“Is this the extent of the ‘strength’ you so desired?”

“……!”

Of course it wasn’t. The Protagonist loathed himself in his rampaging state, believing it to be his ‘weakest’ condition.

Not to mention I recalled the detail that the Protagonist had told Chris he wanted to grow stronger last time.

Short and punchy. That was Chris’s way of speaking.

It seemed to work. Seureureu—the Protagonist’s face, hidden behind flames, slowly began to emerge.

Now was the time to drive the final nail.

Even for Chris, a whip alone wouldn’t suffice. Above all, what this situation needed was the Protagonist’s will to come back.

I racked my brain desperately, trying to recall.

A ‘Famous Quotes World Cup’ for <Hero Rampage> that some obsessive fan had posted on an internet site.

The line that had won first place most often was surely…….

“Whatever destiny you were born with doesn’t matter. As long as you can make a true resolve, you can be reborn as someone strong.”

“……!”

This was it.

It was what the Protagonist had replied to an extra who said, ‘I want to be like you, brother!’ with shining eyes somewhere around the midpoint of the story.

‘Since the Protagonist said those words himself, they’d inevitably strike a chord in his heart.’

Sure enough. I could see the Protagonist’s face gradually transforming into that of a tearful boy.

‘Now I just need to wrap this up well.’

“And I told you that you would grow stronger.”

“Sob, hic…….”

“There won’t be a next time.”

It was a chilling threat that if there was a ‘next rampage,’ I would personally kill him—so why was he sobbing like a child who’d just been comforted?

I slowly released my grip from his neck and turned away…….

‘Ugh, ow, shit, it hurts so damn much I’m going to die!’

All room for idle thoughts vanished instantly.

I couldn’t bear to look at my hand. For a modern person like me who’d never even had a cast, wasn’t that excessively graphic?

‘The skin was probably peeled off and hanging in tatters…… Aaaagh, stop imagining it!’

I fought the urge to squeeze my eyes shut and swallowed hard.

Small flames still clung to the Protagonist’s body, but the rampage seemed to have subsided for now. If I just left coolly, Chris’s role would be done…… or so I thought.

‘Ah, right. Come to think of it, he’s naked after a rampage. All his clothes burned away.’

Were the remaining flames desperately serving as a mosaic to preserve his modesty?

A kid who already got mocked as the weakling, now fully exposed in the nude in front of his friends.

That was just…… too sad, wasn’t it?

‘Kids’ hearts are delicate, you know.’

I recalled a freshman who’d gotten drunk at an orientation retreat, thrown up, then run toward Haeundae Beach in his underwear claiming he was going to dive in.

‘That kid eventually dropped out.’

In the end, I took off the worn outer coat I always wore.

It didn’t matter since I had another similar layer underneath. Wearing layers of tattered clothing was Chris’s aesthetic, after all.

Then I dropped the coat over the Protagonist’s head.

“……!”

“Handle the rest yourself.”

See that? This was Chris’s brand of indifferent affection.

So, Protagonist, don’t be so careless—just go to the infirmary.

I walked out without looking back. I heard voices calling after me, but I ignored them all.

[Quest Complete! You have received ‘Bedallua Academy Map (4/4)’ and ‘Rotten Mandragora Root’ as rewards.]

[‘Bedallua Academy Map’ updated! ‘Location Tracking’ feature activated.]

[‘Rotten Mandragora Root’ is a consumable item.

Effect: Increases user’s recovery speed by 200%

Side effects: ???]

[You have cleared all of Chapter 1 of the ‘Request of the Earth God’ quest.]

I was already too busy dealing with the status windows popping up simultaneously before my eyes.

Besides, given the gravity of the situation, the Principal would soon arrive and start firing off annoying questions. And I’d just stay put?

Fleeing was definitely the best strategy.

‘Leaving the X-Class kids behind and the state of Narrow Eyes did bother me, but…….’

Chris wouldn’t care about either.

I’d just have to trust that the other professors would somehow handle things.

‘……Still, it wasn’t a complete disaster.’

I let out a sigh of relief as I looked at the translucent mini-map.

‘Location Tracking’.

A feature that let me see where everyone in the Academy was currently located.

The dot labeled ‘Yujin’ was still blinking.

* * *

“I thought you’d come.”

Did you? I didn’t.

