Rokujouma no Shinryakusha!? - Volume 12 - Chapter 2

An Evening in Room 106

Friday, April 23rd

Ruth’s arm was wrapped around Koutarou’s. There was practically no space between them as they walked along, making their way through the residential area cloaked in twilight. They were on their way back home to Corona House after paying a visit to Clan at her spaceship.

“Master, it’s gotten a lot warmer, hasn’t it?”

Ruth smiled with her cheek resting on Koutarou’s shoulder. She was gazing up at the first hints of the early summer night sky. The calendar had hit the end of spring, making it comfortable outside even after the sun set.

“If it’s so warm, then why not let go?”

“Jeez... you always try to pull away like that Master...”

“...I’m sorry. I’m not used to it...”

When it was just the two of them, Ruth would call Koutarou “master.” And as of late, she would start to link her arm with his. It was also the result of Ruth’s wish to be closer with him.

“I think I have the right to stick to you from time to time, if I may say so.”

“Ruth-san, you’re always so diligent and serious, so... it’s a bit embarrassing...”

“Heehee. Please get used to it. My master has the right to freely make use of my mind and body...”

Since some time ago, Ruth had begun feeling that she was the only one missing out on physical contact with Koutarou.

Sanae had been clinging to Koutarou ever since she was a ghost, and she continued doing so even after regaining her body. Theia’s relation with Koutarou was fierce, both in the past and present. Since Yurika lived so sloppily, Koutarou was always taking care of her one way or another. And Kiriha lived to play her little pranks on Koutarou.

Looking at it like that, Ruth was the only one missing out because of her serious and reserved personality. That bothered her, so she at least wanted to be close while it was just the two of them. And if Koutarou refused her, he would feel like he was only rejecting her, so he had no choice but to accept her wishes.

“But... if you really don’t like it, please say so... That’s not what I want...”

The smile on Ruth’s face disappeared just for the moment she spoke those words. She didn’t seriously want to trouble Koutarou.

“If I really didn’t like it, it wouldn’t bother me.”

Koutarou, on the other hand, started smiling as he spoke.

Any normal person would probably be able to do this without any resistance...

Thanks to the girls around him, Koutarou had realized the flaw he carried with him.

He didn’t expect much from people. That’s why he reflexively tried to get out of linking arms with Ruth. In other words, he subconsciously felt it was meaningless. That it wouldn’t lead to a deep bond.

But now, Koutarou realized that was wrong. He didn’t want to keep living like that. And while it might be hard to change right away, he believed he could little by little.

“Then... I will wait.”

“Huh?”

“Her Highness and I will always wait for you. Until the day you can accept us...”

Still leaning on Koutarou, Ruth tightened her embrace around Koutarou’s arm. While he couldn’t see her expression, the warmth he felt from her conveyed the depth of her feelings.

“Why would you go so far...?”

“That’s because... we wish to save you and realize happiness.”

If Koutarou had only been the Blue Knight, Ruth probably wouldn’t have loved him as much as she did. She loved him—the boy named Koutarou—because he was imperfect. She wasn’t just depending on him for protection. She could protect him too.

“I think that’s what love is.”

Ruth looked up at Koutarou. As she did, the gentle light in her eyes shot straight into Koutarou’s heart. And that light broke down another piece of the wall around his heart.

“Ruth-san...”

His heart a little lighter, Koutarou spoke to Ruth honestly.

“I don’t want you repeating this, but...”

“Yes, Master?”

Ruth quietly nodded without changing her expression.

“There are times when... I think of you and the others as angels or something similar.”

Those were Koutarou’s true feelings. It was the most gratitude he could offer in words for the girls that treated him so well despite his many flaws.

“You’re wrong, Master.”

However, Ruth simply shook her head.

“We are just human. Because... if we really were angels, we wouldn’t think to want to be loved by anyone, would we?”

“Ru...”

Hearing that, Koutarou was at a loss for words.

“We are just normal humans that love you and want to be loved in return.”

“...”

In the end, Koutarou wasn’t able to say anything else at all.

It’s things like that that make you look like angels to me...

As he stared at Ruth’s gentle eyes filled with conviction, it was all he could do to admit that in his head.

When Koutarou and Ruth returned to Corona House, they were greeted with a bizarre sight. It stopped them both in their tracks.

“Kyaaah!”

“Sanae?!”

Sanae was collapsed in front of room 106. She was lying down on the ground with her head pressed up against the door. It looked like she’d tried to break through it with her face.

“It’s okay, Ruth-san. It’s just the usual thing.”

Koutarou lightly stroked Ruth’s hair as she screamed and held tightly on to his arm. In response, she timidly looked up at him. There were tears forming in her eyes.

“I... I just can’t get used to this no matter how many times I see it...”

“That Sanae... I keep telling her...”

Realizing what was going on, Ruth calmed down and let go of Koutarou’s arm. Grumbling to himself, Koutarou approached the collapsed girl.

“Upsy-daisy.”

Koutarou stuck his arms under the unconscious Sanae and lifted her up. Her body was completely limp, so it took quite a bit of effort.

“Master, here.”

Ruth opened the door for Koutarou.

“Thank you.”

Koutarou took Sanae inside. Stepping into the apartment, he could hear the TV on in the inner room. Someone was already here.

“She really is...”

Feeling a bit exasperated, Koutarou marched into the inner room. Coming around the corner, he could see a magnificent magical girl transformation sequence and the back of a ghost sitting in front of the TV watching it.

“The magical girl of love and courage! Love Love Heart!”

“It’s finally here!”

“It’s not finally here!”

Koutarou struck the back of the head of the ghost glued to the TV, Sanae.

“Ow... Oh, welcome home, Koutarou.”

Ghost Sanae pressed the power switch on the remote and turned to Koutarou. When she did, the magical girl on the TV disappeared. Sanae had been watching the episodes of the magical girl show that Yurika had recorded for her during the time she’d lost her memories.

“Sanae, how many times do I have to tell you? Don’t just leave your body lying around.”

“Ah, yeah. You’re right.”

Realizing she’d gone into astral projection mode, she slightly blushed as she apologized to Koutarou.

“I’m sorry, Koutarou. Old habits die hard, I guess...”

Sanae had recovered her body, but when she tried to pass through the doors like she had as a ghost, it left her physical body on the wrong side.

“If the neighbors see your body lying around like that, it’ll cause an uproar.”

“I understand. I’ll be more careful.”

Sanae hadn’t done it on purpose, so she remorsefully reflected on her actions. Sanae was the one who would be the most upset if nobody could stay in room 106 anymore because she’d caused trouble.

“Good... Here’s your body.”

Koutarou presented Sanae’s ghost form with her physical body. However, she shook her head and pointed towards the wall with the window.

“I don’t need it right now. Leave it over there and I’ll get in later.”

“Get in now. You’re in the way when you take up space as two people.”

“Jeez! How could you say that this bundle of adorability, Love Love Sanae-chan, is in the way?! Isn’t having two of me even better?!”

“One is fine. The room is small enough already.”

“But if I get in now, my head’s gonna hurt...”

Sanae pointed to her body’s forehead. It was swollen and red.

“Oh, come on...”

It looked painful even to Koutarou, so he complied and carried her body over to the wall while grumbling.

“That’s right!” Sanae clapped her hands as she came up with a good idea. “As thanks, you can touch my boobs! I’ll forgive you.”

“As if I would!”

Sanae thought it was a brilliant idea, but Koutarou instantly rejected her.

“You joker. You know you want to touch them, Koutarou-chaaan! You don’t have to hold back.”

“What’s the fun of touching someone without anything inside?”

“...Is that how it is?”

“I don’t know about anyone else, but it sure is for me. If neither you or Sanae-san are there, it’s not much different from touching a doll.”

Sanae’s personality still wasn’t fully merged. Ghost Sanae’s personality appeared when she was with Koutarou and the others, and when she wasn’t, her more mature self—Sanae-san—came to the surface. But when Sanae collectively wasn’t inhabiting her body, it wasn’t much different from a doll.

“Hmm... I feel like I’ve learned something new.”

