Chapter 6

"I saaaid dooon't mooove!" said Ami. "I can't draw your lip liner!"

"You don't have to do that stuff."

"I said we gotta do it! Your lips are thin, aren't they?! How much

faith do you have in your bare face?! Just how cute do you think you are?!"

"You're noisy, Dimhuahua. You're always yapping away."

A sweet chemical smell floated through the air. The girls' loud, shrill

voices made it seem like a battle scene. The yells crossed the place here and

there.

"No way! That color's so pretty!"

"You ran into that girl, and you're not even going to apologize?!"

"Huh?! Where did the powder that was just right here go?!"

"Ahh! My pencil broke!"

They were nearing anger.

Ami's eyes were serious as she held onto Taiga's chin. In one

tumultuous corner, she carried a giant pouch filled with makeup from

famous luxury brands. Taiga, who was sitting on a chair in front of the

mirror, didn't seem intent on cooperating one bit. She continued to tap at

buttons on her phone and scowl. She wasn't sitting still.

The pale pink pencil slowly traced the petal-like contours of Taiga's

pouted lips to give them a prominent lustrous tint.

"Don't move, don't move… Don't open your mouth, close it, close it,

yeah… There, it's finally done. Next is the gloss, okay? But whiiich one? A

limited-edition Chanel in coral pink? Do you think glitter would be too

loud? Or RMK's lilac pink… You have a blue undertone, so this one seems

like it would work better. Or should we use a transparent MAC gloss that's

shiny to show your natural color? Hmmm, but you don't want to be plain.

We can give you some luster with NARS Multiple, but that might be too

much…"

With her long fingers, Ami pulled out several glosses from her pouch

all at once. Exactly like a master magician manipulating cards, she

dexterously screwed open the tops and quickly dripped sticky drops of each

one onto the back of her hand. Hmmmm, she solemnly examined them.

Shanel or nars or mack or dee-or, or a cheaper domestic brand?

Ryuuji thought, trying to remember the brand names. Ami compared the

colorful liquid against the natural tint of Taiga's cheeks and lips, as she

spewed words that almost seemed like they were part of a baffling spell.

She was deep in serious contemplation. Where was the normal, beautiful,

goody-two-shoes Ami-chan? She was completely bowlegged.

"Hmmmmmmmm…"

"…Bi bi bi…"

"What? Takasu-kun, what did you just say?"

"Uh, nothing… I thought maybe you were brainwashed."

"Huh? Don't make stupid jokes, I can't humor you right now."

"Oh, sorry…"

Ryuuji's existence at that moment didn't even merit her looking at

him.

Sitting Taiga down in the chair, Ami looked into her face and

earnestly continued to do her makeup. Ami had balled up several tissues

and stuck them into her jacket pocket. A battery of brushes and sponge tips

were tangled in the gaps of her fingers. She was playing an active role in

rubbing and dusting many substances on Taiga. Incidentally, she had

professional-looking powder puffs on either hand, and on her collar, she had

prepped hairpins that she was using to hold up Taiga's spilling bangs. She

was probably on a completely different level from the other struggling

teams of girls.

"This is kind of powdery…ha-choo! …Ahh, tissue…"

"No! You'll take off the makeup on your nose!"

Unable to obstruct Ami's hard work, Taiga tapped her cellphone and

sniffled like she always did when she had her usual allergies.

The classroom in the detached gym building was partitioned into

several blocks with curtains. In each booth, there were girls entering the

Miss Festival pageant who were changing or doing their makeup or hair.

The teams of girls from the classes that came with the candidates were in

the middle of preparations, making a huge commotion. Incidentally, Ryuuji

was the only boy amongst them in that atmosphere, though none of the girls

cared. They were all solely focused on what they were doing. This was now

a battleground.

"Wah, we have ten minutes left?! That's so soon, I have to get ready

for the emcee prep meeting… Takasu-kun, did you finish the costume?!"

"Yeah. I was waiting for you to ask. The seamstress division also

helped. This is the completed product."

Ryuuji stood up and unfurled the costume. The handicraft club girls

in class 2-C had given him satisfied applause at its workmanship as they

looked up at him.

"Waah! Takasu-kun, it's amazing!"

"Amazing, amazing, you made it so cute!"

Naturally, the costume didn't have a single wrinkle. He anticipated

there would be no iron, so he had made sure to choose a costume made

from material that wouldn't crease.

"Ohh! It's preeeetty good!"

Ami brushed her fingers across the material. Her eyes glittered as she

looked at it.

Taiga's delicate physique would certainly be emphasized in the loose

and flowing A-line silhouette. The soft and transparent silk material only

had a moderate amount of Taiga's beloved frills and lace. The layered

organza trembled elegantly, like a real princess dress.

Charmed, Ryuuji happily looked at the costume in his hands. He

didn't go so far as to want to wear it, of course, but it more than satisfied his

fashion sense, which was rarefied relative to a typical high school boy's.

He had found the dress while organizing Taiga's closet.

"This is super nice! Why don't you wear this?!" he asked Taiga. The

cute silhouette and elegant design were enough to leave Ryuuji in agony.

"I bought it thinking it was cute, but it'll be obvious I don't have a

chest, so I don't want to," Taiga answered.

So for the Miss Festival pageant, Ryuuji borrowed the help of the

other girls and put a little work into the dress. He had them help by sewing

a long ribbon of cloth taken from other old silk clothes. At the spot the

dress would hit the swell of Taiga's chest, Ryuuji had added small, delicate

pleats. Then he had the girls sew in a pale beige ribbon right under her chest

where the fluffy bow would be. If he put untactful pads in, then it would

affect the silhouette. This was enough. It would follow along her delicate

bodyline and should have some pretty volume at the chest.

"The image we're going for is Juliet's dress… It's the height of

romance…with an empire silhouette…"

As his hand crawled along the finished dress, Ryuuji's eyes took on a

cast unfit for any mammal.

Takasu-kun likes stuff like this. That's unexpected, that looks

dangerous… He didn't notice the looks of the girls that went slightly

beyond respect as they were cleaning up the sewing equipment.

The costume didn't just end with the Juliet dress. If anything, the

Miss Festival pageant was still part of a cultural festival. Taiga wouldn't be

attention-grabbing enough with just the dress. Ryuuji had prepared just one

more thing—a knockout prop for Taiga.

