“Fucking pain in the ass… why the hell do I have to babysit some first-year brat…”
Kai let out what had to be his hundredth pissed-off sigh of the day, not even trying to hide his bad mood.
“Don’t say that! You got taken care of last year too, remember?”
While scolding him, I peeked into the gym where all the first-years were gathered.
A week after the entrance ceremony, today was the big day we second-years got paired with first-years.
The pair system is basically a mentorship thing: the upperclassman teaches the newbie the ropes, attends some classes together, that kinda stuff. And this year, that upperclassman role falls to us.
“You just want a cute one, right, Kai? Hope you get a good kid.”
“……Nah, right now I’m not really in that kinda mood… I’m only interested in y—”
Mid-sentence his voice suddenly turned into a pathetic little squeak and I couldn’t hear the rest. This happens sometimes when we talk, but the guy’s usually loud as fuck, so I wish he’d just speak from the damn diaphragm.
“Huh? Can’t hear you.”
“N-Nothing! You’re the one who can’t get bailed out by your perfect childhood friend this year, so you better pair up with someone actually useful!”
“God, you’re so rude…”
For the record, my pair last year was Claude.
As much as it pisses me off to admit Kai’s right, Claude literally carried me the whole time. In pair-class combat training he protected me 24/7, did most of my homework for me—it’s all still fresh. This year I’m the one who has to protect and teach a first-year… and honestly I’m kinda scared I’ll suck at it.
**◇**
Okay, sudden public announcement: I’m cute as hell.
Magic power and physical ability are totally average, but I’m half-fairy on my mom’s side, so when it comes to looks I’m legitimately, no-exaggeration, probably the cutest guy in the whole academy.
And I’m not even gonna pretend to be humble about it. It’s fact. Denying it would be rude to everyone who’s ever called me cute, plus being cute gets you a lot of perks.
So yeah, I fully expected to get mobbed the second pair selection started… but still.
“Fren-senpai! Pair with me!”
“Hey, I was first! Pair with—”
“No, me!”
“I’m the one who—”
I did NOT expect this level of aggression.
The moment I stepped into the gym, first-years swarmed me like sharks. Getting my arm grabbed is whatever, but when the first-years started fighting each other it got kinda terrifying.
“This is a little outside my predictions…”
A bit scared, I scanned the crowd while fending off the horde.
I was looking for one specific person—the kid from the courtyard that day.
“He’s not here after all… Two-tone bangs-kun.”
That was within expectations, but I can’t just stand around.
I yanked the still-grumbling Kai over and whispered in his ear.
“Kai! I’m gonna go look for someone, so cover for me!”
“You—don’t get that fucking close all of a sudden…! Who the hell are you looking for? Where are you even—”
His ears looked redder than usual, but I ignored that and answered based on memory.
“Hmm… probably the courtyard. He was there last time too.”
**◇**
I slipped out of the gym and headed to the courtyard—it was peaceful as always. No oppressive magic pressure this time.
“Hope he’s here… Oh!”
Right away I spotted those familiar black-and-white bangs through the trees. Tall people are so easy to find, huh. Actually, now that I’m calm, isn’t he taller than even Claude?
Trying not to startle him, I walked over slowly and called out.
“Hey, it’s pair selection day today! You don’t wanna be left out and lonely, right? Come to the gym with me?”
“…”
Whoa, that’s not just ignoring me—he won’t even look at me. Total cold shoulder. Well, expected.
“Pairs are great! Last year Claude was my pair and he taught me everything, plus there’re classes you can only take with a pair—if you don’t have one you’re at a huge disadvantage, y’know?”
The newbies don’t know how brutal the homework here is yet, so I flashed my best smile while explaining the perks.
“…Don’t need it.”
Cold reply, but hearing his voice for the first time was a win in my book.
“First time you actually answered! You remember me, right?”
The moment I took another step to keep the conversation going—CRACK!—a spark of magic snapped at my feet. Intimidation via magic.
“Wah! You scared me… Are you mad?”
I dodged the level-100 static electricity crackling around and kept closing in. Two-tone bangs looked down at me and spat:
“…Someone weaker than me is useless.”
Damn, I’m definitely—no, absolutely weaker than this kid, so no argument there. Man, I wish I were Claude right now…
While I was secretly racking my brain for the next line, he spoke again.
“…Besides.”
“Hm?”
I perked my ears, surprised the conversation was still going.
“…Nobody wants to pair with me anyway.”
His voice wasn’t loud, but it rang clear. I chewed on those words for a second before choosing my next ones carefully.
“By the way, what’s your name?”
“…”
Silent treatment again. One step forward, two steps back—tough crowd.
“Hey, listen. Getting ignored by this me is pretty damn luxurious, don’t you think?”
I said it in that teasing tone that always makes Kai bite.
“………”
No dice. Guess he doesn’t have that simple a brain. Well, he does look smart.
Fine—no choice. Little gamble time.
“I heard rumors, y’know? The dragon clan outcast, the Evil Dragon… Luca, was it?”
The instant the words “Evil Dragon” left my mouth, his shoulders twitched hard. When he turned, his face was visibly stiff.
“…So what.”
“Yes! Finally another reply. So your name’s Luca? Thanks~”
“…Tch.”
Now officially Luca (ex-two-tone bangs) glared at me, snorting in obvious irritation.
Not a rampage like last time, but the pissed-off magic pressure rolling off him still made me stumble a bit. I barely held my ground.
