I placed Penguin-kun, the bodyguard with a terrifying scar on his beak, at the front row of the pink shelf.
A pink shelf displaying numerous items according to rising collection desire. Numerous stuffed animal soldiers standing there. They were standing at attention, silently waiting for orders from their general.
‘I’ll be back, Penguin. Guard <Central Prism Academy> well for 2 nights and 3 days.’
-Understood. Please take care of your precious self.
Penguin-kun receiving my orders.
He saluted with a resolute expression, polishing his buttons.
Although this all happened only in my imagination, his spirit was truly that of a general guarding a nation.
I looked around the room once more and put on my pink backpack.
The backpack was very light because it only contained spare uniforms, underwear, tracksuits, and emergency food. There weren’t really any other important items to pack anyway.
‘I’m only staying for 2 nights and 3 days anyway.’
<Mimir Technical High School> was a much wealthier school incomparable to ours, so it was more advantageous to use the items they provide for guests. Moreover, this time I could go via the ether floating train I usually couldn’t ride…
‘…The problem is the return trip since it’s a one-way ticket limited to the outbound journey and bicycles are prohibited on the train by regulation.’
But I wasn’t too worried.
There was one person at <Mimir Technical High School> I could somewhat call an acquaintance.
The vice president of the architecture club <Facilities Engineering Department>.
A student of <Mimir Technical High School> named ‘Maya’.
A connection I somehow became close with by chance.
Since she only appeared as a quest NPC in the game, I hadn’t even thought of meeting her when I first fell into the academy city.
Actually, I hadn’t been in frequent contact since going into seclusion, so I didn’t know the current detailed situation, but.
‘The last news was that Maya was scheduled to become the vice president of <Facilities Engineering Department> in her last semester of second year.’
But looking at her settings in the game, she wasn’t likely to change her stance. That kid with her own kind of affection would probably grant my request.
‘Unlike with Hilde, I won’t have to argue about fighting tournaments with her.’
<Mimir Technical High School> often had to travel around <Academy City Yord> by vehicle for materials or equipment installation. On our way back, we should be able to borrow a club vehicle that conveniently operates near here.
Even the hardship of the round trip was gone.
Truly a luxurious travel without getting a speck of dust on our bodies. Moreover, this time it was just participating in <Mimir Technical High School>’s event and persuading one problem child to come along.
‘It’s become much easier than originally planned.’
To receive such a reward for just one good deed, I can’t help but bow my head in gratitude to the heavens.
With gratitude in my heart, when I put on my shoes and came out to the hallway, Alvit and Rota were already waiting in the dormitory hallway with their luggage packed.
“Sorry―☆ Did you wait?”
“As expected, senior doesn’t have much luggage either.”
“We’re a beggar school of cute and poor girls gathered together―☆”
“On a day like today when we’re going on a trip, can’t you not say such sad things?”
Alvit grinned as if feeling a sense of kinship seeing my modest backpack.
She too was wearing just a small backpack with simple luggage, and a modest outfit with <Central Prism Academy>’s practice sword at her waist.
By the way, since the day of the chase, Alvit hid the last practice weapon in panic whenever I tried to touch it.
“Ahaha☆ Sorry sorry for making you sad~ And actually, we’re not going on a trip―☆”
“What…?”
“One of a girl’s secrets―☆ We’re actually invading <Mimir Technical High School>! To let them know! That we are the cutest girls in <Academy City Yord>! It’s a declaration of war! Kyaa―how bold♡”
“Haah, it’s my fault for listening seriously.”
As I was having this silly conversation with Alvit-
Twitch-twitch
“…”
Somehow Rota kept moving her cat ears, looking anxious and cautious. That’s because her luggage was on a level that could be called military gear without exaggeration.
Bong―
Bong―
Making a threatening sound cutting through the air, a backpack packed so full it had an enormous presence, seemingly too much for Rota’s thin legs to bear. Judging by the shapes vaguely visible on the outside of the backpack, it seemed she had brought magical tools and various books as well.
‘Bringing books is a true sign of a travel novice.’
A day going on a picnic.
A girl overly excited and packing all sorts of luggage.
I found that appearance somehow childlike and cute.
“Huhu☆”
Seeing my chuckle, Rota became even more flustered and anxious.
“Am I… strange…?”
“No~ I’m saying you can go just like that―☆ Cute girls naturally have many secrets and travel luggage☆ That’s right that’s right☆”
“Then senior isn’t a cute girl.”
“…”
“Don’t suddenly close your mouth and stare. It’s scary.”
“Okay―☆”
Suppressing Alvit’s adorable rebellion, we leave the campus still cool with early morning air, making noisy sounds like that.
The large field connecting <Central Prism Academy>’s main building, main hall, and dormitory building. We lock all the facility doors and finally check the main gate thoroughly.
Clank―
We left the school as the main gate closed completely with that sound.
The white coats of the three high school girls walking side by side flutter in the chilly early morning wind.
Like that, going down the hill of <Central Prism Academy>, past the shopping district, towards downtown where the ether train station is, it finally felt real that we were going on a trip all together for the first time.
“…”
The voices of Alvit and Rota chattering beside me. The dwarves in the shopping district waving goodbye and telling us to have a good trip. The bustling sounds of downtown we don’t often visit.
