Before I knew it, a full year had passed.
The seasons turned, and winter arrived.
I turned eighteen.
School was going smoothly — I'd been promoted without issue and was about to enter my fourth year. Research was progressing well too; no complaints there.
Come to think of it, while I'd made it to the next grade,
Incidentally,
At home, things were fine too.
Lucy was growing nicely.
She'd weaned surprisingly early, and recently she'd been eating nothing but solid food.
And the other day — believe it or not — she called me "Rudie" for the first time.
Not Papa, not Daddy, not Mr. Bubbles. Rudie.
Well, since nobody else was going to call me Papa, I guess I had no choice.
She called Sylphie "Mama," of course, but that was because Sylphie had taught her to.
Should I have made my own name for myself "Papa"? No, those are just baby words. No rush. Once she's a little older, I'll have her call me Father.
Man, talking at just barely over a year old — what do you make of that? Was my kid actually pretty smart?
Nah, I knew she was normal. Some kids start talking early, some late. Sylphie and Lillia had been working hard to teach her words, so you could say it was the result of their efforts.
But still — when it's your own kid talking, you can't help thinking "wow, that's amazing."
And who knows, once she gets a little older, maybe she'll say something like "Don't wash Dad's underwear together with mine!" I was actually looking forward to stuff like that!
As Lucy grew, Sylphie's breast milk dried up.
That sweet, bittersweet, almost thrilling taste — I'd never experience it again.
I was devastated.
At the same time, her chest had completely returned to its former size.
I wouldn't say small was bad, but there was a certain loneliness — like when bonus time ends.
Also, once the breast milk was no longer needed, my contract with Suzanne ended.
That was fate too, so if anything ever came up, I'd lend her a hand.
For example, when her son enrolled in school, I could look after him or something.
Although I might have graduated by then, so I might ask
Norn and
They'd both been cooing over Lucy, saying how cute she was. To them, I supposed she felt like a little sister.
I overheard them whispering behind the stairs: "Let's try not to fight in front of Lucy."
Apparently they were planning all sorts of things together.
Probably something like a "cool big sister" project.
Lately, the two of them rarely descended into hostility.
People always try to be their best when someone's looking up to them.
If Lucy's birth brought Norn and Aisha closer together, that made me very happy.
For some reason, the general students regarded her with a mixture of awe and fear.
There were no kids pulling pranks during her lectures, so she'd probably enjoy a comfortable teaching life for a while.
She'd eat meals with Norn, pull weeds with Aisha, hold Lucy's little finger and smile.
Yes — ever since Norn and Aisha's birthday party, Zenith had started smiling more often.
They were small smiles, barely a twitch of facial muscles.
But anyone could tell she was smiling.
She still couldn't speak, and her expressions were mostly blank.
But she was recovering steadily.
That's what I wanted to believe.
--- Today was graduation day.
The entrance ceremony had been held outdoors, but the graduation ceremony was indoors.
I'd never set foot in the Great Hall before.
A massive stage had been set up, and one by one, graduates received the emblem of graduation — proof that they had completed their studies.
The number of graduates was roughly five hundred.
They said the school had over ten thousand students total, but only five hundred graduated.
Most likely, the current seventh-year class had started with nearly two thousand students.
As the years progressed, students dropped out little by little until the number shrank to this.
Getting in was easy. Graduating was hard.
Advanced magic and hybrid magic were difficult to master, and some people simply couldn't learn them no matter how much mana they had.
Others, even if they had the talent, figured that once they could cast basic magic, that was good enough.
Beyond those reasons, students dropped out for all manner of causes, one after another.
In the midst of all that, I was one of the lucky ones — treated quite well as a special student.
Lining the students' flanks were rows upon rows of teachers.
There must have been a thousand of them.
They actually seemed to outnumber the students.
In reality, it was probably only two or three hundred.
Even so — there were really this many?
No wonder they used an entire building for the staff room.
Among them, the one who stood out for being conspicuously small was Roxy.
Even from a distance, she seemed to shine. Easy to spot.
Incidentally.
The general students had the day off.
Current students were not obligated to attend either the graduation ceremony or the entrance ceremony.
In fact, even observing required special permission.
