Chapter 15
Chapter 15
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 15
Chapter Title: The Color of the Star in Your Heart☆ (6)
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Alvitt and Lotha could only watch with dumbfounded expressions as Kara devoured the ice cream I’d brought.
“Chomp… Thank you, comrades! Smack, I was starving since I had some business around the school and missed the meal schedule…! Chomp. My own schoolmates… smack. They just turn me away whenever I go to the food stalls! Can you call that school spirit!”
“Alright, just shut your mouth and eat. It looks incredibly crude.”
“Smack, got it!”
“Ugh, seriously…”
Lotha, seemingly fed up with Kara's distracting messiness as she ate with both hands while chattering nonstop, finally turned her head away.
*Twitch.*
*Twitch.*
Yet, her orange cat ears still picked up the grating smacking sounds, causing them to flick constantly as if shaking off dust.
Alvitt watched the scene and spoke in a hollow voice.
“I thought she was some suspicious character, but she’s just a school troublemaker… No, wait, if she’s on the verge of expulsion, I guess she is suspicious…?”
“Looking at her now, I don’t really care―☆”
“At first, I thought she was acting… but she really does look hungry.”
“Good thing I went out and got the ice cream, just in case―☆”
Hearing my words, Alvitt turned to look at me.
I had washed off the ice cream I’d poured on my head for my foolish act at a water fountain and used a bit of ether manipulation to dry my hair.
Thanks to that, my pink hair was fluffy and dry again.
“…”
Alvitt’s gaze felt like that of a mother watching her troublemaking young daughter who had successfully managed to wash up on her own. She gave me a warm, proud smile and patted my head as she spoke.
*Pat, pat.*
“You did a good job all by yourself.”
“Ahaha…”
Good girl.
Good girl.
A hand moved back and forth over my head.
‘I acted like an idiot in front of Alvitt… but has my image really sunk to this in just a week? I suppose I brought this on myself… but still… something about this feels…’
Could you even call this a normal senior-junior relationship between two people only two years apart?
A strange mix of guilt and a ticklish feeling.
A girl who, if you counted my past life, was just barely old enough to be my daughter.
Being genuinely praised and patted on the head by her for managing to wash up by myself was a truly peculiar sensation.
Alvitt giggled, driving the final nail into this strange feeling.
“Hehe, I was worried you’d be sulking alone in your room, senior.”
“…Ugh.”
Good girl.
Good girl.
The hand of a diligent girl with a bob cut that suited her well.
As befitting a swordswoman, her hand was rough with calluses.
The feel of her slender, delicately shaped nails.
The softness of her white wrist brushing against my ear with every pat was incredibly gentle.
“…”
Her slender white arms, peeking out from the long sleeves of her uniform, and her dark, distinct eyebrows, clearly visible even under her brown bob.
Now that I was consciously noticing it, she had a truly neat and tidy appearance.
‘I never realized it before, since she was always either on the verge of tears or smiling playfully.’
…What is this?
It’s strange.
It’s strange, but…
A character from a game, a junior to be protected, and a hero who would one day save this world. The fact that Alvitt, whom I had only seen in those roles, actually existed right in front of me was finally sinking in. And the fact that such a girl was treating me so kindly with gentle eyes felt unfamiliar.
A ticklish feeling of everyday life that I had never felt with Hilde and my other fighting companions.
It was an unknown world that existed beyond the rules of the game.
‘Just as the real ‘Hilde’ was there… the real ‘Alvitt’ is here now.’
Not the junior that Clara was waiting for.
Not the protagonist that a man was waiting for.
Just a diligent girl named Alvitt.
For some reason, it felt like I was only now becoming conscious of that fact.
Our meeting wasn't our first, and the road ahead was endlessly long, but somehow, it felt like this was the first moment I had truly faced the girl named ‘Alvitt.’
“…”
Alvitt, so weak I could defeat her with one hand right now.
Was I not avoiding her touch because of my resolve to act weak on the surface while protecting my juniors from behind the scenes?
Or was it because of the heart of a lonely girl that still lingered within my Pretty Filter?
“…”
Because it was all ‘Clara,’ I couldn’t know.
‘Have I really become a fool from pretending to be one?’
