The operation time of the Ferris wheel generally tends to correlate with its size.
The Ferris wheel we boarded is one with a little over thirty capsules, and the operation time is said to be around 20 minutes. Even just a glance reveals it’s not ordinary size, which makes this a relatively long operation time in terms of amusement rides.
However, this 20 minutes can feel infinitely long or short depending on the person.
This is something that can be perfectly explained just by the two people inside this Ferris wheel.
For someone with good social skills like Hifumi, having just a decent conversation partner makes spending 30 minutes or so feel like a mere blink of an eye.
But for Haruka, this 20 minutes could feel like an eternity, making her wonder when it will end. Luckily, with Aru beside her, it’s a saving grace; if she were separated from Aru, she might genuinely feel like dying. In such situations, it wouldn’t be unusual for her to develop claustrophobia.
So then, what would be a conversation topic that could satisfy everyone?
Simply enjoying the view of the amusement park at sunset isn’t bad, but it feels a bit regrettable to spend 20 minutes that way.
Hifumi generally responds decently to any conversation topic, except for Momo Friends, and I don’t particularly mind either.
So, it would be good to focus a bit more on the other two. Conversations regarding Gehenna Academy are like Haruka’s Achilles’ heel, so avoiding those is a must.
What the heck, there isn’t really much else to talk about other than Aru, is there?
The problem is that I deliberately left out the part about Heungsinso 68 while explaining to our group…
“Uh, Aru?”
“Hmm? If you have something to ask this Aru, feel free! Of course, except for business secrets.”
“Business secrets…?”
While I was pondering how to handle that part, Hifumi, who was observing Aru closely, seemed to have decided on how to steer the conversation. But it’s awkward.
“Um, you and your group are all in the same club, right…?”
Hifumi’s question—a confusion that stemmed from briefly tilting her head at Aru’s words—was unfortunately directly linked to the information about Heungsinso that I was trying to hide.
Aru, didn’t we agree to keep this a secret for today? Then why do I have no trust in you at all?
Upon hearing Hifumi’s question, my anxious mind almost made me poke Aru in the side to signal her.
“Uhuhuh. It’s not a club, but we’re in the same company… Huh?!”
“…Aru? Are you okay?”
“Ah, ah! Of course, I’m fine! This is just something I got from when I was shot while fighting against the criminal organization threatening our company recently. You could consider it a badge of honor earned from a tough battle! Right, Haruka?!”
“Yes, yes! It’s useless of me not to have taken the hit for Aru! Should I just die? Should I? If I fall from here—”
“There’s no need for that!”
Wow, Aru really just winged a lie with flair without even a bit of hesitation. All I did was poke her side with my finger.
By the way, it’s a different matter to believe that Aru would keep her mouth shut for the day… Sometimes I feel like trusting people too much, just like me, is also a problem.
If someone physically hit me from behind, they could easily bend me in half, and if they took a non-physical approach, they could resolve things with the authority given to the T-party host, so as long as it’s reasonable, trusting others blindly shouldn’t cause too big of an issue, right?
At this point, I have no choice. I’ll have to take care of everything again myself. I can already envision Nagisa struggling with a headache over the Heungsinso ordeal after the terrorist group…
To give a bit of an excuse, it wouldn’t have been surprising if something major happened if I let them roam freely out of my sight. That’s why the best option was to watch closely, so I made what I thought was a reasonable decision.
Even if I were to call Rio right now and ask if my choice was reasonable, I’d probably get a positive answer. Maybe.
“Oof… A fight against a criminal organization, is it a dangerous company…?”
Hifumi’s eyes, who will soon go down in history as the notorious leader of the “swimming mask criminal organization,” shake wildly.
Nooo, don’t be deflated! Hifumi, you won’t have to bow down at all later on!
“Huh. It is a dangerous business, yes. The Heungsinso operation is closely intertwined with the underworld of Kivotos!”
“The underworld? That sounds scary just hearing it… Oof…”
“But the skills of the employees from Heungsinso 68 are, without a doubt, the best in the industry! We have the ability to take on any dangerous requests without a second thought. Which means, no matter how dangerous the job is, it’s not that dangerous for us!”
