The Gloomy and Timid Princess Heads to the Academy

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I didn’t have high expectations since it was a facility within the Academy, but calling it a zoo was more than sufficient.

“Look… that’s an elephant!”

I thought it would only have some rabbits, cats, cute little birds, and maybe a few ferocious beasts, just to fill the gaps.

But this was the real deal.

“Oh, did you know that?”

“…I read about it in a book. This is my first time seeing one in real life.”

Maybe that’s why it felt a bit awkward to act like I knew something, but how could I hold back my amazement at seeing an elephant?

Even though I’m a woman now, seeing something big and beautiful made the slumbering male heart of mine stir.

As much as it’s a fantasy world, are there really no dinosaurs? I genuinely regretted that, but I was still grateful to see such large animals.

I originally planned to chat with Dokan while exploring.

But now that I found out about all this, my interest in that went right out the window.

“Alright, then! Next! Let’s go to the next area!”

“…You seem a little excited.”

There was no denying my exuberance. It was true—I was excited.

I hadn’t expected to see such great sights, but this guy knew what’s up!

“Next up, after the general animal exhibit, is the divine beasts and… the monstrous beasts exhibit. Are you okay with that?”

Monstrous beasts.

Um… I didn’t really know much about them. I hadn’t seen anything that could truly be called a monstrous beast in my life.

I’d seen various fantastical creatures, but they all acted like puppies, so I’d never felt any sense of danger.

The only time I felt overwhelmed was when I saw a deity that resembled the “Kooryong.” I seriously thought for a moment that the deity might forget and accidentally squash the palace with its movements because it was that massive.

“What do you mean?”

So, unless it’s something like that, I didn’t see much problem.

“Ah, well… divine beasts are gentle, but monstrous beasts are mostly ferocious, you see.”

“So, what’s your point?”

Even if they’re ferocious, they’re caged. What is there to be scared of? The whole divine beast thing bothered me a little, but I still wanted to see.

Since coming to this continent, everything with ‘divine’ in its name has been odd and unpleasant.

“If you’re alright with it.”

Dokan began to lead the way without asking any more questions.

The moment we stepped inside, the first impression hit me: the air was different.

Not refreshing, since the magic power was almost the same. But for some reason, it felt familiar.

Maybe similar to when I talked to a deity. Although it was faint enough that I barely noticed it.

Since it was the monstrous beast exhibit, there were definitely more uniquely shaped animals. The cages were much bigger and sturdier, and some animals were entirely separated by glass walls.

In contrast, divine beasts had wooden fences or were just let loose entirely.

It felt like discrimination, but the monstrous beasts looked so threatening that I couldn’t help but acknowledge the difference.

The divine beasts were all white with wings or pretty patterns, making them look safe.

On the other hand, the monstrous beasts often had twisted human faces embedded in insect-like bodies or had spines like hooks all over, appearing dangerous.

…Even if I could faintly sense a deity’s presence, it was still too risky to get close.

The monstrous beasts were sending me friendly gazes, so I felt a bit sorry for them, but today, I just wanted to see the divine beasts.

They showed no interest in Dokan and looked at him as if he were prey instead.

“Then… should we just not look at the monstrous beasts today…?”

Since there was nobody around, I dropped my formal speech.

It’s not that I found the way my father taught me to speak uncomfortable, but it felt a bit off to use it with friends.

“Monstrous beasts are, well, a bit problematic, right?”

I was fine, but I didn’t think he would be.

“…Yeah.”

I didn’t want to say that outright. I could always check out the monstrous beasts later on my own. I certainly didn’t want to put Dokan in danger.

“So… should we start with this?”

– – – –

She seemed to be searching for unexpected animals like elephants, giraffes, and lions.

I thought she might show some interest in cute animals like cats and rabbits, but she completely ignored them.

Even she would find the monstrous beasts a bit much.

I didn’t know what monstrous beasts from the Eastern continent looked like, but I’d read that all the ones from our continent were horrifically ugly.

