I Became The Academy’s Joker Character

Chapter 2

—–CROW—– 

It was absurd.

Even for random magic, was it necessary to include such gambling-like elements?

The two exclamation points at the end, as if it were something amazing, made it even more infuriating.

Especially for a one-time use magic.

But at the same time, another thought crossed my mind.

“…Could there be game developers involved?”

‘First-time limited’ was a very artificial phrase.

It was as if someone had artificially imbued this ability.

Then who?

It seemed likely to be the original Oz or some entity equivalent to the game developers…

This wasn’t something I could figure out just by thinking about it now.

“Still, it’s better to have a purpose.”

Considering Oz’s role in the game, the primary objective was survival.

But living with only that in mind felt too pathetic for someone like me.

I might have been possessed for unknown reasons, but I didn’t want to live in ignorance.

Finding the answer to this had to be my second goal.

“Then, Spatial Barrier is…”

[Spatial Barrier Lv. 1]

[──]

“Nothing.”

Was it unfinished?

If the game had been released like this, countless trucks would have gathered in front of the company’s main gate.

Now that it was reality, it felt like an even more broken game.

[Contemplation – Deactivated]

The longer I maintained [Contemplation], the more nauseous I felt and the worse my headache became, so I decided to deactivate it for a moment.

It felt mentally draining.

I would have to check it later, once I had organized my thoughts.

For now, I had confirmed three things:

The existence of [Contemplation].

It allowed me to think deeply about what I observed.

Knowledge related to magic.

I understood the flow of mana and how to utilize it, but I didn’t know about things like magic circles that constituted magic spells.

Information about skills.

The few techniques I could use immediately.

I had to rely on these for now.

It felt like the tutorial was over. Then the next precaution was…

“Oz, may I come in?”

At that moment, a knock and a young woman’s voice echoed.

I checked the clock on the wall and then reconfirmed the schedule written on the sticky note, but there was no meeting scheduled.

Then was it an uninvited guest?

“Hmm…”

It might be better to pretend I wasn’t here.

If the woman outside was someone close to Oz, like family or a lover, things could become quite troublesome.

I could needlessly ruin a relationship.  It was not wise to act rashly in this uncertain situation.

“Oh? Are you pretending not to be here? Playing hide-and-seek? But I can sense your mana, Oz? Is something wrong? You don’t seem to be sleeping… Should I force the door open and check?”

Come to think of it, there was such a setting.

The characters in this game could identify each other’s mana and locate them.

Thinking about it now, it was a setting optimized for stalking.

I responded, trying to sound as similar as possible to the Oz in the game.

“No, there’s no problem.”

“Ah, you were here after all.  If you don’t mind, could you open the door?”

“…Alright.”

Since I had been discovered, there was no helping it.

It would be best to go out and try to manage the situation as much as possible…

“…”

Just as I was about to move to open the door.

I saw the sticky note I had been looking at lying on the floor, stepped on by my foot.

That small piece of paper particularly caught my eye. If this was Oz’s arrangement, it wouldn’t be a simple instruction manual.

Don’t stop [Contemplating].

Thinking about it that way, the sentence seemed meaningful.

It wasn’t simply ‘Do it,’ but ‘Don’t stop,’ was it?

Why?

Did it mean I had to be suspicious even in everyday life?

“Could it be…”

What if the purpose of this note wasn’t simply to teach me about abilities, but to warn me about what was about to happen?  The meaning of might be just that.

[Contemplation – Activated]

Just in case, I reactivated [Contemplation], and I saw an ominous aura, like fog, seeping through the gap in the door.

I couldn’t tell just by looking at that.

So I slightly moved my foot and checked the next sentence that had been hidden.

Don’t trust anyone until you leave .

The Demon King’s Kingdom, .

In the game, it was the name of Oz’s home country.

Even Oz’s title was [Successor of the Demon King], wasn’t it?

Then where exactly was I right now?

A luxurious, hotel-like room.

Outside the window, I saw multicolored stars and a purple sky that matched the background of the region in the game.

The ominous aura leaking through the door crack.

