Episode 35 — Saying Goodbye Is to Die a Little
～ Part 2 ～
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A bad atmosphere was prevalent inside the class. It was natural. One person among them had died.
Himemizu Rin came out on the deck and was spending time in a daze. She tried to invite Kyousuke as well, but that guy shut himself inside his room and wouldn’t come out. In the end, she couldn’t do anything for him. Perhaps, he was even forced to confirm his inside that he had always been looking away from due to Suou’s remarks, then he had to part way with his classmate immediately afterward.
To help someone, to support someone purely to be appreciated, Kyousuke had barely maintained his humanity like that, but his classmate was killed before his own eyes. An empty box is fragile. Kyousuke’s heart had been shattered.
Last time was his body, now his heart. Both of them were in pieces.
In the field established on the deck, Hanazono was silently gardening. Herbs resembling parsleys were steadily growing with the help of Hanazono’s ability.
When Rin called out, Hanazono Hana raised her face and smiled.
“It’s a disaster, Himemizu-san.”
“Yeah…”
Saying so, Hanazono once again diligently work on gardening. Since Hanazono was timid, Rin had thought that the matter this time would definitely break her heart and she would insist on wanting to go back, so this behavior was something unexpected. Speaking of which, isn’t that line of thought bad manner? While Rin was thinking so, Hanazono said this.
“Washio-kun, he confessed to me once.”
“Eh!?”
“I rejected him though. I mean, we have only been in the same class for about a week. There wasn’t enough time to talk that much.”
“Ah, right, yeah…”
Indeed, Rin recalled that there was such a rumors at the beginning of the first semester in their 2nd year. Anyway, Washio was thinking he wanted a girlfriend, so he carried out something like a door-to-door (sale) strategy and systematically called out to all of the girls in the class. Naturally, everything was an honorable defeat, the girls absolutely took no notice of him.
It was probably right after that event that he began buttering up Ryuzaki who was in the top caste of the class.
“That time, I was tampering with the gardening club’s flower bed. We talked about flowers for a bit.”
“Yeah…”
“Is it because he died? I think he’s a good person.”
Hanazono think he’s a good person, thought Rin. Memories are often beautified, Rin had also heard such words before. However, as the students was afraid that they themselves might die next time, many of them couldn’t concentrate on their jobs. Among them, she was properly mourning Washio’s death.
“Hana-chan, what are you raising now?”
“Because the funeral is tomorrow, I thought to raise flowers. It isn’t the flowers that Washio-kun praised though.”
As Hanazono pointed out, there were fluffy flowers similar to white calyx gathered in large quantity.
“What is this?”
“Carrot.”
“Carrot…”
“Washio-kun, he liked carrots, so I could only come up with this idea.”
Hanazono was no longer as reluctant as before to offered the crops that she grew as food ingredients. With the condition that the seeds, seedlings were to be left behind properly, then those seeds would continue on to the next generation, she was now delivering root crops and leaf vegetables to Sugiura normally.
Memories of Washio? Rin recalled.
Rin was in the track-and-field club, Washio was in the basketball club. They had been in the same class since 1st year, so there were relatively many chances to converse with each other. On the day of the closing ceremony in 1st year 3rd semester, he came up to Rin who was practicing short-distance race as usual and said to do a 1-on-1 basket ball match, so she kept him company just once.
Then surprising even herself, Rin was dribbling well enough and she splendidly beat Washio black-and-blue. This feels a bit awkward. I can only remember that much if it’s about memories.
“Even so, he’s a good person, Washio-kun.”
Rin nodded. Even if she did have some impudent feelings regarding the deceased, he was by no means a bad person.
It was also possible for her to fare up in anger that he was killed. But that feeling had withered now.
“Yup. Aya-chan too, she said that she is going make a carrot party today and tomorrow.”
“For Washio-kun?”
“We decided this talk together. If we stop working, everyone will be in trouble. It’s sad, it’s scary, but I have to do what I can do now. Let’s work hard together step by step.”
“Together, step by step…”
Work hard. This, coincidentally, was the very same words that Rin had said in the battle some time ago.
To the goblins keeping watch at the gun turrets on the deck, it could be seen that Gofunkawahara was going around while calling out to them. Those goblins weren’t shock by Washio’s death. However, the same was true for Gofunkawahara and Okumura who didn’t receive that much shock.
They also had a feeling of simply mourning for their classmate. But it didn’t appear to affect them at all. When she tried asking them just now, their answer was as followed.
