“Hahaha… Take responsibility, Nagisa-chan. Where do you get off acting so bold over there?”
I took a moment’s break before the mock battle at the beach, resting my head on the table while replaying in my mind the scolding I received from Nagisa right after the match ended.
‘You think it’s only you that I’m going to laugh at? Do you really think it’s reasonable for someone who wanted to broadcast my downfall to the whole Kivotos to say such a thing? Oh, by the way, I wonder if Mika enjoyed the delightful sight of me being ruined as she wished? What was it she said? Was it too much? The person who made me show such an excessive display in front of others is the one being too much. Right here, right now, how would it feel if I told Mika to show off her cuteness in front of everyone?’
I genuinely felt like I couldn’t breathe while listening. Makoto, who was waiting for an opportune moment to toss in her nonsense, scurried off somewhere with a disgusted look.
Still, I respect the way Nagisa chose to express her dissatisfaction through a metaphor. I thought it was a valid complaint.
The problem came with my clumsy response.
‘Well, even if I were to do that, I wouldn’t want it to be shown to anyone but Nagisa-chan…’
‘…You, come here.’
Ah, it’s still embarrassing just thinking about it. How am I supposed to look anyone in the face after that, Nagisa?
“Then, um… I guess you could come over to my house…”
“Waa—o. Nagisa-chan, you definitely flipped out when you jokingly suggested we date a while back. Are you now proposing to me…? Even if I were to die today, I wouldn’t care☆”
Looking back, I can’t even tell if I was Mika or if Mika was me back then. I feel like I have a clearer sense of my identity now than I did back then.
…Maybe.
“…If you like it that much, I’d rather you not give any chance to others. And don’t even mention death or whatever. I really don’t want to hear that, even as a joke.”
“Ah… I got hit hard, Nagisa-chan. It hurts when the truth hits me like that. And you don’t need to worry about the afterwords! Because if I’m not around, who will protect our fragile Nagisa-chan? Yep, I’ll have to protect you for life since you’re so weak.”
“Right now, are you seriously implying that you’d hit me back on the pretext that I was the one who attacked you with the truth? Do you think you can handle it, Mika? I’ve changed quite a bit from who I used to be.”
“Hahaha, does that mean that you’ve improved just a little from when you fought with Haruna-chan?”
“…Fufu.”
Oh no, my mouth slipped again…!
But just a few days ago, I heard that the three of us, including Noa, got together for dinner, and Nagisa hasn’t mentioned anything about hating or disliking Haruna since then.
So, it should be alright… right? They might not be on friendly terms, but they can at least maintain a polite distance, and a light joke should be excusable. Isn’t it…?
“Mika-san… Do you happen to know this?”
“Yeah?”
“You’re really bad at kissing.”
“…”
Huh?
…What?
A line I never imagined I would hear from Nagisa hit me like a dagger, embedding itself deep inside my heart.
“It’s okay, it happens. If I’m your first, then that’s something too, right? I don’t dislike that. But honestly, you’re terrible at kissing.”
“N-no, is there really a need to confirm that…? It hurts too much, Nagisa-chan.”
“But… isn’t this the truth? I just stated the fact you love so much, so what’s the pain about?”
“…I messed up. Can we call this a draw?”
“How shameless! Asking for a draw when you’ve already lost. In fact, that’s even cuter!”
As I was getting hit verbally by Nagisa, I felt my life points drop to zero in no time.
“Hmm. Anyway, it would be bad if something like this came from Hina-chan later. In that case, it would mean I didn’t lead properly.”
“Why is it that Nagisa-chan is the one who gets to lead…?”
“Mika-san, are you in good conscience? Honestly, I initially thought you were someone who seduces simply by breathing, but I never expected this foolishness underneath. It’s shockingly surprising how much more clumsy you’ve gotten the deeper the relationship goes.”
“Waa—o…?”
“What do you mean by ‘wa-oo’? Now, Mika-san. Stand up and come over here.”
“…Are you serious?”
“Would I joke about this? Of course, I’m serious.”
“Ahaha… Well, that hurts my pride.”
“Are you really arguing about pride when you can’t even kiss properly?”
“Nagisa-chan…? Alright, just please stop trampling on my self-esteem! I’m not not trying! I can’t help it! You’re my first too. Why are you so good at it? It’s weird! I’m supposed to be the one not good at it, and you being good doesn’t make sense!”
“That’s… ahem. I still think it’s a bit embarrassing to say this outside. Well… ladies have their secrets, you know? You must feel the same, Mika-san.”
“Secrets? What’s that… Ah.”
As if they both realized they had been lying up until now, both Nagisa and I sealed our lips. It took quite some time for our glued mouths to open up again.
But more than that, I don’t have any secrets, so why..
“…Huaa. Anyway! Come here and sit down. I don’t want to see the person I love being disrespected, you know?”
“Is it okay for you to disrespect me then…?”
“This isn’t disrespect; this is love’s discipline, Mika-san. Who else would wield the rod if not me? Other girls just crave love from you, Mika-san. But as your only understanding partner, I need you to realize that this case is different.”
