“Happy birthday, Mika!”
“…Uh-huh, thank you.”
“As always, but today you look absolutely stunning. The person next to you too.”
“…”
This marked about the fifth time I had received similar greetings and compliments. Welcoming leaders from various factions and their corresponding students was slowly making my mouth twitch.
Glancing to the side, Aco surprisingly seemed to be… in a pretty good mood?
I thought for sure the Trinity folks would wear forced smiles, spouting things that were obvious.
“I don’t need to worry about what those people are thinking inside. It’s not like it’s a new thing for the Trinity folks to have dark thoughts.”
As I nudged that point, Aco smiled softly and tilted her head slightly, then whispered quietly in my ear.
“You’re the type that gets annoyed by face-to-face interaction, aren’t you? Not as much as the Chairperson, though.”
That girl is speaking nonsense. She knows better than anyone that comparing me to Makoto is a huge faux pas.
“Uh-huh, well—”
“Oho, Senior Administrative Officer. How well you spoke up!”
…What on earth is with this crazy timing?
“…Chairperson Makoto?!”
“Kikiki! Then, who else could possibly shine like a halo other than I, Hanuma Makoto!”
“You’re the Head. And, uh…”
Aco briskly rebutted Makoto’s rhetorical question, trailing off at the end. Given how she glanced my way, it seemed she hesitated to add me into the mix.
Did Aco almost mention me in the same breath as Hina? Now that’s a big deal…
“Hah, comparing me to Hina? It’s been the case for a while, but your eyesight really is terrible, Senior Administrative Officer.”
“That’s impossible. I pride myself on having the highest standards in Kivotos, Chairperson Makoto.”
“That’s a laughable statement. Those who can’t even recognize my greatness and the countless accomplishments I could boast about would dare say such a thing!”
“People who don’t realize they should be grateful to the Head should speak less.”
“Me, thanking the great Makoto? Hah, what a delightful joke that is—”
Well, I decided to let these two bicker, which left me free to attend to the guests properly.
“Ibuki-chan~☆”
“Sister~!”
Feeling slightly guilty towards Aco, I unclasped my arms and scooped up the adorably dressed Ibuki.
Lifting Ibuki… heh.
“Hey, Mika? That expression looks quite ominous right now.”
“Oh, no way. You must be seeing things.”
And I hugged her tightly. Ibuki is just too cute. Simply hugging her feels healing. Iroha must be feeling jealous.
With horns, wings, and a tail, Ibuki is undeniably a student from Gehenna, flaunting the full set of devilry.
It’s only natural for the students to feel a bit conflicted seeing her nestled in my arms, the quintessential Trinity.
Honestly, it’s none of my business.
“Sister, Ibuki has a present ready!”
“Huh? I told her it was all right, though…”
I’m pretty sure I told Makoto no gifts were necessary when inviting her, just to come if she wanted to.
Honestly, inviting Makoto was something I was reluctant to do, but I felt like not inviting her would lead to its own set of problems.
If Makoto reacted like, “Mika, how could you exclude me from such a grand party? How rude!” then I’d be the one stuck dealing with the fallout.
Having a teacher present helped with control… so I thought inviting her was the better option.
“Tada!”
“Wow—?”
What Ibuki presented before me was a small Mika figure made of clay…? It wasn’t at the level of an art piece per se, but it was certainly impressive enough that I wouldn’t claim I could do better.
No, if Ibuki were to be graded, it would be museum-worthy.
“I didn’t expect something like this… ahaha.”
“In return, you must prepare a super amazing gift for Ibuki’s birthday!”
“Ahaha. Of course, I’ll provide a wonderful present for Ibuki-chan’s birthday. Just let me know if you want anything☆”
“Yay!”
By the way, whoever prepared this took it a step further; even the transparent plastic box it’s enclosed in is perfect…
“This was helped by Iroha-chan, right?”
“…Because Ibuki wanted it, of course. I simply did what was expected.”
“Thank you both!”
“Hehehe!”
To think they prepared this in such a short time… I may have said no gift was necessary, but honestly, it would make me a bit sad to think I wouldn’t receive this. Yeah.
“More importantly, Senior Administrative Officer… Hmm. You’ve put quite some effort into your outfit. Well, I guess it’s only natural to want to make a good impression on the Head.”
No way, is Makoto already scheming…? Planning to ruin Aco’s mood in real-time—
“Wrong.”
“Huh?”
“I have no need to make an impression on the Head. I’m merely doing my utmost to assist her. So, this is for… someone else.”
“…?”
Not getting the expected reaction, Makoto wore a flabbergasted expression.
As Aco noticed me looking her way, she quickly turned her head. Her blushing earlobes were just too cute.
No matter how I look at it, what I provided wasn’t an opportunity but rather a sort of permission, wasn’t it?
