Chapter 125
A few days later.
“Look at this—an Olive Young tint. My boyfriend gave it to me, but it doesn’t match my personal color at all. It’s seriously ugly as hell.”
“R-right….”
“Hey, hey, I’m sending the split bill for yesterday’s Dookki in chat, okay?”
“Wasn’t I the one who bought the Mega yesterday? Take that off.”
“Right, ugh, my head hurts. Just send that for settlement too.”
“No, later you buy me a strawberry cookie frappe once.”
“Chae, give me some lip balm.”
“Don’t press down on the lip balm like that.”
Even today, the Yoo Choa cartel was behind me, chattering about something I barely understood. With Kim Minseo, Park Chaeyeon, Lee Suyeon, Yoon Yisol, and Yoo Choa all added to the mix, the ridiculously tight-knit clique had huddled around Choa and Minseo’s table and was going full middle-school-girl gossip mode.
Starting with Lee Suyeon’s boyfriend-bashing, then settling up the costs for some outing from who-knows-when. Today, just sitting still in a chair was especially rough, because today was Hunter Class’s rest day.
That meant I’d have to listen to these little kids’ banter like background music all the way through fifth period.
“Eve, come here and try some lip balm. I bought this new one yesterday, you know?”
“Huh? Me..? I’ve never put on lip balm before….”
“Seriously? What, do Awakened people not even get chapped lips?”
“Uh… probably..?”
The Yoo Choa cartel clicked their tongues in disbelief at the same time. You can even go without chapping your lips and they’re making such a fuss over it.
“Awakened people are unfair, seriously.”
“No, just Eve. Mine crack. I use lip balm.”
“Wow, then Eve’s the unfair one.”
“N-no….”
“Hurry up and come over here. This is a cool-tone lip balm. You can tell at a glance you’re a summer cool light.”
“Summer cool..?”
What is that, something like Juicy Cool? With Light attached, maybe it’s the low-calorie version. Probably not, though….
“Eve, hurry up and turn your chair around.”
“I-I need to go to the bathroom….”
“No way. She’s trying to run away again. I guess I’ll go.”
“Chae, why are you bullying Eve?”
“I think I need to play with Eve a bit. You’re totally cool-toned, you know? I’m really good at personal color.”
Park Chaeyeon suddenly jumped up from her seat, came right up in front of me, grabbed my chin tight, and shoved her lip balm toward me. She was even that close, and with such sharp features that, honestly, Park Chaeyeon is a little scary.
“Don’t do that little pout with your lips. You look like a boy.”
“You’ve seriously never used lip balm?”
“Can’t I do it like this..?”
“That’s the kind of thing boys do when they put on lip balm like that. Keep your lips still.”
“I-I see….”
“Okay, say ahh.”
“A-ahh….”
“No, not with words. Move your lips like this, like this.”
“O-okay….”
I’d put on lip balm for the first time in my life. Honestly, back in the day, if my lips got chapped I’d just smear on some spit and call it a day, so why would a guy bother putting anything on his lips…? Even after becoming this body, I haven’t really had my lips crack or anything.
Maybe because Ophelia keeps taking care of supplements and stuff for me? I’m not sure.
“Hey, guys. Check out Eve. What do you think?”
“Just cute.”
“Should we date?”
“Sorry…. That won’t work….”
“Eve’s expensive. She even rides around in a Rolls-Royce.”
“No way, is it true she’s a princess?”
“I-I don’t know….”
Park Chaeyeon lifted my chair with a whoosh, turned it around, then dragged it clatter-clatter over to the Yoo Choa cartel’s hideout? and shoved me deep inside. The tabletop was packed with table mirrors covered in stickers, watching every direction like radar.
She turned one of them toward my face, held my chin in place, and moved my face toward the mirror.
“Take a look directly. How is it? Pretty, right?”
“I-I guess..?”
“If I looked like Eve, you guys would never have seen me. I’d be an idol trainee.”
