Before me (well, below me) was a teary-eyed, enigmatic girl, staring up accusingly.
“It hurt so much… I thought I’d die…”
“S-Sorry! I didn’t think we hit that hard…”
“But my butt hurts.”
“I said I’m sorry!”
“My round butt got flattened…”
“I-I mean, what am I supposed to do about that…?”
“Like the lunch pack.”
“…………”
“Like the lunch pack.”
“Saying it twice doesn’t help!”
“I’ll haunt you.”
“Me specifically!?”
She really holds a grudge. Is that it? Maybe? I dunno.
The conversation spiraled into nonsense, leaving me at a loss for words.
Still seated, the girl picked up the lunch pack from her stomach and clamped it between her teeth again.
And then, while still sitting on her butt, she started munching on it noisily.
“…………”
Why the hell is she resuming her meal at a time like this…
Wait, why? Do I have to watch this? What kind of situation is this?
As I stared dumbfounded, the girl with the spade-shaped hair looked up at me and nodded firmly.
“……Nope. Eating didn’t fix my butt after all.”
“Oh, so that’s why you started eating—you thought it was some kind of recovery item…”
“Upsy-daisy.”
Just as I mustered the energy to retort, she completely ignored me, wobbling as she tried to stand up.
But it was short-lived—she immediately lost strength and plopped back down.
“Ah, this might be bad… I just used up all my expendable energy for today…”
“What do you mean? Didn’t you eat to recover?”
“But eating takes energy too, y’know? Wild animals risk their lives just to hunt.”
“That logic doesn’t apply outside the wild, not with your stamina…”
“Ow. Why does this person keep tormenting me like this—”
Contrary to her appearance, she was surprisingly frail. Like, sickly frail.
“Haaah, I just have the worst luck… Why do I keep getting into such awful situations…?”
“I don’t think I’ve put you through that much suffering.”
“B-but, but! I lose at games, get sent on punishment errands, and now this! Don’t you think that’s horrible!?”
“Even so, I had nothing to do with that!”
“And then I bump into some weird guy and now my butt hurts! You have to take responsibility!”
She was dead set on blaming me. She did just call me a “weird guy,” though.
If anything, I feel like the victim here.
“Uuuu… Haaah, nothing good ever happens to me lately. Why do you think that is?”
“Now you asking me… I mean, is it really that bad?”
“Well, just the other day, some guy told me I was cute, but he just ended up taking my money and dumped me with a two-line text… Plus, I’ve always had terrible taste in men…”
“……………………” Yikes.
“It’s always like that. At first, everyone says I’m cute, y’know? So I try really hard to stay cute and make sure they have fun with me, but in the end, they always leave. Maybe I’m just not attractive enough…”
“Okay, sorry! I’m sorry, alright!? I had no idea you’d been through that much!”
“I wonder… Maybe I’ll just be alone forever until I die? What do you think? I mean, it’s fine, right? I am just a high school girl, so I guess it’s normal to have some dreams…”
“Got it, got it! My bad, okay!? So can you please cut me some slack!?”
She’s not just physically weak—she’s mentally fragile too. Give me a break.
Well, objectively speaking, she is a real beauty. No doubt she attracts a lot of guys, and with that comes a higher chance of meeting the wrong ones. But hearing all this is just awkward.
What am I even supposed to do?
As I stood there helpless, she suddenly peeked up at me with upturned eyes.
“Haaah… This is such a pain… I’m so tired, I can’t move at all…”
“Oi, you’ve gotta be kidding me.”
“I wanna get to the clubroom chair…”
“I never thought I’d meet someone other than a fairy who’d ask for this.”
“It’s fine. I am as cute as a fairy, according to rumors.”
—Shut up, or I’ll punch you.
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If only I had the guts to say that. Sadly, I don’t.
Haaah… A deep sigh escaped me before I could stop it.
Noticing my reaction, she pouted, so I reluctantly made an offer.
“If I’m gonna carry you, the only way is piggyback. You sure you’re okay with that?”
“…Wait, you’d actually carry me?”
She looked surprised, then grinned.
“Well, I do feel kinda responsible. If you’re serious, I don’t mind carrying you.”