"Once you put this on, it'll be complete. Ho ho ho, there was a scene

in that DiCaprio Romeo + Juliet movie where she had one of these on,

right? It's a only faint resemblance, but it's made in that image."

The thing he had made to go on Taiga's back using a fine satin ribbon

were nothing other than angel wings. The wings were ever so slightly

expanded so that they could be seen from the front. And where had he

gotten his hands on such a thing, you might ask? A drag queen auntie from

Bishamon Heaven who used wings regularly at work had handed them over

to Yasuko at no charge.

"A pageant?!" she'd said. "Now, isn't that lovely?! Even though I

look like this, I'm a winner! …I made a mistake while making this pair…"

"Aww," Ami said, clapping her hands together at the cuteness of the

wings, though she didn't know their origin. "Yeah, I was right to put you in

charge of everything related to the costume, Takasu-kun. Her makeup is

mostly done now. See, raise your face. The last part is your cheeks. A little

goes a long way."

"Ngh…seriously, what is he doing? He hasn't answered yet. It's

irritating… Maybe something happened? An accident? There couldn't have

been…"

Even then, Taiga didn't look at her finished makeup but just clutched

at her phone in frustration. She was still looking down at the screen from

the corner of her eye and didn't attempt to look at the mirror or the costume.

Ami pulled up Taiga's face and dusted pale peach powder on her cheeks

with a huge brush. In the end, she pulled off the curlers she had put in

Taiga's hair one by one. Ami, with practiced handiwork, loosened the hair

and sprayed it slightly from the underside.

"Kawashima-saaan! Please come to the stage wing soon! We also

have to prepare!"

"Oh, riiight. ♥ Damn it, time's up! Hey Tiger, Nanako and Maya will

come to do your hair soon, so tell them that Ami-chan told them to make it,

'fluffy and angelic with the bangs to the left, and a jagged part!' Ahh,

seriously, I wanted to see it through!"

Ami started to regretfully clean up her makeup box . Ryuuji wanted to

ask her about her unexpected enthusiasm.

"You like this stagehand work a lot more than I thought you would,"

he said. "I was thinking you were the type who couldn't stand it unless you

were in the leading role."

"It's not like I don't enjoy backstage stuff. Doing makeup on

someone else is super fun, too! Well, girls like doing this stuff, but it might

be because I see how the pros work up close that I'm especially… Actually,

what're you doing, Takasu-kun? Everyone's going to be changing soon. We

can't have a boy in here! So, Tiger! You hurry and change, and make sure to

tell Maya and Nanako about your hair!"

"Ngh."

"Have you been listening to what anyone's been saying? Actually, are

you still waiting for your dad? He's probably not coming today. Aaah, the

connections I was going to make, poor me."

"He's coming!" Abruptly, Taiga snapped up her head. "He's definitely

—he's probably—running late because of work! So that's why he can't

answer! I was lucky he didn't see the pro-wrestling show. That would have

been embarrassing. It's good he's late. He's coming now. He definitely is."

"If you say so, sure. Anyway, shouldn't you change the introduction

you decided on earlier for now? What do you want to do? I can think up a

new one myself if you need it."

"You don't have to change it. Announce it the way it is."

"But you—" Ami tried to interject.

"Kawashima-san! If you don't hurry, we'll be in trouble!"

"Yeees, soooorry! I'm coooming! Are you seriously sure?"

"It's fine! Hey, Ryuuji, you think so too, right? He's coming right

now, right? He promised, so he's definitely coming. Right? It's not an

accident and he's not sick, right?"

Taiga's eyes turned to Ryuuji. Suddenly, they lost their strength and

quivered.

"Even I'm not psychic," he said, "so I don't know, but…if it's an

accident or something like that, wouldn't you have gotten a message?"

"Right! That's what I think, too."

At the pressing voice of the acting committee member, Ami ended

any further conversation and turned herself around after grabbing her

things. She grabbed Ryuuji's arm and pulled him out of the booths where

the girls seemed about to start changing.

"Thank you for everything! Now, you just get in the audience seats

and be excited. ♥"

Ami shrugged her shoulders. Then she ran right off with the acting

committee member and left him behind. In her place, Maya and Nanako

went into the enclosure of girls with huge mirrors, brushes, and other things

in hand.

"I'm tired…"

Ryuuji's low voice echoed futilely to himself through the hallway in

the deserted gym. He had finished the storm of things he needed to do, and

suddenly the fatigue hit his shoulders and back. The melancholy he had

forgotten as he had been sewing while panicked and pressed for time reared

its head all at once. It settled again onto his neck.

When the last pro-wrestling show finished, the whole class knew

Taiga had to prepare to go into the Miss Festival pageant. The whole class

should have known, but in the end, Minori hadn't appeared at this dressing

room. She had left it all up to Ryuuji and Ami and the other girls, even

though she was supposed to be Taiga's friend. She hadn't even come to

peek in.

Ami had put it this way: "Ha! If that jock girl were here, she'd just be

a nuisance!" Ryuuji still felt that if Minori had at least told Taiga to do her

best or something, Taiga might have been able to relax more.

The thing he didn't want to think about, even though he did, was the

current situation—the situation of Taiga's father still not making an

appearance. Minori was probably thinking, "I warned you." She would have

been like Look at what's happened! that's why I told you so, as she watched

Taiga nervously looking at her phone while he soothed her.

…Though he didn't want to believe she was like that.

"Hurry and get here, old man," he said to himself, gruffly rolling his

stiff shoulders. He hit his elbow on the wall and crouched. He raised his

miserable face and vigorously rubbed it with his dry palms. He imagined

that old man appearing.

He would definitely drive up to the front school gate in his silver

convertible.

He would be wearing a light jacket or something. He would say,

Sorry I'm late! and shrug.

Taiga would be furious. You're late! In the end, she would still be

incredibly happy and embarrassed. She'd be smiling.

"You'll definitely come. No matter how late you are, you'll definitely

come dashing in. You're that kind of guy, right? You're a dad, aren't you?"

A hero was someone who arrived late, anyway.

Hmph. Ryuuji breathed out through his nose and heaved himself up.

Noto should have saved him a seat in the gym. As though trying to step

over the situation he couldn't progress through, he roughly plodded forward

with large strides.

Anyway, if he didn't come during the Miss Festival pageant, the

family jewels were sure to be punished again.

