NOVEL WEB Chapter 91
There wasn’t really any grand reason to gather at Ageha’s house.
Like usual with kids of that age, it simply flowed in that direction, getting swept up in the atmosphere.
It’s not like she hadn’t actively suggested studying at her place, though.
“It’s only the first semester, but the final exams are really just around the corner. Phew, I’ve heard seniors say they can’t even guess what the questions will be this year… What about you guys? Are you nervous?”
“I am nervous, but somehow I feel like I can do it… It’s that kind of feeling!”
“What makes me more nervous is that Grandma said she’d spank me if I do poorly on the final exams!”
“That’s a bit exaggerated, don’t you think?”
“Exaggeration or not, it can feel burdensome for a person.”
At Jin-hyeon’s stiff words, Fukukin responded even stiffer.
The members gathered at her house included me, Lapiz, the game protagonists, and surprisingly, Fukukin, who was pretty close to her.
Of course, the host, Ageha, was left out.
“What does Miss Blanca think? Are you nervous? Or…?”
“Um… yeah? Not really? I managed just fine during the midterms, and no matter how crazy the difficulty is, I’m confident I can pass…”
“You were thinking something else, weren’t you? I know. What were you thinking so hard about while studying?”
Ageha playfully and slightly mischievously asked me. It felt like she was expecting something giggly.
“Your house. It’s nice.”
When I complimented her house, Ageha seemed a bit flustered, as if it was unexpected, before quickly regaining herself and puffing up proudly.
She probably wanted to show it off quite a bit. The way she pushed for discussions on where to study showed that.
What did she say? After seeing Miss Blanca’s house, she wanted to show hers, claiming that was only fair. That made no sense to me, but okay.
I couldn’t tell if it was an apology or a bragging thing.
Though even if she invited me with an apology, I felt like she wanted to brag a little too.
It was quite a wonderful house, not to the level of Lapiz’s, but still impressive.
Even if it wasn’t at the level of a traditional Japanese house, the decor was that of a home where you could tell a Japanese person lives, even I, who know nothing about art, could feel it.
It was normal in a suburban house in the city, so I figured that was just the average level of Heros Academy.
In fact, it was way more rare for a kid like me, living in an apartment complex tighter than a chicken coop.
Even the D and E class losers had some backstory about growing up in decent villas, so it wasn’t odd at all for a Heros Academy student to be well-off.
Even though Heros Academy is said to be free, it’s not truly open to everyone.
It’s not like there’s any qualification for support. Anyone could apply at least.
What I’m saying is, it’s nearly impossible for someone to rise from nothing.
To get into the academy, talent is important, but having the foundation to hone that talent is just as essential.
I kind of got off track, but anyway, it was true that Ageha was rich.
She even said herself that her original home is in Japan and that this house was bought for attending the academy, so that’s that.
“Ageha, do you live separately from your parents?”
“Sort of… yeah. My dad and mom try to come whenever they can, but they’re busy with work, so… It’s not like I can see them often.”
Yeonhwa was about to say how amazing she thought that was, but after hearing Ageha’s addition of, “I call them every day via video chat,” she frowned and asked.
“So, in a way, you see them every day, right…?”
“Not really! It’s not the same as seeing their real faces, you know!”
Yeonhwa looked puzzled, but I could totally understand Ageha’s feelings.
There are some things that can only be resolved by seeing in person. I nodded along appropriately to show my understanding.
“I think I get it…”
“See? Miss Blanca agrees!”
“Wait, Blanca?”
Lapiz hesitated a bit, then she indirectly agreed with Ageha by saying that she felt she wanted to see her grandma even more after talking to her.
“Lapiz too… Hmm, is there something I don’t know?”
“It’s better not to know. No matter the situation, being separated from family isn’t particularly enjoyable.”
Ageha said that while staring at me a bit intently. No, I didn’t need pity that much.
If this keeps up, I felt like Ageha would bring up my family stories to someone, so I hastily tried to change the topic.
“Even if we set aside theory, what kind of stuff do you think will come out in the practical exam?”
I had a rough idea of what the exam would be like.
