The Academy’s Weakest Became A Demon-Limited Hunter

Chapter 248: Hilde (2)

“Are you crazy…”

In the dorm of Elma Hall.

I dressed the Frost Dragon, now in human form, and had her sit on the bed. I was asking her various questions.

I was also dressed. I sat in the chair, with the Phantom Cat Cheshire on my lap, looking at Hilde.

As I petted Cheshire on my lap, Hilde shot a cold glance at him.

It was jealousy. Her eyes seem to say, “That should be me.”

However, Hilde in human form was so unfamiliar that I had no desire to pet her.

“Aren’t you supposed to be with Alice?”

[It’s fine, this is more fun! Alice is probably really bored with her work right now.]

Cheshire was all about having fun. There was no need to question its mindset.

[So, Hilde, what about that form? Is it modeled after the Primordial Ice Sovereign?]

[No, Cheshire. This is just my human form. My previous master had black hair and was thin.]

I didn’t know what the Primordial Ice Sovereign looked like. So, she had black hair and was thin.

[Were you always able to transform into a human?]

[I learned the transformation magic to become human because I wanted to be closer to my previous master. Although, I failed to get close to her.]

In the community in my past life, this was commonly referred to as Polymorph.

There were fan art circulating online imagining what the human version of Hilde might look like, and some seemed to have accurately guessed her appearance.

This wasn’t just a simple disguise. Changing the nature of one’s body was a very high-level spell. It wasn’t something just anyone could just pick up.

Aside from her horns, mystical light blue eyes, and swaying tail, Hilde looked like an ordinary human.

Her typically ladylike, delicate voice matched her current form perfectly.

Perhaps it was because she had such a voice that she ended up with this appearance.

“You want to get your dress fitted in that form, right?”

[Is that not obvious, Master? Did you seriously believe I would want to get a human dress fitted while in my original form?]

“...”

Is that sarcasm? How was I supposed to know that?

Anyway.

I was flustered at first, but in retrospect, it was probably a good thing.

“Okay, but can you hide your horns and tail?”

[Do you mean a complete human form? Yes, I can. But the horns and tail are the source of my mana. I am unable to use magic when they are hidden, which is a bit inconvenient.]

That’s a relief. It means she can live like a normal human.

“You mentioned wanting to live normally like the people here. It seems possible in that form, doesn’t it?”

[…Huh? Ohh!]

Hilde’s expression brightened.

She had helped me so much, and I wanted to return the favor. At the very least, I could fulfill Hilde’s wishes.

Since I was going to keep her summoned, I wanted to make her happy.

[Cheshire returns~.]

“You’re late.”

In Charles Hall, the dorm for high-ranked students.

Alice, working at her desk by the lamp, greeted the Phantom Cat Cheshire as he entered through the window.

From tomorrow, Alice would begin organizing her duties to smoothly hand over her presidency to the next Student Council President. This included creating a work manual that she was currently drafting in advance.

The organizing would only take a few days, but those few days made her long to see Isaac tonight.

So Cheshire went to ask Isaac to meet her tonight, but he arrived much later than Alice had anticipated.

[Something interesting happened.]

Cheshire grinned while sitting by the window.

Curious, Alice stopped what she was doing and looked at the Phantom Cat.

“Something interesting?”

[I went to Isaac’s room and saw him completely naked, petting a girl! I was really shocked!]

“…?”

The words and context didn’t quite fit together in Alice’s mind.

Why would “Isaac,” “naked,” and “girl” be in the same sentence…? And he did what to the girl…?

Alice had accepted Isaac’s harem and had feelings for him. However, she had decided she would become his priority.

Isaac seemed determined not to be swayed by romance until he defeated the Evil God, so Alice planned to slowly win his heart. Rash actions would only hinder Isaac.

But who could have beaten me to it at this timing…?

Suppressing the storm of emotions within her, Alice tapped her finger lightly on the desk and formed her usual gentle smile.

“Who… could have seduced Isaac? Was it Dorothy, or Luce Eltania?”

The only two people still at the academy who posed a threat were Dorothy and Luce.

For now, she could relax. Even if someone had succeeded in getting close to Isaac, the Phantom Cat Cheshire’s interruption meant they had been thwarted for now.

However, the Phantom Cat’s response was completely unexpected.

[Eh? It was neither of them.]

