Chapter 288
[18th Round] Pedonar’s Palm
“The history of Fantasy, this world where heroes are cultivated, is far longer than you think, Kang Han Soo.”
“Is it important, though?”
I had already experienced the events that transpired 2,000 years ago.
I was able to find out how my resentful senior became the First Hero and how he caused the rise of the Five Great Disasters.
The outcome?
Even after I found out the pitiful truth of his past, I earned nothing from it.
“It is important, considering people learn from their past mistakes.”
“You were hoping to meet me for this?”
“Haha! Of course not, but wouldn’t our conversation proceed smoother and better if the atmosphere is right?”
“Enough idle chatter.”
I stared at the supervisor as he grinned.
People who could give me a good rebuff were rare, after all.
Since I absorbed the experience points and knowledge of the heroes in the First Hero’s house, I knew what I was talking about.
The supervisor was a born fighter who relied not on Fantasy skills but his own strength.
“This inst.i.tution’s roots are as strong as its history is long. We’ve had our fair share of adversities, but we’ve never been in as much danger as now.”
“You’ve had problems before. Don’t pretend this is the first time.”
The First Hero escaped and became an enemy.
“He is but one hooligan among many others. I admit that he was strong enough to defeat the Demon Lord, but he’s a bad student, and there can be no excuse for that.”
“What difference does it make?”
“He has no moral principles.”
“Then you can just make them up.”
“Haha! As expected of you. However, you can only afford to say such words because you are an outstanding student. Many graduates are jealous of your accomplishments. Among ourselves, we call it charisma.”
I squinted a little.
“Where are you leading this conversation?”
“We spared neither funds nor efforts to ensure that the student who killed Demon Lord Pedonar would get a great job and be able to start a family in peace. In return, however, he fled, found supporters, and made an enemy out of us.”
“And?”
“I know you prevented the war, but even if you couldn’t, Fantasy wouldn’t have fallen. It never will. We still keep in touch with the alumni who love their alma mater, after all. We tried to avoid it simply because we didn’t want to spoil our reputation.”
I roughly understood what he wanted to say.
History and tradition were powerful in themselves.
Graduates tried to enter first-cla.s.s universities mainly because famous and successful people graduated from them.
To express their grat.i.tude, they would come to their alma mater’s rescue if needed.
“Graduates who have landed jobs…”
“To be more precise, students who have completed tertiary education. Companies do not recognize primary and secondary education as sufficient training.”
“I forgot about that.”
As he said, Fantasy had a long history.
Throughout its existence, it had allowed a large number of students to graduate and work somewhere in the universe.
I could only imagine how great the power of love and friendship that strong was.
“The First Hero is just one of the students who graduated from the highest course. If we compare him with the most successful student, currently the president of a large corporation, then the First Hero is just a small business owner.”
“Oh?”
My lunatic senior, running an entire galaxy, was just a small business owner?
He might be exaggerating or bluffing. I had no evidence of that being the case, though.
“You probably don’t believe me, which is why I started our conversation with Fantasy’s history. Once you hear how this world of ours began, survived, and thrived, you won’t be able to stop yourself from believing.”
“Don’t let him talk you out, hubby.”
“Ah! Excuse me, Councilor Ssosia. I apologize for not greeting you immediately. Since you have no clothes on, I’ve been feeling reluctant to turn my attention to you.”
“Before greeting me and making excuses, you first need to apologize for invading a married couple’s personal s.p.a.ce.”
“Oh, right! I apologize, Madam Councilor. Forgive your junior, who, due to prejudice, decided that only mortals cared and worried about such trifling matters. Marriage, after all, is still a new experience for you, the Second Demon, despite how long you’ve already lived—”
“Don’t talk about my age.”
“I must request that you excuse my insolence once more. I cannot collect my thoughts since I don’t know where I should place my gaze.”
“Hmph!”
Ssosia, putting on a black dress, grinned and sat down next to me.
“You two have a great relationship.”
“You just opened your mouth, and you’re already lying.”
“Haha! That’s not the case at all, Councilor Ssosia. I am certain you know Fantasy didn’t begin when the current inst.i.tution was founded. In fact, this training dimension existed long before that.”
“Yeah. In a very miserable way.”
“Even if it looked pathetic, it doesn’t change the fact that the heroes were trained there. We call it the 1st curriculum.”
This conversation was taking too much time.
I already understood that the history of Fantasy was long and that many worthy students had graduated from it.
“Your point being?”
“This inst.i.tution, which couldn’t be harmed by brute force, is facing a real crisis for the first time. Since its 3rd and 4th curriculum, which the princ.i.p.al had so persistently promoted, failed, the school’s credibility fell. Then discontent and dissatisfaction flooded in from graduates preparing for employment, only to find out the teachers support you.”
So I was popular.
‘Ssosia, you heard him, right? That’s how amazing your husband is. You should be grateful that you married me.’
“… Did I enter some kind of parallel universe?”
The cowardly little wife began to dodge my statement as if I threw a frying pan at her.
“My niece! You look pathetic~” The First Spirit said.
“I know that you like to joke around, but I hope you tell the truth for once, like how my husband is a promiscuous man—”
“Shameless liar~”
“…”
The curator, grinning, once again showed my achievements.
“Councilor Ssosia, it seems to me that you’re reluctant to acknowledge your well-deserved love for Kang Han Soo, but his achievements do not lie.
▷ 49: Voted as the cutest Hero by the residents of Fantasy.
