Even the Top Magic Student Joins the Bullying
Sharin Sazaris. The moment I ran straight into her in the hallway, I froze.
"What are you doing hereee?"
Sharin's eyes narrowed. Through everything we had been through, she and I had built a relationship that hovered on the precarious edge of friendship. But even so, a male friend disguised as a girl, sneaking into the female dormitory? That was not something easily overlooked.
I found myself completely tongue-tied. Anything I said right now would sound like a flimsy excuse to her. At this point, the only one who could save me was Iris.
Perhaps because I remained silent, Sharin stared at me intently before letting out a soft sigh.
"What's going on this timeee?"
She asked in her usual sleepy, languid tone. I blinked in surprise. I was cross-dressing and sneaking around the girls' dorm, yet instead of scolding me, she asked about my circumstances first.
"...Sharin, are you an angel?"
"You're only just realizing that nowww?"
Sharin puffed out her chest slightly, looking smug. She was far more merciful than I had given her credit for.
"Seriously, it's not like that."
"There she goes, hiding things again!"
Just then, the voices of other girls echoed from down the hallway.
Hearing them, Sharin walked over to me. "Let's talk insideee." There was no point in letting other students see us talking out here.
Stepping into Hania and Iris's room, Sharin slipped off her shoes. She plopped down onto a chair, completely barefoot. Why does she never wear socks? Even though this wasn't her room, she made herself right at home.
"So, why are you dressed like thataa?"
Since I had already been caught, there was no point in hiding it. Sitting in the chair opposite her, I explained the general situation.
"To protect Lady Iris, huhhh." Of course, I glossed over the details regarding Nikita, but Sharin didn't pry. She knew that the parts I left out were things I simply couldn't say. To her, I had been a walking mystery from the very beginning anyway. There was no point in getting worked up over it now.
"So that's why you didn't put me on your teammm?"
She was referring to the Hanon team for this summer's Demon Palace raid. Because of the incident I had caused in the Magic Engineering department previously, none of the magic students had been willing to join our team as backline support. Sharin had offered to join us instead, but I had turned her down. Since the real Hanon wouldn't be there, bringing in a powerhouse like Sharin would draw too much attention and risk exposing the ruse. I had already warned the actual team members that the 'me' joining them this time wouldn't be the real one, but since Sharin wasn't on the team, I hadn't gotten around to telling her.
"Does the Hanon team knowww?"
"I didn't give them the exact details, but they know it's not me. They're all understanding about this sort of thing." Seron had been a bit of a pain, constantly prying for reasons, but I managed to quiet her down by stuffing a few snacks into her mouth.
"Huuung, so you told them but kept it a secret from meee."
For some reason, there was a sharp edge to her voice.
"...Sharin, are you mad?" When I asked cautiously, she smiled with her usual expression. "Nooo." She was definitely mad.
"I'm sorry. Since I had to end up in this state, I couldn't just go around telling everyone."
Sharin stared intently at my face. Her gaze felt incredibly heavy.
"I just thought Hanon wearing a skirt would be pretty funnnyyy." Sharin's lips curled up in a teasing smirk. I had a feeling she was going to bring this up to tease me for the rest of my life. What a terrible hobby.
"But of all people, Haniaaa..." Sharin seemed to find something bothersome about it.
"Why? Is there something going on with Hania?"
"Mmm, no, or should I say yes? I don't knowww."
I didn't know what she meant, but it felt incredibly ominous.
"I have to stay in this form until tomorrow. Tell me exactly what it is."
Sharin finally seemed to make up her mind and leaned in to whisper. "Hania recently got herself a stalker."
...Excuse me?
A stalker. A criminal who follows someone around without any justifiable reason, instilling anxiety and fear. Naturally, it was an incredibly distressing experience for the victim. And apparently, Hania was currently being stalked.
"...Who could possibly be that reckless?"
As mentioned before, Hania was the Runner-up of the Martial Arts department. On top of that, she was the daughter of the Empire's Knight Commander. She was in a position where she could easily ruin someone's life if she wished.
"Well, not everything in the world can be solved with brute forceee."
"Even so, I don't think Hania is the type to just sit back and take it." As I had seen earlier, Hania was definitely not the type to quietly endure being stalked. If she could have beaten them to a pulp herself, she would have done so long ago.
"I don't know the details eitheree. I only heard Isabel talking about it." That made sense. Sharin didn't have many close friends to begin with. There was no way she had heard it from Hania herself; she must have overheard it from Isabel. Still, I figured Hania was more than capable of handling her own problems.
"The problem is, right now, I am Hania."
Does that mean I'm the one who's going to get stalked today and tomorrow?
"Mhm, that's why I told youuu."
"Will it really be a problem, though?" Today's classes were already over, and I planned to stay in the room. Tomorrow, I would be spending the entire day inside the Demon Palace anyway. Once we cleared it, I would return to my original form, so the stalker wouldn't even have time to follow me.
"Who knowwws?" Sharin had only warned me just in case; she didn't seem particularly worried either. After all, I wasn't the actual target of the stalker. There was no real reason to fret.
"I just hope it doesn't cause any unnecessary trouble."
