บท 20: Epilogue: A Reason
Two shadowy figures watched the students form a line and exit the auditorium just as
Touya and Masachika had instructed.
"Heh! My brother is still going far too easy on them." Yuki leisurely smirked with a
cup of tea in hand as she sat in the projection room built above the audience seats. She
observed Masachika watching the students leave from the stage while leaning back in her
chair, confidently crossing her legs.
"He could have ended this entire charade in mere minutes if he wanted to… Was he
trying to give his partner an opportunity to grow? Or was he simply going easy on his
opponent, since he felt bad for her?"
She swirled the tea in her cup and coldly looked down at him.
"I suppose it doesn't matter. He isn't going to stand a chance against me at this rate,
though. He'stoo soft, and it's going to be the end of him before long… Wouldn't you agree?"
Yuki asked without looking back. Ayano, who was standing diagonally behind her, tilted her
head as she pondered.
"I am not so sure. I believe both Masachika and Alisa did an incredible job."
Yuki placed her teacup down, frowned, and looked back as if she was offended by
Ayano's skeptical tone.
"Ayano."
"Yes?"
"You don't get it. You don't get it at all. You need to smugly and audaciously evaluate
your opponent after each battle while a shadow conceals your eyes! This is one of the most
important parts of acting like a villain!" barked Yuki asshe banged her fist against her chair's
armrest.
"You have my deepest apologies. I still have so much to learn." Ayano bowed sincerely.
"Tsk. Get it together, Ayano. Why the hell do you think I agreed to handle sound and
lighting during the debate? Do you think I like uncomfortably hot rooms?"
Yuki, clearly annoyed, fanned herself with her hand as the lighting equipment heated up
the humid room. Ayano hastily pulled a fan out of her pocket and began fanning her master.
"May I say something…?" she eventually asked, clearly hesitant.
"What?"
"Don't villains usually lose in the end?"
"…"
"In addition, as I mentioned earlier, eating and drinking are prohibited in the projection
room."
"…"
Yuki followed Ayano's gaze until she was looking down at a teacup placed on top of the
control panel for the lights…so she uncrossed her legs and carefully picked up the teacup.
"…Ayano."
"Yes?"
"…Let's clean up."
"As you wish."
After thoroughly cleaning the now-deserted auditorium, Masachika and Alisa sat
themselves in two side-by-side audience seats while they gazed at the empty stage. The other
student council members had already left. All that remained was silence. After some time
had gone by, Alisa eventually muttered:
"I think she really admired you."
"…?"
Although inwardly confused by what she meant, Masachika waited in silence for her
to continue.
"Taniyama said that you and Yuki were a one-of-a-kind pair. She said she aspired to be
like you. That's why she was able to give up," Alisa said, still facing forward.
"Yeah…"
It suddenly all made sense to Masachika, because he felt there'd been something strange
about Sayaka's recent behavior. She was always very logical and rational, and yet she was
acting as if she was possessed by rage and hatred. But this was a problem familiar to his
heart, too, and that was why he could understand very well where she was coming from.
Yeah… You felt betrayed.
He always wondered why Sayaka didn't join the student council. Usually, you'd want to
become a member during your first year of high school if you were serious about becoming
the student council president. She did actually join in middle school with that goal as well. On
the other hand, it wouldn't be a surprise if she decided not to join the student council because
she had given up on trying to exact her revenge on Yuki…and in the end, that was exactly
what happened. Sayaka realized that she wouldn't be able to defeat Yuki, so she dropped
out. She most likely recognized Masachika's achievements and skills as well. That was why
she'd assumed that he would run with Yuki again this year. She never even doubted it. But
Masachika decided to run with Alisa instead.
No wonder she was upset.
I wonder how she sees me. I wonder what made her feel like she lost. I wonder how it
felt to have her decision trampled on like this.
Masachika was painfully aware of how it felt to believe and trust someone, only to feel
like you were betrayed. And when he thought about how he was the reason she was in pain,
he was overcome with incredible guilt.
