Epilogue: The Returner Hero’s Re: School
The next day.
“Ah! Hasumin’s back at school!”
“Long time no see~”
“We were so worried about you!”
“You look well—that’s such a relief!”
“Ehehe, thanks to you all. Sorry for making everyone worry.”
“No joke, we were seriously worried, you know~”
“You’re really okay now?”
“If you start feeling bad again, promise you’ll say something right away, okay?”
“Yeah. Thank you, everyone—really.”
“Oh right! Here—these are the notes from while you were out. Math I and Math A. And look, I even added my custom point-by-point highlights!”
“I’ve got you covered for Japanese class.”
“And English is on me. Both Communication English and English Expression, all perfectly taken care of.”
“Thank you! This helps so, so much!”
“Don’t mention it!”
“Finals are right around the corner, so make sure you review properly!”
“But hey, with Hasumin having Oda-kun—top of the class—helping her out, there’s nothing to worry about, right?”
“Yeah yeah, Oda-kun was super worried about you.”
“Mhm. I know.”
“Whoa—did you see that reaction!?”
“So Hasumin knew Oda-kun was worried, huh?”
“Figures~ Of course she knew~”
“Y-Yup.”
“Steamy~”
“Aww, love is in the air~”
“Hasumin’s blushing so hard~”
“Is he your suki-pi (someone you like)?”
“So? Have you guys done the deed yet?”
“If you’re gonna do it, make sure to use protection~”
“We haven’t done anything indecent, okay!?”
“Then how far have you gone?”
“Yeah yeah—what’s the furthest you’ve gotten?”
“W-Well, um… I-It was just a… kiss, I guess…”
“Woooow!”
“Hasumin’s all grown up now!”
“What kind of kiss? Like, was it a grown-up kiss?”
“Um, it was… gentle. Kind of sweet…”
Barely through the front gates, Hasumin found herself surrounded by a circle of close girl friends.
At first they’d been genuinely worried—but the moment they saw how lively she looked, the switch flipped straight to teasing mode.
(Girls really do love talking about other people’s love lives, don’t they…)
Bombarded from every angle, Hasumin stood there blushing, rambling, and too flustered to even make it to her seat.
“Should we stop her? At this rate, she’s gonna spill every little secret, you know?”
As I watched Hasumin flustered and cornered by her friends, Nitta-san leaned in beside me.
I’d already told Nitta-san that Hasumin would be coming to school today.
And of course, I’d told her we were now dating.
Last night, the three of us—me, Hasumin, and Nitta-san—had started a group chat and gone over everything together.
Naturally, we didn’t bring up the whole ‘other world’ business.
“It’s not like we’ve done anything shady. Everyone was just worried about Hasumin, and it’s only natural they’re excited she’s back.”
A kiss, at least, is pretty standard for high schoolers.
“Barely started dating and already being the doting boyfriend—well, if Oda-kun’s fine with it, I guess I can’t complain. Honestly, I’m kind of jealous of how loved she is.”
While we were talking, Hasumin finally managed to break away from the crowd and hurried over.
“Ughhh… that was exhausting…”
“Rough morning, huh? That’s the price of being popular, Hasumin.”
Not that I’d ever say it aloud, but it’s a far cry from how people forgot my name after summer break.
Saying something that petty to your new girlfriend? That’s not just bad boyfriend material—that’s bad person territory.
“Popular? More like I was everyone’s plaything. They were toying with me.”
“You flailing around all flustered was kind of adorable, though.”
“You just say that stuff with a straight face… You dummy, Shuhei-kun. But I love you.”
Hasumin looked up at me with a shy, upward glance, her face tilted ever so slightly down.
—And then,
“Yes, yes. You two can be as lovey-dovey as you want, but maybe remember I’m standing right here?”
Nitta-san muttered with an exaggerated sigh.
“M-Mei… it’s, uh… you know, that kind of thing…”
“Don’t mind me, just a third wheel crashing your private little world. I’ll go back to my seat now.”
“N-No, don’t be like that! It’s been forever since we talked—let’s chat some more, right Shuhei-kun?”
“Yeah, you’re right. It’s been a while since the three of us had a proper conversation.”
“Well, if you both say so, then I guess I’ll stay.”
“Of course you should! Right, Shuhei-kun?”
“Naturally.”
And so—
The peaceful school life of me, Oda Shuhei—the hero who saved the other world, Orphermaus, and made it safely home—began anew.
(The End)
tl/n: Thank you so much for joining me on this journey and reading all the way to the end! If you enjoyed the series and would like to support my work, consider buying me a coffee on Ko-fi — every little bit helps and means the world to me.