Chapter 6
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 6
Chapter Title: To Return Home
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"......Come in."
Elric barely managed to respond without his words catching in his throat.
The door opened softly, and the black-haired woman he had seen at breakfast entered with a bright smile.
"Elric...... Oh my."
The woman, Celest, let out a soft chuckle upon seeing Elric sprawled out.
"Joel and Silua must have trained you harder than usual, huh?"
'No way it's that obvious just from this?'
Just how much had they put 'Elric' through? Goosebumps prickled along Elric's arms.
"Wait just a moment, dear. I'll call the healing mage for you."
Celest instructed the servant Elric had summoned with the cord to fetch the estate's healing mage. Elric forced his creaking body upright to greet her properly.
"Hehe, you didn't have to get up."
No way he could stay like that. This woman—'Elric's mother, no less—if he handled her wrong, who knew what might happen.
He might end up with a limb severed like that flower-shaped monster from breakfast.
Elric broke out in a cold sweat but somehow managed to greet her with the proper posture.
"What brings you here, Mother?"
"Oh my, does a mother need a reason to visit her son?"
Celest widened her eyes at Elric's curt tone.
"......"
Elric didn't react. That was 'Elric's personality, after all.
"Hoho, just teasing. I came because I have something to tell you."
"What is it?"
"Hmm, let's talk after you've been healed."
"Understood."
Elric nodded readily. His body had been on the verge of collapsing anyway.
Moments later, the healing mage arrived and cast a healing spell on Elric's body.
As the white light swept over him, his body felt miraculously light, like a lie.
Elric stared at his arm in wonder.
'This is healing magic......'
What an amazing sensation. He swung his arm around experimentally.
"Hoho, you're all healed up now. You know Sir Alex's skills, right?"
He didn't, but saying so wouldn't fly. Elric swallowed his words and nodded.
Soon after, the healing mage left, and Elric sat across from Celest at the table in his bedroom.
"What did you come to tell me?"
"Hmm, so impatient. Then again, our Curiosity Demon King Elric couldn't possibly hold back, could he?"
Celest smiled and spoke clearly, word by word.
"It's about Houser Academy, where you'll be enrolling soon. There's a professor in the magic department. She's in her second year there, freshly appointed."
Elric nodded. The original 'Elric' wasn't one for many words anyway.
"Her field is a bit unusual. She deals with space and dimensions."
Elric's eyes widened at Celest's words.
Space and dimensions? That's......
'The field 'Elric' is obsessed with.'
"Hehe, surprised?"
Whether she misinterpreted his reaction or not, Celest looked delighted.
Elric furrowed his brow and leaned forward urgently.
Of course, it was all an act.
"Is it true? Which grade does she teach? What's her name?"
"Oh my, one question at a time, Elric. Hehe."
Celest covered her mouth and laughed at Elric's eager rush.
Elric sighed inwardly and stared intently at her.
"Goodness, I'll tell you. You'll bore a hole right through me at this rate."
"......Ahem."
Only then did Elric seem to snap out of it, clearing his throat and leaning back.
Naturally, that was acting too.
"Yes, it's true. From what I hear, she's in charge of the final year, fourth year. Makes sense, given her subject. Her name—you've probably heard it. Kuina Rosly."
Kuina Rosly. Elric quietly repeated the name of the professor he 'needed' to be interested in.
"And this is just an unconfirmed rumor, but it's something interesting."
With that, Celest leaned closer to Elric and lowered her voice.
"You know Kuina Rosly spends most of her time outside studying outer dimensions, right?"
"Yes."
He didn't, but he had to play along. Elric nodded.
"But apparently, there was a massive interference in our dimension—our space—that could be felt even from those outer dimensions."
"Pardon?"
Elric flinched. Massive interference? What happened?
"Rumor has it that Kuina Rosly, who barely set foot here despite her professorship, came down officially to research it. Who knows if it's true, though."
Ah, hold on.
Could it be?
"When did Professor Kuina Rosly come down?"
Elric soothed the flicker of anxiety in his chest and asked Celest.
Celest tilted her head as she answered.
"I'm not sure exactly. But I hear it's only been a few days. Most people probably don't even know she came here."
A few days.
Ambiguous. Or maybe a sign she had noticed something.
Elric bit his lip without realizing.
Celest gently pried his lip free with her finger.
"Elric, don't do that. You'll hurt your lip."
