Chapter 77: Academy Heroine's Right Diagonal Back Seat
Chapter 77
As expected, there really was something different about being a rich girl.
I never thought there would be a day when I'd go to school in a limousine...
Feeling burdened and thinking of saying I'd just walk since there was a gate right near Astra's mansion, Sylvia asked, "Do you not like going to school with me?" So, I quietly got in.
How could I refuse when she asked with such a pitiful expression...
For that reason, Sylvia and I entered the classroom together, and suddenly all the students' eyes turned toward us at once.
Flustered by the sudden attention, I froze for a moment, and Mei quickly came over and asked.
"Scarlet! I heard you were sick all day. You were so sick you couldn't even contact the school; are you okay now?"
"Ah, um... I'm fine now."
Realizing the reason immediately, I answered.
After being kidnapped and rescued, I found countless missed calls and messages from the school and Mei on my phone.
They were asking why I didn't come to school and if something happened to me, so I had to lie that I was sick.
I couldn't exactly say that I'm an experimental subject created related to a witch and got kidnapped because of it.
Anyway, it seemed I had caused a lot of worry.
"Huee... Scarlet, were you very sick? Co... could it be because of the aftereffects of the surgery for your prosthetic hand?"
Jessie, who had followed behind Mei, clung to me, teary-eyed.
"It's not that, so don't worry. It was just that my condition suddenly got a bit bad."
"That's a relief, but... please don't overdo it for a while. I'm worried you might suddenly collapse..."
Patting her head to calm her down seemed to help a bit, but perhaps because I had been late before, my image had become that of a completely sickly child.
Now that I think about it, being terminally ill does mean being sickly, doesn't it?
... Even though I'm not a heroine of a tear-jerking story, what meaning would it have for someone like me to have a terminally ill, sickly attribute?
Anyway, other kids who had been looking our way also chimed in, seemingly agreeing with Jessie's words.
"Yeah, don't get sick. Everyone is worried about you!"
"Right, if there's anything tough, we'll help, so just say it."
Daniel and Andre's voices were especially loud.
Feeling embarrassed by the pouring concerns, I waved my hand lightly and sat down, and Yoon Si-woo, who had been watching me from his seat, greeted me.
"... Did you have a good weekend?"
"Yeah, so-so."
Answering casually, Sylvia, who had followed me and sat down, glared at Yoon Si-woo.
Sylvia, who had been glaring at Yoon Si-woo, moved closer to his seat and seemed to whisper something quietly.
Oh... Honestly, I thought there hadn't been much progress between them, but it seems they had gotten quite close without me knowing.
Isn't it a sort of privilege to be able to watch the original protagonist and heroine from a prime seat?
As I inwardly grabbed some popcorn and expected a situation where they would blush at each other, Sylvia's face began to redden.
But it felt a bit different from what I expected.
No matter how I looked at it, she seemed angry...
Still, the original protagonist and heroine are supposed to get closer while bickering, so I decided to stay quiet.
*
"... Yoon Si-woo, since you've done that, you'll take responsibility, right?"
Yoon Si-woo, who had greeted Scarlet in the classroom, suddenly found Sylvia beside him, asking quietly.
"Responsibility? What are you talking about?"
"About what happened with Scarlet yesterday. I know roughly, so don't pretend and answer clearly."
Trying hard to maintain a calm expression while recalling what Scarlet had said before parting yesterday.
'The fact that I asked you for such a favor is a secret from others. Especially from Sylvia. She'd be sad if she knew I asked for such a favor. Got it?'
But not knowing how Sylvia found out, Yoon Si-woo could only feign ignorance.
"... I don't know what you're talking about?"
"Ugh...! Are you going to pretend you don't know after doing such a thing?"
"I'm not pretending; I really don't know."
Hearing this, Sylvia's face turned bright red with anger as she muttered.
"How can you be so irresponsible..."
Not knowing why she was so angry, Yoon Si-woo realized she certainly seemed to hate him.
Wondering what to say, Yoon Si-woo, knowing he was not good at lying or making excuses, chose to stay silent.
Just as Scarlet had said, to keep the secret.
*
"By the way, Evande, even if you were sick, you should have at least sent a text to the school. Do you know how worried the teacher was, wondering what happened to you?"
It felt like it had been a while since I participated in training before getting my prosthetic hand.
Eve, who was conducting 1-on-1 training separate from the other students doing group practice to get me quickly used to my prosthetic, said this.
Hearing that, I lay on the floor, catching my breath and complained.
"... Isn't it a bit harsh to push someone so hard who was sick?"
I had just cleared up to the 17th round of Eve's illusion magic 'Increasing Beast Wave Defense'.
Thinking it wasn't something to say after forcing someone to fight 17-on-1, I complained, and Eve replied as if it was absurd.
"Evande, even if they're low-grade beasts, can I treat someone who single-handedly defeated 17 beasts as a sick person? You seem much healthier than before. I thought 10 rounds would be your limit."
Hearing that made too much sense, so I quietly shut my mouth.
Even though it was to get used to the feel, I was initially very flustered when she told me to rely less on my abilities and use my body more to deal with the beasts.
But once I tried, I just ended up using a bit of flame around my hands and went on a rampage among the beasts.
As Eve said, I didn't feel healthier but more comfortable controlling my body.
... Why is that?
“It feels like it was just the other day when you said you were scared of fighting monsters, but now you don’t seem hesitant at all. Hmm, I wonder if it’s because you overcame it by fighting mid-level monsters.”
Eve mumbled to herself as she looked at me.
Her words made me understand why fighting had become easier for me.
Come to think of it, I’ve felt a lot less resistance to fighting monsters lately.
Whether it’s because of my experience fighting mid-level monsters, or because I’ve realized I’ve always been resisting something scarier than monsters, I’m not sure. But anyway, it feels like the delay caused by that resistance has decreased.
