My Taboo Academy

"Ah~ Liliana. Her magical power itself is basically a masterpiece too."

She never showed anything close to that during our Lucky Skewer duel.

The Student Council President had been hiding her real strength.

Or maybe she was so buried in personal problems she never got the chance to use it.

"The student council president sits at the very top of Veyron Academy. Accumulating enough achievements to surpass that while only attending classes is basically impossible."

"So should I become a hunter or a hero?"

Let me think.

"Aria. Hunters get magical essence from inside dungeons. How do heroes get theirs?"

"From magical beasts that escape the dungeons. But those are strong and hard to deal with. Usually you capture a villain and receive essence as a reward. Villains use black-market refined weapons."

According to Aria’s explanation:

In the black market you could buy items of unknown origin to quickly boost and enhance magical essence, but it was illegal.

When a hero confiscated a villain’s weapon for the royal treasury, they received some of that mystical energy as compensation and used it to grow stronger.

In short...

"Liliana is a genuine workaholic. She hasn’t slept more than two hours a night since she was eight," Reid said.

To gather 30,000 I would need that same level of dedication.

"Without proper equipment no one can bring out their full power. A stable MP supply directly decides a hunter’s strength. That’s why choosing your weapon carefully matters so much," Aria explained seriously.

I wasn’t ignoring her advice. But if this was Lustbound content, the system was probably designed for the protagonist. Even if I picked a plain wooden stick, wouldn’t it be possible to enhance it all the way to level 99? That kind of romantic idea was hard to resist.

Chasing that kind of dream was just part of being a man.

"I’m sticking with the gun."

"...Sigh. Fine."

Aria pulled a generous pile of mystical energy from her inventory.

"Aria?"

"Use all of this to reinforce Ren’s weapon."

"What..."

All of it?

She laid out dozens of different magical essences, including the C-rank one we had just obtained.

Why was she offering something this valuable stuff she could have used on her own weapon to me?

"You helped raise my stats before. This is me paying you back."

"...Aria."

"Are you really doing this with a gun? No regrets?"

"Aria, thank you!!"

I was so happy I pulled her into a tight hug.

"Ah!!?"

"Thank you! I love you!"

"Alright, alright, let go... oh come on...!"

She must have been saving that essence carefully.

To offer it so freely for my growth...

I genuinely wanted to grant any request she made after this.

"I’m doing it with the gun!"

"Okay. Wait a moment."

I decided to reinforce the Glock.

It was my first weapon and carried sentimental value. Even if I eventually used a revolver as backup, I planned to keep the Glock as my main.

I would expand the firearm arsenal gradually.

First investment: the Glock.

[Glock (COMPACT)] [B Rank]

[Owner: Ren Asahi]

[Glock 19 compact version] 15 rounds of 9 mm. [Reinforced with demonic steel, improved accuracy, rate of fire, and power.]

"Here."

"Thank you."

I accepted it like it was a sacred relic.

"You’ll be able to show some real power inside dungeons now. Come back when you get more Demonic Steel."

"Yes!"

"You’re that excited?"

Aria watched me with an amused smile she couldn’t quite hide.

"My Glock is B-rank now!"

"Anything else you need?"

"Gun shop next."

This time I took Aria’s hand and led the way.

She followed with an embarrassed little noise.

It felt almost like a date.

"Why did you put so many accessories on it?"

Aria stared at the modified gun with open curiosity.

"You know what a dot sight is, right?"

"Yes. What’s this thing on the muzzle?"

"Muzzle brake. Vents gas to cut down recoil."

"And the part underneath?"

"Flashlight. Surefire model."

Built for extreme conditions, durable and bright. I bought it so I’d be ready if I ever ended up in another Apocalypse-type dungeon.

And then...

"You already have a gun. Why do you want another one?" Aria asked as I picked up a revolver.

"Backup. In case the main gun jams. With a revolver, even if one round fails the cylinder just turns and you can fire the next one. Perfect for emergencies."

It wasn’t reinforced yet, but it would be reliable insurance if the Glock malfunctioned again. The model I chose was a Colt Python originally designed by Colt as a high-end competition pistol.

"You don’t look like a normal academy student with tastes like that," the shop owner said with a grin.

