The Old School Building remained as deserted as ever, with no one daring to approach it. When Izumi Nogami followed Kazuma and saw the aging structure and the barricades surrounding it, a chill ran down her spine and she suddenly stopped.
"The Old School Building?"
Kazuma turned back with a faint smile. "Don't tell me you're scared of it, Izumi?"
"I've heard a lot of rumors about this place. People say it's haunted, and there was that death incident not long ago," Izumi Nogami said, her expression stiff. "Before, I definitely wouldn't have believed in ghosts or anything, but—"
Things were different now. She had personally witnessed supernatural abilities and Kazuma's unbelievable powers. Maybe ghosts really did exist after all.
"I've been living here for several days and haven't seen any ghosts. Don't worry. Even if they do exist, they won't be able to hurt you," Kazuma said confidently.
Izumi Nogami finally relaxed. Wait… why am I feeling relieved? She glanced at Kazuma walking ahead, pouting slightly as she muttered under her breath, too quietly for anyone to hear.
"Kazuma, you said you live here. Is that really true?" She looked around in disbelief. Was this really a place people could live? "Living somewhere like this?"
"Ah, what can I do?" Kazuma sighed. "I'm just that pitiful."
"..."
Izumi Nogami remembered what this guy had said before—about being homeless and having no one to rely on. It seemed that hadn't been an excuse after all.
Under the cherry tree, Kazuma took a new item out of his system backpack: a beret. "Aren't you curious about my toys? This is a perfect chance to show you something new."
[Impression Beret]
In Kazuma's view, this item was no less impressive than the [Universal Pass]. It could transform imagined objects into reality. Naturally, the better he understood the object, the higher the success rate. Otherwise, it would fail.
He sat cross-legged in front of Izumi Nogami, placed the beret on his head, closed his eyes, and focused. In theory, he could imagine anything into existence—even a world-destroying weapon.
However, imagining something completely out of thin air had an extremely low success rate—so low it was practically impossible.
If the object had a known origin, the process would be much easier. This time, he was envisioning a sword. A thin wisp of smoke rose from the top of the Impression Beret, as though something inside was gradually taking shape. The strange sight caught Izumi Nogami's full attention.
But she ended up waiting for an entire hour.
"Hey, isn't it done yet?" the Spicy Gal Young Miss complained impatiently, watching the sweat bead on Kazuma's forehead. "This is taking forever."
It really was taking a long time. Even Kazuma hadn't expected that materializing a weapon he understood well would demand so much effort. He didn't respond, pouring all his concentration into turning the imagined object into reality.
At last, the smoke began to twist violently, and the outline of a sword slowly solidified.
Whoosh ————
When the smoke finally cleared, an exquisite and magnificent longsword stood embedded in the ground. Its blue hilt and blade shimmered under the sunlight, radiating a powerful aura that made the air feel heavy.
At a glance, it was obvious this was no ordinary weapon.
Kazuma collapsed onto the ground with his arms spread out, completely drained. "I'm exhausted… I didn't expect it to take this much out of me. It's even more tiring than last night. Looks like using the Impression Beret consumes a huge amount of mental energy."
So this is what true mental exhaustion feels like.
Still, the result was worth it.
"Kazuma, what is this thing?" Izumi Nogami was about to reach out and grab the hilt, but then she quickly pulled her hand back. A strange force pushed her hand away.
"This is called the Sword of Promised Victory—the legendary weapon of King Arthur," Kazuma said seriously. He grasped the hilt of the Sword of Promised Victory and pulled it free. Perhaps because he had created it himself, the sword felt natural in his hand, as if it belonged there.
But I don't even know how to use a sword.
Forget it. I'll stick with the Electric Light Ball.
I should have materialized Avalon first. Now I'm too mentally drained to try again. "Izumi, do you want to give it a shot? The Impression Beret basically materializes your imagination. As long as you truly understand what you're imagining, it can become real."
And it doesn't work on secret items.
"No problem!"
Izumi Nogami eagerly placed the beret on her head. Smoke rose from it just like before—but this time, it dissipated completely within two minutes. Kazuma's expression darkened immediately. "I told you—it has to be something you actually understand."
"Ugh, what a pain."
She had tried imagining an item with hypnotic abilities, but just as Kazuma warned, something she didn't understand couldn't be materialized. Giving up on that, she glanced at Kazuma's sword. She had no interest in blades, so instead—
Clatter.
