Editing CubexCursedxCurious:Volume12 Chapter4 (section)

===Part 1===

It was the final night during the school excursion. Although this fact carried all sorts of significance, Haruaki and company currently had no choice but to do the same as the other students for now.

"How did it go? What kind of paradise was it? Me, I was forced carry all the shopping, almost dislocating my shoulders! Damn it!" Back to the hotel, Haruaki was finishing dinner while enduring Taizou's interrogation. "Hey hey! How did it go!?" The girls were also hassled by Kana's questioning, so things were about the same for them. That said, Haruaki had no idea what Taizou and Kana meant exactly by "How?"

They took this opportunity to take a bath first. After agreeing with Fear and the girls to meet at the lobby after bathing, Haruaki and the boys went to the bath together. In an attempt to avoid being questioned, he asked Taizou and Animori about their day. Despite grumbling nonstop, they still seemed quite contented to have a chance to accompany the super beauty Shiraho and her group on this trip. "My only regret is that I didn't get a chance to go 'Please allow your humble servant to help massage your exhausted legs'&mdash;"Although Animori made a creepy remark that gave the listener goosebumps, Haruaki decided to pretend he did not hear it.

After a bath, Haruaki parted ways with Taizou and Animori who were returning to the room, then headed to the washroom alone. On the way back, he was slightly lost and happened to pass by a certain entrance that led to what appeared to be the hotel's backyard.

(Oh&mdash;I didn't know there was this kind of place?)

Seeing as it was their final night at this hotel, it probably would not hurt to go adventuring once in an unexplored part. After all, Fear and the others were girls and would probably take some more time to finish their bath. It was also a way to kill time until it was time to meet up. Furthermore, a simple reason was that it seemed like it would be very comfortable to experience the cool breeze of the night after the body was heated up by the bath.

Borrowing the clogs placed there for communal use, Haruaki entered the backyard. The space was large enough to plant a row of trees along the boundary wall enclosing the hotel. The moon in the night sky was quite beautiful and the evening breeze was very comfortable and refreshing.

Spacing out, Haruaki pondered the situation here on.

According to Konoha, Kotetsu's key had already accumulated quite a lot of power. Then at the moment of activation, they must keep an eye on Kotetsu at the scene.

Supposing Kotetsu activated her key faster than Fear and the others then arrived before Un Izoey, the keeper of the box, Un Izoey was supposed to hand the box over without resistance. Pakuaki had issued orders for her to do so. But the only comforting fact was that Un Izoey had told them: "I will not resist. However&mdash;It is your freedom to hinder the opponent if you choose. I add this kind of addition." In other words, even if they lost in the race to activate the key, they still had the last resort of preventing Kotetsu from approaching Un Izoey. Hence, Un Izoey must absolutely not be allowed to leave their line of sight... Right now, Fear and the girls were probably taking a bath with her.

But of course, the fastest method was to activate their keys before Kotetsu. Was this possible?

(I wonder how is Konoha's progress... Fear is also acting a little weird...)

Haruaki recalled that on the way back from Fushimi Inari Shrine, Fear had a very gloomy expression on her face. Although she would answer when spoken to, Haruaki always found her in deep thought or sighing listlessly whenever he paid sudden attention to her. What on earth happened? Haruaki decided to ask her properly later.

Konoha seemed to be making good progress. Although she suffering some minor physical injuries in the fight against Kotetsu, what remained next was a race to beat Kotetsu in key activation.

At this point, Haruaki suddenly felt doubtful.

They were set to take the bullet train in the afternoon to make their way home. Before that, collective sightseeing was scheduled, the same as on the first and second days of the trip. Was there enough time to activate the keys by then? Even if they could not make it in time, Un Izoey was going back with them anyway, so there was no issue there, but if that happened, was Kotetsu going to give chase? Of course, that was not a problem for Fear and Konoha, but what about the other person&mdash;

"If this matter is not resolved by tomorrow, what will Kururi do...?"

