Can a hierarchy exist even among friends?

I pose a question with a predetermined answer. In truth, both you and I already know it. Even among equal friends, there are those you simply cannot treat carelessly. There are friends who demand a gentler touch than the rest. You know you shouldn’t, yet there are those for whom you inevitably reserve special treatment.

For me, that was Lena. 

She was even my only friend.

That was why it took quite some time after we parted ways for me to reflect on our relationship. Were we truly friends? I twist these long-held feelings into a faint, wistful question.

Lena.

What exactly was I to you?

Unlike the previous question, this one has no predetermined answer.

Because no matter how hard I think, even I don’t know what you meant to me.

“Haa…”

The journey back from the Academy is always arduous and exhausting. That much hasn’t changed at all from before the apocalypse. If I used to struggle from chewing over the day’s shame and humiliation, now I toil to prop up my collapsing moral compass.

And on days like today, returning with a haul of supplies, I have to stay on high alert for potential ambushes. In the early days, those ignorant fools who charged at me blindly were quite a headache.

But lately, such situations have become rare, so I don’t walk around with my eyes wide open like a startled rabbit anymore. Evaluating it coldly, I suppose I’ve just grown numb in various ways.

Moreover, having listened to all sorts of talk today, I’m even more so.

“Three days from now.”

I chewed over Heiter’s words once more. I hadn’t given him a clear answer, but he seemed to expect me to show up. Perhaps he noticed my expression change when he mentioned Lena. 

Thus, I was given three days. An overflowing amount of time to agonize over it. Yet my head was already starting to throb. Should I go? Should I stay? The only two options flicker before my eyes.

Strictly speaking, however, it wasn’t even an issue worth agonizing over. Should I save a friend on the verge of being caught and gang-raped by angry men, or should I leave her to her fate? Framed like that, the answer seemed all too clear.

Of course…

“Of course I should go save her.”

The resolution I spat out sounded so hollow even to my own ears. Why was that? Even as I tried to stoke my anger by imagining Lena being torn to pieces, my chest remained freezing cold.

And above all, every time I thought about going to save her, the profile of Lena as she turned away from me kept flashing through my mind.

Lena had already turned her back on me once. Actually, not just once. She had always ignored me. Save for that fleeting moment when I went to wake her up every morning, she treated me as if I didn’t exist and never acted like a friend.

Then what exactly would I gain from saving Lena? The same old hug and smile? Gratitude amounting to nothing more than the words ‘I love you’? There was a time when those words and actions made my heart flutter. But now, I don’t particularly miss that warmth.

I know all too well that I couldn’t get anything more than that. Lena had never once offered anything beyond an awkward embrace. 

Even if I saved her life, I doubted her values would change.

“…Ah.”

Coming to my senses, the door to my dormitory came into view. The sunlight had faded long ago, leaving a chilling evening sunset to cast its gloom over everything. I must have lost track of time while walking and thinking about Lena.

Thinking about it, it feels a bit unfair. I doubt even a single percent of me remains in your head. What are you thinking about right now? Are you regretting that you should have followed me out of the classroom that day?

Before Heiter pries your moist thighs apart to explore your vulva, will you scream my name in one final struggle?

“Haa…”

Not knowing what I want is so suffocating. I wish I had been driven mad by lust like the others and spent the time before the apocalypse meaningfully. But I don’t want anything. Before the apocalypse or now, I just live without any desires.

At this point, I even question why I’m still alive. In an era where everyone harbors at least some twisted desire, what am I doing?

…

No matter how I think about it, wishing for the world to end was not something to be taken lightly.

For now, I should head inside and sort out my thoughts. Reaching for the doorknob with that in mind, my front door, steeped in tedium, carried the fragrant scent of forget-me-nots as always.

“…”

…

A fragrant scent…?

My hand stopped before the doorknob. A soft fragrance still lingered at the tip of my nose. It was the same perfume scent Lena used to wear after stepping out of the shower.

And it was far too luxurious a scent for a rotting palm to give off.

Casting a casual glance to the side, I spotted a wrist nailed to the wall. It was half-rotted as always, yet strangely, not a single fly was in sight. If I took a whiff, it was certain to carry the scent of forget-me-nots as well.

Fragrance doesn’t linger as long as a stench. Someone was definitely nearby.

The moment that thought crossed my mind, I was already gripping my sword.

