The next morning, as I was leaving, Emma-san and Rio-kun came to see us off at the castle gate.

“Oh, is Ars-san at work?” I asked Emma-san when I couldn’t see Ars-san around.

“Yes, it seems like he’s got some important work to do,” she replied with a smile that seemed somewhat unsettling.

Rio-kun leaned in close to my ear and whispered, “Lark, it’s best not to ask any more about my father.”

Rio-kun’s expression was serious, and even Guldo-san advised me solemnly, “There are some worlds that are better off not knowing, Lark. Do you understand?”

“Yes, uh-huh…” I replied, confused.

I wonder what’s happening to Ars-san now…

◈◈◈

When Guldo-san and I returned to the guild, we immediately headed to the basement for training that we couldn’t do yesterday. Guldo-san seemed to still be tired from yesterday and the training was more subdued than usual. However, my attacks still failed to land on Guldo-san.

After training, Guldo-san wiped his sweat and said, “Phew, let’s call it a day here.”

“Thank you very much,” I replied.

“But Lark, you’re a fast learner, and it’s rewarding to teach you,” Guldo-san said.

“Your teaching method is really good,” I replied.

“That makes me happy,” he said.

After having an early lunch with Guldo-san at the cafeteria, we headed to the Guild Master’s room to study. It seemed that Guldo-san had some business to attend to in the Guild Master’s room today, so we went together. When we knocked and entered the room, Fia-san greeted us, albeit a little surprised to see Guldo-san.

“Oh my, you’re here early today. Guldo, are you done with your training?”

“No, actually, I got muscle soreness after going wild for the first time in a while yesterday, so I cut it short today,” he answered, looking embarrassed.

“Don’t you think your body has gotten sluggish?”

“I’ll try to move my body a bit more…” Guldo-san felt remorse after being pointed out by Fia-san. After giving a brief report, Guldo-san went back to his receptionist job. When Fia-san and I were alone, I suddenly remembered the reference book I solved in the castle and took it out of ‘Useful Box’.

“Oh, speaking of which, Fia-san. About this reference book…”

“Oh, is there something you didn’t understand? Lark-kun, you’re really studious.”

“No, it’s not that. I solved all of it, so could I get a new one?”

“Huh? You solved all of it?” Fia-san looked skeptical. She took the reference book from me and flipped through it. Then, her expression gradually became stern. Wondering what was wrong, Fia-san spoke to me while looking at the reference book, “Hey, Lark-kun. How long did it take you to solve this reference book?”

“Um… about an hour or so?”

Fia-san groaned upon hearing my response. “It seems like teaching arithmetic to Lark-kun is pointless.”

“Huh? Isn’t this reference book tailored to my age?”

“Only the first few pages. The problems towards the end are at the level even upperclassmen in the academy struggle with. But you’ve solved all of them… yeah, arithmetic is no problem. Then, let’s study history next.” Fia-san closed the reference book with a snap and took out another thick book from the bookshelf. It was a history book from this world that I had used several times in my previous studies.

“I’ve only taught you the bare minimum until now, but from today, I’ll be discussing more specialized topics.”

“Yes, please!” I couldn’t help but speak excitedly at the thought of learning something new. After that, Fia-san taught me about history thoroughly.

The study time was over, and I returned to the inn. When I stopped by the dining hall, I saw the innkeeper’s daughter, Anna, sitting at a window seat with a notebook open, looking puzzled.

“Umm… What’s wrong, Anna-chan?”

When I approached her and spoke, Anna-chan looked up. “I’m doing homework, but there’s a part I don’t understand…”

“Oh, what kind of homework is it?”

“It’s an arithmetic problem. It’s this part here…” Anna-chan opened her notebook and showed it to me. It was a typical word problem about how to distribute fruit evenly among a certain number of people.

I explained the thought process and how to formulate the equation as carefully as possible. I was anxious about whether I could explain it well since it was my first time teaching someone, but Anna-chan seemed to have understood it well and was happy.

Then suddenly, I heard a voice from behind. “Lark-kun, you’re good at studying, aren’t you?”

When I turned around, Amelda-san was standing there with dinner in her hands. I answered a little shyly, “Yes, I’ve been learning a lot from the guild master lately.”

“I see. Anna is also doing her best, but she’s struggling to improve. If it’s okay with you, could you teach her a little?”

“Sure.”

So, I quickly finished my dinner and sat next to Anna-chan to help her with her homework for a while. Anna-chan was a fast learner, and after teaching her a few problems, she gradually became able to solve them on her own.

Before long, we finished all the homework, and Anna-chan thanked me happily, “Thank you, Lark-kun. Lark-kun, even though you’re not that much older than me, you’re amazing.”

“Anna-chan, you’re amazing too. You solved the last few problems on your own, so I think your grades will improve soon.”

“Yeah, I’ll do my best.”

After saying goodbye to Anna-chan, I returned to my room. I prayed to the gods and lay down on the bed. However, I couldn’t fall asleep easily because I felt a chilly sensation, probably due to taking a luxurious bath yesterday.

“Sigh, I want to live a life where I can take a bath every day someday…”

In the end, I fell asleep after midnight.