『Because we have also lost our precious one.』
It was about Gofunkawahara’s big sister, 『Yukari-san』. What sort of illness did she have, how and when did she pass away? Rin didn’t know. However, since the other students couldn’t move, she had an impression that they who had overcome the death of their loved one, was moving around even more energetic than usual.
She also saw that Kaminari was consoling Nekomiya who received a big shock from the death of Washio as his team leader. As Nekomiya was a poser and a person who had great confidence in herself, it was difficult looking at her moping around like that. So Kaminari was accompanying such a girl and putting out tender words to her.
She talked about how she wanted to return to their world together, how happy she was about that, and she said that she felt like doing her best even now because of that feeling. Still, Nekomiya blamed herself as the cause of Washio’s death, but she somehow floated an expression as if she had been saved by Kaminari’s words.
What everyone can do, they keep going on with it little by little.
The students of 2nd year class 4 was growing. Big or small, each of them had to face their respective problems, and while the changes were slow, they were advancing forward little by little. If the same thing had happened at the beginning of the trip, the class might have collapsed on that very same day.
I wonder what I myself can do? Rin thought.
For Kyousuke. Or for Washio. Himemizu Rin wonder what she could do.
“Himemizu-san, the parsleys are going to be ready soon.”
Hanazono said so a little happily.
“You’re worried about Utsurogi-kun, aren’t you? Since he likes parsleys, let’s have him eat his fill of parsleys.”
“Yup, that’s right…”
On the deck of the heavy cruiser branch school running at the bottom of the valley, Rin was intently looking at the swaying parsleys for a while.
Worrying about Utsurogi Kyousuke as well as Ryuzaki Kunihiro. Sakuma Sachiko bit her lips while walking in the passage inside the ship.
Behind her, there was also the number one delinquent girl of the class, Inugami Hibiki. A literary girl and a delinquent girl. It was a combination unimaginable at the time they were still humans. Inugami who was walking behind Sakuma, had an expression several tens percent more sullen than usual.
Washio Kouta has died. When she received this report, Sakuma’s head turned blank.
Even if they didn’t talk much in the past, he was still her classmate. It wasn’t a simple death, he was killed. She didn’t know what to think of it, so she was stunned for a while, and when she came to her sense, what welled up within her first wasn’t grief and sorrow but fear.
This is Sakuma who had passed though so many life-threatening situations ever since she had reincarnated as a succubus up until now. It could even be said to be a miraculous phenomenon that her fear of death was paralyzed and didn’t appeared up until now, but with the death of her classmate, that fear started rearing its ugly head.
That fear had been suppressed by the existence of Utsurogi Kyousuke.
That Kyousuke had witnessed the death of Washio with his own eyes, even if he was to pass by Sakuma, he didn’t say a single word to her and just shut himself inside his room. Rin who was with him, only briefly said to Sakuma like this. 『I’m sorry, I couldn’t protect Utsurogi-kun.』
Kyousuke’s hollow attitude and Rin’s mortifying words said everything. At that moment, Sakuma who had been helped by Kyousuke until now knew for sure that it was her turn to help him out. Rin had been trying to do it all this while.
With the death of Washio, there was subtle changes happening inside the class.
Among them, the most surprising one to Sakuma was the changes to Inugami Hibiki. As a lone wolf of the class and a delinquent, there was no need for her to show any concern about Washio’s death, or so Sakuma thought. However, as far as Sakuma saw it, the one who flared up with the purest of anger when receiving Ryuzaki’s report was without a doubt Inugami.
『I’m going to Akai’s place, Sakuma.』
Inugami curtly said so.
『Asuka-chan’s place?』
『I was wondering what to do up until now, but I will interrogate that vampire this time for sure.』
In those words, she could feel a deep connection between Inugami and Akai.
Sakuma had always felt doubtful why Inugami could perceive the existence of the Blood of Red Moon. That wasn’t all. Whenever Inugami spoke of Akai, she always had that same eyes as when she spoke of Red Moon.
“Inugami-san…”
While walking along the corridor, Sakuma suddenly started speaking.
“What?”
“Washio-kun, that is, are you angry because he died…?”
“Ahh.”
She heard the same brusque voice as usual from behind.
“I, any more than this, I cannot forgive the guy who kill people in my surroundings.”
“You mean, Asuka-chan?”
“I guess I will go confirm it with that girl.”
