Chapter 254

“When people run out of things to say, they resort to insults. I’m feeling pretty much the same right now.”

“You want me to express my deep feelings just like that? Honestly, I’d rather show you my deep fist.”

But the moment I swing my fist, I’ve already lost the game. I might end up facing even worse punishment than before.

After all, Tommy didn’t actually insult me. He might have taken some swings at me, but he did it ‘politely.’

So I got even more annoyed and threw out an insult right away. I wanted to avoid this pointless situation at all costs.

“Ha… ha. How surprising. I asked for a deep heart, not a rough tongue.”

“Pig.”

“… …”

Was it better to be called a pig than to deal with insults? The moment I bluntly called Tommy a pig, his mouth snapped shut.

His eyes grew more ferocious than before, exuding an air that he wanted to punch me right away.

But there’s one feature about those who blabber: their mental resilience is astonishingly high.

Even now, he cleared the hostile atmosphere and returned to a somewhat normal expression.

“How unfortunate. It seems there’s no respect or deep consideration for others, is there? What do you think, Princess Kara?”

“Deep consideration, my foot. Do you really think you’ll show consideration when you’re grabbing someone like that?”

“But insults can wound a person’s heart. A person who engages in such acts can’t be called a good person, can they?”

That’s a true statement, yet it feels like getting slapped by a dog.

Truth be told, I wanted to throw a punch, but I held myself back.

As I stressed earlier, you need to beat someone like this with words to knock some sense into them.

Moreover, there’s something I’ve been thinking about. I looked up at the sky.

The bright blue sky had not a single cloud, yet there’s a being who could manipulate that sky at will.

‘Hey, Gulrak. Are you just going to watch this unfold?’

Gulrak likely prefers to observe things for now. He may be a penny-pincher and strict, but he won’t foolishly intervene.

If he had struck down lightning, it would have sparked discussion in many ways. Not to mention, it would influence Kara in countless ways.

Students would struggle with their own interpretation of Kara, possibly even quaking in fear.

They’ve often called her a savage, but if Gulrak expresses affection for Kara, the Academy students would be terrified of when they might get struck by lightning.

“And what about you?”

“Huh? What do you mean?”

“Why aren’t you showing consideration?”

Above all, this guy hadn’t shown any consideration himself. It’s one thing to say it, but it feels wrong to act this way right now.

I mentioned that, and I started to look around. As we exchanged words, the crowd of onlookers began to grow.

If they were ordinary people, they might have just passed it off as mere banter, but we’re hardly ordinary.

Kara’s skin color is different right from the start, and I’m someone infamous at the Academy for various reasons.

‘Pretending not to notice and just passing by…’

If Tommy had some thoughts, he would have made a ‘polite’ request. Instead, he went straight for the confession.

We’d met at the freshers’ ball, but we hadn’t set any agreements after that. Of course, Kara likely rejected all of them.

“You think I’m inconsiderate? That’s nonsense. Do you know just how considerate I am?”

“What kind of consideration is that?”

“Treating Princess Kara not as a savage but as a civilized person. What could be more considerate than that?”

“… …”

Hearing that, I blinked a couple of times. Technically, that was some form of consideration.

Even if there’s a bit of a supremacy complex, it’s still consideration. But from Kara’s standpoint, it’s pretty laughable.

“That’s all you’ve got? Sorry, but true consideration should arise naturally; thinking of it like you do diminishes its meaning. Plus, Sivar became friends with me the moment we met!”

“Friend? Can you tell me when that was?”

“Since the moment Sivar first entered the Academy.”

To be precise, it was since the very first class. Back then, I hardly could talk, but I was getting along well with Kara.

I knew what kind of person Kara was, and because she knew I was a savage, she could approach me without hesitation.

If I had been a civilized person, she would have just ignored me. After all, I had endured a decent number of wounds since I entered the Academy.

“Ha ha. That’s quite a funny statement. How can you be friends right after meeting? You had no culture at that time, did you?”

“That’s the consideration and heart I’m talking about, you fool. It’s not some thought, but consideration that’s naturally ingrained in one’s body. Isn’t that explainable?”

“Hmm… that’s true, but I might offer you better consideration. As I said earlier, my proposal would be a very good offer for you too.”

“No thanks. If I’m going to seek someone else’s help, I’ll just handle it myself.”

When it came to talking about marriage or whatever, I caught on to something. Tommy must have made some sort of proposition.

He wouldn’t be throwing out proposals out of nowhere without any basis.

He probably knew Kara’s situation and made some sort of collaborative suggestion. It’s predictable.

‘There’s also a route where Kara becomes a queen, but…’

That route is effectively tied to a bad ending. The precondition is betraying Kara.

