Chapter 85

“Let’s have fun forever, child~ It’s time to go back now~ Everyone’s leaving already~.”

Upon hearing the farewell as students exited the auditorium, Erica silently took Kana’s hand and left the rooftop.

For her part, the main heroine from the Busan side had somewhat lowered her guard around her, but Erica was meticulously vigilant to ensure Kana didn’t pull any strange antics. Kana, for her part, wore an enigmatic smile, neither resisting nor offering any excuses.

Both of them were aware that the emotional undercurrents between them were far from healthy. Without her vigilance, an atmosphere ripe for immediate conflict might have emerged anytime.

Thus, staying much longer could have only led to unfortunate incidents. Erica quickly distanced herself from the building alongside Kana.

The girl currently holding her hand, smiling as if pleased, was someone whose information Erica sought from the only soul who could know anything about this girl who she had never encountered at school before.

‘While we’re on the subject, give me an explanation about this one first.’

Claiming herself to be Erica’s junior, Kana, contrary to her initially unsettling appearance, possessed an unexpectedly robust physique.

If she were to use an instant enhancement, her clearly muscular body would display extraordinary strength — making it hard to understand why she had been taken hostage moments ago.

Perhaps it was due to her being inexperienced in combat or because of the doll-like figures’ near-ambush tactics, but there was also a possibility that Kana might be somehow in collaboration with the actual doll maker. Therefore, it seemed appropriate to extract information from the sole person who could know about Kana.

“『I have no idea.』”

‘What?’

If only the other side had not known about Kana… Erica couldn’t help but question after hearing the matter-of-factly voice of the original owner, who appeared to be encountering this for the first time.

By now, Kana, having taken the lead over Erica as per their prior agreement, was heading toward her accommodation, yet Erica was too engrossed in her conversation with the original owner to notice.

“『I do know Kana. She was quite close to me. However, she was a young-looking, delicate girl then—not the robust woman you see now.』”

‘Maybe she just grew up in the time since we didn’t see each other?’

Given the revelation that the girl claiming to be her junior since the start was indeed a fake, Erica was shaken. No matter how she tried to process it, disbelief persisted—this being driven home with calm finality.

“『However she came about it, the enhancement ability you mentioned isn’t the skill of the junior I knew. Her skill was modest but suited her personality: she was shy but had abilities fitting her character.』”

This body’s current owner was not the one Erica had known, yet continuing to believe Kana was the original junior was naive.

Still, due to the faint trust formed while tutoring Kana, Erica clung to that final shred of belief as she asked internally.

‘Then what was her ability?’

“『Magic. A magic similar to conjuring a sketchbook from thin air. …She mainly used it to make me happy.』”

Magic.

Compared to other ability wielders whose skills seemed to manipulate and bend their chosen aspects arbitrarily, hers was astonishingly simple—yet strangely, this unassuming ability seemed particularly fascinating.

Perhaps it was because she employed it to bring joy to others that Erica felt as though the person holding her hand now seemed different from before.

“『Still, it’s possible your information gathering ability could be flawed, so test her. If she truly is my junior, she’ll react to this. Otherwise, she’s not the real one.』”

The information-gathering ability.

Erica lacked knowledge of how “Erica” collected her information, resulting in comments like these. While sharing thoughts through the same body, “Erica” could not access the source of the information-gathering process – the system.

Though it usually provided accurate information, exceptions arose sometimes due to the target’s abilities or roles, even resulting in fake abilities being displayed.

Thus, the system’s messages weren’t entirely trustworthy. Without objecting to “her” words, Erica tightened her grip on Kana’s hand, who was humming cheerfully.

Erica’s strength was nothing particularly powerful, but Kana stopped, giving the impression that she was willing to listen.

Upon hearing the declaration “Now repeat after me,” Erica followed accordingly, speaking aloud.

“We both agreed not to hold hands because of the bad marks on our wrists, didn’t we?”

