It was the second day since I came to visit Isis-san’s castle.
Right now, in front of me was a huge room filled with books from the floor to its ceiling.
[T- That’s an amazing amount.]
[……The next room…… is just about the same….. as this room.]
I knew that Isis-san loves books and she has a large number of them, but seeing them in person was truly breathtaking. I was simply overwhelmed by the number of books in her collection, that wouldn’t even make her collection second to none, compared to any large libraries.
And while I looked at them stunned, Isis-san approached me with some books in her arms.
[……Kaito…… These books…… are for you.]
[Eh? Is it alright?]
[……Unnn…… I also want Kaito…… to read them.]
[T- Thank you very much.]
Or rather, Isis-san…… Isn’t this around 50 books? You’re lifting it quite easily, but I probably wouldn’t even be able to hold it if you hand it to me.
Receiving the books a few batches after another, I put them away in my magic box and thanked Isis-san again.
[……Even so, there’s really an amazing amount of books here, isn’t it? Have you read all these books, Isis-san?]
[……Unnn…… I remember…… all of them.]
[You even remember what you read!?]
She remembers the contents of the millions of books in here? T- That’s quite outrageous huh……
T- Thinking about it once again…… Isis-san really is an absurdly high-spec person.
[……I had always…… been reading…… books after all.]
[……When you’re alone huh?]
[……Unnn…… so…… after Kaito came…… I’m really…… happy.]
The amount of time it took her to remember all the contents of this ridiculous amount of books…… These piles of millions of books were the testament to the amount of time that Isis-san had spent in solitude.
Perhaps remembering those times, she looked a little sad, so I spoke to her with a bright smile on my face.
[That’s right, Isis-san! Can you tell me about the Demon Realm?]
[……Eh?]
[I actually bought a guidebook for the Demon Realm before I came here. However, I don’t really understand what it means if I just read it alone…… Can we read it together?]
[……Kaito…… Unnn!]
Hearing my words, Isis-san nodded with a very happy expression on her face.
The guidebook I bought from Alice…… I actually haven’t looked at it yet.
I originally wanted to look through it while traveling with Lillywood-san, but I haven’t seen it yet because I didn’t have time for that due to my encounter with Magnawell-san.
Since we have the chance, if I read this with Isis-san, who knows a lot about the Demon Realm, she’ll be able to teach me lots of things and that will be a great help for me.
—is what I thought when I suggested that but……
[……This book…… is very detailed…… It must have been written……. by someone…… who knows a lot about the Demon Realm huh.]
[T- T- That’s right.]
When Isis-san spoke just now, I could feel her breath faintly touching my cheeks, making my spine unconsciously straighten up…… And after that, I could feel some things soft behind my back.
The book is open, Isis-san is leaning behind my back, looking into the book from over my shoulder. The closeness of our bodies makes me flustered.
Why the heck didn’t I expect something like this would happen!? Haven’t I learned anything from the events that happened yesterday!?
C- Calm down…… For the time being, let’s go see the contents of this book. Let’s just focus on that and……
Errr, yeah, where was I reading again? Errr, let’s see…… There’s a good scone shop near the forest where Lillywood-san lives, so you might want to bring some back as Alice-chan’s souvenirs? There’s a shop that specializes in Wyvern meat, and since it can be bought as takeouts…… she wants to eat it?
……Isn’t this just a guidebook of what Alice wants to eat!? What the heck is with this person and her face as thick as wall, that bast*rd’s demanding for souvenirs in the guidebook you wrote!!!?
[……It’s an interesting…… book.]
[……I’m sorry. It was written by an idiot.]
[……However…… this book…… really is…… amazing.]
[Is that so?]
[……Unnn…… I’ve never seen before…… a book as detailed as this.]
Apparently, the guidebook to the Demon Realm written by Alice is quite detailed, even from the perspective of Isis-san, who has read a large number of books.
I wonder if Alice has been to the Demon Realm? Come to think of it, I think she was also quite familiar with the high-ranking Demons.
Could it be that although she said she was a Human, she was actually a Demon?
Hmmm. Thinking about her, Alice is a pretty mysterious person…… She’s ridiculously high-spec and even though she’s astonishingly stupid…… She sometimes looks sharp and knows about strange information.
I’ll just have to ask her about it next time I visit with a souvenir……
[……Kaito?]
[Ahh, I’m sorry. Errr…… We’re now around here, right?]
[……Unnn…… If you go a little bit towards the east…… you would be in the swampy area.]
[A swampy area huh……]
[……In that place…… is a rare herb called…… Rainleaf…… I’ve gone there before…… to pick some.]
As she lives in this area, Isis-san pointed at the book, explaining in detail.
[You have gone to harvest there before? Is that herb used for anything?]
[……No…… It’s just a herb…… with an unusual pattern.]
When I heard Isis-san say that she once went to pick up Rainleafs, I wondered if that herb was so great that Isis-san, one of the Six Kings, would even come to harvest it but…… it seems that isn’t the case.
Seeing me tilting my head, Isis-san had a slightly embarrassed expression on her face.
[……Errr….. it’s just….. my hobby.]
[Your hobby, is it?]
After hearing her story, it seems that Isis-san likes to read novels, and when she finds a novel she likes, she goes to collect the items that appeared in that novel.
Harvesting them as mementos, they would be kept safe in a separate room with State Preservation Magic casted on it.
[It’s a wonderful hobby.]
[……Y- You think so?]
[Yes. If Isis-san is fine with it…… Would you take me with you the next time you go?]
[……Unnn! ……Let’s go…… together.]
Isis-san has even given me these books, so I think it would be good to go out with her after I finished reading them.
I’m sure it would be fun if I went there with Isis-san, and I’d like to see more of the different views of this world.
While thinking about this, I continued to look at the Demon Realm guidebook and was being taught by Isis-san…… But suddenly, Isis-san reached out her hands in front of me and softly embraced me.
[Ehh? I- Isis-san!?]
[…… Kaito…… really is…… kind.]
[E- Errr……]
The soft stuff pressing against my back, and her warm breath tickling my cheek…
[……Just for a moment…… Can I stay…… like this?]
[……Yes.]
It was quite a mysterious feeling.
My heart should have been beating really fast and I’m feeling restless just a few minutes ago, but now, I’m feeling very calm.
No, my heart is still beating really fast but…… exceeding that, the warmth of Isis-san’s body was comforting and gave me peace of mind.
Dear Mom, Dad——- It’s the second day I spent with Isis-san…… I was quite nervous about lots of things on the first day, but now that I’ve given my mind a break, I feel a little more relaxed. At the very least, the time I spent with Isis-san—— I enjoyed it from the bottom of my heart.
<Author’s Notes>
You spent the whole chapter doing that!? Go explode!!!
Putting that aside, I think Kaito looks like an ikemen when he’s with Isis.
…… Phantasmal King-chan’s reentry.
T/N: 13/92