Chapter 46

My antics during class were, unsurprisingly, reported to Rod. From the beginning, it was bound to become a grand rumor.

I only did that to showcase my regeneration ability, but I can’t deny it was quite extreme.

To justify myself, I thought a small wound wouldn’t cut it to explain things.

I hadn’t even considered it initially, but still, that’s how it turned out.

“Ha ha. So, did you clean up the blood?”

“Huh?”

“I asked if you wiped up all the blood.”

Rod chuckled while letting Luna and Kara chime in with their half-hearted testimonies and then politely asked. He seemed to be taking it all in stride now.

“Yes. Thanks to Kara, we cleaned it all up. We acted before the blood dried, so it was neat.”

“It’s a relief that Sivar took responsibility. But really, you got hurt so badly the blood was pouring out, and you recovered this quickly?”

“Um… yes.”

“Hmm.”

Rod stared at me blankly at Luna’s response. Sensing the pressure, I intentionally averted my gaze.

Up until now, my antics had contained some intentional parts, so I had let them slide. But not today.

Maybe it was because I just returned from the wilderness, but I had completely missed the mark. I realized that today.

“Well, as long as it doesn’t trouble anyone else, it’s fine. You worked hard. You can go rest for the day.”

“Thank you. You rest well too, Chancellor.”

Luna bowed her head and turned away. Now, it was her time to relax too.

Clunk—

“Oh? Luna!”

“Eli?”

Just then, I coincidentally bumped into Eli, who was walking in. She was cradling Porori in her arms.

To be precise, she wasn’t holding Porori; Eli was carrying a small box, with Porori sitting on top of it.

And there was Porori, comfortably leaning against Eli’s chest as if it were a cushion. I couldn’t help but feel a twinge of jealousy.

“Rough, rough, rough.”

“·····”

Let me correct that. I was insanely jealous.

Just how comfortable must it be to be snoring away like that?

Drool streamed from its mouth, clearly in the depths of the sweetest sleep. It seemed to have thrown any wilderness instinct far behind.

“Are you leaving now?”

“Yeah.”

“If you don’t have anything to do, why not stay with me? I’d be bored alone.”

“Um…”

With Eli’s request, Luna looked at Rod. It was a silent inquiry if that was okay.

Rod seemed fine with it too, nodding to give his permission. For him, the more people around, the better.

After all, he’s someone who hardly cares about others and can take immediate action if any issues arise.

“Alright. I’ll stay for a bit before leaving.”

“Okay. But what about Kara and Elvin?”

“Elvin said he had work, so he went ahead. Kara will be here soon.”

“Why does Elvin, your guardian, leave so often?”

Eli wasn’t whining; she genuinely seemed curious. To her, that was how it looked.

In reality, Elvin has a rather ambiguous relationship compared to others. Neither too close nor too distant.

While we all casually got along, Elvin would be more businesslike.

‘He’s busy with his nurturing tasks too.’

Above all, he’s a promising talent from the Matra Empire, and he’s probably caught up in discussions with them.

Soon, we’d also hear about the ‘test’ we’d be taking in the future through Elvin.

It might seem somewhat irregular, but it surely is. As I’ve mentioned consistently, the essence of the Academy has long been diluted.

“He said he’s busy. Eli, you don’t have a nurturer, right? Like getting scouted by the Matra Empire or the Granada Empire.”

“I do! They said they’d come to offer support.”

“Oh really? So that kind of thing exists even for non-combat positions.”

It does exist, and they offer solid support. The difference lies in the type of materials and the ethical aspects.

The Matra Empire has a variety of materials but many old-fashioned folks, while the Granada Empire has limited materials yet is quite relaxed.

The Matra Empire is rich in natural resources, whereas the Granada Empire has limited resources, which causes these differences.

“So, who approached you? The Matra Empire?”

“Nope. The Hwan Empire.”

“The Hwan Empire?”

“Yeah. A person from the Hwan Empire came to me and asked if I wanted to work together.”

Typically, the Hwan Empire wouldn’t approach unless they’re very sure. They only go after talents they can be confident in.

And Eli indeed possesses the abilities and talents to win over the Hwan Empire’s favor. They’re skilled in crafting potions and remedies, which is remarkable.

Thanks to that, she often survives in the game. If you keep her alive until the end, you can score various buffs and healing potions for free.

“That’s impressive. The Hwan Empire is quite stubborn, so they don’t generally scout people.”

“So, did you accept it?”

“No? I turned them down for now because I feel I have more to learn at the Academy. With the mountain of things I need to learn already, I can’t afford to add that to my worries.”

Eli quietly placed Porori down on the sofa with the box. As soon as she did, Porori’s ears perked up, having just woken from its deep sleep.

No matter how soft the sofa is, it signifies nothing in front of Eli’s pocket. Even I’d concede that.

“Hmm…? What’s up? Did everyone come?”

