Chapter 25
Nero, with Cyril slung over his shoulder, was racing through the forest at night without carrying so much as a light. Even in human form, Nero could see reasonably well in the dark.
On top of that, he was vastly stronger than a human, so carrying Cyril over his shoulder did not stop him from sprinting at full speed with room to spare.
(…Come to think of it, how did this chilly big brother get out of the dorm?)
Both boys' and girls' dormitories were surrounded by tall walls. There were guards stationed at the gates all night, so it should not have been easy to get in or out.
It would be a different story if he could use wind magic to leap or fly, but flight magic was not as easy as people made it sound. Monica had once said that it required both advanced, precise magic manipulation and physical ability, making it something only high-level mages could use.
As for Monica, quite apart from her magic technique, her motor skills were so catastrophically bad that jumping high was the most she could manage.
(As far as yours truly can tell, this chilly big brother is outstanding at ice magic, but he doesn't seem all that good at anything else.)
Humans were born with a fixed affinity for a particular element. It was quite common for ordinary mages to be unable to use anything but magic of their affinity.
Monica, who could effortlessly use difficult magic regardless of its element, was an anomaly in all sorts of ways. It was easy to forget that sometimes.
(This chilly big brother probably can't use wind magic. Still, being able to use this much ice magic at his age is pretty impressive.)
How had Cyril, who could not use flight magic, escaped from the boys' dormitory?
The answer became clear as soon as they reached the back of the boys' dormitory. There was a crack in part of the wall surrounding it. Apparently, Cyril had escaped through here.
"Even a prestigious school's security is surprisingly sloppy."
"Apparently, students throughout the years have used that crack to sneak out of the dormitory and get some fresh air."
A voice came from behind Nero.
When Nero turned around with Cyril still on his back, he saw a familiar male student standing there.
A tall, slender figure, a sweetly handsome face, and golden hair shining softly beneath the moonlight—the second prince of the Kingdom of Ridill, Felix Ark Ridill.
Felix was wearing his uniform and holding a somewhat oversized board.
When Nero looked at the board, Felix leaned it against the wall, covering the crack.
"I usually prop a board against it to hide this crack, but it seems Cyril didn't have the presence of mind to do even that."
So this was a secret exit even the prince made use of.
As he digested that, Nero lowered Cyril from his shoulder.
"I'm just a traveler passing through. This chilly big brother went berserk from magic power poisoning and collapsed in the forest, so I brought him here. I'm nice, aren't I? You'd better be grateful."
"Ah, thank you for going out of your way."
"Even if this chilly big brother says something, tell him he was hallucinating from magic power poisoning. Got it? Everything he saw was a hallucination."
"…Hmm?"
Felix glanced at Cyril, then immediately returned his gaze to Nero.
His expression was calm and gentle—but his blue eyes fixed intently on Nero, leaving no room for carelessness.
"Kind traveler, may I ask your name?"
"I'm not important enough to introduce myself, but since I'm kind, I'll tell you anyway. Bartholomew Alexander."
When Nero told him a brazen lie, Felix covered his mouth and giggled.
"That's the same name as the protagonist of an adventure novel."
"You know Dustin Gunter?"
Nero's opinion of Felix rose a tiny bit. Nero firmly believed that no one who liked Dustin Gunter could be a bad person.
Felix giggled at Nero's suddenly animated voice.
"I enjoy pretty much every form of entertainment this country has to offer. Novels, games, and theater."
"Women too, I bet?"
Since Nero had seen Felix heading out for a night on the town, he jabbed him with that barb, and Felix gave an ambiguous smile. "Who knows?"
(…What a creepy human.)
Born into royalty and blessed with everything imaginable, yet he had a hollow gaze, as though he possessed nothing at all.
Felix easily hoisted Cyril onto his back, then looked at Nero as though he had just remembered something.
"By the way, did you know, traveler? The forest around here is part of the academy grounds, so anyone unaffiliated with the academy is forbidden from entering."
