Chapter 102

Episode 101: Shiny Light Wings

With nothing left to do, Miuye was at a loss.

Sitting on a random bench, she idly tapped away at her tablet, killing time.

“So bored…”

“Yeah, that’s right.”

Beside her, Toa sat lazily gazing at the sky, having been asked by Kei to keep her company.

“Is it okay to skip class?”

“All courses are already completed. Now it’s just about finishing the graduation thesis and coming up with an invention. Though, I do get extra assignments from Older Sister and Luka sometimes.”

“Really?”

The casual way she said this hinted at her genius.

Toa looked at Miuye with a slight tinge of envy.

As for Miuye, she still seemed as bored as ever.

“Toa, how about you?”

“Huh?”

“Are your classes done too?”

“Oh, we don’t have classes at our place. We can’t afford to hire teachers.”

“Eh…”

That “Eh…” carried many emotions, causing Toa to suddenly realize.

(If she gets a bad impression of Factom General Academy here, they might not come anymore!)

The dorms and school building were in shambles. The autonomous zone had no income source, and now there were only four students and one Demons Gear. Classes weren’t properly conducted; it was mostly self-study or Dungeon rescues.

According to Miroku, it was the ultimate form of a free-spirited school style. Mizuki would say it was a practical academy focused on real-world application.

You’d understand its terrifying nature if you read between the lines.

Only those with special circumstances or fools lured by the zero tuition fee came here.

Knowing all this well, Toa hurried to cover up.

“But, but, things are looking up! Mizuki is S Rank! And we’ve got Miroku and Kei too! Nana… well, um, she’s harmless as long as you don’t touch her!”

“As long as you don’t touch her?”

“Yes! As long as you don’t touch her…!”

Currently, the only one who could be touched was Miroku after being administered some dangerous drugs.

“Our debts have been… repaid, really. This is where it all begins. Factom General Academy is a great place! Yes!”

Heatedly nodding multiple times, Toa leaned closer than she realized.

“And now, everyone can have more than one room, and classrooms are available for use anytime!”

“Hmm, sounds good for experiments.”

Whether Miluk would allow it was another matter, which Toa conveniently left out.

“So, if anything happens, you should come to us. Yes.”

“Would that be alright? I might cause trouble.”

“It’s no trouble at all. Don’t worry, there’s absolutely no problem!”

It seemed the relentless spirit of recruitment from Factom had been successfully passed down from the seniors to Toa.

Though slightly put off by this, Miuye listened to Toa’s talk with enjoyment.

This was quite an ordinary moment, but for Miuye, it was a rare and precious time to converse with someone her age.

(Friends feel like this, huh…)

She wasn’t entirely unhappy.

“Please tell me more. Listening to your stories about Factom is interesting.”

“Really!? Then—”

Just as Toa was about to continue her wonderful and perfect presentation of Factom…

A loud crashing sound behind them drowned out Toa’s voice, accompanied by a small, pitiful cry.

“Huh?”

Turning around while still seated on the bench, they saw a mountain of cardboard boxes and a hand sticking out from it.

■

“Thank you so much! You saved me!”

The girl rescued from under the mountain of boxes bowed deeply with great vigor to the two of them.

The girl, shorter than both of them, looked even smaller when compared to the stacked boxes.

“Uh, are you alright?”

“Yes, I’m fine. Look, I’m this energetic!”

The girl demonstrated her energy by hopping around, her golden hair shimmering in the sunlight, making her look like an innocent fairy.

“Phew, for a moment there, I thought something bad might happen. Yep yep.”

The girl nodded, looking alternately at Miuye and Toa before suddenly exclaiming “Ah!” She pointed at Toa and grabbed her hand, shaking it vigorously.

“You’re that person, aren’t you? The one who fought for me when I wasn’t myself!”

“Huh?”

Miuye tilted her head in confusion.

“That’s right! The one who attacked my ally from behind! Your amazing converging artillery attack!”

Miuye quickly turned to Toa, who silently shook her head with a pale face.

“Eh, well, maybe there’s some misunderstanding here?”

“Nope, none at all. I saw it clearly. Your artillery attack made the red-haired person go ‘whoosh’ and become stronger!”

“…Ah. Is this about the Kisou Academy incident?”

The girl happily nodded. “Yes, yes!” She then bowed politely again.

“Thank you very much back then! In the end, you helped me too!”

“Who is she, Toa?”

