I let out a deep sigh as I rested my head on the cold, hard surface of the caffeine table. "Why am I still not waking up?" I pondered, feeling the weight of my situation settling heavily upon me.
It had been two years since I transmigrated, and like so many other stories, I found myself cast in the role of the villainess. My name was Stiella Hensel, a character from the popular otome game "Even in Darkness There is Light," set in a post-apocalyptic world overrun by zombies. I would have much preferred to be the game's heroine, Lily, but alas, fate had other plans for me.
In every route of the game, Stiella met a gruesome and terrifying end. She was the classic villainess - bratty, spoiled, and always looking down on others. In one route, a love interest even threw her in front of a horde of zombies out of anger. In another, she was bitten and tried to hide it, only to be shot in the head by a love interest when he found out. It seemed that no matter what path she took, death was always waiting for her at the end.
But for me, this wasn't just a game - it was my new reality. And to make matters worse, I found myself constantly getting blamed for things I didn't do, simply because of Stiella's reputation. It seemed that no matter how hard I tried to distance myself from her persona, I couldn't escape her shadow. As I sat there lost in thought, as I started banging my head on the table softly, a voice suddenly interrupted my musings.
"Oi! Stop hitting your head, do you wanna get even more dumber??" It was Carl Addison, one of the love interests in the game and Stiella's childhood friend.
Carl's route had been the first one I played, and while he had shown some sympathy for Stiella after her death, he had also abandoned her to go find Lily when they got separated during a zombie attack. It was a decision he regretted deeply, and one that haunted him every night. As Carl stood there in front of me, his curly black hair and dark eyes shining in the dim light, I couldn't help but feel a twinge of annoyance. "Go away," I snapped, "I might really become dumb from being next to you since you're a bad influence."
But Carl just chuckled in response, clearly unperturbed by my insults. "What? Am I too handsome that you can't even look away?" he teased. I rolled my eyes and rested my head on the table, wondering what other twists and turns my transmigration story would bring.
The tinkling of a girl's voice interrupted our conversation, "Stiella, I got the foods." A small smile crept across my face as I welcomed Ruby's return. I didn't want to continue talking to Carl, who would abandon me at any moment for his crush.
"Ruby, you're back!" I waved my hand happily, feeling grateful for her presence.
"You have changed a lot these past two years," Carl remarked as he sat down on a chair next to mine.
I glanced over at him, not really in the mood for small talk. I didn't want to risk my life for someone who couldn't make smart decisions.
I couldn't help but think to myself, 'I don't want to die because of your dumb decisions in the future.'
Ruby took a seat in the empty chair beside me, a grin spreading across her face. "Look, I got a burger for you!" she exclaimed.
"Why are you here?" she glared at Carl.
Ruby was the first person I had met after being reincarnated. When I woke up that day, I found myself in her house. She explained that while walking home from school, someone threw a stone at my head, and I fainted. She was walking down the same street and found me lying on the ground, so she took me to her house.
It was a mess, and I was extremely confused and acting like a crazy person. However, she was patient with me, thinking I had lost my memories, and helped me a lot during those days. I couldn't remember seeing her in the game, so she must be a side character or something. But how could an angel like her be a mere side character? With her curly long blond hair, blue eyes, baby face, and warm smile, she looked just like an angel, and no one could convince me otherwise.
As she was never shown or talked about in the game, there was a possibility that she would die when the apocalypse started. But I wouldn't let that happen. I would protect her at any cost. Come to think of it, she was the only side character with such a catchy appearance. Was she really a side character, or was I forgetting something? Regardless, I pushed these thoughts aside and focused on enjoying my time with this cute angel.
"Don't worry. I'm not here to look at your ugly face," Carl interjected, breaking my train of thought.
"Trash's opinion doesn't matter, behhh," Ruby retorted.
As always, they kept arguing back and forth. "Stiella?" Ruby called out, bringing my attention back to her. "What's wrong? Is the burger not to your liking? I thought you liked burgers, which is why I bought one for you," she said, her face falling with concern.
"Ah, no, it's not that. I'm just so touched by how caring you are towards me," I said, feeling guilty for making her upset.
"Ew," Carl interjected, looking disgusted.
"You can leave if you don't like it here. You were uninvited anyway," I snapped, glaring at Carl.
"Ouch. Is this how you talk to your childhood friend? My heart hurts," he said dramatically, a smirk on his face.
Time passed by just like that, and soon the tiffin time came to an end.
As Carl left to attend his class, Ruby and I made our way towards our own classroom. As usual, she couldn't stop gushing about how incredible her brother was, making me wonder if he was just as good-looking as her. With his blonde hair, blue eyes, and angelic features, I couldn't help but feel curious about him. Unfortunately he has already graduated from high school.
