“Luke, why are you here?”
“Just to get some fresh air.”
At Luke’s answer, Helena replied with a slightly reproachful tone.
“If you wanted fresh air, you didn’t have to come all the way to the roof.”
“Uh….”
That was quite on point.
In reality, he hadn’t just come to get fresh air; he was looking for a place on a rooftop, away from others, to feed Liv with the magical power brought by the autumn wind.
However, if he said that, it would mean admitting that Liv was not just a stuffed animal. So, Luke awkwardly smiled and changed the subject.
“Well, it seems you were studying?”
“Yeah. No one is coming right now, so it’s quiet.”
After all, the distance from here to the library is quite far.
It’s fine for sixth graders since the library is close, but Helena’s classroom, being in a lower grade, is far from the library.
Breaks are set for about ten minutes, but since the school is large, it takes roughly five minutes just to walk to and from.
So naturally, studying properly would be difficult.
Moreover, since sixth graders have a strong eagerness to learn, it’s still questionable whether there would be any seats left in the library for those who arrive late.
“You seem to prefer studying quietly. Got it. I won’t bother you anymore.”
“I’d appreciate that.”
When Helena replied, Luke quickly seemed to lose interest in her and began staring quietly in the direction the wind was blowing, hugging his doll.
It really looked like he had come just to get fresh air, with no other intention.
“…….”
But why did he really come up to the roof?
He wasn’t studying right now either.
However, she didn’t want to ask that again, feeling like she no longer wanted to talk to Luke.
That would just be wasting time.
Ignoring Luke like that, Helena began to study.
Helena pointed at the part she had been memorizing with her finger, then closed her eyes and started to recite.
“The power formula of Rabette is the necessary amount of mana multiplied by the mass of the object….”
At that moment.
“Wait a minute, Helena. What are you doing right now?”
Luke’s voice came from right beside her.
Helena couldn’t help but recoil in shock.
“Wha-what?! You startled me!”
Although Helena shouted, Luke spoke with a firm expression and tone as if he didn’t care about that.
“You weren’t just memorizing the formula without understanding the process, were you?”
Wondering why he suddenly reacted like that, she thought something major had happened.
Was it really only because she was just memorizing the formula?
Helena replied incredulously.
“What’s wrong with that? What’s required for the test is the answer, not the process. As long as the result is good, that’s all that matters, right? What’s so important about understanding the process? I just need to write down the answer.”
Memorizing the formula makes the test much simpler and faster; there’s no need to understand everything, right?
That’s far more “efficient.”
However, Luke shook his head as if he could not accept that.
“Of course it’s important!”
“W-why are you suddenly angry?”
Though that might be the right way to think, it wasn’t something to get mad about.
Luke immediately poured out words as if he were delivering a passionate speech.
“Compared to the magic represented by the circles of the past, the importance of the power calculation formula in modern class magic has grown immensely. Moreover, it tends to become more complex and intricate as we move on to higher magic. What if you disregard and do not understand the process that led to that formula at a mere second-grade level? Well, it shouldn’t be a problem if you are only using basic magic like now.
Perhaps with higher magic, it might be possible to solve it just by memorizing the formula. But that would lead to a lack of adaptability and reduce the ability to cope with various situations and issues. Then, naturally, studying won’t become learning but mere labor! Then you’d end up like a fool who can never realize what kind of discipline magic is and what fun it holds!”
Helena was taken aback by Luke’s passionate words.
“What are you even saying?”
—–
“So, this formula is derived through this process.”
“O-oh, I see. Yeah, I understand.”
In just a few minutes, Helena had received quite an impressive lecture.
It felt like she was listening to a network lecture at double speed.
Honestly, it was quite amazing.
‘Since I have no time, let me quickly cover the concepts.’ Despite explaining at a rapid-fire pace, it was easy to understand and flowed into her ears perfectly.
Well, she had already experienced that Luke was good at teaching when they studied together at a place called a café.
‘But…’
That’s not the problem.
Sure, the explanation of why this formula comes about is good.
It didn’t feel bad to learn the meanings behind the magical formulas she usually just memorized.
However, wasn’t that a bit too close?
Of course, it was unavoidable for him to be right next to her while explaining from the notebook.
Yet, even if Helena didn’t want to think that way, she found herself thinking.
‘Could it be… Luke isn’t trying to stick close to me on purpose, is he?’
Thinking that way honestly gave her a bit of chills. If that were the case, then using the excuse of explaining had allowed him to sit next to her without her realizing it.
A cold sweat was forming on Helena’s forehead.
‘No, wait. Why do I have to feel so flustered?’
If Luke was liking her rationally…
No, in this case, would it be more accurate to say he likes her as a friend?
