If Her Flag Breaks Volume 1 Chapter 2: Difference between revisions

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==Flag 3: Exploring and Rebuilding the Guild Base<ref> As you might know, most of the character names also include RPG class names. Nanami’s a knight, Kikuno’s a summoner, Akane’s a magician, etc. I’ll note the classes of new characters as they appear.</ref>==
==Flag 2: The Indomitable Magician Quietly Approaches==
“Um… I live in a dorm. What about it…?”


As Souta slung his backpack over his shoulders at the end of the school day, Akane had asked, “Souta-kun, where do you live?” After Souta answered, she nodded in feigned understanding.
The day after Souta transferred.


“Can we go play there?”
The excitement of the previous day was like a dream. Other than Kikuno, the only person who would actively seek him out to talk, people stopped approaching Souta after class.


“No.”
As the daylight waned in the noisy classroom, only one word described Souta sitting at his seat — lonely.


Hearing Souta’s response, Akane’s eyes welled up in tears. She blubbered “Oh~”, her friendship flag breaking in reply.
His figure evoked loneliness.


''He’s still as rough with the flags as before…'' Nanami watched the conversation in her peripheral vision as she put her stationery in her school bag.
“They don’t so much as glance at him, is this reality… Has everyone already lost interest in the transfer student?”


“That kind of place isn’t suitable for girls to visit.”
Nanami sat sideways on her chair, expressing her honest opinion of Souta.


“Like the boy’s bathroom?”
However, the classroom atmosphere was less that of ostracism so much as… that feeling of ‘the new transfer student seems to like being alone and doesn’t want to interact, so let’s just let him be.’


“What kind of dorm would that be?!”
Souta didn’t seem to care at all. “Oh, that’s because…” he replied:


Akane’s off-putting question resulted in a rare Souta retort.
“After a flag breaks, it won’t reappear that easily. If something special happens, the flag could reappear or a ‘Flag Recovery’ flag might appear…”


“Like your room’s in a stall?”
“This mechanism is quite annoying…”


Human relationships might indeed be like this, it’s just that this flag thing is too exaggerated — Nanami understood this implicitly. As the bell rang, she turned to face forward.


“Even prisoners live better than that, right…?”
However… there was a pair of eyes secretly staring at them.


No, since it’s Miss Heiress, the toilet in her mansion might be quite big. With this thought process, Souta decided it was pointless to hide it, so he told the truth.
The eyes’ owner looked breathlessly at Souta, who hadn’t left his seat, for the entire class and seemed to nod with determination…


“How do I put it? It’s because my dorm’s messy, it’s a total wreck.”
Lunch break.


“Then we’ll go clean it up! Don’t look at Akane that way, but Akane really does love to be clean though? Mm-hmm!<ref> It’s supposed to be the noise Hirasawa Yui makes in ''K-On!''. Again, I haven’t watched it, so apologies if it isn’t entirely accurate.</ref>”
The students either started eating lunch with three to five friends around a desk or went to the cafeteria together. A lively atmosphere filled the classroom.


As usual, another one of Akane’s friendship flags was raised immediately. Souta’s feelings about them had already begun to gradually move from fear to admiration.
In contrast, Nanami and Souta were too quiet, staring at their respective desks and quietly nibbling on the salty bread they bought that morning.


Despite Akane’s enthusiastic proposal, Souta still crossed his arms and sighed in contemplation. “Hmmmm…”
Their loneliness was so strong that people couldn’t approach them, adding even more loneliness and falling into an endless negative spiral. FYI, the word spiral definitely wasn’t used because it’s a cool word. Spiral.


On the other hand, Akane was really motivated. For some reason, she was wiping an imaginary window with exaggerated movements, as if she were practicing boxing. Although, even if she was wiping a window, it was more like ‘Wax on, wax off.’<ref> Karate Kid reference</ref>
Based on her excessively protective mentality, if Kikuno was there it would be impossible for Souta to stay in that loneliness spiral, and they would definitely be eating lunch together. Unfortunately, in order to give advice to those who volunteered to study abroad, Kikuno was attending a lunch gathering hosted by the Student Council and wasn’t in the classroom.


“Huh?! Huh?! What happened? Souta and Akane, why did you guys suddenly become so close without Big Sis’s consent?!”
Suddenly, a shadow approached this singular space.


Kikuno, not knowing what had happened during lunch, protested with her eyes welling up in tears. She seemed to blame Souta, her expression a little accusatory.
It was an approachable girl, a beautiful girl-next-door type person. Each grade generally has one of those.


“That requires consent…?”
If Nanami’s beauty was like a rose, hers would be a cherry blossom that rouses people’s protective instincts.


Nanami, having become a bystander, murmured to herself with a faint smile.
She had shoulder-length hair with big bows swaying on both sides highlighting her cuteness.


“We just ate together during the lunch break, we’re not actually as close as you say…”
“Hi, my name is Mahougasawa Akane.<ref> Akane’s last name includes the characters for ‘magician’, hence the title of this chapter.</ref>”


Kikuno puffed her cheeks angrily, as cute as a child no older than one. Souta comforted her while explaining what had happened.
The girl… Akane smiled gently and suddenly brought her face closer — close enough to feel her breath — and surprised Souta, who stiffened.


After listening to Souta’s explanation, Kikuno nodded with a slight smile, feigning understanding.
The thing that made Souta’s expression most tense was that…


“Really? Akane-chan is a really good kid, Big Sis strongly approves of your friendship!”
''The flag… It’s been raised…''


It seems consent has been acquired.
A friendship flag flapped on Akane’s head.


Kikuno turned and faced Akane with a deep bow.
“Ah, I hope you don’t feel repulsed! I’m not a suspicious person, I’m a mysterious classmate, okay?”


“Please take care of Sou-kun.”
“You’re mysterious?!”


“D-don’t be like that, Okiku-nee…!”
So suspicious it might explode.


“Yeah, Kikuno-senpai, it’s not like I’m an outsider.”
“Excuse me… what does this mysterious classmate want from me?”


“Huh?! You’re already family?! Sou-kun, why didn’t you discuss this with Big Sis first?! Big Sis feels so lonely!!”
“I’m Akane-chan, though?”


It seems consent has not been fully acquired.
“... Mahougasawa-san, what do—”


“Huh? What do you mean…?”
“I’m Akane-chan, though?”


Big Sis’s logic was too unpredictable and Souta was at a loss, but Akane, the central subject, was still smiling brightly.
Souta was interrupted by Akane halfway through his sentence.


“... Speaking of which, Akane just referred to Okiku-nee as ‘senpai’, right?”
“... Akane, what do you want from me?”


Although Kikuno was supposed to be a year older than them, calling a classmate ‘senpai’ is still pretty strange.
“Oh! It’s the first time a boy used my first name directly.”


“Ah, um. Senpai guided me when I came to this school last year. Since she was Senpai at the time, it feels a bit weird to change it now…”
Souta glanced at the friendship flag, which had been splashed with a hint of pink.


“Ah, but, at the time, I already knew I would become a freshman a year late.”
Akane also blushed pink, matching the flag. She didn’t seem to notice the subtle movements of his eyes. She asked generously:


The senpai in the same grade seemed a bit shy.
“Can we eat a bento together?”


It’s unclear whether this resolves the subject, but Akane, who wasn’t especially paying attention, returned to the original subject.
Honestly, Souta didn’t really want to interact with people, and most importantly, he was more apprehensive than happy at the thought of having lunch with two girls in the classroom. After all, he was a sensitive boy in his teenage years, so this was an expected reaction.


“Then, since we got your Big Sis’s approval, we can go to Souta’s dorm now! Mm-hmm!”
“... It’s bothersome.”


“... She approved?”
“He thinks I’m a bother!!”


“Big Sis also wants to go! Mm-hmm!”
Akane’s friendship flag broke, and Souta was relieved.


Kikuno, even more free-spirited than Akane, raised her hands with this declaration, cutting off Souta’s question.
Nanami was already peeking at them through the corner of her eyes while drinking from her milk carton. At this time, she leaned over beside Souta’s ear and asked:


Met with inexplicable enthusiasm, Souta was then patted on the waist from behind, startling him.
“Souta, was the flag raised?”


“!?”
“Yeah…”


He turned to look, but there was nobody behind him… Then he found that it came from below.
“Did you break it?”


To Souta, who was 170 cm tall, the other person was a girl 50 cm shorter than him. Not only her height, but her appearance looked young. Although she looked like an elementary school student, her uniform revealed her to be a student in the same grade. That said, the other students had called her ‘Grandmother’ during the lunch break, even asking her for advice.
“Pretty much…”


“Give up, young Souta.”<ref> Tsumugi technically calls others 'little brother/sister *name*', but I think 'young' fits better.</ref>
“Oh.” Despite her disinterested expression, Nanami looked into Souta’s eyes, which were filled with self-contempt and self-pity. This guy was torturing himself.


“Young?!”
“I won’t be a bother, so can we eat lunch together?”


The young girl, who seemed not to wear anything on her lower half, spoke to Souta in a wizened tone, as if he were a little rascal or devil.<ref> The Chinese translation I’m using uses 萝卜头 and 鬼头 (lit. ‘carrot-head’ and ‘devil-head’), which are somewhat xenophobic terms in Cantonese referring to Japanese people and Westerners respectively… no idea what the original intention was.</ref> As a result, Souta couldn’t help but raise his voice.
“Huh?!”


“Young Akane has a disease where she just can’t leave hapless beings alone, you could say she’s in a critical condition. If you continue having this kind of hapless aura, you’ll always be stuck with her, okay? Plus, young Kikuno is also very stubborn.”
Since Akane’s flag had been broken, Souta thought she should have left already. Yet she stubbornly stayed and continued trying. Souta was absolutely flabbergasted.


The little girl chuckled and went on her way home.
“Did it not break?”


Akane followed the silhouette with her eyes, and told the dumbstruck Souta:
Nanami murmured, letting go of the straw in the carton.


“She’s Grandmother Tsumugi.”
“How can this be possible…”


“‘Grandmother’...? … Is she an old lady?”
Souta was sure that the flag had been broken and looked above Akane’s head… but —


They say that humans will gradually shrink when they pass a certain age, so maybe she was like that? But whether it’s her delicate skin or her facial features, she looks indistinguishable from a young girl. Or is she just an old-fashioned little girl who skipped a few grades? The mysteries surrounding her identity increased.
“It-it rose again…!”


“She’s the Living Dictionary of the academy. They say that our academy doesn’t have students who don’t listen to Grandmother Tsumugi’s words.”
He saw the friendship flag rise again.


“What happens if you don’t listen?”
Having broken countless flags, Souta had never seen a flag recover so quickly.


