Chapter 26: The Unexpected Drop

Since Siwoo and the noble lady hadn’t followed us by the time we arrived at the café, it seemed like their conversation had gone on longer than expected.

After hearing the story, I felt a bit more at ease.

Whether I had no choice but to continue being a Hero, or whether I somehow quit, my abilities wouldn’t mean much in the end.

After all, it was said that I wasn’t the only Hero in this game.

Yeah, that was actually more comforting than being overestimated or having too many expectations placed on me.

More than anything, I was relieved that the conversation between Siwoo and the noble lady hadn’t been about romance—

…Anyway.

On the way to the café, Chloe, Sasha, and Nariya all tried in their own ways to cheer me up, chatting about this and that.

I gave half-hearted replies as I entered the café.

“I’ll treat us today!”

“No way! I’ll pay, nya!”

“Kuooong!”

As the three of them competed to pay, I gave up and stepped back.

Otherwise, none of them would’ve been able to recover from the emotional shock in more ways than one.

Well, it didn’t feel right to be the only one who got to feel better anyway.

I ordered something simple and went to sit at an empty table.

As I waited for the three to bring our order, I blinked in surprise when someone placed a plate on my table.

Looking up, I saw a very pretty girl.

She was wearing a school uniform too, but unlike ours which was dark navy, hers was made of white and gold.

A pale face, black hair, black eyes.

With her long straight hair hanging down the sides, she could’ve looked cold at a glance—but her eyes were far too gentle for that.

Smile, smile.

If I had to describe her expression in words, that’s how it would be.

“Hello, Hero. Since we attend the same academy, I figured we’d meet eventually, but I didn’t expect it to be like this.”

“Uh… I mean…”

“My name’s Anya. I’m a commoner like you, Hero.”

It was only after hearing her name that I realized she was a character.

Sure enough—a 3-star.

She barely had any offensive abilities, but her healing skill could bring a character back from the brink of death to near full health, so she was occasionally used.

Just like she said, she was a “commoner,” but there was a hidden backstory behind her.

“Do you like sweet things?”

As she said this, she gently pushed the plate toward me.

“It’s fine. I haven’t started eating yet.”

“Uh, no, that’s not really the issue. Didn’t you buy that for yourself?”

“It’s fine. I already had a slice.”

I glanced at the table next to mine, where Anya had been sitting.

…Pretty sure it wasn’t just one slice.

On the table, the plates were literally stacked one on top of another.

Did she replace a full meal with just desserts?

“Oh my, how embarrassing.”

As I stared blankly at Anya, who was covering her cheek with one hand, the others who had gone to get the food all came rushing over.

“Huh? Who’s this, nya?”

Sasha blinked and asked the girl who had somehow ended up sitting next to me.

“I’m Anya, a fellow first-year like all of you. Are you Miss Sasha, by any chance?”

“That’s… right, nya…”

Sasha hesitated as she sat down, glancing warily at Anya.

Then she pushed a cup of coffee toward me.

“I understand if you don’t recognize me. We haven’t had the chance to meet yet. Up until just now, I was receiving various lessons at the academy’s cathedral. I was seriously craving sweets the whole time!”

“You’re Anya, one of the Saintess candidates, right?”

Chloe asked for confirmation, and Anya replied with a warm smile.

“Yes, and Sister Chloe, you’re a Saintess candidate as well, aren’t you?”

But their outfits were clearly different.

“I’ve heard a lot about you at the cathedral. They say you’re the Saintess candidate personally chosen by the Hero.”

“Ah, no, I…”

So what, are they treating her differently because of that?

“And the other two?” I asked.

“They haven’t been outside the cathedral in a long time, so I imagine they’re doing whatever they want now, making the most of their time.”

I had cut into their conversation a bit abruptly, but Anya didn’t seem to mind and continued speaking in a calm tone.

I glanced again at the table beside us.

A staff member was now clearing away the pile of empty dessert plates.

I remembered that the Saintess candidates were selected and trained from a young age in the cathedral.

This wasn’t something I had learned from Siwoo—it was common knowledge in this world.

Children with high divine power were handpicked by each diocese and raised competitively.

When Anya said it had been a long time since she left the cathedral, she probably didn’t mean it figuratively.

They must’ve been thoroughly briefed before the semester began.

“…Here, just eat this.”

“Oh my, are you sure?”

“Yeah. You seem to really like sweet things.”

“Hehe, thank you. I think we’ll get along quite well, Hero.”

I doubt it.

You don’t even like Heroes.

A typical “dark and brooding thinker”-type character.

The reason she accepted the position of Saintess candidate without hesitation was to get revenge on her parents.

She had been abandoned as a child, yet by the time the main story began, she had already thoroughly investigated her biological parents. That says it all.

“Um, I…”

Chloe hesitated for a moment as she watched Anya slowly pick up her fork and gently scoop bites of cake into her mouth.

“Yes, go ahead,”

Anya replied after swallowing a bite.

After a brief pause for thought, Chloe opened her mouth.

“I… haven’t been summoned by the Church at all. Other than meeting the Bishop briefly when I enrolled…”

“Oh, I don’t think that’ll be a problem. After all, Sister Chloe, you were personally chosen by the Hero, weren’t you? Naturally, your path will differ from ours.”

Chloe’s mouth fell open.

And I felt like I’d just swallowed a lump of lead.

“That’s… quite a thing to say.”

Chloe barely managed to respond, then carefully lifted the cocoa she had bought and sipped from it.

For a while, no one said anything.

Ugh.

This is uncomfortable.

But I couldn’t just outright tell her to leave either.

