“Time, huh. You mean right now?”“Yes. Let us talk over lunch.”At Beatrice’s lunch suggestion, I looked at Bell without a word. Bell hurriedly waved her hands.“Ah— no. I’m fine, so please do as you like.”At Bell’s reaction, Beatrice shrugged.“Did you have a prior engagement? My apologies.”“No, Lady Beatrice. There’s no need to apologize. I’m fine, so you can take care of your business first.”Bell ducked her head as if feeling honored, but Beatrice motioned for her not to and to stand.“Then how about we all dine together? I’ll treat you.”“Hm.”Not my intention, but this wasn’t a bad development.If Bell sat with us, talking with Beatrice would be easier and the mood wouldn’t be so heavy.And if Bell ate alone with me, weird rumors would spread; but if the three of us ate with Beatrice, that wouldn’t happen.“Alright. Eating together sounds good. Bell, what about you?”“I— it’d be an honor, but would I be imposing?”“Not at all. Excessive modesty is impolite. Then I’ll take it as settled.”Beatrice moved ahead of us and told us to follow her.“There’s a place I know well. Come along.”***Eredor’s student dining.In truth, it was less a student cafeteria and more a cluster of many eateries, a kind of food street.Eredor’s students were given a set number of meal tickets each term, which they could use in the dining district instead of cash.Of course, if they wished, they could buy more expensive, better food with money, like we were doing now.“Wow…”Bell stared up with her mouth open at the pure white building before us.The place we reached following Beatrice was the most upscale-looking of the restaurants in the district, a place called [Heaven’s Breath].'As expected of Beatrice.'By setting, it was the most expensive and most delicious restaurant in Eredor, off-limits to ordinary meal tickets and run strictly by reservation.Naturally, for Beatrice—Eredor’s Student Council President and imperial princess of the Magocratic Empire—it was a free pass.Thanks to her, we entered without any trouble.The interior was decorated as lavishly as a luxury hotel.White marble and costly ornaments everywhere—clearly a lot of money went into it.“This way, please.”The waiter led us to a good table that wasn’t easily seen by others and looked out over the scenery.He poured sparkling water into our glasses and took our orders.Beatrice ordered her usual favorite, cream pasta.A modest palate for a princess.“Very well. And for you two?”“I— I’ll have whatever he orders.”Bell handed the choice over to me.I skimmed the prices, closed the menu, and gave it to the waiter.“The most expensive one.”“Yes. Order received.”“Ah.”Bell groaned, looking troubled, but it was too late.When I ordered the priciest dish in the restaurant, Beatrice faintly knit her brows.“Will you be able to finish it?”Beatrice hated waste to an extreme.Either her sense of stewardship as a princess, or a mage’s inclination for efficiency.“Don’t worry. I can finish it.”I’d only half-filled my stomach the last two days, so I was craving something good.And with daily training and mana breathing, my appetite was in full swing.Money had to be saved, too, so I might as well eat my fill of something good while I could.“And you?”Beatrice looked at Bell.Thankfully, Bell was a born big eater. Price was the issue, not quantity.“I can finish it, but, um, the price…”Bell had entered the Union on scholarship. Naturally, paying that much for a single meal was unimaginable.As she hesitated, Beatrice gave a slight smile.“Don’t worry about the price. If you can finish it, it’s fine.”“Th-thank you.”That ended the small talk. I got to the point.“So, why invite me to eat together?”Last time it was Elena; this time Beatrice approached me first.No downside to me, but I wondered at her purpose.“Nothing special. I wanted to hand you a copy of the minutes from the last meeting.”Beatrice took a clean white file from her bag and passed it to me.I accepted it and put it in my briefcase.But that had to be only a nominal pretext. The real subject would come next.Sure enough, Beatrice continued in a grave tone.“Loen. Do you remember the incident at your inauguration ceremony?”The inauguration? What was that again.“…I’ve heard some of it, but my memory’s a bit hazy.”I tapped my temple, as if the shock from that time left my memory unreliable.A very convenient excuse.Beatrice didn’t particularly doubt it.“I see. So you’re not fully recovered after all.”She looked at me for a moment, then went on.“The high-ranking monsters that raided the auditorium that day were banished by some power. But the aftereffects still remain.”“The aftereffects do still remain.”When I tapped my temple again to emphasize the amnesia, Beatrice clicked her tongue.“…Don’t joke.”“Got it.”She must have felt a sudden thirst; she took a sip of sparkling water and continued.“Monsters basically emit magi, but most of it scatters into the air and vanishes. However, the magi of high-ranking monsters is a little different.”Click—.She took a glass bottle from her bag and set it on the table.Inside the bottle, sealed by a magic circle, sat an obsidian cube puffing black smoke.A familiar quest item from the game — a Dark Magic Stone.“A Dark Magic Stone, then.”“…You know it?”“I may not look it, but I’m an alchemist.”“Now that I think about it, you are. I’d forgotten.”