“Ahaha. Didn’t think you’d actually agree.”
“Eh, I’m in a phase where I could use more friends. Might as well earn some goodwill.”
“——————”
For a moment, she fell silent, blinking rapidly.
But then she gave a faint smile, reached out toward me, and—beamed.
“That’s nice. Hehe… Okay, go ahead.”
“Now that I’ve said it, I didn’t actually think you’d take me up on it…”
“Want me to back out?”
“Nah, I’ve made my decision. —Alright, hop on.”
I crouched down, turning my back toward her.
After a brief wait, I felt her weight pressing against me as she leaned in.
“So, where am I taking you?”
“The Second Literature Club’s first clubroom.”
“Sec—… What?”
“This school has two literature clubs. The First Literature Club and the Second Literature Club.”
“Oh… right.”
Only now did I remember that the first club I’d taken a job from was the First Literature Club.
I hadn’t paid much attention, but now that I thought about it, if there’s a First, there’s bound to be a Second.
“Where is it?”
“The first room on the second floor.”
“Got it. Hold on tight so you don’t fall.”
And so, I ended up carrying a stranger on my back up the stairs.
Somehow, it reminded me of when my sibling were little.
“…Hehehe. This is kinda nice. Way easier than walking myself.”
As I climbed the stairs with her lightweight frame, she suddenly whispered in my ear.
“You’ve got some unique sensibilities, huh…”
“Eh? You think so?”
“Don’t you? Most people wouldn’t let a stranger carry them like this.”
“Well, I am low on stamina. I’d rather be carried than carry.”
“Who the hell would prefer carrying someone…?”
“Ahaha, who knows? By the way, which side are you on? Secretly happy to have a girl on your back?”
——Her voice, oddly sweet, carried that question straight to my ear.
Only now did I fully realize: I’m giving a girl a piggyback ride.
“……It’s not like I’m carrying you because I like it or anything.”
“Eh~, really? That’s a shame.”
“…………”
“But I get it. At this point, I don’t even wanna carry anything heavier than air!”
“Then you shouldn’t even be able to hold chopsticks…”
“You don’t get it. If I can’t hold chopsticks, I’ll just eat bread instead.”
“What kind of noble logic is that? Wait, is that why you had that lunch pack earlier?”
“Well, I’d still have to hold it with my hands either way.”
“Yeah, no kidding.”
As we exchanged banter lighter than the girl on my back, we reached the upper floor.
I’d left the cleaning supplies downstairs—no way was I lugging those up too.
“…Just checking. I’m not heavy, right?”
Out of nowhere, she asked from behind me. I chuckled slightly.
“Nah, you’re fine. Didn’t think you’d care about that.”
“Whew, glad to hear it. People do call me a heavy woman a lot, y’know?”
“Pretty sure that’s not about your weight……?”
“Hmm, who knows?”
“……Well, if anything, you’re too light. If you’d asked me to carry you to the top floor, I might’ve regretted it.”
“Fufu, I see, I see. You’re more considerate than I thought~”
“Not like I’m saying it to be nice. I am carrying you, so of course I’d care.”
“Yeah, yeah. You are lifting me, after all.”
“Exactly. Even fairies these days pay you back for carrying them. With fruits or whatever.”
“What are you even talking about? I did give you two fruits as payment.”
“Huh? What’s that supposed to mean?”
“I’m talking about what’s touching your back.”
For a second, my steps faltered.
I quickly resumed walking, but she’d probably noticed. She continued:
“Y’know, those plump little fruits pressed against you?”
“…………”
“You have to have noticed, right? you’re carrying a girl, after all. I take pride in how soft they are—what do you think?”
“…………”
“Your ears are red. Didn’t expect you to be so innocent~ Cute.”
“We’re here.”
I tried to deflect by announcing our arrival.
Seriously, calling out something I was trying not to think about…
“Whee, thanks for the ride! Can you open the door too?”
At the request of this self-proclaimed fairy who refused to lift a finger, I pushed open the door labeled Second Literature Club – First Clubroom.
The moment I did, the sight of a cluttered room—and one girl sitting inside—greeted me.
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