The title
Most titles were supposed to describe someone personally, quirk, or manner, not deflect to someone else, but hers referred to someone else's title. It was the first time I'd seen a title like this. Hell, it was the first time I'd even known something like this existed.
Why did this title refer to my title anyway? My own
I could only guess it was because I was the first one in the group to have power, maybe that's why our special titles went from Ace to Knight, like in a deck of cards.
"Now I understand what you meant now that I've seen this," I said.
I leaned back into the bench. When I looked at Putri, for some reason, I could tell she looked happy. Happier than I'd ever seen her. Once again, I was just guessing her expressionless face, but I tested my theory.
"Are you that happy just because I trust you?"
I gave her a deadpan look, commenting on what I thought I saw in her. Because this time I did trust my guess, I said it out loud and asked her.
She quickly covered her face with both hands. Her cheeks were red, and she looked flustered, but this time was different from usual. This time, her expression showed clearly on her face, even if her hands covered most of it.
"N-no… It's just… It's been a long time since someone really understood what I was feeling…"
She slowly lowered her hands and revealed her face to me. Her tone wavered a little, though her intonation remained the same. She tried to look me in the eye but kept glancing away.
Didn't she just say I could read her expressions earlier? Why was she acting so shy now? I didn't really understand her whole deal.
What I did know was that she wasn't fully aware of the expressions she made. She always thought nobody could tell what she was feeling, even though she unconsciously showed it. That last smile I saw felt genuine, not fake. Natural.
"Wasn't the last time you smiled and laughed with me? Not from my guess, but from your own expression?"
Her face still flushed, she looked confused like she had no idea what I meant. For someone who supposedly doesn't show emotion, her feelings were kind of obvious, even if I was just guessing.
It seemed like Putri didn't realize the expression she had shown earlier. Her feelings had just flowed out without her noticing. Maybe because our conversation felt so natural, something unfamiliar to her, she let her emotions out.
Right now she is like a character that have a gap personality or even breaking her natural character.
"Well then, just like now, did you realize that your shy face was actually… charming? You were expressing yourself just like any normal person."
I was trying to reassure her, but my mouth slipped, and I ended up complimenting her. It even sounded like I was flirting. Well, I was just being honest, though.
"Charming?... Maybe… because no one's treated me normally in a long time…"
She unknowingly repeated the word maybe twice. Putri touched her face as if to check what I'd said. Realizing her face felt hot, her expression subtly changed, and her lips curled into a soft, enchanting smile.
Stop making faces like that. Any normal guy would agree, that kind of smile is lethal. Most guys would absolutely agree with me.
Putri lowered her head and massaged her cheeks, trying to feel what was happening to her face. That kind of reaction was so cute coming from someone who usually had zero expression. Do you know what a "gap" is? I don't really know how to describe it, but just looking at her made the corners of my mouth lift.
"All right. I'll believe every word you say completely. I don't feel any threat from you."
I shook my head a few times and tried to bring the conversation back. Putri turned toward me, snapped out of her daze when I spoke.
Just like I'd thought before, there were a few people around me who posed absolutely no threat. Not even the slightest suspicion. She was one of them.
"Yes, I am `
"As for the data you tried to find, it's probably outside the school's system. Only a few people know I'm
Some information was missing, but as usual, let's save that for another time. Like why the government kept my title secret, or the backstory she might ask me about later, and other possibilities. Honestly, that story is pretty annoying.
Putri nodded several times, seeming to understand that I wanted to avoid the topic.
"So, should we go back to the main issue?"
I wanted to steer the conversation toward what we were supposed to be discussing from the start: the magic community. The ones behind all the recent trouble.
Putri picked up her laptop beside her, opened it, and showed me the screen.
Several images and lines of text appeared on the laptop's panel. It looked like data, with a few programs running in the background. I even saw a browser window open behind the app; it looked like the school's website. A few alert windows popped up and disappeared quickly. However you looked at it, this was… hacking to school site!?
I looked at her doubtfully, hoping she hadn't gone as far as doing something illegal. Our eyes met, and she quickly looked away, pretending not to notice. But come on, any way you looked at it… she totally did it.
"I didn't know you were so good with computers, Putri."
I gave her a flat look. Not that I was looking down on her, but hacking into the school system to gather intel was… kind of illegal, right?
"Y-yeah… It's just a small job…" Her voice was so quiet, and she couldn't even look at me.
Putri once told me to act normal around her, but now she was the one acting all nervous. When she shows emotion, she's just a regular girl like anyone else.
"This is your fault!"
She pointed at me and suddenly blamed me. Her expression was the same as usual, but her tone rose with a hint of frustration.
Why the hell was she blaming me!? Was she that curious about someone so similar to herself because of the title she had? That was just my guess, but it was the only explanation that made sense.
"It's because you're too much like me."
Ah… guess I was right. Now I was even more certain of our similarity. Her face looked like it was saying, 'You're the problem' or something similar to that.
"But doesn't the same go for me?"
"Hmhm~…"
Yup. Nailed it again. She looked up at the sky, trying to avoid admitting the possibility. Sometimes I'm like that too, but now I wasn't sure whether to be proud or embarrassed. Seeing my own traits in someone else was kind of annoying. Now I understand how Alysha must feel.
