After the women's sparring class ended, it was lunchtime.
I was about to eat alone in a corner as I did yesterday, but an uninvited guest came over.
"Wow, you were really cool during the sparring earlier. You dodged all the incoming attacks and even managed to counter when there was a brief opening. I couldn't help but cheer."
Yun Siwoo was making a fuss in front of me, talking about it.
It was good to see Silvia sitting next to him, but...
Silvia was looking at me with a discontented expression, picking at her food, which made my heart ache.
...No, I sat in the corner on purpose so I wouldn't interfere with their cozy lunch, but this guy, Yun Siwoo, came to sit right in front of me?
While thinking this, I glared at Yun Siwoo, but this clueless guy was so excited that he kept talking to me with a smile.
I was too lazy to answer, so I just nodded and replied.
"Did you learn that martial art when you were young?"
Nod
"It must have been really tough to train to that level."
Nod
"...Do you want to be friends with me?"
"No."
My sharp refusal made Yun Siwoo deflated.
Silvia started to look at me with even more intense eyes.
Why?!
After finishing her meal, Silvia put down her utensils with a clatter.
She stared at me and muttered to herself.
"Ah, after sparring, I really want something sweet."
Her eyes triggered my friend sensor.
This... means it's time to pay the friend fee!
"Would a macaron be okay?"
"Oh, you're offering to buy it? Is that okay?"
When I asked, Silvia smiled and replied, confirming I was right.
Is it okay? Of course, it's a no-brainer, Silvia!
I've been starving myself morning and night for this!
"Because we're friends!"
"Since it's a friend's offer, I won't refuse."
Silvia answered.
Yun Siwoo suddenly looked at Silvia with wide eyes, surprised.
Silvia is indeed very pretty, which is why she was surprised.
But who is Silvia's friend right now?
Her name is?
Scarlett Evande.
Hehe... then what's her job?
'Silvia's friend'.
That's why I am invincible, and Silvia is a god.
Yun Siwoo looked at me with a complicated expression, but I didn't care.
I ran to the snack stand, feeling elated.
*
"Hey, Lucy, do I look unpleasant?"
[Siwoo, you have no conscience. You should apologize to other guys.]
Yun Siwoo's question made the self within the Sword of Humility, Lucy, answer with exasperation.
Yun Siwoo himself knew he was asking a straightforward question.
He knew, though it was a bit embarrassing to admit, that he had a face that attracted the opposite sex.
This made him even more curious.
The red-haired, red-eyed girl with a blank expression who had vehemently refused his offer to "take her home" was the first person who had ever treated him negatively without any reason.
Perhaps because he had never experienced such a reaction, Yun Siwoo naturally became interested in her.
Since they wore the same school uniform, he thought he might run into her somewhere.
While pedaling his bicycle, Yun Siwoo realized he had taken a wrong turn only after 30 minutes past the 8:00 AM school start time.
When he finally arrived at school and opened the classroom door, he saw the girl he had seen on his way to school.
Unlike the noisy surroundings, she was sitting in her seat with a blank expression, looking like a doll.
Seeing that the seat in front of her was empty, Yun Siwoo quickly sat down and learned her name was Scarlett Evande.
She didn't even respond to his offer to be friends.
Her attitude was clearly different from the other girls in the class who looked at him.
Yun Siwoo wanted to know more about her.
It's troublesome...
Seeing Scarlett eating alone in the corner, Yun Siwoo sighed.
After the ability measurement class, she had been avoiding him ever since he had seen her naked and hit her chin while she was under an illusion spell.
She seemed to believe he had seen her in an embarrassing state.
Feeling embarrassed, his face turned hot, and he went to the bathroom to wash his face with cold water after finishing his meal.
Back in the classroom, he was talking with Silvia when someone approached and gave Silvia a macaron from the snack stand.
When Yun Siwoo looked up, he was shocked.
Scarlett was smiling and talking to Silvia.
She could make such an expression.
Watching her smile, Yun Siwoo suddenly wished she would smile at him like that.
It seemed she was giving Silvia a macaron to celebrate becoming friends.
Does she show such a smile only to her friends?
When he asked if she had one for him, she immediately wiped the smile off her face and returned to her blank expression, which made Yun Siwoo a bit sad.
Back home, lying in bed, the image of Scarlett's smile kept flashing in his mind, making it hard to fall asleep.
[It's not just her smile, is it? Her skin was definitely good, and her body was beautiful.]
Ugh... Lucy, I told you not to read my thoughts.