As she shook her head slightly, Erica’s hair grazed Kana’s cheek. Yet Kana’s expression did not waver, despite the potentially irritating situation.

“That’s true. Perhaps I’ve been inconsiderate? Or maybe I’ve been too indifferent?”

The natural flow of Kana’s response left Erica momentarily startled but was quickly calmed by an inner voice.

“『Don’t be thrown off. If she can talk at home, she certainly could outside as well.』”

Indeed.

Even assuming a trauma-induced aphasia, it would be normal for her not to speak at all—yet as a heroine, she certainly couldn’t stay silent continuously. The groundwork was laid for her to speak appropriately when needed.

This was Erica’s weakness, born out of her belief in visual novel conventions being applicable to her world—a belief she stubbornly held onto.

It wasn’t easy to correct this flaw, especially because it was part of her defense mechanism against this reality.

“I was the one who was thoughtless and lacked consideration by suddenly showing up at your place.”

“Sister, what are you talking about? I was the one who didn’t show enough concern for you and played a small prank.”

Could it just be a feeling?

Erica felt as if Kana’s body was changing—bulging muscles that could crush rock seemed to be fading, transforming her into a more delicate girl-like figure, creating an optical illusion.

“Magic~.”

Her voice confirmed that this wasn’t merely an illusion. Simultaneously, the words hovering above Kana’s head changed.

[Aspiring Magician Kana]

[Role: Hidden Heroine]

[Ability: Magic]

[“I’ll protect you, sister, from whatever might break you.”]

The description of Kana as an aspiring magician became clear; additional sentences appeared like something Kana herself might say. Perhaps her ability to notice tags above others heads improved with system updates, or was it due to story progression?

“Did you think I was someone else? Ta-da! It’s always been me. I was disappointed you continued to play ignorant~.”

Regardless of Erica’s internal thoughts, the aspiring magician revealed herself with a bright, chirpy voice.

“Why were you captured by the dolls earlier?”

“『Fool. Just repeat whatever I say. Now your doubt is your responsibility.』”

Even amidst self-reproach from the inner voice, Erica maintained her composure while looking at Kana.

Though things were unfolding as though Kana was indeed “her” junior, being her junior and being on her side were two different matters. After two instances where Kana had acted adversarially, continuing to keep her close was risky.

Knowing Erica was on guard, Kana nonetheless spoke calmly.

“It’s because you need to activate your ability, sister. The more disadvantaged the situation, the greater your strength becomes, doesn’t it? That’s the essence of the power you possess.”

Kana’s words revealed knowledge of Erica’s ability, something even the current Erica wasn’t fully aware of.

Erica doesn’t always receive 100 units of power. When the threat is below a certain level, she receives just 100 units of power. If the threat exceeds that, a stronger power, under the protective mechanism, activates.

Thus, when the protection mechanism activates, Erica gains the strength to overcome any obstacle or crisis during its duration.

‘How close were they?’

Naturally, Erica couldn’t help but question how intimate their past relationship must have been for Kana to know such information.

“『That was exactly what I wanted to say… But still, she was one of the closer friends besides the current Student Council President, Kim Ha-neul, and Inna, so it’s natural she’d have some understanding of my power. I’ve helped her a few times too.』”

‘Erica’ might not have many friends, but the bonds she forms are deep. Hence, even though Kana was at the bottom rung in her circle, “bottom” still meant a more profound relationship than average friendships.

Erica refrained from asking about Kana’s current or past interactions with “sister,” as she surmised they would be adversarial.

“That’s right. I was just asking.”

Of course, the earlier question was not something that could be lightly passed off as casual, but it stemmed from suspicion toward Kana.

“Then about your earlier suggestion to stay over at my place, what happens now?”

Kana brushed aside the prior suspicion to prioritize what she deemed more important, acknowledging that the doubt had already taken root within her.

Lost in thoughts, Erica wasn’t too concerned about whether she’d triggered doubt in Kana’s mind.

The pair slowly made their way towards their resting place as other students had already returned to their accommodations.