Ch.73Chapter 73

The festival was just around the corner.

Departments and clubs filled the Academy’s vast grounds with booth events. Food trucks had also arrived, suggesting that outsiders were being permitted entry as well.

Departments and clubs that struggled to create activity-based booths showed off their strengths by using designated buildings as exhibition spaces.

The small stage would feature busking performances, while the main stage would host student performances and celebrity shows. My heart raced with anticipation. Just thinking about enjoying delicious food and fun sights made me smile involuntarily.

Since the Academy was quite large, I worried about the crowds that would gather from all around.

Well, I had more important things to worry about.

“…Hmm.”

I placed my hand on my chest. The brief sensation I felt yesterday remained vivid in my memory, but I couldn’t feel it anymore. Everything felt normal now.

It was a sensation I never wanted to experience again. I stroked my chest and got up, determined to have another peaceful day. With a small groan, I stretched and took a deep breath.

My chest expanded fully and then deflated. If I were a frog, I might have croaked and puffed out my cheeks.

I noticed the Professor sleeping with slumped shoulders. She must not have slept well last night, as the area under her eyes looked dark even while sleeping.

The Professor’s morning usually began at 6 AM.

It was still only 5 AM. I quietly got up from where I was sitting. The bed was so soft that the Professor didn’t notice my movement.

I approached the window. Slipping through the gap in the curtains gave me the feeling of sneaking around.

I opened the door. I thought how nice it was to have a door connecting to a balcony in such a large room. The dark sky at 5 AM was beginning to spread a blue light, heralding the coming dawn.

The brightening colors of the sky spreading.

I leaned against the railing and quietly observed the scenery.

People perceive the same things differently depending on their circumstances. That’s probably true for all beings, not just humans, but I felt it deeply.

When I first met the Professor, I felt strange. Thinking back on it was certainly painful, but I thought I could endure it if I considered it the turning point that allowed me to escape from that time.

It had been a year since I started coming and going from the lab until I could step into the world wearing normal clothes like this. Remembering this time, which wasn’t long but wasn’t short either, I smiled bitterly.

“Ourr?!”

While I was grinning and looking outside, I heard the Professor’s panicked voice. Startled, I turned my head. Perhaps because the curtain was between us, she seemed to think I had disappeared.

I took off my slippers and slightly opened the door to find the Professor already up and coming toward me.

“…Professor?”

“Ah, there you are.”

It seemed she was about to check the balcony first because she couldn’t see me. When I emerged from there, her expression changed from surprise to relief.

The Professor, who had been clutching her chest in alarm, approached me and embraced me tightly.

Feeling her strong embrace, I stood dazed for a moment before awkwardly raising my hands to hug her back. Though I wondered what this was all about so early in the morning, it wasn’t something to dwell on for long.

Yesterday, when I felt strange and panicked, the Professor had tilted her head in concern, so I figured this was an extension of that emotion.

“I’m right here.”

I told the Professor this and quietly closed my eyes.

As I held her tightly with my eyes closed to reassure her, I felt her warmth and a pleasant pressure.

“Yes.”

The Professor must have been quite anxious, as she nodded and continued to embrace me.

I thought about how I wanted to enjoy the festival with the Professor, doing various activities together.

The morning started with a somewhat unsettled atmosphere, but it was fine.

After composing our emotions, we went to the Academy.

On Tuesdays, there was a third-year lecture in the afternoon called “Demon God Magic Studies.” This was the crucial lecture that helped the Professor create her original magic, making me think such lectures were essential for anyone wanting to create new original magic.

Since it was about creating new magic based on Demon God characteristics, the class taught about Demon God habits, which caught my interest.

I don’t know if it was because I was a Demon God myself, but I was interested and listened attentively to the Professor’s lecture.

I sat next to Sera and listened intently as if hearing an interesting story.

