The train car falls silent.
“Hehe.”
A smile lingers at the corner of Olivia’s mouth.
Watching Olivia eat her side dish with a fork, I pick up some lotus root and eat it with my rice.
‘Not great.’
I was curious about the taste since it’s a common Japanese home-style side dish, but it’s just okay.
Maybe it’s because the ekiben is for one person, but we finish it off in no time together.
After tidying up the empty lunchbox, Olivia finishes peeling a boiled egg she brought.
“The egg is pretty tasty too.”
It tastes fine as a dessert after finishing the rice.
“Hmph, hmph! Receiving such obvious compliments doesn’t make me happy at all, you know?!”
Olivia’s cheeks flush pink as her lips twitch.
By the time we finish the egg, I start to feel sleepy.
Maybe it’s because I didn’t sleep well last night.
I’m tired.
I need to sleep a bit.
“Hey, Olivia. I’m going to sleep, so wake me up when we arrive.”
“W-What kind of ridiculous order is that…?”
I close my eyes and drift off before I even hear the end of Olivia’s sentence.
*
Kim Deok-Sung has fallen asleep in an instant.
Olivia, seeing him, pouts her lips.
“Ugh… Seriously… So self-centered, the worst of the worst…”
Despite the harsh words she’s spilling, her heart is racing so fast it feels like it might be heard outside.
Thump, thump.
Olivia’s face turns red from the uncontrollable heartbeat.
She looks at Kim Deok-Sung’s peaceful sleeping face in her view.
“If only he could say something… Ugh, how annoying…”
Olivia pouts her lips again.
She remembers exploring the ruins with him at the start of the semester.
‘It was like this back then too.’
She recalls taking care of him after defeating the boss monster.
Unintentionally, she even used her knees as a pillow for him.
Though she complained about how it wasn’t an outing but a ruin exploration, looking back now, it wasn’t such a bad memory.
It might be because it was just the two of them, no other mischief-makers around.
That might have been the best time.
“Ah, no!”
Olivia shakes her head vigorously as those thoughts come to her mind.
Realizing she had spoken out loud without meaning to, she quickly covers her mouth.
She turns her head.
Kim Deok-Sung is softly breathing as he sleeps.
“Haah.”
Olivia lets out a sigh of relief but then shakes her head again.
“Wh-Why am I even worried about that fool?!”
She does have to care a bit.
After all, she is his exclusive maid.
She lost in a duel fought in the name of the Bonaparte royal family’s honor.
It’s only natural.
But is that really all of it?
Olivia suddenly realizes that the duties of an exclusive maid alone can’t explain the pounding in her heart.
Her face quickly flushes red.
‘…Idiot. You’re recklessly messing with a lady’s heart…’
“My, my, my! You just go and mess with a lady’s heart like that…!”
Recently, Olivia felt her emotions spiraling out of control.
Just a moment ago, for example.
Normally, a petty seat war wouldn’t have been worth her time, but Olivia joined in.
When he grabbed her wrist at Tokyo Station, she didn’t even have the luxury to retort like usual.
Her heart was racing so fast, calming it down was a bigger challenge than she imagined.
It was the same when he asked to share a lunch box.
When she unknowingly blurted out the words asking him to feed her—something only lovers say—she nearly wanted to cover her mouth.
“Wh-what, how could I act so embarrassingly…!”
But Olivia couldn’t even imagine that Kim Deok-Sung would really feed her.
That wasn’t all.
Compared to the beginning, Kim Deok-Sung had become much kinder to her lately.
What would have been harsh words before, now often slipped by without remark.
Other girls even complained about being singled out by him.
Just earlier today, she made the mistake of believing Bella’s words and brought a boiled egg and soda, but he didn’t scold her.
Instead, he said the plain boiled egg was delicious and suggested sharing the ekiben he probably intended to eat alone.
Casual yet thoughtful consideration.
“…You fool, you idiot. Being so unnecessarily kind in trivial matters is why all those stray cats keep flocking around you!”
Boom.
Olivia’s face heated up again.
“Maybe… I too… like this fool… like those stray cats…?”
──Unbelievably, she’s fallen for him.
No, perhaps it has been much longer.
From the day she became his exclusive maid, or rather, from the day she learned about his past.
