The Extra’s Academy Survival Guide - Chapter 181

“Don’t meddle.”

Those were the words Elvira’s older sister said as she slapped her across the cheek.

That was the most vivid memory engraved in the mind of Elvira, the devil child of the Aniston family.

Before she had even matured, she had already opened her eyes to the science of combining different reagents and the development of magic engineering.

Her childhood, which consisted of her being a troublemaker who locked herself in the laboratory of the Aniston Mansion and caused explosions three or four times a day… it wasn’t all that distant a past for her.

The Aniston family was not all that wealthy. However, being a famous alchemist house, her sisters were also well versed in different fields of alchemy.

However, compared to Elvira—who had already invented her own system and was fascinated in her own world—they were only considered regular talents.

And for Elvira… She could never stand still if she saw an ineffective reagent combination, a new means to improving magical engineering, or a product made with subpar materials.

There was no one in her family that had more talent and passion than her. So, in the end, she took notice of everything.

She would occasionally look over the research results of her sisters, complaining while pointing out areas that were incomplete.

She had incredible achievements in terms of her research and an attitude towards life as a full-fledged alchemist. Her values and passion for research… Seeing her live her own life so fruitfully, the people around her couldn’t help but feel a rising sense of inferiority.

God gave her natural talent and passion, but he did not give her the right behavior and attitude.

Though, truthfully, it was too much to expect a young girl like her to act like an adult.

However, one day, when her older sister Diella Aniston failed her Silvenia entrance exam, that building sense of inferiority exploded.

As Diella watched Elvira tilt her head as she disassembled the magic engineering item that she had brought for her entrance exam… Having felt inferior to Elvira’s talents for a while, she could no longer bear her rising emotions as she slapped Elvira across the cheek.

Elvira didn’t do anything wrong.

However, it was also true that she did not consider Diella’s heartbroken feelings.

“You’re always thinking that you’re the main character in this world, aren’t you?”

Diella Aniston smashed all of the reagent bottles on the workbench, ripped the research scrolls, and ground her teeth.

“It must be nice… Not having to try and understand ordinary people like me.”

“Sister…”

“Fine, show off your abilities to your heart’s content. Like a human born with mediocre talents… I’m going to live the rest of my life in mediocrity.”

After that, Diella completely gave up on alchemy and went to the empire’s capital, Kroelon, to study accounting and management.

It became extremely rare to see her back at home. It was difficult to even see her once a year.

Now, to her… Alchemy was nothing more than a trigger that reminded her of her failures.

That was why she never wanted to return to her home, which was full of all sorts of alchemy tools.

Although it all happened when she was a child, Elvira knew it.

She didn’t do anything wrong.

The reason Diella screamed and got angry at Elvira, even giving up on alchemy… was completely due to her own inferiority complex.

Elvira’s meddling comments were always correct. The efficiency of the magic power flow, the cost-effectiveness of the materials used, the efficiency of the reagents, etc… Elvira always gave the correct answer.

It was impossible for her to help fix Diella’s heartbroken eyes, which looked on her in jealousy.

Rather it was the opposite. She only made it worse.

Not long after, Elvira entered Silvenia Academy and became the top student of the alchemy department…

She constantly complained to the other students who didn’t do their part, and was even ridiculed for meddling too much in others’ business… But Elvira never stopped.

Even though it seemed stubborn, it was her own attempt to prove that her choice was right.

Suddenly, she had a thought, wondering if Clevius would agree with that opinion.

* * *

Ominous magic power rose from his dripping blood.

Clevius, who bent forward while taking a deep breath, looked up at Taylee eerily.

Taylee had no plans to back down either. If Clevius wasn’t going to try and resolve things through words, he would also raise his sword.

“Wait! Stop! This isn’t like the two of you…”

Elvira quickly pushed up from the floor, trying to raise her upper body as she shouted. However, the energy of the Blood Swordsmanship was already covering Clevius’ body.

There was no middle ground in Clevius Nortondale’s Blood Swordsmanship.

Once his Blood Swordsmanship activated, it would continue to eat away at Clevius’ mind, little by little.