"I have a good eye," I answered.

[「Crimson Eye」activated]

[Colt Python]

Not a mass-produced model. A luxury Colt Python where every action part was hand-fitted by craftsmen. [Walnut grip.]

It wasn’t only useful for identifying Fleshlight masterpieces.

There were plenty of revolvers in the display case.

But when a true craftsman-made Colt Python was sitting there, there was no other choice.

Walnut grip with checkering—the classic crosshatch pattern for better hold.

Hard to find these days since Colt had nearly gone under (the in-game history was unclear), and before they started making reproductions it was basically a collector’s piece.

The big advantage of a proper artisan Python was its accuracy.

"I’ll take the gun, bullets, and holster."

"That’ll be 1,000 coins."

"Just the gun."

"900 coins."

Most of the price was the revolver itself. I didn’t have that kind of money on me right now.

The realization made me a little dizzy.

Aria stepped in immediately.

"Short on cash?"

"Uh... yeah."

"We’re splitting funds anyway. I’ll cover the rest."

"Really?"

Was it okay to accept this?

Technically I had given her more money overall.

Still, I was grateful she understood what I needed without me having to explain.

"I thought your girlfriend was only pretty, but she’s kind too."

"She’s not my girlfriend. Not yet."

I said it without thinking.

"..."

Aria glared at me and paid with her student ID.

"Why? Does she already like someone else? She only stared at your face the whole time we were shopping."

"Just process the payment, please!"

"Take care. From an old man’s eyes, it’s obvious she’s interested."

"Mister!"

Aria left the shop with her ears completely red.

"Ah... it’s hot. Must be the furnaces."

"Shall we head back up?"

My insides were burning with the thrill of trying to balance a harem.

Hehehe... how many more times was I going to do things this out of character?

"She’s not my girlfriend... not yet☆"

Aaaaaa!!!

I was going insane!

How did protagonists in these stories say lines that made you want to kick the blankets at night?!

"By the way, I might have taken more than my share of the distribution earlier. Aren’t you going to ask how much it was?"

Should I tease her a little more?

Next-level brainwave incoming.

"It’s kind of like leaving your wallet with your wife and not worrying about it."

"Pffft!!"

Aria couldn’t hold back and started lightly punching my back with her cute fists.

"You idiot! Idiot! Just die already!"

That flustered reaction was pure gold.

Good-looking people really were worth watching.

After climbing back to the surface, we decided to clear the remaining dungeons in the training grounds. Most were low D-rank goblin fields perfect for testing the newly reinforced weapons.

"Ren! Two coming up behind you!"

"On it!"

*Bang, bang!*

Maybe it was just my mood, but ever since the enhancement the slide felt butter-smooth, like a well-aged machine. The Glock that used to struggle to finish goblins in one shot now punched clean holes through their skulls without effort.

More incoming?

"I’ll take this side!"

"Go for it!"

I dumped the rest of the magazine, switched to the Colt Python, and dropped the rest one by one. After that...

"Turn into a Fleshlight."

A solid pile of ordinary Fleshlights stacked up. Five masterpieces in total this run. No higher-tier ones, which was a little disappointing, but the goblin King should still be happy.

[Dungeon Clear]

[Contribution MVP (88%) – Aria Nakamori]

[Others – Ren Asahi]

"Phew. It’s lunchtime. Let’s stop here."

Aria sheathed her sword as she spoke.

"Yeah."

Even though they were only D- to C-rank, clearing four dungeons back-to-back without a real break had been solid exercise. Aria was nicely soaked in sweat too.

...

"Here’s your cut of the loot."

"Keep it."

"If you keep calling me ’wife’ like that, I’m going to make you regret it."

"Haha..."

Aria was always sharp when money was involved.

[Veyron Academy Student ID – Ren Asahi]

[You have received 70 coins]

Four D-rank dungeons only came to this much. Honestly I’d known for a while that she was favoring me more than was fair. She once handed me 500 coins after a single C-rank clear. Was it because I looked like a profitable Fleshlight collector? No.

It started with the very first dungeon when she gave me 50 coins. From then on Aria had been quietly taking care of me. When she finally started splitting things evenly later, I realized just how much she had been looking out for me in the beginning.

’I really want her to be my wife.’

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