『Is this craftsmanship from the cult?』
The demon scrutinized the awakening agent. It split the drug and examined the black contents carefully with tweezers.
『…No, it can’t be the cult. It hasn’t even been 20 years since we went through that struggle to exterminate them. The academy is not an easy target to invade either.』
The tweezers separated a specific content.
『Is this a fin from a Skywhale? I don’t know the purpose of distributing this awakening agent, but they can’t possibly be using this expensive material just for pure sale.』
The demon placed the tweezers down.
『Young Craft, you won’t be affected anyway. Just like you can’t gain energy from food, various drugs won’t work on you.』
The demon tapped its fingers on the table.
『But just in case, it’s better not to eat it.』
Huh?
Pastel’s eyes went wide.
Several awakening agents rolled around in her open mouth.
The demon, turning around, held its forehead.
『Why are you eating that?』
“But, it tastes good!”
Pastel quickly chewed. Her eyes sparkled with each bite of the awakening agent.
The magic stone had the taste of junk food candy. However, the awakening agent was much tastier than the magic stone.
Gourmet candy?
It seemed like some luxurious candy crafted by a renowned candy chef over several days.
How can I express this?
While pondering, Pastel suddenly came up with a brilliant description.
“A drug cocktail by a top chef!”
Wow.
The chef’s skill is utterly fantastic.
『A drug cocktail…?』
The demon’s face hardened. Then it snatched the box of awakening agents away.
『Don’t eat it.』
Ah?!
“Give it back!”
Pastel reached out her hands.
『No.』
The demon stood up and held the box high above. Its tall stature kept the box far out of reach.
“Give it back! Please!”
Pastel clung to the demon and reached out. But her hands couldn’t even touch the box as she struggled.
Ah! The height!
The height…!
The demon looked down resolutely.
『What’s a drug cocktail? Just don’t eat it.』
Ugh.
I guess my expression was indeed too strange.
“I’ll correct myself! It’s not a drug, no, no.”
Ugh.
While placing her head in her hands and seriously contemplating, Pastel glanced up at the demon with slight uncertainty.
“A magic stone cocktail…?”
Hehe.
The demon declared without any change in expression.
『No.』
Ahh.
My special magic stone cocktail…!
Chef, please scold the demon!
Wasn’t it said that similar craftsmanship belongs to the cult? I feel a kinship towards the cult. Shouldn’t I have been with the cult instead?
Ugh, calm down.
Top student Pastel, you can protect the magic stone cocktail.
Logical and rational brain activity!
Yay…!
“Lord Demon, Lord Demon. I’m not in a position to be picky about what I eat. I know my expression was weird, but just like you said, there’s no problem in eating it!”
She pointed at herself.
After all, she had just swallowed several awakening agents and didn’t feel any change.
『That’s…』
The demon hesitated.
It seemed that no matter how much it tried to think well, it found it troubling that the girl was eating anything she picked up.
Opportunity!
Pastel jumped up, snatched the awakening agent box, and ran away.
Oh yeah, oh yeah.
She poured the awakening agents into her mouth.
The sweetness of candy!
The demon hesitated about whether to stop her, then gave up and watched with a feeling of unease.
Pastel smiled brightly.
“I’m fine!”
Because there’s no problem at all.
Really.
#
The next day, Pastel submitted one of the leftover awakening agents to the professor’s meeting in her capacity as a student council member.
Then she headed to the old dormitory to inform the first-year students about the results regarding the ghost.
“The sensation of a ghost at night was from Leonard’s group.”
Not a ghost, how disappointing.
“Le, Leonard?”
The first-year student shook his pale face.
“No way, there were sounds last night.”
“Really? Everyone was in the garden.”
“It really happened!”
Could there be a ghost?
Oh yeah.
Pastel was delighted.
The first-year student flinched and avoided eye contact.
“S-so, I checked it myself to see if it was really a ghost.”
Oh?
Our friend showed unexpected courage.
The first-year student moved into the corridor, then shivered and pointed to the floor.
“The cause was here.”
The finger pointed to the simple corridor floor.
“At night, there were voices echoing from below. It must be a ghost!”
Huh?
Really? Isn’t there just a space below the floor? Like a basement?
“Got it, the student council will look into it.”