The only difference between a beast and a monstrous beast was one simple thing.

Did they attack humans unprovoked or not? If they did, they were beasts; if not, they were monstrous beasts.

The setting said that plants and animals were corrupted by the magic, turning into such things. On the other hand, divine beasts were said to be exposed to divine power.

They might be better than beasts, but monstrous beasts were still dangerous.

Knowing this, she suggested we look at the divine beasts.

“Then… shall we start with this?”

I picked a unicorn. It was renowned in the original story as a virgin detector, and since it would be gentle with a virgin, it would also be sweet towards Hoyun.

The moment the unicorn saw Anastasia, it demanded a head rub and a knee pillow, so I thought the same would happen with Hoyun.

According to a later revelation by the author, the unicorn only behaves like that in cases where it meets the Virgin Detector theory.

I wasn’t quite sure what that was… but apparently, some people would push for the heroine based on that.

But the unicorn’s reaction was somehow a bit odd.

It took a step forward, then another step back, repeating the process.

If it were a non-virgin, it would be angry and keep its distance. If it were a virgin, it would rush forward, so what could this behavior mean? I had no clue.

“…Don’t worry, come here. I won’t eat you…”

In contrast, Hoyun called out to the unicorn cheerfully as if that behavior meant nothing.

She seemed so cute doing it, even though it’s not an animal that has the intelligence to understand speech…

A suspicion lingered in the back of my mind.

What if she wasn’t a virgin?

I know that assumption is ridiculous. And even so, it wouldn’t change my feelings for her anyway. I wouldn’t picky; at least not from my perspective.

But still, it would be better if she were a virgin.

I wondered why the unicorn was hesitant to approach her. Hoyun tilted her head in confusion and began stepping closer to the unicorn.

The unicorn too, matched her pace, stepping back to maintain its distance.

Did she not have friends, but had someone she loved? Knowing about men’s bodies, perhaps it isn’t impossible.

Or maybe she was simply seeking pleasure without love.

If my guess was right, I’d feel a twinge of betrayal.

“Come over here, I said! I won’t eat you!”

As she desperately called out to it, just as I was about to say the unicorn doesn’t have the intelligence to understand, something unbelievable happened.

The unicorn dashed towards Hoyun, looking as if it were about to die.

Even I, who might not understand horse expressions well, could clearly see the unicorn trembling in fear.

…There’s no way it understood speech, right?

The writer had established that the unicorn only had virgin detection abilities and nothing else special.

So what on earth was happening?

From what I just saw, it must’ve understood her words, but did Hoyun have some ability to communicate with animals?

There was a setting of demi-humans being affectionate towards animals, but no setting for communicating with them.

“…Good, good. That’s right, that’s right…”

Even though it was terrified, the unicorn was steadily approaching her. I couldn’t help but see my own situation reflected in it.

The unicorn looked as if it were feeling what it felt when I scolded her.

Like prey in front of a predator, every step it took oozed reluctance.

“…You’re a good little one. No need to be afraid.”

Watching it rub its head against her, I felt certain my thoughts were wrong. But I still wondered why the unicorn looked so pitiful.

Fear shone in its eyes. While it requested a head rub from her, it seemed to plead for its release.

“…Okay, now go on.”

As if it understood her words, the unicorn dashed hastily to the opposite side and disappeared.

So she really was a virgin after all.

I guess I briefly entertained some doubts. After all, no one would dare to engage in such antics while being observed by me in real-time.

Starry Moon still scared me. When she said she was watching everything, I almost faltered in my resolve, and I did feel it.

I did genuinely consider giving up until Hoyun suddenly forgave me during lunch.

However, upon receiving Hoyun’s forgiveness, my thoughts shifted a bit.

Instead of giving up, I decided to pursue her and uncover that mysterious “question.”

Hoyun seemed to show a lot of interest in me, and since Starry Moon mentioned she wouldn’t kill me, it was a decision I could reach.

…It was still too soon to give up.

On the harem, on the happy ending.