“El? You don’t look so good today. Is something the matter?”
“…I was debating whether or not to say anything, but it seems Selia has spoken for me.”
“Huh? Nothing’s wrong? Do I really look that bad?”
“Yes. You have dark circles under your eyes, your skin looks dry in places, and you seem to be spacing out. Each of your actions feels lacking in energy. Of course, even such a look suits you, El.”
…Is my condition really that bad?
“Ahaha… The novel Selia recommended the other day was so engaging that I ended up reading it all night under the covers and couldn’t get enough sleep.”
“I’m glad you enjoyed the book I recommended, but I didn’t suggest it with the intention that you’d lose sleep over it…”
If I were to list all the books Selian has recommended, they might fill an entire small bookshelf.
Of course, I’ve read as many books in the last half year as Selian has, but her ability to recommend them all with such deep knowledge is impressive.
There hasn’t been a single boring book among those Selian has recommended.
“As fun as the book might be, you still need your sleep at night.”
“Hehe… Sorry. I won’t do it again.”
It’s true that I spent the night reading under the covers.
However, there’s a causal relationship that is slightly off.
I haven’t lied to my friends; I just avoided unnecessary details.
I didn’t stay up all night reading because the book was fascinating—it was because I couldn’t sleep that I picked up the book.
In fact, I fell asleep at my usual time, but I woke up not long after.
Though I don’t remember it clearly, I know it was a bad dream. I felt extremely dirty afterward.
At one point, I even felt a sudden pain in my lower abdomen where the Master-Slave Mark is located, which made me wonder if that day had come early.
However, considering it was still a few days until my period was due and there weren’t any physical signs, I concluded it was another mysterious pain, similar to the one from before.
Fortunately, it wasn’t as severe as last time—if it had been, I might have woken my friends worrying them.
While lying in bed moaning softly under the covers, I completely lost sleep, and eventually, I decided to pick up a book because I couldn’t fall asleep.
Given that this situation has kept repeating, it makes me wonder if I might have some dangerous illness, but if I did, Mariel or Goddess Serena would have warned me by now, so I shouldn’t worry too much.
– El smells delicious for some reason.
While indulging in unnecessary thoughts, Linne approached me, drawn by a wave of negativity, and started sniffing around.
What’s she doing sniffing, as if she’s not a dog or something?
“Linne! M, don’t say weird things like that. Come over here quickly.”
Fortunately, Yuli intervened, and Linne, still sniffing, flew over to Yuli.
“Hmm? I don’t really smell anything particularly appetizing…”
But just as Linne moved away, Anne stepped in, turning around and sniffing as well.
Thankfully, unlike Linne, Anne didn’t show much interest and quickly lost focus.
“Huh? What’s wrong?”
“…Nothing. We’ll be late if we keep delaying. Let’s go.”
Meanwhile, Selian was staring at me intently for some reason.
Thanks to Selian’s prompt, the questioning about last night finally came to an end.
*
“Hello… Oh, you’re not the usual person here, are you?”
“Ah, the previous staff member has returned after their disciplinary period ended. Six months is quite long, isn’t it?”
On my way to meet Presia, I tried to greet the usual uncle who usually manned the reception desk in the magic building lobby, but a stranger’s face greeted me instead.
“Are you Elysia Frentz? Nice to meet you. My name’s Sharon.”
The woman introduced herself as Sharon as she extended her hand toward me.
“Yes, nice to meet you.”
Though we weren’t that well acquainted to shake hands, I extended mine too, to prevent an awkward moment if she had been refused.
“Wow, the Hero’s hand is softer than I imagined. I thought it would be calloused from your remarkable swordsmanship.”
“Hmm… Perhaps you could call it a unique constitution.”
After all, how plausible is it for someone who trains their body to not have calluses?
I, too, have calluses on my hands and various scars from torture training scattered all over my body.
However, according to the principle of the non-magician, the TS magic completely smoothed out all calluses and scars on my body.
Since then, I’ve never developed new calluses.
The fortunate part is that the lack of calluses hasn’t caused any inconvenience.
“Aww, that’s disappointing. We didn’t properly greet each other…”
“Well, we might bump into each other once or twice passing by, anyway. The Academy isn’t that big of a place, after all.”
That’s right… If I remember correctly, the uncle working at the reception desk was placed there as a form of punishment, so he mustn’t have left the Academy. He’s probably back to his regular duties by now.