These ceremonies were apparently an honor reserved only for the chosen few.
I was positioned at the edge of the student council members.
The entire student council was in attendance.
Ariel, Luke, the two attendants, and about four other members whose faces I recognized.
And Sylphie.
As always, Sylphie on the job looked sharp and dignified.
Not so long ago, you couldn't even tell she was a girl from looking at her.
Now her hair had grown to her shoulders, and perhaps because she'd had a child, her femininity had bloomed.
She looked like a career woman.
Cute and cool.
I wanted to go around bragging that she was my wife.
Oh, and one more puzzling thing.
At the very end of the student council members, I spotted Norn.
I hadn't heard anything about this.
Had she somehow joined the student council?
There'd been no sign of it this year, so maybe she'd become a member starting next term?
If she could explain before the entrance ceremony, her big brother would be very happy.
"The graduate representatives! Linia Derodidea!
And Pursena Addordidea!
To you both, we confer the graduation certificate and the certification as Rank D of the Magic Guild!"
Linia and Pursena had been chosen as graduate representatives.
They'd had their rebellious phases, but in the end they'd left behind outstanding academic records.
More than that, they were princesses of the Doldia — the king among beast races — clan.
There could be no objection on the basis of status.
As expected, or rather, as was natural.
The graduate representatives had to be of noble standing.
When a commoner and a noble had the same grades, the noble was chosen as representative.
That caused fewer problems, and the nobles wouldn't feel slighted.
It would only be different if the commoner's grades were overwhelmingly superior.
Roxy had been quite excellent too, but apparently hadn't been chosen as representative.
The Magic University proudly proclaimed that it welcomed every student without exception, regardless of their background.
But at the end of the day, since it was run by humans, the usual entanglements came into play.
"Linia Derodidea. I humbly accept this honor!"
"Pursena Addordidea. I humbly accept this honor!"
"May the path of sorcery be ever open to you!"
Linia and Pursena's bearing was magnificent.
Climbing onto the stage and standing side by side to receive their graduation emblems — they cut an impressive figure.
I was reminded of the time Linia had declared she'd find a boyfriend during the mating season, only to tear through the swarm of suitors, ripping them apart and tossing them aside, again and again.
Standing atop a mountain of corpses, those two had murmured, "We've gotten too strong, meow," and "It's so hollow." Their fierce, noble bearing flashed through my mind.
That was the visage of true kings.
Behind them, I had seen the lord of all beasts.
Though I suppose I should forget the part where afterward, while drinking at the bar, they'd gone on and on: "We don't need men for the rest of our lives, meow!" and "That's right, men can go to hell!"
--- After the graduation ceremony, I headed to
"Cough, cough."
Nanahoshi was bundled up in a blanket-like wrap, coughing.
"Did you catch a cold again?"
"Cough... seems like it."
Over this past year, Nanahoshi had always seemed to be in poor health.
She'd have random coughing fits, develop fevers.
Each time, I'd cured her with detoxification magic.
But she'd inevitably fall ill again shortly after.
"Wouldn't you be better off living a slightly healthier lifestyle?"
Nanahoshi was basically a shut-in. She'd come out when something came up, but she spent year-round sleeping and living in this lab.
At noon, she'd show up at the cafeteria, and that was it.
In the morning and evening, she'd eat preserved food of some kind and repeat the same unhealthy routine.
Naturally, her immune system would weaken, and she'd become more prone to illness.
You could say she brought it on herself, but I still thought she ought to take better care of her body.
"At the very least, you should rest until your cold is completely cured."
"My research is going well, so I can't afford to rest."
With that, Nanahoshi turned back to her magic circle.
Her research was indeed progressing.
A few months ago, the second phase had been completed.
During the first phase, she'd summoned a PET bottle. In the second phase, a cap had been added to it.
Now she was in the third phase.
• Summoning "living things" such as "plants" or "small animals."
Before long, vegetables from my previous world would appear in this one.
Everything was going remarkably well.
"Today, I'm running the third-phase experiment."
"Wouldn't it be better to have
"True. Could you go call them for me?"
I shook my head.
"Unfortunately, both of them are off today."
