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TSR V2C15: FRESHMAN ARC ⑼ -SURPRISE ATTACK BY THE KATRINA FACTION-
Tensei Shoujo no Rirekisho was written by Karasawa Kazuki and this chapter was translated by yAmi on www.yamitranslations.com
After that, the Magic Sink barrier inspection job ended without a hitch and we stayed overnight in the outskirts before returning back to school.
The entire excursion was mainly about the country’s mages visit the various regions’ Magic Sink to maintain them. As usual, it was tough on the mages.
I made cookies for snacks and they were so good that I ate them all by myself. I had planned to distribute them to everyone and have them praise me, for example, by saying, “I have never eaten such good sweets! As expected of Ryou!” A fine plot to obtain the nickname of “Genius Ryou”... I should have made more cookies.
Speaking of which, I was in a rather empty lecture hall, attending the Magic History class. This week, all the classes except Magic History were taking a break. It was because the Magic Sink inspection trip might take 5 days for some people.
It took that long because of the travelling distance but still...seems tough on them.
I had arrived early so to kill time, I was aimlessly flipping the pages of the Magic History textbook. Alan, Charlotte-chan and Ritz-kun were not back yet, hence, I was seated alone and lonely.
“May I take this seat?”
I was turning the pages of the textbook when someone spoke to me and I looked up. It was someone I didn’t expect to be here...
“S-Sarome-sama? How do you do? I don’t really mind...”
I was slightly taken aback. She was Sarome, the girl with a sexy mole underneath her eye. She was with Katrina all the time.
Could the Katrina Faction be planning to strike when I am alone?
I was getting the jitters but I had subconsciously allowed her to sit beside me so she took her seat in an elegant motion.
Damn, I am super nervous.
“Ryou-sama, I was planning to talk to you for quite some time.”
Sarome laid her elbow on the desk, rested her chin behind her hand and stared at me.
I had to lift my line of sight several degrees up and looking at her from that angle, her eyes were so sexy! She is just a 10 year old freshman right? I-Is it alright for her to be this seductive?
What if this was actually a honey trap!?
W-Wha! I am girl! Not to mention, I’m a hot girl! Did you think that you can attract me so easily by just being sexy!
“M-Me? It is really my honour that Miss Sarome thinks so highly of me.”
“Fufu, please don’t be that stiff.”
S-She saw through me! B-But, wasn’t she part of Katrina’s clique? Wasn’t she the kid who was close to Katrina? The Katrina who would always look at me, no, glare at me and dismiss me with a “Hmph!”?
“Well, as someone close to Katrina, you would obviously harbour some suspicions on why I am here.”
She laughed playfully but suddenly changed to an all-serious expression.
“It is because Katrina-sama, and all her other followers included, have not returned. I thought that today was the best day to have a little chat with Ryou-sama and that was how I spontaneously got here. I have no other intentions.”
R-Really?
“So then
 What do you want to talk about?”
“Nothing special, I just wanted to have a conversation with you. ...Katrina-sama seems to have a rare fixation on you, that’s all.”
The corner of her lips were raised to a smile.
F-Fixation
 Somehow I have the feeling that I am being hated here

“Why does Katrina-sama hate me
 Did I do something to offend her?”
I finally released the doubts that I have held for a few months. The only reason I could think of was that Alan had screwed up somewhere.
“I don’t think you did anything discourteous to her directly
 Maybe she couldn’t stomach the fact that Ryou is able to stand on the same ground as other mages.”
Equally
 Is she referring to Charlotte-chan and Ritz-kun? Alan was my henchman so his considered lower than me

