In the
Baskerville family's mansion, Aeris Centorea says this deeply while having
dinner in the dining room.
At the
entrance, we met Aeris, who had turned into a yandere, and from then on, I
tried to put her in a good mood, since she had been excluded from the date.
Aeris,
with eyes that looked like a mixture of all kinds of misfortunes, was
absolutely terrifying. Not only me, but even Urza and Nagisa's faces were
wrinkled with shivers.
After
about an hour of quieting her down, hugging her from behind and patting her
head, I finally succeeded in getting her back to her usual calm expression.
At
dinner time, we sat around the table and talked about the events of the day.
"No
way, it's just a coincidence that you met Brave-san. And I didn't expect
Zenon-sama and Brave-san to fight a duel..."
"Brave
wasn't weak either. But still... his lack of training was still noticeable. I'm
sure I will win if I have to fight him a hundred times."
I say my
honest opinion as I put the knife-cut meat into my mouth.
Leon
Brave is a hero, and his potential is overwhelming.
Not to
mention me, even Nagisa and Urza can't beat the fully grown Leon.
Even
so... Leon, who has unintentionally avoided the trials he should have gone
through because he was out of the regular scenario, was not that strong.
For me,
who had grown up by the shortest route using the knowledge of the game and the
items, he was not a threat by any means.
"But...
he may turn out to be a good opponent after this defeat."
Otherwise,
it's meaningless.
I need
Leon to defeat the Demon King so that I can live peacefully from now on.
If the
Demon King can be defeated without Leon, I can leave him alone... but the blood
of the hero is indispensable to seal the resurrected Demon King.
And
there is already less than half a year until the Demon King comes back to life.
Leon must grow up before then.
"He
didn't look like he had that much guts, desu~no. That ball-less guy looks
fragile, desu~no"
Urza
gives a withering assessment as she bites into a hunk of roast beef.
Please
don't tell him. Although his ball has been kicked and bruised... maybe it's
still attached.
"Fumu...
Brave was not bad with the sword. The problem is that he is too
good-natured."
Nagisa,
who has changed into a loungewear designed like a yukata (Japanese summer
kimono), also evaluates Leon in this way.
"I
don't mean to say that being lonely is strength. I understand that there is
strength to protect. It's just... he lacked the desperation to be strong at all
costs. Perhaps, he has never experienced defeat in his life."
Nagisa
stirs the soup with a spoon, a somewhat melancholy expression on her face.
"Defeat
and humiliation are hard and painful, but they are also food for leaps and
bounds. I guess that man never experienced a decisive defeat, so he was never
saddened by his weakness and impatient with his strength."
"...I
suppose that's true."
Nagisa
Seikai, a female swordsman, experienced the 'decisive defeat' of having her
school and family eliminated, which gave her the strength to fight through to
this point.
Her
words came from that experience, and they were as heavy as gold.
I
believe that Leon was supposed to get such a decisive defeat in the battle
against gargoyles.
The
correct scenario would have been that he would not be able to defeat the
gargoyle and that his classmates would die because of it... and that he would
use that defeat as an opportunity to grow as a hero.
"...I
wish my fight with him could be the substitute for that..."
I murmur
somberly and put a piece of meat in my mouth.
This
meat is of the finest quality, seasoned by a skilled chef and it is melted on
the tongue.
But,
perhaps because I was worried about Leon, I couldn't taste it at all.
"...I
don't like it. It's useless for me to be worrying about it."
No
matter what I worry about, Leon does not suddenly become stronger.
As a
villain, as a hated character, I've done all I can.
All that
remains is to trust the hero's guts.
"I'll
see the results soon anyway... and I'm looking forward to it on the final
exam."
"If
I recall correctly, the exams start next week. Oh dear... I've been so busy
that I haven't been able to study at all. What should I do?"
Aeris
pressed her cheeks with her hands troubledly.
The
final examinations at the academy consist of both written and practical tests.
The
written examinations are the same as those at ordinary Japanese schools. The
answers to the written examinations are based on what you have learned in
class.
In the
practical test, on the other hand, the students form a party of four and work
together to defeat monsters and collect items in a specific area.
The
rarer the monster or item is, the higher the score is, so it becomes a real
competition.
"Oh,
by the way..."
Nagisa
murmurs as if she remembers and tilts her head.
"We've
been diving in dungeons instead of going to the school lately...perhaps the
party is being decided in a place where we're absent?"
"No... the party
assignment for the final exam is supposed to be flexible. There is no such thing
as being assigned to a party without permission. However..."
We need
to form a party for the final exam.
Aeris,
Nagisa and I will be on a team of three. Urza can't participate in the final
exam because she is not an official student.
"Uuu,
now Urza is left out!"
"Don't
be upset. I'll buy you some sweets next time... But still, do we need to find
one more party member somewhere? Can't we participate in the exam if there are
only three of us?"
In the
game, Ciel, Aeris, and Nagisa were already in the party by the time of the
summer final exam, so there was no need to worry about the number of party
members.
But what
happened if the members could not be gathered?
"As
I recall... if we don't have enough members, we are supposed to participate
with the number of members we don't have. The score of the practical test is
equally divided by the number of members, so I don't think it would be too much
of a disadvantage even if there are three members..."
Aeris
answers my question.
In the
practical test, points are awarded for defeating monsters and collecting items in
each test area.
In the
end, the scores are divided equally among the members of the party, and the
results are graded.
"In
that case, it would be better not to increase the number of members. If we
bring in a person of half ability into the party, he or she will be a
liability, and the score will be taken away by the increase in the number of
members."
"I
agree. I think we should challenge with these members"
Nagisa
agrees with me.
The
female swordsman, who is a strong fighter, seems to be of the same opinion as
me... On the other hand, Aeris is thinking with a difficult expression on her
face.
"It's
unbalanced that we don't have any offensive magic user... But there are
probably already some talented wizards in the other party, and it's going to be
difficult to find them now, isn't it?"
"I
agree. There will not be any good wizards left."
"Besides...
we can't have any more girls around Zenon-sama. I can't stand it if I'm
excluded again."
"......"
I looked
away silently, not knowing what to say to Aeris' words.
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