What?

Alice’s fingers stopped tapping the desk.

“Neither of them?”

Alice leaned slightly forward towards the Phantom Cat.

An unforeseen variable was trying to sneak up on her.

“Then… who was the girl with my baby?”

[It was Hilde.]

“Hilde?”

Alice’s thoughts froze for a moment.

Hilde.

The Frost Dragon, Hilde?

“Wait, you mean Isaac’s familiar? But Hilde is a dragon…”

[She can transform into a human.]

“A human?”

[I just found out today too. Isaac was talking about getting Hilde a pretty dress and treating her like a human.]

The initial, perverse thoughts faded, but she still had to sort out her complicated thoughts.

Let’s think about the situation.

The Frost Dragon Hilde could transform into a human, and Isaac, who was naked, had been petting her.

Isaac, while naked, promised to get the Frost Dragon Hilde a pretty dress.

Isaac, while naked, seemed to be treating the Frost Dragon Hilde kindly as if she were human….

[Alice?]

“…”

Each of these statements seemed to lead to impure conclusions.

A cold sweat trickled down Alice’s cheek.

Could it be… that Isaac’s desired harem is not limited to humans?

Did treating the Frost Dragon Hilde as a familiar mean there would be no romantic complications?

This was unexpected.

[Huh? Alice?]

As Student Council President, Alice had calmly handled any unexpected situations, but this one was so shocking that she struggled to process it.

The appearance of an unexpected obstacle stirred a wave of emotional turmoil within her.

…Let’s calm down.

Alice took a deep breath, wiped the cold sweat from her cheek, and smiled warmly.

“Cheshire, would you mind secretly keeping an eye on my baby tonight?”

[Huh? Secretly? What about Isaac’s privacy?]

Why is the cat making sense right now?

Of course, Alice respected Isaac’s privacy.

But this was an exception. It was an emergency.

“We have a master-servant relationship with Isaac, don’t we? Sometimes, for our master’s well-being, we have to slightly intervene in his privacy. Isaac will understand.”

Isaac was an archwizard. He would easily notice if the Phantom Cat was secretly watching.

In other words, it was possible to keep an eye on Isaac and the Frost Dragon tonight.

If Isaac were to confront her and ask, “Why are you spying on my room?” then she would have no choice but to back off. But doing something was better than just sitting around and worrying.

The Phantom Cat Cheshire realized that Alice’s order was intended to keep an eye on Hilde. The Phantom Cat answered excitedly and left.

That dawn, the Phantom Cat reported back to Alice.

The Frost Dragon had returned to her small dragon form and was sleeping peacefully with Isaac.

Only then did Alice, who had unintentionally stayed up all night, feel a sense of relief.

“Hilde is getting a dress? That sounds fun! Can I come? Let me come with you!”

[I’m curious about that too.]

It was lunchtime. I usually ate lunch with Luce, but she went to Hegel Tower this morning due to her usual apprenticeship duties.

So, after finishing my meal alone in the Academy Cafeteria, I left the building.

As I headed straight to the clothing store, I ran into Dorothy.

As if she had been waiting for me, Dorothy suddenly popped out from a tree and greeted me cheerfully while hanging upside down from a branch. The white cat magic beast, Ella, was with her.

It was a common occurrence, so I wasn’t surprised.

With a small dragon form of the Frost Dragon Hilde perched on my head, I returned the greeting and explained that we were on our way to get a dress fitted for Hilde.

Dorothy and Ella thought it would be fun and decided to tag along.

“Hilde, leave it to me to choose your clothes. No one in our department who suits elegant clothes better than I do. I’m sure it’ll help.”

[Oh, really! I will entrust myself to you, Dorothy!]

“Nihihi, just leave it to me!”

Hilde was very excited at the prospect of wearing a dress.

She had been posing in front of a full-length mirror since this morning.

[But Hilde, you’re a dragon. Why do you want to wear a human dress?]

The white cat, Ella, asked in a refined tone.

At that moment, a floating purple cat appeared beside my shoulder and flew towards Ella.

[Meow! There’s a reason for that!]

[Kyaah!!]

Ella reflexively screamed and quickly fled to Dorothy’s shoulder.

“Cheshire?”

“Oh, it’s Cheshire!”

We stopped walking.

