Not long after, Qualia was called to be introduced to the girl who would be his teacher, and who Lobelia called her little sister.
He found Lobelia in the back garden. There were no decorations, or really any decorative plants, and in this empty back garden, one thing stood out.
There was a cross-shaped stone stuck in the middle of the back garden, and Lobelia was standing in front of it.
“Ah, you’re here. Thanks for coming.”
As Qualia approached her, Lobelia waved her hand.
“Request explanation. What is this stone?”
“Oh? A lot of your common sense really did fly away.”
Lobelia looked a little exasperated, but started explaining.
“This is a grave. The final destination of everyone who’s alive. If people leave behind a body when they die, they’re usually buried underground like this.”
“Why do you bury bodies whose vital activity has ceased?”
“Who knows? For the self-satisfaction of the living? I guess it has a grander meaning for people who believe in god.”
Said Lobelia with a shrug, but her blue eyes seemed somewhat dry.
“Request explanation. Who died?”
“Family.”
Lobelia looked at Qualia, as her eyes became a little warm.
“Well, kind of like what Ina is to you.”
“So? I came out here because you called me and you’re just visiting a grave?”
Following this somewhat young sounding voice, the quiet sound of footsteps on grass could be heard.
It was a short, lightly dressed girl, like Lobelia. She was slender, but moved as though she did not feel the weight of the big sword on her waist.
Her light blond hair was in a ponytail, and her indigo blue eyes were reminiscent of the ocean.
“Human detected. Request explanation about the name of the individual.”
“…What’s with you?”
The girl frowned, taking the peculiar way of speaking of the artificial intelligence as an offense to her ears.
“Qualia, this is Spirito, my younger sister, and the third princess. I hope you two can get along.”
“Situation understood.”
“She’s the winner of the Kingdom of Acacia’s swordsmanship tournament, and she’s called Holy Sword. She’s probably number one in this country if we’re only talking about swordsmanship.”
“Is he the member of Hello World you were talking about?”
Asked Spirito, and Lobelia responded with deep nods.
Spirito looked back and forth between Qualia and the cross, and whispered.
“…I see. I feel like I get why my sister picked you up.”
“Request explanation about the reason.”
“I can’t answer. It’s kind of a family thing.”
Spirito flatly rejected Qualia’s question, and after a deep breath, turned to Lobelia.
“Fine. I accepted it, so I can’t back out now. Qualia, I’ll face you.”
“Thanks, Spirito.”
“But on one condition.”
Spirito’s deep blue eyes became even deeper, as she glared at Qualia as if he was an old enemy, and spoke coldly.
“You can’t work as a member of Hello World until I deem you worthy.”
The back garden became quiet, as Lobelia awkwardly let out a small sigh.
“So that’s it uh…”
“Of course. A teacher has the power and responsibility to control her pupil’s behavior. And so, it’s only natural for me to restrict my pupil’s actions and make sure he doesn’t do anything crazy.”
And then, Spirito moved her lips close to Lobelia’s ears to whisper.
“You know I’m totally against you forming Hello World in the first place.”
“…So that’s why you were being so cooperative. This is what you were after.”
Spirito being Qualia’s teacher would mean that Spirito would have the authority to control Hello World’s activities, although Qualia did not know why she seemed to dislike Hello World.
Lobelia put her hand on her forehead and shook her head, realizing her mistake.
“Fine then… Sorry Qualia, but let’s forget about this whole teacher…”
“Situation understood. Your specs are much higher than Qualia’s. The combat data that can be acquired from you is very important for Qualia’s learning algorithm.”
Qualia was thinking about how useful of a ‘model’ Spirito would be.
He only spoke to her briefly, but just scanning her body while she stood still was enough for him to understand that her combat abilities were very high.
Qualia had very little chance of beating her now, but that just made her that much more useful for his learning process. But that would also mean taking a bad bet.
Lobelia, who did not know what was going through Qualia’s head, simply smiled awkwardly.
“Qualia, are you listening? If she becomes your teacher, you won’t be able to work as a member of Hello World. Isn’t that putting the cart before the horses?”
“No problem. Qualia will receive Spirito’s approval.”
Qualia locked eyes with piercing, cold blue eyes, but there was no shuddering, no fear, no uneasiness.
“Request explanation. What would Qualia need to do to receive permission to work as a member of Hello World?”
“…So you’re already assuming you can do it, uh?”
“Qualia will learn with you as a model, and will be stronger as a member of Hello World. That is the optimal solution.”
“…Very simple. You just have to make me say ‘I give up’.”
Spirito said with a deep sigh, while staring back at Qualia.
“I won’t run, but I won’t chase you if you leave. If you say you give up, that’s it.”
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Oh, you think you can challenge a super computer to some kind of will power battle? Good luck, lady xD