Chương 5: Ordinary Daily Life

Do you remember I said I don't want anything to do with the girl that looks like MEI? Well… I guess the world hates me.

"Lloyd-kun, you will be partnering up with Raiden-san for this project. She is one of the best students in the class, so I am sure she will be able to explain everything you need," the teacher said as she partnered two students in a group.

And now, I am sitting side by side with another version of MEI. My face shows dissatisfaction with the situation, making the girl look disturbed. Don't get me wrong, I don't hate the girl. But… I can't help but remember Dr. MEI whenever I see her face. And I don't like that.

"Hello, it is nice meeting you again," she greeted me, not minding the look on my face.

Yeah, what a coincidence. Looking at the girl beside me, I wondered. If she is the counterpart of MEI in this world, there will be another version of Himeko in this world, too, right? No, no, no. Don't make your hopes up, Lloyd. Even if there is another version of her, she is not the person you had grown up with.

"It is… nice to meet you again," I nodded. "As you already know, my name is Lloyd Mervyn. You can just call me Lloyd like before," I replied as I kept writing down the note the teacher was giving.

And... There is an awkward silence between us. The teacher is writing on the blackboard, and other students are taking notes.

"Did I do something to make you hate me?" the girl suddenly asked.

"Hahh…" I sighed and dragged my hand down my face. I guess I wasn't being fair to this… Mei.

"No, it was not your fault," I whispered, not to let the teacher know that we were talking.

Do I hate MEI? Yes, a little. Do I admire her? Yes, a lot. We won't survive that far in my previous life without her help. I hate her because of the stunt she pulled, but I can also understand why she did that. But I can't help but resent her a little for that.

Moreover, I still remember what I told myself before reincarnating into this world. 'Be nice to Mei,' I think back to when I repeatedly reminded myself. Okay, Lloyd, don't fuck this up.

"You… just reminded me of my late friend. I'm sorry if I somehow offended you," I apologized.

The girl from my side went quiet for a while. "No… no, I should be the one apologizing, and it was insensitive of me," she also apologized back to me.

"No, no, you couldn't have known, and it was my fault for treating you like that," I apologized back.

Looking at each other, the two of us burst out laughing, alarming the teacher. "Lloyd-san and Raiden-san, I would be glad if the two of you listen to what I'm teaching," he warned us, who were sitting at the back.

"We're sorry!" We replied back at the same time. Not gonna lie. This Mei is more fun to interact with than the bookworm one from my previous life. With that said, the two of us listened to the teacher's teaching at the front while talking about something more comfortable. Just like that, the class ended.

"I… am going back to my seat. And I will send you my portion of the assignment when I am done with it," I said, earning a nod from Mei.

"Do you even have my contact number?" she asked, tilting her head.

"Hmm…? No, I don't," I laughed a little. Now that she reminded me, I don't even have Sakuya and Kyuushou's phone numbers. For some reason, Yae's number is already on my phone.

"Here, take it," she gave me her number after writing it on the paper. Is it okay for her to casually give out her phone number like that?

"Oh, thank you," I nodded. With that, I finally walked away from the girl.

I will not lie. Even though it is fun to speak with Raiden Mei, my heart hurts whenever I look at the girl. She made me remember all about the sufferings I had to go through in my previous life as a MANTIS. Am I a coward? Yes, I am, and I am afraid to suffer like that again.

It was lunchtime, and I walked to the roof today as well. It is the only place I can be at peace while thinking about everything I need to go through. I was homeschooled from where I came and was taught academics by Father while how to fight by my two Mothers. So, school roofs are one of the things I miss in my everyday life. After all, this was also the place where we left our innocent lives.

KEVIN, SU, and I were on the rooftop, skipping the class because it was boring. It was when the disaster struck Nagazora and turned almost all the people in the school to turn into zombies. We run away, wishing for some kind of hero to save us.

But… hero, eh? I wonder… Did Kosma become the hero he wanted? Even though he abandoned that wish, I really hope he became one. Because I failed to become the hero I aspired to be.

If there are any records left about me, I am sure it will tell the descendants what kind of evil I had become. I just… I just wanted to become the hero for others since no hero came and saved us when we wished for one.

I sighed and continued to eat my lunch. I should probably stop thinking as making me lose my appetite.

The day went on just like yesterday. For me, this ordinary daily life like this is something I tend to treasure after going through the hellish experience in my previous life.

The final bell rang, and it was time for us to go back home. "Lloyd-san," I heard someone else calling me from behind, so I turned around to meet the one who called me.

I saw a dark-haired girl; I believe she is a "Class president, right? Do you need anything?" I asked.

