"So, Hiratsuka-sensei asked you about your club?"
During the break, Sakamoto turned around to ask Rojin.
Ever since Rojin came, Sakamoto felt he'd been talking a lot more.
He wasn't the cold type, but for various reasons it was rare to find someone he could talk comfortably with.
Rojin's arrival definitely added some color to his dull life.
"Yeah. But once I said I planned to join your club, she didn't say much else."
Hands behind his head, Rojin leaned lazily on the desk behind him.
Sakura, sitting behind Rojin, stared nervously at the worksheet he was pressing down.
Should she remind him?
For someone shy and maybe even a bit insecure like Sakura, something like this took real courage.
She only managed to ask him for contact info after her best friend repeatedly pushed her to.
And after exchanging contacts, they hadn't sent a single message.
Looking at her trapped worksheet, Sakura kept cheering herself on.
It's fine, just say something simple…
"So, what are we eating for lunch?"
The moment food was mentioned, Rojin perked up.
He shifted from leaning backward to leaning forward on his own desk.
Phew~
Seeing him "free" her worksheet, Sakura let out a quiet sigh of relief and quickly retrieved it.
Neither Rojin nor Sakamoto noticed.
They were busy discussing lunch.
"Want to go grab some rice balls? The convenience store's rice balls are pretty good lately."
Sakamoto adjusted his glasses. For him, food was food. Nothing could affect his elegance.
"I already had rice balls yesterday. Should I switch things up today?"
Rojin wasn't a big fan of the school rice balls.
Probably because they were made mild to suit most students.
But Rojin preferred strong flavors. Only occasionally did he switch to something light.
"How about yakisoba bread?"
"Rice balls it is."
In the end, Rojin surrendered.
Between yakisoba bread and bland rice balls, he'd rather take the rice balls.
Dululululu—
Just as Rojin pulled out his book for the next period, a strange ringtone interrupted him.
"Your phone?"
Sakamoto looked at him puzzled.
He remembered that Rojin always kept his phone on silent during class.
"Probably something minor."
Rojin wasn't worried. If something truly serious happened, the Institute wouldn't just call him like this.
"I'm stepping out."
He told Sakamoto and left the classroom with his phone.
He took out an earbud, connected it, answered the call, and said:
"This is Rojin. What's going on?"
Heading toward the rooftop, he continued:
At this time, there shouldn't be anyone there, so it was a good place to talk.
And walking around helped clear his head. Even if school had no stress for him, students always felt a strange attraction to places normally off-limits like rooftops.
Many students passed by him, but none noticed him.
A small white paper ema swayed at his waist with each step.
It was an anomalous item discovered by the Institute — it reduced one's presence.
Since they had many and there were no side effects, they were widely issued.
Rojin wasn't even sure if ema were supposed to be used like this, but he usually just tied it at his waist.
{We've made progress on the fallen angel. She's already revealed almost everything she knows.}
The liaison reported succinctly.
The fallen angel had been stubborn at first, but after Dr. Jean pinned her to the lab table, she broke down quickly.
Very quickly.
Seeing the jars full of contained anomalies around her was enough to crush anyone.
Where she came from, what her original world was like.
Her relationships, alliances, enemies, the powers and resources she had…
She spilled all of it like pouring beans from a bag.
The researcher recording it all didn't even blink.
Just a fallen angel. They were used to this kind of thing.
We deal with all kinds of monsters. A fallen angel is nothing.
"Got it."
Standing before the rooftop door, Rojin frowned at the well-worn padlock.
Wasn't the rooftop supposed to be off-limits to students?
Although Sobu High had reinforced every rooftop and even added benches, in principle students were forbidden.
Yes, in principle.
"This rule is basically meaningless."
He pulled out a piece of wire from who-knows-where, stuck it into the keyhole, twisted it twice, and the lock popped open.
While complaining like this, Rojin didn't consider at all how unreliable his actions were.
It was like a certain Marine Admiral who slacked off at work.
Saying "so scary" one moment, kicking down a Supernova the next.
Rojin was the same kind of person.
Complaining about the rules being pointless, while breaking them himself.
{Right, Princess Syalis asked me to give you a message.}
As if remembering something, the liaison couldn't help but smile.
"Wait, I don't want to hear it."
Rojin hurriedly waved his hand. He definitely didn't want to know what that noisy princess had to say to him.
Even though Rojin resisted, the liaison still repeated Princess Syalis' exact words:
{You did very well. If I need anything next time, I'll look for you again.}
After saying that, the liaison hung up.
When the call ended, Rojin stood quietly on the rooftop.
Next time? She wants a next time?
I have school, woman.
Should I just drop out?
The honor student Rojin actually began wondering if he should just drop out altogether.
After all, being in school caused all kinds of inconvenience.
For starters, even answering calls wasn't convenient.
Sometimes, when urgent missions came up, Rojin might have no choice but to imitate generations of high-school superheroes and skip class on the spot.
But considering the situation realistically, taking a long leave or temporarily suspending school seemed more practical.
Actually, no—maybe he should drop out right away.