“You’ll be cursed.”
Seeing Souta speechless, Akane tilted her head in confusion.


“That isn’t the same as a living dictionary, right?!”
“Can we?”


Akane was pretty much just saying random things, but Souta didn’t know whether to take the rumor seriously or lose to Akane’s enthusiasm or even think that Tsumugi’s advice did indeed make sense. Regardless, Souta sighed deeply, forced a smile, and said to Akane:
“Holy…!”


“Nevermind. Since you want to come over so much, come. But I’m not kidding that the dorm is messy, alright?”
Maybe thinking that Souta’s silence indicated permission, Akane relaxed and brought an empty seat next to Souta’s desk.


“Mm-hmm!! I’ll take the chance to show my great skills! It’ll be my first time cleaning up a boy’s room!!”
Nearly going with the flow, Souta frantically tried to break the flag again as Akane put down the chair.


“B-Big Sis also wants to clean up!!”
“N-no, how should I say this… After all… I’ll be teased if I have lunch with girls… you know what I mean?”


“Let’s team up!! Attack as a team!”
“... That makes sense, sorry.”


They actually wanted to attack…? Souta’s mood dimmed, and he looked at the ‘Inexplicably Motivated’ flag sticking up on Akane’s head with a strained smile.
Seeing the friendship flag break and disappear again, Souta sighed in relief.


“It’s highly-anticipated, right, Nanami?”
… But before the sigh even came out, a new friendship flag had already popped up.


“Huh? Why ask me?”
“I’ll eat after Souta-kun has finished eating, so can we sit together?”


As Nanami zipped up her backpack, she was suddenly thrown into the fray by Akane. Nanami frowned in suspicion.
“You don’t understand what I’m saying at all?!”


“Because we’re going together~”
“?”


“Why…?”
Souta was scared silly, and Akane tilted her head in confusion, smiling gently.


“I’ll tell you after we get there.”
“But-but, it feels a little rude to eat first, though?”


“There’s basically no point in telling Us after we get there!!”
“...”


Nanami somehow discovered Akane’s trap. Mahougasawa Akane… How did you think that she wouldn’t notice?
Souta didn’t think that she could understand him at all. This kind of situation was desperate, almost like fighting a [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pull_switch pull chain] in the middle of a room.


“... Nevermind, there’s nothing to do anyways. Plus, the Big Sis isn’t very responsible, and giving the kind of guy Souta a chance to be by himself is dangerous, so there’s no harm in having Us accompany you.”
“Can’t I?”


“After all, Souta-kun would explode.”
“I’m not saying that… You can’t… No, I’m just saying…”


“Am I really that dangerous?!”
Attracted by the ruckus, even the classmates who had their flags broken started glancing towards Souta with interest.


This requires a Level 5 hazardous waste management license. In other words, a nitroglycerine person; or, perhaps, human nitroglycerin?<ref> lmfao Bakugo??</ref> Anyways, there’s no difference.
“See, everyone’s looking…”


And so, the four-person group of Akane, Nanami, Kikuno, and Souta was formed, heading towards the dorm where Souta lived.
Souta lowered his head, looking extremely distressed. Akane, almost crying, looked around at her classmates.


Hatagaya Academy’s huge campus was encircled by a total of four [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/H-Bahn H-Bahn sky train] stations; namely, Yoyogi Uehara Station to the southwest of the academy, Yoyogi Park Station to the southeast, Hatagaya North Station to the northwest, and Hatsudai North Station to the northeast.
The spectators crossed their arms in unison, thinking about the best solution for this situation. After contemplating a while, they all looked to the center of the classroom together.


The high school division was near Yoyogi Park Station, while Souta’s dorm was near Hatsudai North Station.
They looked at the wisest person in the class — the academy’s Living Dictionary, the sage Ryuukishibara Tsumugi. Currently, she was nibbling a rice ball.


Although these were walkable distances, students of Hatagaya Academy can freely get on and off these four stations so long as they present their student IDs, so of course they choose to take the trains.
Her face and body, even if you relaxed the standard, was at most just at the level of a middle schooler… No, this description is still wrong. She looked completely childish, just like a little girl.


“I thought the dorms were all concentrated on the main road. Turns out there are some here as well.”
Despite her immature appearance, there were rumors that she had been living here even before the academy was founded. How many years she had repeated was a complete mystery. It was one of the seven wonders of the school.


“Yep… For the sake of caution, I’ll confirm once again: the dorms are really messy, are you guys absolutely sure you want to come?”
There were other mysteries about her, too. For example, she only wore school uniform’s shirt and coat over a belted kimono — this outfit would surprise every passerby.


“Hey Souta, thou hath only transferred for two days, and your room is already messy enough that it’s not to be seen by others…?”
If someone asked her about this, she would sigh: “You don’t even know how to wear a kimono? Western tea has poisoned you to forget…”


“If you have any complaints, then just don’t come…”
However, she still wore large lace hair accessories. In this regard, her appreciation of beauty did not distinguish between East and West.


Before Nanami could counter Souta’s already exhausted words, Akane interjected cheerfully:
Under the gaze of the whole class, Tsumugi understood the situation, thought quickly, and immediately stood up.


“It’s definitely just that your luggage hasn’t been completely sorted yet and is in a messy pile, right? Just leave it to me!”
“Everybody listen up!! The weather today is great!! It’s warm and sunny, so go out and eat!”


Akane’s ‘motivated’ flag was still flying strong.
Tsumugi chewed on her rice ball and put on her [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geta_(footwear) ''geta''.] She walked out of the classroom, geta clicking on the floor.


The four got off at the academy’s Hatsudai North Station and, after walking a short distance, gradually saw farms and pastures.
“Oh, how befitting her title of Grandmother! Great idea!”


“... What is this? The countryside?” Nanami asked.
“Of course Bento needs to be eaten outside!”


“If I remember correctly… this is the farm of the Agriculture, Forestry, Aquaculture, and Horticulture Club.”
“The courtyard, let’s go to the courtyard!”


“Horticulture…?”
Then, everyone started talking again and left the classroom single file. When they realized it, only Souta, Akane, and Nanami, unable to bear the atmosphere, were left in the classroom.


The landscape looked bucolic from a distance, and it felt considerably large. Nanami frowned, wondering if it was part of a backup plan adopted by farmers afraid of the production reduction policy.<ref> Might be referring to Japan’s [https://www.tokyofoundation.org/research/detail.php?id=86 Rice Acreage-Reduction Policy]</ref>
“... Nobody’s looking anymore?”


Behind the farms was a dense stretch of woods, actually more like a forest than woods. Walking in there felt like being showered by forest.
“Something’s wrong with those guys’s problem-solving methods…”


“... There’s a dorm in this place?”
Akane successfully caught Souta’s attention and smiled at him; Nanami scanned the empty classroom in cold sweat.


“Awesome, your home is in a forest.”
“Can we eat bento together?”


Compared to Nanami’s unhappy expression of “there should be a limit to how remote this is”, Akane smiled as she always did, thinking positively.
“... Yes.”


Souta, leading them, had a different attitude and plodded on.
Since it had already gotten to this point, Souta lost the courage to refuse.


And then, in a small clearing in the forest—
The friendship flag, which had been broken more than once, was raised once again, and broke Souta’s heart to the brink of collapse.


A building stood quietly.
As Akane excitedly sat down on the newly-arranged chair, Nanami also turned her chair 180 degrees.


The edge of the roof had fallen, and not only was part of the wall collapsed, it was also covered with vines. The door had almost rotted through, the windows were broken, and the surrounding area was overgrown with weeds.
“Nanami-san, do you want to join us?”


Even by the lowest standards, it still looked like…
“In this situation, if We were the only one facing forward to eat, wouldn’t We be the only one without friends?”


“Ruins…?”
Nanami acted unexpectedly cute in this situation.


“What…? What’s going on with this tattered dorm…”
“Wow! I’m so happy!! Actually, I’ve always wanted to find a chance to get along with Nanami-san. But I couldn’t find a chance… Ah! Souta-kun, you have many weaknesses… you could even say that your whole body is covered with them!”


“Are these not ruins? Souta, thou didst not go to the wrong place, right?”
“... Is it really?”


“See? What did I say?”
Akane’s carefree words… The aggrieved Souta’s mouth twitched and he asked Nanami:


Souta showed the dorm’s certification page in the student handbook. It said ‘Quest House’. Nanami looked at the moldy dorm plaque and knit her brows.
“... Hey Nanami, is Akane this kind of ‘jerk’?”


“This is indeed ‘Quest House’...”
“This airhead is a super rich heiress, hmph.”


“So you live… here…?”
Nanami replied imperiously, implying that Souta was wasting her breath. Souta wanted to punch her.


Akane’s eyes lost their light, frozen in shock. However, Souta smiled and nodded with a hint of self-deprecation.
“Oh, what’s wrong? Are you investigating me? How am I a rich heiress… my grandfather just happens to be the president of a consortium, that’s all.”


“For a lonely, poor person like me with dead parents, what could I expect? I have nowhere to go, and no home to go back to… The academy now not only gives me shelter from the elements, but also a scholarship. If I ask for too much and get kicked out, wouldn’t I be in an even more tragic state?”
“Consortium?!”


“But… even if it’s like that, to live in this kind of place is…”
“Isn’t the Mahougasawa Group quite famous? You don’t know?”


“After all, this is my situation, so I’m pretty easy to take advantage of. But taking in somebody like me makes it easier for the academy to raise money… Although, the fact of the matter is, they only need to take me in. Nobody really cares how it’s handled afterward.”
“... I’m not familiar with the consortium industry.”


“How can this be… That’s too much…”
Consortium industry… What the hell is a consortium industry…? Nanami gave Souta a strange look, but Akane smiled.


Souta’s attitude might have been due to all the tragedies he’d experienced. This attitude, coupled with his situation, made Akane even more worried.
“My business isn’t important. Speaking of which, Nanami is a princess.”


But before Akane’s feelings burst out, Kikuno’s tear glands had already let loose.
“A princess?!”


“It’s too much… It’s too much… So it’s like this… they actually want Sou-kun to live in this kind of place…!!”
“You aren’t familiar with the princess industry either?”


Kikuno’s tears streamed down her face as she cried. Souta was taken aback.
Where did this industry come from…? Nanami gave Akane a strange look this time, but Akane kept beaming.


“Hey… Wh-why does Okiku-nee need to cry? I… I don’t really mind.”
“Nanami’s actually the thirteenth princess of the Principality of Bladefield!”


“Anywhere is fine… Poor Souta-kun…”
''Huh?! That wasn’t a metaphor, she’s a real princess?!'' Souta’s eyes widened, causing Nanami to look resentful.


