The bell rang, ending today"s cla.s.s, and it became time to leave school.

『Hey, child. Are you done with school? If so, show me a little more of the Imperial City today.』

「Yes, yes…..What?」

Well, even if I say I"m going home, it"ll be after several detours at the request of the Demon King.

I don"t mind a little diversion, I wasn"t refusing.

But…… Before that……

「Well, I can"t go home, I"ve become a supplementary lesson student because of you!」

『…… I am not at fault…』

「It"s really your fault!」

Yes, after all, the instructor was angry because I mentioned that absurd eye of the Great Demon King, so I"ll be staying for supplementary lessons after school.

I mean, if I thought calmly, the answer that the instructor issued should have probably been the right one. f.u.c.k……

"…… Hey…… Earth.”

“Hmm?"

It was then.

In front of me as I was about to get up, there the princess was standing, coldly looking down at me.

"…… Uum…… Princess… Phianse…… What can I do for you?"

I asked the princess who suddenly stood before me, while recalling that addressing her as "princess" or using honorifics would be no good.

No, it"s really sudden, isn"t it? As I thought…

“Ah… Earth. So, you"ve been staring at me a lot…."

“Hmm? Ah…”

“It seems you had something to say, so I came here straight away.”

In the cla.s.s just now… No, I was caught in the flow of the conversation with the Demon King, I just didn"t turn my gaze….

“No, no, it"s nothing. Then I"m…”

For now, let"s get out of here before she complains about something. With that in mind, I slipped by Phianse"s side –

“Now, don"t be shy! Well, I"m already, I know! You have something to say. So I"ll listen to you!"

“Huh, eh, cho, princess!?"

“Hey, don"t address me as "Princess" this time!”

I couldn"t slip through.

No, really … what? She grabbed my shoulders as I tried to escape, and the usually composed princess sighed in frustration and drew close to me.

What? Did I do something?

“L-Look, you"re about to do something decisive, and, you, something like confiding in me and then over…”

“No, no, it"s nothing, really, nothing in particular…”

“Hey, don"t be ashamed! No, are you? Is it no good in front of everyone in the cla.s.sroom? I"m sorry I am not used to this mood! Should we go somewhere else? Maybe behind the school building? alright, if we"re going then let"s go! I"ll accept it anytime!"

W-What? Behind the school building? Are we fighting? Is it duel? Or, why am I being challenged by the princess I"ve never beaten in a mock battle[S1] ?

“What, is it so hard to say? Are you thinking about the difference in status or something boring by any chance? Then don"t worry. In the first place, your house is in good status and my father and your parents are best friends, and they were talking about each other"s children in the future. In other words, there are no problems or obstacles, and the rest is up to us!"

c.r.a.p, I don"t know what"s what.

No, really…… to not worry about the difference in status…. Does she mean we can fight seriously?

Even so, during our usual mock battles, I always fight with all my power without worrying about the princess being a woman, and still lose. Is this person not aware of that?

“Hey, what do you mean?”

“Could it be, at last… Kyaaa!"

“Oi, are you serious?”

“What"s going to happen?”

"What? By any chance, is this it?"

“We are casually witnessing a historical moment that may determine the future of this country, aren"t we?”

And the unusual excitement of the princess was naturally the center of attention in the cla.s.s, and it was an atmosphere that seemed interesting to the others watching the interaction between us.

“No, I"m going to the teacher"s office now for… the supplementary lessons…”

“Guh, coward! That much…… are you that afraid of me? S-such a trivial thing, i-it"s not like I"ll always win!"

Sorry that you"re a prodigy or whatever, but get off my case!

“Okay, Earth. This time… your match… The event to determine the strongest young warrior…… I"m sure you and I will be selected.”

“Ha, haha…”

“And, in my plan… Well, the finals should be down to you and me, so intend to declare to everyone that I"m going to do something in the future. But you can"t even make the finals if you"re so timid!"

What? This princess, does she want to make a declaration of her victory before the ma.s.ses? Not a very good personality.

“Well, even if you say that… basically, I"m yet to be selected.

“No, I"m sure you and I won"t have a problem. Or rather, the world will want to see the battle between the children of the Seven Heroes.”

“Well, that"s true, but…”

Yes, I said I"m not sure I"m going to be selected yet, but with my previous grades I don"t think it"s a problem.

Also, there is a trend that the world wants to see the event of “The Battle of the Children of the Next Generation of the Seven Heroes”, and as the princess says, she and I will definitely be selected.

The result is the top and second seat.

But honestly, I"m really not enthusiastic. In the first place, I lost to the princess.

“Ah, fine already! Goodness, you coward…. When you"re selected, you"ll take it seriously then, right?"

“No, princess that…”

“Anyway! No, if you have something to say, then you"ll say it! Well, I didn"t think you would go about it in such a half-hearted manner, but, I want to be told…. I, I"ve heard it"s what a man would want to say. So, anyway work hard and say it! Well then!"

And then, my replies and responses were completely ignored by a rough groan as the princess left the cla.s.sroom.

That was the interaction between me and the princess.

“””””Haah!… good grief.""""

And, the cla.s.smates sighed in disappointment, and…

『I see… 』

By my side, the Demon King folds his arms.

『Though she seems as a child the princess was unexpectedly mature[S2] … while you seeming to be talented are an imbecile.』

「Eh! W-what do you mean!」

『And, in addition, regarding you…you are so dull that I wondered whether you might be lacking something as a life form…rather than worrying me, you speed right past that into irritating me. You irritate me to the depths of my being[S3] .』

「Ha!? 」

『Or rather, as you do not comprehend it, what would you know about a person"s heart?』

For some reason, I was viciously scolded and made a fool of.

 [S1]Okay, should I add "Dense Protagonist" to the tags as well? Because seriously…

 [S2]There word used here was ポンコツ Ponkotsu, which wiktionary says mean "worn out" and "no longer useful". I figured "mature" went better.

 [S3]This scalding take down is courtesy of over at reddit. My original attempt had the demon king more pa.s.sive aggressively sparing Earth"s feelings. But him showing his disdain would mirror the reader"s feelings I believe.