I was genuinely curious how Haruna had concluded that Fuuka was the traitor of the Gourmet Research Society.
…And honestly, Fuuka was never even a member of the Gourmet Research Society, she was just frequently kidnapped, wasn't she?
Out of self-interest, and partly to buy time until the Justice Task Force reinforcements arrived, while also blocking the Gourmet Research Society's retreat, I gave a subtle glance to my girls and cleared my throat:
"Haruna, why do you think that?"
"It's only natural for Sensei to wonder," Haruna said, gazing sorrowfully at Fuuka, whose expression was utterly dejected. "Yes, Fuuka, our soulmate… how could she possibly be a traitor? Once I ruled out all impossibilities, I had no choice but to accept this fact and consider the reason behind it… there may be many… but the most important one, as I suspected, is jealousy."
…What?
Even if Fuuka somehow reached out for help, shouldn't the only reason be that she was coerced from the start?
At this moment, Junko, furrowing her brows and clearly annoyed, spoke impatiently: "What kind of nonsense are you talking about! Sensei is way more suspicious! And if we don't run now, we're going to get surrounded!"
"Exactly!" Izumi, holding the golden tuna, agreed wholeheartedly, though with a touch of grievance in her tone, "It's still slapping my face!"
Haruna, as the club president, silenced her companions with a firm voice:
"Don't rush. It's our duty to make Sensei see Fuuka's true nature as soon as possible."
Taking a deep breath, she began her careful reasoning:
"Everyone, though I wish to believe that Sensei and we share a fated connection… this coincidence is too great. We just broke through the Justice Task Force's blockade and then ran into Sensei? Someone must be trying to manipulate the bond between us and our important club advisor. And the only one among us who knew our actions and had time to notify Sensei… could only be one person!"
Junko blinked in confusion: "Huh? You don't mean…"
"Yes! Akari, Junko, your obsession with food is evident to all. Even Izumi… well, she also made a considerable sacrifice this time."
"Then hurry up and give me a chance to put the fish down already!"
Ignoring Izumi's protests, Haruna sighed: "Fuuka, do you have any excuses left?"
Fuuka struggled symbolically, as if to express through her body that even if she wanted to call for help, she couldn't.
But in Haruna's eyes, this gesture meant the complete opposite.
"Too guilty to even deny it?" Haruna, giving her no chance to refute, pulled out a handkerchief and wiped her eyes. "I trusted you so completely. Thinking it through… the only thing that could drive you to betray the unbreakable bond forged through our love of food must be something equally important."
Finally, the president of the Gourmet Research Society, the notoriously infamous criminal in Kivotos, stopped teasing and pointed at Fuuka, shouting her conclusion:
"Aikiyo Fuuka! Admit it! You like Sensei! That's why you couldn't stand to see us, who were like sisters, getting along with Sensei! That's utterly despicable, Fuuka!"
The room fell silent.
…She can't possibly be projecting her own feelings onto Fuuka, can she?
"…Ah, so that's what's going on," Hanako's soft laugh broke the silence.
Fuuka, finally coming to her senses after such an absurd accusation, blinked in disbelief. Her face quickly flushed bright red, and she began struggling violently, muffled sobs spilling out.
Then I realized a fact, not entirely unexpected.
Haruna's words weren't completely baseless.
Ignoring the heat rising in my chest, I decided to confirm the nature of this newfound "power" once this was all over.
"Well said." Akari clapped and supported her president, a mischievous, amused smile on her face. Then she feigned seriousness: "Fuuka, why are you so flustered? Was it really because she hit the mark?"
Fuuka, after a moment of inner struggle, tried her hardest to calm down, though her body still trembled and tears filled her eyes with grief and anger.
Haruna, observing this, sighed in satisfaction: "Ah, Fuuka finally realized she can no longer deny it before my meticulous reasoning."
Fuuka remained silent for a while, accepting the harsh reality that she had no power to respond. Her eyes lost their sparkle again, and she returned to her indifferent, "do whatever you want" posture.
"So! Enough wasting time here!"
Junko, glancing warily around, finally shouted in exasperation: "Can't we discuss this traitor business after escaping?! We're literally in the middle of fleeing! If we dawdle now, we'll end up trapped!"
Izumi nodded frantically: "Exactly! My face is going to be completely swollen… sob sob…"
So why hasn't she temporarily put down the golden tuna?
Looking at Haruna, who had been orchestrating this entire distraction, and Akari, seemingly focused only on stoking the fire and watching the spectacle…
Junko might be the only sensible one in the Gourmet Research Society.
"Hm… that's true," Haruna pondered briefly, then nodded in agreement with Junko's perspective.
Unfortunately, the Justice Task Force reinforcements wouldn't arrive for a while, meaning a fight was inevitable.
Still, managing to delay things this long far exceeded my expectations.
Thanks to Haruna's cooperation, I saved a lot of mental energy.
Just as I prepared to step back to command the situation, with the girls on both sides nearly raising their weapons for battle, I noticed something unusual.
The silver-haired girl in military uniform bent down, carefully placing her beloved sniper rifle on the ground, then stood upright and raised her hands.
In full view of everyone, Haruna, with her mysterious, knowing smile, looked directly at my face and blinked brightly.
Then, casually, she said to me:
"Hehe~ then Sensei, please, accept our surrender, shall we?"