Could I have seconds?
"Oh… Sorry. I didn't recognize your voice, so I thought the baseball-club and soccerclub guys had come back. My bad." The speaker smiled sheepishly; she was everyone's
favorite school delinquent…better known asthe vice president of the student council, Chisaki
Sarashina. Her menacing aura had disappeared as she apologetically held up a hand in front
of her and winked. Masachika, who was sitting across from her, relaxed a bit.
"Sigh… What was that all about anyway?"
"Hmm? You know more than I do."
"What?"
As Masachika curiously tilted his head, Chisaki looked over at Alisa, who was sitting
next to him.
"I heard our cute little friend here tried to settle their quarrel and find a compromise, but
they continued to fight like savages and ignored what she had to say. In other words, they
were pickin' a fight with the entire student council, so I smacked the shi— Ahem! Uh… I
smacked some sense into them! Yeah!"
Why do I get the feeling that's not what she was going to say?
Masachika set aside that thought for now and shifted his eyes toward the bamboo sword
leaning against Chisaki's side.
"Makes sense… But, uh…don't you think the sword was a bit much?"
"Huh? Oh, uh… Ha-ha-ha…"
Chisaki glanced to her side uncomfortably, then said in an extremely forced and cheerful
tone:
"D-don't worry about it! My fists might be deadly, but a bamboo sword has never killed
anyone!"
"…Uh-huh."
"A bamboo sword would break way before a person ever would!"
"Ha-ha…" Masachika let out a dry laugh.
"Ha-ha…! Yep!"
Chisaki's eyes began wandering as she smiled tensely, realizing her joke had bombed.
If it was Yuki, Masachika would have definitely played along, but this was Chisaki. It was
nothing to laugh about. It wasn't even a joke. Chisaki Sarashina, a second-year high school
student, was one of the two so-called beauties in her grade. Some boys feared her, and some
girls adored her for her handsome yet feminine looks. She was called Donna at school as a
sign of admiration. People used to call her the Conquering Mother or the Chief, which had
similar nuances, but they decided to go with Donna permanently after Maria transferred in
and became the school's Madonna. She used to handle student discipline in middle school,
similar to a hall monitor, and was now the vice president of the student council—where she
was in charge of organizing club meetings, which were mainly composed of club captains
and vice captains.
I can see why everyone respects her… This is someone you should definitely respect.
Masachika recalled how the baseball team and soccer team had acted after leaving the room,
not to mention her menacing aura. Plus, there were countless stories about her around school:
how she worked herself to the bone to solve the class's bullying problem, how she handled
a dozen actual delinquents who'd infiltrated the school all by herself, and how she used her
bare hands to stop an agitated bull from charging at another student in Hokkaido on a field
trip. However, her most famous heroic episode was when she saved a female Seiren Academy
student who'd almost been kidnapped on her way home from school. Some of the other
stories might have been made up, but this one really happened, and there was undeniable
proof, too, because after the incident,she was awarded a letter of appreciation from the police.
Plus, it was in the newspaper as well. Masachika had always figured she was probably the
kind of person who would break your legs if she had to, like a loan shark, but after seeing
how nervously she fidgeted just because they were awkwardly staring at her, he realized that
was probably not the case.
"T-Touya…!"
She pathetically called for her boyfriend to help as though she couldn't take the pressure
any longer. Touya, who was sitting in the president's chair by the window at the back of the
room, smirked at his girlfriend's plea and replied:
"Relax, Kuze. Chisaki didn't resort to violence. She simply hinted at it to threaten them."
"T-Touya?!"
Chisaki's eyes opened wide in surprise.
"I'm kidding," Touya said with a mischievous grin. Chisaki pouted, stood up, and ran
around the desk where she began to slap Touya on the shoulder.
"You jerk! You big dummy!"
"Ha-ha! My bad."
Masachika couldn't help but laugh at their heartwarming quarrel.
"You're such a meanie!"
"Ha-ha. Chisaki? My shoulder's dislocating. Okay? My shoulder."
