Episode 356: One Conclusion

Morning.

I met up with Natsumi-senpai and the others at the usual convenience store, and the four of us walked the familiar route to school.

As our casual conversation flourished, the topic gradually began to shift toward the upcoming final exams…

「Ah… I’m so depressed.」

With a heavy sigh, Natsumi-senpai showed her blatant distaste just as her words suggested.

Come to think of it, I don’t think I’ve ever heard about her grades before?

「If you studied properly on a regular basis, you wouldn’t need to worry yourself sick just because it’s test time.」

「That might be true for you, but I’m in a sports club.」

「Natsumi-senpai, you should apologize to every sports club member in the country for that.」

「Fine, fine, I’m sorry.」

Setting aside the outrageous argument that one can’t study because they’re in a sports club, there is certainly an image that it’s hard to find time for studying when club activities are busy.

But there are plenty of people who balance both and achieve solid grades…

Natsumi-senpai really should apologize, yeah.

「Since Hanako-san is a transfer student, she’s definitely on the side of people who can study. That means…」

「Ah, I’ll have you know I study properly, okay?」

Since a meaningful gaze was directed my way, I answered before anything could be said.

I’m working hard on my studies too, especially since I have a goal now.

「Well, Takanashi-kun has the ultimate private tutor with him.」

「I’m not sure about that phrasing?」

「Cleaning, laundry, cooking, and general housework, taking care of her husband in every possible way, and she has the top grades in the year… how is a tutor who teaches him not the ultimate?」

「Even if you say that, all of those things are just normal for me.」

「It might be normal to you, but that’s not the general opinion of the world.」

Everything is just normal for Sara-san, and she probably doesn’t realize she’s special at all… which is exactly why I must never forget my feelings of gratitude and must continue to express them clearly in words.

「Really, thank you as always, Sara-san.」

「Hehe… let’s work hard together for our future, okay♪」

「Yes.」

To fulfill my promise to Masaomi-san.

To move toward my own goals and dreams.

And for my future with Sara-san…

I have to work even harder!!

It happened the moment I took off my shoes at the entrance and opened the door to my locker.

Even if it’s a common situation in manga or anime, it’s something I have no connection to… meaning, it was an impossible situation no matter how I looked at it.

Furthermore, this sight gave me a strong sense of deja vu in a very unpleasant way…

「Kazunari, what are you holding… a letter?」

「Uhh…」

「Kazunari-san, what’s wrong?」

「There was a letter in Kazunari’s locker.」

「…Eh?」

Hanako-san looked at the envelope in my hand with a suspicious gaze, while Sara-san froze with her smile still on her face. By the way, Natsumi-senpai was already gone since she went to the club room first.

Well then…

「They have a lot of nerve, considering Kazunari has a wife.」

「Um, Kazunari-san…」

「For now, I can’t say anything without seeing the contents.」

「Y-You’re right. It hasn’t been decided that it’s a love letter yet.」

If it were Hayato, there might be a good chance that this letter was a love letter… in fact, that’s the only thing one could think (I’ve actually seen it happen many times), but I have a history of being called out by idiots using this pattern.

So… I can’t let my guard down.

「I’m going to open it right here.」

「No, that’s…」

「It’s okay. I’ll check the contents by myself first.」

I’m fairly certain this isn’t a love letter, but even if there’s a one-in-a-million chance, I don’t want to do anything that would make Sara-san anxious. So it’s best to just reach a conclusion quickly on the spot.

「Let’s see…」

First, I checked both sides to confirm there was no name or anything. Next, I slowly peeled off the sticker on the back so as not to tear it, and took the contents out of the plain, unadorned white envelope.

Inside was a single sheet of stationary… a cute one bordered with pink hearts.

At this point, the possibility that the sender wasn’t a man also surfaced… but it’s too early to jump to conclusions.

And as for the crucial content…

「I will be waiting for you on the roof after school today. If possible, please come together with Satsukawa-san. …Kusuhara Rena.」

It said.

To be honest, this was out of left field… if she wants Sara-san to be there too, I can’t imagine what the conversation is about at all.

