Chapter 115: Free-loading
Being fixated upon by the young man who was a head taller than him, Dillin felt uneasy all over, sensing that the other party’s gaze wasn’t very friendly.
“Classmate, did you stop me for any particular reason?” The implication being, if it’s not urgent, don’t hold me up.
“Not really anything urgent, just curious about what the champion divine maiden’s divine son looks like, that’s all.” This male student stared meaningfully at Dillin.
“Are you really Lady Tillysha’s divine son??”
“Didn’t you just ask that question already?”
“Oh, sorry, it’s just that you don’t resemble it much.” The male student seemed to apologize on the surface.
These words made Dillin want to roll his eyes inside. Not resembling it? It’s like you’ve actually seen it before or something! Do people need your approval on what they look like?
“I was imagining how amazing someone who would be worthy of being Lady Tillysha’s divine son would be, but he looks ordinary, like some random guy.”
“That sorry-for-himself look, like he’s half-asleep. In the final, we didn’t even see him, like he’s boasting about how exhausted he was.” Watching the conversation between the two, several students began to chime in.
But rather than commenting, most of the eyes watching were gleeful and schadenfreude-filled.
What are they happy about? Simple: Tillysha’s divine son turns out to be an average and unremarkable man who disappeared after the Top Ten finals, apparently just riding Tillysha’s coattails to get there – an embroidered pillow of sorts.
A divine son like this has no competitiveness. Presumably, Miss Tillysha has already grown tired of this talentless and incapable guy and will be looking for a new teammate after enrollment!
If they can leech off Tillysha, they could save thirty years of hard work, right?! More outrageously, if Miss Tillysha, this beautiful and talented gem, actually takes a liking to them…
Many students, particularly male ones, started daydreaming.
Dillin had no idea how they were thinking, but felt awkward.
“Comrade, that’s quite rude.” Dillin didn’t want to deal with these grape-sour people, but at this moment, Wenfu nearby spoke up.
This little cat-girl put her hands on her hips and said to the male student blocking Dillin’s way, “It was a mutual decision for Dillin and Tillysha to team up. Why are you sticking your nose into it?”
“You’ve never even met him, yet you’re already talking nonsense! Aren’t you just jealous that others can team up with Miss Tillysha, so you’re picking a fight?”
“I…” Even though Wenfu is small, she’s great at arguing, leaving the male student speechless. Seeing it was Wenfu who was arguing with him, the student shrank back, not daring to say much, muttering something before leaving.
“Cat-ear classmate, thank you for helping me out.”
“Don’t mention it. You’re Tillysha’s divine son, it’s only proper.” Wenfu’s tail swayed as if she enjoyed compliments.
“I haven’t introduced myself yet. I’m Wenfu Shires, a cleric-class divine maiden. Perhaps you’ve heard of me?”
“Wenfu classmate, nice to meet you.” Dillin nodded.
“Is Dillin coming to the lounge to pick up Tillysha?”
“Ah… yeah, but I didn’t expect her to have already left.” Dillin scratched his head.
“I see.” Wenfu was silent. She wasn’t much better; after the competition ended, her first thought was to come and pick up Tillysha, but she also came up empty.
Of course, picking up Tillysha was just one of her goals…
As a cleric-class divine maiden, she had to choose a sufficiently reliable team and find a good ‘husband’ to marry into.
Back when she was eliminated, she already had this idea. But by the time the competition ended, she got stuck.
Even though she was indeed one of the more well-known rising stars in the school, Tillysha was now the ‘Crown King’ of this session. Countless talents wanted to be her teammate, including many excellent cleric divine maidens, severely limiting her competitive edge in the industry.
In the Secret Realm, she wanted to be Tillysha’s teammate, but this time, it’s different. This time, she wants to be Tillysha’s official teammate.
During their cooperation in the Secret Realm, she realized something: the most important trait for a teammate isn’t results, but character.
Tillysha could step up to protect her, an enemy, for an o*al promise. Finding a teammate like this was incredibly rare.
