◇[Kashima Kotobuki]◇
The leopard-headed woman who called herself Eve.
After parting ways with her, Kashima Kotobuki walked through the dimly lit forest.
The sun was already starting to set…
A forest wrapped in twilight.
A scenery filled with nothing but unease.
Yet strangely, her anxiety was faint.
The Takao sisters walked in front of and behind her.
This sense of reassurance was thanks to them.
Kotobuki said,
"Um…"
She prefaced her words and gave her thanks.
"Thank you again… Takao-san."
"Wooow, you're being super formal, Kashima. You can just call us by our first names, okay? We're both Takao anyway. Also, what's with that polite speech? We're in the same year, so you don't need to do that."
Ki spoke to her in a light tone.
She was clearly being considerate.
Kotobuki could tell from the sound of her voice.
"…You two are amazing. Even in a place like this, your behavior hasn't changed at all from when we were in the original world."
"Humans are creatures that can change no matter which world they're in."
The older sister, Hijiri, spoke from behind.
"An event might serve as a trigger, but in the end, people who are going to change will change in any world, and people who won't change won't change either."
"Hi-Hijiri-san, you really are amazing too…"
Kotobuki drooped her shoulders.
She could only say "amazing."
She hated how limited her vocabulary felt.
(Even though I read so many novels, when it comes to real conversation, the words just won't come out…)
She tried to construct clever dialogue inside her head.
But it immediately fell apart.
She really was bad at live communication.
She was trying hard to change herself.
But perhaps the deeply rooted parts could not be changed.
"By the way, Kashima."
"Ah, yeah."
"There's something I wanted to ask you."
Something that the carefree Ki wanted to ask her…
What could it be?
"What is it?"
"Why are you in Asagi's group?"
"Eh?"
"No matter how you look at it, you seem more like the class rep type."
"That's because—"
Kotobuki recalled the time they had spent in Alion's royal castle.
△
The first trial.
The condition for clearing it was to kill a monster.
But Kotobuki could not do it.
She could not bring herself to kill.
That was when it happened.
Asagi whispered to her,
"For a scaredy-cat Poppo-chan like you, the reliable Asagi-san will lend you a hand~"
In the end—she managed to clear the trial without killing anything herself.
In front of her lay the corpse of a monster.
"Poppo, you did it~! It looked like a lucky hit after you got all panicked and shaky, but you still cleared the trial! Case closed♪"
Asagi deliberately spoke loudly enough for everyone around to hear.
She walked closer and rested her elbow on Kotobuki's shoulder from behind.
"Hmm! Let me explain it in a way even a Poppo whose chest is overflowing but whose brain is lacking can understand."
Her tone was gentle.
"Humanity has survived by joining hands. But if we don't properly join hands and cooperate, the next thing that starts is a fight to the death. So we also have to cooperate, okay~?"
Kotobuki's legs were trembling slightly.
It felt as if a snake had wrapped itself around her body.
At that moment, she thought Ikusaba Asagi was terrifying.
She could not reply.
The words would not come out.
"Kashima-san."
Asagi's hand reached toward Kotobuki's left chest from behind.
"Are you listening to what I'm saying?"
▽
Scary.
Ikusaba Asagi was scary.
Kotobuki said,
"I will… stay in Asagi-san's group for now."
Ki crossed her arms behind her head and spoke in a carefree tone.
"Personally, I get the feeling Asagi is kinda dangerous…"
At some point, Kotobuki's body had become covered in cold sweat.
It was not from the rain.
This unpleasant feeling…
It was a familiar kind of sweat.
Kotobuki said,
"Yeah, I know."
Ki tilted her head with an innocent expression.
"Hm? You also think she's dangerous? …Does she have something on you?"
Kotobuki shook her head.
"No, that's not it."
□
'Hey Poppo~ you actually want to be in Ayaka's group, right?'
'Yeah… at first, that's what I wanted.'
'Ohh?'
'But now… well… Asagi-san helped me during the trial, so…'
'Wooow~! What a good attitude! Asagi-san is moved~'
▽
She would not run away from Asagi's group.
