Capítulo 36: Bless the Horse Man
It was the day before the cultural festival.
As a special touch, most of the classes spent the afternoon preparing for the festival.
My classmates wore the costumes they had brought with them to recreate the atmosphere of the festival. I was supposed to play the role of a monitor of sorts, so I was glad to not be wearing a costume.
The girls were chatting among themselves. On the other hand, the men seemed excited as they glanced at the girls who, as if in courtship, showed off their costumes.
I noted that this was the epitome of breeding in the animal kingdom.
They communicated a kind of ritualistic shared expression of love with their eyes, voices, and gestures. All in pursuit of reproduction. It was probably a long ways off, but they're making steady progress.
When you think about it, isn't a uniform kind of a disguise?
Among us young'uns, the word "cosplay" was understood easier.
Especially those cute skirts that high school girls love. I thought it was totally like cosplay. Pretty cute.
So it was the men who were attracted to the skirts. The thighs which peeked out stimulated us. And for some reason, girls wore their skirts short. They wanted to expose their thighs even though the school rules said that the length should go to around the knees. Tracing the principles of their behavior, it all converges to sexual appeal.
Now they were each wearing clothes that went beyond a skirt. Yes, they were shining even more than usual.
In conclusion, it was inevitable for the men to get excited.
"Your face is too stiff."
It was Takane Makoto who commented to me leaning against the wall.
He was wearing shorts, an aloha shirt, and a horse mask. I recognized him from his voice, but if he hadn't been speaking, I would have shot him dead with a large caliber gun. Something like an elephant gun. It really feels like the festival is special since it allows monsters like this inverted centaur to appear.
"I was feeling the history of life that had built up over hundreds of years. Never thought I'd be able to feel that in this class."
"Yep, Sui, you're a freak."
"Lucky I can't beat you up right now."
The horse's mouth moved as he spoke.
The face of the horse, which never changed its expression regardless of what it said, was strangely intimidating, causing me to flinch. Its black eyes had lost all emotion. Similar to Arina.
"Did you buy that horse mask?"
"Yes, yes. I bought it like I told you. The aloha is mine. You're not gonna dress up after all, Sui?"
"Guess not. It's a shame, but I'm in charge of defending the school. I might visit as a guest."
"That Sui-like response makes me relieved. So, so, what do you think?"
"About what?"
"The girls. Who's the cutest?"
"Out of all the cosplayers?"
"Isn't that obvious!? There seemed to be someone who confessed at the festival! In cosplay! Uuuu!"
"The tension's high, huh? It's amazing. I'mma go cook some red rice."
"Right. So, who do you think is good?!"
"Probably Tsuru."
"Ohh! Niwatari Tsuru! You have good eyes!"
Why you acting like an old guy in an antique shop?
"She's a natural gal, but also very smart, which makes her popular with the boys! And her outfit today is a European medieval one-piece military uniform. The jet black and crimson bring out her power and nobility to their limits! Wonderful!"
"Oh."
"Did she buy that uniform or make it herself? No, it takes a high level of skill— or maybe Niwatari-san could do it…"
"She didn't buy them?"
"Huh? Don't come to that conclusion, Sui. The girls are doing their best."
I wanted to tell him that he was a pervert, but I was overwhelmed by his intimidating aura.
"Sorry. I was being shallow."
"It's alright. I got too heated. It's too hot in this mask."
So apparently, Makoto's personality changed when he wore the horse mask. It wasn't as if he became violent, but stronger.
"If it's too hot, just take it off."
"I'm not taking it off. I'd feel like I'm losing."
To who?
"Do your best. Horse-kun. [1] Lemme know when you go to the horse race."
"Got it. Bet all your money."
"Okay okay."
It was half a chore, so I ran away. I decided to assume that he had quit being human and had become a centaur.
As I fixed the decorations and such away from Makoto, a girl came up to talk to me.
"May I have a minute of your time?"
"It's not too late to get life insurance."
The voice's owner was Mimori Ruka.
She was characterized by her ladylike atmosphere. I think we've only talked a few times. First and foremost, we had no connection. I didn't know her well enough to know if she was a member of the calligraphy club or tea ceremony club. I didn't expect her to talk to me. So, I got a little flustered and said something about life insurance.