She sent the terrified first-year student back.
Pastel placed her ear on the ground to listen for sounds.
What could she hear?
As she stayed still, faint animal sounds trickled through.
Meow, meow.
Pastel’s eyes widened.
“Lord Demon! Lord Demon! It’s the sound of a cat! There’s a cat living underground!”
Wow, underground cat.
『It must be a basement. Since it was a training facility for officers, there are likely remnants. Though it was covered by the dormitory, it seems it hasn’t been completely erased.』
Oh, the signs of adventure are blossoming.
Pastel’s eyes sparkled.
“Let’s go in right now!”
After digging all day, she discovered there was no entrance to the basement at all.
Eh.
『Did they cover it up with the dormitory? If that’s the case, we can’t get in. Give up.』
“What about the cat? How did it get in?”
『If the inside is spacious, there might be an entrance that’s accidentally opened far away. Even if abandoned, it was military secret in the past. It’s better not to think you can find a hidden entrance.』
“Ah, I can’t believe it.”
How disappointing.
And so the adventure came to an end.
Perhaps this is just how life goes.
Regrettable.
Now she had to think about how to console the terrified first-year student instead of going on an adventure.
She crossed her arms and looked down at the corridor floor.
Suddenly, she heard a noise from her pocket.
Huh.
When she took it out, it was the fateful compass obtained from the Demon King’s ruins.
The compass spun around and pointed at the floor.
Oh?
『…It seems the Demon King’s arrangement is underground.』
Pastel’s eyes shone brightly.
Could it be this time a magic stone duplication?
Or does it mean she could absorb demonic energy from the atmosphere just by breathing?
Whatever it may be, if it’s the Demon King’s arrangement, life would be easier. There must be at least one cheat code.
『Though it’s a stroke of luck, rummaging through the library might allow you to find information on underground resources. If lucky, you might even deduce the entrance.』
What did you say? You want me to read a lot of books?
Sit in a dusty library that you can’t even play in?
Ew, top student Pastel isn’t doing that.
“I have an idea!”
Smart people don’t study.
Pastel’s sharp gaze scanned the dormitory.
It was neat but quite shabby.
“I can’t believe students live in such poor facilities!”
Everything she saw was outdated, completely outdated.
“This is unacceptable as a student council!”
She raised one arm high.
“Let’s build a new dormitory!”
Pastel’s eyes sparkled.
“If the magical weapons are beneath the dormitory, wouldn’t it be possible to just push the dormitory away?”
Using the authority of the student council to subtly interfere at the construction site and gobble up the Demon King’s arrangements.
An utterly brilliant idea.
And, and!
“We will recruit the construction company directly from the Demon Realm!”
Why the Demon Realm?
Just, hehehe.
It’s not a big deal.
“We’ll feed the poor kids~.”
The demon muttered in a worried voice.
『…Why the Demon Realm?』
The beginning is hard.
The second time is doable.
The third time is easy!
Oh yeah.
To the Demon Realm we go~!
Oh no, wait.
First, I need to increase the numbers in the student council.
It seems Ellie is struggling alone.
#
Dustin Wild.
The second son of Baron Wild.
Raised under a father who had a hobby of confiscating commoners’ farms and a mother who got along well with such a husband.
Hahaha.
His brother, a spitting image of their father, enjoyed the hobby of whipping maids and would frequently seek out his younger brother, stemming from their good relationship.
Hahaha.
He had never been hit or shouted at.
However, Dustin wanted to run away from home due to an inexplicable rebellious spirit.
As a result, he worked hard and successfully entered the academy.
Good job, Dustin.
But reality is often cruel.
What he faced was a low score in written exams.
Having learned that theft was his only skill, Dustin couldn’t contain his pride and picked a fight with the top student who seemed easy to bully.
There were also calculations involved.
As the second son of a baron family, his future looked bleak. He had no choice but to gain reputation and connections to become independent.
In that respect, defeating a girl from a house with only reputation in the first duel was a rough but worthwhile scenario.
Being insulted in spite of his infamy would still be better than being unknown.
For a starting point, Craft’s Pastel appeared to be an easy opponent.
She certainly seemed that way.
But the result was a crushing defeat.
The frail girl possessed unbelievable strength.
