133. I Have No Friends (1)
133. I Have No Friends (1)
"You've done something terrifying."
"It was nothing special."
"That's hardly something a man who cleared five unexplored dungeons with young students should say. I hear the Explorers' Guild has gone hoarse announcing your name every week."
Truthfully, aside from the first one, those dungeons had remained unconquered because of troublesome gimmicks: inconvenient mechanisms, puzzles, or mazes that were infuriatingly difficult to navigate. They had not been especially dangerous.
I could tunnel past mechanisms, solve puzzles normally, and smash straight through maze walls. Unlike a game, this world had no indestructible objects, so all sorts of shortcuts worked. Their unconquered status did not make them particularly difficult.
Though that did mean the rewards were on the underwhelming side.
In the end, I hadn't even found a holy relic capable of removing Karina's curse.
"It's the sort of thing anyone could pull off if they put their mind to it."
"If it were easy, legendary explorers like Fabrizio wouldn't be revered as legends in the first place."
...Who was that again?
Probably some famous explorer. He could not have been important; otherwise I would have remembered him.
I lifted the teacup from the table and took a sip of black tea, looking out the window.
Second semester was only a week away.
The start of second semester might not seem like a big deal to most, but it was a big deal to me.
A very big deal.
Millia and Karina would transfer into Kalon Academy then, which meant both would become entangled in the original story. Karina was destined to become involved regardless, but I couldn't help worrying about Millia.
That kid didn't have a shred of combat ability.
The General Studies Department was relatively distant from the main plot, but incidents happened there too. Was it the second incident of the semester? Or the third? Around then, one of its students would cause trouble.
...I wanted to have Millia keep watch, but I wasn't sure she could do it well.
"Are you listening?"
"Ah. My apologies."
"Well, it was only small talk, so never mind... but it seems something's weighing on your mind."
My eyes met Principal Merlin's. I couldn't tell him, 'All sorts of incidents will occur during the second semester, and I'm worried that our Millia and Karina will be dragged into them,' so I gave him a safer explanation.
"The second semester begins soon, and Karina will be transferring into the academy. I am concerned because, as you know... incidents keep occurring here."
I watched Principal Merlin as I spoke. He nodded, apparently sharing my concern. Three major incidents had occurred in succession; it would have been strange not to worry. Even an optimist could not remain optimistic after three consecutive disasters.
"That's why I expanded the security personnel as much as possible during the break. We'll be posting additional security for the Saintess as well."
I wondered if that would mean much.
Honestly, in the game they had been known as "the useless group that calls itself elite but can't prevent a single incident." They could have prevented roughly half the incidents on campus in advance, yet stopped none of them. I wanted to trust them, but found it difficult.
"We'll be sticking close to Karina."
"Even during class?"
"Is that not a matter of course?"
For Karina's safety—not merely to observe the original characters—she needed something close to round-the-clock protection. Reni even entered the bath with Karina and washed herself at the same time. She probably did it because escort duty left her no separate time to bathe.
Besides, it wouldn't be strange if that woman could beat a Cerberus to death with her bare fists.
"I agree. She is the Saintess, after all. The cultists are also targeting her."
Was he referring to Halphas and its followers?
Come to think of it, why had those bastards gone quiet? In the original story, they were little more than named monsters with a minor role in the Main Quest, so perhaps silence was normal. Even so, it bothered me immensely.
The bastards who'd stuck to us like mad all the way to Kalon Academy suddenly going quiet made no sense.
Just what were they cooking up?
"Speaking of the cultists... have you heard anything about the Cult of Halphas?"
"Hmm... I heard that the Holy Knights destroyed several branches. But that was all."
A few branches?
So they still hadn't hit the main base?
Was there a single competent organization in this world?
"They were never such a meticulous organization. Something smells suspicious, but the cause is difficult to identify."
"I'd honestly feel a lot more at ease if the answer was simply that the Holy Knight Order is incompetent."
The Cult of Halphas being small fry that the Holy Knights were too useless to find would be the better outcome for me. If that were the case, I could just go crush their heads in myself later and be done with it. But if the Holy Knight Order couldn't touch them because the cult had grown dangerously strong...
