I Became the Must-Have Character of the Academy City

Chapter 23

“...Stop.”

Click!

Rohan fixed his gaze on the princess, whose right pupil had shifted into the shape of a heart.

It was both strangely seductive and unnervingly sinister.

"Terrifying, absolutely terrifying."

The magic condensing into the bullet within the chamber radiated a palpable menace.

Still, it didn’t seem like she was ready to pull the trigger just yet.

The princess looked confused, and Rohan, in turn, quickly scanned their surroundings.

"No allies nearby... Didn’t bring a sniper rifle either? Or is it hidden behind that wall?"

At least her lack of a primary weapon was a relief.

Even in the worst-case scenario, this one detail significantly raised Rohan’s odds of getting out unscathed.

"I’ve stopped. Lower the gun, and let’s talk."

The dignified aura exuding from the girl reminded him of Ichinose and Noah.

Out of respect, Rohan decided to use polite language to match her tone.

“...”

The princess hesitated but didn’t lower her gun.

Her reaction was understandable. Rohan had anticipated this kind of response—no matter how he approached, her wariness was inevitable.

A stranger had suddenly appeared, pointed out a tracker on her, and then casually announced he was leaving.

How could she tell if this was an act of goodwill or something else entirely?

"If it were me, I’d have drawn my gun too."

As Rohan calmly ate another macaron to recharge his energy, the princess finally broke the silence.

"Who are you?"

“I wasn’t an invited guest, that’s for sure. And the people you were waiting for? They won’t be coming.”

"You killed them, didn’t you."

Rohan nodded, confirming her guess with a nonchalant tone.

"Yeah, that’s how it went."

"That’s not something to brush off so lightly."

The princess shot back sharply, but Rohan only grinned as if he found her anger amusing.

Her finger, poised on the trigger, trembled faintly.

"Let’s just say we never met. You waited, but no one showed up... Something like that?"

Rohan offered her a macaron from the box, but the princess merely glanced at it before glaring at him fiercely.

"Why would I do that?"

“It could help you learn things you didn’t know before, like just now.”

“...”

Almost reflexively, the princess touched the tiny tracker she’d removed earlier, her fingers brushing against it lightly.

"...I don’t understand."

“How I knew about that device, you mean?”

“Not just that—everything.”@@@@

Rohan could guess what was going through her mind.

Her thoughts were likely spinning furiously, struggling to make sense of the growing number of questions without answers.

"I imagine you have many questions without clear solutions."

“!”

"For instance, what happened to the elves who once lived in the Tigrova forest?"

The princess’s expression hardened, her energy flaring as she stepped closer to Rohan.

The barrel of her gun was now mere inches from his chest.

"Tell me everything you know."

“I need time to gather information myself.”

"So you’re asking me to just let you walk away?"

“Yes. I’m in a bit of a hurry.”

"You’re unbelievably shameless."

"Exactly."

"So you assume that no matter what you say, I won’t believe you."

Rohan didn’t answer.

Over time, she would naturally come to understand.

"I’m sure you already have an idea of how to use that tracker."

“...”

The princess glanced at the small device in her hand.

The fact that she hadn’t destroyed it on the spot meant she must have had some thoughts about its potential uses.

"Do you have paper and a pen?"

"Why do you ask...?"

Uncharacteristically, the princess trailed off.

"I’ll give you a number to contact me."

The princess didn’t have a smartphone. The only device she had was a radio connected to the elders.

If she wanted to make a call, she would have to venture into the city and use a public phone.

"As it happens, I picked something up on my way here."

“?”

Rohan blinked in confusion, wondering what she meant.

Avoiding his gaze for the first time, the princess opened a pocket on her vest.

Click!

As the button snapped open, she retrieved the item.

Rohan’s eyes widened in surprise.

"Ahem..."

The princess hesitated before pulling out a small notebook and pen adorned with a design of a crying dragon and a goofy-looking shark.

Rohan recognized the characters immediately.

"...I just grabbed it thinking it might be useful. Lucky, I guess."

She claimed she’d picked it up, but the pristine condition of the notebook suggested otherwise.

It was obvious she had purchased it herself.

Rohan accepted the notebook and pen, briefly inspecting the cover.

"Wait, isn’t this the brand Ichinose likes?"

He hadn’t expected the princess to have such a preference.

This seemed like one of those hidden details about her character that would have been revealed if she had ever been made a playable character.

Suppressing the urge to comment, Rohan opened the notebook, noticing a few neatly written notes scattered throughout.

He refrained from saying anything about them and simply wrote down the number.

"As you know, giving you this puts me at significant risk."

“...”

Rohan wasn’t giving out his number lightly.

Even though he considered it unlikely, he had already accounted for the possibility of the princess revealing his number to the elders—or the risk of them discovering it without her saying anything.

The elders, wary of drawing attention in Academy City, would likely avoid causing a scene.

At most, their actions would amount to hiring someone to deal with the situation.

Within the city, Rohan had more than enough options to handle such problems.

Handing the notebook back with a grin, Rohan added, "It was nice meeting you. I’ve included the best times to call. Feel free to contact me even if it’s not for anything serious."

"What do you mean by that?"

"Like if you’re struggling with something or just craving something sweet. Even trivial reasons are fine."

"You’re trying to extract information through casual conversation... That won’t work on me."

Rohan chuckled at her suspicious tone, brushing it off lightly.

He began preparing to leave.

"I’ve done what I can."

What the princess needed most right now was something to cling to—a faint hope for a brighter future or a reason to endure her current struggles.

Rohan had planted as many seeds as he could within reason.

"I’ll take my leave now."

"For information gathering?"

"That, and... I have studying and part-time work to attend to."

"Hmph, so you won’t reveal anything about yourself."

The princess’s untrusting gaze lingered on Rohan.

Rohan didn’t mind. In fact, he found it rather amusing.