The next morning, bruised and beaten from his training with Rinyu, Senji sent a message to the head of training, declaring that he'd be skipping today's exercises.
"You're skipping out on training to run away?"
"No. I'd rather study on my own than waste time with lazy instruction from a weakling."
"Oh, I see. The Second Knight Division, right? Yeah, I hate that captain too."
"Glad you understand."
"For the record, I hate the First Knight Division's captain as well."
"That one's different; she's beautiful. Her purple hair—gah!"
As Senji thought fondly of the First Knight Division's captain, he was hit with a sudden headbutt, sending stars dancing before his eyes. Glaring at Rinyu in protest, she simply tossed her messy silver hair back and scoffed, though the dust from her hair drifted into his face, making him cough.
"Ugh, what the hell was that for?!"
"Just reminding you that there's a beautiful silver-haired woman right here, dummy."
"I only see a meathead standing in front of me."
"Meathead?! I've been proposed to more times than I can count! Wait... they weren't only interested in my title, right...? Oh god, was it just because I'm a Sword Saint...?"
As Rinyu spiraled into insecurity, Senji raised an eyebrow, smirking as he shrugged like a clueless foreigner.
"W-Wait… I am pretty, right?"
"Well, thanks for the training this morning. I'll be off now!" Senji quickly turned his back on her, leaving the arena.
"W-Wait! Am I… pretty?"
Later, Senji learned from his friend Setsuna that Rinyu had spent the rest of the day asking every single warrior in the barracks, "Am I pretty?" The pathetic image was enough to give Senji a twisted sense of satisfaction.
He was, indeed, a total pervert.
---
At the same time Rinyu was making her rounds like a ghostly urban legend, Senji had arrived at the Royal Palace's grand library. The place dwarfed any library he'd ever visited back on Earth.
Today's focus was monsters. Specifically, dungeon-dwelling creatures. Beside him sat Kaibata, her loyal maid Moony, and Senji's personal butler, Laika.
"Monsters in dungeons aren't bound by the laws of normal life, huh?" Senji mused as he flipped through the pages.
"No, sir. Though they resemble living creatures, they're an aberration," Laika confirmed, standing attentively nearby.
According to the texts, monsters in dungeons disappeared upon death, leaving behind only magical stones known as *magi-stones*. These stones were highly sought after for their use in various industries and could be sold at adventurer guilds for a good price.
More interestingly, these creatures had no concept of camaraderie. In rare cases, a particularly powerful monster would rise among them, slaughtering its weaker counterparts to grow stronger. These were known as *enhanced variants*, becoming nearly unstoppable if left unchecked.
"So the dungeons themselves are creating these monsters?"
"Yes. Though there's an alternate theory that the Witch of Forbidden Knowledge, Roberta, created them to wipe out humanity."
"Roberta?"
"She's a figure from legend. Supposedly, she fought alongside a hero to defeat the Demon King, only to betray them. With twenty-four powerful magical relics, she threatened humanity. Those relics, known as 'Roberta's Legacy,' are rumored to exist, but I heard the stories as a child, so I can't say how much is true."
"Interesting…"
While the tale intrigued Senji, he mentally shelved it for later. There were more pressing matters at hand.
He continued to absorb knowledge about monsters and dungeons. The text he held was written by a previous hero, listing dungeon floors and the average strength of the creatures within them.
*These stats… I should be able to handle this level of monster just fine,* Senji thought, flipping through the book.
After finishing with the monster text, he turned to documents detailing past hero occupations. Unsurprisingly, no record existed of a job called "Traitor." Instead, he found an entry about Setsuna's childhood friend, Hiyou Yuunagi, who had the job "Envoy of the Sun God Agni."
*What's this nonsense?* he thought as he read. The entry rambled on about how the hero's fire spells grew stronger when casting with the sun behind him. It even mentioned a dubious tale where Hiyou's firepower increased at night, merely because another hero mistook a lantern for the sun.
*This is ridiculous. Who wrote this garbage?*
He checked the author's name—and was surprised to find it belonged to a Japanese person. So, a former summoned hero from Earth had left behind these nonsensical writings.
As Senji flipped through more pages, a piece of paper slipped out. Curious, he unfolded it, expecting a simple note. Instead, it read:
---
*"Do not trust your allies.*
*One of them is a traitor.*
*They will slaughter the heroes.*
*Find them, and kill them.*
*We lost five already.*
*Future hero, trust no one."*
---
*Well, that's dark.*
He crumpled the note and pocketed it. His face remained calm, but his thoughts churned. *Who left this note?* The handwriting seemed recent, but the last summoning had been hundreds of years ago.
*No matter. It's something to worry about later.* For now, he had other things to focus on, like the practical knowledge he was accumulating. Thankfully, Kaibata hadn't noticed anything, and as for Laika, well, he'd smooth things over with his butler later.
After finishing in the library, Senji headed out with Kaibata for a late dinner.
---
That evening, they dined on a meal centered around lean meat. Kaibata quickly devoured her portion, then nibbled on her salad, seemingly satisfied.
Senji observed her before speaking up, "You're not very good at studying, are you, sensei?"
"Guh!"
"I've been watching all day. You've got to summarize and organize the key points, not just copy entire pages."
"B-But… I tried…"
Her notebook had been filled with textbook passages, a classic example of inefficient note-taking. Senji couldn't help but sigh at her pitiful expression.
"Look, I know you're not great with this stuff, but—"
"You don't have to be so harsh…"
Kaibata's trembling voice and watery eyes triggered something deep within Senji. *Perfect. Let's not push her too far yet. Time to offer some encouragement.*
He slid the remaining portion of his meal over to her.
"Here, eat this. You'll need your strength for tomorrow. I admire how hard you try, even if you're not the best at it."
"R-Really?" she said, her face lighting up as she accepted the food.
Watching her smile, Senji thought, *Yeah, she's got a pretty face at least.* His shallow musings solidified his status as a man of base instincts.
---
Later that night, Senji stood alone in his room, gazing into a mirror.
*Time to test this out... 'Disguise'.*
He activated the skill, watching as his reflection distorted into a new face—silver-haired, chiseled, and far more like an otherworlder than his typical Japanese appearance.
He smirked at the effectiveness. *Perfect.*
Next, he used *Disguise* again, this time on the bed, crafting an illusion of himself sleeping peacefully. The skill had far more potential than he'd initially thought.
---
Why all the precautions? Simple—Senji had plans to sneak out of the palace.
---
With everything set, he looked out the window at the kingdom's capital, illuminated by the night lights.
*First stop… the Adventurer's Guild.*
With a wicked grin, Senji leaped into the night.