Ch.76Chapter 76

“Delicious!”

I looked up. Every time I did, the Professor would hold a tissue and vigorously wipe my mouth. If I did it myself, I could clean it with gentle pressure, but it seemed she wasn’t very skilled at wiping someone else’s mouth.

My lips fumbled under the Professor’s touch, which was rough despite appearing gentle.

I winced, thinking my lips might get squished. Still, I could see the Professor smiling with satisfaction, as if she’d managed to clean me up properly with her forceful approach.

My lips felt slightly sore, so I touched them. At least they were clean—nothing came off on my fingers.

After eating stir-fried udon with Karen and cube steak with the Professor, plus various other foods, my money had decreased quite a bit. I had 50 Riel, then spent it, received another 50 Riel, spent that too, and nearly emptied my pockets.

Well, I still had some left.

About 42…

I jingled the coins as I stuffed them into my pocket and looked up.

I’d let my guard down. An unexpected expense had appeared. Since I wasn’t originally a Demon God, I sometimes forgot that I was one now.

I wanted to think “I should know better after living like this for over a year!” but it was difficult to constantly remember that no matter how much I ate, I never felt full.

I only stopped eating when the people beside me said they couldn’t eat anymore. While I enjoyed eating various foods with others, it was frustrating that I had no limit.

After stopping and looking around, I paused briefly before letting out a sigh.

“Let’s go to the booths now! They have bumper cars.”

I pulled the Professor’s hand and looked toward Karen. Just as we were all heading toward the event booths, I felt a vibration against my chest.

Startled, I stopped in place and lowered my head.

I pulled out the phone from my inner pocket and realized Sera was calling.

“…Uh, hello?”

[Ourr, where are you? I’m about to head over with Aria.]

“I’m heading to the event booths with the Professor and Karen right now.”

[What? No, Aria! It’s your fault we’re late! They’re already at the event booths! I’ll be right there! Don’t do too much without us!]

With that, Sera abruptly hung up.

“Huh?”

The call ended before I could say anything else, leaving me staring blankly at the screen. After a few seconds, the call end screen returned to the usual lock screen.

“Who was that? Sera?”

As I stood still holding my phone, the Professor tilted her head curiously.

I nodded, answering in a dazed voice, and the Professor asked another question.

“What’s wrong? Did she say she’s not coming to the Academy today?”

“No, she said she’s coming, but I was surprised because the call suddenly ended.”

“I see.”

The Professor urged me to keep walking, saying that was fine then. Karen gently grabbed my shoulder and guided me forward. As I walked, being pushed along, I looked up at Karen.

“Karen.”

“Yes?”

“Do you like bumper cars?”

“…Bumper cars?”

Karen made a face that suggested she didn’t understand what I meant.

And that expression quickly changed to shock.

“W-wait… I’ve heard about bumper cars as an amusement ride, but I’ve never heard of this kind of bumper car before?”

Motorcycle models made of cardboard. They were neither proper toys nor impressive sculptures, but this was a world where magic existed.

The wheels being bicycle wheels was a bit disappointing, but it was still impressive to see the motorcycles start up with mana as if they were real bikes.

[Welcome to the Motorcycle Club! We’ve made motorcycle models out of cardboard for safety. This creates an innovative design that prevents serious impact when colliding. You normally don’t get to experience collisions on regular motorcycles. Experience thrills you can’t find at any amusement park! If you don’t want to crash but still want to show off your driving skills, try zipping around avoiding those trying to crash into you! The permitted space is quite large!]

It was a spacious area. The perimeter was lined with mats to prevent serious injuries from collisions.

The club staff member holding the microphone was trying to promote how fun it would be to curious onlookers. They had prepared quite a few bikes. While the wheels might be expensive, the cardboard itself was relatively easy to obtain if one was determined.

Compared to regular bumper cars with solid bodies and rubber bumpers to reduce impact, this was definitely something new.

A cardboard body that could be destroyed, except for the wheels. What amusement park would ever hold such a destructive event? Intrigued, I looked at the Professor with sparkling eyes.

The Professor’s reaction wasn’t positive.

“Even if it’s just cardboard…”

She looked at the prepared bikes with an apprehensive expression.

