Surviving as a Con Artist at the Academy

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256th Episode. Devil Road Academia (1)

Makia, who had completely taken over the corpse of the Evil God, had finally grown accustomed to moving.

Although she didn’t realize it, the occupied soul was merely a fragment, a mere scrap of consciousness.

Yet she possessed memories at the same level as the original because she was an entity specialized in astral projection.

Even if she split her soul to create a clone, that clone ended up becoming another version of herself.

And when the clone perished, those memories would be relayed back to the original.

Thus, Makia was currently very unhappy.

[Ugh… Why… why can’t anything go right!!]

A tremendous roar emanated from the mouth of the Zombie Evil God.

With the noise came a gust of wind that forced the girls facing it to struggle to maintain their balance.

“Even with reduced power, it’s still this strong?”

“If Radon had failed in his gamble, we would have been in real trouble.”

The Zombie Evil God looked exhausted, like a dying insect.

Nevertheless, the residual power was not completely diminished, still posing a significant threat to them.

That power was even stronger than Mary, who had transformed into a Demon Lord.

“With regards to mana, it’s clear he surpasses me. As he adapts to that body, he’ll surely demonstrate even more refined strength.”

Thus, prolonging the battle would be dangerous. They needed to take him down quickly while he was still recuperating both body and mind.

Speed was of the essence.

“Then I shall step forward first.”

Miyrona, drawing her red sword, advanced forward.

In her current life as a Princess and in her past life as a Saint, the Holy Sword Rozaria she wielded was glistening with more red droplets than ever before.

She gazed at the Zombie Evil God with a look of pity.

“Father.”

[Miyrona… I never imagined you would be here as well.]

Makia saw her daughter walk confidently toward her.

Those red hair and eyes had remained unchanged over the years.

Back when she was acting as Emperor Kamain, Makia would get angry every time she saw that face.

It resembled that of her daughter from 300 years ago, a daughter she could not forget.

That girl who betrayed her and became Dantia’s disciple.

She deserved to die hundreds of times.

[Are you rebelling against me now that you’ve gained your freedom? The one I raised with such care!?]

“Cared for? I’ve never once received such treatment since I was born.”

[What?!]

Makia’s anger flared at those words.

She felt it was unreasonable that her daughter would abandon her noble status as a royal, which she should have been eternally grateful for.

“Honestly, even if I was treated this way, I always believed in you, Father. I thought you would see me someday. That’s why I’ve strived to make a good impression.”

Even being the child of a concubine, being born a royal was something to be thankful for.

Even if mistreated by the legal queen, Miyrona had endured every day believing in the talents bestowed upon her.

Having been raised with the sole purpose of impressing her father, the Emperor, she thought that was her only goal.

But after entering Aligieri Academy, she came to realize that was unnecessary. She recognized that she held a baseless conviction.

“Though you were known as a Sage Monarch, I believed you cared for me deep down despite your apparent coldness. But…”

While attending the Academy, Miyrona changed her perspective.

She learned to see the person who gave her life from a different angle, not just to be grateful.

When she shifted her gaze from a single tree to the entire forest, she began to notice the lurking evil.

A feeling of betrayal surged through her without any hesitation.

That is why she could now confidently say:

“Father… you haven’t changed at all since 300 years ago.”

[What?!]

“Father, you are unworthy of being called an Emperor.”

At those words, Makia’s eyes widened.

Her mind spun quickly at the mention of “300 years ago.”

[You… no way!]

“My name is Maya. I am the Princess of the Divine Empire from 300 years ago and a disciple of Great Sage Dantia. I have died four times due to the curse caused by you, and now I am living my fifth life.”

Makia’s nose and eyes twitched with agitation.

The fact that the child conceived from Emperor Kamain’s whims and his dalliance with a servant was her previous life’s daughter was too much to grasp.

It was a coincidence so unbelievable. No wonder they shared the same hair color, making her feel an inexplicable connection.

[You are truly… that traitorous girl!]

“I still don’t fully remember my first life as Maya, but I vividly recall this period. When I told you who I admired the most… what did you do to me, Father?”

Upon uttering Dantia Aligieri’s name, Makia imprisoned her daughter in a solitary room.

When she mentioned that name again, she inflicted severe wounds upon her with ruthless whipping.

In a fit of anger, Makia exiled her daughter from the royal family.

In the end, the daughter had to walk to Dantia’s residence with her battered body.

[So… you really…]

“And just now, did you see the extraordinary Demon soaring towards the heavens? Do you remember who that is?”

[….]

Moments ago, that figure had transformed into a demon and flown towards the Destruction God.

That young man certainly bore a familiar face.

Indeed. His face was just like that accursed child of Dantia.

And considering that Maya had now revived in this life, that young man perhaps was….

[No way….]

“That’s right. It’s Lyman, the child of Master Dantia.”

The pests thought to be gone began to swarm again.

Why did those apparitions from 300 years ago that she so despised appear before her now?

Moreover, Miyrona was wearing the Aligieri Academy uniform, the vestment of that cursed Dantia’s establishment.

All elements seemed to provoke Makia’s resentment and her face contorted into a fierce scowl.

