CubexCursedxCurious:Volume6 Chapter3
Chapter 3 - Water and Exposed Skin Everywhere the Eye Could See. Or Perhaps, / "How to clean the whole stealthily"
Part 1
For the next few days, everyone had their hands full between handling exams and protecting Satsuko. Since they could not be certain if the plan worked in making Fourteen give up, ensuring safety had to come first.
Guessing that the enemy would not attack in crowded places, they decided that Satsuko should be fine when going to school during the daytime. In any case, they accompanied her on the way to and from school and cautioned her not to go anywhere deserted. The only remaining problem was protection during the night. After all, Satsuko could not keep staying over at the Yachi residence, but neither could they go to her home (which was an apartment building), hence their only choice was concealing themselves outside to monitor the place. In the end, the responsibility fell to Fear and her kind who were less prone to sleep deprivation (especially Kuroe who had no exams) as well as Kirika who offered to help due to being aware of the situation. In this manner, the group worked hard and took turns in protecting Satsuko. Although they had asked Haruaki not to push himself too much, naturally, he also tried his best to help out within the bounds of his stamina. Due to a need to prepare for exams and further reduction of sleeping time, it really was quite tough. However, Haruaki could not permit himself to relax while all the girls were hard at work, monitoring for Satsuko's sake.
However, there was also one more person whom Haruaki wished could relax a bit more. Mainly, the extra person who had showed up staring from the first night to monitor Satsuko's home apart from Haruaki's group.
Kaidou. Naturally, she did not arrive at the request of Haruaki's group. The morning after Fourteen's attack, she had thanked them for the night and left. But for her, things probably could not end there.
If Haruaki's entourage were to appear before Kaidou, she would surely say: "Leave it all to me. You should return." Hence, Haruaki's side decided to hide a certain distance away from Kaidou who was leaning openly against a utility pole as though challenging the enemy "Come at me if you are going to strike." Then even more nervous than before, they secret kept watch.
Hence, from that day onwards, they kept their distance from Kaidou not only at night but also during daytime as well. Perhaps due to sleep deprivation or some other reason, Kaidou was always spacing out, not just during her lessons but also when she came to the class as the exam invigilator, making it impossible for anyone to talk to her. Naturally, Fear did not take any action towards her. It was as though she had forgotten what happened that night.
This scenery filled Haruaki with a sense of loneliness. He was troubled by an inexplicable sense of agitation over "is there any method to resolve this situation?" that he could not dispel from his mind. Precisely because Fear and Satsuko's friendship was deepening as days went by, this anxiety felt especially poignant.
Naturally, Haruaki had no objections to their friendship. Rather, he felt that it was a good thing instead. Ever since that night, Satsuko had grown especially intimate with Fear and would interact proactively. Perhaps the two of them had found some kind of common ground in particular to hit it off.
In any case, while Haruaki was at a loss as to how to improve relations between Kaidou and Fear, the raging storm of the end of term examinations finally subsided. Another few days passed—Since nothing had happened so far, perhaps they could deem their plan a success. Although they remained vigilant, the level of alert gradually diminished.
By the time the first weekend arrived after exams had finished, Haruaki's group concluded it was probably okay for Satsuko to move around freely. Hence, that weekend became a special occasion to commemorate their dual sense of liberation—from exams and the conclusion of the incident. Under extremely natural conditions, they decided to execute the plan first proposed during the study gathering.
A perfect opportunity. Or rather, it was an opportunity that could not be missed.
Hence, while planning the itinerary for the weekend, Haruaki also decided to put a certain plan into motion. He had no idea if it would work or not. Furthermore, the results would only be visible on that day but in any case, he felt compelled to do it.
Then after some hasty preparation over a neither long nor short period of time...
The Sunday scheduled for the plan finally arrived—
"Ooh— Ooh—Too slow, you guys are too slow!"
"Yeah, but the appointed time hasn't arrived yet. We're the ones who arrived too early."
"That's right. Please do not keep pacing back and forth, Fear-san. It's very unsightly."
"Oh my, waiting like this is part of the fun after all. Say, it's been quite a while since the last trip to the pool."
"I knew it's been quite a long time since the last time we all went out to have fun like this. But do you really have to deliberately close up your shop the whole day to take part...?"
