Capítulo 62: I’m innocent! I swear!
"Whoa…," muttered Masachika dispassionately as if he was witnessing something that
had nothing to do with him.
It was September 1st, the first day of the second semester, and both the opening ceremony
and homeroom had already ended, so Masachika was looking out the classroom window,
down at the schoolyard, where a huge line was extending outside the gymnasium entrance.
A group of students were even sprinting over to join the line as if there were somebody
famous waiting for them inside. Obviously, there weren't any celebrities, though. They were
selling new school uniforms inside the gymnasium today—the summer uniforms, which
Touya Kenzaki, the student council president, had been fighting to improve.
Of course, that didn't mean everyone had to wear one. The new summer uniforms were
only being sold to those who wanted one. At the very least, for the next three years, students
could choose whichever summer uniform they wanted to wear, whether it be the old uniform
or the new one. The student council had predicted that there would be a ton of students who
wanted one, so they arranged a staff meeting, voted on it, and ended up putting together a
temporary shop in the gymnasium just for that day. The absurdly long line alone made it
obvious they had made the right decision. If they had decided to sell the uniforms at the
school store, then the line for the uniforms would have blocked people trying to go home,
which would have made for one chaotic hallway.
"Everyone must be sick of these long-sleeved blazers," muttered Alisa. Her facial
expression made it seem like she had mixed feelings while she watched her classmates dash
down the hallway.
There were students who were against the idea of changing the school uniform, so they
decided on a rule that allowed the student to choose. As it turned out, however, most students
seemed to have opted for the new summer uniform. Perhaps some threw in the towel when
they realized how hot it still was when the new semester started, or maybe some people
simply didn't want to stick out like a sore thumb after seeing how many of their peers went
with the new uniform, so they followed the crowd. Either way, Touya's proposal to improve
the summer uniform seemed to be accepted by most.
"I bet everyone's gonna end up going with the new uniform. Today's crazy hot, too."
Takeshi fanned himself with his hand.
"I'm so grateful that we don't have to wear these blazers to school tomorrow, especially
since school rules said we had to wear them even on our way to school," exclaimed Hikaru,
nodding in agreement with his friend.
"I don't mean to rain on your parade, but the new collared shirt is apparently a little hot."
"What? Why?"
Takeshi and Hikaru stared at Masachika as if he were speaking in tongues.
"They're apparently using some sort of slightly thicker material that's not see-through,
since they wanted to make sure students still looked proper in public, no matter what
happens." Masachika shrugged.
"W-wait. Hold up… Are you telling me—…?"
After Takeshi paused, appearing stunned, he glanced at Alisa, then lowered his voice so
that she couldn't hear him and asked:
"Does that mean we're not gonna be able to see their bras through their shirts…?"
Despite his friend having the most ridiculously serious look on his face, Masachika
gravely nodded back.
"That's exactly what this means."
"No… Nooo!"
Grief-stricken, Takeshi leaned weakly against the window as his eyes darted around,
surveying the outside world.
"What have we done…? Hopes and dreams are but a thing of the past now…"
"You say as you live in Japan during a time of peace."
"It's a new semester, and not even one beautiful girl transferred to our school and told
me she was my fiancée…"
"Yeah, like that'd ever happen in real life. By the way, that trope is already outdated.
Popular tropes for transfer students nowadays are former heroes or former soldiers who
dream about living normal lives."
"Maybe if they're the protagonist! But I'm going to be a side character!"
"…Oh."
"Why did you just hesitate there for a second?"
"No reason…"
Masachika swiftly averted his gaze while Hikaru and Alisa both frowned uncomfortably.
The awkward silence continued for the next few seconds until Hikaru decided to speak up
with a cheerful note in his voice and added:
"Anyway, I'm impressed. I always assumed that it'd be impossible to get rid of an
outdated tradition like this, since I didn't think there was any way to convince the First Light
Committee."
The First Light Committee was the official title of the committee made up of former
student council presidents and vice presidents who had graduated from Seirei Academy High
School. The academy may have been a private school for the elite, but the tuition was
relatively inexpensive. If anything, the tuition was rather cheap when considering all the
facilities and systems that had been put into place. The reason for this was because the school
was receiving tremendously generous donations from its alumni. The First Light
Committee's donations were extraordinary, which proportionally gave them a lot of say in
regard to school policy.
Needless to say, a not-small portion of their donation was used to make the new summer
uniforms, so this plan would have never come to fruition without their approval.
