Chapter 297
"Alright, gentlemen, how are we feeling?"
What is the greatest merit of power leveling? I believe it's time reduction.To reach the level cap of Class 5 within a week, and also carefully select skills and jobs, we must prioritize efficiency.
"Do you think there's any way I'd say 'great'?! What the hell was this week?! I never thought hell would be here!! I never imagined having my meals and sleep entirely managed would make me feel like dying!!""But you got stronger, right?""I did!? I thought it might be a dream, but seeing my stats actually at Class 5 is amazing, I think!!"
In that case, there's no choice but to push forward with game-brained, unreasonable demands that practically say "Human rights? What are those, do they taste good?"
After undergoing something you could call 'training? No, it's torture,' none of the people here, who had reached the supposedly unattainable Class 5 in this world, could simply rejoice.
"Nice retort. Reaching Class 5 has sharpened your wit even more.""I didn't want to improve like this!!"
Wake up in the morning -> Dungeon. Eat lunch -> Dungeon. Eat dinner -> Dungeon. Before bath -> Dungeon. Before sleep -> Dungeon.
That was the basic rotation of our training.
"Every single one was a dungeon with higher-level enemies!! How many times did you think I'd die!?""I hope it wasn't over a hundred.""It's because you think like that that I'm pissed off!! Understand!?"
I understand why Judeus is furious, but this was necessary, so it can't be helped.
"Shut up, Judeus."
Amidst that environment, the men started making resolved expressions towards Judeus, whose comedic timing had improved.But the biggest change was...
"If you get that angry, wrinkles will stay on your face, you know?""You're the one who's changed too much!! I'm a man!! I always said that, didn't I?!!"
...that Sharia had awakened to cross-dressing, just like in the original.Sharia, who had a complex about his feminine face, accumulated immense stress during this week-long dungeon rush.
I did pay considerable attention to alcohol and meals for stress relief, and prepared high-quality bedding.
It's no exaggeration to say that preparing the tools is the most important part of power leveling.That includes not just equipment, but the living environment as well.
"Did I say that?"
Even in such a plentiful living environment, stress relief is necessary, and various forms of it emerged.The most common was the men increasing their exposure during breaks.They said clothes got in the way during muscle training, so being shirtless became normal, wearing only underwear became normal, and getting naked after drinking became normal.
Ever since using the Magic Elixir, these men, who had gotten a taste of liberation, found stress relief in not wearing clothes.When I pointed it out, their motivation dropped noticeably. Since they properly wore equipment during combat, I let it slide for private time.
Then, naked drinking parties became the default, and complaints came in from the maids.So, I changed the drinking companions to butlers.
They enjoyed their brief respite by reveling in their daily trained bodies.
"I did say it!!""But I don't want to hear that from you while you're naked?""Hah!? Since when were you—"
Among them, the one who mastered the technique of unconsciously undressing while still making retorts was Judeus.It wasn't in the original, but he might have been the one most hooked on the liberating feeling of the Magic Elixir.
Judeus, pointed out by Sharia (male, though you could mistake him for a beautiful girl), was surprised to find himself undressing unconsciously.And Sharia, who initially had a rough, masculine tone, had now become a proper 'bokukko' (girl using male pronouns).
For Sharia, it was less about stress and more about getting hooked—or perhaps falling into the swamp—once he actually tried it.While saying he was tired and unmotivated, using cosmetics to care for his skin made him more beautiful. His stats increased, enhancing the effect further, and he became captivated by his own beauty.Once that cycle starts, a true enthusiast dives deeper and deeper.
"Sharia has become quite the fine lady, hasn't he?""Hey now! You're the one who dragged me down this path, Liberta-kun, right? You have to take responsibility.""I did take responsibility and trained you properly, didn't I?"
Gradually, his tone and gestures became more careful, and now he's transformed into a proper 'little devil' type—a seductive woman who bewitches men.Somehow, perhaps because he was originally male, he can imagine the gestures that men would appreciate.He's winking at me right now, but if I didn't know Sharia's true nature, my heart might have skipped a beat.
The other men, except Judeus, are already captivated, treating him as a sacred, idol-like figure that must never be touched.He possesses a certain charisma different from Amina's.
"Ugh, that's not what I meant, you know?""I know that's not why you hired me, right?""Okay, then? So, what are we going to do now?""First, the rest of you, put your clothes on. It's work time."
Thinking to myself that they've turned out weirder than expected, I consoled myself that this is probably the best one can do on short notice.I was worried the worst-case scenario—a group born that's naked except for masks—might happen, but thankfully it didn't. What a relief.This group is quick to undress and equally quick to dress. Once they finished preparing and lined up, they looked quite impressive.
"Now, the training is over, but this was merely the preparation period. From here on out is your real performance."
