I Became a Tentacle Monster Blooming in the Academy Garden 223

## Chapter 223 – The Fight Beneath the Surface (6)

Wasn’t the decision to construct the workshop this time also due to considerable support from the daughter of a prominent family from Chaoxing?

In fact, with current technology, building construction itself was relatively inexpensive when considered as a percentage of the budget.

After all, this was a world where rare medicinal ingredients and technological products were as valuable as an entire building.

The academy’s finances were an impregnable fortress, capable of handling all of that.

But then, news that would shake the international situation began to surface.

‘Reinforcing the front lines…
It’s too early…
We could have held out for another five years…’

The front lines, separating the monster zones from human territories.

The area where humans and monsters clashed, with only the victor surviving.

The ultimate defense wall protecting humanity from monsters, and the undefeated spearhead expanding that territory, the ‘front lines’ had been reinforced roughly every five years.

The front lines essentially referred to the circular boundary of the human residential area, encompassing Barmhausen and Chaoxing, but Groden, due to its geographical characteristics, had a higher exposure to the front lines than other countries.

In fact, the vast front lines, spanning a length equivalent to 50% of the Verdini continent’s diameter, were like a money-devouring hippopotamus.

The unexplored and unconfirmed areas beyond the front lines accounted for more than 70% of the entire continent.

The fact that this could even be inferred was only possible thanks to ancient records that vaguely described the state of the continent.

The reason why humanity lived within a mere 30% of the continent was clear.

Monsters not only prevented their outward expansion but even invaded in reverse, so how could they possibly venture out?

In such a state, the front lines were, in the truest sense, the front lines for external exploration and an indispensable element for maintaining the survival of humanity.

To cover the enormous costs required by the front lines, wealthy nobles had to pay substantial taxes, much like the major corporations that accounted for most of the national tax revenue.

The last reinforcement of the front lines had been two years ago, so the news of another reinforcement coming so suddenly, with three years still remaining, was like a bolt from the blue for the nobles who had already spent a considerable amount two years prior.

There was even a saying that even the most extravagant nobles behaved themselves during the year the front lines were reinforced.

Their current situation was akin to not just stepping in poop, but falling into a latrine altogether.

The problem was that with such high taxes, the proportion of money voluntarily donated, i.e., donated to the academy’s operating expenses, would also decrease.

It’s hard to help others when you’re struggling to make ends meet yourself.

Moreover, having made such large expenditures, it would take them at least a few years to return to a financial state where they could donate as much to the operating expenses as before.

They could donate enough money to the academy when they had the余裕, but whether they took pride in the academy or not, this was not something that could be easily resolved.

‘Because of that, the funding for the academy has been greatly reduced…
Why now of all times… why now…
If it had been delayed by two years… no… even just one year…’

It was something that was bound to happen eventually, but it was an unforeseen problem that suddenly erupted while the academy was undertaking various projects.

What should have been a minor issue resolved through temporary austerity and efficient budget management was becoming increasingly serious due to a series of coincidences.

If things continued this way, the academy might have to close its doors in as little as five years, which only exacerbated Charlotte’s frustration.

“I’ve heard that the costs covered by support haven’t been sufficient lately…
Why don’t you stop being stubborn, Miss?
Shouldn’t you look at reality?
The academy is in a dangerous situation, isn’t it? Am I wrong?”

Laratina was known to be a commoner from the back alleys.

As such, she didn’t pay taxes like the nobles, which meant she retained more of her wealth compared to them.

Now, even the madam of a brothel was setting foot in the sacred hall of education.

Leaving aside the pride of her family, as a student of this academy and in solidarity with her fellow students, Charlotte could not condone such a thing.

But…

“Let’s see~ How about this much…?”

What she presented was too much money to vehemently refuse.

That was why it was difficult to coldly reject this woman named Laratina.

How much money could one possibly make from running a brothel?

Enough to build one of the pillars of the faltering academy.

Charlotte’s flushed face trembled like an aspen leaf at the sight of Laratina handing over a check with such a large number written on it.

“The operation of the academy is also a royal decree…
You wouldn’t dare to mock the dignity of the royal family, would you…?”

“How could someone as lowly as I do such a thing, Miss?
I simply hope to benefit each other… it’s simple, isn’t it?
I’m not asking for anything that grand, you know?”

