I’m the Slit-Eyed Character at the Academy, but I’m not the Mastermind

Chapter 334

The quest to gain Lowell’s recognition and obtain the Proof Token.

It was a mission that clashed completely with my original plan of avoiding any interactions with Lowell as much as possible.

‘Honestly, I don’t want to do this…’

The penalty for refusal was a stat reduction, but considering the uniqueness of Lowell’s character, losing 5 stats wasn’t a dealbreaker.

Anyone who’d played this game a few times would’ve made the same choice as me.

‘If only Lucia wasn’t involved.’

Unlike stats, the penalty of Lucia’s favorability dropping significantly couldn’t be taken lightly.

In this game, the phrase “significantly” wasn’t something to scoff at—it meant an absurdly large reduction.

Even a good relationship could plummet to neutral—or worse—almost instantly.

‘I can’t afford to lose my connection with Lucia, who will be a great help later.’

Not only did we share a mentor-student bond, but I was also carrying a pile of debts she owed me.

Cutting ties before I could collect on those debts would be a colossal waste.

‘…I accept.’

[Main Quest #8: “Obtain the Proof Token!” has been accepted.]

Though it was a quest I had accepted under duress, it wasn’t all bad.

Aside from the curiosity surrounding the additional reward, I would also gain access to the “Lucid Family’s Secret” linked quest.

‘Linked quests usually come with generous rewards. Although, completing it to the end might still be tough this time.’

That’s right. The “Lucid Family’s Secret” quest was one of the more easily discoverable hidden pieces in the game.

This was partly because it had been discovered early in the game’s release, but mostly because of Rodelin’s immense popularity.

Thanks to the tireless efforts of her fans—no, the Rodelin Fan Club—nearly all the Lucid family’s storylines had been uncovered.

‘Thanks to that, I’ve managed to gather a lot of information about the Lucid family.’

Lucia, Lucas, Lowell, Rodelin.

And even their father, the head of the family, Duke Luke, as well as the information they desperately sought—these were things I knew.

As long as I held such knowledge, the Lucid family wouldn’t dare treat me recklessly.

No exceptions.

Yes, even Duke Luke himself, one of the empire’s Eight Pillars and known as the “Warlord of the North.”

‘The problem is that it’s not yet the right time to bring up any of this.’

If I mentioned it in front of the fierce Lowell, I’d just get myself killed.

Besides, this wasn’t something she was equipped to handle. Conversations like that would be best saved for Duke Luke himself.

‘That way, the rewards would be even better.’

Anyway, even if my opponent was the infamous “Mad Lion” Lowell, she was ultimately just a slightly larger cat in front of a seasoned veteran like me.

‘I was only avoiding her because it’s annoying to cater to her whims, and the rewards hardly seemed worth the trouble.’

But now that my relationship with Lucia was at stake, I had no choice but to accept the quest.

Well, it was a short episode, and there was even the enticing promise of a “???” special reward. Catering to Lowell’s mood wouldn’t be too difficult.

I’d gotten through plenty of similar situations without issue before, so I could handle this one too.

The only wild card here was…

“Is she my teacher’s younger sister?”

“Uh, yes, that’s right. I thought her mana scent seemed similar, somehow.”

…this damned cat and rabbit, whose behavior was utterly unpredictable.

Last night, she had the audacity to call Lowell short, pat her on the head, and even pick a fight with her.

Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine something like this could happen.

“Well then, let’s get along for the time being.”

The Mad Lion, Lowell, flashed us a smile.

A smile filled with ominous foreboding.

After class, I visited the training grounds.

“I-I can’t go on anymoreee…”

Rezé collapsed, completely exhausted.

I poked her with a wooden sword to check if she was still alive, but meanwhile, I fell into deep thought.

‘How am I supposed to get the Proof Token from Lowell?’

Quests that required obtaining Proof Tokens from specific families weren’t uncommon.

But a quest to get one from Lowell? That was something I’d never seen before.

It was practically a hidden piece. And when you considered Lowell’s personality, the difficulty of this quest was bound to be high.

‘This episode is short. I need to figure out the conditions quickly and get that token.’

To figure out the conditions, I needed information.

To get information, I needed access.

