A Rooftop Pinky Promise
The morning commute passed in the blink of an eye, and the academy began functioning normally once more. It was time to slip back into our daily routines. Students who now had to begin the long race of academics again started moving with frantic energy. Of course, I was one of them.
Most of the classes covered knowledge straight out of the game I remembered, but every so often something unfamiliar would appear. It didn't look like earning that scholarship was going to be easy. Then again, what in this world ever is? You can't know everything just by living in it. Still, anything I didn't know could be learned. I'd study it, memorize it, apply it to problems, then memorize it all over again. It wasn't easy. It had been a long time since I'd taxed my brain this heavily, and even longer since I'd planted my butt in a chair for hours on end.
The sun would rise, then slip beyond the horizon. The moon would take its place, and tiny stars would wrap themselves around me in the sky. That was how I spent each day. I woke early, took a quick shower, and headed to school. My body automatically stirred at six, so I was never late. In fact, I often reached the classroom first.
Once inside, I would fling the curtains wide and crack open the sealed windows to let the air circulate. Sunlight would pour through the gap and greet me like an old friend. Because it was spring, the morning rays felt warm, and cherry blossoms danced outside. The sight was breathtaking.
The cherry blossoms were that vivid pink you only see in Japanese anime. Petals scattering along the streets, sunlight at the perfect gentle strength, this emotionally stirring panorama—it was nothing short of spectacular. I knew I would never forget it. No matter what happened, the image of those pink blossoms would remain engraved in my heart.
Watching them, I couldn't help thinking of a friend with hair the same beautiful shade of pink. I hadn't seen her once since the incident was resolved. Still, we were in the same year, so we'd cross paths again eventually. Until then, I just had to focus on my own tasks.
The practical exam had been nullified, and we'd agreed to retake a simplified version soon. It would probably boil down to a simple test. As I stared out the window in a daze, more students began filling the paths below. Quite a few familiar named characters stood out among them.
There was Ian, the original protagonist, sprinting with a sandwich clamped in his mouth. Elisha Isis walked calmly, absorbed in a textbook. The Ron and Lloyd duo—apparently closer after the recent events—chatted animatedly as they strolled. Trailing behind them was Priest Kyle, the one who'd abandoned us last time. Given the circumstances, I wasn't about to hold it against him.
Beside him walked the next Saintess and his younger sister. Nearby, a woman with hair like blazing flames and another with hair the color of a clear sky stood together. And at the very back... Elin. I spotted Elin.
She was the first friend I'd made after arriving here, and someone I could trust. Seeing her smile shine as brightly as a beautiful flower, I felt my own lips curve upward without meaning to. After the incident she'd gained some confidence; watching her walk with her friends again filled me with quiet joy.
Of course, I had no friends of my own. Part of it was my focus on studies, but I suspected my past actions played a bigger role. The fact that I'd risked my life to protect the students had already spread through the academy, yet most people seemed skeptical. It didn't matter to me. I hadn't done it for attention. I simply couldn't stand watching people die in front of me.
As I rested my chin on the windowsill, lost in thought while gazing outside, Elin noticed me. She began waving enthusiastically. She didn't have to acknowledge me. She could have pretended not to see and kept walking. Getting tangled up with me would only cause her headaches. She'd finally made new friends—why risk driving them away? There was even a part of me that had deliberately avoided her for that reason.
Ha... But you. You're really something else.
Not wanting her to feel awkward, I gave a small wave back. She flashed a thumbs-up and beamed even brighter. What a great way to start the morning.
The classes that followed that cheerful thumbs-up greeting began pleasantly enough. But as the material shifted to topics I knew nothing about, my good mood gradually sank.
"Ha... This is brutal."
In the game, classroom scenes could be skipped or breezed through. Here in reality, lessons dragged on until four in the afternoon, when the sun finally began to dip. Around noon we headed to the first-floor cafeteria or canteen for a quick meal and enjoyed roughly an hour of lunch break. Some students recharged, others played with friends, and a few reviewed or previewed lessons. I belonged to the review crowd. With no friends in class, there wasn't much else to do. Besides, I needed that scholarship to save money. Tuition was expensive, so securing it was worth the effort.
