I Became a Genius Mechanic at the Academy

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“······.”

Edgar looked at Enya with a flustered expression after her question.

He was at a loss for words when she asked why he was holding Isabella from behind.

“No, how could you…?”

It was simply ridiculous that Enya was aware of this fact.

After all, the entire area was covered with curtains, and no one had ever peered inside.

Unless someone had set up a camera anticipating that he and Isabella would lie on that bed together, it was impossible to confirm what had transpired inside.

“…As I thought, it’s true.”

However, Enya nodded as if her suspicion was confirmed.

Then she began explaining her reasoning for making such an assumption.

“Actually… I caught a glimpse of it in that instant. The moment you pulled back the curtain, I saw Isabella sleeping.”

“······.”

“And at that moment, the way Isabella was lying looked strange. She was tilted too much to one side… More than that, there were signs of someone else lying next to her… Exactly the posture as if someone was embracing Isabella from behind.”

Indeed, was that how it had happened?

What monstrous visual acuity she possessed.

To capture such a fleeting moment and remember the details so clearly.

Well, the reason she was a genius in swordplay was precisely due to this instant perception ability.

She captured countless stances in minute detail, easily learning any sword technique.

“I see. So, through that gap…”

Thus, Edgar understood.

If it were someone else, it might be different, but with Enya, she could capture that split-second frame and remember it vividly.

“…Yeah. I’m sorry if I intruded on something between you two. But I was just curious about how you and Isabella… got so close… You know Isabella is originally my friend. So I just wanted to know.”

Using the excuse of ‘as Isabella’s friend’ to ask her questions, Enya.

But in reality, she was feeling jealousy about the relationship between the two.

She was the first one to befriend Edgar; why did he embrace Isabella from behind, and why did Isabella allow it?

And why was Bella, who had long suffered from insomnia, able to sleep soundly in Edgar’s arms?

Such thoughts gnawed at her relentlessly, almost to the point of bursting with emotion.

Until she knew the reasons for all this, it was difficult to lead a proper life, as her anxiety consumed her.

At that moment, Edgar shrugged and said.

“Um… Actually, embracing from behind is no big deal. It’s just a type of sleep therapy.”

Edgar spoke nonchalantly, as if it were nothing particularly special.

Enya swallowed hard and focused on Edgar’s next words.

“Embracing from behind is… one of the common methods of sleep therapy. Some people sleep better when someone is next to them.”

Enya felt a sigh of relief at Edgar’s response.

The way he spoke with an emotionless demeanor, like a doctor treating a patient, inspired trust.

If Edgar’s words were true, then he was simply providing an appropriate prescription for Isabella.

But there was one question lingering—how did Edgar know such a therapy?

To that question, Edgar replied.

“Um… Actually, I already knew all about sleep therapy. The village chief back in my hometown taught me.”

He had learned about sleep therapy from the village chief.

Of course, that claim was a lie.

He couldn’t explain that he learned about it during a previous episode, so he had thrown the village chief, who had participated in the great war, under the bus.

Fortunately, Enya seemed to believe him.

“Ah… So that’s how it is…”

“Right. But keep it a secret. It could be a problematic story if others find out.”

“Ah, of course! I won’t say a word to anyone!”

Feeling good, Enya replied with a bright smile.

Having confirmed that there was nothing amiss between Isabella and Edgar, she no longer had any reservations.

“Hehe. This beer is delicious. Can I have another drink?”

“Of course. As long as you don’t go overboard.”

“Come on~ I’ve only had two drinks. I’m fine.”

Thus, having regained her original energy, Enya smiled brightly and downed her beer.

With the issue that had been gnawing at her for a few days resolved, Enya was intoxicated with joy and continued to request refills on her beer.

“Um, where’s the bathroom?”

But all of a sudden, after downing so much liquid, she felt a pressing need to pee.

Edgar chuckled and replied.

“Over there. If you go a bit deeper into the shower room, it’s there.”

“Okay. I’ll just go wash my face for a moment.”

Using washing her face as an excuse, Enya stepped outside.

She also closed the door behind her.

After all, she didn’t want to let Edgar hear her using the bathroom.

“Phew. Thank goodness.”

Fortunately, the bathroom was a bit far from Edgar’s room.

With this distance, her sounds shouldn’t reach him, right?

Eventually, sitting on the toilet, Enya relieved herself.

As she did, she buried her nose in Edgar’s shirt.

It smelled like sweet flowers.

That was because Edgar used a fabric softener similar to that.

“It’s fragrant…”

With a face flushed red, Enya smiled.

The thought of wearing clothes that Edgar usually wore made her giggle.

With every movement, the soft sensation of the fabric wrapping around her skin made her think about how it must have felt against Edgar’s skin, stirring inappropriate fantasies that made her pinch her thighs repeatedly.