"Hmm? You're asking what I'll do?"

"...W-Wooooooah!"

"Arghhhh, idiot, shut up, that's so freaking incompetent! It'd be bad if someone came over!"

While Haruaki was muttering to himself, Kururi happened to jump over the wall, landing in the backyard here. Due to the suddenness, Haruaki could not help but scream out, causing Kururi to hastily and gruffly cover his mouth. While finding it difficult to breathe, Haruaki also sensed the softness of Kururi's hand and the fragrance of clean soap, probably due to her job in the food business. Who could have expected her to be so serious at her job?

Kururi slowly withdrew her hand, finally giving Haruaki a chance to speak:

"W-Why are you here?"

"...I came looking for you to discuss things. But walking in directly through the front door seemed wrong. Just as I was wondering what to do, climbing over the wall, I happened to see you so I came in. That's all."

"I get the reason but appearing in that way will give people heart attacks... Couldn't you have called?"

"This isn't something that can be solved over the phone. Freaking incompetent."

"Oh... well, Fear and the girls are still in the bath, so why don't you wait until later if you have something to say. Oh right, I happen to have a question for you. We're going home tomorrow, what are your plans?"

"That's exactly the issue. I still have a job, so it's not like I could go back with you. But as a matter of duty, it's not like I could say: 'Okay, I'm leaving the rest to you guys, thanks.' So I've decided to end things before you guys leave tomorrow."

"...How?"

Beneath the moonlight, Kururi frowned after hearing Haruaki's question. Then she pouted and grumbled, sulking for quite a while:

"I said it already... I'm looking for ''you'' to discuss something, so I don't need that bunch of girls. Rather, it'd be better with you alone..."

Finally, Kururi spoke up as though in resignation:

"So! Hurry up and tell me, what kind of present usually makes boys happy!?"

"...Huh?"

What an unexpected question. Clenching her fists, Kururi blushed and turned her face away.

Haruaki tilted his head in puzzlement, gathering all the information in his mind, searching for clues among them. A key that required strengthened emotions. A deadline by tomorrow. Present. Things that Bivorio seemed to have said. Oh right, I think she mentioned ''his'' birthday&mdash;

"Oh... Because it's Kouichirou-san's birthday tomorrow, you're going to give him a present?"

"Wha..!? How did you guess from just one question I asked!? Are you a psychic? Damn it, freaking incompetent! No, that's not it, umm... I don't feel anything towards that guy, okay, it's absolutely impossible to begin with! But he's basically a partner at work and has take good care of me ever since I arrived, so anyway, gratitude surely counts as a type of emotion, so... That person said, this is a good opportunity for me to express myself, that's why I have no choice&mdash;Hey! Are you listening!"

"I'm listening, I'm listening."

After listening to Kururi's dishonest explanation, Haruaki smiled wryly and said:

"But this is really sudden. His birthday is tomorrow, right?"

"If I rush out to buy it now, shops that are open would still be open. Otherwise, I could still buy it early in the morning tomorrow. Cut the crap and hurry. Tell me what kind of present is the best. What's incompetent is that I've never given any present to anyone. Also, I don't have too much money either. Remember to consider these before giving me suggestions."

"I'm really not sure if my suggestions might be useful.. But anyway, let's think together. Right, I'd like to know about his background such as age or what kind of hobbies and interests he has, for example."

"Huh? As if anyone would know, I certainly have no interest in finding out. At most, all I know is that he's called Niimi Kouichirou, male, twenty-years-old, a university student majoring in economics, haven't joined a club, hobby is bass fishing, favorite food is super spicy curry with naan bread, his Mexican neighbor is very noisy, he lives in a one-room apartment, his little brother is an anime geek<!--otaku-->, he's a fan of the Hanshin Tigers and also a fan of the interesting foreigner, Trey Moore, who used to play for that baseball team."

"..."

"What's with that look?"