"I would like to ask if you are joining any club activities," she asked.

"Is it necessary to join a club?" I raised my eyebrow. I need to go to my part-time job every weekday.

"Not really. But joining one will help you with your academic record," the girl explained.

Hmm… what to do. "I… won't be joining one, sorry," I said. I need to work part-time jobs to make sure I can pay for bills.

"I see… I will be noting that down. But don't be shy to inform me once you change your mind," the girl nodded and noted down in her notebook.

After saying goodbye to the class president, I went to my part-time job. There isn't anyone who actually dared to sexually harass the employees, so I am just standing there and serving the ladies who came to the cafe, which is strange. I never thought that girls would be coming to the maid cafe. But, who am I to judge?

By the end of my shift, I got tons of phone numbers from the ladies who visited the cafe. Am I… really that popular? Well… I guess I didn't notice that because I was always together with KEVIN in my previous life.

As I walked back to my home, I noticed that I had forgotten to buy pudding for Kyuushou. So, I turned around to look for the convenience store. Most of the stores are open 24 hours, so it was not hard to find the store.

"Welcome!"

I looked for the pudding and found varieties of them, and I have absolutely no idea what to buy for Kyuushou. So, I chose the most expensive one for her.

"It will be 1000 Homu Coins, sir," the cashier replied after scanning the pudding.

I sighed and paid for it. But before that, I saw some kittens outside the store, and I asked, "Are those kittens yours?"

"No, sir. They are from the alleyway from the side of the store," he replied. Hmm…

"One moment, please," I said and quickly picked a bottle of milk from the aisle.

"I will take this too," I put the bottle in front of the cashier, and he smiles.

"Will you be taking a bowl, sir? It will be on me," he said.

"Hmm?" I raised my eyebrow.

"The thing is, although I want to feed them, the manager forbids me to do so," the cashier rubbed his neck.

"I see. I will take it then," I nodded.

"Thank you for your purchase!"

I grabbed the bowl and heated milk from the store, and walked toward the kittens. Oh my god! These little things are so cute! They kept meowing at me when they got the scent of the milk. I think there are about 5 of them.

"Here you go, little guys. Drink up," I sit down near them and watch over them.

While I was feeding the kittens, I heard the faint sounds of footsteps coming this way. When I turned around, I saw the two girls coming this way.

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3rd POV

In front of the T.V, a petite girl holds a game controller. She has light gray colored drill-shaped twin-tail hair. Her name is Bronya Zaychik.

"Today, subject Savior said she will be introducing her friend to the Bronya," the girl muttered emotionlessly. Savior was the online friend she gained last month, and the gaming skill of that person is as good as hers.

While she was waiting, she heard a furious yell from the outside.

"Matushka is angry," the girl muttered. "I want to know why," she thought. But she was sure that her Matushka won't tell her anything about the subject. So, she did the best possible thing... She bugged Matushka's office.

Bronya put her controller on the chair softly and walked toward her bed to grab the Homu-shaped earphones.

"What do you mean the leader of Immortal Blades is in Nagazora!" She heard her Matushka clearly.

"You know what? Stop whatever you and the team are doing until they return to Schicksal HQ! It will be a problem if our little experiment was found out by her," she could hear tiredness in her Matushka's voice. After a while, she listened to the sound of the phone being hung up.

"Hahh… why now? It looks like I need to step up my plan," Bronya heard Matushka muttering on the other side.

"Hello? Yes, this is Cocolia. I would like to file a lawsuit. Yes, it is about embezzling the funds. Yes," she then heard Matushka call another call, but she had enough. She puts the earphones back in place and waits for the friend of her party member to come.

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Lloyd's POV

One of the girls has strawberry blonde hair, and the other has honey blonde hair. The first one has long hair, reaching her hips, and as for the second one, her hair only reaches the back of her neck.

"Look, Rita! Those kittens look very cute!" the long-haired one exclaimed to the one named Rita. She is short… Her height is only around Lloyd's chest and a little shorter than the girl beside her.

The two of them walk toward me, but it looks like they don't notice me, but their eyes are on the kittens.

"They sure are," I replied to the long-haired girl's statement.

Only then did the two of them notice me. But what shocked me was what came out of the long-haired girl's mouth.

"Overseer Otto?"

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Author's Note;

Here is another chapter! Our MC is really different from Urien, eh? It might be because he has the memories of the regular dude, unlike Urien from the start of the Honkai arc.

Another thing is that I didn't change the latter half of the chapter because it is already good to go.

You can check what Lloyd looks like in the paragraph comment.