[Hehe, you are a teenage boy, after all. There's nothing to be embarrassed about. It's natural to fall in love at first sight with a girl you meet for the first time.]
I didn't fall in love!
This... I just want to be friends.
[If that's what you want, then that's what it is.]
Yun Siwoo tried to explain, despite Lucy's smiling voice.
Yeah, I just want to be friends.
Trying to ignore the first fluttering feeling he had ever experienced, he repeated this to himself.
*
Arriving at the snack stand, I picked up a macaron.
This small pastry cost ten times my daily living expenses, but it wasn't a waste if I was giving it to Silvia!
I was about to pay with my student ID when I suddenly remembered yesterday.
Should I buy another macaron?
I recalled how Silvia had glared at me when I didn't give her a macaron.
Thinking about it, I should buy another one, but my hand trembled as I tried to pick up another macaron.
After all, this one pastry cost ten times my daily living expenses!
Moreover, this was not a friend fee but my own living expenses.
If I bought this, my daily living expenses would drop from 300 gold to 230 gold!
Damn... it was really expensive.
Thinking about giving it to Yun Siwoo, the macaron felt like a thousand gold pieces, but to avoid being hated by Silvia, I gritted my teeth and picked up another macaron, then paid for both.
"Hey, wait a minute!"
Just as I was about to leave the snack stand, I heard a voice and turned around to see the class president standing there, looking uneasy.
"Sorry!"
She bowed and apologized to me first.
What's going on? Is this a YouTube-style conversation where you start with an apology?
Feeling confused, I listened as she continued.
"Yesterday, I talked about a sensitive topic without knowing anything, and today I said something about not bringing a weapon. I wanted to apologize to you for my mistakes..."
Wow.
"A hero aspirant shouldn't speak so carelessly... I'm really sorry."
My inner self screamed, trying to hold back tears.
How can someone be so honest and kind!
I was so proud of her that I grabbed her hands with both of mine and said,
"Thank you for apologizing."
Her body, which had been bowed, started to tremble.
Oh, did I make her feel awkward by suddenly holding her hands?
Feeling embarrassed, I let go of her hands, and she lifted her head and turned around.
Her face, which I could see briefly, was bright red.
"If you ever have any trouble, let me know..."
The class president said this and then ran off in the opposite direction, as if she had an urgent matter.
Hot! I need to fulfill my duty as a friend!
Recalling my original purpose, I returned to the classroom.
"Thank you, Miss Scarlett."
I was moved to see Silvia smiling as she received the macaron.
Ah, how happy it is to buy this smile for 3000 gold.
Feeling the happiness for a moment, I noticed Yun Siwoo staring at the macaron I had given to Silvia.
Ah... I really don't want to give it to him...
I took out the macaron, trembling, and extended it to Yun Siwoo.
"Um... are you giving this to me?"
When Yun Siwoo asked, I gritted my teeth and looked at Silvia.
Is... is this the right answer? Miss Silvia!
Silvia was glaring at me with a murderous look.
It's even worse than yesterday! Why?!
I finally realized.
Not giving Yun Siwoo a macaron would decrease his affection by -3,
but giving him a macaron would decrease his affection by -10, a major failure.
Is it too late to change?
I quickly shook my head and put the macaron back in my pocket.
"Hehe... Yeah, I'll give it to you when I feel like it."
Yun Siwoo, who had extended his hand to take the macaron, awkwardly laughed and said,
Well, I don't know if I'll ever feel like giving you a macaron.
I nodded, thinking this.
"I'll wait."
Yun Siwoo smiled sadly and said.
Kid, you're putting a lot of pressure on me.
If you want a macaron so badly, buy it with your own money!
I fiddled with the macaron in my pocket and thought to myself.
...If I save the macaron, can I eat it for ten days?
Author's Note
In NovelPia, if you write {reader nickname} in the author's note, it will display the nickname of the reader who is reading the story.
Many readers were surprised by the author's note yesterday.
When I saw the new feature, I thought:
What if I used a reader's nickname instead of the new feature?
If other readers didn't notice and didn't mention it in the comments,
and if the person whose nickname I used didn't notice,
I thought about playing a prank like that.
But I decided not to do it because it might be disrespectful to that reader.
Actually, there were many comments about the new feature yesterday, so I plan to refrain from using it for a while.
By the way, my story reached the top 13 on NovelPia yesterday!
I was so surprised when I saw it...
Honestly, while writing, I often wonder if my story is worth the support of so many readers, but I will try to write better stories to repay the readers who enjoy my work.