The Evil Scientist is Too Competent-Chapter 169: New Semester (1)

Time Passed.

Surprisingly, a mundane routine persisted without any significant incidents.

One month, two months—nearly three months passed uneventfully.

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Well, it makes sense. Villains can't just roam around freely anymore...

Villains were now tracked using Evilus Agents, exterminated through coordinated operations with heroes, and prevented from turning rogue by Moonlit systems.

The world had already become a place that no longer tolerated the existence of villains. A time had come when heroes were no longer needed.

As I spent my days in this peaceful routine, I glanced at the calendar and let out a sigh.

“Ah... I have to go to work.”

It was already March.

The start of a new academic year.

This year, I had been appointed as a professor at E University.

I don’t want to go...

But of course—

That meant I had to report to E University.

I would have to leave the heaven where I could laze around and indulge myself without anyone nagging me, only to descend into the human world full of constant political squabbles.

Still, as no one can live doing only what they want, this was another one of those unavoidable tasks. Grumbling all the way, I headed to E University.

*****

“—This concludes today’s orientation.”

The professor wrapped up the first lecture, gathered the documents, and tucked them under his arm.

Just as he seemed about to leave, he turned back to the students, as if suddenly remembering something, and spoke again.

“University is not high school. Until now, simply following the set tracks may have been enough, but... not anymore. From now on, you must carve out your own paths. Think deeply about how you can do that.”

With those final words, the professor exited the classroom.

Left behind, the students began chatting or packing up to head to their next class.

Moved by the professor’s last remarks, Aile sat in her seat, replaying the words she had just heard.

“You must carve out your own path...”

No matter how many times she repeated it, her heart raced.

After all, what had her life been like up until now?

Born unwanted and powerless, she had been thrown into a prison disguised as a school. A place where it was natural for half-grown beasts in the guise of students to torment her.

But now?

She had defied the tracks laid out for her and entered university purely by her own strength.

From here, what she could achieve would depend entirely on herself.

“A-Alright! First, I need to make friends—”

With that determination, Aile glanced around.

Her eyes shifted subtly, taking in the people around her.

Occasionally, someone made eye contact with her, and each time, she responded with a bright smile.

Yet, for some reason, they quickly looked away and began whispering among themselves.

H-Huh?

Sensing something was off, Aile stood up and cautiously approached a woman who had met her gaze earlier.

But the moment Aile approached, the woman and her friend stood up and hurriedly left the classroom.

Watching that, Aile quickly grasped the situation—people were avoiding her.

Even someone like Aile wasn’t so oblivious that she couldn’t notice that much.

W-Why?

There was only one thing she couldn’t figure out—why they were avoiding her.

She had even brought out her most treasured magical-girl collection for this day...

A cute dress covered in frills, rare merchandise from the first, second, and third seasons of Magical Girl, magical-girl pins, keychains—she had prepared them all.

Despite arming herself with such a secret weapon, Aile had not only failed to make friends but was outright rejected.

Feeling dejected, she trudged toward her next class, fiddling with her smartphone.

The only friend she could rely on—the Evilus Agent—responded to her texts.

—I want to make friends at university! What should I do?

[Start by talking to someone. Inviting them to eat together is a great way to build connections.]

Oh, I see.

With newfound determination, Aile approached another woman after her next class ended.

“H-Hey—”

“Hm? What’s up?”

“W-Would you like to... eat lunch together?”

Hearing Aile’s timid invitation, the woman scratched her cheek awkwardly.

“Ah... I already made plans with a friend...”

“Oh...”

“I-I’m sorry?”

Rejected again, Aile trudged out of the classroom, her steps heavy.

This time, her path led somewhere no other students dared to enter—a direction rumored to drag you straight into graduate school the moment you stepped inside.

The professor’s office.

*****

“Uwaaah—! It’s not working! You stupid AI!”

“Hmm... isn’t the real problem here that you’re the one who ran straight to my office after being rejected just once, Aile?”

“W-What? You expect me to just brush it off and talk to someone else after being rejected? That’s shameless!”

Aile looked up at me as if I had just said something unforgivably cruel. From my perspective, however, the fact that she was here whining after a single rejection was even more ridiculous.

I let out a sigh and frowned slightly as I looked at Aile. Her outfit was so outlandish that it was hard to believe any self-respecting adult would wear something like that. This wasn’t some cosplay event—she was supposed to be a university student.

“Don’t you think your outfit’s a bit much, Aile?”

“Huh? Too much? This is a magical girl costume that you can’t even buy anymore! It shows my passion for magical girls and lets people know how loyal I am once I become their friend! It’s my treasure—just because you’re a scientist doesn’t mean—”

“Okay, okay. I get it.”

I cut her off mid-rant, covering her mouth before my ears burst from her barrage of words.

“If you’re that desperate to make friends, why don’t you contact your class rep? You have their number, right?”

“...Th-The class rep is...”

