As the very last rays of sunlight fade away, the moon begins to take its place in the sky, while the chirping of nearby insects gets increasingly louder.
The usually deserted restricted area of the academy now has a pair of figures slowly walking between all the tree trunks. Or rather, a single figure hidden in the darkness, with one person carrying another on their back.
"Tch, I told you it was too much the last time …or even the time before that one."
I grumble as I slightly adjust the position of my hands holding Lucy's legs.
"I'm sorry Hina…" Lucy weakly says, her warm breath brushing against my ears.
"But I'm still awake now, so it's already a big step forward, right?"
"...You're still saying that now? How long would it take you to make it back to the dormitories by yourself in this state? I'll be more strict in monitoring you next time."
"Eeh, I just feel a little tired is all… But 'next time', does that mean you agree to keep helping me?"
"..."
Honestly this training was pure torture for me. Seeing Lucy's complexion get worse each time I summoned a flame was already nerve-racking, but then when I wanted to end it, Lucy kept persuading me to keep going, insisting she was fine.
And me being the fool I am, kept giving in each time and now this is the result. She wasn't even able to stand steadily after everything was over and now I have to carry her on my back.
"...Honestly I still think Miss Julia should be present too."
"N-no! She can't know about this!"
"I knew it. You are avoiding getting her involved with this training. You already know she wouldn't agree to it, don't you?"
"I… but she's scary when she's angry… So you can't mention this to her, okay?"
"Heh, she will find out about it sooner or later you know. What will happen to me then?"
I'm kind of scared of seeing her angry too…
"That… I will protect you."
"Pfft. Is that really what you want to say in this situation?"
I can't help but chuckle upon hearing Lucy's declaration and glance back at her. Though by now only the moonlight is left to illuminate her face, I can still clearly see the prominent, red blush appearing on her cheeks.
Though I can only catch her embarrassed expression for a brief moment before she notices my gaze and quickly buries her face in my back.
"Fine, fine. I'll believe you."
A few minutes later we finally made it back to the dormitories, luckily we didn't run into anyone on the way back so our unallowed excursion was successfully executed.
"This is your room?"
"...hm."
I quietly ask Lucy, who answers with a barely awake grunt, just slightly opening her eyes to look at the door in front of us.
"Okay. Hold on tight."
I carefully open the door while still holding Lucy and enter the room.
This is my first time in Lucy place, and although there isn't much light, my eyes have already adjusted to the darkness while we were on our way back.
So quickly glancing around, I only see the very barest of furniture with just an old bed and a dilapidated desk next to it. There are barely any personal items around, only some living essentials.
"..."
Though it's more or less what I expected, I still can't help but feel sorry for Lucy's circumstances.
"Hina…"
Lucy calls my name with a nasal, almost whiny voice right next to my ear and then slightly changes her position. It must be getting uncomfortable for her to be carried on my back for this long.
"Ah, sorry. I'll let you down. Wait!"
I carefully set her down on her bed and Lucy immediately falls to her side and lays out flat on her bed.
"Lucy… You should take a bath first, or change your clothes at least."
"..."
It seems like my slightly scolding words fall on deaf ears as the only answer I get is her slow, rhythmic breathing.
"Seriously…"
I mutter to myself, but I still move closer to fix her clothes and then cover her with a nearby blanket. As I pull it up to her neck, my eyes can't help but linger on her serene sleeping face.
I reach out and take off her perception altering glasses. While they do have their appeal, right now they are kind of disturbing the current scene.
With a few strands of moonlight illuminating her visage, she truly looks like she's come straight out of a fairytale. Even though I thought I have gotten immune to her appearance by now, she still manages to stun me like this.
Just like when she so confidently stated her resolution to get stronger earlier, though she was captivating for a different reason then…
"..." I reach with a finger and gently poke her cheek.
Could that have been a glimpse into her future self where she keeps improving herself? If so, she could become such a dazzling existence who would easily take center stage in this country's social circle, maybe even beyond it.
…Perhaps it's wishful thinking, but I've learnt to rely on my instincts when interacting with others, and I truly feel like Lucy could become someone like that. Though it will take a lot of time and effort…
"Silly girl… When you could just rely on me and not have to deal with anything…"
I keep poking her familiarly soft cheek while thinking, but soon I see her furrow her brows in displeasure, so I stop myself from going further.
"Well, whatever. Goodnight Lucy."
I quietly say and leave her room.
***
It's been two weeks since I first took Hina to the clearing in the forest and I have been really busy since then. I keep up with classes and thanks to Hina's connections, I managed to buy some used class books at a low price with the money I received for last month's work.
But we still get together once a week for a study session on Hina's insistence. Then we attend the student council three times a week, which has been an easier task ever since Arthur returned to his usual self. And it's a good chance to keep an eye on him so he doesn't change again.
I also still do my part time work as well, though only twice a week. Then I use my last day to catch up on anything I'm behind on, like studies, chores or light magic practice.
