Chapter 97: The Test of Resolve

“Why is that?”

Seo.

I couldn’t help but ask.

I couldn’t believe that someone so much more timid than me had made such a decision.

I was suspicious.

I wondered if he was just saying whatever came to mind to get out of this situation.

But it seems my prediction was off.

“Be, because last week when we hung out…, it was so, so much fun…. And stu, studying together before the Midterm Exam was nice too… So, I, I want to keep spending time like this….”

Amazingly, despite Liolikin’s extremely introverted nature, maybe he was actually the type who felt lonely when alone and recharged his energy with others.

That would mean the reason he stubbornly joined the study group I missed out on wasn’t simply to be seen as part of the group by others, but because he genuinely wanted to join in.

“Bu… but… I, I don’t think, anyone, thinks of me as a fr, friend…”

Apparently, even if I really pushed him away, He assumed that Reysir Daudabina and the others would still accept him as a friend, which was a naïve way of thinking.

But after Reysir Daudabina had just cornered him like that, he must have realized that wasn’t the case.

‘Still, does that mean Liolikin actually thinks of those at the dinner gatherings as friends?’

This was unexpected.

I figured, since he saw My Possessed Body as just a tool, he’d see the rest as mere hangers-on.

Yet it seems he genuinely enjoyed and cherished the friendship games led by Reysir Daudabina.

‘But what’s even more surprising is Reysir Daudabina’s behavior and words!

That he worries so much about my safety and is so sensitive… Well, that makes sense.

I don’t know exactly when it started, but Reysir Daudabina has always cared about me a lot, and after even succeeding at the emotional event, Besides, this Original Protagonist has trauma over the deaths of those around him, right?

Even so, what surprises me is this question that popped into my head:

‘Isn’t Liolikin now someone within Reysir Daudabina’s circle?’

And yet, when I was in danger of dying, Reysir Daudabina grilled that coward, asking if he’d just run away.

His attitude clearly put my safety above Liolikin’s.

He seemed willing to sacrifice Liolikin to protect me, weighing lives differently.

Which means Liolikin hadn’t just failed to enter the Original Protagonist’s boundary,

But had become firmly disliked.

‘More than that… did the Mental Acceleration skill just activate?’

As soon as I realized this, the headache returned.

Still, perhaps because I didn’t keep the skill active long or pay attention to the flow of Aether, the pain wasn’t as bad as usual despite my body not being fully recovered.

There was no nosebleed, and the groaning was bearable.

“I, I really want to be friends with everyone. And, especially, I, I want to get along with Karvald Austri…! The, the one who told me to overcome my fears together…”

“Hold it. I never told you we would overcome your fears together. I just said I’d allow you to join me if you could overcome them. Don’t twist my words and get moved over nothing.”

“Ah… y, yes….”

I’m really glad the headache wasn’t severe this time.

Thanks to that, I avoided unnecessary worry and managed to cancel another forced emotional event.

‘Anyway… Looks like Liolikin’s found a clear goal.’

It didn’t feel like he was just making excuses to get out of the situation; I could sense he’d truly made up his mind.

Yet even so, Reysir Daudabina still seemed doubtful.

“If you’ve made up your mind, I can check right away, can’t I?”

“Eh…? Ch, check how…?”

“How else? Through a sparring match, obviously.”

“O-oh….”

Deciding on something and being ready for it must be two different things.

Liolikin glanced at me with a flustered look.

And then…

“Kyaooong!”

Yor cried out sharply, glaring at Liolikin.

That big, cowardly guy yelped, “Hiiik!” and jumped up, scrambling backward.

Apparently unimpressed, Reysir Daudabina frowned deeply at Liolikin’s pathetic display.

But I wasn’t interested in Liolikin’s antics.

Someone else, who required my attention, had started moving.

“Yor. Are you feeling a bit better now?”

I gently stroked the baby dragon’s back, speaking in a soft, calm voice.

There were many listening ears, but after how Yor had been bawling a moment ago, I couldn’t bring myself to speak harshly.

Anyway, Reysir Daudabina and Vigdis Shalbrady had seen similar scenes before, and I was still using Karvald Austri’s distinct way of speaking, so it shouldn’t look too strange.

“Kyaoo…!”

‘The really strange thing right now is Yor’s reaction, isn’t it?’

‘Why is my cute, harmless baby dragon letting out such prickly cries at me?’

It’s terribly perplexing.

“Y-Yor…?”

“What is it!”

“Are you angry…? Did I overdo it again and fail to take care of myself?”

“Kyaoo, kyaong, kyak! Myamyamalk, myamyak!!”

Suddenly, Yor started to rage.

From the look of it, that must be the answer.

“Sorry for making you worry again.”

“Myaoo, myaa! Yaong, yaooong!”

I couldn’t understand a word, but the cries were filled with sorrow, clearly blaming me.

By this point, cold sweat ran down my back.

Right now, Yor was just worried, so he was wrapping himself around me and meowing, but maybe later, he’d refuse to let me touch him until his anger subsided.

That sense of crisis made me grovel.

“Alright, alright. It’s all my fault. I’ll be more careful from now on. Please forgive me, okay?”

I earnestly stroked Yor’s back with both hands, pleading in a hushed voice.

Fortunately, the generous baby dragon didn’t turn away from my efforts.

“Nyaa, nyangnyang. Miyaong.”

“Are you forgiving me…?”

“Yaooong~!”

Finally, Yor let go of me and looked me in the face.

The responding cry was as cute and affectionate as always.

