Chapter 4: A Gun That Would Not Break

At the Schale office, located in the heart of Kivotos under the General Student Council’s jurisdiction.

Knock, knock, knock.

“Sensei, we’re here.”

The entrance to this place, which served as both an office and Sensei’s personal residence, was now being knocked on by two female students in Millennium uniforms, arriving early in the morning.

“Sensei isn’t responding to Yuuka’s call! Could she be in rest mode?”

“Phew… looks like she stayed up late working again and fell asleep. I’ll open the door, so step aside for a sec, Aris-chan.”

Hayase Yuuka, the treasurer of Millennium’s Seminar, and Tendo Aris, casually holding a massive box nearly as big as herself, stood side by side.

“Oh! Yuuka has mastered the art of lockpicking! Aris didn’t know the treasurer could double as a thief class!”

“D-Don’t say things that could be misunderstood! I’ve been helping Sensei with organizing so much that she gave me the passcode herself!”

Yuuka, flustered, responded to the innocent android girl whose eyes sparkled as she spoke, before hurriedly stepping into the office.

“Excuse us… ugh.”

True to her word, Yuuka was one of the few permitted to “legally” unlock this door. But as soon as she stepped inside, she let out a deep sigh at the predictably cluttered state of the office.

“As expected, not a single thing is organized… Aris-chan, take the stuff you brought to the storage room for now.”

“Got it! A quest isn’t complete until the items are delivered to the exact destination!”

After sending Aris off, Yuuka scanned the messy office and quickly spotted the person she was looking for.

“Sigh… I told her to sleep properly in her bed, not on the sofa.”

A woman lay on the sofa, dressed in familiar pajamas, buried under a blanket that covered even her head, fast asleep.

“Sensei, wake up already. It’s morning. I keep telling you, staying up so late is bad for your health…”

Shaking her head, Yuuka approached the sofa, muttering scoldingly, and yanked the blanket off the woman’s head without hesitation.

“…Huh?”

But the treasurer of Seminar, ready to continue her lecture, froze with a dumbfounded sound.

Instead of Sensei’s familiar brown hair, soft lavender locks, almost reminiscent of silver, spilled out from under the blanket onto the sofa.

Already startled enough, Yuuka’s gaze shifted to the owner of that hair, and she stood there, utterly stunned.

“…”

Beneath the blanket slept a woman whose beauty and aura, even to another woman, were breathtaking.

“Wh… what… is this…?”

Faced with someone who bore no resemblance to the Schale Sensei who always took her nagging with an awkward smile, Yuuka could only gape, unable to form words.

Pop.

“Mmm…”

As if disturbed by the morning sunlight, the mysterious woman let out a small groan.

A delicate halo appeared above her head, and her eyes, hidden beneath long lashes, slowly opened.

“…Oh?”

The female student, awakening with dreamy gray eyes, noticed Yuuka and made a curious sound.

“Kyaaa?!”

Finally snapping out of it, Yuuka let out a piercing scream and stumbled backward.

…Talk about an unexpected encounter.

Right after my rather startling meeting with Yuuka, thankfully, Sensei rushed out from cleaning her private bedroom upon hearing the scream, preventing any further chaos.

“So, Trinity was supposed to provide Kaoru-san with a temporary residence starting today, but since it got late last night, Sensei brought her to Schale instead…”

“Aris understands! Kaoru is a hero from another world!”

Yuuka, sounding exhausted as she muttered the explanation Sensei had just given while sitting around the table, contrasted with Aris, who looked at me with sparkling, excited eyes.

“Yeah, luckily, my pajamas fit Kaoru perfectly. I even lent her some new underwear.”

“Sigh… you had to wear the same pajamas, so I got a shock. Please give us a heads-up next time, Sensei.”

“Haha, sorry, sorry. I didn’t expect you two to show up this early.”

As Sensei scratched her head with an awkward laugh in response to Yuuka’s half-scolding, Yuuka turned to me with an embarrassed expression and apologized.

“Um… sorry for screaming like that, Kaoru-san. I was just startled…”

“Fufu, it’s alright. The morning has dawned, so it was time to rise anyway.”

“Ugh… y-yeah…”

When I replied with a slightly intentional smile, Yuuka averted her gaze, her face flushing.

“…”

Seeing Sensei’s troubled expression as she watched this, I couldn’t help but remind myself to stop smiling so freely.

…This body is kind of dangerous, especially since everyone here is female.

For the record, I had changed back into my school uniform, and my hair, which had been let down while I slept, was now pinned up again with a hairpin.

I’d never tied my hair in my life, but holding the hairpin felt strangely natural, and my hands moved on their own.

Oddly enough, when I tentatively gripped the handle of my sword, neatly placed beside the sofa, I felt nothing at all.

For now, it seems I won’t be able to use it.

And in a world where even an anti-tank round only knocks you out for a day, I’m not sure a sword is even useful as a weapon.

After the commotion settled, Sensei smiled warmly and expressed her gratitude to the two Millennium students.

“Thanks for fulfilling my urgent request, Yuuka, Aris. It must’ve been heavy.”

“No problem, Sensei! Aris has plenty of inventory weight capacity! Yuuka could carry it easily too if needed!”

“Wh-What? Why am I being dragged into this? I’m not that heavy, you know?”

