Blackout

In chapter 16, one of my readers Hendro has requested a girls' side of the chapter, since he was curious about what the girls said during the slumber party. I will get to that eventually, since this slumber party comes first.

   Yui had heard from Akira that Sakuya is quite sloppy, so she was half-expecting the view she saw when all of them are inside her room. Mashiro has heard about it from Ichika, and Madoka already knew this from her investigation. Ichika… well, this is pretty much a normal view for her.

   There are clothes, documents and files literally everywhere. Sofas, an expensive-looking piano, her large bed, there’s something at somewhere no matter where you look. Except a kitchen. You can’t find one here.

   Even the first years have heard of the story. When Sakuya was a first year, she tried to cook on the first night she moved in to her new room.

   Half her room exploded. Thankfully, no one was injured.

   After the disaster, her father the principal had forbidden the existence of a kitchen in her room. If she ever wants a meal, she would have to ask someone to cook it for her. Furthermore, she’s never allowed to step foot inside a kitchen unless she’s closely supervised.

   Sakuya hangs her head in embarrassment. ‘I’m sorry. I was rushing to go to school, and…’

   ‘Say no more, president. Let us assist you in cleaning up.’ Ichika tells Sakuya.

   The other girls nod.

   ‘Thank you, Ichika-chan. Thank you, everyone.’

   It didn’t take long for 5 people to clean up the mess of a room. When they’re finally done, they take a short break while lying down on the sofas.

   ‘I’m so glad Akira-kun isn’t here.’ Sakuya mumbles.

   ‘He would help you with the clean up without saying anything.’ Ichika assures her.

   ‘I seriously doubt that. That boy can be pretty mean if he wants to.’

   ‘Can he? He is pretty nice to me, though.’ Ichika says.

   ‘And to Mashiro.’

   ‘Boo~. This isn’t fair. Why can’t he treat his big sister more nicely?’

   ‘I suddenly thinks that Akira takes pleasure in bullying you, president.’

   ‘It’s quite fun to bully president, after all.’ Mashiro adds.

   ‘Mashiro-chan, please stop getting corrupted by him.’

   ‘That said, I read from an article that some boys prefer to show their affections to their crush by bullying them. Perhaps that is what Akira is doing.’

   A few seconds of silence.

   ‘Hmm, so that’s how it is. That Akira-kun is so dishonest~’ Sakuya flaps her legs excitedly.

   ‘If only he would do the same to me.’ Ichika wishes mournfully.

   ‘And Mashiro is probably getting the little sister treatment.’ Mashiro says dejectedly.

   ‘Oh, I’m pretty sure that he likes the two of you as well. If not, Akira-kun would not spend almost every morning to train with you, Ichika-chan. And Mashiro-chan too. He wasn’t very obvious, but he’s quite nervous whenever you sits near him. He definitely sees you as a woman.’

   Ichika and Mashiro think over what Sakuya just said. And then the two of them smiles happily.

   It’s quite obvious that these three girls are all in love with Akira, and Yui is amazed that none of them are even trying to hide that from the other two. They’re even assuring that Akira likes them too. This is not the typical bloodbath that Yui is used to seeing in soap dramas.

   As for Madoka, she knows about it a long time ago. It’s just that no one ever asked her about it, so she never said anything. She has a policy of not being a loudmouth if someone isn’t paying for the information.

   ‘It’s pretty amazing, isn’t it?’ Sakuya says all of a sudden. ‘4 out of 5 people in this room is in love with Akira-kun.’

   Yui gets up and looks at Madoka in astonishment. ‘Kojima-san, are you in love with Kagenashi-kun, as well?’

   Madoka looks back at Yui in surprise. ‘What are you saying? Morifuji-senpai is obviously talking about you.’

   Yui’s mind blanks out the moment she heard that.

   ‘...Who? Me? In love with…Kagenashi-kun?’ she can’t even form a sentence normally.

   ‘Oh my. Didn’t you realize it, Yui-chan?’ Sakuya asks her.

   ‘We realize it quite a while ago.’ Ichika tells her.

   Both Mashiro and Madoka nod at that.

   Now that they mention it, ever since the test of courage in the last day of training camp, she had been feeling weird whenever she was with Akira.

   ‘Maybe…maybe I am.’ Yui says slowly.

   ‘Oh, being honest now, are you? Tell me, when did it start?’ Sakuya prompts.

   ‘Well, I think it was the test of courage. Kagenashi-kun found out that I was afraid of ghosts, even though I’m a priestess. Even so, he didn’t make fun of me. When I was being jumpy and hysteric, he didn’t lose patience in me, nor did he snap at me. He was very patient and understanding, and I was very grateful for that. We even made a promise to go to a spirit-related mission together if one got given to me.’

   ‘When I did receive one a few days later, I was very scared. But, the moment I remember my promise with Kagenashi-kun, I felt much calmer for some reason.’

   She then told them the rest of the story. When she reach the part where Akira was being strict to her, she realize that for the first time ever, she was being encouraged to face her fear, instead of being protected. No amount of gratitude is ever enough to express her thanks to him.

