The Only Male Student in the Academy - Chapter 162

162. Commercial District – Wandering Giant Strategy (2)

As for Claire, I think we have become a relationship with no hesitation anymore.

That’s right, I’ve seen Claire not only in her underwear but also naked several times…. Now that I say this, it’s definitely not a normal friendship.

Would you say that Claire showing me her underwear or naked body is no different from everyday life now?

In the first place, Claire only did such perverted things for her own pleasure.

In any case, I am just an object of s*xual desire.

So this was a little different.

Speaking only in terms of area, the bunny girl outfit would show much less skin than the underwear, but for some reason, it was also provocative.

Above all, direction.

Claire was clearly tempting me.

“…Is it time for that?”

I pushed away Claire who was clinging to me.

The light body immediately fell away from me without much resistance.

“Hey, Claire. The situation is not as peaceful as it looks. Monsters may come at any time.”

“I know that much~?”

-Tuk.

I felt a small weight on his thigh.

Claire sat down on the floor and placed her head on my lap.

“Put me on it~.”

“…….”

Did I really eat something wrong?

Claire’s face looking up at me from her lap was more ordinary than I thought. I would say that it is not much different from the atmosphere of Claire that I usually see.

That’s why I’m embarrassed.

“Stop it. If you keep doing this, someone else will catch you.”

“It doesn’t really matter~.”

“……What?”

“You’ve revealed everything to Miss Marie~? So even if I do something like this, you’ll treat me like a crazy person, right?”

That’s right.

I wonder if Claire and I really cross the line. It’s like walking around in a bunny girl suit…… , It would be much more normal than having a dog on a leash and licking my feet.

But it’s not just Marie and I who are here.

“It’s the same with Nina~. If you get caught, you’re going to start a rumor~? You can tell Benit Findelnerca, but so? What can I do with that?”

“…….”

Nothing will happen.

Not only is Nina not the type to spread rumors, but Benit’s current situation is not very good to begin with.

The reputation of the Count Findelnerca family is at its worst. But if I were to say bad things about Claire, would you even believe me?

Even if you believe me, you will only be attacked. And if Claire takes it away, that’s it.

In the first place, our current actions are in the position of helping the Count Findelnerca family. So Nina can’t say anything.

“Rather, being known… Makes me excited.”

“Incorrigible pervert….”

“That’s right~. I’m an incorrigible pet♡”

Claire speaks in a tickling voice.

I was thinking of getting out of the way…… No matter how I look at it, it doesn’t seem to be there.

I feel like sighing, but… As expected, I can’t shake off the feeling of discomfort.

“…….”

I stroked Claire’s head in silence.

I can feel the soft texture of my hair, and I think that the texture of hair can be so different from person to person.

It feels different from my hair and from Mari’s hair.

Somehow, it really feels like I’m petting a puppy.

Claire just surrenders herself to my touch as if it feels good.

“Can I touch somewhere other than the head?”

Claire said.

For some reason, it sounded like he was asking me to stroke other places as well.

I wonder what kind of situation this is, but it’s better than bareing my chest, ripping off my clothes, and throwing them away.

He slowly moves his hand down and places his fingers on Claire’s cheek.

I can feel the elasticity starting from the tip of my finger, and when I feel the softness, I pinch it only slightly so as not to hurt.

Claire smiled,

My bangs seemed to be covering my eyes, so I moved them to my forehead and followed the line until I reached my ears.

Ears feel rough compared to cheeks, but earlobes are fun to roll with your fingers.

Go down the jaw line separately,

Run your finger over your lips,

Swipe your nose.

“Hair, cheeks, ears, nose, lips. You can do whatever you want. It’s all Ariel’s.”

I touched Claire’s face like that for a long time.

I guess I could say that I became more focused without even realizing it. There I was, caressing Claire without even thinking about it.

Aren’t there people who heal by petting cats?

It’s similar to that…… Isn’t that a bit much to say? Anyway, humans have a desire to keep touching things that feel good to the touch.

… I guess I was pretty tired too.

Healing with Clair in the middle of the danger zone.

“I am handing over the night watch.”

