Chapter 132: Academy Heroine's Right Diagonal Back Seat

Chapter 132

[Beep beep beep~ Good morning~ Beep beep beep~]

As I slowly opened my eyes, the sunlight was streaming through the blinds installed over the window.

Still lying down, I looked up and saw a ceiling that was unfamiliar to me.

For a moment, I wondered, “Where am I now?” But as I became more aware, I remembered that I had moved to Yoon Si-woo's house yesterday.

Over the past few months, I’ve moved so many times that there’s no chance for me to get used to the ceiling I see from my bed.

Well, I’m not the type to prefer moving frequently, but in this case, it was an inevitable choice.

No regrets.

In fact, it was such an excellent decision that I feel like I should pat myself on the back.

After all, having an environment where you can sleep soundly and wake up refreshed is really important.

Thanks to a good night’s sleep, I was able to start the day in the best condition I’ve had in the past few days.

Humming the melody that played in my head from my upbeat mood, I stepped out of my room and immediately made eye contact with Yoon Si-woo, who was sitting on the living room sofa.

...Wait, did he see that?

And the moment Yoon Si-woo blushed and averted his eyes, I was certain that he had witnessed my embarrassing moment.

This brought back memories of past embarrassments.

Like the time when, for some reason, I was alone in an elevator singing my heart out without a care in the world, only for the doors to suddenly open and someone else stepped in.

It was an elevator with no soundproofing whatsoever, so they definitely heard me singing, but they pretended not to, and I had to endure the excruciatingly awkward atmosphere.

Back then, to escape the awkwardness, I foolishly decided to keep singing as if I didn’t care whether they heard me or not...

But people learn from their mistakes.

After spending the night regretting that decision and kicking the covers in frustration, I realized that the best thing to do in such situations is to act as if nothing happened.

Trying hard not to show how embarrassed I was, I spoke to Yoon Si-woo.

“Good morning, Yoon Si-woo.”

“Oh? Oh, good morning...”

“Have you had breakfast yet? If not, I can make it for you.”

“Ah... Yeah, thanks.”

As I shifted the conversation to breakfast, Yoon Si-woo nodded absentmindedly, and I felt relieved that it seemed to have worked smoothly.

Breakfast was soy sauce egg rice made with the eggs I bought yesterday.

The harmonious combination of rice, eggs, and soy sauce, enhanced by a spoonful of sesame oil, was simply irresistible.

As I was enjoying this simple yet perfect breakfast, Yoon Si-woo, who was sitting across from me, suddenly asked a question.

“...Hey, was there anything uncomfortable when you slept last night? Anything that bothered you?”

“Huh? Not really, nothing was uncomfortable. In fact, I slept great last night.”

It had been so long since I slept that well.

As I answered, thinking how important the environment is for a good sleep, Yoon Si-woo suddenly started coughing as if something went down the wrong way.

Seeing his face turn completely red, it seemed like it was a pretty severe choke.

I quickly brought him some water and gently patted his back, and thankfully, he soon stopped coughing.

Taking deep breaths to calm himself down, Yoon Si-woo’s face still looked quite tired.

He seemed like someone who hadn’t gotten much sleep last night.

As I wondered if something was wrong, I recalled the question he had just asked.

It dawned on me, and I cautiously asked him.

“...Hey, it looks like you didn’t sleep well last night... Was that because of me?”

Then Yoon Si-woo quickly shook his head and shouted in a loud voice.

“No, no! You’ve got it all wrong, Scarlet! I didn’t have any bad thoughts about you...!”

Seeing him sweat profusely and desperately deny it, a pang of guilt hit me in the chest.

Suddenly having someone intrude on your personal space is a big deal.

When someone invades your private space, it can be a really sensitive issue.

For me, after living for two years in a cramped military dorm, sharing everything with over a dozen people, I’ve grown indifferent to such things, but for someone like Yoon Si-woo, who hasn’t had such experiences, it must have been uncomfortable.

He probably didn’t refuse to let me stay because he knows my situation to some extent.

Yoon Si-woo isn’t the type of person who could cold-heartedly refuse a request from someone with a limited time to live.

Because he’s not a harsh person, no matter what his true feelings are, he couldn’t openly say to my face that my presence is so bothersome that he can’t even sleep properly.

Filled with guilt, I spoke to Yoon Si-woo.

“No... I understand that it must be hard to suddenly have someone else here when you’re used to living alone... You don’t have to pretend like it’s not bothering you.”

“Really, it’s not like that! I’ve been trying so hard not to think like that... Ugh?!”

“So it *was* bothering you, huh?”

“I mean...! Ah, ugh... I’m sorry...”

It seemed like he felt so guilty about accidentally revealing his true feelings that he turned pale and bowed his head to apologize.

I gently lifted Yoon Si-woo’s head, whose face was now red with embarrassment, and looked him straight in the eyes as I spoke.

