I Became the Cute One in the Troubleshooter Squad-Chapter 112: Aftermath at Saint Maria (6)

"That was a great meal! Let's meet again soon!"

"Uh, yeah. Try to get better quickly, though. You look kinda miserable."

"Hah! No need to worry! A sturdy body is one of my few strong points!"

Hahaha!

After finishing his meal, Victor left the restaurant with his companions supporting him, still laughing heartily.

I never knew a person could be this loud. My eardrums felt like they had been thoroughly overworked.

Of course, objectively speaking, he was a hero who had saved everyone in Saint Maria last night.

And honestly, he was pretty likable in a lot of ways.

It wasn’t that I disliked him... it was just that his energy level was way too much for me.

As a classic introvert, this kind of enthusiasm was exhausting to deal with.

With that thought, I quietly sucked on a candy, standing next to Alice as we walked out.

For the record, the candy had been given to me by Victor’s assistant—a cool beauty in a sharp office suit.

She said she liked how enthusiastically I was eating my food.

...Well, if someone’s giving me free candy, I won’t say no.

"Phew, that really hit the spot. How long has it been since I last ate expensive meat without worrying about money?"

"Haha... I think the hotel staff might be crying right now."

Alice gave an awkward laugh as she watched Raven pat his stomach in satisfaction.

The amount of meat those two had devoured—excluding the bones—was several kilograms.

If you converted that into actual money... yeah. Even a rough estimate would put the loss at an insane amount.

And, of course, they weren't paying for any of it.

It seemed Alice felt at least a little guilty about that.

But honestly—considering these two had literally bled to keep the hotel safe, preventing a massacre—

The future revenue from saving its reputation probably outweighed the meal costs.

Anyway, as we left the restaurant, walking through the hallway in that pleasant post-meal drowsiness,

Raven, who was walking ahead, casually turned to Alice and asked,

"Wanna grab some coffee? My throat’s a little dry."

Wait. Since when did he drink coffee?

He usually complained that it was too bitter.

Surprised, Alice blinked a few times before waving her hand.

"I’m good. What about the rest of you?"

"Hmm, I think I could use some."

"Ah, then I’ll wait over there by the tables."

"...!"

In the end, the ones heading to the café were the four of them—excluding me and Alice.

Since I didn’t particularly feel like drinking anything, I decided to wait outside with her.

The table we chose had a perfect view of the ocean.

Through the transparent glass windows, the winter sea stretched endlessly before us, filling the air with a quiet serenity.

Looking at a view like this...

Maybe Alice had some thoughts of her own.

Resting her chin on her hand, she mumbled to herself,

"It’s nice... A little disappointing that it’s not summer, though."

"..."

"Huh? What? Oh... You’re saying we can just come back in the summer?"

"...!"

"Ahaha! You’re right! This isn’t the end, after all. Next summer, next winter... As long as we’re all together, that’s all that matters."

She suddenly burst into laughter, her eyes crinkling so much that tears almost welled up—

And then, she gently ruffled my hair.

Thankfully, my desperate attempt at comforting her had worked.

After that short conversation, we fell into a quiet rhythm, simply watching the ocean.

I wished we could hear the sound of the waves, but even without it, just seeing the water crash and break into white foam was mesmerizing.

A view that could make you forget time itself.

...But of course, moments like this never lasted forever.

"Ah! There you are, Alice-chan!"

The peaceful atmosphere was abruptly shattered by an unexpected voice.

Who the hell is ruining this moment?

Turning toward the source of the voice—

I found myself looking at a smiling fox beastkin girl.

Yanagi Tamamo.

"Oh... Tamamo?"

"Yup, it’s me. And the one next to you must be... Yuria-chan, right? Nice to meet you!"

"..."

...Uh. Hello.

Since she had greeted not only Alice but also me, I gave her a polite nod.

We hadn’t formally introduced ourselves, but somehow, my name must have reached her ears.

But it seemed Tamamo didn’t actually have business with me.

After winking playfully, she scratched her cheek awkwardly and looked back at Alice.

Wait a second—there was someone else behind her.

"Ahaha, Alice-chan, good afternoon! So, um... actually, Nera really wants to apologize...."

"I-I’m so sorryyyyyyy!!!"

Whoosh!

Like a shadow launching into the sky, a dark figure behind Tamamo suddenly shot forward at an insane speed—

And then latched onto Alice, immediately dropping into a full-body prostration.

Upon closer inspection, the girl kneeling on the ground was dressed entirely in black from head to toe—her hair, her clothes, even her shoes.

So she wanted to apologize, huh...?

Yeah, it was probably the Academy’s Disciplinary Chief, Nera.

Yesterday, she had been intoxicated by the Rage Gas and ended up attacking Alice, injuring her.

There was nothing else this could be about.

...Well, seeing her plastered against the ground like this, it was clear she was genuinely remorseful.

"Uh, um... excuse me...?"

"I woke up in the infirmary and heard everything! I was under the influence of some strange gas and ended up hurting you, Alice! Even if I was being controlled, that doesn’t erase the fact that I committed a crime! So... please, punish me however you see fit!"

"P-Punish you?!"

With a desperate, teary voice, Nera shouted her plea, still glued to the floor.