"From what I heard, it was actually the relatively younger members of the group who
were against the idea." Masachika shrugged again, causing Takeshi to curiously raise an
eyebrow.
"Wait. For real? You'd think some stubborn old man would have been the one who was
against the idea."
"The geezers on the First Light Committee are all leading figures in the business world
and in politics, so maybe they just don't let little things like school uniforms bother them."
"…Yeah, I guess I can't really imagine Niikura complaining about school uniforms,
since he used to go here."
"Right?"
"…? Niikura?"
Alisa appeared confused.
"Prime Minister Niikura," clarified Masachika, surprised that she wasn't aware.
"…?! What?!"
"Oh, ya didn't know?" asked Takeshi, since she seemed to be genuinely taken aback.
"It makes sense, though. It's not like the First Light Committee goes on TV to talk or
anything, so there's no way you would know unless someone told you."
Nevertheless, this was a relatively well-known fact among the students at Seirei
Academy, and it wasn't something even worth gossiping about, so it made sense that Alisa,
who didn't have a lot of close friends, wouldn't know. At least, that was what Masachika
figured when he tried to make her feel better about being out of the loop.
Incidentally, the only reason it wasn't worth gossiping about was because it wasn't
anything unusual. After all, four members within the committee had been the prime minister
at some point in their life, and the number was most likely even higher than that if they
included former members of the committee who had already passed away. Although most
schools would probably use the fact that a former student of theirs became the prime minister
as a selling point, it was so common at Seirei Academy that nobody really batted an eye.
"By the way, the minister of finance, Onuma, and the governor of Tokyo, Nanase, also
graduated from our school—just to name a few. You've also got Sayaka's dad, who's the
CEO of Taniyama Heavy Industries; the CEO of Gilkes; the head of Eimei Bank; the CEO
of Clarique—the list is endless."
Masachika started to list off members of the committee on his fingers until it started to
bore him, and he stopped.
"Also, I believe Yuki Suou's grandfather used to be an ambassador to the United States,"
Hikaru casually added.
"…Oh, right."
Masachika realized that his enthusiasm had plummeted to the point that he was worried
the others would pick up on it. While Takeshi didn't seem to notice, both Alisa and Hikaru
glanced at him quizzically, making Masachika want to click his tongue.
"Yo."
That was when the person they had been waiting for suddenly arrived, which allowed
Masachika to nonchalantly shift his focus to her.
"Oh, hey…"
The new visitor stepping into the room was none other than Nonoa, her hair tied in
a ponytail. However, the instant everyone saw how she was dressed, they froze because
she had already changed into the new summer uniform that they'd just started selling at the
gymnasium. Did she somehow manage to buy it in advance? But as far as Masachika knew,
there was no way anyone could have gotten their hands on the new uniform in advance, and
he would know, since he was in the student council.
"…How are you already dressed in the new school uniform?" asked Masachika on behalf
of all the inquiring minds, making Nonoa curiously tilt her head with her usual heavy-lidded
eyes.
"Eh, you know. One thing led to another."
"…Uh-huh."
He couldn't press her for answers anymore after hearing that. Although it was highly
likely that she just didn't feel like explaining, Masachika felt that asking for details wouldn't
lead to anything good, so he dropped it. If Nonoa said that one thing led to another, then that
was what happened.
"Not on your phone for once, huh?" commented Masachika, changing the subject. Nonoa
sluggishly sat in a nearby seat.
"Yeah," she grunted with a shrug.
"My mom got mad at me for being on my phone all the time, so I'm trying to cut back
or whatever."
"Oh…"
Masachika was genuinely surprised that Nonoa was respecting her mother's wishes, and
he didn't seem to be the only one.
"Wow… You do what your parents tell you to do," mentioned Takeshi a bit hesitantly.
"Uh…? Yeah? Of course I do. That doesn't mean I'm gonna start listening to my teachers
or anything, though. Ha-ha."
It was hard to gauge whether she was serious or joking, and her bored expression wasn't
helping. Takeshi and Hikaru fake-laughed as well, since they didn't know how else to react.
Mmm… What have I gotten myself into? This isn't going to be easy.
Takeshi was uncomfortable around girls his age despite how he usually acted, and Hikaru
simply wasn't a fan of them. And to make matters worse, Alisa was terrible at making new
friends. Meanwhile, Nonoa did things at her own pace, and Sayaka didn't really trouble
herself over how others felt. In other words, though he was the one who had brought these
people together, Masachika had a hard time imagining a future where they really hit it off
and had great chemistry as a band.