***

Click! Spotlights lit up the center of the stage from three directions.

"Sorry for the long wait!"

In that moment, the emcee appeared with a microphone in hand.

The filled gym shook. With a giant, earsplitting cheer and thunderous

applause, the overjoyed spectators stomped on the floor.

"M-my ears hurt…!"

Ryuuji automatically plugged his ears and covered his face to protect

himself.

"Noooooooooooooo waaaaaaaaaay! AAAAAAAAAMIIIIIICHAAAAAAAAAAN, AH HAAA HAAAAAAAAAAAAA!

AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

Right next to him, Noto jumped up and down, bumping and stomping

like an overexcited puppy. He thrust a fist up and shook his head as he

screamed like a maniac.

"N-Noto…Noto!"

"AHHHHHHHHHHHH! AMI KAWA-SHIMA AGH,

BYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH! UGYAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

"You're acting strange Noto, you're acting strange! You'll die if you

lose your cool like this!"

Ryuuji desperately tried to calm Noto down by rubbing his back, but

his friend was still in the crucible of joy. Noto's glasses had slipped all the

way to his chin. In that moment, his heart and the hearts of all the others

were one as they jumped with the energy of a thousand saccharine pop stars

over and over in the narrow seating, to the point that they seemed about to

break their spines. Naturally, Ryuuji's feet were in excruciating pain from

being stepped on.

"Ho ho ho, everyone, please be quiet. ♥"

It was a completely full house, densely packed with folding chairs.

There were even some people standing. Ami grandly and naturally accepted

the audience's excitement and screams. Her beautiful face was graced with

an enchanting, amorous smile.

The way she looked was just unfair. Are you the emcee?! Ryuuji

thought, more shocked than captivated. Whaaat do you mean 'It's not like I

don't enjoy backstage stuff?' Her true nature definitely just came down to

wanting to be eye catching, showered with attention, and to be called the

most beautiful in the world.

He didn't know how, but through some quick technique, Ami had

made a transformation. She had put coquettish makeup on her beautiful

smiling face that bewitchingly set off her features in the lighting. So this is

why she's called a pro-model, he thought. Her shimmering, radiant lips

were vibrant and her skin's texture was that of a pearl itself. Using just a

pale eye shadow, she had made her large Chihuahua eyes even glitterier.

They were so pure they didn't know shame, and they seemed about to spill

over. Her thickly drawn eyeliner had a limitless charm. If her gaze were to

just quiver, Ami's looks were dramatic enough that they seemed able to tell

a tale of their own, the kind split into three books with annotations in the

back. Her luscious, spilling hair traced many gentle and charming curves.

Somewhat terrifyingly, even the shadow she dropped was strangely dark

and beautiful.

The costume that clad her perfectly proportioned, flexible, slender

body had driven the audience mad, Noto included. It had even shocked

Ryuuji.

"Now reeeally, if you don't be quiet, I'll PUN-ISH-YOU ♥."

She held a whip in her hand above her head. There, in that public high

school, on the cultural festival's stage, the queen stood.

Her stilettos were over ten centimeters tall.

Her fishnets climbed halfway up her thin thighs, cutting slightly into

her flesh and making her fair skin more pronounced against the black

threads that clung to her.

Her garter belt was black and alluring. She even had it connected to a

leather bustier. Though thin, her soft inner thigh seemed plump as it

overflowed from her shorts. The way the leather squeezed in her small butt

and created a line was too sexy to look at. The bustier was tied with string

at the chest and went all the way up to her neck, but like some kind of trap,

only the valley of her chest had a large, daring cutout. In that hole were two

charming, plump, and pale swells that held up as though they had been

frozen in place. They were pushed together until they were perfectly round.

Under the too-beautiful hollows of her underarms, her two thinly

muscled and sculpted marble-like arms were covered with leather gloves

that, of course, went up to her fingertips, but were nevertheless lewd. The

smile disappeared from Ami's face.

"I told you to shut up, you piiiiiiiiiiiigs!"

PSHHT! The whip revolved elegantly through the air, hit the ground,

and cracked.

…Her jeering isn't an act, it's real. This is Ami's true nature. She was

showing her pitch-black insides as she yelled, each syllable coarse. Ryuuji

shivered as though it were cold.

"Aaaah…master, I want to become the floor!"

"Bwaaaaah…hit me, hit me, I want to be hiiiit."

"I'm fine with being a pig, I'm fine with that! As long as I can get

close to Ami-chan!"

The guys were overtaken by masochistic servility. They disgracefully

swore their allegiance to queen Ami for eternity right on the spot.

"You want me to hit it even harder?! You greedy pigs, you're

shameless! You hateful trotters! You ugly pigs should sit obediently like the

pigs you are! A pig that doesn't fly is just pooooooooooork!"

The gym was filled with enchanted voices that seemed close to

drooling, but she effectively lowered the volume of the cheers. That was

because queen Ami had told them to be obedient. Noto was on the verge of

dying from mania. His eyes were drowsily and unpleasantly melting.

"Ami-chan's thighs… Ami-chan's violence… This is great, this is

great. It's the best! A new, strong desire has risen inside me…"

He curled up as though in a dream and sat enchanted in his seat in the

fetal position.

Ryuuji alone was calm—no, he was in considerable confusion—and

still hadn't been pulled into the spiral of wild enthusiasm. He was looking at

the emcee queen. Everyone was really excited now, but in all honesty, was

this a good thing?

"Just kidding. ♥ No way, everyone, that was all just a joke, so you

can't actually think it was real~! Now get your hearts pumping! I'll explain

the voting now! First, you'll get to see the appeals of each candidate

onstage, and after that everyone will have one vote…"

What was an emcee doing standing out more than anyone? That was

basically the situation.

As emcee, Ami the queen briskly explained the ballot rules, but no

one was listening. Everyone was looking at Ami's cleavage. They were

looking at her thighs and her underarms and her fishnet tights where her

delicate white skin showed.

The background music changed, and Ami moved to where the

microphone stand was set up on the side of the stage. The audience's line of

sight also moved along with her.

"And now, let's hurry and call them up! Entry number one, first year

class A's—"

A fair, slender, and cute first year, probably still in the same costume

as for her class's exhibition, appeared in a maid costume. He felt he had

seen her before trying to lure in customers. She's gonna say it, she's gonna

say it, he thought.

