A Closer Distance
Yelena's skin was surprisingly rough for a highborn lady. Her slender fingers were lined with thick calluses, bearing silent witness to the grueling, unrelenting path she had walked.
I gently enveloped her hand in mine.
"Thank you."
Yelena Frost was no longer just a scrap of data flickering across a computer screen. Now that I had caught a glimpse of the real girl hidden behind that icy, impassive mask, there was no way I could ever view her as mere lines of code again.
Looking at Yelena, who had already slipped back into her usual stoic expression, I offered a warm smile.
"Feel free to just call me Sian. Friends don't need to stand on ceremony with each other."
"...All right. Sian."
"Heheh..."
The goofy chuckle that slipped out of me was the purely instinctive reaction of a gamer who had sunk thousands of hours into Arcana Academy. My ultimate favorite character had just spoken my name in such a gentle, subdued voice. How on earth was I supposed to keep a straight face?
Before I could stop myself, an utterly defenseless, dorky grin spread from ear to ear.
Watching me beam like an idiot, Yelena's stiff features softened ever so slightly, and she murmured under her breath,
"...Help me up. I think I pushed myself too far. My legs have no strength left."
"O-Oh! Right away!"
Seeing a girl who usually moved like a clockwork automaton show such a vulnerable side—practically whispering in my ear—was unexpectedly heart-stopping. Telling myself that looking at her any longer would be hazardous to my health, I squeezed my eyes shut and pulled firmly on her hand.
I had completely forgotten the obvious reality that Yelena, having swung her blade for nearly twenty hours straight on an empty stomach, had zero energy left to support her own weight.
"Kya?!"
"Ugh...!"
With twin yelps of alarm, our balance collapsed, sending us tumbling forward. Fortunately, whether because I was finally growing accustomed to her unreal beauty or sheer survival instinct kicked in, my reflexes fired in time.
Beneath the fabric of my glove, my Stigma flared with an inky, dark radiance. Teleporting two people simultaneously was an atrocious drain on my mana pool, but right now, my sword was safely at my hip.
Clenching my eyes tight, I channeled mana into the brand and pulled Yelena flush against my chest.
"Wait, what—?!"
"Hold on tight!"
She had spent the entire day drenched in sweat, yet the scent wafting from her was surprisingly, inexplicably sweet. Desperately trying to ignore the plush, soft sensation pressing against my chest, and listening to the frantic thumping of Yelena's heart vibrating directly through our touching skin, I focused my mind.
Blink
Before my head could spin any further, I unleashed the authority. Motes of inky-black light billowed out, wrapping us in a dark cocoon.
"You might feel a little dizzy!"
At that exact moment, the world inverted.
The space between us and the training hall's exit compressed into a single point. Half a beat of weightlessness suspended our bodies before gravity snapped back, and our boots met solid stone.
Though we landed cleanly, a sudden wave of lethargy washed over me, and I ended up slumping heavily against Yelena's shoulder.
"Uuu... This is why I really didn't want to use my Stigma on two people at once..."
"...Ah?"
A startled breath escaped Yelena's lips. Experiencing spatial displacement via a Stigma for the first time must have disoriented her, because her heartbeat seemed to accelerate by the second.
I remembered being the exact same way when I first awakened Blink: that jarring sensation of space folding inward, floating through a void for an instant, and then being violently dragged back to earth. It had taken me nearly an entire year of grueling practice just to adapt to that nausea well enough to use it in live combat.
"Sorry about that. It makes your head spin the first time."
"..."
Yet Yelena remained utterly silent. It took me a few seconds to realize why.
Right now, I was clinging flush against her, leaning my entire body weight into hers. It was an overwhelming level of physical proximity that she was definitely not accustomed to.
"A-Ah! I'm so sorry if that made you uncomfortable...!"
I stammered a frantic apology and hurriedly tried to peel my wobbling limbs away from her. Or rather, I tried to—until Yelena's arms came around and gently encircled my back.
"...No. You can stay like this. You look terribly dizzy."
"Huh?"
Her voice was curiously soft, sending an involuntary shiver down my spine.
In the game, she was an emotional fortress who never revealed her true thoughts—or at best, offered a practiced, hollow smile. Was the girl standing in front of me really the same Yelena Frost? Overwhelmed by her unexpected tenderness, I could only gaze up at her with wide, dazed eyes.
"I mean... you looked like you were on the verge of collapsing, so I'm just letting you lean on me. Don't read anything into it."
She was rambling—completely out of character for her. And hearing her fumble only made my own embarrassment spike through the roof. An excruciating silence fell over the corridor, the synchronized racing of our hearts echoing deafeningly in my ears.
Neither of us knew what to say. And worse, my stupid brain couldn't stop registering how warm and surprisingly soft she felt, leaving us frozen in that horribly awkward embrace.
"It's almost time to clean the training grounds, so could everyone step outside for a bit—"
A savior appeared to shatter the stifling tension.
Elin strolled through the doorway, scanning the hall, only for her eyes to lock directly onto the two of us clutching each other in an intimate, compromising hug.