"......Ah, yes."
"What's wrong? I thought you'd be thrilled."
Elric cursed inwardly and racked his brain for an excuse.
"......I was disappointed that I can only meet her in my fourth year."
"Oh my, hohoho, I see. That makes sense."
Whew, dodged that. Elric sighed inwardly in relief.
"Hmm, Elric, but someone like you might catch Kuina Rosly's interest, don't you think? Your passion for space and dimensions is incredible."
"......Who knows. Whether I'd catch her eye."
"Oh my, hoho, you saying something like that? First time I've heard."
Celest laughed and stroked Elric's head. He stayed still and let her.
"Don't worry. Our son will catch her eye. Whose son is he? Of course he'll satisfy."
"......Emotional reassurance doesn't really—"
"Shh, Elric, none of that. Mommy's comforting you, hehe."
Elric tried to follow 'Elric's lines but was cut off by Celest.
Lucky. He nearly tripped over his tongue with nonsense.
"Anyway, that's the news I had. Too weighty for breakfast chatter."
"I see. Thank you for telling me."
Elric bowed his head politely. Celest beamed wide-eyed.
"No trouble at all."
"Haaah......"
The confrontation with the family's presumed final boss ended surprisingly anticlimactically. Celest seemed to have come solely for that, vanishing like the wind with, "Well, I'll be off then. Study hard."
"More...... normal than I thought......?"
Elric's mental evaluation of Celest rose a notch—from this family's top weirdo to someone who might actually be fairly normal.
Right, that monster from breakfast? Probably for research. 'Elric's info said her main field was monster studies.
"Ugh......"
Either way, she seemed far more normal than muscle-obsessed Joel or psycho Silua.
What kind of people made their magic-studying little brother train physically and with the sword like it was nothing?
And 'Elric's body seemed accustomed to it all. Beyond talent, it was like muscle memory.
No way that came from a day or two with them. It felt instinctive. This body had endured those trainings without fail.
"This family is......"
What kind of place is it?
Elric's thoughts, having reached Celest, then Joel and Silua, extended to the family head, Techel Raishion.
"Hmm......"
Truth be told, at this point, the most unknown—and thus the one to guard against most—was him.
Excessively taciturn, personally powerful, and head of a ducal house, no less.
Surface info on him was in 'Elric's notes, but nothing crucial.
Like how he viewed 'Elric.
[Father is an extremely quiet man. And inscrutable. I don't think there's more I can say.]
That was all 'Elric's commentary. Which only made it more worrying.
If he realized Elric wasn't 'Elric, who knew what he'd do.
His exact personality? Whether he cared for 'Elric? How much? All unknowns.
They said humanity's greatest fear was the unknown.
Thus, Elric feared Techel most.
"Hoo......"
The problem was, the only defense was to act even harder like 'Elric.
"Exhausting......"
The half-day so far had drained his mental strength completely.
"This is tough, so tough......"
He hadn't even been pretending to be 'Elric for a full day yet.
More despairing: He had to keep it up indefinitely. That fact drove Elric mad.
No point dwelling on the grim reality. Elric forcibly shifted his thoughts.
A massive interference in dimension and space, felt even from outer dimensions.
What Celest mentioned was probably
'My possession......'
Not certain, but high chance. Possessions were usually souls crossing dimensions, described that way.
This world's lore didn't seem much different from typical fantasy settings. So likely similar.
And just a few days ago—barely after his possession yesterday.
All signs pointed to his possession drawing that person, Kuina Rosly, to this dimension.
'......If she's that perceptive or knowledgeable.'
He had to make contact.
She might hold the key to unraveling this damn mess.
Elric clenched his fist with that resolve.
The issue: To do so, he needed to study enough space and dimension magic to hold a conversation.
"This'll drive me crazy......"
Studying his own(?) papers, and now space and dimensions too?
Is this really trying to work me to death?
Why did I possess this ice-cold genius, suffering body, mind, and brain alike?
Old saying: If the body suffers, the mind rests. But why am I suffering all around? Wait, wrong proverb?
Anyway, screwed.
A month and a half till enrollment. No time to cover it all.
After a moment of despair, Elric grudgingly opened the book.
He hated it, barely understood it, but study he must.
Elric let out a deep sigh, then focused on the readable-yet-incomprehensible tome.
And so, the light in Elric's room burned late into the deepening night.