“Even Akane is crying?!”
“To put it simply, it’s just a small country in the European countryside. And there are ten princes and fourteen princesses. We rank second-to-last. If We had stayed home, We would just be an eyesore. So We were sent to this Far East island country. We are only a princess in name.”


Next to Kikuno, Akane followed suit, her tears pouring down like a waterfall. In this atmosphere, Souta was already in no position to prevent this.
“......”
 
“S-so what…?” Seeing Souta staring blankly at her,  Nanami retreated slightly and asked.
 
“I don’t have any money though?!”
 
“We are not running a royal scam on thou!!”
 
The ‘royal scam’ refers to the crime of posing as a royal and using fake connections to scam people.
 
“If Nanami wants money, I have some, okay?”
 
“Don’t need it!”
 
Souta saw the rare sight of a princess refusing a donation from a rich girl.
 
“You’re right. There’s something more important than money. And that’s friendth— Ow!”
 
“She bit her tongue!”
 
“She bit her tongue at the most important part!!”
 
Akane, who bit her tongue, was about to cry. So Nanami and Souta ran around babbling: “Friendship is great!” “Long live friendship!” to make Akane’s tears give way to a smile.
 
“Absolutely! This spirit of mutual protection is friendship! It’s a shining gem!”
 
Akane happily held Nanami and Souta’s hands and turned towards them. Although Akane’s sappy lines made the two rather uneasy, they forced a shaky smile. They’d have a headache if she really cried.
 
Then, in the predicament of holding hands with a rich heiress, Souta wanted to secretly withdraw his hand before she thought that ''Boys’ hands are thick and hard, it’s so disgusting~''. Suddenly, Akane faced him and said:
 
“A boy’s hand…”


“... Souta, didst thou plan to let the peerless Miss Heiress clean this place up? Instead of cleaning it up, is it not faster to raze it to the ground and rebuild it again…?”
Akane’s face stiffened slightly and she paused for a moment. Souta couldn’t help but think ‘as expected’ with a pained expression about as bitter as 99% pure chocolate.


At least, Nanami wouldn’t want to step foot into this dorm.
“... is really strong! Other than perhaps my father, it’s the first time I held hands with a boy.”


“Why… Why did Sou-kun have to meet this kind of treatment…”
Seeing Akane’s friendship flag flutter more energetically than before, Souta’s expression was so painfully bitter that it became as bitter as 100% pure chocolate. That said, 100% purity wouldn’t be chocolate, it’d just be cocoa.


“Waaah~ It’s too much… It’s too unfair…”
“Why does Souta-kun have such a tangled expression? Is it because you indirectly held hands with my father?”


Kikuno and Akane, who erupted into tears, and Souta, who had been struggling to deal with Akane, didn’t hear Nanami speak at all.
“... That’s not it. But after all, I didn’t think Nanami really was a princess… how do I put it… Although I’ve always thought that Nanami’s speech pattern was different from a normal person’s… but… really? You guys are actually Her Princess Highness and Miss Heiress of a tycoon… I feel really out of place.”


Especially the always indifferent Souta — although he didn’t care about hurting himself, when he met girls who felt sad for him, he didn’t know what to do. Since he had no clue how to deal with Akane, he looked to Nanami for help, almost crying himself.
“Not a tycoon, it’s a consortium, though?”


Having never encountered such mayhem before, Nanami retreated on the spot.
Akane raised her index finger to correct the mistake, and Souta, not well-versed in the tycoon industry, asked her:


“Uh…! … This… E-enough! Crying for what? Think of a solution instead! Doing anything else would be better than this!”
“What’s the difference?”


Nanami already stopped holding back, pretty much ready to ride to battle at this point. Akane stopped crying, beamed, and hugged Nanami.
“They’re all the same.”


“Nanami really is a good person!”
“Didst thou not sayest it was different?! If thou actually thinkest they are the same, why didst thou just correct it?”


“Whoa… Hey! Stop hugging, stop sticking to Us! Quick, Souta, come save Us!”
“...... Then they’re not the same.”


Nanami, who couldn’t stand Akane rubbing her cheeks, issued an SOS signal. Souta mocked instead:
After being exposed by Nanami, Akane became depressed. Souta forced a smile and asked her again:


“Isn’t this great? I think you guys are closer friends with each other than with me, yeah?”
“So then, what’s the difference?”


Souta, who originally had a sad smile, didn’t mean anything bad when he said this. However, facing the wrong direction, Kikuno’s super-sensitive Sisterly Love Radar received the wrong signals at that moment and she rushed over to Souta.
“...... They’re all the same.”


“D-don’t worry, Sou-kun! Big Sis will help you ask Akane to be your friend! You don’t have to feel lonely!”
“We have hit a wall.”


“Huh…? No… Okiku-nee, what are you…!”
Let’s just stop talking about this, search it up yourself later — Souta thought, Akane also thought, and Nanami thought too. Young modern people are probably not concerned about financial news, and that’s a serious problem. At the same time, young people not caring about other young people is also a very serious problem.


“Akane, please also be friends with Souta!”
“It’s a little late to say this kind of thing now, but is it really okay for me to talk to the Princess and Miss Heiress on equal ground…?”


Kikuno, ignoring Souta’s attempt at stopping her and with her sisterly doting reaching its peak, sincerely pleaded.
Souta kept his distance a bit, and Akane shook her head very sadly.


Receiving her plea, Akane’s frequently-used Loneliness Sensor revved to its max. She let go of Nanami, clasped Souta’s hand, and said:
“Please don’t use honorifics. Because we’re classmates.”


“I’m sorry, Souta! I’m your friend, but I made you feel lonely; I’m unworthy of being a friend! Souta-kun’s my good friend, though! Please don’t feel lonely! Akane and Nanami and Kikuno-senpai and Souta-kun are a very close group of four!”
“Art not thou using honorifics…”


Akane made Kikuno hold the hands of Nanami and Souta, and took the two’s empty other hands herself, forming a circle. The four started spinning circles, but only Akane laughed aloud: “Ahahahahaha!”
“...... Then let’s use honorifics together.”


After spinning for a while, Akane, albeit dizzy and unsteady, faced Souta and said:
Akane hesitantly let out an “Ahh…”, while Nanami burst out.


“Look! I also can’t let poor Souta go uncared for!”
“We will not!”


“Souta’s on the other side, Akane.”
“Souta-kun, Nanami is a princess, so it’s not her selfish refusal, it’s me forcing her to do something she can’t do.”


Because she was dizzy and unsteady, she didn’t face Souta.
“We know how to use honorifics! Nobody forced Us to say that!”


“Mother once said, ‘Close friends are magic staffs’ and ‘That’s the magic that makes you feel like you can do anything’. In my mind, Souta-kun and Nanami are wonderful, bright magic.”
Akane tried to be too clever and ended up rubbing Nanami the wrong way. Something similar was probably said before. ‘Rubbing the wrong way’ would be cute if written in hiragana and katakana.<ref> According to the Chinese TL, the Japanese version of the idiom ‘to rub the wrong way’ means specifically to irritate elders and people with higher status.</ref>


Akane clasped Souta’s hand again, smiling. As if infected by the poetic lines, Nanami grinned slightly and added a sentence of her thoughts:
“Then, I hope you try to use them.”


“Put simply, Akane is a magician specializing in summoning gentle fairies~”
“... Please allow Us to refuse.”


“Nanami, you’re a poet!”
““Ooh, very princess-like.””<ref> They (Souta and Akane) say this at the same time.</ref>


“Huh?! Th-that doesn’t count! Wh-what was just said doesn’t count!!”
“Sh-shut up! There definitely won’t be a next time!”


Nanami, snapping out of it, thought she said something embarrassing and her face heated up.
Nanami’s white skin reddened and she looked away in shame and displeasure.


“I want to hear more of Nanami’s poems!”
At this point, Akane said she left her tea-filled water bottle at her seat and walked slowly to the back of the classroom.


“Do not mention poetry!!”
Souta took the opportunity to whisper to Nanami:


“What does that matter, this is the privilege of youth! Everyone, let’s abuse this privilege together and run around the seaside asking for trouble at dusk!”
“... That girl is a bit strange… no, she’s really strange. Though she seems like a good girl.”


“Do nyaat<ref> If you remember from Chapter 1, Nanami makes cat sounds when distressed</ref> waste your youth!”
“... Yeah. Although We are not very familiar with her either, she is cute, gentle, likeable, cheerful, friendly, and always surrounded by friends… It feels like she has everything that thou lacketh.”


''The atmosphere’s getting better and better…'' Souta thought as he watched Akane and Nanami with a strained smile. He then inadvertently looked at the top of Akane’s head…
Nanami didn’t seem to realize that this sentence applied to herself, too.


“Souta-kun also needs to waste our youth with us.”
“Don’t say it out loud…”


Akane’s ‘can’t leave pitiful people alone’ attitude completely switched on, and friendship flags raised in an overwhelming frenzy
Why do those kinds of people voluntarily come and talk to themselves…? Just as Souta thought this, Akane came back. She looked at them with interest. Although she didn’t hear what they said, she smiled bashfully and asked:


Seeing the flags raise everywhere, Souta thought, ''Was it me?! Did I do something wrong?! God… please, don’t do this anymore.'' He couldn’t help but take three steps backwards. Unfortunately, he didn’t realize that within the pile of friendship flags stood a singular pink flag with a heart symbol…
“Souta-kun, do you have a very good relationship with Nanami?”


“... Then, what should we do to fix the dorm?”
“Who would have a good relationship with this kind of dithering guy?!”


“That’s what We want to ask!”
Nanami roared before Souta had a chance to say anything.


Sitting on the train on their way back, Akane triumphantly turned her neck and asked. Nanami then roared back, as if attacked.
“Even maggots are indispensable creatures for [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spaceship_Earth Spaceship Earth] since they clean up animal corpses, right?”


The group consisting of Her Princess Highness and Miss Heiress, who were a little ignorant of the world, plus the newly transferred Souta, crossed their arms and looked to the sky in deep thought.
“Who said he was a maggot? I would never say such a disgusting word!!”


Watching this group of youngsters with a smile, Kikuno picked the right opportunity, raised her index finger, and said:
Since the two were constantly hopping the line between good and evil, Souta couldn’t figure out who was right and who was wrong.


“When in a predicament, the saying goes that only old ginger is spicy.”
“... Akane, why did you want to talk to me?”


Rumor has it, the person who looks like a little girl and sips green tea at the Tea Ceremony Club might be the “old” ginger.
“Right. Thou hast so many friends and art welcomed everywhere, so why would thou payest attention to this kind of person?”


“The tattered dorm? Quest House? After all, it was built when the academy was founded. Even if you tidied it up, it still wouldn’t become clean.”
Worried he would continue to be teased, Souta felt a sense of crisis and asked Akane. Nanami also joined in, also interested.


