Editing CubexCursedxCurious:Volume12 Chapter1 (section)

===Part 8===

Without needing Kirika to issue orders as the class representative, all the roommates obediently went into sleep mode the moment it was time for lights out.

"Okay, now that we've eaten rice crackers and played cards, I have no regrets today! Let's sleep! Mufufu, sleeping like this with our futons lined in a row like this, it feels so much like a training camp. It reminds me of the the time when we stayed over in the school's night watchman's room&mdash;mmfffmmfff"

"Night watchman's room...?"

"N-No, it's nothing, Miyama-san. Ohohoho. Okay, let us sleep quickly so that we will be able to have as much fun as possible tomorrow!"

"Y-Yeah. If we end up exhausted from staying up at night, it'll be truly and absolutely ridiculous."

Naturally, it was not possible for the group to fall asleep immediately. To accommodate Kana's excited spirits, Kirika and Fear chatted casually for quite a while. Although it was very fun, Fear soon fell asleep after that, bringing a natural conclusion to the conversation party. Kana muttered "it's just the first day, so there's still plenty of time for that traditional battle..." and groped her pillow as though to confirm its rigidity. How inauspicious.

Then the next day, everyone got up at the appointed time, rubbing their eyes while they ate breakfast and set off for the sightseeing destination of this day's itinerary, namely, Kyoto.

Kirika was working hard to be proactive.

"Y-Yachi! This is just to remember the trip with absolutely no other significance! Let's take a photo together with the Temple of the Golden Pavilion as the background!"

Using a World Heritage Site as cover to take a photo of just the two of them. This was so cliched. Rather, a tried and true attack.

"Oh of course. I actually wanted to borrow Kuroe's digital camera but ended up forgetting. I was just thinking that a cellphone photo would be kind of unfulfilling. Uh, what about the others&mdash;"

"L-Let's take one with just the two of us first, yes! It's also a chance to test out my digital camera to see if there are any problems! Okay, Kana, I'm counting on you!"

"OK!"

Kirika swiftly leaned close to Haruaki and looked up to glance at the profile of his face, saving the image into the most important folder in the memory of her mind. Of course a photo together as a pair was important, but this was very important too.

After the photo was taken, accompanied by the shutter sound, Kirika checked the LCD screen to confirm, finding a photo of herself looking tense and Haruaki looking shy (increasing her treasures by one). At this moment, Konoha quickly came forward. Thinking "Sorry, the competitive world is this merciless" to herself, Kirika separated naturally from Haruaki. She had no right to monopolize him. No one did. Was this way of thinking too naive? But at the very minimum, she did not want to do anything that would tarnish her own honor.

"Tsk! How careless of me! ...Uh ...I'd like to test my camera too! Haruaki-kun, please join me in a photo as well!"

"Sure, of course. But I was just thinking, even if it's just for testing, you could include the others. Just take the photo again when necessary&mdash;"

"Don't mind the trivial details, that would be too rude to the Temple of the Golden Pavilion!"

"But the Temple isn't gonna complain."

"Come, Miyama-san, please take my camera as well!"

"Ready any time&mdash;I'm going to take the photo now! Say cheese..."

"Hey hey Haruaki, did you see that!? It's so golden and shiny it's unbelievable! I thought it was really tasteless but after making one round around it, I actually find it very tasteful now!"

Within the viewfinder, a silver little head suddenly squeezed itself between the Haruaki and Konoha. The shutter button was then pressed.

"Excuse me, Fear-san&mdash;! I demand a re-take!"

"Muu, you're always so noisy, Cow Tits. Why don't you take the Temple of the Golden Pavilion as your role model and paint your tasteless and vulgar body gold as well? Perhaps it'll look a lot classier after I circle around you once. But according to my predictions, it'll probably still remain a tragic sight to behold, serving to remind everyone of the truth of the galaxy that your existence itself is so terrible that nothing can be done to erase it."

The current location was next to the Mirror Pond, supposedly the best location to get a clear view of the Golden Pavilion. Students were essentially still moving around in their homeroom classes as a unit, but due to the machinations of some unknown person, Fear's and Haruaki's groups naturally moved together. In other words, there were other boys present apart from Haruaki.

