19 Chapter 18: My weird Stalker can't be this cute!

Chapter 18: My weird stalker can't be this cute!

- Lingyin Huang (Rin) –

"Why am I not in the same class as Ichika…" sighed Rin in sadness as she lazily at her desk while waiting for the teacher to return.

Unfortunately, she had no close friends in her class, so she spent most of her time alone. She could talk between some of them, but they were more acquaintances than anything else.

"Lingyin!" called her desk mate beside her as Rin looked at the girl in confusion. She didn't know why she would get called at this time.

"Did you hear about the rumour?"

"What are you talking about, Sawamura-san?" asked Rin, dumbfounded. 

"Oh my! So you didn't know? I heard from Maki-san that we would have a new student joining our class!"

Rin became interested as she hadn't expected this kind of news. "Oh really?"

Sawamura became depressed. "So you didn't know, huh? I thought you would know something since you are close to Orimura-sensei's brother."

"I can't know everything…" muttered Rin as she sighed in annoyance.

"Oh well." Shrugged Sawamura as she returned to talking to her friend.

[Ding Dong Deng] [Ding Dong Deng] [Ding Dong Deng]

As every student heard the bell ringing, they silently returned to their seat and patiently waited for their homeroom teacher.

They didn't wait for long. They all heard the sound of footsteps nearing their classroom as the door opened. The students and Rin looked at the door and saw three people coming inside the school, but they didn't recognize the last girl behind their teacher.

"I guess the rumour of the new students joining our class was real…" muttered Rin as she observed the new girl.

"Hello, girls. I hope everyone did everything they needed during the break and before we started with our lesson. I must present you girls with this new classmate who will join us for the next three years." Said Rin's homeroom teacher.

Jill Alektra is Rin's homeroom teacher, a tall and imposing woman with long dark hair in a ponytail. She has purple eyes and a slender figure. There were also rumours or gossip that their teacher lost her right arm during a conflict between countries as she was on the front line. They heard that her right arm was an artificial one.

Near Jill Alektra was another woman, and she was the assistant teacher of the class. Emma Bronson is a young woman of average height with a slim but curvy build. She maintains a professional appearance, always dressed in a black uniform with her green hair in a bun, except for two forward buns.

"This is Chloe Chronicle, a very talented IS pilot. She finally joined our school after she resolved some family trouble, so I hope you girl will take care of her."

"Hai"

"Does anyone have any questions for Chloe Chronicle before we continue to where we last left?"

The girl's hand shot up one by one as they were very interested in their new classmate. Her beautiful, doll-like appearance attracted the attention of everyone.

(Insert Questions here) (I am not doing this again and have no idea what to write)

Jill then stopped the question, feeling like they had wasted enough time. "Then Chloe, please take the empty seat next to Lingyin Huan."

"Yes, sensei." Responded Chloe as she immediately walked toward Rin with a smile. 

"Nice to meet you, Chronicle." Said Rin as she smiled at her. Rin was also interested in this girl and felt they could be friends. She had good feelings about this new girl who joined her class.

"Nice to meet you too, Lingyin," whispered Chloe softly, as she didn't want to disturb the lesson going on right now.

"You can call me Rin, Chronicle, and how about you join me since you don't have the manual?" muttered Rin with a tinge of embarrassment, as she had never been the one to make the first move.

Chloe gave Rin a wide smile. "This is very kind of you, Rin, and please call me Chloe."

"Yes, Chloe!"

x-x-x-x-x-x

- Aruto Igarashi –

[Ding Dong Deng] [Ding Dong Deng] [Ding Dong Deng]

I slammed my head on the desk as my first class ended. It was painful since they couldn't return to the introduction basic for IS just for me, so now I have to learn them independently, or I'll have someone else to teach me.

…As if I'm going to serious study that shit.

I'm not staying here long, and I'll escape at the first chance, but it won't probably be anytime soon. 

"Yo Aruto!" exclaimed Ichika as he tapped my shoulder with amusement. Ichika thought the current Aruto reminded them of himself on his first day when he was lost.

"Oh hey, Ichika, what's good?" I said, and I looked around me and saw a lot of students hanging around us.

"Nothing much, but since it's your first day at the school. Let's have dinner together, yeah? I'll pay for your food, too." Said Ichika as he tapped his chest.

I stood up from my chair as I suddenly felt hungry. After all, I just ate some fruit given to me by Ichika, and I could definitely go for some free food.

"That's great! Thank you for the food, Ichika." I thanked him graciously.

"Hahaha, no worries, Aruto! We are friends here, and we guys should all band up together?"

Then Ichika came closer to me and whispered into my right ear. "The school has a lot of scary girls for us guys."

"…Are you talking by experience?"

Ichika rubbed his head in embarrassment until he spotted Charles near them. "Hey Charles! Join us! We are going to eat dinner!"

"Oh- Uh, that's… Sure! Thank you for having me, guys?" said Charles with some surprise.

I also took this chance to approach Charles since I was interested in this third male IS pilot. It wasn't every day that you could find someone else that was also special like you.

Maybe he could also convince them to join me to escape this dreadful life. After all, which guy would willingly stay here in this hell?

I greeted Charles and dabbed him. "Big dog," which left him confused as I shook my head.

What a disappointment.

I still went for a handshake; somehow, his hand felt soft. I can think of this later since we will eat at the cafeteria.

Oh, also, Houki and Cecilia joined us as we were going to leave.

I also introduced myself to them and thought I left a great image of myself to them, but I didn't understand why they gave me a suspicious look.

x-x-x-x-x

[Slurp]

The ramen set can never be wrong, and Ichika is a homie for the food. I should talk with Chifuyu about my money problem since I'm pretty broke and can't access my money in the bank.

