Did I ever mention how many unfortunate characters there are in Soul Academy? To be more precise, there are fewer main characters who <em>aren’t</em> burdened with misfortune. Each one carries some form of hardship, and oveing or dealing with that hardship is what drives their character quests in the game.


    Just look at the characters I''ve encountered so far.


    Arthur Sdin, the poor prince, is tormented by thepulsion to be perfect after losing his mother.


    Freyr Kent, unable to feel emotions, is obsessed with life-or-death battles.


    Fayvie is a ticking time bomb of bad luck that even she isn’t aware of.


    The reason I consider Joy my favorite character is precisely because she’s not deeply connected to misfortune, unlike the others.


    Her family is normal, her personality is fine, and her biggest issue is that it’s hard for her to make true friends. Even her clumsy antics are endearing.


    This morning, when she copsed from exhaustion trying to keep up with Freyr and me, I couldn’t stopughing. She’s ridiculously goofy, but then she picks herself up and turns into that cold viiness. It’s amusing in its own way.


    Given all this, it’s no surprise that the Inferior Noble has his own share of misfortune.


    Despite his ambiguous utility, he’s still one of the main NPCs. There''s even an achievement rted to clearing Jackal’s route.


    Jackal Burrow’s misfortune stems from his inferiorityplex toward his older brother.


    An older brother who was overwhelmingly superior to him.


    An older brother who was expected to bring glory to the Burrow family.


    An older brother whose brilliance cast a shadow that imprisoned Jackal.


    An older brother who sacrificed himself to save others in an idental tragedy.


    Even after his brother’s death, Jackal could never escape that shadow.


    His parents were still trapped in their grief over their lost son.


    The family members constantlypared Jackal to his deceased brother, belittling him.


    And even Jackal himself pushed himself deeper into the mud byparing himself to his brother.


    Jackal, who once loved to y, now desperately strives to be the best, for a reason.


    "And how did youe by that?"


    The ne I just showed him is none other than the keepsake of Jackal Burrow’s older brother, Jael Burrow.


    A ne that Jael always wore.


    A ne that was supposed to be passed down to Jackal ording to Jael’s will.


    The reason I have it is simple.


    When Jael died, someone stole it and sold it off as loot.


    The dead don’t speak, after all.


    ‘By chance...’ “I came across it by chance. The Burrow family crest caught my eye.”


    There’s no way Jackal wouldn’t recognize it.


    He followed his brother around when they were young, and even now, he lives in his brother’s shadow.


    The items that belonged to his brother are probably still vivid in his memory.


    If the story progresses as it does in the game, Jackal will demand the ne.


    Once he touches it, the magic embedded within will activate, triggering a quest.


    After weplete that task together, Jackal’s heart will open up!


    And then I’ll just have to wait to see what the Trash God rewards me with.


    As I waited for Jackal’s response, I noticed something unsettling in his expression.


    "So, what do you expect me to do with this?"


    Jackal, who had been staring at the ne, slowly lifted his head.


    His eyes were filled with deep, crimson hatred—just like his hair.


    "I’ll ask you again. What do you expect me to do with this?"


    That line wasn’t supposed toe out of Jackal’s mouth in Soul Academy.


    In the game, Jackal was supposed to demand the ne, saying it wasn’t something I should be holding.


    "Were you nning to make a deal with me using that ne? Too bad. I’m not interested in it."


    ‘That’s a lie.’ "Mister Inferior Noble, are you trying to deceive yourself? How pathetic."


    The words slipped out automatically, tranted by my Mesugaki skill into something that slipped into Jackal’s ears.


    But he didn’t frown.


    He didn’t get angry.


    He simply stood up from his seat without saying another word.


    He grabbed his book and walked away, his back too heavy with burden for me to stop him.


    It wasn’t until long after Jackal left the library that I finally came to my senses.


    What... what just happened?


    Why did Jackal leave the ne behind and walk away?


    Why?


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    Jackal Burrow remembered his brother.


    The one who seemed not to know the meaning of the word cking.”


    The one who was expected to bring prosperity to the Burrow family.


    And the fool who threw himself into danger to save others before realizing those expectations.


    He couldn’t help but remember.


    The clock of the Burrow family stopped the day they lost the gear that was Jael.


    Jackal hated it.


    He hated his mother, who cried every day while searching for her lost son.


    He hated his father, who spent his days in a drunken stupor, always taking out his anger on Jackal.


    He hated the silent family members who offered him no support.


    There was nothing he liked about any of it.


    So Jackal tried to escape that day.


    He worked hard to be a son to be proud of.


    He gave up the y he once loved and started training.


    He embraced the books he used toin about having to read.


    He gritted his teeth to embody the nobility expected of him.


    All to rece Jael.


    All to be the gear that would keep the Burrow family moving forward.


    But no matter how hard he struggled, nothing changed.


    No matter how impressive Jackal’s achievements were, his parents wouldn’t look at him.