"I'd feel so lonely that I'd die if everyone is having fun while I'm not only one working. Haru, do you want me to die? You murderer—I can't help but admit, you must be one of those special serial killers who derive excitement from watching a beautiful pubescent girl like me, dying as result of being ostracized by her friends—"
"Okay okay... But I don't have an entry ticket for a beautiful pubescent girl here, so you'll have to pay for yourself."
Haruaki and his group's location was currently the entrance of the Hitsutou Grand Hotel in the center of Hitsutou City. It was the tallest building in the city with its pentagonal form towering into the clouds. This place was not simply a luxury hotel but also housed their destination today—a water park and leisure facility. Rather than a "relaxed vacation with your family," the building exuded an air that invited "the minority of people who possessed excess time and cash." One could say that it was the kind of venue that Haruaki would never consider in the first place, conscientious as he was regarding family expenses—
"But on further thought, this prize really was quite extravagant. Weren't there hundreds of people in the winning team at the sports festival?"
"I heard that this place's operator is friends with the superintendent."
"That guy's social circles are quite a mystery... But if they're friends, I can understand."
Just as they chatted over these matters, Fear suddenly straightened her posture. She was originally prowling the area in circles like a bear. Waving her hand vigorously, she cried out:
"Oh Kirika! We're over here!"
"Hmm... You guys are really early. I already left home ahead of time."
"Good morning, Class Rep. It's all this girl's fault. Ever since she got up from bed, she's been yelling 'Okay, let's go, we're setting off now,' forcing us to leave the house early."
"R-Really? I see."
As the two met face to face, Kirika's face went red subtly. Intrigued, Haruaki lowered his voice and whispered:
"Umm... You sure you weren't forced into this? If you don't like swimming, I don't actually have to celebrate at this venue."
"W-What are you saying at this point? Umm... I think it should be fine. After all, not everyone who goes to have fun at the pool needs to be in swimwear, right? I came because I expect to have fun, so don't you worry. U-Understood!?"
"Oh? I don't understand why you're scolding me, but sure, I understand...!"
Kirika scoffed and went "Hmph," turning her back towards Haruaki in a huff. Then she began muttering emphatically while facing the wrong direction:
"...Seriously... I even went that far already, how could I miss this kind of chance? Right, although there's a risk, I'll be fine so long as I'm careful... So..."
"Uh—Class Rep...? What's the matter...?"
"N-Nothing!" Kirika frantically restored her expression then spoke as though trying to change the subject:
"By the way, Kana and Taizou really can't come?"
"Yeah, they can't. They both said their clubs had competitions... Especially Taizou, he was so despaired that he sounded like the world was coming to an end."
Taizou had been inviting everyone to the pool from a while ago... But at this critical moment, he had ended up backing out. Due to the cultural festival and the end of term exams for the past while, this weekend was the final opportunity, but unfortunately for him, he missed it because of a match. When Haruaki explained the situation to Kirika, the result was—
"I never expected Taizou to be this timid... Although I feel sorry for them, it's true that their absence implies less of a risk. If we postpone to the next weekend, fewer of us can join because of supplementary lessons. Further than that, the tickets will expire, so in terms of dates, it can't be helped."
"Hmm, why did I hear an unlucky term? But personally, I don't like going near unlucky things, so I'll pretend I didn't hear that."
Originally chatting and laughing with Kuroe, Konoha tightly grabbed the collar of Fear who had stopped in front of her but still intended to wander around and check out the surroundings.
"What do you mean by unlucky? Please do not indulge in escapism and remind yourself to be more self-aware. Seriously, even though we held a study gathering... You really aren't one for self-improvement."
"W-What are you talking about? I'll curse you! Listen to me carefully! I did fail Ancient Japanese but compared to the midterms, I improved three marks for Modern Japanese—"
"A mere three marks, what are you boasting about!? It's only because the average went down so your score managed to pass barely, right?"
Protecting Satsuko made everyone even more busy and of course, they ended up spending even less time preparing for the finals than for the midterms. In Haruaki's case, his overall scores were slightly worse than usual (but luckily he did not fail anything), so he was more or less sympathetic to Fear's plight. But Fear was arguing against Konoha whose grades had not dropped very much despite facing the same conditions, which made it difficult for Haruaki to put in a good word in Fear's defense. As for Kirika, her scores were the same as usual, thereby underlining the importance of studying throughout the term.
