"So they're shrine maidens who worship dragons... Does that mean they aren't particularly accustomed to combat?"
"Not necessarily. I've heard that in Yamato, there are those known as 'Warrior Shrine Maidens' who wield magic items forged from materials granted by the dragons themselves. Since they're coming to Luminous Academy—a prestigious institution for training Magic Knights—as exchange students, it's safer to assume they have a solid grasp of combat."
Anhel and Misery discussed the three exchange students whose backgrounds were mostly known among the group of five.
The rest of the group seemed equally fascinated by these girls, who were both spiritual attendants to dragons and trained warriors.
"Well, regardless of their combat prowess, a shrine maiden is still a shrine maiden," Marcos interjected. "Unlike the women currently in our presence, I am certain they will be modest, refined individuals."
"Hey, what’s that supposed to mean? We’re perfectly refined and modest," Anhel snapped. "My bust size might not be modest, but the rest of me is!"
"Marcos, you really can't help but say one word too many," Melt added with a sigh. "I can see exactly why people hate you!"
A chorus of boos erupted from the women toward Marcos for his usual lack of tact.
As the room filled with the sounds of their bickering, Fee, who had been watching with a wry smile, noticed that his older brother was unusually quiet. He leaned over to speak to him.
"Brother, what’s wrong? You’re awfully silent."
"Hmm? Am I?"
"Fee is right," Hao chimed in. "I fully expected you to be geeking out about how 'romantic' the idea of Warrior Shrine Maidens is. I was surprised when you didn't react at all."
Prompted by Hao, Yugo offered a wry smile that mirrored his younger brother’s.
Under the collective gaze of his companions, he finally voiced his concern, though he seemed hesitant to say it out loud.
"No, well... more than half of the exchange students are girls, right? I don't really want to think about it, but I’m worried that Sian or Egos might try something... questionable."
"Ah..."
A collective groan of realization escaped his companions' lips.
As everyone recalled the recent behavior of those two, Yugo continued to vent his anxieties.
"I’d like to believe it’s impossible, but what if—just what if, okay? What if those two pull the same kind of sexual harassment on the exchange students that they did to Melt and Anhel? That would be a disaster, wouldn't it?"
"It certainly would," Marcos agreed. "They come from the prestigious noble houses of Yamato. If anyone were to touch someone of that status without permission or commit some act of disrespect, it would spark an international incident immediately."
"Sian contacted me the moment I grew stronger thanks to Master's training," Misery noted. "There's a very high probability he'll try to make contact with the exchange students as well."
"The biggest problem is that those guys are exactly the type who would screw up," Anhel muttered. "I want to believe they wouldn't go that far, but after everything we've seen, they have zero credibility."
"They were even willing to abandon Shiroi so easily during the incident at the village," Melt recalled. "Even if they were being manipulated or weren't thinking clearly, it felt so cold... Like they lacked any basic human kindness."
"Those two didn't care about the villagers at all," Anhel added bluntly. "They were just throwing a tantrum because they lost their virginity to that slime."
"Honestly, they're more of a disgrace to the academy than Yugo ever was. Sian and Egos are bad enough, but Zenon and Isaac were dangerous too. I'm starting to think none of these 'Hero Candidates' can be trusted."
"By the way," Fee interrupted, "I heard a rumor that one of the exchange students is a girl transferring into the Elementary Division."
"O-Oh, I see! Well, I hope you can become friends with her, Fee!"
Yugo responded to his brother in a forced, cheerful tone, but an indescribable anxiety continued to swirl in his chest.
He wasn't the only one; his companions looked equally troubled. Even Fee seemed a bit uneasy after sharing the news.
Surely—they couldn't possibly be that depraved, right? They wouldn't lay a hand on an elementary school student... would they? That was the unspoken fear hanging over the room.
The thought that such an act would be a heinous crime even before it became a diplomatic crisis crossed everyone's minds, but no one wanted to be the first to say it. Marcos decided to break the heavy silence.
"As Fee mentioned, the fourth exchange student is heading for the Elementary Division. As for the final one... he appears to be the only male in the group. Like the three shrine maidens, he will be joining the first-year High School Division."
"Oh! There's a guy too?" Yugo's interest was piqued. "It’d be nice to have another guy around to get along with. So, what’s he like?"
Having heard only about the female students so far, Yugo was genuinely curious about the male arrival.
Marcos wore a complicated expression for a moment before summarizing the rumors he had heard about the fifth student.
"It’s just a rumor for now, but... they say he's a swordsman with unbelievable skill. Apparently, back at the academy in Yamato, he's recognized by everyone as the undisputed strongest student."