Sobu High School, Student Council Room
Lala and I were currently in the student council room together with the council members, plus Yuji, Miko, Asia, and Kato.
"So, Ace, has the new student in your class been giving you trouble?" Kenzaki-senpai asked.
Hmm. It had already been two days since Ren challenged me. During those two days, he kept challenging me nonstop or showing off his strength. Of course, I could still beat him easily.
Like earlier, when I was walking alone through the school hallway and he suddenly blocked my path while holding a magazine before ripping it cleanly in half.
"So manly!" I could hear several students say in admiration.
I simply stayed silent and created a book thicker than Ren's magazine before tearing it apart just as easily. Of course, I used Fenghuang Down so the other students only saw me pulling the book out of my pocket.
"So incredibly manly!"
They were seriously impressed.
Or another time when he walked past me carrying a giant stack of books before accidentally dropping them. If I hadn't been there, someone probably would have gotten hurt.
"You mean Ren? Yeah, for now he's not that annoying, but if he keeps this up, I might run out of patience," I answered.
"Speaking of that new student, I feel like there's something strange about him," Sarashina-senpai said.
"Strange how, Senpai?" Maria-san asked.
Sarashina-senpai rubbed her chin thoughtfully.
"Hmm. It feels like there's some strange aura around him. Like he's not human."
"Yeah, I felt that too, Senpai," Masachika added.
"So, Akashi-kun, what do you think? Does Ren have some connection to the supernatural world?" Sarashina-senpai asked.
"Congratulations, Senpai, Masachika. You're right! Ren isn't human. He's an alien," I answered while clapping my hands.
"Hah?"
Everyone looked confused except Yuki and Asia.
"An alien. A lifeform from outer space that landed on Earth."
"We know what an alien means! But aliens actually exist?!" Yuji shouted.
"Ah, I never told you guys?"
"YOU DIDN'T!" everyone yelled.
"Really? Well, now you know, so it's fine."
"THAT IS NOT FINE!" they shouted again.
Did they really have to yell?
"Stop shouting, okay?" I said while covering my ears.
"I think everyone should calm down first," Asia tried soothing them.
"Yeah, Asia's right. You all need to calm down." Yuki then turned toward Ayano. "Ayano, please keep this secret too."
Ayano recovered from her shock before giving a slight bow. "Of course, Yuki-sama. I shall take this secret with me to the grave."
No, you really didn't need to go that far. Why was she always so dramatic?
Eventually, everyone calmed down.
Honestly, this was only about aliens. They already knew curses, devils, angels, and mythology were real, yet they were still freaking out over aliens.
"So, are you all calm now?"
Kenzaki-senpai let out a long sigh.
"Yeah... alright, continue your explanation."
"Okay. To put it simply, Ren is an alien who came to Earth to steal Lala away from me. The end."
"But why Lala?" Miko asked.
Ah, right. I never told Miko about Lala's true identity.
"Because Lala is the princess of this galaxy. Don't scream."
I saw Masachika rubbing the bridge of his nose. "Ace, can you stop giving explanations halfway? Talking to you feels like getting shot in the leg, waiting for it to heal, then getting shot in the exact same spot again... three times."
"Why are you being so dramatic, Masachika? Look at Yuki. She's perfectly calm."
Alisa-san looked toward Yuki.
"Akashi-kun is right. Why are you so calm, Suou-san?"
Yuki only smiled gently.
"Because I already knew. Ace told me a long time ago.
I saw Masachika stare at Yuki with an exhausted face while Yuki kept smiling. In her mind, she was probably laughing or lightly tapping her head while saying "tehe."
"Oh right, I made these for you guys."
I pulled out three pens and handed them to Masachika, Yuji, and Sarashina-senpai.
"Pens?"
"Not ordinary pens. Try removing the safety lock and press the button."
Yuji removed the safety lock and pressed the button.
A second later, the pen transformed into a sword.
"WOAH! THAT'S AWESOME!" Yuji shouted.
"I figured you guys might accidentally run into curses or devils someday, and you obviously can't openly carry swords around, so I made those," I explained.
"Hm, but why pens that turn into swords? I remember seeing Ace summon his sword out of nowhere before. Why not give them something like that?" Yuki asked.
"You mean this?"
I pulled a small sling bag out from inside my school blazer.
"This thing is hard to make. Even this single one took me six months."
"I see."
Tok... Tok... Tok...
The knocking on the student council room door interrupted our discussion.
Masha-san, who was closest to the door, stood up with her usual gentle smile.
"Ah, it seems we have a guest. I'll get the doo-"
"Please wait, Maria-sama."
Ayano suddenly stepped forward, cutting Maria-san off with the swift professionalism of an elite maid.
"I shall handle this. Please continue your discussion."
Maria-san blinked in confusion but stepped aside anyway.
"Eh? Alright, Ayano-chan."
Ayano slowly and elegantly opened the door, but the moment she saw who was standing outside, her expression instantly turned cautious and emotionless again.
Standing there was the exact transfer student we had just been talking about.
Ren Elsie Jewelria.
He looked slightly awkward while staring into the student council room.
"Um... excuse me." Ren peeked inside while searching for someone. "Is Akashi Ace here?"
I let out a long sigh.
We had literally just talked about him, and now he showed up immediately. Talk about timing.
"I'm here, Ren. What is it?" I answered while casually raising my hand.
Ren stared at me with an unusually serious face. "Akashi Ace... can you come with me for a moment? There's something I want to discuss privately."
The atmosphere inside the student council room immediately became silent.
"Alright."
I stood up and walked past Ayano before following Ren outside. Before leaving, I glanced toward Lala. Lala simply waved at me.
