Episode 83: Intellectual Frustration
There are four main characters from the original story at Jilnias Academy.
All of them are part of the Student Council, and Toa and I were about to negotiate with this Student Council.
It seems Mikage Academy also wants to establish an agreement quickly; Miroku Senpai’s request was smoothly accepted, and we arrived at Jilnias Academy by noon that day.
Let’s see… fifty-fifty chance.
“What about?”
The probability of encountering beautiful girls among the original story characters.
Out of four, two are beautiful girls.
And the remaining two are nice guys.
In any case, these are characters from the revered original story, but truthfully, it would be preferable if they were beautiful girls.
Come on! Beautiful girl, come on!
“Hmm, indeed, it would be better to meet a beautiful girl. Your stats inexplicably rise when you encounter one too.”
Why inexplicably… isn’t it normal?
What are you talking about?
“Here it is, the main building of Jilnias Academy.”
Led by Miuye, we gazed upward in awe at the ridiculously large building.
Huge… If Kisou Academy’s building looks like an evil organization’s headquarters, this feels more like a bastion of righteous science, as if robots might burst out of it at any moment.
Even before arriving here, we saw many enormous structures, giving us a clear sense of the scale of Jilnias Academy.
Compared to other academies, it extensively researches various dungeon-related topics such as Dive Gear development, magical technology applications, and relic analysis, which is why most of its supporting companies are related to those fields.
Things unseen in other academies, like holographic traffic signals and meticulously managed street trees where every branch follows strict rules, show how much human effort has been put into everything here.
This place truly deserves the name “near-future city.”
“Wow, it’s huge…”
“Yeah, doesn’t really feel like a school.”
“C’mon, let’s go inside. The student council room is this way!”
Miuye beckoned us impatiently, and all we could do was obediently follow behind her.
No way we’d get lost and find our way back.
“By the way, Miuye, do you know the student council? You seem pretty familiar with coming here.”
To my question, Miuye gave a nonchalant reply: “Yeah, that’s right.”
“I’ve been taken care of by Luka-san. After becoming a high school student, I moved to this city. She looked after me when I didn’t know left from right.”
“From outside the city, huh? Wow, it must have been tough living on the main island. Reconstruction hasn’t finished yet, right?”
“Haha, major cities have completed their reconstruction, and infrastructure has somewhat improved.”
This world, or rather Japan, within the borders of Lutra, once almost came to an end.
Before Hinotuchi gathered all the dungeons, there was a time when dungeons appeared all over Japan, spilling out monsters and causing great chaos.
I only know this from the director’s past recollections, but it was nearly catastrophic.
Apparently, the head of the Na Takikai family conquered dungeons estimated to be A-rank or higher across various regions.
Though details aren’t fully disclosed, it seems they controlled one of the dungeon lords.
Japan regained peace thanks to efforts from other families like Gattou and Mikashima, who created Dive Gear.
The true mission of explorers is to conquer dungeons and use the resources and technologies obtained from them to reconstruct Japan.
“Living here is so good now that I barely remember anything about the main island anymore. It feels like ancient history to me.”
Saying this, Miuye smiled.
Look, a beautiful girl smiling! How cute.
“That’s cute ^^”
“Are you two childhood friends then?”
“I started in sixth grade… When Miroku and Mizuki entered Factom General Academy in middle school, I followed them. Besides, I didn’t have any other friends anyway.”
Toa answered slightly dejectedly.
Did saying that make her sad? It’s good that she made more friends later.
So, when did Na Takikai Kei start?
Hey, when did I start?
Hmm… Let’s match the setting of being the eldest son of the Na Takikai family.
“I started in middle school. Until then, I trained as an explorer at the main house. My father rigorously trained me, but yeah, I definitely enjoy this life more now. No harsh training either.”
“Training… So the Na Takikai family really is amazing, huh!”
At my teasing words, Toa looked at me with admiration.
Stop it… I don’t know anything about that…
“—We’re here. This is the student council.”
