Chapter II: My Roommate is a Blond Gentleman
Chapter II: My Roommate is a Blond Gentleman
“I’m Charles Dunois. I come from France. Please bear with me as I adjust to life in Japan.”The first new student, Charles, introduced himself with a smile. The entire class, myself included, were shocked.
“Are... are you a boy?” someone asked quietly.
“Yes. I’d heard that there was someone here in the same situation, so of course I—”
A friendly-seeming face. Polite manners, and almost androgynous features. His hair was a honey blond, tied back behind his neck. His build was lithe, almost fragile, with slender legs. In short, the very picture of a young gentleman, especially his nonchalant grin.
“Squ—
“Hm?”
“Squeeeeeeeeee!”
So that’s what a sonic boom felt like. Seriously. The shrieks of joy propagated outward from the center of the class.
“A boy! Another boy!”
“And in our class!”
“He’s so adorable! I just want to spoil him!”
“I’m so glad I was born on Earth!”
The thirst was real. It was probably only due to it being homeroom that no one from the other classes, or even the other years, came by to take a peek. Good work, teachers!
“Enough. Quiet!” Chifuyu barked, visibly annoyed.
It seemed like she was bothered by the girls’ reaction even more than the disruption. Even when she was in school, she didn’t seem to get along with normal girls very well.
“Everyone, quiet down. We have another introduction to make!”
The other student, not so much forgotten as driven out of our minds, stood visibly apart. Her hair was a shimmering silver—almost pure white—and it hung down to her waist. While she was beautiful, it was obviously not from any excess of preening. She wore a patch over her left eye. Not a gauze one from the doctor’s or anything, but an old-school black eyepatch. Like the one on the Oberst in that 20th century war movie. While her visible right eye was a flame red, it exuded anything but warmth. From head to toe, she seemed a soldier. While she was obviously shorter than Charles, the chill and sharp aura she exuded made them seem the same size. And while Charles may have been small for a boy, the other new student was short even compared to the other girls.
“.........”
Standing with her lips sealed and her arms crossed, she glared at the class. However, this only lasted a moment before she fixed her gaze on a particular point... In Chifuyu’s direction.
“Introduce yourself... Laura.”
“Ma’am! Yes, ma’am.”
The transfer student came at once to attention with a swift response, as the class’ jaws dropped. Chifuyu’s face twisted into a slightly different grimace as she received the foreign salute.
“Don’t respond to me like that here. I am not your superior officer, and you’re a civilian student. Refer to me as Ms. Orimura.”
“Understood.”
With that response, Laura returned her arm to her side, brought her heels together, and straightened her back.
She had to be either a soldier, or at least a civilian contractor. And her bearing toward Chifuyu was unmistakably German. I’d heard that Chifuyu had spent a year as a military trainer in Germany. It seems like after that and a gap year, she became an instructor at IS Academy. I say “it seems like” because I’d only heard it from Ms. Yamada and other teachers. She hadn’t told me anything myself. I suppose there was a reason, but still...
—She could have at least told me where she was and what she was doing.
For whatever reason, the girl looked tense, or perhaps vulnerable.
“Bodewig. Laura Bodewig.”
“.........”
My classmates were silent. They waited for something more, but as soon as Laura’s name left her lips they clamped shut like the shell of a clam.
“U-Um, is that all?”
“Affirmative.”
Ms. Yamada attempted to prompt Laura with a smile, but received nothing but a harsh acknowledgement.
—Don’t be mean to your teacher like that. Look at her, she looks like she’s about to cry. Jeez.
Maybe it was because I thought that that I met her gaze.
“You! You must be—”
—Huh? What’s with her? She’s walking straight at me...
Smack!
“.........”
“Huh?”
She suddenly slapped me. A full-force palm across the face.
“I can’t believe it. I refuse to accept that you’re her brother.”
The pain from my cheek seeped through my confusion.
—Why? Why’d she hit me? What did I do to deserve this?
Now the entire class was staring. Even Houki was agape.
—Now’s not the time to be thinking about her!
“What the hell are you doing?!”
“Hmph.”
Laura left as abruptly as she had walked up to me. She strode to an open seat, she sat down, crossed her arms and closed her eye, before becoming perfectly still.
—Wow, she ignored me. Did she really ignore me? What’s wrong with this girl? Is she some kind of alien from the planet Incommunicado? Do Germans slap each other when introduced as a sign of friendship? I never want to live there.
“Ah, ahem! Homeroom is over. Get changed and meet up at Field #2. We’ll be conducting a joint mock combat exercise with Class B. Dismissed!”
Chifuyu clapped her hands to spur us from our seats. I was nearly beside myself with rage, but I couldn’t make a scene right now. After all, if I stayed in the classroom much longer, I’d have to change with the girls. That would go badly. Very badly. I had to get out of there, and fast.
—Hmm, today the second arena’s locker room is free...
“Orimura! You two are both boys. Show Dunois what to do.”
Oh, right. Yeah, that made sense.
“You’re Orimura? Pleased to meet you. I’m—”
“Honestly, let’s get going and save it for later. The girls are already starting to change.”
I explained as I took Charles’ hand and led him from the classroom.
“Anyway, us guys are going to change in the second arena’s locker room. You’ll be doing this a lot, so try to pick it up quickly.”
“O-Okay...”
For some reason, he seemed nervous all of a sudden. Was something wrong?
“Do you have to go to the bathroom?”
“Bathr— No, that’s not the problem!”
“Oh, that’s good.”
We descended the stairs to the first floor. We couldn’t slow down, or—
“There he is! There’s the transfer student!”
“Orimura’s with him, too!”
Yes. Homeroom was over. Advance scouts were arriving from every year and every class to get all the information they could. If we were caught up in that wave, we’d be so bogged down by their questions that we’d be late and have to stay after for “the special curriculum.” Anything but that.
“There they are! Over there!”
“To arms! To arms!”
—Wait. What am I doing in a samurai movie? Or are they trying to get the conch shell from me?
“I don’t mind Orimura’s black hair, but a blond is fine, too.”
“And those amethyst eyes!”
“Squeeeee! Look, look! Their hands! They’re holding hands!”
“I’m so glad I was born in Japan! Thank you so much, Mom! For Mother’s Day I’m going to have to get you something more than just picking wildflowers for you!”
Weren’t you supposed to give her a present every year?
“What’s going on? Why is everyone so excited?”
Charles, utterly blindsided, asked me with a confused look.
“It’s because we’re the only boys here.”
“Huh...?”
Huh? Why did he seem so confused?
“What’s so odd about it? Aren’t we the only two guys who can pilot IS?”
“Ah! Yes, that’s right. That makes sense.”
“So yeah. The girls here almost never have any contact with boys, so when the do, they go full axolotl.”
“Axo... Axo— What?!”
“An exotic pet from the 20th century. They were a fad in Japan.”
“Hmmm.”
Anyway, whatever. Right now we needed to break through their lines.
[I shall not perish ‘ere I reach my mark. E’en must I carve a trail of gore.]
“Honestly, I’m glad you’re here.”
“Why?”
“It’s pretty tough to be the only boy at school. It’s always weighing on my mind. Even just one more makes me feel a lot better.”
“Really?”
—What do you mean, “Really?” Aren’t we in the same boat together? Come on, dude!
Maybe foreign IS schools were attached to a coed gen-ed program? But I thought this was the only place in the world where you could get IS training. Interesting.
“Anyway, pleased to meet you. I’m Orimura Ichika. Call me Ichika.”
“Got it. Pleased to meet you, too, Ichika. You can call me Charles, too.”
“Got it, Charles.”
Somehow, we had managed to break out of the school building.
[Fortune smiles upon us. Onward to our destination!]
“All right, we made it!”
The door slid open as a gust escaped with a whoosh. We’d safely made it to the second arena locker room.
“Wow, it’s getting late! We need to hurry up and get changed.”
I glanced at the clock, and realized how much time had passed. IS suits were a pain to put on, so I was in a hurry. I had already undone my uniform’s buttons while I spoke. I went and sat on a bench, inhaled, and pulled off my T-shirt.
