Editing Maria-sama ga Miteru:Volume8 Chapter5 2

===<noinclude>Farewell Address and Formal Reply. </noinclude>Part 2===

As expected of Rei.

There was no confusion in her eyes, Eriko proudly acknowledged.



Rei came across as a normal, gentle girl when she wasn't wielding her shinai, but it was plain to see why she was voted this year's Mister Lillian. When something had to be done, she did it. It was kind of cool.

The formal reply had begun.

As expected of Youko, her voice didn't waver. She spoke with an irritating calmness. Right up until the very end, she remained the perfect honors student.

"Thinking back, these three years of high-school have – "

Eriko closed her eyes while listening to Youko's speech. Not to go to sleep. She wanted Youko's voice carved deep into her heart.

Lots of things had happened during their three years of high-school. Eriko had known Youko for six years, and Sei for getting on fourteen years now.

Fourteen years.

That was to say, for as long as Eriko had been attending Lillian's.

She could have stayed at Lillian's for another four years, but it felt like the right time to be heading outside.

Why, after all these years? – She'd often been asked this after she joined the ranks of students taking entrance exams to other universities.

Especially by the friends she'd known since kindergarten, they wanted to know why Lillian's University was no good.

Why, after all these years? Even when she was asked this, she couldn't easily come up with a clear answer.

Lillian's was a good academy. She had no complaints.

So then, why?

Eriko thought, vaguely, that it was probably because she was satisfied. Because she was content with her school life at Lillian's, and had no regrets, she could start her journey into a new world.

When they didn't stop asking, she decided to answer the usual way, with, "Lillian's doesn't offer the degree I want to do." Which wasn't wrong, but it wasn't completely true either.

The truth was that she hadn't found what she wanted to study, so she was going to university to look for it. So if she followed that through to its logical conclusion, she'd probably be just as happy studying literature or home economics at Lillian's Women's University.

In herself, she didn't fully understand her own mind. So, as a stopgap, she fell back on the easily understood reason.

Youko's formal reply would soon be over.

Now, as she was right on the brink of leaving Lillian's, all sorts of memories came flooding back.

Foremost among them were the things she'd done with the Yamayurikai. And, through it, the petit soeur and friends she'd found. They were irreplaceable treasures.

(Ah, no good. I'm getting all sentimental.)

Even though she was going off in search of even more interesting things. What's the point of being sad? Eriko gave herself a little pep talk.

Still.

She could overlook the small teardrops that had gathered in the corner of her eyes.

For today it was alright to cry. Nobody would blame her.

She could hear the intro to the traditional graduation song, "Aogeba Toutoshi."