There are three main ways to increase favorability in Soul Academy.
The first method is to spend time together in everyday life.
During free time, you talk to the character and explore Soul Academy together.
The most efficient way to do this was by visiting the cake shop.
You’d eat cake with this person, then with that person, to the point where you’d wonder if the protagonist would die from diabetes with how much cake they were eating. It was the most effective way to increase favorability.
But now, I can’t even do that if I wanted to.
How on earth did the game’s protagonist make friends just by talking to them?
When I try to talk to people, they turn into enemies!
That protagonist must have been carrying some kind of hypnosis app or something.
Otherwise, it doesn’t make any sense!
The second method is to clear dungeons together.
As you fight through battlefields together, your favorability gradually increases.
Of course, this is difficult for me as well.
Who would want to go into a life-and-death battlefield with someone they don’t even want to talk to?
Sure, the story might change if I’m a particrly useful party member, but honestly, the chances aren’t high.
Thest method is toplete character-rted quests.
By progressing through quests rted to specific characters, you can increase their favorability.
This is something I can manage, even in my current situation.
My n is as follows:
First, I’llplete rted quests to raise the base favorability level until I can call them a friend, more or less.
Then, I’ll spend time with them, go on dungeon runs, andplete quests together, gradually raising their favorability to 70.
If I can sessfully set up the first step, it’s entirely possible.
That’s why I’m heading to Alsetine’s Tavern, putting everything on the line.
I need to obtain an item from Alsetine that will trigger a character-rted quest!
"Mydy, this seems dangerous."
Carl spoke with concern as we stopped at the entrance to the tavern, hidden away in a back alley.
"Not confident?"
"What’s wrong, idiot? Are you saying you can’t protect me?"
"It’s not that, but it’s always best to avoid danger when possible."
"It’s okay to admit if you’re not confident."
"Come on, just admit it. ‘Mydy, I’m a weak idiot and can’t go inside,’ and then I might reconsider."
Unable to withstand my taunting, Carl finally fell silent.
He must have some pride as a knight.
He can endure most insults, but call him weak, and he reacts immediately.
"Carl…"
"Idiot, are you not going to dere yourself a weakling?"
"No. I’ll earn your trust by protecting you, mydy."
So, you’re not going to stop me from going in?
I turned my gaze away from Carl’s determined face and grabbed the tavern door.
As soon as I opened the door, the people inside turned their gazes towards me.
Most of those looks were wary.
In the game, no one cared who walked in, but it’s different now that this is real.
Well, it’s not surprising. It would be strange not to be on guard when a kid like me walks into a tavern hidden in a back alley.
As I stepped inside, a man sitting at a table near the entrance sneered and spoke up.
"Little nobledy, this isn’t a ce for someone smelling of milk like you."
"Then…"
"So, it’s a ce that only epts trash that smells like you? That’s a problem. I can’t be a pathetic loser like you."
"What did you say, girl?!"
The man’s frown deepened, and Carl shouted in rm, almost simultaneously.
Hmm, I didn’t mean to be this harsh, but the Mesugaki skill is really going all out today.
"Puhaha!"
"For a nobledy, you’ve got a sharp tongue!"
"So even the littledy thinks this guy’s a loser virgin, huh?"
"Who are you calling a virgin, you bastard?!"
The people in the tavern wereughing, but it wasn’t out of goodwill.
I could see it clearly in their eyes as theyughed and nced at me.
They had designated me as someone to be wary of.
Well, this is off to a bad start.
"So, what brings a nobledy like you here?"
A man drinking in the distance asked me with a sly tone.
As soon as he spoke, the others fell silent. It seemed that this man had considerable influence in this ce.
"I’m here to meet someone."
"I’m here to find an idiot."
"A nobledy like you wouldn’t have anyone to meet in a ce filled with trash like this."
His tone made it clear that he was suggesting I leave before things got rough.
Ha. Does he think I’ll get scared? Does he think being the leader of these lowlifes makes him something special?
I’m not interested in trash NPCs like you.
"I want to meet Alsetine."
"I’m here to meet the owner of this rundown tavern."
"Didn’t I just tell you there’s no one for you to meet here, nobledy?"
"I wasn’t talking to you."
"I wasn’t talking to some old geezer whose life achievement is leading a bunch of losers."
"...I was trying to be polite."
As the man stood up from his chair, the other patrons in the tavern began to rise one by one, as if waiting for this moment.
Each of them had a knife in their hands—typical of the back alley crowd.
At the same time, I heard a sigh from behind me.
"Mydy, did you receive a revtion for this as well?"
"Yes!"
