I Became the Academy's Pink Airhead - Chapter 22
When we weren’t spending time on our individual routines, we would all gather and sit in the student council room.
A scene like an ordinary meeting room.
A large table in the center, chairs, bookshelves, and small lockers for each person’s belongings. Unlike other schools’ student council rooms, there was no designated seat for the student council president.
It was the cleanest and most spacious among the shabby classrooms of <Central Prism Academy>, and when the windows were open, it had the best view of the academy city scenery. So it had naturally become our gathering and waiting place.
Around the time when the warm wind carrying the evening sunset blew in through the open window of the student council room.
I was sitting in a chair with Rota, listening to Kara’s story.
With the faintly heard broadcast of the <United Student Council> Press Department as background music, Kara was talking about the flag she had made.
“…And so! I reached a new idea! Why should summoned creatures and users attack separately? A way to combine the ‘spear’ I originally use with my summoning skill [Revolutionary Comrade] for easy use! That is…!”
Twitch twitch―
Rota’s two cat ears moved with a displeased air.
Actually, I had already known the content of Kara’s words from the game, so I was only half-listening. I was just looking at Rota’s two cat ears moving vividly in front of me.
Twitch twitch―
Every time they moved, the fluffy orange fur scattered, and the soft pink inner flesh shook elastically. The slightly glossy surface looked like the highest quality cushion made of silk.
A soft and cozy texture that couldn’t be confirmed in the game illustrations.
I wanted to enjoy the fluffiness of the outer surface with one hand, enjoy the softness of the inside with the other hand, and rub my face to feel the texture of the cat fur.
Burying my face between the two ears and seeing the scenery while smelling the cat scent like an old blanket left in the sun would surely be heaven.
Twitch twitch―
“…”
My hand rising without me realizing.
Rota was still listening to Kara’s explanation with a grumpy look.
‘Honestly, we’ve gotten close enough by now.’
I was about to secretly try to grab those cat ears once, but gave up.
Flinch―
Perhaps Rota unconsciously sensed my presence, as she glanced back this way.
“…?”
Blink blink
Her large orange eyes filled with question. The transparent pupils like jewels unique to cat beastkin rapidly enlarged as she examined my expression.
“…”
“Ahaha―☆”
“…”
I glossed it over with a laugh, but Rota seemed to have detected an unusual atmosphere with the sensitivity unique to beastkin. She moved slightly away from me while still sitting in her chair.
Creak―
And she glanced at me while making a low warning sound.
Grrrr…!
‘Damn. The likability is still low.’
Oblivious to our subtle atmosphere.
“…And so, recalling the moments when I couldn’t give timely instructions to my beloved summoned [Revolutionary Comrades], I became determined with the resolution of a lifetime―!”
Kara was still talking about the inconvenient moments of using her main weapon, the spear, and summoning skill together with exaggerated gestures. And she boasts about the ingenuity of her new idea.
I wanted to keep listening to my beloved junior’s boasting, but… honestly it was starting to get boring.
‘…Is simply sticking a spear blade on a flag such an ingenious idea?’
Actually, Kara, a major character in the game, used polearms from the start, and since her earliest exclusive weapon design was a flag, I just went along with the explanation of the new weapon.
But this could be a fairly innovative idea in this world, so. I glanced at the reactions of the other two juniors sitting around.
‘Ah, so this is a flag. It can convey signals to allies.’
‘Wow! Amazing―! Attaching cloth to a spear to use as a flag!’
It seemed like I should go along with this kind of atmosphere.
I thought that while glancing around.
Glance…
“Haah…”
Rota still had an expression of ‘what are you saying such obvious things for’. But perhaps because she had sensed my unsettling gaze earlier, her orange cat ears didn’t show as intense movement as before.
What was heard behind that was the sound of a pencil.
Scribble scribble…
Unrelated to our noise, Alvit was looking at the <United Student Council>’s general education textbook that Bell had distributed and organizing notes.
She occasionally referred to the history books kept in the student council room and added annotations.
Alvit’s muttering voice.
“Hmm… The history of the Aesir warlords…”
Flip―
Alvit had only glanced at Kara’s words at first, then completely cut off interest and was fully focused on studying.
