Chapter 16: You are a more reserved person than I thought

People’s tastes vary widely.  

As long as it doesn’t cross over from passion into the realm of crime, I think it’s worth respecting.  

That’s what “taste” is, after all.  

Hmm, hmm.

Likewise, I believe liking pretty, cute, or beautiful things is just inevitable.  

Even preferring sleekly polished stones or twigs is human nature—how could it be any different with people?  

If anything, human interactions are all about nitpicking over every little detail.  

“Did I hold you up when you had something to do?”  

“No, it’s fine. I’ve got plenty of time.”  

And so, I declare myself not guilty.  

‘Yep, gold hair beats silver any day.’  

Flowing golden locks.  

A beautiful face that lifts your mood just by looking at it.  

Not too overwhelming, but with a glamorous yet slender figure—perfect.  

And that person is standing right in front of me!  

‘Is my love luck finally normalizing?’  

Dressed impeccably in black, she seemed like the fated partner handpicked by the gods, finally appearing before me.  

[The goddess frowns dramatically, clucking her tongue at the fickle hero’s lack of principles.]  

Somewhere, I could faintly hear the jealous voice of that tacky silver-haired goddess, but today it sounded especially distant.  

She’s the one who kept nagging me to get into a relationship, and now that I’m taking it seriously, she’s got something to say?  

There’s no way such a selfish goddess could actually exist.  

“Oh, then could you tell me which way to the main administrative building?”  

“I’m heading that way anyway, so I’ll just take you there.”  

“Hmm, you’re really kind.”  

The more I listened, the more her voice matched my taste too.  

Ten minutes until the lecture starts.  

It might seem tight, but this is usually plenty of time.  

Since it wasn’t too far off my usual route, I decided to guide her to the main building. It’s just the building next to the Combat Department, after all.  

Well, it’s not exactly nearby—it’s a bit of a walk, and I’d never actually been there myself.  

But even without going, you could find pretty much any info you needed on the campus community boards.  

Ever since I discovered the school’s online community last time, I’d been poring over popular posts and announcements, learning a ton.  

I’d memorized all the key facilities, notices, and schedules.  

[“Wow, I wanna lick that hot guy’s neck.”]  

[“So many people begging to get sued these days.”]  

[“Is that red sprout already a sign of fall?”]  

There was a lot of stuff I didn’t need to know, sure, but at least I’d confirmed I was in demand in this world.  

Knowing I could meet someone anytime I wanted made me wonder what’s so different from the fantasy continent.  

‘But here, I can casually flirt like this!’  

Back there, everyone already knew who I was.  

Oops—being too famous as a hero can be a real hassle.  

A popular guy can’t just wander around freely.  

[The goddess furrows her brow, about to unleash some harsh curses…]  

Anyway, the main administrative building handles the Academy’s overall operations. 

It’s the place to go for most administrative issues, and they usually get resolved there.  

According to half-joking community posts, it’s where all the top school officials gather.  

There’s even a rumor that it’s called the “main building” because shadowy figures hold meetings there before making big decisions.  

In creepier, urban-legend territory, some say there’s a button in the basement that could blow up the entire Academy.  

Or that an abyssal monster lurks down there, biding its time.  

‘If a campus-wide bomb went off all at once, even I might be in trouble.’  

The abyss or monster stuff doesn’t scare me—those are my specialties.  

At this stage, pure physical force like a hydrogen bomb might actually be trickier to deal with.  

I’m not in peak condition to take a hit like that without a scratch.  

Beasts or demons?

Dark magic?  

Even if thousands of them swarmed me at once, they’d be my lunch.  

I’ve spent half my life crushing those things.  

Hmm? I’m not sure how I ended up spiraling into these thoughts, though.  

“Here we are.”  

Before I knew it, we’d arrived at the main building.  

It looks far at first, but once you start walking, it’s quick, right?  

The stunning blonde woman gave me a deep smile, her expression tinged with curiosity.  

“You’re quieter than I expected.”  

“…Yeah, I guess I am.”  

It’s not so much my nature as it is that I’ve had a lot on my mind lately.  

Well, to some extent, it’s because of this person, so it’s not entirely untrue.  

Sadly, I’ve also been forced into being quiet because I rarely get the chance to talk to women.  

“Thanks, let’s meet again if we get the chance.”  

“Sure, looking forward to it.”  

We coolly shook hands, exchanged farewells, and parted ways right there.  

[The goddess looks at the hero with a baffled expression, as if she’s seen something bizarre.]  

[(=_=)]  

[She’s dumbfounded, asking why I didn’t make a bolder move or at least get her number.]  

