And, there is dark. And dark. And roughness. Someone sure chose a bad sack to put a person in.

Really rude.

And someone is carrying me. If only I weighed so much that they couldn't. 

One disadvantage of being a cute girl is that you are extreamly light.

So....can I skip time? This is kinda boring. Wand wand, take me to future.

But I don't have a wand. They took it from me. Very impolite of them.

 0/10. Would not get kidnapped again.

Huh. Very sad. Do I have to wait then? Oh my, how much time it has been since I had to wait?

Was it months? Or years? When was it when Vivian used to lock me in my room? 

When did I entered this school?

Oh, but I am seated now. Nice.

The sack is removed from me. Double Nice.

"So, Flare, how do you do?"

"Vivi! I am doing fin-, oh, wait. Ahem. How do you do?"

"Umu, so, you must be wondering what you are doing here."

Oh yeah, here. Where is here? Here is a dark room? A square one. With lots of others men here.

Wait...could this be.

A mixer!

Ababababbababab. I am not quite ready for this.

"Viv, no, my heart is not ready yet~"

"I quite don't care Flare. I used to care, but I have stopped caring. I can't help but not care. Have you ever felt that way? To be able to do nothing, so much nothing that you can't help getting bored to the pits of hell where there is nothing but more boredom and you can do nothing to stop it other than to see everything you have built up till now fall?"

"Uh.. I mean, I built a sand castle once. That kind of crumbled down."

Viv bit her lower lip, breathed so heavily I felt it on my skin.

"Flare. I am like you, you know?

I came from Earth, just walking down the street when it happened. Without my permission.

Without my permission a truck rammed into me

Without my permission I was bought here

Without my permission I was told to fight this Demon Lord thing.

Without my permission I had to relearn things from start.

So many things, Flare, so annoying. I couldn't take it. The annoying people. People who wouldn't believe me, who doubted me. 

And why would I do it? I had just one wish. Marry the prince.

It was a senseless, shelfish, seldom chosen wish. But he was the only reason I wanted to live. 

And it got fufilled one day. When I achieved my magic. My magic as the hero, the power to make friends.

You, Flare, do you know why I am telling you this?"

"If you kill the Demon Lord, the magic disappears?"

"Correct, I am still baffled how you reach the conclusion. But I suppose God helped you. Nevertheless, your explanation is wrong. It is a simple case of...I don't know, balance? Yin-yang? But magic originates from both Demon Lord and Hero.

When you read them, tales of other heroes, you will find something. They all are horribly weak. 

But for some reason when near the Demon Lord, they awaken some sort of power. Power of "friendship" God calls it. Weird name considering it has nothing to do with friends. It strips the hero of his powers, and defeats the demon lord."

"Oh my, so you would be lonely?"

"Yes, Flare. I would be so lonely. No one would love me without my magic.

But you defeated the Demon Lord for me, so everything is fine, isn't it?"

"Of course! And I would be your friend forever!"

"Friend? 

Let's see. Flare, truth to be told, I don't know what to do with you."

"Me?"

"See Flare, friends...they are this clockwork. You have to see the power of everyone and assign roles to them. Only then would we be able to have team work. Use the specialties of everyone.

Flare, you are a problem in the formula. You don't fit anywhere."

"Eh? I'll work hard! Sometimes..."

"But...what to do with you? You see, my plan was to just have you deal the demon lord. But, friends. Flare, do you promise to never ever ever ever betray me in your entire life."

"Yes!"

"And take it to your grave."

"Yes!."

"Then, congrats. You are friends with the princess. We are friends."

"Hehe. And Claire too."

"Huh? Why her?"

"Because...she is nice?"

"Is that so. I shall consider it. You are free to go."

"Great!" I exclaimed as the knots were being opened, "By the way, what about my wand?"

"Hm? I'll return it. I want to play with it for a while."

"Okay~~"

I stand up and just walk out of the door. Ala? This was just a storage box? Really! I am still in school, just outside a shed.

Wow, I didn't even knew it.

Come to think of it, where is Claire? Hmmmm. If I had my wand, I could still go to her.

Hehe. I didn't told Viv this, but I can all my wand back. Hehee. Still, she should be knowing this, it's common sense, is it not? She is from Earth right?

Anyhow, wish washie, my wand, come to me back please!

Quite contrary to what I say, my wand doesn't come flying to me, it magically appears in my hand.

Sworry, I shall return it back.

Magic is really con-vi-nient.

Spin spin spin take me to wherever Claire is.

And I am here!...in front of a hut?

No no no no. Don't call it a hut. It's more like a apartment flat. The kind with a door. But on ground floor. So, like the door, its actually touching the Earth.

...

Yeah, I am bad at explaining stuff, let it be a hut.

So, I check if the door is opened, and it indeed was.

"Claire!" I announce banging the door open, "I've come to play!"

Inside however, was not a festive mood.

The room was completely littered with papers. So many papers.

Bundles of notebooks and books and papers.

"Ala? Isn't this that thing?" I ask while picking up one of the papers, "Magic circle?"

"I am not looking for a maid."

"I am not applying as one either, but..say, what does this circle do?"

"It..is a voice amplifier."

"Oh wow. Can I try?"

"You can't. It needs a conductor ink I cannot afford."

"Oh. So this is?"

"Normal ink. Its just a scribbling."

"Don't say that, it's beautiful."

