WeTried Translations

Translator: Botanica

Discord: https://dsc.gg/wetried

◈ Academy’s Pure Love Dark Knight

Chapter 039

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Episode 39. Always you, just one step behind.

“..Beef stew? Licht, you knew how to cook?”

“Oh, this is delicious, Helmet Guy!”

A little while later, I cooked the monsters we'd caught and fed the awakened hero couple a meal. After all, they needed to eat to work.

“Another bowl, please.”

“You have quite an appetite…. Here you go.”

Just a meat stew, made by throwing everything available into a pot and boiling it.

I thought of someone after a long time and tried making it, and the taste was quite successful. Perhaps it's because of my long experience cooking for myself in reality.

‘The group assignment ends this evening.’

I served the Glass Knight a fresh ladle of stew and made my plans. That Crown Prince. Was he always such a big eater? Our Saintess also tended to eat a lot.

“So, you're saying we should catch a 6-star monster? Isn't it dangerous?”

“We'll choose ones that aren't dangerous.”

I let out a hollow laugh watching Mardol eat, his face still covered by glass as soon as he received a fresh bowl of stew. No one would take it even if he ate slowly. It was fortunate that my smile wasn't visible due to the helmet.

Just then, the blonde hero expressed a question to me.

“A Shadow Wolf is 5-star, though..?”

“The number of stars doesn't determine everything, Kainel.”

Certainly, it's not a weak monster if you don't know the information.

“..That's what guides are for. It'll be easy.”

“That's true.”

Just as there were monsters with tough carapaces that swordsmen found difficult to deal with in the actual game. Some mobs had wild patterns, or were so annoying that even if they were 4-star, players tended to avoid their quests.

“So.. what kind of monster is it, exactly?”

“You know the Armored Bees? We're going to catch their queen bee.”

A monster with a large population and a high star rating. I looked at Mardol and Ariel.

“Queen bee..? Armored Queen Bee?”

“That's right, Ariel.”

With The Mage of Flames here, and seeing Mardol's swordsmanship this morning, it seemed possible. I nodded and began to speak to the others.

Because there were no weaknesses to be exploited.

“Destroying the beehive is our primary goal.”

“..Just that?”

“Just that? Armored Bees are originally bees that need to be dealt with magic, and among them, the Queen is….”

“Protection. Tricky.”

Because it's a creature that carries a steel beehive on its back. It's safe to say that where the Queen is, is also the habitat of the Armored Bees. Moreover, it's easier to deal with these creatures if you know how to counter them.

“As Mardol said, Armored Bees have physical resistance, and the Queen has magic resistance.”

“Then.. if Ariel handles the subordinates, you and I?”

“It's good that we understand each other so well, Kainel. But it's slightly different.”

“What's different?”

In the game, I hated spoilers, so it was incredibly difficult when I challenged it with swordsmanship alone. The Queen wouldn't leave her subordinate protection formation, and Armored Bees weren't easily pierced by swordsmanship.

“Mardol and I will be one pair, and Kainel and Ariel will be the other. If a gap appears, it could be dangerous, and we also need to earn teamwork points.”

“So you're considering magic and physical resistance…. But was Mardol a magician?”

To prepare for any unforeseen circumstances, magic and swordsmanship always had to be paired together to be able to cope.

“He's a Magic Swordsman.”

“Licht's right.”

“Well, it would be strange if he wasn't a Magic Swordsman with that armor! Mardol!”

It wasn't my first time seeing Mardol's glass magic, but the hero couple had never seen it. It made sense. Kainel showed a look of understanding.

“Anyway, we'll lure them with something sweet. Given their habit of making honey, we should be able to attract them with something other than flowers… huh?”

I fumbled around in my pockets, but felt nothing.

‘Where are the candies I bought..?’

Ah, I don't have any candy right now. I forgot I gave them to Kainel during the carriage ride. I despaired at forgetting even such a simple thing. I smacked the forehead of my helmet with my palm.

“Here. Candy.”

“Mardol..?”

Just then, a golden candy was offered to me. Thank you, Crown Prince! You really are a good person. This was entirely my mistake. I should always carry some for our Saintess.

“..Thank you, Mardol.”

Seeing him surpass me even in this aspect made me a little envious. Unaware of my feelings, the heavily armored knight made munching sounds as he ate the remaining candy.

“..You're welcome.”

Your pronunciation is off, Mardol. Perhaps because he was eating inside the glass helmet, the sound echoed hollowly.

“We'll melt this down…”

The crushed candy on the ladle took on a caramel form when it met the fire, becoming a thick, brown liquid. It really felt like making Dalgona.

“Ariel. You can use the skill 「Fire Blossom」, can't you?”

“Ah, yes! Of course I can use it! It's basic magic, Helmet Guy!”

It's because I can't even use that, that I'm doing this. Soon after, she created a flower of flame. Seeing it take the shape of lavender, I wondered if it was reflected from her inner image because it represented her hometown.

“It reminds me of Labranse Village.”

“You're right, Ariel. Was this also a thought for our village?”

“Hehe.. of course, Kai!”

Seeing the Yellow Dog notice that, I felt a slight sense of relief. You've become much more perceptive. I gave a small nod. The red twin-tailed elf was smiling gently at him.

‘At this rate, even if I'm not around, by the time of <Knight Heart> five years from now, won't they be happily dating?’

Tsunderes actually need a lot of time. I tend to think that if they fall in love too easily from a little kindness, it would actually kill their character.

