"You've gone too far!"
Seeing Cyra pretending to be coy in front of me, I just wanted to tear her mouth apart.
"If you have a problem with it, I'll just cut my hair short when I get back, the same length as Reed's. Then you'll have nothing to say, right?"
Although I had initially felt my hair was too long and cut it a bit shorter, I still couldn't bear to cut too much. Nicola probably felt the same way. But now it has become a reason to be mocked.
"Feliciana, don't take Cyra's words to heart. She's always been like this with her words!"
Hearing I wanted to cut my hair, Nicola quickly dissuaded me.
"Besides, Norma also said angel hair takes thousands of years to grow back, so it needs to be treated carefully. If you make one wrong cut with the scissors, it would take at least thousands of years to grow back."
"Did Norma say that?"
I looked at Cyra doubtfully to confirm if this was true. Although I did feel like my hair hadn't grown much in the past month, it would still be prudent to double-check.
"It's true, I swear!"
Seeing my reaction, Cyra immediately raised her hand and said solemnly.
"Otherwise I would have cut this long hair off already. It's so inconvenient. Unfortunately, there are no reliable hairstylists in Edimere. I wish I could have it the same length as you guys..."
"Have Nicola help you cut it. She cut my hair and it turned out alright."
Since I felt it was just a matter of cutting long hair shorter without any styling, there was no need for a professional hairstylist. Cyra was probably just reluctant to part with her long hair til now.
"You guys should go chat outside if you have nothing to do. Don't stand here."
Just then, Reed suddenly spoke up, clearly unhappy that we were disturbing her reading.
"What kind of books are you reading so attentively?"
Seeing Reed completely engrossed, Nicola walked over and casually picked up one of the books to take a look.
"'Introduction to Magic Studies'..."
I also took a peek from next to her. It reminded me of the various science courses I had taken in university.
"What's that other book you have there?"
Nicola still wouldn't give up, hoping to find a more normal book.
"'Analysis of Auxiliary Circuits in Magic Arrays'"
Reed briefly showed us the cover before turning her back again, no longer wanting to entertain us.
"It's up to you now, Feliciana. I was an art major in university."
Nicola patted me on the shoulder and left the room without another word.
"Hey! Even though I was a science major, magic stuff is still completely different, okay?"
I said incredulously as I saw Cyra also shrug and exit the room, suddenly feeling all alone.
"Um... Reed..."
I stuttered a few words but got no reaction at all from the other party. My forehead started sweating a little.
"Today is a rare chance for us four survivors to get together here. Want to join us for a meal?"
I gathered my courage and asked the question I had originally come here for. Although I was quite certain earlier that Reed would agree to the dinner gathering, seeing her reaction now, I broke into a cold sweat.
"Okay..."
After a long pause, Reed finally gave a slow reply.
"Great! Let's get going then. Nicola and the others are waiting outside. And Cyra hasn't eaten in a month already and can't wait for this meal!"
Seeing that she finally agreed, I knew I hadn't judged her wrongly. I quickly urged her along happily.
"Let me finish reading this last bit. You guys can go wait outside. I'll be out shortly."
She was still facing away from me and showed no intention of turning around. But since she gave her word, there should be no issues.
Seeing my objective was already achieved, I didn't say anything more and exited the "Magic Library" as she had asked.
"How did it go?"
Nicola and Cyra were indeed waiting outside. They immediately asked me as soon as I came out.
"Done!"
I made a victory sign with two fingers and smiled.
"She said to wait a while. She just needs to finish reading something then she'll come out."
"Wow! You even managed to convince the aloof bookworm!"
Nicola gave me a thumbs up in praise.
"I've been saying all along, that Reed doesn't oppose interacting with classmates!"
I was also secretly relieved I hadn't judged wrongly, otherwise would have been quite awkward.
"Let's wait here for a bit then..."
Seeing the situation, Cyra could only find a spot to sit down.
"Hopefully not too long. I'm still waiting to eat."
"Don't worry. Reed said she'd be out soon!"
I firmly reiterated what she had told me earlier.
"Unlike you, she's reliable with her words. She definitely won't go back on it."
"But just waiting here is so boring. Don't you have anything to kill the time? Like playing cards or something?"
Cyra asked Nicola and me.
"Get lost! Where would there be such things in this world!"