“Then get in.”

“No way. My head will hurt too much.”

“Right, right...”

Koutarou set down Sanae’s body by the wall while smiling wryly. He took a moment to straighten out her disheveled clothes.

“Thanks, Koutarou.”

“You better get in before long.”

“Okay.”

Sanae energetically nodded and turned back to the TV to continue watching her anime.

“Jeez...”

Koutarou looked back and forth between Sanae’s body by the wall and Sanae sitting in front of the TV before shrugging and heading to the tea table in the middle of the room. That was when his eyes met with the girl sitting there.

“What’s wrong, Theia? You’re making a strange face.”

“Ah, no, it’s... you see...”

Theia had both her hands pressed against her chest and was staring at Koutarou. But when her eyes met Koutarou’s, her face turned red and she turned away. Theia kept her mouth shut and didn’t say anything. Koutarou wondered what she was doing and sat down next to her.

“Your Highness, no one will understand if you just think it to yourself.”

“R-Right...”

After a word of encouragement from Ruth, who was also sitting at the table, Theia glanced at Koutarou. She then looked down at her chest before opening her mouth.

“Pleb...”

“What?”

“Well, I recalled something as you and Sanae were talking.”

Theia fell silent for a moment and looked up at Koutarou’s face. Waiting for a moment to make sure he wouldn’t laugh, she continued.

“When we first met, you said something. Do you remember? You said, ‘I have the right to choose which breasts I fondle.’”

“Yeah...”

Hearing what Theia said, Koutarou thought back to when they first met. Back then, he’d accidentally touched Theia’s breasts. Theia chewed him out for it, and that was how he’d responded.

“...Something like that did happen, didn’t it?”

Koutarou started feeling nostalgic and looked at the wall furthest into the room that led to Blue Knight. On that day, it was the wall Theia had appeared from.

Back then, Koutarou never would have imagined the day would come when he and Theia would be speaking so calmly to one another. He couldn’t help smiling thinking about how immature they’d both been back them.

“So... I want you to listen without laughing, but...”

Hearing those words, Koutarou turned back to look at Theia. He could see she’d grown a little in the last year, both mentally and physically. With her eyes still turned away, she continued squeezing out words.

“I-I was wondering... if you still think... the same way...”

After listening to Koutarou and Sanae’s talk, that’s what Theia had started feeling anxious about—what Koutarou thought of her breasts.

“M-My breasts have grown, you know! They haven’t grown much in the past year, but they’ve still grown a little!”

In the past, Koutarou had called Theia flat. It wasn’t like she was unaware of her size, but as time passed and Theia fell in love with Koutarou, it was something she started to worry about. Did he still not want to touch them, just like when they first met? Or has he changed his mind since then? It might sound silly to anyone else, but it was a serious concern for Theia.

“They shouldn’t be as unshapely as you think anymore! Surely!”

Theia was desperate. She believed that Koutarou would stay by her side as long as she stayed true to her fate. But she also wanted him to love her as a woman. And if he still didn’t want to touch her breasts, that must mean that he didn’t love that part of her. That was a serious problem for Theia when it came to her pride as a young woman.

“Theia...”

Theia’s words inadvertently told Koutarou how she felt for him. He could feel something tugging at his heartstrings. If he let down his guard, he felt like he would just break down and give Theia a big hug.

Wait, calm down! That would be bad!

However, Koutarou managed to stop himself as he started to reach out for her. That was because he recalled the problems surrounding room 106. And after taking several deep breaths, he smiled at her instead.

“Honestly... size doesn’t really affect whether or not I want to touch them.”

Though he’d kept his composure, talking about breasts was uncomfortable for Koutarou. He couldn’t keep himself from blushing.

“But... that’s not what you said back then...”

Koutarou gave Theia his honest opinion, but she had trouble accepting it. She doubted it because it seemed to contradict what he’d said before, and she gave Koutarou a scrutinizing look. Seeing that, Koutarou decided to explain himself.

“You understand tit for a tat, right?”

“...Yes...”

“Back then, I didn’t like you, so I brought the size of your breasts up to make fun of you, even though I didn’t really care.”

Koutarou had been so desperate to prove his innocence that he tried to make the argument that he’d never want to touch her small breasts in the first place.

“Then... you don’t care if my breasts are small?”

Theia intently leaned forward a little and her expression started to brighten.

“Let me put it this way. I care more about your heart than your chest, got it?”

As Koutarou said that, he turned to look towards the TV. He saw Sanae, who was swinging from joy to sorrow and back again.

“...I see. I understand.”

Theia looked at Sanae too and nodded.

 Of course... Just wanting to touch someone’s breasts because they’re big certainly would be sad.

If someone’s body was all that mattered, Sanae probably wouldn’t have made it back. But that wasn’t the case. And that likely meant the same held true for someone’s figure, face, height, or anything else. If those things were really what mattered, it wouldn’t be a proper relationship in the first place.

What’s important isn’t the sword, but the oath sworn on it... How immature of me to be so concerned of the size of my breasts...

In fact, if appearance or position had mattered to him, Theia probably wouldn’t have chosen Koutarou to be her knight. And the same was true the other way around—she hadn’t fallen in love with him for his looks or his status. Yet even though she loved him for the kind man he was, Theia had been so concerned about her breasts that she’d nearly forgotten that. Having come to her senses, Theia now spoke to Koutarou with her usual smile on her face.

“Then... the question is whether you love me or not, no?”

Theia knew that Koutarou loved everyone, but she wasn’t asking about that. She was asking if he loved her as a woman. If he didn’t just want to talk and laugh together, but also embrace her and feel her warmth. That should be the deciding factor if Koutarou wanted to touch her breasts or not.

“What do you think?”

“I don’t know. But I do know that you won’t run away if I touch you like this.”

“Oh?”

Theia had reached over and put her hand on top of Koutarou’s without him noticing. When he looked down at it now, however, he didn’t pull his hand away or try and shake her off. It wasn’t an unpleasant feeling.

“You love me enough to allow this. And in that case, my breasts are only a matter of time...” Theia narrowed her eyes and held on to Koutarou’s hand. “Heh, such futile resistance, Satomi Koutarou.”

“How selfish...”

Koutarou criticized what Theia was saying, but on the inside he was thinking the opposite.

Futile resistance, huh...? Maybe that really is the case...

Just moments ago, Koutarou had been about to embrace Theia. He had barely managed to hold himself back, but that was exactly what Theia was talking about. He was aware of that, and it made no sense to deny it. That’s why, despite what he was saying, Koutarou lightly squeezed Theia’s hand back. As if responding to that, Theia intertwined her fingers with Koutarou’s.

“Yes, I am selfish. I’m an invader, after all,” she said with a confident smile.

After all, Theia’s invasion was proceeding smoothly.

While waiting for Ruth to finish making the tea, a bored Koutarou was watching what Theia was doing. She had ardently been scribbling something on a large piece of paper for a while now.

“So... what is that?”

“I was thinking of ways to power up your armor.”

Theia flashed a big smile and showed the paper to Koutarou.

“Let’s see... ‘Theia’s New Super Koutarou’?”

That was what was written at the very top of the paper, and underneath it was a long list of ideas to strengthen Koutarou’s armor. Koutarou, however, couldn’t get past the title.

“Hey, don’t play around with me, Theia.”

“How rude! I’m quite serious about this. There have been a lot of troublesome incidents lately, right? So I figured there would be no harm in preparing for any future trouble.”

“That’s true...”

Goofy title aside, Koutarou thought Theia’s heart was in the right place. The continued peace of room 106 was something all residents wished for.

“So what’s up with this drawing, Theia? It’s a big mess and I can’t understand it at all.”

Below the title and list was a tangle of lines and complex diagrams, making it impossible to tell what Theia’s plans were just at a glance. That’s why Koutarou needed an explanation.

“I came up with ideas for additional equipment. But if they get in the way of your movement, there wouldn’t be any point in adding them, so I was thinking of positioning small unmanned fighters of various types around you instead. They could support you in battles using various formations.”