“There’s no reason for you to be sorry to me. I’m the one who should be apologizing. I’m sorry for making you uncomfortable. You agreed to my request even though you didn’t want to, so I want to do something for you, but I don’t have much to offer besides myself... So while we’re living together, if there’s anything you need or want to ask, please don’t hesitate. I won’t refuse anything I can do. Got it?”

“...Okay, I get it.”

With his face still flushed, Yoon Si-woo replied and then quickly retreated into his room, not showing his face for the rest of the morning.

*

“...Are you going out?”

“Yeah, there’s something I need to check.”

When I called Yoon Si-woo out for lunch, he finally came out of his room. Noticing that I was dressed to go out, he asked me that question.

After I answered, Yoon Si-woo, still avoiding eye contact due to the earlier incident, mumbled with his head down.

“...Take care.”

“I’ll be back. I’ll make sure to be back before dinner, so let’s eat together then.”

“...Okay.”

After saying goodbye to Yoon Si-woo, I left the house.

The moment I stepped outside, I felt my hands tremble slightly.

I couldn’t help but smile bitterly at that instinctive reaction.

Just a little separation, and I’m already like this.

It’s fortunate that Yoon Si-woo is on leave. If not, I’m already worried about how I’ll manage when we have to be apart.

...I guess the only option is to keep myself together.

As I thought about that, I started walking.

The task I had to do today was simple.

Ever since that incident when I was dragged off by the witch, my body had undergone changes.

I was heading out to figure out what those changes were.

It was obvious that I wasn’t going to a hospital.

If the doctor who was shocked by how much my condition had improved last time saw me now, they’d probably faint.

The state I was in now was something that shouldn’t be revealed to others unless absolutely necessary.

And there was only one person who knew me well enough and could help me understand what was happening to my body.

The place I went to was a shabby building in a remote part of the city.

I pushed open the closed door and descended into the basement, where various devices were installed. A man was already seated there, waiting.

“...It’s been a while.”

The person who greeted me was Luke, or as I knew him, my guardian.

He looked quite exhausted, and when I bowed to return the greeting, he gave a bitter smile and said,

“I’ve heard you’ve been through a lot, but I’m sorry I haven’t been able to visit. There have been more people watching me than usual lately, so it took me some time to slip out unnoticed. Anyway, you said there was something strange with your body?”

“...Yes, I was hoping you could take a look. Do you have something sharp?”

“...Something sharp? Will this do?”

At my question, he pulled a pen out of his pocket and handed it to me.

It might seem shocking, but seeing is believing.

I took the pen and stabbed it into the back of my hand with all my strength.

“What are you doing?! All of a sudden...!”

“Calm down and look.”

Although he cried out in surprise, I calmly showed him my hand, where blood was dripping from the wound made by the pen.

After a short while, he murmured in shock.

“...Is it healed? What on earth...”

“I came to show you this. I was wondering if you might know what’s going on.”

“...This is going to need some explanation.”

I then gave him a rough explanation of what had happened and what I suspected had caused these changes in my body.

After that, I lay down on a suspicious-looking device and underwent various tests.

As he reviewed the results, his expression hardened, and he muttered,

“Hoo, Magira... I’ve searched far and wide for a way to improve your condition, but I never imagined this would be the solution. By the way, Scarlet, were you aware of your previous condition?”

“...Yes, that I wouldn’t live long. I vaguely remember you saying I had at most three years left.”

“...So you knew. Well, there’s one piece of bad news and one piece of good news. Which would you like to hear first?”

“...Please start with the bad news.”

At my request, he sighed deeply and pointed to my chest.

“Originally, your body had seven fragments of the witch’s heart embedded throughout it to allow you to use her powers. However, except for the one in your prosthetic arm, all the fragments have now merged into the heart in your chest. I don’t know how this happened, but that’s likely the cause of the changes in your body. Your body, which was closer to that of a human, has now become more like that of a witch.”

At those words, I instinctively touched my chest.

A bitter smile crept onto my face, and I muttered,

“...So, am I no longer human but a monster?”

“...That’s not true. Absolutely not.”

He gripped my shoulders tightly.

His gaze held a mix of emotions, but one stood out the most—faith.

With a voice full of that belief, he said to me,

“Remember this, Scarlet. No matter what happens to your body, as long as your heart holds onto human emotions, you are still a person. So don’t ever call yourself a monster. Do you understand?”

I nodded in response.

Seeing this, he smiled slightly and began to speak again.

“Come to think of it, I haven’t told you the good news yet. Scarlet, your body... it was originally in a state of gradual decay. But now, there’s no sign of that. You’re going to live a long, healthy life.”

He smiled as he whispered to me, his voice trembling with emotion.

“I’ve always been worried because of your condition, but now I can worry less. If I can see you live happily for a long time, I’ll have no regrets left. Truly... this is such a relief.”

He smiled with genuine joy.

But as I looked at him, I couldn’t bring myself to smile.

Ah, the fact that my life was no longer on a timer should have made me happy.

But I couldn’t smile at all.

It felt like even that was bad news.

Because, to me, even three years felt like an eternity.

Amid the voices echoing in my mind, I asked myself,

How much longer can I endure this?

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