ROSE

  Two days had passed since my arrival at Ryujin-san’s home.

  Since then, I had been treated with a kind of hospitality that still felt unfamiliar to me—clean clothes, warm meals, and a roof beneath which I could sleep without fear. It was more comfort than I had known in a long time.

  At some point, Kiyomi-san gave me a wooden sword so I could continue practicing. She said she had noticed how much I liked swordsmanship.

  Perhaps she had seen me secretly practicing with a broom.

  I must have looked ridiculous. Still, I needed something to train with.

  Her gift was kind.

  Though, if I were honest… I wanted my Heaven Sword.

  As I walked downstairs to train, I heard raised voices coming from the first floor.

  Ryujin-san was arguing with his younger brother.

  “I want to go,” Yoshida said, his tone firm despite its quietness.

  Ryujin’s response was calmer, almost condescending.

  “It seems nothing will change your mind,” he said after a pause. “Fine. You win… but you’re not going alone.”

  “I need someone close to you, in case you need help.”

  “What the hell?” Yoshida replied, clearly irritated.

  “Kiyomi sometimes has to cover night shifts…” Ryujin sounded as if he were pacing, thinking aloud. “If only someone could accompany you…”

  “Hey, I don’t need—”

  Listening from the stairs, I immediately understood where the conversation was going. I tried to step back quietly, intending to retreat unnoticed, but then—

  My wooden sword slipped from my hand.

  Ah.

  It rolled down the steps, loudly announcing my presence before landing at the bottom with unnecessary drama.

  “Rose? Is that you?” Ryujin asked as he approached.

  He found me crouched there, trying to retrieve the sword with what little dignity I had left.

  “Y-yes… Ryujin-san. It’s me.”

  Embarrassment made me say foolish things.

  After that, Yoshida left in his strange rolling throne, while Ryujin invited me to drink something called tea. Without prolonging the conversation, he politely asked if I could accompany Yoshida to school and keep an eye on him.

  I had no reason to refuse.

  Part of me felt obligated to repay Ryujin-san’s kindness, and the request itself did not seem unreasonable. More than that, my instincts as a knight responded before my thoughts could.

  Besides… what better place to gather information than an academy? Such places always held knowledge.

  “My brother can be stubborn, but please—”

  Ryujin continued speaking, though I had already drifted into my own thoughts.

  “Did you understand, Rose?”

  “Huh?”

  Damn it. I hadn’t heard a single word.

  “Yes. Naturally,” I replied, hoping it sounded convincing enough.

  And that was how I ended up here.

  Sitting beside the window, morning light filtered through white curtains as I silently observed the classroom. The constant murmur of voices, the scraping of chairs, and hurried footsteps created an atmosphere that felt strange—foreign, yet orderly.

  Beside me, Yoshida tried to speak with a few classmates.

  “G-good morning…”

  His voice was quiet, hesitant.

  Some glanced at him briefly before looking away. Others pretended not to hear him. Soft laughter followed, whispers that required no clear words.

  “Is he new?”

  “He looks weird…”

  “He’s really pale…”

  He didn’t seem offended.

  He smiled awkwardly and nodded, as if nothing had happened.

  That smile felt strange to me. It wasn’t strong, but it wasn’t fake either.

  It was… resigned.

  I, on the other hand, hadn’t spoken a single word, yet I could feel eyes resting on me.

  “Who is she?”

  “Is she a foreigner?”

  “She’s pretty…”

  A few girls approached with friendly smiles. Some boys pretended indifference, though their glances betrayed them.

  Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  “Your hair is really pretty.”

  “Where are you from?”

  I wasn’t used to that kind of attention.

  On the battlefield, a gaze meant danger.

  Here… it only made me uncomfortable.

  I nodded politely and turned my attention back toward the window.

  The sky was calm.

  Too calm.

  While Yoshida struggled to fit in, I fit in without trying.

  I didn’t know which was worse.

