The world outside.
In other words, the amount of fame points that could be earned on Earth was inevitably greater than in the world inside Ventair.
The difficulty itself was different.
In the outside world, Gates and monsters were causing no end of chaos, but from the standpoint of the transmigrators, they were far too easy to deal with.
And compared to such an easy level of difficulty, what about the fame they gained?
Views that increased by the hundreds of thousands in an instant with a single upload to the internet.
Rumors that spread overnight through every kind of media.
Of course, because it was that light, it was fame that cooled just as quickly.
In other words, its quality was poor.
Because the rumors were light and lacked weight, the efficiency of the fame gained compared to the speed at which they spread was not good.
But they overwhelmed in quantity, so it was not a problem.
Rather, despite being of such low quality, they earned far more points.
That was why the transmigrators were strong despite not having gained particularly great fame here.
In the outside world, they were being called the first awakened, heroes, saviors, and so on, steadily accumulating fame points.
His head... was a mess.
A world where everyone except Hio himself could log out.
Of course, he had suspected as much ever since the first logout.
Wasn’t it strange?
There was clearly no way to log out, so how had Silvert already been enjoying fame in the outside world?
Could it be... that he was the only one who couldn’t log out?
That was why he had checked again and again, meticulously.
Even so, there was no such thing as a way to log out.
......Why?
The question “why” surfaced endlessly in his mind, but...
He didn’t know.
So, he would set that aside for now.
“Seriously, what a foolish idea. Use this world as an experimental platform? And protect the outside world intact? Do you really think that’s possible?”
The second problem.
Those who intended to sacrifice this world to protect the outside world.
On the surface, it sounded like a plausible plan, but with just a little thought, wasn’t the answer obvious?
If this world were destroyed, the outside world couldn’t remain intact either.
Because no passage through which the Abyss could be conquered existed in the outside world.
At Hio’s cold voice, Silvert swallowed without realizing it, then said to Hio,
“......Yeah. After I met you back then, I came to my senses too. That plan was wrong.”
“You had to actually try it to know that?”
At Hio’s reprimand, Silvert tried to protest as if he had his own grievances.
“No, back then, Supreme Heavenly Demon, you weren’t there, so......”
“It’s Hio Pavlenko. Call me Hio here.”
“......Fine. I understand.”
He gave up on protesting and simply let out a deep sigh.
Whatever the case, it was true that he had made the wrong judgment.
“The best method is to continue conquering the Abyss. Without a single failure.”
The best method was to prevent Abyss Gates themselves from appearing.
The problem was that no one knew where the end was.
Because it was quite literally an abyss, even in the game, they had ultimately failed to see the end and met destruction, hadn’t they?
But it was certainly the best method they could take right now.
“I think so too. I’m paying close attention to the conquest team and running it properly, so it should be fine.”
It probably would be fine.
“For the time being.”
For the time being, it would be fine.
“There are more and more forces interfering with the conquest.”
Those who still tried to push that plan forward.
The checks from those bastards who said this world had to be used as an experimental platform and sacrificed for the sake of the original world were growing worse by the day.
If Black Fang, having caught the scent, joined in as well, the situation would become complicated.
“It’s still manageable for now, but sooner or later, we’ll have to have one big clash.”
In that sense, a Ranker among Rankers.
It would be good if the Supreme Heavenly Demon stepped forward, but...
Silvert glanced at Hio’s expression.
He couldn’t tell.
Hio’s expression didn’t look good, but Silvert couldn’t read his thoughts at all.
To be honest, he had no idea what Hio had been doing all this time, either.
Well, there were nothing but mysteries, but one thing was certain: his strength.
The fact that he had surpassed the Sword Saint and received the Empire’s Guardian Knight Medal meant that he possessed martial power at least on par with him.
That was reassuring in its own way.
Yes, it was reassuring, but......
Silvert checked the time, then spoke cautiously to Hio.
“But I......”
He had to do what he had to do.
“It’s time for me to go lecture.”
Silvert was treating this world with all sincerity.
He was satisfied with his profession as a professor, and he had a sense of responsibility that came with it.
“If you still have more to say, shall we go together?”
* * *
“Roland Bernstein.”
At Claire’s words, the purple sweet potato girl flared up.
“How dare some lowly thing call my name so casually!”
Roland Bernstein.
The second daughter of Count Bernstein’s family.
A skill user who had awakened a wind-attribute skill, and whose grades were also near the top.
With her family’s influence also being considerable, Roland Bernstein had formed a fairly large faction even within the academy.
And Roland Bernstein’s greatest characteristic was...
“For someone like you, at least you have eyes enough to come crawling tooth and nail to the professor’s lecture.”
That she was an ardent follower of Silvert.
There was, in fact, a special reason for it.
The decisive event that had brought Silvert fame.
Hadn’t it been when he wiped an orc village in the western Lugo region off the map in half a day?