Naturally, this led to one conclusion: I had to get closer to Lowell.

‘I have to befriend the Mad Lion…’

I couldn’t come up with any particularly good ideas.

What should I do? Offer her some rabbit meat as a tribute?

Speaking of which, there was a rabbit right here, with soft-looking, tender flesh…

“W-wait! I feel the presence of death somewhereee!”

Rezé, who had been lying flat just moments ago, suddenly sprang to her feet, adopting a defensive posture.

What was this? A meerkat?

A ridiculously sharp meerkat-rabbit hybrid, at that.

As I seriously contemplated whether I should trim her idiot hair spinning like a radar dish, Luna approached and lightly tapped me on the shoulder.

“You’ve been mumbling to yourself for a while now. If there’s something wrong, just tell me. Don’t keep it to yourself.”

“Keke, it’s a secret.”

Luna’s eyes narrowed. Her gaze carried a hint of dissatisfaction.

“It’s fine if you don’t fully trust us yet. That just means we haven’t done enough to earn your trust.”

Luna’s voice carried a faint melancholy.

Even for someone like me, who had seen it all, this caught me off guard.

Her suddenly serious reaction was unexpected—this was the same girl who usually brushed things off without a care. Why was she acting like this now?

“But you could at least share your worries with us, couldn’t you? Joy should be shared to double it, and sorrow or troubles should be shared to cut them in half. We’re… friends, aren’t we?”

Luna lowered her head slightly.

This was serious. Luna, the walking embodiment of chaos, was suddenly being sentimental.

It seemed that narrowly escaping death had brought on a wave of reflection for her.

“Keke, unfortunately, I think differently. I believe that when sorrow is shared, it actually doubles.”

“What nonsense is that? Sharing splits it in half, obviously! Don’t tell me you don’t even know how division works?”

Well then, why does sharing joy double it?

Luna’s baffling logic was so far removed from anything remotely beautiful that it nearly gave me a headache.

Meanwhile, Rezé, who had been standing like a meerkat, flailed her arms.

“P-please leave me out of this. I-I don’t really want to get involved with… that(?).”

She referred to me as “that.” Truly, this wretched rabbit…

Luna threw an arm around Rezé’s shoulders and smiled.

“See? Even Rezé wants to help you.”

No, she was clearly denying it with her entire body.

Her glare practically screamed that if I brought up my worries, she might shoot me on the spot.

“And who knows? Our advice might actually help.”

“…”

“Well, if you don’t want to talk about it, that’s fine. I’m a cool girl, so I’m not going to get upset over something like this.”

Grumble-grumble.

Luna’s lips jutted out and began to move restlessly.

A “cool girl” who doesn’t get upset, huh? She was clearly sulking hard.

‘Cute.’

Luna was a comrade and friend who would stay with me until the end.

I doubted I’d get any useful advice from her, but sharing the current situation would likely strengthen her trust in me.

“I need to win over Lowell and gain her favor—to the point of receiving the Lucid family’s Proof Token.”

“The Proof Token?”

Luna began rummaging through her pockets.

Photos, money, pebbles, a parrot feather—various items tumbled out.

“Found it!”

She triumphantly held up something.

It was a Proof Token, embossed with the face of a roaring lion.

Below the lion’s face, the name Lucia shimmered with a faint blue glow.

It was the family’s Proof Token that Lucia had given us before she left.

“That’s right. I need the Proof Token with Lady Lowell’s name engraved on it.”

“Why do you need that? Isn’t Lady Lucia’s token enough?”

“There’s a reason for it.”

“Hmph~ So you’re not going to tell me everything, huh? You’re so stingy.”

Luna grumbled, but she couldn’t hide the excitement in her expression.

She seemed happy that I trusted her enough to share, even if just a little.

Spinning the Proof Token around on her finger, Luna eventually opened her mouth.

“Wouldn’t it be simpler if we just revealed that we’re Lady Lucia’s disciples?”

Lucia was a troublemaker, but she was also Lowell’s older sister and someone she deeply respected.

It was a reasonable suggestion—if it weren’t Lowell we were dealing with.

“Do you remember what Lady Lucia said before she left?”

“She told us to be careful not to let anyone know we’re her disciples.”

