"...Wow."
Dazzling lights flickered, blurring my vision.
A scene that made me realize once again that this world was built on magic and superhuman powers unfolded before my eyes.
"Why are you staring like it’s so amazing? You’ve never been to a place like this before?"
Ignoring Amelia’s question, I blankly took in the sight of the place I had just entered.
"Arte?"
Strange objects floating in the air as if defying the laws of physics.
Colorful accessories radiating hues that seemed otherworldly.
It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to call this a magical space.
"These things...?"
"They’re made with the Abilities of superhumans. Never seen them before?"
"With Abilities?"
It was a sight you’d only expect to see in movies or anime.
I looked around for some kind of mechanical device, but there was no trace of anything like that.
"Yeah. Retired superhumans from the front lines made them."
"...Superhumans."
"What, you acting like you didn’t know? Only superhumans can use mana, so of course it’s them."
Amelia wasn’t wrong.
No one but a superhuman could create something like this.
Even knowing that, I couldn’t bring myself to believe it.
"..."
Maybe I just didn’t want to.
...Right, superhumans weren’t just people who fought.
There had to be superhumans who made things like this too.
Killing, fighting.
It wasn’t like every superhuman did those things.
"I just... think it’s amazing."
But the reason I had been ignoring that fact was simple.
Because even a single trivial truth like that—
The thought that superhumans might live ordinary lives—made this world feel more real.
That’s why I had turned away from it.
But lately, it had become harder to ignore these little things one by one.
Was it because the Author had disappeared? Because I had started to feel warmth from Yu Siwoo?
Was this world really just a puppet show?
Or was it actually another world entirely?
Those thoughts had begun to creep in.
"...Well, fine. Seems like it’s your first time here. Then that’s even better. You’ll find it really amazing. It’s okay to get your hopes up."
I didn’t get why Amelia was so confident. It wasn’t like she’d made any of this.
If this had been me from the entrance ceremony, I would’ve just scoffed and brushed it off.
But now, even Amelia’s behavior seemed like a normal reaction for someone her age. It felt strange.
Like she was just an ordinary student.
Not a puppet, but a real person.
"What are you two doing over there?! Hurry up and come here!"
"Ah. We’ll be right there! ...Let’s go, Arte."
"Yes."
I don’t know.
As always, I tried to stop myself from thinking about it, but it wasn’t working.
Dorothy’s urgent expression and gestures as she beckoned us over.
Amelia glancing back every so often to make sure I was following.
Nothing had changed. Dorothy was the same, Amelia was the same as always.
So the only reason I was feeling differently about them must be because *I* had changed.
"What were you talking about?"
"Nothing much. He said it’s his first time here, so he’s amazed."
"...Really?"
"Yes. This is my first time here."
In novels, those with Abilities were always fighting.
Against society, against monsters, sometimes even against each other.
So perhaps I had subconsciously assumed that superhumans were nothing more than heroes and villains.
Like puppets in a crafted world, always fighting and nothing else.
And in reality, every superhuman I had seen so far had been exactly that.
Fighting villains, fighting heroes, fighting monsters.
A spectacle I had never witnessed in the world I came from—truly a story unique to this world.
And because of that. Because I had seen it with my own eyes.
I couldn’t shake the feeling that this world was nothing more than a meticulously constructed one.
"Still, it doesn’t seem so bad. It’s beautiful."
"That’s good to hear."
"…Yeah."
But if I saw a scene like this—
Now that I had seen superhumans who didn’t just harm others—
Could I still believe this world was nothing more than a well-made story?
I looked at the scene before me once more.
A sight still far removed from the world I had lived in, radiating a magical beauty.
And there, people were happily chatting and laughing over things they had never seen before.
"What are you doing over there?"
"Uh, that, well…"
"You should hand over that bracelet in your hand soon. It’ll be the middle of the night before you know it. …You’re not planning to deliver it to her house, are you?"
"No, I’ll give it to her."
Yu Siwoo fidgeted with the bracelet in his hand at Dorothy’s words.
Right, I should give it to her soon.
I should… but…
"It’s just hard to find the right timing when Arte looks so happy."
"…Ah. That’s true. I didn’t expect her to be this excited."