Okay, maybe heartwarming wasn't the right word. Uh… The sounds were worrying. The
banging started to sound like cracking. She was really starting to dig in there, and after each
hit, Touya's well-built body wobbled. Nevertheless, he continued to smile as his girlfriend
reprimanded him. He was a real man in Masachika's eyes.
"Sorry I'm late. ♪"
Maria had suddenly thrown open the door, and she stood as still as a mouse while
blinking at the sight before her, but then a soft grin curled her lips.
"Oh my. Chisaki? President? Let's keep flirting in the student council room to a
minimum."
The fact that Maria could see something moderately violent and consider it flirting was
impressive. She was a real "genius" in Masachika's eyes. Regardless, it seemed to work on
Chisaki.
"W-we weren't flirting!"
Only after stepping away from Touya and seeing him rub his shoulder did she come
back to her senses. Her expression became apologetic.
"S-sorry. Did I hurt you?"
"Hmm? Oh, I'm fine. My shoulders needed a massage anyway."
Touya smiled and rotated his shoulder, though his smile seemed to be tinged with a
painful grimace. His handling of the situation was so badass that Masachika almost fell in
love.
"I'm really sorry… It looks like I need to work on controlling my strength…"
"What is she, some sort of new superhero?" Masachika whispered to Alisa.
"Don't worry," Touya reassured her. "This is why I work out. Come at me with
everything you've got."
"I guess, in a way, that means he works out for his girlfriend," Masachika continued
in a hush.
"Touya…" Chisaki murmured with a soft sigh.
"Huh? Why are there stars in their eyes? Did something romantic just happen?"
Masachika asked.
In response to Masachika's whispers, Alisa tugged on his sleeve, shook her head
reproachfully, and tried not to smile. After snickering at her reprimanding gaze, he glanced
over his shoulder at Chisaki and whispered:
"Hey, do you think Chisaki wraps her body in white cotton sarashi bandages like
delinquents do in anime?"
"Why do you even care?" Alisa whispered back.
"Because then we could start calling her Sarashi Sarashina. G-get it?"
"Pfft!"
Alisa couldn't stifle a snicker at the bad joke, then turned bright red in embarrassment
and hit Masachika on the shoulder.
"Oh my. You two are so close," Maria commented.
"…! Wh-what do you know?"
"Heh! That we are! Looks like we can't hide it from your sister any longer ☆,"
Masachika joked and winked like someone who had never winked before.
"Shut up," Alisa replied hastily. Then there was a knock on the door, and Yuki stepped
inside.
"Hey. Sorry for being late."
"Hmm? Oh. Don't worry about it," said Touya as he stood and joined the others at the
table. Touya was sitting in the seat in the very back—at the head of the table, in other words.
Then to his right sat Maria, Alisa, and then Masachika. To his left sat Chisaki and then Yuki.
Once everyone had settled in and relaxed, Touya asked:
"Is everyone ready?"
"""Ready."""
"Then let us begin. First, let's have Kuze tell us a bit about himself."
"All right."
Masachika stood up.
"I'm Masachika Kuze. I'll be working as a general member of the student council from
today on. My interests include anything nerdy, and I'm familiar with most popular anime
and comics. In addition…"
He looked over at Alisa, who was sitting next to him.
"…I plan on running in next year's election with Alisa Kujou here. Anyway, I'm happy
to be part of the team now."
"Welcome aboard."
"We're glad you're here, too."
"Happy to have you."
Everyone showered him with warm applause and smiles. Yuki's archaic smile as she
clapped made it impossible to tell how she really felt, though Alisa quietly observed her.
"All right, then. How about we all say a bit about ourselves as well?" Touya suggested
while exchanging glances with the other members to check if everyone was okay with the
idea. He then turned to face Masachika once more.
"I am the president of the student council, Touya Kenzaki. I've been really into working
out lately. Welcome to the team."
"I'm the vice president, Chisaki Sarashina. My hobby…is kendo, I guess? Nice to have
you on the team."
"I'm Maria Kujou, the secretary. I like to collect cute things. Oh, and I read quite a bit
of comics, at least ones written for young women."
"I am Yuki Suou, the council's publicist, and I am so happy you decided to join us,
Masachika."
"…Alisa Kujou. I like to read."
