A week has passed since I was transmigrated into the body of my favorite Blue Archive character, Misono Mika.
On the first day, I was bedridden, suffering from the aftereffects of the gender-bender beam, until Mika's best friend, Nagisa, came to find me, which helped me get a grip.
On the second day, I became a good little student and followed Nagisa to Trinity, the top academy in Kivotos. But it turns out my position at this "academy"—which is so ridiculously huge it's basically its own country—is the President?! An absurd situation, to say the least.
I thought I was going to be a slave, saddled with endless responsibilities and worked to death, but my god. The benefits at this company are insane.
The moment I saw the number in my bank account, all my suffering suddenly felt trivial. As a result, for the past week, I've been diligently handling my assigned tasks, leading fulfilling days. It's technically a stipend for "maintaining dignity," but they're dropping a normal office worker's annual salary into my account every single month?! How am I supposed to resist that...? I have no choice but to gracefully accept my life as a slave.
And then came the fateful third day.
I had to experience the true meaning of despair as I worked through the mock exam papers Nagisa provided.
Language, surprisingly, I scored well on. It's probably accurate to say my brain automatically downloaded a Japanese language patch when I was transmigrated into this body.
As for math, I remembered most of it, except for one area, so I figured I could avoid failing with just a little polishing.
The problem was ballistics.
No, I mean, the other subjects are one thing, but didn't the difficulty for this one just jump exponentially? Of course, I Christmas-treed the whole section. I can understand why a subject like this exists in a world of gun-toting high school girls, but the level is just too high. How are the people who suck at math in this world supposed to survive?
Whether it was fortunate or not, the passing grade for this subject is apparently much lower than the others. Nagisa, horrified after seeing my answer sheet, offered to personally tutor me in this area. She tried to reassure me, saying that since my other math scores were good, I'd probably manage somehow, but why am I the one who lacks confidence?
Still, if I don't do it, I'm not the only one who's screwed, so I have no choice. If I fail this and my life-tech tree in Kivotos gets ruined, I swear I'll invade Arius myself and wreak havoc. But the problem is getting through the entire Arius student body in the first place, and as for my chances of taking on Beatrice one-on-one... well, are there any? In the end, failing is an outcome that must be avoided at all costs.
History, of course, I bombed spectacularly. But I was less worried about this one. It's a memorization-based subject, and there's a loophole I can use. As long as the goal is just to pass, not to get a high score, it's difficult to memorize the entire syllabus in a short time, but I believe it's more than possible to solidly memorize a portion of it. It's the worst way to study, but when the goal is to pass a single test, it's a different story. A loophole, or a wise method, depending on how you look at it.
Given that I have to take exams in multiple subjects, I think the most rational plan for me right now is to check the syllabus and be selective about where I focus. Nagisa, though deeply displeased with this mindset, agreed that it was the surest path to passing and pointed out the syllabus for the next exam. Once I get past this one test, I'll have a bit more time, so I plan to catch up as much as I can.
I'll have to pour all my free time into studying to avoid failing in the future. And on top of that, I have Tea Party duties every day, and it's essential to set aside time for combat training to prepare for real battles. To be honest, I didn't even live this diligently when I was studying for my college entrance exams.
The biggest ordeal was probably me, a non-religious person, having to study theology and attend Sunday Mass. I had no idea what not to do during Mass, so I had to look up the general procedure beforehand, but even then, I was so blank and dazed at first that a student from the Sisterhood came over to express her concern.
"Sister, you do not seem well. Perhaps it would be best for you to return home for today."
I'm perfectly fine... It was just my first time...
I can't even complain to anyone. Nagisa and Seia are busy people; if I whine to them about something like this, I'll just seem pathetic.
Honestly, I resent that Trinity is a mission school. After spending four days here, attending Mass didn't feel entirely meaningless, but a bigger reason was that I was so busy with so many things to do that even the not-so-long Mass time felt like a waste. But then again, for the Host of the Tea Party to not attend Sunday Mass would probably cause controversy, so I can't skip it. Being suddenly transmigrated into a body with such an important status makes me act with extra caution.
