“Chasing it away is one thing, but to catch that thing, we need firepower that’s at least several times stronger than what we have now. Besides, if it escapes before we inflict enough damage like this, we’ll be just like a dog chasing a chicken staring at the roof.”
“Bwoosh”
“Even with Hellfire, the effectiveness isn’t as good as I’d hoped, so we need something stronger… The problem is that most high-powered weaponry relies on helicopter support, but with the sandstorm, the risk of crashing is… Hehe, calling in one from headquarters might not be such a bad idea.”
“Zoom”
The encounter between the teacher’s group and Vina was, in a way, somewhat successful. However, the information obtained was less than expected.
“Sigh”
“In other words, we didn’t gain much in practical results.”
“Hmm”
“Could it be that it has some sort of self-repair function…?”
“Bloop”
“I think such technology is absurd, but since there have been sightings for decades, we can’t outright deny it. There must be others who have tried to catch that thing over the years, not just us.”
“Yikes”
“Ah, I want to vote for the self-repair function too. The armor is too clean for a mechanical monster that’s existed for so many decades.”
“Ping”
While the RABBIT squad members and Ayane were in a heated discussion, Hoshino was slumped on the couch, absently fiddling with her cellphone. The teacher, who had been lost in thought on the chair beside her, spoke up.
“Knock”
“I’m sorry, Hoshino.”
“Huh? Teacher, what’s with the sudden apology?”
“Ugh”
“If my command had been just a bit more precise, the other three wouldn’t have gotten hurt.”
“Aww”
“What’s with you, Teacher? You seem down for no reason. Your command was flawless! It’s honestly impressive that you could coordinate the situation while that guy went into hand-to-hand combat.”
“Hehe”
With Ayane and Hoshino excluded, all the members of the committee were currently resting in the infirmary, making Hoshino blink and smile.
“Hee”
“Oh, is that it? Teacher thought I was feeling down because the underclassmen got hurt… Don’t worry! They’ll be back to running around after just a day of rest. Maybe Shiroko will burst out by dinner time, and that wouldn’t be odd at all.”
“Poof”
Reflecting on the battle with Vina, Hoshino scratched her cheek. The teacher’s command was unbelievably stable for their first real battle against an unknown giant monster, and her smooth handling of the situation was excellent.
“Humm”
The only reason the committee members, excluding Hoshino, were resting was simply because they were swept away by Vina’s movements. Even Saki and Miyako weren’t significantly different in that regard.
“Oof”
Hoshino was only able to avoid any effective hits thanks to the shield’s presence; Vina’s movements were far more threatening than anticipated.
“Wham”
It was absurd for the RABBIT squad, trying to organize the information from their operation against a mechanical monster the size of a tall building, and for the committee students to claim that a little rest would suffice.
“Duh”
In fact, this was unnecessary worry. However, it wasn’t easy for the teacher to set aside considering they had just gone through their first real battle.
“Whoao”
“By the way, about the title of the best sniper. I never thought they would be so skillful, to the point of being free of exaggeration. I mean, right after you gave orders, the first shot was one thing, but to successfully land two more while that guy was struggling? I wonder if they’re considering transferring to our Abydos~?”
“Eh? Me? Th-That is to say…”
“Miyu is an irreplaceable member of our squad, Hoshino. There’s absolutely no way I could let her go!”
“Gah!”
“Oh dear, that’s a bit disappointing. But if you’re interested, you’re always welcome, so just say the word?”
“Snicker”
While Hoshino attempted to recruit with a line that was hard to tell if it was a joke or serious, she shut her eyes and slumped once more.
“Whack”
As predicted, Shiroko bolted out of the infirmary right on time when dinner came around.
“Dash”
*
Upon waking up, the first thing I saw was…
“Wow—oh.”
Surprisingly, it was Hina’s horn. That intimidating thing was flaunting its presence in an unexpected place.
“Phew”
Hmm, maybe I really need to stick a tennis ball to her mouth every night to prevent waking her up.
“Squeeze”
Though I couldn’t see Hina’s face since she was lying against my shoulder, her chest was rising and falling rhythmically, suggesting she was deep asleep.
