I Became The Academy Necromancer
Chapter 321: The Sloppy Girls

[Animal.]

[Lion.]

Two voices echoed in the quiet prison. After being confined here for several days, it seemed they had gotten bored and continued playing their word chain game sounding completely emotionless.

[Your turn, Deus.]

I frowned instinctively at the voice of the Dark Spiritualist leaning against my right shoulder.

“Do I have to participate in this as well?”

[Then, are you not going to play? It’s pretty boring otherwise.]

“I am not really bored.”

Though I wished they’d just stay quiet, Stella quickly responded to my words.

[R? Rat poison!]

Silence returned to the prison once more.

The women leaning on either side of me poked my sides simultaneously.

[Come on, n… you have so many options.]

[Nausea, Nest, Nestle. Lots to choose from, Deus.]

“I said, I am not playing.”

[Germ!]

Did they actually find this fun?

Or were they just trying to pass the time in their own way?

“…”

Being a Necromancer, should I really indulge these souls’ antics? Considering that briefly, I realized that we’d been in this prison for too long.

Rattle. Rattle.

Then came a commotion from outside.

However, it didn’t sound like a desperate or tense noise, but rather a strange sense of clumsiness.

“Ouch!”

In fact, the voice that came through sounded rather youthful, especially for someone in a prison.

“My butt hurts.”

“That’s why I told you I’d go in first.”

“What if you went in first and got caught? I’m a princess, but you’re just some ordinary nobody.”

“Did you know? I was voted the prettiest in the academy.”

“It was a rigged election. Did you threaten or beat up the voters? That’s not very nice.”

“Nope. You’re just bitter because you lost.”

“…Should I look into who voted?”

“Ugh, you crazy bitch. Fine, they excluded you from the vote because you’re royalty.”

[What are they doing here?]

[Are they not afraid of Mage Tribunal Judge Tyren showing up?]

“He will not come.”

Tyren might have lost most of the battles we had seen, but he was still one of the top five strongest people in the kingdom.

And besides, this underground prison was managed by Tyren and the Mage Tribunal Judges.

Knowing that Princess Eleanor was the intruder, it was obvious they wouldn’t bother making a move.

After all, everyone knew that I was close with Princess Eleanor.

“Enough. Let’s just find Professor.”

“I heard Deus is the only one in this prison. Get in quietly.”

It felt like watching kids playing house. Even though everyone was aware of their intrusion, the two girls were still trying their hardest not to get caught.

“Why are you here?”

When I finally responded to their voices, the sound of two footsteps echoed as if in reply.

“Deus!”

“Professor!”

The two stood right in front of the iron bars.

It seemed they had attempted to somewhat disguise themselves, each tying a piece of cloth around their heads, making them resemble petty thieves.

“I wanted to come as soon as I heard you were detained, but my brother wouldn’t let me. Sorry!”

“Professor, are you hungry? I brought you a lunchbox!”

I was expecting some dramatic plan to help me escape, but instead, they handed me a thermos and a lunchbox.

“Hey, I thought we agreed that we would give it together, didn’t we? Deus, I also helped her with the cooking! And I brought dessert too!”

Clearly irritated, Eleanor pulled out a neatly wrapped box of cookies from her belongings.

[Seriously, why did they even come here?]

[Still, I’m relieved they’ve brought food. It was hard to watch Deus getting thinner.]

The situation was so absurd that even the Dark Spiritualist and Stella were bewildered, but I accepted their offering for now.

“Have you eaten? I-if it’s okay, can you eat it now?”

“I-It’s really delicious, I swear!”

“…”

I wasn’t particularly hungry, but it seemed they wouldn’t leave unless I opened the lunchbox.

Click.

I opened the lunchbox.

[Wow.]

[Oh dear.]

Sighs came from behind me.

Shaken during their bumpy journey, the contents of the lunchbox had all mixed together into a messy jumble.

“…”

“…”

Seeing the lunchbox they had lovingly prepared turned into something resembling dog food, the two girls looked half-defeated.

“…Do I have to eat this and tell you that it is delicious?”

This felt like such a cliché. Still, it seemed like the girls were subtly hoping for such praise.

[Just close your eyes and eat it. If it were Fluffy or Fluffy II, they’d have eaten it.]

[Since they put so much effort into it, wouldn’t it be nice to at least take a bite and say it’s good?]

“Sigh.”

With a sigh of resignation, I accepted the fork Aria handed me and stabbed at something random to eat.

It was an oddly colored piece, a roasted carrot apparently. It hadn’t been cooked properly, so it crunched unpleasantly between my teeth.

I slowly put the lunchbox down.

And just as I was about to give my judgment—

“Deus, I’m a princess.”

Eleanor beat me by talking first.

“Professor, actually, she made the whole thing herself.”

While Aria promptly threw Eleanor under the bus.

“This is ridiculous! Weren’t you the one who handled the vegetables? Didn’t you brag about learning the flame sword techniques from a Master of the Flaming Sword in the Sahar desert?”

“What was I supposed to do? It doesn’t work well with a frying pan!”

“That’s why I said we should use the kitchen! I knew you’d mess it up when you tried using the flame sword on a frying pan!”

“Professor, that one! She made that rolled omelette! Please try it. I saw her dropping eggshells in it like she was adding salt!”