I followed Ren until we stopped at the rooftop.
How did he even get the rooftop key? Or did he use alien technology?
"So, what did you want to talk about?" I asked directly.
"What should I do?" Ren asked while staring at the school field below. "Compared to you, I feel completely inferior, so please tell me how I can become manlier!!"
How should I know?!
I just do whatever I think is right.
Haah... but if I didn't answer him, he would probably keep asking forever.
I raised my right hand, copying Kamen Rider Kabuto's pose.
"My grandfather once said this. A man should follow what his heart tells him and avoid causing trouble for others! So, Ren, just follow your heart and stay away from what you think is wrong. That's all. Ciao."
I started walking toward the rooftop door.
(A/N:his grandfather never say all that)
"I see..." I heard Ren mutter quietly.
"Ah, and one more thing."
I stopped and turned back toward him one last time.
"A man must be cool."
After saying that, I left the rooftop behind.
I returned to the student council room.
"Yo, I'm back," I said while returning to my seat.
"So... how did the conversation go?" Kenzaki-senpai asked nervously.
"Why are you so tense, Senpai? It was just a normal conversation. Relax," I answered while gesturing for him to calm down.
"Whew... I thought he got angry because he couldn't beat you and was about to summon hundreds of alien ships to invade Earth!!" Yuji panicked.
"...You really have an active imagination, Yuji. That's not going to happen, so calm down, okay?"
I looked at the clock.
"Break time's almost over. We should head back to class."
---
Kriiiing.
The dismissal bell rang.
Lala and I tidied our desks before leaving the classroom.
"Lala, go ahead first. I need to handle something for a moment."
"Okay! I'll wait at the gate!" Lala ran off happily.
"...You don't actually have to wait for me."
I pulled out my phone and called Zastin.
"What is it, Ace-sama?" Zastin answered calmly.
"Zastin, I detected a spaceship that most likely belongs to Power Sphere hunters. They're not on Earth for Lala, so can you handle them? I'll send you their information and destination coordinates."
"I understand, Ace-sama. I'll handle them. But why are you interested in these Power Sphere hunters? I know you want to protect Earth, but usually you would deal with this kind of thing personally."
"Yeah, I have another reason. I'm pretty busy right now, so I want you to bring me the Power Sphere belonging to the leader of that hunter squad. Besides, hunting groups like them is technically your job anyway."
"...I see. Very well. I'll take care of them."
"Thanks, Zastin. Oh, and the Power Sphere might be hidden inside his weapon." I ended the call and jogged toward the school gate.
Hopefully Lala hadn't been waiting too long.
After running for a bit, I spotted Lala chatting with Yuki, Miko, and Asia.
Why hadn't Yuki and Miko gone home yet?
"Yo. You haven't been waiting long, right, Lala? Asia?"
"Ace! Nope, not long at all. Did you finish your business?" Lala asked.
"Yeah. You two, why haven't you gone home yet?" I asked Yuki and Miko.
Yuki glanced briefly toward Miko before answering. "Actually, we were waiting for Lala. The two of us are planning to stay over at Lala's house tonight."
"I see. Have fun." I casually raised my hand in farewell before turning around and walking away.
Then my steps suddenly stopped.
I slapped my forehead.
Lala's house was my house too!!
This was seriously embarrassing. Why wasn't I paying attention properly?!
Even without looking, I could practically feel Yuki's teasing smile.
I turned back toward them. "...Come on. What are you waiting for? You're staying over at Lala's house, right?" I said while trying to suppress my embarrassment.
"Areee? Did Ace forget that he lives together with Lala? You're really adorable at moments like this." Yuki laughed while maintaining her elegant princess-like demeanor. "You seriously need more rest later."
Damn it. She never missed a chance to tease me.
"Yuki, stop that. You're making him even more embarrassed," Miko tried to mediate, though I could see the corner of her lips twitching as she held back a smile.
"Ace-san, forgetting something like that is normal," Asia added with her angelic smile.
I let out a long sigh while trying to restore the dignity I had just lost.
I turned toward Lala, who had been tilting her head this entire time. "Lala, why didn't you tell me they were staying over?" I asked helplessly.
Lala blinked before lightly tapping her fist against her temple with an innocent face.
"Ah! I forgot to tell you, Ace! I got distracted thinking about dinner on the way here. Hehe, sorry!"
Why did you forget things so often when you were supposed to be insanely smart?
"More importantly, did you all get permission from your parents?"
"I already got permission from mine, so there's no problem," Miko answered.
"I also told Ayano I wouldn't be going home tonight," Yuki added casually.
Even though Yuki said that, I could still sense Ayano secretly watching us from behind a wall.
I pointed toward her hiding spot. "You can come out now, failed ninja maid!" Ayano stepped out of hiding.
"Ayano? What are you doing here? I already told you I'd be staying at Lala's house, so you don't need to worry," Yuki said.
"My place is by your side, Yuki-sama, therefore I shall also stay over," Ayano answered.
Yuki tried arguing back, but Ayano countered every single argument.
"Alright, I guess it's fine. There are enough rooms at home for everyone, so don't worry about it. Lala, call Tohru and tell her to prepare extra dinner. We have guests."
"I already did that earlier!" Lala answered proudly.
You remembered that but forgot to remind me?
I started leading everyone toward my house.
I walked ahead while the sound of their footsteps and cheerful chatter became the background music of the evening.
Yeah... I should probably prepare myself mentally for this.
I pulled out a book I hadn't read in a long time titled:
"How to Build the Courage to Have Four Wives."
Maybe I'd read it once we got home.