  For a moment, I watched him more carefully. He observed everyone around him as if trying to memorize every gesture, every laugh, every trivial conversation.

  Like someone who knew he wouldn’t have many chances left to do so.

  Something stirred in my chest.

  It wasn’t pity.

  It was confusion.

  Why would someone so weak want to be here?

  Why did he keep smiling when it was obvious he didn’t belong?

  My fingers tightened against the edge of the desk.

  People were exhausting.

  I stood abruptly. Several heads turned toward me.

  “Where are you going?” one of the boys asked.

  “Excuse me.”

  I walked toward Yoshida and stopped beside him, but he interrupted me before I could speak.

  “Don’t bother.”

  Something inside me snapped.

  “Ryujin-san told me that if you needed anything—” I tried to say calmly.

  “I don’t need anything from you.”

  His words were short. Final.

  There was no hesitation. No explanation.

  I fell silent.

  Something tightened in my chest as my hand curled into a fist. Since the moment we met, he had treated me with nothing but coldness. For Ryujin-san’s sake, I had tried to be considerate, but this… felt unnecessary.

  One of the boys seemed to notice the tension.

  “Hey, new guy,” he said, stepping closer. “You got a problem?”

  The room grew quiet.

  A heavy silence settled over the classroom.

  “Hey! Aren’t you going to answer?” he snapped, reaching toward Yoshida’s collar.

  I stopped him before he could touch him.

  Grabbing his wrist was instinctive. I tightened my grip.

  “That won’t be necessary.”

  The boy winced in pain.

  “Hey—ow—!”

  His complaints blended with the anger rising inside me.

  Then I saw Yoshida’s eyes.

  There was something different in them.

  A quiet melancholy.

  I understood then that continuing would only make things worse.

  I released the boy.

  He stepped back, muttering complaints, while Yoshida remained seated, motionless.

  I turned and left the classroom.

  I never wanted to return to that place again.

  Whispers followed me as I walked out.

  I’m not here to babysit foolish children, I thought bitterly. I didn’t even know why I had come here in the first place.

  Damn it.

  My habit of obeying orders—of acting as a knight—had weighed more heavily on me than I wanted to admit. That was why I accepted Ryujin-san’s request without hesitation.

  How foolish.

  I wandered the halls without direction, lost in thought, ignoring the voices and footsteps around me. The students all dressed alike, moving in endless lines like soldiers without purpose.

  Eventually, I stopped in front of a worn metal door.

  It looked like a good place to hide and rest.

  I reached for the handle, but the door opened from the inside.

  A girl stepped out, slightly out of breath, clutching a book to her chest.

  “Hello…”

  “H-hello,” I replied, surprised.

  She laughed softly.

  “Hehe… hardly anyone uses these books anymore.”

  Dark circles rested beneath her eyes, and her messy hair fell across her face.

  “My name is Nozomi. I’m the president of the reading club… or rather, its only member.”

  “I’m Rose. It’s a pleasure.”

  “Oh… that’s a beautiful name,” she said with a smile. “You’re not from around here, are you?”

  She opened the door wider, revealing tables, chairs, and stacks of books piled everywhere.

  “Looking for something specific?”

  I’ll be honest.

  She was strange. Too strange. But I didn’t want to return to the classroom—or see Yoshida or the others again.

  And the books…

  I felt drawn to them immediately.

  After all, I needed to understand this world before I could pursue the Demon King.

  I sat down.

  Nozomi brought me something called coffee and sat across from me, smiling far too widely. I didn’t know how to begin a conversation.

  “What kind of books do you like, Rose?”

  She showed me several. Some depicted knights, kingdoms, and heroic legends—things that felt painfully familiar.

  My reading was clumsy; I barely understood the language. Noticing this, Nozomi began explaining things patiently.

  “This was a period in our world’s history… a very long time ago.”

  My mind went blank.

  Was this the future?

  Had the Queen sent me centuries ahead?

  My chest tightened.

  “Do these stories have villains?” I asked.

