I Became the Savior of the Academy’s Villains Chapter 97

"Huaaam...."

"What's this? Didn't you get any sleep?"

Ottbo yawned.

Seeing him, Hav gave him a puzzled look.

"... I slept too much on the train."

"Yeah, you did sleep a lot."

Ottbo made an excuse, not wanting to talk about what happened last night.

However, since the excuse was plausible enough, Hav accepted it right away.

Soon after, he smiled brightly.

"No matter how much I sleep, I can always sleep again once I lie down!"

"Hav. Is that something to brag about...?"

Next to them, Moula looked at him as if he were pathetic, but he remained confident.

"My master said that kids who sleep well grow up quickly! That means sleeping well is a good thing!"

"Let's cut the nonsense there. Shouldn't you be showing us around by now?"

Luca, who had hardly slept last night like Ottbo, didn't look tired at all.

At his indifferent words, Hav tilted his head.

"Not eating?"

"I don't want to eat in a place like this."

His tone was curt.

It seemed he didn't want to stay here even a minute longer after what happened yesterday.

Hav nodded in agreement.

"Alright. Anyway, they're selling food on the Workshop Street too."

"Workshop Street?"

Having heard 'illegal workshop,' Luca imagined just a small building.

But a 'street'?

He couldn't quite picture it.

"It's big. Let's just go. Even if it's nearby, we'll need to walk a bit."

Perhaps because he was hungry, Hav wanted to leave immediately.

Everyone agreed, quickly packed their belongings, and left the inn.

It was still early morning, but the streets of Bizen were quite busy.

No, it would be more accurate to say they were busy at this time of day.

Only during the time people commuted to and from work did the crowd thicken.

But it wasn't crowded enough to be called a throng, so they could walk at a leisurely pace.

They headed further and further toward the outskirts until they finally crossed the city's border and reached the outer forest.

"It's quite far."

Though they had walked a good deal, they still hadn't arrived, and Luca glanced at Hav with doubtful eyes.

Hav scratched his neck.

"When Master led the way, we got there quickly, but it's not so easy on my own."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, it's an illegal workshop. There's a barrier set up so people can't get in easily. You have to recognize the specific magic power pattern to find the entrance, but I can't see it well."

At those words, Ottbo, with a tired and worn-out expression, lifted his head.

"No wonder the magic power felt a bit strange."

"You felt that?"

Hav looked slightly surprised.

He had heard that the barrier here used an extremely clandestine magic power pattern to evade crackdowns, so even among advanced mages, unless they specialized in barriers, it was hard to sense anything unusual.

Hav himself had visited several times, and his master, Bern Doyner, had taught him how to find the pattern, so only vaguely could he sense it.

"Yeah. I think the starting point is over there."

Ottbo pointed at a spot where two ordinary trees stood side by side.

At that, Hav made a reluctant face.

"I think that's it."

"So you couldn't find something so simple?"

Luca said curtly, and Hav gave him a bewildered look.

"Huh? There's no way...?"

"Let's go quickly. I'm getting hungry."

"Uh... alright..."

Hav couldn't quite grasp the situation, but since he was hungry, he hurried after Luca and Ottbo who had taken the lead.

Shwoong!

As Ottbo passed between the two trees he had pointed out, a gigantic iron wall suddenly became visible.

A wall so massive it could be seen from far away.

Luca glanced back.

Unlike the sparse woods they had just been in, this forest was densely packed with trees.

'Did we just teleport?'

It didn't exactly feel like a spatial jump, but with scenery so different from just moments before, he couldn't help thinking such things.

"Who goes there!"

At that moment, two guards standing at the large iron gate that served as the entrance to the wall spotted them.

Spotting them, the guards thrust their long spears forward and shouted.

Hav stepped forward and spoke.

"I'm Master Bern's disciple!"

"... Oh? It is. That's Hav and Moula, master Bern's disciples."

"What's up? Didn't you go off to the Academy? Why are you out here on a date?"

They seemed to recognize Hav and quickly greeted him.

Hav exchanged some brief greetings and then looked over at Luca.

"They said we can go in!"

"Hmph."

It was such a slipshod security that he wondered if this was really okay.

But since there was no reason to pick a fight, it was actually for the best.

As Luca and his group passed through the wall, the guards muttered among themselves.

"Is it fine for kids to go in by themselves? Isn't it dangerous?"

"Leave them. Are you going to be their escort?"

"Well, no..."

Hearing their conversation as he passed, Luca glanced back and clicked his tongue, hand going to his sword hilt.

'Clearly, this isn't just any workshop.'

