Chapter 125: Truth and Falsehood, Falsehood and Truth

“Classmate Weil, I heard you were sick, and it was a very serious strange illness. You were sent to the Church for treatment, is that true?” Classmate Passerby A looked cautious.

“Nonsense! Classmate Weil caught a highly contagious strange illness, was quarantined by the Church for a few days, and was just released. I heard they even invited a Cardinal to treat you. That’s amazing! I’ve never even seen a Cardinal. Even the Cardinal of the Church is only visible from afar on Radiance Day, and you can barely see clearly. I’m so envious.” Classmate Passerby B was full of admiration.

“Hmph, Classmate Weil wasn’t sick at all! I heard that the Rose Knight Hall and several other Knight Guild Halls were competing for students, so they agreed to send out their respective Knight Apprentices for duels to allocate the spots. Classmate Weil was the representative Knight Apprentice for the Rose Knight Hall. He fought three great battles every day for five consecutive days and ultimately achieved a great victory. Tsk tsk, truly worthy of being the Top Student of our Mildis Intermediate Academy, a perfect example of excelling in both academics and martial arts!”

“Three matches a day, isn’t that fifteen great battles over five days? So Classmate Weil is that amazing!”

“No, no, no! Didn’t Angell say before that Classmate Weil had to fight ten women every night at the Rose Knight Hall? Recently, he hasn’t fallen even after fighting twenty women in a row, hehe!”

“Bullshit! Your news isn’t accurate. According to the precise information I received, Classmate Weil was kidnapped by a Young Noble who secretly likes Classmate Lilith, using this to force Classmate Lilith to accept his pursuit. As a result, Classmate Lilith’s aunt, Senior Knight Moli, led people to storm the place and rescue him. That Young Noble’s family is very powerful. Although they were in the wrong, they remained very aggressive, and the two sides engaged in a great battle. Classmate Weil, excelling in both academics and martial arts, ultimately won. You must have been recuperating at the Kendall Family these past few days.” You didn’t even need to look to know that this was that bastard Fittman, whose fabricated news stories are always systematic and interlinked, greatly increasing people’s interest.

Punching Fittman five meters away, Little Weir retracted his fist and said helplessly, “Do you want to hear the truth or a lie? I’ll only give you one chance. If you regret it afterward, I won’t be responsible.”

“We want to hear both!” The classmates were very familiar with Little Weir’s routine, speaking in unison, followed by a burst of laughter.

“So, which one do you want to hear first?” Little Weir continued to ask.

“The lie first, then the truth.” This choice also fit everyone’s habits; if they heard the truth first, hearing the lies afterward would be meaningless, so it was better to hear the lie first.

Little Weir straightened his clothes and started by asking, “Everyone should know about the Mercenary profession, right? Raise your hand if you don’t.” This drew a chorus of boos and middle fingers from the boys. Classmate Weil, are you insulting our intelligence?

“My father is a Formal Knight, and before I was born, he was also a famous Mercenary in Delaik City. Relying on my father’s connections, I got to know some veteran Mercenaries and registered with them. A few days ago, two external Adventurers found me. They needed a helper proficient in Ancient Script to assist them in exploring an Ancient Ruins. This ruin was extremely valuable, so after learning about my skill in archaic writing, they used slightly unsavory methods. Without notifying my family, they took me away, only allowing me to leave a letter for my family. They only released me yesterday after completing the exploration of the ruins.” Little Weir had a look that said, I’m just so exceptional, what can I do about it?

“Boo~” A chorus of boos rang out, and all the boys gave him the middle finger.

“I have proof. Look, an Ancient Era Gold Coin. This is one of my spoils of war. Hmm, it’s one of the pieces of evidence I secretly slipped into my boot and brought back when they weren’t paying attention.”

Little Weir took out two Ancient Gold Coins from his school bag (just for show; he actually retrieved them from his apostle space). The ancient aura on them was not easily faked, and the patterns and script were very different from those used now. Interested classmates swarmed him, and the two gold coins quickly changed hands.

“It seems real! Although I haven’t seen this pattern before, this script must be what Professor Wiesel taught us before. It’s definitely Ancient Script.” A male classmate who studied well felt that some of the characters on the coin looked familiar.

“Tch, you talk as if you actually recognize it. Let the Great Detective Fittman help you appraise it! Wait, don’t push! Who stepped on my foot? Don’t grab! Ouch!” Fittman’s physique was truly unsuitable for snatching things; he was instantly squeezed out of the crowd.

Gold coins are precious, let alone Gold Coins from the Ancient Era—those are antiques, worth more than current gold coins. After everyone took turns admiring them, the two gold coins returned to Little Weir’s hands intact. Little Weir casually placed them on the desk, displaying them for everyone.

