SWNOVELXO Chapter 101
“Yo.”
Coming back from spending my time to the fullest at the Boss’s mansion to find out I had to go to the Academy was pretty depressing, but that feeling evaporated the moment I saw my friends.
Well, I mean, they weren’t exactly friends. More like those play-friends.
Thanks to the Boss waking me up about 30 minutes too late, I barely made it to class just before morning assembly.
Maybe that’s why, but the others were already clustered around Lapiz’s seat, chatting lively about something. Probably about me, I assumed.
If I were to be honest, I hoped it was about me. I wanted to be that important to them.
“Whoa, Blanca?! Are you okay?! What on earth happened?!”
Yeonhwa rubbed her eyes in disbelief and rushed over to grab my hands.
Right then, the others came rushing in too, poking and prodding, asking what happened to me.
Normally, I would find their touching annoying, but their concern was overwhelming, so I didn’t mind. In fact, it felt kind of nice.
Still, I wished Lapiz wouldn’t grab my tail. The root area and base are sensitive, you know.
I playfully flicked my tail to gently tap Lapiz’s wrist, clearly expressing that I didn’t appreciate that, and she backed off.
“If I spill everything, Heros Company will come to catch me, so I’ll keep it simple. I merged with my suit.”
“…Huh? Wait, what? Sorry, I don’t get it at all. Can you explain a bit more… please? So, how exactly did you merge with your suit?”
“Was it the word choice? Fusion? Unification? Integration? Blending? Call it what you want. Just don’t ask how it happened. Because if I say, they’ll come for me.”
This was something I got the green light for from the research team. They said I could share this much.
No matter how much I tried to hide it, it was obvious that something had merged, so there was that.
But even if the researchers said it was fine to speak, the expressions on my friends’ faces were like they had just heard something they really shouldn’t.
“Wha…t…?”
Minho and Jinhyeon, who knew a bit more about the situation, just looked bitter, while the others were in shock, unable to even speak.
Even those nearby who were eavesdropping shot me looks as if they were wondering if they heard wrong.
“B-but that doesn’t make sense! How…?”
“The moment I explain how it happened, both of us will get caught. So, I can’t say. Just, think of it as it happened—okay?”
The atmosphere was one of total disbelief. Lapiz stammered, barely able to hold back, questioning if my suit had turned me into a monster.
“Yeah.”
“So that means you became one with a monster?! How is that okay?!”
After reaching that point, Lapiz seemed to lose it, her stuttering completely gone as she expressed her anger.
Of course, after she calmed down and saw the attention shifting to me, she instantly apologized and shrank back, but I didn’t care. In fact, I found it somewhat satisfying and joyful.
It wasn’t me who they were mad at; it was Heros Company.
And I was really amazed that Lapiz knew how to get mad for someone else now. And it felt good that the someone was me.
“Why are you apologizing? It’s not you who should be sorry. I guess the ones who should be apologizing have no intention of doing so. What are you staring at? Did you come to gawk?”
I growled at the peeking kids, chasing them away, just in time for Justitia to enter the room, slightly late, and apologize.
She promptly had Changwon whip the class into shape and announced that today was the day we would receive our final exam scores.
At that statement, groans erupted from various corners, but I wasn’t too worried. I was sure I’d scored high.
“And… there was a big incident that’s hard to discuss with student Blanca, but please treat her just like you used to. Though her body may be a bit different now, her heart hasn’t changed.”
Justitia pointedly instructed the class to look out for me before she began preparing to leave.
“Today might be our last day in Class A, so make sure to spend it without regrets. That’s all for the announcements.”
Justitia chose her words carefully as she exited the classroom. The students were deep into a debate over whether they would pass or fail.
Not surprisingly, they weren’t much different from any other day. Lapiz was talking to Seolhwa, expressing some unease, while Yeonhwa was encouraging them.
Ageha was fretting that all her efforts had turned out poorly, saying she might fail, while Minho was reassuring her.