"Grrrrr, it's only Haruaki again..."

"The plan for my perfect crime is already 60% complete. Listen carefully, the first step is to throw Yachi into a completely sealed room with neither windows nor doors, then&mdash;"

"That sounds like it'll be quite a pain just to throw him inside. Hey, isn't it easier to just kill him directly in the first place?"

"What a great idea! You're truly a genius!"

"G-Guys, stop discussing something so scary! Argh, jeez, this is so incomprehensible, but anyway, everyone please gather for a commemorative photo! Gather up, gather up!"

"I will gladly comply! As long as I can get a copy of the group photo afterwards, all will be forgiven!"

Despite being quite astounded by the bizarre excitement exhibited by Taizou and the boys, Kirika still joined them for a photo of the two groups combined. The person helping to take the photo was Kaidou-sensei. In a different sense compared to the previous, this photo was also one of Kirika's treasures.

The Temple of the Golden Pavilion was not the only destination in the second day's morning itinerary. They still had to take a bus to tour the northwestern outskirts of Kyoto. The next stop was Ryouan-ji, the Temple of the Dragon at Peace, greatly renowned for its Zen garden. Standing in a row before the rock garden, the group experienced the dry landscape.

"...Haruaki, can I say something honest? This is really boring."

"Isn't that the point? Yeah&mdash;It calms the soul. Isn't this what's meant by attaining the state of Zen?"

A withered old man as always&mdash;Kirika laughed wryly to herself in secret. That said, likewise experiencing serenity and bliss simply by sitting beside him, perhaps she was calling the kettle black.

Fear looked over the rock garden, apparently unable to understand it, commenting quietly:

"But this garden is so empty... In comparison, our garden at home feels much more comfortable and natural."

"That is such a lack of manners afforded to a World Heritage Site. However, seeing as elegance and refinement have nothing to do with you, this is only to be expected."

"What are you talking about!? Then lemme ask you, what exactly is the meaning behind these rocks that seem randomly placed to me? Talking about elegance so smugly, you should have no trouble answering something so trivial, right?"

"Ooh! Well..."

"Hmph... As much as I'd like to gloat over my victory, the lack of an answer is really making me curious. Let's ask Kirika in a time like this."

"There are numerous interpretations regarding the rocks. Some say that it depicts a scene of a tigress crossing a river while carrying her cub. Others say since only fourteen of the fifteen boulders can be seen from any angle at a time, this is a teaching the world to accept imperfection and incompleteness... I suppose the viewer is meant is decide for themselves."

"That's too deep for me. But unfortunately, all I see is 'rocks on some sand.' Then what does it look like to you, Kirika?"

Kirika stared intently at the rock garden before her and came to a conclusion:

"...Sorry but I think it's just 'rocks on some sand' as well. Looks like I still have far to go since I haven't attained a level capable to seeing other meanings."

"Pffft... Hohoho."

"H-Hey! Laughing is not allowed, Yachi! It's not like I can help it!"

"What a rude shameless brat! Don't worry, Kirika, I'll teach him a lesson for you!"

Haruaki casually blocked Fear's relentless flurry of karate chops and said:

"Sorry Class Rep but I jumped the gun and was hoping you'd have some kind of interpretation, yet the result was quite unexpected..."

"Seriously... A-Absolutely ridiculous..."

Kirika pouted slightly and turned her gaze forward to cover up her substantial embarrassment.

Gazing at the space of the dry landscape where time seemed to have stopped, she experienced the heat in her chest and the speed of her heart beats. If someone were to ask her what she saw in this world of desolate rock and sand, her current answer would be nothing at all, apart from ''his'' childish, laughing face.

The next destination was the temple of Ninna-ji. One could call this a triple dose of UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Although Ninna-ji did not possess particularly magnificent buildings, its vast grounds included many tourist spots that exemplified Kyoto style, such as the Golden Hall, the Pagoda, the Omuro cherry blossom trees, the Reihoukan museum's cultural treasures display. They leisurely toured all of these sights in turn.

