Mesugaki Tank Enters The Academy-Chapter 645: Kidnapping? (5)

The benefits of the third-person perspective turned out to be much greater than I had anticipated. In the end, martial arts are designed to align with the structure of life.

To target a human's line of sight, various techniques were devised.

But if I could see from a third-person perspective, all of this effort could lose its meaning.

Because I could see everything.

The opponent's deceptions. The subtle movements. The glances of the opponent.

All of it.

When I compare the sheer volume of information I can now process to what I could see with my two eyes, it's almost ridiculous. In just a few days, I was able to stall even against Rasha, who was starting to show some serious intent.

At first, it was tough to adjust. The perspective was one thing, but moving my body from a third-person viewpoint was incredibly difficult.

But once I adapted, it became incredibly comfortable.

What’s more, the best part is the newfound confidence.

It wasn’t the forced confidence created by the Mesugaki skill, but the confidence I had when I used to rage at the screen in the past.

Pride from the Soul Academy’s stagnant waters.

No matter how grotesque the enemies, I believed I could face them.

It also made it easy to find areas for improvement. I could immediately see my movements from an objective perspective, which allowed me to correct them on the spot.

Because of this, a bit of narcissism crept in.

The image of Lucy, dancing like a fairy to face the enemy, was quite beautiful.

Just to clarify, I'm not saying I sympathize with the perverse tendencies of that pathetic god!

It’s admiration when I see beautiful pieces of art!

Actually, that’s the problem!

How is it possible that no desire arises when I’m facing Lucy, dressed in such elegant armor!

I’ve been celibate for a long time, but I never expected to become mentally celibate as well!

No, maybe it’s just because Lucy looks so young.

I’ll have to test this later on Fabi or Joy.

This is a huge issue. Perhaps even more important than the fate of the world.

<What are you thinking so seriously about?> ‘...Me!? I wasn’t thinking about anything at all!’

<How long have we known each other? Do you really think I would believe that?>

Even though Grandpa is a comfortable companion, I can’t talk about such thoughts with him.

I can’t say something like "I can’t get excited about facing you, because I’m too embarrassed" to someone who doesn’t know me!

‘Uh, well. It’s about the Pope’s plan.’ <You’re talking about the nonsense of making the god the only one, right?> ‘Yes. That nonsense.’

Thank goodness. Although I just made up that excuse, I didn’t sense any suspicion from Grandpa.

If he’d asked if I had other concerns, I would have really bitten my tongue!

<It does seem strange. The Apostle of the Evil God must know that killing a god is impossible.>

As I listened to Grandpa agree, a strange thought crossed my mind.

The plan I heard from the Pope was very similar to what appeared in the game.

Looking at the structure of the story, it could be said to perfectly align.

After reigniting the age of myths, the Pope planned to start a war, annihilate the gods, and then disappear with the evil god Agras. His dream had never wavered, not once, for hundreds of years.

Even now, as reality had merged with the game, the Pope still clung to the same dream.

His dream to make the god Armadi the one and only great god.

Back then, when I was on the other side of the screen, I thought his dream was foolish. But I never thought it was completely impossible.

At the time, I believed that gods could die too.

After all, I had killed gods countless times from behind the screen.

It was back in the days when I’d say "gods are the weakest in dungeons" as if it was an everyday thing.

But now, I have doubts. After recently facing the dark evil god, I’ve come to realize how difficult it is to kill a god.

Gods are conceptual beings.

They cannot disappear unless someone takes their place.

‘Grandpa, is it really possible for one god to possess multiple powers?’ <As far as I know, it’s impossible. Maybe it could be possible if the powers are related, but no god can encompass all concepts.>

This content is taken from freeweɓnovel.cѳm.

Grandpa, who lived through the era of myths and was close to many gods, is probably right.

And the Pope, like Grandpa, lived through the mythic era and served as an apostle of the evil god. He must understand the difficulty of killing a god.

Yet the Pope has never once doubted his failure.

In both the game and in reality, he has pursued his goal without hesitation.

If only the Pope had lost his mind, it would be easier to understand, but he’s a man who has gone completely insane.

He must have something he’s absolutely sure of, otherwise, he wouldn’t act this way.

‘I guess it’s time to get out of here.’ <What?> ‘I don’t think there’s anything left for me to do here.’

I felt like talking to others might lead to something useful.