“Whaa—”
“Huh?”
Why was he surprised now?
“Did you leave something behind? Why aren’t you changing? If you don’t hurry up, you’re going to be late. You probably weren’t told, but our teacher is a real stickler for punctuality.”
“Okay, I’ll get changed. But, uh, could you look the other way?”
“Huh? I mean, it’s not like I’m gonna be staring at you... Like you are at me, for example.”
“I am not! Not at all!”
Charles raised his arms while looking toward the floor. Why was he acting like this? It made no sense.
“Whatever, just hurry up. Being late on your first day is no joke... At least, she isn’t gonna be laughing.”
Really, what I wanted from that flame-wreathed demon, teacher Orimura Chifuyu, was enough leeway to tell a joke. Can’t we ever get on close enough terms that she’d blow one off with “Hahaha, you little scamp?” Nah, probably not. Honestly, Chifuyu was weird sometimes.
“.........”
I felt a gaze upon me.
“Charles?”
“Y-Yes?!”
As I turned toward him, I saw Charles suddenly spin toward the wall, as he pulled up his zipper.
“Wow, you change really fast. How’d you do that?”
“Oh, it’s nothing. Aren’t you done yet?”
I had stripped off my pants and shorts completely, and pulled my IS suit up to around my waist. In flagrante—very flagrant—delicto, so to say.
“These’re tough to put on naked. Things get caught.”
“Th-Things?”
“Yeah.”
“.........”
Was I just imagining things, or did he suddenly blush? What a weirdo.
“There we go. Let’s get going.”
“Okay.”
Having both changed, we left the locker room. As we walked to the field, I looked over at Charles again.
“That suit looks easy to wear. Who makes it?”
“Oh, this? It’s a design by Dunois. It’s based on the Phalanx, but it’s almost all custom-order.”
“Dunois? That name sounds familiar.”
“Yeah. It’s my family. My father is the president. I think we’re the biggest IS-related company in France.”
“Wow! So your dad’s the company president? Makes sense, I guess.”
“Er? Why?”
“I dunno, I just got the impression that you were brought up somewhere fancy. Guess I was right.”
“Somewhere fancy, huh...”
Charles avoided eye contact, and a troubled expression sprang to his face. It seemed like I’d brought up something I shouldn’t have.
“You’re more impressive, to be honest. I can’t believe you’re the brother of the Orimura Chifuyu,” he said.
“Hahaha, you little scamp!”
“Huh?”
“Oh, nothing. Anyway, looks like we’ve each got one strike.”
“Huh? I’m not really sure what you mean...”
There was some unavoidable circumstance here. Circumstance, circumstance, stump.
“Oh, never mind. We’re better off not talking about it.”
“Huh?”
Oh. He gave me a funny look. What a failure! I’d changed the topic to get away from funny looks. I felt like crawling into a hole and dying.
“Ahem... Mr. Dunois, a physics question.”
“Why are you being so formal all of a sudden?”
“Bear with me. How do you calculate the drag force acting on a falling object?”
“Er, using the square of its velocity?”
“It’s like that.”
Good job, me. What an intelligent-sounding way to explain it. I had to have had at least 50 points in INT just then. I was sure of it.
“.........”
Eh? Huh? He clammed up. Why? Silence of the North? I loved that one, but maybe Charles preferred of the Lambs.
—Hm? Wait. “Silence” wasn’t a series?
He burst out laughing.
“Seriously? You’re so funny, Ichika.”
He laughed. What a failure! (Repeat from above.)
“I was hoping you’d laugh and give me a ‘Hahaha, you little scamp!’...”
“Don’t sulk like that! I already complimented your sense of humor!”
Huh? Really? Okay, then.
“You’re late!”
We arrive at the second field... A moment too late. The demon stood, her arms folded...
—Did she want a beatstick? Really, when you write it out, it looks like a brand name for something. Beatstick, by Dr—
“If you have time to stand around thinking of worthless things, you have time to get in line!”
Smack! Thanks for the advice.
Charles and I join the end of our class’ line.
“You sure took your time.”
As luck would have it, we were next to Cecilia. She had been trying to micromanage me since the class rep match in April. Sorry, but my “big sister” spot was filled already.
“Why did it take you so long to just get changed?”
Her IS suit was a standard women’s model, and looked something like a one-piece swimsuit, or a leotard. Apparently, showing so much skin made it easier to move around. The IS’ shield barrier provided enough defense for the suit to be fairly flimsy.
On the other hand, mine and Charles’ were different—they completely covered our bodies up to our necks. Only the head, hands, and feet were left uncovered, almost like a scuba drysuit. Supposedly, this was to gather more data. Oh well, if ours were like swimsuits, too, they’d leave us shirtless. It seems like they thought of everything, probably.
“It was crowded getting here.”
“Liar. You normally make it on time, too.”
Huh? For some reason, Cecilia’s words were laced with barbs. I suppose she proved the old saying ‘that every rose has its thorns.’ Somehow, I feel like I’ve said that before. Though then, it was in response to Rin’s “Wow, doesn’t it embarrass you to say that?”
“That’s right. I’m sure it’s because Ichika is just soooo popular with the girls. After all, if he wasn’t, he wouldn’t get slapped two months in a row.”
Ugh. Such snark. Remembering that slap, my cheek began to ache again.
“What? Did you do something again?”
—A formless voice... Are you a master ninja?! Guards! GUARDS!
“Behind you, idiot!”
Oh, right. Class B was lined up behind us. Who was it? Rin? Had to be. No one else in Class B would say that to me. Always with the “idiot.”
“Ichika here already got slapped by the new girl.”
“Wow! Ichika, why are you such an idiot?”
“Don’t worry... there are two idiots right here in front of me,” said a voice.
Cecilia and Rin twisted their necks in the direction of the sudden creak of tin. A demon awaited their gaze. The demon of this training field welcomed all. She does not discriminate on the basis of age, nationality, and gender. And now, the gates of hell creaked open.
Smack!
Under the wide blue sky, the clipboard claims another set of victims.
◇
“Beginning today, we’ll be conducting both hand-to-hand combat and marksmanship exercises.”
“Okay.”
With Class A and B together, there were twice as many students as usual. It made the response sound more energetic.
“Ugh... Hitting someone on the head on the least pretext...”
“It’s all, all, all Ichika’s fault...”
Cecilia and Rin rubbed their heads with tears in their eyes, perhaps from the pain of being hit.
—Anyway, Rin, wasn’t that an improper and baseless claim? I may be overthinking things, but if I wasn’t there’s a slander case there for sure!
Bam!
“I can tell exactly what you’re thinking.”
Ow, she kicked me. The girl behind me kicked me!
—Teach! Teeeeach! I need aid!
“We’ll be conducting combat exercises today. Now, I know you girls are full of energy, so... Huang! Alcott!”
“Why me?” cried Cecilia.
They were completely caught up in it now. Give it up, Cecilia. You’re never going to be able to slide past Chifuyu. Of course, that didn’t stop her from doing it to us sometimes, though she preferred physical attacks.
“We’ll be starting immediately with those who have their own personal IS. Step forward.”
“Still, why me out of that list?”
“It’s Ichika’s fault that I have to do this...”
—Lalala, I can’t quite hear.
“Show some enthusiasm. Don’t you want to impress him?” Chifuyu whispered.
“I suppose this is a moment suited to I, Cecilia Alcott, the British National Cadet!”
“I guess we can show off the talent that earned us our own IS!”
—Huh? What did Chifuyu just say to them?
For some reason, their morale gauges are suddenly maxed out. What the heck. Did she tell them the winner got lunch? Wait, they’re girls, so maybe dessert instead.
“And who am I to compete with? I certainly wouldn’t object to it being Ling.”
“Well, well. I could say the same. This time, I’ll take you down.”
“Be quiet, you idiots. Your opponent will be—”
Shiiiiiiiing!
Huh? What was that sound? It sounded as if the heavens were being ripped apart, but—
“Ahhhhhh! Look out!”
Lookout? Who, me— Whoa!
Boom!