Soon, Porori rubbed its eyes awake, with me casting a mixed look of envy at it.

In the meantime, Eli sat on the sofa and gently stroked Porori’s head, a small smile on her face.

“Poor Ratatosk worked hard today. I needed some materials, and it helped me get them.”

“Really? Do you know all about the types of herbs?”

“I just didn’t know the names, but I know everything else.”

Porori crossed its arms and puffed up. The urge to smack it was bubbling inside me.

How could every single action of theirs be so infuriating? It might be adorable to others, but not to me.

“So, does Sivar also know about herbs?”

“Probably. Since its recovery capabilities increased, it spends all its time on meals.”

Porori was right. Ever since my regeneration level went up, every herb turned into food.

Especially effective in eliminating that distinct wild animal smell.

“They’re quite tasty. So I secretly snuck some now and then.”

“Wait, what? Was it you? That’s why food would occasionally disappear.”

At that time, I thought it was the raccoons or birds that took it; I never imagined Porori.

Thought it was strange I couldn’t sense its presence? It could ambush me whenever it wanted.

Moreover, being smaller than larger beasts makes it so much harder to notice.

“You should ask that thing to cook for you later. It’ll whip up something delicious.”

“True, that bear meat we ate last time was quite good.”

“·····”

Eli put on a look of delight while Luna seemed green around the gills.

It seemed she was recalling the time we first met when she had handed over a bear steak.

I knew Eli came from a seriously rural area, where she even had a history of eating bugs.

“Oh, wait. This isn’t the time for that. I brought something fun today.”

As I momentarily recalled the past, Eli suddenly said she had forgotten something.

She began rummaging through the box she had put on the sofa earlier. Everyone, including Rod, turned their attention that way.

Clunk—

“Huh? Eli, you’re here too.”

“Ah! Perfect timing. Do you want to try this, sis?”

Coincidentally, Kara had just arrived. The moment Eli spotted her, she waved her over with a bright expression.

Kara approached us with a puzzled look.

“What’s this?”

“Creativity test. And a Wisdom Ring. I thought it would be fun, so I bought it.”

She showed us two things.

One was a sheet of paper with five dots of the same shape, and the other was a complexly tangled ring.

“Can you see the dots? There are probably a dozen or so. You need to connect five dots in different patterns within a minute.”

“And this?”

Kara pointed at the tangled rings. They were two intertwined rings.

“For this, you simply need to separate the rings without using any strength. It’s called the Wisdom Ring for a reason, so you’ll need to use your head.”

“Why did you bring this?”

“Because I was bored.”

“·····”

Her admission of boredom left everyone with strange expressions. Rod merely smiled softly.

In the game, getting close to Eli enables participation in various mini-games. The creativity test and wisdom ring are part of that.

It’s also a good way to gauge the player’s capabilities. Many people in the actual Soul World clear stories just using their creativity.

“Chancellor, do you want to try? Just connect them in different patterns within a minute.”

“Hmm, it wouldn’t be bad to give it a go.”

“Right? Here are two sheets.”

Normally, she would cautiously make the suggestion, but Eli’s lively demeanor shone through. Rod, too, accepted it without thinking much.

By the time everyone was handed a paper to try, an unexpected situation occurred.

“····· Hey, miss. What am I supposed to do?”

“Oh.”

There were no suitable tools for Porori, who wasn’t really ‘human’ but more of a ‘beast.’ Eli looked quite flustered as it seemed she hadn’t realized that.

Even if there was a pen that fit Porori perfectly, there would still be an issue. I shot a question at Porori.

“Geez.”

“Can you even bend your thumb? What does that even mean?”

Even as a spirit, it appears it can’t escape the limits of being a beast. Other spirit creatures probably wouldn’t be much different.

In the end, we decided to exclude Porori from the creativity test. What creativity can one show if they can’t even bend their thumb?

“I’ll get you later. One day, I’ll bend my thumb.”

“Yeah, good luck with that.”

“You little brat…”

“Ratatosk.”

Just as Porori was about to let a curse slip, Eli stopped it. Porori, somewhat vexed, could only pout.

At least in front of Eli, it wouldn’t dare to say a word. I secretly laughed, then turned my gaze toward the paper.

“Alright. When the second hand of that clock points exactly at twelve, we’ll start. And now… Start!”

As Eli made the starting call, everyone bowed their heads. The room filled with the sound of pens scratching on paper.

I dashed through it without any hindrance. There hadn’t been much need for thinking thus far, nor did I wish to.

It was too bothersome to think when the answer was obvious. That was also a realization based on Porori’s remark.

“Alright, time’s up! How many did everyone draw? I got 52!”

“51. A bit disappointing. Is it age catching up to me?”

“·····”

But in front of the real ‘geniuses,’ my light dimmed. The confidence that had soared to the heavens crashed dramatically.