The madness that engulfed his mind only increased with the passage of time.

There had never been an opponent who hadn’t shed blood in front of him. That swordsmanship, which was like madness itself… Even Lucy Mayreel suffered a scratch from it.

“Shut your mouth and stay there.”

Clevius’ energy was completely different from usual.

After shutting Elvira up with a single sentence, he kicked off from the floor as he rushed towards Taylee.

His sword surpassed just being fast. It wasn’t even visible.

Taylee managed to block Clevius’ first attack through what was nearly pure instinct. Even though his attack was invisible, he could still feel it through his battle senses.

He didn’t block it after seeing it, nor did he block it by predicting it. It was closer to a sense of foresight.

Even after blocking Clevius’ sword attack, Taylee clenched his teeth in shock.

The light in Clevius’ eyes in front of him as their swords clashed…

It wasn’t that of a human’s, but that of a beast’s.

He still had a bit of his sense of reason left, but his mask was slowly coming off as his real emotions started to show.

“Clevius…! You don’t even know what’s going on…!”

“I might not know what’s going on, but…”

The swords that clashed into each other trembled. The two were on even terms as they pushed against each other, but when it came to speed, Clevius was far ahead of him.

Clevius bent down and spun as he roundhouse kicked Taylee in the stomach.

It was a large movement, but it came at such a great speed that Taylee couldn’t react.

“Keuk!”

Taylee flew into the iron bars that served as the outer wall for the Elte Store.

Losing his breath for a moment, he felt a giant pain rise up his back… However, there wasn’t any time to worry about the pain.

When he looked up, Clevius had already jumped forward and was right in front of him.

Right before the attack struck, without seeing the flow of Clevius’ attack, he twisted his waist and bent down.

It was like a strike of lightning. By the time he realized it, he had been struck.

Taylee managed to avoid a direct hit by bending down with his incredible reflexes, but he couldn’t dodge the blade that scraped against his shoulder blade, causing him to bleed.

Clenching his shoulders tightly in pain, Taylee repositioned himself.

The iron bars that were struck by Clevius’ attack instead of Taylee… They made a loud noise as they came crashing down.

“…But I do know what you were trying to do.”

Clevius definitely felt it.

For a moment, Taylee tried to cut down Elvira.

Of course, there was no sense of bloodlust. However, it was still a massive attack that could have caused a fatal wound.

At that moment, there was no point in trying to understand the circumstances.

Clevius took out a dagger from his waist as he stabbed his own shoulder.

Blood started to gush out of Clevius’ shoulder as it dripped onto the floor. The more blood that flowed, the more magic power formed in his body.

Clevius twisted his body grotesquely as he bent forward… his body twitched and trembled.

“If you ever face House Nortondale’s Blade Demon, you have to finish things in one attack.”

That was what Mike, a senior professor of the combat department, had said before combat practice.

As long as he was still alive, he would keep getting stronger. And the closer he got to death, the stronger he would become.

Someone who used his own flowing blood to slowly build up more magic power… The closer he got to death, the more of a crazed monster he became.

Thus, if you tried to win against him by making consistent shallow slashes, in the end you would be the one who was cut down.

So, before that monster started to crave even more blood, you had to quench its thirst and end the fight before it became any more of a monster.

Clevius Nortondale’s Blood Swordsmanship was a maddening technique that became stronger the more prevalent the smell of death became.

When he was on the verge of death, the speed of his final attack before he would lose his life… It was impossible for even a genius magician or veteran swordsman who had overcome all sorts of ordeals to keep up with.

“E-Eukkk. Phew…”

Leaning against the iron bars, barely managing to pull himself up… Taylee looked into the eyes of Clevius, who was in front of him.

The Elte Store’s garden, underneath the shining moonlight.

There, a blood-eating monster stood.

The option of ending the fight quickly had long passed. He was now a swordsman covered in blood, craving even more, as he glared at Taylee with eerie eyes…

He then ran straight towards Taylee with a dagger still shoved into his shoulder.

It all happened in the blink of an eye.

* * *

“We have to take Princess Penia’s side.”

