Chapter 142: Error
Rei and Geppeti came into the classroom and introduced themselves as Zetto sisters to the rest of the class.
In Rei’s arms was a doll I had never seen before, and before I could ask what it was, she announced that Yuri had bought it for her.
Aizel questioned, “Didn’t you say you were going to buy a drink?” but Yuri shrugged it off.
Since Yuri collects dolls, she probably went to buy that rabbit doll and gave it to Rei as a gift.
I thanked Yuri.
They all looked confused because I had sisters, and I had brought them with me but somehow, despite the twists and turns, Rei and Geppeti were accepted as my sisters.
Geppeti’s acting was flawless, and Rei was a little clumsy, but she was clutching a doll in her arms, so there was nothing wrong with their appearance.
In fact, I was even asked if the reason I was so good at taking care of people was because I had sisters.
Lucia, who was smiling wryly, patted Rei on the head, saying that her sister, Rikua, used to be like this too.
‘Ugh…’
Rei looked reluctant, but…you can’t spit on a smiling face.
Lucia’s smile was pure and unadulterated, with no ulterior motives.
Rei and Geppeti were then left in the safety of a corner of the classroom while the students continued their joint combat training.
The first day of classes had begun once again after the return from the desert. Edward had mentioned that the cadets would be dealing with demons in an illusionary spell.
The Academy had originally planned to test the cadets’ skills against the otherworlders in the desert, but that plan fell through.
Hence the new plan.
Especially since our group was of a high level, we would have to deal with quite strong demons.
Since Edward would be the one preparing the illusion magic anyway, the illusion would be based on his memories of the demons he had killed or encountered in the past.
‘Demons that Edward met…’
Whatever it was, it was agreed that Edward’s smile was so sinister that we would need to be prepared.
It was a joint combat drill, but for me, it was also a way to gauge how much power the group currently possessed.
One day, we might have to work together to defeat the demons.
And so the training continued.
Since there were no scarecrows to use as enemies, I, the only non-mage, was playing the role of a demon.
This would mean that I would not be able to train, but I decided that the sum total of the mages with different attributes was the most important thing.
…Anyway, it was Lucia who was the biggest problem.
Lucia, who is currently standing in the center of the room, eyes glazed over, firing spells all over the place, will be even more terrified and panicked when the real thing begins.
Then chaos would ensue.
The desert environment, Lucia’s only advantage, is gone so I had to work on her fragile mental faculties to keep her out of the way.
Whew!
Just then, Lucia’s gust of wind sent Aizel flying through the air and I quickly leaped to catch her.
We landed on the ground.
“Are you okay, Miss Aizel?”
“……Yes.”
Aizel blushes at my question and turns her head quickly.
For some reason, I’d somehow gotten into an awkward “princess hug” position.
Realizing this, I tried to put her legs down on the floor, but I couldn’t because of the strength of Aizel’s arms around my neck.
As I was doing so, Yuri came running.
“Zetto, you’re a demon now! You don’t have care if she’s flying through the air or slamming into a wall…! And Aizel, aren’t you paying attention?!”
“Haha, this keeps making my body react first…”
I scratched my head, putting Aizel down.
“Sorry.”
Aizel apologized in a nonchalant voice as she stepped onto the floor, her golden hair fluttering.
Yuri let out an irritated sigh, making a “ha.” sound.
Well… She didn’t say anything wrong.
I’m currently playing the role of a demon, and I’m their enemy, so it’s not the time to care about Aizel.
I can’t help but feel that Aizel is not concentrating at all, as she makes many mistakes.
Lucia and Amon approach us next.
“I’m sorry… I misfired my magic…”
Anyway, Lucia’s “misfire” continues to happen one after another so I decided to offer a solution.
“…Lucia, would you like to think of the demon as Amon for once?”
“Eh? As Amon…?”
“Zetto, what are you talking about?”
A wide-eyed Lucia pointed at Amon, then glared at me.
“Or I’ll have Amon play the role of a demon for once, and then you’ll understand what I’m talking about.”
None of us seemed to understand what she was talking about, but we decided to give it a try.
It was just a matter of switching roles.
Next, Amon, standing tall in the center of the room, spoke up.
“Koooooooooo!!!”
…I wonder if he’s acting as a demon to make it more realistic.
I don’t know if it’s realistic, but I wasn’t expecting this, however it’s good that he’s so eager.
“Hiccup…”
Amon’s thunderous roar scares the crap out of Lucia.
…It seems to have worked, at least for Lucia but I wonder if that’s a good thing.
“Miss Lucia, take a slow, deep breath and pretend the demon it’s Amon.”
Lucia stammered out a few words.
‘It’s really Amon, but…’
Lucia mimics my words and takes a deep breath.
She then nods her head.
“Whoa…He must be Amon…”
“Yes, he’s Amon. The enemy.”
Aizel and Yuri, who had been listening to the conversation between me and Lucia, cocked their heads.
Lucia’s eyes turned serious as she held out her index finger.
“Hahahahahah!!!”
She points her hand at Amon, who is charging over here with a mean, ‘demonic’ laugh.
“Windcutter.”
With a single word from Lucia, the intangible wind blade emits a hissing sound and slashes murderously.
It’s a hit that Lucia normally couldn’t hit even if she stood still.
Crack!
However, Lucia’s wind cutter plunges straight into Amon’s abdomen, shattering the protective magic surrounding his body.
“Kuhhhh!!!”
Amon rolls across the room in shock.
“What was that…?”
Yuri questions as she watches.
“What, what?!”
Lucia exclaims, looking just as surprised so I explain.
“Miss Lucia is particularly good at matching Amon, haha…”
For some reason, Amon is the only target I’ve ever observed that Lucia can hit without closing her eyes.
