Extra Chapter 01 (Main Story: 10.01) "The Saint's Tears and the Redefinition of 0.2"
My vision was completely painted white.
Just a few seconds ago‚ I had been looking at Serina's crying face.
――"Looking" isn't the precise term. "Observing" is more accurate. That hellish sensation of processing her tear-streaked face as "moisture expulsion data."
But what lay beyond my opened eyelids was the dazzling sunlight of the white tower.
(……Huh? The log is…… No‚ is the memory area (memory) bugging out? Coordinates: Royal Magic Academy – Entrance Exam Venue. Current time: several years before my life gets ruined――)
What stung my nose was the smell of scorched magic power and the heat radiating from the crowd of examinees. And overriding all of it was a sweet floral scent.
"Rui-kun! You're spacing out in a place like that again. Are you hungry?"
Suddenly‚ a soft yet violently massive weight pressed against my right arm.
Serina Elferia.
Her beautiful silver-thread-like hair brushed my shoulder. Every time she leaned in‚ the distinctly sweet girl scent transmitted clearly even through her uniform fabric violently knocked against my thought circuits.
"……Se-Serina? Why are you so close? Mathematically speaking‚ this level of physical contact exceeds public morals thresholds by 200%."
"Huh? I'm just sitting next to Rui-kun‚ so this is totally normal‚ right?"
Serina tilted her head slightly‚ thrusting a perfectly calculated――or perhaps innate――physical bug at me. Her eyes were filled with sparkling‚ defenseless affection‚ as if the despairing tears I saw at the end of the main story had never existed.
(……This is bad. At this distance‚ my mental capacity is about to overflow. Heart rate: 1.5 times normal. Brain computation circuits are on the verge of short-circuiting from 'light-attribute violent overload.')
"Rui‚ your face is red? Do you have a fever? Shall I check for you?"
Her face drew even closer. Her breath grazed my ear‚ and the bag of "freshly baked honey bread" she was holding rustled. The unconscious heat made my vision sway violently.
"……No‚ I'm fine. I'm just confused because the world suddenly rewrote itself in a peaceful direction. ……Ahh‚ I want to go home. I want to calculate the reflection angle of the bucket water at the inn's back door and reclaim my peace……"
"No way. Today is the day everyone gets to see how amazing Rui-kun is!"
Still clinging to my arm‚ Serina began walking with bouncy steps. Pulled along by that gravitational force‚ my 'bubble of self-esteem' evaporated with a fizz‚ replaced by an indescribable hot something that filled my brain.
"Next‚ Rui Adel. Please step in front of the measuring device."
The examiner's businesslike voice‚ carrying a hint of "expectation value zero‚" echoed through the venue.
I finally escaped Serina's physical restraint (lock)‚ kicked off the stone pavement‚ and staggered over to stand in front of the magic power measuring device.
(……It's fine. Calm down. According to past data‚ here I output '0.3' or '0.2‚' get laughed at as worse than an insect‚ receive the failure notice right away‚ and return to washing dishes at the inn. ……That was supposed to be my perfectly calculated 'life blueprint.')
Before me stood a massive bronze apparatus embedded with a black crystal.
A "truth-revealing device" with no escape: simply place your hand over it and it quantifies your internal magic power index.
I slowly extended my trembling right hand.
My fingertips touched the cold crystal surface.
――In that instant.
The device began flashing violently in colors never seen before.
First a deep-sea blue‚ then a sun-like gold.
And finally‚ a pure white "nothingness" so intense it burned into my retinas.
"GA-GA‚ GAGAGAGA……!!"
A bizarre metallic scream rose from inside the device.
Gears spun uselessly‚ the stench of burning computation chips assaulted my nose. The dial needle swung wildly left and right like a metronome‚ and the entire apparatus began rattling from overload beyond its limits.
"Wh-what!? Is it broken!? Who is this examinee!?"
The moment the examiner paled and reached for the device――
With a crisp 'CRACK!'‚ countless fissures ran across the central crystal.
And on the display panel‚ alongside a bright red error code――a single thin line-like numerical value appeared.
『 0.2 』
A moment of silence.