And the subtle silence that permeated the air despite being in such a bustling city.

And the killing intent I felt from every word the woman uttered.

“Are you almost ready?”

“…”

It seemed she wasn’t a guest, but an enemy.

Perhaps an assassin who had intentionally approached Oz.

It seemed my starting point was a thrilling escape room game.

Now, what should I do? There weren’t many options.

“Oz? Is something the matter?”

Moreover, I didn’t have much time.

Seeing the ominous aura seeping through the door crack grow thicker, it seemed she was starting to suspect me.

“Just a moment.”

“Yes?”

First, I looked around the room while maintaining [Contemplation].

The room was sealed.

Hiding now was pointless since she knew I was here through mana, and hiding in this small space was meaningless.

The view outside the window was the sky.

Since I couldn’t see other buildings, it was likely a very high-rise building.

──Then there was only one door I could escape through safely.

The direction where the presumed dangerous woman was.

There wouldn’t be a fight immediately. If she had intended to fight, she wouldn’t have acted so friendly.

But I had stalled for too long.  If I went out without an excuse, it would be difficult to avoid suspicion.

Then, at least with an attitude befitting Oz…

“I’m changing clothes, so wait a little longer.”

As I spoke in Oz’s characteristic arrogant, aristocratic voice, the opponent’s ominous aura faded considerably.

“Oh, is that so? I’m sorry. I was being inconsiderate.”

Had her suspicion subsided somewhat?  The ominous aura visible through the door crack seemed to have faded.

For now, since she was also feigning friendliness, it was likely a stage of gathering information about each other.

So I should maintain my composure and face her.

Then an opportunity would come.

“Come in.”

“Yes, Oz.”

When I opened the door, I saw a woman with red hair and yellow eyes.

She looked younger than I expected.

She wore a red dress that matched her hair color and held a small bag in one hand.

[Erosion Rate 14%]

Was it because I was nervous? Or because I was focused? The [Erosion Rate] jumped up as soon as I saw her.

“Was I being a bit too sudden?”

“Perhaps…”

Not a bit, but extremely sudden. But I didn’t show it in my attitude. The Oz in the game wouldn’t have shown such a reaction.

“Have a seat.”

I led the red-haired woman, who might be an assassin, to the table.

With some distance between us and both of us seated, her movements would be somewhat restricted in case of an emergency.

“Then, excuse me.”

The woman sat down demurely.

Whether she was a noble lady from somewhere or a trained assassin, her demeanor was quite elegant.

“Oh, I brought some wine…”

The woman took out what appeared to be an expensive bottle of wine from her small bag.

“…Sorry, but I have an appointment, so I’d rather not drink.”

“Oh… That’s too bad.”

I barely managed to suppress a groan and refused as naturally as possible.  An overtly ominous aura emanated from the wine.

“It’s delicious wine, such a shame… Then I’ll leave it here so you can have it later.”

“Alright.”

Was she thinking of poisoning me?

But what surprised me more was that such a large object could fit in a bag the size of a handbag.

Since it was a fantasy world, it wouldn’t be strange to have convenient items like subspace bags, but…

I started to worry about what else she might be hiding in there.

* * *

The information I gathered while conversing with the assassin woman was as follows:

Her right hand had more calluses compared to her left.

It was a subtle difference that would be hard to notice normally, but I could discern it, perhaps due to [Contemplation] or my extreme tension.

Actually, it wasn’t enough to be called calluses, but the right side of her hand was more trained than the left.

Being trained like that meant she frequently swung something large and heavy with her right hand.

“Mmm, this is delicious.”

And while she might have been suspicious, she wasn’t wary of me.

As if she was certain I wouldn’t touch her.

As if she wished this situation wouldn’t change. As if it couldn’t change.

Her purpose was to assassinate me, but she was clearly enjoying this moment together.

Was this Oz’s charisma that captivated even an assassin?

…Or perhaps they were originally that close.

She might not have been an assassin, or perhaps Oz had betrayed her expectations.

Knowing Oz’s arrogance, it was plausible.