"I'm not going to give up," Alisa announced.
"…?"
He stopped grinding his teeth and lifted his head up.
"I'm going to prove that you didn't make a mistake choosing to run with me…and I am
going to gain Taniyama's respect."
He was extremely envious of how honest her words were and how optimistic her thinking
was. Unlike Masachika, who had his head down as he drowned in his guilt, Alisa waslooking
straight ahead and trying to move forward. She was like a radiant star in a pitch-black sky,
and it tore at his heart. But at the same time, he was glad that she was being positive, because
he realized that staring at the ground wasn't going to get him anywhere. He realized that if
he had to choose, then why not keep his chin up and move forward?
"…I'm not going to give up, either. I'm going to prove to Sayaka that we aren't messing
around, and next year, she is going to want to vote for us."
"I'm glad to hear that."
They nodded at each other, fortifying their resolve. They weren't in this fight alone
anymore. Failure wasn't an option anymore—not after they'd hurt Sayaka and used her as
a stepping stone for their own success.
It was her tears that moved me once again.
Masachika recalled seeing Sayaka crying two years ago and smiled bitterly.
"…Hey, can I ask you something?" Alisa said hesitantly after seeing the look on his
face, interrupting his flow of thoughts.
"Hmm?"
He turned toward Alisa, but she was looking forward with a troubled expression as if
she was having a hard time finishing what she wanted to say. However, after a few moments
of silence, she eventually faced Masachika and asked:
"What made you choose me over Yuki?"
"…"
After slowly blinking for a few moments, he swiftly shifted his gaze up at the ceiling. It
was now Alisa who was quietly waiting for him to speak.
"…I only joined the student council with her because I couldn't say no to her."
The muttered words that finally slipped off his tongue sounded more like a monologue
than an answer, but Alisa listened quietly and attentively to what he had to say. Without so
much as checking to see how she was reacting, he continued:
"I wanted to support her dream as well…but I guess I mainly helped her because I felt
guilty."
"'Guilty'?" Alisa repeated unconsciously.
"…"
Masachika kept staring ahead and didn't say another word. Alisa, however, could tell
that he was confronting his inner self right now, so she swallowed her curiosity and faced
forward once more.
"That's probably why I always felt like I couldn't breathe. I would see people around
me working so hard for their dreams or goals and compare myself. I didn't have the drive
they did, and I would beat myself up over it."
Becoming the president of the student council at Seiren Academy. That mission had
been assigned to Masachika, but in the end, he had dumped that responsibility on his sister.
That was why he couldn't say no to her. But because of that guilt, there was never any sense
of achievement, no matter what he did. He dumped all his obligations on his sister. He forced
her to be his reason. And while he did work somewhat hard to support her from the shadows,
he felt like a coward.
"Saying I work and support the student council president from the shadows makes me
sound cool, but all it really means is that I'm out of the limelight. It just means that I don't
have what it takes to stand proud before my peers and fulfill my role as the vice president."
Hearing him speak so poorly of himself broke Alisa's heart.
That's not true. There's no need for you to put yourself down like that. Alisa wanted
to tell him that, but she thought anything she said would sound shallow, since she felt she
didn't really know him that well.
Yuki probably would have been able to cheer him up if she was here…
Maria probably would have been able to gently heal his wounded heart, too…
Touya, Chisaki, Ayano… She kept visualizing what others could do to fix the situation,
making her feel powerless, and it struck her with grief.
Why am I like this? Why can't I be more considerate of others' feelings? I would do
anything if I could to make him feel just a little better, and yet my body won't move. I can't
speak. All I can do is listen in silence.
It wasn't clear if he sensed her distress, but Masachika's distant expression suddenly
changed into something slightly more embarrassed.
"But this time is different…"
"…?"
"I decided to become the vice president of the student council on my own… I alone
chose to run with you."