For the scale and security, something was off to be just a simple workshop.

It seemed his suspicions were correct—as soon as they passed through the gate, a startling sight unfolded before them.

Tssss! Tssss! Beeeep!

The first thing they saw upon entering was a massive magic power plant, billowing steam.

Around it were multiple magic smelters and machinery.

The noise they produced made his ears ring for a moment.

"W-wow!"

The first to react was Ottbo's exclamation.

Fatigue had disappeared from his eyes, replaced by bright curiosity.

"It's quite spacious."

Luca, too, was impressed.

He'd wondered how large Workshop Street could be, but it seemed even larger than Bizen itself.

Most of it was used for parking auto-carriages, though.

"Over there—that restaurant has rolled meat with pickled cabbage, it's really good."

"Hav. While we're here, let's go to the materials shop too."

"Ah, should we? I need to buy a gift for Master too."

Hav and Moula, perhaps energized by returning after a long time, seemed excited.

With everyone so spirited, Luca felt the need to calm things down.

"We're not here to play. Everyone, calm down. Let's eat first, then immediately secure an auto-carriage and proceed with our business."

"That sounds good. I'm starving."

"Then... hey, Ottbo."

Luca, who was about to suggest heading to the restaurant, frowned as Ottbo kept looking all around him.

"Focus."

"Huh? Mm..."

Finally snapping out of it, Ottbo blinked.

"Let's eat first, then think things over."

They went to the restaurant Hav had recommended.

The menu was a dish where chopped meat and spices were stuffed into pickled cabbage and simmered for several hours.

Just as Hav had said, it was delicious.

"It's even tastier since it's been so long!"

"Not bad."

"Shall we check out the auto-carriages, then?"

Looking at Ottbo, who seemed about to run straight to the workshop after their meal, Luca smiled.

"Let's do that."

"Let's go!"

Ottbo, excited, took the lead.

The others quickly followed after him.

"Wow, Luca, do you see that? It's nothing like regular carriages! That might be less stable, but I bet it's super fast!"

"Wow! What's that? Springs? Did they attach springs to the wheels? Amazing!"

"Wow! Spider legs! They actually put articulated legs on an auto-carriage!"

Excited, Ottbo babbled on.

Luca followed behind, saying,

"Ottbo, don't pick anything weird. We're just here to rent an auto-carriage to get to that guy's village."

"Yeah, I know! I'm just looking!"

"Doesn't seem like you're just looking..."

Seeing Ottbo acting like a kid at a toy store put a faint, fond smile on his face.

He wondered sometimes if having a younger sibling would feel like this.

But Hav, walking behind, asked with curiosity,

"By the way, can we actually rent an auto-carriage here?"

"... What do you mean?"

Hearing such a thing now, Luca frowned.

Hav flinched.

"I mean... I've never rented one before..."

"Then why did you bring us here?"

"Huh? Well... when it comes to auto-carriages, it's got to be here."

Luca's eyelid twitched and he let out a heavy sigh.

"Hey. You know how much one of those costs?"

"No idea. Maybe a hundred gold?"

"...."

Hav's clueless reply left Luca at a loss.

Even if things here were cheaper than on Earth, an auto-carriage was probably as pricey as a car; there was no way you could get one for just a hundred gold.

Even the most basic ones usually cost at least 20,000 gold—and if these were illegal, customized vehicles, the price could be double that.

"So we've wasted our trip."

"Wait... it can't be done for a hundred gold...?"

Seeing Luca sigh, Hav asked hesitantly.

Moula, next to him, whispered,

"Hav. I think you'd need at least a thousand gold."

"Gasp! That much?"

"... Exhausting."

Luca realized his mistake—he hadn't considered Hav's rural, commoner sense of money.

He sighed again and looked for Ottbo.

"?"

But Ottbo was nowhere to be seen.

"Ottbo?"

"Luca! How about this one?"

Just then, Ottbo's voice called from a little farther away.

Luca went in the direction of the voice and said,

"Ottbo, you can't actually rent—"

"How's this one? Isn't it cool? Performance looks good, too!"

Ottbo, ignoring Luca, gazed excitedly at some auto-carriage.

Luca glanced at the vehicle Ottbo was pointing to.

The auto-carriage was similar to an Earth car, but also a bit different.

The structure was based on a carriage, but the driver's seat had been adapted to an enclosed cabin.

It was somewhat like having the front of an airplane attached to a carriage.

But the model Ottbo pointed out was even more like a modern sedan.

To see something like that in this time period made Luca want to applaud.

'If they've got these, why didn't they appear in the original story?'