Masachika nodded respectfully after everyone officially introduced themselves.
Man, it's actually pretty impressive to see these people together in the same room.
He was awestruck. After all, the girls gathered here were unparalleled beauties, even
throughout the long, rich history of Seiren Academy. Plus, they were each different in their
own way. If you took a picture and sent it to some television network, they'd probably send
someone over to interview the "most beautiful student council in the world."
"All right, Kuze. Do you think you could help Big Kujou with her work today?"
"Sure."
"Thanks. I'm sure you'll get used to your tasks in no time, since you were the vice
president in middle school, but I figured you could learn the ropes working side by side with
one of us for now."
"I'm guessing it's also because we're shorthanded, right?"
"Yeah. To tell the truth, we're way understaffed, so nobody's able to focus solely on
their assigned job."
"Well, I'm happy to help. Besides, accounting and secretary work are usually done by
multiple people, and general members like me are basically odd-jobbers anyway. I was a
general member during my first year of middle school, so I'm used to stuff like this."
"Oh? That's really encouraging." Touya mirthfully chuckled.
"I apologize for interrupting, President, but I need to get going. I have a meeting with
the art club in regard to the upcoming exhibition," Yuki announced suddenly.
"Hmm? Oh, sure. Thanks."
"And we are going to be discussing the budget as well, so I would like for Alya to come
with me."
"Huh?" Alisa said, surprised.
She blinked, bewildered by her sudden inclusion in the conversation, but she almost
immediately nodded as she deduced some unspoken message from Yuki's expression.
"All right. I'll be back shortly."
They got out of their seats and began walking toward the door.
I feel like there's more to this than meets the eye…
Masachika's heart filled with worry as he watched them leave, but it was soon erased
by Maria's unconcerned, cheerful voice.
"Over here, Kuze. ♪ Let's get started. ♪"
Her voice had a trancelike quality. Maria patted the seat, which Alisa had been sitting
in, with the most calming smile, and Masachika scooted over with his own obedient smile.
Alisa followed closely behind Yuki as they walked down the hallway. She wasn't so
naive as to really believe Yuki simply wanted her help. Yuki had an ulterior motive, and
Alisa had an idea of what it was. And yet it still didn't seem like Yuki was ever going to
start the conversation.
Yes… This is a conversation I need to initiate.
Alisa closed her eyes, mentally prepared herself, and said:
"Hey, Yuki? Do you think we could talk?"
Yuki turned around without a hint of surprise, like she'd been expecting this. She
remained quiet as she smiled and nodded before looking toward an empty classroom.
"Sure. How about we go in here?"
"Okay."
Yuki stepped inside the classroom, followed by Alisa, who closed the door behind them.
The evening sun filtered through the window and illuminated the two girls as they faced
each other.
"I decided to run for president next year with Kuze," Alisa declared almost
provocatively, initiating the conversation. Yuki, however, maintained her smile and nodded.
"Yes, I know. He told me yesterday."
"…Oh."
Although one of Alisa's eyebrows briefly twitched when she heard that, she didn't say
another word, so Yuki eventually tilted her head in confusion.
"Um… Is that it?"
"…Yes. And I didn't do anything Ishould feel ashamed of,so I'm not going to apologize.
I just thought I should tell you."
"Giggle. Well, thanks for telling me."
Some might think that Alisa was intentionally provoking her, but Yuki cracked a smile
as if she found it amusing.
"Yes, there is nothing you need to apologize for. After all, Masachika made the decision
for himself, so I can't complain. I do not plan on blaming you for anything, either," Yuki
stated clearly.
"It was a shame that he didn't go with me, though," she added playfully, and yet Alisa
thought she seemed somehow withdrawn.
"Yuki… About Kuze… Do you…?"
"…?"
"…Never mind."
Alisa stopped herself from going any further after realizing that she was overstepping
boundaries. However…
"I love him. I love him more than anyone else in the entire world," Yukisaid confidently.
"…?!"
Alisa gazed at her in astonishment, taken off guard by Yuki's serious expression and
unflinching response.
"M-more than anyone else?"
"Yes. I love Masachika…more than my mother, more than my father, more than anyone
in the entire world."