"Welcome home, master!"

She said it with a rather nervous-looking smile. She had actually said

it. There was applause from the hall, but it seemed rather distracted. The

audience still had their sights obviously plastered on the emcee.

"Her specialty is welcoming her master home! She has a first-class

license in being a maid! This pretty maid-san's appeal is playing rockpaper-scissors! Everyone, give it up for her!"

Ami, as she tried to get the audience excited by announcing surprising

fun facts on the side of the stage, was completely taking the spotlight. Her

beauty and her wild antics were stealing the show. There really was a huge

difference between a pro and an amateur.

Still not noticing the weird atmosphere, the first-year maid was

speaking with a self-important flair.

"Let's play a game of rock-paper-scissors! Um, this is the way we

play at the class 1-A maid café—"

She danced around, sang a painful, mysterious song, and then bam,

put out her clenched fist to symbolize 'rock'. There were just a few girls

going along with her…probably her classmates.

"This won't do, Ami-chan's too eye-catching! Actually, the acting

committee made a mistake choosing her to emcee in the first place."

Even Noto, who had regained the ability to understand human speech,

finally turned a sympathetic eye to the first-year girl. Ryuuji completely

agreed. As the least he could do, he clapped loudly for the girl who was

walking out in this strange atmosphere.

Then the next first year appeared.

"W-welcome home, master."

She said it, too.

"How many maids have we got in the school?!"

"Isn't there anything else they can say?!"

No matter what they did, Ryuuji, Noto, and the audience couldn't get

enthusiastic about it. Of course, the candidate was cute. She had harsh cat

eyes, a fluffy short haircut, and a miniskirt from which her slender and

narrow legs peeked out like a goat's. She was probably the class's prettiest

girl, but they had had their fill of maids and their uniforms. The "Welcome

home" was just too predictable. They were fed up with the shallow replicas

to the extent that they basically knew what each one would do. Each one

would just be outshined by the emcee again.

"Takasu, did you know eight classes had maid cafés at this year's

festival? I went to four of them… They wrote Noto in hearts on the omelet

rice with ketchup…for an extra 300 yen…"

"I thought you'd disappeared. That was what you were doing?"

"Right, I was. I went on a maid café crawl. Where did you go during

the break, Takasu? Were you with Kitamura? I was going to invite you. I

was looking for you for a while with Haruta."

"I went with Taiga and Kitamura to a third year's restaurant to eat.

We also went to a crepe place… Right, right, we lined up for the chemistry

club's annual toffee making, but they sold out right in front of our eyes."

"That toffee making is always so serious every year. I had some, and I

bought some as gifts, too, since my sister's a graduate and likes them. I

have a lot. Do you want some?"

"Oh, are you sure? I do, I do."

The flower of small talk unintentionally bloomed between them.

Then, as Ryuuji returned to his senses and wondered whether they shouldn't

have been talking, it happened.

"Oh, a phone's going off. Isn't that yours?"

The cellphone in his pocket he had put on vibrate suddenly buzzed.

Ryuuji pulled it out by its strap in a rush. Just as he was thinking that it was

a nuisance in the middle of an event like this, he noticed those around him.

There were already guys and girls who had their phones out. They were

tapping at them and taking pictures of the stage. He decided he could at

least check his messages in a situation like this, and flipped the phone open.

A maid was on stage, starting to do karaoke in a dubious, high-pitched

voice.

"Ahh, poor thing…" said Noto. "Maybe I'll vote for this girl…"

That time, too… And this time, too ♪ she sang, painfully. The mood in

the place cooled as it steadily became clear she realized her mistake. This

really was pitiful.

"You fool. Make sure you vote for Taiga. Those are points for the

class, too."

After saying that, Ryuuji poked at Noto's elbow. Noto laughed and

the song continued. Whether from nerves or tone deafness, it was out of

tune. Ryuuji at least glanced politely at the stiff maid as he also looked at

his cellphone.

The screen was glaring as it glowed in the dim darkness.

He could clearly see the characters. They were so clear, he couldn't

mistake or confuse them. All of it was clear. The characters jumped into

Ryuuji's retinas.

"A Favor," read the title.

The message was from "Aisaka (dad)".

The first line was Hello.

"Hey, Takasu, what number was Tiger? Is this going by year order?"

"Ah."

Suddenly, all sound cut out.

I have something I want you to tell Taiga, if you could.

"Guess it's not. A third year suddenly came on. Whoa, a kimono!

Isn't she a regular beauty?"

"…Yeah."

I actually have to leave immediately for a job.

"Oh ho, seems like it's a tea ceremony. So there was an

upperclassman like that. Ah, how refined."

"…"

So, sorry I can't make it today. Tell her I'll make up for it. And one

other thing.

"Seriously, Ami-chan! She's standing out again! Ahh, that whipuser!"

"…"

Tell her that us living together again isn't happening.

Turns out I can't get divorced anyway because it would be

inconvenient for the company.

So let's keep things the way they are.

And ask her to at least come out to eat with me.

Please apologize to my princess. Thanks.

"…Takasu?"

It was because of work or something like that.

He had been thinking that if Taiga's father had to go on a sudden

business trip, or had a guest visit, or if her father had come down with

something—if something like that happened and he couldn't come to the

festival—that was just unfortunately how things were.

He had thought that no matter how much he wanted Taiga to enjoy

herself, no matter how much she wanted her dad to come, no matter how

much she believed her dad's promise—if something like that happened,

there wasn't anything anyone could do. Her dad was an adult, so no matter

how precious she was to him, he couldn't prioritize his high school kid's

event over his career. Even Ryuuji understood as much. Taiga must have

understood that as well.

But.

He didn't think that Taiga's dad would do this. He hadn't thought in

his dreams that this would happen to her.

…He hadn't even imagined it.

"Takasu? What's wrong? Hey, wait."

"…"

So this was how it felt to be shocked beyond words.

He breathed in quickly, but he couldn't move his body. It felt as

though he were wearing a steel suit of armor. From the moment he saw the

message's first line, his raised eyebrows and wide-open eyes were frozen in

time, motionless.

He was shocked. He was really shocked.

Ryuuji was truly shocked. He didn't know what to do. He didn't

know the reason or the meaning of it. He didn't know what to do.

He didn't know what to do about this message—or about Taiga, or

himself. No one told him what to do.