I stopped stroking and said.

Claire has no particular reaction to that. I thought he might utter a word of complaint, but he just smiled calmly and got up.

I got up from my chair, still wary that something was up to me.

“Most of the details were written down on paper. As you can see, turrets have been built and mines have been laid in some places, so be careful.”

“Huh~. Then, how many places should we build walls?”

“Don’t leave that up to your judgment. I’ve taken out the combat rations, so take them and eat them, and this candle… But you’re not going to stand guard wearing those, are you?”

Claire, wearing a bunny girl suit, nods her head casually. In the end, I had no choice but to say one thing.

Claire grins.

“Why? Do you want me to do that?”

“That’s nonsense….Why on earth did you wear it?”

“I just wore it because I wanted to show it to Ariel. Isn’t it cuter than I thought? I like this.”

“Oh, that’s right.”

It seems that Claire has opened her eyes to something new again.

I thought so because it happens often.

“I want to do something that feels better, but I guess I’ll just get a taste of it today.”

Phew.

Claire gently grabbed my shoulder, tiptoed, and breathed into my ear.

A strangeness that seems to pierce the brain.

Claire whispers in my ear.

“You can look forward to it.”

“…What do you mean?”

“That’s obvious. There’s only one thing that can make me feel good now.”

“……I’m going to sleep.”

I shook off Claire and walked towards the camp.

Before entering the camp, don’t forget to say a word.

“Change your clothes and stay alert.”

And the next day, when I woke up, Claire was fortunately wearing her original clothes.

I guess I was the one who woke up last. When I came out of the tent, Marie, Nina, and Claire were all up.

Every part of my body screams as I sleep in my sleeping bag with only a single tent cloth. It’s also unfortunate that we couldn’t bring an extra bed due to space issues.

Still, I guess I was quite tired, so I slept soundly. Because despite my physical pain, my mind was very clear.

The morning I greeted while rubbing my eyes started off in a not very good mood.

Marie is preparing her breakfast near the bonfire, watching her.

Claire was glaring at Nina with her arms crossed.

“Ariel, you’re awake. You’re here at the right time.”

She has a very different atmosphere from what I saw before.

Claire, who has even erased her smile, has nothing but cuteness. There is only a sharply refined, tense atmosphere.

Nina responds to him with an expressionless expression.

From the beginning, Nina had a hard, rock-like aura, but she feels even colder when contrasted with Claire. It was as if there was an invisible wall between Claire and Nina.

The reason was easy to predict.

A corpse rolling around.

It was close to a human form, and everywhere you looked it was an infectious agent.

“Did a monster come at dawn?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“And you killed it by yourself?”

“…….”

No answer comes out of Nina’s mouth right away.

She was probably questioned by Claire with similar words.

“I didn’t think there was a need to disturb other people’s sleep. Since there were only a small number of people, I was able to respond sufficiently on my own….”

“The watchdog was not entrusted to you to respond alone. It was set up to notify others if a problem arises.”

“However, Ariel Beherit. If all the party members lose sleep, wouldn’t it cause a lot of disruption to the next schedule? In that case, there would be less loss if only I, who had rested the longest, would respond.”

“I am saying this because you are the only one who can find the way in the Territory Wisdom Technique. In the first place, please understand that this camping trip is to preserve your stamina.”

Tsk.

I clicked her tongue without realizing it.

“…For me, you mean?”

“The loss is greater if you become tired or injured than if we become a little tired. Don’t you know that if you become incapable of fighting, we will have to camp here for one more day?”

“…….”

Nina looked troubled. I guess I didn’t even think about it that far.

In fact, Nina’s role in our party was quite large.

At least she must keep Nina intact until she gets the ‘spark of sanctification’ into her hands.

“From now on, I will be the first watch, Marie will be the second watch, Claire will be the third watch, and Nina will be the last watch. And when Claire finishes the third watch, she will watch Nina’s last watch.”

“Well, there’s no need to do that….”

“Don’t make me say this too many times, Nina. I’m the head of the party, and if you tease me, you’re the head of the party.”

