On the way back after receiving the mace from Favie, just after leaving the church, the old man cautiously spoke up.
‘What about her?’
‘Favie?'
I tilted my head in confusion at his words.
It made no sense because the Favie I knew was like a mighty tree.
A person as steadfast as a tree that wouldn’t fall no matter how fierce the storm.
A person who could shelter everyone under her vast shade.
Even if a few roots were to rot, she would still grow taller without wavering.
That’s the kind of person Favie is.
Even in her personal story, where she faced countless trials, she never once frowned and always maintained the composure of a saint. There’s no way soone like that would be shaken without any reason.
‘Co on, that’s ridiculous.’
Grandpa, if you’re going to make accusations, at least make them believable.
Jealousy and Favie don’t belong in the sa sentence.
I’ve played through her route in the ga countless tis, and not once did I see the saint display jealousy toward anyone.
Why are you trying to paint a girl with no connection to you as so kind of villain?
‘...Are you saying Favie is really jealous of ?!’
Huh?
Why?
What could she possibly be jealous of? Objectively speaking, is there anything about that would make Favie feel envious?
I can’t wrap my head around it.
‘Why?’
So, it’s that part.
I guess it makes sense. She’s spent her whole life devoutly worshiping the gods, yet she’s never heard their voice, while just recently, a sugaki who used to wreak havoc in the church is now receiving divine blessings. That must be infuriating for her.
If I were in her shoes, I’d probably think, “Screw this perverted god, like I’d ever believe in you again.” But Favie isn’t that kind of person.
Now that I think about it, this situation never occurred in the ga.
In the ga, Armathi never spoke to the player.
So I don’t know exactly how Favie would react when faced with a player who received the goddess’s favor.
But I can make an educated guess.
I know what kind of person she is.
‘She’ll be fine.’
Favie might waver.
She might even stumble.
Even though she holds the title of saint and is closer to the divine than anyone else, she’s still human.
But Favie will be okay.
In the end, she always overcos and smiles—that’s the kind of character Saint Favie is.
I believed in the bright smile she showed at the end of her dark personal story.
‘Don’t worry. When have I ever been wrong?’
‘But more importantly, Grandpa, let’s talk about how I can get stronger from here.’
This is the more pressing issue.
Given that I’m marked as Armathi’s apostle, who knows how many threats will co my way.
Nakrard attacked earlier, sensing Armathi’s presence in , and ignored his original plan just to kill .
Who knows how many more tis this will happen in the future.
The best way to prepare is for to beco stronger.
It’s better to prepare to crush any variables rather than shivering in fear over what might happen.
‘It’s not enough.’
If it were just about physical specs, I could grind and improve them myself.
But combat skills are different. You can’t just grind your way to expertise.
Right now, I rely on Grandpa’s judgnt in critical monts. But that’s not good enough.
When fighting Nakrard, I realized that waiting for Grandpa’s advice was too slow.
I need to reach a level where I can make the sa judgnts as Grandpa before he even speaks.
‘I don’t want to die.’
‘Thanks, Grandpa. And one more thing.’
‘You rember all the lessons I’ve taken at the academy, right?’
So, here’s the thing—a quest just popped up, telling to take first place in the midterms.
The problem is, I spent most of the academy lectures making out with my desk.
So if soone asks what I’ve learned so far, all I can say is, “Uh...”
I really need your help, Grandpa!
‘Yes?’
Grandpa let out a sigh at my shaless request and then launched into a lecture.
It’s not the first ti I’ve heard this, so I just let it go in one ear and out the other.
You’re going to help anyway, right, Grandpa?
I already figured out long ago that you’re a tsundere!
The next morning.
As I was preparing for training with Freyr as usual, Joy ca to see .
She better not be here to say thank you again after all the thanks she gave in the infirmary yesterday.
If that’s really the case, I’ll use my sugaki skills to make her forget all about gratitude.
But as I waited for Joy to speak, the words that ca out of her mouth were completely unexpected.
“Please help beco stronger.”
Uh... what?
What did you say?
Help you beco stronger?
Why would Joy, a mage, ask for that? There are plenty of more reliable sources she could turn to for advice, aren’t there?
