Chapter 20: Inevitably, the Heroine

I Hate the Club (1)

The vibration rattled my head. I thought it would be brief and tried to ignore it and fall back asleep, but for some reason, the vibration continued incessantly. Just what is this noise? With a disgruntled expression, I groped around on the floor until my hand landed on something hard.

Woo-oong-

Feeling the cold, chilling sensation of metal, I realized that the object in my hand was a Smartwatch. Just as I was wondering why I was getting a call at this ungodly hour, I heard a rather urgent voice in my ear.

-Aisha!

Frey's voice sounded as if something had happened. Sensing that something was up, I cleared my throat a few times, and Frey dropped a rather shocking statement.

-You're late! Don't tell me you were still asleep?

"...What?"

Late? But it's still so dark in the house... Only then did I notice the curtains covering the window. I had closed the curtains so tightly after coming home that they blocked out even the moonlight, which was why the house was so dark. A chill ran down my spine, and something heavy seemed to drop in my chest.

Stiffly, I turned my head to look at the clock, which already read 9 o'clock.

"...Ah."

I'm screwed.

#

Swaaa-

To make matters worse, rain was pouring down as soon as I opened the door. Normally, I would have used my Ability to just run, but using my Ability on a rainy day could cause me to slip... so I was hesitant to use it.

"Huu... I hate rain."

I had no choice but to open my umbrella and decide to walk. I didn't like getting rained on, but I thought it was kind of charming to watch the rain falling, so I figured it would be nice to walk slowly. Whether I left now or earlier, I was still going to be late anyway.

Thud-

Magnolias were falling to the ground, battered by the rain. The magnolias, already tinged with brown, were falling, and green leaves were taking their place, signaling that summer was slowly approaching. Maybe the weather would get much hotter after this rain stopped.

Raindrops bounced off the umbrella and hit the ground. Ripples formed in the quickly accumulating puddles, and I blankly watched them. I stared at my reflection in the disappearing ripples. I don't feel anything anymore. My first season as a woman. While I felt something subtle, I also thought that maybe it was for the best.

If I had continued to feel repulsed by this body, it would have been quite uncomfortable. I'm a woman now. As I thought about something that would have horrified me in the past, I skipped over a puddle and started walking. One, two- counting the puddles I jumped over, I felt like I was returning to my childhood, and the corners of my mouth turned up slightly.

Come to think of it, I am young now, aren't I?

Seventeen years old. I was taking it for granted that the innocence I possessed was natural, when I heard someone running from behind. It was a quiet street with no one going to work or school. With a disgruntled expression at the ruined atmosphere, I turned around and saw someone running from afar.

"...Who is it?"

A person running without an umbrella, just covering their head with their hands. As I watched them for a moment, I realized that the person's hair was white, and one person suddenly came to mind.

...Could it be?

There's no way I'd run into him at such a perfect time. I shook my head a few times to clear away the unnecessary thoughts and started walking again. Xenon, as I thought of that name, yesterday's events began to come to mind. Meeting Hera Carmen, fighting villains, and now having to face a development I don't know.

"Huu."

Why was the way home so far? It was an hour by subway, but that hour felt like a lifetime. I was quite exhausted yesterday. It was partly because I had used my Ability to its limit, and partly because my body was stiff from the tension of fighting against 10 villains.

Maybe that's why I was late. When people are too exhausted, they can't even hear the alarm and just pass out. Maybe the professor will take my circumstances into consideration if I explain them? Yesterday's villain attack was a pretty big deal, and when I briefly looked at my Smartwatch earlier, there were several missed calls from Professor Veronica.

That's probably why I feel so relaxed now. My heart dropped when I realized I was late, but when I thought about it, my lateness was only natural. How could I not be tired after fighting like that? If I wasn't tired, I wouldn't be human; I'd be a machine.

"...I don't want to go to school."

My true feelings slipped out unintentionally. Even though I had slept, I was still tired because I had woken up to the phone call and rushed to get ready. I doubted whether I would be able to listen to the class today with a clear head. I just wanted to take a day off. As I was thinking this and walking blankly, I felt someone approaching me.

"Aisha."

A familiar and slightly tired voice. When I turned my head slightly, Xenon, soaked in the rain, scratched his head and stood next to me.

"...Um, can I share your umbrella?"

"Haa..."

So you were the one running earlier, but you didn't even bring an umbrella... I wanted to ignore him, but he looked like a drowned rat, and his white hair made him look even more pathetic, so I reluctantly handed him the umbrella.

"Here, you hold it."

"Thanks. But are you late too?"

"...Yeah, I woke up to Frey's call."

"Well, you did look really tired yesterday."

You couldn't even walk properly, he added, as Xenon tilted the umbrella towards me. A slight distance opened up between Xenon and me, and the umbrella was completely over me. When I glanced at him, his shoulder was clearly exposed and getting wet.

"Hey, your shoulder."

