## Chapter 17
Ding-ding-ding~ Good morning~ Ding-ding-ding~ Ba-ba-ba, ba-ba, ba-ba~
I buried my face in the pillow and stretched my arm out to switch off the alarm.
It’s the kind of music that is specifically designed to make people angry every time it plays.
Every time I heard it, I felt more stressed and considered changing it a few times, but I forced myself to leave it as it was, worried that if I changed it, I’d forget the world I originally came from.
……I don’t want to go to school.
I just wanted to cocoon myself in bed, not think about anything, and zone out.
But still, I had to go to school.
Ignoring my bed’s desperate pleas not to leave me behind, I forced my body to rise.
I need to buy some macarons for Silvia.
*
“Hey, if you’re struggling, you can just sit and rest.”
As I stood there momentarily dazed with a broom in hand, the class president hesitantly spoke up.
“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 really fall asleep until the crack of dawn.
Honestly, I felt more dazed than tired.
Did I hit my head too hard…?
When I slightly frowned, still feeling a little tingle where I bumped my head, the class president, looking at me with sympathetic eyes, pulled something from their pocket and offered it to me.
It was chocolate.
“If you’re struggling, eat this. Sweet things are the best in times like these.”
……It felt weird to be receiving something after always being the one giving.
My hand trembled as I accepted the chocolate; it was just that unfamiliar.
“……Okay, I’ll eat it later.”
“If you need help, definitely say something.”
I didn’t reply and just gave a small smile to the class president as they said this.
Sorry, but I don’t think I can tell you, president.
I quietly tucked the chocolate into my pocket.
*
Silvia, who had been showing me various expressions lately, was really good at hiding her feelings.
Maybe because she grew up with the family teaching her to always be composed, it was hard to tell what she was thinking unless it was an extreme case. But there was one exception.
When I watched Silvia, I sometimes noticed her ears twitch slightly.
It was such a subtle detail that you’d really have to pay attention to catch it, but since I always kept a close watch on her, I could sense it.
That was the signal that she was thinking about wanting to eat macarons.
Thanks to the efforts I’d put in over the past few days at school, I could even feel her gaze instinctively turning toward me when she wanted macarons.
I felt good, thinking that my plan to turn Silvia into a friend was gradually making progress.
As soon as our eyes met, I nodded and swiftly dashed to the cafeteria to buy some macarons.
Seeing me do that, Silvia looked both incredulous and resigned.
She wasn’t the type of child to show a lot of expressions, but seeing her reveal her feelings like this made me think we were gradually getting closer.
“Miss Scarlet, did I perhaps mutter something about wanting to eat macarons?”
With a curious look, Silvia eyed me.
I shook my head and replied.
“You didn’t say it, but… it seemed like you wanted to…”
“So how did you know?”
Uhh… because I watch you all day long?
If I said that literally, I’d definitely get treated like a stalker, so I decided to phrase it a bit more tactfully.
“Because we’re friends, I can tell.”
“Because we’re friends… I see. But you keep buying them for me; is there a reason?”
“…It’s just, because we’re friends…”
At my answer, Silvia’s expression seemed to become complicated.
She kept clenching and releasing her fists, as if trying to say something before stopping, ultimately taking the macaron I offered her with a sigh.
“…Okay, I’ll enjoy it. Miss Scarlet.”
The expression on Silvia’s face while putting the macaron in her mouth was much softer than before.
Ooooh… this is!
I could distinctly feel the friendship gauge rising!
It had to be a significant affection-boosting event.
I suppressed the flames that were about to surge out of my body.
I felt like if I kept looking at Silvia, I might burn my clothes.
Then I’d end up in debt!
I quickly dashed out of the classroom.
To calm myself, I headed up to the school rooftop to get some fresh air.
Thinking back, the rooftop has this strange perception of being a place you shouldn’t easily access.
Maybe because in manga or novels, it feels like a spot where the protagonist skips class to take a nap or have a secret rendezvous with their crush—an area reserved for the true insiders.
As I pondered this, I opened the rooftop door and saw someone already there.
As soon as I spotted them, I intended to close the door again and leave, but it seemed it was too late.
“Hey, don’t worry about me, you can come up.”
There was a certain pressure in their voice that made it feel as though refusing wasn’t an option.
I couldn’t reject it and gently opened the door to step onto the rooftop.
“You look like a freshman; I don’t care about being formal, so just relax, okay?”
The person speaking had an appearance that made it impossible to relax.
A dangerously short skirt.
A uniform top tied up to expose her belly button.
Her pronounced bosom and exposed legs radiated femininity to the point of being breathtaking…
Sun-kissed skin sparkling in the sunlight.
