“I-I’m exhausted! I really need to study up on the correct way to handle things when the conversation turns to topics like that...”
After returning to Luminous Academy and parting ways with Melt and the other girls as they headed toward the female dormitory, Yugo grumbled to himself the moment he was finally alone.
He understood the girls’ feelings—or rather, their general intentions—to some extent, but he was currently racking his brain over the unanswerable question of what exactly he should have done in that situation.
He admitted he might have been a little forceful, but considering how hard he had worked to bring that chaos to a close, wasn't their attitude toward him a bit unreasonable? As he was lost in thought, a group of familiar faces approached from the opposite direction.
“Oh, it’s Marcos! Were you out training today, too? You’re really giving it your all!”
Yugo waved to Marcos Borg, who appeared to be heading back to the dormitory with his subordinates in tow.
Yugo meant to praise his hardworking friend for training so late into the evening, but Marcos’s reaction was decidedly strange.
“Fufufu... Yugo! To encounter you here... it seems we truly were born under such a star!”
“Huh?”
Yugo tilted his head in confusion at Marcos, who had begun laughing fearlessly and spouting nonsense.
Just as he was thinking that today seemed to be the day for all his friends to act bizarrely, Marcos pointed a finger straight at him and shouted with a theatrical, dignified air.
“My eternal rival, Yugo! Rejoice! I have reached the stage where I shall ascend to even greater heights! Soon, I will no longer lag behind you!”
“O-Oh, is that so? Well, that’s great, then...?”
“Fuhahahahaha! Reborn with humiliation as my fuel, I, who have mastered the modified Giga Scissors, have transformed into Neo Marcos! And even now, I am on the verge of further evolution! You could call it... yes... Neo Marcos Super!”
“...I’ve been thinking this for a while, but do you maybe have a terrible naming sense?”
Don’t go changing your name every five minutes like that one guy—or maybe he was a virus—who kept screaming ‘I am God!’ Yugo retorted internally.
He found himself imagining the worst-case scenario where Marcos eventually renamed himself something like ‘Neo Marcos Borg Super God,’ lost his remaining lives, reverted to the regular Marcos Borg, and then vanished into thin air. As he entertained these impossible thoughts, a slightly calmer Marcos spoke.
“Just you watch, Yugo! I will become strong! Strong enough to stand as your equal! I shall bid farewell to my weak and pathetic past self, break out of my shell, and step into the domain beyond! Look forward to that day, my eternal arch-rival!”
“Sure...? I’ll look forward to it.”
“Hahaha! Ha—hahaha!! I can still grow stronger! I’ll show you I can! Fuhahahahaha! Hahahahahahaha!”
“...What is he even talking about?”
Yugo muttered with a dubious expression as he watched Marcos stride back toward the dormitory, laughing uproariously with his subordinates following behind.
He thought the behavior was weird, but then again, he realized that in a certain sense, this might just be Marcos’s version of normal. With that thought, he made his way back to the Fifth Dormitory.
“And that’s basically what happened. Kind of weird, right?”
“Hahaha. I suppose so. I’m sure everyone is just getting restless with the school trip right around the corner.”
“Hmm... I get the feeling it didn’t have much to do with the school trip in Marcos’s case, though.”
Later that night, Yugo reported the day’s events to Ryuga in their shared room. Ryuga replied with an ambiguous smile.
Naturally, Ryuga did not mention that he was the one who had given Marcos the hint that sparked his growth—or that he was essentially the cause of his friend's strange behavior.
He figured Marcos would want to explain it himself eventually, and there was no need to spoil the surprise.
Of course, Ryuga was keeping his own secrets, but since Yugo hadn’t mentioned the incident involving Raiha’s swimsuit either, they were essentially even.
Yugo, still looking puzzled, grumbled to himself while tilting his head.
“I don’t know what Marcos is thinking. Talking about leaving his weak and pathetic self behind... he’s already plenty strong. He’s the kind of guy I can trust to watch my back without a second thought.”
“Fufu... True. He is far too self-deprecating. I think he could afford to have a bit more confidence...”
Ryuga had given him advice, but people did not change overnight.
Thinking that Marcos’s habit of belittling himself hadn't quite vanished yet, Ryuga agreed with Yugo, glad to see they were of the same mind.
After mulling it over, Yugo concluded that his friends would probably return to their usual selves before long and stopped worrying about it. He flopped down onto his bed and looked over at his partner.
“Well, I’m definitely looking forward to the school trip! What about you, Ryuga?”
“I am. Going on a long journey with friends you trust... my heart is dancing, too.”
“Right!? My heart is dancing!”
Mimicking the atmosphere of a certain ‘Neo Marcos Super’ type individual (the one who was likely a virus), Yugo gave Ryuga a bright smile.
Looking up at the ceiling, his chest swelling with anticipation for the upcoming journey, he whispered happily to himself.
“I can’t wait for this school trip! It’s going to be great!”