Chapter 41 part 2: (Interlude) Delictum Solnari

After everything was over, Trinity had to focus on recovery efforts for a while.

The Eden Treaty was decided to proceed after both Gehenna and Trinity had sorted out the situation and resolved their respective losses to some extent.

Unfortunately, I didn’t have time to visit Sora, which I regret. She was injured so badly because of us, so we should take full responsibility… I’m sorry.

We were having a meeting as usual. Since the content of the meeting included matters related to Arius, even Mika was quite serious.

The content was mainly about the Arius students imprisoned in Trinity that day and the future of the Arius branch school.

As the meeting continued, the regular Tea Party attendants’ working hours were coming to an end. It would be better to let Sora leave early.

The discussion from now on is for her… and also, the more the meeting progresses, the harder it becomes to see her. She would usually refuse, but today I’ll be a little forceful. Mika will probably cooperate.

“…Yes? Today? Suddenly?”

“Yes, Sora, you can go home early today. We will probably have to continue working for a long time today.”

“Then I should stay…”

“Ahaha☆ Could it be that Sora-chan doesn’t trust me when I’m here? Oh… I might be a little sad…”

“Ugh…. Alright… I’ll go home early…”

I feel sorry for Sora, but it’s for her own good. The special tasks were actually finished quickly by the three of us a long time ago.

“Good work.”

-Creeeak-

With the sound of the door closing, Sora disappears. And at the same time…

“Sigh…”

“…It’s difficult…”

“Sigh… I knew it would be like this…”

Sighs and laments spread throughout the office as soon as she left.

We’ve seen her often, so everyone could easily tell. She acted differently from her usual self.

When on guard duty, she always kept her wings somewhat spread, ready to enter a guard stance at any moment.

She always kept her right hand free so she could draw her weapon at any time.

But today was different. She kept her wings folded as narrowly as possible, and she covered her right hand with her left, hiding the scar.

If it was a conscious act, I would admire her consideration, and if it was an unconscious act, we would not be able to escape the guilt.

“Sora-chan… was folding her wings…”

“Can we just stay like this? This isn’t the situation she wanted while going so far, is it?”

Seia is right. We have to do what we can. I’ve already thought of something.

But to do that, we must first finish the remaining tasks.

But… it’s best to do what we can right away…

“Mika?”

“Yeah, Nagi. I’ll bring some of the spares I have tomorrow… I don’t know if it’s okay to say this… but I might be a little happy….”

That day passed a little slowly. Just… a little… It’s hard…

-Tea Party 3rd Year Senior Administrator –

“What’s with that junior… She’s so cocky… I can’t do anything because there’s nothing wrong with her even if I dig around..”

Since when was it… that I felt jealous of a junior who came in as a Tea Party attendant and was favored by the Tea Party faction leaders.

When was the moment I realized that jealousy was a futile act?

Now I can dare to say it. Noble.

“Those people are so busy… and so noble, there’s no way.”

When various rumors arose between that junior and the faction leaders, I just let it slide.

I dismissed it, saying there’s no way.

Until that junior came out of the rubble of the Old Cathedral, holding Nagisa’s hand tightly with her torn wings.

“Please… □□”

“Yes, a mirror and… a chair without a backrest… I’ll bring them right away.”

Maybe it was from that moment. The moment I started sincerely supporting their relationship.

Since I’ve only recently come to terms with it, let’s help them from behind. Well, all I have to do is diligently carry out requests or orders.

It’s not a bad thing to help a classmate who’s helping the junior, is it?

-New Justice Task Force Member, 1st Year Promising Recruit –

It was about several months after I joined the Justice Task Force following my friend.

I wasn’t particularly good at academics, but I was confident in physical activities, so it suited me quite well.

We were a group of three who had been together since the first year of middle school, but I was disappointed when one of them went to the Tea Party.

However, due to the nature of our work, we met frequently, and we ended up hanging out together after school, so that disappointment quickly faded away.

“Heeh… That’s a nice story.”

“Right, right?! Isn’t it romantic?!”

When I heard rumors about the knight and the Tea Party from that friend in the Tea Party, I thought it was quite romantic.

