Chapter 17: Academy Heroine's Right Diagonal Back Seat

 Chapter 17

[Ring-ding-ding~ Good morning~ Ring-ding-ding~ Ba-ba-ba Ba-ba Ba-ba-]

I reached out my arm from beneath the pillow and turned off the alarm.

This music seemed designed to piss people off whenever they heard it.

I had considered changing it several times because it felt like it was stressing me out every time I heard it, but I kept it, fearing I might forget the world I originally lived in if I changed it.

......I don't want to go to school.

I just wanted to stay buried in bed and zone out without thinking about anything.

But I had to go to school.

Ignoring the bed's desperate pleas not to leave, I forced myself to get up.

I needed to buy macarons for Sylvia.

*

“If you're struggling, you can just sit down and rest.”

I was zoning out with a broom in my hand when the class president spoke hesitantly.

“Did you stay up all night? You look tired.”

“......It's nothing. I just didn't sleep well.”

I had gone to bed early, but I didn't actually fall asleep until dawn.

Honestly, I felt more dazed than tired.

Maybe I hit my head too hard......

When I frowned slightly, still feeling a faint tingle where I hit my head yesterday, the class president, who was looking at me with a sympathetic gaze, pulled something out of his pocket and handed it to me.

It was chocolate.

“If you're having a hard time, eat this. Sweets are the best in times like these.”

......I always gave things away, so receiving something felt strange.

It was so unfamiliar that my hand trembled as I accepted the chocolate.

“......Yeah, I'll eat it later.”

“If you need help, make sure to ask.”

I just smiled slightly at the class president who said that, without responding.

Sorry, I don't think I can tell you, class president.

I quietly put the chocolate in my pocket.

*

Sylvia, who recently started showing me various expressions, was originally skilled at hiding her emotions.

Having grown up with the family teaching that she must always be composed, it was hard to know what she was thinking unless it was a really exceptional situation, but there was one exception.

When I watched Sylvia, her ears would sometimes twitch slightly.

It was subtle enough that you had to look closely to notice, but since I always watched Sylvia attentively, I could tell.

That was the signal that she was thinking about eating macarons.

Thanks to the efforts of the past few days at school, I could now even feel Sylvia's gaze unconsciously turning towards me when she wanted to eat macarons.

I felt good thinking that my plan to corrupt and train Sylvia into a friend was making some progress.

As soon as I made eye contact with Sylvia, who was looking in my direction, I nodded and quickly ran to the store to buy macarons.

Sylvia seemed exasperated but resigned as she watched me.

She originally wasn't a child who showed such diverse expressions, but seeing her reveal so many emotions to me made me think we were getting a bit closer.

“Scarlet, did I perhaps mutter that I wanted to eat macarons?”

Sylvia asked, looking at me with a strange gaze.

I shook my head and answered.

“You didn’t say it, but... it seemed like you wanted to...”

“So how did you know?”

Oh... because I watch you all day?

I decided to say it a bit indirectly, knowing I’d be immediately treated as a stalker if I said it directly.

“Because we're friends, I can tell.”

“Because we're friends... I see. But you keep buying them for me, is there a reason?”

“...That too, just because we're friends...”

Sylvia seemed to be troubled by my answer.

She repeatedly clenched and unclenched her fists as if trying to say something but then stopping, eventually taking the macaron I handed her with a sigh.

“...Alright, I’ll eat well. Scarlet.”

Sylvia’s expression as she put the macaron in her mouth was much softer than before.

Oh... this is it!

I could feel the friendship gauge visibly rising!

It must have been a major event boosting her affection.

I suppressed the flames about to burst from my body.

I thought that if I kept looking at Sylvia, I might burn my clothes again.

Then I’d be in debt!

I quickly ran out of the classroom.

I headed to the school rooftop to calm myself down with some fresh air.

Come to think of it, the rooftop always seemed like a place you shouldn’t easily go to.

Maybe because in manga or novels, it's portrayed as a place where the protagonist skips class to take a nap or has a tryst with their crush, a place only the true insiders can go to.

Thinking that, I opened the rooftop door and found someone already there.

As soon as I saw them, I was about to close the door and leave, but it was too late.

“You can come up, don’t mind me.”

There was an authority in that voice that made it hard to refuse.

I couldn’t refuse and slowly opened the door to step onto the rooftop.

“You look like a freshman, but I don't care about formalities, so just relax.”

The owner of that voice was someone whose appearance made it impossible to relax.

A skirt cut dangerously short.

A uniform top tied up to expose her belly button.