Before Toa could answer, the girl introduced herself.

“My name is Yatsutaka Hikari! I used to be part of the vigilante group at Kisou Academy! Nice to meet you!!!”

“Ah, hello. I’m Karon Miuye.”

“Miuye-chan!”

“A, yes.”

“What a nice name!”

“Thank you! Hikari-chan has a nice name too!”

“Thank you! I’m glad to hear that!”

As their voices grew louder, Toa noticed she was the only one left behind.

Miuye, who wasn’t shy, and Hikari, the epitome of an energetic girl, seemed to hit it off instantly, leaving Toa feeling defeated and isolated.

“Ah, my name is Tsuki Miyako.”

“Yes! Toa-chan, please take care of me from now on!”

“Ah, ah, sure.”

Caught off guard by the momentum, Toa simply replied.

There hadn’t been anyone like this around her before, so Toa’s communication deck didn’t have a card specifically for dealing with energetic girls.

“…Hey, do you not remember me?”

Confused by Toa’s puzzled expression, Hikari stepped closer.

Then, she messed up her own hair and said,

“Hmm, will this jog your memory? Although, the time we met was rather brief.”

The vibrant aura surrounding Hikari dissipated, replaced by a seasoned, intense atmosphere. She absentmindedly traced her neck with her fingertips.

“H-Hikari-chan, you seem different…”

“Um… Professor?”

Faced with the confused Miuye and tilting-head Toa, Hikari brightened up again and nodded.

“Yes, yes! How do I look? Not similar enough? Moreover, Toa-chan, you’re surprisingly unfazed…”

“Is that so? If you’ve seen the real person, the differences might be too shocking. Hikari-chan is cute though.”

“Hmm… Clam went into a panic and almost cried when I did this…”

“Uh, is that supposed to be a joke?”

“That trick fooled him enough to make him super angry…”

“Absolutely never do that again, alright?”

Hikari obediently nodded, though whether she truly understood remained unclear.

Anyway, touching on this topic wasn’t wise, so Toa decided to change the subject.

“So, why are you carrying such a ridiculous amount of cardboard boxes?”

It was a pile of cardboard boxes towering five meters high.

Apparently, Hikari had been moving them all by herself until now.

“In fact, I was hospitalized until yesterday. I was discharged this morning, and since I wanted to express my gratitude, I’ve been wandering around this academy. But no matter how much I searched, I couldn’t find Luka-san anywhere. So, I decided to help people wherever I could to repay the favor!!!!”

“So that’s what happened…”

“You were treated by Luka-san?”

“Yes! That person is incredible! They completely healed me when I was practically on death’s doorstep!”

Her words were backed by her actions.

Rather, she was overly energetic.

“Truly impressive, Luka-san…”

“I’m kinda dumb, so I have immense respect for super smart people like that! And this academy is where such incredibly intelligent people study. Therefore, I’m repaying my debt through physical labor!”

Saying this, Hikari patted the cardboard boxes.

“What’s inside these boxes?”

“They seem to be reports. Apparently, all servers at Jilnias Academy were simultaneously hacked, and intruders broke into various research facilities and labs. It’s quite a mess. There’s fear that if important reports were lost, it would drive everyone mad. Right now, everyone is writing reports with pen and paper. I relate to analog methods, so I feel close to them!”

“Hmm… Wait, Jilnias Academy got hacked!?”

“Yes!!! They said it was super serious!”

“Ahahaha, impossible! With security algorithms changing every minute and the impenetrable security system using the Relic known as Laplace’s Clock, there’s no entity capable of breaking through that!”

Jilnias Academy was recognized by all as professionals in cyber warfare.

Given their research into Dungeons, which often involved confidential information, it was natural for them to have superior security programs compared to other academies.

Nothing could breach such an invincible fortress.

“Is that so? Then, an even smarter person must be hacking it!”

“Can it really be summed up as just ‘super smart’…?”

“Hmm, I’m not specialized in that field, so I wouldn’t be able to help even if I went there. Nico might have been able to handle it, but everyone is currently chasing Solciera…”

“Eh? Solciera? Then—if—ah.”

Hikari stopped mid-sentence, seemingly remembering something, and slapped herself.

“Hikari-chan!?”

“Sorry. I almost forgot Clam’s request. I know nothing about Solciera. That’s all I know!”

“An ignorant knower, huh.”

“Yes!”

Saying this, Hikari effortlessly picked up three stacked cardboard boxes.

