"Hey, Arte."
"Yes?"
"Want to go out somewhere for fun?"
...What is this about?
He should be asking Amelia, not me. Why me?
Caught off guard, a negative reaction slipped out.
"Uh, we have finals coming up soon."
"I know. But we’re comrades who went through a dangerous situation together, right? I thought it might be nice to go out somewhere. ...Amelia already agreed to come too."
"Ah, I see."
[A heart-pounding harem event! This is great!]
Oh, so that’s what this is. So it’s just the three of us—Amelia, him, and me?
Looks like he wanted to go on a date with her but was too shy, so he dragged me along as an excuse.
No wonder Amelia’s been sticking closer to Yu Siwoo than me lately. Seems like she’s solidifying her place as the heroine.
Ignoring the author’s absurd mutterings about a harem, I considered the story’s progression.
...Maybe taking a break wouldn’t be so bad.
Come to think of it, the protagonist had never really had a chance to relax before. A little rest might not be a bad idea.
[Amusement park! Aquarium! And, and...!]
The author started rambling to themselves, already making plans.
In the end, the author would probably pester me until I agreed. And refusing here wouldn’t make much difference anyway. There was no real reason to say no.
"Sure."
"...Huh?! Really?"
"If you’re going to be surprised when I accept your invitation, I might take that personally. Were you just joking?"
"Ah, no. I was just surprised..."
His reaction was so unexpected that I couldn’t help but tease him a little.
There was no way the protagonist would do something like this unless he genuinely meant it. Maybe it was out of goodwill toward me, or maybe I was just an afterthought because of Amelia. Either way, the fact that he invited me at all showed consideration.
...Wait, no. He didn’t actually mean it, right? Please tell me he did.
"Where are we going?"
"An amusement park. ...What do you think? This weekend."
"Ah, sounds fun. I’m in!"
I briefly wondered if superhumans like us could even enjoy an amusement park.
But I decided to set those concerns aside.
Well, he must have a reason for suggesting it, so let’s just go.
[Amusement park...! It’ll be so much fun. There’ll be so many exciting episodes!]
It seemed the author wasn’t looking forward to the amusement park itself, but rather the episodes that would unfold there.
An amusement park, huh. I hadn’t been to one since I was a kid. It might be fun to go after all this time.
"Then, send me the details via message!"
"Sure."
Yu Siwoo, who had seemed a little flustered, returned to his seat as if the matter was settled.
Then he exchanged a few words with Amelia before suddenly getting smacked on the back by her.
...?
"Ah, it’s nothing, Arte."
"Y-Yes..."
Amelia noticed my gaze and waved her hand dismissively, as if to say it was fine.
Nothing? That didn’t look like nothing.
She had hit him pretty hard. Why?
What reason would Amelia have to hit Yu Siwoo...?
"Ah, I get it now."
It seemed Amelia had already made plans with Yu Siwoo, and he had unnecessarily dragged me into it, which must have annoyed her.
Going out as friends was fine, but this was probably a missed opportunity for them to grow closer.
...Hmm, maybe I shouldn’t have said yes.
I should’ve just said no and watched from the shadows. A hint of regret crept in.
Before I knew it, I was gazing at Siwoo—now caught in a joint lock by Amelia—with a pitying look.
He really suffers from being so oblivious. But that’s the protagonist’s fate. Accept it.
"Ugh, seriously. I can’t even live with this."
"I already said I was sorry."
"Then why did you have to bring *me* into it?! Just the two of you go! The two of you!"
"···."
Amelia unleashed a flood of complaints at me.
Well, fine.
It *was* my fault. I’d accidentally dragged her into this because I was so nervous.
Originally, the plan had been for just Arte and me to go. But somehow, Amelia had gotten pulled in too.
But… but this isn’t exactly the time for *you* to be complaining.
I just couldn’t hold back the words.
"···Guess you have no conscience, Amelia."
"W-what?! What did I do?!"
"Nothing. If you don’t know, then it’s fine."
I said that, but deep down, Amelia seemed embarrassed.
Her face flushed red as she raised her voice for no reason.
Yeah, she *should* be embarrassed.
Who was the one who’d been running around the amusement park with wide, excited eyes before Arte even arrived? Who’d bought that weird heart-shaped headband and was practically bouncing with anticipation?
"T-that’s…! I-I’ve never been to a place like this before! It’s only natural!"
"Right. Of course."
"Ugh, this is so—"
"···Oh, did I keep you waiting?"
Just as I was finally getting the chance to tease Amelia and vent all my pent-up frustration—
The voice of the person we’d been waiting for reached us, and Amelia hastily turned her head toward it.
"No, no! You’re not late at all! Come—wow. Arte, you look amazing."