“…”
There were many times I went outside school, but it was always repeating the same pattern of going out alone on Red Hare at dawn, and silently returning late at night with prizes.
This noise felt fresh and enjoyable.
“Huhu―☆”
I thought it would be nice to go on picnics like this together often from now on.
* * *
“Yes. Invitation confirmed. Have a pleasant trip.”
“Yes―☆”
The dwarf female employee wearing a suit, the uniform of the ether train station. She finally tipped the hat placed on her mechanical head and withdrew outside the compartment.
Rattle―
Silence returning again.
Looking around the quiet compartment, Alvit exclaimed in admiration.
“Wow… This train seems much cleaner and better than the one I rode on enrollment day? They even gave us a separate 4-person compartment instead of a group compartment…”
“Even though it’s a short-distance line, <Mimir Technical High School> is rich enough to have an exclusive operation contract with the regular line train―☆”
“Ah… Come to think of it, on the day I enrolled in <Public Bana Boarding School>, I think the seniors boasted about exclusively operating the line crossing the eastern part of <Academy City Yord>.”
“That’s a long-distance line so it’s surprisingly☆ expensive―! Wow―☆ As expected of <Academy City Yord>’s richest school☆”
“I’m jealous… Exclusive operation.”
“You~☆ Wake up from your dream―☆”
“I didn’t say anything though.”
Literally, exclusive operation lines meant regular lines contracted exclusively with schools by the ether floating train company.
Friendly staff. Quiet compartments. Clean seats.
Befitting a train carrying only limited passengers, it was much more comfortable than the facilities of regular ether trains. Even the students’ voices faintly heard through the compartment partitions were much more cultured.
‘I couldn’t even afford to ride regular lines.’
As the name suggests, it’s a vehicle incorporating magic engineering using ether conductors, so the price wasn’t something you could casually ride like trains or subways in my previous life.
‘It felt slightly more expensive than a low-cost airline flight…’
But considering the attacks by delinquent students you’d encounter when moving on foot and <Academy City Yord>’s uniquely spread out population density, it was sometimes unavoidable to use.
So most schools provided their own exclusively operated lines to students as basic welfare.
‘I only had Red Hare though.’
While I was reminiscing about those days when I roamed the world with Red Hare, an announcement was heard from the speakers connected to each compartment.
[Hello, dear passengers. This train is an exclusive train going directly only to <Mimir Technical High School>. Please check your train tickets, and be careful of your safety when moving between compartments.]
[The train doors will close soon.]
Ding dong―
Ding dong―
Ding dong―
Beeeep―
Along with the whistle sound from the distant platform indicating there are no more passengers getting on or off,
Whirrr―
With a slight feeling of floating felt throughout the train, it slowly starts gliding out of the station.
The journey began like that.
A more leisurely speed than trains in my previous life.
Alvit stares blankly out the window and starts nodding off. Rota rummages through her bag and takes out a magic book to read. Sometimes eating snacks they brought, sometimes looking out the window.
Idle time.
About two hours passing like that.
The scenery of <Mimir Technical High School> grounds slowly started to appear outside the train window.
‘It seems something new has been built again.’
Befitting the mecca of architecture and facility engineering in <Academy City Yord>,
Huge buildings I hadn’t seen before had sprung up like bamboo shoots on the <Mimir Technical High School> grounds I was revisiting after about a year.
Unlike the surroundings of <Central Prism Academy> and the shopping district built mainly in white, dense and huge gray rectangular buildings. And the street scenery of unusually tall female students on average walking around here and there wearing work clothes.
Numerous ironwork-related shops.
Endless heavy equipment coming and going.
A city built more solidly and functionally than any other school’s city.
That place was busily moving for the new student welcome event.
We had arrived at <Mimir Technical High School>.
* * *
At the same time.
A factory in <Mimir Technical High School> was running busily.
A site where numerous dwarves were moving, transporting various basic materials and supplies. Among them, the mustached dwarf serving as the work foreman urged the surrounding staff in a loud voice.
“Hurry up! We’ll have to stay up all night to deliver the additional items ordered by <Facilities Engineering Department> and <Mechanical Engineering Department> on time!!”
“Um, excuse me.”
In between, a young dwarf wearing a bread hat timidly raised his hand while clutching the pocket of his work apron.
“What!! Can’t you see we’re busy?”
“I need to use the bathroom…”
“Don’t say such things, just go quickly!!! A man being so timid!!”
“Eek…?! I-I’m sorry.”
Scurry―
The bread-hatted dwarf holding his bulging stomach and unnaturally bending at the waist passed by, but the busy factory workers were too focused on their work to pay any attention.
“…”
Tap tap tap
Where the bread-hatted dwarf arrived after moving his short legs wasn’t the bathroom.
A place where huge containers for disposing of factory waste were concentrated.
The bread-hatted dwarf knocked on one of the containers there.
Knock knock
[The pigeon?]
“E-East.”
[The color of the flag?]
“R-Red.”
Pop―
“Your business?”
What emerged from there was a tall female student wearing goggles and with navy blue hair.
“I-I brought… the item.”
“Welcome, revolutionary comrade.”
“W-What does that mean, Kara?”
“It means brothers who carry a red star in their hearts.”
The female student smiled brightly, like a lit light bulb.