Chapter 37. Preparation (2)
After finishing preparations to save Lucy, I returned to the dormitory.
Lilliana should be doing well, right? I wonder if she's starving. I'm a little worried.
Ding-dong.
I tapped my smartwatch against the door, but no sound came from inside.
"Is she asleep?"
After what happened outside, she wouldn't have run away...
"Ah~ fuck. Why the hell isn't the jungler coming?! The enemy top laner and their damn support keep ganking top!"
As if to ease my worries, I heard a cute yet foul-mouthed voice from inside.
Peeking through the slightly open door, I took a glance inside.
Lilliana was streaming a game.
She was so focused that she hadn't even noticed I had arrived.
"Ugh, we lost this? These fucking idiots. Quit the game, you useless pricks!"
"..."
"Ah, thanks for the donation, Arcane Research Club Ace—fifty thousand won. Appreciate it."
"What? My reactions are lacking? Then get the fuck out, dumbass."
Lilliana was wearing a succubus cosplay outfit, swaying her tail while streaming.
I realized that succubi were creatures of adaptation.
Now, I was curious about her stream myself.
I logged onto EveryDay to check if it had been uploaded.
As soon as I entered, I saw a post at the top.
[Isn't this our dormitory, no matter how you look at it?]
The post contained screenshots from Lilliana's stream, explaining how the room's layout perfectly matched Victoria Academy's dorms.
Since the post included the stream's name, I searched for it and tuned in.
The stream's title was Sexy Succubus.
She doesn't even act like a succubus, yet she named it that?
- Noona, curse at me more, please.
- I'm a student at Victoria Academy. This is definitely a dorm room. This is legendary.
- Wow, a Victoria Academy student is streaming as a camgirl.
- How much do I need to donate for you to curse at me using my name?
"Hmm... They're all insane."
There are so many deranged people in the world.
Still, seeing her working diligently from day one made me feel proud.
And she was drawing the kind of attention I had hoped for. Good, good.
By the time I return from the training hall, her stream should be over. I'll talk to her then.
Changing into my academy uniform, I headed toward the training hall.
Since it was Monday, the public training hall had a moderate number of people.
Unlike private rooms, the public training hall was where students trained in pairs or groups.
In short, it was a place for extroverts.
Ignoring the stares directed at me, I headed toward the corner where a holographic monitor was stationed.
[Welcome to Victoria Academy's course management system. How can I assist you?]
"Show me today's lecture materials from Professor Im Sol for Class 1-A and the barrier spell materials."
Shhh—
The AI projected the handouts from today's class onto the holographic monitor.
It also displayed every barrier spell circle that had ever been made publicly available to students at Victoria Academy.
"Ugh, that's too much. Show me advanced-level ones only."
Eight magic circles appeared before me.
Five utilized a double-helix structure to reinforce defenses against attacks.
Three were lightweight barrier spells designed for emergencies.
Naturally, I was interested in the former.
"Remove the lightweight ones."
Slide—
Now it was time to analyze them.
The common factor among these spells was their use of double-helix mana structures to enhance durability.
The main differences lay in their effectiveness against different attack types—whether they worked better against physical or magical attacks.
The fundamental concept remained the same.
However, there were subtle distinctions in the details.
Oh, if the mana disperses outward from the center, it's more effective against fire magic.
This magic circle lacks a proper finishing stroke. If it distributed a little more mana at the end, its efficiency would improve.
As I analyzed the barriers, I started noticing potential improvements.
Normally, a student finding flaws in high-level barrier spells would be unthinkable, but thanks to [Mana Sensitivity], I could do it.
"Ho-yeon, what are you doing?"
Holy shit, that scared me.
Before I realized it, Lumi had appeared beside me.
"Hey, you should say something before sneaking up on me. You startled me."
"Hehe... Sorry."
If this had been before, she would've shrieked and run away. She's grown a lot.
But is it okay for her to be talking to me? Lucy would be mad if she found out.
"Are you sure you should be here? Lucy might get upset if she sees."
"It's fine. Once Lucy falls asleep, she wouldn't notice even if someone kidnapped her. She said she was exhausted and went to bed early. By the way, were you practicing barriers?"
"Yeah, today's lesson was interesting, so I was practicing alone."
"Then! Would you like to train with me?!"
Lumi's eyes sparkled with excitement.
----------------------
『A Sub-Quest Has Been Issued.』
[Train in the Extrovert Zone!]
Lumi admires training with friends!
Train with Lumi and enjoy a fun barrier training session!
- Reward: +1 Mana Stat
----------------------
It had been a while since a quest appeared. No reason to refuse.
"Hmm, I'm fine with it, but training with me won't benefit you much."
"That's not true. Helping each other's weaknesses is what... friends do!"
I chuckled. She hesitated while saying friends and looked at me expectantly. Kinda cute.
"That's right, we're friends."
"Y-yes!"
Cute. It's adorable how happy she gets over something as simple as friendship.
Lumi is naturally talented in barrier magic. But seeing her willingly train with me made me feel a little guilty.
"You were practicing barrier spells, right? Let me demonstrate first."
"Alright."
I still vividly remembered Lumi's spell from class, but there was no reason to decline.
Lumi glanced at me as if showing off, then slowly began forming a barrier.
Her double-helix mana strands intertwined, solidifying into a sturdy protective shield.
Wow, she's amazing.
This was the highest level a student could possibly reach.
Especially the defensive nature of her mana—it carried a warm, protective intent.
"Maybe because you're watching, Ho-yeon? It turned out really well. Would you like to try next?"
"Alright. But now I feel kinda nervous. Haha."
