Afternoon came.
"Yuuka, you're heading back already?"
I tried to persuade her to stay as she began packing up her things.
"Sensei, I've already finished all the work I can handle here at Schale. Staying would just mean sitting around doing nothing. There's still plenty waiting for me back at the Seminar."
Yuuka avoided my sincere gaze. "Besides, even if I leave, Noa's still here, right?"
Noa smiled pleasantly. "Don't worry, Yuuka~ I'll make sure to supervise Sensei and keep him working diligently~."
"Wh-what do you mean supervise?! Ugh, whatever, I'm leaving!"
With her cheeks flushed red, Yuuka stormed off… though she did look oddly at ease.
Clearly, Yuuka had never heard the saying 'guard against fire, thieves, and your best friend.'
Noa always looked calm and unshakable to the point that she was impossible to read, but to be honest, I had the distinct feeling she was interested in me.
And yet Yuuka left me alone in the same room with Noa. Truly, such trust moved me deeply.
I silently swore to myself that I would not betray that trust!
Yuuka trusted me this much… so if I didn't take advantage of this chance, that would be the real betrayal, wouldn't it?
"Sensei," Noa tilted her head slightly, her violet eyes meeting mine. "Why are you staring at my face like that? Is there something on it?"
I blinked, surprised that I'd been caught so easily.
Her lips curved into a knowing smile, those lavender eyes gleaming with an unreadable light. "I promised Yuuka I'd keep an eye on you, Sensei. So please, get back to work~."
"No rush," I said smoothly. "Proper rest can actually improve efficiency, you know."
Saying that, I picked up a mug, poured myself a steaming cup of coffee from the machine, and returned to my desk. Lifting the cup, I blew lightly on the rising steam and asked casually, "Care for a chat?"
Noa took a sip from her own cup and smiled. "Hmm… let me think… hehe~ You're right, Sensei. I am a little tired from work. Let's relax a bit while Yuuka's not here∼."
As I expected, Noa was both intelligent and sharp, keenly observant of details. Truly worthy of her role as the Millennium Seminar's secretary, especially in a school overflowing with geniuses.
I shifted the conversation naturally. "You seem really fond of Yuuka, Noa."
"Oh my, is this going to be about Yuuka?" Noa blinked, then smiled. "You're right, of course. She's a very dear friend of mine. It's never boring when she's around."
"But you love teasing her, don't you?"
Noa gave a lilting hum, neither confirming nor denying it. "Mm~ How should I put it? Yuuka's emotions are so vivid and easy to read. You know that as well as I do, right, Sensei? So every time I tease her, it just… sort of happens naturally∼ Hehe."
Yeah, right. That wasn't "accidental" in the slightest.
From that short exchange, I'd already gauged roughly how she viewed me and formed a plan of my own.
So that's how it is. A girl with a bit of a mischievous streak, huh?
I was starting to find Noa rather adorable.
Continuing the thread, I said, "Yuuka does get a little impatient sometimes. I suppose that's just part of how she deals with the workload at the Seminar?"
"There's probably some truth to that," Noa replied. "As the Seminar's accountant, Yuuka often has to coordinate with other clubs. You might have heard, Sensei, though it's strange for me, as a Millennium student, to say this, but with how open our academic culture is, a lot of clubs are… quite free-spirited."
That reminded me of the Engineering Department and the Game Development Club and Yuuka's famous reputation as the cold-blooded human calculator who kept them all in line.
Honestly, if I were in her shoes, dealing with those students all day, my patience would probably wear thin too.
Then again, if I were the one handling them, their attitude toward me would probably be… very different. Yuuka might not like that result much either.
The more I thought about it, the more I felt sympathy for her. After a short sigh of appreciation, I steered the conversation toward the topic I actually wanted.
"What about you, Noa?"
She blinked. "...Me?"
"Yeah. What kind of work do you usually handle? Is it stressful too?" I asked earnestly. "If there's ever anything I can do to help, just let me know, alright? After all, I am a teacher."
Hearing that, Noa covered her mouth with a soft giggle. "Hehe~ Normally, I just handle the secretary's duties like observing and objectively recording what's said in the Seminar. For example…"
She took out a small notebook, about the size of her two hands, and began to write, reading aloud as she did:
"14:23:15 — Sensei stared at my face for five seconds."
"14:24:03 — Sensei picked up a new mug and poured a cup of coffee from the machine. Coffee type: Stellarbucks Signature Blend."
"14:28:36 — Sensei returned to his seat and invited me to take a break to chat."
Closing the notebook, she said, "Something like that~."
She remembered it down to the second. Impressive. No wonder she was considered Yuuka's equal, a human recorder to match the human calculator.
"Wow, that's incredible, Noa. But isn't it tiring to keep track of so much?"
"I don't find it tiring at all~ Maybe I've just gotten used to it. But thank you for your concern, Sensei. I'll make sure to remember what you said earlier and come to you if I ever need help."
Then she reopened the notebook and wrote again, reading as she went:
"14:32:28 — Sensei promised that, whenever I need him, he'll come to my side no matter what and give me his all~."
"That's not what I said!"
"Hehe~ Are you doubting my memory, Sensei∼?"
She laughed playfully, then crossed out the line with a shake of her head.
"Just kidding. A proper secretary should record only the truth. Alright~ break time's over, back to work we go~."
But instead, I raised my hand and calmly announced, "14:33:52."
"...Eh?"
"As a secretary, you said you have to record things accurately, right?"
I lowered my head and pulled the next document toward me, speaking casually as I read. "So, you'd better correct that last timestamp to the real one."
When I looked up again, I found Noa staring at me, eyes wide with surprise.
"Noa? What's wrong? Time to get back to work."
"...Right."
She regained her composure, nodded once, and silently returned to writing.
But I noticed, she did jot down something new in her notebook.