[Everyone is trying to infuriate me. It’s because of that woman… that woman…!!]

“Are you going to blame everything on the master again? My father from my past life always did that too, like a child throwing a tantrum, grabbing at your pant legs.”

[Shut up! So you’re still the same now as you were back then! You declare ingratitude without trying to understand your father’s intentions! You are trash! A shameful piece of trash I brought into this world!]

He was her only father. Despite hearing such cursed insults, Miyrona’s expression remained unchanged.

He was always the type to get angry without accepting sudden changes to his circumstances.

“Is that all you can say?”

[Yes! Those who try to surpass me are all trash. That is the truth of the world that I have ‘understood’!]

In a fit of rage, Makia wielded a massive great sword.

The Zombie Evil God, who had just been whining, suddenly displayed refined technique.

Hidden beneath the ugliness, in a past life, he had been a hero before becoming Emperor.

That prowess could not be disparaged.

[You worthless trash will face my sword… Huh?]

Though he tried to raise his sword, it wouldn’t budge.

At some point, the air had turned cold, and the sword froze into the ground.

[What the?!]

Realizing this too late, he attempted to withdraw, but in that moment, an ambush had been set in motion.

“Trash? Are you saying that to your own daughter?”

Screech!—

Suddenly, an iceberg surged from the right side.

The spikes of the iceberg froze the arm that held the sword while a chilling voice echoed forth.

“Are you really a parent after saying that?”

Standing atop the risen iceberg was Jenny, her blue hair fluttering.

The conversation they were having seemed distant, as if it were none of her business, and an ominous air hung over Jenny’s face.

[Damn it… why is my body…!]

Something was off. She had been fine while holding the sword, but now felt sluggish again.

And to say the Evil God’s body was too low in durability was an understatement.

Was a crucial organ for mana circulation damaged somehow?

[It must have been back then…!]

When the destructive ray penetrated her mouth, all her organs were obliterated.

Considering that blood circulation is vital for mana manipulation, she was weakened beyond repair.

But….

[It doesn’t matter! This body is fundamentally different from humans!]

Crash!—

With sheer force, Makia shattered the ice and quickly seized Jenny.

Just as she intended to crush her with all her might…

“Go to hell!”

Slash!—

In an instant, a red streak surged forth, severing the wrist that held her.

Black blood burst forth from the severed stump with a scream following suit.

[Ughhh!!]

“You are unworthy to be called an Emperor, much less a father!”

Standing where the wrist had fallen was Luska, wielding a dual-edged sword.

With fox ears and nine tails rising above her flowing black hair, her powerful mana surged wildly around her.

“Parents, family… once lost, will never return. You have never loved your family, have you?”

[What…?]

“What do you think of your own child?”

The dual-edged sword transformed into a bow as it launched a massive magical arrow.

Several wolf-shaped arrows raced together like a family, hunting their quarry.

Boom!!—

A powerful explosion from the arrows consumed the Zombie Evil God.

[Ughhhh!!]

Once again feeling pain, Makia fell to her knees.

But that wasn’t the end.

“Someone who hasn’t fallen once doesn’t know how to rise; someone who has never given to others doesn’t understand happiness.”

There was a horn sprouting from Mary’s small head, glowing brightly.

A moment later, the high-tier flash magic “Genesis” was unleashed from the magic circle.

“Those who have not learned happiness only ever crave… ”

Swoosh!!—

“In the end, they only end up alone.”

[Uwaaaaaaah!!!]

Her entire body burned with light.

Makia, who had barely endured so far, showed no sign of rising again.

“Please give up. There’s no chance left for you, Father.”

As Miyrona pointed her rosy sword at Makia and closed in.

Despite possessing the power of the Evil God’s body, Makia could not withstand a single foe.

In a situation free of humiliation, Makia internally screamed.

*

A stark white background came into view.

Having presumably fallen asleep from mana depletion, I opened my eyes in an unknown place.

Where is this? Before I could think further, a sense of déjà vu washed over me.

I had dreamt something similar before.

“This feels similar to the place where I viewed the future.”

I could feel my voice and the sensation of my skin.

The elements were so convincing that I could mistake this for reality.

Then, in that dream, I could have sworn I heard a woman’s voice from across the way.

– You’re not reacting like this is your first time here.

This time the voice was deep and resonant. More than anything, it wasn’t human.

In the direction where the sound came from stood a shapeless black apparition.

– I suppose it’s your first time meeting me in this form, Radon Crawler.

“You must be the Destruction God, Endless.”

The strange pressure I had felt while conversing with Grisha echoed again. This entity possessed the same ominous essence.

And although it appeared smaller than the original, it was a miniature version of the Destruction God, Endless.

It resembled a black human figure, reminiscent of childhood flash animations like Stickman.

– I’m currently fighting Lyman Begilius. That vessel, Makia, has grown so weak that it’s made me weaker in the process.

“Well, that’s fortunate.”

– However, if we work together, the outcome will be different.

A serpentine tongue seemed to wriggle from its mouth, trying to tempt me.

But no matter what it said, it would be of no use to me.

– Do you know? You’re merely a tool summoned to this world.

That was before I heard those words.

Survival of the Academy Scammer.