She boldly proclaimed her love for Masachika without shame or doubt, and Alisa
unconsciously took a step back. Without missing a beat, Yuki took advantage of her shock
and countered.
"What about you, Alya?"
"Huh?"
"How do you feel about Masachika?"
"I—I…"
She reflexively tried to say that he was just a friend, but Yuki's unblinking stare made
her panic and look away. She wondered if it was really okay to give such a noncommittal
answer after Yuki had honestly told her how she really felt.
"Kuze…is my friend. A very d-dear friend…who means so much to me."
Although Alisa was still looking away and now blushing, she eventually managed to
squeeze out those words…then immediately, she felt her whole body flush, and she began
to fidget. That wasn't enough to please Yuki, though.
"Do you like him?"
"Hng?!"
The candid question made Alisa grunt and meet the other girl's gaze. Yuki looked her
straight in the eye and began to approach her, but Alisa instinctively retreated. Yuki, however,
didn't stop and kept marching forward until Alisa's back was up against the wall. There was
at least a twenty-centimeter height difference between Alisa, who was really tall, and Yuki,
who was petite, so Yuki had to lean her head back and look up to face her. And yet it was
Alisa who felt small.
"So? What is it? Do you like him?"
"Saying that I like him…would be… It's more like…"
"I told you that I love him, so you have to tell me exactly how you feel, too!"
"M-mmm…"
Yuki's relentless questioning was more than someone who wasn't used to talking about
boys and love could handle, forcing Alisa's brain to overheat. She couldn't think straight
anymore, and the only things that ended up moving her lips were her stubbornness and
feelings of rivalry toward Yuki.
"I don't know…if I have feelings for him like that…but…! I-I'm not going to let you
have him!"
Yuki slowly blinked, then stepped back.
"…Isee. Isuppose thatshould do for now." Yuki giggled with her characteristic ladylike
smile. "Shall we start heading over to the art club now? We shouldn't keep them waiting
too long."
"O-oh, right…"
Although Alisa was slightly perplexed by how quickly Yuki's behavior had changed,
she followed her out of the room and began heading toward the art club's room.
Wh-what did I say back there? I feel like I said something…really big. Wait… "Love"?
Hold on. Love…?!
While she walked, Alisa struggled to recall what had transpired a few moments ago, and
her eyes spun in circles as she helplessly tried to process it all. Yuki, who was observing her
out of the corner of her eye, casually turned her head away, a sinister smile twisting her lips.
He means a lot to her, huh? And she's never gonna let me have him? Heh… That's my
brother for ya. ♪
Contrary to Alisa, Yuki was thoroughly enjoying herself. Her steps were as light as a
feather, as if she was going to break into a dance at any moment.
"Masha, about this part here…"
"Hmm? Ah, I must have made a mistake."
"Oh, all right. I'll fix it, then."
"Thanks."
Meanwhile, Masachika was helping Masha with her work and was inwardly shocked
by what he'd learned…
Masha is an extremely competent secretary! What the hell?!
His surprise was pretty rude, but she really was exceeding all his expectations. She was
serene as usual, but she got her work done, and she got it done incredibly quickly as well.
He'd fully assumed she was invited to join the student council because they were relying on
her popularity, so he was taken aback by how much of a talented hard worker she actually
was.
This girl, on the other hand…
Masachika stealthily glanced at the girl sitting in front of him.
"Huh…? I was just looking at it a few seconds ago. Where did it go?"
"Chisaki, I think I saw you put it inside the blue folder over there," Maria mentioned.
"Huh? Ohhh. Right. Yeah."
Chisaki went over to grab the blue folder off the shelf on the wall, but she didn't seem to
know which blue folder it was, so she just took a random one and curiously looked through it.
She's terrible at her job! She can't do anything on her own! I know it's rude of me to
say that, but still…!
It became clear that Chisaki and office work didn't get along. In fact, she had absolutely
no organizational skills at all from what Masachika could see.
"Hmm…? Mmm…"
And she couldn't sit still, either. It had only been twenty minutes since they started doing
paperwork when she began to fidget restlessly.
What is she? An elementary schoolboy full of pent-up energy?
