Chapter 55: Flowers Playing the Piano

Ephnel was sitting in a café, staring blankly out the window.

Although it was her vacation, Ephnel didn’t really have anything to do.

Or rather, if there were no missions requiring her to fight, Ephnel never had anything to do.

Normally, she would have spent this time in continuous training.

For Agents, no amount of training or massive energy intake would change their body shape.

But research showed that reasonable physical training could indeed enhance their stamina and strength values, so training was an essential part of every Agent’s routine.

But Ephnel was currently “suspended,” so it would be a bit strange to go to headquarters now to borrow the training room.

In the morning, Ephnel went to the hospital to visit Fuurin Shion and Shiina Rin, and she tactfully asked Shiina Rin if she “would be willing to retire from her duties as an Agent after finishing her treatment.”

But the answer she received was “absolutely not.”

Ephnel didn’t overthink it, nor did she say anything more.

She simply comforted her and told her to rest well before leaving.

Ephnel chose to respect Shiina Rin’s decision, just as she had never stripped Fuurin Shion of her Agent identity.

This was a sign of respect for the warriors who held this position.

It was the same for Ephnel.

Ephnel’s initial reason for becoming an Agent was, of course, for herself and for her sister.

But having come this far, she was no longer the girl who simply moved forward for a single goal.

Everyone is bound by countless ties.

These are the shackles that hold them back, but at the same time, they are the source of their strength in battle.

For an Agent, this has already become an inseparable part of themselves.

After leaving the hospital, Ephnel suddenly remembered that since most of her women’s clothing was in her room at headquarters, there were no women’s pajamas in the apartment, and she had very few clothes to change into.

So she went to the shopping street and bought several sets of clothes and underwear.

She found a random place for lunch and then came to this café, found a quiet corner, and scrolled through the comments on her social media account on her tablet.

Unexpectedly, the online sentiment seemed a bit different from what she had imagined?

But before she could take a closer look, her phone rang.

The caller ID showed Yukina’s homeroom teacher.

Ephnel frowned slightly and answered the call.

“Hello! Is this Mr. Yanase?”

The person on the other end seemed a bit anxious.

“I was wondering if you have time to come to the school… Yukina, she…”

Injured a classmate?

A faint smell of antiseptic lingered in the air.

Yukina sat in front of the examination bed, looking at Hanasou Kotone on the bed, her expression somber.

Hanasou Kotone’s left arm was bandaged, and there was ointment on her lower cheek, but the bruising under her skin was still clearly visible.

Her pretty, delicate face was completely ruined by the unsightly ointment and bruises.

Several classmates were gathered around, their faces full of worry.

“We’ll head back to class now. Hanasou-san, please get some rest and get well soon.”

“Okay, thank you, bye!”

Hanasou Kotone replied.

The classmates left, but Yukina stayed behind.

“They’re gone…”

Hanasou Kotone watched her classmates leave the infirmary, took a deep breath, and managed a yawn.

“It’s tiring being surrounded all the time. Oh, right, Yukina, is it okay for you to not go back to the classroom?”

“It’s still break time.”

Yukina said.

“Besides, the teacher said I could stay here and look after you. My credits are sufficient anyway, so skipping one class won’t be a big deal.”

Hanasou Kotone’s injuries were much more severe than expected.

A brief loss of consciousness, a fracture in her left forearm, soft tissue damage, and a bruised jaw—this didn’t look like an injury that could be caused by a rubber and leather ball.

It was more like she had been struck hard with some blunt object.

But everyone had seen that shot clearly.

The deafening crack still echoed in Yukina’s mind.

After getting injured, Hanasou Kotone was immediately helped to the infirmary, and Yukina was tasked with looking after her.

“Is that so…”

“Um… Hanasou-san, I’m sorry. I hurt you…”

“You don’t need to apologize, Shiomi-san.”

Hanasou Kotone smiled, then winced as if she had pulled on her injuries.

Yukina remained silent, her gaze lowered.

“Alright, alright, don’t make that face. It’s just a small thing. I used to get injured a lot during training when I was little, and it wasn’t much different from this. I’m used to it.”

“This is different.”

Perhaps in Hanasou Kotone’s eyes, it was all just an accident, but Yukina knew very well in her heart that she had completely lost control of her strength at that moment, which led to this result.

Yukina spread her fingers, staring at her palm.

Her skin was clean, her knuckles slender; her hand was no different from any other girl’s.

But the uncontrollable power that had burst forth made her realize that something about her must have changed.

Even if it wasn’t intentional, she had indeed hurt her best friend.

“Honestly, Yukina, that shot really surprised me. The move was so beautiful, it was like it was tailor-made for a volleyball match… Oh, right!”

As if suddenly remembering something exciting, Hanasou looked straight at Yukina.

“Why don’t you join the school team with me, Shiomi-san! Someone as amazing as you would definitely be a key player!”

“No way.”

Yukina rolled her eyes at Hanasou Kotone and turned her head away.

“Why not!”

“Shiomi-san, Hanasou-san, please be quiet in the infirmary.”

The nurse’s voice came from the inner room.

Hanasou stuck out her tongue and closed her mouth.

Yukina finally breathed a sigh of relief.

“You should get some rest and stop thinking about all that random stuff. Final exams are coming up. If you don’t recover quickly and your grades drop, I’ll feel very guilty.”

“Don’t worry. Just give up your spot for me, and I guarantee I’ll get first place for you!”

In their class, Yukina’s academic ranking had always been first, while Hanasou usually hovered around second, third, or fourth.

Just then, the door to the infirmary was pulled open, and a wave of noise and heat rushed in from outside.

“Hey, hey, who’s that girl… She’s so pretty!”

It was the voice of a classmate who had just left the infirmary.

In a girls’ school, it was common for girls to gather and admire another pretty girl.

If a beautiful upperclassman came to a junior classroom, she would easily be surrounded.

This kind of thing happened occasionally and was a great source of amusement for the girls.

Yukina glanced at Hanasou Kotone.

In the past, Hanasou Kotone would definitely have dragged Yukina along to join the fun at times like this.

Footsteps entered the infirmary and paused for a moment.

“So pretty!”

At that moment, Hanasou Kotone, who had been looking around, suddenly exclaimed in admiration.

“Hey, hey, Yukina, there’s a really pretty young lady here, quick, take a look…”

She quickly tugged on Yukina’s sleeve, only to notice that Yukina’s expression was a bit unnatural.

Facing the pretty young lady, Yukina stood up.

“Onee-chan…”

Hearing Yukina’s words, Hanasou Kotone was now also stunned.

“O… Onee-chan…?”

Hanasou Kotone looked seriously at Yukina, then raised her gaze to the pretty young lady who had just walked in.