Rynelle brought Nina to the sparsely populated storage room of the Training Ground.
While Rynelle’s eyes were blazing with intensity, Nina averted her gaze.
Due to her extreme anxiety, Rynelle let out a deep sigh.
“First of all, I’m sorry for yelling at you. I was frustrated and I couldn’t help it.”
“W-Well, it’s okay. I guess you’d have every right to be angry since I came back alive without the Professor…”
“Haah…! What angers me the most is your attitude right now.”
“Huh?”
“I don’t believe that Daniel is dead. He must have some reason for not returning. But how are you acting right now?”
“That is…”
“Are you thinking the Professor sacrificed himself instead of you?”
Nina clamped her mouth shut at the piercing remark.
At first, Nina didn’t think Daniel was dead.
However, as days passed without his return, her anxiety grew, and only negative suspicions festered.
“I’m disappointed. I thought you would believe in the Professor no matter what, just like me.”
“……”
Seeing Rynelle, who held unwavering conviction in contrast to her own wavering faith, made Nina feel even smaller.
She knew she should emulate such a demeanor, but it wasn’t easy.
After all, Nina was still just a tender-hearted child.
“Let’s go find Daniel together.”
“Huh?”
“What’s with the surprise? Isn’t it obvious? Since Daniel isn’t back due to some issue, we need to help him return as soon as possible.”
“B-But the Professor’s location is probably…”
“I know he’s at the bottom of the ocean! That’s why I’ve been borrowing my family’s resources to get the Magic Tools needed for diving for the past few days.”
“So, you’ve gathered everything already?”
“That’s right. Normally, I would’ve wanted to go find him immediately, but it took quite a while to gather such rare items.”
Even though only five days had passed, Rynelle was already equipped for rescuing Daniel.
She wasn’t just sitting and waiting; she had been planning to save him.
Nina admired Rynelle’s decisiveness while simultaneously feeling ashamed.
While she was hoping for a miracle, Rynelle was creating one with her own hands.
“Why are you suggesting that I join you? Didn’t you hate me?”
“Yeah, I do hate you. But this time, there’s no choice, is there? You were the last person with Daniel. We need your assistance to find him.”
“It might be dangerous. I asked the mermaids for help, but they turned me down, saying it might provoke the Behemoth.”
“Do you think Daniel wouldn’t be at risk if I helped? It’s all the same!”
With just one line from Rynelle, Nina felt as if she had been hit on the head.
Her words were indeed correct. Daniel had risked his life multiple times to save her.
Yet here she was, hesitating to save someone precious to her for fear of danger.
Nina couldn’t accept that at all. She raised her hand and slapped her tear-soaked cheek hard, creating a smack sound.
“I’ll go too.”
“Are you sure? If you’re scared, just tell me your location. I’ll search alone.”
“I’m not scared. And I need to be there to persuade the mermaids.”
“But you said they wouldn’t help you?”
“I’ll return all the treasures I received from the mermaids and ask them to find Daniel. If they refuse, I’ll drag them out by their gills.”
“Looks like you’ve finally got a decent resolve.”
Nina, who had previously been sobbing, was now speaking with an imposing demeanor. Rynelle smiled warmly at this change.
Helping a rival was a rather unsightly situation, but she didn’t mind much.
‘Father, I think I truly am your daughter.’
For the sake of someone she loved, she could collaborate with her rival over and over.
Blind, unreciprocated love.
It was indeed foolish, but what could she do?
She had fallen for him to the point where she couldn’t control her feelings.
“Are you okay with skipping today’s classes?”
“Do you think grades are important right now?”
Recognizing her own foolishness, Rynelle chuckled softly and shook her head.
Special Class and F Class.
For the two who were already at the bottom, grades held no meaning.
Even if they were in Class S, they both would have made the same choice.
If not, they wouldn’t have treated each other as rivals.
Two female students who always remained on guard and bit at each other.
However, this time, they left the Academy side by side, hand in hand.
This was a beautiful page of youth that the two women drew, a scene even a polar bear would shed tears to acknowledge.
*
“How’s your condition?”
“Not bad. Nope, it’s the best!”
At last, I had completed my five-day recovery today.
My entire body had been wrecked like a rag, but with the power of the Behemoth, my physique was rebuilt anew.
The pathetic body that had been my greatest flaw was no longer present.
I wasn’t quite at the level of a bodybuilder, but I had gained a nice amount of muscle.
Finally breaking free from that cursed physique, where no matter how well I ate and exercised, I couldn’t build muscle, was satisfying.
Now I understood why a bodybuilder would kiss their own biceps.
“What are you doing naked? I’ve heard there’s a weird condition called exhibitionism in the human world. Is that the case?”
“It’s nothing like that. I was just overwhelmed with joy to have this new body.”
“You may find joy in the strangest things. The most trivial of achievements from the past two days, you know.”
“But it has the advantage of being visible.”
While recuperating, I gained various insights from the Behemoth’s past.
I shattered the walls of limitations through the magical knowledge of ancient elves, acquiring new techniques.