Of course, there was no reason for them to.

People used magic or flew around in airships, so there wasn't much use for auto-carriages.

'That's not the issue right now.'

Luca shook his head and looked at Ottbo.

"Ottbo, they say you can't rent auto-carriages here. I doubt you could borrow this."

"Huh? Then I'll just buy it."

"...?"

At Ottbo's simple answer, Luca fell silent.

And what happened next left him dumbfounded.

"Hey! How much is this one?"

"... Tsk. Kid, if you're just here to gawk, go away."

The shop owner, noticing Ottbo's enthusiastic demeanor, clicked his tongue and looked him over.

Ottbo frowned.

"I asked you how much it was."

"...100,000 gold."

"Don't lie. The materials and workmanship don't justify that. At most, it's worth 60,000 gold, right?"

At Ottbo's words, the shop owner's eyes glinted.

"Why do you think so, kid?"

"Judging by the max magic power output, the magic power regen, and the chassis durability, it's an Arzena workshop mid-grade magic stone and Ronno alloy."

"Ho."

At Ottbo's unhesitant reply, the shop owner smiled in interest.

"Alright. So I see you know your stuff. Then you must have the money to buy it, right?"

"If I buy this, you'll at least throw in a storage subspace case, right?"

"Of course. If you didn't, you couldn't even take it out of here."

At that, Ottbo took something from his wallet.

It was a continental standard cash exchange card.

But the color was strange.

"There should be a little over 60,000 gold left. That's enough, right? You can keep the change."

A beautiful, opal-colored card shimmering in his hand.

It was the highest-tier exchange card, usable for at least 50,000 gold and up to 100,000 gold.

The shop owner smacked his lips and bowed his head.

"... I'll prepare it right away."

"I bought it! Luca!"

And then Ottbo looked at Luca with the brightest smile.

Luca watched him with half-lidded eyes and asked,

"Ottbo. Where did you get that money?"

"This? It was an entrance gift. I always wondered when I'd use it, but I guess it was here."

"..."

Luca twisted his lips.

"Ottbo. Be honest. That stuff about your family ignoring you was a lie, wasn't it?"

"W-what are you talking about?"

Ottbo looked genuinely flustered.

Luca pouted and turned away.

"No, never mind."

"?"

Even if he was the shunned second son, being the second son of a family that made war supplies was a completely different status.

"Young master, it'll take a little while to get it ready. Is that alright?"

Just then, the shop owner came out and asked Ottbo.

Luca nodded for Ottbo.

"The most important problem is solved, so let's look around."

"Shall we?"

Ottbo's eyes sparkled as if he had been waiting for this.

Luca chuckled and looked at Hav and Moula.

"You two go to that materials shop. It'll take some time here."

"Okay!"

Sending off Hav and Moula, Luca and Ottbo wandered through other workshops.

'Hmm?'

As Luca followed the busy Ottbo around, something odd caught his eye.

Some people in the street made eye contact, glancing repeatedly in their direction.

All of them looked rather rough and intimidating.

'It's not like I feel any bloodlust, though.'

They weren't hiding their presence like assassins.

Right then, someone passing by Ottbo bumped his shoulder.

"Ugh!"

"?"

Ottbo staggered to the side, and the person who had bumped into him suddenly fell to the ground.

"Aaagh! My shoulder! My shoulder's broken, aaagh!"

"Huh, huuh?"

Though he'd been the one to get bumped, now the other party was rolling on the ground, causing Ottbo confusion.

Soon, several people gathered around the fallen man.

"What's this, are you alright? That looks pretty serious."

"Hey! Kid! Watch where you're going!"

"This is bad. There's no hospital nearby, is there?"

At that signal, the people who had been making eye contact before rushed over as if on cue, glaring at Ottbo.

Their movement was so coordinated, this clearly wasn't their first time.

Ottbo, who hadn't grasped the situation, blinked in confusion as the man on the ground quietly stood and said,

"Hey, what are you going to do about my shoulder!"

He clutched his shoulder, which dangled as if it had popped out of its socket.

The onlookers buzzed among themselves.

"Oh dear, this is serious. ... We should get compensation for his treatment, shouldn't we?"

-------------= Clacky's Corner -------------=

For real, Ottbo is the MVP of this trip...

Super-deluxe suite, buying the auto-carriage...

Yeah, what Luca said before, that he was sure Ottbo would be useful was true...

It's just that he didn't know how useful Ottbo would be...

I doubt he thought Ottbo would just buy a 60,000 gold auto-carriage willy nilly...

【ദ്ദി(⩌ᴗ⩌)】