“Damn it…”

I drew my blade and pressed my back against the wall. Seeing as the door was still locked, it was unlikely this mysterious intruder had breached the interior. Which meant they were still lurking nearby. At the very least, there were no suspicious shadows within my line of sight.

But that was only within my field of vision. This godforsaken dormitory was built near the forest, leaving far too many places to hide. For instance, behind that boulder. Between the ostentatious street trees. Inside the pond where fish carcasses dried. Just the spots I could think of easily exceeded double digits.

What was certain was that this bastard was far sharper than the ones who came before. Instead of charging right in, they were observing their target’s movements. That fact alone was enough to drive me to neurosis.

And more than anything, night was about to fall. I, like an absolute idiot, have terrible night vision.

Just thinking about it made my eyes start to dim.

Should I head inside and think for now? If I couldn’t pinpoint their location, drawing them into my line of sight was another option. The intruder’s goal was undoubtedly the supplies inside, so they’d crawl out if I opened the door. Besides, if there were multiple enemies, fighting in a narrow space was better than out in the open.

For now, I had to open the door.

“This is insane…”

I quickly inserted the key, yet doubted my own judgment. I couldn’t muster any confidence that this was the right move. But the doorknob had already clicked and turned. Now all I had to do was push.

Until then, there was no trace of the intruder. No matter how much I scanned the areas I had checked earlier, there was no suspicious movement. The boulder. The trees. The well. At least anywhere a human foot could reach, there was nothing…

…

Just then, a passing remark Heiter had dropped suddenly came to mind. After his nonsense about needing more condoms, he had definitely said this: that suspicious flying creatures were roaming around the Academy.

Right. Flying creatures.

“Flying creatures…?”

In that instant, my gaze was sucked up to the massive tree directly in front of me. A pale crescent moon had somehow perched atop the towering tree.

And from up there, I could finally make out the silhouette of the intruder. 

It was a pitch-black silhouette, but deep blue eyes shone clearly from within. They gazed down at me quietly before finally locking eyes with mine. My vision had already grown too dark to see clearly, but it seemed they had spotted me long ago.

After staring intently at my face, the figure shifted slightly before throwing themselves down from the tree.

And in that moment, I was already charging at them with my blade raised.

In a flash, my breathing exploded as the cold air scraped my cheeks. My form, honed over years of practice, was flawless, and hesitation had been sheathed long ago. Even then, they were still falling from the tree.

I didn’t know the intruder’s identity, but their stance was bound to falter the moment they landed, which would be my optimal opening. Even if I couldn’t slash them, it would certainly make it easier to gain the upper hand afterward. I had not a single doubt about this judgment.

“…!”

And just as expected, they stumbled upon landing and braced their hands against the ground. I didn’t miss the beat, sprinting forward and raising my sword high. But they made no move to block or evade.

They merely slowly shook their head, which was tightly wrapped in a hat and mask.

“Huh?”

“…!!!”

My hand stopped involuntarily in that moment. Seeing that, the figure shook their head even faster. That sight reminded me of a certain girl I had seen in a classroom long ago.

“Don’t tell me…”

Dust billowed from the tips of my feet as I came to a complete halt. Holding my sword raised, I uttered that girl’s name.

“Saya?”

“…”

At that, the figure slowly nodded this time. Even that was just like back then. However, it didn’t end there this time.

“Hello. Lope.”

“Ah…”

When I heard Saya’s voice, my mouth hung open blankly. But that wasn’t because she wasn’t mute. That was surprising enough, but what was even more wondrous was the voice itself. It was a voice that didn’t belong in this rotten world, much like the scent of forget-me-nots that had permeated the front door.

To put it simply, it was more beautiful than any girl’s voice I had ever heard. So much so that my name, which I had just heard, bloomed around my ears like falling petals.

While I stood in shock, Saya brought her hands to her face. And she began to unravel the scraps of cloth that had concealed her, one strand at a time. 

“…”

I watched the scene as if bewitched. I felt as though it was the first time in my life I had been so spellbound. As the last remaining mask dropped to the floor with a soft pat, Saya looked at me without wavering.

Only then could I comprehend everything. Why she had hidden her face until now. Why she had kept to herself instead of mingling with the others. How she could fall from such a high tree as lightly as a dandelion seed.

I could tell just by looking at the two pointed ears revealed between the strands of Saya’s hair. 

“Saya…”

“Yes.”

As I called her name, that beautiful voice flowed out once more. There was only one race in this world that bore such features.

“It’s been a while.”

“…”

She was an elf.