Wait…

Who was Kusuhara Rena again?

「Kazunari-san, how is it?」

「She wants Sara-san and me to come to the roof after school.」

「…Me too?」

「That’s way too unexpected. Is the person a guy? A girl?」

「It says Kusuhara Rena.」

「Kusuhara… I feel like I’ve heard that somewhere?」

「The stupid girl who caused a scene at the beauty pageant.」

「Ah, it was her.」

Ah, now that you mention it, I feel like that arrogant girl’s real name was something like that… wait, it seems Sara-san had genuinely forgotten too.

But that can’t be helped. Even if her presence was temporarily intense, her overall impression is rather thin. I don’t know why.

…Anyway, putting that aside.

「A letter from that woman… I have nothing but a bad feeling about this.」

「What shall we do, Kazunari-san?」

「Let’s see…」

Certainly, if it’s her, there’s a non-zero chance she’ll find some nonsensical fault again and it’ll lead to pointless trouble. But there’s also the perspective of settling things once and for all to eliminate future worries.

Plus, given the report I received from Nishikawa-san, I should…

「Then, I’ll…」

「Understood. I will go with you.」

「Eh!? S-Sara-san?」

「To begin with, this matter seems to have started from the friction between her and me. If that’s the case, I believe I should be there to bring some kind of closure. Besides…」

「Besides?」

「There’s no way I would let you go alone… Kazunari-san, you’re so mean…」

「Ugh…」

Sara-san puffed out her cheeks, showing the world’s cutest protest.

This is a bit… no, it’s not just a foul, she’s so cute it’s ridiculous.

Way too cute, yeah.

「Sigh… the letter says for both of you to come, so just go together quietly. Stop flirting at every turn.」

「Well, that’s true, but…」

「If you say that, there’s no point in arguing.」

It certainly says that, but I can’t help wanting to avoid taking my precious person to a place full of suspicion…

But as Sara-san said, a conversation between the people themselves might be necessary to reach some kind of conclusion.

In that case.

「Sara-san… then please come with me after school.」

「Yes. I won’t let her lay a finger on you, Kazunari-san, so please rest assured.」

「No, that’s my line…」

「I’ll move in as backup just in case something happens. Kazunari, go with your wife.」

「Got it. Thanks, Hanako-san.」

「We’ll be in your care.」

Since I don’t know what’s waiting for us on the roof, I’ll take Hanako-san up on her kindness. Since she can’t be trusted, it’s better to have some kind of insurance.

However… it’s not guaranteed she’ll come alone, and if it develops into physical trouble, I can’t let Hanako-san do anything reckless.

And on top of that, if I’m going to protect Sara-san…

Just in case, it seems like a good idea to set up one more piece of insurance.

I felt unsettled thinking about after school, but I still made sure to get through my classes properly. This is important to me, and it’s a promise I made with Sara-san so that my daily life wouldn’t be entirely consumed by studying.

By treasuring daily classes, I can make the review I do at home more efficient. Sara-san taught me that this leads to securing free time, which results in being able to live a solid private life.

「All rise, bow!」

With that, after-school homeroom ended, and the time for the confrontation(?) finally approached. The plan was to meet up with Sara-san in the student council room and then head to the roof together.

What that arrogant girl waiting for us there would say… well, only God knows.

「Well, I’m off.」

「I’ll move after a time delay, so for now just act normal.」

「Roger.」

I spoke to my dependable big sister and headed to the student council room to meet Sara-san first.

I managed to set up the insurance for emergencies in time, so even if the unexpected happens, I should at least be able to avoid Hanako-san doing anything reckless.

After that, if I just protect Sara-san for sure, then…

「Oops…」

「Hehe… good work today, Kazunari-san.」

On the stairs to the student council room, I bumped into Sara-san who was walking from the hallway side.

It seemed our homerooms finished at about the same time.

「The reason for heading to the student council room has disappeared, hasn’t it?」

「You’re right. Then, shall we just head there now?」

「Yes.」

After confirming that with few words, Sara-san took her usual position… lining up to my right, and we headed straight for the roof.