Why is it, that… political correctness? Isn’t that what you use at times like this? Anyway.

Aren’t there some works where the princess is stronger than the knight and the princess seduces the knight?

Even considering that it’s a rumor and may be exaggerated, a boss and subordinate who care for each other? It’s a pretty good image, isn’t it…

But it wasn’t an exaggeration.

Panic Room 84, I think it was called. It was the day the Tea Party’s safe house was attacked and brutally destroyed.

“Ahaha☆ Sorry? Could you please work quietly? I know it’s a bit much to ask, but she’s a child who’s been through a lot lately…”

“Ah… Yes…”

I knew it as soon as I saw it. This person is the princess of the Tea Party, and the person sleeping soundly on her lap is that knight.

“Eek?!”

“Sora-chan is honestly a patient right now, okay? Seia-chan and the Knights Hospitaller are on their way, so please lie down a little longer?”

Just sleeping on her lap was enough to create that kind of atmosphere…

The princess covered the knight’s mouth with her hand and forcibly laid her down again.

I cover my friend’s nose and my nose at the same time with my hand. I’m quite perceptive, so I noticed that my nose started bleeding.

Wow…-

That’s right, it’s stimulating. That’s why it’s good.

And the reason I’m bringing this up now is…

because I’m now witnessing the scene where it’s being nailed down.

-Tea Party 2nd Year Transport Division Senior Attendant Hayami Yuzuki-

“Wow… Since when..?”

“Ahaha…”

“I’ve known since the time you expected,.”

“I’m recent…”

Yes, I should have known this would happen.

I thought there was that kind of atmosphere between Sora and Seia since the kidnapping incident…

Our junior… is capable, isn’t she..?

Mika avoided eye contact, Seia was confident, and Nagisa spoke a little ambiguously.

“But… why me..?”

“You’re the least hesitant… and I heard you’re close to Sora.”

The reason why I, who rarely come to the office because of my different department, am here now, is ultimately because of Sora.

As proof of that, there are only three attendants, including a junior from the Justice Task Force, when there should normally be 4-6?

Sora is concerned about rumors, so I think it’s out of consideration. But… isn’t it already too late? Well… let’s move on…

“If it’s difficult, you can refuse?”

“No, I’ll cooperate.”

I accept because it seems like an interesting scene awaits. It’s just a request to work hard as a direct attendant here for one day, so it’s not difficult.

“Ugh… It’s quite intense from today…”

For some reason, I was told to go home early yesterday. Apart from knowing that I would come to work on the day I was discharged from the hospital, were they worried about my physical condition?

If so, I might be a little grateful. They probably told me to leave at the regular time, knowing that I would stay until the end anyway if they told me to leave early.

-Creeeak-

“You’re here, Sora.”

“You’ve come.”

“Waa~ Sora-chan came early again, so diligent~!”

After that day, Seia moved and is now commuting to school with Mika and Nagisa, so I no longer needed to pick up Seia early in the morning.

Thanks to that, it was nice to have a little more sleep time, but it was not easy to change the life pattern engraved on my body. So recently, I’ve been unintentionally coming to work early repeatedly.

Today, for some reason, Mika was present earlier than usual. Mika usually comes to the office around the regular time. The attendants around… Huh?!

“Eh?”

“Wow~ Early arrival? I’m not one to talk, but you’re diligent~”

“Welcome, Sora. I was faster today?”

Senior Yuzuki, and for some reason, a member of the Justice Task Force, and… a senior who always worked with me in the office were present. There are a few strange things.

First, why is a member of the Justice Task Force here? Usually, the Tea Party’s office is staffed by me and the attendant on duty the previous day.

Therefore, if I come to work early, I usually meet the attendant on duty or a classmate, but today, another member of the Justice Task Force was in that position.

The second is Senior Yuzuki. Senior Yuzuki rarely appears in the Tea Party office due to the nature of her department.

In the first place, senior attendants of the transport department usually stay in the transport department building, so they rarely have business in other buildings.

I was a little close to Senior Yuzuki because of Seia’s escort duty, so I saw her a little outside… but that was only outside. She has no business in the Tea Party office.