By the time I turned toward the voice, it was already too late. I was struck by an unidentified flying object, and rolled to the ground after being blown several meters away.
“Phew. I barely got Byakushiki out in time. But what was—”
Squish.
“Huh...?”
What was this feeling in the palm of my hand? Is the ground supposed to be this soft? Is it pudding here? Is this what they mean by the Pudding Belt?
“Er, Orimura, could you— Ahh!”
—The pudding is talking!
Wait, wait, wait. That made no sense... Fearfully, I turn my gaze toward my hand.
“Er... Um... We can’t... do that here... No! That’s not the only problem! You and I are student and teacher! But... I suppose being Ms. Orimura’s sister-in-law has its own appeal...”
Ms. Yamada. It was Ms. Yamada. Ms. Yamada was the pudding. And what a big cup of pudding it was.
—I sound like a dirty old man.
It hadn’t been obvious because of how her clothes were cut, but now she was in an IS suit. Its low-cut neckline did nothing to conceal the beautiful curves of her swelling breasts. They were huge. Bigger than Chifuyu’s. And even worse was my own position. Somehow, after being blown away, I had rolled to a stop on top of Ms. Yamada. And my hand was not only on her breast, but was still squeezing in shock.
I realized that I needed to let go. However, my body wasn’t inclined to cooperate. No, really!
—Come on! Hand, you need to move right now! Why won’t you move?! Is this what sleep paralysis is li—
“Wha—”
A sudden premonition of danger snapped me from my paralysis, and I immediately threw myself away from Ms. Yamada. A blast of laser light filled the space where my head had been a moment before.
“Ohohohoho. That’s too bad, I seem to have missed.”
There was a smile on her face, but also an obviously-visible pulsing vein on her forehead. The Azure Sniper, Cecilia Alcott (Rage Mode)!
—Oh God...
“.........”
I heard the clang of something being pieced together. Was that what I thought it was? The sound of Rin’s weapon, the Souten Gagetsu, being combined? At first, it was split into two pieces. Combining them turned it into a double-bladed form that she could then throw. Yeah, she wound up just like that and then—
“WHOA!”
That thing almost took my head off! I barely managed to dodge, but stumbled and fell flat on my back. What I looked up at filled me with despair. Her twin blades, when combined, flew just like a boomerang. There was no way I could dodge.
—I’m done for...
“Fire!”
Bang! Bang!
Two swift shots echoed. The bullets found their mark on Rin’s Souten Gagetsu, and changed its trajectory.
As I listened to the sound of spent casings hitting the ground, I turned my gaze toward the shooter who had saved me. It was Ms. Yamada. Mounted firmly in her hands was the .51-caliber assault rifle called Red Bullet.
Manufactured by the American company, Klaus, its practicality and reliability have made it standard-issue worldwide. But what was most surprising was her accuracy, even having only managed to prop herself up slightly after falling. Unlike her usual puppylike air, now she had a steely calm. She seemed completely unlike the person who’d crashed into a wall during my entrance exam.
“.........”
I wasn’t the only one shocked, either. Cecilia, Rin, and the other girls were all stunned.
“I guess you really are a former National Cadet, Ms. Yamada. You made that shot without breaking a sweat.”
“That was a long time ago. And I never was anything but a cadet.”
Ms. Yamada returned to her normal self. She rolled over and stood up, then returned her gun to its shoulder-mounted container. Afterward, she adjusted her tilted glasses with both hands. Yep... That was definitely Ms. Yamada. She was even blushing slightly from Chifuyu’s praise.
“Anyway, girls, that’s enough gawking. Let’s do this.”
“What? Two-on-one?”
“Are you sure about this?”
“Don’t worry. You two will lose quickly enough.”
Being told they’d lose was enough to put some fighting spirit back in Cecilia and Rin’s eyes. Especially for Cecilia, it seemed the prospect of a rematch was just continuing to pump her up.
“Then, let’s begin!”
As the signal, Cecilia and Rin immediately leapt. Ms. Yamada watched for a moment, then followed.
“I won’t hold back!” explained Cecilia.
“Last time I was just playing around!” shouted Rin.
“H-Here I come!”
The words were definitely Ms. Yamada’s, but her demeanor was as cold and calculated as before. Cecilia and Rin made the first attack, but it was easily dodged.
“Now... Oh, right. Good timing. Dunois, tell us about Ms. Yamada’s IS.”
“Okay.”
As we watched the aerial battle unfold, Charles began an explanation in a clear voice.
“The IS Ms. Yamada is using is Dunois’ ‘Rafale Revive.’ While it was the final second-generation IS to be developed, its specs are comparable to those of early third-generation models, and it’s become known for its consistency, versatility, and wide variety of available loadouts. It currently holds a third-place share of the global IS market, even as the most recent model to enter mass production, and is produced under license in seven countries and used in twelve. Especially notable is its ease of piloting, making it both acceptable to a wide range of pilots and versatile in a multirole function. Its loadouts make it useful in close-in, sniping, and defensive roles, and it’s well-known for extensive third-party support.”
“Thank you, that’s enough for now... It’s over.”
I had been so engrossed in Charles’ explanation that I had completely forgotten about the battle going on. As I looked up again, I saw a shot of Ms. Yamada’s force Cecilia to dodge into Rin, which she then followed up with a grenade. From the smoke of the explosion, two figures fell to earth.
“Ugh... I can’t believe I, of all people, lost...”
“You got read like a book.”
“And you didn’t?! You’re not supposed to just fire your impact cannon in the air aimlessly!”
“I could say the same thing! Why’d you launch your bits so soon? And you run out of energy so fast!”
“Grrrrrr....”
“Grrrrrr....”
They were like oil and water... Or maybe they just didn’t get along. Really, neither was wrong so it was kind of embarrassing to watch. I could practically hear the whoosh as the reputation value of having our own IS fell. And unfortunately, there was no circuit breaker. Their squabble continued until the girls of both classes were practically gasping with laughter.
“I believe we’ve established the competence of our instructors at IS academy, then. Be sure to show proper respect in the future.”
With a clap of her hands, Chifuyu brought everyone back to attention.
“Orimura, Alcott, Dunois, Bodewig, and Huang. You each have your own IS. Split up into groups of eight, led by that list. Understood? Get to it.”
As soon as Chifuyu finished speaking, Charles and I were buried under two classes of girls.
“Let’s do our best, Orimura!”
“Show me how to do this!”
“I want to see how you pilot, Dunois!”
“Hey, hey, pick me for your group!”
They were as vibrantly enthusiastic as I’d expected, if not more so, and all Charles and I could do was stand there wondering what to do. Whether it was out of exasperation at their pace, or frustration with her own misjudgment, Chifuyu rubbed her forehead while growling in a low voice.
“These idiots... Group up, rotating groups one by one, in alphabetical order! Like I told you before. The next one to hold things up does 100 laps with an IS on her back.”
Her voice cut through the confusion. The girls, who’d been swarming like ants until a moment before, suddenly skittered apart like spiders and groups were formed around each of us within two minutes flat.
“You idiots should’ve done that to begin with,” Chifuyu said with a sigh.
The girls of each group continued speaking softly to each other, so as not to be overheard by her.
“Yay! I’m in the same group as Orimura! I’m glad I have my name...”
“Ugh, Cecilia? After she just lost like that? Sigh...”
“Let’s do this, Huang. Oh, hey, can I ask you something about Orimura later?”
“Dunois! If there’s anything you need explained, just ask! And by the way, I’m single!”
“.........”
The only group which was quiet was that of the German transfer student, Laura Bodewig.
Her tense manner. Her standoffish aura. Her cold, disdainful gaze. The mouth, which hadn’t opened even once since before. The other girls were just standing quietly, staring at the ground, seemingly unable to work up the nerve to strike up conversation with such an impervious fortress.
—Honestly, I kinda feel sorry for them.
“Listen up, everyone. For this exercise, each group will get to choose one trainer IS. We have three Uchiganes and two Revives. Discuss among yourselves which one your group would like. But remember, they’re first-come, first-served!”