In the end, Haruaki could not take either side, thus the argument continued to escalate.
"To think you'd fail to understand the importance of three marks. I've always suspected you of cheating, looks like I really should look deeper into it... I keep getting the feeling that you possess another memory organ apart from your brain. Of course, it's one that no ordinary person possesses, so I was thinking it must be an unnatural and twisted biological component that ordinary people cannot imagine..."
"Ah, you...!"
"Wow~ It wobbled just now! Kuroe, look, the creature is awakening, beware!"
"Wah—We're gonna be eaten—"
"Kuroe-san, don't you go joining in this nonsense!"
Just as Haruaki half narrowed his eyes and wondered thought: "Should I break up this argument?"
"Ufufu, you're so noisy here! Hello everyone—"
"Given such unsightly behavior in public, I think it's best that we pretend to be strangers, Sovereignty."
At this moment, Shiraho and Sovereignty arrived. As expected, Sovereignty did not come in her maid outfit. But rather than Sovereignty, Fear seemed to be more concerned with Shiraho's arrival.
"Shiraho! You've come at the right moment. As my study buddy, you must say something to this girl here&—"
"D-Don't go treating me as your buddy so casually. This concerns me not."
Shiraho turned her face away in displeasure. According to Sovereignty's brief report, Shiraho narrowly avoided repeating her legendary achievement of failing all subjects last time. Although it only applied to two or three subjects, she did indeed progress to the point of passing. These results were thanks to her own efforts and the support of her gentle lover, as well as Kirika's earnest instruction of studying techniques.
"...By the way, human, may I say something? I only came here to have fun with Sovereignty. You people only happen to be here by coincidence. Since we are not friends who came together, there is no need for me to show any mercy... Should any of you stare at Sovereignty or me in our swimsuits, I shall instantly scream and have the security guards evict you. I advise you to prepare yourselves. Oh how I really look forward to watching a typical pervert getting taken away while excuses in vain."
"Don't casually call someone a pervert, okay!?"
"Oh dear, so you're actually the pervert...! No matter how others might stare, Satsuko won't make any objections since she owes you... Oh no~ But for further actions, please do it somewhere without people watching please!"
"Anyway, when did you arrive?"
Haruaki had missed Satsuko because of her petite stature. Like a young puppy as usual, Satsuko was trembling nonstop with fear in her eyes.
"J-Just now. Sorry, something happened while Satsuko was on her way. For someone like Satsuko with a hopeless sense of direction, getting lost is only natural... So Satsuko is a bit late. But Satsuko expected this already, so luckily, Satsuko packed a «Hollow Earth Compass» beforehand. Without this compass for pointing the way towards the entrance to the massive underground cavern in the antarctic, who knows where Satsuko would have ended up now...!"
"Isn't that no different from a normal compass... N-Never mind. After all, you managed to arrive on time, so there's nothing to be concerned about. It's okay."
"O-Okay, thanks..."
Seeing Satsuko, Fear stopped aggravating Konoha and rushed over.
"Oh~ Satsuko! You've arrived!"
Using her running momentum, Fear high-fived Satsuko with both hands, yelling "Yeah!" in unison. Judging from her smiling face, she was really happy. Of course, Satsuko also smiled and conservatively received Fear's high-five. If Haruaki tried the same thing with Satsuko, she would probably ask fearfully: "Oh no, this mysterious posture! Using both hands, you are planning to toy with Satsuki's body doubly, right...?" Although Haruaki was not particularly envious of their close friendship, somehow he felt rather complicated inside.
"S-Satsuko is here. Satsuko can't believe that you would invite someone like Satsuko who is just an eyesore and not fun at all..."
"Please, didn't we agree already? How could we not invite you? Oh yeah, I should ask just in case. What happened after yesterday?"
Fear stared into Satsuko's face and asked.
"Yes, nothing strange is happening anymore... Like the «Lucky Cthulu Oracle» or the «Crystal Bowling Ball Fortune Telling», both showed good results! Thank you all for taking so much care of Satsuko recently...!"