She was looking around as if she was bored and waiting for everyone else to stop
working, and while Masachika pretended not to notice, the fed up look in his eyes made how
he felt more than obvious. A comforting, sweet girl who looked as sharp as a sponge at first
glance, and a handsome young lady who looked like she could run an entire business all by
herself… And yet the opposite ended up being true for both of them.
You seriously can't judge a book by its cover…
Masachika was really feeling that when all of a sudden, Touya spoke up as if he couldn't
watch any longer.
"Oh. By the way, Chisaki…I heard they were replacing a lot of the books at the library
with new ones."
"What?! Do they need someone to help?!"
"Probably. The student librarians are mostly girls as well, and switching out heavy books
can be exhausting. Do you think you could go check up on them for me?"
"I'm on it!"
Chisaki's expression lit up like that of a kid on Christmas before she darted out the door
in the blink of an eye. The paperwork must have been killing her. There was no way she was
coming back any time soon.
"Sorry, Kuze. Chisaki's always like this. With that being said, she's extremely useful
when we have committee and club meetings, so go easy on her, okay?" Touya bitterly
smirked.
"Oh, uh… I mean, everyone has things they're good at and things they're not, right? Haha," Masachika replied with a strained laugh. Chisaki was a really good person whom you
could count on. That much he knew after seeing how she got angry because of how those
jocks treated Alisa the previous day. And that was exactly why witnessing her childish side
like this…made it even harder for Masachika, because he had no idea how to react to it.
"But that's just one of the many things that makes her cute, right?"
"'Derp. Isn't it cute that my girlfriend can't sit still for more than five minutes?' Stop
bragging about your girlfriend."
"Heh! Look at you, Kuze. A straight shooter like you is just what the student council
needed."
"This student council needed all the help it could get."
"Ha-ha-ha! I knew inviting you to join was the right move!"
"What made you realize it?"
Maria watched their bit with a smile as if to say, "They look like they're having fun,"
while casually dragging Chisaki's paperwork over to her side to finish it like that was the
norm.
What kind of superhero is she?
Masachika changed his opinion of her from that moment on.
They continued working for another forty minutes or until they each found a good
stopping point and decided to take a break. Incidentally, Chisaki never came back.
"Who would like some tea?" Maria offered.
"Oh, let me help you." Masachika started to get up to assist.
"It's fine. Please stay seated. I like making tea."
Trying to help would only bother her. Plus, watching her heat up the pot and cups only
further conveyed how serious she was when it came to tea. An amateur wouldn't be able to
do what she was doing.
"Do you like milk in your tea, Kuze? Or sugar? Oh, we even have some jam."
"Jam… Oh, are you making Russian tea?"
"That's what they call it here in Japan, at least. It isn't lemon tea, though, unfortunately."
"Sure, why not? I'll have mine with jam."
"Okay. ♪ Oh, and you wanted protein powder in yours, right, President?"
"Absolutely not."
"Pfft!"
Masachika naturally burst out laughing at Maria's sudden joke (?). It didn't help that
Touya had replied with a straight face, either.
Seriously? I had no idea Masha joked around like this. Wait… She wasn'tserious,right?
Either way, that was hilarious. Pfft…!
Masachika helplessly tried to hold in his snickering.
"Calm down already, Kuze."
"My bad…! It was just so— Pfft! Ha-ha!"
Touya rolled his eyes, and Masachika laughed until he cried and could laugh no more.
"Ah, that was good… Hmm? Now that I think about it, I thought people only drank tea
in Russia during the winter," he mentioned, as if to hide his embarrassment from laughing
so hard. Maria swiftly poured hot water into the cups of tea while curiously tilting her head.
"Hmm? I think it depends on the person? At least, in our family, we would drink tea
even during the summer. I guess it helped that our mother loved tea, though."
"Oh, your mother's Japanese, right? That makes sense…"
It was only natural that some Japanese culture meshed with theirs, even though they
were born in Russia.
"Do you know a lot about Russia, Kuze?" Maria asked casually with her back still turned
to him.
"Not really… I've just seen a few Russian movies. That's all."
"Oh, is that so?"
