When I entered the assigned dormitory room, a girl with long silver hair cascading down to her shoulders was unpacking her belongings.
This girl seed to be my new roommate, the one I would be living with from now on.
She was so beautiful that I couldn’t help but admire her.
Hearing my remark, the girl’s face flushed red.
She seed quite shy.
‘Wait a minute, wouldn’t it be weird to tell soone they’re pretty the first ti you et them?’
Oh no, I made a mistake.
Co to think of it, comnting on soone’s appearance right after eting them might feel rude.
I decided to apologize first.
“Um, hey? If that upset you, I’m sorry.”
The girl’s face flickered with a mix of surprise and shyness at my words. Then she gave a slight smile and replied.
“It’s okay! What you said earlier was a complint, right? Thank you!”
“Are you sure you’re okay? Your reaction didn’t look so positive just now.”
“No! I’m not upset. It’s just… I was a little startled to hear sothing like that out of the blue. But I don’t think you ant it in a bad way. Right?”
“That’s right! Thanks for understanding!”
The girl didn’t seem to take it badly.
As I thought, it’s always best to apologize when in doubt.
She gave a warm smile.
“I don’t mind, but maybe don’t tell others they’re pretty or handso out of nowhere. So people feel mocked when their appearance is comnted on so casually and might get upset. Oh, but really, I was fine. Don’t dwell on it too much.”
“You’re right! That makes sense. I’ll be careful.”
Indeed, there are people who can’t take complints as they are.
After the brief exchange, an awkward silence fell between us.
It felt like I should say sothing more, but I wasn’t sure how to continue the conversation.
What do people usually say in situations like this? ‘The weather’s nice?’ or ‘Did you eat?’
Those options felt weird.
The girl seed hesitant to speak as well.
Right, they say questions are good for keeping a conversation going.
I cleared my throat.
“Uh, um, did you just move into this dorm too? Are you a freshman?”
“Yes, that’s right! I just started at Polaris this year. Are you a freshman too?”
“Wow? Really? That’s aweso! Yeah, I’m a freshman too. Nice to et you! I’m Violet. Violet D. Rugilinn. What about you?”
I left out the middle na because it sounded awkward and just said ‘D.’
It sounded kind of cool though, like I belonged to a legendary clan.
In response to my question, the girl replied with a radiant smile like a blooming flower.
“So it’s true they pair roommates with classmates? Nice to et you, Rugilinn! I’m Daphne Grace.”
Her large, sapphire-blue eyes sparkled with curiosity.
Wait a second, Daphne… what?
It sounded familiar sohow.
“Uh, sorry? My hearing’s a bit dull. Could you say your na again?”
“Daphne Grace. Were you wondering about the spelling? …Rugilinn? Are you okay? Your expression…”
I forced my stiff face into a bright smile.
Daphne looked at with concern, as if sensing sothing was off.
“Are you feeling unwell?”
“No, no. I’m fine. Perfectly healthy! Ehehe…”
It was a lie.
The mont I heard her na, I felt a wave of dizziness.
I stumbled back a step and almost lost my balance.
“I… need to go to the restroom for a mont!”
I pushed the restroom door open and hurried inside.
-Splash!
Splashing cold water on my face helped regain my composure.
I realized that extre shock could indeed cause dizziness.
‘eting her here…?’
Thinking about Daphne Grace’s identity made my head spin.
Daphne Grace.
A delicate, gentle-looking beauty with waist-length hair braided to the side and large blue eyes.
A girl who always spoke politely.
She was a character of significant importance in the story.
And she had a rather unique connection to ‘.’
She would be killed by ‘.’
To be precise, she would be killed by the future —the Boundless Witch—about four or five years from now.
If she were just killed, I could curse her murderer and move on, but the cinematic cutscene depicting her death in the ga was highly traumatic.
—
“Ha… Look at you, Academic Supervisor. Your principles, the vermin you tried to protect, not a single one amounted to anything. In the end, it was all futile. Like a snowman in the spring breeze, like dew in the sunlight, all crumbling to dust without a trace. Stop with the aningless acts and face reality.” ℞𝘈𝐍𝖔𝐁Ěṩ
“…Where’s Daphne?”
“Oh, the ‘Saint of Salvation’? That girl who scread, ‘Run away, Supervisor!’ while watching you flee like a coward?”
Is this… what you’re looking for?
“…..!”
“She held out for quite a while, but in the end, this is what happened. Watching soone struggle to save vermin was hilariously pitiful. Ahahaha!”
—
Daphne sacrificed herself to protect people during the Obsidian Legion’s terror attack.
She saved the wounded protagonist, the Academic Supervisor, by giving up her life.
Her sacrifice was rewarded by her head being severed and rolling across the cold floor.
But this… this was beyond coincidence. To et the ‘Saint’ here?
Her nickna ‘Saint’ ca from her altruistic actions.
And ?
I was a witch who took lives.
The future perpetrator and victim eting as dorm roommates—what kind of joke was this?
“Oh, my head…”
So of the released characters in the ga had connections to Polaris Academy.
I had considered the possibility of eting them, but encountering her was beyond my imagination.
Who would have thought Daphne was from Polaris Academy?
“Ah, whatever…”
I decided to accept it.
Who knows what other bizarre events might occur?
Worrying about everything would only make my head hurt.
After straightening my clothes, I quietly stepped out of the restroom.
A pair of concerned blue eyes awaited .
“May I take a look for a mont?”
Daphne cautiously approached.
“Huh..? What?”
“When faced with a new environnt, psychological stress can sotis cause symptoms like headaches or dizziness. I wondered if that might be the case for you. May I check?”
Her face grew serious as she drew closer to examine .