“See you later, Mika-onee! Happy birthday!”
With Ibuki waving goodbye, the storm known as Manma Battle passed swiftly.
Afterward, familiar faces began to approach one by one to greet me. The first to break the ice were the sisters of our sacred Sisterhood.
“Another… has it increased again…?”
With a piercing gaze, Mari looked at me, shooting me a ‘let’s see what you’ll confess during the next confession’ look. Honestly, at this point, shouldn’t I just give up?
I’m tired of hearing about repentance and seeking forgiveness for sins, believing there’s light left within me… I’m already a prime example of a lost cause. I gave up on ever thinking I would reach Heaven long ago, so Mari, you should just let me go.
“Ha, happy birthday, Sister Mika! Thank you for looking out for Sister Sakurako. Because of that, other sisters have been feeling a bit alive lately…”
“Huh?”
“Ah, it’s nothing…!”
Perhaps Hina was referencing when Sakurako said, “I trusted you, but how could you do this to me…?” to me.
“And how are you doing, Mika-chan? Celebrating the most blessed day of the year for you… Happy birthday, Pyororong~☆”
…Wow. Wow. Wowww!
I can finally hear that from Sakurako. This is truly miraculous…
“Oh? Is my reaction… perhaps a bit off? I read somewhere that it’s a universal hit…”
“No, no! That was incredibly effective! Yeah, I think you should use it more often☆”
“Is that so? Hehe. Since you say so, I’m starting to believe. Thank you.”
“…”
I could feel Aco’s confused stare across from me, blinking as if to say, is that really right? But I chose to ignore it. Sakurako’s Pyororong was a significant matter.
Following that, I welcomed individuals from the Justice Realization Department and the Rescue Knights…
“…In the end, you really have fallen for it, haven’t you?”
“Yeah, as you can see…”
“I’ll never fall for it.”
“I’ll cheer you on.”
While Aco and Hasumi engaged in some mysterious conversation, I comforted Tsurugi, who had shriveled up under the people’s gaze.
After exchanging greetings with Mine, whom I met for the first time today, and Hanaa…
“…What is Saori up to? I have high expectations for her.”
Misaki, with Serina on her arm, pinched my cheek.
“Grmmr…”
“This person already contacted us separately to adjust her schedule. I plan to let her go soon, so you don’t need to worry about it.”
“…Make sure of it. She’s already suffered enough. There’s no one who deserves to be as happy as Saori.”
“Uh-huh. I’ll keep that in mind.”
Even if gentle, knowing well that meddling in someone else’s romantic affairs was madness, Serina simply left me with a standard greeting of “Happy birthday, and please take care of your health!”
…Deserving happiness, huh.
I’m glad Misaki seems to have found her happiness.
The other kids, I have to make them happy to the extent of my ability.
Afterward, I welcomed each of the other kids I’d invited from the Band Department and Supplementary Class. One by one, the couples, except for the two who chose to refrain from attending, started to gather.
The first girl to show up stood quietly beside Aco, gazing at her in silence. As Aco tried to avert her gaze, she took a couple of steps closer to make sure Aco was looking at her.
The head of Gehenna’s Student Council and Aco’s ex, Hina, tiptoed up and gently stroked her head.
“Head…?”
“You’ve worked hard, Aco.”
“Ah…”
“…You’re making that strange face. You didn’t think I’d be angry at you for this, did you?”
“It seems natural to expect that I should be.”
“What nonsense, it’s Mika we’re dealing with. I’m the one who should apologize, Aco. Although, I might want to kick you just for touching my aide.”
As Hina said this, she glanced at me, tapping the floor with her boots, then looked at my bare legs and stopped, clicking her tongue lightly.
“Tch. I suppose it can’t be helped. But for now, I’ll say happy birthday.”
“Yeah, thanks… By the way, Hina-chan, you came in your uniform again?”
“Just standing here in this outfit reduces the chances of someone causing a scene. There’s no one brave enough to act up in front of the head of Justice Realization and me.”
Hina’s sense of responsibility is truly admirable. It feels like she fills in the gaps of my own lack of responsibility… yeah.
While I was thinking this, our Student Council President poked me in the side with her fingertip and spoke up.
“Mika, even though it’s you… if you make my aide cry, I won’t let it slide. If you’re going to make someone cry, at least let it be me.”
“W-What do you mean, President?! That should be the opposite!”
“Are you defying your superior right now, Aco?”
“Yes! I would rather die than witness tears streaming down the Head’s face!”
Honestly, watching these two interact without a hint of awkwardness warmed my heart. I knew Hina cared for Aco, but witnessing it like this made it radiate even more than I imagined.
Hmm… now I guess the only thing left is to convince our ‘Husband.’
…Where did I put that leash back then?
