Chapter 47

“Th-that’s not it.”

“I appreciate the thought, but no thanks. I’m not you.”

Majia bit his lip, looking as though he might burst into tears. If he were the type to simply get angry and throw a punch, things would have been easier. If he had been that kind of person, he probably would have hacked the personnel management system from the start and made her life miserable.

I may be physically weaker, but office workers have their own ways of fighting back. Honestly, that would be easier.

Erabelle swallowed a sigh.

Among aliens, there were always a few who were strangely indifferent to dominance—the Count, Sanche, Camillia, Majia himself.

Much like those rare Earthlings who seemed oddly indifferent to hunger.

Escaping this world would have been far easier if people like them simply didn’t exist.

“I’ve never thought of you that way. Honestly, I don’t even want to.”

“......”

Instead of clenching his fists, Majia clasped his hands tightly together.

“So just stop, all right?”

Majia lowered his gaze. Tears glimmered in his eyes, threatening to spill at the slightest provocation.

At times like this, alcohol was always the answer.

“Want a beer? I’ve got several brands.”

“...Let me see.”

He’s still picky, even now.

“Twelve CP each.”

Majia finally exploded.

“Ugh! Lieutenant!!”

“What? Free stuff makes your hair fall out. It’s built into our genes.”

“Who tries to sell someone beer while rejecting them?! Do you seriously have to do this?!”

“I don’t want to either, but giving things away for free is inconvenient.”

“Damn it! Why? Seriously, why do you dislike me so much? Why can’t you just try dating me? Even as a test?”

For someone so timid, he really doesn’t know when to quit.

“You don’t even have a man anyway...”

Why are we going in circles again?

“I have plenty of men.”

Well, not exactly.

But there were at least a dozen she was crazy about.

Erabelle scratched the side of her ear.

For a moment, she considered telling him the truth: that her life was an absolute disaster, that anyone who got tangled up with her would probably have their own life ruined along with it, and—most importantly—that even when the two of them were alone together at night, she felt absolutely nothing.

It probably wasn’t that serious, but she had no desire to crush his pride badly enough to make him actually throw a punch.

Her physical condition was already terrible. She couldn’t afford to lose time recovering from injuries.

“You haven’t tried compatibility matching yet, have you?”

Majia blinked at the sudden question.

“Huh?”

“You should.”

“...I don’t need something like that.”

You’ll change your mind once you actually try it.

“Do you think compatible matches are just randomly good?”

Physical compatibility alone was impressive enough.

She knew that from experience.

“The only person I like is you, Lieutenant. I don’t need anyone else.”

“What do you mean, you don’t need anyone else? Isn’t surfing your hobby?”

“...Huh?”

Majia flinched, jolted out of his sentimental mood.

“Amber eyes, sandy-brown hair... and wasn’t he about six feet tall? Shouldn’t you redo your physical evaluation? That sounds completely different from what I heard.”

“Th-that...”

“I’d never heard you use that kind of voice before. You sounded like you were on a blind date. Maybe you’re into men? That’s a pretty important thing to know about yourself.”

“Th-that’s...”

“Yeah, you should seriously think about it. Oh, want to hear it? I have a habit of recording calls.”

“O-oh, look at the time! I should get going.”

“Wait. Let me find the file—”

“I’ll be leaving now.”

“Hold on, I said—ugh... uwaaagh—”

Mid-sentence, Erabelle suddenly lunged for the trash can and doubled over.

Startled, Majia rushed over and frantically patted her back, but Erabelle shoved him away.

“...Motion sickness.”

The side effects of the fusion stabilizer were endless.

Fountain. Gastric missile launcher.

She certainly lived up to all those nicknames.

“My stomach’s been queasy since earlier.”

Erabelle spoke curtly, rinsed her mouth with bottled water, spat into the trash can, and swallowed a handful of pills.

“W-what are you taking now?”

“Energy boosters.”

“Lieutenant, please stop living like this!”

“What about me?”

Like I want to live like this.

Erabelle grumbled as she tossed a few vitamins and digestive pills into her mouth.

“Ugh, stop taking things already!”

“Shut up! Stop nagging me and go to bed! Before I actually play that recording!”

Majia finally buried his face in his hands and stormed out.

She should probably buy him a surfboard later as a peace offering.

Erabelle scoffed and dropped into the chair at her desk.

Whatever happened tomorrow, she still had work to finish.