“…Wasn’t planning on telling you my name.”
“Call it senpai privilege! Okay, let’s fill this out~”
Finally getting to the point, I pulled a quadruple-folded form from my pocket and unfolded it.
“…Fill out what…”
“You really weren’t listening in orientation, huh? This is the pair registration form. Once the second-year writes the names, it’s official! Here, look~”
It’s a bit wobbly because I didn’t write it on a desk, but the names “Fren” and “Luca” were perfectly legible. I held it right up to his face.
“Wha…”
Seeing that, his deep green eyes shot wide open in total disbelief.
“Dude, I was insanely popular again this year, got swarmed with pair offers like crazy. But I’d already decided I’m pairing with you, Luca. So? Happy now?”
“…Why me?”
He asked like a wary stray cat keeping its distance.
Well, yeah, getting picked out of nowhere by a cute senpai like me is a once-in-a-lifetime thing, so I get the shock.
“Hmm… because I was curious? Anyway, I’m not forcing you! If you hate it, just say ‘no’ right now, loud and clear.”
I looked straight up into Luca’s eyes—he’s a full head taller—and waited.
(Now that I’m actually getting a good look… isn’t this guy stupidly gorgeous? Like, cool-beauty levels of hot?)
He’s not just handsome—he’s straight-up beautiful.
Tall as hell, but still has that slight first-year baby face. The black-and-white two-tone bangs are unique as fuck, and those deep green eyes with cat-like pupils suck you right in. He could totally be a model. Even at a school full of hot people, this guy’s top-tier material.
(Though I’m in the cute category, so no competition.)
I figured he needed time to think, so I waited leisurely… but he said nothing.
“No objections = consent! Cool, I’m gonna go turn this in! Looking forward to working with you starting today!”
Silence means yes, right? Class time was running out anyway, so I waved at Luca and jogged back to the gym.
**◇◇**
I silently watched that spring-rose-colored figure get smaller and smaller.
I still don’t know why I couldn’t say “I don’t need it” again back there…
Everyone either uses me because I’m the Evil Dragon or is scared shitless of me—there’s no in-between.
Yet when those light-gray eyes looked up at me, every single one of those thoughts just vanished, my brain went blank, and before I knew it I’d basically agreed.
I could still chase after him right now and cancel the pair.
But for some reason my legs wouldn’t move, and I just let it happen.
“…I’m always alone anyway.”
The words I muttered were swallowed by the spring breeze and never reached anyone.
**◇**
After pair selection was over, I met up with Claude—who’d miraculously finished class early—and we were walking back to the dorms together.
His perfectly combed dark-brown hair, knight-style and neat as always, didn’t have a single strand out of place even after brutal assignments. It suited his solid, masculine build perfectly.
“How’d pair selection go? You’re popular, Fren, bet it was chaos.”
“Not as bad as what you went through last year… It was a little rough, but I got it settled.”
Thinking back to last year’s selection—Claude was surrounded by way more people than me, it was like an idol concert—made me smile as I reported today’s events.
“Good to hear… Fren, what happened to your right arm?”
“My arm…? Oh! Just a little cut.”
When I rolled up my sleeve at Claude’s prompting, there was a shallow scratch. Didn’t even hurt, so I hadn’t noticed, but a bit of blood was seeping out.
“Hold your arm out… there.”
Claude placed his palm over my right arm, muttered something short, and the wound vanished without a trace.
“Whoa… Claude, you’re not even in the healer course—how can you do that? That’s insane… thanks.”
Healing magic is high-level specialized shit. The fact that Claude, a combat-spec knight, can pull it off so casually is actually pretty abnormal, but he does it so smoothly it feels normal.
“You never know when it’ll come in handy. Good thing there’s no scar… Honestly, if I were closer to you more often, I wouldn’t let you get hurt at all…”
Wait, when did the conversation turn into that?
His indigo eyes were staring at my arm like it physically pained him, and it was making me itchy, so I blurted out what I remembered.
“Ah, guess I couldn’t dodge everything back there.”
That level-100 static intimidation from Luca—tons of invisible magic shards had exploded everywhere, so I couldn’t avoid them all.
“Fren?”
“Just a little during pair selection… kinda like getting scratched by a cat.”
More like scratched by a dragon, but whatever. I answered lightly.
“Someone attacked you?”
Claude’s normally calm ocean eyes flashed like a sudden storm.
“No no, I don’t think it was on purpose. Just a feeling.”
“But—”
“Anyway, I’m starving! What’s for dinner tonight? That meat stew from the other day was bomb, I want that again. What do you want, Claude?”
I grabbed his arm with both hands and tilted my head, trying to change the subject.
He was still a little tense, but…
“…Something warm like soup. Nights are still cold.”
“That sounds perfect! Man, I can’t wait to get back!”
Claude’s kind. We’ve known each other forever, so we kinda just get what the other means. He definitely noticed I was dodging the topic, but he didn’t push.
(Sorry for worrying you. But I’ll be fine. I just want to pay forward what you did for me back then.)
Way back when my magic was rampaging and I was drowning in terror and despair, Claude was the hero who pulled me out.
I want to be that for someone else someday.
I’m still too embarrassed to say that to him, but when I finally do, I hope he’ll pat my head with that gentle voice and say, “Good job.”
Hiding that wish in my chest, I walked back to the dorms side by side with Claude.