And that's why I need to act as a sort of mediator to bring them together.
But the instant he renewed hisresolve, Sayaka came walking through the door and almost
immediately began to run the show.
"All right, how about we start off by choosing a band name? Does anyone have any
ideas?"
She stood at the lectern like a teacher, since the six of them were the only people in the
room. A few moments went by after she made eye contact with each of them individually.
Hikaru suddenly raised a hand.
"I do."
"Okay, let's hear it."
"Uh… How about Colorful? Our band's pretty diverse when you think about it. Plus,
it's simple, which I like."
"That's not a bad idea at all," admitted Sayaka as she wrote Colorful on the chalkboard.
After she asked if there were any other ideas, Takeshi enthusiastically raised his hand.
"Yes, Takeshi?"
He smirked as if he had the greatest idea in the whole world.
"Shan't," he slowly exclaimed, his breath oozing with confidence; however, the other
five were clearly unimpressed.
Sayaka's brow furrowed slightly, and she pushed up her glasses by the bridge.
"You mean like as an abbreviation for 'shall not'?"
It was a reasonable question, so Takeshi promptly raised an index finger to explain
further.
"The easiest way to come up with team names is to take the first letter of everyone's
name. In our case, we have T, H, A, S, and N, so after thinking about it for a while, I came
up with Shan't! What do ya think?!"
"Lame."
Nonoa used "Relentless Strike"! Takeshi "Fainted"!
"…Anybody have any better ideas?"
Even the disciplinary committee member was relentless, rubbing salt into his wounds.
After clearing her throat, Sayaka set her eyes on the girl who had absolutely crushed Takeshi.
"What about you, Nonoa?"
"Me? For real?"
When Masachika glanced at Nonoa, who was twirling her hair as her eyes wandered,
the first thought that came to his mind was, There's no point in even asking her, since it's
probably going to be something flashy or trashy. It's just going to be something ridiculously
long about being "lit" or having "rizz" or something stupid.
"Oh," Nonoa suddenly muttered before Masachika's speculating gaze. "How about God
of Grilled Chicken Meatballs?"
"Are you okay?"
"What? It's a legit good name."
"It sounds like the name of a pub," interjected Masachika with a straight face.
"How did you come up with that name anyway?" asked Sayaka, frowning.
"Hmm? It just came to me," replied Nonoa.
"…"
Even though Sayaka placed a hand on her forehead in exasperation, she still wrote God
of Grilled Chicken Meatballs on the chalkboard.
"What about you, Saya?" asked Nonoa while Sayaka was still facing the board.
"My idea for a band name? Well…"
After Sayaka slightly turned around with a raised eyebrow, she faced the blackboard
once more, allowing the chalk to effortlessly glide across its enamel. Dark—
"Sayaka, wait."
"What?"
"Just come over here for a second."
The instant Masachika saw what she had begun to write, he tried to lead her to the
hallway, but she only stared back at him, knitting her brow in utter confusion.
"…Can it wait until I finish writing my idea?"
"Saya? Like, I think you should probably hear Kuze out first."
"Nonoa…"
Sayaka placed the chalk down at the request of her childhood friend, then stepped out
with Masachika into the hallway, where he immediately shut the door, cornered Sayaka
against the wall, and placed a hand on the wall by her head.
"What were you planning on writing on that chalkboard?"
"What? …Sigh."
She sighed as if to say, "That's what you wanted to talk about?"
"Dark Alliance," she revealed in a matter-of-fact tone as she adjusted her glasses.
"Wooowee. Now that's a doozy. That was a close one. Even I almost took damage."
"What are you rambling on about?"
"No, what are you rambling on about? What other amazing names did you come up
with?"
"Well, I was considering Nightmare or something similar."
"Ooof. Aren't you a little too old to be having your emo phase now?"
Although it wasn't an emo phase, Sayaka hadn't been a nerd for long. She had only gotten
into anime and manga in June during her second year of middle school—in other words,
right after she lost to Yuki and Masachika in the middle school student council presidential
election. Until then, she was an overachiever just like her parents wanted her to be, and she
never once questioned why she was living solely to satisfy her parents. She was the model
student who went to a prestigious school to meet her parents' expectations. In fact, the first
time she had ever failed to meet their expectations was when she lost the election.
