Seraphim is a Bystander

Alternating Days - Part 3
 
…

The moment I noticed something was off came after P.E.—which I’d ended up sitting out—and just as regular classes resumed.
"Alright, who can solve this problem?"
“Me! Me!”

As my usual energetic classmates eagerly raised their hands, I found myself swallowed by a strange, unfamiliar sensation.
Before I could even begin to think, the answer to the teacher’s question just popped into my head.
Not just the answer—but the entire content of the upcoming lesson, even stuff we hadn’t studied yet, came flooding into my mind like a dam had burst.
There was no time to even think, “Oh, this makes class easier.”
The sheer overflow of information left me frozen.
I used to pride myself on having decent memory and quick thinking, but this was on another level—so much data that it would’ve made my brain boil over normally, yet somehow I could process it all effortlessly.
It just left me stunned.

…Will I forget all of this once I’m back in my original body?
Right now, it feels like I have the entire textbook inside my head, ready to flip through at will.
I can even recall the teacher’s explanation like I’m watching a video—no, I don’t just remember it, I understand it, and can recreate it.
It hit me again just how overwhelming Seras’s power really was.
And at the same time, I couldn’t help but feel guilty—as if I were cheating by using a power I never earned myself.

So I tried to stay as quiet as possible during class, only answering when I was directly called on.
I filled in quiz forms with answers I already knew before even seeing the questions, and spent the morning in what could generously be called an “easy” lesson—or bluntly, a boring one.
“Alright, after lunch we’ll be putting together our field trip reports, so be ready when the break ends!”
Watching the teacher leave the room to prep for lunch, I closed the textbook tab I had open on my tablet.

“…Phew.”
"Aoi-kun, you still seem kinda out of it… Are you okay?"
As I let out a sigh, Runa-chan, who sat next to me, asked with concern.
Ever since I changed into this body, I’d been aware that people were looking at me more often than usual.
I’d noticed Runa-chan in particular sneaking glances at me during class, probably worried about how I was doing.

“Yeah… I’m okay. There’s not much that’s inconvenient with this body, really.”
Which was true—Seras’s body was clearly more capable than mine in a lot of ways.
…Though it being "not inconvenient" didn’t mean I wasn’t troubled.
“I see… That’s good then. But seriously, if anything’s bothering you, you have to tell me, okay?”
“Thanks, Runa-chan.”

“U-Uh… Of course! Helping friends in need is totally normal!”
She flushed red and fumbled through her reply when I thanked her.
…Huh? Was that embarrassment?
For some reason, it felt like she was flustered the way someone might be around a crush.
But ❀ Nоvеlігht ❀ (Don’t copy, read here) why? I mean, she just said we’re “friends,” and from her perspective, I’m the same gender right now…
…Could it be that Runa-chan… likes girls?
Well, Seras is beautiful, after all…

I caught myself going further than I should and stopped there.
I normally wouldn’t be thinking about stuff like this.
It felt like something about me was different from usual—but speculating any more than this felt disrespectful to Runa-chan, so I let it go.
After we finished setting up lunch, I quietly ate my meal—wondering whether it was really okay for me to be eating like this.
Seras had said she didn’t need food, after all…
『…Helmeee… not there… ZZZ…』

“!?”
“Aoi-kun!?”
Suddenly, Seras’s voice echoed in my mind and I shot to my feet without thinking.
Startled classmates stared at me in confusion, so I quickly made up some excuse and hurried out of the classroom to the multipurpose bathroom.

“(Seras-san? Seras-san, are you there!?)”
『…ZZZ…』
Frantically calling out in my mind, I waited for a response.
Only now, because I was focusing, I realized I could hear Seras’s soft, sleeping breath.
Until now, I must’ve just tuned it out completely.

“……”
…So she’s just asleep, huh?
The moment I realized that, all the tension I’d been unconsciously holding onto melted away and I sank onto the toilet seat in relief.

Ah… thank god.
I’d started to fear I’d forced Seras out too hard, and that maybe she’d vanished entirely, leaving me stuck in her body for good.
But if she was just asleep and forgot to switch back—then that was manageable.
If I just wake her up, we should be able to swap back. Alright.

“(Seras-saaaan! Wake up! Seras-saaaan!!!)”
『Mmm… Helmee… just 200 more years…』
“…Huh.”

Despite my desperate calls, the voice that returned was nothing like her usual calm and even tone—more like a drowsy mutter.
“200 years”? “Helme”? Is that someone’s name?
In any case, she showed no signs of waking up.
I wanted to believe she’d wake up eventually, but hearing her talk in her sleep about needing another 200 years didn’t inspire confidence.
She wasn’t human, after all.
There was no guarantee that her sleep cycle worked the same way ours did.

What if she didn’t wake up… until after I was already dead?
Knowing she hadn’t disappeared was a huge relief—
But even so, it only gave rise to a new wave of uncertainty, swirling darkly inside my chest.