Whoosh— A gentle breeze blew into the academy at this moment, lightly brushing against the cheeks of Megumi and Rover, who were sitting on the bench.
“Haa…”
Megumi yawned lazily at the sun.
In these busy days, he had forgotten how many sunrises he had witnessed.
He only knew that he hadn’t slept for a long time.
At this moment, he was sitting on a bench, waiting with Rover for the results of Lynae’s interrogation by the academy.
“Megumi.”
Rover suddenly called out softly to Megumi beside her.
“Hm.”
Megumi replied, leaning back against the bench and looking at the sky.
“Why did you come to help me and Lynae suppress the Void Worm?”
“That question, huh…”
Facing Rover’s question, Megumi raised an eyebrow.
The other party was probably confused, as he had clearly shirked the responsibility of investigating the Remnant Star Society earlier.
“No special reason, just protecting friends.” Megumi answered casually.
This reason for taking the first step was something he had determined at the very beginning of their journey.
He felt that facing the Void Worm and investigating the Remnant Star Society were not of the same difficulty; the former needed his help more.
“Besides, I don’t feel like I helped much.”
Megumi reflected on his performance against the Void Worm.
“You activated the defense array, and Lynae delivered the final blow to the Void Worm.”
As he spoke, Megumi looked down at his shadow.
With only two Shikigami unlocked, he really wasn’t of much help in resisting external enemies.
In the end, there was just too little time.
He felt like a newbie who had accidentally wandered into a raid, skipping the grinding and leveling phase to challenge the big boss directly.
“No, Megumi, you played a huge role. You held off the Void Worm for me and Lynae.” Rover shook her head, denying Megumi’s self-deprecation.
“Is this meant to be a comfort?” Megumi lowered his head and smiled.
“At least you are willing to wait for Lynae to come out with me.” Rover sat upright, her expression serious.
“…”
Although Lynae was a great hero who returned to the academy with Rover, she was still a suspect until the academy’s interrogation was completely settled.
Her former friends were either afraid of her or hadn’t yet adapted to the change in her true identity; in short, besides Megumi and Rover, no one was waiting for her here.
“Don’t worry, wait for me to come back!”
When Megumi and Rover last saw Lynae before they parted ways, it was her usual cheerful smile.
However, this didn’t mean Lynae’s fate was sealed; on the contrary, she still had plenty of room to maneuver.
After all, she was, by any account, a great hero who had saved the academy.
Rattle-rattle.
At this moment, the familiar sound of wheels reached Megumi and Rover’s ears.
When they looked up, they saw the free-spirited girl.
“Hehehe.”
Judging by the joyful expression on her face, everything must have gone relatively smoothly.
“How did it go?”
Rover stood up from the bench to ask about the result of the academy’s interrogation.
Whoosh!
Hearing Rover’s question, Lynae took a piece of paper from behind her back.
It was a test paper, and the score on it was one hundred. Find the original chapter at g.com.
“I didn’t expect you to really be a genius.”
Megumi also leaned in, looking at the test paper in Lynae’s hand with surprise.
After all, the image of Lynae in his mind was mostly carefree, and she didn’t fit the mold of a so-called honor student.
“Hehe, now I’m a student of the academy again, although I’ve been asked to start everything over, and I’m not considered an official student yet.”
Lynae scratched her head awkwardly at the end.
After the academy teachers finished interrogating her earlier, they gave her a test paper.
They didn’t say anything else, just that this was an exam.
Lynae’s face lit up with joy, and she immediately began to write furiously.
The final result was as she expected.
“Hmph, I used to be a student who could make up credits by passing final exams even while skipping classes.”
Lynae opened one eye and looked at Megumi with a smug expression.
“Congratulations, Lynae.” Rover smiled.
“Congratulations on returning to your favorite academy.” Megumi also put aside his playful mood and said seriously.
“You guys, you’re making me feel a bit embarrassed.” Lynae scratched her head.
Indeed, facing her best friends’ sudden seriousness felt a bit too strange.
“Then, shall we celebrate in your favorite way and go for a ride together?” Rover invited.
“Well, although I’d really like to go, I’m strictly speaking still in a probationary period, so I’m not as free as before.”
Lynae shrugged helplessly.
This was a very uncomfortable thing for her.
“Perfect, I also need to catch up on sleep. I haven’t even entered my dormitory once since arriving at the academy.” Megumi said, yawning.
“Oh? Student Megumi, you’re skipping class not long after arriving at the academy?”