Suddenly, the Phantom Cat deactivated its invisibility, stood on its hind legs, and placed its front paws on my leg.

It seemed like the Phantom Cat was now used to Ella avoiding him and remained unbothered.

[Hilde would look really beautiful in a human dress! Though she can’t quite compete with Ella’s beauty!]

[Hissss!!]

Cheshire winked and made a flirty remark to Ella, who responded fiercely, raising her tail in hostility.

[That was very inappropriate, Cheshire! I am as beautiful as Ella, if not more so!]

[Yeah, yeah. But you’re not a cat, are you?]

Hilde challenged the Phantom Cat, but he nonchalantly responded without even glancing at her.

Believing she was the most beautiful, regardless of the race, Hilde trembled slightly and looked down at me.

[Master, keep walking! We must go and get my dress fitted, do we not?!]

“Yeah, let’s go. Cheshire, do you want to come along?”

[Meow! Of course, that sounds fun!]

With the Phantom Cat joining us, we retraced our steps.

We chatted along the way. Dorothy and Cheshire seemed to get along well despite once fighting with the intent to kill each other.

Maybe it was because they were now on the same side? There was a refreshing sense coming off of them.

On the other hand, Ella clung to Dorothy’s shoulder, avoiding eye contact with the Phantom Cat. It was obvious that she didn’t like him.

[Meow! Ella, you’re as beautiful as always!]

[Yeah, and you’re as ugly as ever.]

[Would you like to go see some fish with me next time? I found a nice lake.]

[How about going to the Styx instead? By yourself.]

[Meow, I’ve never been there, but going to see the fish sounds nice! A place Ella thought of for me, I feel like I’m dreaming.]

[And I feel like I’m having a nightmare.]

[So, Ella, when are you free? I’d love to spend time with you!]

[I have plenty of time, just none to spend with you!]

[Oh, you must be very busy. It can’t be helped, then. Is there anything you want? I’d love to give you something.]

[Your death.]

[Meow, you’re so cute when you’re being coy! I like how extreme you are!]

With tears in its eyes, the Phantom Cat continued to express its unwavering affection for Ella with a smile.

Feeling pity for it, I stopped looking at the Phantom Cat.

We arrived at the clothing store in the academy shopping district. It was filled with vintage dresses and suits.

“Welcome… Oh! It’s been a while, Isaac! No, wait… I must be crazy. Should I call you… the Ice Sovereign…?”

The woman who owned the shop welcomed us. She was one of the people I had gotten to know while working in the Magic Department last year.

This was also the store I had visited last year to rent a suit for a social gathering.

She seemed confused on how to address me now because my status had changed.

“Please treat me like you did before. It’ll only make me feel uncomfortable otherwise.”

“Is that okay…?”

“Yes, of course.”

“Hehe, that’s good for me too.”

This is how I prefer it.

“So, what kind of clothes are you looking for, Ice Sovereign?”

“We’re here to look at dresses. For women.”

The shop owner’s gaze naturally turned towards Dorothy.

“Is it for her? Is she your girlfriend, perhaps?”

“Nihihi! You’ve got that right.”

“Oh my! Really? You two look great together!”

Dorothy’s playful attitude made the shop owner believe her joke.

“She’s just joking.”

“Ah… really? But you two look good together.”

The shop owner expressed her positive impression.

It seemed like they got along well. I thought so too. I’d remain a regular here until graduation.

Dorothy looked at me mischievously, covering her mouth and snickering as if she had read my emotions.

“Isaac, you seem a bit stiff. Were you excited because of m— Ouch!”

I flicked Dorothy’s forehead.

“Let’s not joke about things like that.”

“You’re so cold… You’re making Big Sis sad.”

Dorothy puffed her cheeks slightly and made a disappointed expression.

As I gently rubbed the spot where I flicked her, Dorothy closed her eyes and smiled, accepting my touch.

“For now, it’s her who wants to look at dresses.”

I pointed to Hilde, who was perched on my head. She stood up on her hind legs, placing her front paws on her waist, and struck a pose.

“Oh, uh? Huh…?”

The shop owner was flustered.

She seemed to have a lot to say but wasn’t sure where to start.

…I get you.

Meanwhile

An Imperial carriage carrying White and Merlin and a carriage from the Astrea Duchy carrying Gerald and Kaya departed for Märchen Academy.