Bluff (3)

After hearing the man's words, Dier fell into thought for a moment.

"Right, there was a time when I resented that too."

His exceptional dynamic vision compared to his utterly average physique. He always felt frustrated by his body that couldn't keep up with his thoughts.

There were times when he questioned God, wondering why he was given such good eyesight if he was going to have such an ordinary body, only to be left with longing.

However, God doesn't care about such things in the first place. He doesn't have any specific intentions for each individual.

"It's true that I want to become stronger, of course," Dier said with a smile, his face serene. "But if I take your hand, I feel like I'll become weaker instead."

[...]

The man didn't have much of a reaction to Dier's provocative words.

Dier took a step back. "I'm good. I'll just accept your sentiment."

Smiling, Dier turned around.

He wasn't exactly keen on showing his back to such a suspicious person, but this was inside Constel. That man wouldn't act recklessly here.

If he did anything, he would be caught in an instant.

[Dier.]

The man spoke behind Dier's slowly retreating back.

[You will come find us soon.]

"..."

What a cliche. Dier sighed and kept walking.

He was incredibly suspicious, anyway. Is that kind of thing trending in Constel these days?

[You must know Frondier de Roach, right?]

The man spoke again.

It was Senior Slacker again. Although a name that bothered him came up, Dier ignored it. He dismissed it as another useless remark.

However.

[He also received our help.]

Halt—

Dier's steps stopped. His expression, always carefree and lively, sank deeply.

"...What did you say?"

Seeing Dier turn around again, the man chuckled, uncharacteristically.

[How could the second son of Roach have gained such immense power? In less than a year, too. There's a limit to how much a person's Mana can grow. It takes a very long time to surpass that limit. You would know better than anyone, Dier Eiger.]

At the man's words, Dier couldn't offer any rebuttal and remained silent.

Honestly, Dier also didn't know how Frondier had become so strong in such a short period.

During his days as the Human Sloth, he couldn't have been that great. If he had sufficient skills, even with his lazy nature, he would have been called by a different nickname. Instead of a complete derogatory term like Human Sloth.

Not just Dier, but all of Constel was paying attention to Frondier's rapid growth.

If it were possible to become strong that quickly, everyone would choose that method. Even the teachers, though they wouldn't say it, would be curious. If it's a proper training method, they would need to apply it to the curriculum as soon as possible.

But for Frondier's secret to becoming strong to actually be the help of this suspicious group?

"That's a lie."

[Then can you come up with another explanation? There's no need to argue about anything else. Look at Frondier's overflowing Mana. Do you have any idea how he could have obtained such Mana in such a short time?]

"..."

He didn't.

Within the methods that Dier knew, such a method didn't exist.

But that didn't mean he had to believe this man's words. Both options were equally suspicious.

It was just the timing of this unknown group's appearance, right after Frondier became strong, that felt off.

[Let's head back for today. Think carefully with that clever head of yours. We'll be waiting.]

With those words, the man turned and left.

It was Dier who was going to turn his back and leave first, but somehow the roles had reversed.

"...Huu."

Dier ran his hand through his hair.

"This is a big problem."

Dier didn't believe the man's words.

This wasn't necessarily a logical denial of the man's words, but rather a matter of intuition and his heart.

Dier was one of the people who had witnessed firsthand, not just heard rumors of, an aspect of Frondier's strength.

Dier had noticed that Frondier was going much easier on the freshmen than the conditions of the test required. That was the level of strength that Frondier himself had set as the second stage of the test.

The composure and decisiveness that Frondier had shown, the advice he had given to Pielott, and his ability to respond to Dier's strategies. Those weren't things that could be shown simply by increasing the amount of Mana.

That's why Dier believed in Frondier.

That's why, what Dier meant by a big problem was a different issue.

'He wouldn't have just spouted those words to me alone, would he?'

Even Dier, who held Frondier in high regard and had come to respect him, was momentarily shaken by those words.

Then what about when others heard them? To students who had only heard rumors about Frondier and hadn't properly observed him, even if they had taken the skill test.

─Frondier didn't actually become strong through his own efforts. He used a shortcut.

The persuasiveness of this statement wasn't important. It was just a matter of how believable and desirable it was to believe.

If the man at the bottom of the school suddenly rose to the top, surpassing many others, and it turned out that it wasn't actually due to his own abilities.

'I don't know who those guys are, but...'

They were some of the unluckiest bastards among those who used their heads.

* * *

As Dier expected.

Within a few days, rumors about Frondier spread throughout Constel.

It was the result of the stories that had been gradually spreading since he became a sophomore, like a chain reaction.

─Frondier's strength is due to a shortcut.

─Frondier is taking drugs.

─His Mana is a temporary boost from doping.

Due to the rumors gradually spreading through Constel, an invisible tension formed within the school.

Depending on the situation, this rumor could be more dangerous than the ones Frondier originally had, based on his incompetence and laziness. If the rumors were true, it meant he was involved in a crime.

But Frondier himself, whether he knew it or not.

"Alright, again. Your body can definitely react to it."

He was diligently pushing Pielott on the training ground.

"Huff! Huff, huff!"

Pielott breathed like he was about to die.

It had already been an hour since Frondier called Pielott as a sparring partner.

Pielott was dodging Frondier's Weaving by rolling on the ground.

He was avoiding invisible weapons, only grasping them through Mana detection.

"Hey, stop pretending to be tired."