Polaris turned her gaze from me to Victoria.
"Tori, what kind of magic was that just now? I couldn't feel any magical power, but it's the same as when the floor got wet earlier, right?"
Unlike how she was speaking to me until now, she speaks to Victoria with an extremely excited voice. She immediately used a nickname. She's someone who approaches very quickly.
Victoria looks at me as if she's in a very difficult situation. Even if she looks at me like that, there's nothing I can do.
"Is it really a superpower like we saw on the broadcast? What else can you do?"
Polaris approaches closely.
Victoria hesitantly starts explaining.
"Yeah. Superpower. The only thing I can handle is water."
Victoria drew up a thin stream of water in the air. Polaris looks at it intently.
"As expected, there's no magical power. That means it's not magic. Hmm. It's a superpower that can be easily used even in cities lacking in magical power, right? That's scary."
At Polaris's words, Victoria tilts her head.
"Scary? It's nothing compared to magic, isn't it?"
Polaris giggles. As she does, she pokes Victoria's chest where her heart is with her index finger.
"It's not the superpower that's scary. It's you who's scary, Tori. You followed me to bury me if necessary, right? The killing intent was chilling."
At those words, Victoria subtly turned her head to the side, avoiding Polaris's gaze. Then Polaris straightens her shoulders.
"See? Children like you are rare. And with this kind of power. Are you not interested in becoming a knight by any chance? It's becoming a noble in its own way, and I can take good care of you, won't you think about it carefully?"
Promotion from commoner to knight. It's a good opportunity in a society where the class system still remains. But Victoria shook her head left and right.
"Even if it's a knight, my dream is to be a clockwork knight. If you want a different kind of knight, find someone else."
"Would giving you a factory do?"
At Polaris's probing words, Victoria makes an interested expression. But then she shakes her head vigorously to refuse, and Polaris chuckles.
"That's a shame. If you ever change your mind, come to the Bearington Marquisate. If you're still someone I like at that time, I have no intention of sparing support."
And Polaris gives a brief greeting and goes towards the building.
"She's like a storm. But she doesn't seem like a bad person. Considering how her voice lowered when she talked about her acquaintance dropping out earlier, I think she tried to help Belle."
"Is that so?"
"It was a bit funny that she came to keep in check just because of meeting the prince."
"I think so too."
It seems there was a bloody conflict in the prince's grade.
Seeing that she uses even a benefactor as bait if needed, she passes as a harvester. Apart from that point, it doesn't matter.
"Are we going to Theodor now?"
Victoria carefully asks while watching my reaction. Instead of answering that question, I slightly change the topic.
"I didn't know Theodor had such a body."
"Didn't you meet her before? Didn't you know then?"
"She was sitting the whole time. I thought that's how high-ranking people were, so I didn't have any reason to look closely."
In any world, I was close to an outsider, so this kind of attention is a first for me.
As long as I have a physical body in this world, I'm in this world, not watching through harvesters.
It was enough to follow the flow and pick up the warmth that overflowed and fell from there, but can I create the flow?
It feels like I was playing a simulation game and realized I could directly enter and become a player.
I want to pretend not to have a self until I establish a foundation. But it seems like this kind of opportunity won't come many times.
Hmm.
When did I start considering various things? I just aimed for one goal and did what I could in between.
This time too, let's respond as situations arise.
As the topic changed, instead of asking about Theodor again, Victoria started grumbling.
"Why did I suddenly end up entering the Royal Academy and become like this."
"From the aspect of not rejecting but accepting socially prominent figures, you should be seen as an open-minded person."
You'd need to know the history and current international situation to know accurately. I don't know that. There's almost no information about foreign countries in the memories my current harvesters have.
At best, there's only trivial information like rumors about big events happening somewhere, or that the food there was delicious.
It seems like I could get good information if I turn that person from Theodor into a harvester.
But I won't make contact.
It's not a difficult situation at all. If you use facts as a weapon, you become dependent on those facts. As powerful as facts are, the constraints are also big.
And if the purpose is to treat a disability, they will approach first, so let's try to take the initiative here.
"Oh, is Belle smart by any chance?"
"No. I'm not smart. I'm confident in interpretation because I know a lot, but I can't create new things or predict things using the information I have. In short, that's it. I lack creativity."
Interpreting objects in front of you based on received information and predicting the future are completely different functions.
But it seems Victoria didn't see it that way.
"You should apologize to the aspiring clockwork knights who cry out because they can't even do simple interpretations."
"If you memorize a lot, it'll be fine."