It wasn't only "a few" to be honest, though. I had to have seen at least twenty with
my paternal grandfather—since he was really into Russia—and it ended up helping me a
lot with my Russian listening skills. Thanks to that, I could now understand what a certain
affectionate classmate was whispering all the time, too! Hooray!
"Is everything okay, Kuze? You've been staring off into the distance for a while now."
"Oh, I'm fine…"
Some gifts could be a curse, but perhaps they could also be a blessing in disguise, he
wondered. Maria placed a saucer with a cup and some jam on it in front of Masachika.
"Sorry to keep you waiting."
"Oh, wow. Thank you so much."
"And here's some for you, President."
"Thanks."
Touya seemed to have his with sugar, while Maria selected jam as well.
Now, how should I go about this?
Masachika decided to first taste his tea straight after briefly debating with himself.
"…! This is delicious…"
"Really? Thanks."
Even the fragrance was nothing like the tea he usually drank. A bright aroma that spread
from his mouth to his nostrils, a rich and…nostalgic flavor.
Now that I think about it…
Her mother liked tea as well. While faintly grimacing due to the slightly bitter tea,
Masachika glanced over at Maria out of the corner of his eye and saw her spooning some
jam into her mouth before taking a sip of her tea.
"…? What's wrong?"
"Oh, uh… So you don't put the jam in the tea, huh?"
"It depends on the person. Ded— Ahem. My grandfather used to mix the jam into his
tea, but I prefer to eat mine like a snack."
"Interesting…"
So it was like having sweet bean jelly with green tea, Masachika thought, and he decided
to copy Maria and take a bite.
"It's so sweet…"
His lips twisted, surprised by how sweet it actually was, and he hurriedly sipped at his
tea. The sweetness of the jam was perfectly diluted, slightly changing the tea's taste.
"Interesting…"
Adding the bittersweetness of the jam to the fragrance of the tea leaves gave it a complex
flavor…
Hmm… It completely melts in your mouth with the tea, so it's almost like drinking a
completely new drink…
It was delicious in its own right, but the tea itself was already extremely good,so it might
have been better to drink the tea straight. It wouldn't be right to leave the jam after Maria
spent all that time preparing it, though.
Maybe I'll just go with a little sugar next time, too.
After secretly deciding that, Masachika began alternating between small spoonfuls of
jam and sips of his tea.
More importantly, after actually thinking about it…
Maria was really beautiful, and she had an incredible body, to boot. Plus, she was nice,
outgoing, and well-liked by most of her peers. She apparently had good grades and was
always among the top thirty students in her grade on the bulletin-board score rankings. She
must also be smart. Whether she was athletic or not was anyone's guess, but even if she was
kind of clumsy, that would only contribute to her cute personality. She was a hard worker
who knew how to put on a good cup of tea as well.
Hold on. Is she perfect?
I never thought of Maria that way due to her usually carefree nature and the fact that the
perfect, famous superhuman Alisa was always by my side, but after giving it some thought,
Maria was a perfect superhuman, too.
Masachika suddenly began to feel restless after realizing this. Maria was merely lifting
her teacup slowly with a gentle smile, and yet she appeared more attractive to him than ever.
Now I get it… This is why they call her Madonna. She has the power to unconditionally
turn any guy into a lovestruck little boy…
Right as his otaku brain was about to take off with this big-sister fetish, Maria noticed he
was staring and smiled inquiringly, dragging him back into reality. It was nothing more than
a sweet smile asking, "Is everything okay?" And yet he got butterflies in his stomach. It was
a mystifying experience. He tried to calm himself down, but he couldn't. If he wasn't careful,
he might let his guard down and reveal how he acted around family. He couldn't let his guard
down. He couldn't…and yet when he saw Maria's angelic smile, his caution and self-control
began to wane. He wanted to surrender himself to her comforting, loving nature and—
"We're back."
"…Sorry we took so long."
"Oh! Yuki, Alya, welcome back. ♪"
All of a sudden, Yuki and Alisa returned from their meeting, and Maria broke into a
smile. The overflowing motherly love and charm she was emitting immediately dispersed,
and all that was left was an easygoing girl who loved her little sister.
