On a weekend morning, I felt a little better after hugging Kalia tightly.
There’s nothing quite as stabilizing for the mind and body as holding soone close.
However, I did get scolded a bit.
“Do you think I’m so kind of hugging machine? This isn’t like when you were a puppy and dozens of you sward … You didn’t do this to anyone else, right?”
“I didn’t! Really! I swear!”
“Ugh… Don’t ever do this to anyone else! Got it? If they’re non-awakened, soone could get crushed or throw out their back.”
What Kalia said wasn’t wrong, but she was describing my affectionate gestures as if they were a disaster.
That’s too much. Shouldn’t soone be happy and generously accept it when cute girls like us co rushing toward them?
-But it was warm…-
-It felt better than hugging just among ourselves.-
It felt different from when we hugged each other and slept on the bed.
Honestly, it was much better.
Maybe it was because of the height difference.
The girls I knew were all about the sa height as or taller.
I hadn’t seen anyone smaller than .
-We’re only 150 cm tall. Not particularly tall even for girls, so it can’t be helped.-
-Didn’t it sll a bit sharp during the hug? Like cigarettes?-
-Kalia doesn’t smoke. It’s the sll of gunpowder.-
I hadn’t seen anything unusual last night. Had there been a hunt or so trouble in the area during the night?
The security of the Academy City was managed by the clans, so places like the city center or near schools were very safe. However, the outskirts they ignored weren’t as secure.
In such areas, people preferred to arm themselves with personal defense weapons and form vigilante groups rather than waiting for the police, who might never show up—or might make things worse if the criminal was awakened.
The most effective way to deal with an awakened criminal was to confront them with another awakened individual since ether protection wrapped around their skin could only be penetrated by magic.
I’d heard that ordinary citizens in this world sotis hired awakened individuals as problem-solvers.
While non-awakened people could fight awakened ones by preparing with automatic rifles or explosives, it caused significant collateral damage, so hiring an awakened was relatively less destructive.
Though it cost a lot of money and required so discretion, everything in life has its pros and cons.
-The streets were quiet when we drank last night. There shouldn’t have been any trouble.-
-Right. This neighborhood is patrolled by the Brotherhood, so it’s safe.-
The Brotherhood included Kalia and other awakened mbers, so there was no need to rely on others.
-So, what’s your plan now?-
No. 2, who had been silent, finally spoke.
-Plan for what?-
-Let’s think calmly. Our situation, where we’ve forgotten our nas, hasn’t changed. School and everything else are still piled up. What’s your next move? Should we quit?-
-I don’t want to… but…-
No. 1, who seed to have regained so energy, stretched and stood up.
-For now, we have to survive in this strange world.-
-Exactly.-
-Let’s help Irene for a bit first, and then think about the rest later.-
The shock from yesterday hadn’t disappeared entirely.
The fact that our mories weren’t intact was an undeniable reality.
We couldn’t avoid or ignore it.
Still, with imdiate reality staring us in the face, we had to push it aside, even if forcibly.
-Let’s take it easy for a while and avoid tough jobs.-
-Yeah…-
***
No. 27 lay on her dormitory bed, pulled the blanket over her head, and closed her eyes again.
Listening to the voices of the Violets in her mind, the slight excitent she had felt subsided.
She still didn’t have the will to do anything.
Lying down, she stretched her legs and counted the beams on the ceiling. Suddenly, soone called her from under the bed.
“Rugilinn, are you asleep?”
Peeking down from the ladder, I saw Daphne getting ready to go out.
“No? I’m not asleep. Why did you call ?”
“The weather’s nice. Want to go to the city outside the academy with ?”
“Uh… wait a second…”
I was about to decline out of laziness but suddenly recalled yesterday.
The mory of snapping at innocent Daphne stung my conscience.
It felt right to go along with whatever Daphne wanted here.
“There’s a café nearby that serves delicious parfait. I’ll treat you.”
“Alright, I’ll go…”
After throwing on so casual clothes and grabbing my wallet, I noticed Daphne giving a strange look.
“Rugilinn?”
“What?”
“It’s an outing. Why don’t you wear sothing other than your tracksuit?”
“It’s comfortable! Besides, all my other clothes are similar to this.”
“Don’t you have anything else?”
I shook my head firmly.
When I stayed at Kalia’s place, I had bought clothes, but my stubborn preference for convenience ant I didn’t have a single skirt besides my school uniform.
