Magic Academy Bans Harem

Chapter 341 The Pregnancy Effect
I opened my eyes to a scene that seemed strangely familiar.

The familiar blue sky, the familiar meadow, the familiar golden apple tree
Eh?
Under the shade of the tree, the goddess of bathing stared blankly at the branch that seemed ready to drop a golden apple at any moment, giving her an instant epiphany, looking utterly bewildered.

Her memory was somewhat hazy and unclear, and she couldn't even recall where she had left off last time.

She sat up and turned her head to see Xia Luoluo, who also looked dazed.

Their eyes met, and both were dumbfounded.

"What the hell is this."

As if remembering what had happened before she lost consciousness, Xia Luoluo quickly began checking her injuries. The wounds she sustained in the battle with the plant monster had undoubtedly disappeared.

"So, we died naturally and returned to the starting point? I feel like the memories don't quite match up with Millie's. Yes! Asking Millie should clarify everything."

Half muttering to herself, the goddess of the bath quickly searched for Millie's figure.

"Prioritizing Millie" has become another major policy of the Bathing Goddess, following "Prioritizing Little Li." This is not only because Millie is indeed reliable most of the time, but also because Millie's soul can linger for a period of time after the Golden Apple is activated. Therefore, even in the worst-case scenario, Millie can see their "cause of death."

After looking around, the goddess of bathing quickly found Millie standing on a hillside not far away, gazing at the distant sky.

Once they stepped out of the shade and their view became more open, the Goddess of Bath also looked in the direction Millie was gazing.

Then, the goddess of bathing was immediately stunned.

The area where the snow-capped mountains were originally located suddenly disappeared, as if white paint had been splashed on a canvas.

Moreover, in the blank area, a huge crack appeared at this moment, as if it had cleaved space diagonally.

Because she was so far away, the goddess of bathing didn't know if she was seeing things.

In short, because the surrounding area was all white, the tiny black dot stood out conspicuously and "drilled into" the crack after it appeared.

Furthermore, as the black dots penetrated, the cracks quickly disappeared as well.

Apart from one area disappearing entirely, the fairytale world of "bedtime reading" has returned to tranquility once again.

As the goddess of the bath was lost in thought, Millie scratched her head and turned around, her eyes meeting hers.

"What exactly is going on?"

Before the goddess of bathing could even ask, a bewildered Millie asked first.

A short while later.

The three girls sat in a circle, listening to Millie's general account of what had happened. Charlotte and the Bathing Goddess had almost tilted their heads to the side.

Even the "well-informed" Goddess of Bath felt as if she were listening to urban legends when she learned about Millie's previous fantastical adventures.

And Xia Luoluo's side was even more...
"What do you say? Are you alright?"

"."

Millie couldn't help but roll her eyes at Charlotte.

She could understand their disbelief and was prepared for the questions that might be raised.

But cricket Xia Luoluo!
"If I had known, I wouldn't have said anything. I would have just said that I passed out along with you all."

Millie said with a hint of resentment.

"Hey? Don't be angry. It's not that I doubt you, it's just, uh, it takes some time to accept it?"

As the goddess of the bath spoke, she quickly moved closer to Millie, comforting Millie's somewhat wounded heart.

Think about it carefully: not only did his companion suddenly collapse, leaving him alone in a bizarre world that was completely incomprehensible to his mind, but he also experienced a series of even more unbelievable things.

Millie must have felt incredibly uneasy.

Moreover, as she said, she could have simply not said those ridiculous things. Even if she had just said she didn't know, it probably wouldn't have made any difference to the current situation.

Millie's willingness to confide in others was undoubtedly due to her trust in "Sister Bath," who had shared joys and sorrows with her during this period.

"I'm not that petty, so just let go of me."

Millie, unsure whether the goddess of bathing was taking advantage of her, struggled free from her embrace.

Seeing that Millie's earlier slight resentment quickly dissipated, the Goddess of Bath breathed a sigh of relief, and also realized for the first time in a long time that Millie, who seemed very mature in her words and actions, was actually the only true young girl among the three of them.

