Surviving as a Con Artist at the Academy

78th Episode: Group Allocation

The sky suddenly darkened and raised the stakes.

Sensing a tremendous amount of mana, Jenny and I quickly distanced ourselves from the golem.

Then, a massive lightning bolt struck down. The combined golem that was hit disintegrated into pieces.

It was the moment when the golem known as Spider No. 10 lost its form.

“Ugh… this is so damn annoying.”

Mary, having obliterated the golem that I had meticulously developed over the past week with a single spell.

There was absolutely no hesitation. Her cynical expression and the brazen remarks she spat out reminded me of a final boss who kills the team.

In a moment, she unleashed lightning magic on the golem she had cherished until just moments ago because of a slip of the tongue. They don’t call her a madwoman for nothing.

So the people around her were diligently trying not to be deceived by her angelic appearance today as well.

Beep beep beep. Bleep.

“….”

I looked at a golem that had fallen at my feet and thought.

After being modified, it now lay incapacitated from the lightning magic, reduced to scrap metal. If a mechanical revolt ever happens, Mary would likely be targeted even more intensely.

‘No wonder the desire for revenge just keeps stacking up.’

Thus, the artificial intelligence had accumulated a stack of human hatred.

However, there would definitely be no casualties. I had just fixed it a moment ago.

So there didn’t seem to be any need for worry.

‘But those guys… didn’t they just mention a Yellow Stamp?’

I definitely heard it. Something about the Yellow Stamp having issues that removed their verbal constraints… right?

For now, golems are frequently used in the academy until they start a rebellion. Unlike humans, they carry out tasks thoroughly without being swayed by emotions.

Though they might currently be a bit rough around the edges, the academy wouldn’t easily discard them. Just because their demeanor has soured doesn’t mean their diligence in work goes anywhere.

Moreover, since they were created with support from the royal family, they can’t just casually cease their functions. They are likely to remain functional until the rebellion event occurs.

“Guys….”

At that moment, Mary looked at Jenny and me and asked.

Contrary to how she had called me her friend with a bright smile, her expression now held a cynical edge.

It felt like a lion scouting for prey.

“Are you two thinking the same thing about them?”

Her voice was incredibly spine-chilling. It felt like encountering a witch in a forest with a chilling night breeze.

This wasn’t the little Mary we knew. However, calming her down was quite simple.

“No, quite the opposite! You’re a very mature lady.”

“Yeah! Our Mary is so grown-up.”

[Corrosion Rate Decrease: -2]

[+200 Credits]

Jenny and I merged in our lies.

If we slipped even a single word, we would end up like that golem… and my intuition screamed at me.

Jenny, even without such skills, handled things adeptly. Having been friends with Mary since childhood made it possible.

Thanks to that, Jenny poured out her lies as if they were a flowing river, as if she too were caught in the curse of deceit.

“How can you be taller than me when you’re only 16? You look over 180 centimeters!”

[Corrosion Rate Decrease: -4]

[+400 Credits]

“Even your figure is significantly more well-proportioned than mine! If you and I were selected as promotional models at a clothing store, the merchants would ignore someone like me and use only you!”

…This is not easy, huh?

Somehow, Jenny seems to be spinning her lies with more finesse than I am.

Is it because she’s spent longer time with Mary than I have? Or has she learned how to lie by watching me?

Or could it be both?

“….”

Mary, absorbed in the sweet flattery, remained silent.

Temporarily holding her breath.

Silence enveloped the room.

We felt as if we had committed a grave sin and were now awaiting the punishment for our actions.

Finally, the outcome arrived.

“That’s enough! You really don’t betray me!”

Mary’s expression instantly relaxed.

The speed at which she returned to her usual bright demeanor was almost supernatural.

Anyway, having overcome the crisis, Jenny and I let out a sigh of relief.

“You know, I prefer you guys much more than those stiff golems.”

“Thanks for the compliment… but don’t you feel sorry for them? You were friends with them for a week.”

“Hmph! Those who spread such false rumors are neither friends nor anything else. They are just scammers.”

Sorry, but… where do I even start with this?

It’s true that those golems spoke inflexibly, but I don’t think you have the right to say that.

At this point, it feels like she’s developed a combination of madness and delusional lying.

I’m a scammer too, but I at least have awareness of what lies I’m spinning. But Mary has absolutely no self-awareness. And that’s frightening.

‘I guess there are folks around who are even more scam-like than me.’

After a moment of self-soothing, the three of us sat at a café for men and sipped coffee.