"Y-Yeah~ I don't quite understand fortune telling... But if nothing happened, it looks like the plan really worked. If that woman found out she was tricked, there's no reason for her not to reappear by now. In any case, if anything happens again, just contact us. I will instantly rush over to your side."
At this moment, Fear brought her face close to Satsuko's ear and chattered away:
"...By the way, umm, will you really be okay?"
"Yeah, because it's a one-piece swimsuit, Satsuko thinks it should be no problem at all... Sorry for making you worry..."
The two began whispering to each other. Although Haruaki had no what they were talking about, it was only natural for close friends to share a secret or two. He decided not to pay it any particular attention because there were more pressing concerns at hand.
"Anyway, everyone is basically here. Except for one person..."
Fear suddenly threw a slanted glance up towards Haruaki.
"I didn't get her reply... But I think she should be coming."
To be honest, Haruaki felt apologetic towards Satsuko because in a certain sense, he was partially using her. He had sent an invitation through the superintendent. Since that guy pretty much started the whole affair, he naturally agreed readily to help. For example, Haruaki had asked the superintendent to pass along the details of today's celebration as well as Satsuko's participation. Hence, definitely—
"...See."
Soon after, a certain character arrived in her usual tracksuit and carrying a shovel, someone who looked even more out of place in this luxury hotel than Haruaki's group. Like a warrior heading towards the battle arena, she was slowly approaching step by step.
"—Due to the inclusion of many problem children, hence the superintendent requested that I lead this group. You probably heard about this already."
She stopped before Haruaki and spoke these superficial words. As a side note, the teachers in the white team had all received winning prizes for the sports festival—Kaidou was the only one left who had not used hers. But anyway, her explanation was simply the superficial reason the superintendent used to issue orders to her.
Kaidou moved her eyes and met gazes with Satsuko, who smiled demurely and said: "Hello again..." Kaidou used a deliberate-looking poker face and answered: "...Yes, it is wonderful to see you in good health."
As for Fear, her expression disappeared, but immediately—
"Great, everyone is finally here! Then let's go, time is precious!"
"Don't be in such a hurry, it's not like the swimming pool will run away... There are other guests in the hotel, so don't be too noisy."
The group began to advance. Haruaki deliberately slowed his pace and walked beside Kaidou who was in the rear.
"...Thank you for agreeing to come."
This was the first time for them to speak after that night's incident, but she glanced at Haruaki and replied:
"I came on the superintendent's orders. There is no other reason apart from that."
Despite Kaidou's answer, Haruaki still felt grateful to her. After all, things could not begin unless she came.
On that night, he had not asked Kaidou why she swatted Fear's hand away. But after Fear ran back to her room, judging from the way Kaidou stared at her own hand in surprise—Haruaki concluded that she did not actually mean to do that. It was probably involuntary. In that case, there was still a chance to mend their relationship. If she really did not care about Fear, she probably would not have made that face.
But even now, Haruaki still had no idea how to mend their relationship. Since he did not know, Haruaki decided to start from the very beginning. In other words—to attempt bringing them closer together through ordinary means. In turn, Fear and the others could get closer to the teacher in casual atmosphere. That was all he could come up with.
No matter how much she was at a loss on how to deal with them, perhaps under circumstances when conversation was unavoidable, the awkwardness of not knowing how to face them might gradually diminish or even eliminated. Of course, this was just a prediction based on subjective optimism. It was also possible for her to become even more at a loss—But recalling what had happened that night, Haruaki decided that it could not get worse.
Indeed, simply stated.
Haruaki had changed his mind and seriously thought: "There's already nothing to be afraid of."
Hence, he arranged for Kaidou to be here. Perhaps a day's worth of time might not change anything but it was still better than doing nothing. After all, their dealings with her were not going to be limited to this day only.
"Well... The superintendent is right, there really are a lot of problem children among these girls. If you'll assist in supervising them, Kaidou-sensei, it'll really help me out a lot. If they do anything strange, feel free to scold them harshly."
Haruaki spoke thus.
"—I shall handle things as appropriate."
Her face still solemn, Kaidou replied.
Part 2
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Part 3
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Part 4
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Part 5
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Part 6
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