1.
There’s a saying that if you want to hide a tree, you hide it in a forest, and if you want to hide a person, you hide them among other people.
Thus, if someone were to look for you, the best way to avoid their gaze would be to blend in with the crowd and pretend to be ‘ordinary.’
Even though Rio might be exceptionally skilled and proficient, it was impossible for him to monitor and confirm the identities of thousands or tens of thousands of people.
I remember an anonymous warning passed on to me.
“Big Sister is watching you.”
Beyond this message, I also recall several other idiomatic expressions sent my way.
Though the content of these messages varied, their meaning was unified.
A warning not to draw Rio’s attention.
These chilling pieces of advice urged me to hide myself and leave no trace.
So, immediately after returning from Abidos, I avoided any contact with the Engineering Department or Veritas, living as an ordinary student.
I was worried that if Rio were to suspect my meetings with my fellow members, not only myself but others would get dragged into the mess.
“Or maybe, I’m already involved.”
While I was engaged in hero activities, I used advanced technology and equipment that were subtle but left signs of assistance from allies working behind the scenes.
I don’t know how Rio had guessed that I was affiliated with Millennium, but through these clues, it was inevitable that both Millennium’s Engineering Department and Veritas, as well as the Special Paranormal Task Force, would come under suspicion.
That’s why both clubs likely tried their best to avoid meeting with me.
“So, what will you do now?”
As a result, I found myself in this predicament.
I had originally planned to immediately return to Millennium to repair and enhance my hero equipment as well as to hold a meeting with the Defenders members to discuss new strategies.
However, due to Rio’s interference, all those plans were canceled, and I was now restricted to acting ‘normally.’
Given this situation, what could I, or should I, do?
…Coincidentally or not, I had already found an answer to this problem.
“It’s time to take care of things I’ve been putting off.”
“What kind of things have you been putting off?”
Rio’s surveillance network was unsettling, but it wasn’t something to simply fear. I saw this moment as an opportunity to attempt various things.
Mostly, there were things I couldn’t attend to while fully immersed in hero activities.
As a student. It was time to do something ordinary.
“Like studying, for example.”
“…Eh?”
“Wakamo, let’s study together.”
“Ah, I… uh…”
At my suggestion, Wakamo’s cheerful smile, while leaning on my shoulder, instantly froze.
Did she really hate studying that much?
But unfortunately, I had already made up my mind.
“Study and play games. Also, train a bit.”
Study, hobbies, making friends, and so on.
Since this was the first leisure time I’ve had for a while, being a regular person and a hero both keeping me busy, I planned to make good use of it.
Besides, a certain event was approaching.
“Before the next story begins, I need to prepare accordingly.”
It was nearing the end of mid-March.
If we were to compare it to Earth of my previous life, this was the time when the school term had just started and classes were gradually picking up.
However, my focus was on something else.
“March 25th. I need to wrap this up by at least the 24th.”
“Why’s that?”
“A teacher is coming soon.”
“The teacher from SCALE?”
I nodded in agreement.
March 25th was none other than the birthday of the famous ‘Tendo Aris’ from Blue Archive.
So loosely, this date could be considered the start of the next main storyline.
“Since I’ve already made contact with the Game Development Department and arranged to meet again soon, intervening in the story shouldn’t be difficult. But…”
What worried me was the battle with a certain faction near the end of this storyline.
And the source of my unease was a certain authority figure manipulating things behind the scenes.
“Ultimately, I can’t entirely avoid it, can I?”
If I were to intervene in the main storyline, Rio, the Big Sister, would undoubtedly notice me.
No, it would go beyond mere notice—he’d become very suspicious seeing me, a non-member, involving myself in the Game Development Department’s affairs. In Rio’s rational mind, it’s hard to imagine a more suspicious character.
Thus, I was conflicted.
Should I really intervene in this main storyline?
Since this was Main Storyline Vol.2, which didn’t involve any major incidents, avoiding it wouldn’t create significant problems.
But…
“I decided to become a hero because I wanted to change every story in this world the way I desired.”
Then, is it the right choice to distance myself from others just because there’s a risk of my true identity being exposed?
In that sense, Rio and I were pondering different yet similar issues from opposite ends of a spectrum.
Dozens of good deeds for a single evil act.
A single good deed for dozens of evil acts.
Which is the right path?
“…This requires more thought.”
I don’t know.
Thus, I decided to temporarily suspend my decision.
2.
─Plop!
“…Huff, huff!”
“Gasp, gasp… huff… huff…”
At the edge of the Millennium campus, in the fitness center.