"Would you get out, please?"

"Nopa doodle do. Nope."

"I am not here to entertain you."

"Umu? What are you doing then?"

"Packing. I need to sell this."

"Oh, you are graduating?"

"No. No. I..I.*gulp*. Maid, listen, I..I..I am..I wan, I wan.."

"What is it?"

"Shut up! Shut the..up! Don't say a word. Just listen. Maid. I. Am. I. Am. Going to. To. T-t-to."

"Is it something hard to say?"

"Shut up.."

I come closer to Claire and hold her cheeks. 

"Just say it, one word, okay? I'll understand all."

She took more deep breaths and shivered. I saw her legs trembling so I caught her, and she hugged me.

A big hug, the king where you burrow your face into someone's chest.

"What is it?"

"Maid. Why did you take so long?"

"I was busy."

"I had the door opened. I made a lot of noise. I waited. I waited for someone. Anyone could come. Yet. Ye-yet. No one did."

"I did."

"You did." she said in a muffed voice.

"There there." I slowly felt my blouse getting warmer. 

Oh my, no one came to her graduation. So sad. Of course she will cry.

"I." she started again, "I want to live."

"Of course."

"I don't want to die."

"Of course, no one is killing you."

"Bu-bu-but. I. I, I really. I. I. Wanna. Want to. I want. I want to...d-d-die." 

There was an unnatural silence after that, as if she had stopped breathing.

"What could you mean? Why would you kill yourself?"

"I, I, I don't wanna. Bu-bu*sniff* I can't, I can, I can not, I can not live."

"Why can't you live?"

But I got no answer. Just like when Viv was crying, Claire too was not short of breath. Just taking deep breaths. Deep fast breaths. 

I slowly patted her back. I don't know what to do in these situations.

In my world, only babies cried. And we would give them milk.

I don't know this world where adults cry.

I have nothing to do here.

My friend is struggling, she is in pain. Yet, I don't know what to do.

All I can do is to pat her, hold her hand and stay with her.

Soon the breathing calmed, but she didn't speak.

Should I ask again?

"It's okay, I am here." I tested the waters

"You are worthless."

"I see."

"You can do nothing."

"I see."

"You came here."

"I did."

"...

*sigh*

I am...stupid.

I have nothing in life, no talent. 

There is nothing in my life where I can rest easy.

Everywhere there are rivals.

The only thing I had was hard work. And tutors.

I am stupid, but I could ask people.

I am bad in singing, but I practiced.

I am bad at studying, but I practice."

"I see. Sounds like you are a talented girl"

"That isn't a talent."

"It is. No one works as hard as you, you know?"

"Shut up.

An year ago, I woke up in here. This body. 

And I lost everything."

"It isn't that bad, if you think studies are everything, then I would be wayyyyy low on the food chain."

"My family."

"Hmu?"

"They didn't suspect anything.

There daughter got swapped. And they didn't noticed."

"Well, you two looked similar."

"No. They loved her. She was better than me. More polite. More...princess than me. A perfect daughter. They no longer need me."

"That's sooo untrue! Have you tried telling them!"

"I...wrote a letter."

"What was their reply?"

"We are giving you money, no need to beg. But please don't stoop so low as to impersonate our daughter."

Oof. That was harsh. 

"It's okay, they will realise some day."

"Flare... I can't live like this."

"Live like what?"

"I am a vain girl. I am selfish. I torment others for my enjoyment. I can't live this life. I want to die."

"You don't." I said with sadness and anger.

"I do! I am going to kill myself!" she said with conviction.

"You are not." I said, summoning as much anger as I can.

"I am going to! What can you do to stop me!?"

"I'll stay with you! I'll latch on like a magnet."

"I hate you!"

"...you do?"

"Uh, I mean. No, not that way."

"Say, Claire. If you hate me. Will you live?"

"Huh?"

"If everyone in the entire world hates me. And that results in saving you. I'll do it."

"Uh, wha. No, that doesn't make any sense."

"So you won't die today?"

"No. Not...today" 

"Nice, okay? Now how about you pack these later an-"

"It doesn't solve the problem." Claire said again in that sobbing voice. The voice of suffocation. The voice where you can't breath.

"What do you mean?"

"How does, how does this solve anything! My life is still ruined!"

"SHUT UPPP!!!!!!!

WHY CAN'T ANYONE LISTEN TO ME!!!!

JUST STAY HAPPY, YOU IDIOT!!!

DON'T THINK OF THAT STUFFF!!!!!"

"IT-IT DOESN'T WORK THAT WAY!"

Huuuuuuhhhhhhhhhhhh.

Hell,

This is hell.

I died and went to hell.

There was nothing to say, I am talking with idiots.

Idiots who can't follow a simple request.

Idiots who doubt me again and again.

I close the door after me, I was outside.

Someone important once said to me,

"If you can't find a hero, become one."

However the tables are turned here, so impressive. So hilarious.

Claire didn't even come after me. She must be crying in a corner.

We had a fight right now,

We are friends, yet we had a fight.

This can not continue.

In this world. This world has strange people.

There are strange people living here, people who are always correct.

The person who locks me in the room has a story.

The person who wants to die has a story.

Even a literal demon has a story.

This is hell, I see. A hell where everyone is correct, and there is no wrong.

A hell where there is no bad guy.

I'll create one.

If you can't find a villian. Become one.

-Touhomo Makura