Today is February 12. After some time, we finally reached Level 91.
Walking beside me, Grace was dressed in a simple training outfit—her uniform and long pants.
The moment she saw the environment of Level 91, she stared at it without blinking, as if she didn't even know how to put her thoughts into words.
I started walking toward one of the houses and called for her to follow.
"Stop staring. I'm going to teach you how to ride a motorcycle."
I had no intention of letting anyone other than Lina sit behind me, but since Grace might be entering the dungeon frequently in the future, it was necessary for her to learn.
"...Ah, wait, Karen. You haven't told me what this place is yet."
Grace reacted a beat late and asked the question she should've asked earlier.
I stopped and pointed at the houses and the poles.
"This is a residential area. All the buildings here are houses. Those poles that look like laundry racks are utility poles and power lines."
"I see. But the houses look strange."
"How so?"
I didn't understand what she meant. What was strange about them?
"They're very long but not wide. And there's no grand front entrance to represent the family."
She was overthinking it again. What did family prestige have to do with anything?
I paused for two seconds before finally realizing what she meant, then quickly corrected her.
"...Oh, no. That's not one house. It's a row of more than ten houses connected together—row houses."
She must've thought each row was a single house. In her experience, houses were always spaced apart, with enough room for a person to walk between them.
We were only looking from a distance, so it made sense she misunderstood. Back in my previous life, I lived in a row house, so it never occurred to me.
"Really? Wouldn't that be too small?"
"These are homes for ordinary people. They don't need to be big—just functional."
Grace nodded at my explanation, then looked back at the houses before suddenly speaking with excitement.
"Karen, I want to go inside and take a look!"
"Sure, okay."
I agreed. We needed to go in anyway to get the motorcycle and helmet, so it worked out.
We entered one of the houses that had a heavy motorcycle inside. Grace immediately fixated on the TV.
"Karen, what is this, the thin and black thing?"
"A television."
After saying that, I took out the remote and turned it on. The screen lit up, showing a man tied up.
Naturally, Grace panicked.
"Wha—!? Why did it suddenly light up?! Why is there someone inside?! What is he saying?! Why is he tied up?! He's in danger—I have to save him!"
Her sense of justice was strong. Seeing someone in danger, she grabbed the edges of the television, shouting about saving him.
Honestly, I felt like the television was the one in danger.
I quickly pulled her away and explained to her, who had already lost her composure.
"Calm down! He's an actor! He's fine!"
"...An actor?"
"Yeah. Everyone in there is an actor. They're performing."
Once I saw she had calmed down, I let go of her.
Grace then stared at the interactions on the screen, full of amazement.
"This is incredible… and so realistic. It feels real. How is this possible?"
I turned off the television and said,
"I'll explain when we get to level 96. For now, let's continue exploring."
"Okay."
After finishing her tour—though her comments were nothing particularly noteworthy.
We moved on to learning how to ride a motorcycle.
Grace picked it up quickly. In no time, she was speeding around like a pro.
I stood there with my arms crossed, watching her raise one hand and shout.
"This is amazing! Woohoo!!!"
I was starting to regret teaching her.
I didn't expect her to completely let loose like this.
Eventually, she returned to me and shifted into neutral. I turned the key counterclockwise, shutting off the noisy engine, then casually asked:
"Grace, are you under a lot of stress? Or is something bothering you?"
She took off her helmet, clearly surprised.
"Huh!? Why would you think that?!"
"Think about what you were just doing."
As she placed the helmet on the fuel tank and replayed it in her mind, her face suddenly turned red. She quickly covered it with both hands.
"...That's so embarrassing… I'm sorry! I'm not stressed or anything!"
No stress? Then it must just be her personality.
She lowered her hands and explained, still flushed.
"It's just… riding a motorcycle feels even better than riding a horse. There's no bumping, and it doesn't require as much physical effort. And most importantly, everything around you flashes by—it feels like surpassed everything in speed."
I understood what she meant, but I'd never gone as far as shouting out loud. Lina hadn't either.
I guess she just had an easily excitable personality.
"I felt the same way when I first rode one. But be careful—I don't want your family saying I led you astray."
Grace was a noblewoman. She had to be more mindful of her behavior than noble men. On top of that, she was a duke's daughter—just below royalty—so expectations for her were even higher.
"I understand! And… Mr. Karen, please keep this a secret, okay…?"
She asked shyly, clearly worried Jacob might think less of her if he found out.
She even used formal speech. There was no way I could refuse.
"Alright."
Grace smiled happily at my answer.
What an silly.
Even though I wanted to share every little moment with Lina, a promise was a promise. I'd pretend this never happened.
After that, I took out my own motorcycle and brought Grace to level 92—a school.
There wasn't much worth explaining, and Grace only half-listened anyway.