The time rewound slightly.
Erinde was working in the headmaster's office as usual when they suddenly sensed a familiar magical power.
If that magical power had entered the school building housing the headmaster's office, there would have been no particular problem.
But when it suddenly appeared right beside them as they organized documents at their desk, that was a different story.
Even so, the reason Erinde showed no sign of panic was perhaps because they knew the owner of that magical power well.
They continued reading the contents of the document, confirmed there was nothing unusual, and signed it.
Then they reached for the teacup on the desk, drank the considerably cooled tea, and finally spoke.
"So, what exactly are you doing?"
The person at whom their gaze was directed was an elf, just like themselves, carrying a bow on his back—a magnificent bow that one could never hope to purchase no matter where they looked in town—along with a quiver that could be recognized at a glance as a magic item.
Though he had a slender build typical of elves, Erinde knew that his body was well-trained.
And his face, too, could be described as elegant in a way befitting an elf.
Elves generally tended to have well-proportioned features, but even among them, this person possessed particularly striking beauty.
And yet the fact that one could still clearly recognize him as a man was probably owing to his personality.
The person had been watching Erinde's face with an interested gaze from beside them, but now, apparently deciding he would finally be paid attention to, he smiled and spoke.
"You're cruel too, aren't you? You noticed I was here a while ago, didn't you? And yet you ignore me and prioritize your work..."
"It would be nice to keep you company, but my job is being the Academy Headmaster of this Officer Academy. Given that, surely you understand that even when a friend visits, I have no choice but to prioritize my work?"
"Work, huh. I absolutely refuse to do paperwork, you know. If someone told me to do it, I'd firmly refuse, and if they tried to force me, I'd want to protest even if I had to use this."
Saying that, the elven man lovingly touched the bow he carried on his back.
That bow, made of metal with interwoven white and blue lines, was both the source of the man's alias and an incomparably powerful magic item.
That is to say...
"Even the Heavenly Bow would be dissatisfied if it were used for such trivial things."
Yes, that bow was the weapon known as the Heavenly Bow, and the elf who wielded it was Sardat—the S-Rank Adventurer who shared his weapon's name as his own alias, Heavenly Bow.
"Is that so? Originally, it was Erinde who requested me as a bodyguard, so I'd think I'd deserve praise for doing my job properly."
"For all that, you only intervened in Lord Rei's battle, didn't you? Couldn't you have at least captured the attackers? Surely that much was within your ability?"
"What ridiculous thing are you saying!?"
Sardat spread both arms wide as if to say he was offended.
Each of his gestures was exaggerated; to anyone watching, it felt as though they were sitting in on a play.
(Come to think of it, according to the information that came into the King's Faction, there was talk that the third prince who emerged victorious in the civil war and became the next emperor of the Bestia Empire also had a subordinate with a similar personality... I'd kind of like to see them meet Sardat, but at the same time, I'd rather not.)
Perhaps not suspecting that Erinde was thinking such things internally, Sardat shook his head sorrowfully with his arms still spread wide and spoke.
"I'm an elf, you know? I'm good with bows and Spirit Magic, but close combat isn't my forte. That sort of thing should be left to those who excel at it. ...Oh, but only men, of course. Girls would get scars on their beautiful skin, so I'd prefer they not fight if possible."
"...You really haven't changed at all, have you. Honestly, if this is the S-Rank Adventurer of the Kingdom of Mireana, I can't exactly say this country's future is very bright."
"How offensive. Little girls, young girls, girls, women... they are the world's treasures."
At Sardat proclaiming this as if it were the absolute truth of the world, Erinde sighed.
"Yes, yes. Setting that aside, do you have any idea who attacked Lord Rei in the end?"
"Yes. I've clashed with them a few times before. Those were Stigma."
"...Stigma?"
Not recognizing the name, Erinde tilted their head.
Seeing that, Sardat also tilted his head.
It was a strange sight—two elves tilting their heads at each other in silence—but the first to break it was Sardat.
"Huh? You really don't know? I'd think they're fairly well-known in the Underground World."
"Listen... I'm not an adventurer, nor a resident of the Underground World. I'm just an ordinary Academy Headmaster of an Officer Academy, you know? Why would you think I'd know about someone famous in the Underground World?"
"...You, ordinary, huh. That would change my definition of ordinary... well, whatever. Digging too deep into that topic would backfire on me anyway. So, about Stigma. To put it simply, they're the Holy Light Religion's highest combat force."
"The Holy Light Religion? If you mean the Holy Light Religion, I believe they caused an incident in Exil last year..."
Exil was treated as an Autonomous City due to being a Labyrinth City, but it was still a part of the Kingdom of Mireana nonetheless.
Given that, information about last year's Holy Light Religion Incident had naturally come in.
"That's right. That Holy Light Religion. In the end, because of that incident, even in the Kingdom of Mireana they weren't exactly suppressed... but they came under stricter scrutiny, you know that, right? The highest combat force that the Holy Light Religion possesses is Stigma."
"Do you happen to know roughly how capable they are?"
"Let's see. On average, about A-Rank Adventurer equivalent. Of course, there are some weaker and some stronger among them. ...Oh, naturally, I've never encountered one stronger than me so far, so I don't think there are any S-Rank equivalents."
At those words, Erinde breathed a sigh of relief.
But immediately, their elegant expression turned bitter.
Naturally. If they were on average A-Rank Adventurer equivalent, that was a considerable fighting force.
They didn't think their friend would lose, but Sardat was still only one person.
If trouble broke out in multiple places at once, it was certain that Sardat alone couldn't handle it all.