Lastly, there’s the chair and the full-length mirror. For some reason, a chair without a backrest was placed next to the center table, and a full-length mirror was placed in the corner of the office.

However, this last question was quickly resolved.

“Now, Sora-chan? Could you come here for a moment?”

“Ah…? Yes…Oof!?”

I was seated on the chair without a backrest by Mika, facing away from the Tea Party table.

“What… is the intention…?”

“Ahaha☆ Yeah! Sorry? Could you stay still for a moment?”

I don’t know what kind of prank she’s going to play again… but I’ll go along with it for now. Recently, they’ve been trying to maintain a bright atmosphere, but they couldn’t hide the dark atmosphere.

It was sudden. The sensation I felt on my right wing, Mika began to lift my right wing and spread it.

“Wai… Mika-sen…?!”

“Ahaha☆ Just look forward for a moment? I know it might be unpleasant to be caught off guard, but please bear with it?”

Suddenly, a hand grabs my chin and fixes my gaze forward. The person’s other hand covers my eyes. Someone said that if you cover your eyes, your other senses become a little more active.

“That… It’s a little embarrassing…”

“Ahaha☆ How cute~”

“Fufu… You have a cute side too?”

The touch on my right wing feels a little more detailed. I heard Mika’s voice from the left and Nagisa’s voice from the right.

Come to think of it, the scent that I’m smelling a little intensely now, unlike before, is the perfume that Mika usually uses. The hand covering my eyes must be Mika’s hand. Then the person holding my wing is…

“?!?!”

Just as I was barely able to maintain my sanity and analyze the situation. Suddenly, I began to feel a small touch on my right hand in front of me.

-Rustle, Clink, Smooth-

I can’t move my body. Not physically, but in another sense. I can’t… bear this situation. My mind became a little hazy….

It’s delicate. My wings tickle at the delicate and gentle touch.

The scent of perfume that I feel through the hand that gently fixes my trembling due to the remaining aftereffects and gently remains as my strength fades as I stop moving,

and the sensation of something being done on my right hand with small hands, somehow blows my mind away.

I wonder if my mind would fly away with just this… but I guess it does.

How long did that time pass? The time, which was probably short, but felt endlessly long to me, ended, and the hand that was covering my eyes was slowly and gently removed.

Due to the sudden light that entered my eyes, my vision turned black for a moment, but it soon returned.

In front of me is a full-length mirror…

“Ah…”

“Was it… unnecessary… meddling…? Sora-chan…?”

-Clink-

The right wing, the part where the scar was located and I unconsciously hid, was covered with decorations. The same as Mika’s… the same as Nagisa’s hair ornament…

-Smooth-

On my right hand… was a glove… Is it called an artist’s glove? A glove that properly covers only the ring finger and little finger… where the burn marks are unsightly…

“Three figures are reflected in the full-length mirror behind me, sitting. I can tell who is who, but… I can’t see the details… I can’t see their characteristics. My vision is blurred. I can’t bear it.”

“Ah… Ugh… Uuu… Hic… It’s too much… I was finally… able to accept it… indifferently…. Ugh… Aaaa…”

“Sora-chan…”

My left hand goes to my face. It’s all messed up… I can’t cover my face like this… I can’t lift my right hand… because I’m afraid this right hand will be stained with these marks… Because I’m afraid of these marks that remain on me….

“Haaaaaa… Sob… Aaaaaak…. Haaaaaaa… Aaaaa… Hic… Ugh… Aaaaaak!”

Let’s cry until our throats burst, until our throats are torn and cracked and our voices can no longer come out, so that this cry cannot resound.

Let’s cry in that embrace, so that we will never forget this warmth.

Let’s cry until we can’t open our eyes, so that we can’t see myself again, so that we can’t see my current self and the face of the most precious people.

Let’s cry for a long time, so that we can dare to wish this moment to be eternal.

Let’s cry until blood comes out of our eyes, until blood comes out of our throats. Let’s cry in that. Let’s cry for a lifetime. Because if we don’t, we won’t be able to bear it.