I ordered espresso for its bitter flavor, while the other two preferred something sweet, so they made sure to order lattes packed with cocoa.

As they savored the chocolatey aroma, it drove home the fact that they were teenage girls.

“Radon, is this your first external mission?”

“Yeah, it is.”

Jenny, gulping her latte, asked.

She spoke as if she had done it before as a first-year, but she had probably done some quests for the locals before entering the academy for experience.

Just like her younger sister Ray, whom I met at the cabin during vacation.

“And this is my first! I begged my dad to help the locals when I was younger, but he kept refusing, so I never gained any experience.”

That was Master White Tower’s wise decision.

He must have intentionally discouraged her knowing what kind of trouble his daughter would land herself in.

“I hope we get to be in the same group. Surely the artificial spirits will do a good job of deciding, right?”

“I want to be in the same group as you too. I just don’t get why they have to leave it to the golems.”

Not long ago, the allocation of external mission groups had been handled directly by professors, teaching assistants, and class representatives.

But out of exhaustion from dealing with the fallout of incidents from the first semester, it was the golems’ turn to help this time.

The royal attendants involved in creating the artificial spirits also poked at this, stimulating the professors’ sense of reward.

“We’ve already listed the quests we have to undertake in the Information Department. There’s one that I really want to take.”

“Are you talking about Aramos Town?”

“Yeah. That town where the bandits have appeared.”

Aramos Town is a small village located west of the Empire’s center. Recently, intense battles had unfolded between the priests stationed there and a band of bandits.

The battle between the two factions was as tense as a tug-of-war, barely pulling back in strength, and eventually ended with the priests subduing them.

However, a bizarre detail was discovered in that section. The priests, who had comparable strength to the Empire’s troops, couldn’t defeat a handful of bandits.

Could it be that they weren’t merely bandits, but rather a special elite under disguise? That’s why they had arrangements to escort them to the Holy Cross Sect’s headquarters in Kreuz.

Safely escorting them on that road was the quest that Jenny wanted, and her reason was as follows.

“Among those bandits, there was a sorcerer controlling a lycanthrope.”

“….”

“Even though that person was dealt with during the battle, it’s possible that another sorcerer remains.”

The lycanthrope that killed my mother. Surely the one who controlled that monstrous wolf on that supposedly safe site must have been there.

I almost forgot. That Jenny still held onto memories of that time.

“So, I asked Professor Radian and Cage Department Head for help. I want to take that mission no matter what.”

The algorithm derived from the artificial spirits reorganizes tasks and groups in academy life.

In essence, it’s decided randomly but does not differ much from when the professors arranged it.

Whether it’s decided by the professor or the artificial spirits, in the end, students just hope to be placed in a group with tasks that match their abilities or with friends they get along with.

Since first-year students can’t arbitrarily decide, they have to leave it to luck.

“So, what did they say?”

“….”

Just because you ask doesn’t mean it all goes smoothly.

Jenny lowered her head, clearly displaying a sense of failure, before hesitating…

“Of course, I succeeded!”

When asked how she managed that, Jenny revealed her secret.

“There are usually certain tasks that students dislike. Like missions that are A-rank or higher. Generally, they ask the professor to exclude them from such tasks, all the while knowing they won’t get accepted. But I did the opposite.”

A model student volunteering for tasks that no one wants? Then the professors would surely exclaim ‘Okay!’ and hurry to approve it.

If there’s pressure from the department head, it’s likely they set the algorithm to get Jenny assigned to that mission.

In other words, the mission Jenny would take on is A-rank. It boasts an exceptionally high failure and mortality rate.

In fact, Jenny did get assigned to that mission and ended up in a group with Mary, Lyman, Crona, and Luska.

Excluding Jenny, everyone else in the group was chosen by algorithms.

“I would have liked to go with Radon, but… I don’t want to put you in danger because of my personal reasons. So, I mean, I’d like to ask the department head again…”

“No need for that. It would just be a hassle. And besides, the department head wouldn’t grant such a cautious request for a second time.”

I understood her desire for me not to get assigned that mission, but it was already enough. No matter how much Cage was kind, there are limits to his responsibilities as a department head.

If he keeps giving in, it would become a matter of two people and then ten.

Cage surely understands that offering continual favors to a single person can transform into a collective entitlement.

Thus, asking a second time would be in vain.

“Anyway, the likelihood of me being a part of that is not that high, right? Isn’t it?”

The two agreed with my words, and I sipped my coffee, lounging back in my chair.

Bleep.

“….”