(A pale blue system log seemed to flicker for an instant in the corner of my vision…… or so I thought.)
(……All right. There it is. 0.2. As planned‚ the whole venue will burst into laughter‚ and I'll sprint full speed back to the inn's back door……)
But the explosive laughter my predictive computation had fired off never materialized anywhere.
"……N-no way. The measuring device…… refused to process……?"
I reflexively closed my eyes.
According to empirical data (experience)‚ within three seconds a laugh would come from somewhere. "Worse than an insect‚" "Isn't 0.2 just a measurement error?" "Why even come to the entrance exam?"――My brain's preemptive defense circuit (shield) was already activating.
3‚ 2‚ 1.
……No laughter came.
The examiner's trembling fingertip touched the shattered crystal.
"The value 0.2 is not the minimum. It means that even after pouring every resource of this machine into it‚ we could only observe the 'overflowing fractional magic power' up to the first decimal place……!? An infinite 'void (kuu)' that cannot be contained in this vessel……!"
"Uh‚ um‚ no…… I think it's just a normal malfunction. This morning my static electricity was really bad‚ so it probably became noise……"
"Silence‚ boy! Modesty is unnecessary. This…… this is the reproduction of myth! The inheritor of the legendary prophecy 'the vessel is empty' has appeared in such a plain――pardon‚ noble demeanor!"
The examiner grabbed both my shoulders and shook me violently. His eyes burned with the fanatical heat of a mathematician encountering an undecipherable equation.
(……This is bad. The calculation…… the calculation has flipped 180 degrees. 0.2 has been redefined from 'proof of the weakest' to 'the result of being too strong and causing an error!')
The surrounding examinees' gazes shifted from contempt to "awe."
"Hey‚ did you see that…… He physically destroyed the measuring device."
"Magic power 0.2…… In other words‚ his magic can't be measured with existing standards?"
"What overwhelming…… Even with that messy hair‚ right now it looks like there's a halo around him……"
The murmurs spread like waves.
My 'bubble of self-esteem' was instantly evaporated by the excessive heat of the surrounding expectations‚ without even time to pop.
"Rui-kun‚ that's amaaazing!"
From behind came the voice I least wanted to hear――yet the most proudly beaming one.
Serina ran over and once again pulled my arm into her soft body heat.
"Just as I thought‚ Rui-kun really is special. I believed in you‚ you know? This world has finally caught up to Rui-kun!"
"……Serina‚ too close. Also‚ that smile of yours right now only derives the computational result of 'complete deletion of retreat routes'……"
As if she hadn't heard a word I said‚ Serina tightened her fingers around my arm and scattered a victorious-goddess-like smile around her. That inescapable restraining force was like a "sturdy cage" sewing me into this world.
(Failure route‚ vanished. Peaceful route‚ exploded. ……Mathematically speaking‚ my life may never reach the inn's back door again.)
"Rui! As expected‚ my eyes were not mistaken!"
From behind came a booming sound that shook my eardrums directly.
The man clad in silver armor gleaming in the spring sunlight‚ carrying an overly straight sense of justice――Leon Valks strode toward us with long steps.
"Leon…… So you were here too. No‚ that unnecessarily sparkling aura of yours is 5000 lux too blinding for an introvert like me‚ and it's physically shaving away my retinas' durability."
"Hahaha! That 'shadowy presence that seems to reject light' of yours……! It's a high-level mental control to seal the overflowing magic power inside‚ isn't it!? I am moved‚ my friend!"
Leon slapped my shoulder with the force of someone striking an enemy of his parents.
(……Ow. From my arithmetic eye‚ Leon's friendship simply counts as 'physical damage.' For a flesh body without a protective barrier (shield) deployed‚ the impact is an overload.)
"……Leon. This is just a measurement error‚ and I'm merely the son of an innkeeper. I don't have the capacity to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with a 'true hero' like you. It's a waste of expectation value."
"Don't be modest! Possessing enough magic power to physically destroy the measuring device‚ yet deliberately pretending to be 'the weakest' to keep those around off guard――that noble soul! Your back is the very essence of a holy knight's secret!"
