The monsters were growling.
Right in front of me stood my deskmate, Lucas. Beside him was a beastman with cat ears—no, wolf ears? Honestly, I couldn't even tell anymore, and this felt like the worst possible moment to figure it out.
And there we were, being attacked by monsters I had never seen in my entire life.
How did I get here?
Oh. Right.
I followed Lucas into the woods.
Why did I do that?
Why am I like this?
Why is my luck so tragically, painfully, violently bad???
If I survive this, I swear I'm never following anyone anywhere ever again.
***********************************************
Just one month ago, my life was normal.
On my way home from school, I saw someone save a child from being hit by a car. That person was Lucas—the most popular guy in school.
Everyone knew about him. An orphan who joined through a scholarship. A Class B student, while I was in Class A. A sports champion, admired by almost everyone—basically a school idol. Even teachers used him as an example of the "perfect student."
I wanted to walk away. I really did. I didn't want to get involved in anything unnecessary.
But Lucas noticed me.
Since it would be rude to just turn away after being seen, I decided to at least greet him.
Big mistake.
Lucas looked… annoyed.
His blue eyes turned sharp and cold as he glared at me—then he walked off without saying a single word.
I stood there, completely confused.
Even after I got home, I couldn't stop thinking about him. I felt embarrassed and angry at the same time.
Why was he so rude?
I should've ignored him.
It's not like we're friends or anything—why am I thinking about something that doesn't matter?
I tried to brush it off.
At school, I saw Lucas again. He looked worried about something, but this time I didn't bother myself with him and walked straight to my class.
That's when my bad luck officially began.
Soon after, Lucas and I ended up in the same class.
Not only that—we became deskmates.
From that day on, my desk was constantly flooded with love letters meant for him. My friends kept asking me about Lucas like I was his personal assistant.
Annoyed beyond reason, I started dumping all the letters directly onto his desk.
But there was something about Lucas that only I knew—something I discovered two or three weeks after becoming his deskmate.
Lucas wasn't as kind as he looked.
He hid my homework and got me punished by the teacher.
He tripped me on purpose.
He even made me do his share of classroom cleaning by pretending to be sick.
I asked the teacher if I could change seats.
The teacher refused.
Assigned by roll numbers.
As if roll numbers cared about my suffering.
One evening, while returning from a friend's house, I noticed Lucas walking down the street with a suspicious-looking man. The man wore a hood, and something about them made me uneasy.
I had seen that same man with Lucas once before.
Both times, they looked nervous.
Then a sudden breeze blew the hood off the man's head—
And I froze.
Cat ears.
On a guy.
"…I need more sleep," I muttered, blinking rapidly.
The ears didn't disappear.
Heart pounding, I hid behind a nearby tree.
Suspicion filled my head. What secret is my so-called deskmate hiding?
From that day on, I started paying extra attention to Lucas.
He's always late on Mondays… maybe he meets that man on Sundays.
And like any completely reasonable person—
I decided to follow him.
The next Sunday, I trailed Lucas to the woods near our school.
Lucas and the man were talking in a language I didn't understand. Then the man suddenly knelt and bowed his head to Lucas.
My eyes widened.
Ears again…?
I was right—the man had the same cat-like ears.
My heart pounded so loudly I almost forgot how to breathe.
Then—
Snap.
A twig broke under my foot.
Lucas turned.
Our eyes met.
I tried to run back to my car, but the man stepped in front of me, blocking my way.
"Did you follow me all the way here?" Lucas asked calmly.
"…."
"Good job," he said with a faint smile.
My heart dropped.
Good job?
Did he know I was following him the whole time?!
"I knew you were curious about me," he continued. "But following me all the way here? You're quite something."
"W-what are you?" I stammered.
"Me?" He tilted his head. "Don't you already know?"
"What are you going to do with me?"
"Hm… should I kill you?"
I froze. Terror flooded my chest. Is he serious? Am I actually going to die here?
"Pfft—hahaha!"
"…."
"I'm kidding," Lucas laughed. "Did you really think I'd kill you?"
Yes. Yes, I did.
"I apologize for following you," I said stiffly. "I'd like to leave now."
"You can't," Lucas replied.
"…What?"
"You can't leave," he repeated, smiling faintly. "Because you're coming with me."
What the hell is he talking about? Why would I go anywhere with this guy?
Before I could ask, the man interrupted.
"Your Highness! We don't have much time. We need to move."
My breath caught.
Your… Highness?
I turned to Lucas.
The teasing smile was gone.
In its place was a calm, sharp, commanding expression—
And somehow, I knew my normal life was officially over.