Jinhyeon sat silently, having dyed his hair gray, probably opting to stay quiet, assuming he’d pass anyway. Clever of him.
“Blanca… you look healthy…”
Lucia sneaked into our group and timidly grabbed my sleeve, checking on me.
“Well, I came to school because I’m healthy. If I weren’t healthy, would I even be here?”
“Well, that’s true… What do you think about our scores?”
“Of course I’m passing, right? I saved hostages, took down strong monsters, and did first aid. There’s no reason for me not to pass.”
Plus, considering I went through this incident, surely if a human has a heart, they won’t fail me?
Making a joke about it, the others agreed, sharing a laugh.
Though there were some looking at me with a tinge of jealousy, so what? They were the ones struggling to pass anyway.
– – – –
In the afternoon, as I entered the girls’ changing room, I felt the glance of girls peeking at me.
They would give me looks because of my body back in the day, so I was used to it, but it felt particularly intense today. Was it my morning comments they were curious about?
The girls, led by Lapiz, surrounded me to shield me from their eyes, but honestly, did they have to go that far?
It’s not like anything’s changed that much.
At this point, I felt it was a bit excessive, and I wanted to tell them to stop, but since I was feeling pretty good, I decided to let it slide.
However, with them standing that close until I had to change, I figured I should suggest doing something else.
If I didn’t speak up, they’d likely stand there forever.
“Ah… um, right? But, are you okay?”
“I’m fine. I’ve already changed into my clothes.”
The moment I took off my shirt and loosened the strap of my bra, I wrapped my body in the suit stored inside me.
To others, it might have seemed like I changed into the suit in the blink of an eye, so I wasn’t surprised they were shocked.
Even Lapiz, who was observing the closest, was astonished, asking when I had changed.
“So you really became one with your suit… but Blanca, your eyes look strange? Is it a side effect, or does it hurt…?”
“Oh, this? It doesn’t hurt at all. Just think of it as decoration.”
As the girls tried to process their shock, I hastily said I’d be heading out and slipped out of the changing room.
Even when I went down to the stadium, I could feel the curious gazes of those who noticed my change and those still looking for what had changed.
So, I decided to detach a bit of the suit, forming it into a ball and filling it with water before launching it into the air.
The suit-ball soared into the sky, exhaling steam like a disco ball to block everyone’s view.
As the ball expelled all the water and I quickly recalled it back into my original form, this time I let out tiny suit pieces like tiny flying bugs.
From this angle, it did look like a swarm of bugs. Of course, bugs don’t carry toxic substances.
Right now, it was just filled with plain water since we were in the academy, but in a real situation, inside those tiny bug-like suit pieces would be acid.
Though small, the moment one touched that swarm, it could potentially melt away your entire body.
Or I could merge those from a distance into one massive toxic fog sprayer. Just imagining the possibilities thrilled me.
I could also simply shape the suit into blades, hammers, or morning stars without difficulty.
If I was lazy, I could swipe my hand and unleash countless sharp suit fragments to literally create a wind blade.
“Wow… Blanca, since when could you do things like this?”
When the latecomers saw that, their jaws almost hit the floor as they asked how I could do that.
“If you could control the suit like your own body, you’d be able to do things like this. Didn’t I say? It’s all about getting stronger and feeling great.”
The others seemed to want to protest but found themselves at a loss for words, merely staring at me in silence. However, Jinhyeon seemed to have a different view.
“No. That’s not it… Just because the outcome is good doesn’t mean the process was.”
“That’s true. You’re right, Jinhyeon…”
It felt odd to hear him so spot on, but I knew he wasn’t going to change overnight, so I responded that it was what it was.
“Yeah. Right now, I can’t do anything. So, I need to strive to reach a position where I can do something.”
Did he eat something weird? He’s been brooding for a while since morning.
Just as I felt a moment of wonder, Justitia called us over, saying she had brought the report cards for us to check.
Not wanting to be caught up in this conversation any longer, I hurried over to Justitia.