“Hmm... so where am I in this drawing? There are too many lines for me to tell.”

“Um, around here.”

Theia used the pen in her hand to draw a circle around something in the middle of the paper.

“...You’re an idiot, aren’t you?” Koutarou asked, simply amazed.

“Why are you calling me an idiot?!”

Unhappy with Koutarou’s reaction, Theia puffed out her cheeks and frowned.

“I’m completely buried in your additional equipment! Talk about getting in the way!”

The circle that Theia drew was miniscule. It made sense now why Koutarou couldn’t find himself in the drawing; 99 percent of what was on the page was additional equipment Theia wanted to add.

“With this, you will never lose! You’d survive, no matter what enemy you face!”

“What’s the point of me being in the middle of all of this?!”

“Victory!”

“Then just use Blue Knight!”

A swarm of unmanned fighters surrounded Koutarou for several dozen meters. With that, there was absolutely no point of Koutarou himself fighting. It would be more efficient to just use her spaceship, Blue Knight, to attack. This idea for a power-up was outright useless.

“I don’t want that! I want you to be strong! I want Super Koutarou!”

“Satomi-sama, you don’t understand anything... These plans are filled with both my own and Her Highness’s dreams and love.”

Theia was raising a fuss while Ruth, who was pouring up tea, began talking about love. It seemed the two of them had absolute confidence in this power-up idea.

“With this, you can save me and Ruth from any danger! And you’ll stand in the spotlight and defeat the enemy!”

“With this, the unmanned fighters will be the ones in the spotlight!”

“No, it will be you, Satomi-sama.”

“Give me a break!”

Koutarou wanted to defend the peace of room 106 as efficiently as possible, while Ruth and Theia wanted Koutarou to shine. Their discussion had reached a deadlock there.

“What’s all the commotion about?”

That was when Kiriha peeked into the inner room. She had gone out with Shizuka to buy groceries for tonight’s supper, and she had just now gotten back to the apartment.

“Theia’s just being an idiot.”

“How dare you call me an idiot?! Is that a word you should use to describe your beloved master?!”

“Master or not, you’re an idiot!”

“Your Highness, maybe we should ask for Kiriha-sama’s opinion on this.”

“Indeed! Take a look at this, Kiriha! Koutarou saw this and called us idiots!”

Theia snatched the drawing from Koutarou’s hands and held it out to Kiriha. She took it in her hands and looked it over carefully.

“...Hmm, ‘Theia’s New Super Koutarou,’ huh?”

Having deciphered the complex drawing, Kiriha knitted her brow slightly.

“Tell her, Kiriha-san! Teach this idiot a thing or two!”

Koutarou had high hopes that the reasonable Kiriha would be able to talk some sense into Theia.

“Theia-dono, this plan has several large holes in it.”

“Yeah, like that!”

Hearing exactly what he wanted to from Kiriha, Koutarou nodded emphatically with a satisfied smile on his face.

“What?!”

Theia, on the other hand, got worked up and pressed Kiriha for details.

“To fill those holes, I see a need to add in mass-produced haniwas.”

“Of course! As expected from Kiriha! You do get it!”

But in the end, the conversation didn’t play out as Koutarou had hoped. Kiriha only added more fuel to Theia’s fire.

“You’re on their side too, Kiriha-san?!”

Feeling betrayed, Koutarou could feel his strength leave his body.

“Absolute safety and complete victory! That is the way to go!”

“What a splendid plan, Your Highness.”

Koutarou complained to Kiriha, but Theia’s eyes were sparkling and Ruth was applauding.

“...Is that your real opinion, Kiriha-san?”

“Indeed. This might be quite silly from a strategic point of view.”

“Then—”

“But, with this, you wouldn’t have to fight.”

“Huh?”

“You’re strong, certainly, but we don’t want you to dirty your hands for our sake. So in that sense, this is a great plan.”

Kiriha saw things a bit differently from Theia. She would prefer it if Koutarou didn’t have to fight at all. If he was going to hold something sharp, she’d rather see him with a knife in the kitchen than a sword on the battlefield.

“I can understand that too... but isn’t there a better way?”

Koutarou didn’t want to see Kiriha and the others fight either. He knew they would all have to resolve their various problems someday, but Koutarou much preferred seeing them in their peaceful everyday lives. That’s why he could understand how Kiriha felt, but he couldn’t understand what the point in just powering up him was.

“Heh... You don’t have to worry. This plan will never be realized.”

“Really?”

“Yes. Even though Theia-dono has highly advanced technology, it still has its limits. Even if she tries for this, it will naturally take a more realistic turn in implementation.”

Kiriha was sensitive to the feelings of others, so she understood Koutarou’s confusion.

The girls wanting to make Koutarou stronger was inevitably the result of their romantic notions. Rather than trying to come up with defense for everyone, they would rather have Koutarou eliminate all the enemies without taking so much as a step. That in of itself would end up protecting everyone. In other words, they were trying to create an invincible Prince Charming.

But even if she tried to tell Koutarou that, he wouldn’t understand. And with that thought, she instead tried to comfort him by telling him that Theia’s plan was unrealistic.

“That’s good,” Koutarou said with a sigh.

“Yes, you only need to smile.”

“What’s so good?” Sanae asked as she wandered over.

“I’ll explain it. Just go get in your body,” Koutarou insisted.

“Okay.”

“Realistically speaking, nothing is more effective than us teaming up,” offered Kiriha.

“That’s not true. I will eventually make Koutarou the strongest man in the universe. He’ll be able to defeat any foe and be absolutely safe doing it.”

“...So some grand fantasy will commence at some point, huh?”

“Satomi-sama, please call it a production, not a fantasy.”

“You are my knight! The knight of a soon-to-be legendary princess! If you can’t at least split a planet or two in half, you won’t be much to talk about.”

“As if I’d allow that!”

Koutarou and the girls continued their debate, though it was less like a discussion and more like just playing around. It was of no real consequence.

Outside the room, however, was a single pair of eyes watching over Koutarou and the others. They belonged to Yurika, who had been unable to enter the inner room ever since she came home.

Satomi-san...

Yurika was pressed up against the wall and hiding in the hallway leading into the inner room and looking in. The apartment was overflowing with casual fun, but Yurika wasn’t feeling any of it.

Wh-What should I do...

Yurika’s heart started beating faster, and she was feeling dizzy from the blood rushing to her head. She could hardly stand still even though she wasn’t doing anything, but she hardly knew what to do in the first place. Her mouth was drying up and her breathing was strangely labored.

As of late, Yurika was unable to keep her cool whenever she was around Koutarou. Whenever he entered her sight, she would get worked up and be unable to think of anything. She didn’t want to leave his side, nor did she want to take her eyes off him. She just wanted to feel his presence nearby and look at him, but whenever she was with him, she didn’t know what to do. It was the first time in Yurika’s life she’d ever felt this way.

“Wh-Why am I this...”

“Are you seeing something strange, Yurika-chan?”

“Kyaaah!”

That was when Shizuka, who had been putting away groceries in the fridge, came over to where Yurika was standing. She stood next to her and joined her in peering into the inner room. Yurika had been so focused on what was going on inside the room, she felt like her heart was going to stop when Shizuka suddenly appeared.

“Sh-Shizuka-san?!”

“Hmm, it looks the same as usual to me...”

Shizuka ignore the surprised Yurika and stared into the room for herself, but didn’t spy anything out of the ordinary. She then realized whatever was going on must be on Yurika’s end.

Now that I think about it, Yurika-chan has been acting strange lately...

Having gotten used to living in room 106, Yurika had, for better or worse, gotten bolder. But after the incident with Sanae, she had started behaving suspiciously. Yurika a month ago would have casually waltzed into the inner room like she had every right to do so. But now she was acting as timidly as she had when she first came to room 106.

“Did you get into a fight with someone?”

That was all Shizuka could think of. But Yurika replied by quickly shaking her head.

“No, no fights.”

Yurika’s pigtails bounced around as she shook her head. Seeing that, Shizuka realized that the ribbons at the bases of her pigtails were slightly skewed.

“Is it something between you and Satomi-kun then?”

