GalaxyTL
* * *
Blink I open my eyes.
What comes into view is a room in the baron’s mansion I’ve been staying at recently…no, wait, this isn’t it.
Dirty walls covered in black mold.
Silverfish scurrying about.
A drafty, gapped wooden floor.
A windowless room.
Yet light filters in through cracks in the walls and ceiling, providing a dim illumination.
Ah, this is the storeroom at the house where I, the former Aihara Runa, was last placed in my previous life.
Which means, this must be…
A dream, huh.
A lucid dream, they call it.
I, or rather Aihara Runa, stretch out my body stiffened from lying on the hard floor.
Taking a deep breath of the dusty air.
Folding up the thin towel sheet and changing into my uniform.
Then heading straight to school.
I don’t show my face in the main house.
Because I can already envision the terrible treatment awaiting me there.
Tap tap, tap tap
My feet move of their own accord.
It’s a strange feeling.
This dream proceeds from Aihara Runa’s perspective.
I can’t control the body’s movements.
It’s like re-experiencing old memories.
Is it nearing the end of summer in this dream world?
A feeling of school having just resumed after summer break.
A clear, deep blue sky. Fluffy clouds in the distance.
An occasional cool, pleasant breeze.
Seems it rained last night, with puddles here and there.
Without access to a mirror at home, Runa uses a puddle to comb her hair with her hands.
But it’s futile resistance.
No matter how much she fiddles with it, her stubborn bedhead immediately reverts.
Disheveled hair, rough skin, skinny limbs, wrinkled uniform.
Utterly unkempt, unbefitting a vibrant high school girl.
Well, can’t be helped!
I smile and accept it.
That’s right, I could still smile back when I was Aihara Runa.
Having heard some vague rumor that smiling leads to happiness,
I made a conscious effort to always wear a smile.
Though in the end, it probably just creeped people out.
At the park’s water fountain on my way to school, I wash my face.
Ahhh, refreshingly reinvigorated!
Thunk
Hm?
“Ah, crap! She noticed us!”
“Run away, run awaaay!”
Seems some cheeky elementary schoolers threw a rock at me while I had my guard down.
Well, what can you do? Such is youth!
The kind-hearted Aihara Runa would just laugh it off with a smile.
No point in protesting, it would be futile.
Arriving at school.
No indoor shoes.
No choice but to use the guest slippers.
Got a glare from the security guard uncle when he noticed, but I pretend not to.
In the classroom.
There’s a vase of flowers on my desk.
Wowee, someone, I don’t know who, arranged these flowers for me!
How lovely! Just some wildflowers from around!
Smile
I wonder who put them there?
Need to be careful handling them.
I want to tidy them up, but if I carelessly move them,
“I went through the trouble of putting those there, why’d you move them?”
I might get scolded.
What should I do?
“Mornin’~!”
“Good morning, Misaki-chan!”
My classmates greet with smiles.
I smile back in kind.
Runa-chan knows how to read the air, after all.
Can’t be the one gloomy face souring the mood.
No one actually talks to me, but I just keep smiling nonetheless!
“Alrighty, time for the morning assembly!”
The homeroom teacher arrives.
Forgot his name, huh.
“……Oi, Aihara. What’s with that thing on your desk?”
Uh oh? Teacher noticed.
“Flowers.”
“I can see that, dummy! Why’d you put flowers on your desk? You think you’re being funny, huh? You little punk!!”
Well, I’m not a punk.
“Sorry.”
“Don’t give me that ‘sorry’ crap!?”
“My apologies.”
“That’s not what I meant!!”
The teacher, shoulders tense, marched over from the podium straight to Runa’s seat, grabbed her disheveled hair, and forcibly yanked her up from the chair.
“This is how you apologize, dammit! You think you can just fool around and get away with it, huh!? Huh!?”
Then, with brute force, he pushed her head down, forcing Runa into a deep dogeza bow.
“First period is Japanese History. My class. Perfect timing, so you just stay bowed like that the whole time. Don’t even think about moving.”
The teacher returned to the podium and began taking attendance as if nothing had happened.
My classmates were utterly indifferent to what someone had done to me.
This was Aihara Runa’s daily reality.
From the time she was cognizant until her soul was harvested to this other world, every single day was like this.
Runa’s father was a criminal.
Apparently killed many people.
I’ve heard of the stigma children of criminals face.
But even so, Aihara Runa’s daily life was excessively cruel.
Everyone, from all sides, was her enemy.
Enduring physical and mental torment every single day, she desperately clung to her smile.
What even was that daily existence?
