Chapter 12: Inevitably, the Heroine

I Hate Exams (3)

"...Ah."

The first thing Aisha saw upon waking was the white ceiling, even the mold clustered in the corner was now familiar. Moonlight faintly streamed through the window, it seemed to still be night. Normally, she would have fallen back asleep as soon as she woke up, but today, she was unusually wide awake.

She was sometimes like this. Just like when she was young, she would wonder if her parents might come back. She would wander alone on that country road, where there was no one and not even a small light. Only later did she realize it was meaningless, but the habit from that time still remained.

Tap- tap-

Leaning her head against the window that faithfully reflected the silent, darkened neighborhood, she lightly tapped the frame with her fingers. The fact that the image reflected in the clear window was that of a platinum-blonde girl no longer felt strange, and she let out a self-deprecating laugh.

...Reminds me of the old days.

Before coming here, she often got up at dawn and looked out the window. Back then, it was a basement apartment, so instead of seeing the buildings outside, she saw people's feet or the ground.

Thinking about it that way, life was better now than it was then. Unlike those days when she struggled to survive each day, she was now treated as a talented aspiring Hero. She even wondered if she had been given a second chance at life.

If that was the case, if she had been given another chance...

...I hope I don't lose anything this time.

#

"Aisha!"

"Frey, I told you not to shout like that from morning."

A green-haired girl ran towards her from afar, shouting excitedly. How could she be so fast with the Snail Ability? Aisha told her not to shout, but she didn't entirely dislike such an enthusiastic welcome.

"You say that, but you like it inside, don't you? How about being a little more honest?"

"...I don't."

"Hehe, okay. If you say so, then that's how it is."

"I told you not to be sarcastic, right?"

"Aaa, I know...!"

Aisha gently pushed away the approaching Frey, but she nuzzled up to her, pushing her head in. Aisha didn't know why she did that, knowing how she would react. Was she doing it on purpose?

"Oh, right. Did you see that announcement?"

"What announcement?"

"The practical exam this time. It should have popped up on your smart watch yesterday."

"...What's a smart watch?"

She had heard of a smart box, but what was a smart watch? As Aisha looked puzzled, Frey showed her wrist, as if asking if she really didn't know. What was on her wrist looked like an ordinary watch. But when she lightly pressed a small button in the center-

[Practical Exam Announcement]

A hologram popped up above it, and a voice flowed out.

-This is Veronica, the professor in charge of practical Ability usage... Today's announcement is about the groups for the practical exam in three days. Originally, we were going to have you pair up with people you're close to. But... thinking about it, it reminded me of my childhood. I didn't have any friends when I was your age. I thought there might be some of you who are like I was in my childhood,

-Groups will be decided by lottery.

Click-

The hologram and voice disappeared. After a moment of silence at this absurd announcement, Aisha cautiously opened her mouth.

"...How am I supposed to understand this?"

"Hehe, I thought, 'What is this?' when I first heard it."

The announcement said that since she didn't have any friends, she would rather decide the groups by lottery than have friends pair up - the reason was realistic enough to understand, but there was one thing that bothered her.

"This is a two-person group, right?"

"Yeah, I was going to be in the same group as you. What a shame..."

"...I have a bad feeling about this."

Two-person groups, there's no way she'd be in the same group as that guy among the many students.

...No way.

She shook her head, trying to shake off the unpleasant thought. There were over 200 students in the academy. There's no way they'd be in the same group. Thinking like that made it seem like it would happen, so she deliberately thought about something else.

What's for lunch today? She frowned slightly as she checked the smart box. Braised Pollack? Are they telling her to eat this for lunch? Aisha hated Pollack. It was somewhat edible when it was warm, but when it came out of the refrigerator, it was cold and she couldn't eat it at all.

It had a lot of bones, and above all, the texture was terrible... She didn't understand how Xenon liked it. How could he like Pollack? He said he liked fish in general, so maybe she should go to a sushi restaurant with him later and test him. She liked sushi, so it would be nice to go together...

'What am I saying.'

Why was she thinking about him liking it? It seemed better not to think at all. Thinking about two-person groups kept leading her in that direction. As Aisha rubbed her forehead and muttered, Frey wiggled her antennae and approached.

"Aisha, are you worried about something?"

"...No, I'm just thinking about that two-person group thing."

"Well, Aisha, you don't have any friends besides me. Oh, was that guy Xenon your friend too?"

"He's not my friend."

"Aww, you're always bickering, but you end up together. Aren't you friends? Or more than friends..."

"Hmph."

More than friends, what a load of nonsense. She wasn't even friends with Xenon. It's just- he kept talking to her, so she had no choice but to hang out with him. If she kept saying she didn't like it, he would look dejected. She was bothered by that, no- she just didn't want to see that, so she just hung out with him a little.

Increasing her walking speed and passing Frey, Frey called her name and chased after her. That's what she got for saying that. She knew Aisha hated those words.

"Aaa, Aisha! I was wrong...!"

"I told you not to keep pairing me with him."

"Xenon doesn't talk to other people very well. You're the only one he talks to all the time."

"That's a problem with his personality."

He didn't trust others and wanted to become a Hero only for his own goals. Xenon was completely incompatible with a typical Hero. He would change later, but not now.

"By the way, isn't Xenon handsome? I thought, 'How can a person look like that?' when I first saw him."

"Not really."

Of course, his face was okay, but she didn't want to admit it. The moment she admitted it, it would be as good as her losing. His face was ordinary. He just looked like a gigolo, there was no need to think of such a face as handsome.

"I like the more rugged type."

"But you don't seem to be interested in any other guys besides Xenon, do you?"

"I am."

"When other guys call you, you just say, 'Okay, I got it' on the spot. But when Xenon calls you, you go directly and say something. That's enough to be interested, mmmph...!"

That mouth is the problem, Frey. Aisha froze Frey's mouth and walked ahead. He kept whispering to her, so she went to tell him not to do that, but what was she supposed to do if Frey misunderstood it like that?

Entering the classroom, she saw a familiar head in one corner. The rascal was sleeping face down again today. As she glanced at him with a dissatisfied look, Frey, whose ice had disappeared from her mouth, chased after her and chattered.

"Wow, is he sleeping again? How did he even get into the academy?"

"I know, right? I told him not to sleep, but he keeps sleeping."

If he kept sleeping like that, how was he going to keep up with the class? In the original story, he always slept and often failed. Of course, it was okay then because he was quiet, but what was he going to do if he kept doing this even after being suspended?

...I have to wake him up, what else can I do?

Aisha strode towards Xenon. It had only been three days since his suspension was lifted, but if he was like this, it would be no different from rebelling in the teachers' eyes. He could really get expelled. She couldn't let that happen.

"Hey, Xenon."

Tap tap tap-

She knocked on the desk where he was lying face down and called his name. But his shoulder didn't move. Frowning slightly, she shook his shoulder, but he showed no sign of waking up.

"Is he sick or something?"

He wasn't that weak, tilting her head, she approached him slightly and put her ear close to him.

Hiss- hiss-

His breathing is fine. Sniff sniff, he smelled good. A different, fresh lavender scent than fabric softener. She was briefly intoxicated by the scent and smelled it for a long time- when her eyes suddenly caught sight of his ear. Red, as if someone had painted it red.

"...If you're awake, get up."

".......Okay."

Aisha returned to her seat without even looking at his face. It would probably take a while before she could make eye contact with him again.

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