Anyway, if he liked her, then the problem wouldn’t be with her.
If Luke confessed, she could just turn him down, and if it was not that, she could just treat him like everyone else.
Thus, it didn’t mean she had to give up the benefits she had right now for such a reason.
They say in love, the one who falls first loses.
If Luke was a person who liked explaining things to others, she could just take advantage of that now.
While Helena was concluding that in her mind.
“Hey, Helena? Are you feeling sick or something? Your face is red.”
“Huh? Me?”
At Luke’s question, Helena finally brought her hand to her face.
It seemed like she was a bit hot.
Being bewildered without knowing why, Helena suddenly became startled by the cool touch on her forehead and screamed.
“Ah! It’s cold!”
The touch on her forehead was Luke’s hand.
“It seems you have a bit of a fever… Oh my, have you been sweating this much?”
“Huh? Am I sweating?”
“Yeah, your hand is all damp. Are you catching a cold? It seems the roof was too cold for you.”
“Is that so… Yeah, maybe.”
As Helena casually answered, Luke became quite worried about her studying in such chilly weather on the roof and said with concern.
“Oh dear, you should have been careful with the exam coming up. Managing your condition is as important as studying.”
Isn’t that the case? No matter how hard someone studies, if their body condition is poor, they cannot show their true abilities.
A healthy body leads to a healthy mind.
“I’m fine. This much is okay. I’m an elf, so I’m not catching a cold yet.”
“Even if you are an elf….”
Beasts and dwarves generally tend to be more resistant to heat, while elves tend to be better at withstanding the cold.
However, that doesn’t mean they can’t catch a cold at all.
“That doesn’t mean elves can’t catch colds entirely. It would be best for you to go inside now.”
“I’m okay. Don’t worry about me; if you want to go in, you go ahead. I’ll study a few more minutes before heading in.”
After saying that, Helena quickly resumed her focus on studying.
It felt like she was trying to avoid him.
Was she saying not to disturb her anymore?
“Hmm….”
But there was no way he could just let it go.
It was obvious that she would catch a cold, and he would just tell her to go inside?
That would be the same as making her catch a cold.
‘Let’s see….’
As Luke looked for something to cover her with, he remembered that he himself could sufficiently endure the cold with the use of circles and hadn’t prepared anything like a blanket.
But he also couldn’t just openly cast magic for her.
Currently, the academy was stricter than usual regarding unauthorized use of magic due to the upcoming exams. If something went wrong, Helena might face some consequences.
So what should he do?
After thinking for a moment, Luke suddenly came up with a brilliant idea.
——
With only a few minutes left in the break, Helena was concentrating on her studies for the last time.
Luke’s explanation had been quite helpful.
She was finally able to remember formulas that she couldn’t memorize before in one go.
‘Well, he’s definitely useful.’
As Helena thought that and closed her eyes, reciting the magic formula in her mind, suddenly something soft, fluffy, and warm was felt near her belly.
“…?”
Wondering what it could be, she looked down to check and found that it was a fluffy, platinum-colored tail.
As she touched it a little, it really was soft and fluffy, almost like touching a doll.
But why was this on her belly?
No, what is it, to begin with?
Curious, when Helena traced the end of it to see where it came from, she found Luke sitting there.
That’s right.
It was none other than Luke’s tail.
Helena screamed in shock.
“W-what?! All of a sudden!”
“They say girls should have warm bellies. How is it? Isn’t it warm now?”
“That’s not the point!”
It was definitely warm, but…!
It felt nice like a soft doll, but…!
Luke said that while watching Helena’s reaction as she kept petting his tail, and he couldn’t help but smirk.
“Don’t be too polite. I won’t mind you just touching it a little.”
“B-but…”
‘N-no, this is still a bit too much!’
Luke again placed his hand on her forehead and said.
“It really does seem like you have a fever; you should see the infirmary after the test today. How about it? I could take you there.”
“N-no, I’m fine!”
———-
Thus, Luke arrived at the classroom just as the time became quite tight.
Perhaps because a new test was about to begin, Shirud was awake.
While Luke looked at Shirud, he suddenly thought that Helena would go well with Shirud.
He couldn’t accept a boy’s love, but honestly, Helena seemed like a really good match.
From what he heard about inviting her to the swimming pool, it seemed that Helena had some feelings too, and since they were both elves, their income levels also seemed similar.
One might say that her stubbornness was a slight downside, but right now, she didn’t seem as sharp as before.
“What? Why are you staring at me like that? Do you have something to say?”
“I think Helena is a really cute girl. Don’t you think so?”
“……?”
Shirud was left puzzled by Luke’s sudden statement.
