As I walked down the familiar corridors, through the familiar garden, and across the familiar campus, there was an unfamiliar excitement burgeoning in my heart.
Perhaps because of that, the world, which had once seemed desolate, now appeared vibrant and colorful, as if seen through a kaleidoscope.
“No, this is probably how it was always supposed to look.”
I must have been seeing everything through gray-tinted glasses all this time.
As I strolled through the campus, which felt even more refreshed than the day before, I heard a soft voice call out from behind.
“Arthur!”
“Hi, Reeti.”
“Arthur, weren’t you served a dismissal notice yesterday?”
“It’s… not exactly a notice yet…”
I showed Reeti the document stamped with the Dean’s official seal.
“If I fail the practical test this time… expulsion?! This really is a dismissal notice!”
“…Yeah. You think it’s a foregone conclusion that I’m going to fail the practical test?”
“That’s unfair. According to the Academy’s regulations, expulsion should only occur for students who score less than 50 overall…”
“But with the Dean’s seal on it, this is probably already settled.”
“Dean… call them just ‘Dean.’ They’re being openly biased against you; why do you still speak respectfully?”
Surely there are microphones installed all over the campus…
I could be expelled alongside you if we’re not careful…
Reeti Eleanor.
Reeti, the daughter of Earl Eleanor, became friends with me by mere coincidence based on similar interests.
Despite her father’s title and her attractive appearance, she attracted a lot of admirers at the start of the semester. But that’s because they hadn’t yet truly seen the real her.
On the surface, she looks like an innocent fairy, but the inside story is a bit different.
“This should be officially protested. Even though you lack magical power, to go as far as changing the Academy’s rules to dismiss you? It’s a transparently biased decision.”
Our Dean firmly believes in the superiority of magic.
With roll calls according to magical strength, it’s no surprise I’m always called last. (For reference, I’m dead last.)
“It’s fine. It wasn’t a place that suited me anyway. Maybe getting expelled is simply a natural conclusion.”
“…Is that really you, Arthur? What happened to the stubborn Arthur who used to push through everything? Where did he go and leave some naive guy in his place?”
“Naive?”
To be honest, I had already let go of something, even if just a little.
Certainly, asking Lily could be an option.
Lily is no less than an Outsider.
No matter how high the Academy’s practical test standards are, with the blessing of an Outsider, I could probably pass with my eyes closed.
Still…
“I already owe her too much…”
The blessings of the gods are not freely handed out like to dogs and cattle.
It’s about sharing their own power, so how could they lightly share that with just anyone?
Moreover, I’ve been content merely with Lily’s presence.
Asking for more would be shameless.
Just as Reeti darted off toward the Dean’s office, I restrained her with my arms and turned back toward the classroom.
Suddenly, Reeti thrust her nose into my lapel.
“Sniff, sniff. Arthur, did you go out again without showering… wait a sec, do you have a roommate?”
“Huh?”
“Even… uh… is she by any chance a… girl?”
There’s probably deep emotion behind that final remark, though it might be just my impression.
No, how could she guess that just by smell?
“What… what makes you think… are you saying I…? Where would I even meet someone like that?”
Reeti looked at me with narrow eyes as I trailed off.
“You’re hiding something from me.”
“No…”
“Liar.”
“It’s not…”
“Really?”
“…Not.”
Ah, in that moment, I couldn’t help but think of Lily from this morning.
“Look me in the eye and answer.”
Reeti grabbed my cheeks and aligned her gaze with mine.
“Is it really not?”
“Hey, let go of me!”
“Answer me.”
Not in some private place! People are watching!
“You reek of that female scent, and yet you’re playing dumb.”
“But how could you—”
“Answer me!”
She’s serious. She’ll do this all day until I give her a satisfying answer if she has to.
With that look of fiery determination in her eyes, I have no choice but to answer.
“It’s family.”
“Huh?”
“Family.”