She wondered how she would be punished for her failure when she nervously went home
that day…but what waited for her was her parents' love and affection. It was anticlimactic
while simultaneously making her notice that she'd been the one who wanted to become the
model student to live up to her parents' supposed expectations. The entire experience was
also what pushed her into thinking that maybe she should enjoy her life a little more. That
was how Sayaka became a healthy nerd. Two years had gone by, and now she was finally
going through her edgelord phase!
"I'm telling you this for your own good. Do not write either of those names on the board.
They're going to smell the nerd on you."
"…! That would be bad…"
His warning seemed to work perfectly on this closeted nerd. So after thinking for a few
moments, she walked back inside the classroom and casually erased the word Dark on the
board as if nothing had happened.
"What about you, Alisa? Do you have any ideas?"
"Huh? Me?"
But despite Sayaka suddenly moving on, neither Takeshi nor Hikaru even uttered a word.
Perhaps they were slowly catching on to her.
I'm genuinely surprised she has managed to keep her nerdy hobbies a secret this long.
While Masachika's heart was filled with a mixture of admiration and annoyance, Alisa
somewhat hesitantly spoke up and suggested:
"How about Fortitude…?"
"Fortitude? That's like one of those words I hear a lot but have never actually looked up
in the dictionary," joked Takeshi, except for the fact that it wasn't a joke.
"It means to have courage in the face of pain or misfortune."
"O-oh yeah… I knew that…"
"Yes, courageous… 'Unconquerable' would be another way of trying to get my message
across."
"Unconquerable…"
Hikaru rolled the word off his tongue. Alisa continued:
"Just like how humility is viewed highly in Japan, having a never-give-up attitude and
overcoming whatever life throws at you is considered a virtue in Russia. I understand this
might be a unique value held by Russians who grew up in adverse environments, though."
"Overcoming whatever life throws at you…"
Both Hikaru and Takeru seemed to pick up on what Alisa was trying to say.
"I like it. I like it a lot," said Hikaru with a grin as he nodded at Alisa.
"Me too! It has a nice ring to it!"
Their acceptance instantly suggested that they were going to use Alisa's idea, prompting
Sayaka and Nonoa to exchange glances as if they were communicating through eye contact
alone.
"Great. I think we should go with Alisa's proposal, then. Does anyone have an issue
with that?"
Their silence said it all.
Takeshi somewhat hesitantly spoke up. "Uh… This isn't an issue or anything. I was just
wondering what 'unconquerable' was in Russian."
"Hmm? Oh. Несгибаемые."
"Neese-gee bayayaya…? Okay, then… Let's just go with Fortitude."
Thus, the group decided on Fortitude as the band's name.
"Now, we need to discussthe songs we're going to play at the school festival. Each group
has roughly fifteen minutes of stage time, which means around three songs if you include
our self-introductions. However, the tabs I received the other day were for three covers and
one original, so…what do you want to do?"
Takeshi made eye contact with Hikaru after hearing Sayaka's query, then weakly
mumbled:
"Oh, right. My bad. I know I was the one who sent ya the tabs, but that original was
actually a song we made with the original band…so it wouldn't really feel right if we played
it without them."
"Oh. That's fine. Shall we go with the three covers, then?"
"Yeah, I guess that would be our best bet when you consider how little time we have
to practice before the show."
But there was a faint note of disappointment in Hikaru's tone, as if he really wanted to
play an original deep down inside.
"If you want to play an original, you should. You guys still have a whole month to
practice."
"A month isn't a lot of time. Besides, while Takeshi and I might be able to write the
lyrics, writing the music, too, on such short notice would be impossible…"
Even though Masachika tried to be encouraging, he still couldn't convince Hikaru to give
it a try. Takeshi looked like he wanted to say something as well but ultimately maintained
his silence. They were most likely hesitant, since they didn't want to put any pressure on the
so-called guest members, much less bother them. However…
"If you want to do an original, then I think we should. I've already agreed to help, so
that's what I'm going to do. Let's put on a show that none of us are going to regret," an
unexpected voice suddenly chimed in. Takeshi and Hikaru were wide-eyed in astonishment at
Alisa'ssupport. Even Masachika wassomewhat taken aback by how unexpectedly motivated
and aggressive his partner was being.