"Both of them? That's unusual — why?"
"It was the graduation ceremony."
"Graduation... ah, so it's that time already."
Nanahoshi grimaced.
She probably didn't want to hear the word "graduation." Another year had gone by, and she still hadn't escaped this world.
"Linia and Pursena are graduating too. Those two are heading back to their homeland, so I'm thinking of throwing a farewell party. You'll come, right?"
"...Well, I suppose so."
Linia and Pursena were among Nanahoshi's few female friends.
Not that it was exactly that kind of relationship, but when it came to saying goodbye, she would apparently show up properly.
Compared to the old days, I felt their relationship had improved.
"Those two are going back to be princesses, huh."
"They sure don't look the part."
"Yeah, well."
What would become of the Doldia clan with those two as leaders?
But then again, even if the people at the top were useless, if the people below held things together, the organization would function.
It'd be fine.
*Knock knock!* While I was thinking that, someone knocked on the door.
"...Hmm? Come in."
"Sorry to bother you, meow."
"Come in."
The two who entered were familiar faces.
A cheeky-looking cat and a sleepy-eyed dog.
Linia and Pursena. They strode in wearing their uniforms.
"Boss, we've been looking for you, meow."
"Hey, we need to borrow your face for a bit."
Something felt off today, though.
What was different?
Linia was a bit on edge, maybe.
Or perhaps Pursena hadn't eaten meat.
It was like the first time we'd met.
Usually, one of them would toss out something like, "Flirting around in a girl's room without Fitz or Lady Roxy around — you might get in trouble, you know, meow," but there was none of that energy today.
Were they going to duel again?
Maybe a post-graduation grudge match?
...I didn't really like fights, though.
"Boss, please, meow."
"We're asking you."
Their words were short, but I could feel the weight of their resolve.
Their eyes held something like determination.
They probably couldn't face going home with a loss hanging over them. Something like that, maybe.
They had their pride too.
Well, fine.
This was the last time.
I'd play along.
Besides, I was a man, after all.
If something happened and I left it to Sylphie, that would be worse.
"Fine. Nanahoshi, I'm going to step out for a bit."
"Hey, what about the experiment?"
Nanahoshi looked visibly displeased.
But Linia grabbed Nanahoshi's arm.
"You're coming too, meow. It's special."
"You have our permission."
"Wha — wait. What is this?"
Were they planning to make Nanahoshi a witness to the duel?
Knowing them, they probably hadn't thought at all about who Nanahoshi might report to.
But the name "Silent Seven Star" did carry some weight.
She'd have credibility.
--- The location was within the university grounds.
A spot on the path from the annex to the dormitory.
Adjacent to a wooded area and blanketed with snow, visibility was poor.
"This place will do, meow."
"...This brings back memories."
It was the spot where Zanoba and I had once abducted Linia and Pursena.
The place where we'd first fought — in a sense, you could call it a place full of memories.
In that very spot, Linia and Pursena stood before me.
The two of them were separated by about ten paces.
Facing each other.
Not facing me.
...Huh?
"Boss and Nanahoshi, we want you to witness this, meow."
"Witness what?"
"Starting now, Linia and I are going to settle who's stronger."
So Linia and Pursena were going to duel.
"Why?"
"The winner becomes the chief of the Doldia clan, meow."
"But isn't that unnecessary in the first place? There are two tribes — the Derodidea and the Addordidea."
If my memory served.
I'd been to the Derodidea village, but I was pretty sure the Addordidea had their own village too.
"But when it came to chief, it was just one person, right?"
"The chief of the Doldia clan" — that was a position that united all the sub-tribes under one banner, or so I'd heard.
"That's what we thought at first too, meow."
"But we've reconsidered lately. The world is big. Becoming chief isn't everything, you know."
"Between the two of us, one can go back and teach the others what we learned here, meow."
"The stronger one becomes chief. The other lives as she pleases."
Well, now.
How to put it.
That was quite the reckless and irresponsible plan.
Still — they'd been so obsessed with being number one. What kind of internal shift led to this?
"If we both go back, we'll end up fighting anyway, meow."
"If we lose in the Great Forest, we'll be stuck living a boring life. Married off to the village's strongest warrior or something."