Aru confidently declared, and she certainly had that villain smile that looks just right on the surface. It’s not a problem of substance; it just looks like hard-boiled to the core.
Hmm… But I don’t quite get what the criteria for a dangerous job is. What could possibly be dangerous for students who are perfectly fine after getting shot or hit with artillery or run over by a train? It’s a tough question to figure out.
“I can’t help but think it’s amazing. So, what made you start working at Heungsinso, Aru? There must be quite a story behind it, right? Like, a secret related to Peroro-nim’s tongue!”
“Peroro-nim…? I’m not sure what that is, but there’s definitely a heart-thumping epic tale sleeping beneath my reason for starting Heungsinso! Hehe, don’t be surprised after hearing it!”
What should I say? It feels like watching a granny responding to her excited child, ‘Oh, really? Our little cutie is the best!’ as they embellish their own story.
Hmm…
I wonder how Nagisa is doing.
Even if the story goes well here, there are still a lot of people who like me…
I guess I’ll just have to step in and set boundaries myself? I really hope the others won’t get too hurt, but I’m worried things won’t turn out that smoothly.
“From that day on, I decided to start living the stylish and cool life of a lawless person I’ve dreamed of for a long time. Hehe, if you want to hear the back story, I can tell you. So, what do you think? Interested?”
“Yes, I’d love to hear it!”
Amazingly enough, I responded with suitable enthusiasm to Aru’s captivating story while blankly gazing out the window. No matter how much I think about it, the atmosphere of that Ferris wheel over there would feel embarrassed to compare with this one.
Honestly, I should have just kneeled before Hifumi and apologized.
*
“…”
I look down at the thieving cat that has been persistently sticking to Mika and the little devil showing undivided interest in Mika who appeared out of nowhere. What exactly should I say to separate these two from Mika?
“So, when are we getting to the point, Angel? I mean, I personally have nothing to lose by dragging this out. But our jealous little Angel isn’t down for that, right? Kukuhuhu♡”
That child… Asagi Mitsuki is pretty much close to the truth.
Knowing Mika’s personality, which has no sense of integrity, there’s no way to expect her to decisively brush off the kids latched onto her. While I think having lots of love is good, having too much like Mika becomes a problem.
If all that love would focus solely on me, I’d be beyond happy. But she wasn’t that type of person, so I ended up falling for her, and even if Mika were that kind of person, it would have been inevitable to fall for her.
In that sense, it’s unavoidable to feel regret.
“…I see. Eventually, I can’t just keep giving up opportunities to sit next to Mika without explaining why I had to set up this meeting with the two of you.”
“Though it’s an obvious story that I could figure out without you telling me, I’ll listen specially, alright? Kya-ha-ha~!”
“Yeah, I agree. Your motives are pretty transparent.”
I barely manage to clutch my hand, which was unknowingly reaching for a teacup. With no black tea to soothe my tense nerves, it’s entirely up to me to keep my composure.
“Of course, I know that you and everyone from Arius Squad are devoted and adoring Mika. So I won’t touch on that. But Asagi, why… What makes you have such feelings for Mika? Didn’t you two just meet today for the first time?”
“Aah~ That’s such a boring question. I was hoping for a more explosive question!”
“Just to let you know, saying it was love at first sight or anything like that will not be accepted.”
“Then what? Is that to say our Angel doesn’t have that kind of charm? If that’s the case, I think Mochitsuki-chan will be a bit disappointed!”
The impression of this person, who deliberately changes Mika’s nickname to provoke me, feels like a troublesome brat better at stirring the conversation than the original Mika. Just a little misstep can pull the other person right into their rhythm.
But I’ve come to value my skills at hiding my emotions, so it won’t be that easy to lose my calm as a result of such shallow tricks, Asagi Mitsuki.
“Of course, as you said, Mika has an abundant charm. The people who follow her are proof of that. But based on your personality, which I’ve been observing, I don’t see you as someone who would just be entranced by outer beauty. Don’t you agree?”
“Wow… The Angel’s words gives me a strange sensation~? It’s not bad to be enchanted by Mika-chan’s appearance, right?”