   Yui was able to face the spirit of Kamiya Eri without feeling scared due to his encouragement. In the end, she was able to convince Kamiya to pass on peacefully without resorting to the use of talismans.

   When her father suggested the idea of marrying Yui to Akira, she didn’t dislike the idea at all, even though she used to hate it when her father did the same to countless boys who happened to visit them at the past. Thinking back, it all makes sense now.

   ‘...Wow, that was a superb love story.’ Sakuya concludes.

   Yui goes near Sakuya. ‘How about you, senpai?’

   ‘Huh? What about me?’

   ‘Please don’t act dumb. How did you fall in love with Kagenashi-kun?’

   The usual smug Sakuya suddenly goes into panic mode.

   ‘W-w-w-hy don’t you listen to Ichika-chan’s story? Or Mashiro-chan’s, for that matter?’

   ‘I will, but right now I prefer to hear yours.’ Yui insists.

   ‘Me too.’ Ichika seconds Yui’s opinion.

   ‘Mashiro as well.’

   ‘Hear. Hear.’ Even Madoka joins in.

   ‘Ichika-chan and Mashiro-chan, the two of you are just trying to delay your turns, aren’t you? And Madoka-chan, put those pen and paper away.’

   Sakuya gives in in the end, since she knows that she’s not getting out of this one. She grabs a small pillow and hugs it tightly.

   ‘Well, compared to your story, mine’s nothing much. I was always harsh on myself because I keep having the thought of wanting to protect everyone and getting relied on. That’s part of the reason I joined the student council. People did start to rely on me, and that made me very happy. Although, sometimes I also feel like I want to be spoiled like a little girl. Unfortunately, my position as the perfect student council president doesn’t allow me to do that.’

   The perfect student council president. Everyone else recalled how messy her room was, and the fact that she’s deemed too dangerous to cook. Sakuya didn’t notice their look, so she just continues with her story.

   ‘And then, Akira-kun came along. He’s…different from everyone else. He does rely on me at times, but he also told me that I could rely on him as well, that it’s okay to be spoilt. He doesn’t really see me as his senpai, and oddly enough, I’m grateful for that. Whenever I’m around him, I can be myself.’

   Sakuya suddenly pouts. ‘That said, he’s way too comfortable with treating me as his equal! Can’t he show his affection to me by being nice? That! Jerk!’

   It took her a while to get over the temper tantrum.

   ‘Well, that’s it for me. Who’s next?’

   ‘I guess I will.’ Ichika volunteers.

   ‘Alright. Go ahead then, Ichika-chan.’

   ‘Well, my story is nothing much either.’ Ichika starts. ‘Ever since I was small, all I did was refining my skills in the way of the sword. I was not even slightly interested in the hobbies commonly taken up by girls of my age. Thus, I have somewhat become boyish. My long hair has gotten quite bothersome when I train, which is why I had the thought of cutting it short.’

   ‘But, you shouldn’t!’ Yui says. ‘I mean, your hair is so pretty! It would be a waste to cut it!’

   Ichika smiles at that.

   ‘Thank you. My mother told me the same thing, and she expressly forbade me from cutting it, except to tidy it up. She also gave me a lecture that the hair is most important possession of a woman, and that it is as important as her life.’

   ‘Anyway, my boyish demeanor has scared away lots of boys my age, and thus, I was rarely treated like a girl. And Akira… well, he was scared of me at first, but our relationship become closer over the past few months after all the training we did together. I really enjoy our times together. I just hope he sees me as a girl.’

   ‘You know, Ichika-chan, it’s very hard for anyone to treat you otherwise when you have those.’ Sakuya says while looking at Ichika’s somewhat voluptuous breasts.

   Ichika tries to hide them with her arms in embarrassment. Naturally, she failed.

   ‘I never wanted them to be this big. Besides, they get in my way a lot when I am swinging my sword!’ Ichika complains.

   She suddenly notices that Yui and Mashiro are also staring. Unlike Sakuya, however, they look quite envious. She tried to think up of words of comfort, but couldn’t find any. She has to resort to distracting them.

   ‘Let us wrap this up, Fuyukaze. Your turn.’

   Thankfully, that did the trick. Mashiro nods and begins her story.

   ‘Mashiro met Akira one day during lunchtime. She tried to buy food at the cafeteria, but failed since the place was too crowded. When she was on her way back to the classroom, she passed by the courtyard, and saw Akira eating lunch all by himself.’

   ‘Usually, Mashiro would have left him alone. But, for some reason, she didn’t, and she ended up asking him for food. Akira was kind enough to share half his meal with Mashiro.’

   ‘When it was time for dinner, Mashiro could have go to another females student’s room to ask her for food. But she couldn’t stop thinking about Akira, and she ended up going to his room instead.’

   ‘Wait, are you talking about the night the two of you visited president?’ Ichika asks.

   ‘Yes.’

   ‘So, the two of you only ate dinner together before you came over? Nothing else?’

   Mashiro tilts her head. ‘What did you think we were doing?’

   Ichika blushes furiously. ‘N-N-Nothing! Do continue!’

   Mashiro was about to, but then she realizes that Yui is looking at her while covering up her mouth with her hands. Meanwhile, Sakuya is keep saying ‘oh my~’ gleefully.