“What about them? A class rep is supposed to care about the whole class, so if you say you don’t have any friends, they’d probably help you out.”

“N-No way. Not them....”

“Oh, come on. What’s the big deal?”

I said that as I pulled out my smartphone and quickly looked up the profile of the freshman class rep for the astronomy department. With my authority as a professor, it was effortless.

When I saw their ID photo, I instantly understood why Aile was so hesitant.

Flashy.

Sure, Aile was flashy too, but this person was stylish—deliberately so. It was obvious they knew exactly how to present themselves.

To put it in Aile’s blunt terms, they looked like the type who’d flirt their way through life.

This kind of person was completely at odds with Aile. Unlike Aile, who was introverted, quiet, and only got excited about things she liked, this type of person was the outgoing, hyper-social kind.

In fact, the people who had bullied Aile back in school were often this exact type. It wasn’t hard to see why she’d want to avoid them.

“So what now? Are you planning to give up on making friends altogether?”

“N-No, I want to make friends...”

“Then you need to talk to people.”

“B-But... I don’t want to be friends with just anyone. I’d rather find someone I really click with.”

“Oh, for crying out loud.”

Aile was clearly hoping to find someone with a personality like hers.

But in my experience, people like Aile rarely got along with others just like them. It was almost like a form of self-loathing.

“If you don’t make any friends today, the odds of staying friendless are only going to grow. You’re going to end up eating alone again today, aren’t you?”

“W-Will you eat with me...?”

“A professor eating lunch with a student? Do you have any idea what kind of rumors that would start?”

Shaking my head at her absurd request, I pulled out my last resort.

Since getting Aile to approach someone on her own seemed about as likely as sprouting wings, I needed a solution where someone else would approach her instead.

I slid a club application form across the desk and handed it to her.

“Here. Take this.”

“W-What is this?”

“A club application form. Fill it out and write down the name of the club you want to create. I’ll approve it for you. That way, you can pick and choose your own members.”

Surely even she could manage this much.

As I spoke, Aile’s eyes lit up, and she asked excitedly,

“Really? I can create any club I want!?”

“Uh? Well—within reason...”

“Here!”

Before I could finish, Aile had already filled out the form and handed it back to me.

When I saw what she had written, I couldn’t help but chuckle.

“You’re unbelievable...”

“W-Wait! Is it no good?”

“No, it’s not that...”

Written on the form was:

Magical Girl Club (Only Real Magical Girls Allowed).

Seriously, who in their right mind would join something like this?

Even as I smiled wryly, I went ahead and submitted the application.

I hadn’t expected Aile to change overnight anyway.

She had four years, after all. Wasting a little time wasn’t the end of the world.

*****

“Huh?”

Scrolling through the school’s official app, Snowah froze when she spotted a newly registered club. “Magical Girl Club (Only Real Magical Girls Allowed)”?

It almost seemed like a club founded by an actual magical girl.

Yet, as far as she knew, there weren’t any other magical girls enrolled here besides herself.

Unable to contain her curiosity, she decided to at least take a look and see who had created it. If it turned out to be some sweaty otaku’s delusional creation, she’d just give them a good kick and leave.

Arriving at the clubroom, Snowah knocked a few times before immediately opening the door.

“Excuse me—”

“W-Welcome!”

The moment a woman popped out from inside, Snowah’s first wave of relief came from realizing this wasn’t some shady men’s club made to satisfy weird fantasies.

But that relief quickly gave way to unease.

Her eyes instinctively scanned the woman’s outfit and features, and cold sweat trickled down her back as she cautiously opened her mouth.

“...An Evil Magical Girl?”

“W-Wha—? How did you know...?”

“Ah, um, well, you see—”

That brief moment of hesitation was her last chance to escape.

Unfortunately, Aile’s sharp gaze locked onto her, and in the next instant, her eyes widened in recognition.

“Ah—! You’re Snowah, aren’t you? Aren’t you!?”

“...N-No, I’m not.”

“Huh? You totally are! Are you doubting my sharp instincts?”

She was right.

But what could she do? Admitting it here was out of the question.

Snowah tried her best to avoid meeting the gaze of this lunatic magical girl standing before her and frantically thought to herself—

‘Why the hell is this psycho here!?’

This was the same lunatic who had shattered her bones so many times that she’d lost count.

Sure, she had healed her right afterward, but that was an experience Snowah never wanted to relive.

“Ah! So you’re here to join the club too, right, Snowah!?”

“Wh-What?”

“Yes? No?”

Aile’s eyes trembled as she leaned closer, and Snowah felt the murderous intent radiating off of her.

It wasn’t explicit, but it was enough for Snowah to instinctively understand—if she said no, she might not make it out of this room intact.

In the end, she had no choice but to nod.

Watching Aile jump around the room and shout “Hooray!” three times, Snowah was overwhelmed with the urge to bolt out the door.

But her legs had turned stiff with fear. Running wasn’t an option.