"Anyway, we can chat more casually later. Let me borrow your laptop…"
I took the laptop from Putri's lap and started looking through the data.
This and that—the files here were pretty extensive. Member profiles. Their records. Even their objectives were in here.
This level of hacking was incredible. Considering how serious the magic community seemed to be, gathering this much data wasn't easy. Putri must be insanely good at this.
Let's take a closer look…
The goals. Some of them were pretty normal for a community, like training, gaining knowledge, and so on. But some things stood out. Something felt 'off' about their goals, though I couldn't pinpoint what. Even if this already looked bad, I had a feeling something even worse was lurking beneath the surface.
The really troubling part of their goals… was "to eliminate everyone close to the Queen." Even though they called her that here, it was obvious they meant Violet.
"If you click that title, another layer of information will show up," Putri said, cutting into my thoughts. I'd been thinking their objective was too simple.
"That's just surface-level data. The deeper stuff is hidden way more securely. And I already got it, not all of them, but enough."
She pointed at the laptop screen and explained a bit about how she got in. From when she first found it to how she dug deeper.
At first, Putri had only been looking for information about my title. She searched the school database but didn't find anything. That's when she started hacking, searching for any data related to me, my title, and anything within the school's system.
Her ability to dig up info was really something. Thank god she wasn't my enemy.
Personal information was incredibly valuable now, especially since duels could be decided based on physical stats, power data, and known weaknesses. If she'd gone any deeper, I was scared she'd actually find my real records somewhere.
Putri hadn't found anything substantial about `
When I clicked on the "Protect the Queen" section, the screen slowly shifted into a branching mind map. I looked at the data and found my name.
"What is this…? A hit list?"
I was shocked by what I'd just read. Elimination? Was this a list of targets? There were several people on it, not just me. A few of the profiles below mine had already been crossed out. Did that mean they'd been taken out? What happened to them?
"What about their condition?" I asked.
"Most of them felt threatened and avoided Violet. Some even got hurt, but they covered it up. Basically, you can't call anyone in Violet's class a real friend anymore."
How long had this been going on? Violet never said anything about it… No. I was sure that even if something happened, she'd stay quiet and take it.
"Why didn't you tell me earlier!?"
I raised my voice at Putri without meaning to and glared at her, furious. My thoughts turned pitch black, clouded by rage.
The idea that Violet had been suffering in silence while I stood around doing nothing crushed me.
"Why didn't you tell me earlier!?"
I raised my voice at Putri without meaning to and glared at her, furious. My thoughts turned pitch black, clouded by rage. The idea that someone had been quietly hurting Violet, right under our noses, and I'd just been sitting around like nothing was happening…
My fists clenched. I could feel my nails digging into my palm. If I had known earlier… if only I had known…
"!! I'm sorry. I didn't mean to yell at you."
I caught myself, realizing the expression on her face had shifted, just slightly. Her shoulders flinched. Her eyes lowered, not in fear, but in guilt. She didn't deserve that. She wasn't the one behind any of this. If anything, she was the one helping me when no one else could.
I took a step back, inhaling slowly to try and settle the heat boiling up inside me.
"You're not the one I'm mad at," I muttered, more to myself than to her. "It's just… everything about this is messed up."
Putri stayed quiet for a moment, and then, just as calm as always, she answered…
"It's okay. I understand how you feel."
The discomfort inside me only grew worse. My mind was spinning, trying to figure out how to fix this. I wasn't the kind of person to care about complete strangers, but this had crossed a line. Someone close to me was being targeted, and I was sick of it.
As I fell deeper into thought, I scanned more profiles, and some of the people listed above me hadn't been attacked yet. A few of them were people I knew well: Koizumi Imelda, the Student Council President; Arthur Miles and Evan Grayer from the Discipline Committee; Christopher Westwood, Esper; and finally, Ishimaru Alysha.
Dammit. So they were serious about this.
I bit my lip and clenched my leg to keep from losing it. I tried to think of the best way to deal with this. No matter how hard it got, I had to stop them… no matter what it took.
!!
"Calm down."
Putri wrapped both hands around mine. Her touch was warm. My awareness snapped back to reality immediately. Seeing her face, with her dark eyes, and hearing her voice, helped to settle my mind.
She was right. I had to calm down. No matter how furious I was at their plans, nothing about what they were doing would change. It was better to channel this rage into action, to ruin their plans.
The bell rang! Since it was the Closed Festival, we were allowed to go home after each event. This is for rest and restoring energy.
Perfect timing. Now we could continue this somewhere else.
"Can you come to our dorm? There's something important I need to discuss with Alysha too."
"Of course. If I can help you, I don't mind."
Putri answered with a smile, trying to ease the tension. And it definitely helped me more than she probably realized. I hadn't expected her to smile, but from how I'd acted earlier, it looked like she felt even guiltier.
I handed the laptop on my lap back to Putri, stood up, and pulled out my phone. I had a bit of a plan forming in my head.
"Hello, Alysha…"
I tell the story to Aysha.