Surviving as a Con Artist at the Academy

23. Rest and Friendship (2)

Surely my fate has diverged from the Radon in the main story.

It was rough, but I succeeded in saving my hair from Jenny, and by not ascending to Class A, I maintained my position as Radon Crawler.

I formed an unexpected bond with Mary, someone I had no previous connection with, and I even contributed to controlling the Silver Age technique.

‘The most important thing is that I managed to dodge the ending where I get expelled.’

I avoided filling the connection with Travel. This was to preemptively prevent any issues with the transaction details.

In the main story, Radon would receive an advance from Travel and produce a trashy article. Knowing that would lead to expulsion, I wrote an opposing article instead.

Even with a little lie mixed in, there was nothing that would suspect the faculty at a minimum. That was why Travel came to the hospital in a huff.

Eventually, trapped in the illusion created by desire, Travel hung himself. Unlike him, I was able to slip out gracefully without being swayed by illusion.

Knowing how the world turns, I could live without getting fooled much.

Moreover, in a situation where I needed to live as a scammer, I could be viewed as a character that the main characters who pursue justice despise according to clichés.

Yet, she still visited me in the hospital. Jenny Chain Silver, who had been resenting me so much.

“It’s been a while.”

“……”

An awkward feeling surrounded me as Jenny walked into the hospital room and approached my bed. She seemed more composed than usual.

The fierce look she usually had on her face was nowhere to be found. Just from that, I was convinced she wasn’t here to confront me.

“What brings you here? On the day before my discharge, no less.”

“I was late because of my thoughts. I was debating whether or not to visit you.”

Jenny, sitting in the visitor’s chair, placed a fruit basket on the windowsill.

“I’m glad you didn’t come empty-handed.”

“If I had, would you have told me to go back?”

“Maybe.”

“……”

Anyway, I happened to be hungry, so I reached out and grabbed a banana.

The rest were grapes and apples—fruits that were all easy to eat without peeling.

If it were the usual Jenny, she wouldn’t waste time visiting someone else. It wouldn’t have happened unless she were a close friend like Crona or Mary.

The fact that she came showed that her perception of me had changed.

“I heard. You also helped control this power.”

“Yes, that’s right! If Radon hadn’t helped, we wouldn’t have made it in time! Truly my dear friend!~”

Mary chirped as she bit into an apple from the basket. She seemed to openly consider me a soulmate now.

In fact, Mary could create sealing techniques herself without my sponsorship.

However, she didn’t have the ability to create a sealing technique capable of containing the out-of-control Silver Age. That’s why she desperately needed my help.

“As a result, thanks to you, I can control this power and saved my life. This is enough reason to visit your hospital bed, even if it cost me my training time.”

“……”

“I could finish it because you were there… but it also started because of you.”

Jenny placed her hand on her collarbone, fidgeting. From within, a blue gemstone hung on a metal chain.

It was undoubtedly the sapphire pendant, a memento of her mother.

Even though the broken item had been restored, I wasn’t surprised. I knew who, when, and where it had been repaired.

“Lyman restored it for me. At first, I was surprised and happy, but then I realized it was essentially my fault it had broken in the first place.”

If I recalled Radon at the beginning of the story, I could see him boasting about being a descendant of a sword master.

It was only natural for him to be ridiculed by his peers, but it was a huge mistake for Jenny to meddle in that.

That was an example of how the pendant had broken due to the inflated situation from her unnecessary interference.

In the aftermath of Chapter 1, Jenny would deeply reflect on such foolishness.

Now seemed to be just the time for that. In the main story, she was depicted as being alone and lost in thought.

Clearly, she needed someone to vent to.

If she talked to someone else with different connections, she would only hear responses tailored to their judgements. She likely wanted someone more relatable.

Conveniently, that someone existed in the academy without getting expelled. That was me.

“However, I also think it’s despicable that you broke your promise. But after going through this incident, my thoughts have changed a bit…”

Though many misunderstandings and troubles occurred, it was true that I risked my life to fend off the Lycanthrope.

For a guy with such a conviction, getting beaten up as a scammer would look foolish. That’s why I felt the possibility. The likelihood of being accepted as a person.

“I haven’t forgiven you yet, but at least I wanted to say something.”

“……”

Suddenly, Jenny stood up. All eyes were on her, and I swallowed the banana I’d been chewing.

Her stiff posture indicated she had made some kind of decision. I couldn’t afford to mumble in front of that seriousness.

Then Jenny bowed her head at a 90-degree angle.

“Thank you so much! Thanks to you, I was able to escape the curse and defeat the Lycanthrope.”

Despite her hands and feet trembling, Jenny emphasized once more as she shouted.

“So really, thank you! Radon Crawler! Can we become friends from now on?”

Jenny, who candidly revealed all her feelings, caught Mary’s keen attention. However, noticing the atmosphere between friends, Mary didn’t intrude as if she were crazy.

“I get the gist.”

“……”

“But before we become friends, you’re forgetting one crucial ‘procedure.’”

At the mention of ‘procedure,’ Jenny looked puzzled, but it was merely a reasonable procedure.

A girl had shared her heart while trembling, so I needed to show an appropriate response.

I got out of bed and stood on my own two feet. Since I was essentially healed, any movement would be fine. I easily performed the action of bowing at a right angle.

“I’m sorry for breaking my promise! Jenny Chain Silver! Even though it’s late, I’m truly sorry for my rudeness during this time!”

As I bowed my head in the same manner, Jenny’s face turned bewildered. But it was a natural ‘procedure’ for becoming friends.

