An interesting fact.
The day after that incident, a news article reported that a crazy duo had robbed a bank in the black market. Even though there was no mention of me and Shiroko’s identities, I received countless messages.
From Hoshino, I heard a whiny complaint about why I couldn’t even play the role of a pillow for the old man while hanging out with Shiroko, and I unconsciously thought, “Well, maybe just a nap…?”
No, well… considering I had already done it once before.
But I promptly brushed that thought aside because there was no way I could seriously reject someone who didn’t seem to actually want to hear a “no.”
Even though the results of all my previous attempts to refuse were all identical disasters, sleeping together was still a big no-no.
If Hoshino had clung to me while saying, “The choice only lies with the strong,” I would have had a rough time, but she basically understood consideration. In other words, she wasn’t the type to insist on something when I had clearly shown that I was uncomfortable.
Well, that’s what I thought.
[Mika, why don’t you have some fun with this old guy?]
[Um, Hoshino-chan? Fun? Saying that about a regular nap makes it sound like something very unhealthy.]
[Eh? It’s not just a regular nap!]
[Wow.]
[Well, should I call it a joke? But, instead of that, when you come to Abydos next time, could you hang out with the old guy a bit?]
It seemed that Hoshino’s thoughts were just slightly different from mine, but that was that.
By the way, having fun with the old guy. That really gives off a peculiar vibe. I feel like the word choice might be a bit off.
Aside from that, Haruna shot straight to the point, asking if it was okay for me to still do this while she was trying not to cause trouble.
I speculated that Wakamo, who had yet to properly relieve her pent-up destructive instincts, was expressing some disappointment.
Saori displayed a similar reaction, though the reason was quite different.
And even though she knew I would never get hurt, Atsuko kindly asked if there were any injuries, along with various messages I received from others.
In fact, the message that struck me the most was from none other than our Student Council President.
[…There was a reason for that, right?]
“Uh, Hina-chan…”
[No reason, huh.]
“Uh-huh…”
[Mika, I won’t preach to you, but there’s one thing I want to ask—Did you enjoy robbing the bank?]
What kind of question is that? But I quickly returned my honest answer. To put it plainly, robbing the bank was fun.
But the fun came not from the act itself but more from the fact that I was with Shiroko. In the end, it meant that what truly mattered to me was the people.
So, from my perspective, robbing a bank with Shiroko was not drastically different in enjoyment from helping Hina with her tasks.
Even though I disliked student council duties, it didn’t upset me much because of how much Hanako’s support eased my mind during the work.
Like this, I really love spending time with people. To be more precise, it’s time spent with those I cherish. My past personality was far from this, but honestly, I like my current self much more.
[So… it was fun. Although I can’t say good things about it in my position, I won’t think badly of it.]
Hina’s reaction was somewhat unexpected. At this point, it felt like she was directly telling me just how much she cherished me.
Perhaps because of that, I concluded I should become a chair just for our Student Council President next week.
…Just for the record, this is no joke.
*
In Shiratori Ward of D.U., the building of Shalle stood out as notably tall. While saying the teacher’s office was floating above the clouds was a bit exaggerated, it wasn’t entirely false due to the building’s great height and many floors.
However, there was another building that was tall enough to elicit an “oh…” from me as well.
Interestingly, the top floor of this building was currently used as an office by a specific group.
As soon as I stepped inside that office, someone greeted me with a familiar feeling.
“Welcome! This is Heungsinso 68. What brings you here… Ex, VIP?! No, you?!”
“Ahaha. What’s with that reaction, Aru-chan? I said I’d drop by sometime!”
“Th-this is happening much earlier than I expected…?”
“Heueng… Well, schedule-wise, it turned out that way. You must be busy too, so you can understand, right? Uh… by the way, VIP?! Ahaha! Isn’t that a bit much for a title?”
“Ahem. You seem to have misheard that.”