It was the first time I had entered Lortel’s villa.

Compared to my cabin, it wasn’t particularly extravagant. However, it was still rather spacious, and the furniture that filled the interior was much more luxurious.

It was also well-insulated, with various magic engineering items installed to help circulate the air.

That was enough to feel as if you were living in a regular family’s house, rather than a camp. It was definitely true that there was no such thing as inconvenience when you had money.

“This issue is involved with the power struggle within the imperial family. However, with House Rothstaylor getting tangled up in things, they could become even bigger.”

After entering the villa, I first lit the campfire and put a small amount of magic power into the magic engineering items that were scattered around the room, lighting the place.

With the lights lit, the place felt cozier than I originally thought.

Lortel and I sat side-by-side on the expensive wooden chairs that were in the middle of the villa.

Lortel was already exhausted from being locked up, but she had also run quite a distance throughout the night to get to the camp.

She quickly gulped down the water I poured for her as she nodded in thanks. She then took off her hood as she raised her arms on the table.

“Princess Penia?”

“Yeah. Fortunately, she is someone who can stand on our side in this conflict.”

“I’m not sure. This isn’t about House Rothstaylor, after all… It’s about the Elte Company…?”

“If you look at the bigger picture, House Rothstaylor is involved as well.”

“Still…”

It was obvious what Lortel wanted to say.

“Right now, Princess Penia doesn’t think particularly highly of me.”

“Just how bad is your relationship with her?”

“It’s because Princess Penia thinks that I recently took Princess Selah’s side.”

As I stared at her, puzzled, Lortel immediately added an ambiguous explanation.

“When you were unconscious at the Rothstaylor Mansion, I might have done some scheming to get your body into the hands of the Elte Company.

“What?”

“I didn’t want to entrust your safety to someone else.”

She quickly revealed the truth without beating around the bush.

“But that sounds like…”

“It’s not a secret. Princess Penia and I… are like water and oil.”

It was the same as in the storyline of . Penia and Lortel always see the opposite of each other, painting their own pictures.

“I don’t really like Princess Penia that much either. I don’t want to bow my head to someone like her. I’d rather try to come up with another way…”

“Still… With the situation being like this, it’s not the time to fret over small things like that. You have to think about the state of things.”

In the end, l was the only one who could convince Lortel.

I pushed the chair closer to her, sitting up straight and staring intently at Lortel.

“If there was more time, then we might have been able to try and find another way. However, right now, the person supporting Dune and Slogg is Princess Persica. The only person who can stand up to her authority is Princess Penia.”

In , the two would never get close to each other, even if they were about to die.

In the end, there wasn’t even a single area where they could work together and form one massive power.

“Just look at me and take Princess Penia’s hand.”

“Look at you…?”

The sweat that was across Lortel’s face had dried. She slowly looked into my eyes.

I could see my serious expression reflected in Lortel’s bright eyes.

Princess Penia was something like a lifelong rival to Lortel Kehelland.

Looking at the two of them would make you start to believe that fate was real. Worse than cats and dogs, there wasn’t a single thing that was the same between them.

Their backgrounds, values, the way they led a group, the way they achieved what they wanted, and the way they carried out their goals.

If you tried to have two people that were complete opposites come together… Ultimately, the only way was to appeal to their emotions.

That’s why they say that if you’re the first one to fall in love, you lose.

Lortel rubbed her face as she bit her lip.

“I guess if it’s a contractual relationship out of necessity, then it’s unavoidable. Though, it is unusual in the world of merchants to hold hands with a rival.”

“Alright. Thanks for thinking positively about it. Either way, what we have to do now is catch Dune.”

Dune Grex, who wore a turquoise beret and merchant attire, always had a frivolous smile on his face.

To be honest, I was well aware that his frivolous appearance was only an act, but I didn’t think he would be so meticulous.

“He didn’t stab just anyone in the back. He betrayed you. So, this isn’t a plan that he’s only been preparing for a day or two.”

“But… I’ve always received reports regarding the entire logistics flow of the Elte Company. I even constantly reviewed the work that has been done throughout the day.”