“But she looks like Park Chaeyeon. Then she’d just be Park Chaeyeon from birth.”
“Damn.”
“Y-you’re pretty too….”
“Hey, you heard her. Eve says she’s going out with me.”
“Huh?!”
“What are you talking about? Eve never said that.”
I listened to that conversation for about twenty minutes, to the point my head was spinning in real time, and only got free when class time finally started.
The Yuchoa cartel, which had dragged their chairs over during break and gathered like a pack of Interceptors, scattered in an instant when the bell rang. Still, they’re students of Aegis, and their reputation is pretty good, so they’re not total delinquents or anything.
“Ooh, class…. Ooh, freedom..!”
“Eve, we have to go to the music room.”
“Put Eve in the middle. She’ll run away again.”
“Ugh….”
“Ah, life.”
The music teacher, pretty and full of witty banter, called my name from the attendance sheet once and gave me a little smile.
“Oh my, this is the first time I’ve seen Eve? You weren’t here when Hunter Class was canceled last week.”
“H-hello….”
“She said she took the day off because Eve was headed to a gate.”
“Really? I saw Choa once.”
“Yep, ma’am~”
Hunter Class off-days shift a little from week to week, so the Awakened students get to see the teachers a few times too. But after I attended school for a week and then took about three weeks off after entering, it’s already almost been a month, and there are quite a few teachers I still haven’t met.
And since moving classes means seating is free, the five members of the Yuchoa cartel shoved me into the danger zone—just the far-left seat—and surrounded me.
“Oh my gosh.”
* * * * *
“Princess. Are your school classes going all right?”
“Yep….”
School itself isn’t really the problem. The problem is my classmates, but even that’s not exactly bullying or anything, so it’s a little ambiguous. If I just gave up completely and lived like the Yuchoa cartel girls, maybe there wouldn’t be any problem..?
They’re definitely nice to me, but it puts a lot of pressure on me….
“Sigh….”
“Is something troubling you?”
“N-no…. Not really….”
Until I got my emergency summon mount license, I’d planned to commute to and from school on Suri, but suddenly I realized it would be way too embarrassing. There are plenty of Hunter seniors and stuff, and for me alone to ride Suri to and from school is just too embarrassing.
When it comes to the Awakened crowd, I do want attention and I do want to make a scene, but in real life I guess I don’t really want to become famous that way.
And Suri is busy going into gates and working hard, so calling her early in the morning just so she can take me to school and then head back into a gate again feels kind of mean.
“It’ll be ready soon. Would you like to stop by home first?”
“Um… just a moment?”
Today was the day Bradamante would be completed. It was around 4 p.m. too, so for once I’d timed it perfectly. To do that, when we were making Bradamante I’d gotten up ridiculously early and gone to the forge in the morning.
“I think we can just go. Can I leave my bag in the car?”
“Yes. After we confirm Bradamante’s completion, we’ll be returning in this vehicle.”
“Haah, I’m excited.”
So today, all the golems inside the gate are gathering at the forge. We’re all going to celebrate Bradamante’s completion together. Bradamante’s egg has to stay right with me, so I’d left it in my school locker.
Since it would just teleport to me anyway even if I didn’t carry it, the kids wouldn’t have had a chance to pay me any attention on the way home either.
“Vroooom….”
“Hee-hee.”
“Screeeech!”
We went down the road laid out just for us and headed to Grandpa Galahad’s forge in the mountains. Outside the forge, the troops under Minyum were fooling around and showing off tricks.
“Soldiers!! Have you been well?!?!”
“Snap!!”
“Mm! Good, good! You’ve been doing well!”
The golem soldiers gave a crisp, textbook salute the moment they saw me. When I asked where Minyum was, it seemed she was doing something inside. I carried Bradamante’s egg in my arms and went into the forge.
“Wow, it’s hot in here.”
“Oho, Princess!! Welcome!!”