“Eh? But you…”
Though I’ve never mentioned it aloud, Reeti naturally knows I’m an orphan.
It’s strange not to when it’s a common topic around campus.
She had merely refrained from mentioning it out of consideration for me.
“Could it be… you were adopted??”
“…”
My silence is interpreted as affirmation, and Reeti’s face lights up in disbelief.
And with that, the corners of her mouth turned up dramatically.
“Woohoo! Congratulations, Arthur!”
Her excitement over my personal matters as if they were her own shows her pure-heartedness.
“Does that mean you now have someone to hang out with on holidays other than me? You haven’t had anyone else besides me until now.”
…Wow, to so clearly point out the truth with such clear eyes… such a crazy friend.
“Still… it’s fortunate… really.”
Even so, I can’t help but feel slightly choked up at the sincerity of her joy.
“Yeah, I have someone now too. Don’t stay behind during the holidays pretending you’re with me.”
“Ah, you knew?”
“Would the daughter of an Earl spend the whole holiday stuck in the Academy? That doesn’t make sense, does it?”
“Ehehe…”
Watching her sheepishly laugh made a small laugh escape me.
“Let’s just go to class now. The first class, right?”
“Continental Geography.”
“Oh, that professor arrives early.”
“It’s still early… huh?”
Looking at Reeti’s pocket watch beside me, the hour hand pointed precisely to 9 a.m.
“Uh oh…”
—
At the same time, in the Holy Nation bordering the Magical Empire.
Truly worthy of its name, the Holy Nation housed the continent’s most prestigious sacred site, the Pantaeon, the All-Gods’ Hall.
Every day, this location buzzed with worshipers belonging to various denominations from across the continent, all gathered in one place, worshipping all the gods.
And among the crowd stood someone clearly exuding an oppressive ambiance.
Her whole body was cloaked in a stark black robe, but her long hair carelessly poked out below the robe’s hem.
“Honestly. A race that does such useless things is probably one of the few in the whole universe.”
Pushing forcefully toward the ornate entrance of the All-Gods’ Hall, Lily glanced over the statues lined up there.
“Still, I should at least know about every deity in this universe, right?”
This was preliminary research.
“Hmm…there are no Outer Gods. Purposefully excluded? …Hmm?”
As Lily’s gaze swept over the deities, it suddenly paused at one spot.
A statue of an old man, with white hair contrasting dramatically with muscular features, stood there. Below the statue, a golden plaque bore the name “Nodens: The Great Lord of the Abyss, the Old God of Honor.”
“Ha! Honor? Nodens? Showgres would be more realistic in their calmness.”
Through the deeply-drawn hood of her robe, an eerie red light seeped out.
“There is no god who distances himself more from the concept of honor than this one.”
Clutching her aching side, Lily let out a bitter laugh.
“I didn’t know either, so…”
As flashes of lightning danced before her eyes, pain shot through her head, and Lily turned on her heel.
“One day, the day will come when everything can be returned in full.”
—
“It’s your fault we’re late.”
“What? Who’s the one who was grabbing me by the face?”
In the end, we ended up standing at the back corner of the classroom for being late due to each other.
“There! If you’re late, at least show some remorse!”
The geography professor barked out loudly, emphasizing every syllable.
“We’re truly sorry~”
Seeing Reeti answer lackadaisically, I shook my head in exasperation.
“Alright, we’ll continue the lecture. This continent is divided among five dominant powers: our Magical Empire, our neighboring Holy Nation, and the Great Tribes beyond the mountain ranges…”
“Hey, Arthur.”
The moment I tried to focus on the class, someone started to distract me.
I ignored it briefly, but then I felt a punch jab into my side.
“Oof…”
Gritting my teeth to suppress a groan of pain, I spun around to look at Reeti.
“You…”
She quickly clamped her hand over my mouth.
“Shh! Shut up and listen; I’ve got some really exciting news to share.”
