-1334- The considerate big sister?

Hagun Academy, at the school gate.

Today, everyone had arranged to meet here again to go out together. However, this time, not only Ikki and Shizuku were present, but also members of the student council.

This was not surprising at all.

It was the student council who suggested that everyone should go out to celebrate together, and thus invited Ikki, Stella, and Shizuku.

"Thank you very much for the invitation, Touka senpai," Ikki bowed his head in thanks to Touka Todo.

"No need to be polite. We are all student knights of Hagun Academy and are preparing to fight together in the Seven Stars Sword Art Festival. As comrades and as the student council president, this is something I should do," Touka responded to Ikki with a gentle smile.

"Well, even though we are not representative contestants, we also tagged along."

"Thanks for having us."

Tomaru Renren and Saijou Ikazuchi spoke up from behind Todo Touka.

"Touka already said that since we are classmates who are about to fight together in the Seven Stars Sword Art Festival, it's good to let the representative contestants here bond a bit more."

"As a result, the vice president, Tomaru, and Saijou decided to come along on their own," Misogi Utakata said with a cheerful smile, prompting Totokubara Kanata, who was holding an umbrella nearby, to laugh elegantly.

The entire student council had come along, joining up with Ikki and Shizuku.

Besides them, there was one more person present.

It was a tall, slender, handsome man, wearing a bowler hat, exuding a gentlemanly demeanor, and always carrying a graceful smile on his face.

At first glance, he seemed like a polite nobleman. However, for some reason, everyone present subtly kept their distance from him, looking at him with a hint of unease. Only Shizuku, surprisingly, was chatting with him openly, as if they were old friends, ignoring everyone else.

The two looked like close friends, unusually intimate.

However, the sight of the two chatting so freely made the others somewhat apprehensive, not daring to approach.

Even Touka Todo spoke up awkwardly.

"I wonder if Arnett-kun and Stella will come?"

Touka Todo chose to change the subject.

"Stella should come, right?" Ikki was not sure but said, "Rozen should come too. Whether it's indifference or curiosity, he generally doesn't refuse invitations from people he cares about or finds interesting. He lives very freely."

"Is that so?" Touka admired, "Perhaps living so freely is the source of his strength."

"Maybe," Ikki said helplessly. "But he still feels very mysterious. He usually takes care of us, but when it comes to important matters, even if we ask, he either brushes it off or ignores it entirely, making him hard to understand."

"Indeed," Touka nodded in agreement.

The two did not know that Rozen had only started living so freely after coming to this academy.

If it were in the past, with Rozen's cautious nature, he would probably live more carefully.

Of course, that is also uncertain.

After all, Rozen is quite childish. When you expect him to be calm, he is more impulsive than anyone, and when you expect him to be impulsive, he is calmer than anyone, unpredictable like a child.

Therefore, the only people who can truly understand Rozen are likely those whom Rozen values highly and is particularly close to.

In this world, the only person who truly understands Rozen might be Edelweiss.

Everyone waited at the school gate for Rozen and Stella to arrive, chatting with each other without any hurry.

About ten minutes later, Rozen and Stella arrived late.

"Sorry to keep you waiting!"

Dressed in casual clothes, Stella ran over with Rozen, panting and apologizing to everyone.

"We're not too late, are we?"

Rozen, being pulled by Stella, smiled, his eyes discreetly scanning everyone present.

Seeing Rozen and Stella arrive together, everyone's eyes focused on them.

Including the handsome man chatting with Shizuku, who also turned his gaze towards them, his graceful smile becoming even more pronounced.

"It's great that you two could come."

Touka, as the initiator, took a step forward, coming to Rozen and Stella, first looking at Rozen for a moment before speaking.

"We're also very glad that Arnett-kun could come."

This was indeed the truth.

Despite Rozen defeating Todo Touka effortlessly, using his overwhelming strength to receive Touka's sword, the student council members were not resentful. Instead, they became even more curious about him.

Touka even held Rozen in the same respect as her mentor. Naturally, she was delighted to see Rozen appear.

However...

"I'm not a representative of Hagun Academy. Wouldn't my presence hinder you?"

Rozen tentatively asked.

It wasn't Touka who answered, but Misogi Utakata.

"You don't need to feel apprehensive, junior," Misogi Utakata smiled like a little adult. "We're not representatives either, yet we're here together, right?"

"That's true." Rozen shrugged and didn't say more.

At this moment, Stella finally spoke up.

"Shizuku? That person is...?"

From the moment she arrived, Stella had been staring blankly at the handsome man chatting happily with Shizuku. She asked in a stammer, seemingly dazzled by his appearance. In reality, she was just surprised that Shizuku was standing so intimately with another man.

This made the gentleman display an elegant and magnetic smile.

"My name is Arisuin Nagi, but I don't like being called by my real name, so just call me Alice."

The handsome man named Arisuin Nagi spoke modestly and kindly.

"Alice?"

Stella tilted her head.

"I feel like I've heard that name somewhere..."

Rozen also paused slightly.

Neither of them noticed that everyone else present, including Ikki and Todo Touka, except for Shizuku, had somewhat subtle expressions.

Then...

"Alice is my friend. I mentioned it before, right?"

Shizuku said casually.

However, for Rozen and Stella, this statement was like a bolt from the blue.

"Shizuku's..."

"Friend...?"

Rozen and Stella's faces stiffened.

Indeed, Shizuku had mentioned she had a close friend. Kusakabe Kagami also revealed to Rozen that Shizuku was unusually close with a boy from their class.

Could that person be Arisuin Nagi?

But Shizuku clearly said...

"Although I hate humans, there are exceptions. Alice is one of them, not shallow at all and without excess fat, a considerate big sister."

Yes, Shizuku had said that.

Rozen and Stella felt the name "Alice" was familiar because they had heard this statement.

But that wasn't the most important issue.

The important issue was that the other person was described as a "considerate big sister," right?

This handsome man in front of them was a considerate big sister?

Rozen's mouth twitched.

At this moment...

"Don't think too complicated about it, okay?"

Arisuin Nagi approached Rozen and smiled lovingly.

"I am indeed a girl at heart, just happened to be born in a boy's body. You can think of me as a girl, is that okay?"

Arisuin Nagi said this, causing Rozen to freeze on the spot.