Well, I was created to fight monsters in the first place.
With a short lifespan, if I didn’t do this much, it wouldn’t be worth it.
Even though I’m not yet familiar with fighting techniques and can’t use my body properly, I feel that if I train hard and get used to applying my abilities, I could become a significant force.
I might not compare to someone like Yoon Si-woo, though.
Still, it seemed that Eve was satisfied as she smiled and said,
“This is a complete pass. I was worried because many people have a hard time adjusting to a prosthetic arm, but it looks like there’s no need to worry. You’re at a level where you won’t die easily even in actual combat.”
“...Really?”
“Well, there aren’t many instances of real combat unless it’s a special case like last time! But if it happens, never let your guard down. You promised not to die last time, right? If you die recklessly, I’ll follow you to hell and scold you!”
Eve spoke brightly, but I knew better than anyone that she was sincere, so I bitterly smiled inside.
In the original work, she was the one who grieved the most whenever students died.
Though she looked young, she had been a teacher for a long time and cared for her students more than anyone else.
She earned a vast fortune with her abilities but donated most of it to the welfare of heroes and children orphaned by monsters, earning her the nickname of an angel without wings.
So, when she was suddenly found dead in the original work, all the surviving heroes were deeply shocked by her death.
I had prevented her from mourning by saving the students who would have died in the gymnasium, but I still felt indebted to her because I couldn’t keep my promise not to die.
So, I answered with the hope that Eve would live.
“Then, you don’t die either, teacher. Never let your guard down.”
At this, Eve burst into a big laugh.
“Ha ha ha! Did you just tell your teacher not to die, Evande? Wow, I must be really dying. I’m supposedly the world’s best illusionist.”
Feeling a bit embarrassed by her reaction, I lowered my eyes slightly. Eve chuckled and squatted down to pat my head as I lay there.
“Even so, I’m happy that my student is worried about me. Alright. Let’s both not die. Then, Evande, you’ll have to train harder to stay alive, right? How about one more round?”
“Eek.”
Just like a PT trainer, Eve said, “Just one more,” and created an illusion of 18 monsters in front of me.
After that, I fought like crazy against 18 monsters.
18.
*
Even though I had quite a bit of rest before lunchtime after training, I felt drained and my head felt fuzzy.
It felt like I had just finished a march...
It seemed I wasn’t the only one exhausted by the training, as most of the kids eating lunch looked worn out too.
Sylvia, who was pretending to be fine, was trembling while holding her spoon.
She seemed to crave something sweet, probably because she was tired.
When I discreetly offered her a macaron, Sylvia flinched and asked while looking at the macaron,
“...Scarlet, you said you give me macarons because we’re friends. But if you don’t consider me a friend, why are you giving it to me now?”
She hit a sensitive spot...
Technically, my relationship with Sylvia was very close to being friends, but I had declined, making it an awkward situation.
If I said I wanted to be friends, she would agree anytime.
But because of the guilt that had accumulated and my anxiety about the future, I hesitated.
Still, thinking that someday it might be okay to be friends with her, I wanted to cherish our relationship.
That’s because...
“Because I like you, Sylvia...”
“...Huh? H-Huh?”
Sylvia made a strange noise and blushed deeply.
Seeing that, I was momentarily dazed and then came to my senses.
...Oh my god, what did I just say?
I must have unconsciously mumbled what I was thinking.
Liking her was just in the sense of liking someone who continuously shows goodwill towards you, so it wasn’t a lie.
But still, there’s a nuance to it.
Seeing Sylvia’s face turn red after hearing the word “like,” I quickly finished my meal and stood up.
I had business with someone else anyway.
I approached the person who was eating normally, as if unaffected by the training.
Yoon Si-woo looked at me, chewing his food with a “why are you here?” expression. When I offered him a macaron, he quickly swallowed what was in his mouth, his face slightly flushed.
“...Is this for me?”
“Yeah, it’s a thank-you for saving me and granting my request.”
“...You made this for me, right?”
When Yoon Si-woo asked again, I nodded.
I felt bad about asking for favors for free, so I made some for him while making Sylvia’s.
Seeing me nod, Yoon Si-woo picked up the macaron with an emotional expression and said,
“...Thanks.”
I didn’t expect him to be so happy over a cookie. Did he really like macarons that much?
“...Well, I’ll make you some occasionally.”
Feeling a bit awkward because of his overreaction, I said that, and Yoon Si-woo nodded with a bright smile.
Don’t smile like that, it’s endearing.
And when I turned around, for some reason, Sylvia was glaring at Yoon Si-woo with a displeased look.
Was she feeling like her macarons were being taken away by someone else?
I wondered if I should make a few more for Sylvia starting tomorrow.
Oh god MC is so innocent.
ReplyDeleteWell seeing that she is once a military and also have a quote bad background I wouldn't expect her to have an important other.
Also MC from struggling to fight a group of monsters in a team now just single handedly killed 18 waves of increasing amounts of monsters
Quite. For some reason outro correct correct it as quote
DeleteSouth Korea has mandatory conscription for males. South Korea doesn't draw only from the pool of driven and aggressive men who would normally volunteer for military service in other countries. With that in mind, Scarlet's lack of experience in her first life is plausible.
Deletei love yuri.
ReplyDeletewho doesn't love yuri right?
DeleteThinking about it, scarlet is just a firefly that doesn't need a sam to function, heh.
ReplyDeleteWho care about SAM when there are Caelus and Stelle who care for her?
DeleteHer prosthetic arm can be counted as demi-SAM though.
Thx for the chapter
ReplyDeletekuh... I'm so glad they didn't fall out. just a few chapters ago I was like nooooooooooooooo
ReplyDelete