"None of us." She put the team first…
She wasn't solely pursuing her ideals but instead giving a common goal for everyone to
pursue. It almost brought tears to Masachika's eyes.
"I appreciate the thought, but as I mentioned, we don't have time…"
"Then how about you use one of Saya's original songs?" interjected Nonoa, making
everyone turn to look at Sayaka. "You wrote a few originals, Saya, right?"
"I did write a few, but they're all for guitar."
"Wait. Sayaka, you can play guitar, too?"
"I'm average at best, but yes," she smoothly replied, so Nonoa shifted her heavy-lidded,
unmotivated gaze at Hikaru.
"So there you go. You have an original. Besides, you guys picked out those covers with
the original band, too, right? Like, one of the songsis a bad match for Alisa's voice,so maybe
we should make a new setlist altogether?"
"Yeah… I guess you're right."
"Yeah, I agree."
"Then let's start from the very beginning. It won't, like, matter if we practice covers or
originals if we're starting all over, right?"
Takeshi and Hikaru exchanged glances and nodded after seeing how confident the
female members were being.
"All right… Yeah…let's do it! Let's do this!"
"Now we're talking! Sayaka, do ya have any recordings of your originals? I wanna hear
them."
"Well…I have a video of myself that I took on my phone for practice."
"For real?! Let me hear it!"
The burning motivation and excitement pushed Takeshi and Hikaru over to Sayaka's
side, where they all listened to her originals.
Uh… Is it just me, or do these all sound like anime songs?
Even the song titles sound—
That's enough. We get it.
The boys in the room froze, speaking to one another only with their eyes.
"What do you think? I take pride in my work, and I feel like the quality's there."
Meanwhile, Sayaka seemed strangely confident.
"Oh my god."
It was an ambiguous phrase that young girls like Nonoa could use to avoid saying how
they actually felt.
"I thought all the songs were wonderful and really conveyed how you see the world,"
replied Alisa genuinely, only making the other five like her even more than they already did.
"I especially enjoyed the second song."
"Oh, really? I'm surprised you like that one the best."
"The second song was really bad—uh, ass. Really badass, and I agree with Alisa."
"Yeah, it was rather relaxing. I enjoyed it a lot!"
"Oh my god."
After everyone agreed to go with the song Alisa selected, which also happened to be the
least unique, they decided on two more songs, completing their setlist for the school festival.
"All right, let's go with Sayaka's song 'Anthem' for our original. Is everyone else okay
with that?" asked Alisa.
"Oh, it's actually called 'Phantom.'"
"What…? Oh, uh… Okay."
Once again, it was a mystery how most people didn't pick up on how much of an anime
nerd Sayaka really was.
No, no, no…
The following day, Masachika was tottering down the hallway and feeling overwhelmed
by a sense of imminent danger.
I have to…hurry…
His legs were trembling, and his vision was blurry, but even then, he desperately pushed
forward, for if he stopped moving for even a second, it would all be over. Because at that
moment, he would surely…
I'm going to fall asleep standing up at this rate!!
Although it may have sounded like a joke, it was the truth. Ever since becoming a
member of the student council, Masachika had actually scaled back his carefree lifestyle and
changed his day-to-day behavior so that he wouldn't humiliate his partner, Alisa, in any way.
For instance, he had been gradually increasing the amount of time he slept at night and worked
hard to pay off his sleep debt so that he wouldn't have to take naps at school any longer.
But once summer break started, he got into the habit of going to bed late, getting up
late, and taking naps on the side, instantly destroying his progress on the good habit he had
been building. The new semester had only just begun, and he was already battling against
the almost unbearable urge to sleep. That said, he still managed to stay awake during all his
morning classes… Perhaps that was an exaggeration, since he hardly had any recollection of
what happened during the second half of fourth period, but Alisa didn't reprimand him, so it
wasn't as bad as it could have been. Nevertheless, Masachika did sense that she was catching
on to him, so he decided to make a run for the student council room.
I should be able to take a nap there…without anyone finding out…
Eventually, he managed to make it to the student council room without falling asleep,
although 30 percent of his brain wasn't functioning any longer.
Oh, right… I should set my alarm…
Once inside, he pulled out his smartphone and headed to the couch, then picked a good
time to wake up from hissaved settings, kicked off hisslippers, and collapsed onto the couch.
Only after placing his phone on the table in front of the couch did he finally allow his body
to go completely limp.
