What's Wrong with You?
I didn't know much about Meiru's family.
In fact, I didn't even know her last name, let alone which department she belonged to at the academy.
To be more precise, she had never once mentioned her family name.
It wasn't that I had asked her directly, but I figured she had her reasons for keeping it to herself, so I never pried.
Judging by her behavior and speech, she seemed accustomed to noble life, yet she was slightly clumsy in certain areas.
It was just a guess, but I had heard that illegitimate children born between nobles and commoners received awkward treatment. Perhaps she was in a similar situation.
Or maybe she was a commoner from a fallen noble family.
Either way, I thought it would be rude to ask, so I kept my mouth shut.
Although I didn't know her department, she was definitely a student at the academy.
For starters, no one—including the professors, staff, and other students—ever questioned her presence.
I didn't know when or where she took her classes, but she wore the uniform that only registered students could wear, and she had never flagged any anomalies during the mana-biometric scans. She was undoubtedly a registered student.
However, because she appeared and disappeared without a trace, and because people who met her rarely remembered her well, there was once a running joke that she was a ghost.
Of course, even that rumor faded away within a few days. In many ways, she was shrouded in mystery.
Still, having spent a considerable amount of time with Meiru, I had noticed a unique trait of hers.
Her specialty was her ability to see right through people's emotions.
Oh, of course, it wasn't like she could read minds like some psychic in a manga.
Rather, she never missed a single subtle reaction, seemingly knowing exactly when someone was lying, telling the truth, or hiding their feelings.
Well... she had never actually said this herself; it was just a guess based on my own experiences with her.
Anyway, I had met Meiru quite early on, during my first year at the academy.
She was my third friend at the academy, following Elisio Gremlina, whom I met at the entrance ceremony, and Isabella Kshatri, whom I met on the day of the magic aptitude test.
Our first meeting happened by chance when I woke up unusually early one morning and couldn't fall back asleep. I had headed out to the plaza for a dawn stroll, and there she was.
Eli rarely went outside due to her personality, and I wasn't very close with Isabella at the time.
Before I started trying to hook Lilit Tistina up with Marc, I spent most of my free time with Meiru.
In any case, she was one of the few precious connections I had outside of the original game's main heroines. But why was she here in the plaza at this hour?
"Meiru? Is that you, Meiru?"
I approached the girl crouching in front of the fountain.
In this world, black hair like mine and Meiru's was quite rare.
Among the people I knew, the only other female with black hair was a certain landlady I had briefly stayed with last year.
Even from a quick glance, and even at yesterday morning's academy entrance ceremony, I hadn't seen anyone else with black hair.
Besides, no ordinary person would come to the plaza at this hour.
"...Huh?"
She lifted her head toward the sound of my voice.
Had she been crying for a long time? Her eyes were red and swollen.
She carried the same strangely melancholic aura as when we first met, even sniffing softly. What could have happened?
"Rofel...? Is it... is it really you, Rofel?"
Meiru blinked as if staring at a mirage, then reached her hand out to me.
To be fair, excluding our very first meeting, it had been ages since we last met at such an early hour. Her reaction was understandable.
After all, running into an acquaintance in the quiet dawn was a rare occurrence.
"Yeah, it's really me. What's wrong, Meiru? Why the long face? Did something happen?"
"Ah... Rofel... Rofel! It's you... It's really you!"
After hesitantly patting my chest to make sure I was real, she suddenly lunged forward and wrapped her arms around my back.
To put it simply, she threw herself into my arms and hugged me tightly.
I was taken aback, but I could tell she wasn't in her right mind, so I didn't push her away.
Even Lilit, my one and only girlfriend, would understand just this once.
"Sob... Rofel... I'm really... *sniff*... *wahhh*!"
Clinging to me, Meiru began to weep uncontrollably.
Though I wondered what could have made her so sad, I gently patted her back in silence.
After some time, her tears finally subsided, and she seemed to regain some composure.