Fortunately.
Alvitt soon stopped patting my head and spoke.
“Senior, were you out for a walk until now?”
“Huh? Oh! Yeah, that’s right―☆ I took a quick shower in my room and came out to look around☆ I felt bad about dropping the ice cream with a splat☆ so I was going to get another one! Yup―☆ The very definition of a girl's consideration☆ But when I came back to the dorm like this…”
“Yes, she was here.”
We turned our heads back to look at the girl who was hastily devouring her ice cream.
*Chomp, chomp.*
A tall female student wearing a grease-stained work uniform over her school uniform, as expected of someone from Mimir Industrial High School. She was sitting on the floor, inhaling the ice cream, unconcerned about the dirt and dust getting on her long, ultramarine hair.
“Smack…!”
She chewed desperately, like a hamster, as if this was her only chance to eat. The way she shoved the ice cream into her mouth so frantically was somewhat pitiful.
‘If you look closely, her uniform is already frayed, and the smell is… quite strong.’
Kara smelled like a rain-soaked poncho, as if she hadn't washed in days.
According to Maya, she had been ostracized by the other freshmen due to her peculiar antics. On top of that, she had drawn the ire of the upperclassmen who ran the school facilities, and was eventually forced into a self-sufficient lifestyle.
‘Just what kind of ruckus did she cause to get to this point in a week…’
As one of the main characters from the game.
She was tall as a model and could be called a cool-looking beauty, but…
“Buurp—! That was good! Comrades! Hmmhahaha—!!”
“…”
“…”
“…”
Her crude and distracting behavior completely shattered every impression.
“To share food in a situation like this! Such mercy! Truly a revolutionary sentiment! I shall gladly acknowledge you all! As comrades who share the same will! Hahaha!!”
“…”
“…”
“Wow☆”
Kara spoke with her arms and hands in constant motion, her head bobbing back and forth to emphasize her words.
Her restless gestures and expressions, which I couldn't grasp from the voice acting or text in the game, were more overwhelming than I had imagined.
‘I didn’t know someone could fail to live up to their looks so badly.’
If she had been born in the modern society of my past life, she probably would have become an internet streamer or a comedian who didn't live up to their looks.
On behalf of the silent Alvitt and Lotha, who were intimidated by her energy, I spoke to her.
“So―☆ what was the reason you were trying to plant a bo☆mb in the guest dorm~♡ Depending on your answer, we could have a cute girls’ tea party… or I might just become a very civic-minded girl☆”
“Ooh…! Right! I haven't explained that yet, have I!”
*Shoots up.*
Hearing that, Kara sprang to her feet.
Perhaps because of her long legs, her height seemed to have increased dramatically from when she was sitting.
She was at least a head taller than anyone else here.
‘She seems taller than I was in my past life… Almost 180cm…? Or even taller?’
When I measured ‘Clara’s’ height by myself, it was about 160cm, so the difference seemed about right. Lotha, the shortest among us, had her line of sight fall below Kara’s chest.
“…!”
“…!”
We were the ones surrounding Kara, but her height difference made us unconsciously wary.
She slowly spread her hands and approached me. I could feel Alvitt and Lotha each gripping the hilts of their sword and wand, worried she might try to harm me.
‘It doesn’t matter since I can sense all their movements… but thanks.’
Kara walked right up to me with her hands spread wide and shouted.
“The reason I brought all these fireworks!! To this dorm on the outskirts is!! To prepare for the final revolution for everyone's freedom and joy!!”
“F-freedom…?”
“Joy?”
“Wow―☆ How romantic♡ The student council kids would love to hear that―☆”
“W-wait a moment―! I'll explain in detail!!”
＊
Kara was adopted and raised in a free-spirited artisan village.
She was naturally skilled with her hands and had a keen interest in etheric magitech engineering, which led her to enroll in Mimir Industrial High School.
But what she saw here was strange in some way.
The upperclassmen only ever repeated instructions and orders.
Her classmates carried out their tasks without any complaint, as if it were a matter of course.
Even the dwarves took the commands given to them for granted.
No one questioned their place.
Instead, they took pride in belonging here.
They found greater joy in boasting about the group rather than themselves.