My intelligence isn’t providing me any answers.

Is this another effect of having a third-person perspective?

Now I can objectively see how stupid I really am.

Or maybe my intelligence has actually increased?

Smiling at the thought of becoming wiser, Grandpa urgently called out.

<Wait. I’m confused. But aren’t you currently kidnapped?> ‘Right?’ <Then how can you think you can just escape now?> ‘It’s not impossible. They can’t hurt me.’

In an ordinary situation, escaping would have been impossible. After all, there’s a limit to how much you can face a group alone.

But this situation is different. Their options are limited, but I can do anything.

‘I’ve already figured out the layout of the mansion, analyzed the knights’ strength, and have a rough idea of where the exit is. I’ll be able to escape after five or six attempts.’

<...Weren’t you just messing around with the fairies?> ‘Grandpa. I’m still an apostle of the god, you know? I’ll admit I had some fun, but I’m not a useless brat who only thinks about that!’

How could he doubt me after we’ve been together all this time? He knows better than anyone how serious I am about dungeons!

‘Did you think I wouldn’t challenge this dungeon!?’

<This place is a dungeon. Hah. Forget it. Fine, leaving that aside, what will you do about Rasha or the Pope? If they block you, there’s nothing you can do.> ‘That’s the least of my concerns.’

<What do you mean by that?> ‘It’s hard to explain. You’ll understand when you see it.’

<Wait. Lucy!?>

I flung my fairies around, took out my shield and mace, and kicked down the door.

The two knights who had been waiting outside probably sighed, thinking I was just causing trouble again.

So they were unprepared when I swung my weapon.

One of them fell, clutching his side, and the other quickly regained his stance, but couldn’t react perfectly to the unexpected situation.

Where there would have been a gap hidden by the shield in the past, I could see it clearly now thanks to the third-person view.

So, I took advantage of that gap.

I dashed inside, striking the knight’s solar plexus with my shield, and the remaining knight was neutralized.

So far, everything was going according to plan.

Heh. Alright. Time for a speedrun.

I walked lightly, quickly and quietly, like a fairy fluttering around the mansion.

I had already calculated the knights’ movement patterns long ago.

If I follow this route, I won’t encounter anyone.

Of course, it’s impossible not to get caught at all. Their surveillance network isn’t that easy to bypass.

I could hear the shouts starting now.

“Scatter!” “An Apostle!”

From now on, it doesn’t matter much how I calculate my movements. I don’t know how they’ll move in a panic.

I’ll still try to optimize my route, but if I get caught, I’ll just have to deal with it.

With the lightness of a step I took in the past when moving behind the screen, I easily arrived at a certain door.

Not long ago, the knights had freaked out and tried to stop me from entering.

I don’t know exactly, but something important must be waiting behind this door.

“Kid. What are you doing?” “Our little dog has quite the loyalty, huh?♡ Did you miss your master’s scent that much?♡”

“If you’re gonna escape, at least prepare better. If the first try fails, the next ones get harder.” “Are you worried?♡ Heh heh♡ How cute♡ Fine, fine~♡ I’ll play with you plenty later♡”

When Rasha reacted nonchalantly, it seemed this room wasn’t the answer.

But still, I had to check. Knowing what’s behind here would help me plan my next move.

As I grabbed the handle, Rasha frowned.

“Kid. I don’t usually give advice like this, but you’d better not open that door.” “Why?♡ What’s behind it?♡ Does our little dog have a doghouse in there?♡”

“You’ll regret it.” “What’s so embarrassing about it that you’re making such a fuss?♡”

Ignoring Rasha’s warning, I opened the door and froze as I saw what was inside.

Inside the room was me.

To be exact, it was a picture of me, framed and decorated by what seemed to be the artistic guild. There were also some trinkets, embroidered rugs, and, well, everything in here was about me.

I was frozen in shock at the perverse scene that seemed something an idiot fox would create when Rasha let out a scoff from behind.

“I told you. You’ll regret it.”

“Little dog. Is this yours?”

“I wouldn’t pay for your paintings. Of course, it’s the old man’s. A greedy old man who's lived long enough, and he still wants more.”

...Wait. So, the Pope was decorating this room with my paintings while chuckling?

Just the thought made me want to throw up.

This time, Rasha was right.

Damn it. I want to smack my head and erase the memory.

Seriously.