Getting swept up in that betrayal and taking over Hector’s throne as a conqueror. Not a splendid story at all.

“Above all! I have no interest in any other man but Sivar. Do you understand? If someone is stronger than Sivar, maybe I’ll give them a slight acknowledgment.”

“As I’ve said before, solving things through violence isn’t right…”

“Are you scared?”

I cut in at that moment. Tommy shifted his gaze towards me.

“What did you say?”

“I asked if you’re scared. Afraid of losing?”

“Violence doesn’t solve everything. Power or wealth can also achieve that…”

I could roughly guess where he was headed. He meant that there are alternatives to physical power.

That’s not entirely wrong. If everything could be solved with violence, humanity wouldn’t have established civilization in the first place.

If they were living in tribes, pillaging or uniting other tribes, the peak of violence would hold the greatest power.

Power is a means to suppress violence. If not, civilization would have crumbled long ago.

“Cut the crap.”

“What, what did you say?”

“I said, cut the crap.”

But that only applies in a highly advanced civilization like Earth, and this realm doesn’t have that.

Moreover, given this is a fantasy world, strength naturally links with power and wealth.

Just look at Rod; with skills befitting the title of Sword Saint, he commands immense authority.

And where is this place? An Academy built to cultivate strength!

“This is an Academy, a place that nurtures strength and violence. But isn’t that a bad culture?”

“Th-that’s…”

“Violence is bad? True. But strength isn’t. You’re the one who’s insulting.”

Violence and strength differ depending on the use. Violence is close to evil.

However, violence and strength are essentially the same word. In that sense, it’s a necessary evil.

“The power you mentioned? I can obtain that as well. Probably higher than you.”

“H-how can you be so confident? No matter how strong you are…”

“So let’s fight. You’ll know if we do.”

“Do you have to resolve it that way?”

Is he getting annoyed now? Well, given I keep dragging this to my advantageous side, it’s understandable.

At this rate, he might back out of sheer boredom. That’s the direction I want it to head.

Men, in general, are extremely simple creatures; just a little poke at their pride, and they self-destruct.

They say, ‘If you can endure three times, you’ll avoid murder.’ Once you cross that threshold of patience, it all explodes.

“But wasn’t that guy living with another woman?”

“I’ve heard that rumor too, but what’s he got to do with this savage?”

“Don’t tell me he’s playing both sides?”

As the bystanders grew, whispers started to reach my ears. Not a good situation at all.

It was already common knowledge that Grace and I were living together. It seems this guy might be the cause of more rumors spreading.

‘I don’t mind if it spreads, but…’

It’s getting annoying. I should probably resolve the current situation first.

Is he just puffing up, realizing I’m pulling this in a favorable direction, unable to say anything?

I’m hoping he backs down like this, but unfortunately, that’s not the case.

“Alright then. If I must use barbaric methods, so be it. But!”

“But?”

“You must follow my way as well.”

It’s a reasonably rational approach. We’re both suggesting to face off the way we desire.

If it were a balanced issue, both would accept each other’s stance.

The issue is that it’s not balanced at all. I couldn’t hide my incredulity and turned to the side.

Kara also seemed baffled, staring blankly with a spaced-out face. She muttered softly.

“… …What did I do wrong in my past life? Or is this karma?”

One could think that way. It’s so unfortunate that a strange guy ended up tangled with me.

Upon reflection, the surrounding women have all been snagged by weirdos.

Grace doesn’t need an explanation, and Eli almost got sexually harassed by the prince at the freshman dance.

Now Kara’s in the same boat. No man would approach her due to her reputation, yet this strange guy clung to her like a leech.

‘To be honest, each of them has a charm of their own, but…’

They all seem to be suffering. So many people I need to protect.

‘But what about Luna?’

Luna is also objectively beautiful, yet no man approaches her. Is it because of her quiet nature?

Perhaps even if someone did approach her, they stepped back due to this jerk’s mouth. That seems to be the most likely possibility.

Anyway, I’ll skip that. I turned my gaze to the huffing pig—no, Tommy.

I was hesitant to say this for fear of actually hurting his feelings, but at this point, there’s no turning back.

“Hey.”

“What is it?”

“You often hear you’re clueless, don’t you?”

“… …”

When you say something like that to a clueless person, it really hits hard. Not from personal experience, though.

Look at him now. Tommy’s face is all twisted up after I poked at him.

I wasn’t about to stop there; I launched a barrage of facts. I really do feel sorry but couldn’t help it.

“Your confession.”

It’s a line I often see in past lives.

“For someone, it’s a wound.”

I never expected to use it here like this.

“You don’t have any friends, right?”

But for sure, I need to sink him thoroughly.

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