Chapter 2 Part 7
Translator : PolterGlast
Proofreader : John4891
Within
a few days of reconciling with Mars, Nozomu's treatment in the class had
changed considerably.
Mars,
who hated Nozomu the most, began to talk to him regularly.
Students
in the 10th class were basically treated as dropouts by students in any other
class. It was the harmful effect of Solminati Academy, which advocated a
complete meritocracy.
Their
outlet, which was treated as such a dropout, was Nozomu, the lowest rank in all
grades.
However,
in the 10th class, when Mars, who was in the upper grade, talked to Nozomu,
those who’d been cursing Nozomu couldn’t bully him too much anymore, and as a
result, they took a stance not to get involved with Nozomu.
Mars
had also become more distant from his entourage and had always teamed up with
Nozomu in his practical lessons.
Inevitably,
Nozomu spent more of his time with Mars....
"I'm
so happy~~! Nozomu-kun and Mars-kun are getting along with each other ~~~~
!!"
The
infirmary at noon.
Nozomu
was abducted by Anri-sensei today and had lunch together in the infirmary. By
the way, Mars, who was beside him, was one of her targets, so he was captured
in the same way.
Anri-sensei's
was very enthusiastic from the beginning, and she is sprinkling the happy
atmosphere around her more than ever.
"Oh,
thank you..."
Nozomu
was a little drawn to Anri-sensei's overwhelming happiness, but he knew she was
genuinely happy, so he was honestly grateful for her feelings.
"...Hmm"
Mars
was eating his lunch lazily.
"Now
now. I'm just as happy as Anri. Nozomu-kun and Mars-kun became friends. Anri
was concerned not only with Nozomu but also with Mars."
"What
does that mean?"
"Anri
said Mars was a clumsy but kind child."
"After
all ~~~. Mars-kun. You reassessed Nozomu-kun at the end of the second year and
reflected on what you did to Nozomu-kun right~~~?"
“...”
"Such
a child cannot be a bad child ~~."
There
was a smile on Anri-sensei's face, and she guessed right what Mars was thinking
about decisively. Mars was very surprised.
Well,
if he always saw her happy-go-lucky atmosphere, it'd be hard to notice that she
was actually a sharp person.
Nozomu
had previously been noticed and pointed out by her to some extent. She always
felt something was off, but she couldn’t tell it was the confrontation between
Nozomu and Shino at the end of the second year and the changes that had
occurred in Nozomu.
That
was why Nozomu wasn’t as surprised as Mars, about Anri-sensei who pointed out
the change in Mars's mind.
“...”
Mars
turned away, but his face was red. It was clear that he was shy.
"Fufu....
By the way, Nozomu-kun, what are you making right now?"
Norn-sensei
finished lunch early and spoke to Nozomu who was doing something on her desk.
Nozomu
took out a set of crafting tools on the desk and made something.
"This?
It's a birthday present for a friend."
"Hee!
Is that so? Who will you give it to?
Norn
was a little surprised because she thought that Mars was the only friend of
Nozomu at the school, and she was also interested in what Nozomu was making.
"I'm
giving it to a student of Ecross academy I met before. I can't tell you what it
is, because the first that should know what’s inside the gift is the
child."
Nozomu
didn’t think it was not necessary to hide Somia, aside from the presents he was
making, so when he talked about his encounters with her, Norn-sensei and
Henri-sensei were very surprised.
"Hee!
I didn't think Nozomu-kun would even get acquainted with a daughter of the
Francilt family."
"What
made you so surprised?"
It
seemed that Mars didn’t understand very well, but the Francilt family was one
of the Aristocrats who had existed since the founding of the great power of
Forsina in the western part of the continent.
In
addition, the Country of Forsina quickly dispatched an army to a group of demon
beasts during the great invasion 10 years ago, and that army became the core of
the later formed Allied forces and repelled the great invasion. It became a big
driving force.
It
was also the country that had proposed the establishment of the Solminati
Academy to every country, and its existence was known to all across the
continent.
Most
human beings had nothing to do with such well-known families. Especially
getting acquainted with the daughter of such a family.
"I
only knew she was a Francilt family member recently, even though I knew her and
met her. I didn't know she was a part of such a famous family. Well, I don't
really mind it, but she seemed a little worried that she was hiding her noble
status from me. "
Nozomu
continued to speak while moving his hands.
"Isn't
it reasonable considering her upbringing?"
Well,
a well-known family may have its own worries..
When
Norn saw Nozomu's face while she was working, there was a slight smile on his
face.
(Un,
It's okay with this)
Perhaps,
when thinking about giving a present to the other party, it was unavoidable to
feel happy. When she saw Nozomu, she became happy, and naturally, a smile
bloomed on her face.
==============================================================
After
school, Nozomu and Mars headed to the outskirts of the city. After reconciling,
the two had been arranging their own mock battles there about once every two
days after school.
"In
the end, I couldn't beat Mars before ... As expected of the current me. I'm not
strong enough to deal with you ..."
