episode_0002

“What you showed the child earlier.”

This was the first thing Johanna said after parting ways with the child.

I was staring blankly at her face, so my reply was slightly delayed.

What I showed the child earlier, huh. She must be talking about the illusion.

“Ah, this, you mean?”

*Snap.*

As the sound of my fingers snapping echoed, a butterfly appeared, flapping its wings and flying in the air.

She stopped walking and gazed intently at the butterfly.

I, who had been walking with her, also stopped.

Standing still in the middle of the street, both of us stopped, I could feel eyes drawn to us. People had been staring since earlier, but now that we were standing still, it was definitely noticeable.

Was it because of her beautiful appearance, or my unusual attire? I couldn’t tell.

“….It’s unnatural.”

She opened her mouth after staring at the butterfly for a long time.

Unnatural? I shifted my gaze from her to the butterfly. No matter how I looked at it, it was just a normal butterfly.

“Unnatural, what do you mean by that?”

“Its wingbeats.”

Hearing Johanna’s words, I scrutinized the wingbeats, but to me, I couldn’t find any difference from a normal butterfly.

“Hmm. I really can’t tell, no matter how I look!”

However, I couldn’t dismiss her words. When using illusions, I had to precisely imagine the image of the object I wanted to create. That’s why when I first tried, the form was unrecognizable.

Johanna’s intuition had been mentioned several times even within Croaka, so it was possible she might have noticed the subtle difference from a real butterfly.

“Still, thank you for the advice! I’ll have to try harder in the future.”

She stared at me intently, as if my words surprised her. It’s embarrassing to be stared at like that.

“Aren’t you uncomfortable?”

“Uncomfortable? What do you mean?”

“That, your unique magic.”

Could it be that she was bothered by my casual talk about my unique skill?

Indeed, for people here, a third party, not even a teacher, commenting on their swordsmanship or magic was tantamount to picking a fight. But that’s ‘people here’, and I’m not one of them, am I?

“Actually, I’m even happier that you pointed out my unique magic! If I accept that advice, I can become stronger.”

Hearing my words, Johanna’s mouth slightly parted as she stared at me. For someone whose emotions aren’t easily shown, this level of reaction meant she seemed quite surprised. By the way, her surprised expression is cute too!

“A peculiar person.”

She said that and then resumed walking.

“Peculiar person is fine, but if possible, please remember me as a special person.”

Hearing my words, Johanna’s lips curved upwards. Just a slight upward curve of her lips made her look even more beautiful. Did she just smile?

“Did you just smile?”

“…No.”

Of course, they went down right away, but her lips definitely curved upwards.

“But your lips clearly curved upwards?”

“You saw wrong.”

“But I saw it clearly?”

“…………..”

Johanna, whether sulking or embarrassed by my words, stared at me silently with a pout. So incredibly cute!

Without a word, she increased her walking pace from her usual speed.

“Johanna Senior-nim! Let’s go together!”

I chattered beside her as she walked quickly. Things like what her favorite food was, if there were good restaurants nearby, and so on. She mostly ignored me, probably embarrassed, but even that I liked.

“Johanna Senior-nim, aren’t you curious about anything else about me~?”

Hearing my question about whether she had any more curiosities, Johanna suddenly stopped. And then, timidly, she pointed at the staff I was holding in one hand.

“That sword.”

I was surprised that she called my staff a sword. Because it *was* a sword, and I myself didn’t know it was a sword at first, only realizing it later. To recognize it instantly like that.

“Wow~ How did you know this was a sword? Everyone else sees it as a staff, so you really are amazing, Academy Senior-nim!”

When I infused magic into the staff, its ordinary tip sharpened.

“Ta-da~.”

I showed her the staff that had transformed into a sword, and her eyes wouldn’t leave it. Come to think of it, within Croaka, swords were the only things she ever showed interest in.

“If it’s alright, would you like to hold it once?”

“….Is that allowed?”

At my question, she looked at me with sparkling eyes. Her blank eyes are cute, but! Her sparkling eyes are cute too!

“Yes! Of course. For Johanna Senior-nim, I could even take off and give you this mask, which I treasure the most, not just this!”

I handed the staff over to her. For a Swordsman, a sword is said to be like their life, but for me, it was just a pointy stick.

“I don’t need the mask.”

“Whoosh! I’m hurt.”

I made a strange sound with my mouth, then sat down and drew circles on the floor with my finger. She, meanwhile, paid no mind and examined the staff she received from me from every angle.

After examining my staff for a while, she returned it to me.

“Thank you.”