“Okay, let’s leave it at that. Anyway, the purpose of today’s visit is, well… as you know, it’s about that request. First of all, I can assure you that there won’t be any repercussions for the students working under Heungsinso or Kaiser. Of course, it’s only natural. We even have a curriculum in place for kids with a desire for rehabilitation.”
As I spoke, my gaze turned to the wall. There hung the famous phrase “One Evil a Day”.
That’s the phrase that Aru supposedly wrote for her calligraphy homework, right? It does indeed look good.
Aru? You’ve got talent.
The office naturally had a water cooler, a coffee maker… Wow, the guest sofa and table are quite upscale.
How should I put it? Seeing Heungsinso’s well-established office made my heart swell with pride.
This must all be thanks to Makoto-san. Just Makotoners…
“…You can’t be done already? That seems a bit lacking for someone like you to come all the way here.”
“Hey, no way! That can’t be all there is!”
If I only came here to convey that message, there would have been no reason for me to physically come.
The purpose of my visit has two facets.
The first purpose is… well, it’s nothing special.
“I just wanted to check out the office… Oh wow, you’re using the nameplate I gave you well?”
That was from last Christmas. I remember sending out gold nameplates to everyone at Heungsinso. Makoto thinks she’s the only one who got one and is probably thrilled, but I wonder if everyone else knowing would scratch her pride a bit.
“Ah, ah. Well, a gold nameplate really suits me, doesn’t it? Especially since it can indirectly showcase our Heungsinso’s level when clients come in. Heh heh.”
“Ahaha, it makes me happy to hear that you like it that much.”
“Especially that we even provided gold nameplates to a regular member like Haruka surprised everyone. The benefits are so good that job applications come in occasionally. Unfortunately, though, the only ones prepared to become true villains are those half-boiled kids.”
Then Aru went on to say that to become a true villain… be it skill or evil intent, you can’t afford to lack in any area. Besides that, boldness, decisiveness, and coolness…
…Isn’t that cut-off line way too high? I mean, you’re already out of the evil intent department, aren’t you, Aru?
“Well, that’s another topic that coincidentally aligns with the second purpose of my visit.”
“…Uh, huh?”
“I want to recommend a talent that perfectly fits your Heungsinso’s needs. Personally, I hope that kid gets to know more people, but it seems that’s not working out, so I’d like to offer a little help. Essentially, I just wanted to meddle a bit.”
“Hmm. Well, if someone of your caliber says that, it doesn’t sound like an ordinary talent. So, who is it?”
“Oh, just for reference, the kid hasn’t expressed any wish to join yet☆ More precisely, I haven’t even asked them about it. So, it’s a sort of process to confirm Heungsinso’s interest first!”
“…?”
Aru looked at me as if she couldn’t believe such a person exists, but she was indeed right as a common-sense person.
Hmm. That kid is pretty nice. Isn’t it troublesome because of that?
“So, are you considering taking on an intern? I guarantee their abilities.”
“…We’ll have a strict screening process. After that, we’ll conduct interviews to determine if they fit Heungsinso. If they make it through all that, we won’t have any reason to refuse.”
“Ahaha. Great, then I’ll ask that kid and bring them along.”
“Besides, I don’t think I’ve heard who that person is yet. They’re not from Trinity, are they? In that case, there would be procedural issues…”
“There shouldn’t be any! After all, Heungsinso is an unofficial club. Just throwing a student from another academy on the list should be no problem.”
Upon hearing my words, Aru gasped and hurriedly began defending herself.
“U-unofficial? We’re properly registered as a club according to procedure! Besides, I doubt the student council president of Trinity would say that…”
And then came the rebuttal. But since I’ve heard those words too many times, they didn’t have any impact on me.
“Hehehe. Isn’t it all good?”
“…So, just who is this person? I wouldn’t know them, would I?”
“Yep? The person I was going to recommend is our Sa-chan, Jomae Saori.”
“…”
Aru, staring blankly at me, widened her eyes in shock. Then, her mouth dropped open, and…
“W-what? Whaaat?!”
Hmm. That’s exactly the reaction I was expecting. Totally delicious…!