...It's more peaceful to just think of it as a time for meditation and finding inner peace.
Studying theology was a lost cause. These days, on my way to and from school, I spend my time listening to the audio Bible... ah, I think they call it the Scripture here. The audio Scripture. It's not like I'm done just by listening to the whole thing, so this subject seems the most hopeless.
I'm learning firsthand what it feels like to be so busy that you wish a day had 48 hours. If I had lived this diligently before transmigration, I wouldn't have had time to play games and something like this would never have happened.
And so, after a week of living as Misono Mika, unable to bear the mounting stress, I finally decided to have a cheat day. Skipping two hours of studying to go play is basically the same as a cheat day, right? Dieting and studying are fundamentally the same in that you have to endure not doing what you want to do.
"Wow, is that really true? Hifumi-chan, you're amazing at studying!"
"Ahaha... I-I'm definitely not that good... If anything, Misono-senpai... from the way you talk, you seem like you'd be good at studying..."
"Hmm? Thanks for thinking so highly of me~ but believe it or not, I'm on the verge of failing☆ I guess. Actually, I was supposed to be studying right now, but it was so hard I just came out to play for a bit! I'm the worst, right?"
And so, having abandoned my studies to play hooky, I made an interesting acquaintance in front of a dessert cafe.
Who else but the star of the "I love Hifumi" meme herself, Ajitani Hifumi.
The moment I saw Hifumi hesitating in front of the dessert cafe, wondering whether to go in or not, I couldn't resist approaching her. To be honest, seeing Hifumi, who is relatively gentle compared to the other students, made me feel a sense of relief.
"Besides, 'Misono-senpai' is a bit too distant, don't you think? I think it would be better if you just called me Mika-senpai, what do you think? Hm? Since you're so cute, Hifumi-chan, maybe I'll make a special exception and allow you to call me Mika-chan..."
"Ah, auuu... That's a bit too much for me... Ah, no...! Then, I'll call you Mika-senpai...?"
"Great! Yep, I like it! To meet a cute junior like you, Hifumi-chan, today must be my lucky day☆"
"Ahaha... I'm happy to meet someone like you too, Mika-senpai... But, what club are you in, Mika-senpai?"
Come to think of it, I wasn't in my usual attire. My usual clothes scream "I am of high status," so when I wear them, I get a lot of stares. That's why I deliberately came out in casual clothes.
Any aversion to wearing women's clothing? That was gone from the start. You'd need to have at least a little bit of your original male self left to even have such thoughts, wouldn't you? Still, I do want to try getting a masculine-style suit tailored and wear it sometime. When pretty people wear stuff like that, the "gap moe" is on another level.
Saori or Nagisa in a suit? Honestly, I can't resist that. Mika herself is pretty, but she has more of a cute vibe, so it probably wouldn't suit her as well as those two.
Anyway, since you can't tell anything from casual clothes, it's natural that Hifumi would have a hard time guessing which club I'm in. If I were in my usual outfit, she might not have been able to say for sure that I was in the Tea Party, but she could have at least guessed that I was likely in a club for the upper class.
"Mmm~ Lately, I've been wondering if I'm not the kind of talent suited for the Sisterhood."
Honestly, it's true. I diligently attend Sunday Mass. I listen to the audio Scripture on my way to and from school. I even study theology separately. At this point, aren't I the perfect talent for the Sisterhood? Mika in a nun's habit... This is it...
But even when I imagine it, I don't feel particularly horny. When I see Mika's body in the mirror while showering or after getting out, I feel like I should be turned on, but there's none of that. Is it because it's my body now? A truly lamentable state of affairs.
"Auuu... So you're saying you're not in the Sisterhood. Are you perhaps from the Remedial Knights, Mika-senpai...?"
