Bam!
Today is the day the Academy starts. It’s the admission day.
Unlike usual, my eyes opened even though the sun hasn’t risen yet.
Maybe it’s because I’m so excited about life in the Academy.
…Huh?
“What are you doing?”
Startled.
Io, who was quietly trying to sneak out by my door, froze.
“It’s not time to wake me up yet… so why are you in my room?”
I did tell her to wake me if I didn’t get up, but why is she already in here?
To hide her presence that well… I almost didn’t realize she was in my room!
She truly is Lydia’s sister.
“…W-well… um… Okay! I-I just mixed up the time!”
Io, flustered for a moment, suddenly yelled.
“What? Time?”
She mixed up the time?
It’s so dark outside. How could anyone get confused? It clearly looks like night.
“It’s completely dark outside! What do you mean you mixed up the time?”
“…Uh, I mean… let’s see… yeah! I came in to wake you up quickly so you wouldn’t be late for the entrance ceremony!”
Once again stuttering in response to me, she shouted while her face turned red.
Yeah, I can clearly see that’s not the case.
She must have come in for some other reason.
What could it be? Is she trying to find my weakness?
Even the strongest can be weak while asleep. Did she come in to observe me asleep, looking for my flaws?
“…Is that so?”
“Y-yeah!”
“You came in to observe me while I was sleeping.”
“How did you know that?!”
I guessed right.
“Tell me the truth. I already know everything.”
“Ugh… yeah. You caught me.”
Despair washed over Io.
She probably worked up the courage to sneak into my room, and having her true intentions exposed must be frustrating.
Huh?
But thinking about it, I could have been in serious danger. If Io had ill intentions, she could’ve attacked me while I was asleep!
…Though I don’t think she’s that type. Besides, any attack below a certain level wouldn’t even work on me.
“I get it. I’ll stop asking… but the real reason you snuck into my room is… uh, um…”
Io may be cute, but listening to her challenge is frustrating.
I just want to get ready and go to the Academy entrance ceremony.
“So… your face…”
“Did you come to find my weakness?”
“I came to look at your face…Huh?”
Stumbling over her words, Io was so flustered that I couldn’t help but interrupt her.
After hearing what I said, Io’s eyes widened in surprise.
“Even masters who have reached the peak of swordsmanship or mages who have seen the limits of magic are their most vulnerable when they are asleep. Were you trying to find my weaknesses while I was asleep to try to shake me off from Lydia?”
“…W-well…”
Io seemed unable to respond as if she was broken.
What is going on? Could it be something else? She surely didn’t just come to look at my face in the middle of the night.
“Am I wrong?”
“…No! Um, well yes! You’re right! I was trying to find your weaknesses to get you away from my sister! I can’t believe you noticed that.”
Her answer was awkward, but other explanations just don’t hold up.
This twitchy maid is adorable. Is this what having a little sister feels like?
“So, did you find my weakness?”
“Huh?”
“I asked if you found it.”
“Weakness? Aside from the fact that you look like a beauty from mythology when you’re asleep… Oops!”
As she was responding to my question, she suddenly covered her mouth as if she had said something wrong.
A beauty from mythology?
What is that supposed to mean? Wait!
Did she somehow catch on to my Gift? No way, that can’t be.
There’s no way I could have such a power.
She must think of me as a fraud who claims to be a god, which is why she’s thinking like that.
Did she perhaps reason that I might not be a fraud? So, she doesn’t want to reveal that to me?
If that’s the case, it makes sense.
“…Ha…hahaha.”
“Why are you laughing this time?”
“Oh, nothing. I just find you cute.”
This is really the feeling I’ve heard about—having a little sister. Her prideful demeanor too.
“C-c-c-cute?”
Io’s face turned bright red. Oh, calling someone cute might have rubbed her the wrong way as a fraud.
She looks seriously angry.
This is really a new feeling.
In my previous life, I was an only child, and in this life, I have two monstrous sisters.
Such a fresh feeling is unfamiliar.
But wait, is she really younger than me? Given the timeline of when Lydia and the Nova Empire escaped, it seems…
But whatever, if she’s cute, that’s what matters. Age doesn’t matter.
*
Leaving behind the little commotion with Io, I finished the meal she prepared, got ready, and left the dorm room.
This morning, the entrance ceremony is scheduled to take place in the banquet hall.
The problem is that there’s still plenty of time until it starts.