Ms. Yamada was three times—no, five times—as serious as usual. Perhaps the mock battle before had brought back her confidence? Standing boldly and imposingly, if you took her glasses off, that would be all it took to give the impression of a woman who could get things done. But it wasn’t just her posture that was imposing. The swell of her ample bosom, larger than any of the students’, was on full display.
As is her habit from time to time, she adjusted her glasses. And as she did, her forearms rubbed against her dangling breasts, which shifted like melons on the vine.
“.........”
Scrunch!
“Oww! Hey, what was that for?”
Someone had suddenly stepped on my foot. With her heel, too. The aim of her stomp was almost exquisite, and was enough to make me let out an involuntary gasp of pain. Who would do this to me?
“What are you staring at? Let’s get on with training.”
“H-Houki...”
“What?”
Ugh, she seemed really mad. That wasn’t good.
—Wait, she’s in my group? Then I need to use this chance to try to patch things up between us.
With everything that had been going on, we hadn’t really spoken in a week, and it seemed like it was just going to keep getting more awkward.
—All right, just have to be friendly and...
“Orimura, show me how to pilot an IS!”
“Wow, this IS is heavy! And to think I’ve never had to lift anything heavier than a pair of chopsticks.”
“Most combat training is done in pairs, right? Team up with me, Orimura!”
“Is it as nice as it seems to have your own IS? I’m jealous!”
I wanted to talk with Houki, but before I could I was surrounded by the other girls. And since I was the group leader, I couldn’t just put them off until later, either.
“Well, uh...”
“Group leaders, help your groups get set up in the trainers. Everyone’s going to be piloting today, so fitting and personalization are disabled. Let’s try to have everyone at least started up before lunch.”
Ms. Yamada’s voice came over the open channel. I’d managed to get at least a bit of a grasp on things as a result of my studies, so it wasn’t just because I was the leader that I needed to help out.
“Anyway, let’s set you up and get you walking, going in alphabetical order. First is—”
“Me! It’s me!”
I received an extremely energetic response. You know, I knew it was you, you didn’t need to wave your hand and hop up and down.
“Starting with A! Aikawa Kiyoka! I’m in the Handball club! My hobbies are watching sports and jogging!”
“Uh, okay. Why are you introducing your—”
“I hope we’ll get along together!”
She bent her waist in a deep bow, while extending her right hand. Huh? Did she want to shake hands?
“No fair!”
“I want to, too!”
“First impressions are so important!”
For some reason, the other girls had formed a line, bowing and with their hands out too.
“Um? I’m not quite sure what’s going on, but...”
“Let’s do our best!”
And soon after, I heard the same from behind me. As I turned to see what was happening, I saw Charles confronted with the same bow-and-shake routine.
“U-Um...”
It seemed he was confused by the situation. What a coincidence, so was I.
Wha-bam!
“Owwwww!”
The cries echoed in perfect harmony. It seemed that a line made it easy to discipline all at once. The girls of Charles’ group tilted their faces up, only now realizing the danger which lurked nearby.
“Good, good, nice to see everyone so enthusiastic. I think I’ll take over the training myself. Who’s first?”
“Well, uh, er...”
“Oh, we’re perfectly fine with Dunois.”
“We wouldn’t dream of wasting your time like that.”
“Oh, no, no, I insist. If you’ve got big hopes for the future, you need suitable training. Very well... Let’s go in alphabetical order.”
I heard a tiny gasp. I clasped my hands. See you on the other side.
The girls of my own group, having seen the carnage unfold before their eyes, had flowingly broken their line, and now Aikawa had opened the IS’ external console and was checking its status. Oh, speaking of which, we had ended up with an Uchigane.
“Okay, let’s get started. Aikawa, how many times have you piloted an IS?”
“Well, uh... Just in class.”
“Should be good enough. Let’s get you strapped in and start it up. If we run out of time, we’ll be stuck here after school.”
“Ugh, that sounds terrible. I’ll take it seriously.”
—So you weren’t taking things seriously before? Oh well, I’ll overlook that. Hate the sin, but love the sinner. Let sleeping dogs lie...
Wait, where did those come from? Anyway, the first classmate’s setup, startup, and walking went without a hitch... Or so I had thought, but there was a bit of difficulty when the second went to strap in.
“I, um, I can’t reach the cockpit...”
“Er, uhh...”
Dammit. I’d completely forgotten about this, because I had my own IS, but when using trainers you absolutely had to crouch the IS before removing it. If you remove it while it was standing up, it stayed standing up.
“What’s wrong?”
There was Ms. Yamada. She’d already removed her IS, but was still wearing her bustline-revealing IS suit. Meaning, of course, that I had nowhere really to look but away.
“We, uh, forgot to crouch the IS...”
“Oh, the cockpit’s stuck up high? You’re going to have to lift her up, then.”
“Eh?”
“W-What?!”
“I’m so lucky!”
In order, that was me, Houki, and the second girl—whose name I’d unfortunately forgotten.
“It shouldn’t be difficult at all. Orimura, could you bring out Byakushiki?”
“Okay...”
As ordered, I materialized Byakushiki and mounted up. The month-plus of practice I’d done had paid off, and I was easily able to materialize Byakushiki at a moment’s notice.
“Now, pick up Kishizato.”
“What? Are you sure about—”
“W-Why does he have to do that?!”
Oh, Houki was lashing out. Perfect. Do your best. I was a healthy young boy. I didn’t want to be body-to-body with a girl I barely knew. Things would get real complicated real fast doing that.
“IS can fly, so they’re perfect for carrying someone up to the cockpit,” Ms. Yamada replied.
“Can’t she just stand on someone’s back?!”
See, Houki understood my predicament.
—Wait, standing on someone’s back?
“Stand on what now? And who’s going to do that?”
“Ichika, of course!”
Since when was that a given?
“Hey, wait. If I’m going to have to be stood on, I’d rather just carry her up. It’s safer.”
“That’s right. It’s safer.”
“I— Oh, do whatever!”
Well, I made her mad again, it seemed. Houki turned her back and stalked off.
“All right, Orimura. Pick her up and carry her.”
“Of course.”
I wasn’t very enthusiastic, but I had no choice. It was only once, so it should be fine.
“By the way, Orimura, you need to look at me when you talk to me. I’m not saying you need to stare into everyone’s eyes, but avoiding eye contact is considered rude. Try not to do it too often.”
“Oh, uh...”
“See, you’re doing it again! Look at me!”
Maybe because of her boosted self-confidence from before, Ms. Yamada grasped my hand and pulled me around far more forcefully than I could ever have imagined her normally doing. And, since she did it with both hands, those massive breasts were squeezed between her arms more and more.
“Er, Ms. Yamada...”
Oh, no. I felt my face heat up. But it seemed like not even a third of my innocent emotions were getting through to her, as Ms. Yamada pulled me even closer.
“Look. At. Me! Orimura!”
The more force she put in, the more her arms pushed her breasts upward and toward me. For a healthy 15-year-old, there was no sweeter—and no more noxious—sight.
“Take it easy on him.”
“Yeah! It’s no fair pushing up your breasts like that.”
“My... My breasts?!”
Finally realizing what she was doing, Ms. Yamada looked back and forth between her breasts and my face. With a wordless shout, she leapt backward, wrapping her arms around her body as if to cover herself.
“U-Umm...”
I wanted to break the ice, somehow, but I had no idea what to say. “Nice rack,” maybe... No, I wasn’t that dumb. I’d be sued for sexual harassment.
“Orimura?”
Ms. Yamada turned her head to look back at me and opened her mouth. Her voice was trembling, and she was blushing.
“Were... Were you looking?”
“I, uh... Yes.”
I’d tried to avoid looking as much as possible, but I did for a little bit. I wanted to not tell a lie, but when she heard my words, even her ears turned bright red.
“Well, er, I understand that as a boy of your age it’s only natural, but you really shouldn’t do that because of our age difference and roles, but, er, I’m glad you noticed, but really—”
“What are you doing, Ms. Yamada?”
Chifuyu held a palm to her brow, and spoke in an exhausted voice. Did she have a migraine? How painful.