I was inwardly trembling seeing that sight. Alvit was the type of person I had understood least even until college.
‘The type who studies without complaint even if they start the curriculum at orientation…’
Heroes aren’t supposed to study and such…
Didn’t Liu Bei also nurture grand dreams in his heart while hanging out with drinking buddies in the neighborhood before setting out?
‘Liu Bei, since you are immersed in studies and don’t go on adventures… This Zhuge Liang senior will obtain Guan Shun Mei for you.’
I sighed inwardly and withdrew my gaze.
The long speech still continuing.
Rota seemed bored with the story that was about to drag on, so she cut in and said:
“In short, you’re saying you’ll attach a command flag to a spear to use. Your introduction is always too long.”
“Um… Yes, that’s right.”
“If you want to express your thoughts, first state the main point briefly and clearly.”
“I under…stand.”
“And in the end, since you don’t have ether conductive ore to use as a spear blade on the end of the pole, you just made the basic form for now, right?”
“That’s right.”
Kara somehow seemed deflated. So she stopped explaining and put down the object she had been about to boast about on the table.
Clatter
What she had been holding in her hand was something like a spear with the blade part removed… in short, a long pole with a flag attached. However, the characteristic was that it had sturdy finishing so that the command flag wouldn’t come off even if used roughly.
I closely examined the weapon of a polearm user I was seeing for the first time since Hilde.
‘I did secretly send the ore I had obtained in 1st year to <Mimir Technical High School>…’
The second wish I had asked of Maya.
-Process the ore I sent and make it into suitable weapons that my juniors can use.
Unlike the construction that was the specialty of the architecture club… Facilities Engineering Department that Maya was in charge of, this was an issue that had to be requested through several connections. So it came with the condition of waiting at least 3 weeks.
‘It’s been about a week since I sent it.’
It was while I was thinking that. I suddenly sensed someone running into the school grounds.
‘But why is that kid coming again?’
Eventually…
Bang―!
A huge noise invaded the student council room where only quiet murmuring had been spreading. It was because someone had kicked open the door with a very rude attitude.
We all looked at the suddenly opened student council room door.
“…Hm?”
“…?”
“Huh?”
Standing there was the side-tailed brat Bell, the 2nd year secretary of the <United Student Council>, who had run until she was sweating.
Bell had come back to <Central Prism Academy> just a day after returning to <Gjallarhorn>’s garrison. She was still wearing <Central Prism Academy>’s red tracksuit, perhaps not having received a new uniform yet.
She suddenly entered the student council room with an aggrieved expression, stamping her feet.
“You, you, you guys―!! After I helped you so much―!! Traitors―!!”
“…?”
“…?”
“…?”
“…?”
“Ah, ah, ah, aah~!! You think I won’t know if you all tilt your heads like that! You guys complained to my boss that I destroyed your school as soon as I left for the garrison―!! The boss said she’d put me in solitary confinement for a week in <Aesir Girls’ High School>’s punishment wing if one more complaint comes in―!!”
Gestures pointing at Kara, Rota, me, and Alvit in order with her small finger each time she said ‘Ah’. And stamping her feet with tears slightly welling up in her eyes.
“How could you do this!! I may have destroyed the classroom a little but we cleaned it up together right away―!!”
“…Isn’t it right to clean up your own mistakes…?”
“Yes~ Yes~ The cute secretary doesn’t know such things! If you made a cute girl do such hard labor, the cuteness multiplier is added and cuteness points are gained! That is! I did more labor than my mistake!”
“Wh-What are you saying.”
“Wow―☆ I agree with that―♪ Let’s introduce that at our school too―♡”
“Please read the room, senior…”
This brat wasn’t unilaterally framing us, but truly believed we had done something.
What on earth is she saying?
I couldn’t understand the words of this damn brat.
We quietly looked at each other.
-What is she talking about?
-Rota, did you do it?
-No. Wasn’t it Kara?
-No. I was in my room all day since yesterday.
-Then how about you, senior?
-No―☆
-That can’t be…
-Hey―☆ I wonder what that means♪
We looked into each other’s eyes and communicated with our gazes, but none of us understood those words. So we decided to take special measures.