After finishing lunch, Maria grabbed the paper bag with her new summer uniform inside
and headed over to the student council room. The ridiculously long line the day before
convinced her to wait until the next day, so she came to school in her old uniform…but it
was unreasonably hot for September. To make matters worse, she sat in one of the windowadjacent seats, which were always the hottest. Her peers were all wearing cool, short-sleeved
shirts, while she was wearing a collared shirt, a jumper, and even a blazer, as if she were
spitting right in the face of climate change. She was already far beyond what she could take.
Therefore, she bought the new uniform at the school shop in between morning classes
and decided she would change into it during lunch. There was only one issue: Where would
she change? She wasn't comfortable using the school's dressing room all for herself, and
using the girls' bathroom was not an option, either, since she was a member of the student
council—and for aesthetic reasons as well. Then where? The first place that came to mind
was the student council room, since she could lock the door, which would at least prevent
anyone from walking in on her.
"Hello?" she said just in case, even though she figured nobody was there. However, the
first thing she saw when she walked inside were slippers randomly lying on the floor and
two feet poking out from the edge of the couch.
"Oh, gosh. That scared me…"
She jumped, but whoever was lying on the couch didn't even flinch.
"…"
Maria cautiously approached the feet, stole a peek over the armrest…and lovingly
grinned from ear to ear.
"He's sooo cute. ♪"
After throwing any wariness she had out the window, she promptly rushed over to the
front of the couch and crouched in front of Masachika. Gazing at his innocent, sleeping face,
Maria placed both hands on his cheeks while silently squealing to herself.
"Giggle. ♡ Look at you, Mr. Sleepyhead."
She mirthfully giggled as if she were a mother watching her young child rest. Ever since
she was born,she had been full of more love than most people and had farstronger caretaking
instincts than most, always having the urge to spoil and watch over all those she loved. Up
until now,she mainly only had her little sister to take care of and spoil, but Alisa wasfar more
mature and independent than her older sister, so being pampered was out of the question.
Therefore, Maria was always overflowing with so much love and affection that she didn't
know what to do with it.
But that all changed when she happened across the boy she fell in love with, passed
out from exhaustion on the couch, and he was just waiting for her to take care of him (from
Maria's point of view), which was why she was on the verge of losing control. If he were
sleeping in a bed or on the floor, she would have undoubtedly slept by his side or rested his
head in her lap while he slept.
"Mmm. ♪ You're so cute, Sah. ♡"
Maria had no interest in damaging the relationship between Masachika and Alisa, and
she genuinely meant what she said when she told him she wanted him to prioritize Alisa,
but these were two separate issues entirely. The person who had stolen her heart was right in
front of her, awaiting her affection and care, so taking care of him was the only right thing
to do. Alisa only had herself to blame for not being there to take care of him.
Oh, Alya. What am I going to do with you? Your partner is exhausted, and you're not
even here to support him.
But after telling herself that, she realized that maybe this was intentional. Maybe
Masachika didn't want Alisa to see him in such a fragile state, so he chose to rest here in
secret. The instant Maria realized that this had to be what happened, her heart became swollen
with love and an intense desire to protect him.
Oh, Kuze. ♪ Boys will be boys, I suppose. It looks like I'm just going to take care of you
and pamper you if Alya's not here to do it!
Maria needed a cause, and now she had one. She was going to do this on behalf of Alisa,
and thus, it began. She started by gently poking Masachika's cheeks.
"Giggle. ♪ Poke, poke. Goochie-goochie-goo."
Her fingertip tickled his cheek until she noticed his eyebrow faintly twitching and
stopped, gleefully shaking her head as if to clear her mind of the pink hearts that were
practically visible around her.
Ah! I have to capture his cute, sleeping face on camera!
She immediately sprang into action, stood in the corner of the room, and began to take
picturesfrom a distance to make sure she wouldn't wake him with the camera'sshuttersound.
She then got closer and closer to him, zooming right up on his face like a cameraman for a
reality show where someone sleeping was about to get pranked.
"Ahn. ♡ I love him so much, ♡" whispered Maria, squirming excitedly while poking
his cheek again, enjoying every bit of his cheeks, which were surprisingly smooth and soft
for a boy in high school.
Hmm… What should I do next?
While deciding how she was going spoil him, she realized that there wasn't much she
could do with him on the couch. Since she couldn't sleep by his side or rest his head in her
lap, her only options were essentially rubbing his head or singing him a lullaby…
Oh my. I'm already doing both?
