NOVEL NEXT WORLD Chapter 11
“That was more chaotic than I expected!”
After the brief club introduction, most students training in the Stadium were pondering which club to join.
It’s called a club, but it was practically just another class to attend.
Moreover, they taught things not covered in the regular curriculum.
So, to not fall behind others, joining a club was a must.
Of course, I had already made up my mind before entering the Academy.
It was obviously the one Minho was going to.
He was a crucial target to follow, both out of fan loyalty and planning.
Of course, I had to keep an eye on the game’s protagonists too.
However, these guys didn’t have cheat elements like the protagonists, so they grew steadily—aka, slowly.
…Well, they had innate talents from birth, so there’s that.
It suddenly made me feel an irritability rising up.
“Jinhyeon, have you thought about which club to join?”
“I’m not sure. Nothing really pulls me in on either side…”
“Ugh, still, you’re going to join a club, right? It’s weird doing nothing while everyone else is… Just pick something, anything!”
Maybe it’s because I had to listen to such easygoing remarks.
It’s possible there’s no particular club that fits for the special category, but then don’t let it show.
Even Im Changwon, whose abilities were practically complete, was putting in effort in the Magic Club.
I couldn’t understand why he was being so clueless about it.
It’s quite odd how everything he says can annoy me so much.
We haven’t even known each other for a week, and I’ve already filled a small notebook with things I disliked about him.
You think I’m being too biased?
Absolutely not.
Maybe it’s the finger thing, so I’m saying this with my pinky hooked, but I bet others are finding him a bit annoying too.
“…More importantly, Yeonhwa, where are you going?”
“Me? Of course, I’m joining the Magic Club! I can get one-on-one lessons from seniors with abilities similar to mine, right?”
“I-I also… want to go there…! Uh, while learning from my parents and grandma is good… I was thinking it might be nice to hear from others too…”
“Lapiz, you too?! Great!”
Yeonhwa, like a dog finding its owner, was escaping from Lapiz and frantically looking for a place to hide, before diving into my arms and burying her face.
“Hii, hii… I’m alive…”
How is she even considering being a hero with such a weak heart?
Thinking she would have a tough time during the job experience later, I placed a hand on her shoulder and gently pushed her away.
“Hey, Lapiz. The horn is poking my chest and it hurts. Can you get off?”
It was painful. Really painful.
The way the twisted and dried tip touched me felt like someone was poking me with a needle.
“Oh. I-I’m sorry about that!”
At that, Lapiz’s brown skin turned pale for a moment before she dove back into Yeonhwa’s embrace.
Yeonhwa, who had been acting like an excited retriever just moments ago, now looked somewhat downcast like a tired retriever, gazing down at Lapiz.
Was Yeonhwa hurt by the horn too?
But she didn’t seem to be pierced or anything.
As I was about to ask what was wrong when the usually bright Yeonhwa changed so suddenly, she perked up again.
“That’s great! So, Blanca, which club are you joining?”
She quickly regained her energy and directed her question at me.
“I want to think about it too. Martial Arts, Magic, Weapon Techniques… I’m tempted by all of them. But I can’t join all three at once, can I?”
So I casually replied, pretending to be unsure.
Even though I had already decided, I was acting as if I was considering it because of Minho.
It seemed like he was sneaking glances my way while chatting with Seolhwa, which made me think he was iffy about me.
What if I said I was going to join the club he was going to…?
Honestly, it seemed likely he would end up joining a different club than the original.
That would be a disaster, so I had to create some smoke and mirrors.
“Hmm, it really seems like anything would suit you, Blanca.”
Yeonhwa, saying she would go apply now, took Lapiz in her arms and headed out of the Stadium.
Jinhyeon could only watch her leave.
Now that I think about it, I hadn’t said anything specifically to him.
Up until now, I had either talked to Yeonhwa or just included him in conversations.
It struck me that I hadn’t addressed him directly.
…Maybe it’s because I didn’t like him, but should I be a bit harsh at least once?
“You should think of something too. You can’t become a hero without half-hearted effort.”
If you’re going to slack off like that, then just quit being a hero and drop out.
…I couldn’t say that, so I softened my words a bit, but it was still what I wanted to say.
Everyone else is working their butts off, so don’t just lounge around acting all carefree.
Still, since he’s the protagonist, he should at least show some effort.
“Got it, Blanca. I’ll give it a shot.”