Nod
Nod
Tacit agreement exchanged between us.
Alvit stood up with a resolute expression and walked firmly to the front of Bell. A subtle tension arising between the two facing each other.
“…!”
Bell seemed to think Alvit, who had approached her, was the culprit, and narrowed her eyes more and more to glare.
“You, it was you! You straight-laced bastard!”
“…”
“No wonder you always glared at me like that at the forefront―!”
But Alvit quietly placed her hand on Bell’s shoulder.
“…Let’s talk after we eat first.”
“…Uh, huh?”
Bell was bewildered by the unexpected words.
At the same time, a resounding sound rang out from the stomachs of all <Central Prism Academy> students gathered in the student council room.
Growl…
Growl―
Growl♪
And a sound also came from Alvit’s stomach right in front of Bell.
Growl!
And at the same time, a chorus of responses rang out.
Growl…
Growl―
Growl♪
Growl!
A harmony of empty stomachs.
After encountering that harmony, Bell was just rolling her eyes while sweating coldly.
“Wh-What…? What on earth… is this?”
To her, who stood at the pinnacle of the academy city’s terrifying power, ‘hunger’ was an unknown subject. A place where a sumptuous feast comes out with a single gesture, where the idea of eating snacks instead of rice is possible. For them, ‘hunger’ was an unknown darkness and fear.
That’s right.
Bell was feeling fear at our hunger and shabbiness.
To the rich, the daily life of the poor was a fear.
This was our secret technique. The ultimate negotiation technique of the beggar girls group.
[Harmony of Empty Stomachs]
“Urgh…?”
Bell was frozen, not understanding what this situation was. And Alvit whispered in her ear in a small voice.
“Would you like to try… dried bread crusts…?”
“Bread… why eat… dried… bread crusts…?”
A smile formed on Alvit’s lips. In that smile, a vile satisfaction arose, as if one who was dirtied first was dragging a pure white maiden into a dirty mud pit.
Alvit quietly answered:
“…Because they’re crispy and delicious.”
“…Eek.”
Bell’s face turned completely pale.
* * *
Eventually, Bell calmed down in the absurd situation and started listening to our words rationally.
Munch munch
“So, it really wasn’t you guys?”
“How many times do I have to say it? We really didn’t report you.”
“Hah, then what is it?”
“Maybe the union student council president was just in a bad mood for other reasons?”
“What do you know about the boss!”
“That if we report Bell senior right now, she’ll be locked up in the punishment wing for a week?”
“Eek! I’m sorry!”
Bell was chewing on the bread crust pieces we had given her while walking with us through the shopping district.
The quiet shopping district. The sparseness after even the evening sunset had passed was settled there.
I glanced at Bell chewing on the bread crusts.
‘In the end, she eats it when given.’
We found it difficult to fill our stomachs with just dried bread crusts, so we ended up coming to the shopping district.
The young man at the bakery who always gives us the remaining bread of the day.
It was time for the friendly dwarf’s bakery to close and clear out inventory.
‘We hadn’t been to the bakery in a while since we were getting food from Grandpa Hua Tuo’s place.’
It was time to eat the remaining discarded bread after a long time.
But…
The moment we five reached the front of the bakery, we saw an unbelievable message written on the door.
[Closed for the time being due to disruption in flour supply.]
“Huh?”
“Eh?”
“Oh.”
“Hmm♪ This is no good.”
“…”
Bell sighed deeply seeing that message.
“Ah… So the erosion situation has spread here too in the end.”
“Huh?”
Alvit tilted her head again at that word that came out. Bell looked at Alvit like that, and answered while still chewing on bread crusts:
“Chaos insects often burst out even to the outside from places where ‘black ether’ has appeared in the ether cores of dungeon gates.”
“Chaos insects… even to the outside?!”
“Because of that, logistics transportation is blocked all over the academy city and it’s a huge mess…”
Hearing those words, I inwardly clicked my tongue.
‘I see why Hilde was angry.’
The cult that worships dragons.
The <Ratatosk> guys had begun to seriously pollute the academy city.