Chapter 111: Luna Expresses Confusion
Chapter 111: Luna Expresses Confusion
The process of registering a library card was swift. In only a few minutes, Alice received a plain-looking library card that looked somewhat similar to her student ID.
After acquiring her library card, Alice looked in the direction of the blonde girl with crimson eyes again. However, it would seem that the girl had left as she was no longer standing in the elevator lobby.
Alice couldn't help but frown at this sight. The other party's gaze was so blatant just now that even her weak perception had managed to sense it. It was obvious that the other party was trying to attract her attention. However, as she was waiting in line just now, she chose not to approach the girl first. Yet, after she was done registering her library card, the other party had disappeared. This situation puzzled Alice.
"What's wrong? Is something over there?" Zauna asked as she followed Alice's line of sight. However, she saw only a row of magic elevators and nothing else.
"It's nothing."
Alice shook her head. Although she didn't know what the blonde girl was trying to do, the other party didn't look like she held any malicious intent toward her since she couldn't feel any killing intent from the other party's gaze.
While killing intent might seem like a vague and mysterious thing, thanks to Grant, Aird, and Luna, Alice had experienced what it felt like to have someone wanting to kill her more than once. Meanwhile, she had failed to sense the same feeling from the blonde girl just now.
"By the way, is there anyone in the school with blonde hair, crimson eyes, and a side ponytail?"
Although Alice didn't plan on finding the other party right now, she still tried to ask Zauna to see if she knew of the blonde girl.
"That's too vague of a description Though, I don't think I know of anyone who matches that description," Zauna said, shaking her head after giving the matter some thought. There were plenty of people with blonde hair in the March Academy. People with crimson eyes were relatively common, too. In this world, one could find people with all sorts of hair and eye colors. As for the hairstyle, that could be changed at any time, so it didn't have any value as a reference.
Alice nodded after hearing Zauna's answer. The March Academy hosted students from middle school to university. There were also many students in every grade. Zauna was only a high school freshman, so there was no way she would recognize everyone in the academy.
In fact, Alice would've found it strange if Zauna could identify the blonde girl just by listening to her description of the other party.
"Nevermind. Let's go borrow some books first."
After failing to figure out why the other party had tried to attract her attention, Alice shook her head and stopped thinking about the blonde girl. Not to mention, there was a high possibility that the other party was simply a noble trying to get close to the "princess."
It also made sense now that Alice thought about it that way. If it weren't for the library prohibiting noisemaking, many people would've tried to strike a conversation with her already. Even now, she could still see quite a few students fighting the urge to approach her. These students were probably the nobles of this academy.
However, adhering to her previous plan, Alice simply sent these nobles a glance before walking to the elevator with Zauna, ignoring them completely.
Alice was well aware that the more polite and friendly she behaved, the more likely these nobles would flock to her. However, if she pretended to be aloof, these people would start to consider whether rashly approaching the "princess" would diminish her goodwill toward them, and many of them would probably back away for fear of that happening.
Thankfully, Alice's performance had achieved excellent results. After seeing Alice ignoring them, the nobles who showed signs of wanting to approach her promptly shrunk back. Even when Alice, Zauna, and Luna walked into the elevator, nobody dared to enter into the same elevator with them.
"Wow, you looked just like Luna just now, Alice!" As soon as the elevator door closed, Zauna immediately broke into a smile and pinched Alice's cheeks. "That indifferent expression shocked even me. As expected of the Hero Wait, no, I mean, Your Highness."
Luna, who had been following Alice all this time, was a little stunned when she suddenly became collateral damage. Then, she rubbed her cheeks in confusion, failing to understand why Zauna would use her expression as an example.
"It's not to that extent, right?" Alice helplessly pushed Zauna's hands away and massaged her reddened cheeks. "Also, they will only stay away if I act coldly. I don't want to be disturbed by a group of people when I'm learning taboos, after all."
"That's true. But before learning taboos, I think you should start by learning the basics of magic first," Zauna said as she pressed the button for the 10th floor. Then, she continued, "Although taboos aren't complicated, they still make use of the basic operating principles of mana. It's just like running. Even if it isn't difficult to run, you still need to know how to stand up and walk with your legs first before you can run."
"That's true."
Alice sighed. She had to admit that Zauna was right. The biggest problem she faced now compared to the majority of the people in this world was that she didn't have even the most rudimentary foundation in magic.
The people of this world had been learning magic theories since grade school. Yet, Alice didn't have any knowledge in this area whatsoever.
However, according to Zauna, these magic theories were very simple, and anyone without a mental disability could learn them quickly.
"Here we are. All books starting from the 10th floor are related to magic one way or another," Zauna explained to Alice in a whisper after the elevator doors opened. "I'll go and find some books on magic fundamentals. If you're interested, you can use the computers there to check for books you might want."
After saying so, Zauna pointed at a row of computers nearby. There were 20 computers by the looks of it, and currently, ten of them were occupied.
Zauna also seemed to know where the books on magic fundamentals were located since she dove straight into the rows of bookshelves without using the computers.
Besides the innumerable bookshelves, there were also plenty of tables and chairs on this floor, many of which were occupied by students and people who looked like they had already graduated from university. Just like Zauna previously mentioned, the academy's library was also open to outsiders.
"The March Royal Academy, huh? How nostalgic. It still looks a lot like it did three hundred years ago. But there also seems to be a lot of modern equipment. Are those rectangular things called computers?" Kristine said. Thanks to her psychokinesis, only Alice managed to hear her voice. "I had to flip through a thick record book when I wanted to find a book here in the past, but now they've been replaced by computers."
"It's been three hundred years, after all."
Alice could empathize with Kristine's feelings. Computers were also a relatively modern invention on Earth. There might have been the prototype of a computer back in Kristine's era, but it definitely wasn't as capable as it was now.
"I guess you're right. There's no use lamenting over the past. You came here to learn taboos, right?" Smiling, Kristine said, "In that case, let me recommend a book to you. Even in this library, it can be classified as a top-secret book."