The distance from ME Corp to Senba Academy wasn't too long, nor was it too short. It was the kind of distance where taking a bus felt unnecessary, but walking would leave you a bit tired. Of course, Evan, now possessing a Stigma, didn't mind the physical exertion. He walked briskly, his mind preoccupied with thoughts of the Honkai, Raiden Mei, and the others.
"Yo, little bro, where are you rushing off to? It's about to get dark. If you're homeless, how about coming home with us? We'll take real good care of you~"
As the twilight painted the small path, Evan was stopped by three girls who looked like delinquents. Judging by the way their burning gazes sized him up and the flippant, excited tone in their voices, they weren't after his money.
What's it like to be hit on by a girl? Evan's feelings were complex: three parts helplessness, three parts surprise, and four parts philosophical contemplation.
If he just went along with these girls—who, despite being delinquents, were still quite attractive and, due to the scarcity of men, probably only ever got to experience yuri—would he really be the one losing out?
Practice is the sole criterion for testing truth. Evan believed that without investigation, one has no right to speak. But unfortunately, he didn't have the leisure for that right now. Compared to exploring philosophical answers with these insignificant passersby, he was much more concerned about not standing up Raiden Mei.
"No, thank you. I have something to do. Could you please let me pass?"
"You think we'd give up so easily after finally spotting a young, handsome boy? I'd say your luck is a bit off today. This street is pretty deserted. Even if you scream your lungs out, no one will come to save you."
With that, the trio of delinquents let out a cackle and began to close in on Evan.
This truly was the world of Honkai, where girls would say such things to a boy. If they were brutish, unattractive women without a shred of charm, that would be one thing. The problem was, in Evan's eyes, all three of them could be classified as "beautiful girls."
"...Actually, you're the ones with the bad luck."
Although Evan felt his self-training was of little use—the publicly available information online only taught basic hand-to-hand combat against people, not how to fight zombies, Honkai Beasts, or Herrschers—the current situation was a perfect opportunity to apply those ordinary fighting skills.
With a sigh, Evan burst forward with a speed unattainable by an ordinary person. He quickly closed the short distance between them, appeared behind the delinquents, and delivered three swift chops to the backs of their necks. Watching them collapse to the ground like ragdolls, completely defenseless, Evan adopted a thoughtful expression.
"Is it safe to just leave them passed out here?"
After some consideration, he strongly agreed with himself. While there probably weren't any male hooligans in this world, if they happened to fall victim to something sinister like human trafficking or organ harvesting, he would feel a bit guilty. After all, it was hard for Evan to feel any real hostility towards pretty girls trying to hit on him. Since they weren't enemies, he should be more considerate.
His gaze swept over the unconscious girls and landed on their sneakers.
Two minutes later, Evan revived the trio by pinching the philtrum under their noses, waking them up much earlier than they would have otherwise.
The delinquents slowly came to, dazedly looking at their unchanged surroundings before staring blankly at Evan for a long moment. They couldn't comprehend why he would knock them out only to wake them up again.
"You..."
"I thought about it, and just knocking you out was a bit inconsiderate. I woke you up for your own safety. You should be grateful. Bye-bye, I'm leaving now."
Seeing Evan turn to leave, the delinquents snapped back to their senses and one of them shouted.
"You think you can run after knocking us out so crudely? Sisters, let's get him!"
The three of them stood up menacingly, ready to give chase, but they immediately tripped and fell as soon as they took a step.
"Oh, right. To prevent you from causing more trouble after you woke up, I tied your shoelaces together with a few dead knots. Take your time untying them. Be patient."
With those final words, Evan was already disappearing into the distance. Hearing this, the tangled mess of girls finally looked down at their shoes. The laces of all three were tied together with more than five dead knots.
"...That guy. He looked so sunny and handsome, but he's capable of such mean little tricks."
One of the delinquents muttered resentfully as she struggled with the knots. The girl next to her spoke up timidly.
"Big Sis, I think that boy was actually quite nice. We were the ones with bad intentions, but he still thought about our safety. I mean, I don't think we would've been in any real danger lying here, but we could have caught a cold from the wind, right?"
"So? Am I supposed to thank him? This is so annoying! Why did he tie them so tight? Help me with this! I'm so mad!"
Five minutes later, the laces were untied. The disheveled trio stood up. The leader stared in the direction Evan had left for a long time, prompting one of her underlings to ask.
"Big Sis, should we chase him?"
"Chase him? It's too late... Do you think we'll ever see him again?"
"Huh?! Even if we do, we still can't beat him, can we? My neck still hurts."
"Is that so... I guess you're right... Let's go."