Oh, do I give off that image? I didn't think I had a Remedial Knights vibe...
"The Remedial Knights, you say. In a way, we're fundamentally similar, but also a little different, I guess? Think again!"
"If it's not the Sisterhood or the Remedial Knights... Aaah...?!"
Seeing Hifumi immediately arrive at the truth, I can tell she's a smart kid. It's no wonder she's an honor student.
But for a kid like that to frequent the Black Market to buy Peroro merchandise, and to fail her exams because of a Peroro guerrilla event. I can only think that every student in Kivotos possesses a fragment of madness, big or small.
"It's fine, it's fine~ Right now, we're just a senior and a junior who met outside of school! Nothing more, nothing less☆"
It's a relief she didn't figure out I'm one of the heads of the Tea Party. If that had been revealed at our first meeting, it might have been overwhelmingly burdensome for Hifumi, who calls herself an ordinary student.
"Auuu... But, this is my first time talking to someone from the Tea Party... Did I perhaps commit a grave rudeness..."
"Ahaha! No way! That's really an unnecessary worry, Hifumi-chan. Right now, we're just two people chatting while eating parfaits, right? Besides, I'm not a big fan of being all formal in a place like this! So relax and feel free to talk about whatever you want☆ As an icebreaker!"
Honestly, Hifumi may talk like that, but her social skills are on another level, so if I just lay the groundwork like this, she'll have a good time with me. She's more than enough of a conversation partner to spend a brief escape with.
"Th-then... do you happen to like Peroro-sama?!"
...Oh boy.
I didn't think she'd bring up Peroro right off the bat. Hifumi, how could you just contradict my thoughts so directly?
Still, it's a relief that the topic of conversation is within my expectations. I've, of course, prepared a response template for just such a tricky question.
"Peroro-sama, you mean Peroro from Momo Friends, right? Yeah, if I had to say, I don't dislike him. But it's also hard to say I really like him, I guess? Personally, I like Wavecat from Momo Friends because he's cute☆"
She didn't expect this, did she? This is the conversational skill to cut off the flow before Hifumi's praise for Peroro can begin. This is the art of conversation of someone who was an adult until just recently——
"It's a little sad that you don't know the coolness of Peroro-sama, but Wavecat is also quite lovely...! I think the most charming thing about him is that he's Peroro-sama's best friend!"
"Whoa—"
——the art of... my ass. You win, Hifumi.
Wavecat is Peroro's best friend...? I've never heard of that setting before. This is my loss for underestimating true madness.
"Th-then, let's go shopping together next time you have free time, Mika-senpai! I'm sure it'll be fun... Ah."
...Be honest, Hifumi. You want to go shopping to buy Momo Friends merchandise, don't you? I can see right through you. Is it that great to have someone to share your hobby of collecting merch with?
"Auuu... I'm sorry, did I get too excited...?"
Hmm, but the cuteness that comes from this subtle dorky charm is on another level. Is this what they call an "introvert's dream of their cool-kid self"? An introverted-looking popular kid? To use a metaphor, is it like a forced creation made by scientists genetically engineering an animal that can't exist?
"No, no, what's there to be sorry about? Seeing you that excited makes me happy too, so it's not a bad feeling at all!"
Honestly, the thing I'm most curious about is how she and Nagisa become friends. What is the catalyst that creates a connection between them?
Come to think of it, what if, because I befriended Hifumi first, the butterfly effect kicks in and the event that makes them friends disappears... Should I step in and arrange a situation for them to become friends? And even if I do, what should I do if their relationship becomes different from one that formed naturally?
My worries deepened, but listening to Hifumi chatter away, I couldn't help but have a fatherly smile on my face. It was the perfect way to relax after a tough week.
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"Where! On earth! Have you been? Without a word!"
I was just out for two hours, chatting with a new friend...
When I said that, Nagisa's face contorted. What? Did I do something wrong?