As we approached our classroom, Ruby bid me farewell and continued on her way. I entered the classroom, and as I did, the room fell silent. It had been two years since I started attending this college, and I had always tried to be kind to everyone, but it seemed like I was still an outsider to my peers.
Taking my seat, I heard whispers from behind me. They were talking about how I had allegedly tried to poison a girl who had confessed her love to Carl a few days ago. I was taken aback by this rumor and couldn't help but wonder how it came to be.
As I was wondering, my thoughts drifted back to yesterday after class. The scorching heat had left me feeling drained, and Ruby and I had been craving something cold. We stumbled upon a vending machine and were on our way to get a drink when we saw a girl crying by the bench.
I vaguely recalled seeing her with Carl the other day. Had she been rejected by him, too? I couldn't help but think that he was not worth shedding tears over. He was as dull as a brick wall and twice as thick-headed.
I bought two drinks, hoping to offer one to the distressed girl. As I approached her, she stood up, looking startled. "Hey," I said, handing her the drink. "Drink this. I hope you feel better soon."
After giving her a small smile, I left with Ruby, thinking nothing more of the encounter. But apparently, my simple act of kindness had been twisted into a sinister plot to harm someone.
Sighing, I leaned back in my chair and tried to focus on the lesson, despite the negative attention that seemed to follow me everywhere.
"I heard Stiella was smiling really creepily when she gave that drink to that girl," one of them said taking my attention once again.
Ouch. I was just trying to act kind. Sometimes they sound really childish. Well, let me just mind my own business from now on.
"Poor Ruby... she got stuck with this demon," the back bench said again.
They know that I can hear them, right?
"I heard Stiella is treating Ruby like a slave," the girl behind me sighed as she said that.
How I wish my classroom was the same as Ruby's. It's so triggering listening to the gossip about me. Also, why isn't the teacher coming yet?
Oh, speaking of the devil, the teacher came. He was also a support character, a pervert character.
He tries to rape the main character and ends up getting caught by the most dangerous love interest... the psychopath one.
That psychopath stabs him to death. The poor teacher died even before any route started, but he deserved it.
Lily finds out about it in the psychopath's route later.
That psychopath is a red flag, so it's a good thing I still haven't seen him even though we are in the same college.
The class ended, though I couldn't understand a thing the teacher said. "Well, whatever, since the apocalypse will start soon, it's not like I have to give exams."
"Apocalypse?" someone said from behind me.
"Gahhhhh!" I shouted because of the sudden voice. I looked behind to see that person.
It was Carl.
Why are you here?" I asked coldly.
"Because I missed you, obviously," he replied, winking at me. I rolled my eyes, wondering why he couldn't take a hint.
"Go away," I said, trying to hide my annoyance.
"Why are you being so cold to me?" he asked, looking hurt. "Is it because of the chicken you've been hanging around with?"
I couldn't help but laugh at the absurdity of his insult. Ruby, my best friend, looked nothing like a chicken. Or did she? I imagined her as a fluffy little chick, waddling around, and I couldn't help but giggle.
"Hey! Who are you calling a chicken?" Ruby's voice cut through my thoughts, and I turned to see her marching towards us, her face red with anger.
I couldn't help myself; I started laughing again. Ruby glared at me, and I could tell she was furious.
"Stop laughing at me!" she shouted.
"You stupid donkey, from which side do I look like a chicken?" she continued, and I couldn't help but laugh harder.
"You're dumb, just like a donkey!" Carl retorted, and I could see that the two of them were on the verge of a full-blown argument.
"Oh yeah? And you are short, annoying, and yellow just like a chicken!" Carl replied.
A donkey and a chicken? I ended up laughing, which made both of them look at me.
"It's been awhile since I heard you laugh like that," Carl said while laughing too.
"Ahahahaha, your laugh sounds like a duck's voice," Ruby said.
Duck? What is this? A zoo? First chicken, then donkey, and now a duck?
"Ahhem," I cleared my throat feeling embarrassed cause of the sudden laughing of mine. "Ruby, let's go." I took Ruby's hand and started walking away from Carl.
As We walked outside, and I could see that Ruby was still fuming.
"I'm still mad at you for not defending me and for laughing when he called me a chicken," she pouted.
"I'm sorry, Ruby," I said, trying to make amends. "It's just that you're so cute, like a little chicken."
"If you're going to apologize, you should do it with a good excuse!" she replied, still angry.
At that time, I had no clue that hanging out with Ruby too much would make things more danger and difficult in the future.