No! She is too! She's just a little older than seventeen!

In short, after the unavoidable misunderstanding and the minor incident, the conversation between the three resumed.

"First of all, who exactly is this Miss Alan?"

Millie asked, glancing first in Xia Luoluo's direction. Xia Luoluo, unsurprisingly, shrugged.

“Ah, Alan, yes, we collapsed after seeing Alan.”

Having fully recalled that she had collapsed at a rather delicate moment, the bathing goddess pressed her fingers to her temples as she reminisced.
"Well, to put it simply, she's Einfield's sister. Hmm, it seems the question is now 'Who is Einfield?' Actually, Alan has been at Earls Academy for the entire semester. I wonder if you've ever bumped into that chef at the academy who's... well, flamboyant in his speech and actions?"

"Chef Kenny?"

Compared to the other people whose impressions were vague, Chef Kenny's impression on the students at Earls was undoubtedly very strong.

"Yes, yes, it's Chef Kenny, Professor Kenny. He seems to be very accomplished academically, and Alan isn't in good health. So, Alan has been receiving treatment from Professor Kenny."

"Oh"

Millie gradually came to be remembered.

No wonder the name "Yalan" sounded so familiar; it turned out to be the little girl she occasionally saw at the academy.

Since children under the age of enrollment are rare at Erles Academy, Alan is quite noticeable on ordinary days.

"Wait, since she is Alan, and considering what I saw of Sylvie in that area, it means that area really is..."

"A vision of the future!"

In fact, Millie had long harbored this idea, but she was reluctant to admit it because it seemed too absurd. Now, with another piece of evidence, her experience in the snow-capped mountains seems to be being pushed in the most unbelievable direction.

"Speaking of which, you really managed to recognize that Alan. I heard she's only about ten years old at the academy, right? And the one we saw before, was fifty? Sixty? Seventy? Anyway, normally, would you be able to recognize her?"

During the renewed exchange, Xia Luoluo unusually expressed her own opinions.

"It can't be seventy, right? And don't underestimate me. When it comes to beautiful girls, my memory is second to none! I've always thought Alan was a rising star, so I often fantasize about what she'll look like when she's a little older!"

"." "." Amidst the silence of the other two, the seemingly smug goddess of the bath actually harbored some doubts in her heart.

Her reasons for knowing Alan were somewhat valid. However, she really wasn't very close to him. Since Alan's condition had stabilized, Ritas rarely visited Professor Kenny's dormitory during the semester. Therefore, in the past two months, she and Alan had only bumped into each other occasionally.

Even under these circumstances, she was still able to recognize Alan, who had changed quite a bit since growing up.
To be honest, the goddess of bathing is a little worried about herself.

"So, was that snow-capped mountain area we visited really the 'future' that we were looking for? I can't quite remember the specifics, but doesn't it contradict what you said before? Didn't you say that this world is formed based on people's memories and perceptions? Whose memories and perceptions contain visions of the future?"

Charlotte continued asking questions.

The goddess of the bath glanced at Xia Luoluo with some surprise.

Although her tone gave off a naturally somewhat dim-witted vibe, Xia Luoluo was actually quite clear-headed and not as foolish as one might imagine.

"Could this be related to the creator, that is, 'Estria'? Do Charlotte and Sister Yu have any impressions of Estria?"

"How could that be?"

Charlotte continued to shrug. The Bathing Goddess, however, vaguely replied, "As for the name..."

"Although the exact year is unclear, judging from the changes in Alan and Sylvie's ages, that world must have been at least thirty years ago."

After she stopped believing that speculations about the "future" were absolute delusions, Millie's thinking became clearer and more organized.

“And Estria looks to be under twenty years old. So, at this point in time, she may not have been born yet, and naturally no one would have seen her.”

"Is it possible that she, like you, was forcibly reverted to her childhood form?"

"Yes, that's indeed a possibility."

Millie nodded.

Although she felt that even if Estria had been shrunk, she would still be around ten years old, she couldn't completely rule out the possibility that Charlotte had suggested.

"No! She couldn't have been shrunk."