"It's okay. No one gets it right on their first try. I'll help where you need it."
Watching her do so well only made me feel more pressured.
The magic circles I had seen so far played like a panorama in my mind.
I firmly embedded the magic properties of the barrier that Lumi had just cast into my memory.
My talent allowed me to gather the strengths of these magic circles and integrate the magic properties I learned from Lumi.
Chajajak-
The mana twisted into a double helix, intersecting and layering together.
Stronger. Even stronger.
This wasn't enough.
Hoo. I took a deep breath and started again.
'Clairvoyance'
Jiiiing-
I observed the gaps in the barrier I had created.
To make it even stronger, to fill in the microscopic gaps, the form of the mana had to be even denser. A double helix alone couldn't fully seal those gaps.
Then, a sudden realization struck me.
'If a double helix is the problem, I just need to make it denser.'
I added another strand to the helix that was originally rotating in two layers.
The mana, now rotating in a triple helix, eliminated any tiny gaps and intertwined beautifully.
I infused it with the magic properties I had learned from Lumi.
The determination to defend everything was embedded in the magic circle.
Though my will wasn't as strong as Lumi's, my [Mana Sensitivity] compensated for the gap.
Before long, a wall formed in front of me.
A barrier completely different from Lumi or Im Sol's techniques.
But both Lumi and I could feel it.
It was more than beautiful—it was an artistic masterpiece, almost too precious to be used as a mere barrier.
If Professor Im Sol were here, she would be screaming, demanding to research it while trying to strip my pants off.
In front of me stood an exceptionally elegant, flawless barrier.
"...."
"...."
Lumi, who had demonstrated first, wore a dumbfounded expression at the sheer beauty of my creation.
───――「 Cotton Guard 」───――
▶ Unique Skill
▶ A magic imbued with complete understanding of barriers and an unyielding will. Can be lightened for adaptable usage according to the user's intention.
───――───――───――───――
Cotton Guard.
It had even been registered as a unique skill.
Lumi, who had been admiring its beauty, slowly turned red.
"Ah, ah... Th-that's amazing... Um, could you teach me too...?"
"Oh, uh. Yeah. Of course. Helping each other with our weaknesses is what friends do."
"...Yes. That's right."
It seemed she was embarrassed because she had just said she would point out my weaknesses.
No need to be that shy about it.
*
After finishing training with Lumi, I returned to the dormitory.
We decided to meet regularly for training.
Initially, I was the one receiving help, but getting closer to a heroine is always welcome, so it didn't matter.
Even without that, there's probably research somewhere proving that training efficiency improves when done with a beautiful woman.
When I entered the dorm, Lilliana was sitting at the dining table devouring fried chicken, indicating her stream had ended.
"Hey, you're done?"
"Huh? Oh, contractor. If you mean the stream, yeah, it's over. I made a lot of money today, so I ordered fried chicken. That okay?"
"That's fine, but… Do you even know my name?"
Come to think of it, I knew Lilliana's name, but I never told her mine.
If she had a system window like me, she wouldn't be calling me 'contractor.'
"Uhh?! Oh, um. You never told me, so how would I know?"
She's pinning this on me?
"Hey, at the very least, you should've asked. I thought you already knew."
"Ah, whatever. Are you seriously nitpicking about that? So, what's your name?"
"Call me Lee Hoyeon."
"What kind of lame-ass name is that? Why are you even bragging about it?"
"What did you say?"
"Nothing at all~. Anyway, aren't you curious how much I made today?"
Wow. I was speechless. In just one day, she became this cocky. I kind of missed the Lilliana who was sobbing after getting beaten up yesterday.
"So, how much did you make?"
"Ta-da~ 800,000 won!"
"What?"
"Are you deaf? 800,000 won! Isn't that a lot? A fried chicken costs 15,000 won."
I heard it loud and clear, but I asked again, just in case. Still, it was 800,000 won.
This isn't just a lot; this is a ridiculous amount.
Damn! If only I had been reincarnated as a girl, I could've done streaming and farmed cash too.
Fucking gods!
"That aside, there's actually a serious problem."
At that moment, Lilliana dropped her playful expression and whispered to me.
"A problem? What is it?"
Honestly, there were too many things to be worried about.
Please don't tell me someone found out about her existence.
I specifically told her to select the 'Leave it at the door' option for deliveries!
"I'm bored."
"What?"
"I said I'm bored!"
"When do you even have time to be bored?! You need to stream and make money!"
This damn brat. Where does she get off refusing to work?!
"I can't stream during academy hours anyway! That's why you said I should be a student by day and a pervy succubus cosplayer by night!"
…She's unexpectedly smart.
"Then watch other streams to improve your content sense or practice gaming."
"I'm already good at gaming, so I don't want to. And if I chat in other streams, people will see my username, so I can't. A stream without chatting isn't worth watching!"
This brat is a menace. Just watch quietly, why does she need so much?
From the way she's talking, she clearly wants something, but I hate people who beat around the bush.
"So what do you want to do? Just say it."
"I want to go outside too."
Huh? Did I mishear?
"I want to go out and explore the world."
"How exactly do you plan to do that? Do you have a way?"
Lilliana obviously looked like a succubus. Her heart-shaped tail was swaying in the air.
Of course, if she dressed properly and hid her horns, she could pass as human, but what if some passing priest sensed infernal energy and smacked her with a cross?
Just kidding.
There's no way I'd let her wander alone. If something happened, I'd be responsible.
No way she's leaving my sight.
"Yeah, I have a way."
POOF!
With a playful sound, smoke spread around Lilliana.