As we climbed the stairs together, I idly glanced to my side… and noticing that, Sara-san let out a soft, gentle smile and squeezed my hand tightly.

「It’s okay. No matter what happens, Kazunari-san, I will definitely…」

「Sara-san, I said it this morning, but that’s my line, okay?」

「No, I will…」

「Sara, this is my job.」

「K-Kazunari-san…?」

It might have been a bit unfair, but I said it firmly as if to tell her how it was.

Whether she thinks I’m just acting cool as a guy or not, protecting her at the very end is my job. This is the one thing I absolutely won’t back down on.

「Yes… I understand.」

「Sorry, all of a sudden…」

「No… um… it made me happy…」

Sara-san stared at me looking a bit dazed, then suddenly blushed and looked down shyly.

That said, I knew I’d acted a bit cheesy this time, so I was a little embarrassed myself…

「W-Well then, shall we go?」

「Y-Yes… Dear.」

「S-Sara-san!?」

Sara-san clung tightly to my arm and pressed against me as if to hide her face. This kind of reaction was rare… what was this exactly?

「Um… what’s wrong?」

「…It’s your fault…」

「Eh!?」

「Because you showed me such a dependable side… I…」

「N-No, I didn’t mean to.」

「But… even though I want to protect you too, it’s unfair to say it like that… I’m so happy I can’t say anything…」

「U-Um… well.」

W-What should I do…

Sara-san is way too cute, and she’s being so incredibly sweet I don’t know how to react!!

I didn’t mean to go that far, but seeing her look so adorable… what on earth am I supposed to say!?

「Hehe…」

Leaving me in a state of mini-panic, Sara-san let out a small laugh and finally looked up with an expression that was, as expected, embarrassed.

She gave a small, bashful smile and stood slightly on her tiptoes…

「Dear… thank you.」

「N-No, that was how I truly felt.」

「Yes… I’m happy…」

And then Sara-san’s face slowly… slowly, moved closer…

The distance eventually became zero…

「Dear… I love you… mnh.」

Chu…

Sara-san’s whisper was incredibly sweet and melting, and I felt the soft sensation of her lips on my cheek.

And then, with the love for Sara-san overflowing within me… I carved my resolution into my heart once more.

I will definitely protect Sara-san…

When we went out to the roof, a place where I had deep connections for better or worse, there was only one familiar person waiting for us there.

I glanced around just in case, but I didn’t see any other silhouettes. To begin with, there’s nowhere to hide on the roof, so that meant there was no need to be that cautious at this point…

「Hello, Takanashi-san, Satsukawa-san. Thank you for responding to my sudden summons.」

She wasn’t particularly tense, but she didn’t have her usual sarcasm either. The arrogant girl simply stood there with a dignified air, giving us a conspicuously polite greeting.

This attitude was honestly unexpected, but for that very reason, it could also be called suspicious.

「It’s fine. I don’t know what your intention was in calling us out, but if you went this far, there must be a reason, right?」

「That’s right, I intend to have a serious talk today, so I don’t plan on doing anything unnecessary.」

「That’s good to hear. However, I’ll tell you just in case… if you have any ill intentions toward Kazunari-san, I will crush you with everything I have.」

「!?」

A clearly dangerous atmosphere dwelled in Sara-san’s voice as she spoke calmly without any emotion.

It wasn’t just me who noticed it; the person she was facing… the arrogant girl felt it too, and for a moment she flinched.

「I-I know that without you telling me. You really are an easy person to read when it comes to Takanashi-san, aren’t you?」

「Kazunari-san is everything to me. I will never forgive anyone, whoever they may be, who harms him.」

「Is that so… I actually find myself honestly envious that you have someone you can think that much of. And on top of that, you get to be together for life…」

「Thank you.」

This is a bit… throwing me off.

It goes without saying that the atmosphere is different from usual, but I don’t feel any hostility toward Sara-san in the tone of her voice.