That was because
"It might one day help save Ayaka-san."
Ki's feet stopped.
"Kashima, you—"
"It's okay."
Gulp.
She swallowed the dryness in her throat.
"Asagi-san thinks I'm just a scared, stupid Poppo… so she probably never imagines that I would think something like this…"
Even if she did imagine it, she would never think Kotobuki had the courage to actually do it.
That was what Ikusaba Asagi would assume.
She was right.
In truth, Kotobuki did not have that kind of courage.
Not yet.
(...That's why I have to become stronger.)
Then,
"It seems it was the right decision to come search for Kashima-san."
Hijiri said that.
Only then did Kotobuki remember the question she had been holding inside the whole time.
"U-um… why did you two come to help someone like me?"
"Because the current Ayaka needs a living Kashima-san."
"Me?"
"It's a trivial matter."
"Eh?"
Hijiri touched the hilt of the sword still in its sheath.
"Without telling us, the Goddess secretly sent another unit on this expedition. Since no one talked, it's only speculation… but their objective was probably to assassinate the girls in Ayaka's group."
"…Eh!?"
"They planned to kill Ayaka's important companions and inflict mental damage on her."
Kotobuki was shocked.
"W-why would she do something so horrible…? She was the one who summoned us… We're all working hard to defeat the Great Demon Emperor so we can return to the original world… for the Goddess…!"
"The Goddess wants Ayaka as an obedient pawn. That just proves how valuable an S-rank hero is… but to achieve that, she first has to break her heart—brainwash her and rebuild her."
Hijiri's eyes fixed directly on Kotobuki.
"Kashima-san's death would probably also have a major negative impact on Ayaka. Anyone watching can see that."
(S-so that's why… When Hijiri-san says it, I feel a little happy…)
"It's trivial."
In the darkness, Hijiri continued speaking.
"If Ayaka's heart breaks now, the subsequent developments are easy to imagine."
Her figure soaked by rainwater.
The fabric clinging tightly to her skin because of the moisture.
Because of that, the lines of Hijiri's body were emphasized.
She was slender, but there was no frailty.
Standing calmly in the twilight, her dignified posture gave off an indescribable intensity.
Kotobuki felt an indescribable dread.
"Kashima-san said earlier that everyone is working hard so we can return to the original world, right?"
"Eh? Y-yes…"
Hijiri used her slender fingertips to gently brush aside a few wet strands of hair stuck to the corner of her mouth.
"Even if we fulfill the return condition of defeating the Great Demon Emperor—"
High-class, graceful, sharp, and cold.
(...Hijiri-san.)
"I just can't believe that Goddess will honestly send us back to the original world."
▽
"Ohh, Poppo's back~! I was worried, you know~"
The 2-C students came out to greet the returning Kotobuki and the others.
The first one to rush over and hug her was Ikusaba Asagi.
"So~? Why were you with the Takao sisters?"
"I ran into them on the way and they helped me…"
Asagi glanced at the Takao sisters.
"Hmm… the Takao sisters are surprisingly sentimental, huh… Heh…"
Then Kotobuki spotted a girl running toward them.
"Kashima-san…!"
"Ah… Ayaka-san!"
The one who came running was Ayaka Sogou.
Ayaka placed her hands on Kotobuki's shoulders.
"Are you okay? Are you hurt?"
Her genuine worry was clear.
Kotobuki could not help but smile with relief.
"Yeah, thanks to the Takao sisters…"
She deliberately did not call them "Hijiri-san" or "Ki-san."
She felt it was better not to give the impression that they had become close.
Especially in front of Asagi.
Ayaka sent a grateful look toward the Takao sisters.
"So the Takao sisters helped you…"
Right after returning, the Takao sisters had only given a brief report to Nyantan.
They did not mingle with the other students.
Or so it seemed—
"You disappeared on your own and wasted **my** precious time… Make sure you remember that…"
Surprisingly, it was Kirihara Takuto who spoke to the twins.
Until now, he had treated their existence as nonexistent in class.
"Heh… what's up, Kirihara? It's rare for you to bother talking to us."