(At the very least, the saving grace was that Sardat was an adventurer bearing the alias of Heavenly Bow. His ability to hit targets with arrows even from a distance could serve as a trump card. And also...)
Next, the figure of Rei came to Erinde's mind.
Naturally, they had a certain amount of information about his abilities. This was the City of Gracial, governed by a major figure within the King's Faction. Information about what actions Rei had taken during the civil war of the Bestia Empire had come in, and they had also heard the story of how he had won, albeit in a limited sense, against the S-Rank Adventurer that the Bestia Empire boasted.
And above all, the enormous magical power they had felt when Rei used the Flame Emperor's Crimson Armor.
Having witnessed that, one could understand just how much power he possessed.
(However... according to the gathered information, Lord Rei's specialty is wide-area annihilation magic. In other words, combat in open spaces. Of course, I understand he has more than enough individual strength as well... but then again, the whole point of having him serve as an instructor was to temporarily keep him safe, so the very fact that he's been fighting means I've failed.)
Sardat watched Erinde sigh with an amused expression.
It was right around then that a knock came at the door of the headmaster's office.
From the moment he sensed the presence approaching the door, a smile had been spreading even further across Sardat's face.
Seeing Sardat like that, Erinde must have realized who had come. With an expression of half-resignation, they invited the person inside.
And the one who entered was, naturally, Rei.
"……"
"Hm?"
Erinde had expected Sardat to react in some way to Rei entering the headmaster's office, but found it suspicious that he showed no reaction at all.
What's wrong? Erinde turned to look at Sardat with that thought. No—they intended to, but...
It was unclear how he had moved, but by the time they noticed, Sardat was already heading toward Rei.
"Hello there, are you Rei? I heard from rumors that you were a man, but it seems that was a lie."
Sardat flashed his teeth—though Erinde couldn't see them—as he said this, and Erinde was not the only one surprised.
Naturally, Rei, who had been watching him approach, was equally caught off guard. ...No, in terms of pure surprise, Rei's was likely greater.
Currently, Rei had lowered the hood of his Dragon Robe since he was meeting with Erinde.
As a result, his face, which could fairly be called feminine, was easily visible—and seeing it, Sardat had begun trying to court him.
"No, I was focused on the Stigma earlier, so I didn't realize you were this beautiful. Still, for someone like you to be attacked by Stigma—what did you do?"
"...Wait. Wait a moment. Please, just wait a moment."
Rei, uncharacteristically, thrust his hands forward in confusion and tilted his head while putting distance between himself and Sardat.
This was because he felt as though some strange words had just slipped into the conversation.
"Ah, of course, if you tell me to wait, I'll wait as long as you like. By the way, that robe of yours looks like a quite powerful magic item, but even so, it doesn't fully bring out your beauty. What do you say? I'd like to gift you a dress that suits you afterward."
With a smooth sweep, Sardat ran his hand through his vivid green hair and invited Rei to go shopping.
If the person here had been an ordinary woman instead of Rei, she probably would have fallen in love at first sight from that captivating look.
Because he knew his own beauty, he knew exactly how to display it most effectively—that kind of presentation... no, that kind of allure.
Unfortunately, however... appearances aside, Rei was undeniably a man.
"Ah... Sardat. I'm sorry to interrupt your courting, but Lord Rei is a perfectly fine man."
"...What?"
Sardat froze mid-motion, still in the pose of running his hand through his hair, as if one could almost hear a cracking sound effect, and Rei gave him a flat stare.
He knew that he had what could be called a feminine face, and that his build was smaller than the average man in Elgin.
But if one looked at his abdomen visible through the Dragon Robe, they could tell at a glance that he had a fair amount of muscle there.
(Then again, it's not that unusual for women to have muscle either, is it?)
The figures of several female warriors... not ones like Vihera who maintained their beauty as women, but women with muscle that rivaled men's, passed through Rei's mind.
He had hardly spoken with that type of person, but if he had to name one, it would be Phron, a member of the C-Rank party, Crushing Warriors.
(Thinking about it that way, it's not unreasonable that he mistook me for a woman... I suppose? Not that I'm happy about it.)
Rei recognized himself as a proper man, and precisely because of that, no matter how well-proportioned and attractive his face was, being hit on by another man was not a pleasant experience.
"Umm, well... are you really a man?"
"Yeah. What else would I look like?"
"That would be... after all..."
Sardat was about to say "a woman," but he fell silent under the displeased flat stare from Rei and the exasperated gaze from Erinde.
He felt that if he said something careless now, he would end up suffering in more ways than one.
And in fact, that judgment was probably correct.
If he had tried to insist Rei was a woman right then and there, Rei would have taken a firm stance regardless of who the other party was... even if it was the S-Rank Adventurer bearing the alias of Heavenly Bow, the only one in the Kingdom of Mireana.
(S-Rank Adventurer, Heavenly Bow... there's no chance it's actually someone else, right? No, considering he was saying something about being attacked by some group called Stigma or whatever earlier... I guess this guy really is the Heavenly Bow, without a doubt... but isn't he way too different from Noise?)
After taking in Sardat's troubled expression, Rei shook his head.
Whereas just facing Noise had been tense enough to make him sweat, Sardat carried himself with such a carefree air that it was hard to believe he was on the same level as Noise.
But considering that Erinde, the master of this place, didn't interject or correct him at all, it was an undeniable fact that the person before him was the S-Rank Adventurer known as the Heavenly Bow.
Still finding that fact somehow hard to accept, Rei turned his gaze toward Sardat.