"Hey, are you really okay? The color in your face looks bad."

Noto's hand shook his shoulder. I'm fine, he tried to say, but he didn't

know if sound came out or not.

On top of the stage, the kimono-wearing beauty was reciting a

strangely masochistic acrostic composition. The audience was breaking

down in laughter. Finally, the Miss Festival pageant was starting to get

exciting.

Ryuuji simply continued to look at his phone. Even though his eyes

saw nothing, he just continued to stare at that glaring screen as though he

believed that something would change if he kept looking at it. But nothing

changed. The truth only continued to exist.

Taiga's father had not only abandoned the cultural festival but

everything else, too. Then he'd run away.

That truth alone remained.

"Why…did I believe him…"

He didn't even realize the words had escaped his throat in a small,

child-like voice. Ryuuji clasped at the left side of his chest. Why had he

believed him? Why did he decide it was a good thing without actually

thinking it through? Why didn't he listen to anything Taiga said?

Subconsciously, he was digging his nails into himself through his uniform.

He didn't feel any pain.

There was nothing.

All that remained was a thought: Was it my fault?

Ryuuji thought and thought over and over again. Was it my fault? An

image of Taiga floated into his mind and wavered. It was her back as she

ran back to her father after being admonished by Ryuuji. The arm that clung

to her father's shoulders. It was her during the time when they had stood by

each other under the streetlamps. She wasn't calm, but she was sour-faced

and seemed bashful from her embarrassment.

Taiga seemed happy—truly happy. She always, absolutely always

seemed happy, and, well…Ryuuji had been truly lonely.

He was lonely, and he hated it. Somewhere in his heart, there was a

thought he had been ignoring. It was that he felt it would have been better if

Taiga's father hadn't appeared. If he hadn't, the three of them could have

kept living together as they had been. He wanted Taiga to ask him for

things, he wanted her to need him, and to be dependent on him. He felt that

if she were, he would have felt it wasn't a mistake for him to have been

born. He felt like his existence would have been forgiven.

He'd felt that had all been stolen from him. It was like she had told

him I don't need you anymore, and abandoned him. Ryuuji was lonely and

he hated it. He'd been aware of those feelings, and so he'd desperately

needed to tell himself, "This is a good thing."

That's right.

The reason he made Taiga go to her father wasn't because he believed

it was a good thing.

He did it all for himself. He just pretended he was thinking of Taiga.

He was trying to compensate for his own deficit, for something that

he didn't have, by having Taiga fulfill it. He'd even menaced Taiga: How

could you throw away something that I wish for and could never have?

If Taiga were happy with her father, he felt it would be redemption for

Yasuko having to leave her parents because of him. Even though Taiga and

Yasuko were different people, if he could have one act of redemption, he

felt that his soul would be saved. He felt he could stop thinking that it was a

mistake for him to have been born an unwanted child.

But, in his heart, he was really praying for Taiga's father to disappear.

He was praying for Taiga to stay by his side. He was doing it to give worth

to his own existence.

How much of an idiot was he? He was selfish, egotistical, a worthless

human being.

The whims of fate brought retribution down on him in this form.

How could he tell Taiga?

Like a blizzard, the shock froze everything from his heart to his lungs.

Now Ryuuji was like a corpse. He couldn't think anymore. He couldn't

move a single finger. No one's voice could reach his ears, no matter whose

it was.

"Nooow, the next candidate! If I say she's the second-year class C's

Palmtop Tiger, you'll probably recognize her, right?! As expected…it's

Aisaka Taiga-san!"

Whooooooaaaaaa, there was a low cheer. She's here, the Palmtop

Tiger's here! She's seriously in this?! Don't we need a cage or something?!

Isn't it dangerous?! The spectators were excited and rounded up an

applause louder than any before.

"T-Takasu, hey… Tiger's up there now."

Even though Noto peeked at his face, looking troubled, Ryuuji only

gripped the cellphone with his eyes wide open.

He hadn't noticed that the place had gone silent for a moment.

That person…that girl might have been nervous. She slowly appeared

on the stage.

Shfft. The thin silk danced with her steps.

The angel wings were shaking on her back.

The pale hair that reached her hips was flowing exactly like music. It

softly filled the space and made the air quiver.

Covered by the dress, her delicate body seemed like it could snap

even now.

The eyelashes of her closed eyes created a shadow. Her delicate face,

which looked like it was etched onto hard glass, somehow seemed hidden.

Gently.

As though she were flowing.

Taiga's steps were like ripples on water.

In the hush, her steps were like the wind.

She seemed like she could become transparent, like she could melt

and turn into sweet water. No one could raise their voice.

They watched her like they would an ephemeral winged insect that

had only recently emerged. Everyone was watching as though afraid to even

breathe on that beautiful, breakable thing.

"No way…" someone whispered in admiration.

"Amazing, she's cute…"

Ryuuji was—Ryuuji was—

"Uhh, today, apparently Aisaka-san's father should be here in this

auditorium to cheer his daughter on! If you could, dad, please give her a

cheer!"

Ami waved one hand widely as she yelled into the mic. As she did

that, she seemed worried while she looked into the audience seats.

Taiga was standing with her wings at rest at the center of the stage.

Her eyes said she believed he would come. She anxiously bit her lip. She

was waiting for someone to yell for her from somewhere in that space.

The time flowed so slowly it was cruel.

"U-Uhh…uhhhhhhh…" Ami's voice went high. There was no father

here to cheer Taiga on. At the stagnant proceedings, the assembly gradually

went into a commotion. They weren't vocalizing praise for the beautiful

angel but skepticism of the situation.

"He probably hasn't come?"

"Go to the next one, the next one!"

Taiga's wings wavered.

Ryuuji saw it.

Taiga.

Taiga—

"Takasu?!"

He kicked back his chair and stood up. Taiga's eyes looked at Ryuuji.

Their eyes met. Taiga was more aware than anyone of the cellphone still

gripped in Ryuuji's hand. After seeing Ryuuji's expression, her face

contorted for a moment. He saw it. She was like a baby on the verge of

bawling.

Taiga turned her face down and squeezed her eyes shut.

It was as though she were trying to say she knew all of it. That her

father wasn't coming and that he wasn't coming to get her anymore—she

knew it all. She didn't even seem surprised. It was as though she were

trying to say that there was nothing else in this world she wanted to see

anymore.

