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They weren't used to it, but in both Mai and Miko's eyes, Rosen's importance had just gone up another notch.
After parting ways, Rosen returned to class—only to notice more than a few people sneaking glances at him.
He found out why when a soft voice spoke from behind. Megumi Kato explained that word had already spread about him walking with Mai and Miko… and destroying that punk's phone.
The model students looked down on him—troublemaker, possible two-timer—but some others actually envied him, even admired him a little. After all, most kids wouldn't dare stand up to school bullies.
But this foreign exchange student from the East clearly wasn't like everyone else.
"That's so cool, Rosen… but doing stuff like that might make other classmates avoid you."
"A few real friends are enough. I can cut the useless connections."
"But what if it leads to bullying? Even if they can't beat you up, they could get everyone to ignore you."
"Relax. I'm the one who does the bullying. Besides, not everyone's that childish."
In Japanese anime, especially the "painfully realistic" school-life series, bullying was a recurring theme. Mai's own show had even tied certain cases of "adolescence syndrome" to bullying.
But in this mixed-up world, at least some heroines were perfectly normal.
"I wish I could be as bold as you, Rosen."
"People are different. Staying the way you are is fine, Megumi."
"If you really want to make friends, I could introduce you to two people sometime."
"Oh? You mean Mai Sakurajima and that other girl from another class?"
"They're both really cute."
"True," Rosen nodded. "But you're not bad yourself."
Megumi, who'd been pouting over his praise for other girls, froze at that. A faint blush crept onto her pale cheeks.
"…Compared to them, I'm nowhere close. And… you're way too good at complimenting girls. Are you actually the playboy everyone says you are?"
"If the situation allows… I wouldn't mind."
"…That's not something a high school boy should be saying."
She sighed, unsure if his personality was a blessing or a disaster.
"Careful, or you'll end up in a love triangle."
"…"
That afternoon, Rosen continued to drift off during class. Gabriel had sent him an anime series, and he hadn't finished it yet.
He'd seen parts of it before, but openly watching anime in class had a certain charm.
Halfway through an episode, a notification popped up in the chat group:
[Group Announcement: Current activity level meets Stage One requirement. Group functions will now be upgraded.]
[Group Announcement: Upgrade will take 30 minutes. Please be patient.]
The once quiet chat instantly came alive.
Lazy Angel: "What's going on? Why's the group suddenly upgrading?"
Busujima: "Looks like we leveled up from activity."
Hell's Blizzard: "A bit sudden… but I'm curious about the new features."
Old Mage: "Why's it taking so long? Feels like some ancient grandpa's pace."
Lazy Angel: "How old does someone have to be for you to call them a grandpa, Frieren?"
Old Mage: "I'm counting in elf years. I'm not old at all."
Busujima: "Careful, or you'll make Miss Frieren mad again."
Old Mage: "It's the truth. In elf years, I'm basically a teenage girl."
Old Mage: "@Shepherd, newbie—don't you agree?"
Old Mage: "Selfie.jpg"
Frieren had posted a close-up selfie—eyes half-closed, lips curled in a smug little smile.
Shepherd: "?"
Old Mage: "Isn't this where you're supposed to agree? I even gave you a freebie!"
A selfie counts as a freebie? Rosen almost typed a snarky comment, but Gabriel beat him to it.
Lazy Angel: "Do you even know what 'freebie' means? A selfie isn't even close!"
Old Mage: "Really? I think I'm charming enough to win over a young guy like him in a heartbeat."
Shepherd: "So you were trying to bribe me with a photo?"
Old Mage: "Why not? Don't guys like seeing cute girl pics? And this is my own selfie. I have confidence in my charm."
Hell's Blizzard: "I'd call it more 'cute' than 'charming'… maybe you're just trying to trigger protective instincts?"
"…So you're treating me like a kid?"
He knew Frieren was several centuries old, but it still felt weir.
"..."
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