Episode 5: I Wasn’t a Loner After All…!
And so, Matsuri, who had been summoned, was asked various questions by her homeroom teacher about the Ibinom attack. However, since most of it had already been discussed in the reception room, she was quickly released. But, as a precaution, mental care was deemed necessary, so Matsuri was taken to the academy’s counselor for a simple Q&A session.
The reason for this was that such cases were quite common – instances where individuals developed trauma after being attacked by Ibinom. Therefore, even though Matsuri had been rescued by Kazuma and was unharmed, her mental state was unknown, so she underwent counseling just in case.
As a result, Matsuri was judged to have no issues. Well, considering she went to her classroom as usual right after the attack, Matsuri might surprisingly be quite gutsy.
“Kamishiro-san. They said you’re fine, but try to stay with someone you’re close to today, okay? You might feel alright now, but sometimes the fear can hit you later when you remember it.”
“Y-Yes.”
“Well then, I’m heading back to the Faculty Office, so be careful on your way back to the classroom.”
“Yes.”
Matsuri obediently listened to her teacher and replied.
Afterward, Matsuri returned to her classroom and was bombarded with questions by her best friend, Misaki.
“Hey, what was the summons about?”
“Um, it seems like they’re looking for the person who saved me.”
“Ah, I see. Weren’t they caught on any security cameras or anything?”
“They were, but the angle was bad, so only the Ibinom and I were visible.”
“Is that so? If it wasn’t a teacher, maybe a student from the Combat Course? If so, I’d think they’d be bragging about it by now, and it wouldn’t be strange if they came to see you, Matsuri.”
“You think so? I don’t think they’re that kind of person, though.”
“Well, it might depend on when they awakened.”
Current Gifted individuals no longer need to ingest Ibinom blood and see if they are compatible, like in the old days. Nowadays, since most have parents who are Gifted, their Gifts awaken at the ages of three, five, seven, nine, eleven, thirteen, and finally fifteen. Cases of awakening after that are extremely rare.
Furthermore, a Gift can sometimes be inherited from either parent. Because of this, there used to be people who would forcibly marry those with rare Gifts.
But not anymore.
This is because a parent’s Gift is not always guaranteed to be inherited. Many children awaken Gifts completely different from their parents’.
Thanks to this, marrying based on the quality of one’s Gift has ceased.
“You know, a lot of people get cocky right after their Gift awakens, right? So, if they defeated an Ibinom single-handedly, it wouldn’t be strange for them to brag about it, would it?”
“Hmm. I wonder if that’s true.”
“Well, that’s just my opinion. Should I ask a friend I know in the Combat Course soon?”
“Yeah, that sounds good. I want to thank them properly too. I’ll try looking for them.”
“So, getting back to what we were talking about, what else did you discuss?”
“Um, actually, people from the National Defense Force were there.”
As Matsuri was speaking, Misaki heard the words “National Defense Force” and shot up from her seat in surprise.
“The National Defense Force, you say?!”
“Hey, Misaki-chan! You’re being too loud.”
“Ah, ah, sorry.”
However, it was already too late. The words “National Defense Force,” uttered loudly by Misaki, spread throughout the classroom.
“Did I just hear someone say National Defense Force?”
“Yeah, I heard it. They definitely said National Defense Force.”
“No way! The National Defense Force was here?”
“Ehh! I wanted to see them.”
“Were they here to scout?! If so, I need to go make an impression!”
“Idiot! Why would they come to the Support Course? It must be for a Combat Course student.”
Seeing the classroom grow noisy, Matsuri glared at Misaki. Misaki, the culprit behind the commotion, clasped her hands together, bowed her head, and apologized to Matsuri.
“S-Sorry! It’s all my fault…”
“Haaah. It’s fine. I think it would have gotten out sooner or later anyway. It just happened a bit earlier, so don’t worry about it.”
“Ma-Matsuri~!”
Moved by Matsuri’s kind words, Misaki’s eyes welled up with tears as she hugged her.
“I’m sorry, I’m really sorry.”
“It’s fine, really.”
Stroking the head of the tearful Misaki, Matsuri wondered what to do next. She thought about her friend in the Combat Course, considering asking for help in finding the person who had saved her and Misaki.
Meanwhile, Kazuma was in the classroom, desperately trying to escape his loner status. The main topic of conversation in the classroom was the recent alarm, so Kazuma mustered his courage and tried to join in.
“Hey, did you hear that alarm earlier?”