In modern Japan, where human rights awareness should have been well-developed, I alone was denied any protection.
Looking back, it does seem like an abnormal situation.
In the end, Runa was not permitted to stop dogeza-ing, and Japanese History class ended with her still bowed.
During break, an unusual occurrence – a male classmate actually spoke to Runa.
The class leader, Suzudou Shota.
“Aihara-san, I need to talk to you about something.”
“What is it?”
Smile
“Sasaki-san’s Japanese textbook has been missing since yesterday……you stole it, didn’t you?”
“Huh?”
Behind Suzudou was the petite, timid Sasaki-san, trembling as she glared at me.
“Aihara-san, return it quickly. She needs it for the next class, you know?”
“That’s right Aihara! Give it back already!”
“Poor Sasaki-san……”
Even if they say that?
Runa-chan hasn’t stolen anything, you know?
A complete false accusation.
Unclear why Runa was immediately suspected as the culprit.
Generally, anything inconvenient was just blamed on Runa.
That’s how the world around Runa worked.
With no recollection at all about Sasaki-san’s Japanese textbook, Runa just smiled through her confusion.
Ah, now I remember.
Come to think of it, something like this did happen, didn’t it?
After this, I was called to the guidance counselor’s office and beaten black and blue.
But when I returned to class, Sasaki-san’s textbook was properly in her locker – she had simply forgotten about it.
Ah, well that’s a relief, all’s well that ends well, I guess. And that was the end of it.
Of course, no apology or anything to me.
Can’t be helped, so I just smiled it off as usual.
After that, some upperclassmen picked a fight with me in the hallway for no reason and assaulted me again.
On my way home, a police officer found me all battered and assumed I’d been in a fight with someone.
Then I was taken into custody.
And “disciplined” again when I got “home.”
That was the kind of day it was.
For Aihara Runa, it was actually a relatively easy day.
My previous life was always like that, basically.
With not a single ally, I just tried my hardest to stay positive and keep smiling through it all.
An ally……
Ah, come to think of it, there was one girl who helped me for a bit.
Though she went missing soon after, never to be seen again.
What was her name again…?
* * *
Blink I open my eyes.
What comes into view is indeed a room in the baron’s mansion I’ve been staying at recently.
Clean walls, no mold in sight.
Never even seen a creature called a silverfish in this world.
An old but well-maintained wooden floor, no gaps.
A small room, but with a window.
Bright from the light filtering in.
I’ve awoken.
“Fuwaaah……”
I rise up from the bed and stretch.
An involuntary yawn escapes me.
My, what an unpleasant dream.
Worst way to wake up, really.
Though I have been reborn into this life only to face more ostracization and a difficult path,
I’m keenly reminded that it’s far better than my previous existence.
Because in this life, I have allies, few though they may be.
I have Extra-sama.
I had Master.
Sara-chan, too……
“!!?”
That’s right! Sara-chan!
What happened to Sara-chan!? And the baron!? Everyone!? The mansion!?
<……Mu, fuwah……Hah!? Ah, Emi! You’re awake!?>
Oh, Extra-sama!
Hey, I defeated the Queen but got poisoned and collapsed, what happened after that!? Is Sara-chan okay!?
<Oh, please calm down, Emi. I share sensory perception with you, so I don’t know what happened after you fell unconscious either!>
I hastily jump out of bed.
Seems I’ve been changed into a clean nightgown.
I stretch a bit and open and close my palms.
Yep, no issues moving at all.
In fact, I feel extraordinarily energetic? Far more so than before?
<Well, you did just go through an intense battle. Your body must have undergone further evolution. You’re only getting stronger. Congratulations, Emi.>
Thank you, Extra-sama!
But that’s not important right now!
Sara-chan was unconscious the last time I saw her, what happened to her!?
Ah, ah, and also!!
Gururururururu……
What!? This overwhelming hunger, what is this!?
<Ah, a side effect from your physical evolution, as I’ve explained before. You just experienced a life-or-death battle, incorporating the Queen’s flesh and expending almost all your magic power. It’s only natural your body would grow and manifest intense side effects accordingly……>
Ahhh, enough with the explanation already! My stomach, I’m so huuuungryyyy!
For the time being, I devour the flowers in the vase and drain the water too.
Ugh, disgusting! And not even close to enough!!
……Wait, no!
The hunger can wait! I’ll just stuff myself with food later!
Where is Sara-chan!?
I prick up my ears.
Seems there are people gathered in Sara-chan’s room on the second floor.
I’ll head there first.
Still in my nightgown, I dash out of the room.