This Is Insane (1)
“So… you’re telling me you want to borrow all of these?”
Even with the time left before class, reading this many books was impossible. It would still be impossible even if I devoted the entire day to it. That was why I decided to borrow as many as I could.
Let’s see who wins.
I didn’t usually enjoy reading, but the thought of losing never crossed my mind. I’d start with the individual maximum of fifteen books.
“Are you certain you brought these properly?”
The neatly dressed librarian with glasses looked at the stack I’d brought and adjusted his frames, visibly flustered.
“Yes. I’d like to check them out, please.”
“Hmm… First time seeing this student. You must be a new first-year?”
He calmed himself, examined the titles I had chosen, and began writing something down—probably recording the books’ names and categories. When I gave a light nod, he pointed to a terminal that looked identical to the one at the skewer restaurant.
“Place your watch here.”
Beep.
“Let’s see… First-year Class A, as expected. Name is Zeon. Homeroom instructor is obviously Garein.”
“…As expected?”
His tone suggested he had predicted it all along. He nodded and showed me a sheet of paper.
“At this hour, the only first-years still wandering around are from Class A. See? Everyone who borrowed books after class is from Class A.”
“I see…”
The librarian had hidden the names and displayed only year and class. Sure enough, the three people who had borrowed before me were all in the same class as me.
“You may keep the books for a maximum of two weeks. If they aren’t returned by then, the homeroom teacher will be notified, so please return them on time.”
Two weeks… That’s going to be tight.
One book a day plus a little extra was doable. I had mostly picked thinner volumes just in case, but reading all of them within fourteen days still felt like cutting it close.
“Losing a book or damaging it severely will reduce both the quantity and duration of future loans, so please handle them with care.”
“Understood.”
“The library is always open. If you feel like reading, come anytime without hesitation.”
With that, I returned to the classroom lugging fifteen heavy books. I should have headed straight to the training grounds, but the stack was too annoying to ignore; I needed to organize them first.
Thud.
Maybe it was because I had to read all fifteen, but setting them on the desk produced a surprisingly heavy sound. The empty room probably made it echo louder. Anyway, I’d sort them quickly and get back to the training grounds before I was late.
-Hmm. You’ve recovered enough to come out again. But it’s not perfect yet, so I don’t know when you’ll slip back.
On the path back to the training grounds, Cheonma—who had fled earlier—returned.
“By the way, why hasn’t Miss Hoya shown up yet?”
-Ah! Ah! Can you hear me?! Please say you can hear me!
“Ugh…!”
The moment I asked about her, Hoya’s voice exploded in my head so loudly it felt like my skull was ringing. After staying silent all this time, why was she suddenly blasting me at full volume the second she appeared…?!
-Whoa…! That reaction! It means you really can hear me, right?!
What is she playing at now?
Cheonma narrowed her eyes at Hoya’s antics, trying to read her intentions, but a torrent of dramatic complaints poured out first and cut her off.
-Do you have any idea how hard it’s been for me?! Suddenly you were ignoring me like my voice had vanished—I was so shocked at first! The signal was connected perfectly, so I kept checking whether something had gone wrong. I shouted and shouted until my throat actually started hurting.
Indeed, Hoya’s voice now sounded exactly like someone who had been screaming high notes until they went hoarse.
-Ugh. Still, I’m so relieved you can hear me again. But my condition really isn’t great, so I think I’ll have to return to the Ghost Lair this evening and rest for a while…
Cough. Cough.
As expected of a nine-tailed fox. It feels so genuine.
Her acting was flawless. If she had become an actress, she would have been phenomenal. Compared to Cheonma, her performance was on another level—I nearly fell for it myself.
She really is a nine-tailed fox through and through.
The word “bewitching” felt appropriate right now. Using her “throat condition” as an excuse, she was even trying to slip out of my training by getting Cheonma to drag her away.
The real problem was that even though I knew it was all an act, I had no way to prove it.
-Is it truly that bad?
-Cough. I believe some recuperation is necessary.
-I see. Then rest well today.
Unlike me, Cheonma had completely bought the performance. Her voice brimmed with concern as she granted Hoya leave.
-Still… until the academy classes end… cough. I’ll stay.
-Don’t push yourself.