With a skeptical glare, I watched her rummage around and produce some kind of paper.
“Check it out.”
Held up in front of my eyes was a rectangular object, a cuboid whose sides, viewed from any angle, appeared the same: three sides covered with a different material and three sides completely exposing its ‘flesh.’
“…It’s a book.”
“Yeah, it’s a book.”
The book it was. But not an ordinary book; from its very cover, an unsettling aura of immorality wafted out.
“What is it again?”
“Wait for the surprise. This is the lost first edition of Love Love Crayple!”
My expression immediately soured upon hearing the author’s name, which was familiar to me in a not-so-good way.
Yes. This was the reason I ended up close with the Earl’s daughter.
Growing up under an Earl is not exactly common, especially in such an unconventional noble society.
If things were good with neighboring countries now, it might have been different, but twenty years ago when the Holy Nation was on the brink of war, those were days of constant battle-readiness. Even now, despite the improvement, the life of an Earl’s daughter surely wasn’t comfortable.
Possibly due to this background, the daughter of Earl Eleanor has had… rather peculiar tastes.
These tastes mainly revolved around… collecting strange books.
The range of ‘strange’ is quite broad here.
It includes anything from rare old books to first editions, limited editions, magical scrolls with unique spells to… even erotica.
“…If your father knew about this…”
“Ah, then I’ll just take off my pants and lie face down.”
…Hmm, she’s daring.
“If it’s from this author… Is it erotica again?”
“It’s not just any erotica; it’s extremely rare, highly… well, let’s just say it’s a great book!”
What was that she was about to say earlier…?
“Where is this thing anyway?”
“In the Academy library.”
…What is this person talking about?
Given the gap in our social statuses, even with similar tastes, it wouldn’t have been easy to become close. But why we became such close friends lies in this.
“There’s no book like that in the library. If there was, I’d have shown it to you already.”
Because I’m practically a bookworm at the Academy library.
At the start of the semester, I even used to live there.
Since reading was restricted at the orphanage I came from, I was caught up in a backlash, indulging in books for several months.
After a while, I knew the titles of every book in the library just by glancing at the spines.
Thus, I could assist Reeti in her search, and we naturally became friends.
Although our preferred genres differ, we share a love for books.
But I don’t recall any book like that…
“Hehehe.”
“…What is that creepy laugh… Oh, you’re a pervert.”
“What? Bookworm, there’s one place you don’t know about, isn’t there?”
“…You’re not talking about the Restricted Section, are you?”
“Hehehehe.”
“I’m out.”
“Oh, come on~”
“Are you insane? If we’re caught sneaking in, we could face immediate suspension or expulsion!”
“Sneaking? No, we’ll go in legally.”
“What?”
“If we beg the librarian before I get expelled, maybe they’ll let us in.”
“…So my expulsion is definite, huh?”
This is just too much…
“You’re friends with the librarian, aren’t you? Ask them nicely once.”
“Even if I am, that’s a bit…”
“Please. I’ll even get down on my knees. This is a book that can’t be obtained anymore, you know…”
Her bright eyes, full of longing, made it hard to avoid her gaze as I contemplated her request.
“Restricted Section…”
Somewhere I’ve thought about visiting someday.
It’s said to house dangerous spells and curses that students can’t handle.
“But maybe, there’s a book in there that teaches how to gain magical power?”
…Honestly, the main reason I considered it was because I wanted to do Reeti this favor.
It was hard to refuse someone who has helped me so much.
“Alright. I’ll give it a shot.”
“Whoa! Arthur, you’re the best!”
-Whoosh, Snap!
A piece of chalk flew directly toward Reeti’s forehead and stuck there with a thud.
“Ouch!”
“…Student Reeti. Please visit the principal’s office after class.”
The teacher’s stern tone finally made Reeti back off from me.
Class resumed, but with the thought of the Restricted Section weighing heavily on my mind, I didn’t understand a word of the lessons.