The only thing that bothered me was why Hania hadn't resolved the stalker issue sooner. Is there some kind of special circumstance? I quietly pondered, searching through my memories of the Flame Butterfly Chapter.
Hania was a supporting character who always followed Iris around. Her martial arts skills were undeniably excellent, and she was a well-balanced character with decent overall stats. However, as Lucas rapidly caught up from behind, she was ultimately destined to lose her Runner-up title. She was actually quite popular among players, thanks to her looks and her fierce devotion to Iris. But as was always the case with supporting characters, information on Hania was limited. Furthermore, in the latter half of the story, she got injured while protecting Iris and became unplayable, which severely limited her screen time. Nothing useful comes to mind. I had no idea.
Creak—
At that moment, the door opened. "Phew." Iris had returned from her bath. Still damp, she was drying her hair with a towel when she raised her head, sensing another presence in the room besides mine. Her eyes met Sharin's. Iris tilted her head slowly, then turned her gaze to me.
"Even if we share this room, I'd appreciate it if you refrained from bringing your girlfriend over."
Girlfriend?
"You've got it all wrong. She found out my identity, so I brought her in to explain the situation." I quickly clarified before things could get awkward. At that, Sharin gasped, covering her mouth in mock horror.
"How could you do thisee? I thought Hanon was serious about dating meee."
At least drop that blank expression before you say that.
"You should take proper responsibility." Iris chimed in, playing along. Caught between the two of them, I silently swallowed my grievances. The Top Student of the Martial Arts department and the Top Student of the Magic Engineering department were teaming up to bully me. I would definitely get my revenge on both of them someday.
Growl—
Right then, a loud rumble echoed from my stomach. The hunger I had temporarily forgotten after running into Sharin had returned with a vengeance. "Hania doesn't make noises like that," Iris pointed out, gesturing toward my noisy stomach. That's not exactly something I can control, you know.
After being teased relentlessly by both Sharin and Iris over a late dinner, the next morning arrived. I stretched my arms high above my head and sat up. Man, I'm exhausted. Maybe it was because I wasn't sleeping in my own bed, but I had slept with a fair amount of tension in my body.
I wonder if things are fine on the other side. I had warned my roommate, Card, about Hania. Card isn't the type to cross the line. He wouldn't do anything stupid to mess things up, especially not with the daughter of the Knight Commander.
"Mmm..." Just then, I saw Iris squirming in her bed. She was buried deep beneath her blankets, showing no intention of coming out. Only a few strands of her long black hair peeked out from the covers.
Iris hadn't been able to sleep until late last night. She had sat by the window until the early hours of the morning, lost in thought. Suffering from chronic insomnia, sleep did not come easily to her. Because of this, Iris was incredibly weak in the mornings. Sometimes she would pull all-nighters, and other times she would fall asleep so late that she could barely wake up. Hania was always the one tasked with waking her.
On Iris's desk, I spotted the Honeyer tea I had recommended to her before. Beside it, a candle made of sleep-inducing herbs had burned out, leaving behind a faint, soothing scent. It seemed she had been trying various methods to help her sleep, just as I had advised.
"Lady Iris, it's morning." Today, I was Hania. Determined to play my role perfectly, I approached Iris's bed and called out to her. But Iris showed no signs of waking.
Knowing firsthand how agonizing her insomnia could be, a part of me wanted to let her sleep. But today was the day of the summer Demon Palace raid. Letting her sleep any longer would cause serious problems.
"Lady Iris, you really have to wake up now." Left with no choice, I pulled back the blanket, revealing her pale, flawless face. Her long eyelashes, rosy lips, and the faint shadows beneath her eyes gave her an almost decadent allure. How is her unique trait, Charm, active even when she's asleep? Her beauty was truly breathtaking, no matter how many times I saw it. Moreover, she was wearing comfortable pajamas instead of her usual school uniform, leaving me with nowhere to look. If the imperial knights burst in right now to arrest me, I wouldn't even be able to complain.
"Lady Iris..." At that moment, I felt a sudden grip on my wrist. I looked down to find Iris's hand holding onto me tightly. My instincts screamed at me to pull away immediately. I instantly channeled strength throughout my body, ready to show off the fruits of my training. And then, I was dragged down instantly.
The wall known as Iris, the strongest of the imperial family, was simply too high. My strength, forged from a mere few months of training, was no match for a half-asleep Iris who could already manipulate aura. Pulled flush against her chest in an instant, I fell dead silent. A soft, warm sensation enveloped my face and entire body. A sweet, distinct fragrance invaded my senses, clouding my mind. Is this... some kind of mental magic? I couldn't break free.
In truth, the difference in physical strength between Iris and me was overwhelming. No matter how much I struggled, I wouldn't be able to escape unless she let go. Just then, Iris, still holding me tight, slowly opened her eyes. She stared at me with a heavily sleep-laden gaze, then offered a soft, gentle smile.
"Good morning..." Thank goodness I was in a female form thanks to the Bandage of the Veil. If I had been in my male form, this would have caused a massive disaster in more ways than one. Right then, Iris's eyelids began to flutter shut as she drifted back toward sleep. I had reached my limit.
"Lady Iris." I politely raised my hand. "Forgive me just this once." And with that, I delivered a sharp flick to her forehead to snap her awake.