“Ahh…”

Unaware of her own limits, Enya poured down more beer.

Because of that, she was engaging in perverse indulgences she wouldn’t normally entertain, trying to savor Edgar’s scent.

Finally, after enough mischief with Edgar’s shirt, she washed her hands and checked her reflection.

To her surprise, her face was unusually flushed, and her expression revealed her embarrassment.

“Am I… drunk?”

Even at social gatherings, she seldom drank, so she wasn’t well-acquainted with her limits.

Yet here she was, blushing after just seven beers.

“I need to be careful…”

Thus, Enya steeled herself.

This time, she resolved not to let herself spiral out of control in front of Edgar, planning to act more prudently.

With that determination, she splashed cold water on her face.

***

After washing her face and returning to Edgar’s room, she found him laying a futon next to his bed.

Enya tilted her head and asked Edgar.

“Hmm? Are you going to sleep already?”

“Oh, you’re back? It’s about that time to sleep. Over there—”

Enya followed the line of Edgar’s finger and saw.

The clock was showing 11:30 PM.

When did time pass so quickly?

Whenever she was with Edgar, it felt like time sped up.

“Ah… Already time.”

“Yeah. Should we lie down soon?”

Edgar said that as he sat on the futon spread on the floor.

This caused Enya to look flustered.

“Ah, no! You’re the host; you should sleep in the bed.”

Edgar chuckled and replied.

“Then I would be punished for impertinence, my lady.”

“Ah… No, I’m fine with it.”

“You don’t need to worry. I’ve slept here many times.”

As he said this, Edgar gave a little pat on the portable foldable bed.

Enya tilted her head and replied, skeptical.

“You often sleep there…?”

“Yeah. Occasionally, I sleep in the lab. Whenever that happens, I lay this down on the floor.”

“…Oh.”

Edgar, who was so engrossed in his research that he would even sleep in the lab.

Enya nodded, thinking it was such a typical Edgar thing to do.

With such passion and effort, he was able to create remarkable suits and gauntlets.

‘Edgar… is putting in all this effort while moving ahead…’

However, the more Edgar progressed, the more Enya felt a strange sense of inadequacy.

She felt incredibly small in comparison to his continuous advancement.

Truthfully, though she was hailed as a genius in swordplay, in reality, she was just an empty vessel making a lot of noise.

Her ranking served as proof of this.

Only ranked fifth.

She thought it wouldn’t be impossible to reach second place, even if first place was out of reach.

Yet, there were many flaws and limitations in her swordsmanship, and when it was analyzed, she easily lost.

– I don’t understand why those fools stick to that childish swordplay. It’s a waste of your talent.

Recently, Professor Garcia had given her a stern talking-to.

Given her talent, why choose such a poor sword style? He suggested that he could guide her to find a sword style that would suit her better.

– No, I will prove it. Just wait and see.

Yet she had firmly refused.

She believed that while her swordsmanship was still in its incomplete form with many flaws, if she could perfect it, she would one day become the strongest.

“Hey, Enya?”

Just then, Edgar called out to her.

Seeing that she was dazed and lost in thought, he found it odd and decided to call her.

“Ah, sorry. I was just thinking about something else.”

Enya sheepishly smiled and scratched the back of her head.

Edgar chuckled and told her that he was about to turn off the lights and to get into bed.

“Ahh… I feel really bad about this. I feel like I’m causing trouble.”

“It’s fine. It’s not my first time sleeping on a portable mattress. Should I turn off the lights?”

“Huh? Yeah.”

Soon after, Edgar pressed a switch connected to the magic circuit, extinguishing all the lights in the room.

Enya climbed onto Edgar’s bed, feeling the soft, pleasant fabric of the blanket covering her.

With the air conditioning blowing strongly, covering herself with the blanket felt oddly comforting.

‘In Edgar’s space… I…’

At that moment, Enya felt that it was a rather lewd situation.

Wasn’t she nestled under the blanket that Edgar had used?

Wasn’t this a completely different kind of sleepover compared to Isabella?

She was covering herself with what Edgar had used, and she was squirming on the bed where Edgar had also wriggled.

‘Ugh! Am I becoming a pervert?’

However, such feelings were entirely new to Enya, and she was surprised by them too.

The fact that she could have such indecent thoughts was quite alarming.

But there was no helping it.

She couldn’t keep those thoughts at bay.

This space was the most personal and secret place of someone she liked.

Being right in the middle of it, it was only natural that all sorts of fantasies would torment her.

“Enya.”

But just then.

Edgar, who was lying on the floor, called out to her.

Enya, startled as if her raunchy thoughts had been exposed, replied in an agitated voice.

“Wha-? I didn’t do anything!?”

“…?”