In the end, Hoya had perfectly achieved exactly what she wanted. She would return to the Ghost Lair the moment classes finished, which left roughly two hours. After that, there was no telling when she would come back.
Not that I’m particularly worried.
The chance she might never return? Zero. If she didn’t come back on her own, Cheonma would drag her here anyway. Besides, having already learned Ghostly Qi, it was better for me to keep receiving instruction rather than end things here.
“Since everyone’s here, we’ll continue the evaluation sparring.”
The class had started later than usual. As expected, the remaining students took turns sparring with Garein while the rest of us watched.
My own match had ended a little ambiguously, but like Reglia, I had displayed overwhelming performance and already secured the top score, so I didn’t bother stepping forward again.
-Boring.
-…Yeah.
We all shared the same thought as we watched the matches. Including the current one, every spar after lunch had been dull. Earlier, Reglia had gone first and actually landed a hit on Garein, and he kept taking damage afterward, so the other students’ fights had at least been somewhat entertaining, but…
Not anymore.
The current Garein was in perfect condition, all his wounds healed in the infirmary. The sparring had changed completely. He now leisurely received the students’ attacks—almost to the point it was boring—just to gauge their full power, then finished them with a counter.
Five people had already gone. The only injury he had suffered was a tiny bruise on his palm.
“Next, Kena Freya. Step forward.”
“…Yes.”
This time, someone worth watching was called.
-Freya? One of the four great families.
-He’s from the same four families as that ice brat, so he should be better than the rest.
“Lord Kena! You got this!”
“You look amazing!”
“Give him one good hit!”
At Kena Freya’s entrance, his lackeys began cheering in a blatantly flattering manner. The other students watched with expectant eyes, wondering if Kena might show something on the level of Reglia or me.
Fwoosh.
Flames were already flickering across Kena’s shoulders. It didn’t look like combat fire; it seemed to be leaking out from raw emotion.
“I’ll give you five minutes as well.”
“…Professor, I’d like to begin immediately.”
Huh? That’s unexpected.
Kena glanced at me for a split second before declaring he wanted to start right away. A dry laugh slipped out at his blatantly obvious intention. To think he would try to copy me and jump straight into combat. I had assumed he would accept the five minutes after acknowledging the gap and doing his best, but it seemed I had overestimated him.
“That idiot…”
-Foolish.
-Completely brainless.
Fwoosh.
Reglia covered her face, Cheonma shook her head, and Hoya muttered in open disdain.
With the three women’s harsh verdicts, flames erupted across Kena’s entire body. His emotions had clearly reached their peak from the very beginning.
“Are you truly certain?”
“Of course. I’m fine, so please begin.”
If the opponent insisted he was fine, there was nothing to be done. Having already seen what happened with me, Garein let out a small sigh and nodded.
“Then we’ll begin at once.”
“Here I come!”
Boom.
-He concentrated fire on his legs and used a momentary explosion to boost his speed.
Just as Cheonma described, a small detonation sounded and Kena shot forward like he was flying. He thrust his spear, attempting a high-speed charging stab. Wrapped in flames from head to toe, the sight was as threatening as a fire dragon charging headlong.
“Kena Freya. You’re using an unfinished technique right from the start?”
“…Ugh!”
But the attack was only flashy on the surface. It wasn’t empowered by the Heavenly Demon Divine Art, and an incomplete technique had no hope of reaching Garein.
“Not… yet!”
Fwoosh.
Kena spun in mid-air after Garein’s kick lifted him, swinging his spear. The flames, now burning even more fiercely from the previous strike, wrapped around his body and produced faint heat haze.
Tap.
Yet that attack was also blocked by Garein’s fist. Still, Kena refused to stop.
Whoosh. Whoosh. Whoosh.
“…What the? Something’s off about that guy.”
Reglia frowned slightly as she watched the exchange between Kena and Garein. The movements she remembered from Kena were subtly different from what she was seeing now.
And we felt the same.
“Why does he look so frantic?”
-His emotions are running high, and the openings are multiplying.
-But the fire itself is getting stronger.
Just as Hoya said. While his movements grew somewhat sluggish as his emotions intensified, the power of the flames increased proportionally. The heat had grown so intense it could now be felt all the way to the edges of the training ground.