Like other professors at the academy,
Or a teacher brought in through the Partran family’s connections.
Of course, I can help Joy.
I’ve trained all kinds of characters at Soul Academy, not just lee ones.
I’m an experienced player who knows how to train every class in the ga.
But I’m curious about her motive for asking this question.
‘Why ask ?’
“Blockhead, can’t you think of anything else? Why would a mage ask a knight for help?”
“I’m not asking for guidance in magic. I want to beco soone who can stand by your side. To repay my debt to you.”
I roughly understood what Joy was saying.
She wants to repay the debt she owes for saving her life by standing by my side.
So she’s asking to help her beco soone I’d want to keep by my side?
To put it differently...
‘You want to party with ?’
“Heh~ Blockhead, you want to party with ? Did you actually enjoy being teased by ? You perverted lady~ So gross~”
“...Setting aside the last part, yes, I want to be in the sa party as Lady Allen.”
Having Joy as a party mber would be great.
She was an excellent mage in the ga, after all.
Depending on how you structure the party, Joy was always a top choice when you needed a powerful rear guard.
Since I often feel like I’m lacking in damage during battles, I have no reason to refuse Joy’s request to join the party.
However...
‘If you want to be a party mber, I won’t refuse. But...’
“If you’re begging to join, I could let you in, but can you handle a dungeon, you pathetic coward?”
That’s the problem.
Joy has a trauma related to dungeons from an incident in an alchemist’s dungeon in the past.
No matter how capable she is, a mage who can’t enter dungeons is useless.
If she can’t overco this, I can’t accept her as a party mber.
As I stared at her, waiting for an answer, Joy hesitated for a mont before slowly nodding.
“I... think I’ll be okay.”
‘Really?’
“Blockhead, I know you love , but don’t bluff. You might actually wet yourself this ti.”
“Maybe on my own, I wouldn’t be, but if you’re by my side, Lady Allen, I’ll be fine.”
I’ll be fine if you’re with .
Hearing those careful words from Joy made it impossible for to hold back my laughter.
I was already thrilled when I saw that her favorability had exceeded 70, but seeing my favorite character rely on in person was too much to contain.
‘So you’ll be fine if I’m there!’
“Ahaha♡ You can’t do anything without , can you? Pathetic~ Coward~ Don’t tell you can’t go to the bathroom at night without ?”
I could see Joy’s hands trembling as she clasped them tightly, but there was nothing I could do.
I had dread of this mont, but never thought it would actually happen. How could I not laugh?
It was only after I’d laughed myself breathless that I finally noticed Joy standing with her head bowed, her face bright red.
Hmm, maybe I went a bit too far.
‘Alright, Joy. Let’s go into the dungeon together.’
“Alright. You’re just a helpless little lady without , aren’t you? I’ll take care of you.”
“Thank you.”
Joy’s voice trembled as she replied.
Joy, you might be regretting this now, but it’s too late.
You can co in, but you can’t leave whenever you want.
Now that you’ve asked to be part of an experienced party, you’re going to have to reach the level I expect.
‘But there’s a condition.’
“But blockhead, I can’t take care of you for free. There’s a condition.”
“What is it?”
‘Follow everything I say to the letter, and don’t give up halfway.’
“Do everything I say. No backing out like so coward halfway through.”
In the ga, I couldn’t personally manage the training schedule of my NPC companions.
At best, I could set the general direction.
But this is the real world.
I can do everything the ga’s system prevented from doing before.
In the ga, all I could do was make sure they learned good skills and equipped good items. But now, I can personally shape and polish Joy from start to finish.
Is there any veteran player who wouldn’t be excited about that?
I guarantee there isn’t.
As Joy crossed her arms and gave a confident smile, she spoke up.
“What do you take for, Lady Allen? Do I look like soone who would give up so easily?”
‘Really?’
“Are you sure? Confident? I bet you, pathetic blockhead, won’t last a day.”
“I won’t disappoint you.”
Seeing the determination in Joy’s eyes, I nodded.
If she’s that resolute, who am I to stop her?
Ah, I have no choice.
I didn’t want to push my favorite character too hard, but if she insists, what can I do?
I’ll have to put her through the wringer.
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