Ahead of the trial operation of ETO, several meetings were held throughout October to adjust the detailed policies. The three of us shared opinions and after rolling up feedback from the juniors we discussed, we repeated the process of refining these points in the next meeting. whirring noises

In the first meeting, Kaya offered a quite nice operational method from a perspective very different from ours, but unfortunately, she didn’t attend any further meetings. She had only committed to one visit from the start, so it can’t be helped. Yet, her one suggestion ended up being like a major river, so it’s hard not to feel a sense of regret. sigh

I don’t really know how busy the position of Defense Office Head is by nature, but… I do know that the previous head is cleaning up the mess left in the Defense Office and struggling to regain past trust.

She humbly claimed, “The hard work is being done by the practical staff on the ground. I just sit behind a desk and issue orders,” but surely a position as the head of the student council defense office isn’t just about slacking off and giving vague commands.

Anyway, I secretly hoped Kaya would continue to attend the meetings and share her opinions, but for the reasons mentioned earlier, that wasn’t possible. train sounds

Moreover, since ETO is supposed to come under the jurisdiction of SRT Special Academy, there was concern that the Defense Office’s influence, being a separate committee, could spark controversy.

Thus, after meetings continued until the end of October, it was decided that ETO’s trial operation would officially start on November 15th. However, it was also true that there were many shortcomings in the preparations, so this part would gradually be improved going forward. ping

If it had gone according to the original schedule, it would be a quite symbolic day for Trinity, coinciding with the Feast of All Saints… But given that one side of the treaty rests in Gehenna, being overly concerned about that would indeed be rather strange.

“Mika Onee-chan, trick or treat.”

Oh right. When it comes to the end of October, there’s something you can’t miss, and that’s Halloween. In the hustle of life, I hadn’t exactly lost track that Halloween was right around the corner, having allocated a bit of budget to decorate the entire Trinity campus in a Halloween festival atmosphere.

However, how long do you think it takes to decorate the entire campus? Unsurprisingly, it had been half festively in the academy for over a week, and beyond just decorations, students had gone so far as to voluntarily host parties.

There were students who wore actual proper costumes or cosplays, while there were also kids who looked no different than usual. However, seeing even some of those kids wearing decorations like wings or Halloween-themed headpieces led me to guess that the majority were fully committed to having fun with Halloween.

Standing right in front of me, Atsuko was… well, let’s say she didn’t look much different than usual.

No, while she seemed like she didn’t, there was indeed a difference. Unlike her usual habit of leaving her coat open, today she had it firmly buttoned up.

“Um, Atsuko-chan. Sorry, but… I really have nothing left to give?”

After all, there was no way I would have any candy or dessert left. I had already been tormented by dozens of people, would I have any candy left?

If I had carried an air of superiority a bit more and hadn’t had to deal with this kind of hardship, life wouldn’t be so difficult.

Well, even so, it wouldn’t suit me to try on clothes that didn’t fit my body. I really just feel more at home living with our kids.

“…Really, not even one?”

“Haha, sorry. Really, why is everyone looking to me for candy? It’s not like I didn’t prepare anything, but it disappeared so quickly.”

“Uh-oh, that’s a problem. My friends are going to say something about it. They’ll ask me why I couldn’t get even a single candy from someone who walks around singing all the time. It’s a must.”

“Heueng. Atsuko-chan, do you talk about me to your friends?”

“Yup. I bragged that my sister is the prettiest and kindest in the world.”

“Wow—o…?”

“…Is that a problem?”

As Atsuko tilted her head and asked that, I couldn’t bring myself to mention that such bragging would make her sound like a sister complex. She isn’t even my real sister, and if it’s Atsuko, a question about what a sister complex is would probably pop out anyway.

“Uh, it’s fine, but what about Saori-chan?”

“Heueng. Saori-chan is… Saori-chan.”

“…Right? And Saori-chan is your sister too.”

“Mika Onee-chan… Saori-chan isn’t the kindest in the world. You’d understand if you experienced her training.”

“Uh, I don’t really train, but I’ve trained with her sometimes. Usually, she’s the one who wears out first.”

“…Oh.”

Hmm, this seems like an unavoidable difference in perception. For Atsuko, Saori during her time in Arius must have been like a drill instructor straight from hell… But judging from my standards, I can’t help but feel a bit sorry for Saori.

“Anyway, it’s a problem that there’s no candy. I heard if you don’t give candy, they’ll end up eating you.”

