A delicate insect landed on a flower—its tiny iridescent wings sparkling in the sunlight. Cassian stared at it with an intensity that could have killed it on the spot.
“I got robbed.” Her voice was flat. “By corrupt guards. In a civilized city.”
She let out a joyless laugh. “This is a sketch. It has to be a sketch. It makes no sense.”
I was so angry. I wanted to beat the shit out of them. Beat them until they coughed up my gold coins. But no. I had to hold back.
Because becoming a criminal would have been even WORSE.
She looked at her empty hands. No pockets in this ridiculous outfit. She had carried her purse in her hand. In broad daylight. In a city she didn’t know.
“It was like I was inviting everyone to rob me,” she murmured. “So close to the clothing store. Literally at the entrance.”
The world is actively conspiring against me.
She sat down on a park bench, her golden hair falling around her like a curtain.
When did everything start going wrong?
Lucien. Definitely Lucien. That asshole beat me. And after that…
Too many things. Too fast. And this body…
She looked down. Ridiculously sexualized.
And my real body? Back on Earth?
A freezing thought crossed her mind.
Does time flow the same way here and on Earth? Is it slowed down? Stopped? Accelerated?
I have no way of knowing.
And to go back… how do I go back? Beat a final boss? Wait a certain amount of time? Accomplish some heroic feat?
I don’t know. I know NOTHING.
And if I do go back… in what body? This one? How do I explain that to my parents? “Hi Mom, hi Dad, I’m your son except now I’m an elf girl”?
She massaged her temples, feeling a headache coming on.
Skills. What can I even do in this world?
Farming? No. Raising animals? No. Crafts? Absolutely not.
Carpentry? Blacksmithing? Sewing? Cooking?
Nothing. I know how to do NOTHING useful.
Back on Earth, I didn’t need any of those practical skills.
Here?
I’ll end up a beggar. And a female beggar…
She shivered. That rarely ends well. Especially with this body.
The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.
Become a guard? NO. Not after those two pieces of human garbage who stole my money.
Adventurer?
It was the most logical choice. Her magical abilities—limited but real—pointed her in that direction.
But it’s also the job where I’m most likely to DIE.
“I hate this,” she growled. “Everything is pushing me toward becoming an adventurer. If I were overpowered, if I had a cheat system, I’d do it happily. Power. Glory. Wealth.”
But I came into this world with NOTHING.
Well… not completely nothing. My race is an advantage. Elves clearly have bonuses.
But I wanted MORE.
A realization hit her like a punch.
Wait.
I had wished for cheat armor and a cheat sword. In the bathroom. When I found that modern bathroom in the middle of nowhere.
And then… Hiro pulled that weird armor out of his storage ring. The one nobody could wear.
And the sword. The Sword. That obliterated both the cute creature AND itself.
That was DEFINITELY a cheat sword.
Her heart started racing.
I didn’t realize it at the time, but…
The table full of food. I’d been starving for days. Then suddenly—a table loaded with delicious food. In the middle of nowhere.
The bathroom. I’d felt filthy for days. Then—a ultra-modern bathroom. Perfect.
The clothes. I asked Hiro. He pulled out that strange armor.
“It’s not a coincidence,” she murmured. “It’s definitely my cheat.”
But why does it always take time? Why don’t I just find exactly what I want? Why is it always in the most improbable places?
And why…
Her stomach twisted.
Why is it always HIRO who complicates everything?
The armor? With Hiro. The sword? Found by Hiro. Used by Hiro. Destroyed by Hiro.
It’s like the world is always on his side.
Jealousy rose, acidic and burning.
He has everything I don’t. A system. Skills. Luck. A fucking HAREM forming around him.
I refuse to be a side character in someone else’s story.
She clenched her teeth so hard they ground together.
No. The world should be MY playground. Not his.
A system might have given me answers. About how to leave this world. But apparently, I’m not the protagonist here.
An idea sprouted.
But Hiro has a system.
Why not use it?
If his system has information about how to return to Earth… I can get it. One way or another.
Unless…
Unless he has no intention of going back. Unless he’s happy here. With his harem and his adventures.
Her hand closed into a fist.
