Chapter 28

「Oya? Where is your companion?」

Being called out to like that, Shion finally raised his face up from the book.

After immersing himself in matters to be checked in the library, it seemed that quite a bit of time had passed.

After being brought back to reality, and pressing on his forehead to suppress the faint headache due to having kept up his maximum concentration, Shion confirmed the current situation.

「……Nn?」

When he surveyed the area, Nino’s figure certainly wasn’t there.

At the very least, that green figure that stood out was not in the vicinity that his eyes could reach.

She had most likely gotten bored and went wandering about somewhere.

If this were about a normal girl, then this would be a scene where he would worry about her, but Shion couldn’t imagine an opponent that could somehow be able to handle Nino.

If there was someone able to handle her, there should have been damage to the point that the vicinity would go into an uproar, and the fact that things hadn’t reached up to that point meant that she was alright.

「Ahh, she isn’t here, is she. Well, she’s probably somewhere around here.」

「Is that so.」

Shion looked at the woman that easily nodded in agreement.

Having long silver hair that was collected into buns on both sides of her head, and beautiful golden eyes that matched it, she was a woman that overall possessed a sharp and intellectual impression.

Her long pointed ears were also a characteristic of the long lived race called the Sylphid.

Wearing clothes that were shaped similar to a so-called business suit, the woman picked up one of the books that were stacked up in front of Shion.

Titled 「The Hero Report」, it was a book that glorified the Hero’s achievements, and praised them.

Compared to its scarce amount of information, much of it was the author’s guesses, and those were also overly biased in the Hero glorification.

Though, since most of the books connected to the Hero were like that, this one had the meaning of being “especially” biased.

「Do you have an interest in the Hero?」

「Well, as much as anyone else. Not as much as the author of this book though.」

The Sylphid woman made a wry smile at Shion’s words.

「This book certainly goes far. I decided to buy it after hearing the title, but when it goes this far, it enters the level of a religion.」

「It did have the impression of saying “the best Hero-sama that I could think of”, didn’t it.」

「I believe that is a perfectly fitting phrase.」

After nodding with Shion’s words that he muttered, the Sylphid woman placed the book back on the desk.

「There are many people that get blinded by the Hero Ryuuya’s achievements, and end up acting without thinking. It would seem that that is not the case for you though……」

「I wonder about that? I went nuts just a little while ago though.」

「Surely you jest. What you had wasn’t about the contents, but the eyes of a person that had fallen in love with books.」

Being told that, Shion was at a loss for words.

Certainly, even in his previous world, he liked the sensation of turning the pages of books, and it was a fact that he was intoxicated by the sensation of the books that he hadn’t felt in so long.

While he practically didn’t find any books in regards to the Alva, there was no mistake that he immersed himself in books under the pretense of understanding the Hero.

Even the books that did nothing but praise the Hero, if he thought of those details as a fairy tale or a light novel, he could pleasantly read them.

He was thinking that he would definitely try and restore the archives once he returned to the Dark Continent.

However, not wanting to honestly recognize that, Shion averted his eyes.

「……M, more importantly. Did you need something?」

When she expressed a faint smile at the obvious topic change, the Sylphid woman nodded.

「Yes, there is someone that has come to receive you. May I ask you to come with me?」

「That isn’t a problem. Erm?」

「Luuty Ligas. Please call me Luuty.」

Luuty said that and held out her hand. Shion stood up from the chair and shook her hand.

When he did, Luuty, together with an impish smile, firmly gripped Shion’s hand back.

「Nn!?」

「Now then, why don’t we get going.」

Shion became flustered and tried to pull away from Luuty’s hand as she had started walking just like that.

「Wait, wait……What do you intend to do?」

「I don’t intend on doing anything. It’s just that since I had heard that Shion-dono was an unfettered person, I thought that I would make it so that you cannot run away.」

As if being persuaded by Luuty who tugged and pulled him with a strong enough force that it made him wonder just where was that strength coming from in that slender body of hers, Shion left the library.

「I won’t run away! So please let go!」

When he frantically shook her hand off, Luuty breathed a sigh with a disappointed looking face.

「There’s nothing wrong with it, is there?」

「It isn’t good at all, what’ll you do if rumors start to spread.」

Shion was more or less aware that he himself stood out.

If it was made known that he was walking while holding hands with a woman, the surroundings might make a fuss over it.

If there were rumors, this woman called Luuty would get hurt.

For things to turn out like that was clearly a problem.

「Even though I don’t mind.」

While pouting her lips and looking dissatisfied, Luuty walked and guided Shion.

Entering a building called the Staff Member Building, they climbed a staircase while the gazes of immensely curious staff members stabbed into him.

「If it turned into a rumor that I was intimate with the famed Shion-dono, I’m sure that our budget and donations would increase.」

「I’m sure that it wouldn’t be that simple.」

「No no, the owner of the 『Steel Fish Store』 has had his sales increase and is quite pleased, you know?」

While calling to mind the face that could be mistaken for that of a bandit of the owner of the restaurant that he often visited, Shion breathed a sigh.

「I think that a restaurant and school administration are different though……」

「The principles are the same. In the end, there is the aspect where the presence or absence of a celebrity concerned with it decides its worth. 」

Certainly, he couldn’t say that schools that turned out many well-known people or schools that had the added value of having a long history didn’t have a tendency to be preferred over an anonymous school.

Of course, even if it was natural that there wouldn’t be any meaning to it if it didn’t have a suitable foundation, but even Shion couldn’t deny that merit itself.

Even in his former world, Shion was thoroughly made to dance by that phrase.

「It is an honor to have you understand that……Now then, we have arrived.」

Being told that, Shion looked up at the door that was before him.

The Staff Member Building, top floor.

On a plate that was placed on all of the rooms that the division used, the words “Board Chairman Room” was written.

「Welcome, to my room. It is a pleasure to have you, Shion-dono.」

When she said that, Luuty Ligas, reintroduced as the Edius Adventurer School Board Chairman, expressed an impish smile.

Chapter 29