And I don't want to depend on Ichika for my stuff every time. He is a cool dude and a great friend for now.

"Why are you here?" asked Houki, annoyed at seeing Laura sit with them.

"Eat," replied Laura as she continued eating in peace.

That's right, guys! I'm eating some free ramen accompanied by a little side of drama at the same time.

Fuck, this school is so good.

Houki wasn't the only one, as Cecilia also felt angry at seeing Laura with them. "How thick-skinned are you? You slapped Ichika in front of everyone in class, yet you expect us to accept you seating with us?"

"Yes."

Houki was completely enraged as she slammed the table and stood up from her seat. "You!"

My eyes ultimately shone brightly, and I waited for Houki to throw hands at Laura.

Unfortunately for me, Ichika decided to buy into this upcoming fight. "Wait, Houki! It's fine! I don't mind it anymore!"

"But Ichika! She disrespected you in front of everyone! You can't let it slide!" replied Cecilia, as she couldn't understand his reaction.

"I'm fine. She is my problem, and I'm sure she didn't mean it, right?" asked Ichika as he looked at Laura, who, for the first time, looked at someone instead of her food.

"…Yeah, whatever… I already got scolded by the general…" whispered Laura under her breath and continued eating silently.

"That doesn't sound convincing," uttered Houki annoyingly as she sat back.

"That's fine; I'll prove to her that I deserve Chifuyu-nee as my sister, and no one can take this from me." Responded Ichika with unwavering confidence.

Cecilia and Houki both blushed as they loved seeing a confident Ichika.

Laura snorted as she heard Ichika's declaration and continued eating her food. She didn't believe she would lose to some newbie when she was explicitly trained for IS.

"Ichika!" shouted someone far from them.

I was curious about who was calling for my new friend and saw two short kids coming to us with their food.

"Oh! Rin!" said Ichika as he signalled them to come.

I guess they know each other, huh? Oh well, I might as well finish my ramen first before introducing myself to his friends.

"Hey Rin, meet my new friends! There's Aruto Igarashi, who you already met!" said Ichika as he pointed at me, and I gave her a wave.

"Yo!"

"Nice to meet you, Aruto," said Rin.

Then, Ichika continued by pointing at the silent Charles, who had been forgotten until now. (I swear I didn't forget about him).

"Hello, Rin; nice to meet you." Replied Charles with a smile.

"Nice to—Wait, Charles? Is he a…" asked Rin in surprise.

"You are completely right, Rin! Charles is also a male who joined the school! I feel complete now with them by my side." Said Ichika as he gave Charles and me a hug.

"W-what"

"…Don't say it like that."

"Hahaha, sorry, Aruto. I was just excited to see guys join the school! It was very lonely until you guys came. Also, sorry, Charles, I forgot you were shy."

"It's fine, Ichika…" said Charles with a tinge of blush on his cheeks.

"…Not much better," I said with a deadpanned face, but I finished my ramen until I felt a weird feeling on my body and looked at the culprit.

I looked around for the source of this weird feeling and pinpointed the girl who came with Rin. She reminded me of Laura somehow with her doll-like appearance.

I also didn't miss the suspicious and weird gazes that Laura gave to Chloe ever since she arrived at our table.

Ichika also seemed to spot the new face which finally followed Rin. "Rin? Who is that behind you? Is she a friend?"

"Oh! I almost forgot! Ichika, this is Chloe Chronicle! She is a new student who joined my class!" said Rin with a smile as she pushed Chloe in front of everyone at the table.

"Nice to meet you, Chloe." Replied Ichika with his charming smile with a sigh of relief. He knew Rin didn't have friends in her class, and seeing her with someone else made him feel much better. After all, he cared for Rin a lot as a friend.

"Nice to meet you too, Ichika," Chloe responded, placing her food in front of me before taking her seat. A silent pause hung between us, leaving me unsure how to proceed.

[…]

Extending my hand for a handshake, I began, "Hey, Chloe, right? I'm Aruto. I—"

Before I could finish, Chloe interjected, "Aruto Igarashi, 20 years old, in a class with 15-year-old girls. Weighing 80 kg, standing at 1.80 meters tall, blood type AB..." The unexpected interruption caught me off guard, leaving me speechless.

Chloe continued, her voice steady, "With a distinguished record in academics and athletics. Known for your mastery in martial arts and a keen interest in robotics." She paused, glancing at me with a mix of curiosity.

As she was about to announce my three sizes, I cut her off, "All right, chill girl. That's weird." I needed to stop her before she told the whole world about myself.

"I'm Aruto Igarashi. That's all you need to know, little girl," I said, a bit more edge into it. Her creepy knowledge of my life was fucking weird. Could she be a stalker, somehow addicted to my charm and driven to learn everything about me?

As these thoughts swirled in my head, I studied her face and disappointedly shook my head. Despite her cuteness, she was only 15...

"I'm 18 years old," she suddenly corrected me as if she could read my thoughts.

"Huh?"

"Not a kid," Chloe replied, her voice carrying more emotion now.

Her clarification caught me off guard, and the table's vibe became weird. So, there was only one method I could use in this situation.

-Run away-

Tactical Retreat

As I exited the table, Ichika's voice echoed behind me, filled with surprise. "Ah! Wait! Aruto, where are you going!?"

Without turning back, I said, "Don't worry about me! I have to talk with Orimura-sensei!" 

In no normal circumstance would a new student have such in-depth information about me. So, I decided to investigate my little stalker in the future.

Unbeknownst to me, Chloe watched my retreat intently and in amusement, smiling as she stared at my back.