Could Katrina-sama be unable to accept me for interacting with mages despite being a human without magic ability?
That said, doesn’t Katrina-sama have followers who cannot use magic who she is friendly to! Not to mention that Sarome herself cannot use magic.
“That being said, isn’t Katrina-sama together with the others who cannot use magic?”
“She might be with them, but not on equal standing. I mean, to mages, we are worthless existences and that she has to guide our poor souls so that we can live on. That’s how we see it...”
I-Isn’t that too much!?
“I-I don’t think there exists such a huge gap between us and mages...”
Sarome eyes opened wide in surprise.
“I am envious that you think that way. There might be some variation between territory, but...for the students here, majority would share the same opinion as I do.”
R-Really? It didn’t appear that way at Rainforest and Rubyfallen
 Well, Rubyfallen is the exception since it hardly has any mages in the first place. Still, as far as I can remember, there... might have been a difference.
“For Katrina-sama, she gets irritated whenever she sees you. That’s amazing, really. That basically means that you stand on the same stage as her. Despite the fact that you should be a worthless existence.”
No
 All I get for standing on the same stage as her is to be stared at and be “Hmph!” at!
“I am just hated by her. Compared to you who stands by her side all the time, I’m sure Katrina-sama takes you as a friend.”
Sarome could only give smile of self-derision, not the kind you can find from a ten years old.
“I am already unable to stand equally with Katrina-sama. It is because I have betrayed her expectations once. That’s why, things cannot go back.”
Sarome said so while smiling, but there was deep shadow behind that smile, creating a heavy atmosphere. I did not say anything and by then, the Magic History teacher had walked into the lecture hall.
I glanced back at Sarome again and she was back to her old self, flipping the textbook and facing the teacher so I too acted like nothing happened and attended the class.
However, my mind kept drifting towards those gloomy thoughts during the lecture.
In the end, I was completely unable to concentrate in the class, and when I somewhat gotten to the point of depression, the class ended. I thought I should just go back to the dormitory when Sarome turned to face me.
“It’s still a long way off, kdp palul bx t shgz otvtpbhg tp pal lgw hy pal tvtwlibv rltu, ubzap? Ntpubgt-xtit tgw B mhdsw kl zhbgz ktvn ph hdu ahilphmg. Ntpubgt-xtit mhdsw fuhktksr kl bg t ktw ihhw malg otvtpbhg lgwx, xh B pahdzht it would be better if I warned you first.”
With her bewitching smile, she left behind words that could be taken as both an advice and a threat before leaving.
It’s a matter for the future but I’m somewhat freaked out for the first day of school

------------------------
Sarome had spoken much then and I pondered about it much, though, other than the usual “Glare and Hmph!” from Katrina, our daily ordinary lives moved on.
After that day, I did not have any conversations with Sarome.
In the meantime, I started a simple research on magical gems and managed to understand the basics of the gem’s structure.
In any case, the fire gem was dangerous to some extent so I kept it in a bottle and was preparing to investigate the structure of the ice gem.
I mean, if I am going to do experiments with this, I want to make some delicious food and test the gem with it.
“Heeey, Ryou, what’s with the smirk?”
I was holding onto my bread and dreaming about tomorrow’s dessert when Alan asked.
Oh, how wrong of me. We are still having lunch and I am still fantasizing about another food. How disrespectful to bread.
I said as I pinched a piece of the bread and put it in my mouth.
“I am planning to make something delicious on tomorrow’s rest day.”
Ugh, this bread is hard. I want to eat something softer. If I let this continue, won’t my finger grow muscular?
“Eh? Where?”
“For now, I’m planning to use a fire to cook, so I am going to Kou-san’s place.”
“Then I am going too.”
What?
I stopped tearing the bread and paused to look at Alan.
He had the kind of “Yeah, I’m going; I am the type that will definitely go; Nothing will stop me from going” look.
What a failure! If there are more people, doesn’t it mean my share would be whittled down! And I wanted to have fun with just Kou-san
!
“D-Delicious stuff as in sweet stuff?”
This time, the one making the twinkly eyes was Charlotte-chan. Her face read, “I wanna go too!”
Seated diagonally was Ritz and he too listened with glistening eyes.
Apart from Alan, I don’t really want to disappoint Charlotte-chan and Ritz-kun

However, from the allowance I make from helping at Kou-san’s, I don’t have enough for three

Maybe I should postpone this. I need to save a little more money... Wait a second.
Eureka! Charlotte-chan said she uses ice spirit magic didn’t she!
“Charlotte-sama, you use ice spirits right? Can you create ice?”
“Ice? If we have water, I should be able to make some.”
Alright, we managed to save the cost for ice!
With the extra money, I can buy more ingredients, and in fact, increase my individual portion!
“In that case, I would like your help! We will be able to make more sweets!”
“If it is okay, I’ll like to help too! I like sweets! Yay!”
“C-Can I join in too?”
Together with Charlotte’s cute smile, Ritz appeared immensely interested.
Alright, alright, I greatly welcome you!
I nodded gladly.
I have no choice but to use this chance to promote the name of “Genius Ryou-sama!” with my patissier powers that I couldn’t realise during the excursion!
We were discussing on how fun tomorrow will be when Alan butted in.
“Hmm, won’t Ryou’s guardian be troubled if this many people went? If these two tag along, would it be alright? Ryou.”
Alan appeared to be very proud of himself as he indulged in an air of gentlemanliness.
Alan has a gift of deciding for others doesn’t he!
“I don’t think Kou-san would be that bothered by our numbers
 If you do think so, we have to reduce our numbers slightly. The people who will be going would be me, Charlotte-sama and Ritz-sama.”
That’s my final answer!
“Y-you forgot about me!”
I entertained for Alan a little longer but in the end, the generous me decided to add Alan back on account of our friendship. Also, Cain-sama might be coming too.
Tomorrow will be fun!