Her small shoulders were robbed of their strength, and her wings

slowly turned down. Instead of spilling tears, loose feathers fluttered down

to her feet.

As for what Ryuuji could do—he could do nothing. The stage Taiga

stood on was too far away. Even if he stretched out his hand, he couldn't

reach her. He couldn't drag her father over here either.

Then, with all eyes on her, Taiga apparently tried to run off the stage.

Her hair and dress fluttering up, she turned her back to the audience.

She simply covered her face and tried to run, but even in times like this,

Taiga really was a klutz.

"Waah?!"

Aaah! There were even screams from the audience. At a time that

couldn't have been worse, she stepped on her dress with her heel. She lost

her balance and tilted sideways, pulled by her own weight.

"Oh!"

"Wah…" said Ami, "little tiger…"

BAM! Taiga made a huge noise as she fell in the center of the stage.

Ryuuji and Ami couldn't watch as she toppled face first to the floor. Her

dress turned up and her legs were in full view. The other candidates, lined

up at the side of the stage, froze at the sight. Not a single one of them could

move. They just looked down at the situation that had occurred.

No one could say a thing about the dramatic incident. The gym fell

into silence.

"Ow…ow, ow, ow…"

Only Taiga's low, growling voice echoed. She still hadn't gotten up.

Her earnestly wind-milling hands tried to at least, somehow, fix the edge of

her dress, but the hem had torn. It had torn right at a very risqué point on

her thighs, and she couldn't hide her pale legs. She was red from shame.

She was tearing up.

What in the world could Ryuuji do? Hit by the thunderbolt of divine

retribution, he was being skewered by the stake of self-hatred. With its

scales sewn to the ground, even a dragon couldn't fly. Wings couldn't make

their own wind either. A dog like Ryuuji was even more helpless. He could

only stand there, at a loss. He felt like crying himself. Taiga was in that

state, and he was stuck here.

"Ugh…"

Taiga finally raised her face.

It may have been because she was embarrassed or because she was

overly agitated, but her face was redder than blood. Her eyes were filled

with tears that were on the verge of spilling. Her small nostrils flared as she

bit her lips.

The useless dog's thoughts felt like they were being shouted into the

air. There are only two options you can choose.

One option was to stay there and keep crying while down on the

ground. Taiga could wait to see if anyone did anything. Maybe she would

black out conveniently and someone would go and save her in the nick of

time. Maybe they would take her away from this place, and she could move

on to the next scene.

And then there's one other option.

That was for her to get up with her own two legs.

That was for her to embrace her shame and to come to an

understanding with the world and her feelings. She could pretend something

else had happened, or she could show her wounds, but somehow or other

she would keep going. Even if she was frail, even if the situation was

terrible, even if it hurt, even as she failed over and over again, she would

somehow start walking.

Which will you choose?

Hey Taiga, which will you choose?

"Ahh, seriously…"

Her complaint was small.

Her light was strong.

It was strong and more dazzling than anything. Like a star glowing

with light, Taiga's eyes slowly came back to life. The wings on her back

bounced and moved. Frustrated, she squinted and unleashed her ferocious,

tenacious eyes. She squirmed and stirred and swung her head side to side

several times like an animal that had been aroused from its slumber.

"THIS IS…THEEEE WORST!"

In one forceful motion, she tore away at her hanging, ragged skirt. A

stir rose from the audience to the tune of Wah…that was so violent. As the

audience vocalized, a baffling arrogance came over Taiga, and she put up

her chin. Though she was rubbing her reddening knees, she kept her chest

thrust out in her regular pompous display. She staggered up with her own

two legs.

She had gotten up.

I can't be doing that, she grumbled and contorted her face. The tears

settled in her eyes, but she picked up her majestic stride down the stage's

runway all on her own. Her costume's impromptu transformation into a

daring miniskirt had turned her into the most likely front-runner. The Miss

Festival pageant's victorious candidate continued. She walked on.

"She's got it…"

As she walked, Ryuuji could definitely feel the wind her wings cut

through.

But the wind was too weak for flying.

"Takasu?"

Ryuuji was the only one in the middle of the stirring and

overwhelmed audience.

He was the only one doing it.

He started a forceful applause. He clapped his hands together with all

his strength. That sound echoed and reverberated up to the gym's ceiling.

This was the wind.

I'll send it to you now. This wind is for you.

Hey, that's the delinquent Takasu. It really is, he's cheering on his

partner—he ignored the crossing whispers. He gave a single-handed

standing ovation for that majestically walking girl. Ryuuji sent the wind

forth for Aisaka Taiga and her alone. He sent her the best praise he could.

Do it, do your best, he yelled. Somehow, do your best.

"But, well…is he cheering? That's cute."

"Right, right. Anyway, let's give the Palmtop Tiger a hurrah!"

"The Palmtop Tiger's strong! But she's a transcendent klutz!"

Gradually, the applause spread around Ryuuji like a ripple. Noto, and

then a guy next to him whose name he didn't know, and someone next to

that person, all successively stood up and sent Taiga a huge applause.

Naturally, each and every person in 2-C gave a cacophony of thunderous

applause. As though slightly surprised, the emcee queen put the mic under

her armpit as she clapped her hands. Pheewew! Someone even whistled for

her. Everyone clapped loudly for the pretty, dangerous, unthinkably klutzy

Miss Festival candidate who was walking down the platform. That turned

into a tailwind and it firmly supported Taiga as she progressed.

Finally, when that applause filled the air, it happened.

"TAAAAAAAAAIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIGAAAAAAAAAAA!"

Like a roaring, rushing stream, a shriek passed through the air, but it

hadn't come from Ryuuji's throat.

"TAIGA, YOU GOOOOOOOOOO! No matter what happens, no

matter what the time, you're a strong giiiiiiiirl, Taiga! IT'S

OKAAAAAAAAY!"

The voice was hoarse. That person took a breath.

It was Minori. Minori stood on a chair way in the back. She tried to

yell again. She coughed and her voice went hoarse for a moment. Ryuuji

took the baton.

"TAI-GAAAAAAAAAA!! You're doing great! That's right! Go! DO

IIIIIIIIT!" he yelled. Noto, the others, and everyone looked up at Ryuuji in

surprise, but he still yelled. Along with Minori's voice, he yelled at Taiga to

do her best. Don't lose, he yelled. He screamed as he gave Taiga a standing

ovation.