Koutarou had been the one tying Yurika’s ribbons for a while now. He took Yurika’s appearance fairly seriously, so her ribbons being messy suggested she’d tied them herself today.

“N-Not at all! That kind of thing would never...!”

Being called out on the truth, Yurika panicked and shook her head even more violently than before. Her face had turned as red as an apple.

“Aha!”

Seeing Yurika’s reaction, Shizuka realized what was going on and clapped her hands together.

“So that’s what it was...”

Shizuka flashed a mischievous smile.

“Huh?!”

And just as Yurika had a bad feeling about Shizuka’s smile...

“Prepare yourself!”

“Kyaaaaah!”

Shizuka swept one of Yurika’s legs out from under her and lightly pushed her upper body. With that, Yurika lost her balance and was sent stumbling into the inner room. With no training and poor reflexes, Yurika was unable to regain her balance and took a pratfall right next to Koutarou.

“Ow, ow, ow...”

“Are you okay, Yurika?”

Since she’d come stumbling into the room and fallen square on her butt, Koutarou gave her a worried look.

“Auuugh, ah, uwaaah...”

Yurika fumbled about, trembling from the shame. She’d done something humiliating. Normally she wouldn’t think anything of it, but right now, Yurika was unbelievably embarrassed that Koutarou had seen it.

“I-I-I’m okay! I’m okay!”

Yurika crawled across the floor to escape from Koutarou. But since the room was so small, she didn’t get far. The farthest she could go was the other side of the tea table.

“That was weird.”

While Koutarou was a little confused, this wasn’t the first time he had seen Yurika’s eccentric behavior. He didn’t think much of it and soon continued his conversation with the girls.

“Hahh...”

Once Koutarou took his eyes off of her, Yurika was finally able to take a deep breath. Shizuka then came and sat down next to her.

“That’s no good, Yurika-chan. You have to try harder.”

“Shizuka-san! Th-There are better ways to do it!”

“Sure, but you have a habit of running away. If I hadn’t do something like that, you wouldn’t have even tried.”

“Th-That’s true, but...”

“You want to get along with Satomi-kun, right?” Shizuka whispered into Yurika’s ear.

Yurika’s face turned red and she was rendered speechless. That silence, however, told Shizuka everything she needed to know. She then continued to whisper to Yurika.

“Satomi-kun will get lonely if you can’t at least behave like normal, you know?”

“How do I behave like normal?”

“Just do what you want to do.”

“But that’s...”

Yurika’s face was turning redder and redder, and her voice getting quieter and quieter. She had been whispering to begin with, but now even Shizuka had a hard time hearing her.

“Having Koutarou see my stupid sleeping face, gently brushing my ruffled hair, and scolding me for not going to bed earlier when it looks like I’ll be late for school... I don’t want any of that! I’d be so embarrassed I could die!”

Everything that had been perfectly natural before was now unbearably embarrassing. She didn’t want the boy she cared for to see how pathetic she really was. She just wanted him to see her charming and cute sides. Really, it wasn’t until now that Yurika started to mature as a girl.

“Yurika-chan, could this be...your first love?”

Yurika remained silent and kept her head down.

“I see... That’s great.” Shizuka gently smiled at Yurika. “My first love wasn’t a wonderful one like yours, Yurika-chan... I wish it had been...”

Shizuka’s first love was a long time ago, back when she was in elementary school. It was a typical, childish crush, and it ended without anything happening. Compared to that, Yurika’s first love looked like something brilliant and beautiful to Shizuka.

“I would prefer yours...”

Yurika, on the other hand, had the opposite opinion.

During the past year she’d spent with Koutarou, she’d embarrassed herself countless times. And now that she had developed romantic feelings for him, all of that made for one hopeless and unfavorable legacy. And since Koutarou had only seen that side of her, she worried that he wouldn’t be able to see her as a love interest even if she confessed to him. She was sure he would only ever think of her as a freeloader or, at best, a little sister.

After dinner and games for the night had ended, Koutarou and the others continued to hang out in the inner room. It was him, Shizuka, and the five invaders for a total of seven people. The small room was very stuffy with all of them in it, but nobody complained. They were all happily chatting away about nothing especially important. The seven of them loved the calm, fun atmosphere that their silly talks created.

“Koutarou, it’s starting to get warmer now, isn’t it?”

Though Sanae had recovered her body, she still liked clinging to Koutarou. Even now, she was still clinging to him.

“Well, it is almost summer, so you won’t be able to hold on to me like that for much longer.”

Sanae was light, so the weight wasn’t much of a problem. The real issue was her body heat. Once summer came around, the heat that would build up between Koutarou and Sanae would become unbearable.

“If that happens, I’ll just strip out of my body.”

“Don’t strip.”

Astral projection was easy for Sanae. Even now, she was cheerfully spending her days switching between her body and her ghost form.

“Koutarou, these rice crackers are quite delicious.”

Next to Koutarou and Sanae was Theia, enjoying a rice cracker. After finishing one, she picked up another and put it in her mouth.

“Give me one too.”

Koutarou didn’t lift a finger himself, and instead asked Theia to pass him one. Unlike before when she was a ghost, it was harder to move with Sanae actually on his back.

“Okay.”

But instead of reaching for the bag, Theia turned towards Koutarou and presented him with the rice cracker that had been in her mouth.

“I don’t want one you’ve already started on.”

However, Koutarou had no intentions of taking it from her. In response, Theia relented and let out a small sigh.

“You really are a wuss... Ruth.”

“Yes.”

Ruth, who was sitting next to Theia, pulled out a rice cracker from the bag and presented it to Koutarou. Sanae then took it and split it in half. She put one half in her mouth and pushed the other half into Koutarou’s.

“Oh, these are really good.”

“You’re right! What do you think, Koutarou?”

After tasting the rice cracker herself, Sanae used her psychic powers to share Koutarou’s sense of taste.

“Hmm... I think it’d be better if you ate them.”

Sanae gave up on eating for herself and instead focused on Koutarou’s sense of taste. Since there was a difference in how individuals perceived taste, there were certain things that Koutarou enjoyed more than Sanae. When that happened, Sanae would do what she’d done as ghost and let Koutarou do the eating while she shared his senses.

“I shall leave the rest to you. Now make me proud.”

Using her psychic powers, Sanae pulled the bag of rice crackers a little closer.

“That’s a convenient power...”

Koutarou smiled wryly as he put his hand into the bag and pulled out a rice cracker. That was when Kiriha, who was folding the laundry in front of the wardrobe, called out to him.

“Koutarou, the bath should be ready by now. Why don’t you go on?”

“Hmm, yeah, thanks. I think I’ll do just that.”

Koutarou pushed his rice cracker into his mouth and removed Sanae’s arms around his neck.

“You’re already done?”

“Yeah. Sorry, but you’ll have to eat the rest yourself.”

“Boo.”

Koutarou left the pouting Sanae at the table and approached Kiriha. She handed him a new set of clothes and a towel, both of which had just been washed a neatly folded.

“You could have just given me those unfolded ones.”

“No, that won’t do.”

Kiriha smiled and picked up the next piece of laundry.

“But I’m just going to put them on in a few minutes.”

“I know, but take the folded ones anyway.”

Kiriha then continued carefully folding laundry. It was a casual act, but she did it with an extraordinary amount of love and care. Seeing her like that, Koutarou got a little embarrassed.

I wonder if she’d be like this if we got married...

Koutarou started doing something he had almost never done before—imagining a future together with someone. Thinking about it as he watched Kiriha sit there folding the laundry, he felt both happy and embarrassed. It was the first time he’d felt that way.

I wonder if my old man felt like this before he married mom...

Koutarou thought of his father, who had transferred far away for work. He suddenly wanted to ask him why he’d decided to marry his mother.

“Koutarou?”

Confused as to why Koutarou was just standing there, Kiriha stopped folding the laundry and looked up at him.

“Hmm? Ah, sorry. I’ll go take a bath now.”

“Take your time.”

“Yeah.”