“I never said that was bad. I only stated that you don’t seem like that kind of person.”
“…Kukuhuhu.”
Asagi-san smiles reminiscent of the Mika who is now teasing me after hearing my words. Would it be safe to say I hit the nail on the head?
“Right! It’s not just about beauty! Strictly speaking, it’s more like I’m falling for this person, wouldn’t it be a proper description~?”
“…In what way?”
“Hmm? It’s obvious she’s kind and full of mischief, which makes her my ideal type! I think it would be great fun to tease Aru-chan together. Hehe!”
With her saying that while blushing, it’s pretty clear that there’s more to why she fell for Mika than just that. Without a doubt, Mika must have been swaying her tail a lot, and with this development, I feel like unless I teach that loose girl the concept of restraint, things like this will never end…
Though the main issue is that I definitely lack the resolve to correct such bad habits.
What should I do? Should I cry to the heavens to plead for everyone’s attention to just look at me?
I don’t know. Even if I ensure that Mika is my own, those mischievous cats would not willingly back off. Especially Kurodate and Sorasaki, those two… Sigh.
…Come to think of it, Asagi also comes from Gehenna. Maybe Mika’s the type that’s loved a lot by bad girls from Gehenna.
“Asagi, let me confirm this in front of you. Mika will be a precious partner I will share my lifetime with. So, please don’t treat interrupting us lightly. Don’t meddle for the sake of mere amusement. I sincerely… ask for it.”
“…Heh. So, our Angel was this kind of person~? I’ll have to reevaluate you a bit.”
“My Mika is stronger than anyone, but she’s basically a coward at heart and fears to hurt someone. The words she shared with Azusa earlier to sort out her feelings were no doubt picked with the intention of not being disliked.”
As a partner, it boils my blood, but I cannot win against Mika. I suspect she’s a lot like me in that regard, and because of that, I cannot win.
Even if I want to shape Mika in the direction I envision, she’s a completed gem as she is. Even the parts that concern me are derived from one of her most radiant traits; there’s no way I can sand that down with my selfishness.
“Love makes fools out of people. There’s no lie in that saying. I know it well enough because I’m a living witness. Love has made a fool that merely wishes for Mika’s happiness.”
“That’s true for our squad as well.”
“Fufu… I know that already. It’s just, when I heard Atsuko’s words, I didn’t want to dwell on this topic. Would you want to face the fact that there are so many people who want the person you’ve just started to love?”
“…No, to be honest, I wouldn’t.”
“Just as I thought?”
Oh dear, we’ve already arrived at the top. The view of the sunset at the amusement park is so dreamy. It’s a shame that I kicked off the chance to share that view with the person I wanted to be with and allowed others to come close.
I want to blame Mika for making me this stupid, but now I’m more upset with myself for not being able to do so. Such ironies abound.
“So then, what is it you wish to say to me? Ahaha, no, that’s not it! What exactly do you want to hear from me, silly angel~?”
“…I want to tell you that unless I can truly be someone who puts Mika first, under no circumstances will I allow anyone to approach her. That’s what I wanted to share with you.”
“Hmm. That’s completely like a religion, isn’t it?”
“Well, it might be. But what can I do? I’m so blinded by love.”
The person sitting on the Ferris wheel that just passed the top, do you know just how much I’ve sacrificed to be this way?
I don’t particularly care if you don’t know… but I wish you would at least understand the magnitude of my struggles. That alone would be great happiness for me.
“Asagi Mitsuki… are you someone who can prioritize Mika over anything else? I want to hear if you can become that blindly devoted person to Mika.”
“…Even so, I don’t think I can prioritize Angel-chan over Aru-chan~.”
“Yes, fail.”
“Eh.”
Why is she so surprised? There’s no way I’d give a chance to someone who’s not even close to that level of resolve.
Hmph, this should roughly settle things with the students from other academies. I proposed a compromise, but their failure to meet it is their own problem…
“Alright, then I’ll just make Aru-chan one of Angel-chan’s zealots~♪”
“…Huh?”
Why is she agreeing to such nonsense despite knowing it’s only our first meeting?
