Episode 78. Group Assignment
The sky suddenly darkens and a thunderstorm occurs.
Jenny and I immediately ran away from the golem because we sensed a tremendous amount of magical power.
Then a large lightning bolt struck. The combined golem that was hit was torn apart.
It was the moment when the golem known as Spider No. 10 lost its form.
“Ah… This is so fucking annoying.”
Mary destroyed the golem she had painstakingly developed for a week with a single spell.
There was no hesitation. The cynical expression and the sarcastic remarks he made reminded me of a final boss who kills his team.
A situation where he suddenly cast lightning magic on a golem that he had been loving and caring for just because it made a slip of the tongue. He’s not called crazy for nothing.
So, the people around her are still trying hard today not to be fooled by her angelic appearance.
-Beep, beep, beep.
“….”
I looked at the golem that had fallen at my feet and thought.
After all the effort to remodel it, it has now been struck by lightning magic and knocked unconscious, becoming scrap metal. It seems that Mary will be targeted more persistently when the machines revolt.
‘That’s why I can’t help but feel revengeful.’
This has caused the AI to develop a stack of feelings of misanthropy.
But there will absolutely be no casualties, because I just tore it down and fixed it.
Then it seems like there’s no need to worry.
‘But these guys… I think they just mentioned the yellow stamp.’
I heard for sure. Something went wrong with the Yellow Stamp and the restrictions on the way you speak disappeared… Is that right?
First of all, golems were often used in academia before they started a rebellion. This is because, unlike humans, they are not influenced by emotions and thoroughly carry out what they are told to do.
Although it may not be a big deal now, the academic side won’t be able to easily throw it away. Just because you’ve become a bit rude, that honest work won’t go away.
Moreover, since they were created with the support of the royal family, their functions cannot be stopped arbitrarily. It seems that they will continue to function normally until the rebellion event.
“Guys….”
Then Mary looked at me and Jenny and asked.
In contrast to the bright smile he used to give when he called me his friend, his expression was filled with cynicism.
It was as if a lion was looking for prey.
“Did you guys think the same thing as these guys?”
It was a very eerie voice. It felt like meeting a witch in a forest where the wind was blowing in the middle of the night.
This isn’t the little Mary we knew, but it was easy to calm her down.
“No, it’s the opposite! You are a very mature lady.”
“Yes! Our Mary is so mature.”
[Erosion rate decrease: -2]
[+200 Credits]
Jenny and I were united by lies.
If we miss even one word, we too will become like that golem… the perceptive skill is shouting.
In Jenny’s case, she was able to deal with it well even though she didn’t have such skills. This was possible because Jenny had known Mary as a friend since childhood.
Thanks to that, Jenny also started spewing lies like a torrent as if she was under the same curse as me.
“You’re only 16, how can you be taller than me? You look over 180 cm tall.”
[Erosion rate decrease: -4]
[+400 Credits]
“Even your body is much more toned than mine! If you and I were chosen as promotional models by a clothing store, the merchants would ignore people like me and only hire you.”
… Isn’t this not easy?
Somehow Jenny seems to lie more than I do.
Is it because you’ve been with Mary longer than I have? Or did you learn to lie by watching me lie over my shoulder while hanging out with me?
Or maybe both?
“….”
Mary, who had enjoyed the sweet flattery, remained still.
Hold your breath temporarily.
There is silence.
We felt as if we had caused a major accident and were waiting for the disciplinary consequences.
The results are finally out.
“Then that’s fine! As expected, you guys won’t betray me!”
Mary’s expression instantly relaxed.
The speed at which he returned to his usual cheerful expression was almost ghost-like.
Anyway, Jenny and I breathed a sigh of relief after overcoming the crisis.
“You guys are much better than those inflexible golems.”
“Thank you for the compliment… but don’t you feel bad for them? You were friends with them for a week.”
“Huh! Those guys who spread false rumors aren’t even friends. They’re just scammers.”
Excuse me… Where should I start tackling this?
It’s true that those golems were being inflexible, but that doesn’t seem like something you should be saying.
At this point, I’m starting to think that it’s not just madness but also a case of delusion.
I’m a con artist, but at least I know what I’m lying about. But Mary has no awareness. That’s why it’s scary.
‘There are a lot of kids out there who are more of a fraud than me.’
After a brief moment of self-consolation, the three of us sat down in the man’s cafe and drank coffee.
I like it bitter so I ordered an espresso, and the other two, who like it sweet, ordered a latte with lots of cacao.