“Ms. Orimura?! This was just, uh, I mean, em...”
“Just... You can explain later. Anyway, Bodewig’s group is running behind. Could you give them a hand?”
“Of course!”
Ms. Yamada rose and jogged off toward Laura’s group. Partway, just once, she turned back to look at us, and as our eyes met, I noticed she was still blushing.
“Anyway, uh...”
“Back to it, you idiots. Your group’s the next-slowest,” Chifuyu bellowed.
The demon was angered. Was it even my fault? Yeah, it probably was.
“All right, let’s hurry this up.”
“Hya—”
No sooner had I picked up Kishizato as I was told that she let out a yelp.
—Wait, wait. I wasn’t even touching anywhere funny.
“You’re so rough, Orimura.”
We were in a hurry here, weren’t we?
Girls really were light, though. Why were they so light? It felt great carrying them. Nothing like when I had to drag Gotanda around when he got knocked out. He was so heavy that I was almost tempted to just leave him. But I didn’t, I brought him all the way to the nurse’s office. Well, whatever.
“Hold on tight, or you’ll fall.”
“O-Okay...”
After making sure Kishizato, who reluctantly gripped my arms, was ready, I slowly rose. Not that it was a very big deal, it couldn’t have been much more than a meter. The thing with the IS was, though, that to strap yourself into a deployed one you had to lower yourself into it from the back, so even that height was somewhat dangerous. I carried Kishizato up to the cockpit of the Uchigane, making sure that she didn’t fall.
“Now lower yourself in. It’s easier if you hold on to the armor there. Got it?”
“I’m okay now.”
Since I was still holding her, it was a very close conversation. Her eyes were darting around nervously. Was it because she was uncomfortable being touched by a boy?
“Can I let go now?”
“Eh? Um...”
“Huh? Is something wrong?”
“It’s not so much wrong as very right...”
“What?”
As we spoke, the voices of the rest of the group arose from around us.
“What are they doing?!”
“No fair! I want a turn too!”
“Why?! Why am I twelth in alphabetical order! Curse the descendants of the ancestors who gave me this name!”
You should respect your ancestors, though. And won’t your children be their descendants, too? Be careful who you pointed that at.
“I think I’ll be fine, for now. You can go. Otherwise, I don’t know what’s going to happen...”
“Okay, got it.”
I wasn’t sure what was going on, but something was. Oh, that must have been it. That urban legend only girls knew. I wasn’t entirely sure, but that may have been it.
“Yeah, now start it up.”
I lead her through the startup sequence. The armor plating folded and locked around her, and with a faint sound the Uchigane rose.
“All right, next!”
◇
—I can’t stand this! What the hell is he doing? There’s no reason to get close like that! All he needed to do was be a step!
Just the thought of it was driving me insane. Ugh! Couldn’t he have even a shred of tact? Was that so much to ask?
—He’s spent all day staring at Ms. Yamada, too. What a sleaze.
All this time, he was just ogling other girls. Yet, even when we lived together, he barely even acknowledged me! Maybe there was a reason why he was always quiet... Still, at the very least he could have said something...
“All right, now take off the IS,” Ichika told the second girl. “Oh, wait, remember to kneel it. Otherwise—”
Before Ichika could even finished speaking, the second girl had removed the IS with it still standing. Meaning, of course, that the cockpit was stuck out of reach yet again.
“Wait! What are you—” he exclaimed.
“Wait, whoops, everyone was staring at me so hard that I just...”
“You just what?!”
“S-See?” she coughed.
The other girls, at least in our group, were glaring, as if she owed them something. Meanwhile, the girls of the other groups were staring, their mouths half-agape in envy. Like baby birds craning their necks to be fed. Sadly for them, though, there was no morsel from mother—only scolding from our teacher.
“Well, well. Plenty of time to stand and gawk while you’re in an IS, I see. That means you’ve got plenty of time to do twenty laps. We sure are having fun today, huh?” grunted Chifuyu.
“Thank you, ma’am...”
—So many people are being so careless today. Don’t let your guard down just because we’re outside with everyone else.
“Jeez, I have to pick someone up again? Err, who was next?”
Ichika glanced around with a troubled look on his face. Now was my chance.
“Ahem. It’s me.”
“Oh, right.”
With a look of surprise across Ichika’s face, I stepped forward towards him.
“Well, uh...”
“What’s the delay? Hurry and carry me up. It’s not like I want this or anything, but it’s the safest way. We really don’t have any choice,” I insisted.
“Then why don’t you step on—”
“We already established that this is the safest way!”
“Okay, fine. If that’s how it is, I’ll carry you up.”
—So this is the legendary “bridal carry.” It’s... It’s amazing... No! A man and a woman shouldn’t be this close! But it’s for safety’s sake. We don’t really have a choice in the matter.
I choked back at my own thoughts.
“Huh? What’s wrong, Houki? Are you coming down with a cold?”
“Oh, it’s nothing.”
—Easy does it. Just breathe and think calmly. We have no other choice. This is what we have to do...
“All right, here we go.”
Ichika stretched his arms forward and embraced me around the waist.
“And... Up.”
“Eek— Ahem! Ahem!”
—You idiot! Don’t just grab me like that! I wasn’t ready... And besides, you seem way too used to it...
I couldn’t help but stare at his face. Suddenly he turned to face me, and our eyes locked.
“Is something wrong?”
“N-No! It’s fine! Don’t mind me.”
I immediately looked away. I never noticed it before from afar, but Ichika really was strong. And now we were so close that I could feel heat radiating from him...
—Wait! Does that mean he can feel the same with me—
“Houki.”
“Now what?!”
“What do you mean, now what? Just hang on tight. Otherwise you’ll fall.”
“Umm... Oh, all right. Indeed, I don’t want to fall, so I guess I just have to hang on,” I said. “We have no choice.”
I slowly reached out and wrapped my arms around him.
—It’s like we’re skin-to-skin... Wait, what am I thinking?!
I shook my head to clear my mind, and as I did that, Ichika rose up into the air towards Uchigane’s cockpit.
“Houki.”
“What now?!”
“What do you mean, what now? I have to bring you up to the IS so we can get back to practice. Do you need me to bring you closer?”
“N-No! If you do, I think I’ll lose my—”
“Huh? What do you mean?”
“Oh, nothing! Anyway, this is fine.”
I hastily let go and started to make my way into the cockpit.
“Looks like you’ve got it. Anyway, after you start it up, just take a few steps and—”
“Ichika.”
“Huh? What?”
“Well, um. Did you have plans for lunch today?”
—Why am I so nervous? I’m just asking him to lunch. It’s no big deal. We’ve had lunch plenty of times before...
“Not really.”
“Oh?” I replied.
—Focus! You can do this!
“T-Then... Why don’t we have lunch together for once? Sounds like a good idea.”
“Huh? Sure, I guess.”
After his response, I began to walk with Uchigane. Slowly, but steadily.
—He actually agreed! But, we’re just having lunch. Lunch between two old friends. Nothing special here!
“No problems at all, huh. I knew you’d be good at this. Now, if you could kneel it and get—”
“.........”
—It’s been so long since I’ve had a normal conversation with Ichika... I need to make sure I don’t mess up this opportunity.
“Hey, wait! Why did you leave the IS while it was standing! Ugh, not this again...”
Ah. I didn’t mean to do that. Oh well, surely the next person would be content with that, still.
—I won’t make the same mistake as last time!
◇
“That’s enough for this morning. This afternoon, we’ll be covering maintenance of the IS you used, so each group should assemble in the appropriate hangar. If you have your own, make sure that you also observe its maintenance. Dismissed!”
Having barely completed their startup tests, the combined class of A and B brought their IS to the hangars, then returned to the field. Time was tight, so we all were in a rush. Any slower, and who knows what the demon teacher’s response would be? As we stood gasping for breath, Chifuyu relayed her instructions, then left along with Ms. Yamada.
“Wow, I didn’t realize they’d be so heavy...”
