[I don’t like it.]

“Huh? What don’t you like?”

[I couldn’t imagine it all! I don’t like it!]

I thought I had explained in as much detail as possible.

I let out a small sigh.

Well, they weren’t someone who would be easily satisfied.

“But Author, it’s already happened. You can’t turn back time…”

[Since it’s already happened, I have no choice! I’m going to launch another attack!]

“Huh?”

[Let’s see. After realizing that their wife had died, the other monster that escaped from the illegal breeding facility cried sadly.]

“No, wait a minute, Author.”

[Enveloped in a desire for revenge, the male monster rushed towards the humans who killed her!]

“…”

They aren’t listening.

Okay, it seems the Author is really disappointed.

I need to persuade them as quickly as possible to undo this…

“Kwaaaaa!”

“There’s another one!?”

“Student, take cover! It’s dangerous!”

“Is there still someone inside!?”

Damnit, they’re so fast.

But more importantly, why did it appear right in front of me?

[Ah, I didn’t set the location.]

…Author, what are you doing!?

“Grrrrrr…”

“Now now, good doggy. Stay still…Hand?”

“Kwaaaaaa!”

Yeah, I figured it wouldn’t work.

Blinded by rage, the monster charged at the nearest human.

And who would that be? Obviously me.

Instinctively, I used my ability against its overwhelmingly menacing appearance.

“Krrrk?!”

“Phew, that was a shock.”

[I-I’m sorry, dear reader.]

“Please don’t do that again. There won’t be a next time.”

Yeah, there won’t be a next time.

No matter how powerful the Author is, they can’t turn back time. What’s done is done, and throwing a tantrum won’t solve anything.

[Hiiing…I wanted to see the protagonist’s first epic battle.]

In an instant, the rest of my half-glove unraveled, my stockings loosened, and my bare legs started to show.

The loose threads clung here and there in the auditorium, binding the monster’s four legs, body, and neck without covering them.

The monster charging straight at me was now frozen in place.

“Krrrr…!”
“Shhhh, don’t move.”

I added more threads to restrain the monster struggling to break free.

It was hanging suspended in the air like a stuffed specimen. Kind of reminds me of dried pollock fish.

So, who’s attacking me now?

“This is troublesome, though.”

[Why? The mysterious new student easily restrains the monster! This is a good development.]

“Um, well. How should I put this…”

I glanced down at my body.

At some point, the half-gloves I was wearing and the black stockings covering my legs had all loosened and were binding the monster.

It’s good that I tied up the monster with these threads.
But I used too many out of panic.

“Hmm, what should I do.”

[Just kill it quickly! The protagonist kills the monster restrained by the mysterious beauty that attacked the entrance ceremony! This is Heroine 101!]

“I’d like to do that, but…”

No, not the heroine talk.

The “kill it quickly” part.

Who said anything about being a heroine?

I’m a guy. Do you think I’d do something like that?

I need to pull more from my  clothes to use my killing threads.

I’ve used up all the  clothing I could comfortably pull from, my half-glove and stockings.

What’s left?
Obviously, my leotard and uniform.

Why a leotard and not underwear? That’s easy to answer.
First, I feel too self-conscious about wearing women’s underwear. A leotard feels like a tight swimsuit, so it’s a little better.

Second, a leotard has way more threads than underwear.

“I used way too much.”

[You’re just not used to your ability yet, dear reader. Once you get accustomed to it, you can easily restrain them with less cloth!]

Here’s the problem.

If the only  clothes I can use threads from are my leotard and uniform, which should I use?

My ability is to pull out the threads from the  clothes I’m wearing that are touching my skin. This was the ability the Author gave me.

But if I’m not wearing stockings, my skirt will also touch my skin.
If I use the leotard, I can use the unseen inner threads to kill.

However, the threads I use don’t return, so if I accidentally pull the wrong ones, I could end up just wearing my uniform with nothing underneath, becoming an indecent exhibitionist girl…

I’ve never practiced pulling threads from the leotard before. It would be a disaster if I accidentally loosened my shoulders or even worse…

On the other hand, I’m a bit hesitant to use my uniform.

I could shorten the skirt as a last resort…

But this skirt already feels too short, and shortening it even more?

Should I risk the potential disaster of using the leotard threads, or should I use my uniform and be embarrassed but handle it safely?

What a monumental dilemma!

I probably should have instinctively tied it up with threads from the start.

Like catching a ball, I automatically bound the approaching monster without thinking. But in the process, I used way too many threads excessively.

I’m still inexperienced, so switching the restraining threads I’ve already pulled to killing threads is difficult.

“Student! Just keep it tied up!”

“What are you doing?! Hurry and guard the perimeter in case there are others!”

“Y-Yes, sir!”

[Ah, those guys were here too]

“You don’t care about the teachers, huh?”

[Well, they’re just extras. I don’t really care about them unless they’re the protagonist’s mentor.]

The teachers, staring blankly, finally came to their senses and took action to take down the monster I had tied up.

That’s fortunate. I won’t have to shorten my skirt and walk around embarrassed.

***

Yu Siwoo felt a chill run down his spine.

