Chapter 17: Butterfly Dream: The Illusion Begins

Whoosh…

The old steam train caught fire once again.

The fire boils the water, creating high-pressure steam, which in turn moves the massive train.

It’s a simple principle that moves a giant train,

enough to be called magic, but

in a place with real magic, it’s hardly used.

The current situation is a prime example.

Teleportation would take less than five seconds, but

how long will it take by train…?

When I went to the conductor and asked,

“Can’t you cast a speed-increasing spell on the train?”

“Well~ My lord, I’ll be arrested if I use magic…”

This was the response I received.

Damn it.

Most people use teleportation to travel, so only tourist trains remain. They rely only on magic, so they can’t cope when a situation arises where magic is blocked. This damn empire, if only its politics weren’t so corrupt.

…Is that a good thing?

Whatever magic circle they’re drawing, it’s taking a long time.

A week to draw one magic circle?

I lightly tapped Arthur’s shoulder as he was looking for a seat.

“So, what kind of magic circle are they drawing?”

Arthur answered while looking at the seat map on the wall.

His finger pointed to A-2, the highest-grade compartment.

Wow, he spent some money.

“It’s probably the restoration of the national-level defensive holy magic barrier.”

“Aha.”

“Since it’ll take about a day, look for this or something.”

Ah, that barrier was the decisive factor in the empire’s revival.

It’s said to be able to block the invasions of the northern barbarians and the eastern country, and even multiple great magics.

Tsk, even so, the barrier I cast would be much better.

…But a day?

“If it takes a day, is it a compartment type?”

“Ah, yes! It’s a top-grade couple’s compartment with you, teacher!”

…F*ck?

I became even more disconcerted watching Arthur add, “The Headmaster said to have a happy trip since it’s going to take a long time.”

Didn’t Duke Inverness see the words in front when he bought the top-grade compartment?

‘Duo’ is a compartment for people in a general relationship.

‘Couple’ is… a compartment for people in that kind of relationship, that’s common sense in the empire.

I usually take off my mask when I shower, but

if I take it off in front of Arthur, it’s obvious that a disaster will occur.

He might not kill me for having the same face as the Saintess, but

there’s a high possibility that even the settings revealed in the author’s notes have been implemented.

What setting?

The setting revealed in the chapter where the Saintess died was this:

‘Arthur’s first love is the Saintess, and even if he ends up with a heroine, he won’t forget her!’

If it were just this, I wouldn’t be so worried, but,

‘When Arthur falls in love, he’s unexpectedly possessive, despite his personality!’

…F*ck.

But if I don’t shower, I’ll give off the impression of being dirty, which will damage my concept of a neat professor…

But how suspicious would it be to tell him to leave the compartment because we’re both men and I’m going to shower?

Arthur is kind, so he’ll leave, but

if he unconsciously becomes suspicious or peeks out of curiosity, it’s game over.

Right, let’s use magic.

Although I’m forbidden to use magic by imperial decree,

that only applies to large-scale magic like teleportation or weather manipulation, Arthur said.

So, using a tremendous amount of magic power for high-level magic is okay.

Then the problem is what kind of magic to use…

Normally, it would be fine to reconstruct my body with magic and use a kind of polymorph to shower, but

polymorph consumes a lot of magic power even among high-level magic, so the magic power is very noticeable around the body. Naturally, it’s very difficult to hide since a tremendous amount of magic power swirls around.

Arthur isn’t a student who doesn’t know about mana manipulation, so this is extremely troublesome.

Hmm…what should I do?

…Right, there’s one way.

After finishing my thoughts and raising my head, I was already inside the compartment.

Arthur dragged me in by the hand.

I checked to see if the room was divided, but

the luxurious bathroom and bed were together without a wall.

Of course, the bathroom was covered by a curtain.

Since the purpose of the train is rest, is it for lovers…?

It’s a relief that there are two beds…

I sighed quietly and called Arthur.

“Arthur, I have a favor to ask.”

Arthur, who was reading a thick book, looked up with wide eyes and said loudly.

Is he flustered? What kind of book was he reading?

“Yes? What is it?”

I took out five silver coins from my pocket and handed them to Arthur.

It’s quite a lot of money, so it’ll take a long time to buy them.

“Buy snacks with all of this, commoner snacks.”

“E-excuse me?”

Naturally, since I hadn’t shown much interest in snacks other than chocolate, Arthur was bewildered.

The compartment we’re in is a top-grade compartment, located almost at the opposite end of where they sell commoner snacks.

Even if they sell noble snacks…

…It will take quite a while to come back.

Arthur took the five silver coins and stared at them for a moment.

His blue eyes wavered slightly.

Arthur muttered quietly and started walking.

“…Even five copper coins would be quite enough for you.”