   ‘What’s wrong?’

   ‘So it’s true. It does happen in real life.’ Yui is saying.

   ‘I know, right? Although it’s kind of surprising that it happened to Mashiro-chan.’ Sakuya says.

   Mashiro looks at them with a blank expression. ‘What? What are you talking about?’

   ‘Mashiro-chan, you were smitten by Akira-kun the moment you saw him.’ Sakya tells her.

   ‘It’s a love at first sight.’ Yui adds.

   Mashiro tilts her head again. ‘…It is?’

   ‘Oh Mashiro-chan, you’re so clueless! Okay, just reimagine the scene where you saw Akira-kun at the courtyard.’

   Mashiro closes her eyes and did as Sakuya said. ‘Done.’

   ‘Now, imagine Akira-kun as another boy. Any boy that you know.’

   Mashiro doesn’t know a lot of male students in this Academy, so she has to settle for that loud first year that managed to defeat a teacher during the entrance exam.

   ‘Well? Do you still feel like approaching him?’

   Mashiro gives an immediate answer. ‘No.’

   ‘See? That’s what we’re trying to tell you.’

   Mashiro thinks about it some more. However, the more she thinks about it, the hotter her cheeks feel, so she stopped doing it altogether.

   ‘Mashiro is very grateful to him. He never pushed her away, even though he probably knew her background right from the get-go. Because of him, Mashiro had the courage to face the Destroyer that took everything from her. She…loves Akira.’ Mashiro admits in a small voice.

   ‘I love him too.’ Sakuya says.

   ‘Me too.’ Yui also says.

   ‘As do I.’ Ichika says with her head held high.

   ‘I wonder who he will choose in the end?’ Yui asks.

   ‘Well, whoever he chooses, let us wish them happiness.’ Ichika says.

   Everyone else except Madoka nod at that. Speaking of Madoka, she looks downright uncomfortable. She feels like she has just intruded a private conversation, even though she was forced to come along.

   Yui suddenly thought of an important question.

   ‘Kojima-san, what kind of girl do Kagenashi-kun likes?’

   Madoka was planning to charge Yui for the information, but changed her mind at the last minute. She doesn’t mind giving freebies every once in a while.

   ‘He likes cheerful girls. He is also into big breasts.’

   Yui, Ichika and Mashiro hang their head in despair. There’s only one person who fits the description perfectly.

   Sakuya is so happy she couldn’t stop smiling.

   ‘President, please cherish your time with Akira.’ Ichika sighs.

   ‘I hope the two of you will be happy forever and ever.’ Yui adds.

   ‘President, I hope you’ll still allow Mashiro to have meals at Akira’s room, Mashiro promises that she won’t go near Akira unless absolutely necessary.’ Mashiro pleads.

   Sakuya lost her smile at once.

   ‘Wait! Hold on, girls! It’s not the end for all of you yet. I only fits the descriptions of the type of girls Akira-kun likes. It doesn’t mean he’s in love with me, right?’

   The three girls brightens up at that.

   ‘President, are you actually encouraging your love rivals?’ Madoka asks Sakuya.

   ‘Love rivals? Our relationship isn’t as tense as that. I only see them as my precious kouhais. At least, that’s what I think.’

   ‘I think of you as my precious senpai as well, president.’ Ichika confirms.

   ‘Me too.’

   ‘Me three.’

   Sakuya smiles at that. ‘Thank you, girls. There you go, Madoka-chan. I don’t know about the near future, but for now, we’re not interested in tearing each other apart just to become Akira-kun’s girlfriend.’

   ‘I see.’

   ‘I’ll be honest, though. If it’s all of you, I don’t mind being one of his girlfriends.’

   Everyone else freeze up at that. One of his girlfriends?

   ‘President, are you perhaps suggesting that Akira should date all of us at the same time?’ Ichika asks her.

   ‘Yes. That way, no one will get hurt, right?’

   Ichika thought about the idea for a while.

   ‘It is…indeed a wise idea.’ Ichika admits grudgingly.

   ‘I knew you would see it my way. How about the two of you?’ Sakuya asks Mashiro and Yui.

   ‘I guess I’m fine with it.’ Yui answers.

   ‘Mashiro thinks so too.’

   ‘I’m glad that we’re all on the same page. Granted, it’s all up to Akira-kun, but we could slowly plants the idea in his head.’

   ‘What if he doesn’t want a polygamy relationship?’ Yui asks worriedly.

   Sakuya shrugs. ‘Then only one of us will get to be together with him. Like I said, it’s all up to him.’

   Ichika looks at the time. It’s getting quite late.

   ‘We should go to sleep, since we have a long day ahead of us.’ she tells the rest.

   The others agree. Sakuya’s bed is big enough for all of them, so that’s where they sleep. Before Sakuya goes to her bed, she turns off the lights.

   ‘Well, good night, everyone.’ Sakuya says to them.

   The other girls bid her good night as well.

   ‘And I shall bid our prince a good night as well, even though he can’t hear me.’

   Ichika, Yui and Mashiro did the same, although they didn’t say it out loud. As for Madoka, she just goes to sleep normally.