The reason was not hard to find.

That suspicious woman from this morning was staring straight at him.

‘Was she a new student at the academy…?’

When he first saw her, she looked so suspicious that he didn’t notice what she was wearing.

But she was a student at the academy. A new student, just like him.

He realized he held suspicion based only on her appearance.

Feeling apologetic, he turned his head towards where he felt her gaze.

Perfect timi–she was facing the principal as if she never looked at him.

Strange, he clearly felt her watching him just now.

As he turned his head away, distracted by the surrounding teachers, he felt her gaze on him again.

Was she really that angry?

Curious about her behavior, Yu Siwoo noted where she disappeared after the assembly so he could apologize directly later.

Just as he was about to do that, he heard her mutter something softly.

“Hold on a moment, Author. Let’s have an in-depth discussion.”

…?

Who is this “Author”?

Does she have a writer friend nearby or something? He tried to brush it off casually.

It’s not good to eavesdrop on other people’s private conversations.

It was unintentional, but her voice was so quiet that not even the surrounding students seemed to notice.

He figured it would be better to just ignore it.

…At least, until he heard what she said next.

“Um, when exactly is this monster supposed to appear…?”

A monster?

Yu Siwoo was startled.

A monster is going to appear?

This is the academy. In the heart of a major city, right in the center of human territory.

Monsters are only ever seen on the outskirts of cities, in conflict zones…

“You’re saying a monster can just appear in the city? Say something that makes sense.”

It seemed she was also questioning someone about this, thinking the same way.

And right after hearing that, Yu Siwoo felt a chill run down his spine.

She had just asked when the monster would appear.

And now, she was speaking in a tone that suggested she didn’t want to believe it was possible.

Could it be…?

Now completely free of any guilt about eavesdropping, Yu Siwoo focused on listening intently, absentmindedly caressing the sword at his waist.

“After the principal’s speech ends and the applause stops, a monster will attack from the ceiling…”

The moment she finished speaking, Yu Siwoo naturally stood up without thinking.

Not caring about the strange looks from the other new students, he walked towards the center of the auditorium’s ceiling – the area made of glass for landscaping purposes.

That’s clearly what she was referring to.

There was nowhere else on the ceiling a monster could attack from.

Logically, it didn’t make any sense.

For a new student to know a monster would attack.

Yet strangely, Yu Siwoo believed her words as if spellbound.

Was it because of those ominously hiding eyes he glimpsed when they first met?

“…and with that marks the end of the principal’s speech. Everyone, applause!”

Despite the embarrassed looks from some students viewing him oddly, he found a suitable spot to position himself.

If he had just misheard due to paranoia, that would be great.

Then no one would get hurt.

But who would have thought?

They say things never go the way you hope.

Contrary to Yu Siwoo’s hopes, a monster attacked from the ceiling.

“Kyaaaaaaah?!”

“A, a monster! Level 3!”

“A level 3 monster at the school…!”

Even as the new students were hastily led away by the teachers, she remained unmoving.

Just what gave her such confidence?

While extremely curious about her behavior, with the monster in front of him, Yu Siwoo had no choice but to focus all his attention on defeating it.

After a tense battle ended with him managing to slice open its mouth,
The teachers who had quickly evacuated the students started trying to restrain the monster.

“Student, are you alright?!”

“Yes, I’m fine.”

“Impressive skills. …Still, step aside for now. We teachers will handle this.”

After nodding briefly, Yu Siwoo quickly scanned the auditorium, looking for her, realizing she had disappeared.

Where did she go?

He found her location right after that thought.

With a thunderous crash, another monster appeared, smashing through the wall this time.

“There’s another one!?”

“Student, take cover! It’s dangerous!”

“Is there still someone inside!?”

Right in front of the monster,

“Now now, good doggy. Stay still? …Hand?”

For her to be so relaxed facing a Grade 3 monster.

The suspicions towards her only grew stronger. No matter how you looked at it, she was incredibly suspicious.

The monster began charging straight at her.

…Why wasn’t she moving?

Had he misjudged the situation? Even if she moved now, it was too late!

Despite the monster’s charge, she remained unmoving—as if mocking Yu Siwoo’s consternation.

In an instant, black threads appeared around her and bound the monster.

“Phew, that was a shock.”

Not at all a shocked expression.

Having so easily restrained the monster yet acting like she was startled seemed extremely awkward.

“Please don’t do that again. There won’t be a next time.”

Despite her clearly smiling expression, an inexplicable chill could be felt.

Even the monster writhing in the binding threads seemed to sense it, its movements lessening.

Yet she mercilessly added more threads, further constricting its body.

“Shhhh, don’t move.”

Ah, that’s what she meant by there not being a next time.

Watching her torment the monster instead of finishing it off until the teachers arrived, Yu Siwoo thought to himself:
She’s suspicious.

There’s definitely something about her.

As his suspicions towards her deepened, more words suggesting she was talking to someone else came from her mouth.

“You don’t care about the teachers, huh?”

As if the target were the students.

Translator’s Corner

Hanging dried pollock fish.

 

This is the cover from novelpia that shows her power.

-Ruminas