"Eh, life insurance?"
"My mistake. Forget about it. Do you need something from me?"
I just heard Makoto talk about confessions, so a part of me went "What if?".
So I squashed my thoughts. I had been hurt by my ego before, so I decided not to get my hopes up.
Still, once a person has thought about it, they can't get it out of their brain.
"Could it be—— love related?"
I regretted instantly the stupid thing I had let slip out. There's a fool. Right here. I'm the fool.
"That is correct….."
Heeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeehhhhhhhhhhhhhhh?!
You can't do this! I've had my fill of love. Someone stick a needle in my belly. The word "love" will spray out like a spray of blood.
The situation was too sweet for me. I wanted to eat some salted fish.
"Uuuuuuum, so, what's it about?"
"I believe that Sui-kun is a good friend to Makoto-kun, is that correct?"
"Guess so. Makoto and I are certainly close. Wait, no way–"
"Shh! Be silent, please….!"
OH MY GOD
Makoto. Now ain't the time to wear a horse mask.
It was an after-school afternoon like any other. But after the formal end-of-school meeting, it came in earnest.
The classrooms were usually empty, but many of my classmates stayed behind to do final checks for tomorrow.
I had to go to the student council for final confirmation, so I packed my bag and prepared to leave.
"Sui, you heading out?"
"Hm? Ahh. The student council. I'm going to go over some last-minute stuff."
"Gotcha. Hope you have a good festival tomorrow."
"Yup. Let's make it a good one."
–How long were you gonna wear a horse mask….?
A good festival.
Yes, I hope it will be a good festival.
When I entered the student council room, I felt a sense of dejà vu.
She seemed to be waiting for me again.
As I took my seat, Arina poked me.
"You're worse than a turtle."
She poisoned me with a whisper. You guys were too early.
Sekijun[2]— sorry, my mistake. Seki Jun, the student council president, began as before. I'll spare you from the rest, because I honestly couldn't remember. My thoughts were already directed at something else.
Arina and I had a meeting. We briefly reconfirmed tomorrow's patrol time and procedures as temporary Public Moral officers. It was all pretty self-explanatory.
"I'll be on my own during Arina's fashion show. Rest assured."
"I see."
"Oh, by the way, do you remember Takane Makoto?"
"A mammal? A reptile? I'm not familiar with birds, so I can't answer."
"I dunno if you have to take it into that dimension… he's the one who confessed to you once. He's in the badminton team and hangs out with me a lot."
"Ahh–…"
"If you don't recall, it's fine."
"So, what about it?"
"So, a girl classmate named Mimori Ruka is in my class, and apparently she's in love with Makoto."
"I see."
"And she asked me, as a good friend of Makoto's, for a favor."
"I see."
"She asked if I could help her get closer to Makoto."
"I see."
"And that's it. So what do you think I should do?"
"I don't know. What will happen if you lock them in a bathroom?"
"You're such a pervert."
"No, I'm not. What are you imagining, you shithead. Go die immediately."
"I'm sorry."
It was horrifying to hear her say that without an expression on her face. They were the eyes of hell.
"I had wanted to seek advice from Arina-san, who is a 100-year-old warrior. I want to help Ruka."
"What a pain. Do it yourself."
"It is difficult for me to set up a natural way for the two to become closer. It is not good if Makoto feels uncomfortable. Please lend me your wisdom, Arina-sama."
"I can't. I don't know what to do either. Just go with the flow."
"In that case, if Arina-sama says so, then I have no choice. I shall see what I can do."
"I see."
I was thinking of asking Shirona, but things were still awkward. I can't even start a conversation.
No choice but to go with the flow then, like Arina said.
The student council meeting was quickly broken off.
The officers had to help their classes. I dropped by the classroom.
The number of students had decreased, but there were still some people left. Especially those in the back. There were also some centaurs.
There didn't seem to be any more work to be done, so I bailed on the centaurs and left.
Tomorrow's gonna be an intense day.
[1] Probably a pun. The kanji for horse can be read as 'ma' making it 'Ma-kun' which coincidentally sounds like a nickname that could be based off of the name Makoto
[2] He used the kanjis for "seating order" on accident
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