The insect and the flower were crushed under her palm.
“Shit.”
She sighed deeply and stood up.
This morning I was ready to leave. To abandon the group and go off alone.
And now I’m preparing to COME BACK.
Besides…
My encounter with Hiro was definitely not a coincidence. What are the odds I’d meet my way out so soon?
A bitter thought.
If I had to rank myself in this world… I’d be “important side character.” Not the protagonist. Not an extra. Just… important to someone else’s story.
Pathetic.
---
“Cassian!” Hiro smiled widely when she walked into the inn. “You’re back!”
Lucia and Lena looked up from their table, waving.
“Why didn’t you change clothes?” Lena asked, frowning. “Weren’t you going out for that?”
Cassian shrugged, trying to look casual. “I actually decided I like this outfit.”
Lie. Huge lie. But I CAN’T say I lost all my money in less than a day. Way too embarrassing.
“Oh.” Lena didn’t look convinced. “Okay.”
Hiro turned toward the counter where the owner—a middle-aged woman with gray hair—was waiting. “We were just about to pay for the rooms for tonight. Separate or together?”
“Separate,” Cassian said immediately.
“Together!” Lena and Lucia shouted at the exact same time.
“Uh…” Hiro blinked. “You two want to be in my room?”
“YES!” Again, perfectly synchronized.
Then they glared at each other.
Cassian sighed and sat down on a chair. Here we go.
After ten minutes of tense negotiations, they ended up with two rooms. One for Cassian. One for Hiro, Lucia, and Lena.
Poor Hiro. He’s not sleeping tonight.
Hiro paid with coins from the storage ring—group funds. They had been generously rewarded for the Summer Tears. The Guild had been stunned by the quantity.
“Room on the first floor,” Hiro explained, handing Cassian a key. “End of the hall, left.”
“Thanks.”
She went upstairs, found the room easily, went in.
A bed. A real bed. With clean sheets and a soft pillow.
My first real bed in this world.
Without even taking off her shoes—wait, I’m barefoot—she dropped onto the mattress.
Soft. So soft.
Her eyes closed.
And she slept.
---
BANG BANG BANG!
“HAND OVER THE ELF!”
Cassian jolted awake. What the hell is that noise?
BANG BANG BANG!
“WE KNOW SHE’S IN THERE! BRING HER OUT OR WE TEAR THIS PLACE APART!”
She got up and cautiously opened her door. Voices downstairs. A lot of voices.
“Please!” The owner was pleading. “No violence! This is a respectable establishment!”
“SHUT UP, OLD LADY! One of our guys saw an elf come in here! That bitch has to pay for attacking our men!”
Cassian crept down the stairs, staying in the shadows.
The inn was surrounded. About twenty thugs—armed with clubs, knives, chains—were blocking every exit.
Shit. They followed me?
“What did Cassian do out there?” Lena whispered.
“There aren’t 10,000 elves in this city!” one of the thugs shouted. “Elves are RARE! They stand out! We know she’s here!”
The inn’s customers murmured nervously.
“This place is known for being quiet…”
“If it becomes a target for local thugs, there’s no point coming anymore…”
“I want a refund.”
The owner was on the verge of tears.
Hiro stood up and walked calmly toward the entrance.
“I’ll handle everyone.” His voice carried, quiet but firm. “I know the elf.”
The thugs fell silent, staring at him.
“I don’t know how she might have offended you, but I’ll do my best to calm things down and smooth things over. We can settle this peacefully.”
The thugs burst out laughing.
“Peacefully?!”
“You serious, kid?!”
One of them—a skinny guy with a vicious grin—stepped forward. “I’ve got a better idea. We take you hostage. Then we force the elf to come out to save her little boyfriend.”
“BOYFRIEND?!” Lena exploded. “HIRO IS MY BOYFRIEND!”
Lucia held her back. “Lena, calm down…”
Hiro didn’t smile. “Leave. Now. While I’m still being nice.”
The thugs laughed even harder.
The owner approached, desperate. “Please, young man, don’t fight! The tables! The chairs!”
Hiro turned back to her.
And gave a small bow.
“I’m sorry in advance.”