“Swish”
Feeling a bit chilly, I noticed the blanket was pulled down halfway, so I pulled it up to cover her. But as I stayed still to avoid waking her up, I suddenly felt something unusual.
“Dry”
That familiar feeling of dry lips.
“Huh, that can’t be! There’s no way our Hina would…”
“Snap”
It couldn’t be true.
“Gasp”
As all the clues lined up, it felt as if the missing puzzle pieces were coming together.
“Gosh,”
Mika’s words and the strange state of my lips every time I woke up at Hina’s house made sense now…
“Wow—oh…”
Realizing the most secret aspect of a purely innocent girl yearning for love makes for a strangely delicate feeling. No wonder Mika freaked out whenever I said I wouldn’t accept her turning away.
“Ugh,”
It’s too late now, but I doubt anything would have changed had I noticed back then. I wasn’t disappointed in Hina and had no right to be, but realizing that what I thought was my first kiss with her definitely wasn’t complicates things in every way.
“Hmm…”
I strangely felt familiar, as if I had done this before.
“Woosh”
Past events are in the past, so rather than bringing it up with Hina right now, I decided to leave it as future teasing material.
“Wait a second,”
Speaking of which, wasn’t Aco there at that time too? Aco is definitely Hina’s unwavering ally, meaning she can be considered a co-conspirator, right? It’s outrageous that it took months for me to realize this.
“Flick”
Gently combing through Hina’s hair with my fingers, I paused to think. Playing with her flowing hair lightly, I placed my hand on Hina’s back.
“Swoosh”
I wanted to let Hina sleep longer, but today, I had things to do.
“Haa…”
Hina was the one who would take on annoying work on a nice day. Especially for me.
“Swoosh”
My hand slid down her smooth back to her waist, and then I repeated the movement. After doing this for a moment, Hina’s eyelids fluttered. Hina’s halo gently revealed itself.
“Uh…”
Hina, in her sleepy state, opened her eyes and silently clung to my body a little tighter. Watching her take a deep breath and smell my scent made this situation feel just a bit embarrassing.
“Did you sleep well, Hina-chan?”
“Just a little longer, I want to stay like this.”
“Hmm…”
I had turned off the alarm, so I had no idea what time it was, but a little bit should be fine.
“Woing”
As I gently stroked Hina’s head with one hand, I felt a familiar sensation spreading around her collarbone.
“Oh.”
Hina, who tightly hugged my waist, seemed to be getting a bit too comfortable. After tracing her neck with my fingertips, lifting her chin brought her dull, hazy eyes to meet mine.
“Hina-chan, I have to get going; I can’t do more than this… We can have a ‘next’ anytime, so let’s hold off for today?”
With that, I lightly kissed Hina’s nose and smiled, then attempted to continue stroking her hair, but what I got back was Hina’s sudden kiss.
“Pucker!”
The kiss deepened instantly without hesitation, almost akin to a one-sided assault. Perhaps due to being half-awake, Hina was far more eager than usual, quite literally dominating me.
“Ahh…”
The exhilarating pleasure made my toes curl. It wasn’t just the kiss, but the satisfaction from Hina taking the lead made everything feel intensely pleasurable.
“Tsk… Haa… all of it, Mika, it’s all your fault…”
“Hah…?”
“Mika… every time I see you in a disheveled state because of me, my heart races wildly. I just wanted to be loved by you… But you made me feel all these strange emotions, and now you have to take responsibility… right?”
Her face, flushed bright red, moved closer again. Trusting everything to a girl smaller, weaker, and gentler than me filled me with a sense of betrayal that was overwhelmingly intense.
As the kiss began anew, Hina’s arms that were hugging my waist slid down to grip my backside. Although I didn’t feel pleasure from the action itself, things began to change when Hina’s legs started shifting.
“Wobble”
My head started spinning. I knew this was wrong, but Hina’s touch, warmth, and scent wrapped around me. Eventually, I gave in completely to this adorable devil who seemed intent on devouring me.
“Oh no, I can’t refuse… this truly is a devilish temptation.”
“Happy birthday—— Mmm.”
Now, I no longer knew what was happening. It was a do-what-you-will moment.
“Like Nagisa said, the morning is just a continuation of the night.”