There were no students who lazed around in the shade of a tree or grumbled that the cafeteria food was bad.
They were like cogs existing to move a giant machine.
They ‘naturally’ accepted the progress of the machine that was Mimir Industrial High School.
And at the very top of that machine existed a pilot called the student council president.
If that’s the case.
If the single person leading this giant machine.
Steered it down the wrong path from within everyone's 'normality'.
What in the world would happen?
Kara thought.
Someone had to show they didn't take this for granted, and that realization alone would serve as a great warning.
“That is why chaos and revolution are necessary!! Those at the very top must realize that the ‘status quo’ is not to be taken for granted, but is a ‘promise’ made under the ‘will of all’!! To that end, I will find fault and criticize everything, be it the meals, the classes, or the factories!!”
“…”
“…”
“…”
“Even if just one person is dissatisfied with the current system, that detestable ‘status quo’ will disappear!! All students are equal!! They have the right to be happy on their own terms, not to live according to someone else's intentions—!!”
Kara’s fanatical shout was almost mesmerizing.
Lotha’s cat ears drooped as she clutched her head and muttered.
“I… think I get what you’re saying… but there are a lot of leaps in logic… Isn’t this just saying the kids at this school have good teamwork…? I mean, they themselves say they like it, right? What you’re doing is just a nuisance to people who are living perfectly happy lives…”
Alvitt also spoke with a dubious expression.
“I think it’s better than being a shabby machine that has nothing because it’s poor.”
“Tee-hee―☆”
“I told you not to do that, senior.”
I poked Alvitt’s pouting cheeks, hiding my surprise at hearing Kara’s true intentions, which hadn't been revealed in the game.
‘So it wasn’t just a thoughtless revolution gag.’
I had thought she was just a comic relief character, a running joke using the industrial city theme of Mimir Industrial High School. While her logic was deeply flawed and distorted in many ways, it was a conclusion she had reached after her own deep contemplation and observation.
“…”
In truth, I couldn't say whether Kara's thoughts were right or wrong.
‘Frankly speaking, it’s just another form of idealism.’
It was ultimately just her personal conviction.
She was no different, spouting off without considering the will and circumstances of others.
But one thing was certain in this situation.
Kara's ideals provided the perfect justification for carrying out Maya's request to stop the unilateral decisions of Student Council President Skadi and the hardliners.
“…”
In the game, Kara’s revolution failed and ultimately just became grounds for the student council president to expel her. Yet, she smiled and said she had fulfilled her role.
『My revolution against Mimir Industrial High School was completed at that very moment!!』
But for some reason, that smile seemed empty.
‘Kara is destined to be expelled and transfer to our school anyway.’
She was distracting.
Exaggerated.
And had a foolish dream.
But at the very least, as you leave this place.
I hope you can leave with a relieved smile.
I held that thought in my heart as I spoke.
“Wow―☆ What a wonderful dream☆ It’s so romantic and fairy-tale-like… a dream that makes me want to cheer you on without even realizing it―☆”
“Huh?”
“Senior—?!”
As Alvitt and Lotha looked on in surprise.
I walked toward Kara, whose eyes had widened at my words.
And I took her hand, placing an object Maya had given me into her palm.
“You see―☆ While I was on my walk, I had a fateful, girlish premonition!☆ I picked this up, and I was wondering if you might know what it is~”
“…!”
Kara stared intently at the palm-sized metal key. After reading the serial number written on it, she looked at me with an expression of disbelief. Then, she spoke in a trembling voice.
“Th-this… is the key… to the warehouse where the Mechanical Engineering Department was planning to announce their new invention… but where did you…? Only third-year executives have access to this place…”
“Wow, lucky me―☆ Then shall we use it to grab everyone’s attention~?”
“…!”
A carefree voice.
But its meaning was shocking.
“Senior?!”
“Senior?!”
Even Alvitt and Lotha screamed in astonishment.
“Tee-hee―☆”
I just smiled.
‘Maya, don’t regret entrusting this to Kara and me. We’re about to cause the biggest ruckus possible.’
Now, let’s begin.
Not a grim declaration of war, but a true freshman welcome party.
It’s party time.