Daphne’s soft hands approached, and I instinctively accepted her touch.
Each of her actions exuded kindness.
Her hands gently clasped mine and brushed against my forehead.
“Hmm… How do you feel?”
“Your body temperature is normal, and your pulse is steady. It seems you were just a bit nervous about being in a new environnt. Please wait for a mont.”
From her hand resting on the top of my head, a gentle, warm green light of magic spread outward.
Wow, this is really warm and soothing. If she kept stroking my head like this while radiating that light, I might just fall asleep.
“Ooh… I feel a little better. What is this?”
“It’s nothing special. I simply released a small wave of magic to stabilize your emotions using my unique ability. How do you feel now? A bit better?”
“Wow, that’s amazing. I really do feel better! Thank you.”
The dizziness in my head completely disappeared.
Indeed, Daphne seems to be the kind and gentle person I know.
Unique abilities specializing in recovery aren’t very common, after all.
Yeah, I’m .
There’s no point in getting worked up over a future that may never happen.
-Grrr…
Suddenly, my stomach growled. Now that I think about it, I haven’t had lunch yet.
“Thanks for treating earlier! You’re Daphne, right? Are you hungry by any chance? Let’s grab sothing to eat together!”
“If you’re okay with it, Rugilinn, I don’t mind at all. It’s about lunchti now… But is there anywhere to eat inside Polaris Academy?”
“No idea!”
“Pardon?”
I unfolded the brochure that was handed out to the new dormitory residents.
“Here’s a map. Let’s figure it out as we go!”
With light steps, I headed out of the dormitory.
Daphne stamred, “Uh? Uh?” and quickly followed behind .
Exploring and finding out for yourself is part of the fun.
“Adventure, start!”
A short while later, we were munching on sandwiches in the cafeteria at Polaris Academy.
“Wow, these sandwiches are really good! And the price is reasonable, too. We should eat here for lunch once classes start.”
“Nom… nom… mhm, yeah. Except there’s way too much pickle in it.”
The sandwiches here were generous in portion and ca with a drink.
And yet, they only cost 300 credits. If not for the pickles, it would have been perfect.
I disassembled my sandwich and removed every last pickle.
“You don’t seem to like cucumbers, Rugilinn.”
“Of course not. Cucumbers are the most useless vegetable in the world… But why do you keep using such formal speech with , Daphne?”
“My way of speaking? I’ve spoken like this since I was young, and it’s beco a habit I can’t seem to shake. Is it bothering you? I can try to fix it now if you’d like…”
“I don’t hate it. I just think it’s fascinating! We’re about the sa age, after all.”
Honestly, if we consider ntal age, I’m probably close to ten years older than Daphne.
Age hasn’t been that significant to since I beca a young girl, though.
And so, after enjoying our al, we returned to the dormitory.
The start of the sester was fast approaching.
The past few days had been quite leisurely.
Aside from picking up my uniform from the school’s shop and buying so daily necessities, I spent most of my ti lazing around the dormitory.
Turns out, the asurents they took at the research institute were for the uniforms.
Thankfully, after submitting a few forms, they guided through everything.
When I entered the uniform shop and gave my na, they handed my uniform right away.
I heard it has so protective features.
Truly fitting for a school from a ga.
In the anti, I explored Polaris Academy, comparing it to the ruins in my mory from the ga.
‘It’s almost identical! There’s potential to gather materials or items.’
The conclusion was that it was nearly the sa as the place I knew.
Except, of course, for the students not being replaced by ghouls.
Polaris Academy’s scale is vast, rivaling that of several large universities combined.
Beyond the campus lies a forested mountain and a lake.
Though currently off-limits, they’ll open once classes begin.
I’ll have to sneak in to gather materials and locate treasure chests.
I heard they released weak magical beasts in the mountain for training purposes.
How very fantasy-like, with their utter disregard for safety.
They even had a dedicated dungeon.
What if the dungeon burst open and the magical beasts poured out?
‘What a bizarre world.’
The world of the Deep Crimson Academia has a culture governed by either a rugged, masculine spirit, if seen positively, or sheer lunacy, if seen negatively.
Rustlum, situated on the continent with the most gates opened during the First Dinsional Invasion, remains filled with dungeons and gates of various sizes due to lingering effects.
It’s essentially the frontline.
The reason for placing Awakener training institutions in such a location was, according to the setting, to prepare for a second invasion.
‘It’s like building a military academy right next to the demilitarized zone.’
Not stopping there, they also constructed a defense research lab and a tank factory nearby.
As expected of a poorly researched ga by soone with no military experience, the setting is full of holes.
“Rugilinn, hurry up! The entrance ceremony is about to start!”
In the distance, Daphne waved at , calling out.
It was the first day of September, the sester’s opening day, and the day of the entrance ceremony.
Polaris Academy was crowded with students returning from vacation.
‘Strangely, I don’t see any parents.’
Despite being an entrance ceremony, the area in front of the grand auditorium was filled only with students, staff, and what seed to be teachers.
Everyone parted ways at the entrance as if it were a military boot camp.
In the ga, schools like Aegis Academy or Vesperia Pri Academy had parents snapping photos with their kids.
This place must have a different culture.
“Hurry up~”
At Daphne’s urging, I stopped looking around and walked briskly toward her.
A massive crowd had gathered in front of the grand auditorium, its Gothic arches and pointed spires standing out prominently.
I checked the inside of my coat.
The dual-star alloy hamr I brought from the research institute lay snug in my inner pocket.
‘In a world like this, it’s standard for weird monsters or villains to crash the entrance ceremony.’
If sothing happens, I’ll smash a window with this and escape with Daphne.
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