And after I'm done with my daily duties, I still go to the clearing in the forest with Hina to keep up my training too. I'm already up to tens of seconds of being able to withstand seeing an open flame. So I think I'm already making good progress. Ah right, Hina also took the qualification exam, so we don't need to sneak around for it anymore either.
So while my schedule is a little packed right now, I find it really fulfilling. It's much better than what my situation was back when I first started attending the academy.
I think most of the bullying has stopped too. Hina's plan for me to join the student council has been really effective. I knew it was a possible path too, but I was too afraid to touch the main storyline before. And while I feel like it wasn't too difficult to deal with the harassment, it's nice to have some peace too.
Not many nobles dare to antagonize a member of the student council. In the game it was a little different since the villainess Seraphina set her eyes on Lucy and she is one of the few nobles who can afford to do as they please.
But here I don't need to worry about that, my Hina not only doesn't bully me, but she even helps me out with everything. Looking at it this way, I'm really lucky aren't I?
Anyway, speaking of the student council, for the last two days we were assigned to collect the applications for the student competition coming up at the end of this month.
A number of collection points were set up and I was assigned to one alongside Hina. She mainly handles receiving the applications and answering any questions the students might have.
Then she hands me the papers and I'm in charge of all the administrative tasks, so organising all the applications by class and magical attributes as well as recording all the names.
"Lady Seraphina, how have you been? I just received a new set of exotic tea leaves from the south and I've been meaning to hold a tea party to try them out. If I may ask, would you be interested in attending as well?"
At least that's how it should work, but I feel like most students just approach to have a chance at talking with Hina.
"...Do you have any questions regarding the student tournament?"
"Um… no. But about the-"
"In that case, thank you for your time. The applications have been closed for today."
She shuts down the conversation, leaving the other student a bit dumbfounded, but she quickly leaves after a moment. Then Hina sighs and hands me the last form.
"We're finally done. How are you holding up?"
"I'm fine, I had the easier job… Good work Hina."
"Hm. Thanks. Now we just have to take all these back to the office. Here, let me help you." She says and then picks up a large stack of papers I finished organizing.
I quickly follow her lead and gather the remaining applications, then we go back to the student council office. On the way, I can't help but let my gaze linger on the form at the top of the papers I'm holding and let my thoughts wander.
Would it be a good idea…?
"Hm? Ah, welcome back. Was everything alright?"
"Haah."
It seems like at some point we already arrived back as Arthur's voice brings me out of my daze and he welcomes us back. Then Hina follows up with a sigh while putting down all the papers in her hands.
"Or maybe not?"
"It was fine." she says flatly.
"Is that so? I heard a bit differently from a few complaints…"
"Tch. They even came all the way here?"
"Yes, but don't worry, I handled it for you. Though it does make me a bit curious, you used to be able to deal with all sorts of nobles so patiently and perfectly. What happened?"
"Well… I just kind of realized how annoying it really was to put up with such obviously two-faced and opportunistic people after meeting- …Ahem. Anyway, so we're done for today right?"
"Hm~?"
While Hina and Arthur kept talking, I also placed my papers on the table and then after looking at an empty form for a while, I finally picked it up.
"Um, can I also fill one out?"
It seemed like their conversation ended, so I spoke up while holding the form.
"Oh?"
"Huh?"
Then both of them turn towards me with a shocked expression.
"What? What do you mean Lucy? It's too dangerous!"
"Is it?"
"Well, it's supervised by the teachers and there's also medical staff ready so it's as safe as a dual can get."
"..."
Hina instantly tries to talk me down from it, but Arthur explains the details, which earns him a glare from Hina.
"Why would you want to take part in it in the first place? Is it for the extra credits?"
"Well, it's more that I think it would help me improve and since it said anyone could join, I thought I could give it a try. Although I mostly only know healing spells, would that be a problem?"
In the game Lucy never had the choice to join the tournament, the player could only choose which capture target they wanted to support and depending on the affinity level the target ended up winning or losing. So I wonder if there was something preventing Lucy from joining and Arthur answers my question:
"Technically it is true that anyone can give it a try, but those who specialize in support spells will probably not end up winning. In a duel the loser drops out of the tournament, but all the participants get scored by a panel of teachers on their performance regarding their skills and techniques and general combat awareness. So even if someone loses, if they performed well they could still receive the extra credit. This is the academy's way to incentivise all students to participate and the ranking itself is ultimately just for the fame with no extra reward by itself."
"Oh, that sounds pretty fair."
"But it's still a duel so anything can happen. What if you end up against…" Hina worriedly speaks up.
"It's fine. I want to test myself! And the two of you are taking part too, right? I want to join too."
At least they were part of it in the game.
"I'll be there, I can give you some tips if you want later."
"Hm, me too… but I still don't like it."
"Hina…"
"Fine… but then we need to keep training."
It's kind of funny, back when I first arrived in this world, I could have never imagined myself jumping straight into an event like this. It's only been about three months yet things have already changed so much.
I'm not even forced into it, I just want to start being more active so I will be ready to face all the events coming in the future. And having at least some fighting experience will be really useful.