As I seriously considered what to do, I spotted Siwoo in the distance.

“Lee Siwoo!”

I called out without thinking—only realizing afterward how loudly I’d said his name.

I had even gotten up from my seat.

And raised one hand high in the air.

I could feel everyone’s eyes turning toward me, but I couldn’t just sit down right away.

It was already embarrassing enough.

If I acted self-conscious about it, it would only make it worse.

I forced a cheerful expression, and when Siwoo saw me, he gave a faint, bitter smile.

He didn’t place an order and instead started walking toward our table—

Then his eyes met Anya’s.

“Oh my.”

A faint blush bloomed across Anya’s otherwise calm face.

“What a handsome person.”

Come to think of it, all the female characters in games like this eventually fall for the protagonist.

They usually have their own personal issues, and during the process of the protagonist helping them, they end up falling in love.

“Siwoo belongs to Lila, nya.”

I stared blankly at Sasha.

“Th-that’s right! Siwoo and the Hero are…!”

“Is… is that so?”

…Seriously?

The Saintess candidate, who had kept her composure until now, actually looked flustered.

Her character is falling apart.

What the hell are you even saying right now?

Just moments ago, I had resolved to handle her backstory myself, but now—

Ugh, anyway.

What?

It’s all meaningless now!

“You’re quite quick with your… progress, it seems.”

And what’s your problem now?

What is this—one of those cliché pure Saintess types who secretly schemes all the time but is totally naive when it comes to anything sexual?

Of course she is.

That’s the kind of game this is.

“The Hero even at the inn—!”

“Chloe. Stop. Just—stop.”

I raised a hand to cut her off, and only then did her runaway mouth finally close.

Too late, though—everyone around us had probably heard.

I mean, I’d already shouted Siwoo’s name earlier, and all the attention had been on us since then.

“Uh…”

Siwoo, now right next to our table, scratched his head and said:

“Did I come at a bad time?”

“No, no, perfect timing.”

At least with him here, things won’t get worse.

I forced myself to hold back a sigh.

“Uh, I just remembered I have something urgent to do! I’ll be heading off now!”

“Uh—yeah, sure.”

I replied, and Anya practically bolted.

…She even left her cake behind.

“Did something happen?”

Siwoo asked seriously, clearly recognizing Anya’s fleeing face.

“Nah, not really. Just some small talk. You haven’t met any Saintess candidates other than Chloe, right?”

“I see.”

“There was an attempt to split Siwoo-nyang and Lyra-nyang apart, so I acted in defense, nya.”

“Kuooong.”

“That’s not what happened,” I muttered, sighing deeply.

And so, two more days passed.

Even though this world insists it’s “medieval,” it still has a seven-day week and strictly follows a five-day workweek.

Which meant—we’d reached the weekend.

“Nya nya nya nya nyang!”

You stretch in a really unique way.

Over the past week, I’d learned a lot through classes and various experiences, but it still wasn’t enough.

Most of all, I hadn’t yet coordinated properly with my party members.

I wasn’t so strapped for cash that I had to go off adventuring yet, but I also couldn’t think of a better way to get some real synergy with the team than fighting monsters together.

“Alright, let’s start by figuring out our positions.”

I said, gathering the group.

“Narya, you take the front and draw attention.”

“Kuooong!”

Narya—currently in the form of a bear clad in full plate armor—snapped a salute with one paw.

Kind of cute.

“You’ll take the front line with her. Right behind that, Chloe stands to support us. If anyone gets hurt, she’ll handle the healing.”

“I’m still not very good at it. Sorry…”

“What are you talking about? Everyone learns one step at a time.”

Chloe could only channel divine power in its most basic form right now.

Unlike my powers, hers could directly heal people—so she stood in the middle of the formation, where she could reach anyone quickly.

As she developed her abilities further, she’d probably gain access to buffs and protective spells too.

To be honest, I still didn’t fully understand how “skills” functioned in this world.

In a game, everything progresses by a preset path, but in real life, wouldn’t growth depend more on what you actually learn?

“And this weapon—”

“I saw your movements last time. You’re quick. If it looks dangerous, don’t try to aim—just shoot.”

“Got it.”

Chloe nodded while holding a slingshot in her hands.

Well, we call it a slingshot, but it’s actually quite a threatening weapon.

Anything strong enough to hunt animals could just as easily kill a person, after all.

As long as Chloe could protect herself for even a moment, that was enough.

“Don’t worry, nya! I’ll protect you, nya!”

Sasha said, holding a shield on one arm.

A strangely stat-balanced agility-type character with awkward tanking abilities.

I positioned her next to Chloe in hopes of making the most out of that “hybrid” build.

She might be lacking as a proper frontline tank, but she should be more than capable of buying time.

And at the very back, as always, was Siwoo.

In the game, he wasn’t a playable character, but in order for him to give us buffs, he had to be physically present in the party.

Well, I always trusted his skills anyway.

Besides, didn’t the noble lady say it recently?

That Siwoo’s swordsmanship talent was better than mine.

“Alright then.”

I nodded and spoke.

They say there are hardly any monsters in this area, and even if we encounter some, they’re usually small.

Our job is to locate and exterminate them however we can. Got it?

All the party members, paying close attention to my words, nodded in unison.

“And, as you all know, there are always unexpected variables in real combat—so stay sharp.”

Again, everyone nodded.

Good.

Well, I figured, what serious danger could really occur in the heart of the Empire anyway?

I had already heard the early parts of the story from Siwoo, after all.

So, when we left for the forest near the capital, I was completely at ease.

That is—

Until a high-tier monster, a Nuker, dropped on us from above.

Wait—why?