If anything, I can even see that she really is envious of Sara-san…

「…We’ve gotten off track. Let’s get to the main point right away. That said, I’m not here to have a discussion or anything like that. It’s fine if you just listen to what I have to say.」

「I see. Then let’s hear it quickly. I won’t interject, so feel free.」

After Sara-san said that much, for some reason she narrowed the distance between her and me just a little. I don’t know if there was any meaning to it, but it’s certain that it made me feel more relaxed… so I’ll stay calm and listen to her first.

「Please don’t be so guarded. I simply wanted to apologize to you… to both of you.」

「…Apologize?」

「What do you mean by…」

I had no intention of interjecting, but such an out-of-character statement made me speak up.

To be honest, this was beyond unbelievable… what exactly brought this on?

「Regarding the matter with the Miss Contest, I was so obsessed with winning that I was quite immature in many ways, I’ve been reflecting on that. I’m sorry.」

「…I don’t know why you’ve suddenly started saying something so humble… but as far as I’m concerned, I don’t particularly care. However, if I had to say one thing, I’d like you to never get involved with us again because it’s a nuisance, okay?」

「Yes, I promise I won’t hold such silly hostility anymore.」

「Understood. In that case, no further apology is necessary. I’m sure you aren’t convinced in your true heart anyway, and you’re likely just acting because you feel the need to apologize.」

「What!?」

Sara-san’s sudden pointed remark made the arrogant girl show a look of shock this time.

It seemed she’d hit the nail on the head… but if that was the case, it explained why she had been so persistent and then suddenly turned to apologizing.

But if that’s so…

「Hey… why do you treat Sara-san as an enemy like that? Even if I say so myself, Sara-san has a policy of not interfering with anyone pointlessly, you know?」

「That’s right. I certainly don’t remember having anything done to me directly by her.」

「Then…」

「But… even if that’s the case, individual emotions don’t always go as planned. Whether there was something direct or not…」

「What’s that supposed to mean…」

It wasn’t very clear, but for now, judging from that statement… or rather, this was something I already knew… the root of this conflict was indeed the arrogant girl’s one-sided malicious feelings.

Of course, that itself was as expected, so it wasn’t particularly surprising, but I didn’t know why she had come to have such malice.

So unless that’s resolved, won’t the spark keep smoldering forever?

「There’s one thing I’ve been curious about.」

「What is it?」

「Perhaps because I’ve avoided interacting with people as much as possible, I seem to easily cause various unnecessary misunderstandings. Recently especially, there have been many incidents that made me realize that… by any chance, did I do something to you unconsciously?」

「………」

She didn’t show any particular reaction to Sara-san’s question… she just silently sent a meaningful gaze my way.

I don’t know what that meant, but the only thing I could say was that there was no mistake that this was her own selfish victim complex.

「I see… it seems that was indeed part of the reason this time. In that case, let me apologize as well.」

「Eh?」

「…Hah?」

「To be honest, I don’t remember doing anything… but even so, if I said something that offended you, I apologize for that. I’m sorry.」

Sara-san gave a small bow.

That was a surprise to me too, and at the same time, it wasn’t something I could possibly accept…

「W-Why does Sara-san have to apologize!? This is just her selfish victim complex!!」

「Do you even know what you’re doing!? No matter how you look at it, this conflict was something I started, right!? Where is the need for you to apologize!?」

「I don’t particularly want to be in a hostile relationship with anyone specific. I don’t want to have more contact than necessary either, but more than that, I want to avoid pointless conflict. I don’t want there to be even a one-in-a-million chance of it affecting my precious Kazunari-san.」

「Wha…」

To be honest, I want to step into the conversation here.

There’s no reason at all for Sara-san to apologize to her, and this isn’t something I can accept at all.

But…

「Sara-san…」

「Hehe… please don’t make that face. I’ll be fine, okay? If this makes her satisfied, then there’s no problem, and I must have had some bad parts too.」

Even if I can’t accept it, if I interject here, wouldn’t that make all of Sara-san’s feelings… and her actions, come to nothing?

There’s no way I…

There’s no way I, of all people, could do that!!