After Koutarou returned to his senses, he disappeared into the bathroom as Kiriha saw him off with a smile. When he was finally gone, a certain person let out a large sigh of relief.

“Phew...”

It was Yurika. As she exhaled, she slumped down onto the tea table. Finally free of the tension she’d been feeling in Koutarou’s presence, her body completely relaxed.

“What’s wrong, Yurika? You’ve been acting strange lately... Well, you were strange to begin with, but I mean even more strange than normal.”

Sanae, who was watching TV by Yurika, looked over at her with a confused expression. Since she could see auras, she knew that Yurika’s emotions were a mess. But she’d been like that for a while now, which was what puzzled Sanae.

“Strange...? You guys are the strange ones. How can you all be fine in this kind of situation?”

Yurika replied to Sanae, still leaning over the tea table. She was at a complete loss.

“What kind of situation?”

“Living together with Satomi-san!”

That was the root of Yurika’s problem. She was having trouble accepting that.

“What? Yurika, did Koutarou do something to you?”

“Could it be the ointment for stiff shoulders that he put up your nose during the last penalty game?”

“Ah, that certainly looked painful...”

“Well... at least he didn’t try out some more wrestling techniques on her.”

“Or could it be that he did something lewd to you?”

“You’re wrong! You’re all wrong! That would have been a lot easier!”

To Yurika, penalty games or being an object of desire would have far easier to deal with than her current predicament.

“Then what’s the problem?”

The dumfounded girls all looked at Yurika. She was definitely the one acting strange here.

“Th-The person that really treasures me and is always with me every day, the person who needs me... He’s not a girl!”

Yurika had friends. There was obviously the invader girls, and then there was Harumi and her master, Nana. But to Yurika, who had become vaguely aware of her own sloppiness, there was someone in particular that she felt like she needed and who needed her in return. And that someone being a boy was a problem. Up until now, Yurika had never been close to anyone but other girls. This was the first time Yurika wanted to be more than just friends with a boy, but she was troubled because they were already such close friends.

“You... Are you an idiot?” Theia retorted bluntly.

“That’s too harsh, Your Highness. There wasn’t any groundwork in place for her like there was for us.”

“Even so...”

Theia always had Ruth. She always had someone who had her best interests in mind, and someone she could bare her heart to at her side. That’s why, when she realized her feelings on Valentine’s Day, she’d had someone to share that with. She was never this much of a mess about it.

It’s not like I don’t know how she feels...

Theia figured that the confusion that Yurika was feeling was similar to what she herself had felt when Koutarou had suddenly vanished and just as suddenly returned. That was when Theia first became aware of her feelings, and she had been greatly shaken by his disappearance. She thought she had an inkling of what she was going through. But oddly enough, Yurika was behaving more like Theia had after her confession, which confused her a bit. She couldn’t really relate there.

“If you don’t like being with Koutarou, then you can just run away. That’s what you’re good at, right?”

Sanae tilted her head. Love was love and hate was hate. To Sanae who had an utterly straightforward outlook on things, Yurika’s confused feelings were beyond her comprehension.

“If I didn’t like it, I would have run away a long time ago! I’m troubled because I do!”

Yurika wanted to be with Koutarou. Calmly looking back at the time she’d spent here in room 106, she realized the past year had been a blissful one. The first few months were chaotic, but after that her life had been full of sunshine. And there was no way that Yurika could hate Koutarou, who was the center of all that sunlight. If hate had anything to do with it, she was worried because she didn’t want him to hate her. She didn’t want to disappoint Koutarou by continuing to be so messy and ungraceful, but she didn’t know what to do to show him a better or cuter side. As a result, Yurika was in a torturous situation where she desperately wanted to escape, but couldn’t bring herself to run away.

“You know, Yurika-chan, your way of thinking is a lot like Satomi-kun’s. You’re worried that there’s no way that someone would love you. But that’s not true at all.”

Shizuka, who was smiling, had learned of Yurika’s circumstances after talking it over with her earlier. Shizuka loved that kind of news. She was always happy to listen to such heartfelt confessions. Perhaps because she was an orphan, she took a special delight in such secrets because she didn’t have many people to share them with.

“Satomi Koutarou needs the normal you. You don’t have to do anything out of the ordinary. Just be yourself.”

Yurika’s appearance was adorable to Kiriha, who understood Koutarou’s personality better than anyone else. Yurika was alternating between joy and sorrow while striving to create a better relationship through trial and error. Since Kiriha thought that was a wonderful way to create a bond between two people, she simply watched over Yurika and avoided any actual intervention.

“Really?! Would that really be all right?! Won’t he just think I’m some strange girl?!”

Yurika didn’t have any confidence. She could tell herself that Koutarou needed her just as she was, certainly, but she couldn’t escape the feeling that would only lower his opinion of her as a woman. She wanted the person who needed her to think highly of her. That was the biggest reason for Yurika’s worries.

“Have some confidence, ho! It’s fun taking care of Yurika-chan, ho!”

“You’ll be all right, ho! Helpless girls are always cute, ho!”

“I don’t want that! Waaaaaaaah...”

Yurika slumped down over the tea table again after what the haniwas said. Not a single problem had been resolved. At this rate, Koutarou would be done with his bath before Yurika had a single countermeasure in place. She once more racked her brain.

“Well, have fun with that... Let’s go, Ruth.”

Theia threw a sidelong glance at Yurika, then stood up and walked towards the far wall of the room.

“Are you already done, Your Highness?”

Ruth quickly followed after Theia, but since it was a little too early for bed, Ruth was curious about what Theia was doing. Theia answered Ruth in a whisper so that only she could hear it.

“The more warmth one feels, the better. Especially in her case...”

Theia was planning on giving Yurika time. Time to think on her own, and time to spend together with just Koutarou.

“I see. What a wonderful idea.”

“Of course. I’m not some merciless dictator.”

“Of course not, Your Highness. Well then, goodnight, everyone!”

“Huh?! Wait, Theia-chan, Ruth-san!”

Ignoring Yurika’s pleas, the two aliens made their exit.

“Well then, maybe I should head out as well.”

“I came over here thinking there was some big fuss, but that’s all it is...? Jeez, and I have to carry this body all the way home...”

“Karama, Korama, you don’t have to watch over the room for tonight. Leave the two of them alone. Instead, increase the watch outside.”

“Understood, ho!”

“You’re the best, Nee-san! Ho!”

Realizing Theia’s intentions, the other girls stood up one after another.

“Ah, everyone, please don’t go!”

At this rate, Yurika would be left alone with Koutarou. And she had nowhere to run. She thought of jumping into the wardrobe and hiding under her futon, but that would be behaving in the disgraceful way she was trying to avoid. She could already see Koutarou opening the door to the wardrobe and telling her to take a bath already.

“I’m begging you! Don’t leave me alone!”

Yurika clung to Shizuka in an attempt to keep her in the apartment. Being alone with Koutarou was like torture to Yurika, so she was desperate.

“Yurika-chan, let me know what happened tomorrow, okay?”

“Nooooooooo!”

However, Shizuka casually grabbed Yurika’s wrist and gently threw her to the floor before leaving like nothing had happened. By that time Yurika was left all alone in the inner room.

“Auuuuuuuuugh...”

Yurika was at a loss, her trembling hand reaching out towards the front door.

I-If I’d known this was going to happen, I would have worked harder to become a more proper girl!

Yurika had always thought that nobody would like her. She thought Harumi and Nana only got close to her because they were especially kind and took pity on her. But reality was different. The girls in room 106 all liked Yurika, and Koutarou needed her.

Yurika didn’t know how that had happened, but that was exactly why she began worrying that they would grow to hate her if she didn’t do something right. And that stress was what led Yurika to continuously repeat the same mistakes without end. She wasn’t doing herself any favors. That was why the other girls had all gone home. They knew that no matter what happened, it couldn’t make the situation worse.

I have to run! But where?! This is supposed to be my home, the place where I can feel at ease the most! Th-Then I should at least make myself look a little better... but I can’t use the bathroom because Satomi-san is in there! Th-Th-Then l-l-let’s put on some tea... but how do you do that?! Teach me, Kiriha-saaan! Then what about pretending to study?! Th-That won’t work either! I can’t let Satomi-san see all the mistakes I would make!