I was so excited about meeting them that I came out way too early.
Hmm… Should I head to the banquet hall early?
The streets are foggy at dawn.
Even though the entrance ceremony is scheduled for today, it’s so early that no one seems to be around.
Even still, aren’t they all too lazy?
Am I the only one looking forward to the entrance ceremony?
Thunk!
Thunk!
I heard the sound of something repeatedly bouncing against the building wall.
What is that sound?
It seems like someone is here.
Since there’s still a while before the ceremony, shall I go check it out?
As I walked towards the sound, I saw someone kicking a ball against the building wall in the alley.
As I got closer, I was finally able to make out someone’s face.
“…Huh? Luke. Hey.”
The person kicking the ball was Sunny.
“Hey, Sunny.”
So it’s Sunny.
Thinking back, it had to be Sunny.
This girl, uniquely, loves kicking balls even though she’s a girl.
Although soccer doesn’t exist in this world, there’s a popular sport called ‘Kadurugel (כדורגל)’ where they kick a ball with their feet.
But even so, it’s generally a sport for men.
Girls hardly partake in it.
Yet here is Sunny, enjoying the ball game.
Perhaps that’s why her Gift is related to her ankles.
She also appeared as a supporting character in [Deus Ex Machina].
With her trademark impassive expression and unique character, she gained popularity.
As Luke, I’ve met her before at a social gathering of noble families, and thanks to my memories of [Deus Ex Machina], I was able to form a friendship with her.
“What are you doing? Practicing?”
“Basics. Practicing.”
“Basics?”
“Basics. Must master. Dad taught me.”
Oh, right. That was part of her backstory. I had forgotten that after so long.
“Why so early, though?”
“Morning. Good.”
“Aren’t you going to sweat before the entrance ceremony?”
“…Oh.”
This clumsy yet fourth-dimensional approach is part of Sunny’s charm.
“Here.”
I used a Clean magic artifact to tidy her up.
“Luke.”
“You don’t have to thank me. We’re friends, right?”
“Pervert.”
“…Huh?”
What… a pervert?
“Washing a girl’s body? Luke’s a pervert.”
Are you calling me a pervert just because I used Clean magic?
This is…
Haha. Yeah, this is classic Sunny.
“You’re calling me a pervert? Sunny, I helped you not go to the entrance ceremony sweaty. How is that perverted?”
“Luke’s a pervert.”
“No, I’m not a pervert!”
*
Buzzing.
In the grand banquet hall located at the center of the Academy,
a place where the Academy’s major events take place.
As the entrance ceremony time approached, many new students began to enter.
Sunny and I arrived extremely early and kept waiting.
Watching the students who arrived before us, I saw many familiar faces.
The main stars from [Deus Ex Machina] whom I had wanted to meet.
And likewise, students changed by the altered history.
Most of the people I don’t recognize are pretty insignificant extras…
But where’s that one person? Did they not come to the Academy because of the butterfly effect from my changes? Could that be?
I guess I’ll have to ask Lydia about it later to confirm.
Should I have asked Lydia to send me a list of the new students before entering the Academy?
That would’ve made things much easier.
No, that wouldn’t do. If I did that, it would seem quite suspicious.
I don’t want to come off as anything less than a divine embodiment of god.
So I haven’t really met with Lydia often either.
Yeah, this is right.
Peering at those coming through the door, I locked eyes with Amy.
Amy waved her hand excitedly at me.
We’ve only known each other for a day, and she’s already greeting me with such enthusiasm. What an affable personality.
After saying something to Dia next to her, she also waved at me gently.
I returned the gesture.
Thank goodness. She doesn’t seem completely averse to me.
She’ll gradually get over her fear of men.
Thud.
Buzzing.
Suddenly, the lights in the banquet hall all went out.
Despite being morning, it became instantly dark within such a large space.
And amidst the confusion, the hall grew chaotic.
Suddenly, a massive beam of light descended in front of the hall.
It felt as if it were a spotlight from a stage.
Oh right, the dean.
This guy. He’s quite the attention-seeker.
“Welcome to the Academy, class of 557!”
In the spotlight stood a woman wearing a fish-shaped necklace around her neck.
She’s the current dean of the Academy.
A character famous among [Deus Ex Machina] users for being an attention seeker.
Wackfar Harknockjook.
I can’t believe I’m seeing that person in real life.
Huh?
Is it just me, or… is that woman’s gaze directly on me?
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