Her thoughts reached that point.
Tap.
Kim Deok-Sung’s head plopped against Olivia’s shoulder.
“Wha-what?!”
Startled, Olivia realized she had become his shoulder pillow.
Kim Deok-Sung didn’t respond as he slept.
His breaths against her ear echoed lightly.
With the realization of feelings she had denied, Olivia’s heart raced even more.
The emotions she had worked so hard to suppress raged like a torrential current within her.
Thump, thump.
Feeling the pleasant heartbeat, Olivia opened her eyes.
With trembling hands, she reached out and ruffled Kim Deok-Sung’s black hair.
“Honestly… such a clumsy person… you’re nothing without me, your all-purpose maid by your side.”
So, I will continue to stay by your side from now on.
Olivia swallowed her unspoken words and tenderly scratched Kim Deok-Sung’s head.
A faint smile graced her face.
*
[…Arriving at Kyoto Station.]
The announcement echoed from afar.
“…Wake up.”
A familiar voice called right next to her.
“We’ve arrived in Kyoto. I said, wake up!”
Have we arrived?
As she opened her eyes, her blurry vision cleared to reveal Olivia, blushing and looking at her.
And there she was, resting her head on his shoulder.
Wait, did I really just rest my head on her shoulder?
Panicking, he lifted his head.
“You seemed quite tired. Did you sleep well?”
Olivia, usually so flustered, smiled warmly and spoke sweetly.
“Well, that’s…”
Their eyes met directly.
Unlike usual, she didn’t shy away or pout, just smiled brightly at him.
Olivia’s Smile.
With her blue eyes, pale skin, shiny platinum hair, and stunning beauty, she stands out even more today.
She was always a beautiful girl, but was she really this pretty?
I can’t help but feel a bit awkward.
I divert my gaze and mumble my words.
“I think I slept well…”
“Hehehe. As your personal maid, I couldn’t help but take care of you. You should thank me! Do you understand?”
Olivia shouts with her usual haughty maiden tone.
Yes, this is the tsundere Olivia I know.
Feeling a bit more at ease now, I turn my gaze to the window.
Kyoto.
We’ve finally arrived at the original Volume 4’s key stage, where Meijin Hero Academy is located.
Hurray!
The training group, upon arriving in Kyoto, moved straight to their accommodation, a hotel.
The scenes of Kyoto Station and the Kyoto Tower, a landmark of the city, flash by, just like in the anime.
“Finally in Kyoto.”
Seeing the scenery I often only saw in manga unfold before my eyes feels incredibly nostalgic.
We head to our accommodation under the guidance of the student council.
After unloading our luggage at the hotel rented out entirely by Shuo Hero Academy, we gather in the hotel’s Grand Hall as instructed by the Student Council President.
Cadets line up in order.
In front stands the silver-haired beautiful girl, Saionji Aris, flanked by the vice president and the secretary.
“The Kyoto training program lasts a total of ten days. First, our student council plans to officially contact the Meijin Hero Academy to negotiate through established routes.”
Ten days.
Exactly the same duration as the original exchange event.
The difference from the original is that instead of instructors, the student council is leading us.
This means there is not a single instructor in our training group.
“Is the reason for forming the training group solely with students to avoid provoking Meijin Hero Academy?”
In the original, Mayuzumi-sensei, who accompanied us during the exchange, wasn’t particularly helpful either.
Instructors in academy stories often turn out to be as useful as police in horror movies.
But still, an instructor is an instructor.
The absence of instructors might make Meijin Hero Academy openly refuse the training group, or so the president seems to think.
“If Meijin Hero Academy permits the training, we will then infiltrate their academy to observe their movements. Any questions from the cadets?”
Aris’s cold gaze sweeps over the audience.
As the Student Council President of Shuo Hero Academy, Saionji Aris is a living symbol of our academy.
Very few have the guts to challenge her with questions.
Except for me.
I raise my hand.
“Kim Deok-Sung? Please ask your question.”
What? Did Aris remember my name?
I’m slightly surprised, but that moment passes quickly.
I need to ask my required question.
“The exchange event has already been canceled unilaterally. Isn’t there no guarantee that Meijin Academy will accept our training?”
Upon hearing my question, the cadets murmur among themselves.
“What’s up with him? Asking the president that kind of question?”