Yurika rolled around on the floor, the seconds and minutes passing as she failed and failed again to come up with anything to do to help herself.

“S-Save me, Satomi-san! Wait, Satomi-san is the problem! Nooooo! What should I do?!”

“...I’m what now?”

That was when Koutarou stepped out of the bathroom, wiping his head with a towel. Yurika was still rolling around on the floor, but Koutarou didn’t think much of it. He then approached the fridge, pulled out a bottle of barley tea and poured some into a cup.

“I-I-It’s nothing! Nothing at all!”

Yurika shook her head in a fluster as Koutarou entered the inner room with his bottle and cup in hand.

“Oh? Did everyone already go home?”

Koutarou came in to ask who else wanted some tea, but Yurika was now the only one in the room.

“Y-Yes, just a moment ago!”

“I see.”

If it was just Yurika, he didn’t need to ask. Koutarou poured a second cup for Yurika. Since she was such a glutton, he couldn’t imagine her saying no.

“Yurika, do you want something sweet or not?”

Next, Koutarou opened up the cupboard and went to choose a snack.

“Huh?! Sweet or not?!”

Lying on the floor, Yurika couldn’t see out of the inner room. That’s why she had no idea he was asking about what kind of snack she’d like to go with her tea.

Sweet or not? Wh-Wh-What does he mean?! When a boy just out of the shower says that, that means he’s talking about a k-k-ki...

Koutarou’s sudden appearance had confused Yurika even further, leading to a wild misunderstanding on her part.

“I... I would, um, like a sweet one over an intense one... i-it’s my first time...”

Yurika felt like steam was coming out of her head. Her heart was pounding unbelievably fast and her mind went blank. She couldn’t process anything else. Her imagination was spiraling out of control.

“Got it, a sweet one.”

“...”

Yurika didn’t respond. She was too busy picturing what would happen next. She imagined Koutarou forcibly pushing her down onto the floor. She imagined pushing him down to the floor. She imagined him whispering into her ear as she closed her eyes.

Thanks to her shoujo manga obsession, Yurika really knew her stuff. By the time Koutarou came back into the room, she had run through more than thirty different scenarios in her head. Thanks to that, one clear image had formed in Yurika’s mind. And that was her lips pressing against Koutarou.

I-I-I’m going to kiss Satomi-san! Uwah... Uwaaaaaaaah!

Despite it being just a delusion, it felt like an imminent reality to Yurika. And if today was a kiss, what would tomorrow be? And the day after that? Yurika’s mind was racing with intense scenes from her shoujo mangas.

“Wha ahe yho dhoin?”

Oblivious to what Yurika was thinking, Koutarou approached her with a cup in each hand a bag of jam donuts in his mouth.

“Ah...”

Yurika gaze naturally drifted up towards Koutarou’s lips... and there she spotted the bag of jam donuts. That was when she realized she’d had utterly the wrong idea.

“Th-That’s right! Snacks! Sweet snacks! Of course it would be snacks!”

Her face still red, Yurika began making excuses to no one in particular. She was unbearably embarrassed over getting the wrong idea about things, to the point where she just wanted to jump into a hole and hide. Unfortunately, however, there were no holes in room 106.

“What are you talking about?”

Koutarou looked at Yurika after setting the cups and donuts down on the tea table.

“Aha, aha, ahahahahaha...”

Yurika’s face was beet red for some reason, and she was forcing a dry, fake laugh. Koutarou was concerned.

“...Are you really okay?”

“Huh?”

Seeing Yurika in such a strange state, Koutarou started to worry she had a fever or something. That might explain the rest of her weird behavior too.

“Yurika, bring your face a little closer.”

Koutarou had a serious expression as he approached Yurika.

Bring my face a little closer? Could he... really?!

Yurika’s shattered delusion was instantly revived. She knew it couldn’t possibly be that, but she also couldn’t think of any other reason he’d ask her to lean in.

“U-u-ummm... please be gentle...”

Yurika turned her face towards Koutarou and closed her eyes.

“Don’t worry. It’s not like I’m going to hit you.”

“Okay...”

Yurika had believed that her first kiss was still a long time away.

I’m really... going to... kiss...

She’d dreamily waited a long time for this moment.

“Hmm, it doesn’t look like you have a fever.”

“Wuh?!”

However, when Koutarou put his hand on her forehead, she instantly realized she’d been wildly under the wrong impression again.

“Noooooooo! I don’t want this! I can’t take this anymore!”

Yurika felt like she couldn’t be more embarrassed even if she were stripped naked. Unable to stand it, she got up and dashed out of the inner room. Koutarou simply stood there, dumfounded by Yurika’s actions.

“Yurika, really, what’s wrong with you?!”

Yurika was so fast that all Koutarou could do was hurl his question at her as she charged away.

“The bath! That’s right! I’m getting into the bath before going to sleep!”

And with that, Yurika ran into the bathroom, her only remaining sanctuary. That was when she finally realized...

What do I do? What do I do?! I-I-I’m living in an apartment with a boy!

A year after it should have, that obvious fact finally dawned on her.

When she came to, Yurika was looking up at the ceiling of room 106’s inner room.

“Huh...?”

Unable to remember what had happened just before, Yurika blankly stared up at the ceiling. As time passed, she gradually began absorbing the situation around her.

“Next up is baseball. A fierce battle of skill between both teams...”

The first thing she heard was the female newscaster talking on the TV. With that, she understood that there must be someone else in the room with her. Yurika never watched the news.

The next thing she felt was a breeze. It was a gentle breeze that cooled her hot body. After indulging in it for a few moments, Yurika looked in the direction it was coming from.

“...It’sh Shatomi-shan...”

In front of her she could see a lone boy holding a fan in his hand. He was responsible for the breeze that Yurika was feeling.

“...Mmm, meheheh...”

Yurika loved that boy, so just seeing him made her happy. While still in a daze, she looked at the boy and smiled.

“You awake now, Yurika?”

Hearing Yurika’s soft laughter, the boy looked at her face.

“Are you okay?”

He wore a worried but gentle expression.

Satomi-san is concerned about me...

Realizing that, Yurika felt equal parts guilty and happy. She wanted to put the boy at ease, so she tried to get her head around what was going on.

Um, did I fight with Maki-chan? Or someone else from Darkness Rainbow? Did Theia-chan’s enemy show up? Or was it something about Sanae-chan’s body?

Usually when this boy was worried about her, it involved some kind of crisis. She often ended up hurt in situations like that, but as far as Yurika could tell right now, she was fine.

“I’m fine, I’m fine... There’s nothing wrong...”

Confirming that she was alright, Yurika smiled at the boy.

I’m okay, so don’t worry... I’ll always be with you...

It seemed as if Yurika’s feelings had reached the boy. The worry disappeared from his eyes, leaving behind only his gentle expression. Satisfied by that, Yurika just continued fondly looking at the boy while wishing that she could stay like this forever.

“Mm... Good. You really scared me, you know? I thought you were just taking a long bath, and then I heard a loud noise from the bathroom.”

“Bath? H-Huh...?”

Hearing that word, Yurika’s brain began working rapidly. The fog parted and her mind cleared up.

“And when I rushed over to see what had happened, I found you collapsed in the bathroom...”

“Ah, n-now that I think about it...”

That was when Yurika remembered what had happened to her.

She had run into the bathroom to escape from Koutarou. She was hiding from him, so she wanted to stay in there as long as possible. When she finally couldn’t stand it anymore and had to get out of the bath, she lost her balance after suddenly standing up.

That was as far as Yurika could remember. She must have knocked herself unconscious when she fell.

“...Did you carry me out, Satomi-san?”

“Yeah. You’ve been out for a while.”

“I see... I’m sorry for making you worry...”

“Just stay lying down. You have a big bump on your forehead.”

“Okay...”

Yurika moved her hand and touched her forehead. There was a damp towel over her forehead, but it hurt where she touched it. She did indeed have quite a lump from hitting something in her fall.