“Kii….”
“Clank!”
“Beep!!”
“Grandpa, Suri, Minyum, doggo! I’m here, heh heh.”
“Welcome! Is Bradamante finished yet?”
“It should be ready soon! Suri, aren’t you excited!!”
“Kii….”
Looking at her now, Suri isn’t some hypersensitive diva at all—she’s just shy. She always says it’s not a big deal whenever anything happens. Doggo didn’t come to school with us today either; she was helping out at the forge. I’d seen her this morning, but somehow it still feels like it’s been a while.
Doggo is a total superstar at school. Mostly with the boys, though—she gives them rides in the Claw Brawl mobile battle bus. In class she sleeps through everything, and when break time comes she darts off somewhere to play, then comes back when the bell rings.
Still, I have to pay when we eat, so I drag her around with me. Doggo’s butt is the card.
“Heheh, just three minutes left!!”
Like I said before, they say the powerful combat ability she showed inside the dungeon won’t be visible. That version is closer to her original form, but right now she can’t bring out that power because she’s short on materials.
Ophelia said she was parking the car, but when she came back she was carrying a few paper-bag-looking things.
“Ophelia, what are those?”
“They are Bradamante’s everyday clothes. Today, we also have an appointment at the main branch of the Korean Hunter Association to pick up Sir Galahad’s completed resident registration card, so we’ll be visiting there.”
“Ah, I see.”
“Oh, so that’s the identity document you mentioned before.”
“That is correct. We were informed in advance that the person has to be present in person, so Sir Galahad will have to accompany us as well.”
“Hmm, I see.”
“Clack!”
While we were talking, Bradamante’s crafting time was almost up.
“Ten seconds! Hurry up and gather around, everyone!”
“Moo!”
The house fairies who’d been working hard came rushing over, stomping on one another and stacking themselves into a tower. They didn’t need to do that; you could see just fine anyway.
“I-it’s coming out..!”
“Flaaash—!!”
Bradamante appeared wrapped in a bright glow of mana. She was summoned in exactly the same armor she’d worn before.
“Bradamante!!”
“W-where is this..! Princess!”
The moment Bradamante appeared, she quickly looked around, found me, and ran over to hug me tight. I thought the chest armor would be hard and hurt, but she hugged me softer than I expected, so that felt really nice.
“Princess! It’s so nice to see you again! What on earth are these clothes!? They’re so cute!!”
“Hehe…. Thank you. Suri’s here too.”
“Kii….”
“Suri! You’ve been well..!”
Then I hugged Suri tightly too, greeted Ophelia and Grandpa Galahad, and celebrated Bradamante’s birth together with the applause of the soldier golems and house fairies.
“So you were here too? Pfft….”
“Clack!”
Minyum gave a thumbs-up to Bradamante, who was snickering at her. Come to think of it, what exactly is Minyum’s job? Her role? I’m really curious.
“Now, Bradamante. We have a prior appointment, so we need to move locations. Please put on these clothes.”
“Clothes? Ah, yes! Did you prepare these for me, Princess?!”
“Uh, umm…. You could say that!”
“Thank you, Princess! I’ll wear them well!”
Actually, I didn’t even really know what kind of clothes they were, but I just said yes for now. If I said, “No, Ophelia prepared them,” the picture would get a little weird.
Bradamante went into the container that was still there with Ophelia and hurriedly changed clothes before coming back out.
“W-what do you think..?”
“Mmm-hmm-hmm….”
Maybe it’s a little too plain? She probably would’ve looked pretty in a skirt or something. Well, since Ophelia picked it out, it does suit her, though.
‘No, why do they keep buying me skirts instead of pants? On top of that, I even wore a cheerleader outfit.’
“Clack!”
“Whoa.”
But according to Suri, it’s a perfect 100.
Ophelia and Bradamante, brace yourselves. You’re both wearing cheerleader outfits later.