That was the moment Alisa finally remembered what she asked him. Why did he choose
her instead of Yuki? And that was when she also realized he was answering that question
right now.
"That's why…this has nothing to do with Yuki. I decided to run with you…because
that's what I wanted to do, and this is the first time I've ever made a decision for myself like
this. I'm not comparing it to what happened with her. It'sjust… You know? Thisis how it is."
He averted his gaze and began aggressively scratching his head while stumbling over his
words. Alisa couldn't control her laughter, but she also realized she was part of what inspired
him to stop looking down and face forward, which filled her heart with mirth and relief. A
tingling sensation went through her—something she had never felt before.
"I kind of wish you would be a little more straightforward with your answer," Alisa
teased, smiling. Masachika unsubtly looked away and snapped:
"Oh, shut up. I'm already a little embarrassed. Isn't that enough? Besides, you get the
idea."
"I'm sorry, but I don't. Do you think you could be a little clearer?"
"I see you laughing! You're not getting another word out of me. Anyway, what about
you?"
"What about me?"
She mischievously smirked while leaning closer to him.
"Why did you agree to run with me? Do you think you could tell me and be as clear as
possible?" he promptly asked, almost out of desperation.
"<Oh, that's simple>," she said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world, and she
confidently grinned.
Her easily comprehensible, concise reply almost made Masachika's cheek twitch.
"…! Seriously?"
But he managed to hold back his surprise. Alisa must have thought he was replying to
the fact that she'd answered in Russian, smugly smirking while flicking her hair over her
shoulder.
"About ready to go?"
She stood.
"…Yeah, whatever."
Masachika stood as well, putting on his poker face while stretching his back to conceal
his inner excitement.
Damn. That might be even more effective than Sayaka's tears.
Now he had to start getting serious, he thought, bitterly smirking at what a simple man
he was.
But, well…this isn't that bad. Not bad at all…
At the very least, it was way better than being driven by guilt.
That thought alone put Masachika in a wonderful mood as he followed Alisa to the
entrance.
"Oh, I almost forgot…"
"Hmm?"
She suddenly stopped ahead of him and looked back with a distant gaze.
"Kuze, care to explain?"
"Explain what…?" he wondered, tilting his head. A hint of crimson tinted Alisa's cheeks
as her eyes narrowed grimly.
"You know what I'm talking about. You mentioned something about my chest, I
believe?"
"…! O-oh, that? That was, uh…"
Masachika was suddenly reminded of what he'd said before the debate, and his eyes
began to wander.
"Like, uh… A girl I know said something like that the other day, and… Don't worry
about it. I won't tell anyone else. Plus, it was just a guess."
"…"
"Seriously! The topic came out of nowhere! We were just having an ordinary
conversation! Like, there was this anime on TV where the girl had these E cups, and I was
like, 'There's no way real E cups are this big,' and she was like, 'If you want to know what
real E cups look like, check out Alya…'"
His voice gradually fizzled out as the excuse grew more pathetic. Alisa's absolute-zero
stare peered into his soul…until she suddenly let out a "hmph" and turned away. He
immediately sighed in relief, believing she was going to give him a pass this one time, when
she suddenly whispered:
"<Close enough.>"
He couldn't process what she said at first, but the instant he realized she was answering
his question from before the debate, he fell into a pit of utter confusion.
"Close enough"? Going which way?! Is she slightly bigger? Slightly smaller? Are they
Fs close to the E side? Or are they Ds but on the bigger side?! Ahhh?! Which is it?!
The suddenly disclosed information caused this pubescent boy's teenage brain to
explode, but Alisa didn't have time to worry about how he was reacting, as she rushed out
of the auditorium in an attempt to hide her face, burning red ears and all. After the door was
slammed shut, a deep silence reigned over the spacious theater.
Until eventually…
"Which is it?!?!"
…the screams of a teenage boy filled the empty auditorium.
สถานะพลังงานรายสัปดาห์
-- การจัดอันดับด้วยพลัง 
-- หินพลัง