The trainer IS were moved around on carts, but we weren’t so fortunate as to have them be motorized. These were man-powered. Literally, as I was doing the heavy lifting in my group. The girls must have been expecting a man to do the heavy labor. Even if they weren’t, men were on the bottom of the totem pole these days. Times sure have changed.
It’d be really weird for me to make girls do it, so I guess it was fine. Meanwhile, in Charles’s group, a team of athletic girls had insisted “We can’t let you do that!” and took over moving the trainer IS themselves. Wait. How come they treated him completely different...
“Oh well. Charles, let’s get changed. Remember, we have to go all the way to the arena locker rooms.”
“Oh, I have to make a few tweaks to my IS. You can go on ahead, this may take a while.”
“You sure? I don’t mind waiting. I’m pretty used to—”
“Just go ahead! I do mind! Okay? Just meet me in the classroom.”
“Uh, okay. got it.”
He seemed insistent, so I just nodded. Why did he care so much, anyway? Whatever, I wasn’t going to argue with him, so I gave up and headed to the locker room.
IS suits were almost perfectly sweat-absorbent. It was rather amazing. No matter how hard you worked out, you were left almost perfectly dry. I guess it was because they were originally developed for use in space? That made sense to me, at least.
Quickly, I finished changing. IS suits were three times easier to take off than put on. I left the locker room as I dried my head with a towel.
◇
“Why on earth...”
“Hm?”
For lunch, we had gone to the roof. Normal high schools tried their hardest to keep students from the roof, but IS Academy was different. Seasonal flowers bloomed from beautifully-arranged beds, placed on the sort of calming cobblestone floor reminiscent of a European chateau. Scattered about were round tables with chairs, enlivened by the chatter of the girls on sunny days. Today, everyone had gone to the cafeteria hoping to find Charles, so only we were up here. Yay, privacy. Privacy, yay.
“The weather’s good, so it’s nice to eat on the roof, right?”
“That’s not what I meant...”
Houki cast a quick gaze to the side. There sat Cecilia, Rin, and Charles.
“It’s more fun to eat in a group anyway. Plus, Charles just transferred here, so he doesn’t know his way around yet.”
“I guess...”
Houki raised a clenched hand, as if she was about to object. From it, though, dangled a home-cooked lunch.
Since everyone at IS Academy lived in the dorms, the kitchens were made available in the mornings to students who’d like to prep their own lunch. I’d poked my head in once out of curiosity, and could still remember my befuddlement at the commercial equipment inside. Schools directly run by the national government really had loads of money to burn.
And so it seemed that Houki had made her own lunch today. With enough to share with me, even. Childhood friends were great.
“Here, Ichika. There’s enough for you.”
Rin slung a container at me. Don’t throw food like that, Rin!
“Oh! Sweet-and-sour pork!”
“Yeah. I made some this morning. You said you wanted to try it, right?”
Childhood friends truly were God’s gift to mankind. But who would ever think to have sweet-and-sour pork without rice? Rin had brought rice, but only enough for herself. She tended to take things a little too literally at times.
“Ahem. Ichika... By some twist of fate, I happened to awaken early this morning, and decided to prepare these. If you’d like one, feel free.”
Cecilia opened a basket. Inside were a neat line of sandwiches. But...
“Uh, sure. Thanks.”
My response was a beat delayed. Rin looked on with an almost shocked expression. Dammit, Rin, at least you didn’t have to actually eat it.
“Hm? Is something wrong?”
“O-Oh! It’s nothing!”
To be honest... The British National Cadet, Cecilia Alcott, was absolutely terrible at cooking. Everything she made was beautiful, but it came out tasting awful. I’d sometimes contemplated seriously asking her why she tried to cook things she had no idea how to make, but I had no inclination to do so just then. I didn’t think it would end well. But really, why did she?
She was the rich young scion of a noble family, so surely she had more than one personal chef, had never picked up a cleaver, and rarely even chose her own meal from a menu. When asked about it, she simply said “Well, I made them like in the book.”
—Uh, Cecilia, I think you mean more “like the picture,” not “like the book.”
The taste probably would be a lot better if she actually went by the book, instead.
“Are you gonna drag it out rather than being honest? Idiot.”
Don’t talk to me like that, Rin. I had done the same for her when she cooked me near-poison. The words “Tell me it’s delicious or I’ll kill you” were written all over your face. But even then, it was obviously something that she’d worked hard on making herself. I wanted to avoid saying it was bad if I could. I was grateful just for the thought. Extremely grateful. Up until coming to IS Academy, I’d always done the cooking. I wish Chifuyu was this grateful to me. Then again, if I kept lying nothing would ever change... Sigh.
“Are you sure it was okay for me to sit with you?” Charles said from beside me.
Again, he was being so incredibly polite that he was almost causing more trouble. To be honest, girls had gathered in droves at the doors of Class 1-A to do battle over a second boy, yet the young blond gentleman had managed to disperse them with both courtesy and respect. Perhaps they only left because pressing him any further would have become embarrassing; and so, they drifted away with an expression of frustrated joy on their faces.
His words to send them off were: “It is not the place of one such as I to pluck such beautiful flowers. Even their sweet scent is nearly enough to intoxicate me.” It was incredible. Amazing, even. He seemed completely unsarcastic, too. His earnestness, and more than anything, his profundity and lyricism, only made his words sound more bright. His gentleness, even more so. The third year whose hand he grasped actually fainted.
Anyway, since he’d managed to clear away the entourage, I invited him. Then Rin and Cecilia ended up tagging along, too. I had no reason to turn them down, and it seemed like we’d all get along better with more people there. Since we’re all National Cadets, I was sure we’d have plenty to talk about. Though, strictly speaking, it seemed like I wasn’t officially a National Cadet. As a male, whether I was subject to the Alaska Treaty or not appeared to be a matter of much international debate. I wasn’t particularly concerned either way, but I was certainly glad to have my own IS. I’d once helped Houki to request a trainer, and the amount of paperwork to fill out left me speechless. Ten sheets or so of composition paper? What could possibly take that much writing?
“Plus, we guys need to get along. It’s not always the most convenient, but let’s help each other out. If there’s anything you need to know, just ask me. Well... Except about IS.”
“You need to study harder.”
“I am studying hard, there’s just too much to remember. You guys only know everything since you started before you even enrolled here.”
“Well, yeah. It depends on when you take the aptitude test, but the latest you’d be starting special classes is in junior high.”
That certainly seemed to be the case. As for Rin herself, she’d been studying as a National Cadet with her own IS since her third year of middle school, so I couldn’t even imagine how much hard work she’d put in. Currently, in terms of mock battle win rate, our ranks were Rin first, Cecilia second, Houki third, and myself fourth. Not very flattering results, admittedly.
“Thanks. You’re so nice,” said Charles.
Da-dum.
That guileless smile and those words were enough to set me off, though he was a guy.
“Well, I mean, we’re probably going to be roommates soon enough, so...” I replied.
“Oh, Ichika, has my room been assigned yet?”
“Not technically, but it’s gotta be mine. After all, you’re a guy, too.”
“Oh. Right, that makes sense.”
The conversation continued as we ate. Rin and I had our sweet-and-sour pork, while Charles had a roll he’d bought. Cecilia had brought food as well, with the sandwiches I’d been offered “one” of earlier pushed off entirely on me.
“.........”
The whole time, beside me, Houki sat silently, chopsticks unmoving—having not even opened her lunch box.
“What’s wrong? Do you have a stomachache?
“No...”
“Oh. By the way, Houki, if you could be so kind as to pass me my share...”
“.........”
She silently passed the lunch box, and I racked my mind for something to say. It seemed like being in the same group hadn’t actually improved things between us any. Was she mad about something?
“Then, if I may... Oh, wow!”
Opening the box, I found a well-balanced menu of salt-grilled salmon, fried chicken, konnyaku and burdock stir-fried with hot peppers, and spinach salad with sesame dressing.
“This looks amazing! You must have worked so hard on each of them.”
“I-It’s no big deal. I just happen to have had some left over.”
“I’m still grateful. Thanks, Houki.”
“H-Hmph.”
Even as she tried to downplay it, Houki couldn’t hide her smile as she opened her own lunch box. Of course, her menu was the same as mi— Wait, what?
