The Academy’s Weakest Became A Demon-Limited Hunter

“Princess White, why are you suddenly packing your bags?”

“I can’t stay here anymore…”

While packing in her room, White looked at her escort knight, Merlin, with teary eyes.

Recently, Emperor Carlos's attention had become unusual.

The emperor was known for treating his children equally. His affection would only be tipped for a few days when someone made significant contributions to the national interest.

However, despite White not having accomplished much, she recently received an unusual amount of attention from the emperor.

The emperor would make time from his busy schedule to visit White, give her advice on everything she did, and provide her with rare foods that were beneficial for a woman's body.

The emperor's love for his daughter had become noticeably intense.

It was too extreme to be attributed to not seeing her for half a year due to her attending the academy. Clearly, the weight of his affection was different.

Even three years ago, when the crown prince joined the subjugation force and defeated a dangerous group of monsters, he wasn’t coddled this much.

It was natural for the princes and princesses, who were all aiming for the next imperial throne to keep White in check.

“I feel too self-conscious…”

When rumors had spread around in the imperial family that Emperor Carlos might be planning to pass the next imperial power to White, she decided she needed to escape quickly.

White had no interest in the position of emperor and knew her place well. She firmly believed that her colder and wiser older siblings were far more suited for the emperor's role than her.

From the beginning, she couldn't understand why the emperor was taking such good care of her...! Even when she asked him why, he would just smile, making White break into a cold sweat.

“Run, we have to run, Merlin...! I'm scared…”

Her father's extreme devotion was instead cornering his daughter.

Merlin was confused about whether to take this positively or negatively.

“Don't worry, Princess White. There will be no problem. And before you pack your bags, shouldn't you get permission for an early return to the academy? If His Majesty the Emperor knows what you're doing now, he might be displeased.”

“But still…”

Merlin was confident that the emperor would quickly grant permission for an early return.

According to Merlin's conjecture, the emperor had recently been interested in the close relationship between the ice Sovereign Isaac and White. Otherwise, it was hard to explain his special affection for White.

No, it was actually strange not to notice it.

So if White mentioned an early return to Märchen Academy where Isaac currently resided, the emperor might not only grant permission but also help her prepare willingly.

He would push her, implying that she should have a good time with Isaac.

“What I'm really scared of are my older brothers and sisters. If I run into them, they glare at me now... Huh, I miss Senior Isaac…”

“Yes, let's go see him. Isaac should also be at the academy now.”

"...Okay, hehehe."

When Merlin supported White's wishes, her expression brightened quickly.

Since childhood, White had suffered from various assassination attempts and slanders, so she tended to avoid people who showed her sudden kindness.

It was trauma. When she saw people treating her well, she would prematurely assume they might assassinate her.

Even if it was clear that wasn't the case, something deeply ingrained in a person's psyche couldn’t easily be forgotten.

White said she felt more comfortable later with the fake Priestess who treated her harshly and hurt her rather than with the students who flattered her to get on her good side, So, how bad must it have been?

On the other hand, Isaac effortlessly established the ideal human relationship that White had longed for.

Due to this, White tended to rely on Isaac, and without realizing it, she would happily talk about him every day, as if she had gained a reliable and loving older brother.

Is the ability to penetrate someone's heart also a skill of an archwizard?

Merlin didn't know.

Even now, White was smiling brightly at the thought of seeing Isaac.

The most beautiful woman in the world now wanted to see a man around her age. If the man whom she wanted to see wasn't Isaac, such a man wouldn't have missed such an opportunity.

Merlin didn't quite like Isaac's womanizing ways, but she liked the way Isaac treated White.

Isaac's issues with the opposite sex were not something Merlin should worry about in the first place. Public and private matters needed to be clearly distinguished.

“I should bring a gift. What would Senior Isaac like?”

White happily pondered what gift to give Isaac.

***In the past, on the day of the closing ceremony. I sent a letter to the Imperial Tower.

It was to find out when Aria Lilias would return.

Although I mentioned the names of Düpfendorf and the Ice Sovereign, the Imperial Tower was such a closed group that I doubted whether they would allow the exchange of letters.

They might be even more cautious since I wasn’t from their country. I had to consider the possibility that the letter would be intercepted at the entrance of the tower.

I still didn't know the identity of “Dorothy Gale” who wrote the book for me. At the very least, I needed to find out the reason for sending me to Aria.

Recently, I received a letter. The sender was not Aria, but the Imperial family of Zelver Empire. The luxurious envelope and the imperial seal symbolized the emperor's power.

The letter contained information about the investigation into the collusion between the demons and Baron Ropenheim.

Adrian Ropenheim made a deal with Calgart the Necromancer, who visited him one day. Calgart promised to help him seize power in the empire if he secretly gathered and offered sacrifices.