“We'll use this shape as a mold, Mardol. I'll leave it to you.”

“Okay, I got it, Licht.”

Then, a glass mold was created in the shape overlaid with lavender. The melted candy was immediately poured into it and shaped to look like a flower.

“Thank you. I think the preliminary preparations are complete with this.”

“So, what's the plan?”

It seems we've successfully combined items. Since it's a candy flower created by combining earth and fire attributes, there's no chance of other monsters approaching and messing things up.

“..We're going to steal the royal jelly.”

Even if they're 6-star, if you know the strategy, these guys are easy enough to farm repeatedly. It felt fresh, like playing a game after a long time.

“Oh, the bees are here, Helmet Guy!”

Unlike yesterday, our party was waiting from a distance for the monsters to fall into the trap. How much time had passed?

-Buzzzzz.

“They found it right away.”

“Sugar is sweeter than natural plant pollen, Kainel.”

Heavily armored bees, like Mardol, gathered around the sugar flower. Each one was small, but all the Armored Bees wore steel carapaces.

“..Where's the Queen?”

“She'll probably appear if we follow those bees, Mardol.”

Now that I think about it, when will I get armor? The item I used before was really comfortable. My situation, claiming to be a Black Knight with only a helmet, unlike the Glass Knight, felt pathetic.

“..Ah, they're going in pieces.”

“Let's follow without being detected. They're quite aggressive.”

We slowly tracked the worker bees flying in a procession toward one spot.

Then, a large bee emerged, bearing a steel beehive on its back. Unlike the worker bees, the boss monster's presence was large and fierce.

“Armored Queen Bee.”

“..It's much bigger than I thought? Is that a beehive on its back..?”

Kainel pointed at something with his finger. It was a part called 'Iron Hive'. A key strategic point extensively described in guides and lore books.

Destroying that part had the highest probability of obtaining valuable items like royal jelly.

“We need to target the beehive to get royal jelly. Let's aim for that harder part before killing the boss.”

It's also what players commonly call a 'greed item.' If we get this, we'll probably get a very high score.

“The Queen Bee might sting or charge at us. We don't have an antidote right now, so let's be careful.”

Unlike Armored Bees, it was also written in the lore that Queen Bees sometimes eat meat to maintain their size. We had to prevent a disaster from getting poisoned.

“Then.. how will we make the first attack, Helmet Guy?”

“..Naturally, you two should use a joint skill.”

“Ah. You're right..”

As if agreeing immediately after hearing my words, Kainel nodded while looking at the magician. Ariel's cheeks, however, flushed considerably.

“Hiyah. Hiccup.”

Unable to bear it, she started to hiccup a little. Is a back-hug that embarrassing? Ah, if I thought about doing that with our Saintess, I might feel the same.

Thinking of it that way, I immediately understood.

“Just bear with it a little. Once you clear the way, Mardol and I will rush in with Wolf Fang.”

“Together, joint skill.”

That's not a joint skill, Lupus. I shook my head, looking at the Glass Knight lost in his own fantasy. A joint skill requires the attributes of two people to be mixed.

“..What should we name the joint skill..? Ariel?”

“Hiccup, well... how about 「Shine Fireworks」? Kai..”

“What? You're combining it with me because I'm The Hero of Light?”

“..Yeah.”

As the hero couple prepared to use their joint skill, Mardol and I discussed our swordsmanship to figure out how to land an effective hit on the Queen Bee.

“I'll deal as much damage as possible to the beehive with Void Slash. Since prior preparation is needed, please maintain the formation as disrupted as possible with Gransia-style swordsmanship.”

“What should I use?”

“The second form, 「Howling Wind」, should be good. It should be able to stun the worker bees.”

“..How do you know that, Licht?”

Perhaps finding what I knew suspicious, his words became long again. Golden wolf eyes were visible inside the helmet. I felt that trying to waffle would only backfire.

“For a swordsman, knowing the Imperial sword styles is essential.”

Since I was caught in a leading question, I shouldn't deny it, but only convey the truth. When I gave a suitable answer, he dropped his suspicion and nodded.

“I see.”

It feels like a flag has been raised, but I won't really end up trapped in some Imperial underground as a future-knowledge dispenser, will I? With Senior Nex around, I'll probably be fine.

“Then, let's begin.”

I forcibly ignored the pang of guilt and began the Armored Queen Bee strategy.

***

‘Why on earth does that man wear a helmet..’

Phine Gransia was organizing her thoughts inside her glass armor. At first, she thought he wore it to be wary of her or to hide his identity.

‘Licht, strong but naive….’

Her keen eyes gradually saw through him, reminding her that there wasn't just one question.

Just a moment ago, he fell for a leading question almost immediately, and now that she thought about it, he hadn't revealed his face even when eating stew, just like herself.

‘Yesterday, he seemed to be in poor condition, but he was strong.’

Her pure white wolf ears twitched, showing curiosity. He was one of the few individuals she, who hated losing, had been defeated by.

Because of this, such a change felt incredibly fresh.

‘But why does he seem so lively today..?’

Licht's display of completely shredding monsters with Void Slash the day before had even inspired awe.

‘Unique, and strong.’

Her golden eyes regained some vitality as she looked at the man wearing the Black Knight helmet.

‘..It wouldn't be a problem even if I fought him.’

With the anticipation that he could make her stronger in the upcoming year-end exam, her tail wagged inside her heavy armor.

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