The goddess of bathing, who had seemed to be struggling with something before, decisively denied it.

"Millie, let me confirm one more time. Estria's appearance should be silver hair, a diagonal scar on her face, and she should be able to use things like water droplets, right?"

"Ah."

"Then that's it! Estria is that young because I and Xiao Li have met her. Twice!"

I recall my encounters in the Monster Forest at the beginning of the first semester, and my experiences in the Adventurer's Town during the summer vacation.

The goddess of bathing said so.

A mysterious silver-haired mage.

This is the impression that the goddess of the bath has always had of Estria.

At first, the Goddess of Bathing in the Shadow Mist Forest only felt that Estheria's face looked vaguely familiar. Later, after the "Corpse Disaster" incident, the Goddess of Bathing became curious about why that girl, who looked like a mage, also knew Elson-style swordsmanship and could rival Cortriene in skill.

If there's anything even more puzzling, it's that Estria's behavior is clearly so suspicious, yet Ritas doesn't seem interested in her at all.

But now that I think about it, it wasn't so much that Ritas wasn't interested in Estria, but rather that no matter how hard he investigated, he couldn't find a single piece of information related to her. So, even if he wanted to report or investigate further, there was no way he could.

The inability to locate "Estria" is unrelated to Ritas's abilities. It's something that could never be traced back to the beginning.
"So, that means something called a 'nest demon' appeared in the forest surrounding Erles Academy. And the nearby adventurer town almost got haunted by the undead?"

Not long after, after listening to the goddess of bathing's simple explanation, Xia Luoluo, who had been staring blankly with her mouth half open for a long time, couldn't help but speak.

Why does it feel like Erles Academy is even more chaotic than border areas like the West Frontier?

Moreover, these are only a part of the various events; the truly major events have not yet been included.

"So much has happened, why didn't that guy Ritas mention it in his letters home! He should have written home more often!"

"Hahaha."

Millie chuckled dryly and scratched her face.

It's truly astonishing how quickly things have changed; this year, Ers has almost become the most dangerous area in the world.

Sometimes when I calm down and think about it, I wonder why she would go back to that awful place after school starts.
"Anyway, there really is someone like Estria. And it seems she's always secretly following that guy Ritas? Well... I can understand her getting involved in this world. But why are her memories constructing a future world?"

"Perhaps it's because what is the future for us is the 'past' for her. She probably grew up in that world. In other words, she comes from the 'future'."

Millie, who had witnessed some of Estheria's growth firsthand, offered a simple summary.

For a moment, Millie felt so overwhelmed by the absurdity of what she was saying that she didn't even realize she was actually saying it.

"From the future or something"

Xia Luolu muttered to herself, then suddenly started slapping her cheeks hard with both hands.

Not only was her face slapped red, but Millie and the Bath Goddess were also startled.

"As expected. He won't wake up. Or rather, he's already awake."

Charlotte sighed in frustration.
"After getting involved here, things have become increasingly bizarre! I can't even distinguish between what's reasonable and what's real anymore. If this continues and something else happens, I don't even have the confidence to go back to my original world and still live the same life as before, or see the real world the same way I used to."

Hearing Charlotte's words, Millie and the Bathing Goddess also showed complicated expressions.

The real world is far more absurd than they imagined.

Some beings can use their immense power to construct an illusion that resembles another world, drawing in others who act unreasonably.

Some of these things simply come from the future.
Others exist, originating from different worlds.

Yes, it's the goddess of bathing herself.

The goddess of the bath thought of the term "pregnancy effect," which refers to the phenomenon where pregnant women are often surprised to find that there are many other pregnant women around them.

So, these things have always existed, but she didn't notice them because she wasn't pregnant in the past?

Meanwhile, Millie and the Bath Goddess were also feeling down.
"It's all Ritas's fault!"

At the end of her seemingly earnest reflections, Xia Luoluo's resentful concluding remarks rang out.

Perhaps it's because Millie and the Goddess of Bath now know Charlotte very well.

Hearing Xia Luoluo's words, what used to make them frown slightly, now only elicited a knowing smile from the two of them.

(End of this chapter)