.｡.:✧ Chapter 74 ✧:.｡.

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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: FusionX
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“Phew, it feels like our luggage has only gotten heavier.”

“I know, right?”

Upon arriving at the dormitory, Tana and Eve sighed as they looked at their luggage. The wheels had broken midway due to the heavy load, making their journey even more troublesome.

“I just want to go in and take a shower.”

“It does feel icky, but we still have a bit of a struggle ahead.”

“Ugh.”

The girls’ floor was on the fourth level.

Climbing up to the fourth floor felt like scaling a steep mountain for the two of them.

“Should we take a quick break before going up?”

“Should we?”

As Eve and Tana sat down, chatting, a red-haired female student, Arni Duratan, passed by. She seemed to have already unpacked her things, wearing comfortable clothes, and glanced at the two blocking the staircase.

“Oh, sorry.”

“My bad.”

As they hurriedly moved their luggage aside, Arni asked with a curious expression.

“Why are you just sitting here?”

“The luggage is too heavy.”

Tana, somewhat indifferently replied, sharing a certain camaraderie as they were from the same region. Arni then effortlessly lifted both of their bags.

“Let’s go, I’ll help you carry these.”

“Oh, really?”

“Thank you!”

Tana was surprised, while Eve quickly bowed, grateful for their savior. Arni chuckled at their reactions and briskly ascended the stairs.

“Wow, that’s really impressive.”

“She’s carrying both by herself.”

“I thought only Daniel could do something like that.”

Watching the two chatter, Arni smiled mysteriously. It seemed she found their following her like chicks quite endearing.

Then, as they passed by the boys’ floor on the third level, they heard a commotion inside.

The three hesitated, curious but aware they couldn’t enter the boys’ section, and peered in to see female students causing a stir.

“Are these girls crazy? He already has someone he likes, okay? They’re planning to date!”

May Plov, with slightly longer wavy chestnut hair, seemed exasperated, shouting as if choked.

“I’ve realized it. Daniel’s heart might waver for a moment, might even like someone else. But he’s destined to come back to me.”

Rin, making a cult-like declaration, clutched her chest tightly.

“Why does it matter who Master dates? May, do you throw away your belongings when you get a boyfriend?”

Elise’s comment seemed almost off-topic, questioning if they were even discussing the same matter.

“What’s even happening here?”

“Ah, starting with a fight?”

“Elise?”

Tana and Eve were puzzled by the situation, but Arni saw it differently. Elise, usually dignified but reluctant to take the forefront, showing such assertiveness in the boys’ section?

There must have been some change in her during the vacation, Arni thought.

“Isn’t that Daniel’s room?”

At Eve’s murmur, Tana startled and leaned forward to check. Indeed, it was Daniel’s room.

“…”

Tana glanced at Eve, but she seemed as calm as usual.

“I wonder if Daniel’s back? I’d like to say hi.”

“Do you not feel anything?”

“Feel? About what?”

“Like, all these girls gathered at Daniel’s room, fighting over him. Doesn’t it make your heart boil or something?”

“Are we back to that? It doesn’t bother me.”

“…”

How did it come to this?

Tana had diagnosed Eve with “Romance Reader Syndrome.”

Watching her love interest’s romantic entanglements as if she were merely a reader of a romance novel seemed severe to Tana. She had hoped to cure Eve of this syndrome over the vacation, but to no avail.

“I failed.”

Despite various pieces of advice and recounting her own experiences of liking Ares in detail, the effect seemed minimal.

“Is this about romance?”

Surprisingly, Arni, who was helping them with their luggage, showed interest. As they moved towards the fourth floor, she cautiously asked.

“So, Daniel is quite popular, isn’t he? Are you guys into that too?”

“Uh, well.”

“I was turned down by Daniel.”

Arni was taken aback by Eve’s nonchalant admission, while Tana sighed and nodded.

“I’m just a friend, and Eve liked Daniel…”

“Cough, you have a much more open view on relationships than I thought.”

Arni was flustered by their boldness. After moving their luggage to their room, they thanked her and offered to buy her something from the cafe, but…

“…”

After a moment of hesitation, Arni, her face turning as red as her hair, asked.

“Would it be okay if I asked for some help too?”

“Hm? Do you need something?”

“As long as it doesn’t require physical strength, of course!”

Despite their immediate agreement without knowing the context, Arni still hesitated, fidgeting with the ends of her hair.

After a brief pause, she took a deep breath as if bracing herself and blurted out.

“I, I need some advice on romance!”

***

As students of Aios Academy regretted the end of their vacation and headed back, a man was moving in the complete opposite direction.

Daniel McLean.

It was me.

The stale air felt oppressive, and with every breath, a stuffy sensation seemed to accumulate in my chest.

Entering the Demon Realm Forest after a long time required some adjustment, but it was only for a moment; I soon moved around as if it was my own home.

“There’s no need to stay at the entrance.”

I entered the forest to gather medicinal herbs for Michelle’s illness.

These herbs, rare outside, could be easily found mid-way through the forest, quickly filling my basket.

“Considering Michelle’s future, the disease will likely be cured.”

In my past life, Michelle was frail but didn’t seem to take medication, suggesting that a cure or consistent treatment could heal her.

“I should gather enough for about three years.”

As I indiscriminately stuffed herbs into my basket and bag, a rustling sound came from nearby.

“Hmm, they recognize the person who killed their master, huh?”

Suddenly, giant bugs with patterns on their backs charged at me, recognizing me as the killer of their king, Apviel, and attacked fiercely.

“Sigh, what a nuisance.”

There was no need to confront them all here.

Without drawing my sword, I started to run in the opposite direction, knowing a decent spot nearby.

Crunch.

Crack.

“Interesting, right? These are called Red Skull Roses. They try to pierce anything that enters their territory.”

Numerous thorns flew from a giant rose that resembled a tree, aiming at me and the bugs.

I easily dodged, familiar with the threat, but the bugs following me were not so fortunate.

After passing through the Red Skull Rose’s territory, we entered the Acid Giant’s domain.

Though called a giant, it was incapacitated, drooling, its saliva turning the ground to mud, dissolving anything that stepped on it.

I navigated the less affected ground safely, but the bugs, due to their anatomy, mostly dissolved, with only a few surviving.

I considered drawing my sword but continued running out of laziness, eventually reaching the Silver Lake in the Demon Realm Forest, which was relatively bright.

The lake, shimmering silver, was beautiful but not particularly remarkable.

Approaching, the lake overflowed, aiming at me and the bugs.

“Yah!”

Although the attack was wide-ranging, it was slow, allowing me to dodge while the bugs became prey to the lake, disappearing entirely.

The so-called Silver Lake was not a lake at all.

“It’s a giant Silver Slime.”

A monstrous creature made entirely of acid, unimaginably large.

Fortunately, being in the early to mid-section of the forest meant encountering only simple monsters.

If we had reached the deeper parts, we might have encountered more troublesome creatures.

As I was about to return to gathering herbs, a figure cautiously emerged from between the trees.

Expecting another bug, I was surprised to see it was a person, and even more so, someone I knew.

“Daniel?”

“Adriana?”

Adriana, the witch of the Black Forest who had survived Apviel thanks to the prophecy, had left the academy to return to the forest. Seeing her rush towards me with a surprised look was unexpected.

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