I couldn’t help but worry about where exactly they’d prepared this food. Aria at least had some basic cooking skills from all her adventures, but still.

“I do not feel like eating anymore.”

Handing the lunchbox back to the two, I answered firmly as their mouths shut tight.

[Jeez, you can’t even say one nice thing, can you?]

[You should at least teach them how to cook sometime.]

Stella was right.

It seemed it was necessary to teach them some cooking skills.

“I guess I should at least give them a cooking lesson or two.”

The two, who had been sulking, immediately perked up, their heads snapping toward me as their lips began to twitch into smiles.

“A-are you going to teach us, Deus?”

“Professor, can you cook too?”

“I have had to cook for myself since I was young, so I can handle most dishes.”

Therefore—

“I will teach you when there is time.”

This was the kindest answer I could offer in this situation, and it seemed to work, as both girls beamed and began hopping around excitedly.

“I want to try the food from Deus’ hometown! Uh, what was that thing you mentioned? Kimchi? I want to taste it!”

“What’s your favorite dish, Professor? I’ll try to make it for you!”

The two girls began chattering excitedly. However, well aware that they couldn’t stay long, they left reluctantly not long after.

“I’ll come back tomorrow, Deus!”

“I’ll sneak in by myself!”

Once the girls left, silence filled the prison once more, leaving only a box of cookies in my hand. And from the looks of it, these seemed to be store-bought and relatively decent.

The Dark Spiritualist peeked over my shoulder and stared at the cookies with a puzzled expression.

[I thought they’d suggest breaking you out of prison, but they came and left as if they were just here for a visit.]

I initially assumed the same as well. In fact, I was rather worried that they’d cause a scene demanding I escape. However…

[They trust you.]

Gazing at the space the girls had left, Stella smiled warmly, praising their maturity.

[They believe that if you’re in this prison, it’s for a good reason.]

“…”

[They don’t know why, but they decided not to interfere because they trust you.]

“Yes, I know.”

Still holding the cookie, I replied calmly as Stella quietly linked her arm with mine and whispered.

[You’re such a sinful man.]

I didn’t respond. Instead, I took a bite of the cookie, surprised by its unexpected sweetness.

Although I didn’t usually like sweet things, I didn’t want to waste what they had brought, so I kept eating.

And before I knew it, only an empty cookie box remained.

***

“Do you think Deus ate everything?”

“Well, the cookies were from the bakery, so he must’ve eaten those. I snuck one earlier—it was good.”

“No wonder one was missing.”

Once they were outside the prison, the two girls bickered nonstop.

However, they both knew.

They were deliberately having this argument to deceive the others into believing that they hadn’t deviated from their usual peaceful routine.

Their footsteps quickened as they made their way down the palace corridor. And upon reaching the stairs at the palace’s far end, Eleanor asked.

“Do you think Tyren bought it?”

“Definitely. He probably brushed it off as the princess playing breaking into the prison.”

“Then, what about Deus?”

“It’s hard to tell, but I think we managed to distract him enough with the lunchbox and cookies.”

“Huff, I was so worried he’d catch on.”

“Your lousy acting really stood out. Maybe the acting actually felt realistic because you are indeed sloppy.”

“Just so you know, I’m naturally talented at acting.”

Their sloppy infiltration act in Deus’ cell had all been deliberate.

It was to ensure the entire palace would underestimate them.

Word that Aria and Eleanor had visited Deus would likely have reached King Orpheus by now.

However, that was all part of the smokescreen.

Disguised as incompetent intruders, the two girls made their way to the royal palace’s underground, a place no one could enter carelessly.

Protected by dozens of spells cast by Archmage Ropelican himself, it was the treasure vault of the Royal Palace.

They peeked around the corner of the staircase, catching a glimpse of the red-armored knights guarding a massive door at the end of the underground hallway.

This was one of the places where the Royal Knights were stationed.

“I never thought I’d be raiding the royal treasury as a princess.”

“It’s not like we have any weapons, don’t we? If we clean out that vault, there will be plenty of things that can help Big Brother Shinwoo.”

“Right, let’s get to—wait a second.”

Eleanor, who had been scanning the hallway, whipped her head around and glared at Aria.

“Big Brother Shinwoo?”

“Yeah, Big Brother Shinwoo. I thought it would be better to keep the way I call him distinct from ‘Professor.’ It just rolls off the tongue.”

“Sspp, why do I feel betrayed all of a sudden?”

“So, am I going to end up in the same cell as Big Brother Shinwoo?”

“…Have you ever called B-Big Brother Shinwoo that to his face?”

“Are you crazy? He’d tear me to pieces.”

“…”

“…”

A brief silence ensued.

They decided to drop the conversation and focus on their mission.

Ting! Ting! Ting!

Owen’s performance began right on cue.

The two had asked him to start playing earlier than usual.

“We’ll sneak in there without getting caught, secretly take the items we need, and then return them once everything is over. Right?”

Before starting the task, Aria confirmed the plan once more, and Eleanor nodded.

“We’ll have to sweep up as many diverse and useful items as possible. I don’t know what plan Deus has come up with, but…”

They needed to gather various items to assist him, no matter what situation arose.

Ting! Ting! Ting!

Owen’s performance echoed down the hall.

The piano boy, who had now become a renowned figure in the royal palace, had set the stage.

Steeling themselves, the two girls advanced toward the royal treasury.

***

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