When I said this marks the beginning, their expressions all tightened simultaneously.Good.
Having overcome this week's hardships together has created a sense of camaraderie.
"Your target is the northern city, Hokshi. The corrupt nobles and merchants thriving there."
The task I'm entrusting to them is harassment operations against the suspicious nobles and merchants that His Grace the Duke had investigated for me.As if to say 'finally,' the group grinned. I nodded and handed the list to Sharia, the representative of this team.
"This is the target list. If we can completely strip away their funding sources here, we can restrict the Boldrinde Duke's movements."
If suspicious groups run amok and resources are allocated to deal with them, it will naturally disrupt normal operations.There's a possibility they don't rely on their underlings anyway, but in that case, our plan is to have those very underlings drag them down from below.That's why we leveled them up and gave them strength.I'm confident we've created perfect characters, carefully selecting both their Titles and Job epithets.
"That's a lot.""Can't be helped. I already narrowed it down, you know."
The list spans ten sheets of parchment.And this isn't the end; there are still plenty of potential targets.The fact that Judeus is making a sour face suggests he's aware the public order where he lived wasn't very good.
"And this is the script for the performance."
For this operation, it's not enough to just infiltrate the mansions of nobles and merchants and steal money.Standing out and causing a commotion is the most important part.
"I'd heard about it, but are we really doing this?""You're saying that, Judeus, the one who had the most impressive villainous laugh?"
While calling themselves 'righteous thieves,' what they're doing is theft.Distributing all the stolen money to poor households is an act that nobles would find utterly troublesome. The fact that His Grace the Duke is supporting this is quite peculiar, but given the emergency, we've resigned ourselves to it.
"Ugh, but it was fun..."
And when acting as righteous thieves, character building is crucial.Simply stealing and distributing money won't be easily accepted by the populace.What's needed is a Dark Hero.A being who conquers evil with evil.
Ideally, the King would discover the misdeeds and pass judgment, but if that were possible, we wouldn't be struggling.However, since that doesn't change their current lives, the common people find no hope in it.Therefore, a being that gives hope to those people is necessary.
As the one who supervised the acting direction, I'm proud that Judeus performed it perfectly without a hint of shame.I thought he had actor-like talent from the start, but I never imagined he could pull it off this perfectly.I described my image of the character, and even while drunk, he executed it without embarrassment, saying "Something like this?"
"Umm, am I fine just as I am now?""I think the current Sharia is good as he is, no need to force a character."
Next in line, the 'awakened' Sharia has turned out well.Perhaps because he originally acted with a masculine image, he had a foundation in performance.Now, acting with a cute, feminine image, his appearance is more likely to be accepted by the populace.
Judeus and Sharia are the main two. The others are varied in their roles, set up to provide support.I gave them each a script and asked them to imagine their characters, but compared to those two, the other men are, frankly, ham actors.
"Wouldn't it be better if we just ran around naked?""Are you a genius?""That would be a public nuisance, so stop. Why on earth would people be grateful to a naked man? The money we distribute might not even be used."
If we prioritize impact, the 'naked option'—born from struggling with acting—isn't bad, but I don't want that kind of Dark Hero.Soldiers chasing a man running naked across rooftops... Yeah, what kind of hell is that?
"Is it no good?""No good. Leave the lines to Judeus and Sharia. You guys practice your poses.""Naked?""Put your clothes on."
Where does this naked fixation of theirs come from?Lately, I've started wondering if that Magic Elixir has such an effect.
"!?""Why the surprised face? It's normal."
Who could have imagined such a transformation in just one week?With a sigh, I feel a bit anxious about the future, but their movements are perfect.In fact, if they focused solely on escape, it would even take me some time to catch them.That's how I've configured their skills; their mobility potential is higher than mine, a combat-focused class.With added skills like Lockpicking, Trap Disarming, and even Silent Walk, losing sight of them would make finding them quite a task.
"Sharia, you're our only hope. No matter what, don't let them undress.""Leave it to me!""What about me!?""Look at your own right hand. How can I trust someone who's already grabbing his clothes to take them off?""Since when was I—!?""A few seconds ago."
What kind of group is this, where ten percent are cross-dressing men and the remaining ninety percent suffer from a disrobing syndrome?Even I, frankly, never imagined the group would turn out like this.
"Liberta-kun.""What is it?""By the way, what about our organization's name? The 'Liberation Army' we proposed before was rejected, right?"
There was also a slight issue when deciding the group's overall name.Thinking seriously about it, we concluded that 'Liberation Army' was indeed unsuitable for this bunch.
"Ah, that's fine. I've given it proper thought."
Gathering everyone's attention, I announced the name of this resistance organization.
"Entertainers. That is your name from today."
I couldn't imagine then the incredible things that name would lead to in the future.