“I’ll be going now! I need to deliver these reports to the lab!”

“Are you moving them all alone?”

“Yes!”

Smiling cheerfully in response to Toa’s question,

Behind her, there was still a large stack of cardboard boxes.

“How were you moving them until now?”

“Fufufu, you asked the right question! Let me show you my true form… Light Wings, release!”

Four pairs of glowing wings emerged from Hikari’s back. Seeing this light-shaped wing cutout, Miuye curiously approached.

“Co, are these all magical power!? Wow, incredible! High-output magical power combined with precise control to maintain this shape… Hmm, even considering abilities, everything is top-notch. Impressive, you must be an extremely high rank!”

“I’m still D! Due to various reasons, I haven’t gained anything at all!”

Hikari confidently answered.

Understanding the situation to some extent, Toa hesitated, while Miuye tilted her head.

“However, I’ve acquired new powers. Two mode changes have been implemented, and reaching A Rank is just a matter of time!”

“Wow!”

“Yes! I’m amazing! So, I was using these wings to carry the boxes!”

Hikari treated her wings like giant hands, lifting all the nearby cardboard boxes.

Then, she proudly nodded.

“What do you think? With this, I’m like a human truck!”

“Amazing…”

Miuye murmured, gazing upward at the cardboard boxes.

Surprisingly, the light wings matched perfectly for transportation.

“Sure, this way it’s manageable. …Hikari-chan?”

When she called out, Hikari’s condition seemed odd.

She appeared drowsy, and the energetic voice from earlier had completely disappeared.

“Afuuu…”

With a weak voice, the light wings disappeared.

“Wha-”

Before the two could say anything, Hikari was once again buried under the mountain of cardboard boxes.

■

“I’m so sorry! Twice in one day!”

While holding the cardboard boxes, Hikari energetically bowed her head.

“Don’t overdo it…”

“Yes! Thank you for helping me!”

“Well, we were free anyway…”

The three of them carried the cardboard boxes together.

Miuye managed it reasonably well as an explorer, Hikari carefully unfolded her light wings within her limits this time.

And Toa…

“Toa-chan, isn’t that heavy?”

“Huh? I don’t think so…”

She was carrying the tallest stack of boxes.

Though tied together to make it somewhat easier to hold, the sheer volume made it almost like a walking tower.

“Compared to Artemis’ Impact, this is nothing special.”

“Is that so… Well, if you say so…”

Tilting her head, wondering if she had said something strange, Toa was looked at admiringly by Hikari.

“Amazing…! Someday, I want to obtain my ultimate form and become strong like that!”

“Seems like you’re aiming for physical strength… Oh, isn’t this the place?”

Miuye pointed with her chin as they reached the destination lab.

“Ah, you’re right!”

Carefully lowering them without collapsing, after putting all the boxes down, Hikari smiled brightly.

“Thank you so much. You really saved me.”

“Is this it? If you’d like, we can stay longer…”

“No, this is the end. …But, this is something I’d like to keep confidential if possible.”

Saying this, Hikari whispered quietly to the two.

“I’m secretly doing all this without my childhood friend knowing. So, if she finds out, she’ll probably get super mad. She’s scary. Therefore, please keep it a secret if anyone asks about me!”

“Ah, sure.”

“Understood.”

Relieved by their promise, Hikari gave a thumbs-up and nodded.

“Then, I’ll hand over these reports to the students in this lab and finish my task. Please enjoy the rest of your day! See you!”

Waving her hand, Hikari entered the lab.

At the same time, a frog jumped out from among the boxes.

“Eh, a frog?”

“Ah!”

The frog darted straight after Hikari.

Eventually, the girl and the frog disappeared into the lab.

“Why was there a frog…? And it’s a Dive Gear-made autonomous armed type…?”

“What could it be…?”

Toa laughed nervously to cover it up.

“What shall we do next?”

“Umm… Given that Jilnias Academy is dealing with an unexpected hacking issue, I guess we have no choice but to go back to the bench and space out again?”

“If so, can we stop by that kitchen car we saw on the way? They had delicious-looking crepes.”

“Sure.”

Miuye readily agreed, and Toa’s expression brightened immediately.

“Let’s go then.”

“Yes!”

Following the light-footed Toa, Miuye started walking.

(Today seems like it’ll be a fun day…)

Such a premonition made her steps lighter.

Click the heart to easily convey your support. (Login required.)