Operating under the Millennium name, the facility had become a ghost building due to its outdated equipment, seldom visited by people.
However, for the first time in a long while, the robust sound of breathing echoed there.
The spot where there usually wouldn’t even be a sound or a trace of people now housed a black-haired girl lying on the floor and a white-haired girl sitting on her knees, wiping sweat off her forehead while taking deep breaths.
While the former was exhaling as if she were dying, the latter girl looked refreshingly cheerful, a smile on her face.
“Good job, Wakamo. You’ve improved a lot.”
“Huff, huff… Huff…”
“Are you okay? Your breathing sounds like you’re dying.”
“Huff, huff… No… I’m… fine…”
Wakamo answered in a trembling voice, like someone who’d been massaged, while managing a smile as she met the gaze of the white-haired girl, Hiiro, who was looking down at her.
Now, this white-haired girl was not just someone Wakamo admired but someone she adored—a lively and sharp figure projecting courage and elegance.
As Wakamo gazed at the girl she served and cherished, she couldn’t help but notice how her own lips curled upward.
“Is this one of the ways you express your love…”
“…Um. It might be called love, but it’s going to hurt a lot. Sorry, I got too carried away testing my technique in this mock battle.”
“Hehehe… It’s fine… You…”
Even though Wakamo said so, her body contradicted her words as she trembled and let out screams of pain.
Having received dozens of incomprehensible hits, Wakamo sensed not just growth but a feeling of transcendence beyond mere advancement.
It was painful. And overwhelming.
Wakamo struggled to catch her breath, contemplating while observing Hiiro, who stood nearby, deep in thought, examining her hands after the sparring session.
“Ah, just where does your limit lie?”
Recalling the sparring match moments ago, Wakamo couldn’t help but feel a chill run down her spine.
It was an utterly overwhelming power.
But isn’t it true that if the gap is too large, fear transforms into reverence and admiration? The feelings Wakamo experienced here were precisely that.
Of course, this was partly due to her peculiar mindset of perceiving the pain inflicted by her beloved (愛人) as an expression of love.
“…”
Glancing around the room, Wakamo couldn’t help but smile. Old-fashioned though the facility might be, signs of craters and debris lay scattered here and there among the iron and stone materials.
A simple sparring session intended to train combat techniques had left the center in ruins—causing even Wakamo, skilled in combat, to marvel.
And this wasn’t just because Wakamo and Hiiro had fought excessively.
“Pfft, I still can’t properly control my strength.”
“Hehe. If you could control it right away, wouldn’t that be problematic too?”
“Uh, that’s true.”
Precisely so. Hiiro’s “strength,” or rather, her method of “using strength,” hadn’t been properly controlled, hence the destruction.
Even just a simple punch could reduce surrounding facilities to rubble. Over the past few hours, Hiiro’s technique had reached a level ready for practical combat.
“Initially, I recall you needing quite some preparation time.”
This was a significant flaw in real combat scenarios. A few seconds to execute one technique? That’s enough time to get hit by dozens of bullets in Kiburatos.
However, through only a few hours of sparring and practice, Hiiro had drastically reduced the preparation time.
How does she use such power?
What revelation had she experienced?
How does she continue to rapidly grow stronger?
Despite the many questions swirling around Hiiro, all Wakamo could do was look at her friend, who was deeply engrossed in thought, and smile happily.
Regardless of the numerous inquiries, Wakamo’s role wasn’t to solve these mysteries or get closer to the truth.
Because she simply wanted to stay by Hiiro’s side.
As long as she could be with Hiiro.
Sleeping in the same bed, eating at the same table…
…And occasionally bathing together.
That was enough for her life.
“Of course, it’s still one of my unachieved goals.”
Though they had both slept and eaten together before, Wakamo had never shared a bath in the same household.
Hence, she silently grumbled about Hiiro’s shyness.
“I will accomplish it one day.”
Hiiro’s sensual figure couldn’t be fully hidden even under her plain training suit. Taking a deep breath, Wakamo gave a silent sigh.
Was it an instinctive feeling of animals? Or an impulse born from love?
…
Unknown. But what was clear was that it was definitely one of Wakamo’s goals.
“…Churp.”
“Hm? Are you better now, Wakamo?”
“U, uh… Yes. I’m fine…”
“Should we start again?”
“Hehehe… As long as you wish…”
“…A, alright.”
Hiiro felt an odd tension in Wakamo’s response.
What is it? Why is my hyper-sense suddenly warning me?
Though uncertain about the reason, Hiiro suddenly felt uneasy.
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