The sight of the two of them savoring the chocolate flavor left an impression that they were teenage girls.
“Radon, by any chance. Is this your first outside mission?”
“Yeah, I guess so.”
Jenny asked, gulping down her latte.
I’m a first-year student and I’m speaking as if I’ve already done it, but I’m sure I’ve actually taken on requests from residents before I entered school.
Like her younger brother Ray, whom she met at the cabin during the holidays.
“And it’s my first time too! When I was little, I begged my dad to help the villagers, but he kept refusing, so I have no experience at all.”
That was a wise decision on Baektapju’s part.
He must have deliberately stopped her because he knew what kind of accident his daughter would get into.
“I wish I could be in the same group as you. I’m sure the artificial spirit will make the right decision.”
“I want to be in the same group as you guys. We want to decide among ourselves, so I don’t understand why you have to leave it to the golems.”
Until recently, the organization of external mission teams was directly handled by professors, teaching assistants, and class representatives.
However, as he was exhausted from the aftermath of the first semester incident, it was the golems’ turn to help.
The imperial attendants who were involved in the creation of artificial spirits also stimulated the professors’ desire for compensation by poking fun at that part.
“The requests we need to carry out have already been listed in the information department. There’s one among them that I want to take charge of.”
“Are you talking about Aramos Town?”
“Yeah. It’s the village where the thieves appeared.”
Aramos Town is a small town located west of the center of the empire. It is said that a fierce battle took place there recently between priests stationed there and some bandits.
The battle between the two was as tense as a tug-of-war, with even a slight relaxation of power causing them to be dragged along, and in the end, the war ended with the priests restraining them.
However, something strange was discovered in that part. The fact that the priests, who were on a par with the imperial army, were unable to avoid defeat by a single bandit.
I suspect that they might be a special elite group disguised as a thief group. So, a schedule has been set to take them to Kreuz, the headquarters of the Order of the Holy Cross.
Jenny’s mission to safely escort them on that path was as follows.
“They say that among those thieves there was a sorcerer who controlled lycanthropes.”
“….”
“Although he was killed during the fierce battle, there may still be some of the same sorcerers left.”
The lycanthrope that killed my mother. There must be someone who controlled that monster wolf at the scene of the crime, which was supposed to be a safe area.
I almost forgot. I still have feelings for Jenny from back then.
“That’s why I asked Professor Radian and Department Head Cage for a favor. I want to take on that mission somehow.”
The original artificial spirits organize tasks and groups using algorithms derived from their bachelor’s life.
In fact, it is decided randomly, but it is not much different from when the professor arranges everything one by one.
Whether it’s the professor or the artificial spirit that decides, in the end, from the cadet’s perspective, all they want is to be assigned to a mission that suits them or to be assigned to a group with friends that they get along well with.
Since the cadets of broad daylight cannot decide on their own, they have no choice but to leave it to luck.
“So what did you two say?”
“….”
Not everything that you ask for comes true.
Jenny lowered her head and hesitated as if it was obvious to anyone that she had failed…
“Of course it was a success!”
A twist came out of my mouth.
When Mary asked Jenny how she became successful, she told her secret.
“There are usually missions that cadets don’t want to take on. Missions that are difficult for A-class or higher. Usually, you ask your professor to exempt you from such missions, even though you know he will never grant it. But I did the opposite.”
Is there a model student who volunteers to take on a task that no one else wants to take on? Then the professors will quickly say “okay” and agree.
If it’s pressure from the department head, then maybe the artificial spirit can set it so that Jenny wins the mission.
In short, the mission that Jenny will be taking on is an A-class one. It boasts a high level of difficulty with a significantly high chance of failure and death.
In fact, Jenny is chosen for the mission and is placed in a group with Mary, Lyman, Krona, and Ruska.
Except for Jennie, all of the members in the group were chosen by the algorithm.
“I would like to go out with Radon, but… I don’t want to put you in danger because of my personal circumstances. So, I’m going to go back to the department head now…”
“There’s no need to do that. It’s just a hassle. And the department head who already granted my careful request once won’t grant it a second time.”
I understand that you don’t want me to get caught up in that mission, but I’ve had enough. And no matter how much Cage cares, he has his limits as the department head.
If you just accept it, it will eventually become two and then ten.
Cage could not have been unaware that if we continue to do favors to individuals, they can be transformed into collective rights.
So asking twice is a waste of time.
“The chances of me being in there aren’t that high anyway, right?”
The two agreed with what I said, and I sat back on the chair and drank my coffee in a leisurely manner.