Since there is a lot to prepare for the first semester, I think it is best for me to do it myself. Well, depending on the situation, you can hand it over to Marie.

Situations like this can happen when Nina is handling her horse alone, so it would be better for her to have another person with her. In that case, it would be better for the first and second assistants to have a rather long sleepover period, and then the third assistant, who came after a good rest, to monitor Nina, the last assistant.

Marie is weak-hearted and won’t be able to control Nina, so Claire, who has her temperament, is better. So in the end, Nina’s best position would be 3rd position, and Marie’s remaining 2nd position would be the best position.

Marie and Claire nodded as if they understood.

“Uh, yes… Ah, I understand. I have no complaints.”

“I feel like I have more work to do, but that’s okay. Anyway, that’s better than sleeping and waking up too much.”

“If you say so, you and Nina should follow suit.”

“……I understand.”

Nina looks somewhat burdened.

If you feel pressured, that is actually better. She said Nina needs to have some understanding.

Anyway, since everyone was up, we decided to end the watch. Now you will have to get ready to move again.

Marie is preparing breakfast, so of course she is excluded.

And then Claire and I clean up the campsite.

“Nina, you should rest on the mat.”

“Huh? I will help too.”

“This is my order as the party leader. You just watch quietly, eat breakfast, and don’t even do the dishes.”

“…Eh.”

Ignoring Nina’s helpless gaze, she leaves it to Claire to clean up her camp. Disarming turrets and collecting mines is, of course, my job as an alchemist.

After finishing organizing the camping site, Marie finished preparing her meal. After she drinks a bowl of soup, she even finishes washing the dishes using my water elemental magic.

After spending the morning like that,

Nina, who has been unable to hide her discomfort, takes the lead again.

“This way. Please follow me carefully.”

Unlike yesterday, Nina’s steps were a little more energetic.

She must have been dissatisfied with the fact that she was resting all the time. Although she serves as the book committee member, Nina does not like to sit still.

I would say she has a bit of a workaholic temperament. He is the type of person who gets anxious when nothing happens.

Maybe that’s why I felt like I made much progress today compared to yesterday.

Ultimately, route finding is a matter of luck.

Nina’s stats and skills while navigating the path play a large role, but what ultimately decides is probability.

Yesterday, I felt like I missed the odds a few times, but today I feel like I succeeded one after another.

And so we were finally able to enter the commercial district.

“Have we finally entered?”

What you feel on the soles of your feet is not the texture of dirt, but the texture of well-processed stone.

To be honest, the cityscape with buildings lined up is more familiar than the natural scenery, but it also feels eerie.

‘Entry stage’ is the last stage of the four stages of ‘Route finding-Camping-Encounter-Entry’.

This is the stage that takes place when you enter each district after repeating the three stages of ‘route finding-camping-encounter’.

Inside the Earth, the effect of the Spiritual Defense Technique becomes considerably weaker.

As a result, the difficulty of route finding is greatly reduced. Also, the type of camping changes. It is not a process of setting up a campsite, but a method of choosing which building to stay in.

The most important thing is that the main scenario progresses.

Residents are unable to escape due to the apocalypse, and there are infectious agents roaming the streets, so walking around is dangerous.

There, the story progresses by meeting key people in each district. Ultimately, after solving the case by defeating the boss monster of each district, the game moves on to the next district.

“Ariel Beheritt, what do you want to do from now on?”

“It’s obvious. You have to obtain the ‘spark of sanctification’ first.”

I said so.

The key point of Chapter 2 is to utilize the spark of torch.

The Flame of the Flame is an item that offsets all the risks coming in Chapter 2. It significantly increases the path finding success rate, reduces the mental power stat consumption required for path finding, lowers the encounter rate with monsters, and even suppresses infection accumulation.

Since it was such an important quest item, you need to secure it first.

“Currently, we have entered the west gate of the commercial district. The torch is stored in the basement of the cathedral near the east gate, so we need to move there.”

“In one word, it’s very far.”

“That’s right, Claire Envirus. There is a high possibility of encountering infected entities during the movement, and there is also a high possibility of encountering giants.”

So the players make a choice.