He believed Taiga's decision had definitely been right.

Even if you fell, you had to continue on with your life. That was

because no matter what happened, no matter how hard it got, no matter

whether it hurt, even if you were betrayed, even if you thought it was over,

even then, as long as you were alive, you had to get up like this. You had to

start walking again. No matter how many times you fell, even if you

couldn't stand, even if your strength was gone, even then, you had to start

walking. Whether you were crying or smiling, you had to walk your own

path with your own two feet.

That was what living was.

Living unyieldingly, Taiga's red face looked incredibly displeased as

she scowled. She occasionally rubbed her knees and elbows as though they

hurt and lumbered with wide strides as she walked the platform. The

feathers on her wings continued to fall, covering the route Taiga walked like

light snow. With all his strength, Ryuuji sent applause to her. Good, give it

your all, he continued to shout. The wave of applause was becoming louder

and louder. Whistles echoed. From here and there rose voices yelling the

Palmtop Tiger's name.

As she got to the mic, the veins on her forehead were trembling.

Taiga wrung out all her strength and roared.

"SHUUUUUUUUDDUUUUUUUUP!"

Like the singer Yazawa, she tilted the mic stand as she held it. She

forcefully stomped her feet, which her torn dress revealed.

"Who cares about my dad," she roared, "I shredded him and plucked

him and threw him in the m-moooooooooorgue!"

Whoaa… The audience drew back all at once. Then, as though in

understanding, they gave a low groan. Of course, the Palmtop Tiger, the

most sinister, strongest, free-reigning, dangerous animal around, would

have a parental relationship that was painted with blood.

If Taiga was going this far, she was probably in a desperate state of

mind.

"I'll show you my appeal now! Hey, you idiot! Bring that thing!"

"Y-yes!"

The one sitting in the front row was Haruta, who had already

arranged the prop long ago. He threw an overnight bag to her and she

caught it. They weren't sure what she was doing or intended, but Taiga

opened the zipper and folded her already small body even more compactly

as she squeezed herself into the overnight bag. Then, from inside the bag,

she yelled, "CLOOOOOOOOOSE IIIIIIIIT!"

The one who approached in a fluster was one of the other pitiful

candidates. Though fearful, she closed the zipper and the audience once

again freely applauded at Taiga's compactness.

The first-year maid who closed the zipper, possibly trying to be

considerate, picked up the bag. The audience's cheers became even louder.

"DON'T PICK ME UUUUUUUUUUUUUUP!"

"Eek!"

It seemed that hadn't been the right move. The maid lowered Taiga to

the ground.

"OPEN IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIT!" Taiga shouted after a few seconds.

The same maid opened the zipper. Taiga pushed up her messy hair as

she slowly and arrogantly got up.

"Hmph! Aren't you lucky, maid servant! It must have been an honor

to have been useful!"

Haughty and arrogant, she puffed up her chest… Even though, just

moments ago, she had been wretchedly on the ground like a run over frog.

Then came the results of the ballot.

Somehow, the title of Miss Festival was actually, really given over to

the arrogant, angel-wing-wearing, run-over frog-tiger. The decisive factor

might have been how she so magnificently fell over or her performance

with the bag that was vaguely reminiscent of a certain skinny psychic

entertainer.

Taiga progressed to the center of the stage with a grumpy look, this

time in the middle of an eddy of unfaltering applause. The acting committee

guided her to where a chair was prepared in a slightly elevated place.

From below the stage, Ryuuji kept looking at her. Taiga faced the

front and stuck out her chin, but she was all alone. She was seen by

everyone, she was looking at everyone, but there were no arms to hug her

anywhere. There was no one to take her home, either.

She was alone as she sat there.

"Takasu? W-wait?! What are you doing?!"

Ryuuji tried to get even a little closer to Taiga's side. He tried to step

across the line of chairs in front of him. He knew that he alone wasn't

enough. Ryuuji knew the hole bored into Taiga's heart was something he

couldn't fill with his shape.

But he might have been able to support her while she had to live with

a huge hole in her abdomen. Right now, she might need him for that. He

pushed his way through others' shoulders and kept rushing forward, though

he was being a nuisance. Flustered, Noto desperately stopped him by his

shoulders.

"You can't do that! S-sorry…hey, look! I'm the one who people are

getting mad at!"

The gym was large, wide, and when it was chock-full of folding

chairs, even Ryuuji's scary face couldn't shift the crowd. Noto's arm was

unexpectedly strong, too.

"Taiga…"

His chest felt like it was close to being ripped apart.

He didn't know what he could do, but he knew he needed to get there.

It would be enough if he could get a step or even a centimeter closer to

where Taiga was sitting alone.

Then it happened.

"Now, ladies and gentlemen, it's time for the final game."

The voice that sounded like an old man's, but was feminine and

dignified, echoed through the gym. It made Ryuuji unintentionally stop in

his tracks as he was learning the hard way that he couldn't rush forward.

***

"NA HA HA HA HA HA HA HAA!"

The armband on her uniform was crimson.

An army six strong appeared.

They were on top of the stage and in rows. In the center, cradling a

megaphone and happily roaring with laughter was the big brother in all of

the students' hearts. She was the living legend, the broadminded leader of

everyone, the completely impeccable female student president Kanou

Sumire.

"Oh, oh, what a lively bunch we've got here in these rows! Well now,

we'll commence this year's Mister Festival pageant!"

Permitted to stand at her right was the vice president Kitamura

Yuusaku, faithful as a rock. The other members of the student council stood

in a line behind them, and the acting committee members, wearing green

armbands, stood at the back.

The audience, still excited from the Miss Festival pageant, lost their

composure and started to stir. What in the world was going to happen now?

How were they intending to start a Mister Festival pageant? For starters,

they hadn't even chosen candidates.

Sumire reined in the commotion with just the smile that crossed her

face.

"You'll be judged in the Mister Festival pageant by…this!"

At Sumire's signal, the members of the student council pulled

forcefully on a string that they had hung down from the ceiling at some

point. Shoop! A giant ball opened. Confetti and tape fluttered down all at

once, and a weighty piece of paper unfurled and fell…

"Ouch!"

…Onto the head of an unfortunate student council member. Not

minding him, Sumire pushed aside the member, who had crouched down.

Though they could plainly read the paper themselves, Sumire purposefully

read out the large characters.