She wanted to find Tillysha to discuss teaming up after enrollment, but Tillysha wasn’t there.
At this thought, the small cat-girl’s hopeful eyes looked towards Dillin, but then dimmed.
It felt pointless asking Dillin. Although what those people said before was harsh, they were partially right.
After enrollment, Tillysha probably wouldn’t choose Dillin as her divine son anymore, no matter how good her personality was. She would have to consider team chemistry and divine son responsibilities.
“Miss Wenfu, is there something?” Seeing Wenfu’s gaze shift from him, Dillin was confused.
“No, no.” Wenfu looked away, pretending to ask casually, “By the way, how are the relations between Dillin and Tillysha?”
“Alright, I guess, it works.” Dillin wasn’t particularly thoughtful about it.
“Then, what do you plan to do after winning the Crown Cup?”
“What plans?” Dillin frowned, not fully understanding what Wenfu was hinting at. “I haven’t thought about it yet, though I want to stay at Coleman Academy.”
After all, except for Coleman Academy, he had nowhere else to go. To say it bluntly, as a champion, his future was boundless. As long as he didn’t mess things up, he could enjoy the best treatment in the academy, live comfortably and even support the orphanage that helped him. Why not?
Not to mention, as the divine son, Dillin wanted to progress further.
The rank of divine son is maintained by knowledge; with enough knowledge, the divine son could acquire more abilities beyond just Divine Analysis Technique.
Even though many thought him untalented, Dillin wanted to give it a shot.
“Hmm, will Miss Tillysha be together with you?”
“Her? Of course, she must stay at Coleman Academy.”
“Oh…” Wenfu was a bit disappointed that Dillin didn’t catch her subtle inquiry.
Though the relationship between Dillin and Tillysha seemed decent, no one knows what the future holds.
Dillin was exhausted, wanting to rush back to sleep. After a brief farewell to Wenfu, he hurried back to the dormitory, closed the door, threw his ID card and golden pansy hair accessory, and jumped on the bed.
After several days of battles and frequently using Divine Analysis Technique, his mental energy was severely drained. He was genuinely exhausted and was out like a light within half a minute of touching the bed.
After waking up, he noticed it was already pitch dark. Dazed from sleep, Dillin got up from bed, yawning, searching for his shoes in the semi-darkness when a growling stomach noise filled the quiet room.
…So hungry. Come to think of it, the past few days, he hadn’t really eaten anything substantial. Even the food added in the middle of the competition was hard dry rations.
He was too tired when he just came back to notice, but now that he’s well-rested, Dillin felt dizzy from hunger.
Dinner, he definitely needed a feast! However, feeling his perpetually empty wallet, he could only swallow saliva.
Unless he sneaked in as Tillysha to enjoy the divine maiden’s meals… No, let’s not. Turning into Tillysha would mean eating salad. Sleeping rough outdoors for so many days, eating grass upon returning? Who could handle that? He wasn’t a rabbit!
There should be fewer people in the cafeteria tonight. Though the food is good, who would eat at the cafeteria after finishing celebrating the successful admission test?
Why not find someone to treat him to a meal? But the question is, who in this academy would willingly treat him?
“…………”
“How come? Why aren’t you eating?” One hand chomping on a chicken leg, the other wielding a fork furiously, amidst his feasting, the juice-covered Dillin raised his head and looked confused at the person opposite him.
“You have some too? It’s no fun for me to eat alone, isn’t it? Smack smack…….”
“…………”
“Don’t be so polite. Eat! Others are fine, but today you’re acting so formal? Now that you’ve advanced, don’t be so gloomy, come on, have a toast.” Saying that, Dillin put down his chicken leg, grabbed a glass of juice, and drank it down.
“………. Ahaha, the friend of this divine son sure is bold,” a tall male student sitting at the same table chuckled.
“Oh, alright. I know you don’t want me to be polite. Relax, I won’t be polite. Let’s switch to a bigger cup!” Saying that, Dillin waved to signal the server.