I was too lazy to entertain her further. Looking around at the other rooms, I noticed there was a "History Library" next to the Magic one. I felt somewhat curious to take a look inside.
"No playing cards here, but I have something even more exciting. Wanna take a look?"
Nicola suddenly said mysteriously with a wink towards Cyra. She then took out two cards from her pocket.
"Ta-da! What else could it be other than the wildly popular magical illusion cards that were all the rage in the human world!"
Of course, it had to be those dumb cards... I rolled my eyes.
"What's this? Just two cards that look like a kid's toy. How do you play with them?"
At first, Cyra seemed completely disinterested. But after Nicola turned the cards into physical creatures, her eyes lit up immediately and she rushed forward, mouth agape in astonishment.
"Sugoi! Amazing! How did you do that? Yoisho! They've become real!"
"You guys take your time checking them out. I'm gonna go take a look in the History Library."
Seeing them fawn over the angel from the card like nymphos, I really couldn't take it anymore. I used it as an excuse to get away first.
The number of books in this library was still quite substantial. Although the area was smaller compared to the Magic Library Reed was in earlier, there were still dozens of shelves.
Glancing through them quickly, most were history books regarding angels and Edimere. There were some books about human world history too but very few in comparison.
I randomly picked out a book called "Chronicles of Angels Battling Demons Volume 3" and flipped through it. One page described:
"Elara the First led a legion of angels into the heartlands of the Dark Continent in hopes of defeating Demon Overlord HarTant in an epic battle. But HarTant held fast defending the Gates of Hell and did not emerge. Meanwhile, he stealthily sent armies from other unknown exits of Hell to attack the rear of Elara's forces. Caught between enemies on both front and back, the entire Angel army was wiped out. Elara the First perished in battle while the allied human forces also suffered enormous casualties, with only a small number of survivors managing to escape back to Eldoria Continent. The first Dark Continent siege campaign thus ended in utter failure..."
What the heck is this HarTant! Is this supposed to be a comedy? And isn't the demon overlord called Michelle? Did the leadership change? Come to think of it, there seems to be a cycle of power transfer and succession on the angel side as well. This Elara the First sounds more like a title. So is Elara not a name? Then who is the current Elara?
Just reading this one page brought up so many additional questions. But it wasn't too important for me so after skimming a little more, I placed the book back on the shelf.
"What's with that sword of yours?"
Just as I was about to pick up another book to continue browsing, I suddenly heard Reed's voice coming from outside the library. Looks like she had come out already. I quickly made my way out of the History Library.
Only when I got back into the hallway did I realize why Reed had asked that question. Right now, Nicola was putting on her usual performance – Condensation Sword emerging from the palm.
Meanwhile Cyra had a fan-girlish look, repeatedly clapping and shouting "Sugoi!" excitedly. Seeing Reed emerge from the Magic Library, she eagerly pointed it out.
"Quick, take a look! This is the cheat power Nicola mentioned! Awesome right? Badass right?"
Seriously, leave it to Nicola to show off like this. Looks like those inflatable dolls didn't keep her entertained for long before she had no choice but to bring out her "ultimate move".
"I see it. Nicola, you summoned this weapon from another dimension?"
Reed approached Nicola very curiously and tried poking the palm of her hand.
"Careful, don't hurt yourself..."
Seeing Reed suddenly stretch her fingers out like that, Nicola quickly warned her. After all, little sparks and electricity could occasionally be seen when the Condensation Sword emerged.
"It's fine. An angel body can easily withstand that level of energy."
Reed explained nonchalantly and fearlessly sticking her fingers right into Nicola's palm without hesitation. I saw that her fingers did not sink into the rippling concentric circles generated when the Condensation Sword appeared, as I had imagined.
"Hmm... doesn't seem to be a storage dimension or anything similar. In that case, it's very likely an actual physical sword formed out of thin air. Although I can't sense what element it is, judging from the lightning discharge, it should be a wind-element physical sword created from nothingness, right?"
Reed pondered briefly before deducing the origins of Nicola's Condensation Sword based on her observations.
"Com...completely correct..."
Nicola and I were shocked and speechless. We didn't expect her to be so incredible, analyzing it flawlessly down to every detail. So this is what the top student is capable of! Simply amazing!