The Timid Roommate's Secret
"Luna? What kind of name is that. Pretty name, Aria."
My words turned Aria's face as white as a sheet.
She opened and closed her mouth soundlessly as she backed away.
Maybe she was so shocked her arms went limp. The thick grimoires she was holding lost their balance and tumbled to the floor.
Crash! Thud!
"Eek! Hiiik!"
The loud racket made Aria scream as she collapsed to the ground.
"Um, w-well... that is..."
Her eyes spun wildly in terror.
I crossed my arms and looked down at her.
"Why'd you lie?"
"Th-that's..."
"Afraid I'd bully you or something?"
"Y-yes! N-no! I mean, not that!"
Aria shook her head furiously, but when my eyes narrowed, she bowed it again.
"T-truth is... yeah..."
She confessed in a tiny voice.
"You're... the academy's crazy... I mean, famous person, so... sharing a room, I figured I wouldn't live long..."
Honest. I like that.
The situation was obvious.
She'd recognized me from the moment I grabbed her to ask for directions earlier.
Of course. My notoriety must be something else if she'd lie about her name just to escape.
Probably planned to give a fake name, lead me to the admin office, then vanish.
But unluckily for her, the room I got assigned was hers.
I got it.
But understanding didn't make it any less annoying.
"So? Where were you gonna run off to?"
"Th-that's..."
Aria clamped her mouth shut, at a loss for words.
Not like she had anywhere to go anyway.
Dorms were already assigned.
I jerked my chin at the books on the floor.
"Pick 'em up."
"Y-yes, ma'am!"
Aria scrambled to gather them, her hands shaking so bad she kept dropping them again.
"Take it slow. I'm not gonna hit you."
"Hiiik! Y-you were gonna hit me?!"
"No."
I sighed involuntarily.
Once she'd collected the books, I turned and headed into the room.
"Come in."
"I-I... library..."
"Return time's over. And this is your room anyway."
I claimed one of the beds and sat down.
"Close the door."
At my order, Aria made a miserable face but shuffled in reluctantly.
Click.
The door shut, filling the cramped room with silence.
I looked around.
Definitely small.
Two old single beds side by side and two desks took up most of the space.
And...
"..."
The state of the room was a sight.
One side was Aria's, cluttered with books and junk. The problem was the other side.
My spot, which should've been empty, had grimoires and stacks of parchment piled mountain-high on the desk.
Hell, there were clothes just flung over the chair.
"Hey."
"Y-yes, ma'am!"
"That trash pile over there."
I nodded toward my spot.
"That ain't my welcome gift, right?"
Aria paled and waved her hands frantically.
"Hiiik! N-no! Absolutely not!"
"Then what?"
"W-well... no roommate came, so the room's small, I just... temporarily..."
"Temporarily? Looks like you moved in."
I sighed at the mess.
Not content with getting caught running, she invaded my space too.
I flicked the clothes on the chair with a finger.
"What's this? Underwear?"
"Hiiiik! Don't look!"
Aria screamed and lunged to snatch the clothes off the chair.
She clutched the bundle to her chest, flustered.
"S-sorry! I'll clean it up right now! One minute—no, 30 seconds!"
"Clean it. Now."
"Yes, ma'am!"
Aria fumbled out her wand.
Thought she'd do it by hand, but magic it is.
"Clean!"
She swung the wand, and a small whirlwind stirred in the room.
Books scattered on the floor and desk floated up on their own, slotting neatly into the shelf like magnets.
Crumpled parchments smoothed out and filed into drawers; clothes flew into the wardrobe.
Oh.
I let out an impressed noise.
Simple daily magic, but great control.
Not a speck of dust left—the room was spotless in seconds.
Click, click, click.
Even opened the window wide.
All in under 20 seconds.
"D-done...!"
Aria lowered her wand, panting. Sweat beaded on her forehead.
"Not bad."
I meant it.
Impressive mana control for basic daily spells. Manipulating multiple objects at once is high-level.
Better than most third- or fourth-years.
"You got some magic skills."
Aria jumped at the praise.
"Y-you flatter me!"
"Nah, for real. Commoner, right? Where'd you learn?"
"J-just... got lucky..."
Humble or talented. Either way, fine by me.
I propped my chin and stared at her.
Scaredy-cat, timid, can't lie... but skilled.
Prime talent.
"Guess room cleaning's on you from now on, huh?"
"Huh...?"
Aria's eyes went wide.
"E-everything...?"
"Yeah. Can't use magic, body's weak—might collapse if I clean."
Brazen lie, but she didn't dare argue.
Her lips quivered.
"B-but my friends said roommates split chores..."
"So, you hate it?"
I lowered my voice, and she gasped.
"N-no! I don't hate it!"
"Then?"
"I... love cleaning!"
Aria wailed, teary-eyed.
"Good. Healthy hobby."
I nodded, satisfied.
"Looking forward to it, roommate."
She teared up instead of answering, pretending not to notice as she unpacked.
First out was the crystal flower from Leoness.
Placed on the old wooden desk, its soft glow mysteriously lit the drab room.
"Uh... what's that?"
Aria couldn't hold back her curiosity while stowing cleaning tools.
"Gift."
"Pretty. Feels like mana waves—magic item?"
"From the north."
"The north?"
Her eyes widened. To a commoner like her, northern magic items were rare book stuff.
I smirked, stuffing clothes haphazardly into the wardrobe to finish unpacking.
"You're a scholar, right?"
"Y-yes! Correct!"
Aria snapped to attention.
"Grades?"
"Written... top score. Practical's a bit weak..."
"Ho."
Top written score.
My eyes didn't lie.
Theory whiz, daily magic pro roommate.
Lucky me.
Fun to live with. No big issues keeping her around.
By the time I finished unpacking, it was dark outside.
Unlike noble dorms, soundproofing sucked—mumbles from next door filtered in faintly.
"Sh-should we sleep now?"
Aria asked cautiously.
"Yeah. Early start tomorrow."
I nodded vaguely and perched on the stiff single bed.
Lilliana... gotta visit tomorrow.
Too tired today.
Exhausted from travel, dorm drama.
Tomorrow, clear up misunderstandings, pass Leoness's message.
Bet she's pissed.
Last memory, she was scary.
But she'd be happy I'm back, right?
With that naive thought, I drifted off.
///
Next morning.
Chirp chirp chirp.
Birdsong outside woke me.
"Mm..."
Sitting up, I saw the room spotless. Aria was up, uniform neat.
"Oh. You're awake?"
"Yeah. You been up long?"
"Early riser habit... hehe..."
I yawned, sliding off the bed.
"Ugh... stiff."
Lumpy old bed wrecked my back.
Grabbed the uniform from the chair.
First time in academy uniform. Black jacket, red ribbon tie. Cute design, but buttons galore—fussy alone.
I turned it over, frowning.
How's this even work?
From a modern view, this world's uniform was user-unfriendly.
Sighed deeply, glanced at Aria with the uniform.
"Hey, Aria."
"Yes?"
She startled.
I spread my arms.
"Dress me."