“If you start to feel bad, don’t just hold it in. Let me know, okay?”

“Ahaha, I don’t hold in anything at all...”

“No, you’re the type to hold it in when it really matters.”

As Koutarou said that, he changed the towel on Yurika’s head. The new one felt nice and cool, but Koutarou’s words stunned Yurika so much that she hardly noticed. Eventually, that shock turned into joy.

If I’m with this person, if it’s for this person... then I could probably do anything...

Koutarou said what he did knowing Yurika’s bad sides. She never thought she’d meet anyone like that. Or maybe she was convinced that people like that didn’t really exist. But she was wrong. There was a boy sitting next to her right now that accepted her for who she was—good and bad. That’s why Yurika felt like crying, but she held it in and smiled at Koutarou.

“...Do I look that patient?”

“Less patient and more foolish, I guess.”

“Foolish...”

Before now, Yurika wouldn’t have stood for being called foolish and would have started complaining. But as things stood now, she could honestly accept it. Yurika was confused by that, but she didn’t find it strange.

“I must be. Fools have... confidence, after all...”

“What’s wrong? Does it hurt?”

Yurika was struggling to hold back her feelings anymore, and a portion of her intense emotions broke free in the form of tears. Seeing that, Koutarou remembered that Yurika had hit her head and leaned over to look at her.

“No...”

Yurika shook her head.

“It’s just... I was thinking about how much you understand me... and that made me happy, so...”

And so Yurika ended up revealing her feelings quite naturally.

Before she had stormed into the bathroom, Yurika had been so embarrassed she couldn’t even speak to Koutarou, let alone look at his face. But now was different. Something in Yurika was changing, though what exactly that was remained unclear. Her heart started to beat faster, but in a different way than the out of control throbbing from before. It spread her and Koutarou’s feelings throughout her whole body.

“I-I see...”

In fact, the one embarrassed at that time was Koutarou.

What is this...? For some reason... Yurika really looks like a girl today, or rather, she looks... cute?

Seeing Yurika smile, Koutarou felt his heart starting to beat faster too. It was a new feeling for him. It was quite clearly different from how he felt when he put his trust in her. This was the moment when something inside Koutarou’s heart changed.

“...”

“...”

Both parties unexpectedly fell silent. But unlike before, neither was troubled. They were a little embarrassed, but they both felt at ease as time passed with that silence between them. Just as the towel on Yurika’s head was starting to become lukewarm, she sat up.

“Um... can I ask you something?”

Yurika looked herself over as she spoke. She was wearing the soft pajamas she always wore to bed.

“Hmm? Yeah sure.”

Koutarou took the towel from Yurika and rinsed it in a bowl of water.

“Then...”

Yurika started blushing a little. What she was about to ask was something that she honestly wanted to know, but took courage to say. She felt like now, while their feelings were overlapping, would be her only chance. So she mustered her courage and asked anyway.

“Satomi-san, you... carried me... here from the bathroom, right?”

“That’s right.”

Koutarou’s hands stopped moving.

“And then... you put clothes on me, right?”

“...Yeah.”

Koutarou’s answer was slightly delayed. He realized where Yurika was going with this. Seeing that he was onto her, Yurika’s face turned even redder.

“Th-Then, you... saw me, right? I mean, um... me... naked...”

Yurika had summoned all the courage she could manage, but even then, her voice had all but disappeared by the end of her sentence. Her face turned down towards the floor, she glanced up with her eyes to see how Koutarou reacted.

“I’m sorry. But I had to... I’ll try to forget it as quickly as possible.”

Even dense Koutarou knew that a girl would be embarrassed about someone seeing her naked. That’s why he honestly apologized.

“No... That’s not what I meant...”

Yurika lightly shook her head.

“Huh?”

Koutarou hadn’t expected Yurika to react like that. Surprised, his eyes opened wide.

“Did you have any other impressions...? Other than being sorry... I mean...”

“Th-That’s...”

Yurika’s next question surprised him even more. Koutarou was left at a complete loss for words.

Yurika was well aware that Koutarou had only seen her body because he was acting out of goodwill to help her. In the past, that might have been good enough for her, but now her feelings were a bit more complex. She was obviously embarrassed and would hide in a hole if she could, but she wanted to know if Koutarou had any interest at all in her as a girl.

“How... was it? Did... you feel anything?”

“I—”

Didn’t feel anything.

Just before Koutarou was about to reflexively say that, he shut his mouth.

Wait, is that actually the correct answer?

Not feeling anything for a woman he had seen naked. That was probably the proper answer, but was it really the correct one for Koutarou and Yurika? That was what Koutarou was wondering.

Koutarou knew the way he approached relationships was wrong after the invaders had pointed it out to him. It was why he’d hurt Ruth over her arranged marriage, and why he hadn’t hoped for Sanae to recover her memories. Would he end up rejecting Yurika the same way, even now that he knew better? Would the “proper” answer be too cold for someone he was close with?

Thinking it over, Koutarou gave a different answer from what he normally would have.

“Well, um... I think you looked... beautiful...”

Thinking that delving into details would be going too far and that claiming he hadn’t seen anything would be strange, that was the most honest impression Koutarou was able to comfortably give.

“I-I see...”

Yurika lifted her head, a bit of both joy and embarrassment written on her face. Seeing that, Koutarou felt he’d made the right choice.

I can be a little open with Yurika and the others, can’t I...?

Yurika had helped remind him of something so natural. They were friends, after all.

“As for the rest, um, no comment...”

“I know I was the one who asked, but... I think that’s for the best...”

The pair fell silent once more. They were even more embarrassed than before and their hearts were racing, but they didn’t feel uncomfortable at all. And neither of them fought the mood. They simply sat there together for a while longer.

Bang!

“Kyah!”

“Wah!”

The silence was interrupted by a loud noise from the apartment above. It was just the sound of Shizuka knocking something over, but to Koutarou and Yurika, it felt like Shizuka had suddenly jumped in between them.

“Ah, um, so where were we?”

“Th-That’s right. I have something I wanted to talk to you about too.”

The noise seemed to restore the mood to normal. Now that they were both indirectly thinking about Shizuka, they couldn’t return to that special atmosphere with just the two of them.

“Yurika, could you take a look at these?”

“What’s this...?”

Koutarou spoke at a rapid pace and put down several pamphlets in front of Yurika. The covers of them all depicted large, square buildings.

“They’re brochures for universities. I got them from the teacher today.”

“Universities?”

The pamphlets Koutarou had put down were all introductory guides to nearby universities. Koutarou wanted to show them to Yurika, so he had gone to the guidance counselor to pick them up.

“Actually, recently in the knitting society, we started talking about Sakuraba-senpai’s graduation. You know she’s already in her third year, right?”

“Oh yeah...”

Yurika and the others had just become second-years, but Harumi was a year ahead of them. That meant she’d be applying to university at the end of this year.

“And while we were talking about schools, I started getting more and more worried about what you’re going to do. That’s why I brought you these.”

“What I’m going to do...?”

Yurika touched the pamphlets with a look of blank surprise.

I’ve never even thought about it...

She didn’t have plans for any of this. As someone who fought as a magical girl, the idea of moving on to study at a university had never even crossed her mind. Once the problems with room 106 were resolved, the chances of her next mission being in this city weren’t all that high.

“Yurika, according to the teacher, you should be able to get into the universities around here even with your grades as long as you work hard the next two years. Where do you want to go?”

Yurika’s grades always rode that fine line between passing and failing. But the pamphlets Koutarou had brought were all for universities she could reasonably get in to. Of course, that would still mean putting in some serious effort and really studying.

“Th-This is just so sudden, I...”

Yurika couldn’t decide. That was the first time she’d even thought about going to university. Seeing her look so lost, Koutarou decided to throw her a bone.

“By the way, this is where Sakuraba-senpai will be going. Kisshou University. With her grades, she could probably get in to any school she wanted, but she’s concerned about her health, so she wanted to stay close and picked this one. It would be hard for you to get in though. So if you want to go to the same university as Sakuraba-senpai, you would have to start studying now or it will be too late.”