If only she weren’t the squad leader, she wouldn’t be buried under this much paperwork...

...That bastard.

Erabelle clasped her hands together and prayed with all her heart.

Please, let him lose just one-third of his hair. Not all of it. Just the crown. One-third... I’m begging you.

***

After working straight through until dawn, Erabelle was consumed by a burning hatred for her superior.

It was nearly on par with what she felt toward the Dogs.

Stress had a way of spilling over onto the people closest to you.

So when Majia entered the diner looking utterly miserable, she greeted him with suspicious cheerfulness.

“Oh, look who it is—Surf Boy. You’re early.”

“Please stop teasing me...”

Erabelle had arrived a little before checkout and started eating at a diner near the hotel.

Majia joined her later after receiving her message, his face still gloomy.

“I actually found the file last night.”

“Ugh...”

Majia covered his ears.

Erabelle took a slow bite of her burger, savoring his suffering.

This was why people needed to be careful about leaving behind evidence of their embarrassing past.

“I still don’t know why I said that...”

Majia looked genuinely dazed, probably reliving the moment in his head.

“I must’ve lost my mind for a second. Who even was that guy?”

“You wouldn’t know even if I told you.”

He was the sort of man who would turn Majia’s life into hell if he ever found out.

“Then explain it so I do understand!”

“You really ask for too much.”

“Ugh.”

Majia groaned and slumped forward, pressing his forehead against the table.

“Uh... but is it really okay for us to be sitting around like this?”

“Of course not.”

Erabelle answered without a trace of concern.

“But since we’ve already been caught, we might as well enjoy one decent meal.”

“So chocolate bars really don’t count, huh?”

“If I finish mine first, I’m leaving without you.”

Panicking, Majia hurriedly ordered the fastest meal on the menu.

Before it could arrive, however, the building began to tremble.

Majia jolted and looked toward the dim window.

“E-explosion!”

Erabelle raised her head.

Flames were rising into the overcast sky.

She shoved the rest of her burger into her mouth and stood.

“Let’s head back.”

Now she was certain.

...They found me.

There was no doubt about it.

Her trail had been compromised.

Maybe they hadn’t found the squad itself, but they had definitely traced her movements.

***

There were no casualties downtown.

Thankfully, the explosion had occurred at an abandoned factory.

Inside the shuttle on the way back, Majia anxiously checked the news on his pad before finally sighing in relief.

“Well, at least no one was hurt.”

Of course no one was hurt.

She had spent hours scouting the right location.

“Urgh—”

As usual, the shuttle suddenly launched into evasive maneuvers.

“Blergh.”

Majia, seated well away from her, looked over worriedly.

“You seriously need to go to a hospital. Lieutenant? Lieutenant? Are you even listening to me?”

“...Can’t hear you. Want to come closer and say that again?”

Majia immediately pretended not to hear.

Before he could answer anyway, Erabelle vomited again.

She wiped her mouth carelessly and collapsed back into her seat.

The fact that he still liked her after seeing this happen several times meant he had a surprisingly strong stomach for someone his age.

Still not strong enough to sit any closer, apparently.

“...Ugh.”

“A-are you okay?”

“I told you to come closer if you want to talk...”

“......”

Majia gave her a look that plainly said, How am I supposed to answer if you can’t hear me?

Surprisingly clever.

“Bleeegh!”

“Seriously, how much burger did you even eat? You just keep throwing up! You should’ve stuck with the chocolate bar!”

“...At this rate, I might actually fall for you.”

“......”

Majia finally went silent.

Keeping a safe distance, he watched as Erabelle leaned back and stared blankly at the shuttle ceiling.

She had hoped.

She had really hoped she wouldn’t be this unlucky.

But her life was simply...

hopelessly cursed.

＊ ＊ ＊

Knowing she had been found changed surprisingly little.

The commander continued dumping every scrap of grunt work onto her, and Erabelle, buried alive beneath an endless pile of assignments, continued praying every night for his baldness.

Then one morning, in the middle of her usual exhausted routine, something felt wrong.

It was unnaturally quiet outside the dormitory.

“......”

No shelling.

No groans from clusters of undead.

Not even idle chatter.

Only an eerie silence.

Sensing that something was wrong, Erabelle closed her work and stepped outside—

Only to find herself staring directly into the eyes of Virgo Hag and his vivid red hair.