as a man working on the factory wall turned his gaze.

Approaching him was a man soaked in blood.

In one hand, a crowbar. In the other, a pistol.

Though there were wounds across his body, none seemed life-threatening.

The graffiti artist spoke up.

"Where are my men?"

"Dead."

Rohan’s unwavering declaration made the man frown.

Pulling a pair of brass knuckles from his pocket, the artist slipped them onto his hands.

"How sad. I knew I should’ve gone back to them when I heard the fighting..."

"Got a cramp in your leg?"

Rohan had assumed the man already knew.

The screams of his subordinates had been far from subtle. One of them had even tried to call him.

"Today was just too good. On days like this, I can’t interrupt my work."

"Sure thing."

Rohan nodded casually and raised the pistol.

Bang!

He pulled the trigger.