"Rather than that, we'll settle it here and go our separate ways, meow."
"No hard feelings, you know."
Ah, so becoming chief was still their ultimate goal after all.
But if they couldn't be the best there, they'd rather live somewhere outside the Great Forest and be the best there.
Is that it?
Well, the plan had plenty of holes in it.
Plenty of things to nitpick.
I wanted to say: "Is this really something you two get to just decide on your own?"
But there was nothing for me to object to.
They'd thought about this together and come to their decision.
And I sort of understood the feeling of not wanting to be tied down by home, of wanting to live freely.
"Understood. If that's how it is, I won't stop you. Fight to your heart's content."
"You're okay with this? You're encouraging a fight?"
Nanahoshi looked displeased.
She was an ordinary high school girl, after all.
Maybe she didn't want to watch a fight between acquaintances.
"They'd fight whether I was watching or not, probably."
The two of them were most likely evenly matched.
Without someone to judge, it could end in an undecidable draw.
A third party was necessary to avoid that.
I had to see it through.
And — not that anyone had corrected this — it wasn't a fight. It was a duel.
A "battle" to "decide" something.
"We owe you for this, meow."
"This helps."
Linia and Pursena each bowed.
Then they faced each other again and took a deep breath.
They locked eyes, glaring.
"Hssss!"
"Grrrr!"
They produced intimidation sounds unbefitting young women, sizing each other up.
Tension engulfed the scene.
It could start at any moment.
I activated my magic eyes, and Nanahoshi put on a magic-infused ring.
What was about to begin was a no-holds-barred fight to the death between two beasts.
"Pursena. I've been meaning to say this for a while, but honestly? You've always rubbed me the wrong way, meow."
"That's my line. When we were kids, you followed me around like a little tagalong, and lately you've gotten too big for your boots."
"Hah!? The tagalong was you, meow! When I was four, I covered up your bedwetting incident — have you forgotten that kindness? The Addordidea say they never forget a favor, but what a load of nonsense, meow."
"That's even because I saved you from drowning in the river. For a Derodidea who's supposed to be great at swimming, falling in the water was pathetic."
"That was because you dropped the toy grandpa gave me in the first place, meow!"
"You were the one who knocked it out of my hand, Linia!"
For some reason, their heated exchange carried no real hatred.
Anger and hostility were escalating, yes.
But there was no genuine desire to destroy the other person in their eyes.
They were dredging up old memories and forcing themselves to act hostile.
As though they couldn't fight at all without doing that.
"Pursena's a crybaby!"
"Linia's an idiot!"
Their verbal jabs went back and forth.
And gradually, the words became simpler and simpler.
"Pursena's an octopus!"
"Linia's short-legged!"
"You — ! Pursena's fat!"
"I'm — not fat!"
The one who lost patience first was Pursena.
The moment she was called fat, she snapped!
"Graaaah!"
She lunged at Linia with a mighty leap.
Fist cocked and ready to slam down.
"Shaaaah!"
Linia responded with feline agility.
Her own fist shot out toward Pursena in kind.
"Gu..."
"Ngh..."
A simultaneous cross-counter landed.
They staggered apart — and that became the gong that started the fight.
--- "Aaaah! Pursena charges!
But Linia dodges gracefully!
Pursena barrels forward like a heavy tank, but Linia drives her back!
Linia uses hit-and-run tactics, and Pursena gives chase!
In raw power, Pursena has a slight edge! In speed, Linia wins!
If it comes to a straight brawl, Linia has no chance!
But power alone doesn't decide the fight!
If you can't pin her down, that power is useless!
Using her footwork to land elegant jabs! Jab! Straight!
But Linia can't close in either! She can't land a clean hit! One step short!
Aaah! And there, Pursena's right straight explodes through!
Linia stumbles! Pursena presses the attack!
What will Linia do?! Will she retreat or hold her ground?!
She holds her ground!
Left jab! Jab! A jab that pushes the opponent away!
Pursena can't take it!
Linia is no sweet boxer!
Just because she's outpowered doesn't mean she avoids the slugfest!
Pursena flinches, but her eyes still gleam with the light of a hound locked on its prey!