It was an event only possible in a world with magic—something that could never be done with the technology from where I originally lived—and it was depressing to think I couldn’t participate.

I was really interested in how magic circles substituted for engines.

I had money and could participate… but couldn’t ride.

“Karen… enjoy it for me…”

Pouting, I handed Karen 10 Riel. Karen frantically shook her head and hands.

“No, no! I’m not good with bikes… And it wouldn’t feel right for me to ride alone without you… These things are more fun when you ride together, you know?”

“……”

As she stepped back, refusing to take the money, my coins had nowhere to go.

I wanted to try it too.

I glanced up at the Professor, who gave a bitter smile. With slumped shoulders, as if she couldn’t help it, the Professor quietly approached the students and asked:

“Excuse me, can guardians ride along?”

“Oh, yes! Are you going to ride yourself, Professor?!”

The student immediately recognized the Professor, either from her attire or because her face was well-known, and stood at attention while asking.

The Professor shook her head and pointed to where Karen and I were standing. The male student who had stiffened his posture stared at me.

“I was wondering if those kids could ride together.”

“Hmm, well, if one person is small it might be okay, but it would be safer to ride separately. Having two people on one bike might be dangerous if they bump into each other.”

“Is that so?”

“But we can arrange a session for people who want to ride gently. We have a limited number of cardboard bikes anyway, so we can only use so many per session.”

The Professor nodded, seemingly reassured by the explanation that addressed her concerns.

“Would four people be okay then?”

“Yes, just let us know what time, and we’ll set aside a slot for you.”

When the Professor asked various questions, she received positive answers.

The Professor handed money to the student, looking surprised that they would go to such lengths.

“You’re not doing this because I’m a professor, right?”

“Not at all. It’s first-come, first-served, and for groups, we can arrange for everyone to ride together at once.”

“…But I’m not sure if this is safe.”

“Our department professor gave us permission.”

“……”

The Professor fell silent and just nodded. Regardless of which department it was, the fact that the Motorcycle Club could set up this booth was thanks to that unknown professor.

“Yay!”

I jumped up and hugged the Professor.

The Professor smiled and patted my shoulder.

“I’ve paid, so when the others arrive, you can all ride together.”

“…I could have paid for this…”

“No, just think of it as study group activity funds.”

The Professor nodded at Karen’s words, saying it was fine. Karen bowed her head in thanks.

Not long after, Sera and Aria found their way to us. Sera’s hair was slightly disheveled, as if she had rushed over while with Aria.

She could use a bit of combing.

But first, we needed to ride this.

“Sera! Aria! Come quickly!”

I waved my hands enthusiastically, urging them to hurry. They ran over without knowing what was happening and looked at the Motorcycle Club’s event.

As the first customers who had just managed to gather enough people were riding, Sera stared in shock.

“What is that?”

“…Motorcycle bumper cars?”

Thud!

Two bikes collided. But there was only the sound of boxes crumpling against each other, with no human casualties afterward. When the dull sound occurred and the magic circles prevented the bikes from moving further, everyone stopped and backed away.

In fact, by the time the timeout approached, most people deliberately crashed into each other for one final satisfying collision, so that was the typical ending.

“The Professor paid for everything! Let’s ride!”

I grabbed their hands and pulled them forward.

As I climbed onto a bike, I grinned and gripped the handlebars. A staff member approached and gave me instructions.

“Hold on tight here. Put your legs in this part. Inject mana into the left handle to start, and into the right handle to brake. The speed is quite fast, so be careful not to hurt yourself.”

“Got it.”

I nodded seriously.

The others seemed to have received the same explanation from staff members, as they all looked up and made eye contact.

Cardboard everything except the wheels—it was time to start this unusual bike ride.

[Alright, start!]

There was no typical motorcycle noise. At the organizer’s signal, three bikes quickly accelerated.

I tilted my head in confusion. “Huh?”

Wait, I just realized I don’t know how to inject mana.

While the three others were already speeding along and enjoying themselves, I was left alone, just watching the scene.

“……”

What is this? I want to play too.

In desperation, I gripped the handlebars and shook them, but all I felt was the unstable sensation of cardboard.