It was the academy’s Living Dictionary. After listening to Akane and co. speak, Tsumugi put a [https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Rakugan ''rakugan''] in her mouth and said:
Faced with such blunt questions, Akane twirled her fork, her expression a bit troubled. “Ummm…” After thinking for a while, she put down her fork and said:


“Would it not indeed be faster to rebuild it from the ground?”
“... Ummm—I saw a lonely person, like a puppy drenched in rain or a kitten mewling in pain, so I couldn’t ignore them.”


Although Nanami asserted that her earlier joke wasn’t far from the answer, Tsumugi took a sip of her tea and then poured cold water over her.
““Treated like cats and dogs?!””


“I heard that the school management is in dire straits due to the declining birthrate. Would they be willing to pay for it?”
Nanami and Souta blurted, shocked.


“Can’t we… think of a way?!”
At the same time, Souta soon began to think dark thoughts.


“Students these days are too dependent on other people. They just don’t understand taking matters into their own hands…”
“That means that Miss Heiress helps hapless cats and dogs from her high standing above, right?”


Seeing Tsumugi enter preaching mode, the four all inched back slowly, smiling stiffly.


“Speaking of which, it’s just a little worn out, but you immediately lose heart, proving that recent young people lack perseverance. It’s not like we elders like saying this…”
Upon mumbling this disdainfully, Souta hated his own immaturity. Letting out his anger like this was shameful.


Akane and co. quietly slid open the paper [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shoji ''shoji''] of the Tea Ceremony Club. Meanwhile, Tsumugi was still ranting with her eyes closed.
However, when one enters hell, torn to pieces by lively optimism… He who falls into the earthly abyss often feels that goodwill is a burden.


After leaving the Tea Ceremony Club, they sat down on the benches on the sidewalk, hopelessly sipping on juice boxes.
Well, what was just said is just like someone who had hit rock bottom venting their remaining emotions from that time… No, perhaps they’re still crawling the depths of hell.


“Then, would we get in trouble if we rebuilt without permission?”
Souta didn’t want to say that kind of thing but also didn’t want others to notice, so he inevitably tried to alienate himself. At least, that’s what Akane thought.


“It’d be surprising not to…”
She pondered it, but…


Nanami, relatively less demoralized, asked a sincere question and was immediately rejected by Souta.
''That’s too lonely. Too sad… Too hopeless, isn’t it?'' she decided.


“Then there’s no other way… Souta, please get in trouble.”
“No! It’s not like that!”


“You’re planning to rebuild in secret?!”
Akane didn’t care about being misunderstood. She just couldn’t stand Souta’s attitude — how Souta couldn’t bear to trust other people, so he kept tormenting himself with loneliness


Souta was scared silly.
Akane shook her head desperately and repeatedly stressed:


“Don’t worry, Sou-kun! Big Sis will get in trouble in your stead!
“N-no, no! Souta-kun… how do I put this, barks and purrs cannot be mentioned in the same breath as you, I just think it’s really tragic!”


“Doting to this extent…!”
““Not even considered the same level as cats and dogs?!””


Big Sis’s sisterly love made Nanami retreat.
Souta, slumped his shoulders, feeling exceedingly miserable. Nanami put her hand on Souta’s shoulder, telling him not to take it to heart.


Meanwhile, Souta was afraid of Akane, whose tears had broken the surface tension of her eyes.
“Isn’t this a good thing? A gloomy child like thee needs this kind of friend. Get along with her, okay?”


“... Every time I watch [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Princess_Sara ''Princess Sara''] or [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dog_of_Flanders_(TV_series) ''Dog of Flanders''], I always can’t stop crying, can’t stop crying, can’t bear to keep watching! When I imagine Souta in that position… in a tattered dorm, in a snowstorm… dying… I just…”
“Really? Souta-kun, as long as you don’t–don’t dislike it, do you want to be friends?”


A huge teardrop streamed down Akane’s face again.
“I don’t need…”


“Don’t make people cry!!”
“Rejected immediately!!”


“S-sorry… I-I’ll be fine. See~ Speaking of which, I’d probably be more like Perrine or Lassie.”<ref> The main characters of [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Story_of_Perrine ''The Story of Perrine''] and [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Famous_Dog_Lassie ''Famous Dog Lassie.''] The four anime referenced in this section are old-school anime adaptations of Western children’s classics and part of the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Masterpiece_Theater ''World Masterpiece Theater''], running from the mid 70s to the late 90s.</ref>
Hearing the normally timid Souta say this, Akane was hit hard.


“More like an animal…”
At the same time, Akane’s friendship flag broke with an adorable noise… but just like before, a new friendship flag immediately popped up.


“Sou-kun, you’re so cute!”
“Why? My mother said that friends are the life’s treasures. U-uh… so… treasures are important… I’m just saying that… that… if treasures didn’t exist, they would no longer be shiny, no longer beautiful and polished… So, if you have to clean it up… after you sweep it into the dustpan, there wouldn’t be anywhere to throw it.”


“Souta-kun, so you’re actually a beast!!”
“How did the conversation turn to trash cans?!”


Disregarding the discrepancy in opinion between sister and friend, Souta felt aggrieved at being called a beast.
Akane struggled too hard to persuade them, so much so that she eventually could not find a way to make them understand.


“It doesn’t matter whether it’s a Souta beast’s house or a dog’s house. The point is that, even if we wanted to remodel, we would have to overcome the issue of finances.”
“Basically, in Akane’s mind, friends are like trash cans, so it fits Souta perfectly.”


“Nanami called her friend a beast or dog, that’s too over-the-top!”
“Nanami, what do you mean by that?!”


“Thou clearly saidst it first, thou clearly saidst it first!!”
“Nothing like that, nothing like that. Souta isn’t so much a trash can as a bento box!”


As Akane and Nanami chattered, Souta, at his tender age, discovered that being called a beast or dog by the female sex really hurt.
“So I’m a box, huh…”


“Souta, dost thou want to try begging? Since Akane is a rich heiress, she could definitely provide funds.”
Souta isn’t a flower to be sheltered in a box.<ref> The Japanese idiom for being sheltered involves a box</ref> It was hard to tell whether Akane’s consolation counted as consolation or not.


“Huh?! Souta, you want to beg me?! That’s more than I could ever wish for! It’d be the first time a boy begged me! Go ahead, go ahead, please! Mm-hmm!”
“Anyways, I… don’t want to bother others. Whether it’s Akane or anyone else.”


“......”
“I want to bother Souta-kun!”
 
“You…”
 
Hearing Akane’s unreasonable outburst about inducing more suffering, Souta was about to reproach her. But Akane continued, cutting him off.
 
“Also, I want to be bothered by Souta-kun! That’s what friends do! And… I just can’t ignore the lonely person in front of my eyes!”
 
Akane’s addendum made Souta give up on his retort, and he turned away to escape Akane’s unwavering gaze.
 
“Just don’t worry about me…”
 
“Hold on, Souta!”
 
Seeing that Souta was about to say something she couldn’t ignore, Nanami pulled on his ear.
 
“Wh-what do you want…?”
 
“It’s rare for someone to want to be thy friend. Thou art not permitted to break her flag!”
 
“But…”
 
“Dost thou want to humiliate girls?”
 
“Where’s the problem…?”
 
Seeing Nanami and Souta pretty much arguing, Akane sadly held the tip of her fork in her mouth.
 
“Is it not okay to be your friend?”
 
“I believe a friendship between males and females is impossible…”
 
 
“So sad…”
 
“I just said not to break it!!”
 
Souta was hit behind the head with an unopened package of Klim [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Puri_(food) Puri]. (Note: Nanami later ate it with great relish)
 
“Even if you say that…”


Seeing Akane move her arms like a wrestler before a match, expressing her enthusiasm by bringing both elbows horizontally in front of her chest while breathing heavily,<ref>The signature move of Japanese wrestler [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toyonobori Michiharu Toyonobori.] I think it’s the arm-wavy thing at 1:07 in the video Gorilla Monsoon vs. Toyonobori - 3/28/1963 (I can’t embed youtube links apparently), I watched a couple clips and he seems to do it pretty often.</ref> the corner of Souta’s mouth twitched.
Alas, it was too late. The friendship flag on Akane’s head had snapped, and Akane’s eyes filled with tears.


If Souta refused to beg Akane now, Souta’s tragic plight would not be resolved, Akane would continue to be sad, and Nanami would continue blaming Souta for making Akane sad. In this spiral of sorrow and pain, it was ultimately Souta who got hurt.
“Sure enough, it broke, right, Souta?”


Additionally, he also thought that the most important thing was avoiding Akane’s expectant smile. So, after thoroughly preparing himself, Souta finally said:


“Akane, please build me a new dorm.”
“Pretty much…”


“Huh— how ordinary—”
Souta was relieved, thinking it wouldn’t recover this time. Against all odds, Akane regrouped and, without giving anyone else time to breathe, said:


“Couldn’t thou have acted more flattering, Souta?”
“Ah, b-b-b-b-b-but, we can begin with an attempted friendship, what do you think?”


Reprimanded by the two girls, the young man instantly lost his foothold.
“She’s still not yet satisfied…? Isn’t that wording just like ‘attempted murder’…”<ref> Damn, these are some Cultivation Chat Group-level tangents lol</ref>


“Sou-kun, do you want Big Sis to help you beg?”
“Indeed.” Akane nodded in deep agreement. Souta looked above Akane’s head in disbelief.


With even the doting Big Sis saying something, even getting a toehold was unthinkable, not to mention a foothold.
“It clearly broke several times… But it still stands…”


At this point, Souta steeled himself, forced out a dazzling smile, and said to Akane:
He saw the freshly broken flag give way to yet another new flag.


“Could you please help poor little old me build a new dorm, o mesmerizing Akane-chan? You are the angel of my heart, the only one I can beg.”
“This Mahougasawa Akane chick is unexpectedly persistent… Isn’t she perfect for thee…? No matter how many times her flag breaks, it quickly recovers. Even if thou hurtest her heart, she will still face thee with an unyielding spirit.”


“Souta-kun, you sound like a player.”
“Huh… I feel like that’s pretty terrifying…”


“Thou, who can see flags and decide their fate, art the one who is terrifying, alright?”


“Souta, thou art thoroughly rotten.”
Well said.


“You two were the ones who wanted me to say it, though!!
Nanami and Souta quietly held a council. Akane ignored the two, quietly worrying to the side.


Souta was hit hard, hugging his knees and shouting into them on the bench.
“Attempted friendship isn’t okay either…? Hmm… In this case, then the step before attempted friendship… acquaintances… a nodding acquaintance… hmmmmm… more one-sided… stalker? Is stalker okay?”


