The air of Trinity, which I hadn’t breathed in what felt like months, had a taste that was truly unique. It was a refreshing feeling, almost like finally downing a cool glass of water after a day of not taking a single sip.
After spending the last night in Gehenna—laughing and chatting away with Aco and another friend during our pajama party—I was a bit short on sleep. Thankfully, due to the relatively mellow driving from the Student Council member this time, I was able to catch a quick nap in the car. Otherwise, I might have just crashed at home and slept the day away.
As soon as I returned, Nagisa caught me and kept me by her side all day, but how could I possibly hate that?
I like Hina, and I like Nagisa too. I want to make both of them happy. And once I acknowledged that contradictory, selfish, and greedy feeling, Nagisa’s subtly possessive nature felt nothing but endearing.
Moreover, while asking if my week with Hina had been enjoyable and prying into the details of my vacation—which they had missed—she displayed an admirable professionalism in reviewing the operation we conducted against Kaiser and handling the follow-up like a hawk.
Speaking of professionalism, unlike Aco, she didn’t even touch the short selling of Kaiser stocks because she evaluated the potential gains and losses related to stock manipulation.
Well, this was expected from Nagisa, who prioritized keeping work and personal matters separate. However, it seemed that she experienced a bit of difficulty navigating that boundary in a romantic relationship, so overcoming that hurdle was indeed a commendable attitude considering what the T-party represented.
I wondered if I had missed any details and which of Kaiser’s subsidiaries might need heightened pressure to suppress their recovery in the long run.
After preparing materials on these matters in advance, Seiya interrupted, and we engaged in a heated discussion, ultimately organizing the information based on the feasible sanctions the Student Council could impose. This became the foundation for the guidelines I needed to submit upon my return.
Thus, life at Trinity began anew.
It was peculiar trying to readjust after the short escapade of the past week; there were oddly unsettling aspects.
First, the routine of regularly visiting the cathedral. Second, the hellish paperwork starting back up. And lastly, the treatment I received at Pater, which seemed to have intensified.
Even though I got buried in paperwork, to be frank, it felt infinitely easier compared to before the festival.
To be honest, I felt a bit guilty that Seiya and Nagisa took on the aftermath of the festival, relieving me of any burden.
The process of attacking Kaiser went smoothly thanks to the wonderful support from Veritas and the field agents, so my struggles were relatively mild. Besides, I was ready to pass those related tasks on to the Student Council President, leaving me to prepare for the upcoming autumn.
Integrating into the internal politics at Pater, coupled with showing my genuine intent during the festival and returning from Gehenna, cleared up any traffic complaints quite efficiently. The voices of the extreme hardliners quieted completely, which was a green light for me.
With my hands and feet unbound, I was left with virtually no urgent tasks.
The first autumn in Kivotos seemed certain to be the most comfortable season of the year, as all my worries would fall away like leaves, fading beneath my feet.
*
The small change in my relationship with Nagisa took place about two weeks after returning from Gehenna.
“Mika, I have a serious proposal I hope you’ll consider.”
“Yeah, I’m listening. Oh right, Nagisa! What do you think of this scent? Now that the heat has passed, I thought I’d get it for a change of pace.”
“…Fruity? Cherry suits you quite well. I think it’s a nice choice… but wait, how can you interrupt me when I’m trying to make a serious proposal? I’d really like you to focus.”
“Haha! So what’s this proposal you have?”
“…Well, it’s about, you know, the past Mika.”
The subject of the real Mika was still a touchy topic for Nagisa, and just mentioning it would cloud her expression, like a dragon’s wrath; thus, revealing the whereabouts of the real Mika and the contract with Gematria to her felt premature.
At some point, I would need to open up to Nagisa, Seiya, and others to some extent, but revealing such information now seemed highly concerning for Nagisa. Therefore, I couldn’t help but think that the risks outweighed the benefits.
“You remember that the place I was living at before was the one I was renovating, right?”
“Yeah, I remember…? We had even discussed moving back to that place. I allowed it to fizzle out because I was too lazy☆”
“Mika, that’s not exactly something to brag about… Anyway, you know how inefficient it would be to spread out our security details now that the identities of all T-party members have been revealed.”
“Well, we could just resolve that by not assigning security to me. But honestly, having someone to assist me is more convenient… yeah, I’ve gotten used to it too.”
“If we had assigned clear security personnel during the earlier kidnapping incident, things wouldn’t have escalated the way they did, Mika.”
“But that was with Hina and Nagisa—Ah, please don’t look at me like that… okay, I’m sorry.”
Honestly, if I were to point to my fault in that incident, it would just be that I kept postponing my promise to Haruna. I thought that was the only issue. Setting the past aside and looking at the present, Nagisa was definitely right.
And even though I could vaguely grasp how worried Nagisa had been back then, I had no intention of stubbornly arguing against that. It was true that Nagisa had thrown in the towel, but in terms of our relationship aside from lovey-dovey stuff, I felt like I was the one conceding more.
…Let’s not dwell on the fact that I couldn’t even take any credit for the issues stemming from our relationship.
“The reason I’m bringing this up is that I wish for you to move to one of the T-party residences.”
“What? Aside from being a bit of a hassle, I don’t mind. But, you know, I’m hesitant to give my belongings to the kids. Honestly, I don’t mind if the place itself changes.”
“…Of course, if that were the only thing, I wouldn’t be bringing it up like this. What I want to know is if you’re willing to live in the same place as me—”
“Whoa… Huh?”
What was this? Did I mishear something?
Amidst stirring my coffee slowly, I caught a strange phrase in my ears. If I wasn’t mistaken, Nagisa was proposing cohabitation to me.
Living with Nagisa, whether in the same room or not, meant that we’d share breakfast and dinner together every day. My cheeks flushed just thinking about it. Unlike the week with Hina, which had a clear end date, this was a proposal for an indefinite duration without any issues.
What could I say? It was a harmful but thrilling notion.
One day, we’d be brushing our teeth next to each other in the morning, and we’d end up making meals for each other or cooking together in the kitchen. It was inevitable that we’d show our most natural selves to each other.
Just imagining it filled me with excitement and anticipation. While it didn’t seem right to view my relationship with Nagisa or Nana purely from a romantic perspective, it felt like a preview of life after graduation.
“…Um, we’re going to have separate rooms, right?”
“Of course, separate rooms are the basic premise, but… on occasion, I might come over to the room you’ll be using, Mika…”
“This must come from the time you stayed at Hina’s place.”
“Y-yeah…”
Looking at Nagisa’s reaction, I sensed this might not just be an occasional occurrence. A picture formed in my mind where I’d visit daily, and it would naturally lead to sharing the same bed.
“For now, I’m fine with moving. The cohabitation proposal… to be honest, I’m quite happy about it. There’s no reason for me to turn down the opportunity to get closer to you, Nagisa.”
So if you asked if I disliked it, that wasn’t true. Adjusting to the discomfort of sharing living space with someone was, of course, a necessary process.
“So…?”
“I’ll slowly start preparing for the move today. Hopefully, sometime next week…”
“Let’s aim for this weekend. I’ll help organize your stuff too.”
“…Is that really okay?”
“Yes, it’s perfectly fine.”
Despite the heavy concern in my words, Nagisa returned a decisive answer, albeit with a somewhat bitter smile.
The thought that Nagisa would encounter traces of the original Mika during the packing process crossed my mind, making me feel a need to reveal the whereabouts of the real Mika sooner rather than later.
…This truly wasn’t an easy dilemma.
