“She’s very busy and is notorious for being hard to get a hold of. After she was chosen as your guide, she got incessant inquiries into your whereabouts, even before your arrival.”
“Oh yeah?” Washu sipped her tea on the terrace as she listened to the maids, squinted at the warm sunshine, and looked up at the clear blue sky. “All right, I’ve made up my mind.”
“About what, ma’am?”
“It’s a twenty-minute walk from here to the campus, right? I’m going to go for a walk.”
“But Naja-sama…”
“Please let her know when she gets here.” Washu put on the sandals that rested on the terrace and walked off beyond the grounds, paying no heed to the maids’ calls.
The Academy’s Department of Philosophy was located in a temperate region with four distinct seasons, and spring was in full swing. It was the opposite of Kanamitsu, which had just been entering early autumn. Whereas fall tended to be melancholic, the fresh spring green and glorious weather beckoned Washu with the sparkle of new life, and she took a bit of a detour.
Half an hour later, she was in the leafy shade where she could see the Department of Philosophy. Strictly speaking, she was hiding. There was nothing that indicated the campus boundaries, as there were no walls or fences, just a row of large trees that stretched for miles. There were no buildings, save for a campus building about a kilometer away. Judging by the treetops peeking above the horizon, there was apparently a hill beyond the building.
In any case…what is that? Washu sighed internally. In front of an especially large tree that seemed to serve as a gate, two large robots stood like gatekeepers, holding a giant banner that read, “Welcome, Washu-chan!” in huge letters. At the robots’ feet were a fife and drum band consisting of several hundred members, a group of elementary students with pennants, and a throng of rubberneckers and journalists. A totally strange vibe surrounded them, much worse than yesterday’s scene at the airport.
They aren’t going to catch me this time. Unfortunately, even if she tried a detour, Naja would spot her at once. Washu started to rack her brains. She tried to anticipate the muscle movements, lines of sight, and behavior of the thousand-plus people present, to calculate their blind spots, in order to reach the campus without being seen. But there were uncertain variables in all the simulations.
The most troublesome humans were children. Washu had a bad feeling about one boy, standing with an air of boredom next to his father, whom she watched carefully. There’s nothing worse than a bored child. Conveniently, the boy turned to his father to complain about his boredom, which positioned him in a shadow near Washu.
Good! If only I could get past that kid… Now!!
“Oh, I know that lady!” In the next moment, with exquisite timing, the boy outwitted Washu… although, of course, he had no such intent.
“A scholar is no match for a savant,” said some writer, somewhere. A child’s whim had easily thwarted all of Washu’s intellectual powers and insight. At the boy’s words, every single gaze turned to focus on Washu. Running was futile.
“I’m sorry! Please, let me through!” she shouted impulsively, even though she knew it was pointless.
“Naja’s not here because she went to go get you.” Washu recognized the man. He was the student who had spoken to Naja yesterday. “You didn’t see her on the way here?”
They had just missed each other because Washu took the long route. Naja had not returned yet; if she had, she would have leapt out of the crowd.
“Go on, while you can.” He pointed towards the building.
“Huh?”
“We understand how embarrassing all this is for you. Hurry.” Everyone nodded at his words.
“Th-thanks.” Washu bowed deeply and started running. It was about a kilometer to the closest building. There was no cover, just an open field, like a park. If Naja returned, she would spot Washu instantly. Running at a desperate speed, Washu quickly broke the Academy record for women’s
sprinting.
“Heh!” A smile appeared on Washu’s lips as she panted. She was internally fearful that Naja would discover her at any moment, but she also felt triumphant. She would not owe anything to anyone. That was what made her Washu. In that sense, she had an Imperial Academy philosopher’s attitude already.
Washu kept running.
“Oh?” Hiding behind the building, Washu finally felt comfortable. The sights before her captivated her. A large grove of Powder Snow trees, transplanted from the Jurai home world, bloomed in full resplendent glory.
As Washu had surmised, she was on a hillock overlooking a gentle slope. Low buildings (most were single-story) spread for several kilometers down to the ocean, like terraced fields. Each building’s roof served as the garden of the building above it, full of colorful flowers, providing a contrast to the white Powder Snow blossoms. Jurai was second to none when it came to horticulture.
A man came up to talk to her as she walked around and peeked about. “Hey, you. This place is for authorized personnel only.” The arrogant, overbearing stranger spoke with his chest puffed up, despite his compact, stocky build. Washu thought for a moment that he was a professor, but he had a student’s badge on his uniform. She intuitively understood that he was a type seen often at the send-off parties on Kanamitsu: people who looked down on others.
However, considering the treatment she had received at the Academy, perhaps it was natural that philosophy students considered themselves more elite than necessary.
“Excuse me, where is the office?”
“The office?”
“I need to fill out the admission paperwork…”
The man burst out laughing. “New student? Do you have any idea where you are? Only the chosen among the most elite in the entire galaxy can enter here. It’s not a place for a child like you. Perhaps you’re mistaking it for the Department of Ancient Literature the next town over.” The man looked at her with the utmost contempt.