Hormone Shots, a Prince on the Verge of Castration, and the Transgender Beauty Who Makes Men's Hearts Race (2)
"I have to admit, my muscles can't compete with the roiders'."
That was my impression after prowling around the Academy to see for myself. I was fairly confident in my own physique, but standing next to that kind of voluminous muscle mass, I'd look like nothing more than a guy with some light toning.
Tap.
While walking down the path, I bumped shoulders with someone.
The male student who'd bumped into me burst out laughing.
"Mwahahaha! My bad. You're so skinny like a minnow, I didn't even notice you were there!"
"……"
But there's a saying for this.
Roider muscle is for show.
Or, more precisely, a water balloon that pops the moment it's punctured. The idea being that no matter how much you inflate your muscles with drugs, they can never compare to the dense, combat-forged muscle built through overwhelming real-world experience.
And then there's another saying.
Handsome guys shouldn't work out.
This one is supposedly a warning born of concern from ugly people that naturally handsome guys would intrude on the one area they'd reserved for themselves — trying to at least look good through their bodies — and wreck the ecosystem.
So let's weigh the evidence.
Who built dense, high-quality muscle through consistent training and real combat?
Me.
Who was blessed with a naturally gifted frame and good looks from birth?
Also me.
Well then, this contest goes to me — the handsome one with combat-compressed muscle. Which meant I had absolutely no reason to feel small in front of those muscle-flaunting idiots.
But alas, not everyone shares my mindset.
"Feels good building your body with money, does it?"
"What a laugh. Are you seriously going to lecture us that it's unfair because we happen to have superior equipment for battle?"
A fight had broken out. A clash between students who didn't use steroids and students who did.
Now, watching fights is the greatest entertainment the world has to offer, and anyone who just walks past one has something wrong with them. I hurriedly grabbed some jerky, sat down nearby, and settled in to watch.
"How pathetic you are. Lashing out at us just because you couldn't get your hands on the drug."
Counterattack from the steroid users! Since the supply couldn't keep up with demand, plenty of students had failed to buy any — and they'd cleverly spun that as those students being unable to afford it, which was honestly impressive rhetorical work.
"We didn't fail to get it. We chose not to. Nothing gained without effort has any value."
Counterattack from the clean students! By attacking the steroid users' principles and elevating themselves as the students who'd stayed true to their convictions, there was a real glimpse of a tai chi master's finesse in there.
"Then let me ask you this — are you saying the fine swords you received without effort are worthless too?"
The counter-counterattack from the steroid users!
"Tch…"
Here, the clean student couldn't fire back right away. Seizing the opening, the drug faction pressed the attack.
"We're going to prove ourselves at the Academy and become splendid knights. So go ahead and live your whole life like that."
The contest was on the verge of being decided. Even a casual observer could tell the drug faction was winning. But their opponents didn't look like the type to accept defeat gracefully.
"Come to think of it, I didn't know you were such devoted sons. Aren't you the ones leeching off your parents' spines with no money of your own, clinging to the Academy? Or — oh, wait — is this it? You couldn't buy the drug because there's no more marrow left to suck?"
And there, a critical hit.
"What did you say?!"
A student who'd lost his temper drew the sword at his hip. The students facing off against him drew theirs as well.
Ooh. This is getting more and more interesting.
I stuffed jerky into my mouth by the fistful.
That was when it happened.
"Owen?"
A familiar voice. I turned around to find Lily.
Instead of her usual outfit — shirt, skirt, and robe — she was dressed lightly in a sleeveless top and short shorts. Judging by the outfit, she'd apparently spotted me in the middle of a stroll.
"Oh, Lily. Hey."
"What are you doing at the Academy? Don't you usually stay at your dorm?"
"The club got a request, so I'm on the clock."
"I see."
I patted the sloped grass beside me with my palm, inviting her to sit if she had the time. Lily awkwardly lowered herself, leaving a gap between us as she sat.
A distance that stung a little more than it should have.
"Lily? What's with this distance? You were practically glued to me during the practical exam. Especially in the tent, you—"
"Aah! I wasn't myself back then…! My emotions were all stirred up right after that creepy monster, so…!"
"I see. So this is the normal distance between us. That's a shame. Turns out I was the only one who thought we'd gotten closer."
Lily sniffed at her own t-shirt and came up with an excuse.
"N-no, it's just… I've been sweating, so… if you got close, I'd smell…"
"You smelled during the practical exam too. Especially that time, since you hadn't washed for days."
"Eh? I-I smelled that bad?"
To be strictly honest, no — not at all.
Because the keenest of all the senses is the sense of smell.
In that exam arena, my nose had gone numb from the stench of my own sweat-soaked body before I'd even met Lily, and the moment I reached her, I couldn't detect any odor whatsoever.
"But I washed so I wouldn't smell…"
"Huh? You washed? I didn't see that?"
"Isn't it weirder to watch someone wash?"
Put that way, fair point. If I'd watched Lily washing, that would've been the actual problem.
"Now, about that smell?"
Sliding only my backside closer, I closed in on Lily. And for every inch I moved, she scooted away while staying seated.
"……"
"……"
This girl…
Faster than Lily, who'd been keeping careful watch on me, I kicked off the ground and shot to my feet. Lily scrambled up a beat too late and tried to bolt, but with superior arms, legs, and raw strength in every category, catching her was trivial.
I grabbed the fleeing Lily from behind as she showed me her back.
"Don't…! Don't smell me…!"
To keep her from thrashing too violently, I lifted her clean off the ground, leaving Lily's feet paddling uselessly in the air. With both arms pinned in my grasp, she had no resistance left to give.
I buried my nose into the crown of her head and inhaled deeply.
"Kyaaaa! Kyaaa!"
"There's nothing foul about it, you know? All I smell is something nice."
"I told you not to sniff me…!"
I was hauling the grumbling Lily along to catch the rest of the fight when—
"Huh? Is it over?"
The students who'd been screaming at each other mere moments ago were somehow staring this way with hollow, empty eyes. Apparently Lily's shrieks had drawn all their attention.
And I could guess exactly what was hiding behind those looks — the feelings of those students' hearts.
Envy and jealousy.
The Knight Faculty was famous, above all, for being overwhelmingly male. Female knights, like Kylian's bodyguard, were genuinely rare. Call it the engineering school of this world, if you like.
And you know what they say about engineering schools. Starved of women, they're desperate for them. And because they can't get dates, they end up like soldiers cut off from society — every woman they see starts looking like their dream girl.
So having flaunted my closeness with Lily right in front of all these Knight Faculty students, they'd been forced to confront reality and drown in self-loathing. Fair enough.
Still holding Lily aloft, I flashed those fellows the most infuriating grin I could manage. The Knight Faculty students who beheld my smile gritted their teeth.
And then it came.
"Dickless bastards."
At that one line — hurled, of all things, from the camp of the students who'd been unable to buy the drug — the roiders couldn't hide their anguish.
Oh dear. Side effects already showing this early?
They took to the drug well, and apparently they take to the side effects just as well.
Well then, this contest too must be counted as my victory.
"Truly…!"
Lily was still grumbling in protest over the sniffing incident from earlier. As an apology, I took her into the coffeehouse inside the Academy and bought her a cup.
"I know you never hesitate with physical contact, Owen, but still, I'd appreciate it if you didn't smell me."
"So if it's not sniffing, you're fine with being held like earlier?"
"Th-that's…"
Lily brought the coffee cup to her lips and murmured, barely audible.
"That much is fine…"
So she doesn't hate it after all.
"Here, eat this too."
What I pushed toward her, plate and all, was a chocolate cookie. Now that Morne was selling chocolate in bulk, the café had apparently started putting out menu items that made creative use of the stuff.
The moment Lily laid eyes on the chocolate-dusted cookie, she couldn't hide her delight.
"Wow, Owen. Is this made with the chocolate we made?"
"Yep."
"It's amazing that something we made turned into this."
"Something we made?"
A female student passing by had apparently overheard our conversation, because she stopped mid-stride. The pink-haired girl set her coffee down on the table with a clack and fixed us with a wide-eyed stare.
"Might you two be members of the Engineering Club that developed chocolate?"
"That's us."
"Oho! I have long wished to meet the ones who created something so delicious!"
The girl, who spoke in a most peculiar manner, seized my hand with both of hers and shook it vigorously. Lily watched the display with clear displeasure, puffing out her cheeks, and the quick-witted girl hastily released my hand and scratched her head.
"Ah, my apologies. But pray, do not misunderstand."
"Misunderstand what?"
"Despite appearances, this humble one is a man."
"Huh?"
"I even sent a request to your club! Asking you to make a drug that can turn me into a woman!"
Ah.
Astonishingly, the female student… was not a female student at all. The client who wanted to become a woman was this boy!