Most of the material was familiar. The rest I could learn with extra study. Back in my original world, I'd thought entering a game I already knew would make studying both easy and fun. At first, it was. Learning familiar concepts in a classroom setting felt refreshingly new. But after one day, then two, then three, the novelty wore off. It simply felt like attending school all over again.
After what seemed like an eternity, lunch break finally arrived. I wolfed down the tasteless cafeteria food and headed up to the rooftop. It was the perfect place to kill time or study. Like the schools in anime, this academy left the rooftop door unlocked, so anyone could come and go freely. The view made it a prime spot—a hot location for eating, chatting with friends, or simply soaking up the sun. With few clouds in the sky, the blue stretched endlessly and the sunlight felt pleasantly warm.
With that in mind, I climbed to the rooftop and quietly read my textbook. After about thirty minutes, I closed the book to rest my mind and gazed up at the sky. I had always loved doing this. The sky never changed. Its consistent clarity, like a canvas filled with blue paint, eased my heart. Whether here or in my previous world, the sky remained the same. It filled with blue at dawn, then darkened at dusk, blooming with countless shining stars at night. I cherished that constancy.
As I stared upward, the rooftop door slid open with a soft creak. The person who emerged had lovely pink hair like flower petals and beautiful eyes the color of a clear sky.
"Elin?"
"W-what? V-Vern, you're here too! I really didn't know at all...! This is a total coincidence~."
Why did she look so flustered? The way she stammered made her claim of coincidence sound like a lie. But then, why would she need to lie?
"Elin, what brings you up here?"
"W-what do you mean~? I told you, it's a coincidence. A coincidence!"
"Sure. Let's go with that."
Well, she must have had some reason. As I pondered, Elin spoke again, her voice hesitant.
"Um, Vern... Why have you been avoiding me lately? Do you hate me now? Did I do something wrong...?"
So that was it. Elin was my first friend here. A trustworthy girl and an incredibly kind one. The idea of hating her was ridiculous. Still, I had been avoiding her.
"It's because I didn't want to cause you any trouble."
"What do you mean...? Trouble for me?"
"If people see you hanging around with me, some will start looking at you the wrong way."
"What kind of nonsense is that, Vern! You were avoiding me just because of something so trivial?"
Trivial? I did it for your sake! Maybe I'd been too meddlesome.
"Vern, I don't care about any of that! Not one bit. You don't have to avoid me. We're friends, aren't we!"
"....."
For some reason I couldn't explain, my resolve weakened whenever Elin was in front of me. I didn't want to say anything harsh to her. I had no desire to. That was why my heart kept softening. With her, at least, I wanted to speak my true feelings. Living behind a mask was harder than I'd expected. Even so, it felt good. Having someone who thought of me and worried about me was an incredible blessing.
"Thank you, Elin. But we can't keep sticking together. Midterms are coming up soon. You need to study too, don't you?"
"W-well... that's true."
"Still, thank you. I guess I overdid it with the meddling."
"No! I'm the one who should be thanking you. So, Vern, from today onward you can't avoid me anymore, okay~? Here, promise!"
".....?"
"Come on, Vern, don't you know how? We have to link pinkies! Hurry!"
I knew how, of course. But it had been so long that I momentarily lost myself in nostalgia. Staring at the sky had a way of stirring up sentimentality.
With that thought, I hooked my pinky around hers.
"I promise."
"Yeah!"
For the final step, we pressed our thumbs together like a seal.
"Now you can't break it! Vern!"
"I know, I know."
It had been ages since I'd made a promise like this. Yeah, this was the innocent freshness of student life. It would pass quickly too. But that was exactly what made it meaningful. Once something slips away, it never returns. Each fleeting moment is precious. In that sense, my memories with Elin would become something very dear to me as well.
"Oh! Vern, you just smiled!"
"......"
Had I? Ever since entering this body, smiling had become rare. My face usually stayed blank.
"...Or did I imagine it?"
"Anyway, Elin. Are you staying up here longer? I was about to head back down."
"Then let's go together!"
"Sure."
The real challenge of academy life was only beginning now.