Seeing Dillin devouring his meal like a famished beast, the others sitting at the table weren’t quite sure if this was a celebration banquet for their team or Dillin’s solo feast.
“Why are you being so stiff like a wooden post? Don’t be polite.”
“Polite or not, did you even buy this meal??” John looked at Dillin in a bad mood. “You’re so carefree, you didn’t even invite yourself, just sat down and started eating without even saying hello.”
“It’s because I don’t feel strange around you,” Dillin said calmly while stuffing food into his mouth, his face betraying slight happiness.
The taste of fresh meat, a poor man like him hadn’t enjoyed in quite a while. Eating it now felt like stepping back into another world.
“Phew………” John sighed helplessly.
Today was supposed to be a celebratory dinner with his teammates, but who would expect such a harbinger of bad luck dropping in?
Without hesitation, upon seeing him in the restaurant, Dillin pulled up a seat, signaled the server for an extra set of chopsticks, and started eating without waiting for anyone’s invitation, talking casually with himself while eating without an ounce of reservation.
John understood fine, having some knowledge of this guy, but his teammates were thoroughly confused, seeing what seemed to be a familiar acquaintance, assumed he had invited Dillin, and didn’t say anything.
Fine, no point in squabbling with him.
John knew Dillin’s situation well; providing him with a meal wouldn’t be a problem, but…
“Since you’ve become the Crown King already, why even come here? Why don’t you go find your Tillysha?” John criticized.
“What are you saying? After becoming the Crown King, naturally, the first person I’d look for would be my best friend, right? Am I the type of person who’d value women over friendship?” Dillin lied confidently.
“Wow, this is the truth, I’m so moved………. Do you think I’d say that?! You blasted absentee, you’ve already taken first place and you’re still freeload at this grand feast? Are you even ashamed?” John snapped.
“Haven’t I asked you yet? Confess, from where did you dig up this divine maiden Tillysha? And why did she fancy you?” This comment had the other three people at the table immediately pay attention.
Apparently, they were also interested in this topic.
“………Do you really want to hear?” Dillin raised his head unusually.
“Isn’t this obvious nonsense?” John glared.
“In fact, telling you isn’t a problem, it’s not a secret. It’s just…….. Three chicken legs still seem insufficient.” Dillin looked away, pretending to hesitate.
“Waiter, three more chicken legs!” John exclaimed, then narrowed his eyes at Dillin. “Young Master Dillin, this should do, right?”
“Ahem………” Feeling the four hopeful eyes on him, Dillin awkwardly coughed, finally beginning to recount.
“It’s not too complicated, but it’s still an oddly twisted story.” Then, Dillin fabricated a tale on the spot about encountering an unawoken Tillysha, helping the ugly duckling hated by everyone, merely providing her with a platform, thereby creating mutual trust, etc.
But if you carefully thought about it, this story was basically pieced together using Aistride’s past experiences.
“So………. ” Dillin drained his glass of juice and solemnly declared, “Fate, fate ah, it’s truly indescribably wonderful.”
“In this ever-changing era, amidst the impact of public opinion, while aimlessly drifting through life, can we all still hold on to our kind and sincere original hearts?” Dillin displayed another talent of his as the divine son – bullshitting.
“Gold will always shine, but gold can also be mistaken for specks of dust. We should always have eyes that see beyond the surface, but most importantly, maintain a sincerely unchanged heart……….”
This nonsensical lecture thoroughly stunned John’s divine maiden teammates, causing them to only nod and express admiration, but if you asked them to recount precisely Dillin’s words, they’d likely discover Dillin hadn’t said anything concrete, just some random profound-sounding clichés.
“Is that really the case?” John was doubtful.
“Could there be any doubt?” Saying that, Dillin poured himself another glass of juice.
Anyway, it wasn’t his money, so he might as well recoup what John had taken from here.
Chatting freely was free after all.
“Alright, whatever. So what are your plans now? Continue with Tillysha’s team?”
“What else?”
“Why do I feel like you’re just a freeloader?” John said awkwardly, and indeed, the other divine maidens present agreed but didn’t say it out loud.