If there weren’t so many eyes watching, I might have kissed his adorable little nose.

“……”

“……”

“……”

In the heavy silence, three pairs of eyes were fixed on me.

Reysir Daudabina was smiling gently as if he’d witnessed a heartwarming scene.

Vigdis Shalbrady, even though she’d seen me treat Yor kindly before, blinked in disbelief.

And Liolikin, for some reason, had a look of odd envy.

“…What are you all staring at like that? Weren’t you about to spar? Are you not starting?”

I thought of pointing at Liolikin and asking about his expression, but decided to just act like nothing happened.

Like that day when I ran into Reysir Daudabina on the landing.

To keep my character consistent, I needed to keep my behavior consistent.

“Did you hurriedly comfort Yor, not caring about those around you, because he was upset and angry—and now that things have settled, you’re suddenly feeling embarrassed?”

As expected, Reysir Daudabina teased me with a mischievous grin.

His character really was consistent too.

Since I anticipated this, instead of acting genuinely embarrassed, I just snorted, “Hmph!” and turned my head, putting on a sullen act.

“Ahahaha!”

Reysir Daudabina laughed brightly at my reaction.

Liolikin rolled his eyes awkwardly and laughed along, following Reysir Daudabina…

“Uh…, he, hehe…”

“…Let’s start the sparring.”

As if he’d never laughed so brightly, Reysir Daudabina’s face turned cold as he dragged Liolikin to the center of the training ground.

“You didn’t bring a weapon, so I’ll go easy and spar barehanded today.” “Uh, o-okay….”

“I’m being considerate here, aren’t I? You should thank me.”

“Th, thank… you…?”

Apparently, this main character planned to fix not only Liolikin’s mentality, but also teach him some manners.

So he’d learn to express thanks for even little things.

I’m not sure how effective it’ll be. This would need time, but Reysir Daudabina will be leaving the Academy in a few months.

“Then let’s begin, shall we?”

Maybe Reysir Daudabina thought it would take forever for cowardly Liolikin to get ready.

He threw a punch at his opponent the instant he finished speaking.

-Thud!

There was a heavy thumping sound.

Liolikin let out a choking gasp and was knocked backward, eventually falling over.

He’d hit him hard enough to make Liolikin’s sturdy build and solid muscles meaningless.

If this body had taken that blow, I’d probably have cracked a bone.

“You’d better get up quickly.”

Reysir Daudabina did give him a warning, but didn’t wait for him to stand.

While Liolikin was still curled up holding the bruised spot, a kick flew at him.

Another loud thud rang out, and Liolikin screamed, “Ack!”

“Weren’t you going to try your best? Did you really brace yourself? What are you doing, lying there?”

With a cold voice, Reysir Daudabina drew back one foot, preparing to kick again.

Seeing that, Liolikin gasped and hurriedly got to his feet.

But Reysir Daudabina didn’t pause—he simply carried on, kicking Liolikin in the shin.

“H-hurk…! It… it hurts too much…….”

“Then you should have paid attention to my movements and blocked properly.”

Even as Liolikin teared up in pain, Reysir Daudabina just swung his fists and spoke calmly.

The Original Protagonist wasn’t wrong.

His tone was harsh, but his advice was solid.

He put a lot of force into each attack, but he wasn’t attacking wildly.

In fact, he was moving much slower than when he sparred with me.

‘He’s actually holding back a lot.’

Yet since Liolikin wasn’t putting up any resistance, it looked like a one-sided beating.

It was hard to watch.

Anyway, because of my headache, I couldn’t practice controlling Mental Acceleration any more today.

So instead of analyzing Reysir Daudabina’s moves closely, I hugged Yor and closed my eyes.

Ignoring the sounds of blows and cries of pain, I focused for a few minutes on the feel of the baby dragon’s fur in my palm, pretending to rest.

“Th-this… this isn’t sparring at all. Shouldn’t we stop them?”

Vigdis Shalbrady approached me in a trembling voice.

If I pretended not to hear her, she’d probably try to intervene herself.

So I opened my eyes and looked at Vigdis Shalbrady.

“There’s no need. If Liolikin can’t take it anymore, he’ll say so himself.”

“But… maybe he’s too scared to even say that…?”

Given Liolikin’s personality, that was certainly possible.

Even so, I lightly grasped Vigdis’s wrist, signaling her not to interfere.

“Liolikin sees even the most casual glance as a threatening glare. And now, he’s twisting a training spar meant to help him grow into an act of one-sided violence. By letting fear take over and avoiding reality, he’s turning an innocent person into a villain.”

The reason Reysir Daudabina was being so ruthless with Liolikin, Was to say: ‘If you want to stay by my side as my protector, you need to be able to handle this much. If not, quit right now.’

He saw me as someone far too soft.

He was afraid that in a crisis, instead of being protected by Liolikin, I’d end up protecting Liolikin, be unable to run, and die.

“So don’t try to stop Reysir Daudabina. That would just feed into Liolikin’s victim complex and make it look like Reysir Daudabina is doing something wrong.”

“O……”

From her reaction, she seemed to understand.

I released Vigdis Shalbrady’s wrist and closed my eyes again.

“There’s nothing to watch in this sparring, so I’m going to take a nap. Don’t bother me with unnecessary talk.”

“Um… If you’re going to rest, wouldn’t it be better to lie down? If you want, you can use my lap as a pillow…”

“Not necessary.”

“Ah, okay…”

Even after our conversation ended, the one-sided spar continued for quite a while.

Until Liolikin finally managed to block Reysir Daudabina’s slow attack head-on.