“Does he not trust Saionji-senpai?”
“They say he’s the Black Beast, and it shows.”
The mere act of questioning the Student Council President, who has built absolute trust, sends ripples of shock through the cadets.
At this point, isn’t she more like a dictator than a Student Council President?
“Silence. Quiet down, please.”
As the cadets get too noisy, Nagamine Reiji calls them to order.
The group quiets down as if doused with cold water.
A sparkle of surprise appears in Aris’s silver eyes as she looks at me.
“That’s a valid question, Kim Deok-Sung. However, I am the Student Council President representing Shuo Hero Academy. While Meijin will likely drag out the process upon our official request, they cannot refuse us. Does that answer your question?”
The authority of the student council, huh.
I never imagined that the suspiciously strong power of the student council in this light novel world would come in handy here.
Well, it’s a student council in a light novel, so what can’t they do?
But that’s not all I’m curious about.
“I have one more question.”
“Go ahead, Kim Deok-Sung.”
“We’ve come to Kyoto, shouldn’t we do some sightseeing?”
Sightseeing is a serious matter.
In my original world, as a hopeless otaku, I had never even been to Japan.
While progressing the story is great, wouldn’t it be fine to do a little sightseeing as well?
Since the student council is handling the meeting, there’s no chance for me to butt in anyway.
Before I could finish my thought, Nagamine Reiji beside me excitedly shouts out.
“Tourism during the mission! What nonsense is this… President! These ridiculous questions…”
“Calm down, Nagamine.”
Snap.
Aris raises her left hand to calm the riled-up Nagamine Reiji.
A faint smile appears on her ice-like face.
Is she smiling?
Aris, known for her expressionless nature in the original, only smiles in three specific situations: when showing her true rural girl self, when she is extremely displeased, or when she’s immensely happy.
Since this isn’t the rural girl moment, it must be good or bad—pick one.
Aris opens her lips.
“Do you not understand Kim Deok-Sung’s intention, Nagamine? He proposed sightseeing… under the pretext of scouting the enemy.”
What?
“Indeed, I see. My insight was lacking. President.”
They started jumping to conclusions without a word from me.
It’s absurd.
“Am I right, Kim Deok-Sung?”
Aris looks over at me and asks.
At this point, saying I just want to have fun feels a bit awkward, so I nod.
“Kim, was he actually that amazing?”
“I didn’t know.”
“I want to be praised by the president too!”
The students buzz around me.
It’s nice to hear positive chatter after a long time.
“Our training group is officially here for a trip to Kyoto. Staying in accommodation without a sightseeing program raises unnecessary suspicion. It would be rather natural to actively enjoy some sightseeing. Good observation, Kim Deok-Sung.”
Aris speaks in a calm voice.
“Now, do you have any more questions?”
“No.”
I’ve asked everything I wanted to.
“Alright. The student council will handle the group assignment, so you all will conduct reconnaissance while also enjoying sightseeing at the designated locations.”
Clap.
With that clap, Aris concludes the meeting for the day.
Now all that’s left is reconnaissance, or rather, sightseeing.
Hooray for light novel logic!
*
On the first day of training, in the streets of Kyoto.
The members I was assigned by the student council are…
“Hehe. Being in the same group as my master is super lucky! Eri is already excited!”
“Master, please take care of me…”
It was Nishizawa and Makoto.
Nishizawa is grinning like a fool, fiddling with her dog collar.
“Hey, Nishizawa. Every time you open your mouth, I get a headache, so could you please shut it? And can we drop the dog collar and that ridiculous third-person thing?”
Honestly, I can’t take it anymore.
Hearing her call herself ‘Eri’ makes my stomach churn every time.
No matter how cute her face is, there’s no way the pile of dislike towards Nishizawa would be diluted by just that.
And for the love of everything, why doesn’t she take off that dog collar?
“No way. Eri. Honestly, I’m a bit pouty because Master has been ignoring me. He didn’t even pick me during the train trip. Only pampered the princess. Hmph. Eri could make Master delicious soybean paste soup every morning!”
“Uh, Nishizawa… If you keep this up, you might get on Master’s bad side.”
“Boop…”
Nishizawa’s cheeks puff up.
Are you a child or something?
A sigh escapes me.