  It was obvious who I meant.

  “Villains?” she yawned thoughtfully. “Well… maybe.”

  She looked at me with a crooked smile.

  “Maybe the villains are humans themselves… hehe.”

  I blinked.

  “…What?”

  It made no sense.

  This girl clearly didn’t belong anywhere either.

  “May I borrow these books?” I asked, changing the subject.

  I stood, and Nozomi looked slightly disappointed.

  “You know… almost no one cares about reading anymore,” she said quietly. “I liked having you here, Rose.”

  “I can come again,” I replied without thinking.

  “Really?” Her eyes lit up as she grabbed my hands, shaking them excitedly. “I’ll be waiting.”

  Her joy was strangely contagious.

  “We’ll see each other again,” she added after a brief pause. “Don’t forget.”

  She smiled as if she had said something ordinary.

  I said my goodbye and left the room.

  By the time I walked through the halls again, the sky outside had turned orange. I had stayed far longer than I realized.

  Damn it.

  I hurried back. The corridors were nearly empty.

  “Oh, Rose…” the boy I had grabbed earlier tried to say.

  I ignored him.

  I pushed open the classroom door.

  It was empty.

  Desks aligned. Chairs in place. The earlier noise replaced by an uncomfortable silence.

  Only one person remained.

  Yoshida.

  He sat upright at his desk, eyes lowered, his chair perfectly still—as if the entire class had left and forgotten him behind.

  My chest tightened.

  “Yoshida…”

  He didn’t respond immediately.

  I stepped closer and finally saw it clearly.

  His cheeks were red—not from embarrassment, but from something more recent. A small cut marked his lower lip, barely visible, yet enough. Dried blood traced downward like sweat.

  I clenched my teeth.

  Damn it.

  I didn’t need to ask what had happened.

  I had seen scenes like this countless times—just never inside a classroom.

  I knelt in front of him.

  “I’m sorry,” I said softly. “I shouldn’t have left.”

  His eyes slowly lifted toward mine.

  There was no anger in them.

  No blame.

  Only that same tired, gentle smile.

  He said nothing.

  That hurt more than words.

  This is my fault, I thought.

  I moved behind his chair and adjusted it gently.

  “Come,” I murmured. “It’s time to go.”

  As I gathered his notebooks from the floor, I noticed the folded pages, torn edges, ink smeared across the paper.

  My hands trembled.

  Not from fear.

  From anger.

  I had failed Ryujin-san.

  Worse… I had failed him.

  All of this had happened because of a misunderstanding.

  Without another word, I pushed his chair toward the exit.

  When I opened the door, I saw her.

  Nozomi.

  She leaned against the frame, holding a book against her chest, as if she had been waiting.

  “You’re late,” she said with a distant smile. “Sometimes… quiet places hide the worst stories.”

  I said nothing.

  “Don’t worry,” she added. “Scars teach more than victories.”

  Her eyes briefly settled on Yoshida.

  “We’ll meet again, Rose.”

  A chill ran down my spine.

  I nodded, unsure why.

  We left.

  The sunset painted the sky in warm colors as I pushed Yoshida’s chair outside the school. We didn’t speak.

  But for the first time since arriving in this world…

  I wasn’t walking alone.

  Further ahead, someone waited.

  Leaning against a car, completely at ease, carrying an air of quiet authority.

  The moment I saw him, shame washed over me.

  Yoshida seemed to feel it too.

  Ryujin stood before us.

  “I see,” he said simply, offering neither greeting nor expression.

  He did not glare at me the way Commander Niles once had.

  “You see, Yoshida.”

  I was surprised by his reaction. I had failed him—or so I believed.

  “Ryujin-san…” I began, trying to explain.

  “Rose, don’t worry,” he said calmly. “I told you he could be stubborn.”

  “…Eh?”

  In the end, Ryujin invited us into the car and drove us back to his home—my temporary fortress.

  Damn it.

  What a strange day.