And it was the Bernstein family that governed the Lugo region.
In other words, Roland Bernstein had witnessed, even if from afar, how Silvert had dealt with the orc village.
It had been an enormous shock.
How could a person wield such elegant skills?
How could a person be so strong?
After that incident, Silvert had risen rapidly, even receiving the title of Master of Telekinesis from the imperial family before entering the academy as a professor.
Around the same time, Roland had also enrolled in the academy.
At that point, wasn’t it fate?
There was certainly the great gap between professor and student, but who was she?
She was Roland Bernstein.
The problem, however... was this red-haired girl who had suddenly appeared.
A trial that had appeared between herself and Silvert.
She was terribly irritating.
Well, Roland could understand her receiving attention from the professors because her grades were excellent and she was a fire-skill user.
But what?
A child Silvert personally brought here?
What was that baseless rumor supposed to be?
On top of that...... judging from careful observation, didn’t she truly seem rather close to Silvert?
Roland could tolerate anything else, but that alone was difficult to accept.
Because it looked as though a rolling stone was trying to dislodge one already firmly embedded.
“Mm. Sure.”
What made her angriest of all was Claire’s attitude.
That attitude of ignoring her from beginning to end, as if someone like Roland wasn’t even in her consideration.
This time as well, Claire ignored Roland with that same attitude and walked past her.
“Eek......”
In the end, Roland was once again left fuming all by herself as she followed Claire into the practice hall.
* * *
Students were gathered in small clusters inside the spacious indoor practice hall.
Each of them waited for the professor in charge, Silvert, with varying degrees of tension.
Combat practice.
A mock sparring session between students held once every two weeks, and as befitted an academy that aimed to nurture ability users, it was considered quite important.
Because each student’s skills and abilities were fully revealed, outsiders were strictly forbidden from entering.
The only people permitted entry were the professor in charge and related faculty members.
And at most, those who managed the safety artifacts within the practice hall.
Outsiders could only come during the comprehensive evaluation at the end of the semester.
And yet...... today was a little special.
Professor Silvert opened the door and entered.
He was not alone.
Beside him, for some reason... wasn’t a clown walking in together with him?
On top of that, they were walking while conversing with serious expressions.
A man wearing a large conical hat, holding a staff taller than himself, walked side by side with Silvert.
While everyone watched in puzzlement and began whispering, there was one person who froze in shock.
“......Hio?”
It was Claire.
Claire, who had been standing indifferently without even looking nervous about something like combat practice, widened her eyes and stiffened with a start.
Only two people noticed that reaction.
Ravena, who was beside Claire, and Roland, who had been glaring at Claire.
“Huh? Hio? Is that clown’s name Hio?”
“......He’s not a clown. No, more importantly, why is Hio here...... No, why today of all days?”
She had thought he would come someday, but wasn’t this far too sudden?
She hadn’t even put on the makeup Ravena had taught her.
And on top of that, of all times, it was when she was wearing her practice uniform......
As all those thoughts surfaced at once and Claire fidgeted in a very un-Claire-like manner, Silvert and Hio climbed onto the platform at the front.
Silvert looked over the students and spoke.
“As usual, proceed with combat practice against your designated opponents. I trust you all know the rules well... Hopen? Start right away.”
A concise and clean progression befitting Silvert.
And with that, Silvert and Hio sat down on the prepared chairs.
There was no introduction for Hio.
Because there was no particular reason to give one.
The students glanced at Hio with curious eyes, but their interest did not last long.
“Zabal, Rubel. Put on your artifacts and enter.”
At Assistant Professor Hopen’s call, the sparring began.
The two entered the sparring arena, whose interior was clearly visible, and began taking their stances.
Even so, Claire’s gaze did not turn that way.
Hio was sitting beside Silvert, still wearing a serious expression as they exchanged some kind of conversation.
She was looking at him.
And Roland was looking at that Claire.
Her sweet-potato-like eyes gleamed.
At a glance, didn’t it seem like there was something there?
If she dug just a little deeper, she might be able to find Claire’s weakness.
* * *
“Supreme Heav—no, Hio. What do you intend to do about Black Fang?”
Even while the practice continued, Hio and Silvert’s conversation went on.
The recent movements of the Rankers. And their plans going forward.
“Thanks to you, two problems were resolved safely. Now only Black Fang remains...”
Before the Abyss began in earnest, two of the three greatest problems that had to be resolved had been handled.
A central figure who would unite the Holy Kingdom.
Though it had been by chance, that should have been resolved by discovering Irina’s existence.
The Holy Kingdom would come together as one, and Irina herself would also be able to alleviate the curse of the Abyss to some extent.
The second problem, the empire’s civil war, had also been resolved.
In truth, the civil war itself was not the problem; the war after the civil war had been the greater issue. But since Silvia, not the princes, would soon ascend the imperial throne, it could be considered resolved.