"Yes, I did."
"Then I have no choice but to give it my all."
With that, Carl drew his sword.
Immediately, the thugs, who had been exuding a murderous aura, hesitated and began to back away.
What’s this? Carl hasn’t even done anything yet, so why are they backing off?
<He’s suppressing them with his mana.>
Is it something like killing intent?
Carl really is strong, huh?
He can intimidate these lowlifes just by standing there?
<But, child, did Armandy truly tell you to provoke these people?>
"Yes, that’s right!"
<I see. Despite serving Armandy for so long, I still can’t understand his will.>
Actually, Armandy didn’t say anything!
He’s been stealing credit for my achievements, so it’s only fair that he takes some of the me too, right?
As the standoff between Carl and the thugs continued, a voice came from above.
"Put down your weapons if you don’t want to die, idiots."
The owner of the voice was a rugged-looking man with a scar near his eye.
Just as he appeared in the game—Alsetine.
The thugs, recognizing Alsetine, hesitated before lowering their weapons.
Alsetine descended the stairs and, instead of greeting me, delivered a punch to the thug leader’s stomach.
<em>Thud!</em>
The sound echoed through the tavern, and the thug leader copsed to his knees.
In the now subdued atmosphere, Alsetine approached me and bowed deeply.
"My apologies, Lady Allen. My subordinate was out of line."
Seeing this, Grandpa let out a sigh of admiration.
<He’s a clever one.>
"Why?"
<Your life was put in danger by his subordinate’s actions, which could have given you grounds to take issue with him. But by immediately showing punishment before you could say anything, he’s demonstrated his innocence and created a situation where it’s difficult for you to bring it up. Making such a decision in a short time requires a lot of experience.>
So, everything Alsetine did from the moment he appeared was intentional?
Given his character as someone with influence in the underworld, it makes sense.
Wow, I’m impressed by both Alsetine’s quick thinking and Grandpa’s instant analysis.
I could never keep up with either of them.
Politics isn’t for me in this world.
"I’m Alsetine, the owner of this tavern."
"Hello, Alsetine."
"Nice to meet you, info broker."
An info broker?
He mostly deals in ck-market goods and information, but couldn’t I have found a less blunt term?
Saying something like that right off the bat isn’t going to put him in a good mood!
Look! Alsetine’s smile just stiffened slightly!
I don’t want to get on his bad side since I’ll need to deal with him frequently in the future! Damn it!
"I am Alsetine."
"Yes, I know…"
"Yeah, I know, info broker. Got a problem with that?"
"...No, not at all."
Ugh, whatever.
There’s no way he’d try anything crazy with Benedict right behind me, right?!
Whatever happens, happens!
"I heard you came to see me. Let’s talk inside."
"Lead the way."
"Lead the way."
I followed Alsetine to a room on the second floor, where he offered me a seat.
Once I sat down, he closed the door and returned to his seat before speaking.
"As you may know, I’m a merchant who buys and sells anything. What brings you here?"@@novelbin@@
"I’m here to buy something."
"Info broker, can’t you figure it out from the fact that I came to this dump? Obviously, I’m here to get something."
Even after hearing the Mesugaki-inspired insult, Alsetine’s smile didn’t waver.
He has superhuman patience, typical of an underworld merchant.
Usually, when people talk to me, their expressions start to crack eventually.
"May I ask what it is you’re looking for?"
"A ne with the Barrow family crest on it. Specifically…"
"A ne with the Barrow family crest. It has a ruby, and if you open the locket, there’s a family photo of the Barrow family inside. You’ll find it if you dig through the ck market."
There are many characters within Soul Academy, and the difficulty of raising their favorability varies.
For example, a character like Joy, whose life is rtively smooth, is easy to befriend, while someone like Arthur, who has numerous ups and downs, is extremely difficult.
Among them is Jacal Barrow.
A charactermonly referred to by themunity as the "Inferior Prince." For him, raising favorability is rtively easy if you meet certain conditions.
That condition is triggered by the quest involving the "ne with the Barrow family crest."
Before that, Jacal Barrow is so self-absorbed that it’s hard to even talk to him, but once you clear that quest together, he starts to show interest on his own.
I don’t particrly like Jacal Barrow.
His character’s performance is mediocre, and his personality is arrogant, so I neither dislike nor particrly like him.
Under normal circumstances, I wouldn’t have given this character any attention, but things are different now.
In a situation where I don’t know what will happen if I don’t make at least two characters with a favorability level of 70, Jacal Barrow is like a beacon of hope.
So, for the sake of my survival, I absolutely must get that ne.
Absolutely.