"Huh. So what?"
Nero hated having human conventions imposed on him.
(Because I'm not human.)
Human rules were none of his concern. Nero jerked his chin toward Cyril.
"I helped that chilly big brother, didn't I? Turn a blind eye just this once."
"Of course. I wouldn't dream of interrogating you after you've helped Cyril."
"Oh, really?"
Nero frowned suspiciously and thrust his hand inside his own robe.
He moved his hand around beneath his clothes, making a gesture as though he were catching something.
"…So you don't need to interrogate me because this guy will find out who I really am for you?"
Saying that, Nero pulled his hand back out of the robe.
A white lizard dangled from his fingertips, swinging by its tail.
Nero lifted the white lizard to face level and threatened, "I'm gonna eat you~," making the white lizard thrash its tiny limbs.
Nero bared his sharp teeth and grinned viciously.
"Looks like a water spirit. You were planning to hide it in my clothes and spy on me, weren't you? Too bad. I'm very sensitive to the presence of magic power."
Spirits were essentially masses of magic power. The higher-ranking the spirit, the sooner Nero could sense it.
This white lizard was a high-ranking water spirit. Most likely, it was the prince's contracted spirit.
Even with the white lizard thrust in his face, Felix continued smiling calmly. It was unnerving.
Nero had expected a reaction like, "W-what!?" or "Who are you!?" Yet the prince did not show the slightest bit of agitation.
"See ya."
Nero tossed the white lizard onto the ground with a bored air, then turned his back on Felix and started walking away.
(Hey, sparkly prince. No matter how bored you are, don't touch my favorite, okay?)
If he kept chatting any longer, Felix might figure out who he really was. So Nero muttered without making a sound.
Baring his sharp teeth and grinning viciously as he did so.
(If you break Monica, I'll start at your head and crunch my way down.)
＊ ＊ ＊
The white lizard thrown onto the ground—Will—changed into human form and bowed his head to Felix.
"I apologize for my incompetence. I will pursue that person at once…"
"No, it's fine. It would be a problem if you got eaten."
Felix said it jokingly, and Will lowered his head as though ashamed of his own inadequacy.
Felix no longer intended to pursue the black-haired young man.
He did not know what that young man was… but instinct told him that he was not someone Felix could hope to deal with by chasing after him.
That thing was inhuman. And not a spirit, either… but something else entirely.
Still, whatever that inhuman being was, if it had no intention of harming Felix, then there was no need to do anything about it for now.
"Will, return to your lizard form. It would be somewhat inconvenient if Cyril saw what you look like."
"As you command."
Will changed back into a white lizard, smoothly climbed up Felix's leg, and settled into his pocket. Once he had confirmed this, Felix adjusted Cyril on his back and started walking.
Then Cyril gave a small groan on Felix's back. Apparently, he had regained consciousness.
"…Ugh… I…"
Felix addressed him gently.
"Hey, you're awake."
"…Your Highness…?"
Cyril blinked several times and looked at Felix with unfocused eyes.
"You suffered magic power poisoning and collapsed in the forest. A kind traveler carried you here."
"…I'm sorry for the trouble."
"It's nothing."
Normally, Cyril would have immediately insisted on walking himself. That he did not was a sign of just how exhausted he was.
When Felix delivered Cyril to his room, Cyril lay limply on the bed and gazed up at Felix with unfocused eyes.
"…The traveler who saved me was a short, hooded person, was he not?"
Felix shook his head.
"No, he was a tall, black-haired man."
"…I see."
Cyril murmured and closed his eyes.
Something occurred to Felix, and he asked,
"What kind of hallucination did you see in the forest?"
Cyril remained silent for a while, as though confused. Behind his closed eyelids, he was probably replaying the hallucination in his mind.
Eventually, with his eyes still closed, Cyril slowly opened his mouth.
"…A hallucination of a terrifyingly quiet, terrifyingly powerful… monster………… I will never forget that figure for the rest of my life."