There was not a shred of doubt in Leon's eyes. He forcibly recompiled (converted) all of my 'evasive posture' into the proper spec of 'noble seclusion.'
"Leon. Don't call Rui-kun 'your back.' The right to look at Rui-kun's back belongs only to me."
Suddenly‚ a cool yet unmistakably possessive voice rang out.
Serina‚ who had been entwining her fingers with my arm‚ silently slipped behind me as if hiding me from Leon‚ then wrapped both arms around my waist.
Her soft curves pressed perfectly against my back‚ and now her chin rested on my left shoulder.
(……Leon‚ help. Your best friend has been completely devoured by the 'man-eating cage' known as a duke's daughter. The faint movements of her breathing on my back are short-circuiting my brain computation circuits at 120%‚ you know.)
"Hahaha! Serina is still as devoted to Rui as ever! But Rui‚ the royal palace won't leave a man like you alone. Lady Catherine has already listed you as a 'strategic weapon' to purify this stagnant kingdom with the sword!"
Leon casually dropped the most disturbing information I feared‚ as if it were a morning greeting.
"……Conscription? The royal palace? I…… I just want to wash dishes at the family inn's back door. Calculations involving blood and mud aren't included in my life's income-and-expense statement."
"Rui-kun. It's all right. If the royal palace tries to take you away‚ I'll 'optimize' the entire palace for you."
Serina pressed her nose against my neck and sniffed.
The excessive heat transmitted from her tightly pressed body. And the dangerous possessive desire whispered in my ear.
"Rui-kun‚ you're sweating a little? ……It smells nice. Just this scent alone recovers my magic power by 1.2 times."
(……Scary. This young lady seriously recognizes me as a recovery item (resource). Leon's overly pure justice and Serina's heavy obsession. Sandwiched between these two‚ my daily life is‚ mathematically speaking‚ a desperate battlefield with a survival probability of 0.003%.)
During the break between tests.
I had escaped into the shade of a giant tree in the school building's rear garden. Here‚ I should be able to temporarily log out from the 'heat' known as people's excessive expectations.
"……Phew. When oxygen concentration returns to normal‚ I feel like brain computation efficiency recovers by 5%."
I leaned my back against the tree trunk and sat on the ground.
Inside my head‚ simulations of equations for the upcoming written exam were running. Even with a magic power index of 0.2‚ if I optimized the theory‚ first place wasn't impossible. No‚ taking first place would definitely explode any peace. My target was the 'third from the bottom' position――the coordinate with the least noise.
(All right‚ with force adjustment within 0.01 error……)
"Rui-kun‚ found you. Good work."
Suddenly‚ a voice like bells rolling down from above.
(……Without even using search magic‚ how did she pinpoint me in 0.5 seconds?)
Looking up‚ there stood Serina backlit by the sun.
She had undone the first button of her uniform a little‚ exposing her neck to avoid the heat. A single bead of sweat trailed down her pale‚ translucent skin and disappeared into the hollow of her collarbone.
"……Serina. You're a young lady‚ so I think you should value variables like maintaining personal space a bit more. My self-esteem is about to vanish like bubbles in a boiling pot right now."
"Huh? There's no need to worry about that in front of Rui-kun‚ right? Here‚ my homemade honey bread. Say 'ahh'?"
Serina sat down right next to me at a physically overlapping distance.
Our shoulders touched‚ and raw heat transmitted through the uniform fabric.
The bread she held out was generously coated with honey and glowed golden. What I had only recognized as "a lump of sugar and carbohydrates" at the end of the main story now released an intensely sweet aroma that violently violated my nasal cavity.
"……I'll eat it myself. My hands are free‚ and mathematically speaking‚ bringing it to my own mouth makes position energy control easier."
"Nooo. Say 'ahh.' ……If you won't‚ I'll eat it first and then――"
"Fine! I'll eat! I'll say 'ahh' so don't present that disturbing alternative plan (substitution equation)!"
My face turning bright red‚ I bit into the bread on her fingertip.
In that instant‚ her fingertip faintly touched my lips.
"……!"