After a few more attempts at playing Amon as a demon, I got a good result.
Against Amon, Lucia’s magic hit rate increased dramatically.
Amon, exhausted from being hit by magic so many times with such ridiculous results, glanced at Lucia with a despairing expression.
“…”
Lucia shudders, not knowing why she is doing this.
Yuri, who had been watching them, spoke up.
“…Is there a grudge, that Lucia…?”
“Well, I don’t think there’s a grudge. On the contrary, I wonder if Amon has a grudge against Ms. Lucia… Well, it might have something to do with the fact that they used to play pranks on each other when they were younger.”
“Hmm…”
With a raised eyebrow, Yuri agrees with my words. From the look on her face, it’s clear that there’s something in her memory that might have contributed to that.
In any case, it’s not just a matter of improving her hit rate against Amon.
It was a simple matter but the demons we have to deal with don’t look like Amon.
Now it was time to make her imagine the demons as Amon and try to add up the numbers.
If I succeeded, Lucia would learn the trick and become a better mage since she had enough firepower.
***
The next day.
After Zeto left for school at the academy.
Sitting on her bed in Zeto’s room, Gepetti stared off into space, a plan forming in her mind.
Yesterday, she had observed the people around him.
For her, it was about preserving the human race, the species known as Earthlings….
It was reminiscent of the harems she had seen so often in the data she used to learn about being a sister.
Slowly, Geppeti cataloged Zetto’s surroundings, especially the womens who had taken a rational interest in him.
First was a woman named Aizel Ludwig, a cute woman with platinum hair and golden eyes.
She was in good health, but there were concerns about her mental state.
She was subtly emotional, and her stress levels were quite high for reasons unknown.
However, the amount of mana in her body was enormous. This meant she had exceptional genes.
Upon questioning Rei, it was determined that she was descended from a rather special bloodline, the Ludwig clan.
She was the sole survivor of the clan so she had a strong desire to continue the lineage and their interests were aligned.
Furthermore, she was often seen purposely trying to make contact with Zetto, which was a pretty good sign.
After giving Aizel a “fit,” Geppeti moved on to the next person.
Next up was Yuri Clementine, a woman with striking deep red hair.
According to Rei, she was from one of the famous Four Continental Elemental Families.
The family’s power must be immense, her health and mental state were in good shape, and she was beautiful.
She seemed to have some unusual tastes, somewhat out of place for her age, but that was not a problem for Geppeti’s plans.
She was unusually sensitive to the sight of Zetto and Aizel, which was clearly an emotion called ‘jealousy’.
While this could be a setback for her plans, it also meant that she was interested in Zetto just like Aizel.
Then there was the girl with the pink bangs who had been stealing glances at Zetto in class yesterday.
She had been peeking into the classroom and was eventually spotted by Zetto and was seen talking to him.
Her name was Kaen.
Geppeti noticed that Kaen had a blush on her cheeks at the time she was talking to Zetto.
It was clear that she was holding Zetto in her heart but her physical reaction was unusual.
Her body heated up as if she had been in physical contact with Zetto just by talking to him.
There was no escaping Geppeti’s scans.
She was healthy and perhaps she was reacting in a way that best suited her plan.
Geppeti nodded and recalled the last woman.
She didn’t know if she could call her a woman. No, she was a woman, at least.
Sierra, as Zetto called her, had taken the form of a sword.
She seemed to be a spirit binded using the sword as a medium…but Geppeti still didn’t know much about her, however it was possible to make physical contact.
That caught Geppeti’s eye.
‘I doubt she can be cured, but…’
A spirit being that could make physical contact could give birth to a child.
It was a question that even Geppeti vast database of information could not answer.
In this so-called ‘fantasy’ world, there were otherworldly forces at work.
If a sword gives birth to a child, does it give birth to a sword?
When a spirit gives birth to a child, is the new being a mishmash of things?
Geppeti looked down at her hands.
She was nothing but an inanimate object, but now she had flesh.
She could even create an organism, though it would take some time.
However, Sierra was performing so well as a sword that it seemed important not to lose her.
Furthermore, she is so tightly bound to the sword, which is more of a vessel for her, that it would probably be difficult to transfer her to another body.
Research needed.
Geppeti scribbles those words down next to Sierra’s name.
For now, these are the women in Zetto’s circle who have shown interest in him.
Maybe there are more.
The more the merrier.
It made sense to sow more seeds for the preservation of the species.
But it was a very strange thing.
So many women around him were reacting this way, and yet Zetto, the culprit, was treating them so casually.
He was certainly kind, but he didn’t seem to be aware of their feelings.
A phrase popped into Geppeti’s head.
It was the one that led her to formulate a plan.
‘He’s clueless.’
“…Well.”
Her mumbling made Rei, who had been lying on the bed unnecessarily, stir.
“It’s nothing.”
Geppeti said, and her eyes fell on Rei, who was holding a doll.
Rei was a woman, too but she was a reincarnated hero.
Leon was a man but Rei, who had the body of a child, was naturally excluded from the list.
‘What else am I missing?’
Geppeti’s head slowly lowered as she thought.
“…”
After all, she herself was a ‘woman’ in Zetto’s circle.
But should a vassal covet the king’s body?
Should a ‘sister’ covet her ‘brother’s’ body?
Of course, they weren’t related by blood, so it shouldn’t cause any genetic problems.
“But…”
Geppeti muttered in a small voice.
The last time Rei had coveted a doll… watching her, Geppeti had learned one emotion.
Greed.
It had taken up residence in the back of her mind, swelling in size.
“…Inappropriate…”
Geffetti couldn’t finish her sentence since an error had occurred to her.