“Ah, is your time alright? I heard you had quite a busy schedule today…”

And above all, there was no way Oz wouldn’t have noticed what I had noticed.

The woman in front of me seemed to have been looking for a chance to kill Oz for quite some time. And Oz, knowing this, had allowed her approach.

Contrary to his cold exterior and the arrogance that believed he could handle everything alone, perhaps he was weak at heart.

The assassin and Oz.

I didn’t know exactly what their relationship was, but it was clear that they were recklessly maintaining a relationship that shouldn’t continue.

“This is…”

“Is something wrong?”

Did she notice my bitter expression? The assassin woman asked with a seemingly worried look.

Disgusting.

That expression, hiding the sinister killing intent within, was disgusting.

Yes, it should be disgusting, but…

[Erosion Rate 16%]

Oz’s feelings, which accounted for a mere 16%, seemed different.

“Let’s stop this.”

My heart felt heavy.

If it was like this with just 16%, how suffocating must the original Oz have felt? This relationship had to end.

If the [Erosion Rate] continued to increase like this, I might not be able to escape this relationship either.

“Let’s stop the lies and get to the point.”

“…”

The woman, who had been smiling brightly just a moment ago, instantly became expressionless.

Indeed, she too had noticed the strange situation where they were both lying to each other.

The red-haired woman eventually asked with a maniacal smile, “So, what are you going to do? Are you going to stop playing this childish game and kill me?”

“Well…”

Honestly, I wasn’t sure if I could subdue her, unlike the original Oz.

I had the knowledge, but I couldn’t use magic yet.

It was like having the ingredients for a dish but not knowing the recipe.

I knew how to process mana itself, but I didn’t know any spells.

“If you give up and go back, I don’t intend to stop you.”

“You’re joking, right?”

It didn’t work, huh?

The woman put her hand inside the small bag she had taken the wine from and began to watch me cautiously.

It was good that I had investigated beforehand.

I knew she was strong.

Compared to Oz, who was SSR-rank, she was probably somewhere between SR and SSR rank?

Moreover, it was likely that she wasn’t a mage but a close-combat specialist.

The calluses on her hands proved it.

If I moved recklessly, my head would fly off.

“Can I ask you one thing?”

“Go ahead.”

“If you were planning to end this childish game today, why didn’t you attack me from the beginning?”

“Probably for a reason similar to yours.”

As soon as I said that, the woman frowned and spoke with displeasure.  Did I guess wrong?

“That’s why… Because you’re so foolish like that, Oz, things have come to this.”

Even if she said that, I didn’t know.

What I could understand was that the 16% that was Oz had also made up his mind.

No, it was more like resignation.

It felt strange that it felt so distant even though it was my emotion.

“Then…”

I got up from the table and slowly crossed the room.

I didn’t go towards the door.

She would be guarding the door, so if I headed that way, she would react immediately.

So, as if organizing my thoughts, using Oz’s usual demeanor…

I headed towards the window.

“Beautiful.”

Looking down from the window, I realized. This room was as high as I expected. No, it was even higher than I expected.

Then, it was time to make a decision.

[Master of Mana Lv. 1]

[★First-Time Limited Commemorative 100% SSR-rank Magic Appearance!!]

It was somewhat ridiculous, but this was the only offensive means I could rely on right now.

But this single chance was both an opportunity and a penalty.

SSR-rank magic was usually on a scale that could oppose an army.

Even in the game, they were area-of-effect spells or incredibly high-powered techniques.

If I used it in this narrow room, I wouldn’t be able to handle the aftermath.

“See you below.”

Under normal circumstances, it would be unimaginable.  To even consider jumping from this height would be impossible unless I was insane.

But now it was different.

[Erosion Rate 17%]

17% of me now was occupied by the unwavering mental fortitude of a mage with the highest talent, according to the setting.

A mage calmly and coolly assessed whether or not they could handle the situation at hand.

And this, I could do.

“What…?!”

As the red-haired woman cried out in bewilderment, I threw myself out the window without hesitation.

—–CROW—–