Matching Linia's right, Pursena steps in...!
Aaah! Blood from Pursena!
Did — did Linia just pull out a weapon!?
No! Her claws! She extended her claws and slashed along with her punch!
A perfected cat-punch!
But this isn't dirty — you use everything at your disposal!
Claws extended, punch! Punch! A flurry of lefts and rights!
It isn't a dull ache running through Pursena!
A sudden, different pain lances through her, and Pursena grimaces...!
Oh no! Linia's claws tear through Pursena's clothes!
Something embarrassing is about to be exposed!
But Pursena doesn't stop — Pursena goes in — she doesn't care anymore!
Pursena's right hook pierces straight through Linia's guard!
The expression of agony — it landed!
Is Pursena going to finish it?! Will she end this in one blow?!
"Using everything at their disposal — but why no magic?"
"You're right. The moment Pursena chose close combat, the possibility of a magic battle disappeared.
Once they started trading blows, there's no time for incantation.
If it were me or Sylphie, we'd mix in silent casting, but both of them are fighters.
In an all-out physical struggle, even speaking would be difficult.
Could a marathon runner recite poetry while running? No, that would be —"
"I see. Sorry. I interrupted. Please continue."
"...Linia has stopped moving!
It's an infight! An infight!
Is this the end?! Pursena's punches are steadily taking Linia's legs away!
Hit-and-run is no longer possible!
Like a butterfly with its wings torn, will this king be trampled upon the ground!
But — no!
She's evading, she's evading!
Combining the feline instinct for instant reflexes with slip footwork, she avoids direct hits!
And the counter! Cat-punch smash!
A wound opens on Pursena's cheek! Blood splatters! She's blown backward as if rebounded!
Linia surges forward to press the advantage!
A Brazilian high kick aimed at taking her consciousness!
Aaah! Pursena — Pursena has charged in! Full body tackle!
Her fangs! She's sunk her teeth into Linia's leg aimed at her neck!
Right — she's a wolf! This is her weapon! Not just fists!
She drives Linia to the ground, pinning her down!
Has Linia gotten too close!
But Linia has fangs of her own!
She bites back! Sinking sharp teeth into her opponent!
From here on, it's beast against beast — pure wrestling!"
"To me, it just looks like they're flailing around and hitting each other randomly..."
"Mm, yeah, you could say that."
"Hey, if you don't mind me asking..."
"Yes?"
"Both of them are fighting so desperately — so how come you can be so nonchalant about it?"
"I'm sorry."
--- It was a long battle.
A duel that began with insults and escalated into a fistfight.
It started as a high-skill striking match and devolved, in the end, into childlike scratching and biting.
A tangled, vicious scrap.
On the snow-covered ground, the two rolled and fought.
At a certain moment, they stopped moving.
Only one of them stood up.
"I won..."
It was Pursena.
She was covered in wounds.
Her clothes were tattered, soaked with snow and stained with blood.
Scratches and bite marks covered her body, and blood dripped from her in streams.
It was a savage sight.
And a magnificent one.
The image of someone who had survived a fight to the death.
"..."
Pursena looked down at the fallen Linia.
For just an instant, her expression was complicated — then she turned her face away with a huff.
She staggered toward us.
"It's my win."
"Yeah. Congratulations... let me use healing magic, so sit down over there for a sec."
I reached for the wound on her shoulder, but she slapped my hand away.
"I appreciate it, but I don't need it. These wounds are a badge of honor. I'm keeping every single one."
So.
An honor.
They'd been completely serious.
Halfway through, I'd told myself it wouldn't go as far as killing — now I was almost embarrassed about that.
"I don't know if I'll ever see Linia again, so I'm keeping these, meow."
"But you'll still be together until you leave town, right?"
"We won't. We part ways here. I've already packed my things — I'm leaving today."
So that was how they'd decided it.
Because the path split here, they'd chosen to say goodbye here.
That was kind of cool, honestly.
Maybe I should call off the farewell party after all.
It would probably just spoil the moment.
"...Even if it's not healing magic, at least let me treat your wounds."
"I know."
Pursena staggered off toward the dormitory.
I watched her go.