How can one person change this much so quickly?!
The sudden change almost made Masachika fall out of his seat, but Maria expressed no
concern as she smiled her way over to the shelf with the dishes and tea.
"Would you two like some tea?"
"Oh. Yes, please."
"…Yeah."
"Perfect. ♪"
She cheerily hummed asshe prepared their tea. While Masachika regarded her curiously,
Alisa took the seat next to him and scooted over to his side. But when he glanced at her and
saw how close she was, she gave him a look that said, "Got a problem?"
"…What?" she asked brusquely.
"Oh, uh… Don't you think you're sitting a little close to me?" Masachika flat out replied.
"It's bad luck in Russia for young ladies to sit at the corner of the table," Alisa answered
while glancing in the opposite direction.
"R-really?"
"Really."
The chair rattled once more until her elbow was almost touching his, and she sent Yuki
a piercing glare.
She still doesn't need to be this close! And what's with that look in her eyes?! I-is there
going to be a fight? Are they already fighting?!
Alisa peered at Yuki warily, but again, Yuki's archaic smile made it impossible to guess
how she was really feeling. Masachika felt like he could see sparks flying between their
intersecting gazes. Feeling uncomfortable, he decided to get up and leave, but Alisa instantly
grabbed his sleeve under the table before he could move. She kept hold as though she was
pleading with him not to go…and that was kind of cute…if viewed as an isolated event. But
deep down inside, Masachika didn't feel that way.
Noooooo! Let me goooooo! I can't take this awkward silence! This is so uncomfortable!
Ahhhhhh!!
He felt like a guy who had just been caught cheating on his girlfriend, and he tried to
escape with every fiber of his being.
Why me?! Why did this have to happen to me?! Masha, save me!
He looked back, unable to take it anymore, and asked Maria:
"Is there really a superstition in Russia about sitting at the corner of the table?"
"Of course. It's technically not bad luck, but either you won't be able to ever get married
or you'll get married later than you were supposed to if you sit at the corner."
Maria then turned and cheerfully looked over at Alisa with sparkles in her eyes.
"I never expected Alya to care about something like that, though… Does this mean you
found someone you wanted to marry?!"
"…No. I just felt like it."
"Oh? Really?"
"Drop it already."
"Awww.Alya, don't be like that," Maria said, pouting as she faced forward once more.
After glancing at her sister, Alisa set her eyes on her hand that was holding Masachika's
sleeve, then said in the softest of whispers:
"<It's still too soon to get married.>"
It was a very, very soft whisper, but Masachika could clearly hear her since he was
sitting so close to her.
Yeah, you're only fifteen years old. ♪ I'm a little concerned by how you phrased that,
but everyone knows you're way too young to get married. ♪ …Is she seriously doing this in
front of her sister?!
Masachika shuddered…because despite Alisa's Russian-speaking sister being right
behind them, she was asserting possessive dominance like she was going to mount (?) him.
All of a sudden, Alisa heard Maria placing a teacup on a tray and let go of Masachika's sleeve
in surprise. After a few moments went by, Maria returned to the table with cups of tea for
Alisa and Yuki.
"Here you go, Alya."
She placed a small plate in front of Alisa…with what appeared to be almost an entire
jar's worth of jam on it.
"…What?" she asked, realizing Masachika was observing her.
"Huh? Nothing…"
Masachika swiftly looked away, feigning ignorance as he dumped what little jam he had
left into his tea, mixing it well with his spoon before finishing it off in one gulp.
Yep… This is a completely different drink now.
It seemed to be a lot more jam than tea, leaving a sweetness in his mouth that puckered
his lips.
"Hey, uh… Where did Chisaki go?" Yuki suddenly asked.
"Huh? Oh… She still hasn't come back, now that you mention it…"
After looking up at the clock and tilting his head, Touya placed his teacup down and
shrugged.
"Chisaki went to help out the student librarians… She'll be back when she gets hungry,"
he replied.
"How old is she? Ten?" Masachika joked, and immediately, the door to the student
council room flew open.
"Something smells good!"
"My bad. No older than eight. At most," Masachika added as Chisaki rushed into the
room with stars in her eyes.