“Big Sis knows her Sou-kun isn’t that kind of child!”
“Don’t go there!!”


Doting Big Sis’s trust was unnecessarily heavy.
“......”


“But, I wouldn’t be a woman if I couldn’t respond to a man’s whole-hearted plea. I want to do something for him… however—”
Nanami was the one who initially recommended that the two be friends, but she soon began to doubt whether she made the correct choice.


“However?”
“Since you don’t like stalkers, how about being friends?”


Seeing Akane stop talking, Nanami was puzzled.
“... Do whatever you want.”


“I, don't have money…”
“Hooray!”


“Huh? Art not thou Miss Heiress?”
That’s pretty much a threat.


“To be honest… When I came here to live in a dorm, I accepted my family’s condition: unless it’s an urgent emergency, I must do my best to deal with it without depending on my family. So…”
Watching Akane softly raise her arms and shout hooray with a smile, he felt his mood gradually improve for some reason.


“So it’s like that. Allowing freedom, but requiring self-sufficiency… It’s like that everywhere.”
This may be Akane’s unique characteristic.


Nanami smiled wryly, clenching her empty juice box.
Nonetheless, this must be…


“Huh?”
This must be a temporary whim of Miss Heiress, thinking that he’s interesting.


“It’s okay. However, this is a headache. Our principality is also very poor… To ask for money is to ask the impossible…”
After the novelty subsides, she would definitely lose interest immediately — that was what Souta thought.


Akane and Nanami cast Souta aside and started their own discussion. This allowed Souta to suddenly regain his senses.
Though he’d soon realize that this train of thought was a huge mistake.


“Excuse me… That said, what exactly did I just do that for then…?”
“But I’m kind of happy that Souta-kun’s willing to say such not-so-pleasant things to me.”


“Souta-kun’s efforts will not be wasted. Someday that effort will bear fruit, and its harvest will be taken for foodstuff and displayed in a storefront.”
“... What?”


Although he felt he was gradually being taken for foodstuff, since Akane’s coy laugh of “Heeheehee” was really cute and he didn’t feel any malicious intent, Souta could only deal with it with a sigh in the end.
“I think that when I’m sad, it doesn’t matter if other people pamper me. But when I’m the one doing the pampering, there’s always this warm fuzzy feeling in my heart.”


“Before Souta-kun is taken for foodstuff, we must do our best to help him, Nanami!”
“Akane, is it really okay even if you get hurt?”


“Huh…? We need to too…?”
“Souta-kun thinks I might get hurt and is worrying about me. That makes me really happy.”


Both hands held tightly by Akane, Nanami frowned, troubled.
Seeing Akane smile bashfully, Souta frowned.


Although, Akane just seemed to like the uncommonly used word ‘foodstuff’, so she really wanted to use it.
“... You really are a strange chick.”


“Big Sis will come too, Sou-kun!”
Souta’s tone was no longer hostile nor malicious, and Akane looked jubilant.


What Big Sis would do afterwards was unclear.
“But even if you’re friends with someone like me, you still wouldn’t be happy, right…”


In the end, they didn’t think of a good idea that day, so the meeting was adjourned… The next morning—
Souta’s expression darkened like before and he lowered his head slightly, worried — but he also seemed kind of happy.


Souta entered the classroom and sat down in his seat. Nanami turned, sitting on the side of her chair, and said good morning while getting to the point.
“Art thou an idiot? Souta. That kind of thing is for them to decide. How can it depend on what thou sayest?”


“We asked the housemasters at Our dorm, and it seems that the boys’ dorms are full to the point they’re about to burst.”
Nanami snorted and chewed her Klim Puri flatbread.


“Ah, then… me being put there, might not have been entirely out of malicious intent.”
Akane nodded enthusiastically, agreeing with Nanami.


Looking closely, while Souta’s uniform and school bag were obviously brand new, they seemed to be covered with a layer of dust.
“Yeah! Nanami said it really well. Just talking to Souta-kun makes me really happy! I might feel a bit self-conscious saying this, but… there are many people close to me, so when I meet someone more distant, it’s a new experience… This is someone that I haven't seen around me so far, an unfamiliar kind of person… an unidentified creature… Yes, an unidentified life form.”


“It might genuinely be better for thou to live in a tent.”
““A UFAO?!””<ref> Unidentified, unFamiliar Animated Object. Just roll with it. I tried. If any of you come up with something better, I welcome you to edit it.</ref>


“I can’t put one up though…”
A chupacabra appeared in Nanami’s and Souta’s minds at the same time. Wanna suck blood?<ref> ‘Do you want to suck blood?’ is apparently a quote from Japanese comedian Kanpei Hazama. Relevant because chupacabras suck blood. </ref>


“You guys are planning to go camping without inviting me?! It would be my first time living in a tent. I always live in a villa, homestay, or vacation apartment and such!”
“Souta-kun, Nanami, you guys are really in sync. You’re actually quite close, right?”


Akane popped in between the two.
“We’re not close! Rather, our relationship is really bad. So bad that, given the opportunity, We would steal this guy’s leftover bread in exchange for the not-very-tasty bread We are eating right now.”


“Thy head is only filled with thoughts about playing…”
“My leftover bread is Klim Puri, the very thing Nanami’s eating right now, though?”


Nanami smiled lightly, and Akane continued to ask her, “Are you going to the mountains? Or the beach?”
Having saved the bread for last, Souta was looking forward to eating it. He grieved a little when he heard this bad news.


“Thou misunderstandest. We’re talking about Souta’s dorm.”
“You guys are really similar. That’s great, I’m so jealous--”


“Oh… Everyone should forget about the dorm business, and go play together?”
“......”


“Thy optimism is too exaggerated!!”
Nanami stared hatefully at Akane wiggling.


Incidentally, when you get tired of playing and go home, there is a trap of ‘remembering reality and falling into despair’ waiting for you.
Wasn’t it true that friendship can still be established in spite of very different values? Nanami and Akane were polar opposites, and Souta started to feel that Nanami and Akane may yet make a good pair.


“Hey~ What’s up with the dorm?”
The evidence was…


The classmate with blonde hair and pierced ears who gave Souta his seat earlier heard the exchange and asked frivolously.
“... Before, ye shall become two peas in a pod and become the envy of everybody else!”


After Souta explained, he looked at the sky with an “Umm--”, and, after a long while, he said:
“Actually, I’ve always wanted to become closer with Nanami.”


“Would you like to come to our dormitory? I think it’d be okay as long as you explain everything. Although crowding a fifth person into a room meant for four might be a little tight.”
Hearing Nanami’s slightly lonely words, Akane held Nanami’s hands tightly and smiled. At some point, ‘Nanami-san’ had become ‘Nanami’.


''He’s obviously a frivolous guy who would cheat girls everywhere, but he’s still kind regardless'' The surrounding students lamented that this guy really didn’t match his appearance.
“Wh-why me?!”


But, Souta looked at the frivolous classmate’s head, and immediately replied:
“... Whenever I see a lonely person, or a puppy drenched in rain, or a kitten mewling in pain, I just can’t ignore them!”


“I can’t sleep if I’m not alone.”
“Treated like Souta?!”


“Really? Then it can’t be helped.”
Nanami was even more shocked at this than Souta was when he was just compared to a cat and dog.


He gave up and walked back to his seat.
“Nanami regrettably feels like a person of spoiled arrogance, which has always made me interested in her.”


“We said that thou art not allowed to break flags!”
“What dost thou mean by ‘regrettably’?”


Nanami saw everything, and mercilessly awarded Souta a hand chop.
“Just that, in the phrase ‘spoiled arrogance’, the ‘spoiled’ part outweighs the ‘arrogant’ part!”


“Flag…?”
“Shut up!!”


Akane tilted her head suspiciously, and Souta hurriedly covered it up with a “Nothing, nothing.”
Souta looked at the arguing girls with an magnificent smile, neither forced nor a smirk, and said:


However, either because Souta didn’t cover it up correctly or his agitation wasn’t very natural, Akane felt that something wasn’t right with Souta’s series of actions.
“I for one think that Nanami and Akane can become very good friends.”


“What’s going on… Is he awkward? Or… afraid?... Just like that time… like with me… if it’s really like that… if it’s really like that… then there’s even more reasons why I can’t just leave him alone!”
“What?! This troublemaker also has a flag for Us?”


Akane’s mind strengthened Souta’s sorry impression, and her flags stood up more fiercely on her head.
Nanami pulled on Souta’s ears again, quietly roaring.


Souta saw this and tiredly exhibited a pained expression.
“I don’t know… I basically only see my own— or rather, I should say, flags that have to do with me…”


… At this time, the dainty classmate Ryuukishibara Tsumugi</ref> Tsumugi’s surname indicates that her ‘class’ is dragon rider</ref> and Kikuno walked into the classroom with a young girl wearing a uniform with a strangely colored bow tie, equipped with shoulder pads and arm guards, dressed quite strangely.
That is to say, Souta was only able to see the flag for that morning’s accident because it also involved him — with this understanding, Nanami thought: ''This ability seems convenient but isn’t really convenient; it seems to be a convenience, but that’s not entirely the case…''


“Ah, Kikuno-senpai… and Grandmother.”
“Just like that! That’s what makes people think you two are close! Physical contact is proof of a good relationship! Can I pull on Souta-kun’s ears, too?”


“You lot, you left yesterday without listening to all of my words?! Young people nowadays are really…”
“Sure?”


“Okay okay, Grandmother, pointless ramblings don’t really count.”
“Don’t pull on people’s ears for no reason!”


The female classmate brought by Tsumugi let out a heroic laugh of “Bwahahahahaha!” and stopped Tsumugi’s rant.
“So it’s allowed if there is a reason?”


“You just said something silly…”
“Sure?”


“Excuse me, Grandmother… This person is…?”
“Nanami, no stop seeking schadenfreude! Anyways, what’s so fun about pulling on ears…?”


Akane asked this, and saw the mysterious girl catch everyone’s attention by unnecessarily flipping her hair and stepping forward.
“Causing mischief… That kind of fun, probably?”


“Yours truly<ref> Mimori literally refers to herself using ‘this person’ (本人), so I’m gonna use ‘yours truly’.</ref> waited for someone to ask before introducing myself, that was really Discord…<ref> The Chinese says ‘oolong’, but that doesn’t even sound remotely close to what she corrected herself to say… I changed it to sound more like a slip of the tongue</ref> correction, that was really discourteous of yours truly. Yours truly Hatagaya Academy’s student president, Seiteikouji Mimori<ref> Mimori’s surname contains the words for ‘holy emperor’, given the armor she likes to wear her ‘class’ is probably paladin</ref>!”
“What a terrible relationship!!”


