Editing Tasogare-iro no Uta Tsukai:Volume2 1st Play (section)

===Part 4===

“Hey Enne, aren’t you hot?”

Like he had suddenly thought of it, her companion asked.

“I’m hot, but I’m a teacher so I have to wear the appropriate clothing.”

Resisting the urge to nod her head, Enne replied with the answer she had prepared beforehand. She was wearing a suit with white as the main color. Even though the white cloth reflected the sunlight, it didn’t change how hot she felt.

“Besides, isn’t Mirror also wearing a teacher’s lecture clothing?”

“Ah, that white coat that looks like a scholar’s, right? He likes wearing that though.”

Her colleague who said that wore a flamboyant polka-dotted T-shirt. But even so, he seemed hot, and currently had the edges of his T-shirt tucked in.

“……Zessel, you should wear some neater clothing!”

He was a male teacher who was Enne’s colleague as well as her childhood friend. Regardless of whether he was at school or not, he had probably heard those words hundreds of times to him by now.

“The headmaster said we can do as we like. I do dress neat in front of students, but it’s summer vacation. Plus, there’s no way any student could be here at this time—”

“There is. There’s a child waiting for the library to open. Although if I recall correctly, she’s probably a first-year student.”

“……Is that so?”

“Which means starting tomorrow, you’re also wearing a suit.”

……Give me a break.

He hastily swallowed back the words that he almost absent-mindedly said.

Tremia Academy, Building of General Affairs. The most innermost room on the first floor— They had arrived near that place.

Beside her colleague who straightened his posture, Enne discreetly adjusted the collar of her suit.

“So you do care, don’t you?”

“If I said I didn’t, would you believe me?”

After hearing her childhood friend’s teasing tone of voice, she sent him a meaningful look.

“We were chosen to come at such an early time just so students wouldn’t find out about it and involuntarily reveal it to other teachers. No matter what this is about, make sure you’re ready to face it.”

Towering in front of them was a large, wooden door engraved with impressive patterns.

“I’m not good at dealing with this sort of thing.”

Enne took a step back, meaning ‘I leave this to you’.

Slowly, she pushed the back of Zessel, who stood in front of her.

“……I’m not good at it either.”

“Come on, go for it. I’ll treat you to lunch.”

“……Seriously, give me a break.”

Sighing a second time, Zessel knocked on the door of the headmaster’s room. He entered the room in which the dark green hallway changed into a soft, deep crimson carpet that was spread out on the floor.

The headmaster’s room. Inside, several teachers were already standing in a circle.

“Sorry, you two, for calling you here so early in the morning.”

In the center of the circle, an old man wearing light clothing raised his hand slightly.

“You can join the circle for now. Everyone is probably busy, so I’ll just quickly tell you what’s going on.”

—What’s going on?

Leaning back against the nearest wall, Enne looked at the faces around her.

There was the headmaster and his close advisor Jessica, the director of education. Beside them were the teachers in charge of first-year students. Teachers who taught the other grades included herself, Zessel, and Mirror.

“This summer as well, in order for first-year students to learn some basics, they are going to summertime supplementary lessons. ……But, the incident that occurred a few days ago is probably still fresh in their minds.”

The recital contest— The teachers’ expressions instantly turned serious. Although they had avoided the worst result, a considerable number of students and teachers had been injured in that incident.

……That wasn’t something they wanted to remember.

“In order for us to repair the school, the usual supplementary lessons which students stay overnight at this school for have been cancelled. Instead, we will use the school buildings of Tremia Academy’s branch school in Fidellia. It will be a special field trip.”

Being the only person whose expression didn’t change, the headmaster standing in the center continued speaking.

Branch school. Rather than calling it a school, it was a facility opened to serve as a local gathering hall. Enne hadn’t visited it before herself. If she recalled correctly, Fidellia was a place near the ocean.

“The problem is the <Egg>.”

The old man’s voice wavered slightly. It was a voice mixed with seriousness and distress.

“The fact that nobody passed away in the incident is a blessing among the misfortune, but some students and teachers in this school received injuries. Obviously, the school buildings were damaged as well. ……At that time, many events happened to occur simultaneously. However, the main cause of everything was the atrocious catalyst I brought into the school.”

Spitting those words out like poison, he turned his gaze to a map hanging on the wall.

On the north side of the continent, located on a mountain range that ran through the continent was a red dot. That was Tremia Academy.

On the edge of the continent some distance away, on land that faced the blue-painted ocean, was another red dot. Was that the branch school?

“That is the Kelberk Research Institute where the bothersome catalyst was refined. However, they have branch facilities in various places on the continent. It seems that it wasn’t the main research facility, but a branch facility that originally refined the <Egg>. Actually, the one who brought that catalyst to this school was also a staff member from the branch facility.”

The name ‘Kelberk Research Institute’ sounded familiar to Enne. With its base set up in the center of the continent, it was a large-scale research institute that employed worthy researchers. The school had invited lecturers from there many times.

“Not long ago, I received a message from the research institute’s headquarters, but they told me to discuss the details with staff members from the branch facility.”

……I see. She somewhat understood. Looking up, she exchanged glances with Mirror, who stood in front of her. She and Mirror both nodded slightly.

“I understand the situation. So you’re saying that while the first-year students go on their summer camp, we should go complain to the head of the branch facility, right?”

“……Zessel.”

Instead of sighing, Enne closed her eyes. If this wasn’t the headmaster’s office, she would have pinched the back of that idiot standing beside her.

“Eh? Ah, I was joking, of course.”

Her childhood friend smiled deceptively with a carefree expression. ……Why hadn’t this guy fixed his childish habits?

“Well, it’s not that I don’t understand what Zessel is trying to say. But what I’m concerned about this time is another matter.”

Was that a good thing? It seemed that the headmaster wasn’t worried about what Zessel had mentioned.

“The research facility that refined the <Egg> is located in Fidellia, where the first-year students are headed.”

……Could this timing be called good or bad? 

Then again, Kelberk Research Institute is a facility cooperating with Tremia Academy. It could certainly happen that our branch school is located next to that facility.

“By the way, we received a message from the main facility the day before yesterday.”

Miller, who stood next to the wall across from Enne, continued speaking, explaining the headmaster’s words.

“Recently, our communication with the Fidellia branch seems to have stopped. Furthermore, this happened a few days after it had been confirmed that the <Egg> had gone out of control in this school. We have been trying to contact them since then, but haven’t received a reply.”

“Was the time we lost contact with them also when the recital contest was happening? Has the investigation into the cause of this made any progress?”

The headmaster answered the frowning Zessel with a shake of his head.

“That is something I want you guys to investigate. Mirror has already begun looking into this.”

I see. From the time she had entered the room, she had been curious about the contents of the documents that Mirror had tucked under his arm.

“Although using that sort of place as the location of the first-year students’ training camp isn’t something to be proud of…… Even we have only recently learned of the situation about the Kelberk Research Institute branch facility. It would be slightly difficult to change the chosen location in only these few days. Well, our branch school and the research institute aren’t directly beside each other. Teachers in charge of first-year students, please make sure that students don’t leave the branch school’s campus.”

The teachers in charge of the first-year students must watch over them carefully.

That means at the same time, me and Zessel’s duty is— to accompany the camp disguised as teachers in charge of lectures, and investigate the situation of the research institute.

“……It’s a significant task, isn’t it?”

“That just means I have a lot of confidence in you guys.”

The one who responded wasn’t the headmaster.

Jessica, director of education— the teacher who she, Zessel, and Mirror looked up to.

“Well then, everyone can continue on with their own duties. You should all know already, but this matter must not be revealed to the students!”


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