Should you defeat the wandering giant early and go to get the flame of the torch, or should you go through the build-up and then catch the arson giant?

The Wandering Giant is a boss mob that must be defeated anyway. So, getting rid of it first makes it easier in many ways.

However, there is a risk. The Wandering Giant has the ability to summon infectious agents and monsters from the abyss spread throughout the city. So, the level of difficulty is high because you have to fight against a large number of enemies at once.

And as I said, the flame of the torch has the function of lowering the encounter rate with monsters.

In other words, once you obtain it, the difficulty of fighting against the wandering giant is lowered.

Instead, the process of obtaining the flame of sacred fire itself is quite cumbersome and time-consuming. As I said, the delay in time itself poses a risk.

There are two ways to attack the western region, and you have to think about which one to choose.

But the worries are not mine.

There is an auction house in the center of the commercial district.

It is not as developed as the port city of Pwaliver, so its scale is not large, but until recently, the County of Findelnerca was still receiving quite a lot of tourists. A new dungeon has been discovered.

Of course, it’s because of that new dungeon that it’s been a while.

Anyway, as the number of customers increased, the auction house became more active than before, and as a result, many items were stored in the warehouse.

“This suitcase is great! It’s light and holds a lot of stuff!”

Claire shouted in an excited voice.

Marie hesitantly approached Claire.

“Well, Miss Claire… I went to the market.”

“Oh, Miss Marie. How was it? Were there any good ingredients?”

“Most of it was rotten… There were a few usable things though.”

“What is that meat? It’s my first time seeing it.”

“This is the meat of sea creatures, and it’s okay because it’s smoked.”

“It’s been a while since I’ve been able to eat meat. Let’s throw it all in!”

“Uh, yes….”

I put the ingredients Marie brought into the carrier.

Meat, mushrooms, vegetables and fruits that have not rotted yet. In the case of rare condiments, Marie is seen putting them in her bag instead of putting them in her carrier.

“A big ship, a big ship~♪”

Claire snorts and puts items such as high-quality tea cups stored at the auction house into another carrier.

I sighed when I saw that.

“Hey, why are you carrying something like that? It’s just luggage.”

“You don’t know Ariel. These are things that are not easy to obtain~? If not now, when will you get them?”

“Well….”

I was dumbfounded, opened the bag door and put the things in.

Potions to recover from fatigue, magic tools that allow you to start a bonfire without firewood, tools to create traps, and even liquids that restore broken items.

If you sweep up all kinds of things,

Nina said in a blank voice.

“…Ariel Beheritt, I brought you the ‘Ember of Sanctification.’”

Nina said, showing the lantern.

A soft white flame was burning there.

“Well done. Good job.”

I spoke plainly.

To bring the flame of the torch, you must move near the east gate. However, in the process, there is the threat of being discovered by a wandering giant, and you may encounter infected entities wandering the streets or monsters of the abyss.

So I just sent Nina.

Nina is a master of stealth. Whether she encounters an infection, a monster from the abyss, or a wandering giant passes by. She can just ignore everything and move on.

While Nina was bringing the fireworks, we were farming at the auction house.

“Then let’s float.”

“…Yes?”

“I’ve taken everything I need. There’s no reason to stay in this city any longer.”

“Um… are you going to leave the giant alone…?”

Nina asked carefully.

Nina said, pointing out the window.

You can catch a glimpse of a giant outside the window of the auction house. It’s quite far away so I won’t come all the way here.

A commercial district in the western part of the County of Findelnerca.

Until the apocalypse broke out, many tourists were staying there, and among them there were even VIPs.

However, giants continue to roam around the city, and not only that, monsters from the abyss and infected entities have been placed here and there.

The residents and tourists here are scattered throughout the buildings and hiding, and the story of the Western District is to unite them to avoid the eyes of the giant.

Ultimately, you must rescue the most important guest, ‘Balkus the Grand Prize’.

By showing him a favor, you can recruit the mercenaries hired by Balkus and receive their cooperation during winter vacation.

“The giant must be defeated. Lucius, not me.”

There is no need to take over someone else’s work.

That’s how we left the Western District.

End of attack on the western region.