Then Nanahoshi ran over to her.
She draped her own jacket over Pursena's shoulders and offered her an arm.
Nanahoshi had her good points too.
...Right, then.
"You alive?"
I looked down at the fallen Linia.
Linia hadn't lost consciousness.
She was lying there with a dazed expression, staring up at the sky.
"Still alive, meow."
She was a mess too.
Every bit as beaten up as Pursena.
Her clothes were shredded — torn, scratched, and bitten to ribbons.
Blood seeped from her shoulder, dyeing the snow red.
Her face was swollen, probably from the sheer number of blows she'd taken.
The blood trailing from her mouth wasn't from internal injuries — she'd just bitten the inside of her cheek.
"You're a sight for sore eyes."
"Really, meow."
I noticed her torn clothes were revealing more of Linia's body than they should.
I draped my jacket over her.
Wouldn't want to see something I shouldn't.
Still, it was getting cold.
Nanahoshi had lent hers too — I just hoped her cold didn't get worse.
"Thanks, meow."
Linia raised her hand lazily, placing it behind her head.
She crossed her legs as well.
On the snow.
"Sigh... I lost, meow."
Her words rose as white breath into the air.
"It was a good fight."
"What do you mean, 'good fight,' meow? I heard every word of your commentary, Boss. You seemed to be having quite the time, meow."
Yeah.
Maybe I hadn't read the room well.
But it had been an exciting match.
How to describe it — a cat fight, in the most literal sense.
A blazing stage for two warriors.
Although if I called it a match, she'd probably get mad again.
"At least I'm glad you enjoyed the end, meow."
"Sorry about that."
"It's fine. From the outside, it's just a catfight. Whoever enjoys it wins, meow."
As she said that, Linia grimaced.
She licked at a wound on her arm.
"You're not going to use healing magic either?"
"It's a losing wound, so honestly I want to get rid of it... but fine, this time I'll accept it, meow.
After some time has passed, it'll make a great story to brag about, meow."
The beast-folk warriors I'd dueled before probably bragged about their battle scars too.
"..."
Linia stared silently at the sky.
"............"
I looked up too.
The gray sky, characteristic of the northern lands, stretched above us.
Tonight, it would surely snow again.
"What are you going to do from here on out?"
"Hmm..."
"You said you'd live freely — do you have something in particular you want to do?"
"Yeah. Travel around for a bit, then start a business, meow."
A business.
I had a bad feeling about this.
She'd honestly have better odds as an adventurer.
"Do you have an actual plan?"
"Of course, meow."
Linia declared it with absolute confidence.
Maybe having a vision was fine then.
No — actually, I had a feeling it wasn't.
I could just imagine her charging ahead with some half-baked idea and getting into trouble.
"Within five years, I'll be filthy rich, meow."
"...Well, look, if you ever get in trouble, you can always come to me."
"Nyahaha. Once I've made it big, I'll lend you some money, meow."
Linia, despite having lost, seemed oddly refreshed.
Maybe it was because she'd freed herself from the constraints of home — even if the decision had been made on a whim.
Or maybe she was just putting on a brave face.
Either way, one chapter had closed.
That was the look on her face.
--- Linia and Pursena didn't say goodbye to the others.
They returned to the dorm at different times, applied medicine to their wounds, wrapped themselves in bandages, grabbed their belongings, and left through the school gates one at a time.
I saw Linia off, and Nanahoshi saw Pursena off.
The two of them didn't say much.
They only asked me to give their regards to Zanoba, Cliff, and the others.
Sylphie, Ariel, and the rest would probably be disappointed.
Pursena would now return to the Great Forest and, together with Linia, spar and grow as they vied for the position of chief.
As for Linia — who could say. But she'd find her own way, no doubt.
Did they intend never to see each other again?
They'd been so close.
There was something undeniably cool about the way they chose to live.
As an aside.
That evening, a certain rumor reached my ears.
"I saw two bandaged-up beast-women arguing with each other on a public carriage."
They'd probably failed to coordinate their departure times and run into each other.
What a waste.
Next year's class roster: 3rd Year: Norn (the toughest girl's little sister), Elinalise (the ancient elf senpai)
4th Year: