The Dragon's Heart
26. Awkward Revelations
Arthur hurriedly pulled her top back down to hide her chest and turned away, her face flushed red. I understood. Only someone who wasn't a virgin would be shameless enough not to feel embarrassed after having her breasts groped by a man she wasn't even dating. Still, I couldn't let the silence drag on forever, so I carefully opened my mouth.
"Since when were you a woman?"
"……I've been one since birth."
"Ah."
Even I had to admit that was a brain-dead question. Of course she'd been a woman since birth. I'd thought I was sober, but apparently I was still pretty drunk. After a moment of silence while I tried to figure out what to ask next, I managed to come up with a decent question.
"Why did you hide it?"
"Huh?"
"Why did you hide the fact that you're a woman?"
This world had surprisingly little gender discrimination. Whether man or woman, once you learned aura or mana and gained special abilities, the difference in innate physical capabilities became negligible. So in a way, it made sense. That meant Arthur had no reason to hide her gender out of fear of sexism. There had to be some other reason……
"Well, since I learned one of your secrets, it's only fair you learn one of mine, right?"
"Oh, a secret?"
"Where should I even begin……"
"We've got time. Take it slow."
"The place I was born……"
At my words, Arthur fell into thought for a moment before beginning what was clearly a story from long, long ago. That wasn't exactly what I'd meant by "take it slow."
To summarize her painfully boring story: her body contained a Dragon's Heart, and there were organizations that coveted it. The person who recommended her to the Academy had polymorphed her into a man to hide her identity. After hearing the whole thing, I tilted my head.
'So that was her backstory?'
When I'd played Dairos Academy, Arthur had died at Damian's hands. Naturally, I'd never bothered to look into her hidden backstory and had just assumed she was an extra character since the game continued even after her death. But to think she had a setting involving a Dragon's Heart and cross-dressing as a man…… I never would've guessed.
'Wait, so the game still let you play even after killing off a character with this much backstory?'
I belatedly realized just how much of a god-tier game Dairos Academy really was. No wonder my childhood friend had been so excited about it. I'd been too busy rushing through combat to care about the story, but I wondered how many named NPCs had died because of my actions.
"—And that's why I've been living as a man until now."
Having finished her long story, Arthur lowered her head and waited for my reaction. She looked like a criminal awaiting judgment. She probably thought I'd be angry that she'd hidden her gender. In reality, I wasn't angry at all. Sure, the fact that she'd lied to me was something that could've warranted anger, but—
"Lift your head, Arthur."
"……Okay."
"I understand. Yeah. These things happen. You were in a dangerous situation, after all."
"Kyle……!"
Arthur looked up at me with a moved expression. I nodded down at her as well. Of course these things happened. However, it didn't take long for Arthur to realize something was off, and she quietly lowered her voice.
"……Hey, Kyle?"
"Yeah."
"Could you stop staring at my chest?"
Swish—
Watching Arthur cover her chest as she said that, I widened my eyes and stared at her chest as if I'd never done anything wrong. I hadn't been staring at her chest. It had just happened to be in my line of sight.
"It's not like it'll wear out. Besides, you saw me naked in the bath too."
"……It feels like it will wear out. And you saw me naked too."
"What's wrong with two guys seeing each other naked?"
When my gaze showed no signs of dropping, Arthur sighed and began muttering some kind of incantation. Soon after, her body slowly began to shrink. Her chest grew smaller, and something bulged out below.
"What? You could change back?"
"Yeah. The man who sent me here cast a spell on my body."
"Then why did you turn back into a woman earlier?"
"W-well, it seems like the spell reverts when my reason weakens."
In other words, drinking alcohol had weakened her reason, and the spell had worn off without her realizing. A side effect she'd never known about since she'd never drunk before. Hearing that, I grinned at Arthur.
"Let's do this more often."
"Huh? Kyle? What do you mean?"
"You heard me."
It was a bit much to say out loud, but Arthur as a woman was exactly my type. Enough that I'd want to see it again and again.
'It really is a god-tier game.'
I'd been wrong. Just like my childhood friend had said, this world was a god-tier game.