If I were to keep up the ongoing conflict with Jenny, the same thing might repeat. My existence, being resentful, could hinder the progression of the narrative.

Thus, it was necessary to shed my lingering feelings, and the timing to apologize was now.

By coincidence, the necklace that had been ruined due to me was right in front of me. Jenny was staring at the blue gem she held in her palm. It seemed to shimmer as if it were saying something.

Seeing that, the corners of Jenny’s mouth lifted up.

“Lift your head.”

As I slowly lifted my head, I could see the changed expression on her face.

Due to the destruction of her memento, she had shown indifference and silence, but there existed her original personality beneath it all.

Her true self, which had been hidden in a cold fog due to trauma, was now revived.

“Friend.”

Her face, which used to look cold at everything, was now brightened with vibrant enthusiasm.

Her hand meeting mine during the handshake was devoid of any bitterness.

“Meow.”

At that moment, a cat, which usually came to visit, poked its head through the window.

With its sound suggesting it wanted to play today too, both Jenny and Mary turned their attention. The cat, sensing something odd in their peculiar gaze, broke into a cold sweat.

“Oh? A cat!~”

“Meow!”

Seeing the cute animal, Mary’s eyes sparkled, and with incredible agility, she snatched the cat.

The cat, meeting the girl that lifted it, trembled in fear. Mary’s glaring eyes were approaching the cat threateningly.

“Jenny! Can’t we take it home and keep it?”

“Meow!”

“No, we can’t. It must have a family too, right? Right, meow?”

“Nya……”

With the cat in Jenny’s grasp, her face lit up. It was her affection for ‘cute things’ that she listed in her profile, now shining through. This was the side of Jenny that had been hidden.

“I want to keep it in the dorm, but they don’t allow animals.”

She sighed, rubbing the cat against her face. The cat, always visiting her, was now suffering from the encounter with a devoted admirer.

Seeing the cat’s displeased expression, Jenny reluctantly let it go. Instantly, it jumped into my arms and glared at the girls.

“Oh! Starting today, Radon is officially my friend! We can’t skip the necessary procedures!”

I wondered if there was anything left, but Mary showed me the lunchbox from earlier.

Yuck! It had visuals that made the fruit I had just eaten come back up.

They couldn’t be serious about this “procedure”…

“Come on, hurry up…”

“What?”

“Eat it already.”

Both Mary and even Jenny were imposing a insane diet on me.

Did they all lose their minds at once? Had they finally gotten drunk on the joy of resolving everything?

“It’s a initiation ceremony to become friends. You just have to eat one. How about it, simple enough?”

“Simple my foot! Ain’t no way I’m eating that!”

It looked like a grotesque worm that had died and was soaked in seasoning.

What the hell? Are they trying to make me catch a disease and die?

“Can’t you really eat it?”

“Do you not know? Why would a civilized person suddenly be forced to eat something like this?”

“Strange, huh? Chew chew …It’s just delicious, though?”

“Huh…!”

No way… Jenny swallowed that in one bite. Along with Mary, they both chewed with satisfying expressions.

Could this really be the same Jenny who always displayed grace and cool-headedness? I almost had my doubts, but then I felt certain that this must be the normality.

“By the way, this is good for your health. I completely removed the harmful ingredients!”

“No matter what, the visuals scream ‘do not eat this’!”

“It’s fine. We’ve been training together since childhood, and I’ve eaten it a lot. And look, I’m still fine, aren’t I?”

It’s often revealed throughout the story that the two have grown up together in their childhood.

Among those stories, they shared experiences undergoing survival training led by the Chain Silver family.

At this point, it’s worth pondering. How did Jenny Chain Silver, who was separated from her mother at birth, become best friends with this utterly insane Mary?

It seems odd that such contrasting personalities would bond, yet upon a little thought, the answer emerges.

Jenny too had an innocent side, similar to Mary, but it had only been hidden throughout Chapter 1.

“Oh, let’s introduce Radon to Uncle Gerard soon. Since we’re friends now!”

“Isn’t that a bit rushed? If Father sees Radon’s scam history, he’ll feel complicated.”

Gerard Chain Silver. The current head of the Chain Silver family, and Jenny’s father. He is a war hero who gained great achievements and fame through participation in a large-scale extermination campaign 30 years ago.

Although I helped his daughter in controlling her power, as long as I continued living as a scammer, he wouldn’t be inclined to see me favorably.

“But if you eat this, Uncle will accept Radon!”

“Will he? So hurry up and eat, Radon.”

“No, why are the words going that way? Don’t push… Don’t push! Ugh…!”

You can’t stop with just one hand, can you? Succumbing to their coercive pressure, I swallowed the worm dish and… for a moment, I considered re-hospitalization.

[New skill activated!]

– Insect Summon Lv1

It was a bonus to unexpectedly obtain such a messy skill.

*

The ruckus was spilling out of the hospital room.

A well-built young man, appearing to be in his late teens, stood at the door, listening to the noise.

It wasn’t just Jenny and Mary who had come to visit Radon Crawler.

Lyman Begilius also confirmed Jenny’s determination and followed along. Considering Radon’s antics, he was prepared to come in and turn the entire bed over if necessary.

Though there was no evidence, he had received witness accounts of Travel and Radon having contacted each other.

Fearing that Radon might also be an accomplice, he refrained from entering and only quietly listened. However, contrary to his concern, Lyman felt at ease.

The lively voices of girls continued to resonate outside. It was clear it was a atmosphere filled with happiness.

His only task seemed to be to quietly celebrate their happiness from afar.

“You’ve raised a good daughter, Gerard.”

Lyman murmured quietly as he left the hospital.

Surviving as an Academy Scammer