Yet, for some reason, she didn't pull away even after she stopped crying.
She kept her face buried deep against my chest, hiding herself from view.
I could feel her grip tightening around my back.
Ah... this is a bit awkward.
"...*sniff*..."
"...Meiru? Are you feeling better now?"
Hearing my calm voice, she gave a slight nod.
"I see. That's a relief. So, uh... could you let go of me now...?"
"Ack!"
Before I could even finish my sentence, she squeezed me with sudden force.
It was so strong that my spine actually tingled.
Wait, was Meiru always this strong?
She couldn't compare to Seraphina, but her grip was surprisingly powerful.
Then again, Seraphina was practically superhuman, so comparing the two was unfair.
"...Rofel."
"Yeah? What is it, Meiru?"
"Rofel... did you... start dating someone recently...?"
Huh?
The unexpected question left me momentarily speechless.
Why was she asking me this all of a sudden?
"Judging by your reaction... it must be true..."
She buried her face back into my chest and let out a heavy sigh.
"...Then, could you at least explain it to me...? Why... why are you dating her? What do you like about her? ...Compared to me."
"Meiru...? Why are you asking this out of the blue? And why were you out here alone at dawn in the first place—"
"Don't change the subject! Answer me!"
She shouted, her voice laced with frustration.
"What makes that bitch better than me? Is it her magic? Her family background? What is it?!"
I stood there, utterly dumbfounded. I had never seen her act like this before.
"Answer me! What does that bitch Isabella Kshatri have that I don't?!"
Isabella Kshatri.
Why was her name coming up now?
Well, yes, I had been with her in the dormitory until just moments ago.
And although it was entirely one-sided, we had crossed lines that only lovers or married couples should cross...
But putting today's sudden incident aside, I could confidently say our relationship was strictly platonic.
Besides, I already had a real girlfriend: Lilit Tistina.
"...What are you talking about?"
Perhaps thrown off by my genuine confusion, Meiru's heated anger faltered slightly.
"You recently started dating someone. That famous girl from the Magic Department, Isabella Kshatri. ...Right?"
"No, I'm not."
Hearing my answer, which carried not a shred of deceit, Meiru looked utterly bewildered. Her eyes practically spun.
"Huh? Wait, you're not? Then why was she... But she wasn't lying back then either... And what was that photo about anyway...? Why was Rofel looking like that...? What on earth is going on..."
Resting her chin in her hand, she began to mutter to herself in a voice too quiet for me to make out.
Soon, she regained her composure and glared at me, her voice turning cold as she pressed further.
"But the rumor that you're dating someone was true. Rofel, who are you dating?"
"I was actually about to tell you. You've met her often enough, so you should know. I recently started dating Lilit Tistina—"
"With Lilit Tistina?"
Meiru reacted with sheer shock, cutting me off mid-sentence.
What's this...? She looks incredibly displeased.
"By the way, Meiru, what was all that about earlier?"
"...Huh? What do you mean?"
"I mean, when you thought I was dating Isabella. You asked me what I liked about her compared to you. Why did you ask that...?"
"M-More importantly! Congratulations on dating Lilit! S-So, how did you two end up together? I know you've known each other for a while, but I'm just dying to know the details!"
Uh, that question...
Once again, I found myself at a loss for words.
How Lilit and I started dating?
'Oh, yeah! I got completely wasted, couldn't control my urges around the Duke's daughter, and ended up defiling her! Hahaha, isn't that hilarious?'
No idiot in their right mind would answer like that.
"Oh? Ah, right! Anyway, it's really great to see you after so long, Meiru! How have you been?"
"Huh? Oh, me? I-I've been great! Just keeping busy with this and that, you know? Hahaha!"
And so, we scrambled to change the subject, reaching a silent agreement not to pry too deeply into each other's affairs.
We did it so frantically that we almost forgot what we had been questioning in the first place.