“The student president…”
“No it’s not, no it’s not! That feeling of ‘even if you cause them mischief, they’ll still laugh and forgive you’ is definitely proof of a good relationship.”


“This academy attaches great importance to student autonomy. Seek the Student Council if you are in need of assistance. In fact, the Student Council is also responsible for dormitory affairs, and yours truly is the person in charge.”
Oh, that’s how it is, that does make sense—  Souta smiled faintly in agreement, and Akane’s cheeks went slightly red. Joy emanated from the depths of her heart, and she couldn’t help but smile.


“Eh?! So she’s the one who put Souta-kun in that kind of dorm?!”
“That’s my friend! Looks like you really get me! Souta-kun, you’re really, really charming when you smile! As long as you smile like this a lot, your loneliness will definitely disappear!”


Akane’s and Nanami’s gazes were mixed with some hostility.
“Ah…”


“Yours truly was accidentally on autopilot and put him in an empty dorm~ But I hear it’s very shabby, right? Yours truly will observe the situation after school, and then we’ll go on from there. And Grandmother asked yours truly to do what I can to help!”
Souta wasn’t used to being praised so directly in person, so he inadvertently shrugged, and his smile became strained. Seeing this, Akane exclaimed, “Ah, what a waste of the cool smile just now…” Her hands even began to quiver.


“Huh… Didn’t Grandmother say that we were too dependent on others yesterday…?”
Having eaten her bread and sucked her milk carton dry, Nanami smirked playfully and said:


“I did say to take matters into your own hands. But I never said I wouldn’t help? The short-temperedness of young people isn’t good.”
“But Akane, if he wasn’t lonely anymore, wouldn’t you lose interest?”


Tsumugi crossed her arms and pursed her lips. Purely in terms of appearance, she looked like a pouting young girl.
“In my mind, a laughing Souta is more important than a lonely Souta. This is a historic moment, okay? One small step for mankind, one and a half small steps for me!”


But, her raised arms exuded so much senseless good intentions that Akane happily put her hands together.
““Close enough!!””


“Grandmother is so reliable!!”
“You guys are really in sync… That’s great, I also want someone to be in sync with me.”


“Although it should be that yours truly is more reliable!!”
“Why do you need to envy other people? Akane, don’t you also have many strengths?”


Mimori pointlessly and unreasonably refused to be outdone, making Nanami laugh.
Nanami lightly squeezed her empty milk carton and broke eye contact, her expression that of shy admiration. Hearing Nanami’s words, Akane’s smile bloomed.


“The student president is so childish…”
“R-really?! Like-like what?”


“... And, since young Kikuno was full of sisterly love and pleaded tearfully, it can’t be helped. You, sir, have a good sister, young Souta.”


Although, said sister was really just a sisterly neighbor who lived nearby and loved to take care of people. However, Souta couldn’t say anything about that in this kind of atmosphere.
“... Well… like wanting to eat with me and Souta, right?”


“Thank you, Okiku-nee.”
Seeing Nanami laugh with a little self-deprecation, Akane laughed with an expression of “Isn’t that normal?” She then fell into deep thought with an “Eh…”


“Why so polite? As Big Sis, helping Sou-kun goes without saying!”
“Is it better to eat alone?”


However, those who knew the truth strained a smile. The only person at the scene who wasn’t straining a smile but rather smiling from ear to ear was Akane.
““You had a conversation with yourself?!””


“Great, Souta-kun!”
“Only you two keep getting closer and closer. It’s not fair, it’s not fair!”


“I don’t really care… but, since Akane and Okiku-nee won’t be sad, then so be it, I guess?
However, supposing that Akane and Souta had already eaten half of their lunch, and then Akane and Nanami ate the remaining half, anyone would think that the relationship between Souta and Nanami was deteriorating.


Regardless of his real thoughts, Souta naturally smiled a little as he said this, making Akane ecstatic and feel as if all her pores had opened.
In this way, the three unexpectedly similar people happily ate their lunch in the classroom. Outside, a group of people quietly observed the situation.


''Souta-kun’s smile… as expected, it’s mesmerizing…! I want to see it more!''
“... So, we can probably go in now?”


Seeing the flag on Akane’s head twinkle, Souta’s smile instantly clouded over, and Akane nearly cried.
The rest of the class, who had been driven out of the classroom, searched for an opportunity to go back in.


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Revision as of 22:58, 1 January 2025

Flag 2: The Indomitable Magician Quietly Approaches

The day after Souta transferred.

The excitement of the previous day was like a dream. Other than Kikuno, the only person who would actively seek him out to talk, people stopped approaching Souta after class.

As the daylight waned in the noisy classroom, only one word described Souta sitting at his seat — lonely.

His figure evoked loneliness.

“They don’t so much as glance at him, is this reality… Has everyone already lost interest in the transfer student?”

Nanami sat sideways on her chair, expressing her honest opinion of Souta.

However, the classroom atmosphere was less that of ostracism so much as… that feeling of ‘the new transfer student seems to like being alone and doesn’t want to interact, so let’s just let him be.’

Souta didn’t seem to care at all. “Oh, that’s because…” he replied:

“After a flag breaks, it won’t reappear that easily. If something special happens, the flag could reappear or a ‘Flag Recovery’ flag might appear…”

“This mechanism is quite annoying…”

Human relationships might indeed be like this, it’s just that this flag thing is too exaggerated — Nanami understood this implicitly. As the bell rang, she turned to face forward.

However… there was a pair of eyes secretly staring at them.

The eyes’ owner looked breathlessly at Souta, who hadn’t left his seat, for the entire class and seemed to nod with determination…

Lunch break.

The students either started eating lunch with three to five friends around a desk or went to the cafeteria together. A lively atmosphere filled the classroom.

In contrast, Nanami and Souta were too quiet, staring at their respective desks and quietly nibbling on the salty bread they bought that morning.

Their loneliness was so strong that people couldn’t approach them, adding even more loneliness and falling into an endless negative spiral. FYI, the word spiral definitely wasn’t used because it’s a cool word. Spiral.

Based on her excessively protective mentality, if Kikuno was there it would be impossible for Souta to stay in that loneliness spiral, and they would definitely be eating lunch together. Unfortunately, in order to give advice to those who volunteered to study abroad, Kikuno was attending a lunch gathering hosted by the Student Council and wasn’t in the classroom.

Suddenly, a shadow approached this singular space.

It was an approachable girl, a beautiful girl-next-door type person. Each grade generally has one of those.

If Nanami’s beauty was like a rose, hers would be a cherry blossom that rouses people’s protective instincts.

She had shoulder-length hair with big bows swaying on both sides highlighting her cuteness.

“Hi, my name is Mahougasawa Akane.[1]”

The girl… Akane smiled gently and suddenly brought her face closer — close enough to feel her breath — and surprised Souta, who stiffened.

The thing that made Souta’s expression most tense was that…

The flag… It’s been raised…

A friendship flag flapped on Akane’s head.

“Ah, I hope you don’t feel repulsed! I’m not a suspicious person, I’m a mysterious classmate, okay?”

“You’re mysterious?!”

So suspicious it might explode.

“Excuse me… what does this mysterious classmate want from me?”

“I’m Akane-chan, though?”

“... Mahougasawa-san, what do—”

“I’m Akane-chan, though?”

Souta was interrupted by Akane halfway through his sentence.

“... Akane, what do you want from me?”

“Oh! It’s the first time a boy used my first name directly.”

Souta glanced at the friendship flag, which had been splashed with a hint of pink.

Akane also blushed pink, matching the flag. She didn’t seem to notice the subtle movements of his eyes. She asked generously:

“Can we eat a bento together?”

Honestly, Souta didn’t really want to interact with people, and most importantly, he was more apprehensive than happy at the thought of having lunch with two girls in the classroom. After all, he was a sensitive boy in his teenage years, so this was an expected reaction.

“... It’s bothersome.”

“He thinks I’m a bother!!”

Akane’s friendship flag broke, and Souta was relieved.

Nanami was already peeking at them through the corner of her eyes while drinking from her milk carton. At this time, she leaned over beside Souta’s ear and asked:

“Souta, was the flag raised?”

“Yeah…”

“Did you break it?”

“Pretty much…”

“Oh.” Despite her disinterested expression, Nanami looked into Souta’s eyes, which were filled with self-contempt and self-pity. This guy was torturing himself.

“I won’t be a bother, so can we eat lunch together?”

“Huh?!”

Since Akane’s flag had been broken, Souta thought she should have left already. Yet she stubbornly stayed and continued trying. Souta was absolutely flabbergasted.

“Did it not break?”

Nanami murmured, letting go of the straw in the carton.

“How can this be possible…”

Souta was sure that the flag had been broken and looked above Akane’s head… but —

“It-it rose again…!”

He saw the friendship flag rise again.

Having broken countless flags, Souta had never seen a flag recover so quickly.

Seeing Souta speechless, Akane tilted her head in confusion.

“Can we?”

“Holy…!”

Maybe thinking that Souta’s silence indicated permission, Akane relaxed and brought an empty seat next to Souta’s desk.

Nearly going with the flow, Souta frantically tried to break the flag again as Akane put down the chair.

“N-no, how should I say this… After all… I’ll be teased if I have lunch with girls… you know what I mean?”

“... That makes sense, sorry.”

Seeing the friendship flag break and disappear again, Souta sighed in relief.

… But before the sigh even came out, a new friendship flag had already popped up.

“I’ll eat after Souta-kun has finished eating, so can we sit together?”

“You don’t understand what I’m saying at all?!”

“?”

Souta was scared silly, and Akane tilted her head in confusion, smiling gently.

“But-but, it feels a little rude to eat first, though?”

“...”

Souta didn’t think that she could understand him at all. This kind of situation was desperate, almost like fighting a pull chain in the middle of a room.

“Can’t I?”

“I’m not saying that… You can’t… No, I’m just saying…”

Attracted by the ruckus, even the classmates who had their flags broken started glancing towards Souta with interest.

“See, everyone’s looking…”

Souta lowered his head, looking extremely distressed. Akane, almost crying, looked around at her classmates.

The spectators crossed their arms in unison, thinking about the best solution for this situation. After contemplating a while, they all looked to the center of the classroom together.

They looked at the wisest person in the class — the academy’s Living Dictionary, the sage Ryuukishibara Tsumugi. Currently, she was nibbling a rice ball.

Her face and body, even if you relaxed the standard, was at most just at the level of a middle schooler… No, this description is still wrong. She looked completely childish, just like a little girl.

Despite her immature appearance, there were rumors that she had been living here even before the academy was founded. How many years she had repeated was a complete mystery. It was one of the seven wonders of the school.