“.....”
As
a result of the bout, Mars has a higher winning percentage so far. Nozomu was
one step behind Mars because he didn't use attacking techniques such as
"Phantom", so he lacked the deciding factor.
Nozomu's
attacking technique with Qi still had a high killing caliber though.
This
technique was to surely kill the opponent by efficiently using less energy. It
was necessary for him to survive because he had fought with the demon beast in
the forest.
However,
when it came to school life and mock battles, the story was different, and
these techniques with high killing ability had to be adjusted.
But,
since Nozomu didn’t have a lot of Qi, it was inevitable to reduce the density
of the Qi used in the technique in order to adjust it. Thus, the technique used
would become an inadequate technique for killing opponents.
If
the density was lowered, it wouldn’t be powerful enough to kill the opponent.
Although
his Qi had improved a little, the effect of Nozomu's ability Suppression was
strong, and the effect of auxiliary Qi techniques such as physical
strengthening and quick move was low. It was still insufficient to deal with a
person as strong as Mars.
“...Still,
it's strange when you have beaten me several times.....”
"Is
that so?"
Mars
murmured against Nozomu's remark, but Nozomu's reaction to it was plain.
Using
common sense, there was no aspect that Nozomu could beat Mars on in a
one-on-one basis.
The
difference in physical ability and Qi between Nozomu and Mars was clear, and
since Nozomu had almost no magical power, he couldn’t rely on magic.
Even
so, when he beat Mars, who was supposed to be in the upper class to some
extent, it displayed how high-level his swordsmanship was in the school.
However,
Nozomu wasn’t aware of it.
In
Nozomu’s eyes, the average swordsman must’ve been like Shino.
This
was because he’d fought her the most and wasn’t exposed to weaker people much.
This
was due to the little friendships Nozomu had so far, and it would have been a
little different if he had any friends at the school that could help him.
If
such a monster-like talent became the standard, it wouldn’t be possible to
accurately measure the position of one's own ability compared to the
surroundings.
In
addition, Nozomu himself underestimated his own ability.
This
was due to his Ability Suppression and the results of mock battles so far. Due
to the influence of his Ability Suppression, he always lost power in combat and
rarely won in mock battles.
For
this reason, Nozomu was in a state of "getting used to losing".
================================================
Mars's
POV
(This
guy, what are you saying even though you have sealed such a vicious
technique!!!)
To
be honest, Mars had been shown Nozomu's Qi technique "Phantom" only
once, but when he saw it, he was terrified and trembling.
The
released air blade passed in front of Mars in the blink of an eye and cut off
the large boulder without difficulty.
It
was an incredibly compressed and sharpened blade. The flight speed was
extremely fast, and Mars couldn’t even see the afterimage of the blade that
passed in front of him. To top it all off, it only took half a second to
activate the technique.
If
that blade was fired at him, he would be cut off along with his defense without
being able to dodge at that point.
(Hmm...I
think my loss at that time was definitely confirmed)
Mars
remembered at the end of the second year when he was cornered by the man in
front of him, but if it was this technique that was released at that time, he
would’ve lost his life.
===============================================
(Well,
I can't use it during such a practical lesson)
When
Nozomu was convinced that he had never used the attacking technique until now,
three girls walked from the front. When one of them saw Nozomu, she waved at
him.
Nozomu
also waved back, and the three walked towards him.
"Good
afternoon! Nozomu-san"
"Good
afternoon, Somia-chan. You're with your sister today."
"Yaa,
Good afternoon Nozomu. Long time no see...it's not that long yet though"
"G-Good
afternoon............"
It
was Irisdina, Somia, and Tima who came.
Tima
wasn’t good at this. As usual, she was a little meek.
"Come
on, Tima. You have something to say to Nozomu right?"
"U,
un"
"???"
Prompted
by Irisdina, Tima stood in front of Nozomu. Looked like there was something she
wanted from Nozomu.
"A,
ano! I'm sorry when I was in the infirmary!"
“……
Eh? What are you talking about?”
"Well,
I was rude to Nozomu, because I've heard it..., I've heard ... rumors, "
She
said so and dropped her shoulders. She was so depressed that it looked bad. She
must have been very concerned about that time.
"I'm
sorry, Nozomu-kun. Tima is a little weak on men. She held back a little because
she heard your rumors."
"...
Ah! About that time? It's okay. She’s apologized now, and if she was listening
to the rumors about me, it makes sense ..."
Certainly,
if they were listening to the rumors about Nozomu, it made sense.
At
the time, he was dating one of the leading female students in his grade, no one
had a good impression of him when they heard rumors that he had an affair.
When
he heard Tima's story, Nozomu's chest hurt.
(...
As I thought...It’s painful...)
He
made friends and felt less hurt than before, but when he remembered it
suddenly, the pain struck Nozomu's heart.
“...I'm
still running away as expected...Every time I remember her...)