If I had known she’d be this happy, maybe I should’ve come to visit sooner.
Dorothy muttered that with a smile plastered across her face.
Following her gaze, I saw Amelia and Arte doing something together.
Their expressions… as usual, they were smiling.
Arte always wore a suspicious smile.
A forced, unnatural grin.
It was unsettling, the way she smiled even when she wasn’t happy, making her seem all the more dubious.
Even now, as she played with Amelia, Arte had the same smiling expression.
But if there was one difference from before, it was that her smile seemed to carry a hint of sincerity.
Was she starting to accept people other than me, even if just a little?
Seeing even the slightest growth in Arte made me feel good.
"Still, it’s strange. Don’t people usually visit places like this at least once?"
"…Well. We all have our reasons."
"I suppose so."
There was one more thing I realized while living with Arte.
She lacked common sense.
To an almost bizarre degree.
She was good at cooking, laundry, cleaning—there wasn’t much she couldn’t do.
But every time we watched the news, I was reminded of how little she knew about the world.
Whenever social issues were discussed, it was clear she didn’t understand.
Once, I asked for her opinion on a news story, wondering if she might actually grasp it.
What did she think about it?
At the time, Arte just laughed it off and said, *I’m not interested in things like that, so I don’t know much about them.*
…Even though it was about a former villain who had turned over a new leaf and surrendered—a case so famous that even Arachne would’ve known about it.
Whenever we went out, she’d stare at various products with wide-eyed curiosity, her gaze darting everywhere.
She was good at cooking, yet sometimes she’d serve dishes I’d never seen before, only to look flustered when I said it was my first time trying them.
And when I cooked, she’d stare in wonder, saying it was a dish she’d never seen before.
It felt like watching a tourist on an overseas trip.
Like watching a tourist who knew nothing about the local culture.
"…Are you going?"
"Yeah. I have to."
"Good luck. …You know you can’t just ask her to marry you, right?"
"What the hell are you even—"
"Hehe. Just kidding."
If the situation really wasn’t all that different from what I was feeling…
If Arte was someone from a place so distant that even she found it strange here…
Then it must have been unbearably lonely.
No family, no friends, no acquaintances.
What would it feel like to live in a place where there wasn’t even a single thing to remind you of your past?
I couldn’t even imagine it.
Not when I had friends, family, and the internet, where memories would come flooding back every time I saw something familiar.
"…Arte must be lonely."
Her stealing my clothes—
That didn’t bother me.
Because I’d done bad things too.
I’d done things to Arte that I couldn’t even talk about.
…Actually, quite a lot.
"She must’ve done it because she was lonely."
How lonely would it be to live in a world where you couldn’t see others as people, where you could only open your heart to one person?
Yu Siwoo couldn’t even begin to fathom it.
It was probably a loneliness beyond imagination.
"Hey, Arte."
"…Yes? Uh, weren’t you with Dorothy? Where is she…?"
"…"
Did she realize what I was trying to do by talking to her?
Amelia glanced at Arte before slipping away from her seat.
She really was quick on the uptake.
Just like the woman who proudly called herself the fastest in the world.
"…Well, it’s just…"
To be honest, I knew this looked like a confession.
If the other two hadn’t come with us, anyone would’ve thought we were a couple on a date, with me about to confess my feelings.
…I couldn’t deny there was a part of me that hoped for that.
I didn’t know when it started, but Arte had been on my mind a lot.
I didn’t want her to get hurt.
I didn’t want her to do anything dangerous.
I didn’t want her to go down the wrong path.
When did this start? How did it come to this?
Our first impression had been terrible—she’d been downright hostile.
I remembered the nights I’d cried in fear because Arte had seemed so suspicious.
If I’d told my past self that I’d end up feeling this way about her, I would’ve been told to stop talking nonsense.
Falling for someone like that? They’d have shouted at me for being insane.
Just imagining it made me smile without realizing.
But none of that mattered now.
I’d made up my mind to make Arte so happy that she wouldn’t have room to think about anything but me and my friends.
So this was a confession, but not a confession.
A vow I’d made to myself countless times—
To help Arte.
This was me confessing that vow to her.
But not my feelings. Not yet.
"There’s something I need to tell you."