During this time, Kirika suddenly thought of something. While trying hard to talk to him intentionally, walking naturally by his side, laughing and spending a happy time together, she thought of something.

Although utterly hopeless and matter-of-fact, it was something she only realized now.

(Ah... All things said, I really do... love him.)

Having grown accustomed a long time ago to a daily life of deceiving herself and others, she had always harbored feelings in her heart that she considered "matter-of-fact," to the point that she tended to forget its special qualities&mdash;But now she was experiencing them concretely.

"...Class Rep, what's wrong?"

"N-No, nothing. Uh... I-I was just thinking it's almost the gathering time!"

She had clearly spaced out for only an instant, but Haruaki was suddenly worried and observant. Damn it! His kindness was truly too keen and sensitive. That was precisely why she had fallen in love with him so much&mdash;

To such an extent that even she was at an utter loss as to what to do.



After visiting Ninna-ji, each homeroom class left to head to the respective restaurants they had booked in advance. Haruaki and friends took a bus and finally reached a large, two-story building. The place could not be described as new even in flattery, but gave off a feeling like an excellent restaurant backed by a long history and tradition. Nevertheless&mdash;

"Hey Haruaki, be honest here. What kind of restaurant does this look like to you?"

"...The entrance curtain clearly says 'Teishoku' which means set meals."

Haruaki looked out through the window of the stopping bus and answered honestly. Taizou apparently caught sight of the same building and started to grumble and mumble: "Are you kidding me? They're asking us to just buy a miso mackerel set meal each? That'll surely kill the mood completely&mdash;" But as soon as he spotted a shovel emerging from the seat in front, he immediately shut up.

Then according to Kaidou-sensei's explanations, although this restaurant was essentially a set meal eatery, it also accepted advance bookings for groups or banquets. Presumably, group customers must be a valuable source of business in a tourist area.

Everyone got off the bus and filed through the the door next to the main entrance, marked with "Group Customers Entrance," to reach the second floor. Led by the middle-aged lady and proprietress, they entered the room reserved exclusively for group customers. The space was large enough for an entire class to be seated without any crowding at all.

"Well then, please take your seats, students. Do not make too much noise. There should be normal customers on the first floor... Sorry, Sagisaki-sensei, but I shall rely on you to take over for I must go greet the proprietress."

"Y-Yes... Please count on me. I think I really want to fulfill my duties as a teacher... I guess... Umm, so everyone, it would be better to get seated starting from this side... I guess..."

The frail Sagisaki-sensei was still walking unsteadily. There was not a single cloud in the sky today as well. Perhaps due to people falling to heat stroke, ambulances could be seen rushing past them while they were traveling on the bus from the Temple of the Golden Pavilion to the next destination. Hence, as one might expect, Sagisaki-sensei was also suffering greatly again... Haruaki really hoped she could at least eat some lunch to recover her energy while hoping she would not force herself to eat till she ended up vomiting&mdash;Her face was so pale that the students worried about this.

Although seats were free for the choosing, Haruaki's group of boys still ended up sitting with Fear's group of girls. Haruaki discovered Fear was currently scowling and looking up at the ceiling.

"What's wrong, Fear? Did the scary eight-legged demon appear?"

"No... Stop saying such weird things, I'll curse you! I wasn't thinking in that direction, but now it's your fault that my imagination is running wild! Jeez... Uh&mdash;Let me reset my brain. Not here. Not here. That type of demon does not exist in this world. It does not spit out sticky threads and dangle down smugly. These are nothing more than urban legends. So it can't possibly appear here. Good, it's over!"

"That's quite a convenient brain you've got there..."

"Shut up, damn shameless brat, you shut up! I was just thinking... It's already the second day but nothing's changed. Because we visited three places in a row during the morning, I was hoping for something to happen. But what a disappointment."

"Oh... You're talking about ''that'', right?"

Haruaki also lowered his voice. Indeed, even when today rolled around, they still had not received any information at all regarding the Indulgence Disks. And in fact, there was nothing to guarantee that they were going to get anything in the first place. They had simply interpreted the superintendent's words optimistically, thinking it was worth a shot.