Hmm, I did consider it, sure.  

But I’m the type who cares about appearances and also peers into someone’s inner self.  

People who haven’t dated in a long time tend to have higher standards, you know.  

My dating criteria are the perfect characters from manga or anime!  

—If I said that, the goddess would definitely chew me out again, so I kept it to myself.  

Turning my head, I muttered as I watched the woman disappear into the main building.  

“Who’d have thought the rumors were actually true?”  

I’d briefly wondered about this overly generous world that even embraces dark magic, but in the end, I still preferred humans my own age.  

***

Inside the main building’s basement:  

Patterns of gold and jewels formed a massive magic circle, its lines intricate and grand.  

Walking a path brimming with wealth and glory, the woman loosened her golden hair and flexed her hand.  

“Hmm, what an interesting guy.”  

She could tell he’d figured something out—acting friendly on the surface while keeping his distance.  

On the flip side, she’d tried to peek into his inner self, but couldn’t see a thing.

What kind of monster was he?  

It’d been decades since she last encountered a monster strolling so casually on the streets like that.  

“The barrier’s still intact, though. Wait, did some lesser god or demon sneak in somewhere?”  

That’d be a problem.  

This was her territory, after all.  

Crunch, crack—

Her appearance soon twisted, reshaping into a new form.  

Shedding her pitch-black robe and hanging it on a rack, she began unloading accessories onto a desk as the transformation continued.  

Snap—crack—

Her sleek frame shrank slightly, but the mana within grew fiercer and more powerful, radiating a holy light all on its own.  

Having completed her transformation, the blonde mage exhaled and surveyed the room.  

With bored expressions, these were the great mages who decided the fate of the world.  

Among them, Archmage Arhen Gustav, who held the title of Academy Chairman, waved a hand lazily and spoke.  

“I’m not into dragging things out, so let’s get to the point. 

A massive causal shift intervened in the world not long ago.”  

It happened roughly a hundred days prior—coinciding with the hero’s return.  

***

“Over there! Go that way!”  

“No, not there, you idiot!”  

Sometimes, I think the old sages were onto something.  

‘Even a sheet of paper is easier to carry when two people lift it.’  

They said even simple tasks become much easier when people work together.  

But there’s also the saying, ‘Too many boatmen send the boat up a mountain.’  

‘This feels like they just threw out random proverbs and somehow hit the mark.’  

In this case, it leaned more toward the latter.  

Propping my chin on my hand, I watched the cadets scurrying around in the forest.  

“Oh, that team’s toast.”  

“The forest is too dense—they couldn’t even find the target.”  

“They should’ve found it somehow, though.”  

This was a group assignment for a special mission from the professor.  

Each team had been tasked with finding a specific object in the forest.  

It wasn’t just a simple trail—this woodland was broader than most, making it genuinely tough to locate anything.  

‘If I’m being picky, I’d say it’s weird the school even has a place like this.’  

Is this why it’s nice to have money?  

A school with its own special autonomous district really has everything.  

“Next up, Team 13.”  

Like the other kids running around, it was about time for us to get moving too.  

This was a two-person team exercise, so I’d been paired with a partner.  

I don’t know why professors are so obsessed with group work, collaboration, and joint assignments.  

But thankfully, it’s someone I already know.  

Sephine Alabad.  

A genius summoner—and the golden goblin who bolted the other day—was in my group again here.  

Hmm. 

But this girl keeps avoiding my gaze.  

***

Sephine Alabad had been thinking for days.  

‘Today, I’ll say it.’  

Even if it’s embarrassing, confessing her feelings as a woman was the trend these days.  

She’d come to terms with it.  

Yes, she was a sucker for looks and charm, and it seemed she’d fallen for a classmate in her department.  

But having never cared about love before, she had no idea how to handle these newfound feelings.  

She wanted to be smooth about it, but she lacked the confidence!  

‘…What do I do about this?’  

When she subtly asked her family’s butler for advice, he said “ice-breaking”—creating a good atmosphere—was key.  

And now, she’d ended up in the same group for this class.  

After shining here, she’d make up for awkwardly running off last time, right on the spot.  

With that resolve, she set her sights on the forest depths, determined to score big this time.  

‘I know forests well, don’t I?’  

As a kid, she’d played in the woods near her family estate and often hunted with the family elders.  

Being an elite, she even had a firm grasp of herbology.  

It was time to win with brains—superior knowledge.  

“Oh, jackpot. A blue star nettle.”  

“…”  

Ah.  

For some reason, my partner seemed to know even more than I did.