Because of the joy of returning to the academy, Lynae was joking around with Megumi in her usual carefree manner.
“I’ll ask Dr. Luuk for a sick note. After all, facing the Void Worm counts as a work-related injury, right?” Megumi retorted.
Afterward, Lynae was summoned by the academy for questioning regarding the Remnant Star Society, while Megumi had to go to his dormitory.
So in the end, only Rover was left in the academy square.
Watching her friends leave and the beautiful scenery of the academy, Rover smiled slightly.
“…Protect the sun.”
A strange voice appeared in Rover’s ears, but after she looked around, she found that there was no one else nearby.
Click.
After arriving at his dormitory, Megumi didn’t even have the energy to appreciate the room; he crawled straight onto the bed.
“Whew, as soon as I relax, I feel my eyelids fighting each other…”
After muttering this while lying on the bed, Megumi fell into a dream.
In his dream, he found himself reviewing everything that had happened since arriving in Lahai-Roi.
Suddenly intruding into this strange world, he had to challenge various metal monsters he had never seen before without even a moment to catch his breath.
Very busy.
But at this moment, he unexpectedly felt that this feeling was good.
Probably because…
“Megumi.”
“Hey! Megumi!”
Probably because he had made two best friends.
After sleeping for almost a day, Megumi woke up, set up his own Terminal, and joined the campus forum, only to find…
[ ( * ^ ▽ ^ * ) ]
[Come to the academy garden! Rover and I are both here!]
It seemed today was a rare “time off” for her.
So Megumi didn’t dawdle and went to the academy’s garden.
“Hey! Over here!” Lynae waved at Megumi full of energy.
Tap tap.
When Megumi arrived, the three of them sat down on a nearby bench together.
“So, is there any big happy event that made you call us here in such a rush?” Rover asked with a smile.
“Of course! I’m here to notify my two friends! Tomorrow is my official entrance exam!” Lynae said, puffing out her chest proudly.
“Just that? If I were to guess, you definitely wouldn’t call us here for such a trivial matter.” Megumi rolled his eyes to the side.
“Hey, can’t I just come to share my joy with my good friends?!”
Lynae pouted, looking a bit puffed up with anger.
“I mean, someone like you definitely wouldn’t trouble your friends for such a trivial matter; after all, you’re the type who would rather bear more burdens yourself than let your friends suffer.”
Megumi had come to understand Lynae’s personality along the way, and after saying this, he looked at her with half-opened eyes, as if expecting her next expression.
“I support Megumi’s statement.”
Rover raised her hand in agreement, looking like a student responding to a teacher.
“Alright, I didn’t expect you both to see through me.” Lynae said, lowering her head as if admitting defeat.
Sigh.
Afterward, she stood up and walked forward slowly, while reaching out towards the sun.
“I do have some things I want to vent to my good friends about.”
She turned around and said to Rover and Megumi behind her.
“It’s only right; if anything, this is also a friend’s duty.” Rover said, reaching out gently.
“Same here.” Megumi chuckled.
“Thank you both…”
Afterward, Lynae said many things.
There was the annoyance of the special “caring” assignments given by Professor Mornye, and the annoyance of classmates coming to ask for autographs from her, the Void-Born Insect Knight.
And also the annoyance of having to return to the first grade to start studying again.
Even though the Void Worm had been defeated, it seemed there were still many things that required her attention.
However, although she talked about some troublesome things, when she turned around with her back to the sun at the end, Megumi and Rover saw the expression on her face.
She was smiling.
“These are all my troubles, but now, facing them, I am very happy.”
Lynae’s gaze passed over Megumi and Rover, finally looking at Star-Torch Academy behind them.
“Although I was happy at the academy before, there was always a stone in my heart.”
Lynae said this with her head lowered, placing her hand on her chest.
“But now, with the help of my friends, after moving it away, I feel much better in my heart.”
Her gaze returned to Megumi and Rover.
The two people who helped her untie her heart’s knot.
“Then now, what should we call you?”
Megumi suddenly asked the “freshman” in front of him.
Yes, what should they call this sunny and cheerful girl in front of them?
She was no longer the mercenary who lived in the dark corners of the New Federation, nor was she a mole for the Remnant Star Society.
“My name is Lynae, a first-year preparatory freshman at Star-Torch Academy this year! From now on, please continue to take care of me, my friends!”
Lynae finally smiled and made a peace sign to her friends in front of her.
She had met Megumi and Rover under the name Lynae, so the story of that mercenary should have ended long ago.
From now on, it was a life that belonged to Lynae.