Honestly, I’d debated whether visiting Narrow Eyes at the infirmary fit Chris’s personality.

In a normal situation, ignoring him entirely would earn me criticism for being thoughtless—

‘But Chris IS thoughtless…….’

However, Narrow Eyes had nearly been killed by Chris’s student, and Chris carried trauma from what her student had done.

She’d naturally want to avoid repeating past mistakes.

‘In other words, she wouldn’t visit out of concern for Narrow Eyes, but she might visit to check on his condition.’

With that reasoning, I’d planned to just peek through the first-floor infirmary window when no one was around.

‘He’s damn sharp.’

Or maybe he was already well enough to be up and about?

“Our Keu-ssaem is a good person.”

Hmm, his mental state was still that of a patient, apparently.

If Chris seemed like a good person, it was one of two things: either my character roleplay had gotten sloppy, or he was seriously deluded.

I’d bet on the latter. I’d had him figured out since his Narrow Eyes days. He was the type who viewed the world through a distorted lens.

I dismissed everything he’d said and activated my ‘Say Whatever I Want’ skill with maximum rudeness.

“You did something foolish.”

“Ah, you figured it out after all?”

Uh, no? What did I figure out?

Throwing yourself in front of a rampaging Protagonist was obviously foolish to anyone watching. Especially when magic didn’t even work on him…….

‘Wait.’

Did Narrow Eyes use magic when he charged at the Protagonist?

There was no way Narrow Eyes could have known in advance that magic wouldn’t work on the rampaging Protagonist.

‘No matter how urgent the moment was, normally no one would think to throw themselves in unarmed……’

They wouldn’t.

This crazy bastard?

“I figured I’d survive. The training grounds are protected by the Principal’s magic, and more importantly, Keu-ssaem was right there.”

Whether or not he noticed my horror, Narrow Eyes continued in his characteristically calm tone.

“If lying in a hospital bed for a while could put me in Keu-ssaem’s debt, I figured that was a net profit, haha.”

So Narrow Eyes had deliberately charged at the Protagonist without any defensive magic. With the intention of leaving me in his debt.

‘I’d thought this bastard was a lunatic, but…… to this extent?’

I actually did feel indebted to Narrow Eyes. If not for him, I would’ve been the one carried out as a bloody pulp, and I would’ve died from failing the quest.

But all of this was his…… intention?

‘That’s fucking despicable.’

I shouldn’t hit a patient, should I. But surely one punch would be fine?

Just one good punch. Hmm? My Strength is F, so it wouldn’t even hurt much, right?

My clenched fist had risen to chest level when—

“By the way, what happens to our bet?”

The completely random remark deflated me instantly.

Was that important right now, you idiot? Was that really what mattered?

If he were right next to me, I would’ve pinched and pulled his cheeks or smacked his back.

“If we go by the win count at the time, X-Class won, but I’m not sure how to factor in Michael’s case.”

“It’s your loss.”

“Then I’d like to buy you a meal as an apology.”

“Have you already forgotten the terms of our bet?”

“I injured my head a bit this time, so…….”

Not worth discussing further. I muttered as much and turned to leave.

Truthfully, I sensed that continuing this conversation would only get me swept up in his pace.

This guy marched to his own beat every bit as much as Chris did.

“Keu-ssaem.”

Which meant I couldn’t hear that either. Aaaaaah, I can’t hear you, I can’t hear!

“This is a private offer, so contact me anytime. And get some sleep early tonight. Don’t toss and turn for nothing.”

Can’t hear you.

* * *

I’d never seriously considered the genre of this game (well, it has a system window, at least), but…….

‘At least I was sure it wasn’t a dating sim.’

[From Chapter 2 onward, the quest varies depending on the route selected by the player!]

[Click on an option to view the detailed description of each route.]

->Demon Lord♥

->Holy Emperor♡

->Do not choose.

What was this?

‘Why do I have to pick a route?’

This system was more annoying than I’d expected. Plus, there were inexplicable hearts next to Demon Lord and Holy Emperor.

Was this…… deliberate route guidance, by any chance?

‘If anything, that makes me less interested. Can’t I just stay in Chapter 1 forever?’

[Time remaining: 1 hour 00 minutes 00 seconds]

Exactly! For an Illegal Player who can’t even use skills, I should be grateful they’re even giving me a choice!

I’ll check it right this in-stant, you damn System.