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“Are you saying to go together?”

Absolutely not. I’d rather die at the hands of that demon from earlier.

A mad combat enthusiast who can’t even distinguish between courage and recklessness.

That’s how Riche perceived Arthur.

Someone so egotistical they gamble their team members’ lives without recognizing the difference in skill between themselves and the opponent.

If Luke hadn’t unexpectedly swooped in, the students present would have faced their doom, swept away by Arthur’s bravado.

It wasn’t until after the incident that Riche recounted what happened to the professors who arrived late, then she left the academy right after a simple check-up at the infirmary.

This time, she firmly resolved to catch the fleeing Luke.

Even after exiting the academy without a clear destination, she knew exactly where to go.

The Adventurer’s Guild.

There was only one reason to hunt monsters without the status of an academy student: being an adventurer, so Riche headed straight for the guild.

And of course.

Just as she arrived, she spotted Luke, who seemed to have finished his business, with a Beastman woman by his side.

“I found you.”

Riche waited in place for Luke to come closer, then spoke up.

“Luke.”

“?”

Only when she called out did Luke turn around, suddenly making a strange face.

“No, I’m Dung, though.”

“······?”

What is he saying?

I didn’t come here for some wordplay or jokes.

With a stupid expression, Luke subtly tried to escape.

“This time, you can’t run away.”

With a weak burst of fire, Riche encircled him to block his path.

If he tried to break through physically, he’d have to face both her and the Beastman woman next to him. She observed the woman’s reaction, but—

“······?”

It was bizarrely calm.

Almost too calm to be considered a teammate.

Then, suddenly, a voice rang out from within the fiery barrier.

“Tek-Kai.”

Whatever the incantation, upon hearing it, Luke boldly charged through the flames.

“······How!”

“How? I just broke through.”

That wasn’t what she meant.

How could a person physically break through fire with no protection?

Seeing him appear unscathed apart from a few burnt marks bewildered her.

Normally, one could wrap oneself in magical power to avoid damage.

But if she thought too hard about it, she’d remember he was an ordinary person without any magical power.

He couldn’t use any technique to shield himself with magic.

So that meant he really did break through just using his body.

“No one can stop me!”

The guy who doesn’t dodge a challenge, even if that challenge comes from the main heroine herself.

That reckless trait was Luke’s, but Riche had no way of knowing.

With a mighty shout, he charged forward, leading with his shoulder.

“Wait, just a sec! Kyaah!”

Shoulder tackle.

Riche, struck by the full force of the tackle, flew a considerable distance.

*

“Luke! That person seemed just to be here to talk…”

“Luna, we decided to call such people stalkers.”

That’s a social agreement.

“I think they’re quite different from the stalkers I know…”

“Does someone who comes to talk just attack like that out of nowhere?”

“You did run away from him, though…”

“Not running away, it was a strategic retreat.”

“Yeah… I suppose.”

Luna, that girl seems ungrateful even when someone is saving her. If an invasion event happens at the academy later, I’ll have to throw her into a horde of monsters.

That way, she’d have to thank me later.

Riche stood up, seemingly unharmed from the magic shield she must have put up during the collision.

Brushing herself off lightly, she approached me again.

“I’m sorry for attacking you out of the blue. I couldn’t help it since you kept running away.”

“That’s not running away; it was strategic retreat.”

“Fine, let’s call it retreat. Can we chat for a bit?”

“Absolutely not!”

“I’ll pay for dinner.”

“Sounds good!”

“······.”

What? Why? I can’t resist a pretty lady buying me dinner.

We might be the same age, so technically she isn’t my ‘noona,’ but it’s all good between us.

I just saved on dinner tonight—score!

With Riche who offered to treat me, we headed towards the restaurant street.

Normally, I’d only go to moderately priced places, but since she insisted on treating, I had no intention of turning it down.

When someone says they’ll pay, the etiquette is to milch that generosity thoroughly, and I planned to do just that.

“Excuse me! We’ll take one of everything on the menu!”

I intentionally went to an expensive restaurant and ordered every dish they had.

Riche was a noble after all, and I thought she wouldn’t bat an eye at this.

“You really have no sense of restraint, do you…”

“I’m a Manly Man. I’ll consume all favors before they turn into rights.”

Isn’t it said that if favors continue, they become a right?

So, it’s only polite to consume as much as possible when it’s still a favor.

“You can order more if you want.”

