F-Finally, I made it. By the time I saw a building that looked like the clubroom building, I was exhausted and dying on my feet. The Sixth Sealed Prison was full of dragons of several different species. As a rule, dragons hated sharing space with other types of dragons, but oddly enough, none of the ones in here were fighting over territory.
That wasn’t to say they were tame, however. On my way through the Sixth Sealed Prison, I had seen the mutilated bodies of small monsters, ripped apart by fangs and claws. They must have been food for the dragons, since all of them were missing huge chunks of flesh. If the dragons had noticed me, that might have been my fate as well.
I approached a small brick house. Curiously, despite the lack of a barrier, none of the dragons approached it. It’s not booby-trapped or anything, right? If my mere approach tripped a powerful trap spell, then I’d march right up to the headmaster and tell him I’d join the Biology Club when pigs fly. Fortunately, nothing happened, and I made it all the way to the front door.
Oh, wow. That was when I finally noticed that there was someone with immense power inside the house. No wonder the dragons avoided this place: They were too afraid to draw near it. Is the person inside really a human? The immense pressure emanating from behind the door was almost equal to that I’d sensed from the mythological creatures in the Seventh Sealed Prison. I nervously knocked on the door twice.
After a moment’s silence, the person behind the door said, “Headmaster Uther? You’re visiting way earlier than usual.” The voice was a lot cuter than I’d expected.
“My name is Eugene. I’ll be joining the Biology Club, so I came to introduce myself.”
I sensed the occupant’s confusion after hearing my name and reason for visiting. “Hmm? Did you come alone?”
“Yes. It was a difficult journey.”
“D-Difficult, huh? Didn’t the dragons attack you?”
“I snuck around them by concealing my presence.”
“Oh? How fascinating. I’m interested in hearing what you have to say. Come on in. The door’s unlocked.”
“Excuse me.”
I twisted the doorknob and slowly stepped inside the house. Inside, it was an absolute mess. Bookshelves lined the walls, and I couldn’t even see the floor under the sea of books and papers. Everywhere I looked, I saw grimoires and spellbooks. Was this a mage’s atelier? A large bed had been set up in the middle of the room, with mountains and mountains of books surrounding it. A small girl was lying on top of the mattress.
“I’m pleased to make your acquaintance, Eugene. My name is Medea,” she said.
The girl made an odd impression. She looked fragile, yet she couldn’t contain the aura and mana rising from her body. Though she was merely looking at me, it felt like I was under the gaze of some giant monster. But she was wearing a loose gown like what patients in a hospital might wear. Judging from how she kept coughing quietly, she seemed to be in poor health.
“It’s nice to meet you. My name is Eugene Santafield.”
“The pleasure’s all mine. Oh, sorry, but can you stay over there? Don’t take another step closer.”
“Why?”
“Some complicated reasons I don’t care to get into. Sorry about that.”
Considering she was living in a place like this, those reasons must be serious. I wouldn’t press for any further details.
“I understand. Just to make sure, you’re the president of the Biology Club, and this is the Biology Club’s room, right?”
“Oh? No one told you anything? Well, as you can see, my health leaves much to be desired. Since I can’t attend my classes, I use this clubroom-slash-atelier to research monsters and publish my findings. That’s how I earn credits too.”
“I see. That makes sense.”
It still felt like I was speaking with a normal, albeit frail, girl. What was that overbearing presence I had sensed from her earlier?
“Ah, right. You said you wanted to join the Biology Club, yes? What kind of monster do you specialize in taming?”
“Huh?” I didn’t know how to react at first. She’d posed the question as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
“Hmm? You need to be a Monster Tamer to join the Biology Club. Didn’t you know that?”
“I didn’t.” In that case, I couldn’t join the club.
“Hmm. Why do you want to join us?”
“The headmaster told me to. Here’s his letter of introduction.”
I handed Medea the envelope from the headmaster. After she cut it open, she pulled out the letter and read through it.
“Hmm, hmm, a recommendation from the headmaster, huh? He’s a capricious one, isn’t he? I feel bad for you, Eugene. Let’s see. He wants me to change the entry conditions to allow people who can set foot in the Seventh Sealed Prison... Wait, huh?! Eugene, you can enter the forbidden Seventh Sealed Prison?!” Medea’s eyes widened.
“Yesterday, I entered it with Headmaster Uther,” I explained. “There were so many scary monsters I’d only heard about in legends.”
“Normal people lose their minds the moment they venture inside! I see now why the headmaster likes you so—” Violent coughs cut off the rest of her words. She sounded as if she was in deep pain.
“Are you all right?! I can come back if you’re not feeling well.”
“Ah, no, it’s fine. I’m actually feeling better than normal today. Don’t worry.”
This is better than normal? Does Medea have a serious illness?
Medea leaned forward, still hacking, and blood splattered from her mouth. Upon seeing that, I hurried over. I pressed my handkerchief against her red mouth and rubbed her back.
Her eyes flew open, and she screamed, “I told you to stay away!”
“How can you say that? Should I call for a doctor?”
“Just get away from me! I’m cursed! It’ll spread to you too!” Medea sounded frantic as she tried to shove me away, but her arms were as weak as a child’s.