Nozomu
still hadn’t overcome his broken heart with Lisa, and he had been despised so
far. As he met Somia and Irisdina, reconciled with Mars, and formed new
relationships, naturally, he only had less of a chance to remember.
"Ermm.
Nozomu-san. Who is this person?"
Nozomu
was silent, but Somia noticed Mars next to Nozomu and asked.
"Ah,
this is Mars. My classmate."
With
Nozomu's introduction, the three of them looked at Mars, but Mars was still
staring at Irisdina and the others in a Buddhist style.
“...What
is it"
"Hiu"
Tima
screamed a little at Mars' intimidating expression, but Mars didn’t like it,
and his gaze became even tighter. Tima was even more frightened by Mars's
facial expression, but Mars' facial expression became even more stern, and Tima
saw that facial expression causing a vicious cycle of further atrophy.
"Calm
down Mars. What's wrong?"
“...It’s
nothing...”
Mars
answered Nozomu's question as if nothing had happened, but in fact, he didn't
like Tima's frightened attitude.
She
was an A-ranked student above Mars's B-ranked, which could only be given to
those who were more powerful than Mars. She was a rare person in the school.
However,
her appearance of being frightened by him was unacceptable to Mars, who
believed in her strength.
But,
Tima didn’t know about Mars' beliefs. For her. Mars had a good physique and was
known for his depravity, was more of a horror than a demon beast.
"Oh,
that's right. It's about Somia's birthday party, but I wanted Nozomu-kun to
come if possible..."
When
an unpleasant air was about to flow between Mars and Tima, Irisdina steered
towards the topic of Somia's birthday party to Nozomu in order to change the
atmosphere of the place, and Nozomu responded to it.
"Um.
Is that okay? If it's a birthday party for the daughter of the Francilt family,
famous people will come from all over the place. Can we go to such a
place?"
The
Francilt family was a well-known family on the continent of Arcmeal. When it
came to the birthday party of the young lady of the Francily family, a
prominent figure from every country would come.
Nozomu
found it a shame to join them, who were only one student. What's more, there
were rumors that he was an indecent person at Solminati Academy; however,
Irisdina said she didn't care about it at all.
"It
doesn't matter. I was planning to hold this birthday party only with my
relatives. And Nozomu-kun is a friend of Somia right? It shouldn’t be a
problem."
Irisdina
laughed and blew away Nozomu's worries as if it had nothing to do with her. She
had no lies or fabrications in her expression, and she really thought so and
decided to act on it.
Nozomu
decided to smile as well.
"...
I understand. I’d love to come."
"I
see! I'm glad. Somia too, looks forward to it."
"Yes!
Nozomu-san told me that he would prepare a present!"
With
her big smile, she spread her hands all the way, and her arm ornaments clinked.
Irisdina
and Somia smiled with satisfaction, confirmed the date and place of the
birthday party, and they went their separate ways.
===============================================
Nozomu's
POV
On
the way back, Mars and I were walking and looking back on the previous thing.
"What
about Mars? Will you participate?"
"...I
was invited. I'll just participate."
Mars
was also invited by Irisdina-san. She probably invited him because he’s my
friend.
"Even
so, you were staring at Tima-san for a long time."
Mars's
attitude towards Tima-san is clearly strange. He tends to be emotional, but his
attitude towards her is close to his previous attitude towards me.
"...That
girl is the most frustrating. Even though she's strong, why is she so scared…”
"...
Only the person herself knows what she is so scared of. You don't know about
her right..."
“...”
Only
Tima-san herself can know what she’s afraid of. What’s painful for her is
different from what’s painful for Mars', but Mars's expression still seems
stiff. His face remained until he eventually arrived at Ushitotei.
===============================================
Iris's
POV
"...
Tima, are you okay?"
"...Yup..."
I
comforted my best friend, but her expression isn’t good.
Tima
was born with high magical power and was therefore shunned by the people around
her. She wasn't treated very well, especially by boys of her age.
Also,
her looks have been good since her childhood; therefore, she continued to be
exposed to lustful gazes from the shadows.
Envy,
awe, jealousy, and hatred.
For
her, who still couldn't handle her own magical powers, those gazes are the
greatest psychological burden.
As
a result, she’s become incredibly uncomfortable with the gazes, especially men,
and her emotional instability directly led to her lack of magical control.
Her
magical power is higher than anyone else’s, but she just can't control it.
"Well,
about Nozomu, he doesn't seem to mind, but he...Mars. He'll do something about
that too."
"That's
right! He is Nozomu-san's friend, and I'm sure it's going to be okay!"
"...Un...I'm
sorry Ai, Somia-chan ..."
"Tima,
I'd be happy if you could thank us instead."
"That's
right! "thank you" in such a case!"
I
feel a little playful, Somia answers with a big smile.
"...
Un, thank you, both of you."
Tima's
face smiled in response to me and Somia. In the end, her expression never
really cleared up, and we had no choice but to arrive on our way home.