"No matter how much I look, I can't memorize it!"
So it was about herself. Victoria grumbles.
Was memorizing that difficult?
I search through faded man's memories.
There are scenes of struggling to memorize. In other words, being good at memorizing is also a sign of intelligence. Even if you know something, it's frustrating that you can't create new things with it.
"Let's say that people who can create something with that are amazing."
"So even monsters become envious of what they don't have..."
Somehow Victoria seems to have gained some realization, looking into space with a dazed expression.
Isn't it natural that lacking parts stand out more? So once jealousy sets in, it doesn't easily go away.
Therefore, as it creates an environment where I can easily obtain warmth, it's rather a part I want to encourage.
Anyway.
"Let's go home now."
"You mean the dormitory? I have somewhere to drop by, so I can't go with you."
Victoria is busy preparing various things to become a clockwork knight.
"Ah, right. Where does Belle live now?"
Victoria asked a legitimate question. So I pointed to the main gate of the Royal Academy.
"I'm living in the building immediately to the left of the main road after exiting the main gate."
"Left of the main gate? Ah, is it there."
It seems she recalled it from her memory. The Clockwork Knight School is also in the capital like the Royal Academy. Additionally, Victoria has been around this area before, so she should be able to recall if she tries.
"What does Belle do when you return to your room? Do you watch videos? You don't cook or clean there, right?"
Victoria asks about what I did at her house. So I shook my head left and right.
"The people working inside do that. I just go into the room and sit still."
"You don't do anything else?"
"No. I don't do it because there's no need to."
At my words, Victoria looks at me with a worried expression.
"Don't you get bored then?"
"It passes in an instant."
There are over ten thousand harvesters. In other words, it means there are that many channels. It's not that I can only watch one, I'm watching all harvesters simultaneously. And that's true even now.
So there's no chance for me to be bored.
It might be easier to compare if I say it's like the sensation of watching very shortly edited videos while lying in bed in faded man's memories.
I'm watching enjoyably because human life is basically a comedy when viewed from afar.
So far, there's no warmth coming in except for the warmth of a harvester who died crushed between construction materials while working.
Someday, a lot of warmth will come in.
Of course, warmth comes in not only from killing humans but also other living things.
But That's is insufficient. There's almost no warmth from slaughtering bred animals. Insects on the roadside have more warmth than such animals.
Probably, it means such livestock are closed off from possibilities from the start.
Of course, there are many living things. The jungle I watched from the sea when going from the small port to Bern City.
There were plenty of creatures with a lot of warmth inside. If you clear that all out and pioneer it, you could obtain a lot of warmth at that moment.
However, after that, humans end up being the most efficient in terms of warmth. Even if individual monsters have more warmth, humans have more warmth per density.
Thinking of efficiency, humans are good potential harvesters.
"An instant, you mean time passes quickly? You're talking like an old lady. Oh, speaking of which, how old are you?"
"It does feel like time passes faster as you get older."
As I agreed because it's true, Victoria made a horrified expression.
"Wow, I don't want to get old then. I still have so much to do, does even a day go by quickly?"
"Don't worry. You won't age much anymore."
I said that while pointing at Victoria.
When you become a harvester, old people become younger, and young people don't age much. Hair that wasn't there grows, or traces of time that appeared with age disappear.
"Really?"
"Yes. You can think of it as roughly doubling your lifespan."
Of course, it resets again from the next generation, but if you put me in there, it increases.
"Belle is amazing."
At those words, I smile.
That becomes a reason for people to be obsessed with me. All people age, and aged bodies break down. If it can be restored to its original state, many people would pay any price.
King Hypion will surely come looking for me.
Hehe.
But before that, there's one problem I have to face.
The witch who cursed Aurora.
That witch might see me as an enemy and attack. I welcome the attack itself. But there's something I'm worried about.
The witch was quick-witted. Hyunkeshuni was like that.
After falling to the bottom where I was, in the process of becoming a monster, she broke down and disappeared without becoming a monster. Not all humans who fall to the bottom become my kind.
That witch kept suspecting me in the first world.
And she almost reached the truth.
The back side of harvesters. The real danger not told to everyone. The reason why I can only be an evil monster after all.
What if this witch figures that out?
I might have to use aggressive tactics then.
Or, rather than being driven out without gaining anything, it might be better to break this third world and obtain warmth.
Let's lay out a few choices I can make and wait.
"You'll regret it if you expect that much, Victoria."
And I moved towards the main gate, and Victoria followed me for a while before waving goodbye, saying she was going to the faculty office.
The day passes quickly.