Chapter 2 Part 1
It seems that it will take five days by carriage from the royal capital to the Neutral City of Shifrea, where negotiation with the Disaria Magic Academy will take place.
And so, we decided to depart a week in advance with some leeway.
It was around sunrise that I left the dormitory room and headed toward the headmaster’s office, where we were supposed to meet.
As it was early morning, there were not many people in the academy.
While looking around the academy, I was walking slowly when suddenly,
“Ah…!”
As I was about to enter the academy building, I almost collided with a female student.
At that moment, a book fell from the girl’s hand.
Before the book hit the ground, I cast gravity magic and levitated it.
“Mmm… sorry about that. I rarely walk around the academy in the early morning, so I was distracted by the surroundings.”
When I apologized, the girl, with her face down, looked nervous and said,
“I-I’m sorry too, for bumping into you.”
The girl’s eyes were hidden by her bangs, and she avoided eye contact with me.
“I’m ──”
“I know. You are Kurt-san!”
The girl answered without hesitation.
“And you are…?”
“Cynthia.”
She introduced herself briefly.
At first glance, Cynthia looked as if she was frightened.
Well, with this uncomfortable feeling, I can’t just leave and set off from the academy.
“You almost dropped your book. But it’s okay. It’s not dirty.”
As I thought about what to do, I used gravity magic to bring the book to me and handed it back to Cynthia.
“Ah…”
Cynthia accepted it carefully.
“It’s a biographical work called ‘The Road to Revolution’, which chronicles the events leading up to when the younger brother of King Aurelian defeated him. I was interested in it, too.”
“Eh…?”
Then, for the first time, Cynthia looked up.
Although I couldn’t tell earlier, she has a cute face. I wonder why she’s so scared.
“Do you like reading, Kurt-san?”
“Just call me Kurt. Anyway, I do like books. Not just the ones that are useful for magic research, but also novels for entertainment.”
Compared to a thousand years ago, magic civilization has declined in this era. However, on the other hand, entertainment, such as novels and plays, has undergone further evolution. They were more refined and interesting than a thousand years ago. Even I found myself wanting to know what would happen next in the various stories.
When I mentioned this, Cynthia’s expression softened a bit.
“I see… I like books, too. When I read a book, I feel like I’ve met many people…”
“I agree. Did you borrow that book from the library?”
“Yes.”
Well, it can’t be helped, but that’s unfortunate.
I know all the books stored in the academy library. And the book that Cynthia has in her possession is one of its kind. I’ve wanted to borrow it for a while now, but it seems it’ll have to wait a little longer.
I wonder if that feeling showed on my face.
“Do you want to read it too, Kurt?”
“But you wanted to read it, right? It’s fine if you haven’t finished reading it. How about this… could you lend it to me after you have finished it?”
Hearing my words, Cynthia smiled brightly.
“Yes…! After Cynthia finishes it, Kurt can read it next.”
“I’m looking forward to it.”
That said,
“Cynthia looks cute when you smile. I think you can have more confidence in yourself.”
“……!”
When I said that, Cynthia blushed all the way to her earlobes. And once again, she shyly lowered her face.
“I’ve never been told that before…”
“Is that so?”
That’s strange. Cynthia is quite a beautiful girl. I wouldn’t be surprised if she got a lot of attention.
“Well, I have things to do, so I’ll be going first. I’m looking forward to it, Cynthia.”
After saying that, I turned my back to Cynthia and started walking again ──
“Oh…”
I heard Cynthia’s small voice from behind me, so I turned around.
“What’s the matter?”
“…Nothing.”
Cynthia was moving her mouth as if to say something, but in the end, she just said those words.
“What was that all about?”
Cynthia’s face was still bright red, as she was covering her mouth with her book.
Kurt has the power of effortless rizz.