Her emphasized chest and bare legs exuded femininity to the point of awe...

Tanned, glowing brown skin under the sunlight.

Her hair, whether dyed or natural, was blonde and tied in a ponytail, making her look nothing like a model student.

Her striking appearance was on a different level compared to the half-heartedly styled delinquents.

She carried her bold look naturally, as if she had always been that way.

The charisma emanating from her made it clear she was at the top of the school’s caste system.

I trembled as I imagined it.

Her sitting at the back of the classroom by the window, not caring about class, just staring outside.

Her lying on her desk, silencing noisy, annoying delinquents with a single ‘Be quiet.’

Even if it wasn’t true!

Eek! My body trembles!

My inner small citizen screamed, but I held onto the railing slightly away from her without showing it.

I could feel her staring at me.

Please don’t...

“I'm bored, let’s chat for a bit? Come here.”

I obediently stood beside her.

In the school caste system, it was impossible to refuse orders from someone ranked higher...

“Let’s introduce ourselves. I’m Leonor from Class 2-B. And you are?”

“Scarlet Evande... from Class 1-A.”

In fact, I already knew who she was.

Leonor Lionelle, a supporting heroine from the original story.

Contrary to her appearance, she's a kind person.

Even knowing this, her appearance was still extremely intimidating...

“You're in Ms. Eve's class, right? That must be tough. She’s super strict despite how she looks.”

I nodded in agreement.

Eve cared deeply about her students, which made her classes challenging.

Considering she was our homeroom teacher, she probably paid extra attention to our class.

It was helpful in real-life situations, but still tough.

I started recalling the training from yesterday and shook my head to clear the thoughts. Leonor noticed and laughed.

She laughed for a moment and then pulled out something that was usually associated with delinquents.

She was so bold about smoking it that I was taken aback.

Wait, is this okay?

Maybe it’s actually weird if she doesn’t smoke?

Seeing my surprised expression, she glanced at what she was holding and then shook it in her hand.

“Just so you know, this isn’t a cigarette. It’s a magical herb, and it’s good for you. It has a calming effect as long as you don’t smoke too much.”

She said this as she dug into her pocket with her free hand to pull out a lighter.

She tried to light the herb, but the lighter only made a clicking sound, out of gas.

She clicked her tongue and put the lighter back in her pocket.

Watching this, I let the flames I had been suppressing trickle out just enough to light her herb.

Wow, human lighter!

“Oh, thanks. So you’re a flame user.”

She looked at me with slightly surprised eyes, took a puff of the herb, and then exhaled smoke in my direction.

Betraying me right after I helped!

Startled, I closed my eyes, but instead of the expected smell, I sensed something completely different.

A refreshing herbal scent, not like tobacco at all.

When I blinked and stared at Leonor with a dazed expression, she burst into laughter.

“Haha, how is it? Smells good, right? It’s pretty expensive, you know.”

Hearing that it was expensive, I got a bit curious.

I wondered what it tasted like.

When I kept staring at her, Leonor offered me the herb she was smoking.

“Want to try?”

I nodded and took the herb she handed me.

The herb Leonor had just been smoking.

...Isn’t this an indirect kiss?

Feeling a bit embarrassed but not showing it, I put it in my mouth.

But how do you smoke this?

I had never smoked anything before, so I didn't know how.

I couldn’t just keep it in my mouth, so I inhaled deeply.

“Hey! You shouldn’t inhale it all at once like that if it’s your first time!”

“......Huh?”

My head felt light and airy.

What’s going on?

“Senpai... there’s two of you...”

“Oh no... I’ll take you to the nurse’s office, so stay still.”

Suddenly, I felt as strong as two people as Leonor lifted me up like a princess.

Senpai is strong.

It felt like flying.

“Senpai... take me higher...”

“Sigh... I’m sorry about this.”

She sighed but still lifted me up and down.

My body moved up and down.

Wow, this is fun!

Hehe! Hehehe!

Flailing around, I ended up on something soft.

A bed, it’s a bed.

So soft.

I laid my head on the pillow and crawled under the blanket.

I rolled myself up like a pill bug.

So warm...

It was so warm I felt sleepy...

“When I heard your name, I remembered you’re the one who runs errands for the Astra girl, right?”

“Ugh, I’m not like that... We’re friends.”

“If you don’t like it, I could tell her to stop. How about it?”

“No... I want to do it... Otherwise, I’d have no friends...”

“...Is that so?”

I heard someone running outside the door...

I didn’t care, I was sleepy... Time to sleep...

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