Now only one thing remained.
Black Fang.
Black Fang had to be brought down.
“Let’s talk about that again after I finish my business at the academy.”
With those words, Hio rose from his seat.
The practice had ended before they knew it.
Silvert stood up after Hio and asked as if curious,
“But don’t you need to say hello to Claire? She’s been looking only at you since earlier, it seems.”
“......Ah, right.”
Only then did Hio’s gaze move in search of Claire.
* * *
“Stupid Hio. Idiot Hio.”
Claire muttered as she lightly kicked the innocent ground.
In the end, throughout the entire practice, their eyes had not met even once.
“Isn’t that too much?”
She had even won her match splendidly.
She had worked hard because she wanted to show him that sight.
But what kind of serious conversation had he been having that he didn’t even look at her...?
She felt rather hurt.
But what could she do?
Thinking back, she knew almost nothing about Hio.
She could only guess that he was unimaginably strong and that his status was probably high. She didn’t actually know anything for certain.
“That’s just the kind of relationship we have. Mm.”
Once that thought began to take hold, her mood sank even further.
As she was about to leave the practice hall in that mood, a voice that sounded even more annoying than usual reached her ears.
“Lowly Claire.”
It was the purple sweet potato girl, Roland.
Normally, Claire would have simply passed by, but for some reason, she didn’t feel like doing that today.
In fact, her mood right now was quite bad.
“Pathetic Roland. What?”
“What? A mere commoner dares......”
Perhaps she had not expected Claire to talk back, because Roland flared up, but soon she straightened her expression and spoke leisurely.
“Lowly Claire. What is your relationship with that clown from earlier?”
“......He’s not a clown.”
At Claire’s reaction, which was different from usual, Roland grew even more certain. That clown was definitely Claire’s weakness.
Roland gracefully covered her mouth with one hand and flashed an irritating smile.
“You saw that and still say he isn’t a clown? Anyone can tell the professor brought him here to make us students laugh.”
“Shut that mouth of yours, Roland.”
Was it because her mood was already low?
For some reason, anger surged up inside her.
She could ignore insults and mockery directed at herself, but at the very least, she could not allow Hio to be cursed for no reason.
Claire’s eyes flashed like fire.
“Is it wrong to call a clown a clown? What, are you going to throw a skill at me? Hm? Go on, try it. You’ll be expelled that very day.”
How strange.
Had Roland always been this obnoxious?
If Claire followed her heart, she truly wanted to unleash a skill right onto that infuriating purple hair.
But Claire barely managed to restrain herself.
If she did that, just as Roland said, she would receive severe punishment.
“Still… punching her a few times should be fine.”
As long as it wasn’t a skill.
They wouldn’t hand down too harsh a punishment for a simple fistfight.
“Wh-what? Are you insane?”
Just as Claire was about to stride toward Roland—
“Hey. Sweet Potato.”
A large staff blocked Claire’s path.
A back that seemed familiar, yet unfamiliar.
It was Hio Pavlenko.
“You’ve got talent.”
Appearing between the two out of nowhere, Hio grinned and threw an incomprehensible remark at Roland.
“What is with this clown?”
Roland looked back and forth between Hio and Claire standing before her.
“What a perfect pair. Like attracts like, I see.”
Hio waved a hand at Roland.
“Hold on. Wait just a moment.”
At the same time, with his other hand, he rummaged through the pouch at his waist.
From that tiny pouch came a single book.
The title written on it in crooked handwriting was, as expected, strange.
〔Good Fortune Comes to Those Who Endure!〕
Clutching that book tightly in his hand, Hio nodded at Roland.
“I’m ready. Begin.”
Roland stared at Hio as if dumbfounded.
“…As I thought, it’s difficult to understand the behavior of lowly creatures.”
She spat out those words full of contempt.
“Ooh, nice. More. Keep going.”
But at the sight of him oddly enjoying it instead, Roland unknowingly took a step back.
“N-now that I look at you, you’re out of your mind.”
At that, Hio narrowed his brows and tilted his head.
“Tsk… That one’s a bit weak.”
“…What are you even…”
“Try to do better. Your hair color is perfect, so I’m sure you’d be good at it.”
“Y-you need to speak so I can understand…”
“Don’t feel pressured. Just do what you were doing. Like you did to Claire just now. Hm? You can do that, right?”
Hio moved even closer to Roland, who was edging away.
At the inexplicable madness in his eyes, Roland’s retreating footsteps gradually quickened.
“D-don’t come any closer…”
And only then did Roland realize.
This guy wasn’t a clown.
He was a deranged pervert.
“P-pervert!”
Roland fled without even looking back.
“Mm?”
Watching her retreating figure, Hio smacked his lips regretfully.
The intuition honed through years of nonviolence was telling him.
“…I’ll have to go see her from time to time.”
That sweet potato girl would surely be a benefactor who would raise his patience.