“Isn’t this reason sufficient? You have to know that those two Adventurers were both powerful Transcendent beings. I lived in fear under their surveillance, terrified that I might lose my life if I wasn’t careful. There were also Demonic Beasts and monsters inside the ruins. Have you ever seen a rat this big? I have, and more than one! There was also fine wine that had aged for a thousand years. Although I didn’t drink it, just smelling the aroma made it feel incredibly fragrant.” Little Weir tried hard to describe the things he had seen that he could tell them about. “Most of the weapons in the Blacksmith Shop were corroded and damaged, but the hammer head used by the Blacksmith remained. It was such a huge hammer head that my strength couldn’t even lift it. Forget lifting it, I couldn’t even push it a single inch.”

“Oh~” Exclamations rose and fell. Grinsen, the Dean of Instruction, who had come to inspect before class started, listened intently and didn’t step forward to disturb them. Pastor Paster listened to Little Weir’s “nonsense” with a smile. How many people knew that much of what he called a lie was actually true? But how much of the upcoming “truth” would be false? Perhaps he was deliberately inverting the truth and the lie.

“Hey, Classmate Weil, that ruin must be located not far from Delaik City, otherwise, you couldn’t have made the round trip in six days. Next time you go, remember to take me with you! I can even hand over half of the good things we find.” A Young Noble was itching to go. Adventure is human nature, and although it sounded a bit dangerous, since their classmate had returned safely, bringing a few extra bodyguards should be fine, right?

“Haha, do you think I don’t want to?” Little Wei shrugged helplessly. “I was blindfolded, gagged, tied up three times inside a sack, and placed in a carriage when I was taken away and brought back. I couldn’t see the road at all, and I couldn’t even distinguish directions. Because the time felt so long, I couldn’t even confirm how much time had passed. If my family hadn’t told me it had been five days after I returned, I wouldn’t have known how I spent those days.”

“Mhm, mhm. This fits the style of those Adventurers and Mercenaries. Not killing you to keep the secret is already their mercy,” Fittman said, adopting a knowing expression. “However, I suspect they weren’t truly being merciful to you. It’s highly likely they want to ask for your help again in the future. They must have known you took the gold coins, and those were probably the compensation they tacitly allowed you to take. If you don’t get benefits, you definitely won’t try your best next time. Although they kidnapped you and made you risk your life, they also gave you some advantages. Next time they kidnap you, you might not resist so much, and you might even actively help, right?”

Little Weir thought about it and couldn’t help but nod slightly. “Now that you mention it, it really seems to be the case. Although the process was a bit dangerous, I brought back more than ten gold coins, and each coin is worth between eighty and one hundred gold coins. This wealth is more than a typical family’s annual income.”

“Wow, that’s incredible!” A thousand gold coins—that’s about the level of a Middle Class family’s annual income, and that’s pure income, not counting expenses. A Middle Class family might not even save that much annually. Classmate Weil is the same age as them, yet simply because he diligently studied Ancient Script under Professor Wiesel, he used his knowledge to acquire such a large fortune. It was impossible not to be envious.

“Knowledge is money! The ancients truly did not deceive me!” Fittman couldn’t help but sigh toward the sky. Although he knew knowledge was money, he simply wasn’t cut out for it.

This time, everyone collectively gave Fittman the middle finger. If they studied hard, they might not necessarily be worse than Classmate Weil in the future. Although they might not match his comprehensive knowledge, specializing in one area might lead to achievement. Little Weir’s words implicitly encouraged many people.

“That’s enough of the lie. What about the truth? Is it just as interesting?” Angell generally knew some things. He and Classmate Weil were kidnapped together, but he was voluntarily released that same day, while Classmate Weil was taken away for several days. Was there really a secret hidden within this?

Little Weir pretended to look around mysteriously. Seeing that Lilith and Yuna Peck were both absent today for some unknown reason, he let out a long breath and said, “This matter involves a secret, and I hope everyone can actively keep it confidential. You absolutely must not speak of it outside.”

“Mhm! Mhm!” When everyone heard it was a secret, they nodded enthusiastically. But could something known by this many people still remain a secret? It seemed this secret was quickly going to become a well-known secret.

“Everyone knows that Angell and I are undergoing Knight Training at the Rose Knight Hall, right?” Little Weir’s words were met with confirmation. This wasn’t a secret; nearly everyone in the class knew it.

“Then, does everyone know that the Rose Knight Hall is a Female Knight Guild Hall?” Little Weir’s words caused a commotion. All eyes revealed a hint of excitement: There’s an affair! Two male Knight Apprentices going to a Female Knight Guild Hall every night—what kind of secret was hidden there?