An automatic door for the student council…!
Do they really have that kind of budget? Our doors at Factom General Academy are wooden and fall off if opened too forcefully?
They also had vending machines everywhere, unlike Factom General Academy which doesn’t have even one. It feels like I’ve come to the city from the countryside.
While I was marveling, Miuye waved her Dive Gear near a device next to the door, and it silently slid open.
“Excuse me! Is Luka here?”
As soon as we entered, Miuye loudly called out.
Whereas Mikage Academy’s student council room was spacious, this one looked like someone failed at moving and left too many things scattered around.
Piles of documents, mysterious machinery scattered everywhere.
The pristine white floor was mostly hidden under countless pipes and cords.
Student council… room?
“Is this the right place?”
Toa’s question left me unable to confidently nod.
Probably yes.
Speaking of which, Miuye mentioned before that she doesn’t even have space to lie down in her lab.
Could this cluttered state be the default for Jilnias Academy?
“Uh, is no one here? President? Leon? Nico? Are you not here?”
Miuye boldly stepped in and walked further inside.
I instantly transformed into Super Mysterious Beautiful Girl mode and heightened my dynamic vision to prevent Toa from tripping.
Absolutely won’t let her trip!
“Whoaaaaaa! Won’t even let her stumble!”
Today again, we contribute to the beautiful girls.
Just as we were slowly advancing, suddenly a pile of papers and circuit boards violently shook and collapsed.
Out of the debris leaped a beautiful girl.
“So, Sorciella reaction!? Where? Is Sorciella here?”
A gorgeous maiden with messy blonde hair tied up on the side charged towards us, knocking over documents and machines in her path.
“Ahhh, crap. Something got caught.”
Hey!
“There you are, Luka-san!”
“Be quiet! More importantly, there was a Sorciella reaction!!!”
The beautiful girl holding a terminal approached us and scrutinized us closely before speaking.
“Sorciella? Is blood extraction okay? Ah, can we temporarily take your Dive Gear here? Also, regarding magical formulas, can we verify my interpretations once—”
“Luka-san! Back off! Please stay away! These people are not Sorciella!”
Miuye pulled the beautiful girl’s lab coat backward urgently.
She came way too close, and after fainting three times and waking up, I calmly shook my head.
“We are not her.”
“U-Uh-huh.”
Toa, frightened, hid behind me.
…This is bad.
“Eh?”
If I transform into Super Mysterious Beautiful Girl here, it seems something called the Sorciella Reaction will occur. But if I don’t, as a man, I’ll end up letting Toa cling to me.
Meaning, I’m a guy getting clung to by a beautiful girl!!!!
“Judgment!”
Wait!
“Death.”
There’s no process!?
My life has ended…
“You’re not Sorciella?”
Ignoring the chaotic courtroom drama in my mind, the beautiful girl suddenly deflated and said.
Looking closely, she had terrible dark circles and seemed unsteady on her feet.
“I apologize. For a moment, I thought all my wishes had come true and Sorciella had come to volunteer for experiments.”
“What are you talking about?”
She’s clearly saying something absurd.
“Hmm… However, experimenting on such a beautiful girl under the guise of research does sound appealing, doesn’t it?”
Star Reader’s Staff, you’re wise!
That’s true.
But I’d prefer to be the one initiating things.
“But according to my internet wisdom, girls like Sorciella are always depicted as the submissive ones in doujinshi.”
Don’t surf the net so narrowly!
I’ll set filters to ensure only wholesome sites are accessible!
“Ah, let me reintroduce everyone. This is Vice President Luka-san. Luka-san, these are my benefactors, Toa from Factom General Academy and Kei.”
Kei and Toa bowed politely.
Hmm… So this is Utsumi Luka, one of the original story characters.
More beautiful than cute.
Let’s learn from her as an apprentice to beauty.
“Ah, hello. I’m Utsumi Luka… Here, this is the signature agreeing to the alliance.”