What she was proposing in exchange for such a large sum of money was a business partnership between the brothel and the academy.

Although it was called an academy, this place was different from ordinary schools.

It was more like a university where adults who had completed basic education elsewhere received education to reach higher levels.

It was fundamentally different from elementary schools swarming with minors.

In other words, since they were adults, they were free to wield their dicks as they pleased.

The holes had to be cherished as much as possible for the sake of the family, but in any case, as long as they were adults and took responsibility for their actions, they were free to play around as they wished.

Especially since the academy was mostly composed of nobles who could broaden their choices with ‘money’, it was even more possible.

What Laratina would gain from this deal were potential future customers among the students, most of whom were nobles.

Perhaps some of them would become the heads of their families in the future, and even after graduating from the academy, they might remember her services and visit her brothel.

And there were plenty of ways to profit immediately.

Come to think of it, there were quite a few students who frequented brothels even now.

The male students were prepared men in the prime of their virility.

In most cases, due to the many female students who were noble young ladies who had to value their chastity until marriage, it was often difficult for male students to indulge in their partners, even if they managed to find a girlfriend.

At best, commoner female students who hoped to become concubines in noble families were outlets for their desires.

However, even those girls were desperate not to miss the opportunity they had staked their bodies on, and they showed chastity by refusing to give their bodies to anyone other than their chosen partner.

As a result, they could only suck their thumbs while complaining that commoners were acting too expensive, and even the opportunity to take such commoner female students was rare.

The only way would be to seduce a commoner girlfriend of a noble male student with a lower status than themselves with sweet words, inducing them to break their chastity.

But the future of female students who had been seduced and switched ships was never bright.

A woman with a history of betrayal was only good for a few times of pleasure, and no man would seriously consider her.

As such, in any way, the relationship between men and women within the academy was bound to be rigid, and the place where that desire was directed was ultimately a place where it could be freely satisfied, a brothel.

Around evening, when the students’ class schedules ended, they would drag their bodies, covered in fatigue accumulated throughout the classes, into the rooms prepared for them.

There, a pre-prepared member of the opposite sex would be present, and they would spend time healing their minds and bodies while releasing their lust.

And if they charged a high price to those who had come all the way to this distant academy, as if they were on a business trip rather than waiting for customers at the brothel, that stage alone would be an excellent business plan.

And sometimes, among the commoners, there would be female students who were in difficult circumstances, burdened with debt, or struggling with poverty.

What if they lured such a woman with money, recruited her, and ‘commercialized’ her with the name value of ‘academy student-turned-prostitute’?

After all, most students did not immediately become a force in society upon graduation.

If they were unlucky, it would take time to find a job, and they would not receive a full salary until they fully demonstrated their abilities from the moment they were first employed.

The gap until they started earning money properly could be longer than they thought.

In the end, the students with nothing would have no choice but to be the ones in a hurry.

Therefore, a female student who needed to put out the fire under her feet would have no choice but to prioritize the immediate benefits, even if it meant losing her virginity.

For customers who always liked something fresh, there would be no product more drool-worthy than such a girl with a story.

A diligent girl who wore the academy uniform and attended classes during the day.

Such a girl would become a weak female trembling in a flimsy negligee at night, thinking about what was about to happen.

As a female succumbing to fate, she would eventually be pinned beneath them and scream.

How could any man resist that?

And what if they made that student work at the academy branch of the brothel?

Wouldn’t it be an opportunity for a male student who had just been in class with a female student to violate her for a fair price?

In some ways, due to values such as propriety and morality, there might have been cases where they couldn’t reach out even if the other party was a commoner.

But, if they were lucky, they could have the body of a woman they had always wanted, a woman they had imagined pinning down at least once, as they wished.

There were also cases, which were difficult to imagine normally, where they could warmly play with such a ‘product’ or forcibly harass and violate her, reveling in their superiority.

The blueprint that Laratina had envisioned was this disgusting.

It was a system that someone with an excessive lack of morality would probably cheer for, but someone who wasn’t would inevitably feel uncomfortable with.

But the fact that even such a thing would clearly make money was perhaps an element that could show how crazy this world was.

Laratina’s smile as she quietly watched Charlotte agonizing over her proposal.

It was as if she already knew what choice Charlotte would make, and that arrogant expression was engraved on her face.