“Why don’t you have any fried chicken, Houki?”
“Well... Umm...”
For some reason, she avoided eye contact. Why was she doing this now? Should I not have asked her that?
“They came out good, but I just couldn’t.”
“Huh?”
“I’m on a diet! So I made one less thing for myself. Is that a problem?”
“No. But you don’t look fat or anything.”
I didn’t realize at the time how dangerous that statement could be. Rin and Cecilia’s eyes began to glow red, and they jumped to the attack.
“Why do men always assume that someone is fat just because they’re on a diet?!”
“I simply cannot believe that you’d be so indelicate.”
“No, really, she looks like she doesn’t need a diet at—”
I looked to my side, at Houki. I swear, I didn’t do anything else, yet she still pushed my face back aside.
“Where were you just looking?!”
“Uh? Your body?”
Obviously I wasn’t looking at her face— Ow!
“What are you doing staring at her breasts?!”
Rin stomped her heel down on my foot with full force. She then proceeded to grind it four more times. That really hurts. Please stop. How nimble she was, to be able to do that around a table...
“It seems there are many ways in which Ichika fails to be a gentleman,” Cecilia chimed in.
Of course, her face was smiling even as the veins on her forehead throbbed.
—Cecilia has all the patience of a saint, provided you mean a warrior saint like Joan of Arc. Though... that’s a strange choice, given that she’s English.
“ICHIKA!”
Angry childhood friends echoed in stereo. How could they tell that I was thinking of a joke? Why would that even make them mad? I really didn’t understand the female persuasion at all.
“Huh?”
Charles didn’t quite understand what was going on, and watched with a slightly confused look. Maybe Cecilia got swapped with Charles?
“What’s wrong, Ichika? You’re making such a strange face,” commented Charles.
“Strange? How so?”
“There’s something about your mouth... You look like an old man watching his married grandchildren get together.”
“Not like a wise-aged academic who loves history almost as much as he loves coffee?”
“Ahahah. That’s so silly, Ichika. I love it.”
Shot down with a smile. This was the first time I experienced that angelic cruelty.
“Ahem. That’s enough nonsense. Let’s have lunch. Our break isn’t long enough to chatter up here all day.”
Houki spoke the harsh truth. Hey, wait. What did she mean by “nonsense?”
“Anyway, let’s eat.”
I immediately stuffed my mouth with chicken.
“Wow, this is good!”
The time spent waiting in a lunch box had left it cold, but even so, Houki’s fried chicken was excellent. The breading was still crisp, not soggy at all. The juices, which filled my mouth as I bit down, were thick and rich, as if she expected it to be served cold. Yet somehow, it was refreshingly clean and without an aftertaste, and as soon as I swallowed I was ready for another bite.
“This must have taken you a while to make. Hmm, what’s in it? Ginger and soy.... What else? I know I’ve had something like it before.”
“Grated garlic. That, and a little bit of black pepper at the beginning. And as my secret touch, a pinch of grated daikon.”
“Wow! That sounds good. I’ll have to give it a try myself, sometime.”
I was surprised at how tasty it was. I couldn’t believe this was the same person who had made utterly flavorless fried rice the month before. Then again. You know. Women took to cooking and cleaning like nothing else. Meanwhile, it took forever for a guy to learn. It was like women were specced out differently from the factory. I was a bit jealous, and a bit resentful. When I first started cooking, I was terrible at it. Then again, Chifuyu finished every bite even if she grumbled, and that kind of ended up being my motivation to get to the point where I am now.
“Really, though, this is good. Are you sure you don’t want any, Houki?”
“I... ate all the ones that didn’t come out right...”
“Hm?”
“Oh, uh, nothing! It’s just, umm... I’m glad they’re good,” she mumbled.
For some reason, Houki had been speaking in a low voice that I couldn’t always pick up. Maybe she didn’t want me to hear?
“Really, it’s good. You should try some. Here.”
As I spoke, I picked up a piece that would be bite-sized for a girl with my chopsticks. Of course, I cupped it with my left hand to make sure it wouldn’t fall.
“W-What?!”
“C’mon. Try a piece.”
“No, I-I, wait, uh...”
For some reason, Houki awkwardly stuttered. Was I imagining things, or were her cheeks bright red?
“.........”
Where did her usual razor sharpness go? Houki was just looking back and forth between her lunch box and my chopsticks, flustered.
“.........”
“.........”
I could feel stares coming from the other side of Houki. They were from Rin and Cecilia.
—Why are they glaring at me like that... Oh! They must have want some chicken too, huh?
“I’m just going to point out that you have the wrong idea.”
“How rude. A proper lady would never do such a thing.”
Or not. Whatever.
“C’mon. Have some, Houki.”
“No, I— Well... Umm...” Houki cleared her throat.
A strange expression flitted over her face before she knit her brow into a frown. What was going on in her head?
“Oh, is this the thing Japanese couples do where they say ‘ahhh’? I didn’t realize you two were that close.”
Charles grinned with obvious self-satisfaction as he spoke. The smile of a true golden boy. Yet, his words brought down the wrath of Rin and Cecilia as if they were a tiger sage and a valkyrie.
“Who do you think you are?! What even makes you believe that?”
“Indeed! I demand a retraction!”
They set on Charles as if to devour him. Yet even in such a situation, his smile never left his face. Was this the meaning of noblesse oblige? The French were truly fascinating.
“Hmm. How about this? Why don’t we each pass something around? It’s okay if everyone does it, right?” Charles inquired.
“Sure, sounds good,” I replied.
“If Ichika’s fine with that, then I don’t mind.”
“I would never have such appalling table manners at home, but I suppose this is Japan and isn’t a formal occasion, so... When in Rome?”
It seemed like everyone was on board.
“All right, me first!” Rin suddenly spoke, and snatched the fried chicken from my chopsticks.
“Hey, wait!”
“Wow! This isn’t half bad.”
“Of course. I made it the proper Japanese way,” Houki muttered.
For some reason, even after her chicken was stolen away, Houki’s face held an unconcerned look. Rin herself, on the other hand, looked self-congratulatory. I really didn’t understand how girls thought.
“Ah... Sorry, Houki. That was the last piece of chicken I hadn’t taken a bite of.”
“Oh, really?”
“Yeah. I’m sure you don’t want anything a guy’s bitten into, right? But I don’t have anything else to give you. Everything else we have is the same.”
“Honestly, I don’t mind...”
“Wha— You sure?”
“I-It’s fine. I don’t mind if you’ve taken a bite.”
“Oh? Open wide and say ‘ahh,’ then.”
We can ask people to say “ahh” without a second thought. Was this a privilege reserved for the Japanese?
“Ahh...”
Even if it was a bit awkward, Houki opened her mouth and took the bite of chicken. Looking at her red cheeks, I couldn’t tell if she was blushing. Maybe we were getting a little old for this?
“That was pretty good.”
“Wasn’t it? Your chicken came out great.”
“I didn’t mean the chicken, but... Yeah. It was great.”
I wasn’t quite sure what she meant, but I was glad she was in a better mood.
“Ichika! Have some of the sweet-and-sour pork!”
“Ichika, would you care for a sandwich? Or more than one sandwich, actually!”
Rin and Cecilia immediately squeezed up next to me. What was up with them?!
“Here!”
Each of them pushed some food toward me, as if prompting me to open wide.
“W-Wait. Hold on a minute. I already have some sweet-and-sour pork, and I’d honestly rather save the sandwich for last.”
“.........”
Ah, dammit. A silent insistence meant no counterargument, or room for negotiations. If these two had been around for Romance of the Three Kingdoms, they’d have made great strategists. Perhaps we’d be reading Romance of the Five Kingdoms instead? Yeah, probably not...
“T-Thanks.”
Why can’t men ever win an argument with women? I know it has been like that since around 2000. Probably for all of history. That sounded about right. Anyway, first up was Rin’s sweet-and-sour pork.
“It’s good. But Rin. Why’s your sweet-and-sour pork warm?”
“I heated it up in the microwave when I went and got rice.”