That was the moment Maria noticed that she had been unconsciously humming a lullaby
while gently rubbing his head, which surprised even her. However, after she saw how
peacefully he was sleeping, her beaming smiling only grew wider. Maria got over things
quickly, so she didn't let little things bother her. In other words, although she felt that maybe
Masachika appeared to be sleeping so much more peacefully now without a certain someone
poking his cheeks, she wasn't going to lose any sleep over it!
"Thou art safe in my arms ♪," whispered Maria, finishing the lullaby.
"Kuze, do you think I'm too kind to a fault or too self-giving?" she asked with a relaxed
voice. Of course, he didn't reply, but she continued speaking all the same. "Because you
would be wrong if you did." She softly smirked. "Because I…"
Maria closed her mouth and paused for a moment before whispering ever so quietly:
"Я думаю, у вас с Алей-тян не ладится."
Her eyes narrowed somewhat sorrowfully and yet affectionately as well while she held
Masachika's head.
"Вот увидишь, ты терпеть не сможешь быть рядом с Алей-тян," she added in a voice
so soft that it was almost inaudible, then pouted and rubbed his ears.
"So you see…I'm actually not a nice person at all. Got it?" claimed Maria in a baby
voice before she began to rub his head once more. She then brushed Masachika's bangs back
on a whim, cracking a beaming smile once more.
"Sigh. Even your forehead is adorable. ♡"
…Maria truly did get over things quickly. She was emotionally unique and already on
the verge of melting as she gazed at his forehead, gradually getting the urge to just kiss it.
I want to kiss that cute forehead of his. I want to kiss it so badly… Oh, maybe I could
kiss his cheek?
Out of nowhere, Alisa's face popped into her mind.
Oh, Alya. No. This isn't what you think. It wasn't supposed to be a romantic kiss. It was
more like a good-night kiss a mother would give her child…
She instinctively began to make excusesto hersister, butsuch excusessoon lost meaning
as she continued to stare at Masachika's sleeping face. After a soft gulp, Maria placed her
phone on the floor, then slowly brought her face closer to his.
"It's Alya's fault she's not here…"
Right when she got close enough to feel his breath—
Knock-knock.
"…?!"
There was a knock at the door.
"…? What are you doing?"
Having only knocked as a courtesy, Alisa promptly opened the door with a paper bag
in hand and immediately witnessed Maria jumping to her feet…which obviously made her
sister curious.
"Oh, Alya? I wasn't doing anything at all. I found Kuze sleeping, so I was just checking
on him."
"…?"
Alisa frowned at hersister's unusual overreaction, then she shifted her focusto the couch,
where she noticed two feet sticking out, which apparently belonged to Masachika.
"Did you come all the way here to change, too?"
"…? Yes…"
The furrow in her brow deepened as she looked at her clearly flustered older sister,
carefully observing her expression. As if to avoid those judgmental eyes, Maria immediately
averted her gaze, allowing her eyes to aimlessly wander while she faintly smirked.
"Then I guess we should start changing, since that's what I came here to do, too…"
"No way. Masachika's right there," said Alisa, sending her sister a scornful gaze as if
to say, "You're not going to fool me," since it was painfully obvious that Maria was trying
to hide something. However, Maria's reaction was beyond anything Alisa could have ever
predicted.
"Hmm? So what?"
"Excuse me?"
Maria was not trying to play dumb, and she didn't feel like she was in too deep to back
out, either. She was genuinely puzzled. At the very least, that was how Alisa interpreted her
reaction.
"Kuze's sound asleep, so just lock the door. It'll only take a minute."
"No, no, no! No way!"
"Alya! Shhh!"
"Ah—!"
Alisa covered her own mouth in a fluster after realizing how loud she was, but when she
glanced at Masachika, he was still sound asleep, not even a twitch.
"…See? We should be able to change without waking him up."
"But still—"
"What's our alternative? Did you find somewhere else we could change?"
Maria's question shut Alisa down, since they both specifically chose the student council
room after careful consideration. It wouldn't be easy to find another location as good as this,
especially since such a place might not even exist.
"Don't worry. It'll be okay. We'll quickly change into our new uniforms and be out of
here in no time."
As soon as Maria locked the door from the inside and closed the curtains just in case
as well, she placed her paper bag on the table and immediately started to change into her
new school uniform.