「…is… that…」

「Yes?」

「What on earth is that!! If you apologize to me here, then my… where does that leave me!?」

For some reason, the arrogant girl cried out in a high voice with a desperate look, even carrying a sense of tragic sorrow.

I didn’t feel any of her usual confidence, and her arrogant attitude had vanished… she just stared at Sara-san with a pained, frustrated look.

「The bad one is me for getting involved with you for a selfish reason, right!? I held a grudge because I couldn’t win no matter what I did, and to justify myself, I made you out to be a villain… and then!!」

「………」

「That’s right!! I know it!! Just like Takanashi-san said, this is just my selfish victim complex!! I just arbitrarily interpreted your attitude as malicious and convinced myself you were a nasty woman who moved purely out of calculation to gain popularity!! Even about today, I only apologized because of my own circumstances, and in my true heart, I wasn’t convinced at all!!」

She was shouting in a completely reckless manner, exposing everything bluntly even though we hadn’t asked.

The content was mostly as expected, but for someone like her who seemed to have more pride than most, to admit it so clearly…

「You noticed that too, didn’t you!? And yet, why can you act so humble!? If it were the old you, you would have completely crushed me…」

「Leaving aside how I was before, the current me is different. As I said before, there’s nothing more precious to me than Kazunari-san. So if it’s regarding that, bowing my head isn’t a big deal at all.」

「Precious… thing…」

Whether she was flinched by Sara-san’s firm attitude or had something on her mind…

Changing completely, the arrogant girl closed her mouth as if speechless, her eyes wide as she looked back and forth between Sara-san and me…

「He… hehehe… ahaha…」

「What is it?」

「Hehe… no, I just realized how foolish I’ve been. In the end, I…」

Suddenly, she let out a self-deprecating laugh and muttered something under her breath.

What now…

「…Actually, I knew it. That my assumptions about Satsukawa-san were all my own misunderstanding. I was just one-sidedly hostile because of my jealousy at being unable to beat you in anything… but I guess I just didn’t want to admit it.」

「I’m not quite following what you’re trying to say, but…」

「It’s fine, I’m talking to myself. But… now that you’ve gone that far, I can’t let it end like this either. My pride won’t allow me to leave things vague here.」

「…I don’t quite understand. It’s not such an exaggerated story; I just apologized because there was a possibility I did something wrong.」

「Even so. It’s true that I lost to you… but I don’t want to be any more of a pathetic human being.」

「…I see.」

Honestly, I don’t really know what’s going on either…

Anyway, does she mean that by Sara-san apologizing back, she felt like her own self was pathetic?

She probably intended to get by with a simple apology, but now she felt she couldn’t allow that… or something like that?

「I’ll apologize again. I’m sorry for misunderstanding you on my own and saying all those bad things. I just didn’t want to honestly admit that I was losing to you. Looking back now, I think it was childish self-esteem, but…」

「………」

「Also, about the man who exposed that you two were living together, he’s an associate of mine. The responsibility is mine, so please forgive him.」

「So it was as I thought. There were many unnatural points, so I had a hunch.」

「…To think you even predicted that much, it’s really a surprise.」

This wasn’t just a surprise for the arrogant girl, but for me too…

To think Sara-san had noticed that…

But if that was the case, why…

「If you predicted that much, why didn’t you say anything to me? Even if you didn’t have proof, it wouldn’t be strange for you to take some kind of action.」

「That’s a simple story. To begin with, I had intended to talk about the engagement from the start. Naturally, I intended to touch on the topic of living together if necessary, so even if I was a step behind, the result hasn’t changed at all.」

「It doesn’t seem like it was a bluff… in other words, I… hehe, it’s really a stupid story. I went to the trouble of such underhanded tricks that lowered myself, and in the end, I was just dancing alone.」

The arrogant girl let out a dry, self-deprecating laugh, staring into the distance.

Her figure even seemed to carry a sense of sorrow… well, you could say she was a clown.