At that moment, I locked eyes with the artificial golem serving as a waiter.

The golem glanced between me and the two of them, as if analyzing something…

*

The next day, Monday.

It was the day when missions and groups would be announced.

First-year combat students gathered in the gymnasium to find out about their missions and groups.

It wasn’t that the group allocation was solely for those student gathered now.

Students from other departments who had interacted in cooperative classes or club activities could very well be in the same group.

“Okay, everyone! Attention!”

Standing on a platform, teaching assistant Adela Merhenna of the combat department shouted with a joyful heart.

She was fulfilling Professor Radian’s intention to convey authority and cleanliness while addressing the students.

“Quite a wait, huh? Now from this point….”

Rustle rustle rustle—

As if no one was awaiting further instructions, the murmurs of students intertwined everywhere.

Uncertain of where they would be allocated, they had plenty to say.

“Where do you think you’ll be assigned? Who do you want to team up with?” These unfamiliar conversations merged, drowning out Adela’s words.

“You guys! Can’t you keep it down?”

In the end, even Kent Egist, the representative of the first-year students, climbed onto the platform and raised his voice, but it was to no avail.

Radian had stepped out for some matter.

Wasn’t it truly despairing that he had to be there…? Just as I was about to lose hope.

Boom!—

The noise began to resonate from the platform as if an earthquake was happening.

The vibrations filled the entire gymnasium, instantly drawing the students’ attention, and the powerful energy spread outwards, shaking them to their core.

Only someone like Radian could create such a ruckus.

But Radian was absent… instead, what caught my eye was Teaching Assistant Adela.

Her face twisted in irritation, and her eyes turned a fiery red, with sharp horns growing from both sides of her head.

“I told you… to concentrate!”

It felt like a massive tiger stood right in front of me.

This was definitely not an illusion.

With Adela transforming like a goblin, all the students swallowed hard, falling silent.

In her early twenties, Adela Merhenna usually appeared trustworthy and friendly.

Due to that welcoming image, everyone often forgets something important. She did not become a combat department assistant at such a young age for no reason.

Though she was overwhelmed during the lycanthrope incident when she was ambushed by a spy, it could not be proven that Adela was worthless.

She, too, wasn’t of ordinary bloodline.

“Now, I will announce the groups, so you need to focus. Understand?”

-Yes…

“The answer is too quiet. Do you understand?”

-Yes!!

Adela, satisfied with the students’ answer, snapped her fingers, and a massive screen appeared in front of the platform.

It displayed letters and numbers denoting the groups.

[Group A-1] [Group A-2] [Group A-3] [Group A-4] [Group A-5]….

[Group B-1] [Group B-2] [Group B-3] [Group B-4] [Group B-5]….

[Group C-1] [Group C-2] [Group C-3] [Group C-4] [Group C-5]….

[Group D-1] [Group D-2] [Group D-3] [Group D-4] [Group D-5]….

The topmost groups carry A-rank missions. The difficulty decreases as you move downwards.

Each group can have a maximum of 5 members.

Adela glanced down at the paper she held and began calling out names to allocate the groups.

The results of the allocation determined by the algorithm from the archive would be included in that paper.

As each name was called, my turn approached.

“Radon Crawler. A-3.”

A-rank… not particularly surprising. Now that I was officially a part of Class A, it would set higher hurdles for us.

Surely it couldn’t be that…

“Jenny Chain Silver. A-3.”

“Huh?”

“Luska Mad Eye. A-3.”

“Uh?”

As expected… bad premonitions always turn out to be true.

Whether in this world or the other, algorithms truly are remarkable.

“Well, there we go.”

“Yeah….”

“Uh-huh.”

I found myself seated together with Jenny and Luska.

That being said, the group assignment was not yet complete.

Up to 5 members could be included, which meant that the other two members would be assigned from different departments.

Finally, the assigned members appeared on the screen.

[Group A-3]

★ Magic Department – Trisha Marelyn

Magic Department – Mary Ryudshiel

Combat Department – Luska Mad Eye

Combat Department – Jenny Chain Silver

Combat Department – Radon Crawler

“…Huh?”

After checking the last assigned member, I wore a look of utter disbelief.

Why on earth was the head of the Newspaper Department here? No matter how much she’s my club president, can she really just be thrown in like this?

What category are we even lumped together in?

‘Wait, then where’s Lyman?’

[Group A-12]

★Combat Department – Lyman Begilius

In that instant, I almost let out a loud exclamation.

Isn’t this going too far?

Surviving as an academy scammer.