Aris, boasting her android strength, prompted Yuuka to retort with a flushed face, just as red as before.

“But Aris heard from our peers! At the last physical exam, Yuuka’s weight was—mmph!”

“W-Waah! Be quiet, Aris-chan!”

“…Fufu.”

Watching their almost comedic exchange unfold naturally, I couldn’t help but let out a small laugh.

Seemingly pleased by my reaction, Sensei’s smile brightened as she turned to me.

“Now, Kaoru, this is for you.”

She pointed to the large box Aris had brought, filled with various firearms, placed beside the table.

“Oh? For me, Master?”

“Yes. It might be unfamiliar to you, but in Kivotos, carrying a gun is common sense. So, I asked these two last night to bring some firearms you could use.”

“As Sensei requested, we brought some stuff gathering dust in Millennium’s storage. The Engineering Department kept trying to add weird things, so stopping them was a hassle.”

“…Thanks for your effort, Yuuka.”

Sensei gave a wry smile at Yuuka’s grumbling addition, then gestured to a single pistol engraved with the Schale logo, sitting alone on the office desk.

“As you can see, I carry one too. Though I barely know how to use it—it’s more like a decoration.”

“Come on, I told you to at least take basic training for emergencies, but you always dodge it with excuses. If you’re that busy, I can help. I’m not great with pistols, but I can teach you the basics.”

“Haha, I appreciate the offer, but I can’t keep relying on you, Yuuka.”

“Sigh…”

Yuuka let out an exasperated sigh as Sensei laughed it off, clearly used to this kind of nagging.

It’s true—in the original story, Sensei carried a gun but never used it.

“Fufu, thank you, Master. Then…”

Recalling that minor detail from the original, I reached for an ordinary-looking pistol without much thought.

Since I’d likely have to carry my sword anyway, I figured a lightweight gun would be less cumbersome.

Crunch.

‘…Huh?’

“…Mmm?”

The moment I gripped the handle, a faint cracking sound made me widen my eyes and let go.

“Kaoru-san, is something wrong with the gun? Let me see… huh?”

Yuuka, puzzled by my reaction, took the pistol and inspected it, tilting her head with a confused expression.

“The slide… it’s broken? That’s weird. I’m sure we did basic checks before bringing it.”

“Nooo! Did Aris fail the quest?”

“It’s okay, Aris. It’s old equipment, and we have plenty more. Kaoru, want to try another one?”

“Yes, Master.”

Answering in a voice I was starting to get used to, I cautiously reached for another gun, feeling a bit uneasy.

In the end, we couldn’t find a single usable gun by the time the massive box was empty.

“This… this can’t be real. Is this some kind of supernatural phenomenon?”

“…It’s like the guns are rejecting Kaoru.”

Every firearm I touched broke the moment my hand made contact—rifles, shotguns, sniper rifles, and even a mortar that somehow got mixed in.

“…”

…Seriously, is this because I’m a sword-game character?

As I stood there, silently dumbfounded, the long-haired girl suddenly raised her hand as if struck by an idea.

“Maybe Aris knows why!”

“Aris-chan, you?”

Yuuka asked skeptically, but Aris answered with confident, shining eyes.

“Yes! It’s because… Kaoru must be a hero with designated exclusive equipment! So, naturally, the system won’t let her equip other weapons!”

“…”

…Not exactly helpful, though it might not be entirely wrong.

Meanwhile, Sensei, checking the nearly empty box, pulled out the last remaining gun and placed it in front of me.

“This… looks like the last one.”

“Fufu, it’s quite a charmingly rustic piece.”

Though my words were indirect, I was referring to an old, worn-out revolver that seemed to have been left behind for a reason.

An antique revolver? Doesn’t this belong in a museum?

“No kidding. I don’t know why this relic was in Millennium’s storage, but we brought it anyway… Finding compatible ammo for it will probably be a pain.”

Yuuka, eyeing the questionable revolver with doubt, muttered as she shook her head.

Sigh, no helping it. Looks like this body just isn’t meant for guns.

With little expectation, I reached for the final gun, sharing Yuuka’s sentiment.

But then,

Crackle.

—Don’t forget, Kaoru. You’re our last…

…Ugh?

A sudden, intense sense of déjà vu hit me, and for the first time since possessing this body, I couldn’t help but grimace.

Did I… just hear something?

“…Kaoru-san?”

“What’s wrong, Kaoru?”

I looked around in a panic, but all I saw were Yuuka, Aris, and Sensei staring at me with puzzled expressions.

“Um… did you hear a voice just now?”

“No, I didn’t hear anything…”

Sensei, looking confused, responded, and I glanced down at my hand, which still held the worn-out revolver.

“Wait! Could that be an ego weapon?! Momo bought a game last week with something like that!”

“No way, Aris-chan. Kaoru-san, can I take a look?”

Yuuka, still skeptical, took the old revolver and inspected it, frowning slightly before handing it back.

“…Huh, this one’s fine? Guess it’s so old it doesn’t have anything left to break. For now, carry this one, Kaoru-san. I’ll take the rest back to the Engineering Department for analysis.”

“Fufu, I’ll do that.”

Was it… just my imagination?

Feeling uneasy for some reason, I accepted the old revolver, which I doubted I’d ever use.