    The family members would only praise him on the surface, then criticize him behind his back,paring him to his brother.


    He was a lonely child, left behind in a world that had stopped moving.


    All Jackal could do was resent and resent again the brother who had left him behind.


    So when Lucy Allen showed him the ne, he recognized it immediately.


    He couldn’t help but remember the ne his brother had worn when he had said his final goodbye before his death.


    Why did Lucy Allen have it?


    Unable to understand, Jackal asked, and Lucy Allen, with her usual irritating smile, responded.


    “I found it by chance.”


    By chance.


    She just happened toe across it.


    To Jackal, that was a miraculous and baffling coincidence.


    The ne of the brother he’s been struggling to surpass.


    Now, the one person who makes him feel most inferior, Lucy Allen, had just “coincidentally” found it.


    Jackal hated Lucy Allen.


    There wasn’t any profound reason for it.


    It was simply because Lucy Allen was better than him.@@novelbin@@


    In academics, Lucy Allen was overwhelmingly superior.


    The results she achieved in the academy’s entrance exams were historic.


    It was something Jackal, with his current abilities, couldn’t even dream of matching.


    Combat?


    Look at how she defeated Freyr Kent, who had treated him like a toy in a previous tournament.


    She was on a different level.


    Was shecking in any other areas?


    No.


    Lucy Allencked only one thing.


    Her personality. Her arrogant and haughty nature, where she looked down on everyone, whether they were above or below her.


    Because of that, Lucy Allen was still avoided in the academy.


    Maybe in the past, but the current Lucy Allen surely knew.


    She had to know that if she acted a little more amicably, she could win people’s favor.


    There’s no way someone too stupid to realize that could have topped the entrance exams.


    In Jackal’s mind, her arrogance was a deration that she wouldn’t bow her head to anyone or anything.


    It was a steadfastness to walk her own path, regardless of what others thought of her.


    And Jackal hated that steadfastness.


    Because he couldn’t be steadfast.


    He had to live his life ording to what others wanted from him.


    Even if he wanted to be steadfast, he would eventually be broken.


    He hated the steadfastness he couldn’t achieve.


    So when he saw the ne.


    And then looked up and saw Lucy Allen’s irritating smirk, he remembered his brother.


    The steadfastness that, despite living without concern for others'' opinions, still received their love.


    And so, he shouted that he didn’t care about the ne.


    He imed that he didn’t care about his brother.


    Because if he admitted to needing the ne from Lucy Allen, it would be like acknowledging that he was still trapped under his brother’s shadow.


    "Mister Inferior Noble, are you trying to deceive yourself? How pathetic."


    At that moment.


    Lucy Allen smiled, as if she had seen right through his inferiorityplex.


    Seeing that smile, Jackal shot up from his seat.


    Rude? Disrespectful?


    He didn’t care about any of that.


    He simply couldn’t bear to continue the conversation with Lucy Allen any longer.


    So he left the library and walked for a long time without thinking.


    It wasn’t until he stepped outside and looked up at the cloudy sky, then mmed his fist into the white wall of the academy.


    "Inferior? Me?"


    Lucy Allen.


    That damn girl.


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    I couldn’t wrap my head around it.


    I had never even considered the possibility that Jackal might reject the ne.


    What’s going on? Why did he leave the ne behind and just walk away?


    He recognized the ne—his shock was evident, so there’s no doubt about that.


    But this has never happened in the game before, so I have no clue what to make of it.


    I have no idea what variable caused this.


    Damn it.


    It looks like I’ll have to scrap my n to increase Jackal’s favorability andplete the quest given by the Trash God.


    If I knew what the problem was, I could try to fix it, but I don’t know how to address something I don’t understand.


    I’ll have to take a different route.


    I’ll look for ways to increase Arthur or Freyr’s favorability, and if that doesn’t work, I’ll consider other options.


    There are plenty of ways to go about this.


    Still, it’s disappointing. What I thought would be an easy task just got a lot harder.


    Why has nothing gone the way I wanted since I ended up in this world?


    Could Agra have something to do with this too?


    Furrowing my brow as I continued to ponder, I noticed movement nearby and looked up.


    There, I saw today’s special academy dessert—parfait—approaching.


    It hadn’t been long since I ordered, so it arrived quickly.


    As I took a spoonful and ced the ice cream from the top into my mouth, the sweet, soft, and cool taste made me wave my hand in satisfaction.


    There’s nothing like sweets when you’re stressed.


    I’m d this is a medieval fantasy world.


    If this were the real Middle Ages, I could only dream of such luxury.


    Smiling as the sweetness filled my mouth, I took another spoonful and continued to think.


    Changing ns isn’t difficult.


    Once I get the Raven’s Crest and gain ess to the Newman family’s resources, I’ll have plenty of options.


    For now, I’ll just have to wait for Kurtz Newman to quickly find that elixir.


    “Yum.”


    Until then, I’ll drag Joy and Freyr along for some more grinding.