Lortel was someone who was absolutely certain when handling her work.

So, if it were just a simple scheme, Lortel would have easily noticed something.

However, regardless of the fact that Lortel was busy and had her hands full, he still managed to scheme something outside of her knowledge…

“In terms of the logistics and funds of the store, I’m confident that he wouldn’t have been able to get away with something without me knowing.”

“Then… from outside the store…?”

“Even if it was from outside the store, it would still have to be on Acken Island. That’s because 80% of the funds of the store come from the commercial district on Acken Island. And that district is like my territory, so…”

After saying that, Lortel didn’t finish her sentence.

Her eyes trembled as if she had suddenly remembered something.

“Aside from the commercial district and the school, there is one other place were the store’s funds were used.”

“…Where?”

“Here.”

It was so small that she didn’t even pay attention to it.

It was only a small villa that was large enough for a single person to live in. It was a ridiculously miniscule thing for the Elte Company to pay any attention to.

In fact, since it was part of Lortel’s private business, she had just left it to one of her employees.

She then remembered. An employee of the store who surveyed the site, arranged the materials, and helped make the design drawings to build Lortel’s villa… It was Dune Grex. He even left behind some bottles of liquor as a gift.

“Still, it was something the Elte Company was taking care of. So, shouldn’t you have been informed of the funds and the current status of the construction here?”

“That’s right. There were no other problems with the construction itself… But while I was away in Oldek over break…. Dune Grex had been left completely in charge of the construction of the villa.”

Lortel pushed her chair back as she quickly stood up.

She grabbed the hem of her robe as she headed towards the small door next to the bed. When she opened the expensive wooden door, there was a staircase leading to the basement.

“…That’s?”

“It’s an underground space that was made to be used as a wine cellar.”

Saying that, Lortel quickly went down the stairs.

As I followed behind her, Lortel grabbed the handle and tried to open the basement door. However, she didn’t have the key yet.

“I was thinking of asking Bell to bring over some wine and put it in the cellar. Euk, ughk… However, despite the new semester approaching and the construction of the villa being finished, Dune didn’t give me the key to this cellar.”

“Alright. I got it. Stand back.”

I grabbed Lortel’s arm and gently dragged her to the side. After making some space, I ran into the door with my shoulder.

However, the sturdy basement door didn’t budge. When I turned my gaze to Lortel, she drew out her magic power as she smashed open the entire basement door.

Booooom!

The underground area that was supposed to be a wine cellar could be seen through the dust.

“……”

“……”

Lortel and I could only stand there for a while, dumbfounded.

What filled the wine cellar was… a mountain of gold coins.

Not just a few coins. It was a huge mountain of gold coins.

Not only that, but various valuables that were managed by the Elte Company, including expensive magic engineering supplies and a particularly… large number of high-end liquors were piled up all over the place.

Dune Grex had said that he had a habit of manipulating the store’s books and embezzling small things whenever he had the chance.

Working alongside shrewd merchants, it was easy to run into people like him. However, if they were good at their jobs, it was fine to turn a blind eye to them stealing just a few coins for themselves.

However, that was just a part of his act.

I started to think of Dune wearing his beret, quietly organizing documents. Those sharp eyes of his were like those of a greedy eagle, hunting for its prey.

Acting like a minor embezzler who only took a small amount of money for his own interests and greed occasionally… That was simply a character he had created.

And pretending to be a snob collecting rare foreign liquors, that was all just a part of his act. It was all for the bigger picture.

He tried to be recognized by Lortel as an expendable employee. One that she would always think of as a ‘competent employee, but minor embezzler who only takes a little behind her back’.

In doing so… He was trying to make her fall into the illusion that she had complete control over him.

It might sound completely hypothetical, but the evidence was spread out right in front of us.

Even Lortel, who always remained calm and collected, was at a loss for words. She couldn’t help but stand still, her eyes wide.

The funds and goods that Dune has been embezzling the whole time… they were all located in the basement.

Dune… He didn’t spend even a single coin. Instead, he gathered it all together.

But why?

It was to put the entire blame onto Lortel.

