"Rei Ao… Your identity is that special?"
Having digested the knowledge about the chat group, Emilia was very much in shock.
A group master who can carry out trades and interactions across so many different worlds via some mysterious "chat group."
"This is just too unbelievable."
"It's nothing worth being that surprised about. Before you came here, you probably never even imagined that other worlds existed, right?"
There is always a higher mountain, always someone stronger. Even Rei Ao keeps himself prepared for the unknown.
"You have a point."
Having experienced it personally, Emilia had to agree. She raised her brows.
"If I were to strike a deal with you, could I return home then?"
"No. At the moment, your deals are pinned to this world, not the one you came from."
"…All right."
Left with no choice, her hope of returning was again dashed.
"What suddenly made you want to go back? Don't you still plan on pursuing the Demon King?"
Rei Ao was a bit curious what had prompted Emilia to want to return, as by his standards she shouldn't be doing too badly here.
"The Demon King…"
Better not mention that. As soon as he did, Emilia rolled her eyes.
"Here in your place you have a holy motherly angel, devils, and you, so obviously I can't just kill whoever I want, can I? And with you here, I'm sure you wouldn't let him carry out any wrongdoing."
It wasn't like she didn't want to slice the Demon King. She ground her teeth at the thought that the Demon King, who had wreaked havoc in the Holy Cross Continent, was calmly living in this peaceful world.
Rei Ao said, "That much I can guarantee. But that's probably not the real reason you want to go back, is it?"
"… …"
Pressed for answers, Emilia's eyes shifted, half embarrassed, half annoyed.
"I—It's because you people make noise day in and day out, and I can't sleep properly!"
In this house, each day's clamor left her body all overheated, brimming with anger and shame. She just didn't fit in here at all.
"That's it?"
Rei Ao laughed.
"If you don't want to hear those noises, then hurry up and figure out how to earn money, pay rent, and find your own place."
"Hmph! I don't need you to tell me that—I'd have done it anyway!"
Emilia stood up, all stiff pride. "Tomorrow, I have an interview. Just watch—before long, I'll definitely move out of here!"
So saying, she left with an air of bravado. Rei Ao simply let her go. It would be interesting, he thought, seeing the hero turned "salarywoman."
…
Hagun Academy.
Today the academy was as tranquil as ever, yet Stella felt anything but calm. She had watched Rei Ao's 1v4 livestream in its entirety and felt her whole body growing hot. Her mind kept generating various forbidden images.
So in class she was unfocused, sometimes breathing heavily, sometimes squirming in her seat.
"Hmm?"
From the podium, the teacher keenly noticed Stella's strange state. Said teacher looked like a petite young girl, but few would guess that under her seemingly youthful exterior, she possessed tremendous power.
Saikyo Nene.
A temporary teacher at Hagun Academy. One of only three Desperados in Japan. Also an active KOK A-league competitor, ranked third worldwide. Her Device was an iron fan, her ability controlling gravity as a form of natural interference.
"Oh my~"
She opened her folding fan to cover her face, squinting at Stella with a piercing smile. Stella was arguably the student with the greatest promise at Hagun. As an old friend of Shinguuji Kurono, Saikyo Nene had the qualifications to learn in detail about Stella's circumstances.
But she hadn't expected the hopeful star of Hagun Academy to be going into "heat" right there in her class—how entertaining. Her eyesight was fierce, picking up even the faintest details. She was certain Stella was in a lustful state.
She planned to watch for a bit longer—
"!!!"
All at once, a razor-sharp aura made her stand. She looked solemnly toward the window. The students, startled by their teacher's sudden movement, had no idea why she had become so tense.
They also didn't realize that an uninvited guest had arrived at Hagun Academy.
On the academy walkway, a figure walked steadily forward, eyes cold. She wore silvery-white armor shaped like a dress, and her snow-colored hair fluttered in the wind. An aura of "keep your distance" emanated from her entire being.
"… …"
Abruptly, she halted, looking ahead. Shinguuji Kurono had appeared at some point, already summoning her Device. She stared at the white-haired woman, asking in a heavy tone, "You…why have you come here?"
"I heard someone say there's a swordsman here worth seeing."
The white-haired woman spoke in a frosty voice to match her cold appearance.
"… …"
Kurono felt a pounding headache. The one before her was, in her mind, the single most troublesome individual, bar none.
Edelweiss.
Nickname: Twin Wings.
A Blazer not affiliated with the Mage-Knight Alliances, clad all in white, resembling a valkyrie. The world's strongest swordsman, the highest pinnacle, also called the most evil criminal alive.
Her power was so overwhelming that even the International Mage-Knight Alliance gave up trying to arrest her.
Kurono knew a bit of the background of this strongest fighter in the world. Fifteen years ago, she had single-handedly intervened in a war between two major powers, "The Union" and "The League."
Using swordsmanship alone, she slaughtered an army of three hundred thousand on both sides. After that incident, both sides placed a bounty on Edelweiss—"Twin Wings"—and strived to apprehend her, but to no avail. Confronted by her near-otherworldly might, all attempts proved fruitless. At last, the Alliance realized the futility and abandoned that region, never to tread upon Edel's domain again.
Now, such an existence that even the Alliance dreaded had arrived at Hagun Academy. Kurono wanted no conflict with her. She was no match, and one misstep would endanger the entire academy.
"… …"
After a moment of silence, she retracted her Device.
"What do you intend to do?"
Edelweiss remained icy and silent, uttering only two words:
"Bear witness."
~~~
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