It was a mission-type exam where you need to help citizens while dealing with something hidden by the Academy in some part of the city.
Even with safety personnel on duty, as long as it didn’t put students in mortal danger, they basically would not get involved, no matter what villains showed up.
For the protagonists, of course, something happened that was too tough for even safety personnel to handle.
“Speaking of practical exams… I heard seniors had to face current heroes. They said the difficulty was absolutely terrible…”
“One of my club’s seniors said they had a tournament among classmates.”
“My senior hasn’t said anything about it…”
“That’s probably because you never asked, Lapiz.”
“Y-yeah, that’s true!”
“But whatever happens, just smash through it. If you can’t overcome this level of obstacle, how could you ever become a hero?”
Fukukin said something standard yet painfully boring. Looking at him like this, it really hit me that he’s super uninteresting.
I felt I understood now why he had such a diminished presence since the midway point of the story. He lost all his character after waking up.
Maybe I should’ve stepped on him before. Just when I started to feel a bit guilty for how boring Fukukin had become.
“That’s true, but still, don’t you think it’s a bit too much to push the students this hard?”
Surprisingly, Jin-hyeon made a good point. What’s up with that, why is he speaking sense?
Even a broken clock is right twice a day, is that it?
“I can’t completely agree, but I can’t just dismiss it as completely wrong either.”
Ageha agreed with Jin-hyeon’s opinion to a certain extent, and so did the others. I thought they would just take this treatment for granted.
But that wasn’t the case. Surprisingly, even among them, they were thinking it was a bit harsh.
…For humans, that’s just expected.
“But what can we do? This is a necessary process to select the best heroes.”
“That’s… true, but still.”
“Feels like I haven’t studied at all…”
“It’s not a feeling; it’s that you actually haven’t studied at all.”
“Eek, really? I really haven’t. Ageha, we did gather to study, so shouldn’t we start studying a bit?!”
Yeonhwa looked shocked at the single untouched page in her notebook and suggested we should start studying.
“Sorry! I got so caught up in talking that I lost track. Okay, let’s finally start now.”
Ageha, realizing how far off course we had strayed, turned the page of her notebook at last.
———————
The group study barely wrapped up at 8 o’clock. I ate dinner at Ageha’s house, and while my body was tired, my mind was anything but.
I felt unwell, to the point my tail drooped down, swaying around listlessly.
It wasn’t because Jin-hyeon was showing off or anything. I just didn’t feel at ease.
Just a moment ago, everything felt warm, but now I felt oddly empty and cold.
So, I took out my phone and called that person.
The phone rang once, twice, three times, four times. Were they sleeping? Would this be a bother? But I still wanted to hear that voice.
It would be best to pop a bead and move on, but there’s a certain emotion that can only be sheltered through a call.
As I was about to hang up, anticipating a message saying the call couldn’t connect, their voice came through the phone.
-Ah, sorry for the delay. I was half-asleep.
“…No, it’s fine. I’m just grateful you answered.”
Their voice had a drowsy tone. They must’ve woken up from sleeping. They were probably pretending to wake up for my sake.
-So, what’s this call about? You’re not really just calling to hear my voice, are you?
If that’s the case, it would’ve been faster to just come in person. They joked as such.
After a brief silence, I couldn’t avoid answering their question, and with a hint of hope, I started to speak.
“It’s not anything special, it’s just… on the day of the incident, if any students align with our side… I was wondering if we could accommodate them as well.”
After listening to me, they hummed thoughtfully.
After a while, they finally spoke up.
-I can’t outright say that’s impossible, but I can’t positively respond to that either. The idea is nice, but… there are many things to consider.
They explained various factors to me, like their backgrounds, whether they genuinely sympathize, their abilities, etc.
However, they assured me that since it came from Blanca, they’ll review it positively.
“Thank you.”
-Nah. Still, seeing you say that makes it seem like your ‘friends’ trust you quite a bit, huh?
…
“…Yeah, I guess so.”
-Good. Keep it up. You never know, someone might change their mind after seeing you.
Probably not, but I told them it could happen and then ended the call.