Sakuma came in front of Akai’s door, and adjusting her breath, she knocked.
“Asuka-chan. It’s me.”
『Sachi? Come in.』
From the other side of the door, she heard an unchanged tone of voice. Sakuma nodded to Inugami and opened the door.
Sitting in a chair and looking out from the circular window, Akai Asuka looked back. Upon recognizing Inugami behind Sakuma, Akai’s face immediately turned sullen.
“…Why is Inugami with you?”
“If I say I’m here to settle the scores for the clan and then for Washio’s part as well, would you believe it?”
“……”
Akai narrowed her eyes and glared at Inugami, and after that, she looked at Sakuma. Her eyes were asking Sakuma this question. Did you hear the story?
Sakuma shook her head, but then she resolutely asserted her words.
“Asuka-chan, I have a request.”
“What?”
“Please tell me everything that Asuka-chan knows.”
Something about Akai had been strange ever since she came to this world.
Her lack of cooperation to group action was something from a long time ago. It was because she showed an excessive rejection response to anything called 『order』. However, while her classmates were going through trial-and-error in order to use their own ability, Akai was able to freely manipulate her blood from the very beginning and she also knew about the side effects of her blood.
That wasn’t everything. Before, when the devil from Red Moon attacked the base, the one who defeated that devil was most likely Akai. It was obvious that Akai was hiding her true strength.
And then, there was Inugami’s attitude regarding Akai. Her speech and conduct today.
The 『problem』 that Akai had told Kyousuke also, she felt that it wasn’t something unrelated.
Pressed by Sakuma, Akai floated a bewildered expression.
“No matter if it’s Sachi, this is…”
“Washio-kun has already died!”
Sakuma raised a loud voice. She wondered if it was cowardly to bring out the name of the deceased here.
“Not just Washio-kun! The next one to die, could be Utsurogi-kun, could be Ryuzaki-kun, Harui-san and Hebitsuka-san … and perhaps, it could be me.”
However, Sakuma didn’t stop. The fear that had been confined in the innermost depth of her heart took shape into words.
Washio Kouta had died. However, Washio wouldn’t be the only victim at this rate. Akai was aware of something. By any chance, it could become a clue to break the deadlock in the up coming situation.
“I don’t intend to spread the rumors in particular, vampire.”
Inugami laughed grinningly.
“But your — true colors, if it’s that much do excuse me if I tell Sakuma about it.”
“Inugami…”
At that moment, Akai Asuka was floating a rare grudging expression.
“Asuka-chan, please…”
When Sakuma took her hands, Akai breathed a big sigh.
Then the Queen looked all around the sailor’s room assigned to her that was by no means wide, and finally turned her line of sight outside the round window.
“I understand. Sachi, as well as Inugami.”
Akai Asuka murmured little by little.
“I will explain to you guys. There’s also a limit to what I can do alone.”
“Mu…?”
As Goubayashi was walking inside the valley, he found strange tracks on the ground.
The tracks were as if a bulldozer or an excavator had passed through. It was the so-called caterpillar track, but something that big wasn’t common. For once, the width of the tracks were more than 5 meters, and the distance between the left and right caterpillars tracks were close to 30 meters. Seeing that much, he thought that it was closer a land battleship rather than something fantasy-like.
Speaking of battleships, I recall that I once saw that wreckage of a battleship when leaving the base.
I wonder if Ryuzaki and the others are doing well. Zeku who was sent back midway, did he deliver that human girl safely? When thinking about it, I have come a long way.
Gazing at the «ogre» within himself again, Goubayashi could reconfirm it, so he wanted to return to their base and joined up with everyone if it was possible. However, that required a little bit more time.
It had been a long time since he lost sight of Kaoruko.
It was triggered by the attack of Red Wing. Goubayashi, who became a decoy in order to let Kaoruko escape, had suffered a serious wound and was on the verge of death. Since he was protected by the hands of humans after that, and he had even received generous treatment and training so that in itself wasn’t in vain. However, he ended up losing sight of Kaoruko’s whereabouts.
That fellow was fast only at escaping. I would like to think that fellow has managed to escape properly.
Anyway, these caterpillar tracks are very worrisome. For there to be this kind of things deep in the mountains that was supposed to be unexplored.
It may be better to try following it for a while.
While his mantle trailing from his shoulder pads, Goubayashi chased after the caterpillar tracks.
Next Episode: Her Confession, His Return
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