There were other mysteries about her, too. For example, she only wore school uniform’s shirt and coat over a belted kimono — this outfit would surprise every passerby.

If someone asked her about this, she would sigh: “You don’t even know how to wear a kimono? Western tea has poisoned you to forget…”

However, she still wore large lace hair accessories. In this regard, her appreciation of beauty did not distinguish between East and West.

Under the gaze of the whole class, Tsumugi understood the situation, thought quickly, and immediately stood up.

“Everybody listen up!! The weather today is great!! It’s warm and sunny, so go out and eat!”

Tsumugi chewed on her rice ball and put on her geta. She walked out of the classroom, geta clicking on the floor.

“Oh, how befitting her title of Grandmother! Great idea!”

“Of course Bento needs to be eaten outside!”

“The courtyard, let’s go to the courtyard!”

Then, everyone started talking again and left the classroom single file. When they realized it, only Souta, Akane, and Nanami, unable to bear the atmosphere, were left in the classroom.

“... Nobody’s looking anymore?”

“Something’s wrong with those guys’s problem-solving methods…”

Akane successfully caught Souta’s attention and smiled at him; Nanami scanned the empty classroom in cold sweat.

“Can we eat bento together?”

“... Yes.”

Since it had already gotten to this point, Souta lost the courage to refuse.

The friendship flag, which had been broken more than once, was raised once again, and broke Souta’s heart to the brink of collapse.

As Akane excitedly sat down on the newly-arranged chair, Nanami also turned her chair 180 degrees.

“Nanami-san, do you want to join us?”

“In this situation, if We were the only one facing forward to eat, wouldn’t We be the only one without friends?”

Nanami acted unexpectedly cute in this situation.

“Wow! I’m so happy!! Actually, I’ve always wanted to find a chance to get along with Nanami-san. But I couldn’t find a chance… Ah! Souta-kun, you have many weaknesses… you could even say that your whole body is covered with them!”

“... Is it really?”

Akane’s carefree words… The aggrieved Souta’s mouth twitched and he asked Nanami:

“... Hey Nanami, is Akane this kind of ‘jerk’?”

“This airhead is a super rich heiress, hmph.”

Nanami replied imperiously, implying that Souta was wasting her breath. Souta wanted to punch her.

“Oh, what’s wrong? Are you investigating me? How am I a rich heiress… my grandfather just happens to be the president of a consortium, that’s all.”

“Consortium?!”

“Isn’t the Mahougasawa Group quite famous? You don’t know?”

“... I’m not familiar with the consortium industry.”

Consortium industry… What the hell is a consortium industry…? Nanami gave Souta a strange look, but Akane smiled.

“My business isn’t important. Speaking of which, Nanami is a princess.”

“A princess?!”

“You aren’t familiar with the princess industry either?”

Where did this industry come from…? Nanami gave Akane a strange look this time, but Akane kept beaming.

“Nanami’s actually the thirteenth princess of the Principality of Bladefield!”

Huh?! That wasn’t a metaphor, she’s a real princess?! Souta’s eyes widened, causing Nanami to look resentful.

“To put it simply, it’s just a small country in the European countryside. And there are ten princes and fourteen princesses. We rank second-to-last. If We had stayed home, We would just be an eyesore. So We were sent to this Far East island country. We are only a princess in name.”

“......”

“S-so what…?” Seeing Souta staring blankly at her, Nanami retreated slightly and asked.

“I don’t have any money though?!”

“We are not running a royal scam on thou!!”

The ‘royal scam’ refers to the crime of posing as a royal and using fake connections to scam people.

“If Nanami wants money, I have some, okay?”

“Don’t need it!”

Souta saw the rare sight of a princess refusing a donation from a rich girl.

“You’re right. There’s something more important than money. And that’s friendth— Ow!”

“She bit her tongue!”

“She bit her tongue at the most important part!!”

Akane, who bit her tongue, was about to cry. So Nanami and Souta ran around babbling: “Friendship is great!” “Long live friendship!” to make Akane’s tears give way to a smile.

“Absolutely! This spirit of mutual protection is friendship! It’s a shining gem!”

Akane happily held Nanami and Souta’s hands and turned towards them. Although Akane’s sappy lines made the two rather uneasy, they forced a shaky smile. They’d have a headache if she really cried.

Then, in the predicament of holding hands with a rich heiress, Souta wanted to secretly withdraw his hand before she thought that Boys’ hands are thick and hard, it’s so disgusting~. Suddenly, Akane faced him and said:

“A boy’s hand…”

Akane’s face stiffened slightly and she paused for a moment. Souta couldn’t help but think ‘as expected’ with a pained expression about as bitter as 99% pure chocolate.

“... is really strong! Other than perhaps my father, it’s the first time I held hands with a boy.”

Seeing Akane’s friendship flag flutter more energetically than before, Souta’s expression was so painfully bitter that it became as bitter as 100% pure chocolate. That said, 100% purity wouldn’t be chocolate, it’d just be cocoa.

“Why does Souta-kun have such a tangled expression? Is it because you indirectly held hands with my father?”

“... That’s not it. But after all, I didn’t think Nanami really was a princess… how do I put it… Although I’ve always thought that Nanami’s speech pattern was different from a normal person’s… but… really? You guys are actually Her Princess Highness and Miss Heiress of a tycoon… I feel really out of place.”

“Not a tycoon, it’s a consortium, though?”

Akane raised her index finger to correct the mistake, and Souta, not well-versed in the tycoon industry, asked her:

“What’s the difference?”

“They’re all the same.”

“Didst thou not sayest it was different?! If thou actually thinkest they are the same, why didst thou just correct it?”

“...... Then they’re not the same.”

After being exposed by Nanami, Akane became depressed. Souta forced a smile and asked her again:

“So then, what’s the difference?”

“...... They’re all the same.”

“We have hit a wall.”

Let’s just stop talking about this, search it up yourself later — Souta thought, Akane also thought, and Nanami thought too. Young modern people are probably not concerned about financial news, and that’s a serious problem. At the same time, young people not caring about other young people is also a very serious problem.

“It’s a little late to say this kind of thing now, but is it really okay for me to talk to the Princess and Miss Heiress on equal ground…?”

Souta kept his distance a bit, and Akane shook her head very sadly.

“Please don’t use honorifics. Because we’re classmates.”

“Art not thou using honorifics…”

“...... Then let’s use honorifics together.”

Akane hesitantly let out an “Ahh…”, while Nanami burst out.

“We will not!”

“Souta-kun, Nanami is a princess, so it’s not her selfish refusal, it’s me forcing her to do something she can’t do.”

“We know how to use honorifics! Nobody forced Us to say that!”

Akane tried to be too clever and ended up rubbing Nanami the wrong way. Something similar was probably said before. ‘Rubbing the wrong way’ would be cute if written in hiragana and katakana.[2]

“Then, I hope you try to use them.”

“... Please allow Us to refuse.”

““Ooh, very princess-like.””[3]

“Sh-shut up! There definitely won’t be a next time!”

Nanami’s white skin reddened and she looked away in shame and displeasure.

At this point, Akane said she left her tea-filled water bottle at her seat and walked slowly to the back of the classroom.

Souta took the opportunity to whisper to Nanami:

“... That girl is a bit strange… no, she’s really strange. Though she seems like a good girl.”

“... Yeah. Although We are not very familiar with her either, she is cute, gentle, likeable, cheerful, friendly, and always surrounded by friends… It feels like she has everything that thou lacketh.”

Nanami didn’t seem to realize that this sentence applied to herself, too.

“Don’t say it out loud…”

Why do those kinds of people voluntarily come and talk to themselves…? Just as Souta thought this, Akane came back. She looked at them with interest. Although she didn’t hear what they said, she smiled bashfully and asked:

“Souta-kun, do you have a very good relationship with Nanami?”

“Who would have a good relationship with this kind of dithering guy?!”

Nanami roared before Souta had a chance to say anything.

“Even maggots are indispensable creatures for Spaceship Earth since they clean up animal corpses, right?”

“Who said he was a maggot? I would never say such a disgusting word!!”

Since the two were constantly hopping the line between good and evil, Souta couldn’t figure out who was right and who was wrong.

“... Akane, why did you want to talk to me?”

“Right. Thou hast so many friends and art welcomed everywhere, so why would thou payest attention to this kind of person?”

Worried he would continue to be teased, Souta felt a sense of crisis and asked Akane. Nanami also joined in, also interested.

Faced with such blunt questions, Akane twirled her fork, her expression a bit troubled. “Ummm…” After thinking for a while, she put down her fork and said:

“... Ummm—I saw a lonely person, like a puppy drenched in rain or a kitten mewling in pain, so I couldn’t ignore them.”

““Treated like cats and dogs?!””

Nanami and Souta blurted, shocked.

At the same time, Souta soon began to think dark thoughts.

“That means that Miss Heiress helps hapless cats and dogs from her high standing above, right?”


Upon mumbling this disdainfully, Souta hated his own immaturity. Letting out his anger like this was shameful.

However, when one enters hell, torn to pieces by lively optimism… He who falls into the earthly abyss often feels that goodwill is a burden.

Well, what was just said is just like someone who had hit rock bottom venting their remaining emotions from that time… No, perhaps they’re still crawling the depths of hell.

Souta didn’t want to say that kind of thing but also didn’t want others to notice, so he inevitably tried to alienate himself. At least, that’s what Akane thought.

She pondered it, but…

That’s too lonely. Too sad… Too hopeless, isn’t it? she decided.

“No! It’s not like that!”

Akane didn’t care about being misunderstood. She just couldn’t stand Souta’s attitude — how Souta couldn’t bear to trust other people, so he kept tormenting himself with loneliness

Akane shook her head desperately and repeatedly stressed:

“N-no, no! Souta-kun… how do I put this, barks and purrs cannot be mentioned in the same breath as you, I just think it’s really tragic!”

““Not even considered the same level as cats and dogs?!””

Souta, slumped his shoulders, feeling exceedingly miserable. Nanami put her hand on Souta’s shoulder, telling him not to take it to heart.

“Isn’t this a good thing? A gloomy child like thee needs this kind of friend. Get along with her, okay?”

“Really? Souta-kun, as long as you don’t–don’t dislike it, do you want to be friends?”

“I don’t need…”

“Rejected immediately!!”

Hearing the normally timid Souta say this, Akane was hit hard.

At the same time, Akane’s friendship flag broke with an adorable noise… but just like before, a new friendship flag immediately popped up.

“Why? My mother said that friends are the life’s treasures. U-uh… so… treasures are important… I’m just saying that… that… if treasures didn’t exist, they would no longer be shiny, no longer beautiful and polished… So, if you have to clean it up… after you sweep it into the dustpan, there wouldn’t be anywhere to throw it.”