Whether dyed or natural, her blonde hair was tied in a ponytail, making it clear she did not resemble a model student at all.
Her eye-catching look was on a different level compared to the average delinquents trying to dress decently.
She effortlessly carried such a striking appearance as if she had always been this way.
The charisma emanating from her clearly indicated she was at the top of the school caste system.
I trembled, imagining her.
Sitting at the back of the classroom by the window, completely uninterested in lessons, resting her chin on her hand while staring outside.
When the crude delinquents were making noise and bothering others, she would just lean over her desk and casually say, “Shut up,” instantly silencing them!
Though realistically, that probably wasn’t the case!
Eek! My body is trembling!
My inner commoner screamed, but I quietly stood, holding onto the railing slightly away from her.
I could feel her gaze on me.
Please don’t look at me like that…
“I’m a bit bored; want to chat for a while? Come closer.”
I obediently stepped beside her.
In this school caste system, it was impossible to refuse an order from someone of higher rank…
“Let’s introduce ourselves. I’m Leonore, from class 2-B. You?”
“Scarlet Evande… from class 1-A.”
Honestly, I already knew who she was.
Leonore Lionelle, a supporting heroine from the original story.
She’s a nice person, contrary to her looks.
I knew that, but still, the imposing presence given off by her appearance was just too much…
“So you’re in Miss Eve’s class. That must be tough. She’s really strict despite her look.”
I nodded.
Eve, while caring for her students, ran pretty tough classes.
Since she was our homeroom teacher, she likely focused even more attention on us.
That being said, it was certainly helpful in real-world situations, but it didn’t make it any less difficult.
As I recalled the training from yesterday, I felt like I was about to zone out and shook my head to clear it, prompting Leonore to smile at me.
After she laughed for a moment, she pulled something out that resembled a delinquent’s possession.
The confidence with which she was about to smoke it caught me off guard.
Wait, is that okay?
Actually, wouldn’t it be weirder if she didn’t smoke it?
When she noticed my surprised expression, she briefly examined what she was holding before shaking it in her hand.
“Just so you know, this isn’t a cigarette. It’s a magical herb; it’s good for your health. It has calming effects, as long as you don’t overdo it.”
She said that as she rummaged through her pocket with her other hand to pull out a lighter.
She tried to light the herb, but it just made a clicking noise, and nothing happened.
Tsking, she put the lighter back in her pocket.
Watching this, I released just enough of the flames I’d been holding back to ignite her herb.
Wow, a human lighter!
“Oh, thanks. So you’re a flame user!”
She looked at me with slightly surprised eyes and took a puff from the herb, then blew the smoke in my direction.
What a way to return a favor!
I closed my eyes in shock but instead of the smell I anticipated, I detected something entirely different.
It wasn’t like tobacco; it was a fresh herbal scent.
When I blinked and stared at Leonore with a dazed face, she burst out laughing.
“Haha, so? Doesn’t it smell nice? Even if it looks like this, it’s quite expensive.”
The fact that it was expensive piqued my interest a bit.
I wondered what it tasted like.
As I continued to stare, Leonore offered me the herb she had been smoking.
“Wanna give it a try?”
I nodded and took the herb she extended.
The herb that Leonore had just smoked.
…Isn’t this like an indirect kiss?
Thinking about it made me slightly embarrassed, but I didn’t show it as I brought it to my mouth.
But how do you smoke this?
Having never smoked anything before, I had no idea.
I couldn’t just keep it in my mouth, so I took a deep breath and inhaled hard.
“Hey! If a newbie inhales all at once like that!”
“……Huh?”
My head felt dizzy.
What’s going on?
“Senpai… there are now two of you…”
“Oh dear… I’ll take you to the nurse’s office, so just stay calm.”
With what felt like the strength of two people, Leonore lifted me up like a princess.
Senpai is strong.
It felt like I was flying.
“Senpai… lift me higher…”
“Haah… I’m sorry about this.”
She sighed but continued to raise and lower me.
My body swayed up and down.
Wow, this is fun!
Eek! Hahaha!
While squirming, I ended up sinking into something soft.
A bed, it’s a bed.
It’s so fluffy.
I laid my head on the pillow and crawled under the covers.
I curled up like a pill bug.
So warm…
It’s so warm that I feel sleepy…
“When I heard your name earlier, it reminded me; you’re the one running errands for that Astra girl, right?”
“Uh-huh, I’m not like that… We’re friends.”
“If you don’t want to, I could tell her to stop. What do you think?”
“No… I want to do it… otherwise I won’t have friends…”
“…Is that so?”
I heard the sound of someone rushing past the door…
I didn’t care; I was so sleepy… time to sleep…
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