Villainess and the Stalker - Chapter 7 - Pal

Chapter 7 : Pal

「…… Hahaha, I see now. So, silver hair must be a symbol of fortune in Rilante.」

That youth spoke, his gaze full of admiration.

Wrong, rather than youth…

「Name’s Conrad. That reaction of yours, I guess you’ve never heard about the legend in Helios. In that case I am relieved. You shouldn’t feel bothered about being viewed in the same light as that of the kingdom of your origin.」

And with that, the youth concluded his simple introduction.

From then on, the exchange turned to him asking for my reason for studying abroad and my full name.

Naturally, I told him my “official” name, the one I am to use during my time in this place.

The youth was Conrad Varden, the son of Viscount Varden of the Kingdom of Helios.

And since I confirmed his identity with his ID card, I knew that he wasn’t lying to me. Incidentally, he also taught me how to lock my ID card so that it only displays my name.

For this, I owed him one.

It’s not like I care if anyone saw my fake identity, but I absolutely must not let anyone know my real identity.

Naturally, it’s not like Conrad understood all of this card function, though I still have to verify this matter with the headmaster for the slightest possibilities of error, I could still feel at ease for the time being since my real identity could be concealed.

「Ryuu, in this academy, no one will look at you like you’re some kind of tumor. I mean, that’s just how stunning your appearance is. I’ve told you before that you’re going to be extremely popular with women, right? That alone is a good thing! Wasn’t it the same in your home country? 」

If silver hair in Rilante is truly a symbol of fortune, then I would be really treated like a tumor.

Though my home country isn’t Rilante, both my home country and Rilante have similar culture in regards to the treatment of a silver haired person.

There’s no way my home country would be exposed just from this piece of information.

Well, not that it’d be troublesome if information about my home country was leaked, rather, it would be a trivial matter for a cast off like me, but it would be extremely troublesome in various ways, if my home country were exposed.

That’s just how much trouble I would be attracting only from revealing my home country!

「You might be right but…. it isn’t a matter to be happy about.」

「EH! ? You, for what reason did you come to this academy?….. Isn’t an academy a place where you can flirt with girls as much as you want and not just a place for STUDYING! ? 」

I burst into a laughter at Conrad’s stupid thoughts.

「Fufufu…. The same goes for you, what is the reason for you to come to this academy? Studying? 」

「That’s one of the reasons. But, did you just tell me an important thing? Could it be that you’ve mastered some splendid sorcery? I’ve known a little 1st rank sorcery even before entering this academy, but…after seeing the other students who are much better than me, I no longer have any motivation… Though I’ve a choice of employment as long as I graduate from this academy with good grades… I’ve given up on acquiring a good grades.」

「Well, I know a little 2nd rank sorcery. Nevertheless, it doesn’t mean that I’ve mastered all of 1st rank sorcery.」

「Yup, that’s natural. I mean, there’s at least two hundred types of 1st rank sorcery.」

Despite what Conrad had said just now, I had in fact mastered all 1st rank sorcery. It had nothing to do with talent, it was a result of the gifted education ever since my childhood. Though others refuted my claim that it was a result of hard work. They told me that what I’ve done is not something that can be passed as a result of hard work only.

Anyway, regardless of that, if this news were to spread in the academy I know for sure that everyone would be looking at me like am some sort of a strange creature. That’s why I went along with the 《Setting》 that was prepared for me beforehand.

There’s also the problem with the result of my entrance exam.

And just by how abnormal my achievement for mastering the entire 1st rank sorcery, the 27th place I secured in the entrance exam was also part of the setting.

That’s why, as long as no one suspected the consistency of the story…

「Well, that’s exactly as you say. But then, the way you ‘fell’, aren’t you quite well versed in martial arts yourself? Was it your skills in martial arts, or swordsmanship that enabled you to enter this academy? Seeing how you’re almost uninjured after falling from the tree, I reckon your performance in martial arts must have been quite impressive.」

In fact, now that I took a better look at Conrad, I found him completely uninjured.

Even though it looked like he fell head first, I couldn’t even find traces of dirt or bruise on his face and head.

In short, he’d landed properly despite falling in such awkward posture. [ED: …logic is dead. Poor logic. Well, at least common sense has company. HOW did he not get dirt on? Bruises, fine. It’s still in the realm of possibility if he landed properly, but DIRT?!]

Such a thing couldn’t be just a coincidence, even I could see that this result should be attributed to Conrad’s martial arts skills.

And Conrad nodded in response, affirming my observation.

「Ou. Yes, I am confident about my hand to hand combat. The 1st rank sorcery that I learnt was related to the physical reinforcement type.」

「Is that so…. Then, I guess you’ve made good progress in that direction. It’ll be smooth sailing for you if you wish to become a knight. Though I can’t guarantee that you’ll be accepted for sure thanks to this peace!」

「Was that the case in Rilante? I mean… the demons in Helios were really lively.」

「Rilante aside, I heard that it’s the same in the entire world. And well, while I’m not sure about this piece of news but…. they said that the revival of the 《Demon King Of The End》 is near.」

「Seriously …..」

As soon as he heard the words 《Demon King Of The End》 coming out of my lips, Conrad turned pale.

Amongst the 4 demon kings, The Demon King of The End was said to be the existence that would destroy the world.

The current civilization had confirmed that there’re several extremely advanced ancient civilizations before us, and what was left of them right now was just a shadow of their former glory. Some even believed that this 《Demon King Of The End》 was the one who’d destroyed those ancient civilizations.

Thus, the name 《Demon King Of The End》- An existence that would bring an end to human civilization.

And due to the increase of the demons’ activity in the global scale, there’s a rumor that the advent of such existence was close by.

Because Demon Kings were that kind of existence who used demons as an extension of their limbs.

「Getting scared? 」

When I asked Conrad, he shook his head.

「Just a little. But, this academy exists to counter such existence. That’s why I will do my best to resist when push comes to shove but well… the only thing I’m good at are things related to physical combat though….」

Though he replied with a wry smile, I took quite a liking to his reply.

Thus, I told him.

「And since I’m rather good in using magic, feel free to ask if there’s something that you can’t understand. In exchange, I want you to teach me martial arts.」

「Eh, seriously? Yahoo! best regards then, pal.」

Conrad offered a handshake as he said those words to me.

Though, I am still unsure how this matter led us to become pals.

But, no one treated me so back in my kingdom.

That’s why, being offered a handshake filled with smile, was a fresh experience for me.