"Oh my. Pardon me. Should I come back later?"
No. That wasn't a savior.
That wasn't a savior at all—it was a bomb. A colossal, high-yield tactical nuke!
Without even a second to conceal the crimson blaze burning across my cheeks, I violently scrambled out of Yelena's arms.
"N-No! It's not like that at all, Teacher! It isn't what you think! I was just stumbling, and she caught me, and—!"
"Pfft... Sian, you really are an amusing child."
"Ah."
My panicked stream of excuses ground to an abrupt halt. Seeing Elin gaze down at me as if admiring an adorable, flustered little animal made me freeze solid.
Wait. Had Teacher Elin just tossed that out as a harmless tease, only for my guilty conscience to make me screech like a cornered thief?
Silently, I gathered what little mana I had left. My head still throbbed from teleporting both of us, but I could still squeeze out one or two short hops.
"Uwaaaah..."
"Sian, are you all right?"
Hearing Yelena's deadpan, completely unfazed voice from behind me, my shame short-circuited my brain—and before I could stop myself, I triggered my Stigma and vanished on the spot.
Staring at the empty patch of air where Sian had just been standing, Elin muttered with a wry chuckle,
"Oh dear. Did I tease her too hard? I'll have to apologize next time."
"...?"
Yelena watched Elin mumble with a bewildered tilt of her head. Having lived her entire life with nothing but the sword, the nuance of Elin's playful banter flew completely over her head. Naturally, she had no idea why Sian had turned beet-red and bolted into thin air either.
Even so, the sight of Sian stammering and flustered had been strangely endearing. Deciding not to dwell on it, Yelena turned her attention back to the instructor.
"By the way, were you two practicing together?" Elin asked.
"Yes. I wished to discuss the areas where I fell short during our duel."
"Mmh, I see. To be honest, I came back because I was worried sparks might fly between you two, but it looks like my meddling was entirely unnecessary."
"...It is difficult to hold a grudge against her. Sian is... simply that kind of person."
Whenever she looked at Sian, a gentle warmth seemed to settle in a quiet corner of her chest. Was this what people meant when they called something 'cute'?
And yet, the girl possessed zero sense of personal boundaries. She would throw herself into an embrace one second, only to flush with embarrassment and scramble away the next.
A truly strange girl.
With that lingering thought, Yelena slowly turned and walked away.
The following morning, at seven sharp.
Unlike my usual routine of heading straight out to train the moment my eyes opened, I took a deep breath of the crisp morning air and made my way toward the academy grounds.
If the first two days of the class-placement exam evaluated individual martial prowess through duels, today marked the beginning of Day Three—a test of practical survival capability.
Conducted in a classic 'battle royale' format, the Day Three exam was a massive mock battle utilizing the Academy Northern Forest and an enormous spatial magic circle. Hundreds of students would be scattered at random throughout the dense woodlands, fighting continuously until the last one standing was determined.
Having memories of my past life, this exam format felt intimately familiar. It made sense; after all, the developers who created Arcana Academy had lived in the twenty-first century just like me.
"...Which means I need to move as fast as humanly possible."
Somewhere deep within the Northern Forest lay an item I desperately needed.
My mana stat sat at a pathetic D-minus. Without my personal sword, I couldn't even use all five consecutive charges of my Blink Stigma. A Stigma was a voracious monster that devoured mana like water.
Keeping my sword strapped to my waist would solve the problem, of course, but this was Arcana Academy—the premier institution of the Empire. There was no way they would allow students to roam outside the training halls carrying live steel.
I glanced down at the weapon at my hip and muttered under my breath,
"Take today, for instance. The only weapon we're issued for the exam is a practice sword inscribed with special magic."
Enemies in this world weren't gallant gentlemen who would politely wait until I had my sword drawn before attacking. Preparing a proper contingency was essential.
Sorting through my tactical route, I stepped toward the main field. A crowd of students stood gathered around a sprawling spatial transfer circle. I quickly scanned the ranks to find Temporary Class A.
"Day Three of the Arcana Academy class-placement exam will take place in the Northern Forest. You will be teleported to randomized locations, where..."
Letting the speech—which I had heard dozens of times through my monitor in my previous life—flow in one ear and out the other, I ran a final check on my physical condition. Peak form, as always. Stigma wielders rarely suffered from minor ailments or physical fatigue.
Most students seemed busy forming alliances and scouting potential teammates, but I couldn't care less. In order to snag the hidden piece, working alone was mandatory.
Grade: 2-Star (★★☆☆☆)
Special Trait: Sturdiness
"Sword's in good condition, too..."
With the instructor's announcements drawing to a close, the massive transfer circle began to hum with a high-pitched whine, bathing the ground in brilliant magical light. Ready to fight as always, I stepped forward to enter the array.
Or rather, I was about to.
"Hey! You, commoner wench!"
"...?"
—Right until some noble brat who looked straight out of a third-rate villain casting call showed up with his cronies and surrounded me.