However, sadly, Kazuma’s words didn’t reach anyone. The student he spoke to was probably audible, but they were happily chatting with other close friends. There was no room for Kazuma to squeeze in. As expected, being hospitalized for three months had taken its toll. During that time, his classmates had already formed their own groups. Therefore, it was extremely difficult for Kazuma to join any group now.
“…Damn it. If I had to return, I wish it had been right before the accident.”
He lay his head on the desk and grumbled, but time wouldn’t turn back. This was something even Kazuma’s magic couldn’t achieve. Well, perhaps someday a Gifted individual capable of manipulating time might appear. All Kazuma could do was hope for that.
And so, the last class ended, and the day was over. Looking back, Kazuma had ended up fighting an Ibinom on his very first day of school, making it an intense one. However, since no one knew about it, no one approached Kazuma. He had tried to initiate conversation himself, but it ended awkwardly, and he hadn’t made any friends.
In the end, his first day of school was a disastrous result. The only good thing was that he found out his magic worked on Ibinom. However, he didn’t know how that would be useful in his school life. Unless there was an extreme emergency, like an Ibinom appearing on school grounds as it did today, it probably wouldn’t be of any use.
Homeroom ended, and the classmates split into those going to club activities and those going to hang out after school. Groups of close friends were excitedly making plans to go out, while others were cheerfully discussing what they would do in their clubs today.
Kazuma, who could only watch them, left the classroom alone, looking lonely. There was no point in staying. With a dejected posture, Kazuma trudged back to the student dormitory.
However, at that moment, something completely unexpected happened. As Kazuma left the classroom and was about to head back, a classmate called out to him.
“Hey, Satsuki!”
At first glance, it sounded like a girl’s name, but it was Kazuma’s surname. So, thinking, No way, Kazuma turned around and saw a group of three male students heading towards him.
“Eh, ah…?”
Kazuma was too surprised to speak properly, but the other party spoke considerately.
“Ah, um, hey, wanna hang out with us now?”
“Eh?! Is… is that okay?”
“Yeah. Of course. We were thinking we’d like to talk to you, Satsuki. Let’s get along, fellow classmates in the Support Course.”
At those words, Kazuma trembled with joy. No tears came out, but he made a gesture of wiping his eyes with his arm, feigning crying.
“Uoooooh! Thank you!”
“Hahaha! You’re a funny guy! Well then, let’s go hang out right away!”
And so, Kazuma ended up going out with three of his classmates. For Kazuma, who had resigned himself to a confirmed loner’s gloomy youth, this was a joyous event.
After school, Kazuma headed into town with the three of them. As they walked, the four of them began to introduce themselves.
“Oh yeah, I haven’t said my name yet. I’m Takeshita Akatsuki. Cool name, right?”
“Whoa! Akatsuki! That’s a great name!”
“Haha! Thanks. Your name, Kazuma, is cool too.”
“Thanks. I like this name too.”
Akatsuki, who had first called out to Kazuma, introduced himself, and they chatted lightly. Then, the second person began his introduction.
“I’m Fudou Taichi. Nice to meet you, Satsuki-kun.”
“Nice to meet you, Fudou-kun.”
“Still, sorry for springing this on you. Akatsuki here kind of forced you into it.”
“Hey, hey, it wasn’t forceful, was it?! I invited him pretty normally!”
“No, I was really happy about it. You see, I was hospitalized for three months, so honestly, I’d already given up. Because, you know, the class has probably already formed close-knit groups by now. I thought I was a goner, a loner, so I’m super grateful you invited me today.”
“See! Satsuki’s grateful too! I was right to invite him, wasn’t I?”
“Yeah, yeah. You’re right.”
“You should be praising me more for that!”
While they were getting lively, the last person introduced himself.
“Alright, I’m last. Ibuki Kousuke, currently looking for a girlfriend!”
Hearing the words “looking for a girlfriend,” Kazuma couldn’t help but burst out laughing.
“Bfft! ‘Looking for a girlfriend,’ is that part of your self-introduction?”
“It is a self-introduction. By the way, my type is girls with big butts!”
“Hahahahaha! That’s too sudden, it’s hilarious!”
“You think so? I’m being perfectly serious, you know?”
“Alright! Now that everyone’s introduced themselves, where should we go hang out? Wanna go to karaoke? Or maybe bowling? Billiards or darts are fine too!”
And so, the four of them, having finished their self-introductions, went off to have some fun. Although they hadn’t yet decided where to go, Kazuma was overjoyed, for he had made what he could call friends. He probably never even imagined that such a joyous event would occur at the very, very end.