Chapter 51 : Twitching (ears)

The library of knowledge, built not with bricks but with books, stood proudly majestic as always.

Even if I read from birth until death, would I be able to read even half of the books here?

Maybe these books are slowly dying, becoming each other’s graves, unable to find their rightful place.

“Rizelda?”

“Yeah. That Rizelda you’ve heard of. Don’t tell me you don’t know?”

“Why are you treating me like an idiot?”

Rizelda. One of the two gods, alongside Koz, who sustain this world.

They exist on a level above the main gods—as concepts, not as beings with personality like other gods. Though they are described as male and female, they exist without temples or worshippers. They are more like ideas than actual deities.

What kind of nonsense is that?

This is why I hate theology. Just hearing it gives me a headache.

“Do they even love anyone?”

Koz governs cause, Rizelda governs effect. Some even say that referring to causality with their names is an act of reverence.

“It’s a metaphor. That’s borderline blasphemy, you know?”

“I’m an atheist.”

Divine power and magic both use mana as their base, but unless it’s for healing, magic is overwhelmingly superior. Naturally, if you could

grow stronger just by believing, the world would’ve been buried under crosses already.

Since it’s not a power one earns through effort, unless you’re a high priest, most of it is weak. Though divine energy is said to be good for your

health.

Lena gently rubbed Teferi’s hand and said,

“To be loved by Rizelda means that effects appear more prominently in your life than causes.”

Clear effects? That’s a vague and cryptic statement.

Shall I give a magic-related example? I’ve never seen Teferi practice, yet her skills improve rapidly. Even faster than in the original story.

Someone must be manipulating things behind the scenes. I feel wronged!

“I guess that could be the case… It’s not a bad thing, right?”

“Huh? Not at all. If anything, it’s a bit exhausting. People like that usually have tangled causality.”

Teferi let out a sigh of relief. Seeing her, Lena smiled and continued.

“This school is always interesting. Not long ago, I saw someone here who was loved by Koz instead.”

What a bunch of idle deities. With nothing better to do, they sit around falling in love with girls.

…There’s not going to be lightning from the sky, right? Thankfully, the ceiling is closed.

“Unlike your friend, that girl had clear causes but blurry results. She had wolf ears and ran away the moment she saw me.”

“Wolf ears?”

I frowned and asked back.

As far as I know, there’s only one beastkin with wolf ears at the academy.

‘What the hell is she up to?’

Now that I think about it, I haven’t heard from her in days. That wretched girl. Teferi opened her eyes wide and asked curiously,

[You can see things like that?]

“My mother’s a witch. I can see things that ordinary people struggle to perceive. Not clearly, but faintly.”

[Things hard to see like…?]

“For example, desire. Let’s see.”

Lena gave my body a quick scan from top to bottom. Being stared at like that made me feel oddly embarrassed.

She sighed lightly as she looked at me.

“Trea, I’ve seen you before, but you really are so closed off… There’s nothing in your head but magic.”

“Is that a compliment?”

“Depends on the situation. Now, let’s see about this friend.”

Seeing desire, huh… It sounds silly but fascinating. She read what was in my head exactly.

Just as she did to me, she slowly scanned Teferi’s body. Teferi, like me, looked awkward and kept shifting her foot against the ground.

“Huh?”

I can understand why it’s taking longer than it did with me. I’m a simple person.

But even after a while, Lena only tilted her head in confusion.

“Hmmm?”

She even glanced at me. The last time I felt this sensation was in the black forest—with that unicorn. It was almost the same reaction.

After quite a while, the observation ended. She stepped back, looking somewhat drained.

“She’s scarier than I thought… Maybe I should call her bold. Come to think of it, those books…”

Books? The title of the thick book she borrowed was partially hidden, but I caught the phrase “~binding tightly.”

Ah, I get it now! Teferi wants to become Santa Claus. Put everyone to sleep and leave beautifully wrapped gifts by their pillows.

Makes perfect sense—if only this world had Christmas.

Ignoring my question, Lena patted Teferi’s shoulder.

“It’s okay, wizards are more open-minded about things like that than you’d think. Good luck!”

“…What was that about?”

“Heh, it’s a secret for traitors who skipped last class. Bye now!”