First a pistol. Then a submachine gun. Finally, a sniper rifle.
A pile of firearms dropped onto the ground.
Kazuma was stunned.
This Spicy Gal Young Miss was seriously dangerous.
What kind of normal girl imagines this stuff?
Only her.
"Phew… phew… it worked! The thing I imagined actually became real!" Izumi Nogami tried to stand up, only to stumble backward. "Huh? Why do I feel so dizzy? Kazuma, why am I so tired?"
"That's normal. Did you think you could materialize things without consequences? It drains both your mind and spirit," Kazuma explained calmly as he gathered the firearms into his arms. He placed them inside the wallpaper house, rolled it up, and stored it in his system backpack.
The system backpack can't store anything except secret items—but this workaround works fine.
"Hey! What are you doing? Those are mine!"
"Yours? I only lent you the Impression Beret to try. I didn't give it to you. Naturally, whatever it creates belongs to me," Kazuma said matter-of-factly, causing Izumi Nogami to grit her teeth in frustration.
Was she just being used as a tool? A tool to help him materialize items?
"Izumi," Kazuma said earnestly, patting her shoulder, "these weapons are too dangerous for you. And what is a proper young lady doing playing with guns? It's not safe."
Izumi Nogami glared at him as if she wanted to bite him.
"Besides, with your family background, you could probably get firearms if you really wanted to, right?"
"Do you seriously think my family would let me touch something like that?"
"Oh, right. So even you don't always get what you want." Kazuma stroked his chin thoughtfully. After all, she had helped him. In the end, he took out a small pistol without bullets and handed it to her. "Here. Consider it your reward."
"That's more like it!" Izumi Nogami said, her mood instantly brightening.
"You're not planning to use it to bully people, are you?" Kazuma asked suspiciously.
"I'm not that stupid, okay? It's just for self-defense."
Seeing her completely absorbed in admiring the pistol, Kazuma ignored her and pulled out the photos again, deep in thought. Someone was investigating him—most likely a private detective. He then took out the Search Staff. "This should help."
Izumi Nogami noticed and quietly stepped closer, putting the pistol away. She didn't interrupt—just stood beside him and watched.
"The Search Staff only has a seventy percent success rate, but it should be enough…" Kazuma planted it upright on the ground and pressed the button on top. "Find the person maliciously investigating me… the mastermind behind the private detective digging into my information. That's all the data I have. I hope it's enough."
The button began to glow. After a soft ding, the staff tilted and fell in a specific direction.
"This way?"
Kazuma was about to leave immediately when he paused. "Izumi, want to come with me?"
"Cough… well, I don't have anything better to do, so sure," she said awkwardly. "If we run into trouble, I can help."
"Then let's go."
They walked for a while, periodically using the Search Staff to confirm their direction. After a long and somewhat winding journey, they finally reached their destination—the entrance of St. Peak Girls' Academy.
Kazuma looked at the aristocratic girls' school he had visited yesterday and smiled faintly.
"I see. I think I know who's been pulling the strings."
"St. Peak Girls' Academy?" Izumi Nogami looked surprised.
"You know this place?" Kazuma turned toward her. "Ah, right. I almost forgot—you're a noble young miss. It's not strange that you'd know a school like this."
She nodded. "Of course I know it. My family once considered sending me here after graduation, but I refused. Aristocratic girls' schools are too boring. I already attended one in junior high—it was painfully dull."
She spread her hands casually.
"Maybe that's because your grades weren't good enough," Kazuma teased. "The academic ranking of St. Peak Girls' Academy is higher than our school, isn't it?"
Izumi showed a faintly regretful expression. "Do you think I need to rely on grades? Only girls from ordinary families depend on academics or special talents to enter aristocratic schools. Those schools recruit top students from normal backgrounds, sure—but that's not the only way in."
She snorted lightly. "Besides, if we're talking about prestige, Seika Girls' Academy is far superior to St. Peak Girls' Academy. Why would I choose this place?"
"I can't pretend I didn't hear that."
At that moment, footsteps echoed behind them.
A blue-haired girl approached slowly. It was Mizuki Miyama , the Student Council President they had met yesterday.
She glanced at Kazuma without any visible reaction. Although she had allowed him into the school yesterday because of the [Universal Pass], today she behaved as if she had completely forgotten. She walked up to them and fixed her gaze directly on Izumi Nogami.
Izumi folded her arms and sneered back at her. "What? Got a problem?"
*****
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