While I was inwardly deflated, Kara scratched her head and said,

“I got 43. This was unexpectedly hard. How about you, Luna?”

“I got 45.”

“What did Sivar manage?”

“·····”

I contemplated whether to show them or not but ended up revealing it to Eli. She checked my count first, then assessed for duplicates.

After everyone confirmed, Eli’s eyes widened in surprise as she exclaimed,

“Sivar, a total of 47! Amazing! I heard that’s in the top one percent!”

“You lived in the forest and still managed that? So you’ll get even smarter from this point on?”

After Eli, Kara continued alternating her gaze between the paper and me in amazement. In moments like these, the best decision was to stay quiet.

While that was true for me, I had to wonder what Eli and Rod were doing. I doubted I could hit 50 even if I died and came back.

“What good is being smart if you don’t use that brain? I mean, if it was creative thinking, that’s a different story.”

Maybe it was jealousy, but Porori sneered. It seemed it hated to see me get praised.

“Hey.”

“What?”

“That’s pathetic.”

“·····”

And so I teased it about being pathetic, which narrowed its brows and made its pride waver slightly.

Of course, since there were many people around, it quickly retracted. It clicked its tongue, muttering softly in grievance.

“If I could just bend my thumb…”

Oh, really? I laughed silently.

If that day comes when it can fold its thumb? I’d drop to my knees right there.

“Next up, the Wisdom Ring. You just need to untangle this as it is. It feels a bit like a puzzle.”

“I want to try.”

The intertwined rings of wisdom were first taken on by Kara. She actually enjoys things like these.

Unrelated to that, though, she struggled to untangle the rings. No matter how she tried to wriggle them, they didn’t come apart easily.

“Ugh… This is tough. Want to give it a go?”

“Sure.”

After Kara gave up, she handed it over to Luna. She seemed to be doing well initially, but soon got stuck.

It appears to be somewhat difficult. However, I’d seen this kind of shape in the Soul World before.

I had completely forgotten how to solve it, even though I recognized it. Ultimately, Luna failed as well.

“····· I can’t do it. Sivar, try it.”

Having been unable to solve it, it was my turn next. As I examined the rings curiously, I spoke up.

“What if I just use my strength?”

“You can’t do it with strength. Many people try, but it’s too firmly designed from the start.”

As Eli stated, the small sizes make it tough to apply force.

So, I had to rely solely on my wit. I twisted and turned it around, figuring it out.

‘This looks right.’

For some reason, it felt off when I tried to slot it in. So, I pulled it with a little force.

A little force, speaking within my ‘standards.’

With a loud snap, the rings separated cleanly. However, they didn’t separate entirely.

The middle part shattered completely. That’s when the Wisdom Ring transformed into the Strength Ring.

“····· I heard that was supposed to be hard to break…”

“·····”

Eli muttered, her voice filled with disbelief. For the others, breaking it with strength seems impossible.

Upon hearing her murmuring, I slightly raised my head. I had something to check.

[Sivar]

• Strength: 145

• Agility: 140

• Stamina: 148

• Magic Power: 145

• Luck: 102

• Faith: 3

I knew that my Strength and Faith slightly increased after the fight with Hector. I just hadn’t verified it until now.

But my Strength had specifically risen by 2 points. The increase is so significant after reaching 140 that it drastically differs at every stage.

No wonder it broke so easily with just a bit of force. I hadn’t realized that since there had been hardly any reason to exert strength since the fight with Hector.

In any case, I had to clean this mess up. I looked at the broken Wisdom Ring and casually placed it down.

“Ta-da.”

And brazenly, I proclaimed,

“Look.”

I boasted that I’d solved it. No matter how it was done, as long as I reached the destination.

The reactions of everyone to my shamelessness were truly entertaining.

Luna and Kara looked at me in disbelief, while Eli gave a sheepish smile.

“Look at that. With a body like that, you don’t think at all, do you? If you asked him to use his brain, he’d probably just charge headfirst.”

Porori was busy sneering at me. I had no idea it would break like this.

The last response came from Rod. He looked at what used to be the Wisdom Ring and calmly spoke up.

“Eli, can I ask how much that costs?”

“It’s… not too expensive.”

“But you’re not a noble. Even for such a toy, considerable expenditure would be involved.”

“·····”

Under Rod’s sharp observation, Eli couldn’t find the words.

Rod, probably sensing her feelings, gazed at me with a serious face.

“Sivar.”

“·····”

“From now on, candies are off-limits for a month.”

“Please don’t.”

That can’t happen.

There’s only so much I can extract from a couple.

“If you had apologized from the start, we would’ve laughed it off. But that shameless attitude is the problem, got it?”

“If that’s the case, I have no retorts. But I too am just a victim here.”

I glanced at the broken ring before turning away, muttering.

“This is weak.”

The Wisdom Ring was just weak.

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