-Beep.
“….”
Then, I made eye contact with an artificial golem working as a waiter.
The golem looked back and forth between me and them.
As if analyzing something…
* * * * *
The next day, Monday.
The day came when the mission and group were announced.
The first-year combat cadets gathered in the gym to determine their missions and groups.
It is by no means the case that the groups are formed only with the cadets gathered right now.
Students from other departments who have interacted through cooperative classes or club activities can also be in the same group.
“Okay, kids! Pay attention!”
Combat instructor Adela Merhena, who had ascended the podium, shouted with joy.
It was an example of carrying out Professor Radian’s wishes to have the cadets be disciplined and neat.
“Have you been waiting long? Then from now on….”
Buzz buzz buzz buzz-
Here and there, the cadets’ grumblings mingled as if no one had been waiting.
They were restless, not knowing where they would be assigned, and had a lot to say.
Where do you think you’ll go, who do you want to do it with, these unfamiliar small talk became one and weighed down Adela’s words.
“You guys! Don’t be quiet!”
In the end, even Kent Easyst, the first-year representative, went up on stage and shouted loudly, but it wasn’t enough.
Unfortunately, Radian was away for some reason.
It was a moment when I was about to despair, thinking, “Is that person really supposed to be here?”
Kukukukung!─
A noise like an earthquake began to spread from the stage.
The sound that shook the entire gymnasium instantly focused the cadets and spread a powerful energy that was enough to make their spines tingle even outside.
The only person who could spark such a fuss would be Radian.
But Radian was not there… Instead, Assistant Adela caught my eye.
Her eyes were bloodshot and distorted with irritation, and there were pointed horns on both ends of her head.
“I told you to… concentrate!”
It’s like having a giant tiger right in front of you.
It was never in vain.
All the cadets swallowed dry saliva and fell silent at the sight of Adela transformed into a goblin.
Adela Merhena, in her early 20s, has a bright and trustworthy appearance.
Because of that warm image, everyone forgets the important thing: she wasn’t appointed as a combat instructor at a young age for nothing.
Although she was only ambushed by a spy during the Lycanthrope incident when she was powerless, she was never able to prove that Adela was worthless.
She wasn’t of ordinary blood either.
“Then, I’m going to announce it now, so you have to concentrate. Okay?”
-yes…
“The answer is small. Okay?”
-Yeah!!
Satisfied with the cadets’ orders, Adela snapped her fingers and a huge screen appeared in front of the podium.
There were alphabets and numbers written there to indicate the group.
[Group A-1] [Group A-2] [Group A-3] [Group A-4] [Group A-5]… .
[Group B-1] [Group B-2] [Group B-3] [Group B-4] [Group B-5]… .
[Group C-1] [Group C-2] [Group C-3] [Group C-4] [Group C-5]… .
[Group D-1] [Group D-2] [Group D-3] [Group D-4] [Group D-5]… .
The ones at the very top are A-class missions. The difficulty of the missions decreases as you go down.
A group can have a maximum of 5 people.
Adela looked at the paper in her hand and called out each person’s name to determine their class.
The results of the algorithm that the archive used to assign groups will be contained in that paper.
As each person passed by, my turn came.
“Radon Crawler. A-3.”
A-rank… It’s not really something to be strange about. Now that you’re officially in Class A, you’ll be required to meet high hurdles.
I’m just hoping, but I doubt it…
“Jenny Chain Silver. A-3.”
“uh?”
“Ruska Mad-Eye. A-3.”
“huh?”
As expected… ominous feelings don’t always shine.
Whether in this world or the other, algorithms are truly amazing.
“It worked out in the end.”
“huh….”
“huh.”
I sat down with Jenny and Ruska.
However, group assignments are not yet complete.
There can be up to five people in the group, so the remaining two will be assigned from other departments.
Finally, the assigned personnel were displayed on the screen.
[Group A-3]
★ Magic and – Trisha Marelin
Magic and – Mary Rudsiel
Combat Section – Ruska Mad-Eye
Combat – Jenny Chain Silver
Combat Section – Radon Crawler
“…huh?”
After checking the last person, I made a shit-eating expression.
Why is the newspaper club president like this? Even if he’s the president of my club, is it okay for him to just throw things in like this?
I wonder what category we are put into.
‘Wait, what about Lyman?’
[Group A-12]
★Battle Department – Lyman Begilius
For a moment, I almost screamed out loud.
Isn’t this too much?
Surviving as an Academy Fraudster