Still, if the reception desk job ultimately falls under the category of Academy employee tasks, how could it be considered punishment?
“Anyway! The handover is complete, and I’ve already learned about you from Professor Presia. You don’t need to worry about the timing, so feel free to come and go as you please.”
“Ah, thank you. The Boss… I mean, the Professor occasionally calls me in the middle of the night, so… Anyway, good job.”
As I greeted her, Sharon lightly waved the hand with which I had shaken, saying:
“Yes, see you next time! I’ll keep your handshake unwashed until then!”
“That’s a bit…”
Leaving behind the comment from the receptionist, whose intentions were unclear—whether in jest or seriousness—I proceeded toward my original destination, Room 707.
“There you are.”
Inside, to my surprise, Presia was already awake, waiting for me even though it wasn’t evening yet.
“You’re awake today? What a shame.”
Waking up the soundly sleeping Presia has always been one of my small, yet delightful pleasures.
You might call me a creep, but watching a cute girl sleep curled up like a little kitten is an instant remedy for any mental fatigue.
That’s why whenever I visit Presia, I always take a moment to admire her sleeping figure before gently waking her.
“Shame? What do you mean?”
This habit of mine has remained secret because I didn’t want her to feel uncomfortable about being watched while sleeping. However, my true feelings inadvertently slipped out.
And, of course, Presia didn’t let that comment slide.
“Um, well… it’s…”
“Is there something you can’t tell me?”
Presia’s voice carried a tone of disappointment and sadness.
There’s no escaping this now.
If I stay silent, Presia might think I don’t trust her. But if I confess truthfully, she might see me as a creep.
Trapped in a situation where neither option seems ideal.
In the end, after a brief moment of deliberation, I decided it was better to just be honest.
After all, whether I choose this way or that, my reputation may be ruined either way. So why not be honest and feel relieved?
“Well… It’s just that I like to look at you before waking you up.”
“…Huh?”
“That’s… because you’re so cute, Boss!”
“Huh…?”
Alright. Dithering like this isn’t getting us anywhere. Let’s go all out, be bold, and just say it.
“To be honest, it’s just that when you’re asleep, you look like a doll! You don’t realize it yourself, but to others, it’s just that impressive!”
“Uh, Hmm…?”
Honestly, at this point, I’m not even sure what I’m saying anymore.
Eh, who cares. Without thinking about the consequences, I’ll just say whatever comes to mind.
Presia, too, seemed confused, overwhelmed, and flustered by my sudden outburst.
“To be honest, it’s cheating! If you were like Anne, kicking off your blanket, throwing your legs on someone else’s stomach, and exposing your belly, maybe it would be tolerable, but when you’re sleeping so cutely like this, who wouldn’t go nuts? If I asked passersby, I bet 99 out of 100 people would agree with me! The last one would probably be some dangerous creep who’d mistake you for a doll and try to take you away!”
“Uh, wait a second…”
I can’t give Presia any time to think.
“Bear, Tokki, what do you think? You know best how cute your Master is, right? When you see her sleeping peacefully, doesn’t she look like a doll?”
Ironically, I’m asking the real doll-shaped creatures if they think Presia looks like a doll.
Thankfully, Bear, who is quick-witted, immediately nodded in agreement with my statement.
On the other hand, Tokki, much like Presia, seemed overwhelmed by information overload and hesitated. Oddly, Tokki’s eyes wandered downward toward Presia’s legs during this.
Seeing Tokki’s hesitation, Bear, standing nearby in a position hidden from Presia, nudged Tokki with a nudge.
Realizing what I said, Tokki too finally nodded in agreement.
“See? They agree too. It’s not my fault! If there’s blame, it’s because Boss is just too cute!”
“Um… Do I really look that cute…?”
“Of course! A person who thinks Boss isn’t cute must be blind! No, even blind people can hear Boss’s voice, so they wouldn’t say that either! Boss’s voice is just as cute!”
“Huhuhu… El thinks I’m cute…”
Apparently satisfied with being called cute, it seemed like my peculiar habit was erased from Presia’s memory.
On the contrary, the fact that my unfiltered compliments were well-received was proven by the way she smiled sweetly and started bringing out various kinds of high-class cookies from the cupboard by category.
Alright, one problem solved.
Both Presia and I were content, and I happily bit into a cookie and sipped some tea.
…Hey? Why was I here again?