Ki responded boldly.
She positioned her body between Hijiri and Kirihara.
As if shielding her sister.
"Ayaka has entered the dropout candidate list."
"…Huh? What are you talking about? That doesn't make any sense."
"I'm saying that the only decent S-rank left might be Hijiri Takao… **I** am saying it."
"No, seriously, I don't get what you mean."
"Either you sisters submit to the Kirihara King, or you join the dropout side… eventually you'll have to choose."
Ki's eyes narrowed.
"Did something crawl into your brain, Kirihara?"
"Takao Ki, the words of the Kirihara King are too good for the likes of you… Your sister's little accessory is barking again today…"
"I won't deny being my sister's accessory… but why is the naked king who ignored us until now suddenly acting like this?"
Kirihara let out a deep sigh.
"I've simply become aware of the vessel of the Kirihara King… Don't make me repeat myself. The so-called 'good grades but bad head' definitely refers to you…"
"I don't want to hear that from someone who lost to me several times in overall term test scores."
Crack.
Kirihara cracked his neck.
"I'm a generalist type…"
"Ge… general… what?"
"Still…"
Kirihara reached out toward Hijiri's arm.
"Saint… your little sister's discipline is lacking."
Grip.
Ki blocked the hand that was about to reach Hijiri.
"What are you doing, casually trying to touch my sister?"
Hijiri remained expressionless and silent.
Her eyes seemed to be observing Kirihara.
"In my book… for now, I was planning to show mercy and go easy, but…"
Kirihara brushed his hair back with a sigh.
"I'll show you the difference in rank… so it won't end peacefully…"
"Do it then."
Silence.
For a moment, it felt as if time had stopped.
And then—
"[Golden Dragon—"
—Goooooo—
"[Lightning Shifter—the one who circulates lightning here—]"
—Crackle, snap—
"Whoa, that's enough, you brats!"
Actually, Nyantan had also been about to step in to stop them.
But the one who intervened was the eldest of the Four Holy Saints, Abyss.
"If you keep making the air more annoying than this—!? I'll punch you like that idiot Oyamada who doesn't know manners and shut you up—!? So, what'll it be!?"
Looking over, Oyamada Shogo stood behind Abyss with a bruise on his cheek.
He was glaring at Abyss with pure hatred.
He had probably done something and gotten punched.
The reason he had not been near Kirihara was because he had been with Abyss.
Kotobuki swallowed hard.
(To be able to step between those two without any tension… As expected, the Four Holy Saints are amazing…)
The first one to back down was Kirihara.
"Every single one of you is surviving way too much…"
Kirihara rubbed his neck and let out a sigh of annoyance.
"Because goody-two-shoes with half-baked specs keep butting in, low-spec idiots who don't understand their place keep popping up and showing off… Low-intelligence poor people dragging down the strong doesn't change even in another world. This is the loneliness of a king… Tch, how annoying…"
Ki also stepped back.
"…Looks like the lid came off after coming to another world, Kirihara."
"Ki."
Hijiri finally spoke.
"Thank you for stepping in."
"Hmph… there was no need for you to deal with a guy like that, Big Sis."
"Oh my… it looks like everyone is gathered."
Next to arrive was the eldest of the Four Holy Saints, Agito.
For some reason, he had appeared from the direction opposite the depths of the Demon Zone.
Moreover, he was riding a horse.
"Sorry, but we'll be departing before sunrise."
Agito glanced at Nyantan.
Nyantan nodded slightly.
Behind him, some of the girls were already squealing.
"Kyaa— Agito-san~♪"
"He's riding a horse! And it's a white horse!"
"This is bad, this is so bad! A real white horse prince!"
"It's valid! That's actually valid! Prince type is valid!"
"I can't upload this beautiful sight to SNS and share it… What a tragedy…!"
Agito gave a bitter smile and looked toward Alion.
"Well… even without the anomaly with the monsters, it looks like we were going to return to Alion today anyway."
Agito, still on horseback, announced,
"The Great Demon Emperor's forces, which had been quiet lately, have finally begun a large-scale southward advance."