「However, if it had some kind of impact on Kazunari-san, that would be a different story. If that happened, I would have crushed you with everything I had, just as I declared.」

「You really don’t waver, do you… so you didn’t say anything because it didn’t impact Takanashi-san, is that it?」

「To put it simply, yes. Your tricks and that man don’t matter to me at all.」

「Honestly… I never thought you were this kind of person. To think I didn’t know and… I really am a fool.」

Sigh… the arrogant girl let out a small sigh and wore the same self-deprecating, wry smile. But her appearance was completely different from before, as if all her strength had left her… as if she’d lost her spirit.

「Takanashi-san, I apologize to you too. I’m sorry for everything. If there’s anything you can’t forgive…」

「…Yeah. To be honest, I can’t forgive you for all the bad things you’ve said to Sara-san. Especially what happened at the Miss Contest, I don’t want to forgive that.」

Even if it was a conflict born from a misunderstanding, just because it’s resolved doesn’t mean everything is washed away.

There are things a person can forgive and things they can’t, and I think she crossed that line… but.

「But… that’s for the person involved, Sara-san, to decide, not me. Nothing happened to me personally, and if Sara-san says she won’t press the matter…」

「…Kazunari-san.」

Even if I can’t forgive, the one who ultimately decides is the person involved, Sara-san. So all I can do is respect Sara-san’s will, and after that…

「Hehe… you’re you, and you’re just all about Satsukawa-san, aren’t you. You two really… suit each other.」

「Don’t get the wrong idea. I haven’t forgiven you yet. I’ll be watching to make sure you don’t do anything unnecessary to Sara-san again.」

「As I said before, I have no intention of doing anything unnecessary anymore. Besides… in my position, I can’t afford to be hostile to you two anymore.」

「…I see, so that was the reason. I’m convinced.」

「Um?」

I feel like she was talking about her position earlier too… come to think of it, was there a story that her father was the president of a group company under Saba? So is it related to that?

「Don’t misunderstand. It’s true there was that aspect, but the trigger for me wanting to apologize was different. Well… it’s a fact that by trying to apologize as a formality, I ended up feeling even more frustrated.」

「You’re a pain too. Then why not just apologize normally?」

「This is my personality. It won’t be fixed that easily… probably.」

「In my experience, if there’s an encounter that cancels out your former self, you might be able to change all at once, right?」

While saying that, Sara-san wrapped her arm around mine and wore a full, happy smile.

That meant that for Sara-san, her encounter with me was…

「Sigh… if you’re this different from how you were last year, there might be some credibility to that story. But unfortunately, I haven’t met someone like that yet…… although that was a shock in a different sense.」

「Something?」

「No, it’s nothing. Anyway, that’s the end of what I had to say. I’ve shown quite a pathetic side of myself, but it’s too late now. I have no intention of getting friendly with you two, but since we’re going to be in a long-term relationship, I’ll be as nice to you as I can.」

After tossing out one last bit of spite(?), the arrogant girl gave a quick, composed bow and began walking toward the rooftop exit… the door.

I intended to watch her leave in silence, but Sara-san took a step forward.

「I have no intention of getting friendly either, but as long as you don’t get involved in a strange way, I’ll at least interact with you normally. However…」

「However, I mustn’t cause trouble for Takanashi-san… right? I already got that. But… as for me, I’ll be watching closely to see if Takanashi-san can become a person worthy of his position, okay?」

「That’s an unnecessary worry. If anything, you’re the ones who should be careful not to hold Kazunari-san back, don’t you think?」

Crackle…

I felt like some intense sparks flew between the two of them for some reason.

And what on earth did their meaningful conversation, which left me behind, mean…

「Position,」could that be the talk about the student council president from the other day?

「Hehe… as I thought, this kind of relationship feels right with you.」

「I wouldn’t know. It’s just a nuisance to me, so please don’t get involved with me pointlessly.」

After they both said that much, the arrogant girl turned on her heel and this time left the roof without looking back.

As I watched her back leave this time, I wondered if this was a case closed or a subtle continuation…

But I felt like it was honestly good that we could avoid unnecessary trouble…

I felt that way.