Kalia wasn’t the type to fuss over fashion, so she hadn’t cared either.
When I opened the wardrobe to show her, Daphne’s blue eyes widened in disbelief.
“This is all? Everything is the sa color…”
“Huh? Is there a hole in the clothes?”
At my reply, Daphne sighed deeply.
“That’s not the problem. I’m glad I spoke up. Co on, let’s go clothes shopping first!”
Wow, this was the first ti my gentle roommate had shown such a bold side.
I couldn’t even resist and was helplessly dragged outside the academy.
Save !
When we arrived in the city, the first place we visited was a small clothing store.
“I already have clothes! I’m fine, really!”
“Tracksuits and hiking clothes don’t count as clothes. No wonder you only wear your uniform… Sigh. Excuse , are you the staff here? Could you help , please?”
“Yes, of course, ma’am~”
And so, I spent almost an hour trying on various outfits, practically like a dress-up doll.
“So annoying…”
“Look in the mirror. How is it?”
“Huh…? Surprisingly, not bad.”
In the mirror stood a girl wearing a simple flared skirt and blouse, with a cardigan draped over it.
The clothes felt unfamiliar, but the reflection looked unexpectedly decent.
It was the first ti I had worn such clothing since I had been possessed.
After buying a few outfits, we left the store, and Daphne, who seed satisfied, suddenly asked a question.
“Do you have any makeup? Or none?”
“I do! Lotion!”
“What about other things?”
“…Camouflage cream?”
“As I thought, you don’t.”
“Wait a second! Didn’t you say you’d buy crepes? And parfaits!”
“I’ll buy those for you afterward. Now, let’s go!”
This ti, I was dragged into a costics store.
Wait a second, let go!
Apart from skin lotion, I don’t know a thing about makeup.
Everything here is completely unfamiliar!
I ca out to eat desserts but sohow ended up getting a crash course in using won’s costics. It was ridiculous.
“This is used like this. And that is applied here.”
“Like this?”
“Ms. Rugilinn! That’s n’s skin lotion. Not that—co here. You weren’t paying attention to , were you?”
“…Ehehe…”
At first, I thought of buying anything randomly and leaving, but my clumsy attempts at handling makeup products and tools must have been obvious.
Daphne gently but persistently asked about this and that, and I had to admit I knew nothing about won’s costics.
Her shocked reaction was quite striking.
Was this how fantasy novel protagonists felt when they encountered primitive people who didn’t know how to grill at?
Once the explanation ended, Daphne gave a quick makeover as a demonstration.
“There, all done… Wow.”
Looking in the mirror, I understood why she let out that short exclamation.
“…Is this ?”
It was astounding.
It was undoubtedly , yet soone else stood there.
If the previous Violet had been a 100-point beauty, the current Violet was a 1,000-point beauty!
Is this the power of makeup?
“Honestly, I’m a bit surprised. You’ve never done makeup before, and this was your first ti picking clothes… Ms. Rugilinn, your past makes curious… Ah, I’m not teasing. It’s just that I’ve never seen soone like you among girls your age.”
“Well, I’m curious too…”
This sudden experience made my head spin a bit. It was all too overwhelming.
After everything was over, I mindlessly devoured the parfait Daphne bought at a café.
“…How did you feel today?”
“My feelings? It was fine.”
We left the café and walked through the city.
Daphne handed a waffle.
Actually, more than fine, it had been chaotic and overwhelming, so I wasn’t sure how I felt.
But it hadn’t been bad. The parfait was delicious, after all. And this waffle is good too.
“Then I’m glad.”
“Glad about what?”
“Do you know what your expression was like all week, Ms. Rugilinn? You looked incredibly worn out. So, I thought you might feel better with so fresh air. You weren’t uncomfortable, were you?”
“No, it was nice. The parfait was delicious!”
“Then that’s a relief. Really.”
I think I heard her sigh, but maybe it was my imagination.
Soon enough, the outing, which was both long and short, was coming to an end.
The academy gates were visible in the distance.
This morning’s thoughts briefly crossed my mind. What would it feel like to hug Daphne?
“Can I hug you?”
I casually approached her and spread my arms.
She looked puzzled but responded to .
I gently buried my face against Daphne’s soft chest.
It was cozy.
So soft.
Her body slled faintly of lavender.
It wasn’t a bad day.
Thanks to her, I felt a bit more energized.
Although my situation hadn’t changed, I felt ready to focus on what needed to be done.
Reviews
All reviews (0)