Magiclad Girls and a Mob who will save them, or else the world is doomed!

Chapter 95: Former Bocchi Aoi

The awareness of the great ocean.

[Aoi Side]

From a young age, Aoi had always walked the lonely path of solitude. Despite being a girl, her intimidating gaze and her heterochromia had caused people to shy away from her like ripples in the water. In kindergarten, she had only two options: play alone or with the teacher because the teacher had to look after the other kids. So, she spent her days making sand pudding by herself in the sandbox or playing with a single stick in a large sand mountain, trying not to topple it.

Indoors, it was solitary games of concentration and coloring. She couldn't make any friends...

But, even in those days, not everything was lonely or unpleasant. When she got home, her grandmother was always there. Her parents were busy with work, and her grandmother always took care of her.

Her grandmother would always put Aoi on her lap, pat her head, praise her, teach her various things, and read books to her.

[Aoi is so cute, why don't boys and girls come near you?]

[...Cute?]

[Yes, you're the cutest in the world.]

[Only Mom, Dad, and Grandma say that...]

[You have well-defined features, beautiful hair, clear eyes... like a princess.]

[...Is that so?]

[Yes...]

At that time, Aoi believed everything her grandmother said. But, she still had some doubts. Why, if she was like a princess, did she not have any friends? That question remained.

Her grandmother must have understood her anxiety and doubt. She patted Aoi's head again.

[It might be hard to see Aoi's charm. But someday, someone will come who understands your charm and walks alongside you.]

[Really? If you're lying, you're a...... thief, Grandma.]

[Oh, it's not a lie.]

[Cross your heart?]

[Of course.]

[Will it be someone like a prince, Grandma?]

[I wonder... I don't know that, but I'm sure someone who cherishes Aoi will appear, apart from your family.]

She believed those words for a long time. Someday, friends, or a prince...

But they never came, and her grandmother got sick and passed away. Her parents were kind, but they were busy with work. Aoi felt like she spent a lot of lonely hours.

But still, she believed her grandmother's words.

When she entered junior high, she decided to start anew. She checked the news and newspapers every day, prepared herself to be approachable at any time, and went to school.

But everyone said she was scary and always angry... So, she got a bit sentimental and... That's when a girl approached her... She accidentally stumbled through the conversation... and it became awkward...

She felt like an outcast.

She just didn't fit in...

People around her kept their distance because they thought she was always in a bad mood.

At that moment, Aoi doubted her grandmother's words. She couldn't make friends. There was no prince. She wasn't cute, and she wasn't like a princess. No one walked alongside her.

She was alone.

High school brought with it a sea of bubbly, giggly girls all around. Somewhere deep in her heart, she had hoped for change, but in the end, nothing really did. Was it her harsh gaze, her lack of initiative, or her inability to hold a conversation that was the problem?