"You're awfully harsh on your allies."
"Neither Reni nor I came from the Holy Knights."
"It's quite unusual. Previous Saintesses have sometimes appointed an escort who was not a Holy Knight, but I believe this is the first time none of the escorts have been. This Saintess is unconventional in many ways."
Unconventional... was she?
I'd never paid any attention to previous Saintesses, so there was no way I'd know. Principal Merlin stroked his beard and gazed out the window for a moment before turning back to me.
"...So then, what do you think of the proposal I put on the table?"
--------------------
"Yo~han! Look at this! It's my acceptance letter!"
Millia beamed and held out a piece of paper. Written across it in elegant cursive were the words [Congratulations on Your Admission to Kalon Academy].
"Congratulations."
"I was so nervous, not knowing whether Millia would pass... I'm so relieved."
Karina smiled with relief and looked warmly at Millia. No matter how I viewed it, she looked like someone watching a much younger sister or daughter. I chuckled and addressed her.
"Congratulations to you too, Karina."
"Ah, yes... thank you."
[Ah, youth.]
Karina's faintly reddened cheeks were beautiful, and I found myself staring. She awkwardly avoided my gaze and spoke in a voice that nearly disappeared.
"Staring like that is a little embarrassing..."
"Sorry."
"It's all right. I'm used to it, after all..."
A wry smile had settled on Karina's face. As the Saintess, she was accustomed to people looking up to her. Some of those gazes must have contained admiration, and perhaps some people had even regarded her romantically.
But... did that have anything to do with me?
It wasn't that I disliked Karina, but survival mattered more to me than mere romance. Nothing I built here would matter if I failed to live.
So...
"Yohan? Are you listening?"
A hand tugged my sleeve. I looked down at Millia, who was staring up at me with a pout. She'd apparently become upset because I'd been lost in thought and hadn't answered her.
"What is it?"
"How do I look?"
...Huh?
The sudden, difficult question froze my mind as though I'd looked at Medusa.
Of all people, Millia had asked me the hardest kind of question? Millia, who seemed completely unrelated to concerns like that?
What had changed?
Apart from the uniform, nothing seemed different. I slowly looked Millia over from head to toe.
"...Did you change your hairstyle?"
"No!"
"You changed your makeup?"
"It's the same!"
"Are you talking about the uniform?"
"Yes! Why do you act like you don't know when you obviously do!"
I'd thought there might be some deeper meaning. I sighed at Millia as she planted her hands on her hips and proudly thrust out her chest.
I had thought too deeply about it. Millia was not likely to hide such a complicated intention.
"Well? Does it suit me?"
"Yeah. It suits you."
I'd seen Viola in uniform several times, but because she always walked hunched over, it had never felt much like a school uniform. On Millia, it looked fresh and youthful. Now this was a high school girl.
Age-wise, she was closer to a college student, but the phrase school uniform made me think only of a high school girl.
Delighted, Millia chirped endlessly like a lark. Which parts of the uniform were pretty, what the General Studies Department might be like—countless bits of TMI and miscellaneous chatter flowed into one ear and out the other.
I was on full affirmative autopilot, playing along with her chatter, when Millia abruptly switched targets.
"Hehe. You know what? Karina is incredible! When I saw her wearing it, I was so surprised!"
With the semester so close, Karina must have had a uniform made as well...
Wait, what did she say?
At Millia's remark, I reflexively turned my head to look at Karina. Karina's eyes had gone round with surprise at Millia's comment, and her face had turned bright red.
What was so incredible that Karina reacted like that?
As though answering me, Karina covered her chest with her arms. Her breasts possessed such overwhelming presence that her arms could never conceal them; pressing them together only made them more obvious. My instincts whispered.
Those lumps of fat were exactly where my eyes should go.
"...Ah."
Thank goodness Reni was not here.
Once I understood what Millia meant by "incredible," I turned away from Karina and strode toward the door.
"Where are you going!"
"I just remembered something I need to do."
"Can I come?"
"No."
"Why?"
"You simply cannot. Karina, I have work to do, so I'll leave first."
"...Ah, take care."
"Yohan!"
I ignored Millia's voice calling after me and crossed the corridor at a brisk pace.