Editing Maria-sama ga Miteru:Volume24 Chapter2 3 (section)

===<noinclude>The Bout. </noinclude>Part 3===

"Come in."

I opened the dojo entrance gate and motioned Nana in.

For the Hasekura residence, this would be considered the back gate, but for the dojo the front. They both went to the same place so it didn't really matter but since Nana hadn't come to visit Rei-chan's house it seemed only proper to use the dojo entrance. But it did make it seem kind of like a showdown.

"Rei-chan."

I called inside, informing her of her visitor's arrival.

"Welcome."

Before long Rei-chan appeared and greeted Nana with a smile. Making it hard to believe the tense atmosphere that had been there earlier.

"Gokigenyou, Rosa Foetida. Thank-you for granting my request today."

"Not at all, I've been looking forward to it too. Come in."

Nana responded with, "Okay," and took off her shoes and stepped over the threshold. Rei-chan watched this for a little while before gently informing me:

"Yoshino. Show Nana-chan to the changing room. Then when you're done, wait in the dojo."

"And you?"

I asked, to see where Rei-chan was going. Because if Nana was going to wait in the dojo, it meant that Rei-chan was going somewhere else in the meantime.

"I'm going back to my room to get something I forgot."

"What did you forget?"

"I'm counting on you."

She left me with that then walked off quickly, so even though I was curious I couldn't ask her anything more. If I'd been by myself I would have stubbornly stuck to her asking questions, but since she left me with Nana I couldn't do that. I thought maybe she needed to use the toilet, but in that case there was no need to say it was for something she forgot, or to explicitly mention her room. Besides, she didn't have to go back to the main house for that, there was a toilet in the dojo building.

"You can change clothes in here. Put your belongings in one of the lockers. You can use whichever one you want."

"Well then."

Nana opened locker number seven.<ref>Nana is Japanese for 'seven'.</ref> A lucky number, huh?

"I'll be in the hall."

Nana set about getting changed, taking her coat off, so I reached for the door. We were both girls but it probably wouldn't be okay to watch her get changed.

"I don't mind. But."

"But?"

I turned around without thinking, right as Nana was taking off her sweater.

"You're not getting changed, Yoshino-sama?"

"Me?"

It was a bit late to be asking this now. Hadn't Nana said she wanted a match with Rei-chan? She hadn't been thinking of me in the slightest when she'd said this.

"I've been told that I can't interfere in words or deed."

In this matter, I would be "hands-off." Therefore I wouldn't be changing into my kendo clothes, nor would I be holding a shinai.

"Did Rei-sama tell you that?"

"Yes."

After nodding my head, this time I left Nana behind and went out into the hallway.

"Is that so?"

As I went to close the door, I faintly heard Nana say this, as though she was talking to herself.