Luka expanded a window and slid one toward us. Immediately, some files were transferred to my Dive Gear.
…Alliance, approved!
“Then, goodbye. I’m going to take a short nap after 96 hours without rest.”
Stumbling occasionally, she moved to retreat deeper into the room. Panicking, I called out to her retreating figure.
“Ah, wait!”
“Do you need something else? …Sorry, I don’t have time for idle chatter right now. That bastard went off to conduct field research with the others, leaving me to handle everything from theoretical construction to implementation… What’s worse, why do I have to do all this alone? Why can’t they send Nico or someone over here? Honestly, I don’t understand people at all. Sure, I declined due to laziness, but I was planning to go after the fourth invitation. I want to work on convergence artillery and Demon Gear development too… Why am I stuck doing this—”
Interrupting her muttering was unexpectedly Toa.
“Miuye was almost killed deep in the dungeon. Her party abandoned and left her behind.”
“…Is that true?”
Luka’s movements froze completely. Then, she knelt slightly to meet Miuye’s eye level.
“Miuye, is what she says correct?”
“…Yes.”
“I see.”
After saying that, Luka gently patted her head and turned to smile warmly, a stark contrast from earlier.
“You’re excellent, so naturally, such troubles may arise. Did these people help you?”
“Yes. And I also received help from Mizuki-san and Miroku-san.”
“Mizuki… Ah, that student who recently reached S-Rank. Wasn’t she from Factom General Academy?”
Luka showed slight interest in S-Rank but prioritized addressing Miuye instead.
“Did you thank them?”
“Yes!”
“Are you planning any revenge?”
“Of course not! I’ll follow Luka-san’s teachings!”
Luka nodded approvingly.
“That’s right. We must be beasts of reason, acting solely based on logic and measuring matters through intellect. You’ve remembered well.”
“Yes!”
Luka affectionately patted Miuye’s head.
Miuye, being petted, acted like a happy puppy rubbing against her, making it obvious she was in good spirits from afar.
Sister Luka…
‘Where did the aggressive remarks go?’
That’s right.
Close call, close call.
Sorciella wouldn’t be petted like that!
She’s solitary!
“If they helped Miuye, we should express our gratitude somehow.”
“In that case, do you know anything about Nameless?”
At my words, Luka tilted her head in confusion.
“Nameless? What’s that? I don’t know it.”
“Yesterday, I was attacked by Nameless. Actually, Nameless has been providing me with some knowledge for quite some time!”
Alternating her gaze between us and Miuye, Luka sighed deeply, perhaps sensing this would take a while.
Beautiful girls must rest properly.
“…Um, please prioritize resting. This is purely out of curiosity.”
“Is that so? Then, I’ll take you up on that offer.”
Just as Luka was about to rest, Miuye suddenly interjected with “Ah, by the way,” handing over a hand-drawn memo.
“What’s this?”
“This is the magic formula used during Nameless and Sorciella’s battle and its application method. There was no measurement device, so I couldn’t investigate magic efficiency or depth thoroughly. But I wanted to pass it along before I forget.”
Eh, is it okay to give this now?
Considering this person—.
“…Miuye, did you see Sorciella?”
“Yes. It was amazing! Oh, by the way, there was a magic formula that was still unclear. It’s probably a binding magic using virtual matter generated by mana. Moreover, what surprised me was that Nameless used exactly the same magic as Sorciella— Sorry, I should prioritize my nap. I’ll reflect on this mistake.”
Was that intentional?
Miuye, was that on purpose?
Luka audibly cracked her neck, seemingly fully re-energized.
“No nap. In fact, I feel like I’ve been sleeping until now.”
“Eh, but—”
“Miuye, teach me.”
Luka grabbed Miuye’s shoulder.
There was nothing Toa and I could do at this point, so we quietly shook our heads at Miuye’s questioning glance.
“As long as I remain a beast of reason— Hurry up!”
Her eyes were completely determined.
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