“You’ll ‘give it a shot’ isn’t enough. It should be ‘I’ll work hard,’ you know? Geez, okay, do as you like.”
What club he ends up joining isn’t even in the story.
He’s just wasting time in an appropriate place.
With that mindset, I was about to turn and follow him out of the Stadium when suddenly, an idea hit me.
If he hasn’t even decided where to go, couldn’t I just decide for him?—that kind of thought.
Even after thinking it, I was inwardly baffled at why I was even trying to help this guy.
But then again, it seemed like a pretty decent suggestion.
Of course, the best scenario would be for him to not join any club and waste his talents, but he probably wouldn’t do that.
So instead, my plan was to keep him close and under control.
That was the first reason. I didn’t want him meeting an unexpected opportunity somewhere, experiencing a sudden growth spurt.
The second reason was that it might help keep an eye on the original protagonist.
Since the club the protagonist is going to consists of a lot of people, the more members there are, the harder it is for the protagonist to milk all the benefits.
Just by me and him going, it would be a 100% increase over the original number of club members.
“Otherwise, there’s a club I have in mind. If there’s no place that’s particularly appealing, want to check it out with me?”
“You and… the same club?”
“Yeah. If you don’t like it, you can come back. It’s fine.”
Jinhyeon was still tilting his head, but he followed behind me, thinking it wouldn’t be bad to check it out at least once.
Although I disliked everything about him, there was one aspect that was quite convenient for my needs.
– – – –
This time, I had been nervously anticipating whether Blanca would follow me, but thankfully, it seemed that wasn’t the case.
She had already been bringing mischief and harming my heart health before the first week was over.
While she hadn’t caused any major chaos yet, just seeing her fight with Yamaguchi and get close to Lapiz made me uneasy.
I couldn’t even dare to predict how things would unfold after that.
I couldn’t understand her thought process anymore. I didn’t even know what her goal was now.
Seeing her trample over everything and then appologize instead was just…
What on earth should I treat her as? It left me puzzled.
Moreover, Lapiz was in real trouble.
If Blanca got close to her first, I honestly couldn’t think of how I would approach Lapiz.
However, since I had no justification to split them apart…
I was left with no choice but to watch in agony from the sidelines.
On top of that, with the introduction of Jinhyeon and Yeonhwa, students I had never heard of in the original, I couldn’t help but wonder if this world was really the one I had known.
Maybe it was like a slightly different parallel world only with my classmates.
Everything else was the same, but just with those three in this world.
“Ah. Sorry, sorry… As a senior, I shouldn’t have embarrassed myself in front of the juniors. Hehe. Please forgive me. Honestly, it’s my first time having club members…”
The girl in front of me scratched her head awkwardly and adjusted her glasses.
She looked smaller than a first-year student, but she was still a third-year at the Academy.
And she was one of the several hidden opportunities in this academy.
“Anyway, welcome to the Supernatural Ability Research Club! My name is Meilin, and I’m the president of this club! I hope you, as new members, achieve great results!”
“Did you just say… ‘experiment subject’?”
The girl next to me, Lucia, didn’t hold back and called out her senior’s mistake.
“N-No! How could I call our precious e—uh, I mean, our precious members ‘experiment subjects’?! Uh, um!”
“…Alright then. If that’s what you say.”
Lucia is holding out fine. Thank goodness.
At least, the heroines seem to be as I remember them, except for Blanca.
…Except for Blanca.
For now, it seems like she is treated as one of the heroines, so I guess I need to get close to her.
But I really didn’t feel like doing that.
It felt like I was about to stick my head into the open mouth of a tiger.
It wasn’t merely a matter of preference. My gut instinct was warning me it was dangerous.
But to understand who she is, what she wants, and her true identity, I would have to at least talk to her.
“Well, I can do some light experiments, but that’s not important! Today is the first day, so instead of that, let’s start with filling out profiles!”
I just thought that we should at least try that before the next event happened.
Meilin, with a beaming smile, handed us a paper with a ton of items to fill out.
“Do we really have to fill all this out?”
“Of course~! To analyze your abilities in detail, the profile is essential! So, go on. Don’t hide anything! Write it all down!”
“…Is this really going to help?”
With Lucia’s complaint, I tried to manage to fill in the packed items.
While doing so, I suddenly heard a familiar yet forbidden voice from outside.
‘So, it must be around here… Where was it again…?’
It was Blanca’s voice.