Recognizing Calgart's strength, Adrian accepted the proposal and received dark mana as an advance payment. The dark mana gave Adrian a sense of omnipotence, which was ridiculous.

The Imperial family said they would severely punish Baron Ropenheim and wished to bestow a high reward upon me for my role in resolving this matter.

For some reason, the reward list naturally included a betrothal with White, but I ignored that.

KABOOM!!

BOOM!!

[Success, Master!]

“Oh! I hit it!”

[Woohoo!]

“Ooooo!”

At a corner of the Butterfly Garden.

I successfully hit a rock target 100 meters away with the 7-star ice spell [Icebolt].

I grabbed the forepaw of the Frost Dragon Hilde, who was summoned in the form of a small white dragon, and we laughed together in excitement.

One might think 100 meters wasn't much, but when [Icebolt] was activated, the mana fluctuated wildly, often causing the spell to shoot off in unintended directions. Simply put, it was difficult as hell to control.

In other words, hitting a target I couldn't before was a tremendous achievement.

The next goal was 150 meters. As my body grew stronger, the power exerted when [Vs. Race Combat Power] was activated would become even greater.

Let's work hard.

Come to think of it…

A sudden doubt arose.

It had been a question for a long time.

What is the source of this power?

What exactly is this system that allows me to use 9-star magic so easily and makes me stronger as if I were in a game?

It felt unsettling, like I was recklessly spending funds I accidentally got from a bank loan.

It was hard to explain the dissonance. A plausible hypothesis was that something might have been mimicking the format of a game system.

The system was extremely “intuitive”.

Rather than painstakingly detailing how I became stronger and how much more impressive I was compared to the past.

It was much simpler and clearer to just see “my mana increased by a thousand” in the system window.

According to the records left by Dorothy Gale, there was someone who helped me intuitively. I speculated, no, I was convinced it was the system.

It was referred to as “Her”.

The system was described as “Her” as if it were a living being.

There were still many questions about the game developer Higgs, the system, and Dorothy Gale’s identity.

I just hoped to find all the answers to those questions before the journey ended.

[I am happy these days, Master.]

“What?”

Hilde’s chatter pulled me out of my thoughts. She was looking at the rock target I had broken with [Icebolt].

[I can now roam freely outside in this body. I can closely watch my master grow and feel like I am traveling as we did in the old days, so I am incredibly happy.]

“Is that so?”

Hilde smiled brightly.

If it was talking about the old days, she must be talking about traveling with the Primordial Ice Sovereign.

Since my identity was revealed, Hilde could also freely roam outside with me without hesitation.

When I trained at the training ground, I sometimes met students who stayed at the academy during the holidays to train. They would sometimes approach me to see Hilde up close

At those times, Hilde would puff out her chest and show off her jade-white scales.

[So, about that.]

Hilde flew away from me, flapping her wings in the air, and stretched her forepaws to the sides.

[Now, will you fulfill your promise?]

“Promise?”

A promise with Hilde.

I adjusted my glasses and tried to recall.

Did I make a promise to her?

“Oh, the dress?”

That's right. I remembered.

Last year, when I could only summon Hilde as a small orb, I promised to get her a dress once she could take her full form.

Hilde nodded with satisfaction.

[Indeed. I want to wear a beautiful dress too! I want to flaunt my beauty at the next social gathering!]

“You can't attend a social gathering.”

[What? Why not?!]

Hilde was taken aback.

It's obvious that you can't attend.

“Because you're a dragon.”

[How could this be…! Are modern people discriminating against dragons now…?]

Hilde became dejected.

[I was once a magic beast famous in myths. I should not be subjected to such discrimination…]

Hilde clicked her tongue softly, saying that there was a lack of respect for elder dragons.

“No, it's because only students can attend here.”

[If that is not discrimination, then what is it!]

“…Let’s not talk about this.”

I recalled reading Hilde’s psychology last year.

She eagerly anticipated the day she could wear a dress.

This was undoubtedly an important promise to her.

Perhaps she considered herself female; she had a tendency to pursue beautiful things.

I never considered a dress for a dragon.

Hilde had done so much for me that I was more than willing to repay her.

Not keeping a promise would weigh on my conscience, and having a dress made was not an unreasonable task.

There wouldn’t be a dress suitable for her original size, so I should commission a dress tailored to her current, smaller form.

Since it wouldn’t require much fabric, it shouldn't cost much. That should be fine.

“Although the social gathering might be out, showing off to the kids should be fine.”

Hilde’s expression brightened again.

[Not bad. Ah, when my dress is ready, I should show it off to Gormos too!]

“That sounds good. As for getting the dress made... let’s go in about a week.”