Having said everything she wanted, Lena disappeared between the bookshelves with a wave of encouragement. Now I’m just more curious.

“What exactly is your desire?”

I asked, but Teferi only made a confused face. Fair enough—most people don’t even know what they want.

I decided to ask her again sometime, and we left the library.

“Speak of the devil, and she shall appear.”

Something greater than a tiger appeared. Is today special or what? The moment I think of someone, they show up.

Amither walked toward me slowly. First time in three days.

“Where were you?”

“Visiting my siblings. I stepped out briefly.”

“Siblings?”

As we walked, she shared her story. Turns out she’s the head of a large household of more than ten.

Not biological siblings—she’s known these beastkin since long before attending the academy.

Even with her skills, feeding that many alone must’ve been hard. Is that why she asked for money back then?

‘Wolf ears.’

No matter how hard I look, she’s the only one at the academy with them.

In fact, I probably know her the most—and yet the least. Supposedly my closest friend, but she didn’t even appear in the original story.

“Shut it.”

‘…Fair.’

Maybe it’s because there’s no class today, but there were tons of students on the street. I’m used to the looks I get by now.

After my senses sharpened, I started hearing their whispers clearly, too.

They probably still see me as the nasty villainess. It doesn’t bother me much, but it’s impossible not to notice.

In that sense, I was thankful for Amither, who held my hand and guided me through the crowd. Her grip was tight, almost painful—but I didn’t mind it.

It’s a hard-to-describe feeling. People who care for you are always precious.

“Hey, Ami.”

Soon, the crowd thinned. She looked back at me without a word. Truth be told, I’d called her for no real reason—just felt like it.

Thinking for a moment, I blurted out something I’d been wondering about.

“…Can I touch your ears? Just once?”

“No.”

A cold, sharp rejection. So prickly.

I knew she’d refuse, so I gave up quickly and started walking again.

“Oh, by the way. When I was with Teferi earlier, something came up…”

Amither stopped in her tracks. With a slightly stiff expression, she asked me,

“…You were with her? But today’s a day off, isn’t it?”

Seriously? Maybe she’s just as much of an introverted loner as me.

You can meet people on days off, you know.

“If your hearts align, you can meet anytime.”

Of course, “hearts aligning” is just another way to say “we ran into each other.” It’s not exactly wrong.

Hearing that we were together, Amither’s face darkened slightly as she touched her chin. Soon, she sat me down on a quiet bench nearby.

“Go ahead.”

“What?”

“Touch them. Just this once—I’ll allow it.”

She sat right next to me, leaning her head forward, but turned away so I couldn’t see her face.

What’s gotten into her? Not that I’m complaining—I’m not one to turn down an opportunity.

I gently reached out and stroked her head. Through her hair, a soft ear emerged.

‘Oh!’

Her wolf ears, perched atop her head, felt like a puppy’s—soft and smooth. When I rubbed the tip, she shuddered.

“H-Hurry up already.”

“Ah, yeah.”

I gave a half-hearted answer and continued. They felt so soft.

I even cupped her head with both hands and rubbed gently. She twitched a little, clearly ticklish, but I didn’t stop.

“Hey, enough already!”

There was no room to turn her neck.

She covered her face with both hands.

As her breathing got heavier, she covered her mouth and held her breath.

“What’s wrong?”

Wiggle, wiggle. Her ears, covered in real fur, were far softer than human ears.

It felt like touching luxury fur. No wonder she doesn’t want people touching them.

…But why is she—

Suddenly?

“T-That’s enough! It tickles!”

My touch must have really tickled her—she finally pushed my hand away and raised her head.

Her face was red, something I’d never seen before. She waved her hand to cool off and looked visibly embarrassed after calming down.

“Haa, that’s it. Don’t ask for that again.”

Her tone had softened a little. Maybe I could ask to touch her tail too?

“While we’re at it, can I touch your tail just once?”

“…Do you not know what it means to ask a beastkin to let you touch their tail? Goodbye.”

She gave me a sharp look and walked away toward her dorm.

I really didn’t know what it meant.

“…Ah.”

Curious, I looked it up myself despite the hassle, and apparently touching a beastkin’s tail is a sign of courtship or seduction.

Ha…

…It’s kind of erotic, actually