“I’m fine, thanks.”

“Luna, you don’t refuse someone’s goodwill.”

“I think it’s okay for Luke to refuse a bit, though…”

Is there anything more awkward than being declined for goodwill?

Girls like Luna are just perfect for starving to death while worrying about image and etiquette.

The food I ordered started coming out right away, one dish at a time.

I picked up the first piece of meat with a fork and shoved it in my mouth.

“Alright, I’ll ask a question, so chew and answer.”

“Mhm-mhm.”

“Last time, you mentioned Hex. How do you know about him?”

“Swallow… Hex was… munch… in charge of… mmm.”

“Swallow what’s in your mouth and then speak…”

Telling me to answer while eating is rather demanding.

Normally, at this hour, Riche would be holed up in the library, but since I accidentally spoiled something last time, it probably led to this.

She might have wanted to enjoy the irresponsible pleasures of not researching, but oh well.

I swallowed all the food in my mouth and responded.

“I didn’t say Hex, I said sex.”

“······Eh?”

In an instant, it seemed Riche didn’t comprehend, and Luna facepalmed while shaking her head.

Didn’t they get any sexual education?

When guys gather, it’s common to joke around saying, “Ah~ I want to have sex~.”

I made a circle with my index finger and thumb, and then inserted and withdrew my index finger from the opposite hand into the circle.

“Sex, don’t you know? The male organ goes in and out beneath the woman’s—”

“Oh no! It’s not that I didn’t hear about it!”

Now Riche’s face was completely red, and she shouted in panic.

She wasn’t the type to act flustered or emotionally, but—

Reality surely is different from a novel.

This was entertaining.

‘What’s so embarrassing about this?’

As someone who read the entire novel (except for the side stories), I know there’s plenty of 19+ content.

All the heroines had intimate moments with Arthur.

Even if it’s before that phase, they’ll eventually get there, so how on earth is she going to handle that with such embarrassment?

Though, in the novel, Riche was extremely bashful during her first experience.

Other heroines weren’t embarrassed, but Riche was exceedingly so.

That seems to have pleased our unicorn-loving fans, as she won first place in a heroine popularity poll.

“And I definitely heard you say Hex!”

“Yeah~ Even if we meet, you can’t win~”

Blabbering about this and that, it’s a hassle to explain. Riche has spent half her life seeking Hex, but in the end, she can’t win when they finally meet, so Arthur will catch him instead.

“I won’t ask how you know Hex… but I want you to give me info so I can beat him.”

“Honestly, no matter what you do, you can’t win, alright?”

Even if I pushed her to train until she was on the verge of death, she was designed to lose to him since she was a heroine.

If she could beat him, that would take away the protagonist’s role.

If she wanted to be unreasonable, she should have gone to the author instead of me.

“······Then tell me how to get stronger.”

Do 100 push-ups, 100 sit-ups, 100 squats, and run 10 km; repeat that every day.

“You should be asking a professor for that, not me, you crazy girl.”

“······?”

“I think Luke’s inner thoughts have changed…”

Who said that was his inner thought?

“I think I’ve shared enough information, so I’m off to bed now.”

“Wait, you’re leaving?”

“No, I’m going to sleep.”

My body desperately craves rest right now!

In that sense, I’m going into power-saving mode immediately!

*

-Bang!

Just moments ago, Luke had boldly revealed his ambition, but he ended up burying his head in the table.

To Riche and Luna, who thought it was some kind of joke, their expressions shifted when they heard his snoring; this wasn’t a joke at all.

“…He really fell asleep.”

And yet, she hadn’t gained any concrete information.

Should I wake him before he falls into a deeper sleep?

Just as Riche raised a hand.

“It’s better not to wake him.”

“…Why?”

“If you do, he might die.”

“Surely, you wouldn’t kill a person just for waking them up…?”

Would anyone really kill someone just for waking them?

That’d be psychopathic, right?

Thinking it was a joke, Riche was taken aback by Luna’s serious expression.

“Is he really going to kill him?”

“If you’re curious enough to try, I won’t stop you. Just do it where I’m not present. I really don’t want to get involved.”

Seeing Luna say that earnestly, Riche pulled back her hand.

“Do you have no idea what’s going on?”

“Nope.”

“Sigh….”

The more she delved into it, the more questions arose.

What on earth does he know?

Riche left the place, having gained no valuable information, but plenty of money spent.

 

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