The key executives of the Kaiser side, who were detained, were transported under the management of the FOX Squad. Unlike students, their punishment would certainly not be light, given that they were indeed adults.
Well, they provided the Student Council with a perfect excuse to strike back at them during the military coup. Even if they had ten mouths, they wouldn’t have anything to say.
Among the executives, the one in the best condition was the President, the chief responsible, who managed to avoid shedding blood simply by surrendering gracefully.
On the other hand, the General encountered Wakamo, who happened to be filled with personal grievances against Kaiser, and the Director seemed to struggle when facing the Countermeasures Committee.
Indeed, they seem to be quite unfortunate. Unlike the President, who had given up early on after their base was bombed, the ones who showed a will to resist could still be seen as having some spirit.
Well, it was unfortunate that they ended up getting beaten up even more for it. Perhaps because of that, the two of them looked at the unharmed President with disdain.
By the way, if our Min-cheol is being taken like this, I wonder when he’ll be showing his face in the summer.
As for more detailed information, just like my memory of most other stories, I can recall only bits and pieces… but I guess it’s just as well if this matter turns out to be nothing? When Kaiser is involved, something always goes wrong.
Regardless, from my standpoint, I feel quite relieved that the situation has come to an end so easily.
You know, seeing a villain get ambiguously captured and then causing trouble again in comics, novels, or movies… I just can’t stand that. Maybe that’s why I couldn’t wipe the smile off my face, thinking this was the end of Kaiser during the cleanup process.
“So then, what was it? I think I heard about some enjoyable weeping or something…”
“Ah, ah! Mika, please pretend you didn’t hear that…!”
When I playfully mentioned Wakamo’s words heard over the communication, our fox girl clung to me, pouting. Seriously, who could look at this lovely lady and remember the once infamous Reikubyō no Yū?
“No, Wakamo-chan. How can you say you didn’t hear it when you’ve already heard? Hmm, I heard you were reformed… but I guess that was just a mask, huh?”
“Hee…”
“Really, you should have thought about my feelings hearing such things!”
“…What feelings are you talking about?”
“I was super jealous! Wanting to hear someone else’s enjoyable weeping…”
“Yeeh…?”
Though it sounded like a joke, it was only half a joke. The truth was, this wasn’t my true intention, thus it remained a joke.
Of course, the enjoyable weeping Wakamo referred to would be the kind filled with suffering. What I could offer Wakamo would genuinely be happy sounds. So it was sincere.
“I can cry as much as needed for my husband… uh?!”
As I casually threw out a joke that was not really a joke, someone approached from behind and hugged my waist. Naturally, with just a little force, I could escape, but I chose first to identify who it was.
“Shiroko-chan…?”
“Yup. I want to know that too.”
“Wait a minute! Please remove your hand from Mika!”
“Mika, I’ll wipe off the fox smell.”
“…Don’t say silly things!”
Wakamo, coming closer, wrapped her arm around my neck. So here I was, sandwiched between Wakamo’s soft, nice body in front and Shiroko’s firm yet not lacking curves behind.
With two foxes surrounding me… Sorry, Nagisa-chan. I’m kinda liking this combo a bit too much…
“Wow, Angel-chan… your popularity is still unmatched! Though it seems your tastes have changed a little while we were apart. Hmm, that’s not necessarily a bad thing, right? Kuhuhu.”
“…Is it strong enough for that?!”
Mitsuki pointed out that my words might be interpreted dangerously, but in terms of context, it wasn’t incorrect. It was just a matter of degree, right?
And why is Aru so surprised? What’s with that? Why is there something I don’t know?
“Hehe~ Shiroko-chan, why don’t we leave Mika-chan alone for a bit and have some fun~?”
“…Hmm. Hoshino-senpai should come and enjoy too. It feels nice like this.”
“…Heh. That sounds tempting. So Mika-chan, shall we go take a cozy nap together? I saw a nice spot on the way~.”
Listening to the conversation between the two upperclassmen from Abydos made me feel quite strange. Wasn’t Nonomi a better fit as Hoshino’s nap partner instead of me? I’m not one to be easily defeated, but still, Nonomi is on a whole different level.
“Uh, I checked some information the Kaiser side compiled about this structure.”
Ignoring the situation unfolding on my side, the teacher pointed at the massive object before us. He was holding notepad discovered during the President’s body search.
So this is kind of like giving up entirely on the problem child of the class, right? How cruel…
And they mentioned managing information in an analog manner. Isn’t that more digital than analog…? But it’s not a major issue and I probably won’t see the President again anyway, but it’s still bothersome.