[Understood, Master!]

There was still time before the coronation, and it was uncertain when Aria Lilias, the head of the Hegel Magic Tower, or my sister Eve Ropenheim would arrive.

About a week was suitable for monitoring the situation.

Anyway, I planned to visit Stone Turtle - Gormos, for training. Hilde wore a pretty dress, it would also provide a trivial conversation topic, which was fine by me.

In the second semester, there was an event where one could obtain the 8-star familiar contract circle. After acquiring that contract, I planned to have a serious battle with the Stone Turtle.

My plan was to win that battle and make the Stone Turtle my third familiar, so I wanted to get as close to it as possible beforehand.

***After finishing my daily tasks, I would either bathe with Hilde and engage in light conversations, or we’d fall asleep holding each other.

Hilde eagerly anticipated the day her dress would be made, pondering deeply every day about which color and design would be best.

Before I knew it, the day before going to the clothing store had arrived. After finishing training with Hilde, we returned to Elma Hall.

I went into the shower to wash up, while Hilde sprawled on the desk.

During those days, I always kept Hilde summoned to develop Synchronization.

Hilde’s current level was 188. The total amount of mana required to summon her in her complete form was 36,000.

It was an excellent familiar in terms of practicality, so the accumulation of Synchronization was slow. Like in many games, enhancing higher-grade items was more challenging and costly than lower-grade ones.

Therefore, maintaining Hilde’s summoned state became an important task.

Should I drop by the clothing store after lunch tomorrow?

I was looking forward to seeing the small white dragon in a dress. It seemed like it would be fun.

Whoosh.

“…Huh?”

…What was that?

Just now, it felt like a bit more mana than usual was being drained to maintain the familiar's summoning.

Is it just my imagination?

After washing my body, I stepped out of the shower naked.

When I was with Alice Carroll, I modestly covered my private parts with a shower gown, but now, with only Hilde around, there was nothing to be concerned about.

Hilde was like a pet, so it had always been like this.

However, the moment I stepped out of the shower, I gasped.

[Oh, Master! Are you done washing?]

“...?”

Who is that?

A woman was standing in front of the full-length mirror, wearing nothing but my shirt.

Her silver bobbed hair, reaching her shoulders, sparkled like a snow-covered field.

What stood out were the familiar-shaped horns protruding from both sides of her head and a thick tail emerging from her tailbone, lifting the hem of her shirt.

Judging by appearance, she was a young woman in her early twenties. She seemed to be examining her body with her arms stretched out to the sides.

Her mysterious light blue eyes turned towards me. She was smiling broadly...

She’s the most beautiful woman I have ever seen in my life.

[Ah. Tomorrow is finally the day to get the dress fitted, so I tried changing my appearance in advance. For now, I just put on Master's clothes casually, but how do I look? Am I not beautiful?]

The appearance was certainly unfamiliar, but the voice was very familiar.

I couldn't quell the confusion that surged in my mind.

I quickly approached the silver-haired woman and experimentally touched her horns. She closed her eyes and enjoyed my touch.

[That feels good. Keep stroking me…]

The woman gently stroked my hand as I stroked her horns.

There was only one being that came to mind.

“Hilde...?”

[Yes, Master. You called?]

No, what is this? Why is she like this?

The silver-haired woman, Frost Dragon Hilde, opened her eyes again and looked at me.

Seen up close, these eyes were definitely hers.

“You could transform into a human...?”

I was confused.

[Huh? Did I not tell you last time? I can transform into a form that goes unnoticed by humans.]

Hilde seemed to not understand why I was so surprised.

How was I supposed to know she was talking about being a human?

I remembered how, since last year, she had occasionally said things that didn't make sense, hinting that she could transform into forms other than a dragon.

[Hmm, while you are at it, could you pet me in other places too?]

As I petted her head, she melted with joy. There was no doubt; it felt like human hair.

Since our first meeting, Frost Dragon Hilde had always liked being petted like a pet dog. Even in human form, she seemed to enjoy being touched just as much.

Seeing her close her eyes and blush while enjoying my touch gave me a strange feeling.

Hilde, who I had always regarded as a puppy, now looked nothing like that, and it even made me feel a bit uncomfortable. It was very unfamiliar.

[Meow! Is Isaac here?]

At that moment, Phantom Cat Cheshire entered through the window.

[Alice said she would be busy with organizing tasks from tomorrow, so I came to ask if I could see you for a moment tonight... Meow?]

The Phantom Cat alternately looked at me, who was naked, and Hilde, who was wearing only a white shirt, and couldn't continue speaking.

[Oh, Cheshire. Nice to see you!]

Hilde, unable to read the atmosphere, just waved her hand and greeted it like a friend.