154 A new beginning [11]

"Hey, Zero! What are you going to pick? I'm still unsure whether or not I should choose mana manipulation or not... I'm not sure whether it would be useful as an archer..."

"Hmm? I don't think anyone can make that choice for you, but I guess it might be better for you to pick the reconnaissance course as it might suit your role better."

Even though Caroline was quite insistent on trying to get me on her good side, working hard to look cute and friendly, I kept replying in a friendly, but very matter-of-factly way. Unfortunately for her, I didn't see much use for her.

If she had been her friend, Akane, I would gladly be wagging my tail to see if there was something that I could use. Now, I wouldn't go out of my way to do it, but if Akane for some reason started making moves, I wouldn't hesitate to suck her dry.

Of course, there was no telling if she was useful either, but I had a feeling that the [Beast Tamer] Manual was capable of a lot of great things.

Going back to the conversation with Caroline, we were suddenly ambushed by an energetic blue-haired girl that seemingly didn't want to lose, "Hey, Zero! Have you picked your courses yet?"

Her action of almost skipping over to our desk created a pretty sensual bounce in her well-shaped body, and for a second I thought I could see Caroline's brow twitch. Pretending as if I didn't see her insecurities shine through, I just responded to Stella with a smile.

"Not quite yet, I'm still a bit unsure what I want to do..."

"Ah! Then why don't you pick physical training and Art of War? I think it would be fun to attend classes together!"

Her innocent but incredibly stupid words made both of me and Caroline speechless. 'Oh, you sweet, innocent summer child...'

It was hard not to make fun of her, but as I had an image to uphold, I somehow managed to hold myself back. "Ahaha! I don't think I'm quite suited to those courses, Stella."

"What do you mean?"

I just couldn't wrap my head around the fact that she still didn't see the problem. Although physical training was to some extent reasonable, as everyone would be gaining something from being healthy and fit, Art of War was not for everyone.

Art of War was a course designed for those who would be standing on the front lines, leading their troops when everyone's life was at stake. Believe it or not, even if I wanted Zero to become a sort of leader in the future, there was no way this body would be fit to stand in the front lines.

"Erm... I'm sorry, Stella, but I don't exactly think I have the body of a knight."

Finally, she caught my drift, her face reddening as she realized how stupid her suggestion had been. "Oh, r-right... I'm sorry! I just thought... I mean..."

Comforting her by making my face shine, I tried to show her that I truly didn't mind, "It's fine, Stella. I'm just happy that you are being so considerate, as I'm guessing you just wanted us to get a chance to hang out more. You're a good friend."

If this had been Caroline, I absolutely wouldn't be as merciful as I would suspect that she had a multitude of ulterior motives, but with Stella being as innocent as she was, I didn't want to give her a hard time.

Not caring about her blushing rival, Caroline saw an opportunity to jump back into the conversation, "But what are you thinking about picking, then?"

"Hmm..."

To be honest, that was a question I still didn't have an answer to. The reason why it was so hard was that I wanted a good balance between courses that could actually benefit me, as well as courses that I knew I could show off how amazing I was.

Also, there was an unknown factor that I desperately wanted to get an answer to, and one of the available classes could be an easy way for me to attain it.

'Ah, what use is there hesitating? I could probably change courses whenever I want, after all, I am the child of god!'

So, I told them of my decision while I simultaneously inputted them onto the screen in front of me, "I will choose water manipulation, mana manipulation, and Healing Arts."

It didn't take long for my answer to create a reaction, although Stella's reaction was a lot more exaggerated than Caroline's, "You are a healer?! That's so cool! I heard they are super rare!"

"Woah, a healer?"

Yes, the unknown factor that I needed to get an answer to was if whatever that stupid goddess did to my body might have created a slim chance for me to be able to use healing. In my head, it made a lot of sense that the child of god inside of me would be able to, but at the same time, I had no idea what sense even was anymore.

Scratching my cheek, I forced myself to blush slightly, "Actually, I still don't know if I am suited for it, but I feel like I want to try at least. Even if I can't stand with everyone on the frontlines, I want to do everything I can to make sure we will all get through the future together. Because that is the role I have been given."

Seconds on seconds started to pass with both of the girls around me squirming with red faces, as well as a burly man who had managed to sneak up on us from behind, most likely equally abashed. Certainly, I already knew he was behind me, listening to the conversation, but I didn't see a problem in giving him a bit of fan service as well.

'Aren't I great? How amazing it must be for these people to get to socialize with the child of Theia herself!'

'Man, check yourself. Or I guess, check ourselves?'

Interrupting the incredibly sweet moment, our teacher seemed to be ready to conclude the lesson.

"Seems like everyone has picked their courses! You will be having the rest of the morning session off. After lunch I want you to follow the directions sent to your smartwatches to the stadium where you will be meeting the sophomores!"

"Oh, I guess we should get going. It's a little early for lunch, but do you guys want to do something to pass the time? We could ask Akane as well?"

"Umm... M-may I..?"

"Of course. I already assumed you would come with us, Thomas."

And so we decided to grab a coffee at the café before lunch, where we had a jolly good time and nothing went wrong... is what I wanted to be able to say...

****

[Arthur's Pov]

Sitting in the academy café by myself, I was having a hard time focusing on the written assignment that was to be done before our official start of the new semester. There was no doubt that I should have done it earlier but... I wasn't the best of students...

So now I was stuck with trying to desperately type some sensible words on my laptop while my head was distracted by the confusion I had around Zero. 'The current legislation regarding hunters according to paragraph 4.9 part two is...'

With tears filling my eyes, I could already see where this was headed. There was no way this farmer's boy could just suddenly understand all of this complicated stuff. So instead, I stood up and packed away my laptop.

'I wonder how badly Mr. Brown will beat me...'

Our dear teacher was all in all a pretty lovely guy, there was just one thing... Instead of giving us extra homework or making us write another essay, he thought that sparring against him was the best punishment.

So far, it had only been I and Peter that had been victims of his 'love', and although I came out better than Peter, it wasn't exactly pleasant.

Just as I was about to leave the facility, a group of what I assumed to be freshmen stepped in through the automatic doors, with one of them being so easily recognized that I could never mistake him for someone else.

'Zero...'

Even as I was reminded about how Sophie had told me multiple times that I was pretty clumsy in social interactions, and that I wasn't great at knowing the time and place for things, I still couldn't stop myself from walking up to the group with determined steps.

Seeing that I was approaching, they all stopped and looked like small sheep that were about to get attacked by the big bad wolf, with Zero for some reason taking a step forward.

Although I felt like they were overreacting, I made sure to bring out a light smile to try and show them that I didn't mean anything bad, "Are you Zero? Excuse me, but if it isn't too much to ask for, would you mind giving me a minute of your time?"

However, the reaction I got was the opposite of what I wanted. Instead of them relaxing, my smile seemed to have put them even more on edge, with one petite girl opening her mouth, "Zero, you don't have to go with him if you don't want to..."

Shaking his head, the equally as short Zero seemed to have resolved himself, shaking his head, "No, I'll go. I'll be fine, just grab a table and I'll come over shortly."

Seeing this circus go down in front of me, there was but one thought in my mind.

'Wait... Am I the bad guy here?'