“How did the conversation turn to trash cans?!”

Akane struggled too hard to persuade them, so much so that she eventually could not find a way to make them understand.

“Basically, in Akane’s mind, friends are like trash cans, so it fits Souta perfectly.”

“Nanami, what do you mean by that?!”

“Nothing like that, nothing like that. Souta isn’t so much a trash can as a bento box!”

“So I’m a box, huh…”

Souta isn’t a flower to be sheltered in a box.[4] It was hard to tell whether Akane’s consolation counted as consolation or not.

“Anyways, I… don’t want to bother others. Whether it’s Akane or anyone else.”

“I want to bother Souta-kun!”

“You…”

Hearing Akane’s unreasonable outburst about inducing more suffering, Souta was about to reproach her. But Akane continued, cutting him off.

“Also, I want to be bothered by Souta-kun! That’s what friends do! And… I just can’t ignore the lonely person in front of my eyes!”

Akane’s addendum made Souta give up on his retort, and he turned away to escape Akane’s unwavering gaze.

“Just don’t worry about me…”

“Hold on, Souta!”

Seeing that Souta was about to say something she couldn’t ignore, Nanami pulled on his ear.

“Wh-what do you want…?”

“It’s rare for someone to want to be thy friend. Thou art not permitted to break her flag!”

“But…”

“Dost thou want to humiliate girls?”

“Where’s the problem…?”

Seeing Nanami and Souta pretty much arguing, Akane sadly held the tip of her fork in her mouth.

“Is it not okay to be your friend?”

“I believe a friendship between males and females is impossible…”


“So sad…”

“I just said not to break it!!”

Souta was hit behind the head with an unopened package of Klim Puri. (Note: Nanami later ate it with great relish)

“Even if you say that…”

Alas, it was too late. The friendship flag on Akane’s head had snapped, and Akane’s eyes filled with tears.

“Sure enough, it broke, right, Souta?”


“Pretty much…”

Souta was relieved, thinking it wouldn’t recover this time. Against all odds, Akane regrouped and, without giving anyone else time to breathe, said:

“Ah, b-b-b-b-b-but, we can begin with an attempted friendship, what do you think?”

“She’s still not yet satisfied…? Isn’t that wording just like ‘attempted murder’…”[5]

“Indeed.” Akane nodded in deep agreement. Souta looked above Akane’s head in disbelief.

“It clearly broke several times… But it still stands…”

He saw the freshly broken flag give way to yet another new flag.

“This Mahougasawa Akane chick is unexpectedly persistent… Isn’t she perfect for thee…? No matter how many times her flag breaks, it quickly recovers. Even if thou hurtest her heart, she will still face thee with an unyielding spirit.”

“Huh… I feel like that’s pretty terrifying…”

“Thou, who can see flags and decide their fate, art the one who is terrifying, alright?”

Well said.

Nanami and Souta quietly held a council. Akane ignored the two, quietly worrying to the side.

“Attempted friendship isn’t okay either…? Hmm… In this case, then the step before attempted friendship… acquaintances… a nodding acquaintance… hmmmmm… more one-sided… stalker? Is stalker okay?”

“Don’t go there!!”

“......”

Nanami was the one who initially recommended that the two be friends, but she soon began to doubt whether she made the correct choice.

“Since you don’t like stalkers, how about being friends?”

“... Do whatever you want.”

“Hooray!”

That’s pretty much a threat.

Watching Akane softly raise her arms and shout hooray with a smile, he felt his mood gradually improve for some reason.

This may be Akane’s unique characteristic.

Nonetheless, this must be…

This must be a temporary whim of Miss Heiress, thinking that he’s interesting.

After the novelty subsides, she would definitely lose interest immediately — that was what Souta thought.

Though he’d soon realize that this train of thought was a huge mistake.

“But I’m kind of happy that Souta-kun’s willing to say such not-so-pleasant things to me.”

“... What?”

“I think that when I’m sad, it doesn’t matter if other people pamper me. But when I’m the one doing the pampering, there’s always this warm fuzzy feeling in my heart.”

“Akane, is it really okay even if you get hurt?”

“Souta-kun thinks I might get hurt and is worrying about me. That makes me really happy.”

Seeing Akane smile bashfully, Souta frowned.

“... You really are a strange chick.”

Souta’s tone was no longer hostile nor malicious, and Akane looked jubilant.

“But even if you’re friends with someone like me, you still wouldn’t be happy, right…”

Souta’s expression darkened like before and he lowered his head slightly, worried — but he also seemed kind of happy.

“Art thou an idiot? Souta. That kind of thing is for them to decide. How can it depend on what thou sayest?”

Nanami snorted and chewed her Klim Puri flatbread.

Akane nodded enthusiastically, agreeing with Nanami.

“Yeah! Nanami said it really well. Just talking to Souta-kun makes me really happy! I might feel a bit self-conscious saying this, but… there are many people close to me, so when I meet someone more distant, it’s a new experience… This is someone that I haven't seen around me so far, an unfamiliar kind of person… an unidentified creature… Yes, an unidentified life form.”

““A UFAO?!””[6]

A chupacabra appeared in Nanami’s and Souta’s minds at the same time. Wanna suck blood?[7]

“Souta-kun, Nanami, you guys are really in sync. You’re actually quite close, right?”

“We’re not close! Rather, our relationship is really bad. So bad that, given the opportunity, We would steal this guy’s leftover bread in exchange for the not-very-tasty bread We are eating right now.”

“My leftover bread is Klim Puri, the very thing Nanami’s eating right now, though?”

Having saved the bread for last, Souta was looking forward to eating it. He grieved a little when he heard this bad news.

“You guys are really similar. That’s great, I’m so jealous--”

“......”

Nanami stared hatefully at Akane wiggling.

Wasn’t it true that friendship can still be established in spite of very different values? Nanami and Akane were polar opposites, and Souta started to feel that Nanami and Akane may yet make a good pair.

The evidence was…

“... Before, ye shall become two peas in a pod and become the envy of everybody else!”

“Actually, I’ve always wanted to become closer with Nanami.”

Hearing Nanami’s slightly lonely words, Akane held Nanami’s hands tightly and smiled. At some point, ‘Nanami-san’ had become ‘Nanami’.

“Wh-why me?!”

“... Whenever I see a lonely person, or a puppy drenched in rain, or a kitten mewling in pain, I just can’t ignore them!”

“Treated like Souta?!”

Nanami was even more shocked at this than Souta was when he was just compared to a cat and dog.

“Nanami regrettably feels like a person of spoiled arrogance, which has always made me interested in her.”

“What dost thou mean by ‘regrettably’?”

“Just that, in the phrase ‘spoiled arrogance’, the ‘spoiled’ part outweighs the ‘arrogant’ part!”

“Shut up!!”

Souta looked at the arguing girls with an magnificent smile, neither forced nor a smirk, and said:

“I for one think that Nanami and Akane can become very good friends.”

“What?! This troublemaker also has a flag for Us?”

Nanami pulled on Souta’s ears again, quietly roaring.

“I don’t know… I basically only see my own— or rather, I should say, flags that have to do with me…”

That is to say, Souta was only able to see the flag for that morning’s accident because it also involved him — with this understanding, Nanami thought: This ability seems convenient but isn’t really convenient; it seems to be a convenience, but that’s not entirely the case…

“Just like that! That’s what makes people think you two are close! Physical contact is proof of a good relationship! Can I pull on Souta-kun’s ears, too?”

“Sure?”

“Don’t pull on people’s ears for no reason!”

“So it’s allowed if there is a reason?”

“Sure?”

“Nanami, no stop seeking schadenfreude! Anyways, what’s so fun about pulling on ears…?”

“Causing mischief… That kind of fun, probably?”

“What a terrible relationship!!”

“No it’s not, no it’s not! That feeling of ‘even if you cause them mischief, they’ll still laugh and forgive you’ is definitely proof of a good relationship.”

Oh, that’s how it is, that does make sense— Souta smiled faintly in agreement, and Akane’s cheeks went slightly red. Joy emanated from the depths of her heart, and she couldn’t help but smile.

“That’s my friend! Looks like you really get me! Souta-kun, you’re really, really charming when you smile! As long as you smile like this a lot, your loneliness will definitely disappear!”

“Ah…”

Souta wasn’t used to being praised so directly in person, so he inadvertently shrugged, and his smile became strained. Seeing this, Akane exclaimed, “Ah, what a waste of the cool smile just now…” Her hands even began to quiver.

Having eaten her bread and sucked her milk carton dry, Nanami smirked playfully and said:

“But Akane, if he wasn’t lonely anymore, wouldn’t you lose interest?”

“In my mind, a laughing Souta is more important than a lonely Souta. This is a historic moment, okay? One small step for mankind, one and a half small steps for me!”

““Close enough!!””

“You guys are really in sync… That’s great, I also want someone to be in sync with me.”

“Why do you need to envy other people? Akane, don’t you also have many strengths?”

Nanami lightly squeezed her empty milk carton and broke eye contact, her expression that of shy admiration. Hearing Nanami’s words, Akane’s smile bloomed.

“R-really?! Like-like what?”


“... Well… like wanting to eat with me and Souta, right?”

Seeing Nanami laugh with a little self-deprecation, Akane laughed with an expression of “Isn’t that normal?” She then fell into deep thought with an “Eh…”

“Is it better to eat alone?”

““You had a conversation with yourself?!””

“Only you two keep getting closer and closer. It’s not fair, it’s not fair!”

However, supposing that Akane and Souta had already eaten half of their lunch, and then Akane and Nanami ate the remaining half, anyone would think that the relationship between Souta and Nanami was deteriorating.

In this way, the three unexpectedly similar people happily ate their lunch in the classroom. Outside, a group of people quietly observed the situation.

“... So, we can probably go in now?”

The rest of the class, who had been driven out of the classroom, searched for an opportunity to go back in.


Translator notes and references

  1. ↑ Akane’s last name includes the characters for ‘magician’, hence the title of this chapter.
  2. ↑ According to the Chinese TL, the Japanese version of the idiom ‘to rub the wrong way’ means specifically to irritate elders and people with higher status.
  3. ↑ They (Souta and Akane) say this at the same time.
  4. ↑ The Japanese idiom for being sheltered involves a box
  5. ↑ Damn, these are some Cultivation Chat Group-level tangents lol
  6. ↑ Unidentified, unFamiliar Animated Object. Just roll with it. I tried. If any of you come up with something better, I welcome you to edit it.
  7. ↑ ‘Do you want to suck blood?’ is apparently a quote from Japanese comedian Kanpei Hazama. Relevant because chupacabras suck blood.
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