I nodded.

Lucia had never taken on a disciple, no matter how many noble families begged her to. We were her first.

This alone made us vulnerable to all kinds of dangers, and one wrong step could cost us our lives.

“But it’s her younger sister. Wouldn’t that be fine? Or… are they not on good terms?”

“It’s the opposite. Their relationship is too good—that’s the problem.”

Lowell respected Lucia as much as Rodelin did, if not more.

And if she discovered that we were Lucia’s disciples?

She’d almost certainly draw her sword on the spot, claiming she wanted to test our skills.

“No way. Would she really kill us?”

“She wouldn’t kill us, no. But we’d lose Lady Lucia’s Proof Token.”

“Huh?”

“This isn’t just some trinket—it’s essentially a weapon.”

The Lucid family’s Proof Token, especially one belonging to Duke Luke or Lucia, held immense power.

With it, you could gain benefits anywhere under the Lucid family’s influence.

Money, lodging, connections—even military aid. It was an all-purpose tool.

Depending on how it was used, it could also become a “weapon”—a terrifying one at that.

“So… this thing is that powerful?”

“Yes. But Lady Lucia didn’t give it to us to use as a weapon. She gave it to us to save our lives in times of danger.”

In any dire situation, the token could be used once.

In Lucia’s name, we’d be able to escape death once.

And the price for that would be borne by the eldest daughter of the Lucid family, Lady Lucia herself.

The Proof Token encapsulated that promise.

“If we used such an item recklessly, the consequences would be obvious.”

“…Now that you put it that way, yeah. We’d get scolded like crazy.”

Getting scolded would be the least of our worries. If we flashed the Proof Token in front of Lowell, she’d likely confiscate it.

She’d probably say something like, “I’ll return it when you’ve proven yourself worthy.”

It was a certainty. Not only because that’s exactly the kind of person Lowell was, but also because—

‘For someone who lacks the qualifications to protect it, it’s far more dangerous than useful.’

As mentioned earlier, the Lucid family’s Proof Token held immense power in this world.

Imagine if someone killed its owner and took the token.

They could exploit its authority for personal gain until the Lucid family realized the owner had been replaced.

And during that time, Lucia’s honor would be irreparably damaged.

Lowell taking the Proof Token from us was only natural.

‘When I think about it like this, it really is a huge gift Lucia gave us.’

In any case, Luna’s idea of showing the Proof Token and trying to squeeze one out of Lowell was completely unrealistic.

Once again, I found myself lost in thought.

That’s when Luna began scratching her head roughly and spoke.

“Then just prove your skills!”

“Pardon?”

“Show her your skills and get the Proof Token. We’re the ones Lady Lucia recognized, right? Lady Lowell won’t have a choice but to acknowledge us too!”

Let’s see… At this point in time, Lowell was likely a 6-star knight on the verge of breaking through to 7 stars.

But considering the absurd genetic buffs of the Lucid family, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to treat her as a 7-star already.

And unlike Lucia, Lowell wasn’t the type to go easy on someone.

To earn recognition from someone like her, you’d need to be at least a 5-star knight. Minimum.

Well, putting that aside for a moment—

“Even if we prove ourselves, do you really think she’ll hand over the family’s Proof Token?”

“Hmm, what if we make it a wager? You’re good at provoking people, aren’t you?”

Provoking? Provoking someone like Lowell, the so-called Mad Lion…

Normally, I wouldn’t even consider such a tactic, let alone attempt it.

But for some reason, my brain began whirring at full speed. Was it the blood of a seasoned player, stirred by the thrill of challenging the impossible?

I wasn’t sure. Either way, I started piecing things together.

Click—click—

In my mind, the puzzle pieces that made up the character of Lowell began shifting, and soon, a small but coherent picture emerged.

And with that, I managed to come up with one absurd plan to get the Proof Token.

“…It might actually be possible.”

“See? We’re the ones our mentor recognized! I’m sure Lady Lowell will acknowledge us too!”

“Huh? Wait a second. You guys have a mentor?”

At the sound of that voice, our heads instinctively turned toward its source, snapping downward to where it came from.

There she stood.

The Mad Lion of the Lucid family—Lowell.

–TL Notes–

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