Tap, tap, tap…

Arthur started walking quickly with his magic-imbued feet.

As soon as even a single strand of Arthur’s blonde hair leaving the compartment was out of sight,

Whirr!!

!

I drew a magic circle.

The shape of a bow, drawn with pink magic power, shone brightly.

Perfect, now it’s time to start the chant.

I was a little nervous because I had never chanted before, thinking that silent casting was cooler.

I just forgot for a moment that chanting is also a fundamental method with romance, not inferior to silent casting.

It’s not that I dislike chanting.

My voice echoed in the empty compartment.

“Where butterflies become humans, and humans become butterflies.”

Flash!

Light began to fill the bow from the handle to the arrowhead.

At first glance, it’s a magic power level that can easily crush great magic, but I didn’t disobey the imperial decree, did I?

“Where everything is possible, yet everything is ephemeral.”

“Take flight, butterfly that was once human.”

Black butterflies made of magic power attached themselves to the train one by one, filling the walls.

And I give this magic I created the name of my favorite idiom.

“Butterfly Dream (Hu Die Zhi Meng).”

 

***

 

The teacher is someone who can control himself freely.

If I were to evaluate the teacher, it would probably end with that.

But to spend a commoner’s monthly salary on snacks…?

I walked towards the compartment, carrying an armful of cheap snacks.

When I arrived at the door, I heard a clear sound as if a bell was ringing in my head.

Ding-

Ah, it’s the sound that rings whenever the Holy Sword uses telepathy.

Soon, I heard a man’s voice, forcibly lowered.

‘Arthur, don’t you feel the immense amount of magic power?’

“What are you talking about? It’s the same as usual.”

‘If you stay in a place reeking of stench for a long time, your sense of smell becomes dull.’

That means…

“The entire train is currently enveloped in magic?”

‘Correct. Even you, who has released me, would struggle with this level of magic power, so be careful.’

Gulp-

I swallowed the saliva that filled my mouth due to tension.

I’ve never lost after releasing the Holy Sword.

Even Beelzebub, the 1st Legion Commander of the Demon King’s Army, was incredibly weak.

Because a strong light vanquishes strong evil and brings salvation.

And the Holy Sword, the symbol of light, immediately shattered my thoughts.

‘And the Demon King’s army isn’t over yet.’

“What?”

‘Arthur, the enemies you’ll face in the future will be beyond your imagination. Be strong.’

…Haaa.

What kind of talk is this, like at the beginning of Part 2 of a novel…

My legs gave way from the Holy Sword’s shocking statement, and I collapsed.

Click, clack.

As the compartment door opened, an unfamiliar face appeared.

And then I heard a very familiar voice.

“Arthur, are you alright?”

Grayish hair and obsidian-like black eyes.

And the familiar, unique black suit below.

This is…the teacher’s bare face…!

He looked younger than I thought.

He looked like he was in his late 20s.

Almost the same age as the other teachers at the academy.

And from somewhere,

He resembled Saintess.

“Arthur, wipe your tears.”

The teacher took out the handkerchief from my pocket and poked my eyes.

…Tears.

So I was crying.

For some reason, tears come easily when I see the teacher.

Ah, I was very rude when we first met…

“I’m sorry…”

This is the umpteenth time the teacher has wiped my tears…

Feeling complicated, wondering if it’s okay for a disciple to be like this, I let the teacher wipe my eyes.

Sniff.

It wasn’t just tears, so I sat on the floor for a while.

The teacher quietly knelt down and waited for me to calm down.

“…Take a bath first. Wouldn’t the Head of the Disciplinary Committee be teased at the academy if his eyes are puffy?”

Ah…

Whoosh…

It’s not a pleasant feeling that the outline of the body can be seen through that damn thin curtain.

Because I don’t have a taste for looking at men’s bodies.

Since the filtering disappeared when I took off the mask, I had to put all my effort into every action.

The illusion I cast had one simple yet powerful rule.

‘Make everything about Raven Pest be perceived as male.’

Face, physique, voice, everything.

In reality, my clothes felt like they were about to burst because of my chest, but that was also handled by the illusion.

My voice is also female, but that’s also handled.

Now, as long as Arthur doesn’t touch my upper body, everything is okay.

…I just hope nothing embarrassing happens.

“An illusionary realm that surpasses even mine…”

Amidst the scene of demons carrying thousands of collapsed students,

Kama was wide-eyed, not caring at all.

“Even this person… has desires, tastes, love…”

Kama put her hands on her lips and blushed.

“And lust, right…?”

Drip…

Saliva dripped from her lips, imbued with her pink energy.

She was lonely.

She finally met someone who understood her.

“There’s another ‘person’ who can feel omnipotence..!”

…For the first time since becoming a demon, which even she can’t remember.