▷ 136: Voted the most revered Hero by the residents of Fantasy.
▷ 138: Voted the most desirable man by the female residents of Fantasy.
▷ 140: Voted the most trustworthy Hero by the residents of Fantasy.
▷ 157: Voted as the most desirable male to mate with by Fantasy mermaids.
▷ 162: Voted the greatest ruler by the residents of Fantasy.
▷ 166: Voted the most reliable husband by the people of Fantasy.
▷ 172: Acknowledged as the owner of the deadliest kiss by the Fantasy System.
▷ 173: Acknowledged as the owner of the deadliest fingers by the Fantasy System.
The system didn’t lie.
It was clear from Ssosia’s face that she didn’t want to accept it, but her rejection wouldn’t be enough to magically cause my achievements to disappear.
“239 achievements! And some find it hard to get at least one. Some teachers, including the director, the princ.i.p.al, and Mrs. Councilor, refuse to acknowledge it, but you are ranked 1st among all students concerning achievements even though you haven’t completed your secondary education course yet. Even the second placer’s achievements are almost eight times fewer than yours.”
“Justice has triumphed!”
In my 1st round, I was unable to gain recognition due to the evil director’s unfair a.s.sessment.
But the system remembered my hard work and experience.
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“Let’s get down to business, Kang Han Soo. Achievements are volatile. The ones related to pioneers will last forever, but others will be lost if the record is broken.”
“I don’t care.”
I was already satisfied just looking at Ssosia, whose expression made her feeling of defeat evident.
‘You should be more affectionate with your MAX-Cla.s.s husband from now on, cowardly wife!’
“If this were heard by graduates who are happy with just one accomplishment, they would faint. Achievements are not given to oppress one’s partner…”
“There is no other use for them, then.”
Since my father-in-law handed over his business to me, I now worked as the Demon Lord.
And after my resignation, I was thinking of opening my own cafe.
Achievements didn’t really matter to me.
“That’s not true. Achievements influence public opinion. Suppose you hadn’t so suddenly become the Demon Lord. In that case, as soon as you graduated from the tertiary education course, a requirement for becoming a teacher, you’ll be able to become a princ.i.p.al thanks to the support you’ll be able to gather.”
“If I become the princ.i.p.al, can I safely leave this dimension?”
“That won’t be all you’d be able to do. You’ll be able to punish the teachers who hindered your success. It’ll also be possible to make the trainee a.s.signed to you your secretary.”
“Oh!”
My anger for my father-in-law grew even stronger!
Not only did he push his cowardly daughter to me, but he also prevented me from building a career!
He had given me nothing but trouble and harm.
“As I said, the plan to make you the princ.i.p.al failed since you suddenly dropped out of school.”
“I know.”
It was certainly unexpected.
“More accurately, you fell into a cunning trap. You became the Demon Lord only because Demon Lord Pedonar cooperated with the teachers who didn’t support your candidacy.”
“Is that so?”
Now the puzzle had begun to take shape.
“What about my aunt?” Ssosia asked.
“She doesn’t really like Kang Han Soo, but she’s not stupid enough to make a deal with the Demon Lord.”
“Is that so…”
As she melancholically muttered something, Ssosia suddenly grabbed my hand.
“What are you doing?”
“Do I have to say it out loud? If you don’t like it, say so. I’ll just go away…”
“Don’t pretend to be weak. It doesn’t suit you at all.”
“…”
“Hmm… My father, whom I saw wearing an ap.r.o.n more often than my mother, who… um, was also a good cook, used to tell me, ‘Once you’ve made a choice, you have to see it through to the end."”
I turned to the supervisor.
He didn’t come here to complain about unfulfilled plans.
As I expected he would.
“When you became the Demon Lord, things got complicated. At first, I thought we’d completely failed, but the reality is quite the opposite. The system developer, Councilor Ssosia, is by your side, after all.”
The corners of his lips lifted slightly.
I also smiled at him.
“So you know about our plans.”
Seizing control of the Fantasy Inst.i.tution.
“There’s no way I wouldn’t. Your actions so far were too good to be a coincidence, almost like a wheel of fortune. We call it Pedonar’s Palm.”
So he had us in the palm of his hand all along.
It was annoying.
“Father-in-law decided my fate at his own discretion.”
“You’re probably unaware of this, but the difficulty level of your 1st round was higher than the higher courses. The Karma skill that Councilor Ssosia implemented is just a toy.”
“Meaning?”
“Maintaining cla.s.srooms is expensive. Therefore, those unable to prove themselves fit to be a true Hero are eliminated… methods. That being said, not only did you not drop out, but you also killed the Demon Lord. You outright rejected the destiny G.o.d prepared for you. You can consider it fate that the Demon Lord showed interest in you, though.”
I put my hand on Ssosia’s chest, who was sitting next to me.
And I felt my soul immediately become calmer.
“Shouldn’t it be the other way around?”
Ignoring Ssosia’s complaints, I replied to the supervisor. “What are all these boring explanations for?”
“The director moved on to action.”
“Oh? She finally wants to fight me herself?”
“Ah! You seem to have misunderstood. The princ.i.p.al’s grandson enrolled in primary education to take away your accomplishments, Kang Han Soo. If you want to gain more support, then you need to protect your achievements.”
“And who might he be?”
His MAX-Cla.s.s senior, the very person who almost became the princ.i.p.al, would teach him a lesson.