Her Request

The principal crossed out the umpteenth piece of paper. Writing a speech makes his head almost explode. He wanted to create one that would hold those students' attention, but time and time again, he found the words to be cringy or hard to understand.

Already nearly twenty papers were strewn across his desk, and he was still in his early stages.

"Come in." He replied after the office door was knocked on from the outside. Then, Sienna entered. "Have you finished checking the items the teachers ordered, Sienna?"

The assistant gave a paper folder to the principal. As usual, her lips formed a warm smile. "That's all, sir. Nothing is missing or wrong."

"Just put it there. I'll check later." The principal continued to write, but before long, he leaned back in his chair, sighed, and massaged his forehead. "Can you help me make this damn speech, Sienna?"

"I would love to do that." The assistant grimaced a bit. "Sorry, but just now, I got an invitation from the messengers of the gods to speak to them."

"What?" Eiji frowned. "Is something wrong?"

"I don't think so." The assistant was still smiling. "They may want to ask about the progress of this school. I don't know for sure."

The principal tapped his fingers on the table, thinking about the possibilities. Had they become restless because he hadn't summoned the students yet? Could it be that the staff he chose were not to their liking?

"All I can say is good luck to you." The principal assured. "I hope they don't ask weird questions."

"This is not my first rodeo, sir." The red-haired woman chuckled. "They've interviewed me before I came here, and they're not bad."

Eiji could feel a slight shift in tone in Sienna's last words.

"If there's anything, you just tell me." Eiji intertwined his fingers in front of his face. "Remember, you're not alone anymore."

The assistant nodded. "Of course, sir."

After bowing and saying goodbye, that woman walked out of the room. When she opened the door, she found that Vero was already standing outside with a knocking pose.

"Good morning, Miss Ritter." The assistant gave a greeting, but the warrior only nodded.

"Is there anything I can help you with, Vero?" Eiji asked the warrior, who was wearing a uniform like the other female staff, but hers was dark yellow with black. "That's nice on you, by the way."

"Thanks." She tried to lower her uniform miniskirt. With a slightly blushing face, she muttered in a low voice. "Why is it so short and tight?"

Eiji knew that she meant that to herself, not to him.

"You can modify it," Eiji commented. "Like Anneth's, for example, but maybe you should wait a little longer."

"Ah…. It's okay, really." The warrior then sat on the couch with robotic movements but said nothing more and just stared ahead.

Feeling that the atmosphere would be even more awkward if left like this, Eiji repeated his question. "Vero, how can I help you?"

"That…." The warrior fell silent again, still not looking at the principal.

Eiji got up from his chair, realizing that he had to be patient to have a conversation with this woman. She may be the most difficult to communicate among the others, even when compared to Aline.

"I wonder." So, Eiji decided to discuss a neutral topic first to start the conversation. "Did you miss your old world before being stranded in isekai?"

Finally, the warrior glanced at the principal, who was now sitting across from her. "Hardly. I barely remember my past life."

"Maybe I will too." Eiji looked out the window. "We don't know how long we'll be here. Damn…. I didn't expect to get this job."

The warrior gulped and took a breath. "How can you be so confident, even though this is your first time being a school principal?"

"I look like that, huh?" The principal sighed. "No, I still have a lot of doubts, Vero. Everything will be proven when this school starts."

And both fell silent again. Vero didn't show any signs of wanting to respond to Eiji. The principal became even more confused about what else to say.

"Want me to make some tea?" The young man made an offer. "Sienna's busy, so don't expect me to make it as good as her.

"No need." Vero stopped Eiji, who was almost on his feet. "To be honest, I don't really like tea."

"Ah, that reminds me to order other drinks like coffee. Maybe I was too busy, so I didn't think about that. Well, it would be great if there were some soft drinks. But I made a policy to make this place's environment similar to those other worlds, so the hero candidates are used to a life without modern things. That's why cola and…" The principal stopped talking when he found the warrior's shoulders twitch. "Do you want to drink cola, Vero?"

"I-I didn't say that." The warrior's face turned red again. Her hands also started playing with her long black hair, and she didn't dare look at her boss.

Eiji narrowed his eyes, thinking that maybe teasing her would be fun. "Well, cola is nice and refreshing. If you want it, I can bend the rules a bit."

"I didn't say that." The warrior snorted.

"But your expression says otherwise." Eiji stood up to take his tablet. "Cola it is."

"You…" The warrior cleared his throat, crossed his arms over his chest, and looked away again. Still with blushing cheeks, she spoke in a different tone. "I-I'm not forcing you, but it looks like you want it… Well, I won't refuse…"

Eiji's heart felt a slight spike. His mind immediately drifted to some of the manga and anime he had consumed. He often finds a particular trope that belongs to at least one heroine.

Could a warrior who spent years have that trait?

"Maybe I'll add some potato chips too." Eiji glanced at Vero, who still didn't want to look at him. "I think that's a yes."

Her mouth is now pursed.

Something fell from the roof and landed on the floor, triggering Eiji to jump so violently that he threw his tablet away. On the other hand, Vero jumped back, then used a stance with both fists in front of her face like a boxer.

"Goddammit, Kyoko!" Eiji scolded the kunoichi, who was kneeling in the middle of the room. "I told you, don't do something like that ever again!"

"I feel something…. Sweet…" She smiled, but it looked forced. "And for the first time, I broke my ninja code of not eavesdropping on my superior. It seems I'm no longer fit to be a kunoichi."