"This year it's a 'Mister Lucky Man!'"

They didn't glean anything from her words. What was a…Mister

Lucky Man?

As though their brains had miraculously synchronized, all the

spectators who were squeezed into the gym tilted their heads together. Still

stuck between the rows of seats, being worried over by Noto, Ryuuji

automatically tilted his head with them. Kitamura took a step forward on

the stage. The mic was in his hand.

"The Lucky Man is a Shinto custom on the tenth day of the annual

Ebisu opening in January at the Nishinomiya shrine in Nishinomiya, Hyogo

Prefecture. You've probably seen the yearly news coverage of it. Every year

on the dawn before the tenth day, a crowd of people gathers at the main

front gate. When the gate opens, they dash two hundred and thirty meters

down the stone pavement toward the main shrine. The first one who arrives

is luckiest, and then the second and the third get prizes. First place is given

the title of the Lucky Man. Well, to put it simply, there's already a course on

the athletic field. Anyone who wishes to enter should go gather at the start

line now! In other words, the first place Lucky Man is the winner of the

Mister Festival pageant!"

No sooner than he had firmly said "pageant!" than…

"You're not having a foot race at a cultural festival!"

…The boos rang louder than the cheers. Following suit, others also

spouted complaints.

"The girls just had to get out on a stage and sing, though!"

"Why is it just the guys that always have to do the hard stuff?!"

Alongside the booing, complaints were also directed to the student

council on the stage. Sumire, however, was composed to the end. With a

smile filled to the brim with tolerance, she stood in an imposing stance in

front of the complainers.

"If you don't want to enter, you don't have to. Participation is

voluntary, after all."

Then no one's participating, yeah, let's go, let's go. The audience's

voltage went down a notch. There were sounds of people getting up from

their seats echoing here and there.

"But the prize conferred to the Lucky Man is, first, that he will have

the right to ask this year's Miss Aisaka Taiga for a dance at tonight's

campfire. And second, he'll have the right to give Miss Festival this tiara."

On a cart, they brought out the aforementioned tiara. With reverent

handling, a student council member held it up. Even if they had the right to

ask for a dance, if Taiga refused, then that was it. Many of the guys seemed

to lose interest and were about to go.

"Hey, there's something attached to it?!"

"What's that huge thing?!"

Directly underneath the sparkling tiara that seemed like it was part of

a costume rental, was a mysterious, heavy-looking cloth bag. Grin,

Sumire's red lips formed into a smile.

"Oh, I was about to forget…this tiara comes with something. That's a

specialty Market Kanou shopping bag. You only get one if you buy over

3000 yen in groceries. And the stuff that's inside of it—well, I'm just

recycling stuff I don't need, but it's something I've had for the past three

years. Those are all the notes I've taken from the time I was a first year in

April. I have everything from each and every subject, all the answer sheets

from the periodic exams and their explanations, all in bite-sized notes. I'm

unusually methodical by nature, so I have notes from class and the

instructor's questions, those answers, how to organize the main points…

Well, I couldn't throw them away, anyway. I thought that before I graduate,

Miss Festival and the Lucky Man—that happy couple—could look over the

footsteps of my academic career together, so—"

Like a slowly spreading ripple, the booing that had gone on up to that

point changed in tune.

"Big brother Kanou's notes?!"

"The answers to all the exams?!"

"Notes on the questions, answers, main points?!"

"You mean we can follow in the academic footsteps of that student

president? The one who has, by far, been top of the class in the last three

years since she started school? Of course, she's gotten perfect scores, too!"

The commotion they were making was finally enthusiastic. The ones

who said they would go home started to come back to hear more. In

particular, the third years with perilous grades who were pretty close to

being in a dicey situation unanimously put their heads together. They

started conferring with one another, and the room filled with a chorus of

"Should we enter?!" The genius Kanou Sumire's study materials—it was

too alluring a prize. There was another part of the audience also getting

excited.

"Huh, there are people who are entering?! Seriously?! Th-then, we

could seriously dance with the Palmtop Tiger? But if she says no then that's

the end of it, isn't it?! Isn't it?!"

"I think so… What…if she weren't allowed to say no?!"

"Is that believable?!"

"But, hearing that people are entering kind of makes me nervous…

The dance aside, wouldn't it mean that you'd definitely get to copy the

notes together with Tiger?"

"What if we hit it off…"

"What if…that could actually happen…"

They started to glance at Taiga, who was still sitting behind the

student council on top of the stage. Taiga didn't get mad when Sumire

brought up her name, and she wasn't denying anything. She just quietly and

snugly sat in the chair. Regardless of what she was thinking, there really

wasn't anything cuter than Taiga when she wasn't in a rage.

"I've decided! I'm doing it!"

"No way! You're serious?!"

"Okay! I'll do it too! I'm aiming for luckiest!"

The ones who were running started to head out. On top of that, there

were other groups that had been conferring.

"As the track team, we can't be slower than the others."

"Okay! Down with the track team! Now is the time for the basketball

club to show our strength!"

"Soccer club meeting! We'll kick the others out with our footwork!"

"Ho ho ho, we'll choke the life out of the soccer club right here.

Futsal association, assemble!"

They were the guys from the sports clubs who couldn't lose to the

likes of amateurs at this race. They each gathered, formed circles, raised

their voices, and made their match for the seizure of the Lucky Man.

"I want big brother's notes, too!"

"The Miss Festival pageant was one person per class, so why is the

Mister Festival pageant open to everyone?! It's unfair!"

The ones who were blubbering complaints and making a racket were

the girls. Seeing the boys as they were getting excited, it seemed they had

been quite fully motivated. On the stage, Sumire took the mic in one hand.

"For the Mister Festival pageant…it doesn't matter whether you're a

girl or boy! Participation from girls is fully welcome! Now, everyone who

has made up their minds, gather at the athletic field's track

peripheryyyyyyyyyyyyyyy!"

YEAH! The girls' high cheers also mixed in with the deeper voices.

Among those who started moving and filtering out of the gym was

Ryuuji.

Ryuuji didn't really need the big brother's notes.

He didn't need the title of Lucky Man.

He didn't really care about dancing with Taiga.

Anyway, no matter by what means, he wanted to get closer to Taiga

faster than anyone else. He wanted to run to Taiga, who was sitting there all

by herself.

That was all.