"Huh? Oh, it's okay. As long as my head doesn't get wet."

He smiled slightly, saying it was okay, but I felt a nagging discomfort in my chest. I gave him the umbrella, but it would be uncomfortable if he got so wet. I glanced at the distance between him and me. It was just enough space for us to share the umbrella. Fortunately, the umbrella I brought was a bit large. If we stood completely close, neither of us would get wet.

Hmm.

After pondering for a moment, I casually moved closer to Xenon.

"...Aisha?"

"Your shoulder's getting wet. Just... stay like this."

I also felt a bit sorry. Actually, what I said on the rooftop before kept bothering me. It was all resolved now, and he said he was fine, but I couldn't help but feel uncomfortable. To be honest, it wasn't easy to see him looking so out of it for the past few days.

Although I didn't want to be a heroine, I thought being friends... would be okay. And it didn't seem like he was going to confess to me. Thanks to Hera Carmen's actions, he would be focused on that for the time being. The plot had changed quite a bit from the original, and I thought he would be too busy to be in a relationship.

This much should be okay.

"...Are you okay?"

Xenon cautiously opened his mouth. I was about to answer him when I lifted my head, but when I looked at his face, it seemed like I should be the one asking that question. His face was so red from just standing a little closer. He must be really inexperienced with women.

Well, that's how he was in the original story, so I guess I should understand.

"It's better than getting wet. I gave you the umbrella, so you shouldn't get wet."

"Th, haa. Okay. If you say so."

He seemed resigned as he ran his hand over his face and started asking other things. Was I okay after getting hurt yesterday? Did I get home safely? Did Hera say anything else? I answered one by one, but when I got tired and closed my mouth, he seemed embarrassed and scratched his head, closing his mouth as well.

"...I won't sleep anymore."

"What?"

"I just mean, I won't sleep in class anymore."

What wind had blown that kind of talk into him? I stared blankly at him in surprise, and Xenon avoided my gaze and opened his mouth.

"...Well, there will be a lot of fighting villains in the future. And Hera getting involved with you... is kind of my fault. So I'm going to try hard. I have to... avoid suspension."

"Well... it's a relief, but."

I still felt uneasy. I thought he would work hard now that he was going to stay at the academy, but what he just said made it sound like he was staying at the academy because of me. My eyes narrowed slightly.

"I can see the school gate now."

Hearing those words, I lifted my head and saw the academy's gate in the distance. The time was... a little past 10 o'clock. I really was late, I thought. Had I ever been this late since coming here? Frey had been sending me texts on my Smartwatch earlier.

I had never made a single mistake since entering the academy, so she must be quite worried that I was late for the first time in a month. I felt a bit guilty, but I nonchalantly waved to the security guard in the small building in front of the gate.

"...Do you always greet him like that?"

"Yeah, he works hard."

"I worked hard holding the umbrella too."

"...What do you want me to do about it?"

"Just saying."

He chuckled and lowered the umbrella. I was surprised by the sudden movement and covered my head, but then I realized the situation when I saw Xenon staring at me in bewilderment.

The rain had stopped, and only puddles remained as traces of the heavy rain that had been pouring down until just now. The sun was shining through the white clouds in the sky. Maybe it was just a shower.

Anyway, I should go to class now. Feeling a bit uneasy, I headed to the classroom with Xenon.

#

"Aisha! I was worried."

"There's no need to worry. I just overslept a bit."

Frey was more energetic than ever. I thought the antennae on her head, twitching non-stop, were cute, but I was still at the mercy of her uncontrollable tension. Maybe it was because of the rain. As an Ability user of Snail, she resembled that part of it unnecessarily.

"You never oversleep! Was the practical exam yesterday too hard? Did you run into a villain or something?"

Whish, whish-

I was being tossed around by Frey's immense strength as she grabbed my shoulders and shook me like a doll. I grabbed Frey's clingy arms and opened my mouth.

"Ugh- Frey, I'm dizzy. Stop."

"It's all Aisha's fault. Why do you make people worry?"

By the way, it was a bit difficult to answer the question about running into a villain. Had she not seen the news yet? If that was the case, I thought it would be better if she didn't know. Frey tends to worry about me a bit too much.

She's been stuck to me ever since I was late.

"Well... there were just some things going on. I ran some errands, did some chores. Isn't it the same for you?"

"Right? I didn't have anything special other than finding lost children and catching pickpockets."

"Pickpockets? Tell me about it."

I was curious about the story of catching pickpockets, so I was listening when Xenon suddenly came up and tapped me on the shoulder.

"Aisha, the professor is calling for you."

"Oh, Xenon, are you okay now? I thought you were about to die."

"Ah... I'm okay now. Thanks for worrying, Frey."

Xenon, no more accustomed to Frey's energy than before, glanced at me, looking slightly flustered. If the professor called for us... it must be about that.

"She's calling for you and me, right?"

"Yeah."

As I suspected, it seemed to be Veronica's summons.

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