(……Soft. No‚ not the bread――her finger. The moment the 36.5°C heat source touched my lips‚ my brain circuits short-circuited violently. And then suddenly she placed her head on my thigh…… a lap pillow!?)
"Hehe‚ Rui-kun's legs are a bit thin‚ but they're calming…… Hey‚ don't come to hate me‚ okay?"
She looked up at me from below.
Those eyes resembled a black hole that sucked in everything about me.
Every time she shifted‚ the soft texture of her hair and the weight of her head sank deeper into my lap.
(……This is bad. This situation has my 'equation of reason' hitting an unsolvable problem. Heart rate: overflow at 1.5 times normal. Breathing interval: once every 4 seconds. Inside my brain right now‚ a fierce computation battle is raging over whether to recognize her as a 'saint' or as a 'predator.')
"……Serina‚ too close. The contact area calculation formula is completely bugged. We might physically ignite from friction heat."
"It's fine. If we burn‚ I'll cool you with magic. ……Let's stay like this forever‚ okay?"
Serina held my right arm with both hands and pulled it toward her chest.
The irresistible 'elasticity' and 'warmth' transmitted to my arm.
It was the painfully raw proof of 'life' that the coldhearted computation god I once was could never have felt.
(……Too happy‚ it's scary. Isn't this happiness just the material for the cage she built? ……But right now‚ there's a part of me that wants to surrender to this sweet equation.)
The test ended‚ and the sky was beginning to melt from burning orange into deep gold.
The long shadows cast by the white tower gently yet surely swallowed our feet.
"Rui! Congratulations on passing! Passing at the very bottom is quite stylish. That humility of yours in hiding your true strength――I want to learn it someday too!"
Leon thrust his fist upward as if it were his own achievement and slapped my back repeatedly. The impact forcibly expelled about 0.2 liters of air from my lungs‚ but strangely it didn't feel unpleasant.
"……Bottom of the list pass. Yeah‚ at least that part went according to my calculations. ……But the surrounding expectation values rising vertically by about 10000% is clearly an arithmetic bug."
I stared at the sheepskin 'Certificate of Admission' in my hand.
In the real (main story) memory‚ this had been a one-way ticket to despair. But here in this world‚ it sparkled like a jewel.
"Rui-kun‚ on the way home‚ can we stop by the inn? I want to congratulate your father and mother in person too. ……Also‚ we need to discuss redecorating Rui-kun's room."
"Redecorating? My room at the inn? Why are you talking on the premise that you have access rights?"
"Because from now on it's the place I'll visit every day. Make sure to calculate (optimize) space for my personal belongings in advance‚ okay?"
Still completely securing (locking) my right arm‚ Serina began humming cheerfully.
……Visit? Not stay over? You're not going to let me charge lodging fees? A huge unknown expense called a duke's daughter's stay is about to appear in my household budget calculations.
"Hahaha! Serina‚ you're quick to act! Then I'll accompany you as an escort too! The food at Rui's house is delicious!"
"Leon‚ you don't need to come. Substitute the variable 'reading the room' into your brain computation for this space."
The "what if" scene where the three of us laughed together covered in soot.
It was now playing out before my eyes as undeniable reality (data).
(……Ahh. This is the dream Serina wanted to show me. The golden cage where Rui Adel isn't scorned‚ Leon doesn't break‚ and the three of us can laugh.)
I suddenly checked the lingering aftertaste of the honey bread in my mouth.
Delicious.
Certainly sweet.
――No‚ the 'sugar content' data was definitely detected.
But deep within that sweetness‚ for just an instant――I thought I felt the gritty sensation of biting into inorganic sand‚ like an error.
At the edge of my vision‚ a pale blue system log ran like noise for a single moment.
『―― Construction of the happy cage completed. Continuing alternative processing of humanity ――』
I convinced myself it was just a retinal bug caused by the evening backlight.
I forcibly redirected my consciousness computation resources to the warmth of the hand Serina was holding.
"……All right‚ let's go home. To my inn. ……The dishwashing is waiting‚ after all."
To my murmur‚ Serina nodded happily and Leon laughed heartily.
The sinking sun connected our long shadows into one‚ like an unbreakable bond.
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