"···Do I? I’m not sure. A friend picked it out for me."
"You look *incredible*! ···Hey, what are you doing? Hurry up and compliment her!"
Poke, poke.
Out of Arte’s line of sight, Amelia jabbed me in the back and hissed.
Only then did I snap out of it and open my mouth. …But what was I supposed to say?
After a long hesitation, the words that came out were so half-hearted even *I* thought they lacked sincerity.
"···You look pretty, Arte. Almost unrecognizable."
The moment I finished, Amelia slammed her elbow into my back.
Yeah, yeah. I knew that wasn’t good enough.
It wasn’t much of a compliment. Fortunately, Arte didn’t seem to mind.
"Thank you. You two seem to be having fun already. What should we do first?"
"Hmm, how about that? It’s a ride made for superhumans—apparently, you need to wrap yourself in mana just to survive the speed!"
"···Whoa, that’s actually a ride?"
"I heard normal people sometimes try it and end up in accidents. …But we’re superhumans, so it’s fine! Let’s go!"
That was Arte’s casual wear. It caught me off guard.
She always wore a white hoodie over her school uniform, so I’d just assumed she’d be dressed the same today.
Dark blue jeans that reached her ankles, a black short-sleeve T-shirt. A glimpse of a leotard at the neckline.
Aside from the leotard underneath, it was a normal outfit. …But maybe it was because of her usual image.
She looked so bright, so… like any other girl her age.
Not the unreadable villain, Arachne Arte Isis.
Just a student, Arte Isis, out having fun at an amusement park with friends.
"What are you doing, Yu Siwoo! Aren’t you coming?!"
"...You just want to ride fast, don’t you?"
"Ugh... A-And so what if I do?! I want to ride, so hurry up!"
Sigh.
Amelia seemed to have forgotten her own purpose the second she said it.
She left me and Arte to entertain ourselves while she just casually dipped out?
Dipped out, my ass. She was the most hyped one here.
"I’m coming, I’m coming. Stop getting so worked up, Amelia."
"W-Who’s worked up?! I’m not!"
"Ahaha. We can take it slow. There’s plenty of time to enjoy it."
Yep. No mistake. This wasn’t the usual Arte.
There was something... different about her vibe.
"...This is less fun than I thought. Too slow, Yu Siwoo. Don’t you think?"
"T-Too slow...?"
"Well, if *I* ran at full speed, this is the kind of pace I’d hit..."
Yu Siwoo and I both froze in shock.
Full speed? And *this* was the result? Was she insane?
Even Yu Siwoo and I had trouble keeping our wits about us at the end there!
If the author hadn’t slapped a penalty on Amelia’s ability, she might’ve been the strongest in the world.
Just brushing past someone at that speed would’ve one-shotted most enemies.
I’d heard her dad, an active A-rank Hero, couldn’t catch her before. Now I *felt* how true that was.
How the hell was anyone supposed to catch someone like her?
"Hmm... What should we ride next..."
While Amelia pondered deeply and Yu Siwoo struggled to steady his spinning head, I adjusted my clothes.
Huh. Maybe it was because this was the first time I’d worn casual clothes in this body.
It felt... weird. I’d only ever worn school uniforms before.
"Ah! Next, let’s do that. It’s a haunted house. There’s a normal course and a superhuman course."
"Superhuman course?"
"Yeah. The pamphlet says it’s built on the site of a dungeon that had undead monsters hundreds of years ago. They preserved the dungeon."
"So it’s not a haunted house—it’s an actual haunted house..."
"The normal course isn’t, apparently? Well, we’re superhumans, so we’ll get the real ghosts!"
It was just a plain short-sleeve tee and jeans—clothes I’d worn often even as a guy.
Recommended by Laila and Spira.
The most gender-neutral, boring outfit possible.
So why did it feel so... off? Normally, I didn’t think twice about wearing a skirt.
But today, it was bugging me.
"Arte, you okay? You don’t like ghosts?"
"...Ah. No, it’s fine. Ghosts don’t exist. They’re just monsters."
"Aha. So you’re that type?"
Well, obviously.
Ghosts didn’t exist. This world was the author’s model garden, the author’s puppet show.
Ghosts were supposed to be what appeared after people died. There was no way they’d be here.
I smoothed down my outfit, no longer bothered by it, and glanced at Amelia.
"Hmm, but haunted houses are usually for couples. Isn’t it a little awkward for three people?"
"...Ah!"
Amelia jolted, as if she’d completely forgotten.
What the—she *forgot*?
She and Yu Siwoo were on a date! How could she forget something like that?
Given Amelia’s usual personality, I *could* see it happening... but still. This was ridiculous.
If she was the heroine, shouldn’t she be paying attention to the protagonist?