“I can’t deny that…”
If I’m being honest. If Nagisa were to turn her back on me, I’d definitely get lost and wander.
No, if that day came when Nagisa turned away, I certainly would have spent a lot of time lost. If Hina or Haruna reached out to help me, I might desperately hold onto them, but if I were denied by Nagisa back then…
Well. I probably wouldn’t have reached out even if it was offered. More likely, I would’ve just pushed everyone away.
I don’t usually care about what others think, but what Nagisa desires now is powerful enough to make even someone like me start worrying about others’ gazes.
Hesitating, I edged closer to Nagisa and gently sat on her lap.
“Well, I guess this is the height difference between you and Hina-chan?”
“Uhm. I think it should be somewhat similar.”
“Then shall we begin right away?”
“…What do you mean by ‘begin’? N-no way. Wait, Nagisa-chan? Here, in front of everyone?”
“It’s a corner spot anyway. And haven’t you ever thought it was intended for everyone to see? Are you asking me to keep enduring the sight of you so close to me?”
This is a big problem. Nagisa’s brakes have malfunctioned.
Moreover, since this happened because I kicked them off myself, there’s no way I can complain to anyone.
“Later, it should be that Hina-chan will say you did really well. I already permitted this, so shouldn’t I uphold my dignity? In terms of solidifying my standing.”
After a desperate negotiation, I managed to quell Nagisa’s dissatisfaction. But still, public displays like this are a nuisance, Nagisa.
…Wait a minute. You don’t mean it literally as a display for everyone, do you?
*
At the right time, I boarded the helicopter waiting at the beach for the mock battle to begin. They wanted me to comment while overlooking the scene from above… but this time, it was just me and Nagisa without Makoto.
It was a bit unexpected that no one from Gehenna took the commentary role, but since they weren’t concerned about biased commentary—they believed they would win anyway—I just decided to roll with it. Besides, since Nagisa is fairly neutral, I doubted Gehenna would have any major complaints.
Essentially, this mock battle is fundamentally a clash between the Justice Realization Department and the Student Council. However, due to the unexpected incorporation of Arius into Trinity, the balance of participants got skewed. As a result, to pull in the Manma Battle and also drag in Sisterhood, the scale of this event grew to more than three times its initial concept.
On top of all that, tanks have gotten involved too, turning this into a full-fledged battlefield.
Honestly, even before anything else, the match-up of Tsurugi and Hina, each with their academy’s asymmetric strengths, is enough to raise expectations.
In a way, the outright war between the two academies is realistically a distant dream, and this serves as the meaning of settling their rivalry.
The breathtaking spectacle of a hundred girls armed with firearms and swimsuits facing off against Trinity’s Crusader tank and Gehenna’s Tiger tank on the beach fills me with a sense of grandeur. This would be my first experience seeing a battle of this magnitude since coming to Kivotos.
What happened when I invaded Arius is an entirely different matter, strictly speaking, that was in the genre of a hack-and-slash archive.
In any case, amid such anticipation, I saw Tsurugi and Hina facing each other in the no man’s land at the center of both sides, shaking hands.
“Waa, finally! We’re at the first mock battle on the beach, which you could say is the highlight of this festival! The curtain is about to rise! This event is perfect for clearing away the long-standing grudge built over the histories of both academies!”
“Just as Mika-san said. This mock battle, where each academy’s best forces collide, has always been a topic of debate. When these two top academies clash, the question of ‘which is stronger in Kivotos?’ will be answered… Well.”
“Top dog?”
“Uh, yes. A little different from the expression I was going to use, but it conveys the meaning. Shall I say we are just picking a winner?”
“Hahaha, that might even be better than going in circles. So this match is, after all, quite close to an event… Well, this match won’t be able to clearly answer the question of ‘which of the two academies is stronger!’ However, there is a hard-line stance that losing is absolutely unacceptable to protect the pride of the academy, ensuring that a fierce competition will unfold!”
After Tsurugi and Hina returned to their respective sides, the key personnel from each academy were finally seen doing the last strategic checks.
Gehenna seems likely to completely sever the command with Manma Battle and the Student Council. Personnel from other clubs not included in this may act independently, refusing to follow commands, or perhaps bend to Hina and follow the Student Council’s command.
Trinity has heard that Hasumi will be commanding the overall situation while choosing to grant separate command to Arius in split forces. While Arius seems to be integrating well with Trinity, it remains an unenviable option since the ingrained hatred towards Trinity hasn’t been completely shed.
“One slight complaint I have is that their artillery group was denied participation.”
“…Hmm, if that were allowed, the battlefield would likely turn too chaotic, no? Anyway, it’s currently 4:55. The match is scheduled to begin sharply at 5 o’clock—”
As I continued speaking, my phone on the side vibrated. The caller was Shichido Yukino.
“Well, it seems Nagisa-chan will have to take over the commentary alone this time…”
There was no need to ponder what was happening deeply.
It had been decided that she would only call when Wakamo’s movements were detected.
Waa—o.
It seems that our terrorist fox doesn’t want me to witness this match directly.
The idea of having to catch this later as a replay feels totally unfair. I feel so wronged!
Kosaka Wakamo, I deeply dislike you…!