“It’s nothing at all. I’m the one who should thank you for coming to the Academy with me.”

“….Do you want to hold my sword too?”

For Johanna, who was so serious about swords, to say something like that! But unlike her, I didn’t have much interest in swords.

“I’m fine!”

“…………..”

Oh, she’s sulking.

“Just kidding! Actually, I really want to see Senior-nim’s sword!”

“….Really?”

“Yes, of course! A sword used by Senior-nim, I’m extremely curious. I only refused because I wondered if someone like me was allowed to touch it.”

“It’s alright.”

Johanna handed me the sword, and I carefully took it. Considering her family, it was a rather plain sword. However, its incredibly well-maintained blade showed how much care she put into it.

After examining her sword like that, I returned it to her.

“……..”

When I returned the sword, Johanna silently stared at me intently. What is it? ….No way!

“It’s… a very fine sword.”

*Nod.* She nodded silently.

Cu-cute!

.

.

.

Walking along with her like that, we eventually arrived at the Academy.

And I was overwhelmed by the Academy’s actual appearance, seeing it in person.

Its size was on a different dimension compared to real-world universities. The Academy building showed signs of age, but that didn’t mean it looked old. This was the stage of Croaka!

I felt glad that I had come to the Academy. Of course, not getting expelled from the Academy was harder than getting admitted, but I was confident I wouldn’t be expelled.

The Academy guard was wary of my suspicious attire, but perhaps realizing who the woman beside me was, he let me through. This wasn’t because she was the daughter of a ducal family, but because she was an Academy disciplinary officer.

“Johanna!”

Just then, a girl came running from afar, calling out Johanna’s name. Brown bobbed hair, round glasses, and a disciplinary armband on her arm — her name was Jena Sguro, Johanna’s close friend who appeared in Croaka.

Jena, running towards Johanna, paused when she saw me and stared with eyes full of wariness. No matter how I looked, I was just an ordinary clown, so I couldn’t understand why she was looking at me like that.

“Who are you?”

I tried to introduce myself grandly in response to her question, but Johanna spoke faster than I could strike a pose.

“A freshman.”

“Oh, I see—no, wait! The entrance ceremony is about to start, what are you doing here?! Freshman, you too, hurry to the auditorium before you’re late.”

Jena said that and then started dragging Johanna away.

The reason Jena Sguro, a countess’s daughter, could treat Johanna, a ducal family’s daughter, so casually might be partly due to one of the Academy’s principles of equality, but the biggest reason was probably how close they were.

With a blank expression, I raised both hands high and waved them towards Johanna as she was being dragged away, shouting:

“See you later! Johanna Senior-nim!”

Johanna, even while being dragged along, timidly raised her hand and waved. So cute! I absolutely have to capture that with a camera!

However, since I didn’t have a camera right now, I resolved to buy one as soon as I earned some money, and then walked to the Academy auditorium.

On the way to the auditorium, many people looked at me and whispered.

Even a mask that covers my entire face can’t seem to hide my good looks. Ha, this is why being too handsome is a problem, isn’t it?

As I entered the auditorium, more attention was drawn, and the whispering voices increased. Have they never seen a handsome person before?

I found an empty seat and sat down. At first, the whispering voices were loud, but as time passed, they quieted down somewhat.

I was staring blankly ahead when suddenly, it became several times noisier than when I first entered.

“Is this seat taken?”

I realized the reason when I saw the man speaking to me. Golden hair and golden eyes symbolizing royalty, and a handsome face, though not as handsome as mine — it was Lucas Leonhart, the Imperial Prince of the Empire and the protagonist of Croaka 1.

“Yes, the seat next to me is always empty! But strangely, no one ever sits here.”

“I’m Lucas Leonhart. Just call me Lucas.”

As Lucas sat next to me, I heard gasps from the people around us. They probably intended to sit next to Lucas and flatter him. Sorry, but flattery is my specialty.

“Isn’t Lucas-ssi amazing?”

“Huh? What is?”

“The Academy, I mean! Look at this magnificent building; being able to attend such an Academy is all because I am a citizen of the Empire. Therefore, I wish to dedicate all this glory to His Imperial Majesty. Long live His Imperial Majesty, may His Imperial Majesty live ten thousand years!”

While other students subtly flattered, I flattered openly!

My dazzling skill at flattery left the mouths of those around me agape, unable to close.

“….Puhahahaha!”

Lucas, who had been unable to speak, captivated by my flattery, burst into laughter.

“Pfft… Pfft! Ah, my stomach hurts. What’s your name?”

“Loki. You can just call me Loki.”