“…Each Demon God has its own characteristics. Methods of living eternally, ways of self-healing, ways to avoid injury—they all possess systems in their bodies aimed at longevity.”

The Professor continued her lecture while writing large letters on the blackboard.

I nodded, trying to absorb the information. Although this was a lecture for a different department’s major, Sera seemed interested and was also taking notes diligently, probably because it was related to her credits.

Looking at her rapid pen movements, I could see she was scribbling hastily. When I first saw her organized notes, her handwriting was beautiful, but now she seemed focused solely on capturing everything the Professor said.

She looked quite impressive, laughing at jokes but remaining serious in this setting.

“Just as we instinctively close our eyes when something flies toward our face or defend ourselves with our hands without thinking, Demon Gods also have their own defense mechanisms. And the same applies when they attack.”

The Professor’s well-organized lecture was so easy to understand that it seemed simple enough to comprehend even for someone attending a third-year lecture for the first time.

Of course, one would need to attend first and second-year lectures to truly grasp everything.

“Just as a lion attacks with its teeth and a horse with its hind legs, each has its own unique characteristics. Does anyone know what my original magic is?”

With a swift motion, dozens of students in the room raised their hands.

Every single student raised their hand, which was amazing. I thought, “Our Professor is quite popular!”

The Professor smiled wryly at the students’ response. She searched her pocket and took out a ring she had brought.

The lecture hall filled with sounds of awe, as if they were seeing some legendary item. It seemed they could identify the Professor’s original magic just by seeing that ring.

“This is my original magic. It’s a common concept among Demon Gods. It’s the result of redefining the concept of a large vessel that humans cannot possess through magical formulation. While this concept is common for Demon Gods, uncommon concepts were needed to make it accessible to humans. Demon God Magic Studies is now at the stage of dealing with such things. Since you’re third-years, your final exam will involve creating something like this.”

“Ahhh.”

It was a moment when admiration turned into sighs.

The Professor smiled. She seemed accustomed to such reactions from students and shook her head mercilessly.

“Now, now.”

The Professor skillfully clapped her hands to change the atmosphere.

“Our Ourr, everyone knows her now. It’s quite adorable how this course, which used to be attended mainly by department students, has become so popular that students from other departments want to take it as an elective or a double major.”

“…Eh?”

The Professor’s arm extended.

At her voice directed at me, numerous gazes turned my way. Students sitting in front turned to look at me. Even Sera beside me glanced at me with a smile in her eyes.

The atmosphere seemed to relax a bit, as if this was casual conversation rather than a fast-paced lecture.

As I sat there with a blank expression, the Professor began talking about me.

“You might wonder, ‘If each Demon God has different characteristics, what characteristics does Ourr have?’ But Ourr was a Demon God without such aggression, so I haven’t confirmed anything. Given situations like this, we say that even the smallest personality traits of a Demon God constitute their individuality.”

“Then are there some that don’t have any such individuality at all? Ourr might not have any abilities.”

I perked up my ears slightly, but no good answer came.

Disappointed as much as I had hoped, I slumped my shoulders.

“While I haven’t seen a case with absolutely no abilities, if you research with the possibility in mind, you might get good results. It’s a good perspective to consider lack of individuality as a form of individuality itself. That’s a good question. I’d like to discuss this over coffee sometime.”

The Professor answered a student’s question earnestly and then smiled while staring at that student.

The student froze with an “uh” and then lowered their head. Seeing this, Sera put her hand on her chin and fell into thought.

“What’s wrong, Sera?”

“If I had asked such a question, would she have offered me something even if I had no goal?”

“…What?”

“The academy, I mean.”

“Really?”

I tilted my head, wondering why she suddenly brought up the academy.

Sera glanced at me and placed her hand on my head.

“Should I tie your hair for you today, Ourr?”

“Hmm, no, I’m too lazy today.”

I shook my head. As I gathered my fluffy hair in my arms, Sera let out a squeal. Then she started playing with the hair cradled in my arms.