The girl was, “Iyaaa!”
Dustin, “Agh! Agh!”
No.
After that, Dustin began to be quietly ostracized among the kids.
He was so thoroughly excluded that he couldn’t make a single friend during the entrance exams.
Dustin secretly cried under his blanket, snot running down his face.
He wanted friends.
He had even made a bucket list of 100 things to do with friends at the academy…
Each day passed with him eating alone.
The first item on the list, which was a joke about having meals with friends, was completely unachieved.
Why did I even write that down?
Each day, the pillowcase was soaked with tears.
But was there sunshine at the end of his hardships?
After the entrance ceremony, Leonard approached him. What he wanted was the battle experience gained by fighting Pastel.
Leonard seemed intent on defeating Pastel to gain infamy and fame for himself.
With a body like an upperclassman’s and a shrewd mind that researched his opponent, he captivated Dustin’s attention.
This guy could win against Pastel!
Let’s be friends!
And then, we could eat together…!
In reality, Dustin, who simply wanted to eat with friends, answered all of Leonard’s authoritative questions dutifully.
Though it felt like he was becoming a subordinate rather than a friend, he convinced himself it was just a misunderstanding.
Thus began Leonard’s plan.
Leonard was cold-headed. Despite having a body of an upperclassman, he wasn’t lax about the fact that the girl had astonishing strength.
Upon hearing that the girl was engaging in a series of arm-wrestling matches, he seized the opportunity to duel, waiting for the girl’s strength to completely drain.
This one will win…!
The cool-headed Leonard faced off against the bumbling Pastel.
The girl, “Pashasha!”
Leonard, “Ugh! Ugh!”
No.
Leonard, where did you use all that strength? You can’t go down with just one punch after preparing so thoroughly.
He abandoned all thoughts.
Nothing works, haah.
And even now, nothing works, as Dustin was currently rolling in the dirt.
“Hey! Step on him! How dare you fall for the beauty ploy?! You despicable brat!”
When Leonard commanded, his underlings rushed in. Kicks hit Dustin’s body.
The kicks of his underlings, fueled by their selfish interests, continued.
“That’s right! You despicable one! We wanted to be deceived by Pastel too!”
Leonard, who was also kicking along, flinched.
“What?! Who just said that?! Who is it?!”
Leonard’s fierce gaze scanned the area, and once the search for the perpetrator began, Dustin was finally able to escape.
His beaten body ached everywhere.
He wobbled while bracing himself against the wall.
“Cursed ones, it was just innocent friend verification…”
Even if I am the second son of a baron family, I have some nobility; if it were otherwise, I wouldn’t even have been deceived. These fools are imagining things as they please.
He moved while slightly limping. His ankle felt tingly; was it sprained? He stepped cautiously.
“Oh? Hello, friend.”
A familiar voice echoed.
He turned his head.
Suddenly, cherry blossoms bloomed in his view.
A lush mane swayed in rhythm with her movements. Dreamy pink eyes met his.
In that moment, the wind seemed to carry the scent of flowers.
“Are you okay? Are you hurt?”
Dustin snapped back into reality at her worried voice. He hurriedly averted his gaze.
Ugh, of all times.
So embarrassing.
“I’m fine, just go on your way.”
At his firm refusal, Pastel tilted her head.
“…Ah.”
The girl suddenly looked regretful.
“I didn’t consider your situation. I’m sorry; I usually don’t pay enough attention to those around me.”
Her soft hand gently held Dustin’s hand. He felt a warm sensation as her warmth seemed to climb up his arms.
“I’m sorry, friend.”
Her pink eyes folded beautifully.
“Just give it one chance.”
Dustin’s heart raced. It felt as if the warmth emanating from the girl’s hand enveloped his entire body.
“Of course, I won’t let Leonard near you!”
His imagination ran rampant.
Could this be the free love I’ve heard about?
“Hmm, let’s see. Ah-ha!”
Pastel beamed brightly.
“You have a natural talent for serving under men! Join the student council! We’re short on hands right now! Your skills will fit perfectly!”
Whatever feelings had started to form crumbled to pieces.
“What did you just say…? That I have a knack for being a lackey?”
Dustin Wild, joining the student council.
Position: Lackey.