She was so emotionally overwhelmed that every time she shook her head, her hips wiggled along with it.

...Her figure was surprisingly curvy, so looking down from above felt a bit indecent.

Maybe that was why Alice, who had zero tolerance for anything remotely suggestive, was completely flustered and unable to form a coherent response.

Her trembling gaze instinctively shifted toward Tamamo, silently pleading for help.

Letting out a sigh, Tamamo pressed a hand to her forehead—then, without hesitation, smacked Nera’s butt.

"...?!"

"Kyaa!"

"Get up already. You’re making Alice-chan uncomfortable. I get that you feel bad, but making her awkward like this isn’t helping anyone."

"Uuugh... I’m sorry...."

With watery eyes, Nera slowly lifted her head, looking up at Alice like a guilty puppy before cautiously standing up.

Well... in a way, Alice was her savior—

Since she had stopped Nera from becoming a mindless killing machine, it wasn’t surprising that the girl was reacting so dramatically.

Even if her way of showing it was a bit much.

As time passed, Nera’s emotions seemed to settle, and she finally approached Alice with a more composed demeanor.

"I’m really sorry... and, um, thank you... for protecting everyone along with the student council president...."

"Haha... uh, well, that’s just how things turned out."

"It’s amazing! I couldn’t sense any powerful magic from you, but you’re so strong! Do you have some kind of special secret?!"

Creak.

For a brief moment, silence fell over the table.

Still frozen in her awkward smile, Alice stiffened completely.

Meanwhile, Tamamo’s expression twisted in horror, her lips parting in shock.

"Y-You idiot! Do you even realize what you just said?!"

"Guh?!"

Finally snapping out of her daze, Tamamo smacked Nera on the back of the head and then immediately bowed her head toward Alice in apology.

For her, bringing up magic in front of Alice was a forbidden topic.

Because for non-humans—magic was part of their identity.

After losing their homelands to the Invaders, the only remaining distinction between non-humans and humans was whether or not they possessed magic.

And Alice was born with magic-null disorder—a condition that made it impossible for her to use magic.

What Nera had just said was essentially the equivalent of saying,

"Wow! You’re missing an arm, but your piano skills are amazing!"

...Yeah. That level of social disaster.

"I-I’m so sorry, Alice-chan! She’s just a little... lacking in common sense...!"

"Ahaha, it’s fine. It’s not like she meant anything bad by it. If anything, I should be grateful—she’s just being sincere, right?"

"Th-That’s right! To be honest, I might even admire you a little... mmph!"

"Stop talking already! Grrr... I finally get to see Alice-chan again, and this is what happens...!"

Despite everything, Alice understood that Nera wasn’t trying to insult her—

She was just genuinely amazed by her strength.

So she quickly calmed down, brushing it off with a lighthearted laugh.

The only one still visibly shaken was Tamamo, who seemed on the verge of crying from secondhand embarrassment.

Watching Tamamo and Nera’s familiar dynamic, Alice tilted her head curiously and asked,

"Tamamo, how’s life at the Academy? Are you enjoying ➤ NоvеⅠight ➤ (Read more on our source) it?"

"...Mm. It’s been fun, in its own way. Becoming student council president was a surprise, though."

"Oh? Is that so? It would’ve been fun if we could’ve attended the Academy together. A little disappointing, really."

"That’s..."

As she said that, Alice’s gaze shifted toward me.

I had no idea why she was looking at me like that, so I just tilted my head.

Then, with a soft, gentle smile, she turned back to Tamamo and continued,

"But you know what? I think I like things the way they are now. I’ve met people who are so important to me—I never want to lose them."

Her eyes held a sincerity that made it clear—

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She had finally let go of whatever lingering regrets or inferiority she had carried.

Seeing that, Tamamo seemed to understand something as well.

After staring at Alice for a moment, she smiled and responded,

"I’m glad. I’ve always wished for you to be happy, Alice-chan."

After a little more conversation, Tamamo and Nera eventually took their leave.

As members of the student council and disciplinary committee, they were obviously busy with other responsibilities.

Just as they disappeared, the rest of our group returned from the café, each holding a drink.

"We’re back. This is the table? Damn, this is a great view."

"Right? The ocean looks amazing from up here."

They must have taken their drinks to-go because everyone was holding a cup with a straw.

Lattes, soda, smoothies... yeah, definitely a diverse selection.

After settling into his seat, Raven took a small sip of his latte—

Then, without even turning his head, he casually asked Alice,

"So, got any plans? From what I heard, everything except the damaged areas is back to normal. If there’s something you wanna do, we can go there."

His voice sounded indifferent, almost bored—

But if you listened carefully, you could tell... he was being considerate in his own way.

He was probably still thinking about last night.

Before this trip, Alice had been excited about spending time with everyone—

And yet, after everything that happened, she had barely gotten to enjoy it.

As a responsible adult, Raven likely felt at least a little guilty about that.

And Alice, perceptive as ever, noticed it right away.

Her eyes widened slightly in surprise—

Then, suddenly, she grinned and answered in a bright, cheerful voice.

"Yes! Let’s do it!"

Her smile was like sunlight—radiant and full of warmth.

It was the kind of smile that made you feel lighter, just by looking at it.

And just like that—

Our vacation was finally about to begin.