“To operate this 135mx23mx13m structure, regarded as the most powerful OOPARTS in current Kivotos, it seems a corresponding level of OOPARTS is essential.”
[…So, you mean the Sanctum Tower?]
“Exactly. Can’t you get a rough grasp of what the Kaiser President was planning with this incident?”
Kaya, on the other end of communications, seemed to easily catch on to what the teacher wanted to convey. Indeed, the Student Council President abandoning the management rights of the Sanctum Tower was what made Kaya and me suffer so much. That’s bound to leave a grudge.
“Hm… It can’t be denied that the military coup against the Student Council was the objective. It seems the core of the plan was to secure the Sanctum Tower first and activate this ancient superweapon, or maybe even an ultra-ancient weapon, getting slightly confused over the definitions?”
[If that’s the case, Manma Battle would be more of a bait to disperse power and attention rather than a direct collaborator with the Kaiser side… that seems more accurate.]
“Yup, that’s pretty much it. It’s just so… typical of Kaiser.”
Hanako’s conjecture might be close to the truth. After all, the idea that Kaiser would regard our students as serious collaborators is ridiculous. If there were a student capable of receiving such treatment from Kaiser, that alone would be impressive.
“Ahem. What’s important now isn’t solving a problem already settled. Let’s circle back to what this structure can actually do; that wasn’t in the notepad. Honestly, we probably don’t need to discuss what to do with this structure just yet, but we do know a bigger threat than Kaiser exists.”
“…Nameless Priests.”
“Exactly, they’re still hiding their traces, but if the acquired card proves useful, it’d be wise to find ways to utilize it. We must be meticulously careful to prevent it from falling into the hands of the Nameless Priests.”
When it comes to threats against Kivotos, it’s not just the ambiguity of colors looming. Of course, I know that Gematria is focusing more on preparing against colors at this stage…
Meanwhile, the Supernatural Special Forces were laying plans for destruction on a broader scale, and as for teachers like him, they were only aware of the threat posed by the Nameless Priests due to their ignorance about colors.
It might be that I need to reflect on my own complacency in only thinking about one of the threats while preparing for both.
Regardless, I share the positive stance on discussing how to properly understand and utilize the weapon we’ve acquired. After all, wasn’t it a superweapon that would turn all Kivotos against us the moment Kaiser President succeeded in activation?
Just then, an unexpected voice interrupted.
“I think I can help with that…”
“Huh? Whose voice is this… Kayo-chan! Where have you been? I was worried… cough, of course, I thought you were safe!”
“…I got swept up in the bombing. It took me some time to recover, President.”
Onikata Kayoko, who appeared in the underground as if she had some means of finding us, looked a bit worse for wear. Her state of disarray made sense upon hearing she was caught in the bombing.
…Wait a minute. Is it possible we took a wrong turn here?
But students ought to be just fine with the protection of Halo, so I figured they could withstand being caught up in a bombing.
And aside from durability issues, unless they were put in an unbearable environment, that’s not a particularly wrong judgment. As long as issues like drowning, starvation, or excessive bleeding don’t arise, the presence of Shinpi was supposed to guarantee student safety.
“I’m sorry, Kayoko. While I appreciate your offer of help…”
“It’s alright, teacher. The situation wasn’t serious enough to be of concern. Most importantly, I thought the teacher wouldn’t have approved if there was even a possibility of it being serious.”
What’s this misplaced trust? Are you trying to charm innocent students again, teacher?
Though I might not be able to count all the students I’ve charmed with two hands, I still feel I have something to say about the matter, considering my physical age and gender, even if it’s awkward.
In contrast, while I’m unsure of his exact age, the male teacher is practically a decade younger than the students… I consider this slightly risky, you know?
Forget my thoughts; Kayo steadfastly began to speak her mind.
“To get to the point, this structure is difficult to classify as a standalone weapon. However… the moment conditions align, it’s highly likely to be far more dangerous than an independently functioning weapon.”
Ah, so it’s somewhat similar to a super-performance launch pad? One of those launchers where the egg being in it becomes dangerous.
Or wait, since it requires the Sanctum Tower, is it the opposite?
Ultimately, neither scenario truly matters. What counts isn’t that.
“Well—how about we take a moment to express our gratitude to the Kaiser President with a prayer from now on?”
We salute you, O GOA T.
As everyone shot me ‘what’s her deal?’ looks, I boldly conducted the moment of President worship.
No, really, I’m saying this honestly.
They literally dug it out for us, so a little worship is well-deserved!