I advanced my proficiency in Space Magic to a whole new level and completely revamped my mana management system.
This meant I had gained a lot from the new knowledge.
If I spread this worldwide, I’d earn astronomical amounts of money, and I’d become the teacher of all wizards.
“Is that your dream?”
“Nope, so I don’t plan to reveal it.”
It was cowardly, but I intended to use it for myself alone.
Spreading it worldwide would only end up strengthening future enemies.
There’s nothing dumber than creating a problem for oneself.
“Thanks to you, I’ve gained the strength to pursue my dream.”
“You don’t need to thank me. I’ll collect my fair share in return.”
“Speaking of which, you asked for a wish in exchange for teaching magic, right?”
A being capable of bringing about the end of the world with just a thought asking a mere mortal like me for a favor?
I wondered if there was even anything I could do.
The uncertainty was accompanied by worry over whether I could actually fulfill the request.
“You don’t need to be tense. It’s not a dangerous matter.”
“What is it then?”
“I plan to go out into the surface world after a long time. The events that occurred this time were because my senses had dulled significantly.”
“You mean you’re going on a venture to the human world?”
“Exactly.”
“Are you insane? You know what kind of being you are! If you tried to ascend to the continent in your true form, everything would sink to the ocean floor!”
“Don’t worry; I’ve got some sense.”
The Behemoth said confidently as it suddenly flexed its power.
I had been terrified, thinking it meant to blast the whole continent away.
However, contrary to my worries, the Behemoth began to shrink, like my heart was contracting.
Ignoring the laws of mass conservation, the Behemoth matched my eye level.
Moreover, it transformed into a human… well, an elf woman.
“It’s my first time using shape-shifting abilities, so it feels odd. What do you think?”
“It’s fine. Is the target of your imitation that elf who lost to you and ended up teaching you magic?”
“That’s right.”
“So this is what their ancestors looked like.”
Soft, light blonde hair cascading down to a slender waist.
Eyes and ears were sharp and elongated, while lightly tanned brown skin exuded a wild charm.
I could believe she was a hybrid of elf and barbarian due to her appearance.
“Since I also mimic the target’s weight, there’s no chance of sinking.”
“Then we should be fine.”
There were still plenty of risks, but I couldn’t possibly stop the Behemoth at this point.
Besides, it had saved my life and helped me grow stronger, so I couldn’t just ignore it.
I pondered whether anyone might notice the Behemoth’s presence, but if they did, it’d surely create a ruckus.
I resolved to think of that later when the time came and prepared my Space Magic.
“First of all, I’ll introduce you as an acquaintance, so please don’t cause any trouble.”
“I’ll behave.”
It was a bit inconvenient to be disguised as an elf, but that was fine.
Despite the Crawford family’s decline, it had a rich history, so no one would find it odd to have an elf as an acquaintance.
As long as I didn’t misspeak, everyone would likely buy my story.
“Alright, let’s go.”
I opened a teleportation gate leading to a beach near the Florence Academy.
I felt like showing the world my ability to teleport in public was too risky, so I set the coordinates behind a secluded rock.
I teleported to the beach first and gestured to the Behemoth to come over once I scanned the area.
“Whoa!”
Just as the Behemoth tried to exit through the portal, I felt all my strength drain out.
What I thought would be light baggage turned out to be surprisingly heavy, shocking my muscles into complacency.
“Even if I shape-shifted, the caliber I had still weighs a ton, so it’s bound to be tough.”
“That’s true; just locking your face while fighting you made me break a sweat.”
“If it’s too hard, I’ll just walk myself.”
“Just come over already.”
Previously, I would have told it to do that, but not anymore.
My body had been reinforced, and my magic level had advanced enough to call it revolutionary.
It was tough, but I could manage teleporting the Behemoth now.
“Ugh! Ugh…! Haah!”
“Just a bit more. I’ll be there soon.”
“I said move…!”
“Okay.”
After several groans, I endured until the Behemoth got through.
After a grueling effort, I successfully transported the Behemoth, wiping the sweat from my forehead as I emerged from behind the rock.
“Your lower back seemed quite strained; are you alright?”
“I’m fine. It was hard, but I actually feel refreshed now.”
“Hmm, you’ve really improved significantly compared to before. It’s remarkable progress.”
“Really?”
I was thrilled to hear that my magical prowess improved enough for the Behemoth to recognize it.
However, that happiness was short-lived as I heard a heartbeat echoing loudly.
“Professor…?”
As soon as I stepped out from behind the rock on the beach, I came face to face with Nina and Rynelle.
Their eyes did not reflect a lively spirit.
For a moment, I was bewildered about why they were reacting this way, but retracing the recent events made everything clear.
A man and a woman emerged from behind a large rock, obscuring their human forms.
I was drenched in sweat, looking as if I’d been working out, and there were the moans I’d let out during the teleportation.
Plus, there were the meaningful exchanges we had right after teleporting.
What would happen if Rynelle and Nina heard all of that?
“Ah…”
I’ve really messed up this time.
Lower back…ufff
I CAUGHT UP😭😭😭