“Haha! Atsuko-chan, that’s just one of those expressions used when receiving candy. Don’t take it so seriously☆.”

I feel this every time, but Atsuko’s innocent yet calm face makes even the weirdest comments just seem cute.

“Yup, I know. ‘Eating you’ means something a bit different, Mika Onee-chan.”

“Uh, Atsuko-chan? The ‘different meaning’ you’re talking about isn’t… right?”

“Well… What do you think it is?”

…Expressing her innocence only to suddenly hit me with a sexual innuendo like this?

Wow, Atsuko, it’s too spicy. It’s too spicy, even for me. Even Hanako doesn’t throw around that kind of stuff in front of me.

“I remember what you said. We said we’d talk about it again after going up to high school.”

“Um, Atsuko-chan? Why are you suddenly going for the jacket?”

Suddenly reaching for the jacket zipper, Atsuko began to unzip it. Just moments later, remembering what she usually wore under that coat, I hastily reached out to stop her hand.

“…I’m already grown up like this, so why should I have to wait?”

In an instant, Atsuko unzipped it completely and looked at me with a faint smile.

“A-Atsuko-chan! People will think weird things if you do that outside!”

“No one’s seen it but you, so I think it’s fine.”

In a panic, I quickly zipped her jacket back up. Whoever taught Atsuko how to enjoy Halloween should have made sure I didn’t see her in a mummy costume or something like that!

Just a mere glance was enough to send shivers down my spine with the haphazardly wrapped bandages and her starkly exposed soft skin. Worrying if someone might catch a glimpse of Atsuko like that made me scramble to tidy her outfit, but I felt like I was going to die myself from anxiety.

I mean, who would have guessed she was wearing such an indecent, if you could even call it a costume, outfit under that coat? If this goes on, I can only imagine what would happen when Hanako and Atsuko became friends…

Wait a minute.

Wasn’t I the one who set up the first meeting between Atsuko and Hanako?

“…Atsuko-chan. Who showed you that mummy costume?”

“Huh? Hanako-senpai showed it to me. Why?”

“…”

How could I let our naive little princess be corrupted like this…? I can’t easily forgive you for this, Urawa Hanako—get ready.

I know it was me who ignited the fire in you, but regardless of what I did, this was bound to happen… sigh

“Oh, here you are! Atsuko, I’ve been looking everywhere for you! I almost got lost in the high school campus since it’s my first time. So from now on, let’s go together, okay?”

While I was pondering how to deal with Hanako, someone approached and called out Atsuko’s name. Naturally, our gazes turned that way.

“That pretty one, I would have generously let slide even if it was a lie… wait, what?! Did I see something wrong?”

“Oh, Yoshimi. I was wandering around looking for Mika-senpai too.”

“Why on earth would you say something like that so proudly? Seriously! By the way, you’re telling me that the pretty one you were mentioning is this person…?”

“Yup. Our Onee-chan is more beautiful at heart than in appearance.”

The girl with blonde twin tails looked back and forth between me and Atsuko, appearing flustered. Based on the context, she seemed to be one of the ‘friends’ Atsuko mentioned earlier, and her name… hmm, I can’t remember her last name, but at least her first name was Yoshimi.

Based on my knowledge, she belonged to the after-school dessert club, which is a completely ordinary student club far removed from the politics of Trinity, but I was surprised to learn that Atsuko had made a friend from that group.

“Oh, so you’re Atsuko-chan’s friend? Nice to meet you! I’m Misono Mika☆.”

“Ah, um…? Ibaraki Yoshimi. No, I’m Yoshimi…?”

Yoshimi seemed uncomfortable with using honorifics, insisting on correcting herself. Since they were within the context of senior-junior relationships, she couldn’t overlook it casually.

“Haha, speak casually! I’ve heard a lot about how Atsuko-chan is making many friends in middle school and getting along well… and now that I see it in person, I feel so relieved!”

“Mika-senpai hates stiff atmospheres, so Yoshimi can just speak casually as usual without worrying.”

“So, if I say it casually, you really won’t mind? Okay, I’ll really speak casually, so no saying something different later, okay?”

“Yoshimi, hasn’t it already gotten casual?”

Looking at Yoshimi, who was still being cautious while trying to speak casually, and Atsuko, who was challenging her, I suddenly felt an ominous premonition.

Please tell me one of my candidates to take over my host position isn’t going to end up in the after-school dessert club…

…No, it can’t be. Please, no.