"H-hey—"
"Alya, you better hurry before our lunch break is over. ♪"
Once Alisa glanced at the clock, she realized that they only had a little over ten minutes
before lunch was over. Although she frowned, she concluded that she probably wouldn't be
able to go somewhere else to change and still make it to class on time.
But still…
What if Masachika woke up while they were changing? The thought alone made Alisa's
entire body feel like it was on fire.
Yeah, I'm not doing this…
After she came to that decision, a certain thought crossed Alisa's mind. What if she
woke Masachika up after changing here, waited until he noticed that she was wearing the
new school uniform, and then told him thatshe got changed in this very room? Just imagining
the look on his face tickled Alisa's mischievous heart.
The chance to see that carefree joker embarrassed because of something he himself did
was extremely appealing to her. Having the opportunity from time to time to witnesssomeone
usually reliable turn red in the face like a helpless child was the chance of a lifetime. It was
hard for Alisa to not want to see those cute, pathetically adorable blushing cheeks, and she
was willing to use her powers as a woman to the fullest to do so in order to tease him to
her heart's content.
I wonder how he'd react if I told him I got changed in front of him. Would he be startled?
Would he be like, "O-oh?" and try to play it cool?
If he tried to pretend he was fine, then she could show him the outfit she changed out of.
Maybe she could let him touch it and she'd say, "See? It's still warm." The thought alone was
embarrassing enough to make Alisa feel hot all over, but the joy she got from it overshadowed
the negative—so much that she couldn't stop grinning. An exciting chill ran down her spine
as she imagined herself toying with Masachika and making him squirm.
He was really cute then, too…
Alisa thought back to how adorably pathetic he was at the restaurant a few days earlier
when she was writing on his palm. She'd had to stop herself from going overboard, given
the situation, but today—
"Alya…?"
"…!"
Alisa's expression tensed in shock; she suddenly realized that her sister had been staring
at her weirdly while removing her blazer, so she shot Maria a piercing glare as if her
daydreaming were her older sister's fault, and she promptly began to change before her sister
could even get another word in. She made sure to take off her uniform quickly but carefully
as to not make a sound. She untied her ribbon, removed her collared shirt, and grabbed the
new school uniform when—
"Let's go! Flyyy hiiigher!"
The sudden shout startled Alisa, making her jump and drop the new school uniform on
the floor.
"…!"
Masachika instantly sat up in a panic the moment he heard the familiar anime song he
had set as his alarm and impulsively reached for the source of the noise.
"Ack…! Ugh…," he groaned, for he had far too much momentum when he reached out
to grab the phone, and he slid right off the couch.
"Ah! No!"
The sudden shriek immediately got his attention, welcoming his eyes to paradise, for
standing before him were two beautiful sisters wearing nothing more than their socks and
underwear. Alisa's large, plentiful chest and rear were both perfectly round and firm.
Compared to those, her waistline was slim and toned. Maria, on the other hand, had an
extremely mature, feminine body, which didn't seem to match her youthful appearance one
bit. While Alisa boasted a perfect, tight figure, Maria's voluptuous body was unparalleled,
and both of their bodies were in plain sight. Even their underwear—hardly covering anything
—appeared to be nothing more than decorations worn to complement their breathtakingly
beautiful naked bodies.
"…??"
Masachika stared in silence with his mouth agape, still unable to discern whether this
was a dream or reality in his half-awake state. It was like a flood of data being downloaded
onto a freshly rebooted computer and causing it to freeze.
"S-stop staring!"
"K-Kuze? If you keep staring like that, I…"
Only when he heard the blushing sisters speak up did Masachika's brain start to function
again. Nevertheless, he still couldn't process everything that was happening,so he justsmiled
tightly and gave them a thumbs-up.
"Don't worry! This is no different from seeing you two in a bathing suit!"
However, his way of trying to make them feel better apparently didn't work. Alisa's
eyebrows furrowed as she grabbed her collared shirt, which hung over the chair, and threw
it as hard as she could at Masachika without even giving him a second to dodge. The soft
impact was followed by darkness, but he could still feel Alisa's warmth. The smell of a girl's
skin and sweat tickled his nose, overloading his mind with so many different thoughts until
his brain bugged out, resulting in him being unnecessarily honest.
"Ah, this smells really good."
Immediately, something else hit him right in the face, forcing his consciousness to once
again shut down.
Status de energia semanal
-- Ranking de
Poder 
-- Pedra de
Poder