Kisshou University was a local university from before the merge of Kisshou City and Harukaze City. Compared to the other schools in the area, it was one of the more prestigious options. An honors student like Harumi would have no problem getting in, but she’d picked it as her first choice because of its proximity to the hospital. And since Harumi and Yurika were best friends, Koutarou figured that Yurika would want to go wherever she did.

“Sakuraba-senpai will be going to Kisshou University...”

Yurika mumbled to herself as she picked up their pamphlet.

Will I... study at a university too...?

After becoming a magical girl in Nana’s place, Yurika had always assumed she’d never go back to a normal life. She had only entered Harukaze High because she wanted to harass Koutarou and get him to leave room 106. But now a chance to continue this normal life was presenting itself to her. It didn’t feel real.

“What university will you go to, Satomi-san?”

Yurika still needed more help deciding, so she asked Koutarou about his plans

“I want to go to one of the local universities, either Kisshou U or Harukaze Technical. But like you, I’m not sure if I can get in.”

Koutarou was interested in either Kisshou University or Harukaze Technical University, but those were both above the bar he’d originally set for himself. He’d always thought he’d just go to whatever school he could get in to with his grades, regardless of how far away it was.

But as of late, Koutarou felt like making an effort to stay in the same city his friends lived in. That was a feeling that had awoken inside him after the incident with Sanae.

“I’ll try to get in to Kisshou University, and if that doesn’t work, I’ll compromise a little and aim for Harukaze Technical University, I guess. Haru U has a famous baseball club, so that would really be a win-win.”

Harukaze Technical University was a technical school with about average admissions standards. Since it was a university with plenty of sports clubs, it was attractive to Koutarou, but it was further away than Kisshou University. In the end, both schools were good options for him. Koutarou has set his sights on the more prestigious Kisshou University, thinking that he would have an easier time getting into Harukaze University if he failed. So like Harumi, it was his first choice right now.

“Satomi-san is going to Kisshou U too...”

“What will you do?”

“I, um... I never really thought about it...”

Yurika honestly revealed her hesitation. She still wasn’t sure how she felt.

“Then take some time to think it over.”

“Yes...”

Yurika looked at the pamphlet once more. She imagined herself walking towards the white building in the picture. She saw herself, Koutarou, and Harumi all walking through the gates together. To her, that would be like a dream come true. After thinking for a while, she eventually turned towards Koutarou.

“Um, Satomi-san, can I ask you something?”

“Yeah.”

“What... do you think I should do? Not just what university, but if I should be trying for university in the first place...”

Yurika still couldn’t make up her mind. She was a coward, and it took courage to head towards a new future. Moreover, this was a future she had given up on once already. Yurika just couldn’t make this decision on her own.

“I think that’s something you decide for yourself.”

Koutarou’s answer was the same he had given Ruth over her arranged marriage. In the end, it was Yurika’s decision. But this time, Koutarou didn’t stop there.

“But I think you would be better off studying at a university than just winging it the rest of your life. And instead of going somewhere far away, I would like you to stay close. That way would be more fun.”

Even if the commotion around room 106 came to an end, Koutarou wanted these happy days to continue. He had never wished for that before. He always felt he shouldn’t get his hopes up. But he now knew other people wished for it, and Yurika very well may be one of them. In that case, shouldn’t he wish for the same thing and let people know he supported them? Koutarou held back his negative thoughts and held up his hopes for Yurika’s future.

“Satomi-san...”

Yurika knew about Koutarou’s past. And she had heard Kiriha’s interpretation of how it had affected him. As a result, Yurika knew what was going on inside his heart.

I want to protect him...

This poor soul that had given up on the future after losing his mother was now desperately reaching for a bright future again. That’s why Yurika wanted to protect that small, fragile hope he had.

And if Satomi-san protects me too...

Yurika could use magic, but she wasn’t all-powerful. No matter how much power she might have, she was still a normal girl at the end of the day. Fighting alone was hard and lonely. But she felt like she could continue trying if she had someone by her side. And above all else, she believed that two people supporting one another was a wonderful thing.

“I... want to go to Kisshou University. Together with Satomi-san and Sakuraba-senpai...”

That’s why Yurika wanted to go to university. She wanted to support and be supported by Koutarou and Harumi. She wanted to laugh and have fun with them as they lived their daily lives together. With the invader girls as well. To Yurika right now, that felt like it would be a wonderful future.

“Because I love Satomi-san, Sakuraba-senpai, and everyone else...”

It was the first time Yurika had ever said anything like that. She wanted to live happily. She loved not just Koutarou, but all of the other girls too. That’s why she wanted to be with them forever. It was a declaration of love for all of Yurika’s friends—something she had decidedly been lacking a year ago. But after all this time, she had finally found what she really needed to be a magical girl.

“I see... That’s good...”

Koutarou smiled and nodded at Yurika. He was happy that was her choice, and a little relieved as well. That meant Yurika wouldn’t disappear after they graduated.

“Heehee...”

Yurika’s eyes moistened and she gave an embarrassed smile. The person she loved most of all had said that he wanted to be with her. And he was happy when she said she wanted to be with him too. There could be no sweeter feeling. From the bottom of her heart, Yurika was truly happy that she had come here.

“Then come over here, Yurika.”

Koutarou put away the pamphlets and beckoned over Yurika.

“O-Okay...”

Yurika blushed, and with her eyes still moist, crawled over towards Koutarou.

I misunderstood before... but this time... it’s different, right...?

Koutarou was looking at her with gentle eyes. They both knew they treasured each other. And the time to confirm those feelings directly had come at last. In other words, seal them with a kiss.

If it’s Satomi-san... No, I want it to be with Satomi-san... I don’t want it to be with anyone else... so it should be all right to kiss here... right?

Yurika’s mind was full of thoughts of what was about to happen. But unlike before, she wasn’t losing her composure. Since she knew her feelings had reached him, she didn’t try to run away.

I... love this person...

Yurika felt like her heart was being squeezed. She was sure of that feeling. She followed her heart, and it led her to Koutarou. She was now right in front of him. All that was left to do was give herself over to these feelings.

“All right, let’s start right away.”

However...

“Huh?”

Koutarou put a pen in Yurika’s hand and set a book down in front of her. And with fire in his eyes, he loudly declared his intentions.

“You only faintly remember your multiplication tables, right? We’ll start from here!”

Koutarou tapped the cover of the book: “Fun Mathematics for Second Graders.” It was a grade school level math workbook. Contrary to Yurika’s expectations, Koutarou was planning on having her study right away now that she had decided to aim for university.

“S-Satomi-san, c-can’t you treasure the moment a little more? Can’t you follow your heart?!”

Yurika had been on cloud nine, but was rudely cast right back down to reality. It was just too much. Tears welled in her eyes as she complained to Koutarou.

“It’s because you keep slacking off like this that you’re in such a pitiful condition to begin with.”

However, Koutarou shook his head with a stern expression.

I’ll set her straight on multiplication by tomorrow, and then during the rest of the week, it’s on to division and fractions. But... it might still be too late. I have so much more I need to drive into her!

Koutarou’s fighting spirit flamed up. He was ready to use any means possible to get Yurika into Kisshou University.

“You’re wrong! You might ordinarily be right, but right now, I’m the one who’s right!”

Yurika knew that she had to study. And that she had to start as soon as possible. But that hardly mattered in the moment. Yurika was dead sure that even if she asked a hundred people, they would all agree with her.

“Quit whining and get to work! I’ll do them with you.”

But Koutarou refused to listen to her. He had already decided that he would get Yurika into Kisshou University. That they would go together. And he was going straight for the shortest route there.

“This is wrong! There is definitely something wrong here!”

“It’s good for you to notice your own mistakes. So let’s get on with it!”

“Eep!”

Yurika finally started moving her pen after Koutarou scolded her.

I might have fallen in love with a completely helpless person... W-Wait, huuuuuh?! Satomi-san is totally helpless on his own!

Yurika realized the error of her ways, but it was far too late. The damage was already done.