It would’ve been nice if she heated mine, too. Ah well, it was still tasty.
“Ahem. Then, next are my handmade sandwiches?”
“Uh... Thanks.”
Unable to refuse Cecilia’s bashful insistence, I took a bite of the sandwich she offered.
“......?!”
Urk... It was too damn sweet. How?! What did she put in it! There was definitely some vanilla extract, but something else, too. Whatever it was, it was abnormally sweet. It looked like a BLT! Why was it so sweet?! For argument’s sake, I could maybe accept this much sweetness from an egg sandwich, but...
“How is it?”
—Ugh. What can I even possibly say...
“You should be up-front about it.”
Rin spoke nonchalantly as she shoveled sweet-and-sour pork into her mouth. That made sense. Honestly, she was right. But, well. It was hard to tell a girl that her cooking was bad.
“Uh... Err, it’s... it’s not bad. I-I like it.”
There I go again, choosing to just be polite. I was a bit taken aback at my own lack of courage.
“Oh, really? Feel free to have them all, then!”
Cecilia’s face lit up as she pushed the basket of sandwiches at me. I suppose if I thought of them as dessert I could make it work.
“Idiot.”
Rin said as she sipped from a box of Oolong tea.
She must have bought it at the same time as the rice. Whatever, maybe she was right, maybe I am an idiot.
“You know, I feel like a baby bird doing this.”
I was glad there were no other students on the roof. If there had been anyone else, I never would have done this. There was no reason someone in high school should ever have to be hand-fed by anyone. Houki didn’t seem to mind, though. Maybe it was only embarrassing for men.
“I guess. But there’s nothing wrong with that.”
“Yeah, that’s right. There’s nothing wrong with that.”
Rin and Cecilia nodded in unison. I wasn’t sure, but it seemed like both were blushing.
—Don’t decide now that getting fed is embarrassing! Especially since I’m the one getting fed!
“Ichika. Is there anything else you’d like to eat?” Houki said suddenly. “I mean, I guess I have to feed you something too.”
“It’s fine. Plus, we have the same things other than the chicken, so you’d end up with nothing left.”
“Oh... I guess you’re right...”
“Anyway, let’s finish eating. I don’t want to have to run after a meal, but Charles and I have to go all the way out to the arena locker room again.”
The hangars were on the close side of the athletic fields, but the locker room we could use was in Arena #1, while the hangars were in #4. It ended up being a pretty long walk. If we spent too long, we’d be doing track and field immediately after lunch. I’d really prefer to avoid that.
“Huh? Wait, do you take off your suit after every practice?” asked Rin.
“What? Aren’t you supposed to?” I questioned in return.
Wait, did they—
“Around half of us girls just keep ours on. It’s too much of a pain to change.”
Wow, really? That made sense. They were sweat-wicking and easy to move around in, so there was nothing wrong with keeping them on.
“Meaning...”
Houki and Cecilia probably had theirs on, along with Rin. It wasn’t like you could tell through their clothes. It was so much easier to be a girl. Mine went all the way down to my ankles, so it would feel weird to wear under my pants. It’d be too restricting... Well, probably not, but it seems like it’d be a bit warm.
“I told you, stop staring at girls’ bodies like that! You creep!”
“What? No, I didn’t mean—”
“It doesn’t matter what you mean, that still isn’t gentlemanly!”
“I was just gazing off—”
“Oh, so you’re gazing at us now? How insolent!”
Insolent? Really? Why did they always have to gang up on me, anyway? I let out a sigh as I gave up on arguing. Anyway, I wanted to finish my lunch. All of the food—sorry, except Cecilia’s—was good, so we ate quickly as we turned back to our meals.
“.........”
“What’s wrong, Ichika?”
Charles was, somehow, facing opposite the girls. Naturally, Charles didn’t accuse me of anything. He didn’t stare at me angrily. He even went out of his way to show genuine concern for me.
“It’s great to have another guy around.”
It really was. From today on, I had someone battling for the same team as me. It was wonderful. They might even set up a time where we could use the dorm baths. For a variety of reasons, as a man, I couldn’t currently use the baths. At first I was supposed to be able to use it as long as I went at a different time, but apparently a large number of students objected.
“How are we supposed to take a bath when a boy’s going to be in there after?!”
—Uh, by sitting down in the water? Is there something wrong with that?
And it seemed like even more protested when it was suggested that I go before the girls.
“How are we supposed to take a bath after a boy’s been in there?!”
—By sitting down? Wait, didn’t I already say that?
Anyway, it was obviously too much trouble to set up a time for just one person, so I hadn’t been able to take a bath even once. As a bath-lover, it was almost torture.
“Oh, really? I’m not really sure about that, but I’m glad it makes you happy,” said Charles.
Was he just being shy? For some reason, that came out a little awkward.
“Great to have another guy, huh.”
“How unwholesome.”
“That idiot manages to be the last one to realize...”
The three spoke among themselves in hushed voices. I couldn’t quite make out what they were saying, but it was probably for the best. For the rest of the day, I endured their disgusted looks. What was up with that? I really didn’t understand what women thought.
◇
“Again, I hope we get along well.”
“Sure. You too, Ichika.”
It was night. After dinner, Charles and I returned to our room. At the cafeteria, we were hemmed in and interrogated by an army of girls curious about the new boy, but we’d managed to cut them off before it started to drag on. As expected, or as was a given, Charles was to share my room. There, I poured him some Japanese tea.
“It’s quite different from black tea. I can’t quite put my finger on how. It’s good, though.”
“I’m glad you enjoy it. Let’s have some matcha sometime, too.”
Cecilia, on the other hand, didn’t like Japanese tea at all. Apparently she couldn’t stand the color. Was green really that strange?
“Matcha? You mean the stuff you kneel on bamboo mats to drink? I’d heard there was an elaborate ritual. Do you know how to brew it?”
“Matcha’s prepared, not brewed. I’ve only had the quick stuff, though. There’s a place near the station that makes it their specialty. You can go there and enjoy it like you would a coffee.”
“Oh! Sounds interesting. I’m up for it whenever, I’ve always wanted to try some.”
“All right. We’ve got plenty to talk about, too. How about this Sunday?”
“Really? That sounds great. Thanks, Ichika.”
The subtle smile which sprang to Charles’s face sent my heart aflutter for a moment, even though I knew he was a guy. Maybe it was because of his androgynous look and style, but something inside me was deeply confused when he turned that gentle smile my way.
“I’ve been wanting to have some matcha for a while too, so no big deal.”
“Thanks anyway.”
Charles, perhaps noticing my embarrassment, gave a somewhat kindly smile. I’d lived with just Chifuyu as far back as I could remember, so I didn’t have any way to tell, but maybe this was what a “domestic smile” was? While it was meant to calm me, it only made my mind race more, so I changed the subject.
“So, should we pick an order to shower in? Or I don’t mind going day-by-day, either.”
“Oh, I’m fine going second. You go first, Ichika.”
“Eh? Honestly, saying it like that makes me not want to. Don’t you ever want a shower right after practice?”
“Nah, I’ll be fine. I don’t really sweat much, so I’m not that concerned about showering right away.”
“Oh? Anyway, thanks a ton. Don’t hesitate to insist sometimes, though. After all, we’re both guys.”
“Sure. Thanks.”
He grinned at me again. Ah, that must have been it. Charles was extremely natural and unforced when thanking people. Seeing a smile like that at exactly the right moment must be what was making my heart skip a beat.
“Speaking of which, I’d heard you always practice after school. Is that true?”
“Yeah. I’m behind everyone else, so I’ve gotta keep on putting in extra practice every day.”
Today was the day Charles moved in—if you could call it that, since he arrived with no luggage and no boxes—so I had skipped practice. However, I had to start back up tomorrow. After all, this month was the tournament.
“Mind if I join in? I owe you one, and besides, it’d probably be helpful since I have my own IS.”
“Oh, that’d be awesome. Thanks.”
“Sure. It’s a deal, then.”
I slept well that night, secure in the knowledge that I’d gained a reassuring ally in both public... and private matters.