* * *
As the sun rose, we finished a quick wash and gathered in the dining room. Yuri, who had come to the dining room, sat down while trying to hide her rotting expression.
"Yuri, you okay?"
"……Yeah."
"Looks like you've got a bad hangover."
Well, I'd nearly died from a splitting headache this morning too. I'd only recovered because I'd burned away all the alcohol and other toxins in my body with aura. And— I didn't think Yuri, a mage, would be able to burn away alcohol like I could. There were probably spells that purified alcohol, but there was no way Yuri had learned something like that.
In the end, Yuri caused an incident during the meal.
"Urgh—!"
"M-my lady!?"
Ignoring the maids' weak cries, Yuri covered her mouth and ran straight to the bathroom. The maids, who had only just come to their senses, hurried after her to attend to her. I watched the scene for a moment before continuing my meal.
Yuri didn't return until the meal was over. Arthur finished eating and returned to the Academy, while I lounged in my room waiting for Yuri. After spending who knows how long staring blankly into space, the butler knocked on my door.
"Young master."
"Come in."
"—Excuse me."
The butler entered the room with a serious expression and delivered his message.
"There's a call from His Grace the Duke."
"……His Grace?"
What could the Duke, who was dealing with barbarian remnants in the north, possibly want from me? I wondered if news of the incident I'd caused at the Academy had reached his ears, so I quickly stood up and followed the butler.
The magical communication orb in the communication room was flashing brightly. It was a signal that the Duke was continuously sending mana through from the other side. I sat down and placed my hand on the crystal orb, and the Duke's voice came through my ears.
[Kyle?]
"Yes, Father-in-law."
[I heard what happened.]
So he really was the Duke— I'd never imagined that news of me killing the terrorists would reach his ears so quickly. I was momentarily impressed by something I hadn't even considered before quietly opening my mouth.
"It wasn't a big deal."
[Not a big deal, my ass. It's cause for celebration.]
"Celebration……?"
[Yeah, celebration.]
While I was wondering if I'd misunderstood the meaning of the word "celebration," the Duke continued.
[Already making an heir. Won't it be hard to keep up with classes once you get pregnant?]
"……Excuse me?"
Making an heir? Me? ……With who?
[I'll send the betrothal gifts separately, and as for holding the official wedding ceremony, it would be better to do it before the belly gets too big—]
"Wait a moment, Father-in-law."
[What is it?]
"I…… don't understand what you're talking about."
I told him that Yuri and I hadn't even kissed yet, let alone gone further. Hearing that, the Duke questioned me as if asking what nonsense I was spouting.
[But I heard Yuri was retching and running out this morning?]
"Ah……"
Only then did I understand why the Duke had made this misunderstanding. I explained that Yuri's retching wasn't morning sickness but a hangover, and that we'd secretly drunk alcohol yesterday. After hearing my story, the Duke let out a disappointed sigh as if asking how I could do such a thing. After sighing, he began nitpicking my earlier words.
[Kyle, I hate to say this, but you haven't even kissed yet? Aren't you moving way too slow?]
"……That's not really something Your Grace should be saying."
[—Hurry up and make some progress. Hmm, I'd like to hear some real news next time.]
With those words, the Duke ended the communication. Thinking back on what the Duke had said, I realized he really was a northern man. To directly tell me to get his daughter pregnant quickly…… There was a limit to being straightforward……
'How am I supposed to face Yuri now.'
I probably wouldn't be able to look her in the face for a while. Thinking that, I carefully left the room.
* * *
Around the time the Academy's restoration from the terrorist incident was completed and the trials of the students who had collaborated with the terrorists were coming to an end— the Academy resumed classes. On the first day of classes.
Someone blocked my path.
"Kyle Meyer, right?"
A black-haired, flat-chested girl who looked familiar. I tilted my head as I looked at her face.
"Yeah, that's me."
"Yeah. Nice to meet you. I'm Kim Sera."
"……Kim Sera?"
Hearing that name, I belatedly realized where I'd seen her face before. She was my childhood friend. The one from Earth who'd recommended Dairos Academy to me. After finishing her introduction, Sera proudly added her epithet.
"They call me the Dragon Slayer."
And I realized that she still hadn't outgrown her chuunibyou phase.