It would be too obvious if he tried to embezzle a large amount of money at once. If he did that, then Lortel would have immediately taken action.

But leaving evidence of embezzlement over a long period of time like that… Waiting and waiting for the day it would pay him twofold.

Lortel Kehelland ordered the construction of her villa only because she wanted to live a simple camp life.

Dune Grex had seized that opportunity and made her villa look like a secret vault, where her stolen funds were hidden. He had probably finished changing the books to match his story, as well.

That was more than enough justification to take her down from the position of deputy director.

How many years had he been sharpening his sword in the dark?

Even though countless opportunities had passed, how long had he been secretly waiting to try and get an even bigger certainty?

His opponent was the wealthy merchant Lortel Kehelland.

If he didn’t do at least that much, he wouldn’t be able to take her down. Dune was well aware of that fact.

A mountain of gold coins piled up inside Lortel’s villa.

If the imperial army suddenly burst in, then looking at the circumstances… It wouldn’t be strange if they arrested her right away. The evidence was solid.

* * *

The Elte Company’s Silvenia branch at night.

In the garden, the two swordsmen—Taylee and Clevius—were fighting each other. The noise from their battle echoed all the way up to the top of the building. However, there were only a few people who could properly hear it.

Clang! Clang!

Ziggs Eiffelstein sat on a wooden chair at the entrance to the second floor as he sharpened his sword.

He looked relaxed, but his expression was serious.

There were various weapons all around him. From the rapier he was carrying, a large longsword, a tiny dual-wield dagger, a bow, a gauntlet, a mace, and even a spear…

The image of Ziggs polishing his weapons one by one was like that of a wild beast, standing alone in the wild, sharpening its teeth.

Claaaang! Bang!

Yennekar Palerover was sitting alone in the VIP waiting room on the third floor, drinking a cup of tea.

The atmosphere around her was abnormal.

The spirits around her crouched down as they watched her. They couldn’t really see her face well.

In front of the huge window in the VIP waiting room, there she sat with her back to the front entrance as she looked up at the moon.

Buried in her shadow, there was an unknown sense of fear rising.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

At the end of the hallway on the fourth floor, Trayciana Bloomriver stood wearing a robe with a wand in her hand.

A battle magician who was able to wield advanced magic and had extensive experience in dueling against close combat warriors.

She was the top student of the magic department among the fourth years, which was the highest grade. She was a battle magician that could even beat a warrior in close combat, even though they normally had an edge over magicians.

And on the roof, there were the traces of Ed Rothstaylor’s escape and the path he took to run away through the back of the store. One would have to chase after his footsteps into the North Forest for a long time… until they could finally catch Ed Rothstaylor.

To reach Ed Rothstaylor, Taylee would have to defeat every single one of them, all of whom boasted an unbelievable strength.

Trials that were like a massive wall.

Unless it was a massive wall that couldn’t be jumped over, you couldn’t call it a trial.

Taylee’s life had always been a series of trials and tribulations. So, no matter what ordeal it was, whether it was possible or not… he endured the pain and survived to the end, clenching his teeth.

Taylee McLaure screamed in pain as he fell down.

After being pushed back by Clevius’s sword, falling onto the floor… He could barely gather strength in his body as he looked at that monster in the night.

That blood-crazed Blade Demon who glowed under the soft moonlight.

Taylee closed his eyes.

A life lived with the belief that there was no ordeal that couldn’t be overcome.

Weren’t trials that didn’t kill him only there to make him stronger? However, that didn’t change the fact that they would still be painful.

Still, the reason he was able to stand with his feet planted firmly on the ground was because of Ayla. That was why Taylee McLaure never collapsed.

He barely managed to stand up, leaning against his sword. His body was already a mess.

There were still many trials left in front of him. Still, Taylee never gave up.

He opened his eyes, looking straight at the fearsome Blade Demon.

Life started to return to his eyes. The magic power of the Swordmaster’s Skill that flowed through his body… began to resonate through Taylee’s body once again.

The ordeals of the Swordsman Taylee McLaure.

With a body covered in blood and injuries, slowly running out of energy… He stood up again.