“…”“Anyway. Since this is an object corrupted by contact with the magi exuded by high-ranking monsters, it’s a kind of contraband. After the incident, the Union Guard and each academy’s disposal teams recovered as many Dark Magic Stones from the auditorium as they could, but we judge they didn’t get them all.”“So this could be «N.o.v.e.l.i.g.h.t» circulating inside the academy?”“Yes. None have been reported yet, but the possibility is high. If such an item circulates on campus, there could be major casualties at any time. And someone with malice could make use of it.”“I see.”“Exactly.”“So. What do you want from me?”Beatrice, who saw me as a thorn in her side, had no need to tell me any of this.At my question, she put the item back into her bag.“Well, I’m not particularly asking you to solve it. The Disciplinary Committees of the Four Academies and the Union’s hazardous-materials team will handle it. I simply want you to be aware. Nominal as it may be, you are the General Student Council President.”“Alright. I’ll just be aware.”At my lackluster response, Beatrice rubbed her forehead as if getting a headache.“Haa… Feels like I wasted my time telling you.”“That’s not true. It was a big help. Really.”Thanks to the Dark Magic Stone she produced, the main quest in my memory surfaced clearly.Even at my sincere words, Beatrice answered coldly.“Enough. Don’t speak to me now. Let’s eat quietly.”Having listened in silence to our exchange, Bell mustered the courage to speak.“Um… you two seem to get along better than I thought.”“As if.”“Miss Bell. That’s rude. I must ask for an apology for that at least.”Naturally, the reaction wasn’t great, and Bell bowed her head.“I—I’m sorry!”In any case, Beatrice said she would handle the Dark Magic Stone matter, but it wasn’t something they could resolve on their own.It was an event heralding the start of the main quest [Trace of Delusion], which required intervention by me, the player.The event’s development and timing were a bit different from what I knew, but if I chalked it up to “Loen being alive” shifting things, it wasn’t strange.The core of the main quest would be the same anyway.“Recovery of Dark Magic Stones, and the cleanup of those who used them.”Dark Magic Stones were dangerous items that encouraged human demonization.It was also a matter tied to the main villains of Mir-Ellin Saga, the “Twelve Venerables.”It wasn’t yet time for them to appear, but inevitably, we’d face them as enemies.While I was rekindling memories of my time playing Mir-Ellin Saga—A waiter approached and set a dish before Beatrice with elegant movements.“Your cream pasta with Vericosan bacon. And—”Roll-roll-roll—.He then pushed a cart over and set two huge bowls, one each before Bell and me.“The Trinity Set, which includes a balanced array of the world’s three great delicacies.”“Looks good. Let’s all eat before it gets cold.”As I picked up my utensils and urged them to eat, Beatrice pouted.“I’m the one paying.”“I know. Bell, you remember this—Her Highness’s grace.”“Y-yes.”“…”Slurp—.I first tasted the small cup of mushroom soup.As expected of the most expensive menu, even the starter soup was superb.Then I took up my fork and knife in earnest and began the meal.The main, veal steak.Cooked just right, with a strong truffle aroma — I liked it.Partway through, Beatrice cautiously asked me a personal question about earlier in class.“By the way, Loen. How did you solve that problem?”“You can’t?”I tilted my head as if asking, “You can’t even do that?”, and Beatrice glared.“How could I not? It’s just… surprising that you solved it.”Fair enough; knowing Loen’s grades inside and out, it was surprising from her perspective.“Hm.”I dabbed my mouth with a napkin, pondered a moment, then gave a slight smile.“It’s a secret.”***Chatting as we ate, the mealtime passed quickly.Afterwards, I parted from Bell and Beatrice.Bell promised to treat me next time, and Beatrice swore she would never buy me a meal again.“Shame.”Next time we met, I’d have to pay. If she would even agree to meet me.After lunch, I went to my scheduled lecture.Understanding Classical Music, a general-education course. Drowsy just from the title.Thankfully, the classroom was in Eredor, so I wasn’t late even after the lavish lunch.One thing to mind when registering is classroom routing.Anyway, I hadn’t been sleeping well from waking up at dawn lately, so I used this lecture to catch up on sleep.Thanks to Loen’s infamy, no one bothered me even when I slept openly.Convenient, really.After a good nap through the general-education class, I moved to my next course.[An Easy Understanding of Spirit Studies II].A lecture held in Spirit Academy Voltimir’s domain, Alvheim Hall, Room 109.Because of the timing and distance, walking was impossible; I’d take the tram.Leaving the classical music classroom, I went to the tram stop and boarded the mana-powered car.A streetcar running on ordinary squares and roads. I’d only ever seen them in Europe; riding one in person felt novel.Sitting down like that and blankly admiring the Union’s beautiful scenery out the window—“What the— why, why are you here!”A high voice from a seat at the back of the tram.Looked like I’d boarded the same tram as an unexpected person.I hadn’t wanted attention while in transit.Sighing inwardly, I shot back calmly at Kiriel.“Nice to see you, Big-ears. Headed the same way, are we.”

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