Sitting opposite, Konoha and Kirika also leaned forward over the table and said quietly:

"Hmm&mdash;It does feel quite concerning..."

"Indeed. Although no matter what, since the superintendent went out of his way to say something meaningful, there should ultimately be something at least. Of course, this could very well be subjective speculation that's absolutely ridiculous."

"Umuu, it's almost time for some new leads, right? No matter how generous and forgiving I am, there are still limits. Why don't I simply call the superintendent right now and complain to him..."

Fear frowned, murmuring her grumbles. Even during an important event like the school excursion, she was still unable to forget the issue of the Indulgence Disks. This desire was absolutely not going to disappear from her heart. She was going to keep desiring.

Fear was like that to begin with but Haruaki believed that she was currently expressing that desire more clearly and outwardly than before, presumably because she felt the necessity. The first reason that came to Haruaki's mind was Fear's discovery of a new and dangerous method of fighting. But apart from that, there were probably many other reasons. In a certain sense, this was also only natural.

As time went by, she was growing and developing gradually.

More and more like a human, growing accustomed to the human world, she was living and having contact with people.

Precisely because of that, it meant that she would gradually wish to distance herself from her curse. Hence, Haruaki felt that it was only natural that she would increasingly desire the Indulgence Disks.

Haruaki wished to realize her wish. He wished to assist Fear in reaching this goal that remained unchanged ever since she encountered him, that of wanting to become an ordinary human.

(Hold on, but if nothing actually happens next, it really might be best to call the superintendent and ask again...)

Just at this moment, the proprietress returned to the room and called out vigorously: "Sorry to keep everyone waiting&mdash;" She was also carrying many stacked trays of food. Then Kaidou-sensei, who had returned together with the proprietress, looked around and said:

"Do not just leave everything for others to do. Send out a few people to help carry the food back to share with your table."

On his table, Haruaki was sitting on the side closest to the edge of the room, so he got up and went with the other table representatives to the entrance area next to the room that seemed to be dirt-paved. The proprietress was not the only person carrying trays of food. Following behind her was another employee as well.

The employee seemed to be a girl. Like the proprietress, she was dressed in an apron with a white kerchief tied on her head. Due to the stacked layers of trays, her face could not be seen. At a glance, the girl seemed to be loaded close to her limit already. Since a number of people had gathered before the proprietress as well, Haruaki said to the girl:

"Uh... I'll do the carrying, please hand them over to me."

"...Thanks."

In that instant, Haruaki suddenly felt a sense of dissonance. He kept feeling that the girl's slightly gruff and stiff voice sounded very familiar. Weird? While perplexed, Haruaki still carefully received the the stacked trays. Wow, it's heavier than expected. Hence he drew more strength from his back then proceeded to casually shift his gaze upwards. Upon seeing the server's face&mdash;

"...Huh?"

Then he exclaimed in surprise. It felt like his eyes were really going to pop out and fall off.

"What&mdash;!?"

The girl also backed away in shock. ''A familiar face, one that Haruaki never expected to see again. The face of a former enemy's.''

The girl's back crashed into the wall. Hearing the sound, the proprietress looked back and issued orders: "Oh dear, Kuu-chan, what are you doing? There are more trays so hurry up and bring them!"

"...Kuu-chan?"

"S-Shut up! What the heck, why are you here...!?"

"Kuu-chan! How could you speak to a customer in that manner!? Oh, you know each other?"

Probably because she finally caught sight of the girl's face, Fear suddenly stood up with great alarm on her face, going "What&mdash;!?"

At this moment, from the passage connected to the end of the dirt floor entrance&mdash;probably leading to the second-floor kitchen&mdash;another employee emerged while carrying a tray, bowing her head as she passed beneath the curtains. Like the others, she was also dressed in an apron with a white kerchief on her head. However, she also had a rather striking characteristic.

She was not Japanese.

"Ara." She first looked at Fear then towards Haruaki before going&mdash;


"Welcome, everyone. Please relax and enjoy your meal."


''Alice Bivorio Basskreigh'' was smiling like a tender mother while she spoke.
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